TGIF! It’s Friday afternoon and I can hardly believe that I survived the week.

The week started off with hours spent at the County courthouse for Jury Duty. Yes, JURY DUTY. It makes me irrationally angry that because someone else decided to commit a crime, others have to be inconvenienced by sitting in a basement rooms for hours on end when that time could be used for more productive things.

I was off schedule, working evenings the rest of the week to attend some international meetings. It threw me off – my sleep schedule, eating patterns, etc. I would come home at 10 pm absolutely starving. I hate eating that late.

So it was no surprise that the miles I ran this week were all pretty crappy. Probably not a good thing considering that I’m running a race tomorrow…yep, another half-marathon. Needless to say I am not feeling it. Sadly, I have a definite lack of excitement for this race versus how excited I was for SFM. I’m sure this will change tomorrow come race day – at least I hope so.

To try and drum up some excitement, I quickly threw together a playlist. It’s pretty similar to my SFM playlist with a few new additions.

Tomorrow’s race is the SF Giants Race, as in my team.

It starts at AT&T Park and runs down the Embarcadero to Crissy Field and back. With the exception of the Fort Mason Hill, it’s a flat course, so as Audrey said, “I’m hoping that I saved all my mojo for race day.” Ha! I’m also hoping for cool weather and that race organizers don’t run out of shirts and Tim Lincecum bobble heads for half marathoners

My motivation will be a big bowl of chocolate salt ice cream waiting for me at the Public House post race.

Here goes nothing!

I’ve known all along that weekends will be the downfall of my attempt to eat a better quality diet. So let’s see how this first weekend went:

Friday Night

My friend Wendy invited me to a SF Giants game in the Virgin America Suite! If you’re unfamiliar with the Virgin America suite, it’s one of the newest suites in AT&T Park that was just built a couple of seasons ago. It’s unique because it sits just above RF. You feel like you’re practically on the field!

{Side note: Wendy and I met when we were roommates 12 years ago! We lived together for a year then completely lost touch with each other. We recently reconnected through Facebook and discovered that since being roommates we’ve both picked up running! She is running the 2nd half of the San Francisco Marathon next month, which will be her very first race!}

One of my favorite things about luxury suites is the food, and this one did not disappoint.

I started off with some Caesar salad, and then chose 2 pulled pork sliders over hot dogs, hamburgers and tacos. I’m not sure that was a better choice but it sure was tasty! When I went back for more salad I discovered an untouched tray of anti-pasta. I loaded up on olives, Portobello mushrooms, asparagus, and artichokes. I wish I’d seen this try before the sliders.

Later in the evening it got really cold so we got Ghirardelli hot chocolates, a staple at this ballpark. It was a lot cheaper than buying (yet another) $50 blanket, and the hot chocolate definitely warmed me up for the rest of the game.

For the rest of the evening I declined the temptation of nachos, as well as a whole basket full of Haagen-Dazs bars which were both major wins for me. Oh, and the G’s won too!

{I said no to this…}

Saturday

A friend of mine had some personal business to attend to in Sacramento so I tagged along for a mini road trip. Actually, I had selfish intentions – I was dying to have lunch at Costa Vida.

If you’ve ever heard of Cafe Rio, it’s exactly like it. And I have a deep love for Cafe Rio so this Costa Vida is the closest thing I have to it. If you’ve never heard of either, they’re both Mexican Grill restaurants.

The sweet pork is to die for (hmmm, sensing a theme here….) so I had the sweet pork salad.

image source

It’s probably not the healthiest thing I could have had for lunch on Saturday, but hey, I only visit this place once a year and the salad was a better option than a burrito. I also said no to tortilla strips.

After taking care of business we decided to catch a flick and went to see the new X-Men movie. It was the very first X-Men movie I’ve ever seen and I must admit – I liked it more than I expected that I would.

As for theatre food, my friend and I got some Dibs. We figured sharing Dibs would be better than each having a Drumstick (another weakness). However, all I ended up having was 2 pieces of Dibs. I got so wrapped up in the movie I forgot to have more.

