I think you are providing a fabulous service for those of us who love the city. I wish my father were alive now to see what you are doing because he always told us we lived in the best city in the world and we should appreciate it.
Jim
Mr. SF:
I lived in SF from 1994-99. I now live in a place where I can actually buy a home. Sometimes I miss the City so much it hurts. I still hear the cable car bells at night and the sound the last cable car made going back to the barn at 1 am, turning that corner from the wharf onto Columbus. I can still hear those foghorns, so many different ones, echoing mournfully in the surprisingly quiet night in North Beach.
Thanks for this great website. I just found it and spent all night surfing it.
S. White
Florida
Mister SF,
I found your site when I was looking for info on Trader Vic's and was sadden by the fact that many restaurants I frequented during the late '50s and '60s are no longer in business. But I know that nothing lasts forever. Crown Room at the Fairmont Hotel, where I attended the best buffet ever; Purple Onion where the Smothers Brothers were discovered. My first job was at the Insurance Company right next door to Marconi's in the Financial District.
I have retired now, living in Jacksonville NC, but just reading your site, made me hungry and homesick.
Cecily Bundy
Just thought I'd
drop you
a line and compliment you on your site.
It's excellent. Your
little
monologues on the front page are interesting and hip, and the local
color
and flavor of it really stands out. Clearly a labor of love. Keep up
the
good work!
Erik W.
Greetings Mr. San Francisco,
Being a native San Franciscan (born in St. Joseph's 41 years ago) I was thrilled to come upon your site. How it fills me with satisfaction to know that there are so many who love 'The City' as much as I do. I've been living in Sacramento for the last two years and the summers are unbearable! San Francisco; the cling-cling of the cable cars, the smell of the ocean, the foggy nights and windy days, will forever be etched into my heart. Yes, indeed, I left my heart in San Francisco. I'm happy that so many others have as well.
Take care,
Nora
Just stumbled onto your site and I love it! It is now my browser's opening page. Thanks!
Melanie
The doyen of Noe
Valley
Mister SF:
I stumbled across your website while doing research on the Patty Hearst kidnapping.
This is a brilliant website!!!! I plan on sharing it with many of my friends.
Great job!!!!
Meg
(via AOL)
Mister SF,
Thanks for making me homesick. (But in a good way.)
Ann Patane
Bernal Heights
Resident
1972 - 1986
mister nice guy sf,
i came from chicago to visit your fabulous city for the first time this past weekend. to be honest, i did not know much about san francisco except that the tv show full house was based there.
as i was googling, looking for info on the city, i found your site. it was of tremendous help to me. you have an honest & laid back approach to presenting information about the city, and i found tons of information to make my trip to sf fabulous.
just wanted to thank you kindly for having such an awesome website. you rock.
ciao,
beth
This is quite honestly the best site on the Internet. Only in the City for two years, stumbled on your site two hours ago and have doubled my SF knowledge. Very comprehensive... big credit to you.
Thanks,
Juan Zambrano
Thanks Hank,
For news and views of the City. I only lived there a few years, but it was sure magic while it lasted.
TJS
Washington State
Hi Hank,
I've long wanted to email you and have just never gotten around to it. But tonight again I was looking at your website and just thinking as always how much I love it and how much fun it is. It's obvious that you love San Francisco and what a fantastic way to show it. And I've got to tell you, you really have your finger on the pulse of what makes this the most perfect place to be.
Regards,
Glenn Koch
Dear Hank,
I just returned from my first visit to San Francisco and I wanted to thank you for your work on documenting the "What's Up Doc" movie locations. My wife and I printed out your pages and used them as a roadmap to visit all of them. You sure made it easy for us!
Thanks again for your incredible site!
Keith Smith
Dear Hank,
Just want to tell you how much I appreciate your website. It's one of the first websites I tell people about whenever they want to know more about The City.
Thanx,
G.R.
