Angelika The hope for a Christmas without COVID-19 in San Francisco has unfortunately not come true. Although the number of new infections is still relatively low, it is steadily increasing in San Francisco due to the Omicron variant. Currently, we have an average of 11 new cases per 100,000 residents in the city. Since the willingness to get vaccinated in San Francisco and the surrounding area is very high, many people are also getting the booster shot. It is now available for all age groups in the USA from the age of 16.

Angelika Recently, I had a routine check-up with my gynecologist and was quite surprised when I could read her notes from our conversation online on the patient portal afterwards. At first, I thought she might have pressed the wrong button, because normally I didn't have access to these notes. Usually, I can only view prescriptions, lab reports, etc. through the portal, or contact my doctor via email or make appointments.

Michael As newsletter readers, you know that San Francisco has recently been struggling to get a grip on its skyrocketing crime rate. No one with a modicum of sanity doubts that the astronomical increase in car and home burglaries in San Francisco is due to the fact that perpetrators know they will go unpunished. District Attorney Boudin, who, following a completely broken political ideology, refuses to press charges even in cases with clear evidence, blames the police for allegedly not arresting enough thieves. However, the police blame Boudin, who immediately releases arrested criminals.

Angelika It is evident that tensions are rising in San Francisco and that citizens are becoming increasingly frustrated, as seen by the growing number of initiated recall procedures from political offices. I have already reported on the recall procedure against District Attorney Chesa Boudin ( Rundbrief 11/2021 ). Last week, a brochure landed in our mailbox informing us about the next recall in San Francisco: This time, 3 out of 7 "School Board members" are up. What exactly is a "School Board"? Even translating the expression into German is not so straightforward.

Michael Drugstore chains like Walgreens or CVS have recently been complaining about skyrocketing losses due to shoplifting. The thieves know the law is on their side. Even store-employed security personnel are legally not allowed to stop them if thieves are caught. This has led to situations where vagrants or disheveled schoolchildren maraud through the stores with huge garbage bags, stuffing everything within reach into them and walking out unchallenged. Recently, we were at the Safeway supermarket on a Sunday afternoon and witnessed firsthand how some teenagers stuffed goods into their backpacks and made a run for it. This has become the norm. The goods are then hawked on street corners, like at the Mission/24th subway station in broad daylight. It's obvious that the items come from the nearest drugstore. And reportedly, even Amazon now has stolen goods up for sale!

Michael Since the onset of COVID, we have practically been going for an hour-long walk every day, exploring the lesser-known corners of the city. Finding a nice circular route in a densely populated city like San Francisco that offers wide views and runs far from heavy traffic, perhaps even includes a 300-foot high staircase within a posh neighborhood, or an unpaved path known only to the immediate neighbors, is not so easy. Let alone finding such a previously explored path exactly the same way on the next hike; often, it gets tricky at the points where you actually need to turn, and you end up on a suboptimal path.

Michael When it comes to pizza, like many of you, I grew up with the average offerings in Germany, which aren't bad. But when I was a young lad and visited New York City for the first time, driven by hunger in the middle of the night, I left the youth hostel and walked across the street to a branch of the chain "Roy's Pizza" to get a slice. I almost fainted because this piece of pizza was orders of magnitude better than anything I had ever devoured in Germany under the name "pizza".