Every summer since elementary school, I try to swim whenever possible. The only place I can afford to go is the NYC Parks and Recreation public pools. From the Hamilton Fish pool on E.Houston to Carmine pool in the village and the Astoria pool to the Staten Island pool, I swam them all despite the nasty hairs and bandages floating in them. Thanks to those underwater camera angles during the Olympic swimming events, I somehow manage to teach myself how to swim in those murky and mysterious water. Now, I only swim in hotel pools.
This week however was Splash Week at the YMCA on 14th street. They teach anyone who wants to learn how to swim for free. I wanted to swim, but wasn't entirely excited about going when the week came, but I'm so glad I went. Although I knew how to "swim", my techniques were all wrong. Ever wonder how those swimmers make swimming looks so easy? Or why no matter how fast or hard you stroke you're still slower than the person walking in the pool? Here are the 7 basic, but highly critical techniques to become an effective swimmer I learn this week. Needless to say, its not really the number of strokes, but the techniques that counts.
1. Reach. While you extend your arm in front of your head right before you pull the water, make sure you EXTEND your arm and straight your elbow to obtain the full stretch. At that point, make sure you extend another 6 inches from your shoulder and reach further and reach for something. This will maximize each and every of your stroke.
2. Glide. While reach for that few extra inches, you're actually gliding in the water. This will help you move through the water and take advantage of your stroke without causing friction and negate your stroke. At the same time, you also take not wasting energy. This position is short lived, but effective. While gliding, the shoulder that is doing the reach should almost be pointing down at the bottom of the pool and the other shoulder almost be pointing towards the ceiling.
3. Pull. The pull is the most important part of the stroke. It is done with your palm, not arm. Its what you depend on to cover the maximum distance while pulling your body through the water. To maximize the pull, you need to pull the full distance from the reach position to the side of your thigh. Do not bring your arm back up when it only reach your waist. Instead, pull in a curve, not in a straight line. Pull from the reach position to near your belly button and back out towards your thigh. Using both hands, this will create a shape of an hourglass. Your hand should not be way underneath the water, but as close to your body as possible. Your arm and elbow should be above water.
4. Kick. Do NOT bend your knees. You legs should be fluttering while pointing your toe pointing behind you. Don't stiffen your knees or ankles either. You will notice your hip is actually doing the kicking. Your legs should be moving like a scissor and your body rotate side to side. Although kick is only 10% of swimming, it is critical for breathing and cause you a split second win. It is needed for the starting kick off and finish.
5. Head and Shoulders. Your head dictates the direction of your body. Don't let it be a dead weight by looking down at the bottom of the pool. You should not be looking straight ahead either. These position will cause too much friction. For maximum result, your head should be in the 45 degree angle where half way forward and half way down. Your headline should be skimming the surface of the water and forehead below the water. Your arms and legs should be shoulder length apart while kicking and stroking. This will prevent you body to drift from side to side.
6. Breathing. While reaching with your right hand and your right shoulder almost pointing to the bottom of the pool, face to the left side 90 degree. No more. One of your eye will be above water and one below. Inhale through your mouth only. Exhale through your nose underwater. This will prevent water from going up your nose. It is okay to breath on both side, bilaterally. There is no disadvantages oppose to someone who only breath on one side. The natural time to inhale is right when your hand is out of the water and over your head. Do not lift ur head out of the water to breath. your mouth should only be skimming the surface of the water. If you're like me where my upper body starts to sink during the reach and lifting of the hand, concentrate on the kick. Kick harder as that will push your body and make up for the "missing" pull.
7. Start and Finish. When kicking off the wall, you need to streamline by using your arms to create a slim "A" behind your head with palm to the back of the other. Power flutter through, but under the water, not skimming the surface. Avoid white splashing. This will consume a lot of energy so take a huge deep breath. When you're about to slow down, start to surface and begin the pull. For the finish, instead of taking the last half or 3/4 stroke, glide or streamline to the finish with a big kick and deep reach. The indicator is perpendicular marker under each lane.
Now go out and practice. It is not easy doing them all simultaneously, so remember to use the kick board and the noodle.
