By Molly Sanchez
Photos by Virginia Tieman
San Francisco is a city full of the weird and the wonderful. It’s the city of Lucas Films; the future home of The United Federation of Planets, and stomping grounds to nerds and geeks of all shapes, sizes, and degrees of virginity. As a connoisseur of all things nerdy, I feel it is my duty to bestow upon you the top 5 favorite nerd sites in the city.
Friday Night Magic at Two Cat’s comics in West Portal
Monday nights (5-9 p.m.) and Friday nights (5:30-9:30p.m.) are magical at Two Cat’s comics. Austin Meshel Haun, cinema major at SF state and comic store employee, oversees the store’s weekly free Magic the Gathering card games. “We get on average about 10 people Mondays, 16 on Friday and we hit capacity at 32 people for our weekend events.” Meshel-Haun says that the players range in age from the very young to the very old. Though there are many strategies for game play and deck building, Meshel-Haun says that there is one thing every game has in common,“I inform people that fun is mandatory!”
Nightlife at the Academy Thursday nights at the Academy of Science
Booze, music, and science, no this isn’t a flashback of your weird chem teacher from 10th grade, it’s a taste of what’s in store at Nightlife at the Academy. Every Thursday night from 6-10 p.m. the California Academy of Sciences hosts a party featuring a DJ or a live band. Partygoers can sip trendy cocktails in front of the museums aquatic displays or listen to lectures such as “A Brief Science of Sex and Culture” or enjoy a show in the planetarium while munching on sustainable cuisine. Admission is $10 for member and $12 for general admission.
http://www.calacademy.org/events/nightlife/
Nerd Nite SF
For Lucy Laird, co-boss of Nerd Nite SF, nerd is the verb. It’s “not who someone is but how someone chooses to spend his or her time, i.e., nerding out.” And what a great way to spend time! Laird describes Nerd Nite, which meets at the Rickshaw, shop every 3rd Wednesday of the month , as“discovery channel, with beer!” The group meets for host’s lectures, games, and field trips and each meetup costs an average of $8. “We emphasize humor, as bawdy and nerdy as possible,” says Laird, adding “its way easier to get up in front of hundreds of people with a beer in your hand and a slide presentation as full of hard data as LOLcats!” The lectures range from grammar to genealogy and from physics to fungi and as always the liquor and laughter flow freely. Nerd Nite is a great way to grow some new brain cells and kill the old.
The Golden Gate Knights
Playing with light sabers is not just for jedis anymore, or for teenage Michael Cera in the Bluth’s garage thanks to the Golden Gate Knights. Started by longtime Star Wars fan, Alain Bloch ,and stage combat choreographer, Matthew Carauddo, the Golden Gate Knights is a group that meets every Sunday to teach the art of light saber combat to geeks and nerds of all stripes. Bloch says the class involves “stretches, calisthenics and lots of warm-ups” and is “very athletic and also very geeky.” Bloch says that not everyone who takes the class is a hardcore Star Wars fan. “ Our class makes a great date with a partner,” he adds. Classes are every Sunday from 12-3 p.m. at Studio Garcia on Heron street and cost only $10. I love Golden Gate Knights. They know.
The Podcast that shall not be named
Comedians, dragons, and beer oh my! These are the elements of improv guru; Max McCal’s latest brainchild is a podcast about comics playing Dungeons and Dragons and other table top games. Along with Justin Gomes, McCal started the podcast this January,” We thought putting some of the funniest people in a room together and asking them to just portray strange characters in fantastic worlds would be an awesome way to entertain,” McCal says. “ I think it mirrors the experience most people have with the game to not take it 100% seriously all the time.” Local comedians bring their own senses of humor to the game, which is made apparent by the character traits, one is a lesbian elf played by a bearded straight guy, the constant star wars jokes, and the occasional mid-melee serenades. The podcast can be found on http://www.sylvanproductions.com/.