October 24th 2006 - 12:10AM - UMC BBQ
I was invited to come along to a UMC department picnic. MMMMMMMEEEEEEEAAAAAAATTTTTTT!!!
Nothing turns me on more than a woman handling raw meat.
Chicken, spare ribs...what was best was the mushrooms cooked in the foil wrap.
Couple other photographers there...
It's fun talking shop with other people who are also into photography...
The kids in the group played quarterback...
This baby tried the quarterback sneak...
The adults played "Charades". Emily's dad's team got a hard one..."Office Supplies"
I don't know this guy's name but to me he's Mr. Expression.
Conducting the invisible orchestra...actually the theme is Food so maybe it's Long Noodles? or Heavenly Pastry?
Whatever it is, it must be one of his favorite foods.
This guy had to act out "Movies". Some were so incredibly easy but I guess a imitating a whip motion and firing a gun isn't a big enough clue for some electrical engineers who probably watch IEEE videos in their spare time.
Angela was our performer for our 2 themes...first was "Animals" which to be honest was incredibly easy since we'd all played this game tons of times at parties (and for some people they just like imitating those animals hahaha). Then we made it into the final round where we got "Nature". They tried to screw us with ones like "Yellow River" (taken from another group's unused pile of "Places" - which was incredibly difficult with places in Asia like Yangmingshan...crazy...) but we were able to pull off the win. Don't ask what that kid in the back is doing...lol...
We got certificates to a Chinese restaurant in San Jose.
I wore my Cal colors to support Cal. It was a Sunday and it was versus Arizona St. We won 49-21.
A gopher watches the festivities...I just learned that groundhogs/woodchucks are much bigger and are usually found in the North/East.
"You are the Weakest Link..."
October 21st 2006 - 12:00PM - Flickr
So I finally joined Flickr since Eric joined and started posting pics. I'm still figuring out how I can use it for blogging purposes (besides using Flickr blog) on my website. Flickr actually generates 6 different sizes for each uploaded image which I can access externally via url by just by manipulating the url very slightly. The Flickr RSS feed defaults to show a lower-res version so that's where I'd have to alter it to get what I need. Also that feed only shows the last 20 images I uploaded to Flickr so it's not quite as nice as Imagestation, which will generate multiple feeds (1 per set) AND there's no limit on how many images will be in the feeds. Anyhow, Flickr will help me with allowing people access to high-res images but it won't totally supplant Imagestation as my image service.
Oh yeah, OCF hasn't figured out the database problem yet so that's why it's still down...good thing I made the decision to keep my posts in HTML format. So until that's fixed I've taken down the SQL-using widgets.
October 19th 2006 - 11:52PM - Uvas Canyon
Uvas Canyon is a park I looked up that isn't far south of San Jose. I was looking for waterfalls and Uvas has some of the most readily accessible ones in the area. To get to Big Basin's falls would require several hours of hiking. Uvas does have an entrance fee. Although they have ample picnic tables, the really bad thing is the amount of yellowjackets. They got really annoying.
Animals that will stay motionless for you are great! Too bad I wasn't able to take pictures of all the deer that we saw along the way...I was driving...
Luckily, a butterly decided to stop and fan its wings.
Um yeah...so Uvas has 4 or 5 falls...here's one of them...supposedly, they are much better in December/January. I ended up calling one of them, "Little Niagara" as a joke...it really should have been "Tiny Niagara".
It didn't stop me from taking some great Hsueh family pictures though!
That's actually somewhat of a precarious position but I was glad to see that Emily wasn't afraid.
Strange creatures live in the forest...here we have a lounging hornet-fearing albino forest mummy.
Looks like the hornet-fearing albino forest mummy claimed another victim...
I show off some of my mad yellowjacket fighting skills. I call it Wu-"OMG Get it off of me"-shu.
Emily's dad's Tai-Chi was more impressive...still he couldn't stir up the leaves ala "Tai Chi Master".
October 18th 2006 - 7:10PM - Celebrate Fremont Festival Part 2, Shalimar
The Sikh (pronounced Sic) faith has many traditions regarding their martial art, Gatka.
...but there's nothing against looking cool at the same time. 
Before choosing a weapon, the Sikh pay respect first by performing a simple four step movement called the panthra while the Jaap Sahib Bani prayer is sung.
The women get into it as well.
The basic weapon is called a soti...even if the stick is wood, I wouldn't want to mess with this guy here...
The mock fights were much more enthusiastic than the ones demonstrated by the karate kids. Katars, the armor piercing daggers you see here, look really lethal.
With this guy flailing around his mace, I was surprised that people were still standing on the stage.
