Austin, TX

For Chris's bachelor party, he decided to go to Austin, TX.  He had never been and neither had I, but I had always heard about the great nightlife and that it was definitely a city to check out sometime.  Having traveled there, I definitely confirm that there are just rows of bars in downtown...it's like something I've never seen before.  There's literally one bar next to each other with almost no end in sight, it's kind of amazing that bars can stay competitive like this, but I guess people in Austin just love to drink and party...

I left for Austin on Thursday afternoon and it was a crazy start to my vacation.  My flight out of Tucson was originally scheduled for a 12:10pm departure, but right as I was driving away from my house at 11:00am, I got an e-mail saying the flight was delayed until 1:45pm.  Rather than wait at the airport for an hour and a half, I figured I'd just play some Diablo at home and then get some BK Taco Stand before my flight.  12:00pm rolls around and I get a new e-mail saying that the new departure time is 1:15pm, so I'm like, "okay, I should leave now so I can still grab some food, but I guess I will settle for the other BK."  As I pull into the drive-thru at Burger King and am waiting for my food, I get a new e-mail saying the flight leaves at 12:45 now.  Ruh roh!  So now I have like 25 minutes make it to the airport AND park my car.  As I run into the Southwest check-in stand at 12:40, I ask the lady if I can still make that flight.  She calls the gate and tells me, "probably not, but you should run to the gate and try."  Fortunately there was only 1 other person in the security line (man I love Tucson airport) and as I was running to my gate, I hear on the intercom, "Last call for Andrew Lin, doors closing in 5 seconds."  I make it to the gate and it's already closed, but the attendant opens it and lets me through, lol.  Such a close call and I'm extremely pissed at Southwest for the misleading e-mails!  I guess moral of the story is to not take too many chances and next time just go to the airport bar and drink...

Finally in Austin several hours later 'cause I had a connection in Las Vegas...

On the first night I met up with Chris, Nate, Pete, and other Chris, but that Chris passed out early from too much day drinking, a common theme of this particular bachelor party lol.  We headed out to 6th street that night, spending most of it at Kung Fu Saloon, a pretty chill bar with several video games to play (skeeball too but it was busy).  It was a fairly chill night, but we did stop by Magnolia Cafe on the way home, which I will say has awesome Queso Dip and great food.  I know I might've been drunk, but my tastebuds still function fine even then!

The next day, the rest of the party arrived in Austin including Chris's brother Mike, Lee, Adam, Doug, and Matt.  We started out with some Tex Mex lunch at Iron Cactus on 6th street, which was delicious but expensive in my opinion.  We then made our way over to Bikinis and had several shots and Dos Equis as shown below!

For the most part, Chris's bachelor party was a bunch of drinking at various bars around downtown.  Interestingly enough, Nate, Mike, and I did wander into the Pecan Street Festival on Saturday when we were trying to go back to 6th street.  Being the alcoholic that I am, I decided to get myself a 24oz Coors Light for only $4.  Mike and Nate weren't really day drinking much at that point, so they decided to meet up with Chris and some other guys to check out UT's campus.  I kept on drinking and checked out the festival, not really finding much interesting other than a big fat turkey leg.  Ugh, I ate soooo much this weekend and followed up a 1 lb turkey leg with a 22oz rib-eye steak at the Roaring Fork just a few hours later, lol.

In the end, a solid bachelor party and I think Chris got everything he wanted out of it.  Now it's just the waiting game until his wedding in New Jersey come September!

On Sunday I met up with my friend Mike who used to work at the IBM in Tucson but transferred to the IBM in Austin.  He took me to one of his favorite dive bars called C-Hunts Ice House where there's an ice trough at the bar where you can stash your beer.  Although there is really no reason to ever nurse a beer so long enough that it would go warm... Nonetheless, a novel idea!  I went to IBM Austin on Monday to say hello to a few coworkers and just check out the plant, but I think I definitely enjoy the Tucson site better.

Austin was a pretty cool city to check out, but it wouldn't be on one of my top cities to live in.  Anyhoos, was just great to be on vacation again since it had been a while!  Next stop Apache Lake and then New Orleans! W00T W00T!

