In Laurel Heights today, wandering past some especially elegant houses, I felt--as I often do--that there are really three San Franciscos; the San Francisco for the very wealthy (those making over $250,000 a year), the San Francisco for the comfortably middle class (a family of four making $100,000 to $200,000 a year), and the San Francisco for the poor. I don't think there's much gray area involved in the demographics of this city, in other words, not much room for a working-class population, not to mention artists and young entrepeneurs, to carve out a meager living. If they do exist here, they must be falling through the cracks right about now--or they're living four to a room. And the "comfortably middle class" is growing less comfortable--unless they're in one of those recession-proof job categories (whatever those are--health care, I guess).
This is one of the least attractive aspects of this city--these stark divisions between rich, moderately rich, and poor. I don't have much to say on the subject tonight, really; but it does make me feel uncomfortable when I think about the fact that I'm building a life here. Does "here" really exist in any satisfying way?
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