I heard the above phrase somewhere this week, and promptly lol. Half of my laughing out loud was out of the public embarrassment of being outed. It rubbed me up just the teensiest bit - the way you get when someone makes fun of you, until you realise how right they are, and find yourself chucklingly joining in. San Franciscans do take themselves a little too seriously.
When I first moved to the US I felt unbelievably hemmed in. All the laws, written and unwritten rules made me feel so controlled and angry. Like a 5 year old does the first time they face a parental curfew for bedtime after nights of running wild with open scissors. Curbing my wheels, right on red, recycling, no-fire days, save the air days, street cleaning…I can go on and on. I just have to make a list of all the itty bitty things that confuse my parents when they visit. Which has been frequently, of late. My mom, who is frantically tearing into my easter eggs over my shoulder as I type, says the rules are what makes it all work. But if I left her to choose our parking space, we would have come out to find our car towed more than not. 
She’s inspired by the creativity of San Franciscans. Today we passed a homeless man, on a almost poetically fully-laden bicycle with his worldly possessions, and a twittering American flag. Our South African homeless leave much to be desired. I remarked that I think it this ingeniousness is more about the fact that everyone in San Francisco is slightly mad. You know, that line line between genius and insanity?
But I must admit what still gets me today, (and I’ll step on that soapbox for a minute, if you don’t mind) is how intolerant they are. For a culture that was framed out of an ear that embraced free love, accepting everyone, peace (pass the bong), and giving back, they seem to awfully rigid in their thinking. We don’t mind who you are or what you think..so long as you agree with us. By that, we expect you to paste an Obama sticker on your car, and recycle. Oh, and don’t you dare ask for plastic at the grocery store – what do you mean you didn’t bring your own Whole Foods canvas bags?! Religion is constipated, oil is bad and the Midwest is full of redneck hillybillys. Yes, free love.