On the drive back to the Bay Area we stopped for dinner at Tahoe Joe’s in Vacaville. It’s a typical steak place – like Outback or Black Angus. I ordered a Caesar salad with the dressing on the side and char grilled shrimp with a plain baked potato and steamed veggies (although they were buttered). I said no to the calamari appetizer (another habit that was really to break).

After dinner I was tempted to make an inaugural visit to the famous Fenton’s Creamery, but decided I’d had enough for the day.

Sunday

Aron had arranged a meet-up of Bay Area running bloggers! I’d been to a couple of these in the past and met some wonderful people who have since become good friends, so I wasn’t about to miss this one for the world!

We met in the East Bay and went for a nice run along the Ironhorse Trail in Danville. After the run we took over a patio corner outside Peet’s and chatted about all things running and blogging for a good couple of hours. We were there for so long that I even got a parking ticket! Actually, it was just a “warning” (next time they will tow my car), but it was worth it!

After the run I got really hungry so I bought a cranberry almond scone from Peet’s. Tthere’s weren’t a whole of lot of healthy options to choose from, but I figured the cranberry and almond part was healthy, right? But then just as I started eating it, one of the girls shared some homemade coffee cake that she made. Goodbye scone!

Coffee cake is my most favorite thing ever! My sister and I used to make it every Saturday morning when we were growing up. It was so delish that I had 2 pieces (we were there for so long that I considered the second piece to be my lunch). Plus, homemade is better than store-bought, right?!

I love bloggers, especially running ones!

{Here’s Aron’s post with links to each runner’s blog!)

By the time dinner rolled around I was back on the bandwagon with a good healthy, balanced dinner.

While this weekend definitely wasn’t perfect, I think that for my first attempt at a “healthy weekend” some of the choices I made were better than others. There are some definite areas for improvement, but I also feel that there were some wins that I can build upon for next week.

Last night I went to only my third SF Giants game of the season. And I just realized that this is my first G’s post of the 2011 season. How can that be?

Back in April, I went to the season opener (first home game since winning the World Series) and Opening Night (the night the World Series Rings were awarded). I just realized that I never blogged about that weekend. I’m gonna have to do a “flashback” post of it.

Anyhow, back to last night, it was a great night for ballgame. It was cool, but not windy.

{a snuggie kind of night}

The G’s were facing the Washington Nationals with Timmy Lincecum on the mound, just 5 strikeouts shy of 1000.

It was only fitting that I was there with my cousins – Shari and Jeff (and little J).

{Me and ‘Lil J}

Shari, Jeff and I are the biggest Giants fans. We’ve gone to Spring Training together, gone on road trips together, heck, we’ve even gone to Cooperstown together.

We’ve also witnessed some pretty epic milestones at AT&T Park – Barry’s 600th HR and 300th steal, the entire 2002 post-season home games, Game 1 of the 2010 World Series…and now we can add Timmy’s 1000th strikeout to the list.

Too bad Timmy wasn’t his sharpest and the G’s found themselves down 0-4 early in the game. As such, we found ourselves combing the Club level checking out all the new eats that were added this season…

Like the new “build your own baked potato” bar. I had actually bought a beef brisket sandwich, but when I saw Shari’s baked potato, I gave my sandwich away and bought this baked potato instead:

{baked potato + pulled pork + roasted corn + mushrooms + broccoli}

Since the weather was mild (cool, but not windy), I decided I *had* to have a Ghirardelli sundae. I can’t be at a game and not have either a Ghirardelli sundae or hot chocolate. San Francisco treats:

{7th inning special}

The Giants pulled off yet another comeback and tied the game in the 8th inning. It then went into extras innings. I lost 3 hours of sleep because of those extra innings and felt every bit of it today. Thank goodness they won it in the 13th! The torture continues…

Workout: 19-mile run

In thinking about where I wanted to run this 19-miler, I considered a few different trails. But really, a trail can only be so good for so many miles. And with the temperatures climbing considerably last week, I decided the City would be the best place to run.

I have felt an affinity to San Francisco since I first visited it back in the 90′s, while on my way to college. From that very first visit, I knew that this is where I would end up. I love everything about it – the history, the culture, the Giants (and 49ers too), but especially it’s scenery.

