Christopher "cricket" H.'s Profile

I've hesitated for 4 years to write this review, primarily because I'm not all that comfortable revealing personal information, but if I can save some people from a profoundly negative experience, it'll be worth it.

I saw Dr Barzman for 8 months in 2008. She was recommended as someone that takes a more holistic and less pharaceutical approach to managing mental health. After some months of therapy, she convinced me that my condition warranted some assistance with medication.

The first medication she put me on caused such immediate and extreme side effects that I ended up having to cancel a trip to visit family and instead basically spent a week making frantic trips to the bathroom (I won't go into details). On my next visit to Dr Barzman, she was quite adamant that these symptoms were not caused by the medication.

Being a proactive person, I read up on the medication and sure enough, I was seeing the most common side effect. I brought this to her attention and she became agitated and basically just said "Well, none of my patients have ever had that problem and I've been prescribing it for years". It seemed very odd to me that a doctor would not understand that you can't base things ONLY on your own direct experience with a medication. The sample size is just too small. Anyways.

This pattern repeated through other medications she tried on me, as I would continue to have bad side effects for each of them that outweighed any benefit. She'd once again denied that the medication could be at fault based on her own personal experience.

She put me on another medication which seemed to be working with no bad side effects. I happened to be visiting my GP and when she heard what I was taking and at what dose, she was flabbergasted. She told me the dosage was extremely high and that the drug I was taking was highly addictive, with serious withdrawal problems when I needed to come off of it. I did my own research, which all confirmed what my GP said.

When I brought this up to Dr Barzman, she became unhinged and angry and basically yelled at me. She insisted the dosage was not high and the drug was not addictive (which contradicted even what the manufacturer says in their own literature). She was very upset that I had consulted someone else and demanded to know the credentials of my GP. She rattled off her own credentials and was quite upset that I would value the opinion of someone that did not have the same degrees on their wall as she did. "How dare you undermine my authority!" came out of her mouth at one point (direct quote).

Looking back on previous sessions, I recalled other instances when she would get mildly annoyed or agitated if I questioned anything she advised me to do.

Needless to say, this was the end of my sessions with Dr Barzman and I was left to spend the next 6 months getting off the "temporary" medication that she had me taking. The dosage she was giving me was basically the largest possible dose that anyone ever takes and is typically for people that need to be committed.

Perhaps she does help some patients, but I guess you have to be very passive and not take an active role in healing yourself to get along with Dr Barzman. To get angry and yell at someone for doing their own research and passing along information from the GP is unprofessional and detrimental to people that you are supposed to be helping.

The short version is that I'd avoid Dr Barzman at all costs. There are plenty of kind, compassionate doctors and therapists and psychiatrists out there to choose from. At this risk of crossing the line, I'd suggest that Dr Barzman has her own very serious issues that she needs to work out before she should be seeing other patients.

I'm prefix by saying that resorts are definitely not my thing, so take this with a grain of salt.

Pros:

- Everyone on the staff, from front desk to valets to concierge to cleaners to wait staff in the restaurant are genuinely friendly and helpful, far beyond any hotel we've ever stayed.
- The food was just outstanding, a solid 5 stars. Brown's Beach House, although definitely expensive, was more than worth the cost. I never got tired of the menu and everything was delicious and healthy and downright beautiful. One nice thing we figured out is we could sit down at the Hale Kai restaurant and order from their menu (a solid 4 stars), but also order anything from the Brown's Beach House menu as well. Brown's Deli (also 4 stars) was also great for Breakfast and Lunch, featuring fresh juice and freshly made baked goods.

Cons:

- Like many resorts, it's a very artificial environment. All the landscaping was created in an area that was previously lava beds and looked like the surface of the moon. It's very unreal and fake feeling.
- The rooms are not very quiet as the ventilation systems are on the noisy side and you can also hear the elevators in some rooms. In the early morning, on the golf course side, the sprinklers start up.
- Landscaping activity seemed to be continuous and very loud, with lots of gas-powered equipment. Just not very peaceful at all.
- For those that don't want to spend all their time at the resort, the location is not very close to all the interesting stuff to do. Lots of driving to get anywhere.
- It was unusually windy when we were there, to the point that it was unpleasant to be outside at all. Apparently not like that all the time, but if you are expecting a nice, calm breezy place, this may not be it.
- The snorkeling is very unimpressive at the resort, much better if you head towards Kona.
- There is a lot of nickel-and-diming going on, from renting water gear (which is not very good quality), to renting shady places to sit, to parking fees, etc.
- The breakfast buffet was the one exception to the 5 star food. It was way overpriced ($40 per person) and the quality of food was not that great.
- We ran into people smoking on several occasions. Not really the resorts fault, but it would be nice if they'd keep a better eye on that.

If I were to come to the Big Island again, I'd head to South Kona and rent a condo or stay in a Bed & Breakfast. Much more low-key, quiet, and peaceful. If you like resorts, and don't really want to leave the facility, this is probably a good place and the food is just outstanding. If you're looking for serene and quiet and natural, this is probably not your place.

I have mixed feelings about OSH, but I give the appliance department (and Zohir in particular) a solid 5 stars. My experience buying appliances usually consists of either going to a store that appears to have no staff or one staffed by former used car salesmen. OSH is a great place to buy appliances, although not all their stores sell appliances.

I give the rest of OSH 3 stars. It's basically a Home Depot, but with slightly more staff and we have gotten some very knowledgable help there. But they do carry much of the same crap and the nursery is pretty mediocre.

