Allstar

Went to watch the AAA high school baseball championship at SBC Park yesterday. My cousin, Mike Eng (he also likes to go by "allstar" and "stud"), plays for Washington. He is pictured above in action, and below waiting for the game to start (#10). I think this particular pitch resulted in a foul ball that basically went right to my uncle--but a girl beat him to it. (At least he didn't get hit in the face, like that one kid.)

Good times. Wash lost 6-12, but the team is pretty young this year and should be really awesome next year. (The Enger himself is a junior.) I came away with a new appreciation for high school athletics. Those pitchers work really hard; the starter (Kenny Hwee) must've pitched over 100 balls before he got pulled out, and then he had to play catcher. Geez!

One thing I wish is that the concessions would've stayed open later. I got sooo hungry ...

Anyway. Thanks Mike, good game.

Washington vs. Lincoln at SBC Park

People of the future ...

Linda Woo, Lowell HS c/o 1984. Courtesy of the Lowell Alumni Asso.

So my question is, when the people of the future see this picture, what will they think we were doing??

Comments :)

Hooray for comments! It's like being a little kid and getting mail. (All I get now is bills and credit card offers. Boo.) Your responses are great. Keep 'em coming.

Not too much going on here right now. Just hustling to get my final projects in. I can't wait for June!!!

Porco Rosso

I was home last night for an early Mother's Day. Sat around with the fam and watched Porco Rosso, a completely enchanting movie from Miyazaki, who also directed Spirited Away. Porco Rosso is absurd and cute, and leaves just enough ambiguity to make you ask yourself what's important.

Basic story, as described by Netflix: After witnessing the horrendous deaths of his fellow pilots in action during World War I, an Italian pilot transforms into "Porco Rosso," a being that's part man, part pig. Under this confounding spell, Porco Rosso perseveres by taking odd jobs, romancing the ladies (humans, not sows!) and rescuing people in distress -- all the while looking for a way out of his porcine predicament.

The first dozen words outline a nightmare movie, but Porco Rosso (Crimson Pig) turned out to be a sweet little dream. Highly recommended.

Find the lizard!

I'm keeping a tally of the numbers of people who can actually do it without enlarging the image (which you can do just by clicking on it). So if you're one of them, hit "comments" below and leave me a post!

The picture is from Joshua Tree National Park, down south near LA. Patrick and I went camping there a couple of weekends ago.

Big news: I got a job! There's a link to the school, which I loved when I visited, on the right.

Why blog?

If you are reading this, you probably know that I'm moving to Chicago in August.

FAQ:
1) Why are you moving to Chicago??
The short answer is: To stay with Patrick. He's starting his PhD in Latin American History at the University of Chicago in September, with the ultimate goal of teaching university-level classes (he got sick of high school). Maybe there would also be opportunities to do government stuff, with the UN, ? Who knows?

2) How long will you be there?
Patrick's program usually takes people six years to finish (hey, it's shorter than neurosurgery). We wouldn't have to stay near the University for the last couple years, because he'd just be writing his dissertation (not taking classes or anything).

3) Are you coming back to the Yay Area?
I hope so. I left my heaaaarrrrrt ... in San Francisco ...

4) Why are you moving to Chicago??
The longer answer is somewhere in the next few paragraphs: I'm excited for the change, for one thing. I've never had that dislocation experience, I've always had my family and the streets I know and MUNI and BART and CalTrain, beautiful California weather and California culture. I think it's important for me to be able to empathize with all those people who move. And it will be neat (for a little while, anyway) to see autumn leaves, and snow, and spring will be that much more thrilling when it comes around.

It's also a big plus that Isabel, the friend I've had the longest if you don't count cousins, lives in Chicago now. Patrick has some friends out there too, and his mom is only 4 hours away (she lives in Iowa).

I'm excited about the job I might get, too. A couple of weeks ago, I had some interviews (while Patrick was apartment-hunting), and there was one school I really liked. Grades 7-12, 325 students. All girls but it's a public charter school. The atmosphere was fantastic; people are really friendly with each other, and teachers really support their students--and other teachers, which is going to be crucial for me as a new teacher in a completely new city.

5) Will you miss us?
YES! How can you even ask me that!?! I'm already nostalgic for those days when we played hide-and-go-seek (and I love watching Anthony and Joey and Allison--oh yeah, and Michael--playing now), and made forts out of the sofas, and tried to figure out if Ouiji (spelling?) boards really worked. Take-out was such a treat, and Auntie Lorna's soups! Or whatever was on the menu but always with Swensen's ice cream for dessert. Remember ice cream soup? (ew) How do you spell no mai fon, fon kei gnow yuk chow mein, laap cheung?

I will sorely miss the family that has always taken care of me. I'll be back, though, so you can reprimand me for eating the sausage in the sticky rice and feed me lots of jai (do they have that in Chicago?).

And my friends, my dear, dear friends. We are all scattering to the wind! Finally growing up, I guess.

To everyone: Come visit me in the Windy City. It's a cool place.

sf meets chicago

I heard this story on the radio about an American soldier in Iraq (streams online from www.onthemedia.org). He was talking about his blog (short for "web log"). It started as a way for him to keep in touch with folks at home, but it ended up being a significant commentary on soldier's life. A lot of other bloggers who write about war news and policy have started referencing it.

This blog will not be that important. :)