Charity book sale not for the faint of heart

Personal smackdowns, a threat to call the police and 500 to 600 buyers storming the front door. What is this, the release of a new iPhone?

Nope. It is the annual five-day Friends of the Library Big Book Sale at Fort Mason. This year's event will begin Sept. 23 with the Member Preview Sale. Doors open at 4 p.m.

"I get there at 7 a.m. and there are people already in line," said Byron Spooner, director of book operations. "We've actually timed it and all 500 to 600 people go through the door in five minutes."

The sale is huge, more than 300,000 books in 50 categories. Last year, the Friends raised $265,000, even though no book sells for more than $5.

Spooner says he's broken up tugs-of-war between buyers and posted rules state they "have the right to expel anyone."

That may be easier said than done. Spooner says a couple of years ago a fire started and the Friends had to evacuate the building - or try to.

"I had to threaten to call the police to get them to leave their baskets of books," Spooner said.

Members of the Westwood Park Association, homeowners in a bungalow community near City College, made local history last week when they became the first group to invoke the city's blighted properties law for a residential property.

The law, passed last October, calls for fines of up to $1,000 or repairs by the city which would bill the owner. Anita Theoharis, a former Planning Commission president, said the law was reluctantly invoked. The residence is unpainted and has a plywood door and a front yard littered with construction materials, and some 60 neighbors signed a petition requesting action.

"We don't like neighbors running around like Nazis complaining that you didn't mow your lawn," she said. "But this is a very serious situation."

You may have read Meredith May's story on the renovation of the horseshoe pit in Golden Gate Park that dates back to 1937. Saturday, the site hosted an official horseshoe pitching tournament, including none other than Brian Simmons, a two-time world champion.

Simmons won the straight up competition, but using the handicap scoring system, California Women's Champion Kimmy Stockli was the overall winner.

The sport requires a keen eye, a subtle touch and a steady hand. And that doesn't include getting the shoes off the horses.