Friday, April 29, 2005
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
The Perfect Poker Player
To become the perfect poker player, you would have to able to fool yourself. Understanding this will excelerate your learning process and enable you to become a better poker player faster. Obviously nothing beats experience which will take time. You will not find tips and tricks of becoming one here as there are plenty of online sites out there. Instead, I will focus on the essential and fundamentals.
Poker is a psychological sport. Your ability to learn and more importantly your ability to break old habits will determine your progression, not your physique. The key is knowing when to hold'em and when to fold'em. Since luck is a factor, don't expect to win more hands than the person next to you. Believe it or not, everyone on the table has the same amount of luck. No one has more luck than the other in the long haul. There are bad beats and unfortunately the only thing you can do is avoid them which is only possible if you fold. What separates the professional and the amateurs is the size of the pot they win or lose, not as much so as the amount of hands.
What's interesting about poker is that it is not the hand that win it for you, but how you play them. Let me repeat. It is not what you have, but what you make your opponent thinks you have that counts. To do this, pick a face, any face and stick with that face. Just like bowling, it will not be easy to duplicate that same exact speed, angle, momentum and spin on the ball all the time to get you that strike. Maintain the same expression, your cool and don't give away any hints.
Now to find that perfect poker player in you, you need to know that there are about four different type of players. The CallingStation is someone who plays a lot more than than he should. He tends to stay in a lot of games and takes a lot of chances including mediocre hands. The Rock is a very tight player who only plays very good hand and fold the bad ones. He will win, but won't be enough. Then there is the Maniac who is too agressive. He'll raise alot to knock out mediocre hands with his scare tactics. He'll win often, but when he lose, he'll lose big. Last is the player you want to achieve by avoid those previous 3 players. This is where pros are at. The perfect player can't be described. He is unpredictable. He know what to do in all situations. He knows what not to do by calculating the pots odds. He'll combine the techniques of the other 3 players along with the fundamental of poker described above. He'll rely on the good hands at the same time play mediocre ones if its cheap enough. He's not invincible, but over time, he'll maximize his winnings and minimize his losses.
When trying to become the perfect player, keep these following tips in mind and you'll be the perfect player before you know it.
1. Bet only when the odd is good.
2. Winning small is better than losing or each dollar you did not lose is the same as winning it.
3. Know your weakness and correct it asap.
4. Know you opponent and capitalize on their weaknesses.
Mastering these techniques won't be easy, so practice them, play the game, and have fun.
Poker is a psychological sport. Your ability to learn and more importantly your ability to break old habits will determine your progression, not your physique. The key is knowing when to hold'em and when to fold'em. Since luck is a factor, don't expect to win more hands than the person next to you. Believe it or not, everyone on the table has the same amount of luck. No one has more luck than the other in the long haul. There are bad beats and unfortunately the only thing you can do is avoid them which is only possible if you fold. What separates the professional and the amateurs is the size of the pot they win or lose, not as much so as the amount of hands.
What's interesting about poker is that it is not the hand that win it for you, but how you play them. Let me repeat. It is not what you have, but what you make your opponent thinks you have that counts. To do this, pick a face, any face and stick with that face. Just like bowling, it will not be easy to duplicate that same exact speed, angle, momentum and spin on the ball all the time to get you that strike. Maintain the same expression, your cool and don't give away any hints.
Now to find that perfect poker player in you, you need to know that there are about four different type of players. The CallingStation is someone who plays a lot more than than he should. He tends to stay in a lot of games and takes a lot of chances including mediocre hands. The Rock is a very tight player who only plays very good hand and fold the bad ones. He will win, but won't be enough. Then there is the Maniac who is too agressive. He'll raise alot to knock out mediocre hands with his scare tactics. He'll win often, but when he lose, he'll lose big. Last is the player you want to achieve by avoid those previous 3 players. This is where pros are at. The perfect player can't be described. He is unpredictable. He know what to do in all situations. He knows what not to do by calculating the pots odds. He'll combine the techniques of the other 3 players along with the fundamental of poker described above. He'll rely on the good hands at the same time play mediocre ones if its cheap enough. He's not invincible, but over time, he'll maximize his winnings and minimize his losses.