San Francisco native
Came upon your site today. Love it. I have recently and temporarily transplated to England after calling San Francisco home since 1988. You can imagine how I miss the city. Your site will be a haven for me. I'm sure the site is a labor of love, but that's what San Francisco does to us! Such a special place. Can't wait to return.
Rachel
Brisol, England
Dear Hank,
I just saw you on
Channel
4 and checked out your web
Thank you thank you thank you.
Regards,
Patrick
San Francisco
Dear Mister SF:
I just discovered your site tonight and have been drawn in for a couple of hours and still have much more to explore. Thank you so much for providing this wonderful resource. Your digital photos are stunning, sometimes breathtaking. Your prose is witty. Your information is thorough without being long-winded. And your optimism is contagious. I'm sure you bring a smile and a sense of adventure to all who visit here.
I'm an Armistead Maupin fan from way back, and your line about his characters "crossing the thresholds" of his former residences at some point, made me misty. I'll be forwarding a link to your web site to everyone I know in an effort to spread the word - I'm sure they're going to love it.
Keep up the amazing work and best of luck to you!
Sincerely,
Wayne Jones
Dear Mr. SF,
I am presently a displaced San Franciscan, serving time in the Hell Mound of the U.S. - Dallas, Texas. We had been told of the affordability of property and homes there, so we thought we would make the move and build our home.
I have regretted the decision since the day we stepped out of the car on June 12, 1999. I envy you your rising with each new sun and seeing the City anew for another day. How I long to ride a cable cars and drink in the views as we crest one hill after another on our way down to Fisherman's Wharf or Ghiradelli. My nightly walks along Ocean Beach are now little more than fond memories. How very much I miss the theatre and concerts. What I wouldn't give to be amid the concrete canyons of the Financial District again, to hear the clang of the trollies, waiting for what seemed an eternity for the M-Oceanview line to take me back home after a long day at work. I'd give anything to be jostled and jarred again as we boarded the MUNI.
For all it's faults, for all it's reputation, for all the venom spewed out of sheer envy by those who call it a city of sin only because they want to live there themselves, I miss my fog, my City, my home, San Francisco - the crown jewel of the west coast.
Kimble J. McSweeney
Dear Mr. SF,
Thank you for such a great site. I moved to San Francisco in 1995 and left three years later. This great and beautiful city has always and will always be home to me. I am glad to be moving back in December. Since I left I have looked for someway to connect, your website has allowed me to remember why I love it there so much and why am so glad to be going back home.
Thank you so much,
D.G.
San Diego
Dear Mr. SF,
Thank you so much for such an amazing site. Regular visits have kept me sane throughout a nine-month educational exchange in London. I am always impressed with the enthusiasm of people who have chosen the City as their home. Once again, thank you.
Regards,
Stephen C. Neuburger, Jr.
Dear Mister SF:
Your website is incredible. I was born in San Francisco and was raised near Lake Merced. I had to compliment you on your thoroughly entertaining and historically accurate website.
Keep up the great work.
Kind Regards,
Matthew Lynch
Dear Mr. Donat:
As a native San Franciscan (born in 1961 at SF General), I would normally go about instantly snubbing anyone who calls themselves a San Franciscan who wasn't actually born here (you know how protective us San Franciscans are), but your site is so well done and with obvious passion for this city that I had to drop you a line and thank you. You brought back so many good memories of my childhood here in SF that I was humbled.
"San Francisco" Joe
Hank:
Your column helps me feel connected. So, thanks again from your #1 Chicago fan. (I'm sure there are more...)
Sincerely,
Mark Lowe
Dear Hank,
Your web site is an outstanding achievement.
Best regards,
Jok Church
This is a big big thank you and a peck on the cheek for this site. I live in London (England rather than Texas) but lost my heart to San Francisco on my first visit in March 2001, and then again in November 2001 and I'm sure it will all happen again in March and August 2002. Your site has put into words all the feelings I had about San Francisco but couldn't really express - the sense of belonging, of being at home and generally a real "I awake in the morning and think here I am, where I ought to be" feeling.
