Dom Barrett, 2013 PBA Championship Winner

Two days ago I said I'd write my last blog post for 2013. I fudged. I couldn't help it. Especially when it comes to bowling.

As I wrote on November 2, I'm a big Dom Barrett fan. Yesterday on ESPN, Dom captured his third PBA title (and first major), the PBA World Championship. His first, in 2011 (2011-12 season), when he won the Scorpion Championship.

Dom's opponent in both matches, Sean Rash.

For anyone who's seen Dom bowl before, it was unusual to see his emotional outburst at the end of the match. He also didn't realize he still needed 8 pins to seal the win. But the normally cool and calm Dominator collected himself and bowled a strike on his last ball.

I've included video of both matches. Watched them several times and will watch again. Ecstatic to see Dom getting recognition in the United States.

Can't say it enough. Congratulations! Best wishes on your pending nuptials to Cassie in April.

End of 2013 - We May Never Pass This Way (Again)

As 2013 comes to an end, my biggest highlights this year:

• My 30th Anniversary in San Francisco.
• My 35th high school class reunion.

But it's also been bittersweet. We lost 3 classmates this year. Two of them, Jenny and Wendi, were part of our senior class homecoming court. The other classmate, Bob, was in my 8th grade class and worked at the same place I did while I was a student at Ohio State. 

While at the airport on the way to my high school reunion this past August, my former college roommate notified me a friend of ours from Ohio State passed away suddenly. I felt so badly for her because they were very close. It'd only been a few months earlier when Vish sent me a Facebook friend request. Unfortunately, that was my last direct contact with him. My next contact to him was my condolences to his friends and family on his online obituary. 

The silver lining in all of this is that I've reconnected (hopefully permanently) with long lost friends and family. As I get older, the passing of friends and family comes around more often than I'd like. We begin to see "life is short" is magnified much, much more. It can be hard, but don't be afraid to reconnect with someone special you haven't seen and/or heard from in awhile. 

I'll close with a corny dedication to Jenny, Wendi, Bob, Vish and Amy's mom Anne. Sorely missed, but never forgotten. Cue video. 

Father and Son Bowl Perfect 300 Game - Same Team, Game and Night

image source: Facebook page of Derby City Bowling, Louisville, Kentucky
L: James Stringer Jr., R: James Stringer Sr.

James Jr's.Twitter ID: @Lil_J_88

I love seeing families bowl together in leagues and tournaments. A teammate from my Wednesday night league and his dad bowl, but on different teams. My Sunday practice is with my Wednesday team along with the dad's team. The dad, Steve, bowls with Monica and Walter, who are wife and husband.

Not rare, yet not all that common, do we hear about family members bowling perfect games. But to me, it is the ultimate accomplishment when they can do it on the same team on the same night. Kathy, my Monday league teammate, is friends with a father who did this with his daughter.

So when James Stringer Jr., of Louisville, Kentucky and his dad, James Stringer Sr., both bowled 300 on their Tuesday league night December 17, they did exactly that. 

Congratulations to Big and Lil J! I somehow get the feeling you guys will repeat.

2013 GIBBY Award Winner - Pitching Performance of the Year - Tim Lincecum, SF Giants

image source: MLB.com

A big congratulations to San Francisco Giants Tim Lincecum as winner of the 2013 Greatness in Baseball Yearly Awards (GIBBY) - Pitching Perfomance of the Year.

Timmy pitched the no-hitter on July 13, 2013.
As was noted in my blog entry on that date, it was the 7th no-hitter in San Francisco Giants history (15th in franchise history) and the first no-hitter in San Diego's Petco Park.

Buster Posey, who caught Tim's game, also caught Matt Cain's June 13, 2012 perfect game. Buster is the only catcher in Giants franchise history to catch 2 no-hitters.

And, if you're so inclined to watch, FlyingHellFish99 was kind enough to put San Francisco's broadcast of the game on YouTube. In HD too.

Happy Birthday Johnny Bench!

image source: rantsports.com

Wishing Hall of Fame legend Cincinnati Reds catcher Johnny Bench a very Happy 66th Birthday!

One of my favorite JB appearances was in 2009. Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres had been having a very difficult time to get actor George Clooney to appear on her show. Ellen found out through Clooney's ER co-star Noah Wyle was that Clooney was a huge Big Red Machine fan.

So Ellen enlisted the help of former 2nd baseman Joe Morgan and JB to play catch outside Clooney's trailer. It worked. Below is the video. I couldn't stop smiling. Especially when Clooney gushed how much he admired Joe and JB.

Ohio State versus Michigan - History of Rivalry

image source: runnerspace.com

Some of my favorite team rivalries include:

• San Francisco Giants versus Los Angeles Dodgers (baseball)
• North Carolina Tar Heels versus Duke Blue Devils (basketball)
• Alabama Crimson Tide versus Auburn Tigers (football)
• USC Trojans versus UCLA Bruins (football)
• Oklahoma Sooners versus Nebraska Cornhuskers (football)
• New York Yankees versus Boston Red Sox (baseball)

But for me, what separates rivalries above all others:
Ohio State Buckeyes versus Michigan Wolverines.

Why? It began for me as a 9-year old growing up in Columbus, Ohio. Woody Hayes was the Ohio State coach. His former assistant coach, Bo Schembechler was the Michigan coach.

As Wikipedia describes it:
"The Ten Year War is the informal nickname given to the series of college football games in the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry, played between 1969 and 1978. This series of games pitted coaches Woody Hayes of Ohio State and Bo Schembechler of Michigan against each other in classic teacher-versus-student matchups. In most contests, the Big Ten conference championship and a trip to the Rose Bowl were at stake, and in some cases, a possible national championship."

It became the subject of a 2007 HBO documentary. See for yourself:

Wow, oh wow. This year's game, another one right down to the end. Ohio State 42, Michigan 41.

49th QubicaAMF World Cup - Women's Final - Cherie Tan vs. Caroline Lagrange

image source: QubicaAMF Bowling

Best 2 out of 3 games wins. And it took all 3 games for a winner to be decided in the second ball of the 10th and last frame. Nail biter of a match between former Wichita State Shocker Caroline Lagrange of Canada versus Cherie Tan of Singapore.

Caroline, no stranger to the tournament, won in 2009. Cherie is a member of the formidable Women's Singaporean team and teammate of 2013 USBC Queens Finalist/2012 QubicaAMF Women's Champion Shayna Ng and another former Wichita State Shocker, Jazreel Tan.

I previously wrote about Shayna on September 5 and Jaz on June 3.

Here's Caroline's 2009 championship match versus UK's Zara Giles.



And, big thanks to the Russian network who helped Bowl.com provide a very high quality HD video feed. I felt as if I was in the bowling center itself (located in the Siberian region of Krasnoyarsk, Russia).

Below is this morning's semifinal and final match. The semifinal match was Cherie versus Aumi Guerra of the Dominican Republic, 2010's and 2011's champion.

Remodeled Landmark's Embarcadero Cinema

On November 5, SFGate ran an article about the makeover of Landmark's Embarcadero Cinema in San Francisco's Financial District.

Yesterday, I went there to see "Blue is the Warmest Color". It's been nearly 4 years since my last visit. While the theater still shows arthouse/independent/foreign films, there were some major changes and upgrades made.

They include:
1. No ticket line. At the theater entrance, there are several large touch screen computers that give you the option to purchase, pickup or order tickets for a future showing. You can still buy tickets from a human being at the concierge desk just past the bar and lounge.


















2.  Bar and lounge. Lounge area has tables and seats for about 12. You can also sit at the bar to order food such as Southwestern Egg Rolls and adult beverages such as beer and wine.

3. Large, roomy leather seats with cup holders on both arms with a button to control how far back you want to recline. So far back that it'd be very easy to fall asleep during the film. As a result of the larger seats, the seating capacity is greatly reduced and increases the probability of a sold-out showing.



For me overall, the experience is very enjoyable. Very much like going to an invitation-only film festival. If you want to see a wide release film yet still have the fancy food and drinks, then I recommend Theater 1 at the Sundance Kabuki in Japantown.

Will I come back? Absolutely.

Bowling Area Etiquette

National Bowling Center, Reno, Nevada

My July 20, 2010 blog discussed my annoyance with bowlers (most of them recreational and inexperienced) who fail to observe lane courtesy. In short, if there's a bowler on either side of you on the lane ready to bowl, step off the approach and let the bowler bowl.

What experienced bowlers also know is that beyond the area behind the approach, there's an etiquette observed there too. This area is where bowlers sit or stand when they're not bowling.

They keep the area behind the approach free of debris and liquids. Failure to do so can make bowlers slip, stick and/or fall on their next turn.

Last Sunday at practice and this past Wednesday in league, a few bowlers and I experienced some footing problems because bowlers before us didn't keep the area clean.

My sliding shoe got stuck near the foul line after I threw my ball. Fortunately, I didn't fall and my ball only missed the mark by a few boards. But a senior male bowler several lanes over from us did fall. He got up after a minute or so. I was relieved to see he was OK. House maintenance came by later with scouring pads and towels to both pairs of lanes and cleaned the up the sticky areas.

It's scary for anyone to lose his/her balance and fall while throwing/rolling a very hard 10 to 16 pound ball on a hardwood (or laminate wood) floor. In some cases, a fall can result in a twisted ankle, dislocated shoulder, bruised hip or broken wrist. I have fallen before and it's not fun. The game's focus ends up on not to fall rather than hit your mark.

So, for those of you casual/recreational bowlers that plan your next group outing, please confine food and drink to the counters or tables where the house balls are kept, usually behind the sitting area. I cringe whenever I see someone grab pizza or fries in one hand, ball in the other hand, walks to the lane approach, and then goes to bowl.

What I find worse are clueless league bowlers that use powder to get their shoes to slide. I don't object to use of the powder (it's not enforced but is illegal in my Monday league), I object to the bowler who leaves the excess without regard to other bowlers who may slip on it.

I'm done. Rant over.

Mr. Barrett and his Domination

image source: PBA.com

Pro bowling fans know the World Series of Bowling Championships have been underway all week. For me, it was very exciting to read:

• Marshall Kent (Robert Morris University's bowling superstar) land as top seed in the Scorpion Championship as an amateur. This is Marshall's second appearance in a TV final. He was in the U.S. Open finals this past summer in my birth city of Columbus, Ohio (see July 28, 2013 blog entry).
• Clara Guerrero, the third female bowler (following Liz Johnson and Kelly Kulick) in PBA history to make a TV appearance in the Cheetah Championship, and...
• Dom Barrett emerge as the number 1 seed in the Chameleon and World Series Championships.

My admiration for Dom goes back about 3 years, when I first saw him on YouTube bowling in the 2008 Weber Cup. I included him in a March 29, 2012 blog entry featuring a 2011 Weber Cup video of Dom bowling for Team Europe versus Team USA's Tommy Jones. 

What sealed me as a fan was his 2009 Ten-Pin Masters Final match against Australian sensation and fellow Storm Pro Staffer Jason Belmonte. It was quite the sight to see a low-key, clean-cut, boyish Dom have a very loud legion of fans (aka The Domination) cheer for him in the Barnsley Metrodome. 

My favorite part: the celebration after Dom won the match. Take careful notice on the backs of the T-shirts Dom's fans wore that day. Below is video of the final game in the title match. 

Viral: The Ohio State University Marching Band

image source: tbdbitl.osu.edu

As an Ohio State alum, I am beaming with pride to see the Marching Band (aka The Best Damn Band In The Land) going viral on the internet this past week. The tributes to Michael Jackson and Hollywood Movie Blockbusters, wow to the nth degree.

Featured this morning on NBC's Today Show, these impressive and no doubt difficult moves the band practices to perfection used to be mapped out with dots on paper. It is now done through the tutelage of an iPad app. In case you didn't see it, here's the Today Show's segment:



And for those of you too preoccupied choosing this year's Halloween costume the past 2 weeks, here are the full video clips of the Michael Jackson and Hollywood Movie Blockbuster shows.





Anyone who's ever been in marching band in high school and/or college, the world now knows band nerds are truly cool.

Terrell Owens to bowl in PBA World Series of Bowling

image source: PBA

On March 13, my blog entry discussed Terrell's attempt to bowl at the elite level. Can't say I was surprised to see so many negative comments when he bowled at the USBC Championships in May and his upcoming debut in the PBA World Series of Bowling at South Point in Las Vegas this weekend. However, most that follow the sport of bowling closely support TO's efforts.

Longtime PBA veteran bowler Norm Duke said it best:
"It's unfair for all the bowlers in the world to compare him with us...He does have a pretty good fundamentally sound bowling game, but we should be fair to him. He knows his role here. He wants to see what it is like."--Associated Press, October 24, 2013.

For those naysayers that likely didn't know, Terrell's average during the USBC Championships was about 167. Not great, but not terrible either. It's my guess Terrell will do better than he did in March.

Best of luck to you this weekend, T.O.

2010 MLB World Series Film

image source: Fanpop

On Wednesday, October 23, begins the 2013 World Series between 2 red-themed teams, the St. Louis Cardinals and the Boston Red Sox. Both teams are not strangers to the series, with Boston making their last appearance in 2007, and St. Louis in 2011. Both teams won their series.

I've been revisiting film clips the past few nights from other recent post-season games, including the 2010 World Series, the first championship for the Giants in the San Francisco era. I was able to find on YouTube the full length film chronicling San Francisco's run to the Fall Classic.

Watching the film last night felt like seeing it for the first time. Many of the key players for the Giants in 2010 were not on 2012's team. Cody Ross and Juan Uribe are now with different teams. Brian Wilson spent most of 2012 on the disabled list. Pat Burrell retired. Aubrey Huff and Freddy Sanchez are not actively playing baseball at this time.

Thanks to michael2damax at YouTube for posting it. In case you haven't seen it, here it is:



Narration by actor and comedian Rob Schneider.

Remembering Loma Prieta Earthquake, October 17, 1989

Today is the 24th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area. Epicenter was in Santa Cruz, California. As I tweeted earlier this morning, my longtime and dear friend Jeff drove me to San Francisco International Airport on a flight to visit family and friends in Columbus.

I've copied from George Kelly (@allaboutgeorge on Twitter) a series of tweets from other Tweeters, including mine, of their memories on this date. I was fortunate not to have felt it, but will never forget the impact it had on everyone else living in the area.

As extensive as the damage was to much of the Bay Area, it could have been a lot worse. The San Francisco Giants and Oakland A's were set to play in a first-ever Bay Bridge World Series and traffic was light that day because many were preparing to watch the game.

Weber Cup XIV - 2013

image source: Weber Cup

UPDATE October 13, 2013 - Team Europe rallies to a 17-14 win over Team USA. Congratulations to Mika, Stu, Dom and Martin!

Battling as we speak is this year's Weber Cup match between Europe and the United States. The United States got off to blistering start, leading 5-1. Like the recent America's Cup, a big rally from Team Europe has surged them back into contention. Europe is only 2 matches down.

As of this blog entry, United States 10, Europe 8. First team to reach 17 points wins. Competition ends tomorrow.

This year's rosters:
Team USA (same as 2012): Chris Barnes, Bill O'Neill, Tommy Jones and Mike Fagan.
Team Europe: Mika Koivuniemi, Stuart Williams, Martin Larsen and Dominic Barrett.

Looking very forward to the video of the matches in early 2014.
Go USA!

League Bowling Blog - Gutter to Glory

image source: guttertoglory.com , Roto Grip

A month into my 6th season of league bowling (yes, it will eventually match all these years I played league softball), I'm not perusing as many YouTube videos as I did in the past 2 years. I do continue to follow all levels of bowling from league and local tournaments to the WTBA and PBA.

League scores from the 2 centers where I bowl regularly can be found at leaguesecretary.com. My Wednesday league has its own website at chinesebowlingclub.com under the Friendly Trios icon. Our stats are usually updated Saturday nights. I just checked the site and see results for this week are already in. If I bowled well (which I did), I'm always anxious to see how well I did against everyone else.

Statistics are a great way to help track progress. More importantly for me is practice and to watch others practice. When appropriate, I'll chat with other bowlers during practice and league play for their feedback. I can usually determine that with a "nice shot" compliment, or hear a self-deprecating remark about the errant shot he/she just made.

Which leads me to Zak Becker's and Tim Merath's blog, Gutter to Glory, sponsored by Roto Grip. As fellow league bowlers, they write about their bowling experiences I can relate to in so many ways. The screen shots of their scores on their blog and Twitter look so much like my scores, good and bad. They express frustration with inconsistent scores, how to adapt to changing lane conditions, and a ton of other minutiae bowlers only know.

If you find this kind of bowling minutiae fascinating, you can follow Gutter to Glory on Facebook, and Tim's Twitter account, @guttertoglory. Good luck to Zak and Tim. My goal this season is the same as Zak's, a 165 average.

Max Scherzer, Detroit Tigers pitcher, 21 wins

image source: ESPN

Before the current era of specialized relief pitching, a starter with 20 wins earmarked whether or not you had a very successful season. If you had 30 wins like Dizzy Dean of the St. Louis Cardinals did in 1934, or Denny McLain of the Detroit Tigers with 31 victories in 1968, it was phenomenal.

Today's era of pitchers are categorized into specialized roles. They include starter, long relief, setup, and closer. There's also the 100 pitch limit teams usually restrict to a starter. If he's taken out because of the pitch count and hasn't completed 5 innings yet his team wins the game, the starter cannot be credited for the victory. So if a starting pitcher wins 15 or more games now, it's a great season.

And this is why another Detroit Tigers pitcher, Max Scherzer, who earned his 21st win last night is remarkably special. Congratulations, Max. Good luck to you and the Detroit Tigers in the post-season. Your brother Alex would be very proud. 

Happy 63rd Birthday, William James Murray

image source: Esquire Magazine

Wishing Todd DiLaMuca, The Lounge Singer, Carl Spackler, Ernie McCracken, Herman Blume and my favorite, Dr. Peter Venkman, a very Happy Birthday.

Here's a video of WatchMojo.com's Top 10 favorite Bill Murray performances:

Remembering Ray Dolby

image source: Dolby Labs

On September 12, 2013, sound pioneer Ray Dolby passed away at his home in San Francisco.

From the improvement (no hiss) in cassette recordings to the "Dolby Sound" in the classic blockbuster "Star Wars", music fans and moviegoers know they'll get the ultimate audio experience.

It may be dated and too brief, but here's a clip of the "test" sound I always immediately recognize as Dolby. I know then the movie I'm about to watch is going to sound awesome.



Rest in peace, Mr. Dolby.

Shayna Ng's cropped look

image source: Bowl.com

This afternoon, ESPN2 aired (tape delay) the USBC Queens finals. Congratulations to the top seeded player, Diana Zavjalova, who emerged as this year's winner.

Throughout the week, I followed a few live broadcasts of match play on Bowl.com and read updates on Facebook. Without fail, there was someone, usually male, who commented negatively about the sport, a player, or whatever else can be criticized. And like an ex-boyfriend I was with for 7 years too long, he opined negatively on a topic he doesn't know well.

Which brings me to the comments said about Shayna Ng. With her cropped hairstyle and no makeup, several (all men) asked if Shayna was a man. It got me upset as it's a topic all too familiar to me. I wore short hair most of my life and have had more than my fair share of being mistaken for a man.

Then as I read further along in the comments, a Singaporean (Shayna is from Singapore) clarified the reason for Shayna's cropped look. And if those same smart mouths bothered to watch the telecast, they would have heard announcer Dave Lamont mention it as well. She shaved her head for the Children's Cancer Foundation, Hair for Hope 2013 Campaign. So far, Shayna's pledges have more than doubled the target amount.

Way to go Shayna.