I'm here at MySpace

I'm here at MySpace.

Temecula, California

I visited my customer in Temecula, California today. Before visiting them, I visited Pala Casino Spa Resort, one of Indian casinos in California, which was also my customer. It took about one and half hours from my office in Torrance. 100 miles!, but that's a piece of cake for me now. I also visited Pechanga Casino in Temecula to see what's happening in Indian casinos in California. Picture is the entrance to Old Town Temecula. Temecula is the site of one of the oldest wineries in California. I couldn't visit winery here but I bought one bottle in a wine shop in Old Town. I can show you at next post.

PS: You don't believe me, do you? But, I didn't play any slot machines. This is a business trip. What's business am I in!? It's a secret.

Ropeless Jump Rope "Jump Snap"/100SHIKI.COM

Ropeless Jump Rope "Jump Snap"/100SHIKI.COM

I like this site, "100SHIKI.COM" and watch everyday. But only in Japanese. They're introducing an interesting dot.com website everyday. I found this is a fun, Ropeless Jump Rope. "Jump Snap".

California Driver License

I got my California Driver License today. I thought it would take a month to be mailed, but I got it today. In United States, form of the license is different in each state. California's is above and Georgia's is below in the pic. It's so strange to have two photo IDs in the U.S. What will happen? I can still drive a car if I lose one of the licenses. Georgia's will expire on August 2009, which is my visa's expiry date, but California's expiry date is the first birth date in 5 years, which is April 6, 2012. My last California license expired in 2003. DVD of California renewed my license very easily, without driving test, even if I haven't had a license for more than 4 years. Anyway, I am a California boy now, officially.

PS: Georgia didn't ask me to provide my fingerprint but California asked me. Georgia didn't ask me to take my glasses off when taking photo, but California asked me to take them off.

Redondo Beach couple is quite happy to be boxed in

Redondo Beach couple is quite happy to be boxed in

This is very cheap, made with crates of containers, but really nice house, isn't it?

Memphis, Tennessee T shirt

I'm buying T shirts in every state I visit. This is it from
Memphis, Tennessee.

Teppan KAZAMIDORI

I went to my office at around 10am today, Saturday. I have finished my expenses report for these 2 months, report of business trip to Las Vegas last week, and report of this week activities. I'm a workaholic now, completely different from myself when I have been in California last time. It's true. Believe me. But I have to work out on weekend, because I don't do any exercise everyday, driving my car, that's all. So I went to work out at around 4pm. Of course it's on the green, you know.

A friend of mine, he has been in California for almost 10 years, invited me to a dinner with his family this evening, at Teppan KAZAMIDORI in Torrance. It's a fan to have a drink and Yakitori with my old friend and his family. I used to have too much drink in his home in Redwood City in Northern California. That's back to 1999-2002. His children are now 8 and 10 years old. They don't remember me, but it seems they like me. I miss my family.

At Hawthorne Blvd and Carson Street

I drive Hawthorne Blvd to my office at Carson Street. This photo is on Hawthorne north just in front of Carson. Del Amo Fashion Center on the right, my office on the left. It takes just 2-3 minutes from my apartment to my office. Now I can't believe it took more than 2 hours in Japan.

PS: Wikipedia says "Del Amo Fashion Center is a two-level regional shopping mall in Torrance, California, USA.

With a current gross leasable area (GLA) of 2.5 million ft², it is one of the largest shopping malls in the United States. The mall features three food courts, seven anchors stores, including three Macy's locations, JCPenney & Sears, more than 300 retailers, multiple full-service restaurants, a new fitness center and a new AMC Theatres multiplex. It is currently managed and co-owned by The Mills Corporation."

California Driver License

I went to DMV in Torrance this morning and had a written test. I passed it! At the registration, I showed them my California driver license, which already expired in 2003. They said my personal information was still in file, so I didn't need to show my passport or other official documents. If I showed them only my Georgia license, I had to come back again with my passport. I thought I had to have a new license, but it was OK to renew the old one. So I have a Georgia license and California license at the same time now. Georgia State issues official driver licence on the same day, but California State issues an interim driver license (just a piece of paper, not a card), which is effective for 60 days. They will send me official license (a card) in a month.

Stock price rises if selling, falls if buying

I took profit on Google stock at around $500 last week. Stock price rises after you sell it, and it falls after you buy it. Google rose to $518 today. Investors have to understand this theory.

Location tracking on this blog

Above chart is my blog reader's location tracking as at June 4. Wow! U.S.A is No.1 now. This is already international blog, isn't it?

