Artist Date #2: B-I-N-G-O

My second artist date consisted of visiting a scene from my childhood. Today I attended the fall festival that my elementary school organizes annually. It is a family affair with carnival type games along the sides of the auditorium and the bingo callers up on stage.

When I first stepped into the auditorium, all of my senses were bombarded. I got a whiff of cotton candy and popcorn at the door, bingo numbers were being called out over a microphone and kiddies were running around with their parents in tow or with their own buddies.

I played two games of bingo. The first time I bought two cards for the price of 50 cents. Then the second round was blackout, meaning the entire card had to be filled. I was really close to winning blackout, but 3 people beat me to it. As each number was called, I could feel the tension mounting both within me and in the auditorium. Unfortunately I did not win any money, but it was interesting to visit a place of my past. As a kid, things seem so much larger and grand. Now that I come back after 15 years, it doesn't look that big. Also, I saw some of the teachers I had while back in elementary school and they almost looked the same. It might be the good Asian genes that keep them looking young.

I'm glad that's now out of my system. Don't need to go back for another 15 years now.

Halloween hijinks

German for a Day

Candy is evil. Recently there has been too much of it lying around within easy reach in the office because it's Halloween. I ended up having a fun pack of M&M's, a Reese's peanut butter cup and then a Butterfinger to top it off.

On the street, I didn't see too many custumed people. Here in the picture you see a guy pretending to be German with his fake Lederhosen. His Hosen aren't even leder if you look closely at the image! I think the cloth is khaki.

I think it would be fun to really dress up one time and take a picture.

Masquerade!

Kontraste

Halloween is creeping up on me. It's the perfect time to wear masks and dress up in costumes. Oh wait, it's that what we all do everyday?

At my office there will be a little Halloween gathering over lunch hour. It's a brown bag lunch deal, but they will provide dessert. Costumes are allowed, but I'm going to pass. As a new person, I'm not about to go out on a limb and dress up. I first have to see how many people dress up. I haven't dressed up for Halloween since I was in elementary school.

Some people are very fun-loving and will wear a costume. My sister's boss is going to be a volcano for Halloween. At first she was going to be a love machine, but she couldn't find the right T-shirt for that. Interesting...Then one of my sister's coworkers is going to be hot sauce. Okay...

What should I be for Halloween if I were to dress up? I really don't know. I would have to think really hard to come up with a cool and creative idea.

About the Picture: I like how the hipster and the old lady contrasts on many levels.

Snap

Snap - That was what one of the rods holding up the Bay Bridge did yesterday. It was so windy that one of the cables snapped and hit 3 cars as they were driving on the upper deck of the workhorse bridge. Read about it here. I haven't looked at the Bay Bridge recently, but it must be weird to see absolutely no cars driving on the bridge. Traffic was also flowing much smoother today because of all those people who couldn't drive to work over the Bay Bridge.

About the Picture: This is a snapshot of the view in the lobby of my office building. Love those Corinthian columns.

View from the Freeway

This is what I see on the way to work. Sorry no inspiration today.

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Cloud 9

About the Picture: I'm a speed walker, so I rarely stop to just look up at the sky. However, I stopped to admire this view yesterday. The clouds were the cirrus type. The sky was so vast and blue and the clouds so wispy. Speeding through life sometimes makes us miss the small moments of beauty.

About a Previous Post: I wrote a bit about Philipp Roesler on Saturday and it just amazes me how many hits my blog has gotten because of that post. It may be because people are so curious about an Asian person being a part of the German cabinet. It still boggles my mind.

Hippietown

There was some sort of hippie gathering in GGP today. I found out it's called West Fest. You couldn't miss it because of all the tie-dyed clothing around and the psychedelic buses. See two examples above.