Sports Competition Updates!

Shortly after the New Year, I blogged about a bunch of extracurricular sports leagues I was participating in.  Several months later, it's time to give you a much needed update!

IBM Bowling League:
The team was unable to make it back to the championship game, missing the finals for the first time in 5 years. I think part of the problem was 2 bowlers started out with 200-pin averages (Tony and myself) and we were unable to maintain it, which really hurt towards the end of the season.  After about 15 weeks I had a 198 average, but I fell to 191 by the end of week 24.  I feel like I just got mentally and maybe physically fatigued.  I had joined a 9-week summer league for fun beforehand, but when you tack that on to the regular 25-week season, maybe it was just all too much.  191 is still an improvement from 190 last year however, and I will be looking to improve on next season!  Towards the end of the year I even invested in a non-reactive straight ball that I use to throw at 10-pins.  My pickup rate on the 10-pin went from 50% to 80% in the last few weeks, so I'm hoping that I can take my game to the next level next season!

After Hours Gaming League:
The AHGL StarCraft season was going well up until the semifinals when team IBM faced a very strong opponent in Microsoft.  We had the matchups we wanted going into that battle, but 2 players who we were expecting to win didn't, myself included.  Team IBM ended up losing in the semis and unfortunately won't be going back to Santa Monica this year.  There were just so many good teams with good players this year's league that it really could've gone either way.  While disappointing and depressing, it was still a fun season and I met even more great StarCraft players who are also IBMers.  We look forward to getting back at it next season!

It should be noted that Team IBM was 0-3 this season when ATrain lost his game.  That guy needs to step it up next time! >:O

Tucson APA 8-Ball League:
There are a few 8-Ball leagues for APA (American Poolplayers Association) in Tucson, but I play in the Tuesday league at the Fox and Hound.  Our team, nicknamed "The Dollar Menu" features a band of my friends who I recruited to come drink some cheap pints, have some fun, and maybe play some pool.  The pool league is a handicap league where a lower skilled player can actually have a chance of beating a higher skilled player on any given night (although generally the higher skilled players will be winning more often).  The team as a whole must not exceed a certain number of skill level points, which means you can't just stack a team with awesome players.

The funny thing about our team is that we really are a bunch of noobs.  Skill levels range from 2-7 with 2 being the lowest, and to give you an idea, last year we had on our team two 2's, and three 3's (you play 5 players a night and the maximum skill level total cannot exceed 23; so you can see we were playing with 13 points LOL).  We were really bad and got our butts handed to us last season, but this year we've improved a lot, added a couple players, and wouldn't you know it, we're in 1st place going into the last week of the season!  It's really crazy because we are all lower-leveled players, but in a way other teams have been rooting for us to do well...it shows a lot about the handicap system and never before has a team with these skill levels done so well!

Going into the final week of the regular season, my team sits on top at 1st place with a 2-point cushion over the 2nd place team.  We came up huge against that team last week winning 4 out of 5 points and we'd basically have to have a meltdown tonight to lose our grip on 1st place.  The 1st place team of the league will get an automatic bid into the city 8-ball tournament that includes all the leagues from all over the city...and not to mention we win a fat stack of monies as well. :)

But that's not all.  There's an award called "Top Gun" that goes to the player with the most Top Gun points in the league for each skill level tier.  Each time you beat a player, you earn Top Gun points equivalent to their skill level.  I have a 3-point lead in my skill level tier and if I can maintain it in the final week I will win a patch!  But there's still more.  The Top Gun award extends into the city and if you are the highest player in all the leagues in the city, you get a plaque!  My 31 points are tied with another player, so really it all comes down to tonight and whether I can get a solid win against a decently skilled opponent!

Either way, it's been amazing season and I am so happy I joined the pool league here in Tucson.  I've had so much fun and have met so many new and fun people!

IBM Basketball League:
IBM basketball league has begun and we are already 4 weeks into the season!  I took over as co-commissioner this year and helped register our league at the gym we play at (Clements Center), got insurance coverage to cover the gym (since IBM no longer sponsors us; yeah, sucky, we're kind of an independent league now), and got IBMers and their guests to sign up and play!

