And then there were two...

I laughed, I almost cried, it was better than Cats. What a riveting Democratic debate between two worthy opponents, not to mention an African American and a woman! Kinda surreal that it was in Hollywood, before an Academy Award audience. Caught glimpses of Bradley Whitford (of West Wing fame), Pierce Brosnan (as the heart goes ka-thump), Stevie Wonder, Diane Keaton,...and our very own Gavin Newsom.

I was most impressed by the articulacy, quick-wittedness and high caliber of the two candidates (which reminded me of how floored I am [down to the 30th basement level by now] over how this current...pErSoN(!!) not only got into office but actually won the second time around). Even more striking was the mutual respect that Obama and Clinton obviously shared for each other, nodding quite frequently in agreement while the other was speaking, and jointly conveying the message that, differences aside, we need to be a united Democratic front.

Like Wolf tonight, the pundits are going try to introduce instigating spins to this event, but I thought the two of them were brilliant. [insert dramatic slow clapping, increasing with speed]

I'm Your Biggest Fan

In this age of sensational reporting, I appreciate those who tell it like it is without needing to add a spin to get more gasps or "tsk tsk" from their audience. That's why I so greatly respect and support the crew at NPR for their more objective reporting...(with "more" as the operative word, 'cos I don't know if there's such a thing as truly unbiased journalism).

Special props go out to my favorite correspondents Ivan Watson, with his earnestness and charming lisp; and Anne Garrels, whose shakey voice brought the chaos and fear from the front lines of Afghanistan and Iraq into my consciousness.

While the others judge, rant, and rave to boost their ratings, I'm sticking with those who don't need to exaggerate to make us stop and think. Keep on keeping it real, guys.

Van Damme had the Flintstones

...and I have Bajo La Misma Piel. If the "Muscles from Brussels" can pick up English from Hanna Barbera, then I should be able to improve my Spanish (and melodrama) by occasionally watching a telenovela during lunch breaks. If only there were subtitles, though. I'm not good enough yet to figure out why Bruno was so upset and hollering at poor Sara in that last scene...

"Poor Baby..."

That was Nancy Pelosi's response to hints that the President was going to challenge Democrats on immigration during his State of the Union address. "Poor baby"? Is this what it has come down to, sarcastic schoolyard taunts, on the record? What's next, Harry Reid publicly calling Bush a "Liar, liar, pants on fire"? Don't get me wrong, I definitely agree that this Administration has yet to get its head out of the sand -- and I've indulged in my share of b*tching about the fools in private company -- but I also believe that the institution of the Presidency deserves respect. The man may be among the worst in history, but let's preserve the dignity of the office regardless of who's in it. We just need to make sure the next person is more deserving of the post.

I Shall Call You Alex

This little gal greeted me outside my window today. I think she's a black-chinned hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri), though a few of the western hummingbird females are hard to tell apart since they're not as colorful as the guys. Anyway, I was mesmerized as she darted about with her blurry wings -- a welcome rest for my monitor-fatigued eyes.
Fun Fact: Their eggs are about the size of a coffee bean!

Making a Life List

43 things. An interesting concept to help people stay on track via an on-line community. I'm hoping you guys will help keep me accountable with my 2008 resolutions and goals. ¡Muchas gracias! Quisiera montar mi bicicleta ahora pero está lloviendo.

Miss you guys...

Bottled Up

"It took approximately 17 million barrels of oil equivalent to produce plastic for bottled water consumed by Americans in 2006 — enough energy to fuel more than 1 million American cars and light trucks for a year." - The Pacific Institute, Dec 2007

Yikes. I don't know when or how this bottled water craze started, but I definitely rode that wave with everyone else for a little while.

Then as evidence mounted over the environmental impacts -- like how much energy goes into the whole bottling process and the spike in consumer waste, not to mention those reports about some brands getting their water from the tap (tsk, tsk, Dasani and Aquafina) -- folks started waging campaigns against the bottled water industry and for the virtues of tap water. The word on the street then was to reuse more durable water bottles instead, like Nalgene or Camelbak. (I never leave home without it!)

Now there's concern over those bottles leaching Bisphenol A (BPA), which more and more studies are linking to scary health problems like prostate and breast cancer, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, immune suppression, etc.

So I check whether my favorite bottle contains BPA by looking underneath for a #7 recycling logo and the letters "PC", for polycarbonate... Darn it, now what?

Remembering A King

Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech on August 28, 1963.

Video
Transcript

Monday Morning Pile Up

Musings from the weekend that are too short to warrant their own entries...

• I was childishly star-struck when Robin Williams made a surprise guest appearance at Friday's Dr. Katz show (as part of the SF SketchFest). What an amazingly crazy legend!
  
• Swimming is our new big thing. Our goal is to rival our senior "are they on steroids??" counterparts. I'm convinced that they must have been star athletes during their prime. (Yes, all 15 of them.)
• The Future is Apple, and those folks at their stores are living it. Ryan epitomized the "personal shopper" experience by spending over 1/2 hour with us to demonstrate the features of our next investment (the iMac) and how they've incorporated iPhone's "enlarging" technology into their laptop touchpads. Then he rang us up using his hand-held cash register. It was rough stepping back into this primitive world...
  