The crowd was interesting because there was a mix of clean cut youngsters, alternative looking youngsters, middle aged hippies and unsavory types with long stringy hair coming out of the park.
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Party Politics

Autumn's Harvest

About Other Things: I had to do a double take when I saw an article about Merkel's new cabinet members because I thought I saw an Asian-looking person in the club. I found out that he's called Philipp Roesler and was originally from South Vietnam. I'm surprised that he's made it so far and at such a young age (37 years old). That's pretty good for him and it raises the profile of Asians in Germany I guess.

While here in San Francisco, we've never even had a Chinese or Asian mayor despite the huge number of Asians in the city. That's somewhat disappointing. But you have to ask yourself as well, maybe they're just not interested in politics.

Speaking of politics, the San Francisco supervisors need to get in touch with their constituents because they are proposing new rules that don't address the city's main issues of homelessness and public transport. One rule that a supervisor suggested was that paper bags be banned. I don't think they necessarily should be banned but maybe you could make people pay for them if they want them just like in German supermarkets with plastic bags. In any case, the frustrating thing is that I wish the SF government would start fixing the big problems instead of focusing on the nice to haves. The government needs to get its priorities straight.

About the Photo: Pumpkin decorations at my friend's autumn gathering. She lives across the Bay in Oakland. This was the first time I drove over the Bay Bridge all by myself. I had my trusty GPS device with me, so I got there without a hitch despite the S-curve of they put in. Usually I hear horror stories of Oakland, but her neighborhood was fine. The cost of the toll coming back to San Francisco cost $4. Now I have the East Bay driving experience along with my South Bay driving experience. I'm a more well rounded person because of this.

Happy Friday

Treated myself to a scrumptious lunch of warm salmon sandwich from LuLu Petite. The bread was soft as a pillow. It was called filone bread I think. This is indeed a happy Friday.
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Barbary Coast

About the Picture: Barbary Coast was a wild place back in San Francisco's Gold Rush days. Read this informative Wiki about it. The photo is of one of the plaques in the ground showing the Barbary Coast walking trail. I never noticed the huge detail in these plaques until after I looked at the picture I took.

About Life Things: I'm happy to report that my presentation went well. Although I only spoke for about 10 minutes, I didn't choke during any part of it, thank you very much.

Visualization

About the Photo: The great challenge I face on a daily basis is what picture to take, especially since I can't go on photo shoots when I spend 8 hours at work. There are only so many new things to photograph within walking distance of my office. Today I ventured out to Jackson Square district. The numerous brick buildings in this area reminded me a bit of Boston. In the alley where I shot this picture, I can envision a model with tousled hair standing against the brick wall looking pensive and lost in thought.

About Other Things: Like an athlete, I need to use my powers of visualization to imagine myself presenting flawlessly and gracefully tomorrow. I'm scheduled to present a couple slides to a group of 30 people tomorrow in a training session and my boss will be there. The pressure's on, but I practiced and have faith.

News Boy

About the Picture: Looking at this picture above, it reminds me of how Mad Men starts. [Aside: Do you guys get Mad Men in Germany? If not, it's likely in the works and coming to a Fernseher near you soon.] I really like the stylized beginning and the music. It's uebercool. I shot this photo along the Embarcadero. The weather was so fine that many people were outside just enjoying the weather and reading. At moments like these I think about how lucky I am to live in SF.

Tourist Trap

California

I decided to take a new walking path during my lunch hour. Instead of walking to the Ferry Building, I went up my favorite street - California. I love California Street, if you can love a street because it's so steep. On my way down the street, I saw a huge crowd of tourists, who might have been German, pile into a Chinese restaurant at the corner of California St. and Grant Ave. I don't know if it's good, but I'm guessing that it's just for tourists.

I've been in their shoes before. When I travel with tour groups, they usually lead us to eat at restaurants that are not so hot. Sometimes this makes me feel like a sheep being herded. Baaahhh!!!

Nooks & Crannies

Tai Chi

Sundays = Park Day
It's great to be able to get outside and away from laptops, Internet and Facebook and get some exercise. The powers that be recommend at least 30 minutes of exercise a day, but I only do it on the weekends. I don't feel like paying for gym membership either, so it makes fitting in the 30 minutes a day difficult.

