developing Warriors

To paraphrase Monta Ellis, "I'm a Warriors fan, and I'm always going to be a Warriors fan." It's just the way it is - they're my local team and I feel that they're representing me. As such, each season I find myself wide-eyed and hopeful for the future. What will make the difference that will bring the Warriors to the playoffs and even a championship? New ownership? Well, that prospect is going on right now.

On the court, however, is what's happening with the team. With all the injuries (and not the typical injuries that happen with every team every season), the Warriors have had to look elsewhere just to fill out their roster and get the minimum amount of players on the floor without having to forfeit games. And in the Warriors case, they've looked to the Developmental League. It's actually not new to them - they have players that are so firmly a part of the roster now, it's easy to forget that they too came from the Developmental League in previous seasons.

Now the talk that's going on is people, particularly Coach Don Nelson, feel that they've got a bona-fide star from the D-League on the team: Reggie Williams. How exciting is that? Without even having to go through the draft, it looks for all the world that the Warriors have a player that will help lead them into the future. The team has also been getting stellar play from Anthony Tolliver - he's been playing with the focus and smarts that they've been hoping to get from their recent top draft picks. So now I've been enjoying the prospect of seeing all five players on the floor (not starting, but at some point during a game) next season be former D-Leaguers: C.J. Watson, Kelenna Azubuike, Reggie Williams, Anthony Tolliver, and Chris Hunter.

Throw into the mix Anthony Morrow, who went undrafted too. I really like how it shows that through hard work and dedication, it's possible to attain the dream of playing in the NBA.

it's the proofreader in me

I enjoy looking at the mock drafts that are being created with the NFL draft looming just over three weeks from now. With all the attention given to how teams can improve themselves, as far my interest is concerned, there's no offseason for me either! These 2010 mock drafts have been around for months already; I've even found the occasional 2011 mock draft (of course, there is very little basis for these since there are so many unknowns: the draft order, team needs a year from now, etc.).

Draft or not, I have fun running through a scenario in my mind whenever I see how so-and-so should compliment such-and-such: the 49ers need to draft another running back to compliment Frank Gore; or how the different parts of the squad need to compliment each other.

"Frank, you're the best! You are so good. How you run past would-be tacklers... you are so talented!"

or "You guys are great"
"No, you're great"
"No, you're great"

********

Er, wait a minute, that's complement with an "e" oh! I get it now...

~ Proofreaders - fun at parties ~

familial brushes with greatness

When I started college many years ago, I declared architecture as my major. That didn't go so well, but that's another story. What was neat was one of my late uncles had mentioned that when he was a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he had a famous roommate...

My uncle didn't mention who his famous roommate was only after realizing what my choice of major was; it was something he had mentioned briefly as I was growing up. Considering who it was, he certainly could have done a lot more name-dropping than he did.

Which reminds me of a bit of trivia: it seems that back in college, Tommy Lee Jones and Al Gore were roommates! But I digress...


My uncle's roommate back at M.I.T. was I.M. Pei, the world-renown architect.

Back when I learned of this, I found it interesting, but didn't ask or inquire as much as I would now. All I can recall my uncle saying was he remembered that I.M. (I wonder what my uncle called him?) was so talented that he could socialize and party his time away, then pull all-nighters to get his assignments done, and still turn in stellar work. I'm trying to come up with what I.M. Pei means in the world of architecture to people of equivalent stature in other fields - I mean, he's a big deal!

I remember mentioning it when I was a freshman in college to an acquaintance whom was a senior architecture major. I wasn't boasting or anything; at the very least it was awfully cool - and all Dewitt had to say was: "Sure Arthur."

********

Another big name associated with an uncle of mine (this one an oral surgeon) is supermodel Christy Turlington. Although I haven't heard about this personally, another cousin of mine mentioned that he has worked on her teeth. Pretty cool too, huh?

predator

I still find it pretty remarkable whenever I think of the film 'Predator.' Who could have imagined back when it came out that it starred two future state governors?

