BIG UPDATE: Warriors, 49ers, Piano + Life

Yes, I realize it's been almost a whole month of no-posting, please forgive me and I promise I can explain! With only 8 weeks - get this, EIGHT - left of the semester (and until I graduate with my Masters) my schedule is bottled up back to back, every day, from literally 8am (sometimes earlier) to about 11pm (often times much, much later).  Between class, rehearsals and work, my "workable hours" every day are covered - but then all the other "un-workable hours" I have to use for paperwork which comes from running your own small business, scheduling, practice, and everything else it takes to live! Though I have many fun things lined up, I had to take a break from regularly scheduled programming to address some big things that have been happening in the world of Bay Area sports:

1.  Warriors trade away MONTA ELLIS, Ekpe Udoh, and Kwame Brown for Andrew Bogut and Stephen Jackson.

Uhh, yeah, you read right.  Stephen Jackson.  I'm sorry but I have to flat out be honest - I would take ANY player in the entire league over Stephen Jackson.  You know the sad sorry chap sitting on the bench that we all wish we didn't have anymore - Andris Beidrins?  Yeah, I'd keep him over Stephen Jackson.  Jackson is a diva, a whiner, a P.I.T.A. (figure out the anagram guys, this blog has to stay S.F.W.) and POISON in the locker room.  I don't care what his stats or figures are or could be, he only ever wants money, and is unhappy everywhere.  Of all people, HE'S coming back to the Bay?! Do the new Warriors front office even remember when Jackson was doing everything he could to get AWAY from here?! And now he's coming back?!?!?! You've got to be kidding me!!!  PLEASE get rid of him before he gets to play a game here.

So that's really the part of the trade that bothers me the most.  Let's work on these issues in order of most to least severe shall we?

Here's the thing that bothers me second most.  Tied for second place:  Is Bogut going to stay healthy long enough to be worth it?  And really, Ekpe Udoh is gone?  Sure Bogut has been having only "freak" incidents, (as opposed to Curry with his perpetual Achilles ankle...) but how many freak incidents can a guy have?  The number one important thing in sports is to stay healthy so we can count on you.  Yeah I know he's a big guy and he can put up stats, but Bogut needs to prove it to me.  As for Udoh, I'm sad we don't get to see him develop more here in the Bay. He was really starting to show his colors, and I was liking it.

Lastly - Monta Ellis.  Don't get me wrong, emotionally this is a total downer for me.  Monta is EASILY my most favorite player on the Warriors team.  I don't own ANY "player" merchandise for the Warriors EXCEPT for Monta Ellis.  As he said in his iconic interview when he was new, "I'm a Warriors, I'll always be a Warriors."  I will wear my Ellis 8 Warriors shirt forever - in my heart, Ellis is a star, and he will always be my favorite Warrior.  I will miss him SORELY and it will be eternally strange seeing him come back with the opposing team.

Now, rationally speaking - I'm actually not entirely bummed about Ellis moving on.  Yes he's amazing, but we know and have always known that he's not enough for this team to be a winning team.  In order to get all the pieces needed, something had to give.  When Ellis spoke after the trade, he also wasn't bummed (the team on the other hand was morose, somber even), and mentioned that he felt it was time to move on.  I'm a little sad Ellis isn't going to a playoff team, for all he's capable of, I feel he truly deserves the recognition and opportunities that would come with belonging to a big team.  But I wish him all the best of course, and will continue to look for him in games.

Right now the team is doomed obviously, and everyone knows it.  Am I sold on the Warriors new front office? No.  They will have a lot of proving to do, and will have to win my trust and respect, and then maybe my love.

2.  49ers Sign Randy Moss to One-Year Contract.