I plotted out this plan:

1. Park at the Embarcadero Center
2. Start running from the Ferry Building to AT&T Park.
3. Head back towards the Ferry Building and continue on the Embarcadero
4. Run through Fisherman’s Wharf, Ghirardelli Square and the Aquatic Center
5. Continue through Fort Mason
6. Head to Crissy Field
7. Up and across the Golden Gate Bridge
8. Loop the entire route back to the Ferry Building

I’ve run this route many times for training runs and races, just not the entire thing all in once run. I was excited for it!

But of course, last night was the one night I had a decent night’s sleep and actually slept right up to my alarm. I had to force myself out of bed this morning, but was able to make it out the door before 8 am, as planned.

After parking, I walked to the 24-Hour Fitness in the Embarcadero (I have an all-club membership) for once last bathroom break and to gather myself together. In hindsight, I should’ve brought my gym bag with my swim gear and left it in a locker. I could’ve gone there after the run and used the sauna, steam and whirlpool, as well as the stretching area. Will definitely do this next time.

As I started running, I felt really sluggish, despite having had a good night’s sleep. I decided I don’t like to have a rest day before a long run. It takes me longer to feel comfortable.

I had my iPhone packed in my iFitness belt and wasn’t planning on taking any photos. But then I ran past AT&T Park and saw that they had all new photos in the display windows. I couldn’t resist. As a result, this will be a photo-heavy post.

AT&T Park

{C Buster Posey aka my favorite player}

{Closer Brian Wilson}

{The World Champions}

{The ticker tape parade}

For the record, I took a ton more photos, but I won’t bore you with them.

Embarcadero

I looped around the park back to the Embarcadero.

{This is McCovey Cove, the back side of the ballpark.}

{Bay Bridge}

On the run back towards the Ferry Building, I ran down one of the piers, just for fun.

{View of the Ferry Building from Pier 14}

{Coit Tower}

Fisherman’s Wharf

I continued down the Embarcadero, reaching Fisherman’s Wharf.

{That photo of us on the Bay in my last post? It was on one of these boat tours. For $15/person they’ll take you on a stroll of the Bay.}

{On the front side, you can watch them bake their famous sour dough bread.}

{The famous Ghirardelli Square}

{The Aquatic Center. There was an open-water swimming class that was just getting started. Tons of triathletes in this area.}

Fort Mason & Crissy Field

After the Aquatic Center, I headed down another random pier, which looped to be about a half mile.

{View of the City from the pier}

Then it was up the infamous Fort Mason hill that always kicks my butt! Here’s a photo of Alcatraz from the Fort Mason Hill:

After the Fort Mason Hill, I ran down the Marina Green and onto the Crissy Field area.

{I ran right along side the swells.}

{I took a photo of this boat because “Mako” is my late grandfather’s name.}

{This was still a little early, but on the way back, the beach got crowded! Lots of folks out enjoying the nice weather.}

Golden Gate Bridge

From Crissy Field, I ascended up to the GGB.

{View of Crissy Field from the climb up to the bridge}

So one thing to know about the GGB is that it’s not flat. I guess you could say its “rolling hills?” The inclines go up and down.

Once I got to the Marin side of the bridge, I stopped to use the facilities and refill my water bottles with water from the water fountains. I didn’t realize how thirsty I was because I actually downed several bottles before filling up and heading back.

{View of the City from the GGB}

BTW – there was NO WIND on the bridge! How amazing is that?!?

That was the last of my photos since the rest of the run back-tracked the route.

While on the bridge, my right calf started to hurt again, in the same spot where it bothered me the last 2 long runs, but it eventually went away.

When I came off the bridge I was just starting 13 miles and still feeling pretty good. I had been eating an Espresso GU every 5-miles and I really noticed the impact on my energy level (must be the double dose of caffeine).

I ran back through Crissy Field thinking what a happy place it was – dogs playing, kids playing, people just out enjoying the day.

