Watching reruns not on TV

Before heading out to Christmas dinner at Pauline's a few days ago, I spent my downtime online. If you haven't already figured it out by now, I'm online constantly. Even a lot longer than I am watching TV anymore. Don't let my athletic tendencies fool you. I, Lani Chin, consider myself a full-fledged honorary and proud member of geekdom.

But what I did online was watch TV. I was at Hulu.com, watching reruns of a favorite NBC program in the 70's (1972-1979), "Emergency!". While it was actor Robert Fuller as Dr. Kelly Brackett, F.A.C.S. (right of center in blog pic) that got top billing, it was Randolph Mantooth as Fireman John Gage (center) that brought hormone overloaded teenage girls like me to watch the program every Saturday night.

A similar site to Hulu.com, Joost.com also features films and TV shows. The best part: both sites allow you to view the shows for FREE. I took a look at Joost last night and found, for me, it doesn't offer as much as Hulu. Hulu also has many other current TV programs (Family Guy, Fringe, Chuck, Heroes) and feature films also available for viewing.

It's a great option when there's nothing interesting currently on TV to watch. Check it out sometime.

Hell On Wheels

Pictured to the left is the latest in the fleet of junk from the neighbors from hell. I have to admit the noise and seedy visitors have all but disappeared.

I think the C.W. Nevius column in the San Francisco Chronicle published a few weeks back really did make an impact. Compared to what it was previously, it's a major improvement. However, the house still sticks out like a sore thumb.

The dilipidated truck with the white and blue covers in the driveway hasn't moved. An old washer that looks like it hasn't worked in 30 years sits on the wall to the right of the stairs leading to the house.

I wouldn't be surprised to find the truck gone in the next few weeks because it isn't DMV registered. Slow but measurable progress is being made.

A Matter of Loaf and Death

I've been a HUGE Wallace and Gromit fan for about 15 years. So when I found out there's a new short feature film (like "A Close Shave" and "The Wrong Trousers") that is debuting on December 3, I got all excited. Problem is, it will only be shown in the U.K. and Australia. No date announced as to when it will be available in the U.S. It's likely this will be featured later in 2009 in an animation film festival.

I'm glad to hear that creator Nick Park has returned to the short feature format. While I did like "Curse of the Were Rabbit" very much, the short features have a lot of charm, wit and sight gags packed into 30 to 60 minutes that a full length feature tends to drag out. And while Mr. Park stresses this is being tailored for British audiences, I think that's great. Much of the charm of Wallace and Gromit is because it is very British.

Jolly good.

Neighborhood Nuisance, part 2

As mentioned in my last blog posting, my neighbors across the street were likely the subject in a recent San Francisco Chronicle column. The picture from that entry was taken in June. The picture showing in today's entry was taken 2 days ago.

It does look like some effort is being made to spruce up the house. The house was painted about 2 months ago, but there hasn't been any progress since. The upper right window displaying a fan is still broken. The dilapidated truck in the driveway is now covered loosely with blue and white covers. There's still debris scattered around the outside areas.

This past week, a camper shell from a truck was sitting on the curb in front of the house. It moved to the sidewalk yesterday. Today, there is a bunch of metal debris sitting where the camper shell was. As I vented on my Twitter postings this past week, the sound of someone rummaging glass in the garbage bins could be heard for several hours late Thursday night.

Come on. I don't live in Pacific Heights or St. Francis Woods but I consider my neighborhood, the Inner Sunset, to be nice and a desirable place to live. It's inconsiderate, uncaring bums like my neighbors that rob me of my homeowner pride in one of the most desirable cities in the world.

Next step: Notify the Department of Health about the eyesore sitting in the driveway. Slowly but surely the problem will be eradicated. I want my peace and quiet.

Neighborhood Nuisance

Today, San Francisco Chronicle columnist C.W. Nevius wrote about my San Francisco neighborhood, the Sunset district and our fight to rid urban blight.

