Airgas
525 23rd St. (at Illinois), 648-9353, www.airgas.com
The new Bay Bridge span may be a boondoggle, but if exploited properly by natives, it could solve the region's outsourcing problem. Thousands of jobs in areas such as financial services, engineering, programming, and other San Francisco specialties are in the process of being shipped to Bangalore and Manila over fiber optic lines. The solution: Use the bridge project as a source of hundreds of relatively high-paying welding jobs. To get certified, take classes at City College's southeast satellite campus or at Laney College in Oakland. But first, you'll need gloves, a smock, and other basic supplies, which you can get from Airgas on the east side of Potrero Hill. Now scoot, before outsourcing hands you your ass on a platter.
