OMG!!! Free tacos!!!

I like to say that I've been a 49ers fan my whole life. Ever since Joe Montana was QB in the 80s. Watching my dad watch football was where I learned how to curse. Even better, that's how I found out that "dumbo" could be used as an insult. Before that, "Dumbo" was the flying elphant movie by Disney. I grew up and continued to follow my team through a string of quarterbacks that ranged from awesome to absolutely terrible. I took it personally when Jerry Rice went to the Raiders of all teams to retire. Battle of the Bay had never felt more necessary to win. And I hate to miss Superbowl, even if the Niners haven't been there for years.

Despite my love for the red and gold, I had NEVER been to a 49ers game in my life! In fact, this was sort of a last minute decision too. My wonderful friend Tatiana texted me one day and mentioned her boyfriend and she were getting some people together to go to the game in about 2 weeks. I didn't even consult my girlfriend; I just texted told her, "I'M GOING TO THE 49ERS GAME!!!" Better yet, we were going to watch our Niners try to keep their winning streak against Eli Manning and the NY Giants.

The next two weeks were full of excitement and some anxiety. As a girl, I was fretting over what to wear. The worst part was I had lost my Alex Smith jersey! I bought it a few years ago on eBay (hella cheap, but it worked), and now that he was finally earning the priviliege of having his jersey worn it wasn't anywhere to be found. I ended up getting a Niners T-shirt from Old Navy and a hoodie I bought at Sports Authority in the off-season (which my gf has a matching one too).

I was so excited about the game. The night before was the Manny Pacquiao fight. While all the other Filipinos at work were obsessing over the fight, I was trying to reign in my excitement to give my patients proper care.

So the next day, I made the trek to Daly City to meet with my friends. We met up with Tat's uncle and brother-in-law and we caravaned to Candlestick Park. Though we were drinking the case of beer Tat's bf James brought in his trunk, we were surrounded by people tailgating all around us. We weren't even parked in the proper Candlestick Park parking lot, but people were doing it big! I decided that I'm going to tailgate one day, but I wanted to get my first game under my belt before I try anything like that.

We walked about 10 minutes to the park, and after taking a potty break in the cleanest porto-potties I'd even been in, we were there! There were a lot more NY Giants fans that I had anticipated, but the excitement in the air was almost palpable. In the Bud Light Plaza were food trucks. We visited Kara's Cupcakes (delicious punkin spice cupcakes!!) and Senor Sisig. I had a coupon for $5, so I got a gigantic California burrito. When the lady asked if I wanted pork, chicken or tofu I was stunned. I looked at her like, "I'm Filipino. Of course I want PORK!" But I realized I had to say it out loud so after staring at her like dumbass, I said it. Enjoying a beer and my meal for the day, we joined the herd to reach our seats.

We were up in the nosebleeds, but it wasn't as bad as I thought. TV always makes it seem bigger than it actually is. And it was so fun up in the stands. There were a bunch of crazy guys I gave nicknames. "Shirtless Guy" had a tattoo of the CA state silhoutte with the Niner's "SF" over his right chest and he kept showing it off. "Guido" with his Christian Audigier wannabe-shirt and gold chain was drunkenly yelling Niners praise at everyone, similar to Harley on Epic Mealtime. "Gold Miner" with his miner's SF hat, beard and denim overalls started with a shirt on. Eventually, the shirt came off so he was shirtless under his overalls making him look even more like a miner.

Needless to say, I had a blast. There were a few NY Giants fans standing around us. In fact, the Giants fan in front of me was recording parts of the game with his camcorder. At one point, he turned it to face him. I hope the crazy face I was making made it into his video.
The best part, was the FREE TACOS!!!! The announcers said that if the Niners won the game, everyone in attendance would get 2 free tacos from Jack in the Box. They're only 99 cents, but that adds up. When the timer ran down at the end of the 4th quarter, the crowd went up in roars. Yet Tat and I were excitedly jumping up and down saying, "WE GOT TACOS!!!"

I can't wait to watch my next 49ers game! I just hope they don't move to Santa Clara before I get another chance.

"An aaaaaaarchery contest...?"

A month or so ago I was browsing GroupOn, and I saw a 2-for-1 deal on archery lessons in Daly City. I'd always wanted to learn archery. I really don't know why I'm so facinated with a bow and arrow. Maybe it's because I watched Disney's 'Robin Hood' a lot when I was a kid, and I love 'Prince of Thieves', and I can quote 'Men in Tights' in its entirety. And though Batman is my favorite superhero, I'd say Green Arrow is my second favorite. Still, I never really considered myself a Robin Hood fan, but I admired his skill. Once when I was little, I even made a bow and arrow out of a hanger and yarn. And it worked! If very crudely. I was so proud of myself, then I was embarrassed of it so I threw it away.