A classmate jokingly asked me today if my Randy Moss Niner Jersey was in the mail and I unflinchingly said, "uhh, no."  My jury is still out on Moss.  I see it going either one of two ways - either next year the niners are a post-season dynamo again and Moss is the #1 Wide Receiver, or Moss is poisonous to the chemistry and dynamic of this team and he's out before regular season ends.  I actually don't really want either to happen, but I think one of them will, and though I unfortunately am leaning more towards the latter of the two, I hope that Harbaugh and the team saw something real and that Moss will pull through and learn to be a team player (ha) for the Niners.  (Plus he's old....sports is one field where you definitely DON'T get better with age.)


Well, that's my two cents on what's new around the bay, it's back to practice for me, and then later, more work documents to handle.

Be back soon!

Post-Championship Sunday: Big Kids Can Cry Too

So it’s a bitter end to a sweet season.  Words can’t really describe how I feel right now, but the fact that I’m still up at 2:00am writing this would probably sum it up.  Are there good memories? Plenty.  Is there disappointment? Plenty.

I saw a tweet earlier from a fan saying that this game was like a haunting flashback to the January 20, 1991 NFC Championship Game at Candlestick against the Giants.  Noted, the similarities are uncanny.  The Niners had won against the Giants in the regular season, but a fumble by RB Roger Craig late in the 4^th led to a field goal from the Giants and a win by 2.  This fan then noted that the only difference was, in 1991 he was 8, and he cried.  Tonight he didn’t.

Well, while tears may not have been streaming down my face- at the risk of sounding melodramatic, I definitely cried a little on the inside, and I think it’s safe to say there are many Faithful who share my sentiment on this cold and wet January night.  To come so close, to almost be able to taste it, then have it all washed away with the rain. 

This season has certainly been defining for this team, and while tonight’s heart-wrenching loss will sting for a time, it doesn’t change what Coach Harbaugh has done for this team, and for the fans.  He’s definitely changed the tides around here, and this looks to be a promising return of The Dynasty. 

And as for tonight’s game…it’s easy to pick a hero and a villain.  In fact, it’s almost impossible for human nature to not automatically do so.  Tonight’s hero?  Probably Vernon Davis.  Tonight’s “villain”?  Without a doubt, Kyle Williams. 

Despite the bf disagreeing with me (we disagree on a few things about the Niners, Ginn and Smith two examples!) I’ve always stood by my case and loved Ted Ginn Jr. and the unique addition he brings to our special teams unit, but tonight, anyone who ever doubted what he did for the Niners -and made look so easy at that- had to mince their words. 

That’s fine and all, but it’s simply incorrect to place the entire weight of the loss on Kyle Williams’ shoulders.  Yes, he ran towards the ball (twice), it bounced off his knee, and he forgot that on slow-mo, magnified replay from a million different angles there would have been no way to deny that one. So he tried to get away with pretending like it didn’t happen.  Didn’t work.  Giants score a TD on what is essentially a turnover and with great field position at that.  Minus one, Kyle Williams.

Then in OT, he runs towards the ball, bobbles it, and loses it, leading to yet another turnover, and a Giants field goal that ended the game.  Minus two, Kyle Williams.

But what about ALL the plays on offense that just didn’t happen tonight?! 0 for 13 on 3^rd downs?  The fact that it felt at times like we had no receivers on the field?! Oh, and that one horrific “forward progress” call that essentially could have and should have been yet another turnover?! 

Sure maybe Kyle Williams didn’t bring it all the times he needed to tonight (and it’s true, in a championship game there is no room for error – not one, and certainly not two), but if we’re to be honest moving forward, many aspects of good game play from the 49ers simply wasn’t there.  Defense was pretty much the only third of the team that played consistently tonight.  Cold hard truth: 1/3 of a team isn’t enough to win a championship.

Point is, does it help any to hate on Kyle Williams? (or Alex Smith for that matter, who just a few short months ago stood in the very shoes Williams wears now) No.  Williams is getting bombarded on twitter by death threats and verbal assaults, racial slurs, things that include “You, your wife, and your kids should all die because that’s what you deserve.”  Who would write something like that? Those are the “fans” who shoot people after games, and who ruin it for the rest of us. These “fans” really have something to learn from the rest of the 49ers, who really are doing a good job keeping it together.  Hey everyone, remember when you hated Singletary for always airing his dirty laundry in public, on national tv? This is the exact same thing you’re doing when you attack Kyle Williams.