The temps were climbing and I was wearing a double-layered long-sleeve shirt. Though both were light, I was really warm. I had already gone through both water bottles, so I stopped at a water fountain to refill, again, downing a few more bottles before a final refill and continuing on.

Fisherman’s Wharf had gotten crowded with tourists. As I darted through them, I noted that they do not pay attention to their surroundings at all. Half of them didn’t even notice me trying to manuever around them. I finally copied a few other runners and just ran in the street. Traffic was light so it was a non-issue.

I hopped back on the sidewalk at Pier 39, where it was much wider. I had about 1.5 miles left and this is where I started to battle. Cardiovascularly I was fine. My right hip hurt, but it was manageable. It was my feet that hurt the most. I was so tempted to jump on a trolley and just ride back to my car. But once I hit 18 miles, I told myself to suck it up and finish it.

I had my Garmin set to countdown the miles, so I did just that…9-8-7…you get the idea, until it finally beeped “Workout Finished” and I found myself right in front of the Ferry Building – 19 miles exactly!

I walked around for a bit, stretched a little, crossed the street and just sat, resting, in Justin Herman Plaza for a good 20+ minutes. Once I felt sort of normal again, I made my way back to my car where I had Gatorade and bananas. I waited a bit before leaving, just to make sure my legs felt okay, then I drove out.

No sooner had I left the garage my left calf; i.e., the good one, charley horsed. Luckily I was in the left lane and there was an open parking space that I immediately pulled into. I had to get out and walk it off. I stretched it out and guzzled down another Gatorade. I sat in my car trying to massage out the cramp for about 10-minutes, then prayed to God that I’d get home without it happening again.

I put the car in neutral every time I had to come to a stop, and miraculously made it home in one piece (including a stop for a double-double from In-n-Out.

I survived another long run. The usually cool temps, frequent water fountains, and mix of turns, flat, hills, and sandy terrain of Crissy Field makes San Francisco a great, great running town. I’m doing all my long runs in the City from now on!

Hello from the desert!

We arrived late last evening and picked up our powder blue Crown Victoria car rental which told us it was 91 degrees outside at 9 pm. :/

We headed straight to my aunt’s home in the West Valley where my folks are staying (they happen to be coincidentally visiting at the same time). We had dinner, and then headed to another aunt/uncle’s vacation condo nearby where we stayed for the evening.

My natural body alarm clock woke me up super early and I got to watch the sunrise. This photo doesn’t do it any justice.

I read for a few hours then headed to the pool to get some laps in. I had a few challenges trying to figure out how to get in the pool, and by the time I did, I was only able to get a 35-minute workout in. Better than nothing, right?

We met up with my parents and sister for lunch at the Yard House. I know that the Yard House is a chain restaurant but I LOVE IT! I seriously do. I wish they had one in the Bay Area! The Kona coffee macadamia nut sundae is one of the best things ever!

After an afternoon nap (I mean, we are on vacation), we headed to Scottsdale where we’ll be for the rest of the trip.

{this afternoon’s temp reading}

We stopped at Sports Authority to pick up some baseballs for autographs and I picked up some GU and drinks for my long Saturday run.

Once we got to the ballpark, the temps had cooled down considerably and it turned out to be a breezy evening – a perfect night for a ballgame!

Our original seats were along Right Field, but we were invited back to the seats behind home plate again – the best seats in the house!

It was a quick game with the G’s beating the Angels 4-0. After the game we checked into the hotel and spent the rest of the evening relaxing. We’ve been coming to this resort since 1994 and being here just feels like “home.”

I’ll be heading to the pool again in the morning and will take some pics of the property while I figure out my route for Saturday’s run.

PS Sorry for the crappy iPhone photos. I’ll be using my regular camera for the rest of the trip.

Workouts:

AM: Dailey Method
PM: 5 rainy miles

It’s been a really long day so this will be short. I ran a tough 5-miles tonight and learned that one shouldn’t eat a tub of salsa and blue corn tortilla chips before a run. I was pretty miserable the entire time. Oh and it rained. No, it poured. But I won’t complain about the that because soon summer will be here and I will be cursing the heat.