Come to think of it, I have an old Oakland Raiders game program that has Carl Weathers from when he was a member of the team; I wonder where I put it?

office birthdays

Here are a couple more celebrity birthdays, both from the television show The Office:

Rashida Jones (Karen) - February 25th

Jenna Fischer (Pam) - March 7


Pretty neat, isn't it? One shares her birthday with me, and the other has the same birthday as my late mom. I've been watching reruns of The Office and they have been sharing scenes lately. And to add another favorite actress of mine to the mix:

Patricia Heaton - March 4

She has the same birthday as my late father.

mouth guard design ideas

I've been seeing more and more NBA players using mouth guards to protect themselves from injury lately. Some I have to do a double-take on because they aren't just a single solid light color. Which gives me an idea: why not have fun with it and have them be painted to look like crooked teeth? Or vampire teeth? (I might have seen a player with this already). There are countless other ideas that could be fun - it could be like Halloween!

wearing socks with sandals

so?

I'm all about comfort over appearance. If I could afford them, all my shoes and sandals would be Birkenstocks - as for now, I have a single pair of Birkenstock sandals. A new pair of Birkenstock shoes I can't afford, but when I was able to wear my old pairs, I didn't care how they looked (like Earth shoes?).

So here I am wearing my Birkenstock sandals, and because I'd rather my feet be warm, I'm wearing socks at the same time. What's the big deal? I read an article in the newspaper about a new book that a couple of women have written about deal-breakers for men and one of them is when a guy wears socks with sandals. Does that only apply when he's out in public? Because I don't wear that ostensibly deal-breaking combo out in public, but that's just me - I'm more comfortable wearing socks, shoes, and jeans when I'm out. So still, it's about comfort. I hope that me wearing socks with my sandals in the privacy of my own home is okay in pleasing the ladies.

Maybe that's why I'm always home alone playing Space Cadet pinball on my computer...

Bobby

That would be my name if my two oldest sisters had had their way!

When I was born, the story goes, my two oldest sisters pleaded with my parents to name me 'Bobby.' Now there's nothing wrong with the name Bobby - my favorite childhood baseball player was named Bobby (Bobby Bonds) and my favorite NASCAR driver is named Bobby (Bobby Labonte). But to be named after a Mouseketeer (or was he a dancer on Lawrence Welk by then?)... I'm not so sure about that. Oh well, at least I wasn't almost named Cubby!

Happy Birthday, sis!

hungry hippos

I have a newfound respect for the hippopotamus. Well, not so much newfound - my attitude towards them has been changing slowly over the years. But growing up, I had the idea of them wearing tutus and dancing ballet from 'Fantasia' and as part of the game Hungry Hungry Hippos - they are often portrayed as friendly animals. After all, they are kind of funny looking (don't tell them I said that), and not at all as ferocious looking as other animals such as lions, tigers, and crocodiles.

But over time, I've come to realize that they are incredibly ornery. I've watched some nature shows and hippos compete with crocodiles for being the meanest creatures in the rivers in which they reside. Still, they are a part of nature and need to be conserved and protected from human disruption as I've read online. We consider ourselves to be highly intelligent?

gloria

I don't remember what year it was, but I was in our living room when my older brother came out of our late father's den and told me to come back with him to the den and watch something. We kept a small television in there and it was showing a band's video. I still have a firm idea of my first impression from watching it that day. The band was playing on some sort of barge set upon a river in what looked like an industrial city. The lead singer was very earnest, the lead guitar player seemed very secure, the bass player looked kind of mean and tough, and they had some young kid playing drums. It was U2 and the song was 'Gloria.'

Up to that time, I hadn't really gotten into music and was only familiar with what I heard on the radio that was popular. It took a while longer until the Pretenders that one of my older sisters was into and U2 began to grab a hold of me. It wasn't until my second year of college that I started buying albums, including U2's October to complement the Boy and War albums that one of my roommates already had. The college radio station, KCPR, had recently started a new format and started calling themselves The Sound Alternative, so I heard songs by bands such as Los Lobos, R.E.M., and Lloyd Cole & the Commotions. Besides his U2 albums, my roommate Kevin's record collection included bands such as X, the Bangles (he had their first EP, before Michael Steele was a member), and the English Beat.

I loved looking around the local record store Boo Boo Records on Monterey Street (the records! the posters!). Cheap Thrills was another music store that was a part of my usual walking route through San Luis Obispo. My two roommates and I lived near the Mission, so it was a short distance to all the cool shops in town. I wonder what Boo Boo Records is like now?

rock and roll photographs

or group photographs in general, I suppose.

