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Lombard Street

People that live on this street must love tourists, or are masochists

I was so excited about driving down this path in the Scion tC Zipcar that I rented. But it was hardly exciting. Very slow turns, tons of tourists and their cars. I can't imagine anyone that wants to have live here. Unless they love the false sense of celebrity status that they get from all these wannabe papparazzis with their point and shoot cameras. The drive around this block is actually more exciting as the angle of elevation in the area is so steep. Anyway, the flowers in the path, and just the bricked layered path itself make this street one of the most memorable street in SF. I had to drive down 2x after seeing someone getting out of the passenger side of a car on the path and taking pics of the driver. Glad my gf is such a good sport about it. I'm sure she didn't mind with all the nice flowers there.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Date Visited: August 2009

Product Review: RCA 1400M Multi-directional HDTV antenna

Simple and sturdy design, but only decent reception

I brought this as my replacement antenna after I gave the Terk antenna to my mom. Being a passive (no power source) antenna, I didn't expect it to pull in nearly 40 channels (NYC, >5 miles from broadcast tower, top floor in a 6 flr building) like the Terk did. But I didn't expect it to pull in only about 1/2 that. What's worse is it doesn't even pull in CW network. Good thing I don't watch anything from that channel.

I like the design though. Its flat, super stable, and you can hang it on a wall (with wall hooks underneath). With this white antenna on a white wall, it almost turns invisible. Since it only has 1 wire, it is easy to hide it so it doesn't ruin your decor.

Great antenna if it had better reception.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Product Review: RCA 1450M Multi-directional HDTV antenna

Powered up, but still terrible reception

After getting its powerless (no AC adapter req. cousin, the 1400M model) and sticking with it even though it can't picked up the CW network, I thought I would get the power version for my mom since the Terk Antenna broke. But I must have forgotten how poorly the Terk Antenna did before it broke (only 8 channels, 2 from major networks), because this antenna won't hold a candle to the Terk in terms of reception. Guess how many channels it pulled in from my mom's house (~10 miles from broadcast tower, 1st floor in a 2 floor house)? Answer: 1 (and it wasn't from any of the major networks).

Its design is good, but not as good as the passive version, because of the extra wire. But the extra wire provide what seems like little to no increase in reception.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Comment on NYT blog about ING Direct savings rates

NYT blog entry: http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/30/ing-direct-and-its-second-tier-savings-rates/

Here's my take on it:

The question isn't how much would a bank pay you for you to open an account with them. It is still about trust. When Chase offer $100 to open a checking account with them, it wasn't a hard decision since they are doing so well. But another bank (I won't mention their name) offer to the same 6 months later, I did not take their offer. I feel their name has been tarnished since they needed the govt bailout. Another factor that hasn't been mentioned in the article is that every time you open a bank account, it affects your credit score. I'm not an expert in that field but I do know that your credit score is base on your history with various financial institutions. Every time you open a new account with a new bank, you start a blank slate with that bank's credit history, which (probably) have an affect on your credit score since your overall credit history is less informative than before you opened that account. One final point I want to make is this. When was the last time ING sent out notice when they change interest rate? I think the answer is never. Banks are not required to do that, so who actually knows how much interest they are earning month to month? In a perfect world, a bank would send you an email (and a text msg) that their rate have changed and tell you how much you will earn in interest (base on how much you have saved) with the new rate.

Product Review: Terk HDTV Amplified Indoor antenna

Unstable, and broke easily

I brought this antenna for myself after my cable went out 3x in 1 month. I had it setup behind my TV because I really don't like the look of this antenna. It draws too much attention in a "eye sore" way. The reception is great though, pulled in nearly 40 HD and non-HD channels (NYC, less than 5 miles from the broadcast tower, in the top floor in a 6 story building).

So I decided to bring it over to my mom's house (NYC, ~10 miles from broadcast tower, on 1st floor in a 2 story house), and I got a pathetic 8 channels (only 2 major networks, Fox and NBC). Well, at least it worked. For a short while...