As the defending champ, my team is built around it's core of 3 players: myself, Ryan, and Cooper.  Ryan is the best player in the league and arguably one of the best in Tucson.  To give you an idea of how good we are, in week 2 we scored a whopping 79 points to the tune of a 79-62 victory where Ryan dropped 40 (thus overshadowing my solid 22 points of production heh). 

But I bear some bad news.  Last week we were 3-0 going into week 4, but 10 minutes into the 2nd half, Ryan's foot got caught on another player's foot and he ended up dislocating his ankle and sustaining a small fracture. :'(  It was the worst case scenario and my star player is pretty much done for the season.  I'm really sad because a talent like Ryan's can't be released and he will surely be missed.  We ended up losing that game unfortunately.  Going into future weeks we have recruited replacements to help fill out our roster and bench, but the road to the repeat will surely be more difficult this year.  Time for me to step up my game!

Upcoming Travel and Fun Stuff!
When I'm not enjoying my leagues, I'll be out and about, still making it happen!  The next 6 weekends will be jam packed for me, but I'm looking forward to all of it.  We have on our way:
1. Birthday parties in Tucson for Matt (4/26) and Wes (4/27).
2. Bachelor Party for Chris and visiting Mike in Austin, TX (5/2 - 5/6).
3. Birthday party in Tucson for Dori (5/11).
4. Wakeboarding at Apache Lake with Matt, Doug, and Jonny (5/16 - 5/18).
5. New Orleans with Mike (5/23 - 5/26).
6. Salt River Tubing with Ann, Dori, and Wes (6/1).
Can't wait for May to roll around!  Gonna be fun!  Thanks for stopping by Andy Andy Blog and see ya next time!

RE: 30 Reasons It's Great Being Single

My friend Chapin (a.k.a. Zai, the famous StarCraft caster on YouTube) recently reviewed my list of 30 Reasons It's Great Being Single.  He likes to provide commentary and is always in good humor, so I thought I'd share his ranks and response to the list.  Thanks Chapin and enjoy!