As I was heading over to JFK Blvd this morning, I played the good citizen :-) because I helped a couple from Colombia find their way to the Conservatory of Flowers. They were hopelessly lost, thinking that they were at one end of the park when really they were at another end. Luckily for them I know my way around (for the most part). Golden Gate Park is notoriously hard to navigate. You can easily get lost because there isn't much street signage and the maps are poor.

Sundays in Golden Gate Park have a lot to offer its visitors. You could participate in a tai chi lesson like the people in the picture. You could take a free swing dance lesson at noon from the folks at Lindy in the Park. Or if you're into flowers, check out the Conservatory of Flowers for a fee. Museums such as the California Academy of Sciences and the de Young Museum are also in the park. If that's not your cup of tea and you want to get physical, go up to Stow Lake to paddle around in little boats or rent bicycles to tool about the park. If none of the above appeals to you, then just stroll along JFK Blvd at your own pace. There's something for everyone.

Guessing Game

What is This?

Today in Spanish class we learned how to describe our families, for example, the number of nephews and nieces you have, your grandparents, your parents, siblings, etc. Then we also learned the possessive pronouns such as my, your, their. So far I'm still enjoying learning Spanish. It give my weekends some purpose and structure. I'd like to take the Spanish 1B if it's offered on Saturdays next semester. I'm crossing my fingers!

In terms of random facts, I learned in class that Enrique Iglesias' mother is from the Philippines. I can win the next trivia game with this fact in my back pocket.

Keeping My Day Job

I guess I'll still be showing up to work next Monday because I didn't win the California lottery. My boss got me and my coworker tickets but not even one of the numbers matched. Bummer!

By the way, if you're looking for a new drink, try Almond Milk. It's out of this world delicious.

It's a Sign!

There was a one day 30% off sale at an art store in the Financial District, so I checked it out for bargains. I ended up getting these two notebooks because the colors were so cheery and the price was right. Turns out that these notebooks were made in Spain. What a coincidence! I think it's a positive sign for my trip to Espana next year. Europe, oh Europe ... why do you have such a strong hold on me like no other destination?

P.S. Obama is in town today, causing rush hour traffic to slow to a crawl.

Internal Compass

Now that I have a fairly steady work schedule, I have time on my hands to create a life outside of work. It's exciting and scary at the same time because this is unchartered territory for me. I can no longer hide behind my work!

Native Speaker

City Sidewalks

I find it interesting that there's been so much discussion in Germany about Guido Westerwelle, the future Foreign Secretary's English language skills. While his Youtube video (see below) did leave me scratching my head wondering what he meant to say, what I found more disturbing was his lack of tact when a BBC reporter asked him a question in English during a press conference. (Westerwelle Reprimanding a BBC Correspondent) As a political representative, I think he could have answered in a more elegant fashion. Aren't politicians supposed to be well spoken after all?

Dream Come True

Antique Light

About the Photo: I've always wanted to shoot the dome inside the Neiman Marcus store. Now my dream's come true. Neiman Marcus is a traditional shopping center that sells designer brands. It has a beautiful dome with a picture of a ship on it. You can faintly make out the ship in the photo above. I walked in the store and pretended to be a customer and snapped the photo as I was leaving. The store gave me an idea of what San Francisco must have been like in its hey-day.

Neiman Marcus sells brands like Jil Sander, Prada, Gucci, Armani, Burberry etc. I looked at the price of a woman's buttoned down shirt at Loro Piana and the price tag read $495! I nearly fell off my rocker. Why would a shirt cost that much?

Enjoyment Now or Enjoyment Later?

Fern

I've been trying to finish Oliver Stone's film "Wall Street" this weekend, but other things keep getting in the way. It's a cult classic if you work in the business world because everyone has heard of "Gordon Gekko" and his catchphrase - "Greed is good." Also, one quote that came from the move is "Lunch is for wimps". Ha ha! Funny funny!