Speaking of heat, tomorrow I head back to the desert for Spring Training Trip #2! This time there will be no race, just all baseball and a whole bunch of this:

I’m back from my first of two Spring Training trips! While it was a lot warmer than I expected (I’m not a fan of hot weather), it was still a lot of fun!

Here’s my top 10 favorite photos (in no particular order):

{My first view of Scottsdale Stadium. These are the banners that were used in the World Series parade. Isn’t it a thing of beauty?!?}

{I planted myself along the first base line, next to the G’s dugout, with all the other kids to get autographs and photos. Here’s 2B Freddy Sanchez signing for the fans.}

{I love the shadow of all the fans in this photo! This is prospect Charlie Culbertson who signed autographs for a long time. Since he stood right in front of me signing for so long, I asked him if he ever autographs a baseball on the sweet spot. He replied, “Oh no, that’s for the manager. You get in trouble if you sign there.” LOL}

{I got a photo op with LHP Jeremy Affeldt. Why do I always look so terrible in these photos? Well for one thing, the wretched heat!}

{This is top prospect, 1B Brandon Belt. I was most excited to see him play in person and he did not disappoint! He crushed a HR to right field. Giants fans, get excited about this kid! He’s the real deal!}

{I have *dreamt* of these noodles since Spring Training last year! Best ballpark food ever!}

{This is the first pitch of the ballgame. I’ve sat in these seats for the past few years. They’re right behind the scouts from the other teams. I always try to read what they’re writing and watch the gun to see how fast the pitcher’s pitches are.}

{Pat Burrell at the plate and Charlie Culberson on 2B.}

{This photo was taken during the national anthem at a game in Phoenix vs the Oakland A’s.}

{Wouldn’t this be the best promotional giveaway ever?!?}

I’m headed back to Scottsdale in 9 days for my second and final Spring Training trip. Can’t wait!

This is my first Wordless Wednesday post, but let’s be honest…I can’t just post something without any words.

This is a Robb Nen autograph baseball that my friend Ron got for me a couple of weeks ago. Robb Nen was a closer for my team, the San Francisco Giants. He had over 300 saves and is one of my all time favorites. I miss the Nenth inning.

…and these are the medals from last year’s Bay Breeze Half-Marathon that I’m running again this Saturday. Last year it was half-marathon #4, and this Saturday it will be #10.

Today’s Workout

Wednesday mornings are my strength training workout with Trainer Dave, but he was under the weather so I took the opportunity to sleep in – which means being able to sleep to 6 am.

After work I spent about 20 minutes stretching at the gym before Spin. The Wednesday night Spin instructor, also named Dave, is the most intense group exercise instructor I’ve ever taken a class from. The guy pushes himself to the limit and still manages to speak and lead the class. I’d been spinning on my own for the past couple of weeks and forgot how intense an actual class can be, let alone one taught by this guy. We did a full 55 minutes of hill climbing and speed drills with no breaks. Intense stuff.

Tomorrow I have one last workout scheduled (a run), then nothing till Saturday’s race.

Green Day, my most favorite band in the whole world, sings a song about the “Time of Your Life”, but it’s also called “Good Riddance.” That’s how I feel about 2010.

So last night, during a terrible bout of insomnia, I reflected on 2010, and concluded that if I had to sum it up in one word, it would be “lost.” I went through the motions, did what I had to do, but the passion was missing, in pretty much all aspects of life.

But at the same time, as I scrolled through some of the photos I took over the year, I realized that there were so many high points as well. Once in a life time moments. And lots of special memories made.

• I went to Fan Fest and met Mr. T (my favorite KNBR host), and Kruk & Kuip (best announcers in baseball)!
• Went to the SFG’s first ever tweet-up and built life-long friendships with some amazing friends, the OG Tweeps.
• Went to a TON of games at the most beautiful park in baseball
• Met Big Time Timmy Jim
• And Ron – awesome Giants fan, second only to his wife ☺
• Met fighter pilots
• And went to the World Series. Check that….WON THE WORLD SERIES!

It really was magic inside!

————————–

• Ran 2 marathons and had the support of my best friend and biggest fan!