I even have to give props to Tynes, who – in the heat of the moment, right after his field goal won the game for his team – kept his head enough to remember to be classy and acknowledge that the 49ers are a great team and put up a great fight. (He said something to the effect of, the fact that we just won it by a field goal about 10 minutes into OT says a lot...which is true.)

I like classy things, classy people, and classy behavior.  Keep it classy, San Francisco.  We still love the 49ers, we love Coach Harbaugh, and we aren’t called the Niner Faithful for nothing.  As Harbaugh said to Williams post game, “Keep your head up.”  Rock that red and gold all summer long.  Be proud to let your colors shine. Keep your blood gold.  And after having all the time off to work and improve on what has honestly been an incredible season, let’s bring it all back for an even better run next year.  Call me a glass half-full person, but I believe it, and I stick to my guns—and my team.

(image (C) Yahoo Sports)

Who’s got it better than us?!  Noooooobody. ♥

Who's Got it Better Than Us?? NOOOOOOBODY!!!!

So, my year has gotten off to a fabulous start, and it is every bit as wonderful as I had hoped and planned that it would be!  I just have a feeling about 2012...it's going to be amazing, it will be everything that 2011 wasn't.

I'm back, and school is starting again next week - my last semester! I can't wait to grind and get some serious stuff done.

I'm still having health issues, but thankfully I've started treatment on it, so it's helpful to know that it's not just sitting there, but we're actually starting to make progress.  (Though it will be a long and slow road.)  As a minor issue, I'm also battling what I thought was a cold but now has turned more into a flu, but it wasn't enough to stop me from going to the 49ers NFC PLAYOFF GAME on Saturday!!!!!

And BOY WAS IT A GAME!!  Deemed an Instant Classic, the return of The Dynasty, and name suggestions are pouring in for that last Vernon Davis touchdown that gave the niners a 4 point lead with 9 seconds remaining.  Alex Smith was CLUTCH today, and though initially I was worried about our offense, all three parts of the team brought it today for a game-winning recipe!

Thanks to Mr. S for sponsoring my wildly incredible seat location as well... it was crazy being there - I kept having to remind myself that everything was real, that those shiny gold helmets dancing around on the field were real, that I was watching history in the making!  It was LOUD in the stick today, and the Niner Faithful sent the Saints marching down back home to New Orleans.

Definitely one of the most awesome things I've ever done in my life!  I could write three pages, but words really cannot describe!

Here are some pictures...

Yes, our seats WERE that amazing. 

Look at the beautiful glow! The weather was perfect, everything was perfect.  as Kanye would say...and the weather so breezy, man why can't life always be this easy :)

This is my favorite part of watching the niners play.  It's no secret that I am completely IN LOVE with our special teams, and it doesn't help that they rock it out to Future's Tony Montana before every kickoff! Swag baby swag!

Ahhh yes ♥

I will be faithfully rocking my Niner Faithful Gear all week long, in anticipation for Sunday's NFC Champtionship showdown where we will host the NY Giants at Candlestick!! Let's go Niners!! FTW!! WHO'S GOT IT BETTER THAN US?!  NOOOOOOOOBODY!!!!

NFC West Champions + Frank the Tank

Two pictures to sum up everything I'd possibly have to say about today:

and

Happy Sunday to all...see you at the playoffs!!

Thanksgiving Break Part I: Harbowl + A Taste of Taiwan

My Thanksgiving Break began on Wednesday when I went shopping with family for some winter clothes for my ever growing little bro.  He is turning 15 in a few weeks and since last May, has been growing about 1-2 inches/month.  I have a newly acquired  understanding of the expression, "growing like a weed"!

On Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, my mom and I did some grocery shopping at Marina Foods in Fremont, then had the most amazing lunch I've had in a while!  My mom grew up in Taiwan so since I was little, I've been exposed to some amazing Taiwanese food.  Not going to lie, this is what I miss the most in SF cuisine - where Asian food is predominantly Cantonese.

We went to the newly opened:

Fusion House

46228 Warm Springs Blvd.

Fremont, CA 94539

And I thought I'd died and gone to Taiwan when I opened the menu.  Here finally, was a place where I could indulge in my favorite Taiwanese foods, authentically made, and actually afford to pig-out too!  Needless to say my mom and I stuffed ourselves and left VERY happy.  These are some of my favorite Taiwanese dishes:

I believe this is called the "Glutinous Cupped Rice," it's one of my mom's favorites.  She's a total rice person, whereas I am the Noodle Queen.  (Yes, that is actually a title which was bestowed upon me when I was only five years old but had already manifested a clear preference in carbohydrate selections.)

This is my favorite - apparently, in English, it's called "pottage," news to me as I only ever knew what it was called in Taiwanese!  So "pottage" is basically skinny brown noodles (not to be confused with vermicelli - completely different) in a clear jelly-like thick soup, with different flavors.  My favorite is intestine, this one has both intestine and oyster.  I know it must sound disgustingly terrible to non-Chinese, but please don't freak out until you try it, it's DELICIOUS.

This is probably tied for favorite in my book.  It's called something slightly different at different places, but basically it's a big meat ball inside of a glutinous shell.  So difficult to describe but it will blow your mind and explode your taste buds with wonder!

Lastly my mom and I split another staple - the oyster and egg pancake. It's oyster and egg (duh) inside of a fried jelly-like skin, and it's so amazing!  They put some kind of ketchup-y concoction over it and the sauce is beyond delicious.

Then I came home in the afternoon, cleaned the house a little, and planted myself right in-front of the tv for the much awaited Thanksgiving Niner Game vs. the Baltimore Ravens, which us fans had lovingly dubbed Harbowl.  (For non Niner/football fans, this is because the Ravens are coached by John Harbaugh, elder brother by 15 months to Niner head coach Jim Harbaugh.)

(C)Dave Reginek/Getty Images; Nick Wass/Associated Press

Unfortunately...it was probably by far the most depressing game I had watched all season.  It wasn't even  torture anymore, pain is probably a better way to describe it.  First of all, the Niner's offensive line was all but non-existent, leading to Alex Smith getting sacked 9 times.  Nine times!!!  I cowered shamefully beneath my blanket on the couch.  The poor guy didn't even get a chance to play.  Snyder's presence was definitely missed.

Secondly, the refs made some terrible calls throughout the game that really set the niners back, the worst of which being the chop block penalty called on Rachal which wiped out what would have been Ted Ginn Jr.'s 75-yard touchdown catch.  It was a magical moment, quickly whipped away.  If you watch the replay, I can understand why "technically" the refs had the right to make the call, but that only makes it a "correct call," it was by no means a "good call," as Jim Harbaugh so classily refered to it as, in the post-game press conference.  I seriously give him props for taking the high road with all this, because the good Lord knows I was bashing my head on the wall in disgust when this happened.  Refs let penalties like this go, ALL THE TIME, taking things into context, and I was convinced (and still am) that the refs just wanted to give the fans in Baltimore a Thanksgiving present.  That call totally changed the dynamics of the game, in my opinion, and it was just abysmal from there on out.  Add to it the lack of O, and well...that was that.  

Needless to say, I have full faith that we will be geared up and back ready to go for Sunday's game against the Rams!  In any case, I suppose now is the time to explore weaknesses and areas for improvement, so we can go FTW in the post-season!!

