Monday, June 27, 2011
Debris from Japanese Earthquake Tsunamis to Hit West Coast
The experts are saying that debris from the Japanese earthquake tsunamis will eventually hit the west coast of the U.S. It's just a matter of time. We've bookmarked a site called "Beachcombers' Alert!" that can be found under our Links that has information on this subject. Check it out.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Tuesday, June 07, 2011
We Was Flocked!
We awoke to a flock of flamingos on our lawn one morning.
They were everywhere!
Yes, that's right. We had been flocked! This is a school fundraiser.
They were everywhere!
Yes, that's right. We had been flocked! This is a school fundraiser.
Drug Relapse
Edgar Hansen on the Northwestern talks about a close friend and crew mate who missed "shove off" due to a drug relapse:
Shame
Guilt
No Dignity
Remorse
Lost
Sounds like someone coming off a relapse
Shame
Guilt
No Dignity
Remorse
Lost
Sounds like someone coming off a relapse
Cal Bears Baseball - Team of Fate?
Cal Bears baseball was on life support earlier this season due to the university budget cuts. Although the program has been reinstated because of fundraising and generous gifts from alumni, it seems that the team is still playing as if these are their last games.
The Bears don't seem to care to do things the easy way. In the regionals at Rice University this past weekend, the Bears promptly lost their first game to Baylor with their ace pitching. This meant that to advance to the super regionals, the Bears would have to play their way out of the losers' bracket in the double elimination format. They proceeded to advance by beating Alcorn State and Rice only to find the undefeated Baylor Bears waiting for them. In this double elimination format, the Cal Bears would have to beat their brethren Bears from Baylor twice to advance.
The Bears won the first game 8-0, a game that was not a must win game for Baylor. In the nightcap game for all the marbles, the Bears again with their ace on the mound promptly worked themselves into a 7-1 hole. The sun seemed to be setting on the Bears' season. No amount of fundraising would help them this time.
But due to a series of fated, fortuitous events that included...
1. With the Bears still down 7-3 to start the 8th inning, the first Bears quietly were retired, arguably two of the Bears' better hitters.
2. That's when the Bears sprang for a single and a home run to quickly make it 7-5.
3. But in the top of the 9th, due to 2 errors on one grounder, Baylor gets one run back to make it 8-5.
4. In the bottom of the inning the Bears get a lead-off single, a crack in the door.
5. The next Cal player hits a perfect double play grounder that goes through the legs of the Baylor infielder. More fate?
6. Now the Bears have runners on 1st and 3rd.
7. Next batter hits another ball that has double play written all over it.
8. To start the double play, Baylor throws to 2nd base for the first out; but as Baylor starts the second throw to 1st for the double play, the Cal runner on 3rd breaks for home.
9. Baylor catches this and charges the runner headed for home to get him into a rundown. Being that Baylor was up 3, the correct play for them would've been to complete the double play and let the Bears score their one run.
10. So the rundown ensues, but Baylor makes another error by forgetting to cover home plate. Cal gets a gift without getting the 2nd out recorded against them. Still 8-6 Baylor.
11. Cal scores another run to get to within one run.
The Bears find themselves in the situation in this video:
The Bears don't seem to care to do things the easy way. In the regionals at Rice University this past weekend, the Bears promptly lost their first game to Baylor with their ace pitching. This meant that to advance to the super regionals, the Bears would have to play their way out of the losers' bracket in the double elimination format. They proceeded to advance by beating Alcorn State and Rice only to find the undefeated Baylor Bears waiting for them. In this double elimination format, the Cal Bears would have to beat their brethren Bears from Baylor twice to advance.
The Bears won the first game 8-0, a game that was not a must win game for Baylor. In the nightcap game for all the marbles, the Bears again with their ace on the mound promptly worked themselves into a 7-1 hole. The sun seemed to be setting on the Bears' season. No amount of fundraising would help them this time.
But due to a series of fated, fortuitous events that included...
1. With the Bears still down 7-3 to start the 8th inning, the first Bears quietly were retired, arguably two of the Bears' better hitters.