In addition, I've been trying to cycle through my pile of magazines. Today I read a fascinating article in the mag "New York" about cheapskates. I could relate to the article because deep down inside, I am a tightwad. I admit it. When I decide to buy things, I have a long internal dialogue with myself, weighing the pros and cons of making a purchase. For example, how much pleasure will I get from making the purchase. I'll only buy it if the utility I derive from the product is greater than the cost. Same thing applies to purchases of coffee even. I really like the expensive mixed coffee drinks that no self-respecting coffee lover would drink. Because of the high price, coffee experiences must be limited to max a couple times a month. Some people would say, it's just a coffee, but I say, the little things add up!

This attitude towards money was developed early on because I had no spending money as a kid. Growing up, money was tight, which made me aware very early on that money does not grow on trees, so it must be conserved or spent judiciously, rather than flung around. Over time though, I've developed my own delicate balance between saving and indulging. I try to indulge once in a while because denying yourself little happinesses is not good either.

Picnic

About the Photo: I like this photo because it has simple lines. Also, I enjoy the color play between the white bench slats and the emerald green grass. This photo has a springy feel to it.

About Other Things: I'm trying to multi-task by reading my voting materials and blogging. Voting is a privilege, but really it's a burden too because I have to read up on the various propositions and inform myself before voting. I feel it's my duty since SF tends to have some crazy propositions. If I don't make my voice heard, my tax dollars will be used for things I do not approve of.

Here's a run down of some of the more interesting propositions on the ballot:

Prop C - Candlestick Park Naming Rights - This prop would allow the City to receive revenue in exchange for naming rights of the football stadium at Candlestick Point.
I vote yes because SF needs as much revenue it can get! Some people don't like the fact that the stadium could be named after any company that pays the most, but I think it's fine. If you like the name Candlestick Park, you can call it that amongst your friends.

Prop D - Mid Market Special Sign District - would allow billboards to be placed in the mid-Market district (between 5th and 7th streets). Part of the signage revenue will be provided to arts groups to help vitalize the area. I'm for this. Something is better than nothing when it comes to rejuvenating this area of the city. I personally never walk beyond Market and 4th streets because it's so dirty and sketchy after 4th street.

Autumn in the Air

Vivid

Happy Friday! It's Fleet Week here in SF, so the military might is being paraded around this weekend. The Blue Angels were zooming around the Financial District yesterday and today. It's really distracting because you hear this loud roar and want to see what type of daredevil formation the jets are in. I'm not really into this display of military muscle because I think it's a waste of money to put on an air show. Save the money and use it to get the homeless into rehabilitation or housing! Plus, Fleet Week is also a recruitment tool to inspire youngsters to join the military because they are inspired by the jets. Spare me.

By the way, I saw the film "L'auberge espagnole" on DVD the other day. It's a nice fluffy film about Europeans sharing an apartment. It's by the same director of "Paris" - Cedric Klapisch. Tonight I wanted to see "Wall Street" of "Greed is good" fame, but the DVD I borrowed from the library was scratched, so the film stuck. :-(

Slice of SF Life

I interrupt my usual photo a day to provide you with one of the most popular videos on youtube.
Check this out -



Although San Francisco is a relatively diverse and tolerant place, this doesn't mean that everyone's "happy happy". There are still racial tensions underlying interactions between people of different ethnic groups. The video shows one of the classic antagonistic pairs, especially when it comes to riding the MUNI.

The Asian woman is probably seen as a folk hero now that the video is so wide spread. SFgate had an article on it and it was also featured on the Cantonese language evening news. The reason this video has had such an impact is that many Asians feel that they are bullied on the bus. The Asian woman who fought back is an exception. Because I don't know the whole story, I don't want to opine either way. However, I do have to say that the younger Asian woman who stepped in at the end probably should not have said that the fighting Asian woman in purple was being immature. I'd like to know how she would have reacted if she were punched in the face suddenly.