————————–

• Met the best people through this blog! Amazing runners from near and far, Jess from EatDrinkBreatheSweat, and Jessica from Lululemon! And I even went to a ballgame with Kerri!

————————–

• Organized, ran, and even volunteered at a bunch of races.

————————–

• And got to spend time with amazing friends and family. We even went curling!

And there were so many more special moments shared.

So I guess 2010 wasn’t all that bad. But I look forward to 2011 with a renewed sense of purpose and zeal.

Happy New Year!

THE SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS ARE WORLD CHAMPIONS.

I still find those words hard to believe, but it really did happen. It’s been 20 days and only now am I attempting to write about the experience and what it’s meant to me. It’s somewhat overwhelming to attempt to do this, because of the enormity of it all, but at the parade – the World Series Parade – Mike Krukow uttered these words of wisdom:

“…And everybody here today, you are standing here and you are not standing alone. You are standing with the person that taught you the great story of the San Francisco Giants – whether that be your Dad, or your Mom, a friend, or your sister, or your Grandpa. They taught you right. They taught you that you had to be loyal; you have to love your team. And to a man on this team, this 2010 team, to a man, back in August, they plugged into you, and you fueled and energized this group, all the way until the crazy month of September, and into what was an epic month of October, and what is one glorious day in November.

And you have but one responsibility. You owe it to the person who taught you the good book of the San Francisco Giants. You need to pass this story on. Keep this love alive. And when you tell the story, simply tell ‘em, We’re the Giants. We’re San Francisco. And we’re the World Champions!”

There are 3 people who taught me “the story” – my friend Janice, my cousin Shari (both of whom I went with to NLCS Game 3), and my cousin Jeff. They are Bay Area natives who taught me everything I needed to know about being a Giants fan. A real fan. One that doesn’t just become a fan when it’s trendy, but one who is fan all the time. 365 days a year.

And being able to share this experience with them was special.

World Series Game 1

Shari and I were able to score tickets to Game 1. In my opinion, it was the best game to go to. All the pomp and circumstance.

We left work about 3 hours before game time to take CalTrain to the City. It was great. The train platform was filled with Giants fans.

Some who have been waiting a long time for a championship.

As we got off the train and walked 2 blocks to AT&T Park, you could feel the excitement in the air. Orange and black was everywhere! I’d never seen anything like it before – not even in 2002.

Since we were in the bleachers, we walked the outside perimeter of the ballpark to take in the sights and sounds…

Then entered the park at the 2nd & King gate. Since it was potentially (turns out it was) our last game of the year, we decided to go all out and headed to the Centerfield area, to indulge in the best food in the ballpark – calamari and crab sandwiches. I swear I spent at least $30 just on food that night. The eating area was already crowded, but we found a nice couple to share a table with. When your team is in the World Series, you share the love with everybody!

We made our way to our seats, and as I dreaded, bandwagon fans surrounded us. But I won’t ruin this post by talking about them. You can read about them here. We didn’t let them hamper our experience. And it was one to remember for the ages.

• The Hall of Famers – Monte Irvin, Willie McCovey, Gaylord Perry and Orlando Cepeda threw out the first pitch (Willie Mays was sick and couldn’t make it).

• John Legend sang the National Anthem. I would have preferred a Bay Area artist sang it, but his rendition was good.

• The flyover. I love flyovers and this one was timed perfectly with the anthem. Plus, after the game, we took photos with the fighter pilots. ☺

• Tony Bennett sang. Twice. After every home win, they play “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” Its one of my favorite moments of the game. So to hear him perform it live was just….wow. No words. Then he sang “God Bless America” in the 7th inning. It was the best rendition I’ve heard. It’s probably the only time in my life I’ll ever hear him live in person, and to have it be at the World Series was beyond imaginable.

• Then they played “Don’t Stop Believing”, which has become the playoff anthem, and showed Steve Perry on the big screen, along with a whole bunch of other Bay Area celebs that came home to support the team.

• And the best part of it all? All the runs we kept scoring! I mean, Freddy Sanchez hit 4 doubles – a hitting machine! And Juan Uribe hit a HR! Off the supposedly unbeatable Cliff Lee! Shari and I were going NUTS in the bleachers! We kept hugging each other and screaming in disbelief. It was unreal. Too good to be true.

