The 1st of the month really kicked things off with an appointment at the Alcohol Beverage Control office of SF to apply for a type 41 liquor license which allows on-premise sale & consumption of beer & wine (an effort I like to call...Operation Jubilation). I had a hunch that this appointment would be a challenge, and I had every intention of being fully prepared for a masterful performance. Oliver & I stayed up into the morning & I was up at the crack of dawn to gather residential addresses within a 150 foot radius around 736 Valencia (part of the initial application process & not nearly as bad as gathering addresses within 500 feet). By the time my 1pm appointment was upon me, I was feeling fairly confident...confidence that would be shattered in the matter of minutes.
Without going into too much detail, there was a moment when the lovely woman behind the counter (whom I am determined to become friends with...no matter how badly she dislikes me) said, "Sarah, why are you giving me incorrect documents?" To which I answered with "Ms. Beautiful (that's not REALLY her name, but on the off chance that she reads this...I would not want to irritate her by using her real name...you know), I was unaware that they were incorrect or I certainly would not have presented them to you." Wrinkly chin fully engaged (I have gotten much better at keeping this in check over the last three weeks...in my opinion), I accepted a hug from a fellow applicant (total stranger) and headed for the train home. I had approximately 43 hours to get my self in order...and amend my Articles of Organization with the Secretary of State (f#$k).
I immediately called my lawyer & set an expedited amendment in motion (curds of thanks to Trevor!) and hoped for the best. I also had to hand-draw the space (my attachment of the architectural plan would not suffice...had to be drawn...very strange), which Josh was kind enough to help me with, contact the building department for a direct contact, and get photocopies of my parents drivers licenses (don't ask) who live in WI & are not super handy on the scanner (after some coaching...they nailed it!), amongst other tweaks & application refinement.
When Friday morning arrived, all had gone as planned & I was sure to impress Ms. Beautiful the second time around...and I did. Before I knew it I was watching a video about the responsible service of alcohol created circa 1993 and walking out of the ABC with this sweet poster...
and another pile of applications. One of which I have to sign acknowledging that the application process will take at least 5 months (what?!?), and another (my favorite) which I have to attached the addresses of all residential addresses with in a 500 foot radius of 736 Valencia and sign assuring that I sent a notice of my application to all 832 addresses (yes, 832 copies, 832 envelopes, 832 address labels, 832 return address labels, aaand 832 stamps). A task that would have taken me a week to accomplish on my own...so I called in the troops & they really rocked it. (Curds of thanks to Nat, Laur, Russ, Steph, Bart, & Oliver for their amazing envelope stuffing skills!) So, here I am 20 days after my initial appointment with 4 more applications to complete & turn in to Ms. Beautiful at the ABC office. Then, I wait. (sigh)
Other less dramatic (thank Cheesus) and way more exciting happenings in December include securing a building permit!, purchasing gorgeous Heath tile (good thing we scored a deal because I pretty much sleep with the sample tile under my pillow...I love it), reclaimed lights from Big Daddy Antiques, and tables are being constructed out of salvaged walnut at Heritage Salvage up in Petaluma! If that doesn't make you through up a fist for pump or two...I give up.
So, we have officially entered the construction phase...and I am beyond stoked to see this concrete box morph into a little slice of cheese paradise...where all the hip wheels hang (muahahahaha).
Happy Nogging from Sconi!