When trying to become the perfect player, keep these following tips in mind and you'll be the perfect player before you know it.
1. Bet only when the odd is good.
2. Winning small is better than losing or each dollar you did not lose is the same as winning it.
3. Know your weakness and correct it asap.
4. Know you opponent and capitalize on their weaknesses.
Mastering these techniques won't be easy, so practice them, play the game, and have fun.
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Backgammon: A Game of Chance
I was introduced to backgammon about 2 years ago during the dismantling of the entire Verizon Network Integration outsourcing team at JPMorgan. Clueless to the rules of backgammon, a few of us were quickly drawn into the simplicity of the game. Unlike Chess, your luck is tested instead of your wits. For those of you who are not familiar with Backgammon, an example of the anology would be chess is to Jeopardy as backgammon is to Wheel of Fortune. It is easy to learn, play and a game to enjoy without burning your brain cells. Similar to Sorry.
Some believe there is some sort of mastery skill level involved, but I can't agree totally, therefore I must still be an amateur. In a game of chance, you'll bound to lose no matter how good you are and vice versa. To determine how much of it is luck and how much of it is skill, I decided to learn and play the game. After a handful of games with my former colleagues, that simply wasn't enough. I needed to play more games and keep a good record of it. One hundred games later, I still wasn't satified. I went on and not only finished 200 games or 400 games. I racked up over one thousand on my Palm Vx. 1203 games to be exact. And here are my results against a computer. For more info and rules of backgammon, please visit http://www.bkgm.com.
58% - chance of beating a computer
8 - number of games winning streak
1% - chance of seeing a backgammon,
.0001% chance of getting a stealthmate.
My unofficial ranking is as follow:
<40%>40% Amateur
>50% Challenger
>60% Experienced
>70% Expert
>80% Master
>90% Grandmaster
>99% Wizard
>99.9 GrandWizard
100% YAFOS aka BFL
During this stretch, I went from being a novice player to a formidable opponent. In the beginning, I racked up many lost and declined many doubling to maintain a lower score. This explains why my winning percentage is only at 58% when I should be in the experienced level. It is only after breaching that 1000th game I realized how an expert thinks. Needless to say, I couldn't hang onto that mentality for long. Even during that 8 games winning streak, which I tasted the mastery level, I was very fortunate. However, I'm far from the master or grandmaster level, if there is such a thing.
Backgamming a computer is a lot harder than being backgammoned by a computer. As a human being, I often held my checkers back to a last minute attempt to hit the computer. When this strategy fails, I risked being backgammoned. Because the computer doesn't have any pride, it is programmed to escape a backgammoned at all cost. Of all the 6 times I backgammoned the computer, I felt exhilarated as if I've accomplished what is considered to be impossible. Luck or skill along can't make it happened.
Most people have never seen a stalemate in backgammoned. Some even explained that is legally impossible. However, I was one step too late in hitting the computer and closing out the board while he formed a 6-prime on his home base. Since my original two checkers were blocked by his 6-prime, my only chance was to close him out. Right after hitting him, I needed a 1-2 to get a closeout and his only chance was to roll a 2-6. Load and behold, the computer got a 2-6 to escape and I immediately rolled a 1-2 to form my own prime at home.
That was probably the highlight of my 1200+ games. Here's the rest of the statistics:
1203 Total Games Completed
Me vs Computer
1478 1103 Total Points
1158 0928 Singles
0151 0080 Gammons
0006 0005 Backgammons
0502 0700 Losses
*Big Fat Liar
Some believe there is some sort of mastery skill level involved, but I can't agree totally, therefore I must still be an amateur. In a game of chance, you'll bound to lose no matter how good you are and vice versa. To determine how much of it is luck and how much of it is skill, I decided to learn and play the game. After a handful of games with my former colleagues, that simply wasn't enough. I needed to play more games and keep a good record of it. One hundred games later, I still wasn't satified. I went on and not only finished 200 games or 400 games. I racked up over one thousand on my Palm Vx. 1203 games to be exact. And here are my results against a computer. For more info and rules of backgammon, please visit http://www.bkgm.com.
58% - chance of beating a computer
8 - number of games winning streak
1% - chance of seeing a backgammon,
.0001% chance of getting a stealthmate.