This guy had a HUGE singing voice...
These dreamcatcher-like devices were actually weapons as well...instead of harmless balls on the periphery, they would have razors.
...which would make it a good weapon even if you're down.
The Sikh children decide that parents are the best beating bags.
Fremont has an open pit exhibit near Lake Elizabeth where you get to see the Hayward Fault.
This is it...the only way you can tell is the difference in soil composition.
It's kinda scary seeing how in the past there were so many little earthquakes to offset the severity of the large ones (relieving the pressure) and how that hasn't been happening for us of late.
So many lines...
These two pieces of concrete started out right next to each other but due to the Hayward Fault, they are now apart.
Andy - Gas Station Owner
Finally made it to the Shalimar in Fremont. Beforehand, we had some trouble finding the place...I ended up asking a random Indian dude where Shalimar was and he pointed out the way. Love Lamb Curry...
Shalimar
3325 Walnut Avenue
Fremont, CA 94358
Tel: 510-494-1919
Palak paneer...palak is spinach...paneer is the kind of cheese.
Chicken Biryani...overall, I still think I like Naan and Curry...however, I probably need to try some of their more non-traditional dishes that Naan and Curry doesn't have. Shalimar is pretty popular at night and getting your order in can be somewhat demanding. And oh yeah, the menu they hand out apparently has incorrect prices which they were kind enough to point out AFTER I questioned them about the bill. They said that they were printing new ones but...
October 17th 2006 - 11:30PM - Back up!!!
Hooray!!! Thanks to the staff at OCF, they were able to recover from a failed disk controller (something that I experienced though it was a software and not hardware fault early on at work) and get us back online! I posted 2 posts that I had already created but didn't get up in time so they're up now! I've uploaded all of my Boston pics so a site just for Boston should be up at some point.
October 13th 2006 - 7:18AM - Celebrate Fremont Festival Part 1
I'm splitting up the pics from the Celebrate Fremont Festival (it's the 50th Anniversary of Fremont) into 2 parts. Just too much for just 1 post. BTW, I'm back from Boston after a harrowing experience with luggage...loved it and lots of neat experiences...it's a very cool city. And of course, I have tons of pictures to share! I'm almost caught up!
Guess the Post Office isn't very interested in helping people cancel their post service.
Hey look! A Taiwanese flag!
Lotsa ducks run around Lake Elizabeth.
F4...not the uber-popular Taiwan boy band...the uber-cool fighter-bomber plane.
Model airplanes are cool...I used to watch them fly near our home in Laguna Niguel. It's a place called Kite Hill which incidentally is what our community is called. I hear it's an expensive hobby though...
Intricate parts...very cool to look at. I'd love to do some aerial photography with one of these...I've heard of people rigging up kites so that'd be an option too.
"Whatchu you lookin at? Don't mess with me!"
"So when can I fly through the trees? I hate doing sword ballet."
"Hmm...it seems like my high blocks are ineffectual against your half-hearted knee kicking." These guys had so little life in them when acting out their fighting scene...it looked like a scene from "Retirement Community Fight Club".
"You may think I'm doing Monkey Stance but actually I just like scratching my ears."
"If I blindly flail about, I'm sure to kill someone"
Good castration-striking height!
How marital issues are solved in China. "Honey! Remember, you can't hack anything below the waist!"
The Legend of Blind Pink Warriors
Looks painful but I think almost all kids can do splits right?
This girl just kept pulling off cool stances...
"Dang....I forgot my parachute...this is gonna hurt!"
That's it, I'll do a spin in the air...should make me look cooler!"
"Wait...I want to do one too!"
Now if she was in mid-air with that pose, it would be so "Crouching Tiger, HIdden Dragon"
I watched the Hawaiiian Performance as well...a pretty talented group of dancers.
Ta-da!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They had audience members come up and learn dancing...
THis little girl had this cute dress on and looked ready to perform however she must have had stage fright or didn't understand because as soon as she got on, she just stood there.
Hehehehe...all she could do was stare.
The next group of kids looked more prepared...
...but alas, all they could do was stare too...must be the hypnotic influence of the dance.
Kids love Go-Karts...I think it's a kind of adult-play-acting that goes on when you're a kid.
Oh, such a cute girl!!! It's the hat mostly though...
I think Emily would have gone nuts over this one...
My love of food photography knows no bounds...
That meat looks so succulent...
I doubt those skewers have ever been cleaned...
Now that's a BBQ...
Work it! Work it!
I learned a few interesting tips on what to do about your water/electricity/gas after an earthquake. Earthquake preparedness is very critical in California and even more so in the Bay Area. More on that in a bit.
