Gung Hay Fat Choy (belated)

Happy New Year one and all, although a tad bit late on my part (cough cough). It's the Year of the Tiger, according to the Chinese Lunar Calendar and this little tigger couldn't be happier. I don't believe all the charactertistics apply to all Tigers but it's entertaining to findout what your sign represents , nevertheless.

The annual San Francisco parade just took place this past weekend and it was the first year, in many years, that the sun was smilling down upon the crowds. That in itself is a good sign as far as I'm concerned. Checkout the pictures from the parade here and Gung Hay Fat Choy!

The Tiger:
Tiger people are sensitive, given to deep thinking, capable of great sympathy. They can be extremely short-tempered, however. Other people have great respect for them, but sometimes tiger people come into conflict with older people or those in authority. Sometimes Tiger people cannot make up their minds, which can result in a poor, hasty decision or a sound decision arrived at too late. They are suspicious of others, but they are courageous and powerful. Tigers are most compatible with Horses, Dragons, and Dogs

You are sensitive, emotional and capable of great love.
You are stubborn about what you think is right.
You will make a good boss, explorer or racecar driver.

The Visitors Have Arrived

If you haven't been made aware, there's a re-imagination of the 80's cult classic "V", the TV show. I first heard about this a few weeks ago after seeing a trailer and nearly fell off my couch with excitement. It's a show I grew up with and ignited my imagination with the creative possibilities of the human mind.

The Pilot aired last night, unfortunately, I was not able to watch it. Since I cancelled cable, catching it on demand is no longer an option. That it won't be available to view online until Saturday is frustrating. In the meantime, I'll be checking out the recaps and changing the background on my laptop settings.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

On a spur of the moment decision, inspired by living in the moment, a friend and I checked out the Yeah Yeah Yeahs at the newly renovated Fox Theatre in Oakland Wednesday night. Fronted by Karen O and her uniquely sounding vocals, it's a band we've both wanted to see for some time. The image was taken with my Palm Treo and it's ok. The image above is Karen O singing Cheated Hearts, a personal favorite, with the all seeing Eye in the background.

Bay Bridge Construction Continues

I wasn't living here in 1989 when the 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake rattled the bay area. In fact, I was 250 miles away watching the San Francisco Giants get ready to take on the Oakland A's in the World Series on TV--and I felt the quake.

It's perplexing to realize that 20 years later, the eastern span of the Bay Bridge is still under construction. On the one hand, it's kinda cool to see the bridge rising from beneath the bay waters. On the other hand, it's disturbing to see how political egos (Mayors Willie Brown and Jerry Brown), state budget issues, 2 recessions and dependence on foreign steel have elongated the timeline and costs for completion.

Over the Labor Day holiday, starting Thursday September 3, the Bay Bridge reaches another milestone on its' Evolutionary Path. The eastern span, which connects to Yerba Buena Island, will be replaced with a 4-year temporary S-shaped bridge. This will allow for construction to begin on the self-anchored suspension span (SAS), a critical piece of the new construction.

But this is the part that scares me. As you can see in the second image, commuters will have to slow down in order to safely exit the S-path. And if there's one thing we can count on, it's that some drivers will attempt to cross going at full speed.

What's a commuter to do? This might be the best time to avoid carpool and stick with the transbay buses. I only take BART as a last resort because because the fear of taking a train underwater and getting stuck far outweighs the fear of sharing a bus. What will you do?