My unofficial ranking is as follow:
<40%>40% Amateur
>50% Challenger
>60% Experienced
>70% Expert
>80% Master
>90% Grandmaster
>99% Wizard
>99.9 GrandWizard
100% YAFOS aka BFL
During this stretch, I went from being a novice player to a formidable opponent. In the beginning, I racked up many lost and declined many doubling to maintain a lower score. This explains why my winning percentage is only at 58% when I should be in the experienced level. It is only after breaching that 1000th game I realized how an expert thinks. Needless to say, I couldn't hang onto that mentality for long. Even during that 8 games winning streak, which I tasted the mastery level, I was very fortunate. However, I'm far from the master or grandmaster level, if there is such a thing.
Backgamming a computer is a lot harder than being backgammoned by a computer. As a human being, I often held my checkers back to a last minute attempt to hit the computer. When this strategy fails, I risked being backgammoned. Because the computer doesn't have any pride, it is programmed to escape a backgammoned at all cost. Of all the 6 times I backgammoned the computer, I felt exhilarated as if I've accomplished what is considered to be impossible. Luck or skill along can't make it happened.
Most people have never seen a stalemate in backgammoned. Some even explained that is legally impossible. However, I was one step too late in hitting the computer and closing out the board while he formed a 6-prime on his home base. Since my original two checkers were blocked by his 6-prime, my only chance was to close him out. Right after hitting him, I needed a 1-2 to get a closeout and his only chance was to roll a 2-6. Load and behold, the computer got a 2-6 to escape and I immediately rolled a 1-2 to form my own prime at home.
That was probably the highlight of my 1200+ games. Here's the rest of the statistics:
1203 Total Games Completed
Me vs Computer
1478 1103 Total Points
1158 0928 Singles
0151 0080 Gammons
0006 0005 Backgammons
0502 0700 Losses
*Big Fat Liar
Monday, April 11, 2005
SprintPCS New For You Upgrade Program
If you're looking for an affordable SprintPCS phone without having to replace your current phone number, goodluck. I have been looking to replace mine for the last 6 months since my Samsung phone died on me. The ones in the SprintPCS store are way overpriced considering most companies are practically giving away free phones. Sure you can get one from Ebay, but surprisingly they're not cheap either. I've been asking all my friends and coworkers, but most of them are not on the Sprint network. I even visit SprintPCS website often looking for new phone and deals, but found nothing. Finally, my sister Lori told me about how Sprint services their existing customers and that there is a rebate program.
If you haven't already have an online account with SprintPCS.com, get one. Its greats. Give you a lot of information on your plan, manual to your current phone, text messaging and phone usage. They're all accessible. If you lost your password, they will instantly send it to your phone. You may need to wait over night to use it though. Here's what I found on the website.
Sprint doesn't give out free phone or give out deep discounts on phone unless you open a new line, which you will cause you to lose your current phone. They are aware of this, so they're offer existing SprintPCS the New For You Upgrade Program which give existing customer up to $150 credits towards a new phone. To be eligible for this rebate every 18 months, you must:
1. Have a $35 plan.
2. Account must be in good standing and have not change your phone in the last 18 months.
Before you decide to change your SprintPCS phone, check to see if you are eligible.
If you are, visit your local SprintPCS store to get a rebate submission forms. You'll need to buy a new phone and they'll send you a rebate. It a bit of a hassle, but at least you don't need to pay the ridiculous full price or settled for a used phone on eBay.
If you haven't already have an online account with SprintPCS.com, get one. Its greats. Give you a lot of information on your plan, manual to your current phone, text messaging and phone usage. They're all accessible. If you lost your password, they will instantly send it to your phone. You may need to wait over night to use it though. Here's what I found on the website.
Sprint doesn't give out free phone or give out deep discounts on phone unless you open a new line, which you will cause you to lose your current phone. They are aware of this, so they're offer existing SprintPCS the New For You Upgrade Program which give existing customer up to $150 credits towards a new phone. To be eligible for this rebate every 18 months, you must:
1. Have a $35 plan.
2. Account must be in good standing and have not change your phone in the last 18 months.
Before you decide to change your SprintPCS phone, check to see if you are eligible.