The description of the house and its occupants accurately describes our neighbors across the street. I wrote about them in a previous blog entry this past July. I'm certain the article is about these folks. The San Francisco police visit this house regularly.

On my way home from work November 4, 5 SFPD squad cars were in front of our house, 2 of them blocking my driveway. I had to circle around the block to give them some time to finish their "visit".

This past weekend (as described in my Twitter posting), a motorcycle roared up and down the street all evening. I called the non-emergency number and the dispatcher said they'd look into it. Within an hour, the noise stopped. It's apparent the SFPD keep a close watch on this house. It's helping, but it will take some time before the problem is completely eliminated.

Until then, I have to grit my teeth and put up with it. Just as I end this blog, the motorcycle just roared down the street. Again. Sigh.

Voice to a face

The past 2 months have been nothing but reunions. First, it was seeing my family to celebrate my parents' 50th wedding anniversary. Less than a week later, it was my 30th high school reunion. Now, it's connecting to former classmates and co-workers (mostly from my previous employer) on Facebook and LinkedIn.

If any of my Facebook friends find some of my comments about "seeing you for the first time" a bit strange, it's because 2 of my recent connections were former store/studio managers I knew over the years were people I only talked to over the phone. I've never met them in person. I talked to them so much that I would recognize their voices immediately when they'd call.

A small world now only smaller. And for me, not in a bad way.

I felt all flushed with fever...

I spent this past weekend entirely resting and drinking tons of cranberry juice and water. I had UTI (Urinary Tract Infection). This was my second bout in 7 years.

This bout of UTI first started last weekend during my trip to Columbus for my high school reunion. I intentionally put it off hoping it would work itself out, or get to the doctor's office once I returned home to San Francisco.

It was understandable, but not advisable. The fever and chills began 2 days after I got back to town. Did I visit the doctor then? Nooooo. I've successfully ended colds and flu after a fever and thought the same would apply to a UTI. It doesn't. I finally reached the doctor and she said she couldn't see me. She advised me to visit the UCSF Screening & Acute Care Clinic immediately. The visit would cost me the same as a standard co-payment to the doctor's office.

When I left the office, it was clearly evident how ill I really was. I was in my chill cycle. The outside temperature got up to 82 degrees before I cracked open a window. Usually when the temperature goes above 65, I'd have the air conditioning on as soon as I start the car.

The nurse at the clinic saw me within 10 minutes. She took my temperature and seemed a bit alarmed when she told me it was 102 degrees. I provided a urine sample and within another 15 minutes, the attending resident called my name and confirmed I had UTI. She prescribed me a non-penicillin (I'm allergic to it) antibiotic. I got it filled at Walgreens within the hour.

My fever was so bad that I soaked through my pillow case, the bedsheet, 3 T-shirts and a towel over the course of the weekend. By Saturday night, my body temperature returned to normal, which is around 97 degrees.

The cause (which I won't specify) of both episodes of UTI was the same. In both cases, I failed to do something I should have. Let's just say cranberry juice is back in my diet and I will always do what needs to be done to prevent this from happening again.

Whitehall-Yearling High School Reunion - Class of '78

My long weekend in Columbus is about to wrap up. I came in Friday night to attend my high school reunion. This is the 3rd reunion from my class that I've attended. And like the others, I had a wonderful time. The turnout for what was a class of under 300 was small and intimate.

Most of the attendees were people I'd seen at the previous reunions, but there were a few I hadn't since seen since high school. It was wonderful to catch up. My brother Sherman knows a few of my classmates very well, and as he has at my previous reunions, called the next day to get a recap.

So to those I saw last night, already Google'd to check out this blog and see what else I'm up to, it was great to see you. Hopefully it will be in 5 rather than 10 years that I see you all again.

GUYS: Gary, Terry, Tom, John, Bob, Randy, Tim, Joe, Ed, Bill, Pat
GALS: Barb H., Barb K., Andi, Eva, Cindy, Cindi, Patti, Melody, Tina, Kim, Sharon, Cris, Karin, Michelle, Tracy, Kathy, Lori, and special thanks to Jennifer for helping Barb H. organize. This evening wouldn't have happened without your help.

