Hey everyone. For June we're going back to supporting awesome progressive challengers running against particularly evil conservative incumbents. In June we're raising money for Victoria Wulsin. Get your advance tickets here. Find out more about Victoria here. Victoria's running against Jean "I love what we've done in Iraq" Schmidt. Schmidt is famous for calling war hero John Murtha a coward.
Well, we did it - all of us: We saved rent control!
Proposition 98 failed spectacularly - 61% to 39%. At the same time, Proposition 99, real Eminent Domain reform, passed handily - 62% to 38%.
We can all breathe a sigh of relief - for once the reactionaries who put regressive and discriminatory initiatives on the California ballot did not get their way.
Congratulations and thanks to everyone who pays rent in San Francisco, to everyone who attended the March, April, and May Progressive Readings, and to all our wonderful readers. Thanks, too, to George Nixon and Ellen Gould for their contributions to the cause, and to our volunteers, who make these events run so smoothly.
Check back here for announcements about the June 21 Progressive Reading, featuring Eileen Myles, Andrew Sean Greer, ZZ Packer, Helena Echlin, Lorelei Lee, and of course the Progressive Reading Series All-Star Minstrels!
Like books and the writers who produce them? How about low rent? If you responded at all in the affirmative, I urge you to check out Jen Sullivan Brych's op-ed piece in the SF Bay Guardian.
Remember to VOTE ON TUESDAY, or else you won't be seeing Steve at Tartine for much longer, and his roommate will have sleep somewhere other than the living room. That'd be one Unhappy Baby.
OK, time is coming up. June 3 is election day and all the hard work we've been doing around here will pay off if we defeat Proposition 98. That's the most important thing, to save rent control. But there are some other important things on the ballot as well, so here, for the first time, is the Progressive Reading Series Official Endorsements for you to print and take to the polls.
I know some people like Kansas. Dorothy Gale for one. Kansas was her home and we all know there’s no place like it. And what about your home? Your neighbor's home? The guy who hands you your coffee every morning--what about him? So it was nice to see so many people at the Makeout Room to keep rents (relatively) low despite the fact that it was a rare balmy night in San Francisco, one where you could actually sit outside and watch The Wizard of Oz, which was playing for free a few blocks over in Dolores Park.
First up was poet David West, who wrote Evil Spirits and Their Secretaries. What a great title. One of the poems featured the deer head on the Makeout Room walls who was regular here when this place was a swamp. As if that thing didn’t creep me out enough already, thanks David. The lovely Rachel Howard was up next and read a story called "Dogsitting." Part of it is set in the Presidio pet cemetery. More dead animals. At least those aren't looking at me.
Mark Pritchard took the stage next. He’s the author of How I Adore You. Mark read a story about Garrison Keillor whose tales of loneliness and isolation we can handle because they're told gently. Keillor, he read, is the Walter Cronkite of our time. Adam Mansbach was up next saying he only had a few minutes; he had a new baby daughter at home (congratulations, Adam) and read a great piece from his new novel, The End of the Jews about Risk and Zone a Jewish boy and black boy who were popular as disc jockeys on the bar mitzvah circuit in suburban Connecticut on their way to the big time.
Next we had a short commercial break from Nicole Rivera who has been a volunteer for the Progressive Reading Series practically from the beginning. She’s running for a Democrat County Central Committee and you would be hard pressed to find a better person for the job. She also belted out the phrase "98 we hate, 99 is fine," a few times so we her love even more. Vote for Nicole on June 3rd. More info on Nicole and the Democratic County Central Committee
here.
Nato Green came up next saying he was glad the gay marriage ban was overruled, but that we should take it one step further and make it mandatory, otherwise what’s the point? On another note, his wife is pregnant (congratulations Nato) expecting twins, and he’s letting them pick the gender! It doesn’t get more SF than that. Next up: The All Star Minstrels, Dan and Adam. I swear these two keep getting better and handsomer. Dan sang Woody Guthrie's If You Ain't Got the Do Rei Mei." My how little things have changed in California.