2. That's when the Bears sprang for a single and a home run to quickly make it 7-5.
3. But in the top of the 9th, due to 2 errors on one grounder, Baylor gets one run back to make it 8-5.
4. In the bottom of the inning the Bears get a lead-off single, a crack in the door.
5. The next Cal player hits a perfect double play grounder that goes through the legs of the Baylor infielder. More fate?
6. Now the Bears have runners on 1st and 3rd.
7. Next batter hits another ball that has double play written all over it.
8. To start the double play, Baylor throws to 2nd base for the first out; but as Baylor starts the second throw to 1st for the double play, the Cal runner on 3rd breaks for home.
9. Baylor catches this and charges the runner headed for home to get him into a rundown. Being that Baylor was up 3, the correct play for them would've been to complete the double play and let the Bears score their one run.
10. So the rundown ensues, but Baylor makes another error by forgetting to cover home plate. Cal gets a gift without getting the 2nd out recorded against them. Still 8-6 Baylor.
11. Cal scores another run to get to within one run.
The Bears find themselves in the situation in this video:
Wednesday, June 01, 2011
Weeds Rule!
Yes, Ryan played a weed in the first grade school play. He wanted to be a weed and his wish came true. One of the rules was that the kids could not ask for a part. The teachers decided who was going to play which part.
The play "How Does Your Garden Grow" is a play that the first grade class does each year at our school. The weeds are always boys. Probably not too many girls if any at all who want to play the part of a weed. But the weeds usually steal the show because they get to do a rap song during the play.
Ryan played the role of the stubborn weed.
The play "How Does Your Garden Grow" is a play that the first grade class does each year at our school. The weeds are always boys. Probably not too many girls if any at all who want to play the part of a weed. But the weeds usually steal the show because they get to do a rap song during the play.
Ryan played the role of the stubborn weed.
Monday, May 30, 2011
Uncle Chee's 70th!
Happy Birthday Uncle Chee!
Ryan: Who's Uncle Chee?
Me: One of Mom's uncles.
Ryan: Oh...
Me: Remember Tyler? He's Tyler's Ojiichan.
Ryan: I think I remember Tyler.
Me: I think when you see him you'll remember who he is.
Ryan: Who's Uncle Chee?
Me: One of Mom's uncles.
Ryan: Oh...
Me: Remember Tyler? He's Tyler's Ojiichan.
Ryan: I think I remember Tyler.
Me: I think when you see him you'll remember who he is.
Sunday, May 08, 2011
Friday, May 06, 2011
Who Can Go Higher Ojiichan?
A once in a lifetime photo?
Ryan: I wonder how high I can get in this swing?
Ojiichan: Watch how high I can get!
Ryan: I wonder how high I can get in this swing?
Ojiichan: Watch how high I can get!
Wednesday, May 04, 2011
Ryan's Family Circus Trip Through Lawton Park
Ryan scooters down a path....
.....up the path.....then down a path...whoa, that was too fast....have....to....bail out!
Push the scooter over to the playground....
.....drop scooter and helmet.....and run up the slide!
Scoot through the play set over to the climbing ropes....bounce, bounce, bounce.....
.....keep talking to oneself....and hop, hop, hop.....
......through the second play structure to jump off....ooofffff.........
.....Mom, I'm thirsty!
.....up the path.....then down a path...whoa, that was too fast....have....to....bail out!
Push the scooter over to the playground....
.....drop scooter and helmet.....and run up the slide!
Scoot through the play set over to the climbing ropes....bounce, bounce, bounce.....
.....keep talking to oneself....and hop, hop, hop.....
......through the second play structure to jump off....ooofffff.........
.....Mom, I'm thirsty!
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Clover Gets Nails Clipped
The one activity that Clover is not fond of is getting her nails clipped. Dorothy is the nail clipper in our home. Here are a few photos from today's nail salon session.
Dental Visit and Ebisu
Dorothy and I had a chance to get away from the kids for a short while today. It didn't matter that this was only made possible because we had a dental appointment in San Francisco and Dorothy's sister was able to watch the kids for us. After the appointment, we sampled a trio of edamame, maki sushi, chirashi shushi, and shioyaki salmon at one of our favorite restaurants in the City, Ebisu. We actually tried to get a table at Hotei which is a noodle restaurant owned by the Ebisu owners just across the street from Ebisu, but the place was full. If your appetite is for ramen or other noodle dishes, then Hotei should be your destination. Ebisu does not feature much in the way of noodles. The one new item for us was the trio of edamame which featured the usual salted edamame, and then two variants: togarashi lime edamame and lemon garlic edamame. Our usual use of togarashi is on udon or other noodle dishes so having it on edamame was a first. The lemon garlic edamame reminded us of eating garlic fries. Thumbs up from us!