Go Rams!

Bermuda

If you've haven't been following my Twitter postings, I just returned today from a Royal Caribbean cruise from Cape Liberty in Bayonne, NJ to Bermuda. It was my first cruise ever to celebrate my parents' 50th wedding anniversary.

My parents love to gamble. The original plan was to spend a few days in Las Vegas. My brother Sherman then took it one step further and decided a cruise would be better. Everything my parents like to do would all be in one place. It turned out to be the best gift for them.

Mom and Dad pigged out at the buffet at ALL meals. They stayed in the casinos at least until 1 a.m. Slept in and napped whenever they wanted. After 2 days, we stopped going to our assigned dinner table because we preferred the variety and flexibility the buffet offered. We were booked in one of the luxury suites, so we got satellite on a flat screen TV and the option to watch whatever DVD's were in the library. Dad self-serviced himself frozen yogurt everyday after lunch and/or dinner.

For me, I brought my laptop but couldn't get wireless access. I ended up going to their online center, but they charged $0.55/minute for usage. I needed my online fix, so I coughed up the bucks. Twenty minutes goes by really quickly. I treated myself to a Swedish massage, and used the gym facilities twice during our 5-day cruise. My brother Sherman, the fitness junkie, went to the gym daily. My sister Cindy sat out on the balcony outside our suite to gaze at the ocean for hours on end. Everyone got what they wanted out of the cruise.

It looks like this is going to become an annual outing.

Update to "Eye on the Bay" segment

As I was setting the DVR for 11 a.m. tomorrow on KPIX, the episode featured is not "Eye on the Bay". It is very possible that I may not find myself in a rerun. Oh well.

A claim, albeit BRIEF, to fame

Back in June, KPIX contacted me to do an interview about fog on their newsmagazine show, "Eye on the Bay". I was told the segment wouldn't appear until September. I had been perusing their website for the past few weeks to see if it was coming up on any of the program listings. There was a feature about fog last night, but wasn't sure if this was going to include my interview.

I had it marked on my calendar to watch it. I ran an errand at Target after work and didn't make it home in time. Sure enough, the person who originally contacted for the interview emailed me this afternoon to tell me it was on. It's up on Eye on the Bay's website now. And if you are among the many friends and family I notified today on Facebook, Twitter or personal email and haven't found out about my TV appearance, then you've been under a rock for the past 6 hours. Or dead.

Just in case you STILL don't have it, here's the link. My last name was incorrectly said as "Chang". But hey, at least my first name was pronounced correctly. For those of you in the San Francisco Bay Area, the segment will air again on Sunday, September 28 at 11 a.m. on KPIX (CBS), channel 5. Crunched for time on your way to brunch or football game? No problem. You'll only have to watch the first 6 minutes. I appear twice in that time frame. It's a good as time as any to fire up that DVR.

Autographs cheerfully provided upon request.

Diet Coke. Just for the taste of it...

I haven't touched regular soda (or pop, as they say in parts of Canada and in Ohio) in over 20 years. Even when I did drink it, about the only drink I could gulp in semi-massive quantities was Mello Yello. My dad (today's his birthday) liked Mello Yello so much that he used to hide his supply from us.

When I decided to give up regular soda, I tried Tab, Diet Rite, Diet Pepsi, Diet 7up, Diet Sprite, Diet Dr. Pepper and a bunch of others I won't bother to mention. To me, Diet Coke was and still is the best tasting. Even over regular soda (which I have no desire to drink anymore). I used to opt for Diet Pepsi if Diet Coke wasn't available. But Diet Pepsi is nasty and would rather have plain, still water instead.

I then tried to go the route of giving up soda altogether. Including diet. This was successful for about 2 years. I switched to fruit drinks, iced teas, flavored vitamin and sparkling waters. The energy and fruit drinks don't have as much sugar as regular soda, but still too much. Sparkling water is good, but doesn't neutralize strong tasting food, isn't as satisfying or available. I still drink iced tea, usually green and diet.