If you are, visit your local SprintPCS store to get a rebate submission forms. You'll need to buy a new phone and they'll send you a rebate. It a bit of a hassle, but at least you don't need to pay the ridiculous full price or settled for a used phone on eBay.
Saturday, April 09, 2005
Brief Diamond Buying Guide For The Techies.
Don't sweat it. Buying a diamond is a lot easier than buying a laptop. You don't need to worry about the service support, the reliability of the product, or where it was made. Your goal, however, is to make her happy, not you. Its not going to be cheap, so some research is required. Do spend more time shopping for it then do you would with a laptop. There is really no turning back. Hopefully.
The three "C's" of a diamond. Which is more important, carat, color, or clarity? That is similar to someone asking you what's more important, the CPU, RAM or HDD? Your answer would be, "they all are." Two of the 3 just won't cut it. Think of carat as the CPU speed, color as the amount of RAM and clarity as your harddrive capacity. There is no point of having a 3.0ghz pentium (2005), 1gb RAM and a 2gb HDD. You can try to convince yourself that spec works just fine for your needs. Well, this "laptop" will be her conversation piece, not serve your need. She'll want to show off this "laptop" to her friends and whether you like it or not, the "laptop" will reflex who you are. Its true, those three components don't define the laptop and its no difference with an engagement ring. There are more to it then the three C's.
The CPU, RAM and HDD will be the main components of your laptop. How is this easier than a laptop? For one thing, you won't need to call up tech support. You don't need to install, configure or troubleshoot any software. She'll be the one to take care of the hardware. The harddrive won't crash, cpu won't overheat and the ram won't die on you. Product reliability is out the window. Who cares if it was made it Japan or Taiwan? Diamonds are all natural. All you need to think about is the right specification or combination that will make her happy without breaking your wallet.
Its the balance of the three that makes it powerful and interesting to her. Once you have decided what you want, shop around and do more shopping. If you still are not sure what to look for in a diamond or which is more of a priority? All you have to do is ask your buddy about his computer. Without a doubt, he'll brag about the speed of his CPU. If he has an awesome RAM, he'll include that and might even add the size of his harddrive. So yes, the carat is all there is to talk about since its the most visible. Color and clarity are minor issue. If you decide to skim on the size, but sure to up the color and clarity. See, its not too bad. At least you don't need to worry about getting an upgrade...or do you?
The three "C's" of a diamond. Which is more important, carat, color, or clarity? That is similar to someone asking you what's more important, the CPU, RAM or HDD? Your answer would be, "they all are." Two of the 3 just won't cut it. Think of carat as the CPU speed, color as the amount of RAM and clarity as your harddrive capacity. There is no point of having a 3.0ghz pentium (2005), 1gb RAM and a 2gb HDD. You can try to convince yourself that spec works just fine for your needs. Well, this "laptop" will be her conversation piece, not serve your need. She'll want to show off this "laptop" to her friends and whether you like it or not, the "laptop" will reflex who you are. Its true, those three components don't define the laptop and its no difference with an engagement ring. There are more to it then the three C's.
The CPU, RAM and HDD will be the main components of your laptop. How is this easier than a laptop? For one thing, you won't need to call up tech support. You don't need to install, configure or troubleshoot any software. She'll be the one to take care of the hardware. The harddrive won't crash, cpu won't overheat and the ram won't die on you. Product reliability is out the window. Who cares if it was made it Japan or Taiwan? Diamonds are all natural. All you need to think about is the right specification or combination that will make her happy without breaking your wallet.
Its the balance of the three that makes it powerful and interesting to her. Once you have decided what you want, shop around and do more shopping. If you still are not sure what to look for in a diamond or which is more of a priority? All you have to do is ask your buddy about his computer. Without a doubt, he'll brag about the speed of his CPU. If he has an awesome RAM, he'll include that and might even add the size of his harddrive. So yes, the carat is all there is to talk about since its the most visible. Color and clarity are minor issue. If you decide to skim on the size, but sure to up the color and clarity. See, its not too bad. At least you don't need to worry about getting an upgrade...or do you?
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