The thumb is responsible for 40 percent of the function of the hand which is why when doctors proposed removing Garrett's big toe and using it to create a new thumb. Garrett felt it was his best chance of regaining the use of his hand.

Dr. Charles Lee and UCSF plastic surgeon Scott Hansen performed the procedure - osteosynthesis, for all you sexy medical geeks out there - which lasted over six hours. The surgery included dissecting the toe and thumb tendons, nerves, and blood vessels; a bone removal; dry ice plumes stemming from test tubes; an eerie castle; and a shock of lightning.

Body part reassignment and a mention on BWE? Way to go, St. Mary's.

In other news, we're changing our last name to "La Fever."

BoingBoing and VH1 have featured your video: where will it pop up next?
Who knows. I never would have thought it would go this far. I'm still pretty perplexed about the whole thing

What details about that blue vomit can you reveal?
A lot of people think it looks white. If you see the original video (uncompressed) it looks blue. Still, some who saw the original broadcast have told me that it looked green. I was there though, and it was blue.

Prank or reality television?
huh?

Tell us about your film festival:
The Free Form Film Festival is a touring exhibition. We show films of all genres in big cities and small town alike, around North America. Eventually we'll go abroad. We have leads on Russia, England, Brazil, and Peru. It'll be a while though. Basically we want to re-examine the way people see films, and then re-examine it again. We never want to do any one thing for too long, but however we do things, you can count on us always being around. So far we have done short film programs, features, live video mixes, collaborations with bands and other live performers. We do shows at Theatres, art spaces, clubs, universities, anything. We even did a show at a swimming pool a while back. Right now we are looking to branch out to DVD and television-based distribution. You can see a couple films right now at freeformfilm.org. We are always seeking submissions and always digging up our sleeves for a new kind of show.

When will it be in SF next?
Maybe in six months. Maybe longer. We will always do shows in SF, though. We aren't doing many shows right now. We are busy working on some films of our own and trying to turn the FFFF into a nonprofit.

It was a good year, it was a bad year. Here's my list of the so-best parts of 2004, in no order at all.

So-Best photo: Nope, not Gav+Kim (you all breathe a sigh of relief). I'm not a super big fan of Norah Jones or anything, and it has no SF connection whatsoever, but I've been dying for an excuse to use this picture for months now. Look at that letter Y!

So-Best city hall trend: Rate this year in local politics triple-X! Sex, violence, and foul language: F-bombs dropping like bunker busters, groping at the Gettys, and hand-to-mouth pumping action -- and that's just for two branches of the local government! Throw in some sizzling-hott judicial/executive same-sex marrying action, fights galore, plushie love, vandalism, ranked choice voting computer hackery, and those ever-present Asian fetishists (you just love them for their money), and phew, you'd definitely have to prove you were over 18 to get into this movie!

So-Best blotter entry: The pranksters who stole the bronze Hermes outside the University Club. Runner-up: The angry Texas Ranger throwing the chair at heckling Mr. Bueno and hitting his wife in the nose.

So-Best commuter tale: This was back in April, back when SFist was just a twinkle in our publisher's eye -- but remember that dude who threatened to kill himself on the Bay Bridge and tied up traffic for thirteen hours? And then they proposed shooting a big Spiderman net under him? The highlight of your westbound commute. Runner-up: The Baby Bullet/BART hookup finally working out is saa-weeeeeet. It could only be better if it actually went at like 200 miles an hour so when you looked out the windows, things go all blurry.

So-Best makeshift top 40 radio station: I'm still torn up about the death of Z95.7. But now that I've finally gotten MTV Hits from my cable company RCN and TiVo DVR and an ipod to go, I'm completely up to date. (Damn you, Max Martin, and your catchy new Kelly Clarkson tune.) Runner-up MTV Networks so-best: Have you seen the new VH1 Classic show The Alternative?

So-Best things I've learned at sfist: How to reserve books at the Public Library. Who this band the Arcade Fire is. How many different crime movies and TV shows were set in San Francisco. And all these cool people I have the privilege of writing with (awwww).

Let's go watch the fireworks over the Ferry Building for 2005!