So, after too many drowsy, dragged out afternoons at the office, I returned to Diet Coke. This time, I ventured off into other variations. Diet Coke w/Lemon made with Splenda, decaffeinated Diet Coke, a vitamin fortified version, Coke Zero, with Lime, and with Cherry.

Coke Zero is bitter and nasty and in no way, shape or form tastes like regular Coke. Only marginally better than Diet Pepsi. All the other Diet Coke versions are likable enough, but whenever I return to original formula Diet Coke, I notice the taste difference right away. Not too fizzy and very satisfying.

Gulp, gulp, gulp. Long live Diet Coke.

San Francisco, August 1983

Last month was my 25th anniversary in San Francisco. While reading a discussion thread in Yelp! asking for native San Franciscans to comment about what their childhood experiences. I'm not a native, but it made me realize in 25 years, many things about my transplanted city have changed.

• Stonestown Galleria was an outdoor mall with mostly mom and pop type shops and very few chains. What is now Macy's was Emporium Capwell. Petrini's Supermarket was where McDonald's now is.


• Marine World was in Redwood City where Oracle now is.


• Bridgepointe Shopping Center in San Mateo was Fashion Island Mall. One of the store's anchors was Whole Earth Access. A skating rink was located inside the mall.


• Potrero Avenue and 16th Street was the San Francisco Autocenter. 


• Highway 480 dominated the skyline at my workplace on Davis and Broadway. It was torn down completely after the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake.


• Royal Theatre on Polk and California, Regency Theatres I and II on Van Ness and Sutter, Northpoint Theatre on Powell and Bay (saw "Ghostbusters" and "Top Gun" there), Parkside Theatre on Taraval Street and 20th Avenue (saw "Field of Dreams" there).
• Crocker and Security Pacific were major banks. Crocker merged with Wells Fargo, Bank of America acquired Security Pacific.


• Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) was the dominant discount airline carrier, very similar business model to Southwest Airlines.

Wow, recalling these makes me realize how long I've been around.

How to Be a Leading Hollywood Player When You're Lazy

Ricky Gervais's new film, Ghost Town is due for release on September 18.  I saw the trailer when we went to see Vicky Cristina Barcelona last week. While doing my regular surfing, I came across an Esquire article Ricky has written and it's hilarious. You can also read it here.

The Best Advice Is: Be in charge. Then you can do anything. If you're not in charge, always play characters who have your haircut. That saves an hour in the morning. No wigs, no beards. Forget it. I had to wear a beard for one day. Ridiculous. Forty minutes. No. My haircut: ten minutes. And don't choose ridiculous costumes. Choose normal clothes. Ordinary trousers, ordinary shoes that you can put on yourself. Costume: five minutes. Hair and makeup: ten minutes. That's it. No costumes. No wigs. Own haircut.

Two: Do your own accent. You don't want to have vocal coaching. Don't do anything that needs skill. If there's a scene and it says " . . . rides a horse," say, "You do not need me to ride that horse." Because you'll have to learn how to ride a horse. That could take, like, two weeks. Too busy. Too much trouble.

Three: Always say that your character should be sitting down. Don't ever be standing at the beginning of a scene. So if it starts off, "There's a knock at the door, you get up and answer the door," you'll be up and down for eight hours. Convince them that you should sit there and say, "Come in." When we were filming Ghost Town, I tried to convince the director, David Koepp, that we should do a remake of Ironside together. It's the old TV drama with Raymond Burr as a detective in a wheelchair. Also, I've always wanted to play someone in a coma. Just comes out of it at the end. I was really jealous of Colin Farrell when I found out that Phone Booth was shot in just 16 days. Some of it, he was sitting on the floor of the telephone box. One location, sitting down.

Four: If there are long and complicated monologues, cut them. Say, "I don't think I'd say that." No one will think you're being lazy; it comes across as integrity.