One technique that always intrigues me when looking at portraits of rock bands is when the photographer has some members looking at the camera while others are looking elsewhere. It somehow looks less run-of-the-mill than "Okay everyone, look at the camera!" and more... beguiling? Simply having some of them looking at something outside of the frame adds more dimension and gets me wondering what they could be looking at. It's a cool technique! As an example, here are a couple of photos I found of Creedence Clearwater Revival:

everyone looking at camera

half of band looking away, half looking at camera


And here are a couple of photographs of U2:

more subtle, Larry is facing the camera, but his eyes are averted
(how young they were!)

they're all looking at the camera

posies and steele

Many years ago, I went to see the Posies perform in San Francisco. It was a fantastic concert; I remember we found great seats at the front of the balcony. Now I'm not the most demonstrative audience member (hence, I loved being on the balcony) and am more intent on soaking in a concert, memorizing it rather than 'participating' at the same time: clapping, hollering, jumping up and down, etc. Evidently, the crowd on the floor was rather subdued too - at one point, I recall bass player Ken Stringfellow saying "Ah, a finger-snapping crowd!" It was funny.

At one point, the band urged a woman from the crowd to get up on stage to sing a song; I couldn't tell just whom she was, but considering how she sounded when they performed Big Star's 'September Gurls' I'm pretty sure she was Michael Steele from the Bangles. And if you read my entry yesterday, what a great combination that was for Big Star fans, both on stage and in the crowd!

There is a movie out now about '70s all-girl band The Runaways. I'd heard of them, and knew that Joan Jett and Lita Ford were both members, but decided to check on Wikipedia to see what else I could find out. I was surprised to read that Michael Steele was actually a member of the Runaways, but very early on before they released anything.

the passing of El Goodo

Yesterday, just after I posted my blog entry, I clicked on a link on my Yahoo! home page under 'trending now' that said 'Alex Chilton.' His is not a household name but is very familiar to me. As I was clicking I was thinking to myself, "He didn't just die, did he?" Well, I was startled to find out that yes, he did.

Alex Chilton was most known for being the lead singer of a 60's band called The Box Tops (who had the hits 'The Letter' and 'Cry Like a Baby') and later, in the 70's, as a member of Big Star. I first heard of Big Star, I think, by seeing that R.E.M. cited them as an influence, more so than The Byrds, to whom R.E.M. was often compared. Another band I was listening to, The Replacements, later had a song titled 'Alex Chilton' on their album Pleased to Meet Me. And then, one of my favorite songs done by The Bangles is 'September Gurls,' which is a cover of a Big Star song. Perhaps their most familiar song was used as the theme for That '70s Show - 'In The Street.'

Another of my favorite bands is called The Posies, and they did a wonderful cover of the Hollies song, 'King Midas in Reverse.' The two leaders of The Posies, Jonathan Auer and Ken Stringfellow (who coincidentally has performed with R.E.M.), are also big fans of Big Star, and have performed with Alex Chilton and original drummer Jody Stephens in reformed versions of Big Star. The Posies also did a stunning cover of late Big Star member Chris Bell's song 'I Am the Cosmos' (Bell died in a car crash in 1978).

In reading some articles online about Alex's passing, I saw that he was all set to participate in this year's SXSW in a Big Star reunion which was to include all three surviving members of the band: himself, Jody Stephens, and also original bass player Andy Hummel. It was going to be one of the highlights of the annual Austin music festival, but now sadly, organizers are going to have to figure out how to commemorate his passing.

When I was still able to access YouTube (I need to upgrade my computer), I had spent time looking for songs by Alex Chilton and Big Star; it might be worth your while to look for some of their music.

when stars meet stars

Last night I was watching one of the nightly entertainment shows, and they had an update about the singer Gwen Stefani. It reminded me of something I saw years ago that I really found quite charming.