...until someone dropped the antenna. I don't know who or how it happened, but I dis-assembled the antenna and found the connector inside the housing of the antenna (the one that connects to the fin) is broken from the circuit board. Actually, I do know how it happened. Its the poor design where the antenna cable is coming directly from the base, giving what is already a small foot print even less surface contact.

Until they fixed the design, I won't be getting this antenna again.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Movie Review: Amelia

Historical, but no Titanic

Watching this movie is probably better than watching a documentary on Amelia Earhart, but not by much. It covers all the flights (from her first to her last) that she made as an aviator, and discuss how she and her husband pays for it. However, I never felt really drawn to the movie, with maybe an exception to the ending.

The acting is competent by Swank (Earhart) and Gere (Earhart's husband), but McGregor steals the show as Gene Vidal. Simply put, my gf thought he is sexy. I'm sure he summoned up the charm from Moulin Rouge and not from Star Wars.

At a tad under 2 hours, this movie still felt a bit rushed to me. Perhaps it was the uneven pacing, as my gf fell asleep during parts of it (I'm sure it wasn't the part with Ewan in it).

It is history after all, which means they can't do much to dramatize it. But then again, Titanic was history too, and they made over a billion with that movie.

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

Date viewed: 10/24/2009

Hakata Ton Ton

$38+5 tasting menu is so worth it. Ton of food, can't go wrong if you are hungry.

Entering this restaurants felt like I was transported to Japan, not because of the decor or the wait staff, but the size of the table and spacing. We sat right next to their closet (at least that made easier to get our jackets when we left). 

We started out  with small pieces (salmon carpaccio, tonsoku, and gyoza) that we devoured in matter of seconds. Love the Tonsoku, and the gyoza was pretty good. The salmon was "meh". I was worry that there might not be enough food as we flew though the first few courses. But the hot pot stopped my hunger like it was a car that stopped at the edge of a cliff.  The collagen broth was so delicious (and so tongue burning hot). After we devoured everything from the hotpot, they offer to cook rice in the broth. So unbelievably delicious, I finished every grain of rice, and I mean EVERY GRAIN.

I was so full I barely ate the dessert, which was really good too, but even if it was the best dessert on earth, I don't think I could have finished it. Fortunately it wasn't. But it was up there.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Date Visited: March 2009

Hakata Ton Ton

61 Grove St

New York, NY 10014

Panera Bread

Sandwich a bit too spicy for me, the free WiFi feels priced into the sandwich

$7+ dollars for a sandwich in Astoria? The sandwich was okay, but the place felt like a mix between Starbucks and McDonalds. It serves food that is obviously better than McDees, but at Starbucks prices. But I do like the chill and relaxing decor. The only down side is even though it didn't feel very loud, my gf had a hard time hearing me when I was on the phone w/ her. Maybe that's a good thing, especially when you want to avoid hearing those loud ppl that like to "share" their phone conversations.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Date Visited: N/A

Panera Bread

3801 35th Ave

LIC, NY 11101

Del Frisco Steakhouse

Steaks were really tender. Glass windows were so clear, birds might run into them like in the Windex commercial.

I went to Del Frisco twice (once for lunch, once for dinner), but its almost a year ago for both times. Why did it take me so long? Maybe I just went to too many steakhouses over the past year and forgot about this one.

But this place isn't  forgettable. It has nice decor, high ceilings, spacious dining room that is far enough from the bar area that you don't hear much noise from the bar.

The steaks matched the quality of the decor. It was so tender and flavorful. Just writing about it makes me think when to setup a meetup with the Meetup group for dinner at this place (so I can write a more detailed review on the food).

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Date visited: N/A

Del Frisco Steakhouse

1221 Ave of the Americas

New York, NY 10020

Noodle Pudding

Everything is delicious, just make sure you carry cash...

Been here twice now. Excellent both times. Don't bother coming if you didn't make a reservation, it can be super crowded and wait interminable (tried going here for my b-day on '07). The portions are just right, as is the price. But why don't they take credit cards, I will never know.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Noodle Pudding

38 Henry St

Brooklyn, NY 11201