First there were raises given to staff members who were also given spiffy new job titles. Total cost of all this is will be around $500,000 over the next 18 months, money that will be taken from other departments. Like non-important things such as Muni. And all this after plans for hiring freezes and layoffs. Newsom's press flak, Nathan Ballard, says that all of this is necessary as the people being brought in and paid are all super-special and that not only will it help the city but it will still be within budget.

Then there's news today that Gavin's going to do a little redecorating as he's going to build an office for his well-compensated staff members and put them into what everyone calls a "bullpen." This means taking all the staffers and putting them in one room with what we can guess is either cubicles or just a bunch of tables. The idea, which comes from NY's Mayor Bloomberg, is to have everyone sit together in one room, which will supposedly make it easier for everyone to trade ideas, put their heads together, and talk about "Battlestar Galactica" when it starts up again in March. Gavin also wants to buy a bunch of plasma screens for the bullpen to make it easier for everyone to watch "Battlestar Galactica" Total cost of all this? $139,700

Now, as expected, this has drawn a bit of heat from the Board of Supes who point out that spending money on possibly non-essential things is not the bestest of ideas. In response, Gavin told the Board and all the department heads, whatever, "I drink your milkshake. I drink it up!"