That night was by far, my most memorable experience at AT&T Park, and in the 10 years of existence, I’ve been to a lot of games, so this says a lot.

Games 2-3

With each post-season game, each series that was played, I kept thinking to myself, “So how is this all going to end?”

After being completely traumatized from 2002 (I couldn’t get out of bed the day after Game 7), I refused to let myself truly believe that winning the whole damn thing was even possible. Every hit, every strikeout, every huge play that was made was pure elation, but deep inside me, I had the fear of complete disappointment once again.

But slowly things started happening that made you start to believe that maybe, just maybe, it was our time. Destiny. Or as the KNBR morning show called it, “Particles.” (In reference to a Grateful Dead song.)

Like when the ball Ian Kinsler hit bounced off the center field wall in the deepest part of the ballpark, back into Andres Torres’ hands and saved a home run. That was precisely the moment that I thought, “This is bigger than all of us. This could really happen.”

Then of course, Game 3 happened, the only game we lost. But strangely, I wasn’t completely freaked out by that loss. I mean, I knew we wouldn’t sweep, but it just made the next game all the more important.

Mind you, for each of games following Game 1, I watched with my family. We’d start the game out with a bunch of us in the living room watching. Then by the 5th or 6th inning, we’d notice that Shari, Jeff and I would be the only ones left, because no one could stand to watch the games with us. We’d live and die, screaming with every pitch, every play.

But you know what was amazing? Jeff is amazing. He is SO SMART about baseball. He’d say things right after a play happened. Point things out that we never saw or picked up on. Then 5 seconds later, you’d hear the commentators say the EXACT same thing. And trust me, he’s a million times better than Buck and McCarver.

Game 4

Game 4 was on Halloween. We were assembled as usual, at Shari’s house for dinner. There were so many darn kids who kept ringing the doorbell that her husband Troy, (a Dodger fan, so he didn’t care about the games) had to sit on the front porch to hand out the candy.

And it’s a good thing because we couldn’t be bothered. Because Madison Baumgarner and Buster Posey happened. A 21-year old pitcher, and a 23-year old catcher completely DOMINATED the Texas Ranger lineup. The lineup had been the most potent offense in baseball all season long. I had known MadBum was good, but I didn’t know how good he was until that game. What was most surprising was the composure between these 2 kids. They way they carried themselves, well; you wouldn’t have known it was Game 4 of the World Series!

As Game 4 ended, in another lopsided win, the 3 of us sat there, looking at each other going, “Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. This is really going to happen.” We were one game away from winning it all. But of course, back in 2002, we had been just a few outs away; so we made each other solemnly swear to do everything exactly the same the next day. Same time, same place, same food, same clothes – nothing changes. And nobody was to talk to the jinx (he knows who he is).

Game 5

So we did as planned, and assembled again for Game 5. Timmy vs. Cliff Lee – again.

We are huge Timmy fans, partly because he’s part Filipino, like us. How many Filipino’s do you know who are professional athletes in America? Yep, not many. So when one emerges, especially one that is dominates the way Timmy does, its special.

And boy was he ever. I will never forget the look on his face as he struck out batter after batter. He was all business. And we were so elated. He had rough points in the season that made you think that maybe he lost what had made him so special, but he showed up big time. You could see “the look” in his eyes. He turned into Big Time Timmy Jim once again.

That last couples of innings were intense. I was getting pitch-by-pitch text messages from Ron. We were pacing the living room, covering our eyes. As Brian Wilson made the first 2 outs, the anticipation became unbearable. We didn’t even notice that Troy had brought out the camera and began videotaping us.

As Nelson Cruz came up to the plate with 2 outs, we convened into a circle rightinfront of the TV. You couldn’t be any closer to it. Soon he had 2 strikes on him, and when he swung the bat for the strikeout, we screamed, turned to each other in a group hug, jumping up and down, crying tears of joy, high-fiving and hugging each other.

