Did you graduate college with a sparkling degree and a ton of debt? Yeah, well, you and $1.2 TRILLION worth of other people. But rather than resign yourself to years—decades, even—of forking over ridiculous amounts to some bloodsucking bank, there is a positive action you can take right this second that will not only save you around $14,000 (on average), but also gives you access to a crack service team and contributes to the greater social good by helping young people around the world get a better education.

Your solution to the student-loan quagmire is called CommonBond, and it has the rich, lazy, rapacious dinosaurs of the industry nervous. Because the company is shaking up the old loan paradigm, thanks to its founders, three Wharton classmates who couldn't believe there wasn't anyone out there treating hard-working, prompt-paying borrowers with the respect and support they deserved.

CommonBond promises you three things:

1. Refinance your student loan (or borrow for an MBA) with CommonBond today and on average you'll save more than $14,000...or more or less... it's an average.

2. You'll receive exceptional customer service via phone or instant chat. Just reach out to CommonBond's NYC-based Care Team anytime for advice and answers.

3. Using the 1-for-1 charitable model, every time CommonBond funds a loan here in America, the company then pays the full cost for a full year of schooling—tuition, books, supplies, uniforms, transportation—for child in a third world country. Called the CommonBond Social Promise, the program partners with non-profit Pencils of Promise and is a practice wholly unique in the loan refinancing industry.

How do you know whether CommonBond is right for you? First, ask yourself: "Do I like paying less money for boring things like student loans?" If you answered "Of course!", head to their site right now, and within minutes you'll know how much money you'll save with a CommonBond refi over the term of your loan.

Moving forward, as you finalize your refinancing, the Care Team will help you in any way they can, making the process—mostly just some verifications of your income (paystubs) and identity (driver's license) that can be done using your camera phone—as painless as possible. And there are NO application fees, NO origination fees and NO any other kind of hidden fees.

CommonBond can do all of this because they believe that low-risk borrowers deserve the lowest possible interest rates. Join the CommonBond community and you'll also be entitled to a temporary forbearance in case of economic hardship, or, in flush times, you can pre-pay your loan or increase your payments without any penalty.

And don't worry, this is not some kind of shaky startup: CommonBond currently has more than $625 million in financing, and is in it for the long haul. All you have to do is take action today, fill in a few blanks in their application, and soon you'll be keeping more of your paycheck every month for things you actually want to spend money on.

To learn more about CommonBond, visit their website for more details.

This post is brought to you by CommonBond.

On Saturday, February 6, New Belgium Brewing will be putting on a soiree in downtown Oakland to put on a soiree that is sure to end on a sour note. The brewery’s Lost in the Woods sour release celebrates New Belgium’s passion for sour beers, highlighting the brewery’s wood cellar. The evening will feature 3 special New Belgium sour beers.

The 2016 vintage of Transatlantique Kriek, a wood-aged sour cherry ale, brewed in collaboration with Belgium’s Oud Beersel brewery. Andrew Kelley of Wetten Importers, which imports Oud Beersel from Belgium, will also be on hand to talk about the partnership and discuss some of the love that goes into creating their beers. Rumor has it he will be bringing some Oud Beersel goodness, as well!

The party will also feature New Belgium’s 2016 La Folie, the award-winning sour brown that launched New Belgium’s wood beer program in 1997. When La Folie first rolled out it received a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival and continues to serve as one of New Belgium’s most beloved sours.

We will also have a very rare sour, the NBB Love Blackberry Felix. Felix, one of the two base beers we blend to create La Folie, stands on its own in this beer, with a little twist. It has been aged in a blackberry whiskey barrel from our pals at Leopold Brothers in Denver, CO.

The event is free, however a donation to Bike East Bay gets you a bomber to take home and enters you into a drawing for sweet gifts, courtesy of Bike East Bay. Plus, there will be educational opportunities to learn about the beer and fantastic menu items to eat while sipping the beers. To RSVP for the event and/or donate to Bike East Bay, visit LostInTheWoodsOakland.Eventbrite.com.

When the U.S. Navy and Commodore Matthew Perry opened up Japan to trade in the mid-19th century, Western countries fell under the spell of the archipelago nation and went crazy for all things Japanese. Now you can see the stunning works that inspired impressionist and post-Impressionist artists in the studying subjects at different times of day and seasons to heart in his series of lily paintings.

The use of natural motifs, such as turtles and flowers, in Japanese lacquer, textiles, bronzes and ceramics can be seen in the Art Nouveau movement in at the turn of the 20th century.

Western masterpieces are juxtaposed with rare works from prominent Japanese artists, highlighting the dazzling vision and stylistic ingenuity that emerged during this invigorating cross-cultural moment.

This week, we're giving away a pair of tickets to two lucky winners to gain free entry to the exhibit at the Asian Art Museum. Enter in the form below for your chance! Gothamist LLC terms and conditions apply.

For the third time in ten years, San Francisco's naked-est, drunkenest footrace has lost its sponsor. Redwood City-based Zazzle, which specializes in printed t-shirts and accessories, has pulled out of sponsoring Bay to Breakers after failing to reach agreeable terms with race organizers, as Matier & Ross are reporting.

The race requires about $1 million to be put on each year, and Zazzle's marquee sponsorship was estimated to be around half that. They signed on for a two-year deal in 2011 after former sponsor of five years, ING, bowed out. Prior to that, Albertson's had sponsored the race from 2003-2005. Former SF Examiner owner, billionaire Philip Anschutz, still takes responsibility for Bay to Breakers under his Anschutz Entertainment Group.

Thus, whether organizers find a sponsor or not in the next couple months, the 102nd running of the race will go on on May 19.

[Chron]

All previous Bay to Breakers coverage on SFist.

Recorded with the rhythm section that accompanied him on the classics Look Sharp and I’m the Man, Joe Jackson returns with Rain. In classic Jackson style, Rain is full of humor, swing, sophistication, barbed social commentary... and those perfect songs. Rain is already seeing acclaim from everyone from Paste to Stereogum to USA Today. Catch Joe Jackson’s tour as it lands in n Redwood City on Saturday, May 10, at the Fox Theatre. After the jump, we’re giving away a pair of tickets, as well as a Joe Jackson discography.