Thanks once again,
Abby Sims
London
I'm just writing to complement you on your site.
I lived in SF for four years in the mid-to-late nineties. I appreciate your efforts to capture many of the unique aspects of such a special city.
Allan Lichtenberg
Thanks for your great site. I've been here since '85 and your site captures so much of the feeling I have of being here for these years.
Mark Waldo
I love your web site.
I moved to the Bay Area in 1998 (Palo Alto) and lived there for three years. During that time I came to adore San Francisco. Sometimes it seemed to be a bit overwhelming to me because there is so much to see but there is much more to love.
I now live in
Vancouver,
BC. Finding your web site helped me learn about the things I missed
when
I lived there. Good thing it's only a 2 1/2 hour flight away.
Thanks,
Nichole White
I just wanted to drop a line to say what an awesome piece on Angela Alioto! She is a true, great San Franciscan who is frequently misunderstood by many.
Your web site is a high quality local resource. Keep up the good work!
Regards,
Brenda L. Bryant
Hi Mister SF,
You have a wonderful web site and I've already alerted several friends about it. Thanks for all the work you've done to inform residents and visitors alike.
Patty Jaunzems
Hello Mr. SF,
I love your web site! I'm a former San Franciscan currently living in Seattle and regret that I ever left.
Cory Peeke
Hello!
First of all just want to say I was very happy to find your web site. I live in Sydney, Australia right now (been here since August 2001), but am from S.F. Bay Area. I miss it sooo much!! Have just started to nose around the site, and it looks great!
Bravo!
Elizabeth Hamon
Dear Mr. Donat:
I was fortunate enough to find a link to your web site a couple of weeks ago and I haven't stopped surfing it. I fell in love with the city eight years ago while on a vacation to visit my best friend. I went back three more times that year. She has since moved to Sacramento, but that didn't stop me from returning every year. I am working towards relocating to the city from New York, where I have lived for 20 years. After spending all that time in NY, I have a great appreciation for San Francisco and all it has to offer. Your web site has given me great insights to the most beautiful city in the world. I especially love the "High on a Hill" section, as I find this aspect of the San Francisco fascinating (I can't wait to drive down Vermont!).
Thank you for passing along your passion for San Francisco, it is greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Eric Schulman
New York City
I'd like to thank you for your site. It's my starting page on my browser way out here in Austria, so I don't get too homesick.
Cameron J.
Kainerstorfer
Linz, Austria
Thanks for creating the cool web site. Great to see all these details about SF life documented, though it breaks my heart to have left them a few years ago. You made me homesick.
Steven Barnat
This site is awesome! I, too, am a tourist of this City - the same City in which I live!
R.W.
Mister SF,
I love your web page and thank you for doing such extensive work on behalf of such a lovely city and its community. San Francisco is truly the most unique and lovely city in the U.S. I am totally and completely in love with San Francisco and have some of my best memories in and about "The City," as I always referred to SF while attending High School on the Peninsula.
Keep up the good work. Reading about San Francisco and the community are the things that make being away from The City bearable.
Regards,
Therese
Seward, Alaska
Congrats on such a great web site. I've lived in SF since 1983 and LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT. I've recently moved from Bernal Heights to The Excelsior District. Thanks again for such a great resource about the beautiful place we call home!
M.A. Kotak
I love your site
and your
glowing optimism for our great city. You
deserve to be called
"Mister
SF." Besides we have not had one since Cyril Magnin.
Ken Wilkes
Richmond District SF
Dear Mr. SF,
Thank you for your fun and inspiring web site. I've lived here for 18 years and it's good to be reminded about all the reasons I fell in love with the City.
