My wife and I visited some friends last week for a quick two-night trip. When they graciously showed us to our room, we were not pleased.It’s not that the room was ugly. On the contrary, it was bright, sunny and beautifully decorated (or so I’m told). The problem was the bed. It wasn’t a king, it wasn’t even a queen — it was the dreaded double.

Cara Theobold plays a woman who marries an FBI agent after his wife disappears, and is raising his son (Patrick McAuley). Cara Theobold plays a woman who marries an FBI agent after his wife disappears, and is raising his son (Patrick McAuley). Neil Jackson and Stana Katic star in “Absentia,” a 10-episode series about the hunt for a serial killer that will be available for streaming Friday on Amazon.

When Dave Eggers met Mokhtar Alkhanshali six years ago, the acclaimed Marin County author definitely wasn’t thinking that the ebullient 24-year-old doorman at the luxury Infinity Tower South of Market would be the subject of his next nonfiction book.Eggers was introduced to Alkhanshali while working on an ill-fated HBO pilot about a Muslim cop.

I’m not sure how long I’ll write this column — maybe weeks, maybe months, maybe years. I may quit, I may be fired, I may drop dead — who knows? But I’m not going out without listing my Top Driving Irritation. The world needs to know.This is a subject everyone can relate to. We all have our pet irritations when it comes to driving on our roads. I was originally going to list my Top 10 Driving Irritations, but I had trouble narrowing it down to 10.

Young men skateboarded and smoked a little weed in front of Jennie Lennick’s brand-new storefront in San Francisco’s Mission District — and the new business owner didn’t mind one bit. The skateboarders — kids, really — have helped her lug boxes into the shop and occasionally ask for advice on their artwork.“They think I’m a really old lady,” said the 31-year-old. “But it’s fun to help them with their art.

Today is National Compliment Day. It was invented by two women from New Hampshire, Kathy Chamberlin and Debby Hoffman. It’s one of those unofficial holidays, like Talk Like a Pirate Day. Me, I love invented holidays. Like Jan. 2 was Run It Up the Flagpole and See If Anyone Salutes It Day. I keep coming out on National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11, even though I’ve got nobody left to come out to. I get a charge out of Jan. 9, Static Electricity Day.

Students from the San Jose Dance Theatre perform during the San Francisco Movement Arts Festival, which brought dozens of dance companies and solo artists representing a variety of dance dance styles to Grace ... more Students from the San Jose Dance Theatre perform during the San Francisco Movement Arts Festival, which brought dozens of dance companies and solo artists representing a variety of dance dance styles to Grace Cathedral on Friday.

Author's photo of the lobby wall in the San Francisco Federal Building, January 11, 2018. Author's photo of the lobby wall in the San Francisco Federal Building, January 11, 2018. Author's photo of the lobby wall in the San Francisco Federal Building, January 19, 2017. Author's photo of the lobby wall in the San Francisco Federal Building, January 19, 2017. One year ago, I passed through the visitor entrance to the San Francisco Federal Building at 90 Seventh St.

As he prepares to launch his 33rd repertory season, Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson finds himself in a unique position in American dance. His reign over the San Francisco Ballet has been the longest of any of the major company directors who spent part of their careers as dancers at New York City Ballet in the decades before 1983, the year of ballet master George Balanchine’s death.Tomasson choreographs and teaches as well as running the company.

Artist Phillip Lewis’ installation “Synonym” at the Headlands Center for the Arts in Sausalito explores his forced two-year stay in a Synanon group home for drug rehab as a teenager. Artist Phillip Lewis’ installation “Synonym” at the Headlands Center for the Arts in Sausalito explores his forced two-year stay in a Synanon group home for drug rehab as a teenager.