Several Nature Photos

I found some photos scattered throughout my main hard drive that I took in the past. I don't know why -- perhaps for artistic purposes -- they are in black and white.

Mostly nature-themed, I think I might actually incorporate some of these photos in Asian Outlook's Conscience section in the first Spring '10 issue. There are others lying around, but these three are probably my favorite ones:


Flower Blossom

Simple and delicate. Much like many nature-themed photos I periodically take, they are direct and definitive, self-explanatory, and genuine.

I only wish I knew what kind of flower this is. It adds a fresh taste, since photos of generic tulips and roses grow boring after a while.






Mantis

When I was a kid, I was absolutely obsessed over an insect called the praying mantis. They were huge, averaging between 4 to 6 inches. If I recall correctly, this photo was taken in Taiwan, where I found a mantis that was nearly the length of my hand (around 6-7 inches).

Now that I think about it, I'm still fascinated with these badass, predatory insects...






Longhorn Beetle

Don't let it fool you, this little insect does not quite match up in size with the mantis. Also taken in Taiwan, near a Buddhist temple, the beetle probably fared no more than 2 inches in length.

Interestingly enough, since this was taken at a temple, visitors and monks alike granted this critter a safe path to the nearby gardens, where it immediately blended into the vegetation.

Article: Hideki Matsui

Asian Outlook is putting out a new issue before the end of the semester. A while ago, I finished a short article after the New York Yankees claimed their 27th World Series title on Hideki Matsui. This article will show up in the upcoming issue.

Godzilla for New York
Jeff Hwang

Asked how he felt after playing one of the greatest games in World Series history, the soft-spoken Hideki Matsui simply said it was “unbelievable.” His team, after enduring 162 games through 181 days of the regular baseball season and 15 games through 29 days of the postseason, the New York Yankees emerged once again as the champions of baseball.

Matsui, 35, became a one-man army in New York’s clinching game against the Philadelphia Phillies on November 4, 2009. Despite missing a significant amount of at-bats due to the lack of the designated hitter position when playing on National League turf, Matsui still hit 8-for-13 (a .615 batting average), including a double, 3 home runs, with 8 runs batted in. However, out of those 8 RBIs, 6 of them came in the clinching game when Matsui went 3-for-4, hitting a two-run home run, a two-run single, and then a two-run double in three consecutive at-bats to cap his explosive night. The performance was tied for a record setter, matching Bobby Richardson’s feat with the 1960 New York Yankees, and allowed Matsui to claim the prestigious MVP award of the 2009 World Series.

It marked the first time that a Japanese-born player was named the MVP of the World Series. In his final contract year with the Yankees, it may be possible that Matsui’s time in New York has finally expired. The man nicknamed “Godzilla” in both Japan and the United States came a long way, though, with the sport of baseball mixed into his blood at an early age.

In 1977, at the age of three, Hideki Matsui started his baseball career simply by playing catch with his father. When he was ten years old, the future star joined his first baseball team. Originally batting right-handed, Matsui was actually forced to bat lefty after his older brother and friends felt that they were being overpowered by the young star. Consequently, Matsui became the powerful left-handed batter that the baseball world knows of today. He quickly steamrolled through high school baseball teams and eventually claimed the nickname, “Godzilla,” as his own. The young Matsui’s ability was recognized in the Japanese professional baseball league, which led to a first round draft pick to join the Yomiuri Giants—the Japanese team equivalent to the United States’ New York Yankees.

In ten seasons as an outfielder with the Giants (1993 to 2002), Matsui’s name became a label for power hitting. Averaging more than 30 home runs per season (with a single season high of 50 in his final season in Japan) and holding a career average of .304, Matsui epitomized power as fellow countryman Ichiro Suzuki defined contact and speed. Tearing up Japanese pitchers, Matsui was awarded MVP honors three times in the Japanese league (1996, 2000, and 2002). With virtually the entire spotlight focused on him after Ichiro departed for the Seattle Mariners in the United States, it was inevitable that the MLB would eventually set its sights on the star player. At the same time, though, Matsui already had plans to move to the United States after his final contract year with the Yomiuri Giants.

In 2003, after winning the Japanese championship for the third time and claiming his third MVP award, Matsui signed a three-year deal to play left field with the New York Yankees and began his MLB career as seen today. With the loss of star players Ichiro and Matsui, Japanese baseball fans began tuning into American baseball broadcasts more than ever. It was no longer unusual for baseball fans in Japan to wake up on early mornings to catch the night games in the United States.

Matsui, like Ichiro, adjusted to the American style of baseball rather quickly. Reinforcing his role as “Godzilla,” Matsui instantly achieved fame by belting a grand slam in his debut game as a Yankee. Consistently, Matsui settled into his power hitter mode in the United States, without losing a beat since crossing overseas. From 2003 to 2005, Matsui drove in over 100 runs per season. Because of the productivity, Matsui earned himself a new contract through 2009.

