A digital travel diary. · WP v1.08 · Updated
. . How was 2019 in Sports? Let's take a look:. 124 days of playing tennis (Sunnyvale Tennis Center). 66 days working out in the gym (City Sports). 20 days of surfing (Capitola, Oahu). 15 days of windsurfing (Coyote Point, Sherman Island, Crissy Field). 15 days of snowboarding (Mammoth, Verbier, Alpine Meadows). 15 days of hiking (Yosemite, Sedona, Vasona Lake). 1 day of off-road riding…
Read More: The Year in Sports 2019
I originally planned to leave San Jose by 13:00 for the December return trip to Mammoth Mountain, arriving in Mammoth Lakes around 19:00.. . . . However, due to Bay Area traffic and road closures on 89 South (which Google Maps did not initially anticipate), we had to drive farther on 89 East, then follow 395 South to Mammoth. Fortunately, the roads were reasonably clean,…
Read More: Back to Mammoth Mountain
Excited to see Holiday Lights at Filoli Gardens, Inna and I decided to visit Filoli on Sunday, December 15. Luckily, unlike the previous day, it was not raining, and we enjoyed strolling through the winter gardens festively decorated with ornaments and lights.. . . . At first, we strolled through the beautifully decorated mansion, marveling at the Christmas decorations.. . . . There were 22+…
Read More: Filoli Gardens Holiday Lights
Having never been to Sedona or the Grand Canyon, my wife decided it would be fun to travel to Arizona during the upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday. She found inexpensive airline tickets on Southwest Airlines from San Jose to Phoenix, Flight #1984, departing at 7:35 p.m. from San Jose and arriving in Phoenix at 10:25 p.m.. . . . She looked into several hotels and resorts and…
Read More: Exploring Sedona
I am reviewing the 10th generation of the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite ebook reader, which I recently acquired (on November 22, 2019).. . . . I purchased my first Amazon Kindle device in April 2008. It was one of the first E-ink book readers with a strange user interface. I used it for over a year before selling it and replacing it with the Kindle 2..…
Read More: Review: Amazon Kindle (10th Gen)
Since I've been ill, I haven't been able to ride my Specialized FSR S-Works mountain bike at Almaden Quicksilver County Park.. . . . I decided to try a few rides on Sunday, November 17, Saturday, November 23, and Sunday, November 24. My overall time improved from 86 minutes to 69 minutes. However, I am uncertain about the accuracy since Strava keeps lowering my distance.…
Read More: Back to Almaden Quicksilver Park
On our last visit to London, England, Inna and I ran into a theater playing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Part I and II. We tried to purchase tickets but learned that the play was sold out a year in advance! . . We decided to see it the next time we visit London. Fortunately, J.K Rowling decided to also run the play in…
Read More: Review: Harry Potter & The Cursed Child
While I have heard much about the famous Miss Saigon musical, I had not seen it before yesterday's performance at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts. Loosely based on the famous opera "Madame Butterfly" by Giacomo Puccini, I had some premonition of the plot.. . Red Concepcion, playing the part of "The Engineer" (inappropriately titled, as he should be called "The Hustler" instead),…
Read More: Review: Miss Saigon
For the past 6 years, I have been using the Motorola/Arris SURFboard SB6141 Cable Modem for Comcast Xfinity service in the San Jose area. The modem worked fine until I recently tried to upgrade my Asus RT-AC66U Router to Asus RT-AC88U. During this time, the SB6141 would not connect to Xfinity for multiple hours.. . . . When I logged into the Xfinity website, I…
Read More: Review: Motorola 24×8 MB7621 Cable Modem
A grand opera brings out inherent emotions - overwhelming joy or profound sadness.. . The Marriage of Figaro, based on a French comedy that takes place in Spain but is sung in Italian, does not bring out either. However, I felt sympathy for its main characters in several instances.. . The Marriage of Figaro tells the story of Count Almaviva, his wife, Countess Almaviva, and…
