Good news and an opportunity for San Franciscans 2010

I'm very relieved that the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget & Finance Committee has maintained funding for the Neighborhood Emergency Response Team program. This is a wonderful, practical, and free program to train ordinary San Franciscans to stay safe and, where possible, help others in case of disaster. Unfortunately, there's no guarantee the funding will be preserved in the future, so take advantage of the program now while we have it.

Why should you care?

California has a 99.7 percent chance of having a 6.7 magnitude earthquake or larger during the the next 30 years. The likelihood of a more powerful quake of 7.5 magnitude in the next 30 years is 46 percent. Such a quake is more likely to occur in the southern half of the state than in the northern half. ... the probability of a 6.7 magnitude earthquake or larger over the next 30 years striking the greater Los Angeles area is 67 percent and in the San Francisco Bay Area is 63 percent [source]

The best way to deal with this threat is to understand what it would mean for you and your household and how you can reduce your risks of being badly hurt during a quake. Take the classes, they're free and interesting. Download the NERT manual and learn how to put together an emergency kit. Get involved with your local team and stack the deck in favor of coming through the next big shakeup unharmed.

San Franciscans, once again, why should you care?

Because we have 17,000 residents per square mile and only about 300 firefighters on duty at any given time. You will need to be self-sufficient, especially in the first three days after a major quake.

It's not hard to be ready, but you do have to start preparing.

Every week, from now until the ground moves, devote a little time – even just a few minutes when you can't take a class or do a bigger safety project in your home – to providing for your future.

Microloans: the local view 2008

I enjoyed this update (which came in early August and I just rediscovered cleaning my inbox), and smiled especially at the reminder that everybody everywhere does the same thing when online: looks up their own name in a search engine.

This is an update on your loan to Blessing Obianyo in Nigeria. I’m excited to be writing you as the Kiva Fellow in Benin City, Nigeria. Over the next 3 months I will be witnessing firsthand the impact and realities of microfinance while working with Kiva’s Field Partner, Lift Above Poverty Organization (LAPO). As you may know, all entrepreneur profiles on Kiva's website are posted by local Field Partners (microfinance institutions), which are organizations that lend to the poor for poverty alleviation. The role of a Field Partner is to screen each entrepreneur, upload his/her loan request on the Kiva website, disburse the loan, and collect loan repayments.

In my role, I will be visiting many Kiva entrepreneurs and businesses and training LAPO staff in writing updates for Kiva lenders. As a result, many of you will receive an update on an entrepreneur who received a loan contribution from you. Unfortunately, due to the logistical and administrative constraints, reaching every entrepreneur for an update is not possible, even with the team of 8 people at LAPO who are dedicated to providing Kiva with photos and other content. Whether or not we provide an update on an entrepreneur to whom you loaned, I hope that you will enjoy the story of one Kiva borrower in Benin City that, to me, illustrates the “togetherness” and “unity” that is the inspiration for Kiva’s Swahili name. It is the story of Cookey Nosayana.

Cookey owns a 24-hour Internet café and computer training center. He took a Kiva loan to purchase a more efficient generator that has cut his fuel costs by more than half. It supplies his business with power despite the frequent and extended power outages that are common in Nigeria (in order to stay open for business, he must run a generator an average of 15 hours every day). Cookey is unique among LAPO (and likely Kiva) clients – he has access to the Internet. He is one of the few clients has been able to explore Kiva.org and experience the partnership that lenders have access to every time they sign on to their portfolio page. When I arrived to write his update, he was holding a printout of his borrower page. As a lender myself, I was excited to hear his perspective. He was gracious enough to answer my myriad of questions.

Cookey first found his profile on Kiva.org by accident. He was Googling “Cookey Nosayana” to see if he could find the meaning of his name. Up came Kiva.org. First he read what had been written in his business description. It was basic, but he was grateful that it had helped him get the capital to purchase a new generator. Then he started clicking around. He viewed his lenders – from the United States, Canada and the UK. They were working people, just like him. I asked him what he thought. Was he surprised that someone would lend him money from across the globe? He was grateful, but not surprised.