• We finally tore into the first season of Wonder Woman, which we picked up at Target a few weeks ago. I love it when she hovers around in that invisible plane.
• Contentedness is...enjoying a spontaneous brunch of "pei dan sao yoke jok" (porridge with preserved egg and pork) after church with friends at Won-Ton House on Noriega.

A good start to one of those deadline-filled weeks!

Africa

I just took a traveler IQ quiz and was reminded that my knowledge of Africa (e.g., geography), well,...sucks. So I'm going to study this map and endeavor to learn more about this "forgotten continent".

What Would You Do?

What if you found yourself within earshot of a private conversation among people you did not know that involved hate speech? Regardless of whether the bigoted slurs were being directed at you or anyone else nearby, they were being spoken loudly enough for everyone to hear. Would you say or do anything?

I found myself in this situation the other day, "trapped" as a captive audience to such verbal violence while standing in line for over 30 minutes. And what did I do? Nothing at all, except for grimace each time the hate-ridden words sliced the air. I am ashamed, and I'm now regretting it terribly. Not very becoming of a so-called "community advocate". Never again.

What would you have done?

Of course...

...I had to pick a blustery rainy day to get my passport photo taken. Never thought Squeaks could pull off a beehive.

Buzzkill

Nothing ruins a good groove like when iTunes (unshuffled) goes from "Annie, are you okay? You okay? Are you okay, Annie? You’ve been hit by, you’ve been struck by, a smooth criminal!" straight into "Recorded Books presents an unabridged recording of 'The Bonesetter's Daughter' by Amy Tan..."

Aaah, Les Miz...

I'm so pleased to have picked the Les Misérables soundtrack as background music to my workday today. Few songs make me pause and give me goosebumps like Valjean and Fantine's heart-wrenching "Come To Me", his feisty duet with Javert in "The Confrontation", and the power of "One Day More". *shudder*

Flambé!

"I think I'm drunk," he slurred after sampling a mouthful of our Szechuan Beef and Peppers entreé. He then smiled encouragingly at our concerned faces, silently indicating, "but it's all good."

CO and I experimented with a few recipes this weekend, courtesy of Chef Ming Tsai. Overall, we scored an 8 out of 10 with our taster-judge, not bad considering we extinguished the flames too soon after dousing the beef dish with 1/2 cup of rum, leaving a stronger taste of alcohol in the gravy than expected. Our first real attempt at "flambé-ing" (a.k.a. setting food on fire) began with cries of excitement and muffled clapping, quickly followed by fears that the impressive foot-tall flames were getting out of control, which led to the premature stifling of the rum-fueled inferno with violent whacks of a spatula.

The Drunken Shrimp and Mango had also called for a generous portion of the liquor, but fortunately it wasn't overpowering. And the Kaffir Lime Crab appetizer -- which we modified into a tasty tortilla dip, sans lime leaves -- was a hit!

It's just as well that our menu didn't include wine pairings. Coincidentally, Chef Ming suggests following Szechuan meals with gold rum as a digestive! In any case, fun and happy tummies were enjoyed by all. Mission accomplished!

Perfect Storm(s)

"Forecasters predict the next few days will bring the Bay Area the most rain it has seen since the New Year's Eve storms of 2005... City officials in San Francisco are warning residents and businesses in low-lying areas to prepare for flooding." - KCBS.com

"The Democratic and Republican establishments...were shaken seriously by two national newcomers who won decisively [at Thursday's Iowa caucuses] on messages of insurgency and change...Senator Barack Obama for the Democrats and former Governor Mike Huckabee for the Republicans." - New York Times

Things are getting interesting.

2008 Resolutions

I realize resolutions don't have to be made at the start of the New Year, but I'm a sucker for symbolic milestone and threshold moments. Here are a couple of goals I hope to accomplish in 2008:

1. Poder hablar español. So that I can be more effective in my community advocacy work. Daily lessons (e.g., with the Scots on Coffee Break Spanish) should help. Also seeking a conversation partner. Anyone?
   
2. Relearn how to ride a bike. I'm over the childhood trauma and am ready to climb back on that gel seat. These reasons are good motivations, and maybe I'll use some tips from here. Target goal: To ride in Critical Mass in SF sometime this year...(w/out getting run over).
   

The other items on my list fall into the general recurring categories of "Live with intentionality, purposefulness, and deliberateness" and "Maintain a healthy physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional lifestyle". (e.g., I intend to enjoy only half a slice of pumpkin pie after my Powerwalk so that my bathroom scale will continue to hover between "Marilyn Monroe" and "Kim Basinger" when I step on it,...which will make me happy.)

"Nice Job!"

That's what the grinning busboy at The House exclaimed as he reached for my plate. 'Tho he sounded impressed, I flushed crimson at being caught for scooping up the last drop of the delicious jus that soaked the braised shortribs my guy ordered...after I had devoured my own hefty Niman Ranch pork chop in pomegranate current sauce (pictured). What can I say, the stuff was good! The ahi tuna and deep-fried salmon roll appetizers; and grilled sea bass and cod entrees are worth a try, too. (Thanks to my New Year's Eve dining companions who let me taste!)