It must have also been on one of those nightly entertainment shows. It was a red-carpet event with someone from the show interviewing celebrities as they made their appearances. I can still picture it, although the details escape me. What I see though is a lady interviewer at one end of the red carpet standing next to actress Julia Roberts. Movie Star Julia Roberts! A big-time celebrity to be sure. They were standing there chatting when a commotion started behind them at the other end of the carpet: Gwen Stefani was just making her entrance. And Julia Roberts got all shy! She kept herself turned away from Ms. Stefani, hiding her face. The interviewer noticed her reaction and made a comment, and Ms. Roberts gushed something like "I'm such a big fan!" So the interviewer offered to introduce her to the pop star, and Ms. Roberts said something to the effect of "No, no, no, I don't want her to see me!" while still trying to hide herself.

It's easy to understand how star-struck an average person might get when being around somebody famous, but to see a celebrity react the same way - utterly charming.

the year in rock (1985)

How young are you?
How old am I?
Let's count the rings,
around my eyes.

"I Will Dare"
by The Replacements

One of my favorite books is "The Rolling Stone Review 1985 The Year in Rock" edited by Ira A. Robbins. Every now and then I like to flip through its pages and reminisce about the music of the 80's, when I really found myself developing my musical taste and discovering bands. I remember in the years after it came out, I kept looking for a follow-up, hoping and kind of expecting that it would come out annually, but unfortunately, this was the only one. It wasn't just me - here's an excerpt from the Introduction: "This is the first installment in an annual tradition that we hope will be around for quite some time. The Rolling Stone Review 1985 is a recap of the year 1984 (well, actually, it covers October 1, 1983 to September 30, 1984 - the regulation number of days, just time-shifted a little), a compilation of what happened and when... "

1985! That's 25 years ago.

Here's their list for Bands of the Year: King Sunny Ade, Laurie Anderson, Art of Noise, Afrika Bambaataa, Elvis Costello, Culture Club, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Jacksons, Cyndi Lauper, Huey Lewis and the News, Los Lobos, John Cougar Mellencamp, Motley Crue, Police, Pretenders, Prince, R.E.M., Run-D.M.C., Smiths, Bruce Springsteen, Thompson Twins, Tina Turner, and Van Halen.

And their Picks for 1985: Bangles, Billy Bragg, Bronski Beat, General Public, Husker Du, Let's Active, Minutemen, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Replacements, and Scritti Politti.

How's that for a trip down Memory Lane? I'd say that their choices were pretty accurate. And isn't it wild being able to look back at what was once so fresh and new? Well, maybe it's just me because this was the music of my young adulthood.

Leafing through the pages, there is a LOT more to this book than just the lists I typed above (American Beat, Local Scene Reports, The Year in Pictures, Quotes of the Year, etc.), but since it really just taps into my memories I won't go into it any more. (sniff, sniff, my youth!)

only one song...

but Faith Hill sang 'The Winner Takes It All' beautifully (with Benny accompanying her on the piano!) last night at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2010 Induction Ceremonies.

Thoughts about the ceremony:

Frida is beautiful. She gave a most wonderful acceptance speech, very classy and thoughtful. It is easy to forget that English is not ABBA's native language given how well they emoted their songs.

Benny's acceptance speech reminded me of a video clip I found on YouTube where he also spoke of Sweden, mentioning the climate and other famous people from there including Ingmar Bergman and Greta Garbo. Very heartfelt.

Although I tried to be okay with it, I really missed seeing Agnetha and Bjorn. It would have been so nice to see Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny, and Anni-Frid (Frida) all standing there at the podium together even if they didn't perform.

Faith Hill is beautiful.

A couple of the highlights for me were the induction speeches presented by Stevie Van Zandt for the Hollies, and by Jackson Browne for David Geffen.

I'd forgotten that Peter Gabriel was not going to make an appearance and as expected, Genesis didn't perform at all.

Tony Hicks and Bobby Elliot weren't there for the Hollies; I've only seen Graham Nash in recent years and was able to easily recognize him. Allan Clarke looked the same, just a bit older. So amazing to think that Allan and Graham have been close friends since childhood!

and then there were three...

Another album I remember my brother bringing home many years ago was Genesis' and then there were three... I never got into it and only really learned of Genesis from the videos they made - when there were just the three of them (Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks, and Phil Collins). It wasn't until much later, after Peter Gabriel was having hits of his own, that I learned that he was once their lead singer. The earliest song I can recall by Genesis is Turn It On Again; I can still picture the part of the video that shows Phil Collins in silhouette re-directing the light shining upon him ("I can show you, I can show you, some of the people in my life...").