Eight One

Just HAD to do a post on today's game!  My beloved hometown team, the San Francisco 49ers are now 8-1!! The NY Giants were in town today, and I think the only word I could use to describe the game was...magical.  So often these days, great games are marred by unsportsmanlike conduct - on the field, off the field, between players, between fans, between coaches, in press conferences, etc etc etc.  And it always makes me sad because it really casts a shadow over something that is supposed to be fun and enjoyable and bring people together.

Before any action even went down, I really appreciated the fact that during the past week, respectful comments were being made about the other team from members of both the Niners and the Giants - coaches and players.  And today's game was exciting!! Two very well matched teams, and it was intelligent, high level playing.  But really most of all, respectful.  And boy did Candlestick bring it today...

My favorite players of the day:  Alex Smith (for just being great and getting our only rushing yards in the first half?!), David Akers (for his sneaky stealthy but oh so successful onside kick that led to a field goal, and for being just about perfect), and Justin Smith (Uhhhh...did you SEE that block at the end?!)

And I have to end with this beautiful moment:

Vernon Davis leaping gracefully like a gazelle over Giants safety for a 31-yard touchdown catch!

Image (C) Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger

Sunday Magic With the 49ers!

So happiness hits florence and the machine like a train on the tracks, but happiness hit me today like Alex Smith's perfect pass to Delaney Walker when it mattered the most.

( credit: Duane Burleson, photos from Yahoo! Sports)

(I'm a girl so I'm allowed to talk about fashion right? Can I just say how much I LOVE these away jerseys?! And Michael Crabtree's shoes.  I kind of want that entire outfit right there.)

Niner defense was HUGE today against the strong detroit offense; Patrick Willis and Aldon Smith were all over everywhere they needed to be, the whole entire time!  I was seriously impressed.

I'd also like to shout-out Ted Ginn Jr. for all his impressive kick and punt returns, rushing and receiving yards.  Am I the only one who gets excited every time he starts to run??  You can really see the track & field training come out.

Michael Crabtree had an impressive game today with nine receptions for 77 receiving yards, and was voted MVP by KNBR's Red and Gold post-game show (which ran to nearly 4 o'clock today...it was a looong game).  During his post-game interview, he made some cute comment about being tired of always just almost getting things done and how he had to start to 'just gettin' it done already'!

It's a tough one...but I think I'd anoint my bethscetera MVP of the day title to Frank Gore.  No offense to the good folks over at Niner Nation, but I say Frank Gore is our Optimus Prime!  Frank Gore had 141 rushing yards today, and a touchdown in the second quarter.  If you watch the game you'd have seen that he helped the team tremendously to finally achieve the huge 25-19 win over the Detroit Lions, a team that has built up an impressive record for itself during these first 6 weeks.

There were 15 penalties and an early turnover that had my stomach tightening for a few moments...nightmares of last season came flooding back and my vision blurred for a second.  But then I remembered - wait, we've got Harbaugh now, things are different this year.  And sure enough, Alex Smith didn't shrink into his cave and leave us for the rest of the game like he did time and time again last year. He maintained his composure, and pulled the team through despite the deafening roar of Lions fans at Ford Field.

The only little blip the end...

So, this is what happens.  Schwartz, in case you missed it, totally made fun of Harbaugh (with profanity) for getting a penalty earlier in the game when he challenged a scoring play (which is against the rules now since all scoring plays are reviewed anyway).  Then he lost.  Sure he's pissed, instead of being 6-0 they're now 5-1.  Oh, that's right, like the 49ers.  Harbaugh, on the other hand, who kept his cool the entire time, is now just ecstatic because his team just beat one of the only two undefeated teams so far this season.  So he's happy and bouncy and he comes over happily to shake Schwartz' hand and pat his back.  Schwartz then get his feelings hurt, and decides to chase after Harbaugh for about 20 yards, yelling as he goes.  MY favorite part is when some of the players start putting their helmets on again like...I'm ready! Game on..again!  Harbaugh basically said the post-game conference, 'My bad, totally my fault, I shook his hand too hard.'