Unfortunately, injuries plagued the aging slugger in 2006 and 2008, reducing his offensive output. With his knees shaken up and his speed reduced, Matsui was relegated to the designated hitter role for the majority of his playing time. Nonetheless, when he was healthy, Matsui still proved to be a recurrent power source. In 2007, he continued to maintain his consistency by driving in over 100 runs for the fourth time in five seasons. But even with his successes between 2003 and 2008, Matsui had yet to win a championship with the New York Yankees. As his knees continued to fall out of shape, Matsui was finally taken out of the outfield for fulltime services as a designated hitter in 2009. Regardless, he settled into his new role and immediately set the record for the most home runs in a single season by a Yankee designated hitter, driving out a total of 28.

Everything changed in that fateful year, when Matsui helped carry the Yankees over the Phillies in a 4-2 World Series, claiming his aforementioned series MVP award along with his first championship in a Yankee uniform. As if playing from a storybook, it may be time for Godzilla to bid farewell to New York, with limited options available for the shy and humble power hitter. He can still sign another extended contract with the Yankees—provided that the organization makes the offer, he can sign with a different team, or he can retire and return to Japan as a World Series champion.

For a player who usually stays away from media attention, Matsui made it publicly clear that he wishes to remain in New York. Playing with the idea of a contract extension, Matsui said through his interpreter, “I hope so. I love New York. I love the fans here.”

Sources:
http://www.mlb.com
http://www.yankees.com
http://www.baseball-reference.com
http://www.jockbio.com/bios/matsui

...By the way, Hideki Matsui has one of the largest pornography collections. As quoted in TIME magazine:

"As one Japanese journalist put it, describing Matsui's affinity for such unique Japanese cultural institutions like the no-panties shabu-shabu in Japan, 'Matsui is a horny guy. All of us are horny, more or less. But Matsui doesn't attempt to hide the fact.' Yet another win for the Japanese Everyman."

Thanksgiving 2009

It's always a tradition to spend Thanksgiving break with the family. And like always, a Thanksgiving dinner awaits. In the past, my eldest aunt from my mom's side usually handles the hefty turkey. However, this time around, my cousin Olivia tackled the daunting task.

It's a time of merriment -- other than that of Christmas -- one especially to be shared by family members. Oftentimes, Thanksgiving is celebrated at my home, but for the past couple of years, the holiday celebration's been held at my cousin's. Well, it makes the turkey job much more convenient.

There is a story to be told about this stunning, golden-brown fowl. Originally, roasting the turkey should have taken around three to four hours. To be safe, a plug-in timer was inserted (if you look closely, it's the small red contraption near the top) that pops out when the cooking is completed. Well, a timer's pretty useless if it doesn't tell the chef when the roasting is done. For some unknown reason, the timer was jammed and never popped out from the turkey breast.

Instead, another half hour passed before some investigative work was done. So it turned out our suspicions were correct and that the timer was indeed stuck. Fortunately, the turkey still turned out to be a success. No harm, no fowl... foul. Sorry.

Other than dinner, this was the first time I was able to visit my little niece, Waverly, since early this year. Right now she's about a year and half in age, at the pinnacle of walking and speech-training. Truthfully, I don't know too much about babies or child-psychology in general, but for a 1.5 year-old kid, she is pretty darn intelligent.

How many infants at that age can tell the difference between a circle, square, and a triangle?

How many infants at that age can turn on/off and adjust the volume for a stereo?

How many infants at that age can identify apples, strawberries, bananas, and watermelons? Mind you, this includes the actual fruits, photos of fruits, or hand-drawings of fruits.

I'm sure there are plenty of babies out there who can differentiate many items, but there is one thing that I was seriously, seriously impressed with...

Chinese family trees are notoriously famous for intricacy. It's a huge hassle to remember what each relative stands for. For example, there aren't just aunts and uncles like in the English language. Each aunt on the mother's side and each aunt on the father's side has different titles. Likewise, uncles follow the same trend. However, spouses of every relative also have different titles. An aunt's husband on the mother's side has a different title than that of an aunt's husband on the father's side. Also, generation gaps play roles, as well. In such a case, it is possible for one to have an uncle younger than oneself. Then again, that may be an uncle in English terms, but in Chinese, it's a whole different title. Each cousin has a different title, great aunts, great uncles, great-great aunts, godmothers, nephews and nieces, etc. individually holds a different title. It's a brain-buster.

Back to Waverly, what I'm most impressed with is that she could point out titles to many relatives that were at the Thanksgiving dinner. For example, her mother and father, both uncles (i.e. my brother and me), great aunt (my mother), great uncle (my father), both grandmothers (different titles), grandfather on her father's side, and great-grandmother. Honestly, I'm not even too familiar with the titles. To be outdone by a 1.5 year-old, either I'm mentally disabled or this little girl has serious brains.

I wonder how she will turn out in ten, fifteen years? Hell, I'm not even the parent and I'm wondering.