What has me thinking about Genesis is they too will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this evening. And to mention (again?) a musical connection (I love musical connections and bits of trivia!), Frida had a post-ABBA hit with her song I Know There's Something Going On, and it was produced by... Phil Collins, who also played drums on it. I hope Phil will show up with the rest of the group to accept their induction tonight and I look forward to finding out whether or not he and Frida are seen reminiscing about their collaboration. Even though I've found online that like ABBA, Genesis isn't going to reunite for a performance tonight either, it still looks like it will be a fun event. I hope Peter Gabriel is there!

the Hollies' greatest hits (see UPDATE!!!)

I didn't really start buying records until I was in college. Before that, I listened to the albums that my older siblings had collected or otherwise were 'lying around the house.' I don't know how we obtained lots of our collections, such as the boxed set of Motown hits. We had Carpenters albums and Monkees albums that I also loved listening to. I didn't know much about the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album because I didn't grow up listening to it... we didn't own it. What we did have was Revolver and Magical Mystery Tour. Naturally, those were my favorite Beatles albums.

As I got older and into high school, I can distinctly remember my brother bringing home albums by The Guess Who, the Raspberries, the Zombies - and I'm pretty sure it was his album of the Hollies' Greatest Hits that got me familiar with their, well, greatest hits, beyond the songs that I was familiar with from the radio. Their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is also what I am most looking forward to tomorrow night. I can't wait to see who will be there - hopefully all of the members will be able to make it. Crosby, Stills, Nash (& Young) are considered one of the first of the supergroups, being comprised of David Crosby (from the Byrds), Stephen Stills and Neil Young (from Buffalo Springfield), and Graham Nash from... the Hollies. I fully expect him to be there to accept the honor, and sing too.

Besides Faith Hill participating, as I mentioned in a previous entry, I found out that Chris Isaak will also take part in tomorrow's ceremonies. I wonder whom he will be there to honor and/or perform with?

Also in anticipation of the induction ceremonies tomorrow, I wanted to make sure that I could view them. In looking them up, they are going to be telecast by fuse.tv, a station I was unfamiliar with. Here in Concord, on Comcast, it is on channel 476 tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. I can't wait!

(UPDATE!!! - I just checked again and the 8:30 p.m. start time is Eastern Standard Time, so where I live it starts at 5:30 p.m.)

how to pronounce Agnetha

I'm not Swedish and don't speak the language, but I'd like to give you an idea of how to pronounce her name correctly. I remember the first time I paid attention to the name of 'the blonde from ABBA' and pronounced it to myself the way it was spelled - somehow it didn't sound as pretty as she was. Then looking around YouTube and hearing her or her band mates say her name, it sounded much better! There was even a video clip I found of Agnetha and Benny making an appearance on a British children's show and the host himself didn't bother trying to pronounce it correctly, perhaps because he thought it was too difficult for the children to say - I thought he was just being lazy.

So here goes - it sounds more like: ann-YET-tah,
and not at all like: AG-nuth-uh

Much prettier now, isn't it?

half of ABBA

One of my sisters found an article online that she printed out for me. It tells about this Monday's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies - only two members of ABBA are expected to be there: Frida and Benny. I already knew that it was highly unlikely that Agnetha would make the long trip over from Sweden because of her fear of flying; Bjorn won't be there either. Actually, I think it works out better this way. I mean as long as they're not all there, I'm not going to be too upset at which ones are able to make it or not make it. Plus, it takes the pressure off of Agnetha, since it would be awful if she alone were held responsible for there not being an ABBA reunion.

According to the article, Barry and Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees will do the inducting, which is fitting since both groups occupy the poppier side of music. The article also states that Faith Hill is slated to perform some of their songs during the ceremony, perhaps 'The Winner Takes It All' since she has performed it in her concerts. I wonder if she will also be harmonizing with Frida on some other ABBA hits. I sure hope to see Benny playing keyboards as well... what I'm envisioning now is Benny playing piano, Frida and Faith singing vocals, and Paul Shaffer and his band providing backup.