Read More: Review: The Marriage of Figaro
After 7 years on the Asus RT-AC66U router, I decided that it was time to upgrade to the latest and greatest Asus RT-AX88U. I want to improve 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz coverage, have faster overall speeds, and better protection against hackers, Trojans, and viruses.. . The Asus AX supports the latest 802.11ax standard for up to 6 Gbits of maximum transfer speed. I was…
Read More: Review: Asus RT-AX88U Router
When I purchased my home in 2011, it came with a pre-installed home sprinkler system. While it operated satisfactorily for the past 18 years, it has had operational problems over the past few months.. . . . . . I decided to replace it with something more modern. After some research, I chose the Orbit 57946 B-hyve Smart WiFi Sprinkler Timer, available on Amazon.com for…
Read More: Review: Orbit 57946 B-hyve Smart WiFi Sprinkler Timer
After using my iPhone for the past 3 years, I decided it was time to upgrade. The most important reason for me was the poor battery life. My iPhone 7 was entirely out of battery by late afternoon (5pm), so I frequently needed to recharge the phone before going out to the gym.. . . . . I chose the standard iPhone 11 64GB from…
Read More: Review: Apple iPhone 11
One day, as I was browsing the Plex collection on my Synology DS1815+ Network Attached Storage, I noticed that my Plex server was not able to find any of my music (although all of the files were there). . . . The files on my Synology server are all organized under:. /volume1/Media . After trying multiple options, I finally found a working solution, first described…
Read More: Problem with Plex Music
With the sudden and unexpected flare-up of my Ulcerative Colitis, I was unable to do most of the sport-related activities that I usually favor. However, despite fatigue, I realized I may be good enough to see a movie. Noticing that "Downton Abbey" was playing in the Los Gatos Theatre, I decided to see it with Inna.. . . Both Inna and I were big fans…
Read More: Review: Downton Abbey
Inna has been a long-time fan of Lara Fabian, a Canadian singer with a beautiful voice. Lara decided to visit San Jose on her 50 World Tour (a celebration of her 50th birthday). . . . . . The Laura Fabian Setlist was as follows:. 1. Adagio @Info[Italian version]. 2. Alleluia @Set[Acte 1 - Passion]. 3. Croire @Info[Extrait]. 4. J'ai zappé / Leila. 5. Tu…
Read More: Review: Lara Fabian 50
On a spur-of-the-moment decision, I purchased two tickets to see Wicked at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts. Inna was always interested in seeing Wicked, though I was more ambivalent.. . . . Summary:. . With exceptional costumes, unique sets, and spectacular special effects, Wicked was entertaining despite the weak musical score and easily forgettable lyrics. The plot is quite simple: Elphaba -…
Read More: Review: Wicked at San Jose Center for the Performing Arts
With a heavy wind forecast for Sherman Island by iWindsurf.com, I was eager to experience the strong summer winds (primarily absent this summer season).. . iWindsurf.com predicted 20-25 knots of westerly wind throughout the day. It was already quite windy when I arrived, but only kiteboarders were blasting in the water. I rigged my Fanatic 105 FreeWave Stubby and my Ezzy Elite 4.5 sail (after…
Read More: Blasting at Sherman Island
I arrived at Sherman Island at around 14:05, with light traffic. At first, I parked by the power lines, but then I re-parked in Sherman Island County Park to make it easier to access the playpen area with the foil.. . Initially, I rigged my Ezzy Elite 5.7m sail, intending to use it with my Exocet RF81 foil with the Slingshot Infinity 76 wing.. .…
Read More: Foiling at Sherman Island
Winning multiple Tony Awards, Hamilton has been one of the most talked-about musicals of the early 21st century. I had wanted to see it, but I could not usually afford the exorbitant prices charged on Broadway in New York City. However, I decided to see it for myself when reasonable tickets became available in San Francisco's Orpheum Theater.. . . . . Characters. Alexander Hamilton:…
Read More: Review: Hamilton at Orpheum