If this proposition passes then it may open the door to amendments on other constitutional rights, like the right to bear arms.

I used to think it could be called something other than a marriage license to keep people happy but part of an equal — is not equal. The “real” marriage is the one you have that is officiated by the minister or clergy of your choice and being surrounded by family, friends in a place you choose. You have or have not a spirtual overseer be it nature, Bhudda, Pele, or God. Then you have this government piece of paper that gives you certain rights as a married couple. It has nothing to do with love or the marriage you chose. It was a great government scheme to get money from people who were getting married and in return you get certain benefits. Too bad the government got into the Santa Claus business in the first place. They didn’t think that all groups of people in the futre would also want to get married and enjoy these same rights! It’s the piece of paper that should be called something else.

Music

Extraordinary Women’s Voices from San Francisco (Part I) Claudia Guedes

Brazilian music is popular wherever you go. Bossa Nova, Brazilian funk, samba, Brazilian pop rock songs, or ballads; it doesn’t matter. The music is full of energy and warm feelings transmitted through chords, solos, and voices. In Brazil we can appreciate concerts by Marisa Monte, Gal Costa, Simone, Maria Bethania, and others. However, once outside of the tropical home country, we have to wait for events such as jazz festivals or other producers to bring our “divas” to sing for us. Lately I have been giving my attention especially to female voices because they are often hidden behind a band, yet at the same time, they can be the high point of the concert. Historically, Brazilians or not, it can be seen that bands are formed by boys and men, who, playing guitar and screaming into microphones found a logical place to purse a career. For generations, the stigma of being a singer marked women of incredible talent who often abandoned their passion for music to marry, have babies and spend the rest of their existence in stable lives. Music careers, like other professional artistic paths, were not often considered acceptable for women. Fortunately this has changed, and many women pursue music today as a popular career. In San Francisco, I usually search for incredible musicians and remarkable voices to appreciate. I found out about many female bands, singers, guitar and drum kit players, and rock’n rollers; beautiful and talented women who sing with their heart and soul. Most of them are Americans and some are Brazilians. This article, first in a series called “Female voices from San Francisco,” is especially dedicated to two Brazilians: Sarah Cabral and Dandha da Hora, and two Americans, Maria Stanford and Stephanie Teel. All of them are gifted with and remarkable voices. Dandha da Hora came from Bahia to join the band called SambaDa (founded by Papiba Godinho); Sarah Cabral came from Londrina and sings with her band called Macabea; Maria Stanford came from Texas and has formed the bands Color Puddy and Black Betty; and Stephanie Teel is one of the rare San Franciscans, she is part of the band called The Fabulous Cruise Tones.

 Ocean Beach brings waves to Stephanie Teel, a surfer, a singer, a musician and extraordinary teacher. I had the honor to receive as a gift her first CD and I was touched by the lyrics, music and voice. Stephanie is one of these figures who inspire you to understand music not only as an entertainment, but as language, as expression, as part of yourself. To listen to her CD or to her performance with the guitar is to listen to a speech of art. It is beautiful and reflects her personality. Her music identifies who she is.

   check out my acoustic gig at the NO NAME BAR in Sausalito with Steve V. and Roy . Wednesday October 22. 2008.  

Hold Thursday November 6 for early birthday fun!

Stephanie plays solo at JAVA BEACH

As many of my friends know, besides music, the ocean is my life. I first started surfing when I was 14 years old in the cold water of Kelly’s Cove, San Francisco. This was before  wetsuits for surfing were invented. Nobody thought anything of staying out in the surf for an hour with only a swimsuit or trunks on.  The lucky ones wore a scrap of a diving wetsuit jacket.

The surfboards, like early sailboats, were heavily fiber-glassed and weighed about 40 pounds. Nobody knew how strong that stuff really was. At low tide it was a long walk and a struggle for me to get my board to the surf. You would be rideculed if you were to drag your board! Leg leashes were unheard of, so when you wiped out, and lost your board, you would have to swim all the way back to shore, retrieve your board and paddle out again.

I never got good at surfing then, but I did get strong and always had fun. There was more of social beach scene at that time. Someone would build a beach fire that us kids would stand around to thaw out after a freezing surf session, then paddle back out with renewed vigor. We would do this all day. Sometimes a surfer would steal a pie, that was cooling off on a back window from Playland At The Beach. We would eat it, by digging in with our bare hands!

When the days of Indian Summer would bless the beach with the sun’s heat, I would pour on the baby oil and fry my skin, still feeling the tingling sensation from the cold salt water. Needing extra warmth, I would lie on my stomach and gather up a mound of hot sand, hugging it to my chest. No need for a beach towel. 

I surf better now do to the camaraderie of female surfers, lighter boards with leashes and having a car to drive to surf spots that are less treacherous than Ocean Beach. Oh yeah, wetsuits are nice too!