This will have to do I guess and in the meantime, an ABBA reunion will have to remain playing out in my imagination - and it's wonderful! One of my scenarios even has them performing unplugged. It will lack the so-called ABBA 'sound' as constructed by themselves and Michael Tretow, but they sound great stripped down. I've even imagined Frida and Agnetha harmonizing on Simon & Garfunkel's song 'Benedictus.'

In any case, I always enjoy the tributes that are created for each of the inductees, so I am looking forward to that part too. Also being inducted this Monday is another favorite group of mine, the Hollies. I'll be glued to my television.

eating animals

Ellen DeGeneres had a guest on her show yesterday named Jonathan Safran Foer. He has written a book, Eating Animals, about eating meat and vegetarianism. I came across his segment kind of in the middle by chance, but was very interested in what he had to say. One of his points was that if every American citizen would eat one less meal that included meat per week, it would be the equivalent of taking 3 million cars off the road for that same week (to the best of my recollection; it was a very powerful example in any case). Abstaining from meat is something I've thought about for years from an ethical standpoint, yet I do find it very appealing at the same time - it simply tastes good. Eating less meat though is certainly something I can do. I am certain that if I were to witness the workings of a slaughterhouse, or simply read his book, I would make an even bigger effort to avoid eating meat.

Something I've kept in mind over the years is what non-meat dishes do I actually like as much as those with meat? Here are a few of my favorites: eggplant Parmesan, pasta with pesto sauce, and vegetarian pizza. From an ethical standpoint, eating any meat at all is wrong in my opinion, but eating less would make a difference nevertheless. I'm thinking of the Chinese stir-fry where the bulk of the meal consists of vegetables, and includes just a touch of meat for flavor and protein. I've found that my favorite way to eat vegetables is stir-fried where they maintain their crunch and from what I've read, maintain most of their nutritional benefits too.

Sitting here typing this, it's really such a loaded question trying to decide on all the ramifications of such an idea: how would it affect the economy? industry? the land and the environment? Which reminds me of the well-known adage Think Globally, Act Locally, which applies to so many subjects. What can we do as individuals?

who do you think you are?

There's a new television show (new to the U.S. - it is based on a show originally from Britain) that I like: Who Do You Think You Are?, about celebrities tracing their family trees. Besides being an interesting look at the ancestors of the celebrities themselves, it really got me thinking about my own family tree. I've never really thought farther back than my grandparents, and truthfully, haven't wondered about their lives growing up as children. Both sets of my grandparents came over from China and settled in the Americas, my father's parents in the Bay Area, and my mother's parents in Costa Rica. I imagine that they all came from rural Chinese villages at that.

I have a slight memory of being at my Auntie Amy's house, and her showing me some of the interesting things that someone (I can't recall who: a cousin or some other relative? maybe someone further related?) had discovered during a trip to China and my paternal grandfather's or grandmother's village over there. Now that the subject has really caught my interest, I'm going to have to follow up on that memory with a visit. The show had a graphic depicting upwards of ten or more generations back into the celebrities' trees; it's mind-boggling that this process could go on and on and on, further and further back to the dawn of mankind. And coming back to the present, how each one of us is the culmination of all those lives!

The reason I am more aware of the show than the one episode I saw last week is because that show and another were featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show yesterday. A few of the celebrities appeared, along with clips. The other show besides Who Do You Think You Are? is called Faces of America, broadcast recently on PBS. In it, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. tells accomplished cellist Yo-Yo Ma that through DNA testing, they found out that he is related to actress Eva Longoria! How mind-blowing is that? So beyond the research that may or may not be possible through written records of ancestry and family relations, it is now possible to analyze genetic code to find out whom is related to whom. Also revealed were how people of Jewish ancestry were related to those of Muslim ancestry. Doesn't that clue us all in to how we're all one and the same?

a good year for singers

I've had so many entries by now, I can't remember whether or not I mentioned this thought yet. I know I mentioned it on another little site about ABBA. And politeness prevents me from mentioning just which year it was...

but did you realize that Karen Carpenter (March 2), Agnetha Faltskog (April 5), and Ann Wilson (June 19) were all born the same year?

