In a city where the Board of Supervisors seems determined to make your blood pressure spike on a weekly basis, it's worth remembering that San Francisco still has a few things that work perfectly — and they're the things the government had the least to do with.

Fort Mason, sitting quietly on the northern waterfront, remains one of the best free experiences in the city. No permits required. No $15 parking app. No "activation fee" from some nonprofit that got a six-figure grant to put bean bags on a pier. Just the Bay, the Golden Gate, and whatever's left of your sanity after reading about the city budget.

Call it a moment of zen. Call it the one public asset San Francisco hasn't managed to over-program, over-fund, or run into the ground.

There's something almost radical about a place in this city that just is. No one's proposing a $200 million bond measure to "reimagine" it. No task force has been convened to study whether the grass is equitable enough. The views don't require a feasibility study. They just show up, every single day, completely free of charge.

For a city that spends north of $14 billion a year and still can't figure out how to keep escalators running at Civic Center station, Fort Mason is a quiet reminder that the best things often require the least intervention. Nature, a bit of maintained green space, and the good sense to leave it alone.

So if the news cycle has you spiraling — and in this town, when isn't it — take twenty minutes. Walk out to Fort Mason. Breathe. Remember that San Francisco, underneath all the dysfunction, is still one of the most beautiful places on the planet.

Then come back and keep holding City Hall accountable. Zen only lasts so long.