All photos: Matt Ghali for the Appeal

Market Street’s LED snowflakes — the ones that came with quite a price: “$1,600 sponsorship decorates one lamppost; $8,000 for five and $16,000 for 10” quoth the Garchik, asking:

Why, with money short for arts and athletics programs in the schools, with so many people living in the street and so many San Franciscans with so many unmet needs, would anyone be moved to donate money to put snowflakes on lampposts?

Stop making me think, Leah! Just, stop.

Anyway, they finally lit them us last night, after a disconcerting sneak preview in September. Appeal photographer Matt Ghali was there to shoot the big reveal, as was Mayor Gavin Newsom, fresh from his interview with our own Chris Roberts.

Did someone say “freezing out the media?” Well, one look at Gavin smiling over these icy icons and some Appeal staffers who won’t be named just melted, so hardly.

the author

Eve Batey is the editor and publisher of the San Francisco Appeal. She used to be the San Francisco Chronicle's Deputy Managing Editor for Online, and started at the Chronicle as their blogging and interactive editor. Before that, she was a co-founding writer and the lead editor of SFist. She's been in the city since 1997, presently living in the Outer Sunset with her husband, cat, and dog. You can reach Eve at eve@sfappeal.com.

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