Putting the “Arrrggh” in “Store”

  Regrettably, I’m not much of a reader. Still, I am a fan of the McSweeney’s catalogs edited, designed, and published by author Dave Eggers. Mostly, I love their covers, which are typographic masteries rendered in Garamond. On a recent trip to San Francisco I discovered “826 Valencia,” a non-profit writing workshop for 8-18-year olds. Founded by Eggers, “826” is a storefront in the Mission District featuring an amazing black and white mural by my longtime favorite artist Chris Ware. Stopping inside, I found out that this is not only an amazingly unique community-based center, but also “San Francisco’s only independent pirate supply store.”