Starlee Kine hit the stage next, one-upped Bucky Sinister who took a heckling last March, and read right off her laptop. Strangely, no one booed her. Is there a bit of a double standard going on with the Progressive audience? She read a story about how she had the chance, but refused, to hug a very cute baby panda bear in China. She has principles.
And finally, Pam Houston read a story called the "Other Woman" who was having something called a lightbulb relationship with the narrator's husband. I have no idea what that means, but neither did her narrator. Maybe you do though. Next month come check it out for yourself. We'll be at the Makeout Room again on June 21st. You’ll hear Andrew Sean Greer, Frank Portman, ZZ Packer and the one and only Eileen Myles. And one more time: Vote No on 98, Yes on 99 if you don’t want to buried under your house.
Saturday, May 17
A Special Literary Benefit To
SAVE RENT CONTROL
Featuring Authors: Rachel Howard, Pam Houston, Adam Mansbach, David West, Mark Pritchard
Plus: Sticky Notes from This American Life's Starlee Kine
Josh Bearman's Multi-Media Extravaganza
Comedian Nato Green
and The Progressive Reading Series All-Star Minstrels
Hosted by Stephen Elliott
7pm At The Makeout Room
3225 22nd Street 415 647 2888 $10-20 sliding scale
I found this recently, brought to you by our friends at Smith Magazine, Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser who published six word memoirs in a book called Not Quite What I Was Planning and were with us back in February. It's called Six Words for Bush and is just as much fun. Here's one of my favorites from Marcus in St. Louis, MO. What six words would you like to say to Bush? Send them to Smith Magazine here.
It’s been a busy week since we last convened at the Makeout Room, at least for me. I don’t know about the boys, but I suspect they’re always busy. You know, saving rent control, wrestling gladiators, whatever. So I offer you here a twitter-like version of the events with help from the talented and lovely Michelle Richmond who wrote the unputdownable Year of Fog.
* Laura Fraser planted a Redwood in the Haight (How cool is that?) and does not want to be wearing her Save Rent Control T-shirt next year when she’s living in Kansas.
* Jeff O’Keefe: Thank you for making us feel okay for wanting to have an ice cream sundae in lieu of sex.
* Stephen Elliott does dishes! Hello Stephen, my house?
* Ross Mirkarini has a deep and sexy voice and is the kind of pol we like in SF. That is, one who is in a bar on a Saturday night for a cause he believes in. Thanks for coming out and showing your support, Supervisor.
*Michelle has been hearing strange noises in her house lately and wonders if it’s Charlie’s fault.
* Regarding the All-Star Minstrels: Adam Krefman looks like Joaquin Phoenix and sometimes a young Woody Harrelson. Which movie star does Dan Weiss most resemble? I will be putting up a survey, probably on Facebook, soon. Soon Dan, I promise. In the meantime, check out the song he wrote to save rent control. (Hey, every little bit helps.)
* Message to Yiyun: Just keep writing fiction. Keep it coming. Okay? Thanks.
* Andrew Altschul's book, Lady Lazarus is out now, on the shelves of finer bookstores everywhere and Stephen loves him (in a bromantic way) 9 days out of 10.
Next month is the last chance you’ll have to combine good literature and saving your roof, which reminds me June 3rd: Vote No on 98, Yes on 99, which is the real eminent domain issue. I learned a slogan: it may be silly, (okay, it is silly) 98 we hate, 99 is fine. But if that’ll help you remember, chant it all the way to the voting booth. We’ll see you next month for Mary Roach, David West, Pam Houston, Adam Mansbach, Mark Pritchard, and from This American Life, Josh Bearman and Starlee Kine. Same deal: buy your tickets here and when you’re not living in Kansas this summer you’ll be glad you did.
Straight from friends of the Progressive Reading Series . . .
