Like heaven's eyes - 10 things I think

10 THINGS I THINK

1. Giants are in the World Series. Again. Again! I'm obviously extremely happy as a long-time fan, but wow: the sort of success the team has been experiencing these past few years can only be described as unimaginable. Spoiled. Absolutely spoiled. It's important to be mindful just how lucky we are to see all of this - because it may never happen again. Go ahead, ask the Cubs about World Series. 

2. I bought a brand new Mac Mini to replace my aging Macbook Pro. Cannot wait for the unit to arrive to start doing stuff on it. It's nothing I couldn't have done previously, it'll simply be much, much faster. 

3. Why isn't there a Nike Men's Half Marathon? I'd be so up on that. 

4. I've discovered the "basic" white girl uniform: sweater or hoodie for the top, black leggings, and boots of some sort to round off the package. This past weekend I was at Great America for the Halloween Haunt event, and white girls in that particular garb was absolutely everywhere. 

5. The Penguin character in the Gotham television show is a revelation. I find myself looking forward to his scenes more so than any other. The actor completely pulls off teetering between trustworthiness and pure evil. 

On the other hand, the writers haven't done as good a job with the Riddler character. I hope there's more development further down this initial season. 

6. Two years into the ownership of my STI and the car barely turned 16,000 miles driven. With the recent downturn in petrol prices, I think it's high time to remedy the situation. Somewhat. I'm not made of money, you know. 

7. I'm not sure why Motor Trend is even bothering to test any other trucks for their annual Truck of the Year awards. Everybody in the industry knows the new Ford F150 will take home the golden calipers. Of the car magazine's three industry trophies, I think the one for trucks is the most worthless.

8. The Safari browser in the new OS X Yosemite operating system is actually quite good and faster than its contemporaries, but I'm so invested in Chrome with my google account that it's hard for me migrate back to it. Caught between Google and Apple: sounds oddly familiar, doesn't it? 

9. Use money for experiences, not material processions. 

10. This:

니가 뭔데 - 10 things I think

10 THINGS I THINK

1. This past weekend I went to a tailor and got measured for a suit. It's for my cousin's wedding at the end of November. My regular occupation doesn't exactly warrant the need for such sartorial dress so suffice to say it will be my first complete suit. 

But ouch is a fully-custom suit expensive. I obviously knew of the monetary consequence going in, but yeah, it still hurts when the invoice is presented to you. I'm a firm believer that suits and clothing of that nature should absolutely be tailored and fitted to the individual, otherwise it just looks sloppy and in poor taste. I could've spend a quarter of what I did at a department store but the results will be vastly unsatisfactory.

I'm going to wear the heck of that suit. Get my money's worth, you know? 

2. There's no magic like the Giants in the playoffs. Last Tuesday I went to game four of the NLDS against the Nationals, the end of which you can view in the previous blog post. Why did I ask "you do believe in fate?" Because the game wasn't even suppose to occur: it took numerous obstacles and happenstances for me to even have the opportunity to attend the game (we only ever bought game four tickets). 

First, the Giants had to win a do-or-die wild-card game against the Pirates, which they resoundingly did. Then, in a five-game series against the Nationals, games four and five is a "if necessary" scenario. The Giants, inexplicably (and I'm a Giants fan), won the first two games. Naturally, our lot felt confident about a sweep because the third game was to be started by the staff-ace Bumgarner. I was fairly resigned that I wasn't going to attend my first ever playoff game just yet. 

Well, Bumgarner lost, so game four was on. And the rest, was pure magic. Arguably the best game I've yet attended, it took incredible luck and fate for my first playoff game to also be a clinching game. Outside of seeing a clincher live in the later rounds, I don't think it gets better than what happened last Tuesday. 

Tickets stub and video saved forever. 

3. I was absolutely gutted and horrified to see the Jules Bianchi crash at the Japanese Grand Prix. It was a freak accident that nobody could have foresaw nor prevent. The diagnosis of Bianchi's head injury is not good at all - about a 90 percent chance he won't wake up. What a tremendous shame: he was a young driver with tremendous promise to take up the reign at Ferrari in the near future. 

Keep fighting, Jules; the Formula One community is rooting for you. 

4. The past week or so have not been kind to the stock market. It's gotten so bad that, for the calendar year, I am in the red. Obviously, it doesn't really matter in the long term because my investments are not to be touched for many many years. Still, it's rather heartbreaking to see it plummet to such depths. 

What's worse, this week hasn't exactly gone all too swell either. It appears it's going to hurt a bit more before it gets better again. Now if only the housing market would market-adjust itself, too.

5. Malala Yousafzai being well-deservedly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize really makes me count how blessed I am, and also, what the heck have I done to change the world around me? (answer: absolutely nothing.)

Standing ovation. 