Mission San Francisco de Solano
In California, one of the subjects covered in fourth grade is the history of California missions. These missions were significant in the early history of what is now California. The establishment of these missions led to missionaries being sent to California by the Spanish government and forever changing the state's history.
The teaching of this part of California's history in schools has not been without controversy. Critics have pointed out that in instances the teaching has been sanitized of some of the less palatable elements of the relationship between these new Americans and the Native Americans. Missionaries converting the natives to Catholicism using techniques viewed by as being overly coercive. Natives attacking missions and then suffering for such actions.
General Mariano Vallejo was responsible for establishing Mission San Francisco de Solano in what is now Sonoma, California. Later in life, Vallejo played a key role in the conversion of California from a Mexican district to a State, including naming of the counties in California.
It turns out that Mission San Francisco de Solano would be the last of the 21 missions established in California. It was also the only mission that was established after Mexico's independence from Spain. It was the last mission established because of the secularization of the missions.
Ethan along with the other fourth graders visited Mission San Francisco de Solano. The field trip included sketching the mission, a visit to the barracks, a visit of the mission, lunch in the town square, and a short walk to Vallejo's home. The interesting aspect of the field trip was that Ethan's class only saw one of the other two classes just once until the end of the field trip when it was time to re-board the buses.
The songs in the slide show below are "El Album" by Aterciopelados (a folk band from Columbia) and "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" by Green Day. Enjoy!
The teaching of this part of California's history in schools has not been without controversy. Critics have pointed out that in instances the teaching has been sanitized of some of the less palatable elements of the relationship between these new Americans and the Native Americans. Missionaries converting the natives to Catholicism using techniques viewed by as being overly coercive. Natives attacking missions and then suffering for such actions.
General Mariano Vallejo was responsible for establishing Mission San Francisco de Solano in what is now Sonoma, California. Later in life, Vallejo played a key role in the conversion of California from a Mexican district to a State, including naming of the counties in California.
It turns out that Mission San Francisco de Solano would be the last of the 21 missions established in California. It was also the only mission that was established after Mexico's independence from Spain. It was the last mission established because of the secularization of the missions.
Ethan along with the other fourth graders visited Mission San Francisco de Solano. The field trip included sketching the mission, a visit to the barracks, a visit of the mission, lunch in the town square, and a short walk to Vallejo's home. The interesting aspect of the field trip was that Ethan's class only saw one of the other two classes just once until the end of the field trip when it was time to re-board the buses.
The songs in the slide show below are "El Album" by Aterciopelados (a folk band from Columbia) and "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" by Green Day. Enjoy!
Thursday, April 07, 2011
2011 Little League Opening Day
After a hiatus from baseball, Ethan is giving baseball another try. His team is the Double A Cardinals. Ethan is playing at the level where the players are pitching to each other for the first time. This means that there are many walks and lots of runs scored.
Ryan is playing for the first time and his team is the Single A Nationals. Ryan's league is a coach pitch league which means that your coach pitches to you. There are no walks, but there are strikeouts.
The league runs to about mid-June. Below is a little slide show of the Opening Ceremonies for the league with the Mayor on-hand to throw out the first pitch. Let's play ball!!!!
Ryan is playing for the first time and his team is the Single A Nationals. Ryan's league is a coach pitch league which means that your coach pitches to you. There are no walks, but there are strikeouts.
The league runs to about mid-June. Below is a little slide show of the Opening Ceremonies for the league with the Mayor on-hand to throw out the first pitch. Let's play ball!!!!
Family Dinner
We had a nice night out with Dorothy's sisters and some of their family at one of our favorite Chinese restaurants in the area, 3 Brothers from China.
This was the first time for some of us to meet the newest addition to the family, Kalista!
Cheese!
Kalista making the rounds to visit everyone!
Checking out Naomi's sketching!