“We live in a humanitarian world,” he said. “It’s just like the head of LAPO [Godwin Ehigiamusoe],” Cookey continued. “When he first started LAPO people laughed. Now everyone is running to him for loans. It’s because it is a good idea.” Note: LAPO was started in 1987 when microfinance was still in its infancy and primarily limited to Asia. Those who believed in microfinance were still unsure about it’s promise in Nigeria. Godwin Ehigiamusoe blocked out the negativity, moved forward as he says, “with his heart and his head.” Today LAPO has 137 branches throughout Southern Nigeria and Sierra Leone, provides over $36,126,579 in loans each year and served 135,975 clients in 2007.

Now with LAPO partnering with Kiva, Cookey says that he would love to continue being part of this international web-based financial community. He has expansion plans for his business and will need additional capital to double the number of computers he has connected to the web. He hopes that LAPO will select him as a Kiva client a second time (His first Kiva loan will be paid off in 4 months so keep an eye out for him on the LAPO client lending page).

“Kiva is worthwhile,” says Cookey, “and will continue to be if both sides keep up their part.” As he explored the site, he browsed the businesses of his fellow borrowers from Indonesia to Azerbaijan and appreciated the widespread impact Kiva lenders were having. He believes that it is critical that Kiva entrepreneurs keep making payments and showing improvement and that lenders keep reinvesting their Kiva credit into new businesses as they are repaid.

From Kiva, LAPO and its family of borrowers, we thank you for your continued support of our work. To see all currently fundraising loans from LAPO on Kiva.org, please click
here: View fundraising LAPO entrepreneurs

Sincerely,
Jessica Heinzelman

Through Kiva I've made a LAPO managed loan to Blessing Obianyo in Lagos State, Nigeria, for her business "God's Own Restaurant". That loan is 38% repaid so far.

Overall, through Kiva I have a portfolio of $1200 loaned worldwide which I reinvest as loans are paid back (and which I hope to continue to increase in size). My funding has been used by 43 businesses in 34 countries. 14 loans in which my funds were some of the money lent have been paid back in full; none have defaulted. I do not earn interest on this money, but I consider it an extremely safe place to keep some of my savings because of the reliability of the borrowers in paying back their loans.

Thirty countries! 2008

I just made another microloan through Kiva; this time to a group of women in Mali. This brings me to 30 countries I've invested in. Great to have these connections building all over the world.

Blustery Day 2006

Until I put on Mike Doughty's lovely album Rockity Roll, the song stuck in my head today was

The rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down
      In rushing, rising, rivlets
      'Til the river crept out of it's bed
      And crept right into Piglet's

      Poor Piglet he was frightened
      With quite a rightful fright

Good luck out there, everybody! Drive safe and stay home if you can.

Such a GOOD weekend! 2005

Creatively productive day Friday. That Certain Someone picked me up after work. Dinner at Citrus Club on Haight. Sitting in bed surfing the web. Spooning.

Farmers' Market at the Ferry Building Friday morning. Aidells Maple & Smoked Bacon sausage sandwich with Seeds & Suds mustard. Fresh snap peas. Tasting cheeses and balsamic vinegars. Selecting and eating Recchiuti chocolates - Peanut Butter Puck, Honeycomb Malt, special of the day (Fleur de Sel caramel topped with pecan encased in bittersweet chocolate; simply fucking incredible. One of the top ten chocolate experiences of my life.), Fleur De Sel, Cardamom Nougat, Tarragon Grapefruit, Bergamot Tea - on a bench looking out at the bay. Sailboats. Clouds. Sunshine. The Bay Bridge. Yerba Buena Island.

Walking up Sacramento to Mason and down to Geary. Buying tickets at the Curren for "I Am My Own Wife" (about which more in a couple weeks no doubt). And then seeing Kung Fu Hustle at the Metreon.

Stop what you are doing now and go see Kung Fu Hustle. It's got more life and fun and excitement in it than the last 10 American films I've seen. If I could pre-order the DVD today, I would, and I'll definitely be seeing this one at least twice in the theater.

Grinning like maniacs. A Manhattan and a cheese plate at The View atop the Marriot Hotel looking at, well, the view. Trying to figure out what was going on at the ice rink. Walking across Yerba Buena Gardens to find it was a demonstration game of sled hockey. Very cool. Chatting briefly with a player as he got back into his wheelchair. Coming home and watching the original Star Wars "A New Hope" (laser disc version, not this bullshit "Greedo shoots first" crap).