So if any directors are reading this, I will work every day. I will give it my all. I will give it everything. I will give you 100 percent between the hours of, say, eight and six. And that's from pickup to wrap. If it's, like, two miles away, you can't go, "You'll be picked up at six, it'll be over at eight." You're having a laugh. My pickup is no earlier than seven-thirty. I'm not a maniac. I have to be wrapped by six. Five-day weeks. I only shoot in London and New York. No night shoots. No wigs. No nudity--that's more for the general public's sake as opposed to mine. And let's not go on and on with it. Let's try to keep it under five, six weeks. So, Spielberg--your move.
--As told to David Walters

RIM Blackberry Curve 8310

Toward the end of July, I bought my first smartphone, a RIM BlackBerry Curve 8310 to replace my Sony Ericsson W600i. Like the Nokia that preceded my Sony, the phone contains all of my must haves in features: Bluetooth, speakerphone, cameraphone (which is now standard in most cell phones). I originally had no interest in getting a smartphone, but since my current employer permits us to expense the cost up to $200 on smartphones, I had to take advantage of the offer.

It's now going on my third month with the BlackBerry. In order for me to feel like I was taking full advantage of BlackBerry's features, I changed to an unlimited data/text/e-mail plan. I'm glad I did. I added Twitter, my Yahoo! e-mail, NYTimes for mobile and Facebook to read messages when I'm not on my laptop. I e-mail and send a lot more text messages now, but because I can access this so quickly, I'm also finding I'm more much attentive to the phone than ever before. At work, I find myself constantly looking to see if the flashing LED is red, which means I have a new text or e-mail message.

Two features that my Sony had that my BlackBerry doesn't are a countdown timer and flashlight. I found a free countdown timer from NorthCubed and inexpensive flashlight at Handango. The timer isn't quite as good as Sony's. The loudness can't be adjusted and once time has elapsed, it turns off with no reminder. So if it goes off and I don't know it, I'm SOL.

I don't have yet my work email setup on the BlackBerry. It isn't a requirement (at least not yet) for me to have it installed. I won't be pushing for it anytime soon.

Quarter of a Century

Today is my 25th anniversary in San Francisco. My brother Sherman, his buddy Stan and I drove my 1980 Toyota Celica GT Liftback (front of it shown in picture behind me) from Columbus, Ohio to San Francisco in 4 1/2 days.

Our first stop was in Lawrence, Kansas. We almost didn't get a hotel that night because our stop coincided with parents helping their kids onto campus at the University of Kansas. Second stop was in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Third stop was in Salt Lake City, Utah. Last stop was Reno, Nevada. Our route was I-70 West until we reached I-25 North in Colorado, then finished the rest of our trip on I-80.

We stayed with my cousin Wilgee and his girlfriend (now wife) Amanda in San Bruno when we got into town. I started my first full-time job with The Sharper Image the following week. Unfortunately, The Sharper Image went out of business earlier this year. There will be a reunion party at Gordon Biersch in early September.

Twenty-five years later, about the only things that haven't changed are that I still wear exclusively Levi's jeans and live in the Sunset district. Except now I live in the Inner Sunset. My first residence was in the Outer Sunset.

Home sweet home.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it...

Fully into middle age, I have been a dedicated user (35 years) of Sea Breeze astringent, ORIGINAL FORMULA. About 3 years ago, the manufacturers developed a new formula, Actives. Like New Coke, it never should have been made.

EWWWWW! At the time I bought it, I had no idea it wasn't the original formula. I immediately realized it when my skin felt sticky and didn't feel the same refreshing tingle as I always did. I compared an old bottle to the new one and noticed Original Formula wasn't labeled on it.

I then found AmericaRX.com sold the Original Formula and bought a few bottles. A few months later, I found out Drugstore.com sold it. Woo hoo! I was already having difficulty finding it on store shelves, so I was relieved to know I could now purchase it from a website I regularly use.