Yup, a very good year for singers.

proofreading and editing

Yesterday evening, I checked my blog to glance at my latest entry and was horrified to see that I had misspelled the title as 'Pink-fowering currant' instead of 'Pink-flowering currant.' (I made the correction.) Which first of all shows that the instant spell-check (indicated by a red underline) that I've come to rely on doesn't work on entry titles. And second, it goes to show that proofreaders need their work proofread just like everybody else.

You see, I've worked as a proofreader before - in fact, because of the circumstances at one job, I saw first-hand that it isn't good procedure to have the proofreader make corrections to copy and then send the work straight to press. It's always a good idea to have a fresh set of eyes looking for mistakes and typos, hence the proofreader marks up mistakes on the copy, the copy gets sent back to the typesetter or designer for corrections, then the proofreader rechecks the corrections. At least that's more or less how it should be done.

The most writing I've ever really done is with this blog, and now I can see where the role of the editor comes into play. It's that fresh set of eyes and different perspective that is so valuable, something I'm missing when I post my entries. Like spotting typos, it's nice to have objectivity to catch 'mistakes' in ideas, logic, etc.

Another thing I'd like to mention about yesterday's typo: I had submitted that same photograph to the local newspaper, also to be published around my mother's birthday, a year or two ago. And just like I did, the newspaper printed it with a typographical mistake in the accompanying copy. Oh well, the main thing is the photograph anyway.

Pink-flowering currant

Today is my late mother's birthday. I always thought it was neat that her birthday is so close to my father's, just three days apart. And that my birthday is also close to theirs, just a week before.

The photograph I am including with today's entry was taken three years ago, almost to the day - March 6, 2007. I remember coming home from a class I was taking and noticing that the afternoon light was perfect as it shone on this beautiful flowering shrub, a California native called the Pink-flowering currant (Ribes sanguineum var. glutinosum 'Claremont'). My mother had passed the autumn before; I think she would have loved how this currant is in full flower every year now on her birthday.

where are the oaks?

Growing up in the Bay Area, I've heard the name 'Oakland' my entire life. There are the Oakland A's, the Oakland Raiders, etc. Unlike nearby Walnut Creek, which makes me think of walnuts, I've always thought of Oakland as one word, not really breaking it down into the two words 'Oak' and 'land.' Does anybody really think of Oakland as land of the oaks? Unless you travel up into the hills, where are all the oaks? I can't help but imagine what the area looked like when the name Oakland was first bestowed upon it. It must have been beautiful.

three chords and a nap

Whenever I've tried picking up the guitar thinking I was finally going to dedicate myself to learning how to play, it's fizzled out. It doesn't come naturally to me and I lose interest, particularly trying to play lead guitarist-type lead runs. All I really find myself doing is strumming the few chords that I know. But I've found that simply doing that can be really soothing, almost meditative.

What I have is an acoustic-electric guitar, a Kramer Ferrington model (Telecaster shape). I can recall Neil Finn of Crowded House playing such a model. I feel kind of bad that I don't really know to play such a nice guitar, but when I do find myself in the mood to pick it up and start strumming, what I like to do is lie down and rest it on my chest. Even if I'm just playing the same three chords over and over again, the feeling of resonance it generates makes me feel like I can heal all that ails me.

most prized possession #2

Today is my late father's birthday, so I thought I'd write about another of my prized possessions, my first baseball glove.

I was eleven years old when I signed up to play in Jr. Optimist, a local baseball league similar to Little League. I got to play on the same team as one of my cousins, Darryl; our team ended up calling ourselves the Braves. Prior to the season, my father took me out to buy a baseball glove at a local sporting goods store called Big 5. They had a location for what seemed like forever across from Park 'N Shop on Willow Pass Road. I always enjoyed being around my father. I can still picture the part of the store where the shelf was with the baseball gloves, which way we were facing, etc. The glove that caught my eye was a junior-sized mitt that was blue leather. It was a Rawlings brand GJ 94, with a Mickey Mantle autograph (it's in my lap right now as I type this).

I also have memories of my dad and I playing catch in our backyard. He would use this really old-fashioned looking glove, like the type of model they might have used in the fifties, or even the forties. He seemed to enjoy these 'playing catch' sessions as much as I did. And one day, he brought out his camera and took pictures of me all dressed up in my Jr. Optimist 'Braves' uniform (as I recall, the sponsor of our team was Earl Goldman Insurance, sewn into the backs of our uniforms), the two of us coming up with poses for me to take: in my batting stance, fielding a ground ball, etc.