I had only shot a bow and arrow once at Science Camp in 5th grade, for about 20 minutes. But boy did it stick with me. When I was older and living in Vegas, I drove across town to the only Sports Authority at the time to buy a youth bow and arrow set. I stood there for about 45 minutes trying to talk myself into buying it. I wanted it so badly, but it was little and I wasn't sure if it was worth the $25. If I was going to learn archery, I wanted to learn the right way.

Now here was my chance. I grabbed my favorite spontaneous buddy, Ronna, and I took her to Pacifica Archery for lessons as her birthday gift.

I had such a blast. It didn't take us long to learn the basics of form and how to shoot. We were only shooting at a target about 10 yards away, but once I started getting the hang of it, then I was able to really concentrate on what works for me and personalize my own shooting style. At times, I was so into my own world in my mind that I wasn't always paying attention to what my friend was saying.

We had our fun, then parted ways because she was going to a Sharks game that night. But shooting that afternoon just left me wanting more. Pacifica Archery had pretty good rates, and its walkable from BART so I don't have to drive across the bridge. It's a sport that I could get into and do it by myself or with others. I've been reading up a lot online and plan on going back to shoot a few more times. I found other ranges that I could try too. I did find online that Oakland Hills has an outdoor range where you can go hiking, and shooting with your own equipment. My goal is to one day be good enough to have my equipment, take my girlfriend up there for a hiking & shooting picnic.

Of course, Mady rolled her eyes at me and said, "Just add that to all of the other things you want to do..." Admittedly, I have a long "honey do" list around the house, plus things I have on my own. Well, we'll see. I'd love to learn archery and have it a permanent part of my life. It doesn't have to be my priority, but I'd like it to be my active physical hobby.

Witches and Broomsticks: Girls' Night Out

On the Friday before Halloween, my best friend and her mom dragged me to an event in downtown Tracy. I was a bit apprehensive about it, since it's Tracy, but I'd never gone to any community events before. For $18, you get a goodie bag, access to vendor booths, appetizers, wine and dancing with a live DJ. It seemed interesting, so I thought, "Why not?" I didn't have any other plans for Halloween.

What we got was a reusable bag with crappy old straight ladies magazines and coupons for stores I'll never go to, a nifty wine glass with the logo "Witches and Broomsticks", two drink tickets and a chance to watch old straight soccer moms out having fun. What was really cool was seeing all the different witches' hats. It must've been a thing, because almost everyone had decorated a witch's hat with all kinds of decorations. I saw one covered in cobwebs, one covered in alphabet letters (she must've been a teacher), and even one with flashing lights. Had I known, I would've made my own too.

Still... The vendors weren't very exciting. There was one where they had bracelets which could be opened up to be used as table-top purse hangers, and my best friend and her mom bought some. Otherwise, there weren't very many vendors and what was left wasn't very good. All the tables were in a tent which was SO CRAMPED with women. And the chatter was so high-pitched, it was almost giving me a headache. In the middle of the tent were tables of appetizers and the wine. Well, the wine was local from Lodi but the only two options were Chardonnay and "red wine" (I didn't catch what the blend was). Needless to say, we didn't use our second drink tickets. The appetizers were average, like they were bought at Costco. The DANCING. Ahahahahahaha.... That was hilarious. They used the lobby of the Grand Theatre in downtown Tracy and put in a live DJ. The DJ was terrible, they kept the lights on and it was so intereasting seeing what people pass off as dancing in Central Valley. I did happen to grab a Sam Adams Octoberfest at the bar.

It didn't take us long to realize that the event was for WOMEN (not ladies, or older girls) in Central Valley to have the chance to get out of the humdrum of their boring lives and have a space to go out with their girlfriends. It was obvious that the crowd was was too old for us. Hell, it was too old for my best friend's mom! There weren't any cute young girls there. There were a few women our age, but they were soccer-mom status. We had a couple of laughs at the whole thing, but ditched it for Famous Dave's.

I'd never been to Famous Dave's before, though my parents in Vegas often get a tray of ribs for parties. There was so much food, and I'm so in love with their corn fritters. The even may have been kind of boo-boo, but the night wasn't a waste. I was able to hang out with my best friend which we haven't done in a long time. And next time, I'll be a little bit more picky about the community events I go to. I'll try something in the Bay Area, and stay away from Central Valley events. I mean, I left it for a couple reasons, and lack of cool stuff to do is one of them.