Home free! Or so I thought. This past weekend, I went to Drugstore.com and found it was no longer available. I Google'd to see where else it was available. It was comforting to know that there's a website, Tami's Clock, with numerous comments from other incensed users about the attempt to kill our beloved astringent. I've tried Dickinson's Witch Hazel, Clean and Clear, Sea Breeze astringent Sensitive Skin formula, and a few others. NONE of them work as effectively as Sea Breeze astringent, Original Formula.

As of today, eBay merchant AmericanRx.com sells Original Formula. AmericaRx.com, where I bought a few before I found them at Drugstore.com no longer sell it. CosmeticMall.com and Amazon.com have it listed but is currently not available. A few beauty supply stores do sell in larger quantities, but some comments from Tami's Clock say it isn't Original Formula.

For now, Sea Breeze astringent, Original Formula, can now still be purchased online, but where to get it has become increasingly difficult.

High School Reunion Update

After a hectic 2 weeks, I wanted to update a posting no matter how brief it would be. I found out (not surprisingly) today that the 30-year reunion tentatively planned for this month is to be combined with the all class reunion scheduled for October.

Because I'm committed to a Bermuda cruise to celebrate my parents' 50th wedding anniversary in the same month, it is likely I won't attend. The person planning the reunion has been ill and wasn't able to do much. I'm puzzled because there were 4 people on the planning committee for the 25-year reunion and not sure why someone else didn't step in.

I'm a bit disappointed as I attended the 10 and 20-year reunions and had a blast each time. I seem to be among the minority that actually had fond memories of high school. Yes, there were the cliques, peer pressure, and constant wondering where one was in the pecking order. I wasn't extremely popular, smart or athletic but did well enough in all of these that I managed to be remembered among my classmates many years later. Of course, being one of only 3 Asians in my graduating class certainly didn't hurt either.

As I've gotten older, family gatherings mean a lot more. High school reunions don't come often but family comes first.

Bag Hag

Tonight I ordered 2 bags online. My first stop is always eBags. I've been a customer of theirs for at least 10 years. I've been using exclusively the carry-on suitcase I bought from them at least 7 years ago for only $40 and like the Energizer bunny, it's still going strong.

This order from eBags is a bit different from my previous purchases. I noticed on the website a link at the bottom of the page for AAA members. It brought me to AAA's website and entered my zip code as requested. I was then brought back to eBags's site under the AAA/eTravel store link powered by eBags. The best part is that as an AAA member, I'm eligible for a 20% discount and free shipping for orders $75 and over. Way cool.

The Baggallini nylon bag pictured is one of the 2 items I ordered tonight. I got it at 20% off. but the second item, my Victorinox Lund (a mini-backpack to replace my faded Eagle Creek) was not. The total was just under $83, so I qualified for free shipping.

I ordered the nylon bag for my upcoming cruise with the family in October. Since this trip will last a bit more than a week, I'll need more clothing than my carry-on will fit. I've been flying for the past 3 years without checking in luggage and I'm not about to start now, especially since many airlines now charge for it. The bag folds into a pouch and plan to take with me in my carry-on. I will ship the rest of my clothing to Sherman before I fly out and pack them in the nylon bag once I'm in New York.

As for the new mini-backpack, I've been eyeing one for the past 6 months. My 10+ year old Eagle Creek is quite faded and lacks the compartments the newer mini-backpacks now have. I really liked The North Face's Pandora. It comes in a bunch of awesome colors, but it doesn't have what I liked about my Eagle Creek, an external water bottle holder. The Victorinox Lund has one, and all of the other requirements I wanted: padded shoulder straps, color, 2 storage sections and most importantly, it's small.

While the trip is still over 2 months away, it is never too early to plan ahead. Especially the way air travel is these days. I'll do whatever I can to minimize my time as cattle prod.

Ch-ch-ch-chia

As previously written in my July 2 blog, the amount of spam I am now receiving has increased considerably since I opened a Facebook account. What puzzles me to no end is how many of the spam I'm getting address me as "Chia".

Oooh, my blood is boiling. My name is NOT Chia. Thanks to the lovely spam gods out there who now equate me to a ceramic animal figurine. Please stop. It's annoying and insulting.