Lesa Porche
Thank you for MisterSF.com! I'm a San Franciscan-in-exile, since my company decided to close it's SF satellite office in December. It was either move to the corporate office in L.A., or remain in San Francisco as a jobless artist, competing with thousands of others for the handful of remaining jobs.
Now I'm wishing that I'd held out. I'm starved for culture, beautiful views, a sense of community, real people... And to all those Chronicle columnists who are always complaining about how San Francisco has lost its magic, I can only suggest that they try moving to Los Angeles for a while, to get a sense of perspective.
Anyway, thank you for building and maintaining this site. It's nice to have a place where I can keep an eye on home, until I'm able to come back.
Barbara Shaurette
I have been looking for a site like this. I live in Hawaii and miss the City very much. I'm moving back this summer and can't wait. Now due to your site, I can see SF everyday at the touch of a keystroke. Thanx and keep up the good work
Victor Davis
Hilo Hawaii.
Hi Mister S.F.,
Reading you from Paris - That's a real fine web site you've got there which fills me with endless nostalgia. I've been in Paris for about 20 years now. It's not bad here, though a bit stifling compared to S.F.
I grew up in the bay area (Berkeley, San Jose, Palo Alto, etc.) and never actually lived in the City though I visited relatives there frequently. I remember the first visit: I must have been about 3-feet high because what impressed me the most were the exhaust pipes of buses, the smell of which, forever after, has meant for me mystery and urbanity. I remember red tulips too, growing in the center of the plaza in which I got a whiff of the first bus, and pigeons and very, very tall men in uniforms with lots of buttons (I assume the latter were standing in front of a hotel). So the first memory is all gray and red in that very particular San Francisco air. I hope one day to come back and join you.
All my best to you and much much good luck,
Elizabeth Hamilton
Mister SF,
Thank you for such a wonderful site. I'm heartened to finally find someone who wants to highlight the positive things about the City. I'm tired of hearing about how the housing is expensive and the homes are small and blah...blah...blah...
Thanks for putting this site together.
Mike Wong
28 years in SF (less
8 years
at college and 1 year of
insanity)
Mr. SF:
Wonderful site, beautifully put together. Looking forward to more - and forwarding to everyone!
Dave Laudenat
I cannot find adequate words to tell you what a joy your site is. Absolutely the best find on the Internet. Herb Caen must be delighted to know that you are here to carry on in his tradition. I love this city with so much passion - my parents moved here from NY when I was twelve - when I was 24, I went to NY on a business trip - and lived there for the next 6 years.
It has taken me far too long to finally get back to San Francisco - and here I will stay forever. When I first moved back, I would be driving in the Marina and when I would see the Golden Gate Bridge, I would have to catch my breath upon realizing that I lived here.
Many embraces,
Charra de Marco
LOVE this web site. Sent the URL to my poor, displaced brother in Denver who dreams nightly of this fair city.
Paul Caryotakis
I love the site. It's easy to forget why I live in SF, so thank you for reminding me!
Keep up the good work,
Melissa Villanueva
Love your web site on SF. I am a San Francisco native and lived there through 1978. My favorite SF memories have to do with rare snowstorms, earthquakes, the Emperor Norton treasure hunts and Playland at the Beach. My biggest thrill was getting a ride from Willie Mays in 1959 from Seals Stadium to his home on Miraloma Drive.
Jim Mullany
Mr. SF,
I really enjoy your site, and am glad to see people realize that the City has a will of its own, regardless of who happens to populate it. Thank you for providing an uplifting glance at our wonderful City.
Regards,
Paul Hayward
Hi Mister SF,
I used to live in San Francisco for 11 years and I agree it is the best place in the world!!!!
Theresa Famolaro
Rockville, MD
What a great idea! Your web site is so positive and informative as well. Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy it. Thanks!
Lynn Fortunato
Mister SF,
Can't believe I haven't found your site before. We moved away from Marin a year ago. Miss San Francisco terribly. Love the pictures and local news. Thank you for embarking on this labor of love. I will check in often.