We had a decent year win-loss wise; I think we finished 9-8. Looking back, I don't know how I got through it though - during the season, my father suffered a massive brain hemorrhage (on the day of his sister's funeral, my Auntie Louise) and lay in the hospital for a long while. He died that summer.

drinking water

We've all heard by now that consuming plenty of water is healthful. It's pretty common to see glasses full of ice water being served at restaurants, although many patrons prefer ordering something else to drink, such as a soda.

On the other hand, I once read an article espousing the benefits of drinking hot tea, not only for its anti-oxidant and other chemical properties, but for the warmth of the liquid itself. The article made a strong case for consuming warm liquids - it is better for our bodies and digestive systems than drinking cold liquids.

Which reminds me of my late mother - she is the only person I knew of that would occasionally enjoy sipping warm water. Whereas I might boil a pot of water in order to make a cup of hot chocolate or steep a bag of tea, she would simply pour a mug full of hot water and sip it like hot tea. Actually, I sometimes do it now myself. I figured I drink plain water throughout my day, why not drink it warm? So for those of you that drink their water plain but usually cold or at room temperature, I highly recommend drinking it warm too. It's especially nice on a cold day!

Burmese pythons... in Florida?

Yes, it's true. And you can tell from the name that they come from another part of the world, and are non-native to the United States.

This is something I read about awhile ago, and got reinforced on a television program I saw fairly recently. And it's not just the discovery of a handful of pythons that made the news, but is a problem where the population has been estimated in the thousands, maybe tens of thousands. Can you imagine tens of thousands of pythons living wild in Florida?

Some may feel, "So what? If they thrive, they thrive, it's just survival of the fittest, it's just evolution." I may have mentioned in a previous entry that evolution took place over millions of years at a much slower pace, before modern inventions and technology made the world a smaller place. A species of snake that would not have found itself on the other side of the world hundreds of years ago can make it there in mere hours now, as a stowaway on an airplane for instance. And because many people are fascinated with having exotic pets, these snakes wouldn't even have to be stowaways - they could be quite deliberately shipped around the world as a part of commerce. And as happens so often, a pet owner may one day decide that their pet has gotten too big or too much of a hassle to take care of and release it into the wild without thinking about the possible consequences of such an act. Yes, many animals will perish this way, but what if they survive? What if they assimilate and adapt? What if they multiply and thrive?

The television program I watched described how Burmese pythons are very adaptable to environments and have found the United States very much to their liking. It even showed that whereas pythons have adapted to the state of Florida very well, they could very possibly expand their presence to much of the rest of the country, as far west as California, and even up north to the sewers of New York City. It could be just a matter of time.

And as they do, can you imagine what they'll feed on? I wonder what they're finding for sustenance now as it is. Because they're consuming something. Who knows what kind of harm they're doing to the populations of native creatures. Or maybe they're feeding on the countless non-native creatures that have been brought to this country, one problem feeding another. And then even more directly painful to us, are they feeding on our pets?

As I mentioned, many of these species are being brought over legally, but many are also being brought illegally. Which brings (or should bring) newfound respect to the efforts of our U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Freedom is a wonderful concept and one I believe in, but I'm reminded of an old saying: "With freedom comes responsibility." We have to be careful about the stewardship of our planet.

messing with mosquitoes

There is mention in today's newspaper of how scientists in the U.S. and Great Britain are genetically altering mosquitoes so they cannot fly. It's being done in an effort to combat their ability to spread dengue fever. Not being familiar with dengue fever, I just now skimmed the Wikipedia entry about it, and it is awful to think about. Hopefully something can be done.

The reason the article caught my eye is a thought I had years ago about how eliminating all mosquitoes seemed like a good idea. What if I had the power to do so? What good are mosquitoes anyway? Then over time, it started dawning on me how much mosquitoes are depended upon as a food source for countless creatures: birds, bats, etc. And I now realize that they too are an important part of the web of life.

So although I applaud efforts to curb the spread of a disease as awful as dengue fever, I would also like to caution against messing with Mother Nature. These kinds of things have much too often resulted in unforeseen domino effects. Please be careful!