Ryan ate so much that he decided to do some push ups to work off the food!
This was the first time for some of us to meet the newest addition to the family, Kalista!
Cheese!
Kalista making the rounds to visit everyone!
Checking out Naomi's sketching!
Ryan ate so much that he decided to do some push ups to work off the food!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
KokuaJapan
Came across this web site set up by a San Francisco law firm to raise funds to aid the victims of the earthquake in Japan:
KokuaJapan.org
Kokua means 'help" in Hawaiian.
The following are other notable donations:
Taiwan - $38 million through televised fund raisers
Tadashi Yanai (president of Uniqlo) - $12.2 million (cash and goods)
Coach (fashion house) - $5 million
JPMorgan Chase - $5 million (through various charities)
Toyota - $3.75 million plus donation drive through North American plants
Nissan - $3.75 (through Red Cross and other donations)
Honda - $3.7 million
Walt Disney Company - $2.5 million
Boeing - $2 million (through Red Cross)
Wells Fargo - $1.5 million (through Red Cross and other charities)
Gree, Inc. - over $1.5 million
Mixi, Inc. - over $1.5 million
Starbucks - 100 million yen plus donations
Ichiro - 100 million yen (about $1.23 million)
Hyundai - 100 million yen
Sandra Bullock - $1 million (through Red Cross)
Demi Lovato - $1 million
SM Entertainment - $900,000 (through Red Cross)
Sutter Health - $500,000 (through Red Cross)
Red Cross funderaisers at Angel Stadium and the Rose Bowl - $250,000
Google - $250,000
Lady Gaga - $5 bracelets raised $250,000 in 48 hours
Mazda Foundation - $150,000 (through Red Cross)
Microsoft - $100,000
Telus - $100,000 plus matching funds (through Red Cross, Salvation Army and UNICEF
Seattle Mariners - $100,000 to match donations by their fans and front office
New York Yankees - $100,000 (through Red Cross and Salvation Army)
Eric Schmidt of Google - $100,000 in matching funds
Pacific Software - $70,000 in donations and matching funds
Oakland A's - $1 for every ticket sold for April 3 game against Mariners plus other fund raisers
San Francisco Giants - $12,500
Medefile International, TEMPTU, Clint Eastwood/Warner Bros., Charlie Sheen, Creed, Hanae Mori Parfums, Jewelry for a Cause, Afterzine, Artist James White, Made With Japan, Steven Alan, Rebecca Minkoff, Theory, American Eagle Outfitters, Karmaloop, Gap Inc., Bergdorf Goodman, Brroks Brothers, Forever 21, H&M, Gilt City, Natori and Josie, Zero, Alexis Bittar and other designers and celebrities are making donations through the sale of merchandise.
KokuaJapan.org
Kokua means 'help" in Hawaiian.
The following are other notable donations:
Taiwan - $38 million through televised fund raisers
Tadashi Yanai (president of Uniqlo) - $12.2 million (cash and goods)
Coach (fashion house) - $5 million
JPMorgan Chase - $5 million (through various charities)
Toyota - $3.75 million plus donation drive through North American plants
Nissan - $3.75 (through Red Cross and other donations)
Honda - $3.7 million
Walt Disney Company - $2.5 million
Boeing - $2 million (through Red Cross)
Wells Fargo - $1.5 million (through Red Cross and other charities)
Gree, Inc. - over $1.5 million
Mixi, Inc. - over $1.5 million
Starbucks - 100 million yen plus donations
Ichiro - 100 million yen (about $1.23 million)
Hyundai - 100 million yen
Sandra Bullock - $1 million (through Red Cross)
Demi Lovato - $1 million
SM Entertainment - $900,000 (through Red Cross)
Sutter Health - $500,000 (through Red Cross)
Red Cross funderaisers at Angel Stadium and the Rose Bowl - $250,000
Google - $250,000
Lady Gaga - $5 bracelets raised $250,000 in 48 hours
Mazda Foundation - $150,000 (through Red Cross)
Microsoft - $100,000
Telus - $100,000 plus matching funds (through Red Cross, Salvation Army and UNICEF
Seattle Mariners - $100,000 to match donations by their fans and front office
New York Yankees - $100,000 (through Red Cross and Salvation Army)
Eric Schmidt of Google - $100,000 in matching funds
Pacific Software - $70,000 in donations and matching funds
Oakland A's - $1 for every ticket sold for April 3 game against Mariners plus other fund raisers
San Francisco Giants - $12,500
Medefile International, TEMPTU, Clint Eastwood/Warner Bros., Charlie Sheen, Creed, Hanae Mori Parfums, Jewelry for a Cause, Afterzine, Artist James White, Made With Japan, Steven Alan, Rebecca Minkoff, Theory, American Eagle Outfitters, Karmaloop, Gap Inc., Bergdorf Goodman, Brroks Brothers, Forever 21, H&M, Gilt City, Natori and Josie, Zero, Alexis Bittar and other designers and celebrities are making donations through the sale of merchandise.
