The Trouble With San Francisco

   For about the fourth time, I got in trouble while visiting SF. Lyndsey and I were on the Golden Gate bridge Saturday morning to film a video for The Killers (details to come later). My camera woman, Lyndsey, hates heights, so we tried to do this quickly. I was trying to pass out free flowers which was the focus point of the video, but that was kind of difficult because NO ONE wanted free flowers. Wouldn’t even take 10 seconds to hold a flower to film the clip - when i explained it was for an art project. I mean, we weren’t coercing them to rob a bank with us, or selling drugs….

I was disillusioned.

  and everyone that actually allowed us to film them taking a flower - were either foreign, or tourists, or both. We only got one original San Franciscan. DAMN SAN FRANCISCANS!  i thought it was gonna be like the youtube videos or movies or commericials where it would be so easy….people would take them smiling and happy. IT’S SAN FRANCISCO AFTER ALL!! Apparently, there isn’t much flowery love this summer… as lyndsey would tell me, “how can you be so naive?? LOLOL”
whatever, we’re gonna go back when we’re famous and they’ll all want flowers. In fact, they’ll be giving us flowers, and asking for autographs.
so we didnt do the free hugs thing, because it was hard enough with flowers. there wouldnt be enough room for it in the video anyways, the people we got were just enough to fit in the video time limit.
The first person we asked was the funniest one of the bunch, and the most animated. He waved us off (but with a smile) when we approached him for “free flowers”, but he asked us what it was for. When I told him - art project, he said “ok” in his characteristic Indian accent. He was actually laughing when we filmed the clip. :)

After that we took to introducing our request as for an art project (because “it’s for this Killers contest” would lead to too many complications). This very kind woman volunteered the guy with her, and easily took a flower for the video. They were tourists we had passed by earlier walking on the bridge, and they were so sweet when we asked. I love her, thank you kind woman if you’re out there!

The third stranger featured in the video was a photographer and stopped and allowed us to film when we asked, MUCH TO OUR RELIEF. too much rejection is bad for the heart. :( This is why I was looking out for photographers, they would be more understanding of, “It’s for art..”

We were walking back (still on the bridge and dissapointed) when a man holding his daughter’s hand walking the opposite direction directly in front of us, grabs my attention. He’s one of those people that should be featured on the Sartorialist - long black coat, black cowboy boots, dark sunglasses, and black western hat. I don’t notice the Western tie until I review the footage we shot. How coincidental… this is the same sort of style seen in “All These Things I’ve Done” (which was being used for our video), and the whole Sam’s Town album of the Killers. And both of them were tall - like Killer’s members tall. He’s either Dutch, Belgian or German, European definetly - his accent wasn’t clear because of the wind and we could barely understand what we were all saying because of the darn wind. His daughter and him smile and it’s one of the best scenes we have from that day.

and i got into trouble with security. Apparently youre not supposed to hold signs on the bridge. ironically, i was joking with lyndsey earlier, “LAWL, WHAT IF THEY ARREST US FOR PASSING OUT FREE FLOWERS?”
well, security found me later on the bridge. and he was like “so you were the one holding up the sign earlier? well youre not supposed to do that.. etc. etc. what’s it for anyways?”
“oh its for an art project, im just passing out free flowers”
“ok, well just to let you know, etc. thank you!”
“ok thanks, bye officer!”
he radioed his fellow officers or whatever after that, and said, “i found her - she was just passing out free flowers”
so apparently they were looking for me after they saw me holding up the sign?? but he was smiling the whole time and he was good looking, so it didnt bother me!

I had a vague feeling that I probably shouldn’t have been holding signs up on the bridge. That’s like the fourth time I got into some sort of trouble in SF. Whenever i get that vague feeling of “I probably shouldn’t be doing this,” I go “but lets do it anyways and not get caught.” It’s always been for the sake of ‘art’ though, I SWEAR. Always for stupid, petty things (that i really should know better for) and the situation is always handled with profuse politeness from both sides.

I’m probably gonna be arrested in that city one day! but for a good cause.. like protesting! A friend of mine told me that DJ must stand for delinquent juvenile - haha.

and the people who catch me are always nice.