So, 5 stars for appliances, 3 for the rest, averaging out to 4 stars. :)

First off, it's awesome to have something other than a new restaurant opening on Castro!

I worked in a bike shop for 6 years, so I'm pretty picky and demanding, but these guys have outstanding customer service, a very uncluttered and well-organized store, and competitive prices. If you drive down El Camino, there are quite a few bike shops, but they are all pretty mediocre.

They carry a great range of bikes from the inexpensive to the very expensive, but they aren't bike snobs and don't try to push you into buying something that's more than what you need. They have a nice selection of accessories and you don't get overwhelmed by shelves overstuffed with too many products to choose from. You get the impression that they generally just want to carry stuff that's a good value. Also, they use a Mac-based cash register system, so that rocks.

Although I'm not certain, I believe the store was started and staffed by Eric, Jason, and Taylor, so you're not being served by wage slaves while the boss is sitting in his office puffing on a cigar. An added bonus is that Taylor is absolutely adorable, but I was too shy to ask for his phone number.

It's hard to talk about Scream Sorbet without lapsing into overused phrases, so perhaps it'll motivate you to go to a Farmers Market if you don't already, simply so you can try a taste.

Their committment to local food sources and the highest quality ingredients, as well as their incredibly ingenuity at coming up with unique and amazing flavors makes them well worth the trip.

Don't let the word vegan scare you off. These are among the best you'll ever taste.

I'll preface my review by saying that I hate chain stores in general, but Longs pushes all my "I hate chain stores" buttons, so I think they are deserving of 1 star. My reasons:

* Why must crappy music be blaring all the time? Can't it either be quiet or play something ambient or pleasant while shopping?
* Why does it take 30 minutes to fill a prescription? At Maximart in Palo Alto, a small independent pharmacy, I can get a prescription filled in 5 minutes.
* There are just aisles and aisles of crap that have nothing to do with healthcare. This is not just a Longs complaint, but all the big drugstores are crapstores that happen to also carry healthcare products
* The lighting is overly bright and has that hospital feel to it
* Banners everywhere touting how they are your "local" pharmacy, complete with pictures of your "local" pharamacist. Longs isn't any more my local pharmacy than WalMart is my local corner store.
* The last annoyance is they always push their rewards card on you whenever you buy anything. I don't want any rewards cards. My reward is going somewhere pleasant and quiet and well-lit and being treated like a human being

We've been using Teamworks for 2 years, first at an apartment and then at a house for the last year or so. We've been thoroughly satisfied with their service and professionalism.

Quite a few things set them apart from any most other cleaning services:

* They communicate quickly and easily via email, which is great if you are very busy and don't always have time to take phone calls
* They exclusively use environmentally-friendly products
* They are an employee-owned co-op, so the proceeds go to the employees themselves rather that to a middleman
* They regularly solicit feedback to make sure everything is going well with their service

They are a socially responsible organization, giving their employees wages they can actually live on, as well as providing educational opportunities, health insurance, and other benefits. It's a great way to get a clean house and also help people in your own community get a leg up.

When we were first with Teamworks, the founder was our contact and now our contact was someone promoted from within their organization, who is now in charge of the local co-op, while other co-ops are being formed in other areas.

Rather than going cheap on everything you buy and then give money to charity (where 80% of what you give goes to pay administrators), seek out great local businesses and socially responsible organizations like Teamworks that treat their employees well and want them to succeed and prosper.

Huge hardware store with great selection that is a no-brainer alternative to Home Depot. You will never have trouble finding someone to help you as the store is very well staffed and the staff is friendly almost to the point that I wonder if they are medicated (only joking). I believe that they must treat their employees well because everyone seems happy to work there. Support a local business! They are an ACE hardware, but ACE is a co-op and each store is independently-owned and there is nothing cookie-cutter about this place.

A pharmacy the way it should be. Instead of a giant store like Longs or Walgreens that carries 90% crap that has nothing to do with health, Maximart is a small operation that does what pharmacies should do: fill prescriptions and sell health-related products. If you want a great pharmacy where they will come to know you by name and bend over backwards to meet your needs, this is the place to go. Support a local business and go to Maximart!

I initially gave them a 4 star review but have since upgraded to 5 stars, primarily because I've been using them for far longer and have also had so many negative experiences with the chain drugstores like Long's that I have extra appreciation for Maximart.

A few things that have impressed me since my initial review:

* If there's something they don't stock, they do an awesome job of special ordering items and will also just carry stuff if you tell them you'll be a regular purchaser of the item. A particular type of saline solution I wanted, they've started carrying and whenever I visit, they always have a couple on the shelf
* They are FAST at filling prescriptions. Most pharmacies take 20-30 minutes to fill a prescription, even when they are not busy. Somehow, Maximart can slam out a prescription, even a new one, in 5 minutes while I wait

I could spend hours at a time in this wonderful store. They basically sell almost everything you could possibly need to turn your house into a green-friendly home. This includes: clothing, beds, cleaning supplies, flooring, paints and stains, carpets and rugs, countertops, office supplies, kitchen supplies, and general household products.

I'm renovating my townhouse in Santa Cruz, and I'm buying beautiful countertops (made from recycled glass), wood floors (sustainable wood with low VOCs), paint, stain, and pretty much everything else I need. The staff is outstanding in its knowledge about environmentally-friendly building and is an essential resource to any homeowner or contractor wanting to learn about casting aside the ways of the past and looking towards a greener future.

The building materials section is almost like an art gallery as the products are just so gorgeous. It's great to go to a store where everything looks so beautiful instead of the usual experience of hunting around to find the one thing that you like in a sea of crappy or ugly or toxic products.