I remember screaming, “The SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS are WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!” I remember grabbing 4-year old Jasmine and telling her to remember this moment, because it was very, very important. I remember Janie calling from LA to scream and cheer with us for a few moments. I remember getting an unbelievable amount of text messages.

And I remembered the words that Brian Sabean had said, “You don’t pick the time, the time picks you.” And this was our time. Fireworks were going off in the neighborhood; cars were honking their horns. The City, the Bay Area, all of Northern California was united in pure happiness. It felt so good.

The Parade

Then it came to celebrate. We knew it would be nuts trying to get to the City on the morning of the parade, so we decided to spend the night in the City.

It was perfect. We started the season at the Hyatt Scottsdale for Spring Training, and ended it at the Hyatt Embarcadero for the parade. Full circle. Just like the parade route, which was the same one taken by the team when they first moved from New York to San Francisco in 1958. Full circle.

We planned to situate ourselves at City Hall, so we could hear the speeches, and thought that 8 am would be early enough to be there. At 5 am, I got up to use the bathroom and checked my phone. There was a text from Lauren that she had sent at 1:30 am telling me that they were heading to City Hall. I texted her back and told her that we’d be there around 8 am, and she responded by saying that it would be really crowded by then.

So I got Shari up, and we hurried to get ready, checked out of the hotel, and took BART to the Civic Center. There were already a lot of people, so all we focused on was getting as close to the front as possible.

By some miracle, we found Lauren, and she had a blanket laid out. Thank goodness, because we would have been toast if we had to stand the whole time. Actually, we were toast anyway.

In our haste to get there, we failed to stop and get food and drinks. And by 7 am, there were so many people there, that once you were in, there was no way you’d be able to leave and come back. So between Shari and I, we had a chocolate bar and Altoids. And nothing to drink. Oh and did I mention that it happened to be a really hot day. And, everyone around us was smoking pot? By the time the ceremonies actually began (well after the 1 pm scheduled start time), people were testy. I was testy. I just wanted them to get it over with. I was so annoyed that I had to hear Gavin and Arnold speak.

But once the players started speaking it was great. They were great. The way they acknowledged the fan support was endearing, and very much appreciated, because it takes a lot of effort to be a die-hard fan.

As the ceremonies ended, and the crowd dispersed, it was only then that we realized how large the crowd was. We had been in front, and had no idea how far back, or how wide the crowd had extended to. They say it was a million and a half people. I didn’t even know San Francisco could hold that many people. Later we’d learn that there were 2-hour lines just to buy a BART ticket to get into the City. Crazy! But that’s how much the Bay Area loved this team. That’s how much this championship meant to them. And to me. And to hear the players acknowledge that, and say they wanted to do it for us, just made us love them even more.

Final Thoughts

I love the Giants so much. Its what connects us. We go to Spring Training every year together, we go to games, we talk about the team, the players, the moves, the plays, everything. Even now, in November, Jeff and I have all-day long conversations about the Giants and the moves they need to make. Its what we love.

Having grown up in Hawai’i, I didn’t become a fan until the 90’s, so I have loved hearing Janice, Shari and Jeff’s stories of the growing up Giants’ fans in the 70’s and 80’s. I love hearing about how they’d sneak into Candlestick for games. How they found Darrell Evan’ paycheck and gave it back to him. How they’d harass the visiting bullpen.

It’s the history of it all. And I love history. And that’s what’s so great about baseball. It’s been around for over 100 years, there are so many stories that have been told. And so many still to be written, and told. And to be able to have been a part of this part of Giants’ history has been so special, something I will remember forever.

There’s not a day gone by, in the past 20 days since this happened, that I don’t think about it. And it still brings tears to my eyes. I can be having a crappy day, and then I look at this:

And it makes me feel better. It really does.

In retrospect, I think I had to have experience the devastating loss in 2002, to fully appreciate the championship in 2010. I loved the way it united the Bay Area, I loved the way it united my friends, and I love that I was able to share this with the people who taught me about the Giants. And like Kruk said, “We’re the Giants, We’re San Francisco. And We’re the World Champions!”

More photos at:

San Francisco Giants World Series