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Big Game Win for Bears
Ethan got to experience his first Cal game against Stanford yesterday. Although it wasn't the biggest crowd of the season, Haas Pavilion was rocking just the same. After all, it was Stanford in the house. It was fun to see Ethan's reaction to seeing the Stanford tree for the first time. He thought that it was goofy, especially that the mouth that was attached to the tree looked ready to fall off at any time.
The Stanford band was their usual obnoxious self, playing barely recognizable tunes that became less frequent as the game wore on as it became apparent that there would be very little to cheer about for the cardinal-clad. Most of the empty seats were arranged around the Stanford band giving the band a halo-like effect. Even the Stanford fans who were nearby chose to distance themselves from the seats closest to the band probably to prevent premature deafness. Although we were on the opposite side of Haas from the band, each time the band would strike up Ethan would put his fingers in his ears because it was too loud.
The Bears broke out to a 10-2 lead and never looked back to cruise to a 74-55 win. When the Bears started to clear out their bench, the lead had grown to 28 points. Here's a link to highlights from the game, including a fastbreak layup (starting at about the 1:17 mark of the video clip) that must've brought a smile even to Coach Montgomery. Pass, pass, layup with not a single dribble over half court. This was like one of those drills run in practice with no defenders.
On senior day, the Bears faithful said good-bye to three seniors in pre-game ceremonies. Markhuri Sanders-Frison and two team managers. The Bears lose one key player, but will be adding at least 4 new faces, including two players who are currently redshirting. Although the Bears are not loaded with blue chip recruits like some schools (Arizona, UCLA and Washington come to mind in the Pac-10) and usually are undersized and less athletic compared to their opponents, having the best Pac-10 coach on our side of the court is a big plus. The players part in this is that they have figured out how to play as a team with great chemistry and no hint of personal agendas. The Bears are a very good college team in every sense of the word "team." Looking forward to more Pac-10 hoops next year.
The Stanford band was their usual obnoxious self, playing barely recognizable tunes that became less frequent as the game wore on as it became apparent that there would be very little to cheer about for the cardinal-clad. Most of the empty seats were arranged around the Stanford band giving the band a halo-like effect. Even the Stanford fans who were nearby chose to distance themselves from the seats closest to the band probably to prevent premature deafness. Although we were on the opposite side of Haas from the band, each time the band would strike up Ethan would put his fingers in his ears because it was too loud.
The Bears broke out to a 10-2 lead and never looked back to cruise to a 74-55 win. When the Bears started to clear out their bench, the lead had grown to 28 points. Here's a link to highlights from the game, including a fastbreak layup (starting at about the 1:17 mark of the video clip) that must've brought a smile even to Coach Montgomery. Pass, pass, layup with not a single dribble over half court. This was like one of those drills run in practice with no defenders.
On senior day, the Bears faithful said good-bye to three seniors in pre-game ceremonies. Markhuri Sanders-Frison and two team managers. The Bears lose one key player, but will be adding at least 4 new faces, including two players who are currently redshirting. Although the Bears are not loaded with blue chip recruits like some schools (Arizona, UCLA and Washington come to mind in the Pac-10) and usually are undersized and less athletic compared to their opponents, having the best Pac-10 coach on our side of the court is a big plus. The players part in this is that they have figured out how to play as a team with great chemistry and no hint of personal agendas. The Bears are a very good college team in every sense of the word "team." Looking forward to more Pac-10 hoops next year.
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