Target audience

This summer, I attended Camper Van Beethoven’s 25th anniversary concert at the Fillmore in San Francisco – and I was one of the younger ones in the crowd. Plenty of gray hair and gray beards in the crowd. I did the math and realized that while I discovered the band in college, they formed when I was in junior high, meaning their core audience is older than me. So I scanned the people around me again, and thought, “Yeah, that’s about right.”

A few Sundays ago, I was in a small Scottsdale club to catch Kate Voegele, and the crowd was dominated by teens and twentysomethings. There were some thirtysomethings, people in my age group. So it was a nice mix. But as two opening acts came and went, and Voegele was halfway through her set, I noticed that the people my age hung back. They seemed incredibly bored. Some paced. Some sat on bar stools in the corner. I couldn’t figure them out. And then I realized, with a bit of horror, that these people were parents and were simply there to chaperone their kids.

Ouch.

I can’t win.

Crying foul

I should have taken my own advice. On my family’s Web site where we sell our Giants’ season tickets, I had written this to entice people to buy baseball tickets from us: “Bring a mitt. Foul balls come our way.”

Last Wednesday, sure enough, a foul ball came my way. A line drive, hit hard, screamed toward me from several hundred feet away like a heat-seeking missile. My initial thought was: holy sh–. It’s coming my way!

So I stood.

And in those three or four seconds, I had these frenzied thoughts:

I can catch it!

Wait, it’s going to hurt!

But I can catch it!

The ball was above me. I knew I had to reach high above my head and jump a little for the ball to hit square on my palms. Should I reach out and touch someone, or in this case, something? I was at AT&T Park, after all. But did I really want to hurt my hand, maybe break it, for a stupid foul ball? (more…)

Car photography

I recently came across this bizarre sight on the freeway near downtown Phoenix — a pickup truck filled with giant cartoony heads.

Miiko, a chronic drive-by shooter, loves taking pictures with her camera phone while on the road. She’s more into sunsets and other scenic shots like these, all taken in Arizona. (more…)

Nap time

Here’s Brandi, our puppy, chilling out at the top of the stairs. Actually, she was taking a nap until I rudely stuck this camera in her face.

It hit 107 degrees today, and the forecast calls for 110 on Sunday. It’s definitely summer. Ugh. This time of year, we wait until the sun begins to set, around 7 p.m., before we walk the dogs. What’s great is that other friendly neighborhood dog owners have timed their walks at the same time, so our pups can chase each other at the park and tire themselves out, while we commiserate about stuff like, you know, the weather.

Oh, for my friends who haven’t visited us, that’s my office to the left.

This charming man

I flipped through the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly this past weekend and noticed a review for a new novel named This Charming Man by Irish author Marian Keyes. It made me think of the book by Douglas Coupland, titled Girlfriend in a Coma. Were they fans of The Smiths? Perhaps. I’m sure there are a few other authors who have been inspired by the band and have named their books after Smiths’ songs. And I’m sure there’s a fan site out there listing those books.

So anyway, that got me thinking. I haven’t started my novel yet, but I’m going to name it after a Smiths’ song, too.

My working title?

*drumroll please*

I started something I couldn’t finish.

ahem!

The geek in me…

For several weeks, I’ve pondered whether to fly to Chicago in late July for the UNITY journalism conference, where the Asian American, African American, Native American and Latino journalism organizations unite for a week-long gathering. It’s a chance to meet up with current colleagues, reconnect with old friends, and well, party.

A few days ago, I got a spam email, saying: “15 days until pre-registration ends!” The next day, I got an email that said: “14 days until pre-registration ends!” Today, I got an email that read: “50 days until UNITY!”

Well, here’s how I figure it. For the $500 for roundtrip airfare and the $375 it would cost for pre-registration, not to mention food and other expenses, I can buy three new second-generation iPhones for my whole family.

The geek in me wins out!

And yes, I think I’m going to choose the new 3G iPhone over the new BlackBerry Bold.

Blackberrys, the presidential race and Dungeness crab…

This is an illustrated tale of how my donation to my favorite presidential candidate was diverted to seafood bliss.

A month ago, on Tuesday, Feb. 5, I thought the only important thing going on in the world was Super Tuesday and the race for delegates in the Democratic and Republican presidential primaries. (more…)

Feed me!

This is Robbie, Miiko’s favorite dog. He knows that if he stares at me long enough, I will eventually cave in and feed him bits off my plate. The Dog Whisperer would not approve, but so what?