Moral of the story:  Please be careful when shaking coaches hands...some of them are of a delicate nature!

Can't wait to be at The Stick when The Cleveland Browns (who lost 24-17 to the Raiders today) come to town at the end of the month!

Summer-Back Weekend

Another great weekend gone by, and summer decided to come back and visit again for a few days.

My weekend was wonderful, I got to enjoy the world's best hot-pot with some of my dearest friends...

(with lamb, tempura, lots of tofu, lots of veggies, beef balls, fish balls, mushrooms, yam...yummmmm)

And on Sunday, while enjoying my Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup...

(In my chicken soup I usually put onions - white and green - tomatoes, half a lemon, garlic, napa cabbage, and today I ran out of cilantro so it's less pretty.)

...I got to watch these guys...

...do a lot of this...

 ...this...

...and this!

...culminating in an amazing, 48-3 win over the Tampa Bay Bucs.  Really? Let's say that again shall we?  Yes, you read correctly.  Fourty-eight over three.  Needless to say I was seeing stars for the rest of the day.  And the best part of about it was, it was a clean, solid game for San Francisco - the Niners played exceptionally today, they were every where and every thing they needed to be.  And it shows.  48-3.

In some other news on this beautiful football Sunday that was surprising to me, the Seahawks beat the Giants in New York (Seahawks?! Really?! Who saw that one coming?); reigning champs Green Bay Packers, led by Aaron Rodgers, rallied back towards the end of their game to beat the Falcons and keep their (what is it now-11 games? if you carry over from last season) winning streak alive; and the Raiders beat Houston 25-20, making it all in all, a very good day for my beloved bay.  Al Davis would have been proud.  

Hope all of you out there are doing well and staying alive in your leagues, and enjoying the month of October in your own special ways!

Rooting For The Home Team

I was very interested when Victoria's Secret first started doing "team apparel," but was sad when initially they only offered merchandise for a select few teams, and my teams weren't included on the short list :(

Well, this year I was thrilled to see that they had included many more teams with their VSxMLB collection, and even more delighted when summer rolled around and they debuted a VSxNFL collection!  I have to say, these are *some of* the cutest team apparel items that I've seen around, and the prices are really great when you compare to mlbshop.com or nflshop.com.  In fact, a far simpler shirt from the team store will more than likely cost you more...

Since these designs are all limited edition, when I saw a Giants one earlier in the year, I was quick to grab it...

 front

back

My experience with the Victoria's Secret PINK line is that their tops actually tend to run large, so I ordered an XS for my Giants shirt, and was sad that it was a little more snug than I'd like.  (I like my shirts fitted, but not tight...looser is better because I love to eat and, well, the "food baby" becomes a little too obvious when my shirts are too tight...)  This is definitely smaller than their typical XS fit.

So when the beautiful scarlet red Niners shirt rolled out, I decided to try a size small...

 front

back

...and it was perfect!!!

I was initially a bit hesitant to order the Niner shirt because of the scoop neck.  Typically I prefer v-neck cuts to crew necks, but I was very happy to discover that this scoop neck is considerable lower/wider than a typical crew, so it worked out just fine.  The shoulders fit perfectly, and there was just enough of a loose "hang" in the body...plus my favorite color of all time, scarlet red?! Win-win, my friends.

The only real difference between the two is the v-neck on the Giants shirt and scoop neck on the Niner shirt.  Both shirts are of excellent quality, with beautiful contrast pipe stitching around the collar, made with a great fabric that's not too thin.  Definitely sturdy enough to roll around in the grass for a while with, or survive a few beer spills.  My camera doesn't do the Giants orange foil justice (it looks too dark in all my pictures), but the foil print on both shirts are also awesome, they're bright and shiny in person--just the way I wanted it!

Plus who can resist the adorable tags that come with it?! (Complete with official licensing stickers no less!)

Ok football, I'm ready, let's go!