Back to Torrance, California

I left Travelodge at 9am, visited my customers in Planet Hollywood, Stratosphere, Palace Station, Las Vegas Outlet Center, South Point. It was around 107F today. Very hot! I left Las Vegas for Los Angeles at around 3pm. Photo is around the boarder of Nevada and California. There are 4000-foot mountains in front of me. This business trip was not so successful than expected, but I believe I can do something next time.

PS:I visited a lot of casinos, but this is a business trip. So no gamble, nothing, only business. Believe me.

PS2:I heard rebroadcasting of Bob Dylan's "Theme Time Radio" on XM twice during driving. I also heard Grateful Dead　Special. I don't have many CDs of the Dead, but they has a tune named "Fire on the Mountain", which is a kind of my nickname, isn't it?

Burning sands in Las Vegas

I'm now in a room at Travelodge Las Vegas South Strip. The room isn't comfortable without refrigerator, but the location is excellent between Polo and Planet Hollywood. $59 for one night isn't bad for business trip. Yes, this trip is my first long drive since I moved to Los Angeles. Four and half hours drive from Los Angeles. I have drove 450 miles a day in Georgia, Alabama or Mississippi, so only 280 miles is a piece of cake.

Today's Las Vegas had more than 100F, very very hot. I "understand" from the air or google earth that Las Vegas is in deserts, but now I "know" it is really in deserts. I saw real burning sands on I-15.

My boss and I went to Hamada of Japan for dinner, which is said the best Japanese restaurant in Las Vegas. But I was very disappointed at the foods here. Appetizer is so so, BUT, my main dish "Ten Zaru", Japanese cold "soba" with Tempura was terrible, with too soft noodle and bad-looking Tempura. I can't believe this is the best Japanese restaurant in Las Vegas. I never come back here again.

At ATL

I believe I could do a good presentation at the sales meeting in Crowne Plaza Hotel. I'm in Atlanta Airport and waiting for NWA flight 948 to Memphis. Airport is busy today. I like aisle seat but I have a window seat to Memphis. I couldn't change it, but I could change from middle seat to aisle seat of the MEM-to-LAX flight .

I made money on Google

I sold a few shares of Google (GOOG) this morning. I bought them in February below $470 and could sell above $500 today. In February, I believed it would be over $500 again. Not much, but I got play fee for one round of golf at a very good course. Not bad, isn't it?

Timbuktu

I worked very hard today. Yes, I am working very hard not only today, everyday, of course, you know. I worked out Timbuktu this afternoon. I didn't know anything about this software before, but I have to control my Mac in Atlanta from my office in Los Angeles, so I installed Timbuktu Pro by Netopia. This is a kind of P2P software, isn't it?

Tomorrow morning, I will leave Los Angeles for Atlanta again. I will attend the sales meeting. I prepared presentation material as well today. I will come back in the late evening on Saturday and leave Los Angeles for Las Vegas by my car in very early morning on Sunday. I will stay one night in Las Vegas.

I had a lot of trouble on Verizon again

I had a lot of trouble on Verizon again. I couldn't connect DSL in the morning. Verizon didn't send me any email about activation of DSL at my office. Scheduled activation was on May 25. Remember that they don't tell us any information if we don't ask them.

Anyway, a technician came to my office at 2pm, and went back to their central office to fix it. I could connect to Internet at around 4pm finally. Oh, it took more than one month to activate DSL since I ordered DSL in April.

I had one more trouble today. I need to set up voice mail on the phone in my office. But automatic system of Verizon said my office telephone number was not available number. What's the hell!? I called dumb customer service again. They called and told me after one hour that I could set up voice mail. Finally I could get full phone service and DSL connection.

Google Announces New Mapping Innovations

Google Press Center: News Announcement: "Google Announces New Mapping Innovations"

This is really cool!

Memorial Day

Today, Monday, is Memorial Day Holiday in U.S.A. But I went to my office at around 10am. I still got a lot of things to settle. I had to make a presentation material too. Sales meeting will be held on June 2. I have to go to Atlanta again on this weekend. But the flight will not be red-eye this time. Thank goodness!

Coming back to LA

My DL 75 departed at ATL on time and after about 5 hours, I safely arrived at LAX. I bought Sashimi and other Japanese foods at Japanese Market, Marukai, near my apartment. I can say again, Torrance is not U.S.A. My friend said it is a kind of a city like Nagoya in Japan, with many American people.