Unfortunately, weird stuff and fights on MUNI are nothing new. San Francisco has pretty corners for the tourists and well to do folks, but there's also a gritty side to the city, especially when you take the bus.

Office Space

This is my office, about 1 month after I started the job. I've settled down a bit and developed a routine, but I still need to put up some nice pictures to make the space more cheery.

Speaking of cheery, I had a little pick-me-up today - it was by speaking German. I found out that my local Goethe Institute organizes lunch time discussions once a week on Wednesdays from 12:30 - 1:15 PM and it doesn't cost a dime! I hadn't spoken German regularly for nearly 2 years now, so it was sometimes slow for me to find the right words to express myself. I probably would go back next week if I have time in my schedule.

Always a Foreigner

Get Your Ducks in a Row

Asians = sneaky corporate spies

This is the message I got when I saw an ad from a software company that sells employee monitoring products. This is how the ad looked - an Asian man, a Caucasian man and a Caucasian woman with words written on their foreheads. On the Caucasian man's forehead were the words "I view X-rated sites behind my cube walls". On the woman's head you see the words "I shop online all day at work". And on the Asian's forehead .... (drumroll please) .... of course the Asian is a corporate spy selling secrets. As an Asian American, I do not appreciate the stereotype that we steal company information, implicitly to provide it to the motherland - China. Just because some people might have done this, does not mean we're all sneaky people!

The Awakening

Girlishness

It's time to come to your senses. You go to work to earn money, so that you can live a semi-comfortable life. Nothing more, nothing less. Don't expect to make any friends. If you do, then good for you!

I read an interesting article in the Economist recently. It stated that instead of using GDP as a measure of well-being, we should somehow find a way to measure happiness. What a good idea! America enjoys a high GDP per capita, but Americans work too much. There's so much more that goes into the equation for happiness in addition to goods and services. According to the article, the GDP of France is lower, but the French work less, so maybe they are happier. I'm all for working less and spending time on things I enjoy. Next Monday I have a 3 day weekend because of Columbus Day, which is a bank holiday. Yippee! What should I do with this free day?

Traipsing Around the Park

Golden Gate Park was bustling today!
In the morning I saw the pink clad Avon Breast Cancer walkers along with their boisterous supporters. Later in the morning the park was swarming with people going to enjoy the bluegrass music festival. I can't believe this event is free. Somebody has to pay for the security and the clean up afterwards.

The weather was the real showstopper though. It was simply perfect with the sun shining and wind, which kept everything nice and crisp - just the way I like it.

Beyond Navel Gazing

Full Moon Food

Stepping back for a moment and expanding my view from my own little cocooned life, things have been happening in the world.
- I found out that Rio de Janeiro beat Chicago to host the 2016 Olympics. I guess Obama's star power wasn't enough to persuade the honchos in the Olympic Committee to choose the windy city.
- Ricky Gervais has a new movie out called "The Invention of Lying". I may be biased, but I think it would be a funny movie, except the part about religion.
- San Francisco's various city departments will be running out of money soon. What's new? Somehow the city manages to hobble along year after year.

Project management

I've been down in San Diego for 2 days of company training on the topic of project management. The instructor was really good because she knew her material and was able to make the subject come to life by adding stories from her personal experience. It was a useful course because it provides me with some tools to use on any future projects I'll be helping on. One example of what I learned was what a Gantt chart is. I've used it on my projects, but I just never knew it had an official name. I always just called it a timeline.
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Stranded

I really should have rented a car when I came down here to San Diego for training because this stupid training center is in the middle of nowhere and I'm stuck here waiting for the cabbie! You learn something every time.

Update - Finally the cab came and then he drove me to the hotel that was only 10 minutes away! The hotel hallway stinks in case you were wondering and this is supposed to be a Courtyard Marriott.

About the picture - a shot of the training center lunch room.
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