Sleeping in. Languid lazing around. Puttering around the house. Soup for dinner. The win-win debate: movie or play a game?

New Year's Walk 2004

Here's my first SF Bay Guardian column of the new year.

Absent and Relaxed 2003

I hope everyone had a nice weekend. Mine was lovely.

Mendocino is beautiful, my friends are great, and we saw whales spouting!

Two Moons? 2003

What would Earth be like if it had two moons?

I started out thinking of various natural differences - the tides, for instance - and then got to thinking about how most human cultures seem to be fixated on duality - light/dark and male/female and good/evil. It's interesting to speculate on the societal impact of a third heavenly body. If night and day were less uniform and distinct - no moon nights and one moon nights and two moon nights - would humans be better able to deal with the shades of grey between right and wrong? Is our morality a by-product of our planetary configuration?

He did it! 2002

I just got the email from Edmond - he's in Manning Park, British Columbia, Canada. He just walked there from Mexico.

Hooray for Edmond!

I've posted his log entries on his site.

I am so very proud of him. What a great adventure!

Northbound 2002

Edmond's getting close! I just talked to him on the phone. He's in Snoqualamie and that means only two more resupply points left between him and the Canadian border.

Visit his site for more news about his return and the festivities to welcome him home.

Walking Walking Walking 2002

I've mentioned to many people my goal of walking the entire city of San Francisco, every street, every block. The supportive responses have been great; when people visit they say "Well, shall we take a different route back from the restaurant so you can get in a few more blocks?" I'm making good progress, but it's a lot of walking so it will take me a while. No problem; I've allowed myself until the year 2050 to finish the project.

The helpful man I spoke to in the department of public works estimated it's about 1400-1500 miles of streets. That's mighty impressive and I well understand why it's taking me a while. However, if I made it my full-time job instead of just a happy hobby, I could be a lot further along by now. How much further along is alarmingly well indicated by a certain friend of mine.

My pal Edmond would be done by now if he'd chosen my project instead of his own. Edmond is walking the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mexican border in southern California to the Canadian border in northern Washington. He started April 27th and he's now walked over 1800 miles to reach his last reported location in Crater Lake.

1800 miles, folks.
And he's got another 800 to go.

His journal entries are really fun and he's going to have wonderful pictures to show off once he has time to start setting up the galleries and captioning them on his return. Pay him a visit and send him a hello. He loves email.

Sunday was better 2002

Yesterday morning I woke up in the cozy guest room at my parents's home in Mendocino. I always sleep really well there and I felt great. I had a little breakfast with my Grandma Susie, packed up my clean laundry (they have a washer & dryer *in the house!* so cool!), said fond farewells and had a beautiful, quick drive back down to San Francisco.

It was so lovely, clear & warm when I came over the Golden Gate Bridge that I coaxed Chris out of his house in the Presidio within half an hour of arriving and we went walking. Oh boy did we walk! We walked through the Presidio to the bridge and then over the bridge and then all the way into Sausalito. We were very very hungry by this point and feasted on two pizzas (a medium Catalian & a small Italian) at Giovanni's. Then we got ice cream at Lappert's (Spumoni for him and Kauai something (Kona coffee, macadamia nuts, fudge & coconut shavings) for me) - mmm! - and wandered over to catch the ferry back to San Francisco. What a great time!

Now it's Monday and I'm in the warm & stuffy office nodding off. I could use a little Kona coffee ice cream about now...

Trail Preparations 2002

I'm not posting much lately because I've been very busy helping Edmond get all moved out of the Mountain View house and ready to hit the Pacific Crest Trail. Read all about his adventures which I'll be updating as I receive mail from him during the summer.

Signing out from Mountain View for possibly the last time, this is intrepid hiker supplier Dinah saying "keep your socks dry and don't step on the rattlesnakes!"

p.s. I have it on good authority that the potential hazards of the trail do not in fact apply to those staying home & mailing out the GORP.

Earthquake! 1979

earthquake at 1:24 (approx.) Man on radio wondered if it might have been Skylab (!) [I think I knew that was an absurd notion]