6. Gas prices in the San Francisco Bay Area have dropped to a point where even the most expensive grade has a number three in front of the decimal point. With me driving a car that gets gas mileage in the high teens, this recent downfall in petrol cost is a much welcomed reprieve to my sanity and the wallet. Definitely got to enjoy it while it lasts.

7. It amazes me that my grandmother, whose in her eighties, still got the dexterity and acuity to thread needles and sew stuff. Me attempting to do the same results in hand more shaky than Ozzy Osbourne. I think the point is to stay active and busy even as you venture into your golden years. It won't stave off atrophy completely, but it will prolong the time to reach it. 

8. Apple's annual fall iPad and Mac event is tomorrow and I am waiting on the edge of my seat for announcement of refreshed macs - especially the long overdue Mac Mini. As I've said before, I desperately need a replacement for my long-serving 2009 era Macbook Pro. 

9. Jennifer Lawrence's response to the nude photo incident is brilliant and perfect. It absolutely is a sex crime - both for the people that stole the photographs, and the people that viewed them once it spread. 

10. This:

How easy - 10 things I think

10 THINGS I THINK

1. I proffer my absolute solidarity and support for the Occupy Central protesters in Hong Kong. China should keep it's promise of 'one country, two systems' and allow the people of Hong Kong to determine their own destiny. They deserve free and open election, unfettered and uncorrupted by the influences of Beijing. 

2. Thoughts and prayers to Formula One driver Jules Bianchi for a full recovery. What a horrific freak accident at the Japanese Grand Prix this past weekend. Motorsport has gotten exponentially safer over the decades but the inherent dangers are still so ever real. #ForzaJules

3. Giants are in the baseball postseason and I'm not getting anything done at work or at home while the games are on. It's always an incredible time when the Orange and Black makes it to October. 

4. Thanks, geniuses at MLB, for sticking the NLDS on premium cable channels only. It's like you folks are just begging me to watch the broadcast via illicit methods. 

5. Sebastian Vettel making the move from Red Bull to Ferrari next year is a very big deal indeed. Not that he just became the favorite for the 2015 championship because Ferrari hasn't shown for the better part of a decade that they're capable of building a championship caliber car. 

The real story is the internal turmoil at Red Bull Racing that led to Vettel's exodus from the team that he won four-consecutive titles with. A large part has got to be Vettel's vote of no-confidence on Renault building a functioning power-unit. Adrian Newey taking a lesser role on future car designs is probably another significant factor. Heck, even Adrian Horner is speculated to not be long for the team, with many picking him to replace Bernie at FOM. 

Red Bull Racing might be a shell of its championship self in a years time. Vettel made the right decision. 

6. Did I mention in previous blogs I like San Francisco's unique Indian-summer weather? Yeah, three straight days of 90 degrees and sunny changed my mind with much haste. When you're not used to such relatively severe weather conditions, the heat can be quite draining on your body, like something pressuring down on you constantly. I'm glad it's over now. 

7. Ebola has reached the United States and I'm like 'there's no such thing as too much Purell.'

8. The Fed Up documentary is a must watch. It's not about body image, it's about being healthy. You owe it to yourself to get educated on the food products you ingest. At the very least, you'll gain a new and more kind perspective on people who are obese/fat. 

9. My pick of new shows for this fall season:

• Gotham
• Selfie
• Black-ish

10. This:

The eternal equinox - 10 things I think

1. You need to watch Emma Watson's beautiful and moving address on gender equality at the United Nations. After that, gentlemen, please put down your pledge at heforshe.org. 

2. It's fall television premier week, so from here until December I'm just going to be in my pajamas watching shows everyday during the night hours. That is the life indeed. 

3. Scotland voted to stay in the United Kingdom, which is interesting because America's founding fathers had no idea that seceding from the British empire could be so... civilized. Could have saved us the hassle of a revolutionary war and everything. 

4. Happy autumnal equinox, or more colloquially, the official beginning of fall season. For San Franciscans, however, it's the beginning of our Indian summer. It is as cool as it sounds. After that we go straight to winter. I wish that wasn't the case though, because the change of colors during autumn is one of the loveliest things mother nature does.  

5. Updated my phone to the latest iOS 8 and I absolutely cannot tell the difference. Probably weren't suppose to anyways given that the eight iteration of Apple's mobile operating system is more a polish job than evolutionary overhaul. Thanks for the free stuff though, Apple. 

6. John Oliver will win an Emmy award next year. Book it. I love his program on HBO. 

7. I think it's about time to replace my five year old Macbook Pro with something just a bit faster. It still works, obviously, but editing photographs on it recently have gotten too stuttering to a point of distraction. It's been a valiant machine, my circa 2009 Macbook Pro, time to give it a proper rest. 

8. You can't change a person, but if that person wants to, he/she will change because of you. 

9. All my support to those in New York City marching and fighting for action on climate change. Good on all of you. I believe climate change is the issue of our generation, and it transcends all borders. Remember: we've only got but one planet. 

10. This: