Famous TV bowlers

As I start my first full week of summer league, let's recap with a few of television's most famous bowlers:

Married With Children's head honcho, Al Bundy:


Slate Quarry everyday man Fred Flintstone:


Shotz Brewery's Queen Pins Laverne DeFazio and Shirley Feeney:

image source: PBS.org

Nick Leshi's blog, City of Kik, wrote a nice piece in September, 2011 about these bowlers and a few more.

Yabba. Dabba. Doo.

Before Chad Smith and Will Ferrell

image source: comicvine.com

This past week was the long awaited drum-off between must-have-been-separated-at-birth lookalikes Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith versus actor/comedian Will Ferrell.

Their drum-off and the recent lip sync competitions featuring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Paul Rudd and Emma Stone are great examples of how hip The Tonight Show has become, thanks to former Saturday Night Live alum Jimmy Fallon.

However, before there was ever Chad versus Will, there was another famous drum-off we older kids may have forgotten. The drum battle was between legends, Animal of Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem versus the late jazz great, Buddy Rich.

Animal and Buddy had their drum battle during Buddy's guest appearance on The Muppet Show in 1980. See for yourself:



And in case you'd missed it, here's Chadwick versus William:

Former MLB pitcher John Burkett returns to PBA

image source: PBA

As a huge fan of the San Francisco Giants and current bowling junkie, I'm very excited to hear former Major League Pitcher John Burkett is returning to the PBA tomorrow at Oklahoma's Grand Resort to bowl in the Wolf Open/PBA Summer Swing.

Burkett's return to bowling is his first love. His entry in the Wolf Open is preparation to join the PBA50 tour in 2015. Click here for more details.

During Burkett's pitching days as a San Francisco Giant, he bowled in a few PBA tournaments and bowled well enough to finish in the top 40. Along with former San Francisco 49er Terrell Owens' USBC debut in 2013 (current PBA team owner of the Dallas Strikers), and the upcoming pro debut of former college sensation Marshall Kent, these are all positive steps for the PBA.

If Burkett placed in PBA tournaments in the top 40 while he was a pitcher, I can only imagine how well he'll do now, as his focus will be entirely on bowling. I wish him the best.

Mother's Day

Mom, December 1975

It was a rather exhaustive search this morning to find a nice picture to honor my Mom for Mother's Day.

This was taken during Jong Mea's staff Christmas party in 1975. I then realized the reason why it took so long to find a picture of just her was because that's how she would have preferred it. She won't pose for pictures without her family in it.

Like all great moms, my Mom is the glue, the rock, the hen that rules the roost. She did and does a million other things behnd the scenes that you don't realize she's done until you've moved away from home.

Most of all, she will always have your back.
To Mom and all the other Moms out there, Happy Mother's Day.

A history in ID photos

Last week, DMV mailed my notification to renew my driver's license. As seen in the photo, I've been able to renew my license 3 previous times by mail or on the internet. No dreaded in-person visit. Another reason to smile.

Despite the artificially induced mini-afro (aka perm) in the middle photo, the wide grinned smile pretty much looks the same after 30 years.



How about after 40 years? Junior high ID photos here:

2014 USBC Women's Nationals, Reno Convention Center

This past week, I bowled my first USBC Women's National Tournament at the Reno Convention Center. Unlike the less than stellar accommodations in my first women's state tournament (Fresno) in 2012, this is the way tournaments should be done.

My teammates are all longtime bowlers: Kathy, my Monday night teammate, bowled juniors as a kid. She remains friends with many her teammates, who still bowl leagues and tournaments.

Then there's Jan and Wilma. Jan and Wilma bowl with my other Monday night teammate Mark on Thursday nights. Both have bowled for nearly as long as I've been alive.

The biggest highlight in attending this tournament was to see Jan get recognized for her 50th consecutive Women's National tournament (see article on Bowl.com).

L to R: Lani, Jan, Wilma, Kathy

Unlike the National Bowling Stadium in downtown Reno, the lanes where we bowled were not a permanent part of the convention center.

For the first time this year in the USBC Women's Championships, bowlers were classified according to average. No handicap scoring was used. Our team bowled in the Emerald division (575-649 combined average). When Kathy and I bowled doubles, we were in Division 4 (290-319 combined average).

As a tournament participant (and being part of Jan's team certainly helped), Kathy and I got a $20 discount toward any purchase in the pro shop and gift store. I got a couple of towels and an ID tag for my 2-ball roller.

Kathy used her discount to buy a new Storm 3-ball roller bag for her son, who needs the bag to carry his bowling balls and shoes for a junior tournament next weekend in Orange County (southern California). He's competing for a spot in the Junior Gold Championship which will be held this July in Buffalo, New York.

It was very, very cool to see my name on the big scoreboard. During doubles, each bowler's home city was listed next to her name. I was never prouder to see "San Francisco, CA" next to mine. Only wish my series had been as big as my name on the scoreboard.

Because this was a weekday trip, Kathy got me a killer Groupon deal at the Grand Sierra Resort, which is near the Reno-Tahoe airport.

For $59, we got a 2-night stay with waived resort fee, free room wi-fi, and 2-day complimentary breakfast buffets for 2.

Like cruise ships, the Grand Sierra features amenities that make it possible that you'd never have to leave the hotel. Within the hotel there's a Starbucks, Johnny Rockets, Round Table Pizza, Port of Subs, a wedding chapel and a pool area called "The Beach".

My absolute favorite amenity: the 24-hour, 50 lane bowling center.

Grand Sierra's 24-hour, 50 lane bowling center

It's definitely my first choice on a future Reno trip -- when I'm not there to bowl in a tournament.

Mel Blanc

Mel in 1959, source: Wikipedia

This past Thursday (April 17) marked the 77th anniversary of my favorite web footed lisper, Daffy Duck. 

The voice of Daffy Duck, as well as hundreds of other cartoon characters is the late, great Mel Blanc.

Some of his best known Warner Brothers voices:
Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Pepé Le Pew, Sylvester the Cat, Tweety Bird, Foghorn Leghorn, Tasmanian Devil, Yosemite Sam, and eeebly, eebly, that's all folks, Porky Pig.

Until I read his Wikipedia biography, I didn't know Mr. Blanc was the original voice of Universal Studio's Woody Woodpecker, or that he was born in San Francisco.

Mr. Blanc later worked for Hanna Barbera and was the voice of Mr. Spacely from The Jetsons and more famously as Fred Flinstone's best friend, Barney Rubble.

I'll close with my favorite clips from Bugs Bunny-Daffy Duck-Elmer Fudd trilogy, "Rabbit Season, Duck Season" (thanks kenpoarniceguy1).

Former Major League Baseball MVP Larry Walker bowls a perfect game

Larry Walker's Thursday night league in West Palm Beach, Florida

As some have tweeted to former MLB MVP outfielder-with-a-cannon-arm-Canadian Larry Walker, (Twitter name: @Cdnmooselips33 ) strikes are a good thing. Carrying a pretty impressive league average of 196, Walker bowled his first perfect game during league last night at Verdes Tropicana Lanes in West Palm Beach, Florida.

This was Walker's second perfect game. His first? When he played first base for the Montreal Expos on July 28, 1991 when Dennis Martinez pitched a perfect game.

Most valuable player. Two perfect games in 2 sports. Wow.

Blast from the Past in Tweets

A phone app I installed last week - Timehop.

Short and sweet - a time capsule of my history in photo, videos and status updates (for me, that would be Tweets).

As shown in today's timehop, on this date 4 years ago, I was on my way back to San Francisco from a short visit to Columbus. My connection was in Detroit.

Other than what's been shared here, I haven't yet used the "Share This" feature. Maybe because I'm not quite comfortable with re-posting past status updates.

The free app is currently available for download on Google play (Android) and Apple's App Store.

Saving on a rainy day

Since my first full-time job in 1983, I've only had 2 employers that did not pay me via direct deposit. I have always set up the funds to go into my checking account. That didn't change when I began this job 2 months ago.

It only took my second paycheck to come in via direct deposit. When I verified funds, I found it went into my savings account instead. When this has happened with previous employers, I'd contact payroll to correct the error.

In today's pouring rain, I realized 'correcting the error' would be a mistake. Why?

Time and money.
1.  It only takes me 1 to 3 minutes to transfer the funds from savings to checking using my credit union's mobile phone app.

2. When I choose an amount to the nearest whole dollar, it saves me a ton of time to reconcile the balance. As I don't want to leave less than the account's previous balance, it forces me to save, even only if it seems like a little.

On my first deposit, I left about $50 in savings and transferred the rest to checking. On my most recent paycheck, I left $20 in the savings account.

Most money savers already know this, but as a fiscally conscious yet frugally challenged person, my brain's bulb lit up 200 watts. I just saved $70 in my last 2 paychecks. 

I get paid every other Thursday. That's 26 paychecks. If I leave $20 in my savings account from every paycheck for the next 12 months, I'll have saved $520.

Chump change no more.

Women's Bowling Tournaments (or lack thereof)

An early league trophy

Today I was scheduled to bowl in the 8th Annual San Francisco USBC Women's Tournament at Classic Bowl in Daly City. It was scheduled to begin at 10 am. I would have been there anyway for practice with friends from Wednesday league.

Found out yesterday I wouldn't bowl the tournament. It ended up being another practice session. Not necessarily a bad thing.

Due to the low turnout (8 teams  = 32 women), we cancelled. It would not have been worth our strongest bowler's time and money to drive 50+ miles from her house to battle for payouts less than our $80 entry fee (doubles, singles and 4-person team).

I bowl 3 to 7 tournaments a year. All but 1 or 2 of them are outside the San Francisco Bay Area. Of all the tournaments I have bowled in the past 6 years since I began league, only 2 have been women's - Sea Bowl in Pacifica and a state tournament in Fresno.

What frustrates me is that once the tournament started, there were at least 7 other female leaguers (including me) on other lanes not bowling in it. Four of us have 150+ averages. The remaining 3, 175 and higher. Krystal didn't know until I told her. It's my guess at least one of the women practicing didn't know either.

In my humble opinion, I'd like to offer a few suggestions that might generate a better turnout:

1. Early notice - Put out the word, especially via email and on social media (Facebook, Twitter) 3 months BEFORE the tournament date. This gives women with families and many other commitments to clear calendars and organize teams. I didn't know about the tournament until late February. By word of mouth.
2. Friendly reminders - Get people to pass out flyers to women on their league night.
3. Recruit women without teams - as I did with both leagues I'm currently in, I didn't know anyone. I just signed up and got placed. I bet there'd be enough interested women not on a team would sign up and form their own teams. These are women you would not get otherwise.
4. Open the invitation to other Bay Area USBC leagues. I know several women league bowlers not in SFUSBC that would have participated but could not. The Asian American Bowling Association's tournaments permit any USBC sanctioned league bowler to participate as long as 50% of the team is of Chinese or Japanese ancestry, or bowl in a Chinese or Japanese league.

I don't claim to know all the answers. What I do know is that there are a lot of recreational/sporting functions out there league bowling has to compete against. Don't make it more difficult for women who want to bowl other than weekly leagues and can't.

Take a bath, clean your tub

Yes, that's a picture of my bathtub. Clean, shiny, and free of soap scum. And I got it that way by taking a bath. With baking soda and shampoo. No scrubbing needed.

The key ingredient - baking soda. Inexpensive, easy to find, extremely versatile and a household item most people already have at home.

The baking soda softens the water and rinses off the soap scum around the tub. It'll do the same for your hair and remove shampoo buildup.

Run a load of without clothes in your washing machine with baking soda and vinegar in place of detergent and it will clean out the buildup in the machine's agitator and tub.

My favorite use of baking soda - clogged toilets. I pour about 2/3 cup into the toilet, then 2-3 short squirts of dish detergent (original formula Dawn works the best), vinegar, and about 2 cups of hot water. Repeat application until the clog dissipates. Since finding this information on the internet, it hasn't failed me yet. No plunger, snake, or expensive visit from the plumber needed.

I know many experienced household cleaners have a bunch more uses for baking soda than I do. Like tissues, it's a must have in my house. If I'm down to a single box, it's off to the store for more.

Penguin in a Wetsuit

This past weekend, SFGate featured a story on longtime California Academy of Sciences resident Pierre the Penguin, who turned 31 last month (February 16).

Pierre's claim to fame was in 2007, when senior biologist Pam Schaller, wetsuit manufacturer Oceanic Worldwide and children's costume seamstress Celeste Angel desiged a custom made wetsuit for him in 2007.

source: USA Today

Here's the 2008 local TV story on Pierre from KRON-TV:


Pierre eventually grew his feathers back and no longer wears the wetsuit. He now lives happily ever after with his colony of followers and his woman, Homey.

A History of Cell Phones I've Owned 1997 - 2015

This past Friday, I got an email from Best Buy for a weekend special offer for iPhone 4S and 5 owners to upgrade to a 16GB 5S for $1. The special also includes a $150 gift card. So immediately after work, I drove down the block to Best Buy at Tanforan to exchange my 4S.

While the offer wasn't as wonderful as it first sounded (the $150 gift card was applied toward the 5S purchase), it was still a very good deal. I spent about $75 total (new phone cover, charger and activation fee).

As someone who once eschewed ownership of an iPhone, the 5S is my second Apple product. I've never owned an Android phone so I can't say if the iPhone is better or worse. But in comparison to a Blackberry Curve 8310 (my first smartphone), it is worlds better and the closest thing to a pocket-sized laptop.

With the new 5S, I now officially have owned more cell phones than cars. I thought it'd be fun to recap the history of all the cell phones I've bought.

1. Motorola Microtec, 1997-1999. 

source: Forum XDA Developers
As my first cell phone from Cellular One, the phone number they assigned me is the number I still have today. It was too heavy and bulky to carry in my purse so I kept it in the glove box of my car. I bought it primarily for emergency purposes. I don't think I actually talked on the phone more than a dozen times in the 2 years I owned it.

2. Nokia 8210, 1999-2001.

source: Wikipedia
With this phone, I went from the bulkiest and heaviest to my smallest owned phone. It was the first phone I carried in my purse, the first and last phone to be charged roaming fees, and the last phone that I would turn off when it wasn't in use. I eventually gave the phone to a friend of an ex-boyfriend when I got a Nokia 3650.

3. Nokia 3650, 2001-2004.

source: my-simbian.com
Technology really jumped when I got this phone. It was my first phone with a pretty awesome camera and bluetooth. I knew it was a cool phone when I saw Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner's character in "Alias") carry it with her.

I kept this phone powered on at all times and became a fixture on my desk while at work. I sold the phone in its original box and all its accessories at a yard sale to a younger guy who had only a clamshell phone without bluetooth or a camera. He was so appreciative he insisted he pay me $40 cash for it.

4. Sony Ericsson W600, 2004-2008.

source: Wikipedia
This phone didn't really offer anything more than my previously owned Nokia 3650. I got this phone because I was eligible for an upgrade and didn't want to fall behind having a phone without the latest technology.

I liked the swivel design and how it felt like a landline phone when I used it. I owned this phone longer than I normally would have, probably because I wasn't quite ready to give in to a Treo, the bulky smartphone all the techies had.

5. Blackberry Curve 8310, 2008-2012.

source: AT&T Wireless
My first smartphone, cost subsidized from my employer. I was eligible to buy an iPhone but after 4 people "over" sang their praises about getting one, it only made me more determined not to get one. This was my way of not jumping on the hot and trendy bandwagon. It was the phone I began to send and receive email and text on a regular basis, which many use a lot more than voice calls these days.

It was this phone another boyfriend would constantly play with when we were first dating. It endeared me to him even more to see him so fascinated with a phone that could surf the internet. For our first Christmas together, I got him a gift card through his cell phone carrier so he could get his first smartphone.

6. Apple iPhone 4S, 2012-2014.

source: AT&T Wireless
Resistance is futile. I was in my interminable unemployment phase of 3.5 years and promised myself a new phone once I got back to work.

But as rebooting the Blackberry became a habit, I could no longer wait for a new phone. I found no other phones that had as much excitement as an iPhone, even after 3 generations. Nearly everyone I knew had an iPhone, so they were no longer the short-lived trendy gadget I thought they'd be. Once I got it, I knew I had some catching up to do. A phone with so much demand, my first 4S was stolen during practice at Classic Bowl.

7. Apple iPhone 5S, 2014-present.

source: mobilefun.co.uk
My latest and greatest. Longer and thinner than the 4S, it's got all the cool features that makes the iPhone an essential, yet fun tool. The best feature I've found in the 5S so far is LTE.

When my 4S was in wi-fi territory, it often had problems loading and I'd have to turn off the wi-fi feature and revert back to 4G. With the 5S, it loads right away, thanks to LTE. The LTE speed is about equal to DSL speed. My cable internet connection at home is by far the fastest.

So that's all for now. If my next phone is an Apple, this will be the first line of cellphones I'll have owned more than 2 times.

What Will Your Verse Be?

As many of us know, the narrative in Apple iPad's latest ad is a scene from one of Robin Williams's finest films as English teacher John Keating in , "Dead Poets Society", directed by Peter Weir. The film was released in 1989.

For a film to be 25 years old and have "dead" in its title, Mr. Keating's powerful words are still very much alive.

The original scene from the film:



And, the same words used as powerfully, 25 years later:

Dame Helen Mirren - BAFTA Fellowship Recipient

Congratulations to Dame Helen Mirren for receiving a BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Fellowship. Ms. Mirren has been a favorite of mine for many years. I included her as one of my "girl crushes" from a November 2007 blog entry.

Despite her wonderful Oscar winning performance in "The Queen", I consider Helen Mirren's strongest role in television when she portrayed the balls-busting Jane Tennyson in the TV series, Prime Suspect. Tennyson's character was based on former police officer Jackie Malton, who was a script consultant for the Prime Suspect series. 

What I admired most about Jane Tennyson was her strength and vulnerability in a male dominated workplace. 

If you're an Amazon Prime Member, the full Prime Suspect series is available on Instant Video for free.

Back to Work

Two weeks ago, after 3+ years, I returned to full-time work.

I am beyond relieved and ecstatic to return to work I've done for the past 15+ years: card operations and processing with a strong emphasis on customer service. I find this area of work very fulfilling.

During the time I didn't work, I got back into writing this blog, took online courses at Treehouse and Google (Google Analytics), explored different career paths, and bowled countless practice sessions.

I had to. They were necessary outlets from the stress of no full-time work. It wasn't the only life event I experienced which compounded what was already difficult. It got so bad I had to consider leaving San Francisco, the city I've called home for the past 30 years.

source: Wikipedia

On the left is a snipped chart taken from the Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale. Along with no job, I experienced 2 close family member deaths and an event equivalent to another of the top life events listed.

What has and always helped me is a wide network of family, former classmates, co-workers and current/past teammates from softball and bowling to lean on for support. Especially during a time when my self-worth was constantly in question.

I can't emphasize enough for anyone who's going through a difficult time to reach out to people you know and trust. And don't be afraid to reconnect with someone once close to you but have lost touch. Strength does come in numbers.

Lunar New Year of the Horse

Listed below are sweet, heartwarming and touching tweets and instagrams from those in the San Francisco Bay Area celebrating the Lunar New Year. George previously included my tweet this past October remembering the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake

Thanks again, George Kelly (Twitter name: @allaboutgeorge).

As previously I tweeted on January 30, "...this unmarried, 'jook sin' still graciously accepts red envelopes."

I wish you all a healthy, happy and prosperous Lunar New Year.

A perfect effort - Fairleigh Dickinson Women's Team bowls 300

These days, to see a 300 in bowling happens a lot more than it did in years past. But for a team of 5 bowling 10 frames, it's even more difficult and not done often. Tonight was different.

Fairleigh Dickinson University, a perennial college women's bowling powerhouse and Danielle McEwan's alma mater, bowled a perfect 300 game. Above is a video recap featuring each frame bowled by the team.

Please refer to my November 12, 2012 blog entry on Baker style rules.

Congratulations FDU Knights! Best wishes for a great season.

ESPN 30 for 30: The Price of Gold

source: ESPN
Nancy Kerrigan (top), Tonya Harding (bottom)

The above photo is a sneak peek at ESPN's "30 for 30" latest feature, "The Price of Gold", a documentary that examined the infamous women's figure skating scandal of January 1994. The top billed stars: Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan.

It all began when Olympic hopeful Nancy Kerrigan's right knee was clubbed during practice at Cobo Arena in Detroit, Michigan. Harding's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly (now Jeff Stone) and co-conspirator Shawn Eckhardt, planned the attack. Eckhardt hired Shane Stant to carry out the dastardly deed.

Harding, former CBS anchor Connie Chung, former Olympic skaters Scott Hamilton and Paul Wylie, Kerrigan's coaches Evy and Mary Scotvold are among those interviewed in the documentary. Kerrigan declined. She will, however, have her own story to tell on NBC during the upcoming Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia.

I scrutinized the documentary this past weekend. Watched it twice. Paid close attention to Harding's difficult upbringing and allowed me to understand, but not excuse the events that led to her permanent ban from figure skating. Therefore, it came as no surprise to me when the documentary did nothing to change my opinion of Harding.

In the preview clip, "The Noose Tightens", Harding says in her interview, "...everything hit all at once...and you just want to crawl into a closet and you just want to say 'go away, leave me alone', because you don't know what's going on.".

To me, the remark sounds cryptic and odd. Why? Let's break down her statement:

• "Everything hit all at once...". Interesting word choice when she says "hit". 
• It isn't Tonya's modus operandi to crawl into any closets. Ever.
• If the media goes away, then she's no longer the center of attention. Which is what she wants.
• "Because you don't know what's going on."  This isn't possible. Tonya had to know what was going on. Without Harding, Jeff Gillooly has no connection or motive to injure Kerrigan.