Emily says that this girl was pretty...I think it's just in comparison to her companions...
"Man...I've got mad skillz...at Chinese Yo-Yo!"
"Watch me blend Chinese Yo-Yo with ballet..."
Yo-Yo-ing in a line...
Chinese Yo-Yo..."a game for one-person." Little inside joke for people who've known me a loooooong time.
Sweet...now I have to untangle it...
Guy in front "Please don't drop!"...Girl in back "If I mentally project an image of it falling, maybe he'll miss it...heh heh"
I was very surprised at the carelessness of the parents of these children. The top of the fire engine isn't the safest place to be. Lots of sharp edges everywhere...
HMMMMMMMM...I love strawberries!
Even Cafe Ophelia had a booth...
Roast Beef Sandwich from Saddle Rack
This little group needed a little work on speed-issues. It seemed like each of them just wanted to get out of there ASAP.
A little bored, so I took a pic of the fly sitting in front of me on the grass.
Wonder if my sister still plays the cello...
Emily caught sight of this mating pair of dragonflies. Very cool! The dragonflies were probably thinking..."Can't we get some privacy?"
Emily and I lawn-bowled...I won after making a lucky strike on knocking her ball away...
October 12th 2006 - 11:45PM - Cafe Ophelia
Emily likes Eel...look at the glee on her face!
I can't stop drooling whenever I look at this picture...I love pork hock...esp when they make the skin crispy...hmmmmmmmmm!
Everyone enjoyed the antics of Emily's friends' kids. With the proper electronics you can induce any kid to behave.
This dessert is just wayyyy to small...it's cute by Asian standards but this is food we're talking about!
See how small it is? Now you see it, now you don't...
Wipeout on the PSP...even the little girl was playing. The brother didn't understand how to air brake so I ended up doing that for him.
Group Pic! Unfortunatly, not many waitresses know how to zoom. Too afraid of SLRs...
My sweetie!
October 8th 2006 - 9:17AM - Caltopia, Sushi House, Pigeons
Went to Caltopia, an annual festival that happens in the beginning of the school year at Cal. My old dorm, Cunningham, is the one in the upper right corner. They're building a whole parking structure and rec field in the middle where Underhill Parking Lot used to be. Touch football was fun there...
The cow says "Beef is MMM-MMM-GOOD for you!!!" The woman is rubbing the cow to see if her brisket is ready.
Drool...dual 30" Apple Cinema Displays...$4000 isn't too much for that much goodness.
I'm not going to be touring the rodeo circuit anytime soon...got a lot of freebies at Caltopia...even did the "box with money flying around" game
Afterwards I took Emily and Angela to Sushi House again...wow, they even have a jazz band there during the day. Emily and Angela played Mario Kart DS...Emily likes to go this way...
...and that...while driving. It's quite amusing to watch.
sigh...remember to say sashimi sushi boat...not nigiri sushi boat...sometimes the words just flow out of my mouth too quickly.
Since there were so much wasabi left over, we all took turns eating clumps. I told them that I'd eat double of what they ate. Boy, was that a bad idea...
Sure? Unsure...
"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!"
I'm not even done with my clump yet!!!
*Thinking* "Hmmmm...that was a bad idea..."
*Thinking* "Damn it...I didn't think they'd go through with it..." You know, that was just half of the wasabi that I ate.
*Thinking* "Oh my stomach doesn't feel so good...oh I'm so screwed..."
But thankfully, the queasiness passed and we took a walk outside. A whole colony of pigeons were peacefully feeding when they were suddenly attacked by crazy people. Guess they couldnt' read the sign.
Very happy I didn't get pooped on...
Octoboer 5th 2006 - 11:00PM - Bowling, Nui's BBQ, Bottle Tree
Hmm...Imagestation is down until 6AM Friday PST...the pics will automatically be up after that. Oh yeah, I'm in Boston right now, I'll be trying to move really quickly with the blog queue to get caught up. Key words are "I'll Try".
Went bowling for Jasmine's birthday in San Mateo...the animations on the crisp LCD screens were great to watch...they had a Matrix pinball one that was fun to watch...even if you missed all of the pins.
Emily's co-worker Nui had a BBQ at his place...look at his kid!!! Super cute and extremely well behaved. Here he's doing his best Al Bundy impression.
Uh oh...what is Angela offering?
Nui grows all sorts of vegetables in his garden...
On the way home, we saw this Queensland Bottle Tree (brachychiton rupestris) tree...that is one funky tree. Looks like this one is preparing for a really long drought.