A. Conway
Iowa
Anyone who's a San Franciscan living now in Sacramento (the agony) for law school, I think your web site is food for the soul. I love the City and I grew up in SOMA.
I feel the love from your web site.
Regards,
Philipp R. Aquisap
Wow! Great web site. I am born and raised in SF (42 years) and am always happy to see someone as proud of this city as I am. Great Job!
Good luck to you,
Dan Milkier
It's nice to see someone else loves SF for the tawdry and the beautiful and doesn't waste time lamenting what's gone but celebrating it for what it was and is.
Thanks again for the great site!
Doug Kizer
Howdy,
As a longtime resident of San Francisco & the Bay Area I would like to extend a heartfelt thanks for creating your wonderful web site. It reminded me why I moved here 20 years ago & why I love it so much.
Kevin Evans
You are such an inspiration to this beautiful city of ours! Thanks for uplifting our spirits. You are helping us see the best of our city!
Good Wishes,
PJ Kaur
Just found your site - what a pleasure to meander through! Thanks many times over.
Keep up the good & generous work!
Terry Neil
I LOVE your site. Great work. I'm sending it to a friend of mine who moved to LA five years ago. It will make her cry!
Simon Chius
You really know how to capture the spirit of this wonderful city. I relocated here two months ago and everybody thought I was crazy. "There's layoffs everywhere, rents too high, it's crowded, the homeless, blah blah blah."
I'm sending a link to your web site to all the people who thought it was foolish to move out West to this amazing city. Thank you.
Pat Charles
I really like your site because I've loved San Francisco since I was a kid, and now, I've lived here for over 8 years. I used to come here in high school. I lived in Stockton and once in a while I'd cut class to come here for the day. I'd drive my beat up old VW Dasher to Concord BART and take the train into SF. Had a great time. Eventually, I moved to the East Bay over 10 years ago, and finally moved into San Francisco in late 1993.
Thanks for the great site. I'll be checking back often.
Steven Kyle Weller
GREAT!!! As you know there are lots of us that feel about this City the same as you. I will visit often. Thanks for putting up your web site.
Andy Leas,
San Franciscan since
1985
and never will leave.
Great site! My wife called you a gentleman... something of an anachronism these days, eh?
Keep on Truckin'
Mike Voto
Hello Mr. San Francisco,
A good friend of mine and I have said for years when hearing someone, anyone, complain about this wonderful place; "There are trains, planes, buses and rental cars leaving every hour on the hour for anyone who does not like it here. We're not keeping you!" And we mean that in the nicest way, of course.
I too have traveled to some of the best cities, even Paris is second to San Francisco in my mind, and I love Paris, being my wife's birthplace. She has wanted to live here since she was a kid, moving here for her was fulfillment of a dream.
Your attitude about changes around here is also great, better than Herb Caen's was (bless his nostalgic soul). Your phrasing is on the point, one can choose to be a widow or celebrate all that remains to be excellent about San Francisco. Let's celebrate, I say.
By the way, I like this city so much that I always spell out the name and usually avoid referring to "SF," as my little mantra to the best city on earth, San Francisco.
Lastly, your idea of a great day in San Francisco is almost precisely my idea of a good time. I'd throw in lunch at Sam Woh's and a beer at The Saloon on Grant.
Keep up the excellent work.
Alan Gwinner
I am a native San Franciscan and your site is incredible! I especially like the historical information about San Francisco streets!
Keep up the good work!
Cheers,
Bessie Barnes
Dear Mr. SF,
I was inspired by the article in this morning's Chron to spend some time enjoying your site. It is a delight and I am sending the URL to all my friends still in the East.
Seventeen years ago my husband, Merrill, and I made the move from Pennsylvania. This is where I wish I had been all my life! Thank you for capturing so many of the delights of this wonderful city in your great photos and lively prose.
Sybil Conn