29. No guilty conscience when you check out other girls, flirt, or hook up with someone new. (Feb 27, 2013, 11:16 AM) (NA/10, you totally had this in an earlier response!)
13. You can smoke freely and not have them get upset that you're smoking. (Dec 7, 2012, 11:13 PM) (0/10, don’t smoke!)
1. I don't have a girl eating all my food that I want to eat! (Oct 25, 2012, 10:36 AM) (1/10, girls cook more food than they steal!)
16. Don't feel guilty waking up in someone else's bed. O.o Happy New Year! (Jan 1, 2013, 10:55 AM) (1/10, if you’re in a relationship and you do this, you’re a jerk!)
9. You don't run the risk of knocking up a girl and having your life change completely. (Nov 21, 2012, 11:44 AM) (1/10, you run this risk not single as well!)
22. Don't have to take care of someone else when they've drank way too much. (Jan 19, 2013, 12:07 PM) (2/10, maaaybe, but I’m usually the one being taken care of!)
11. You nail the best man speech at your friend's wedding and then you nail all the hot broads who are gonna want you for your best man capabilities. :D (Nov 24, 2012, 11:53 AM) (2/10, Weddings too rare to worry about this.)
6. I can go out and play wingman for my buddy. (Oct 31, 2012, 7:51 PM) (2/10, a girl should trust you and allow you to play wingman for a bro. If not she’s not worth being with!)
3. I can stay focused on exercising and keeping my body in good shape. No letting myself "go"! (Oct 27, 2012, 4:13 PM) (3/10, you should exercise for yourself!)
26. If you don't have any exes, you wouldn't have to worry about them awkwardly crashing your friend's party and causing unnecessary drama. (Feb 12, 2013, 1:00 PM) (3/10, I find it more fun to gloat about my new relationships to them!)
8. Can stay out late past 2am with friends and not have to head back early to Skype with someone...someone who might not even be there anyway even though she said she would! (Nov 10, 2012, 11:10 AM) (3/10, If she does this she should no longer be your girlfriend. Problem solved!)
18. Don't have to worry about someone borrowing my stuff and never getting it back. (Jan 7, 2013, 1:16 PM) (4/10, you can steal stuff from her too!)
25. Don't have to worry about some jealous prick trying to steal your girl and sabotage everything. (Jan 31, 2013, 9:45 PM) (4/10, maybe, but it’s also awesome when she turns down a bunch of guys… ego boost!)
4. Don't have to worry about where you end up at the end of the night. (Oct 28, 2012, 3:19 AM) (5/10, someone good should be understanding that you need nights out, but it is a pain to check in at times.)
27. It's Valentine's Day and I don't have to do jack shit tonight! Woohoo! (Feb 14, 2013, 11:22 AM) (5/10, true… but you also miss out on guaranteed loving.)
14. Don't have to argue with anyone while I'm driving. So many couples fight in the car lol. (Dec 19, 2012, 1:29 PM) (5/10, while I see the point, it’s also harder to get road head from random girls. Fights may be more common, but even a 50:1 ratio is solid here!)
24. More money for myself! At this rate, retirement before the age of 50 is very doable! (Jan 21, 2013, 11:42 PM) (5/10, true… but retiring alone could be sad.)
17. Can go to the strip club whenever you want! (Jan 2, 2013, 9:08 PM) (6/10, sorta true, but having the girlfriend go with you can be even better if she’s cool)
19. Don't ever have to feel jealous or betrayed. (Jan 8, 2013, 4:36 PM) (6/10, kinda true, but you also miss out on comfort from someone when you feel jealous betrayed by a friend or co-worker.)
10. You don't have to worry about going to multiple Thanksgiving dinners for each side of the family. Happy Thanksgiving! (Nov 22, 2012, 9:14 PM) (6/10, most families are awkward and crappy, so yeah I agree here but turkey day only once a year so less points.)
21. You aren't responsible for someone else's terrible decisions. (Jan 12, 2013, 10:18 PM) (7/10, not much to comment on here, but def true.)
7. You can go to Day Glow and flirt with anyone! Yay! (Nov 2, 2012, 3:04 PM) (8/10, Even if you’re in a happy relationship, meeting and flirting with new people is fun even if you have no intention of hooking up with that person… but yeah you shouldn’t in a relationship, which sucks.)
15. No need to buy extra gifts. Merry Christmas! (Dec 25, 2012, 11:24 AM) (8/10, remembering gifts in general sucks.)
28. No wasting time with foreplay. Rub one out, whenever you want, quick happy ending, and move on! (Feb 18, 2013, 12:57 AM) (8/10, expanding this to “she isn’t always in the mood when you are” which is a big issue.)
2. I can stay up as late as I want without feeling guilty about not going to bed at the same time as someone else. (Oct 27, 2012, 3:13 AM) (9/10, this is a huge one. Sleeping schedules can be a massive annoyance. This is one of the main reasons I don’t mind being single still.)
5. I can sleep in without being interrupted because they have to get up early. (Oct 30, 2012, 11:22 AM) (9/10, this is similar to number 2. Also causes a lack of sleep which makes me cranky.)
20. Don't have to meet someone's family, a family that might reject you anyways. (Jan 11, 2013, 2:16 PM) (9/10, families suck a lot!)
12. You're less stressed out because you need not worry about anyone's life but your own! (Nov 29, 2012, 2:50 PM) (10/10, this one is massive. If ½ of you have a bad day, then you both do automatically. Laaaame.)
23. No need to cater your life around someone else's schedule. Do what you want, when you want! (Jan 19, 2013, 9:39 PM) (10/10, yup… need my freedom!)
30. When you finally meet the right girl, the one you can spend the rest of your life with, the one where #1-29 won't even matter anymore, you'll be available so you can be with her! (Mar 7, 2013, 2:02 PM) (Gaaaaayyy/10)

The Single Life (...Is Better Than Ending Up With Someone Horrible!)

I don't blog about it much, but lately I've been re-evaluating my dating life.  Some people say that you shouldn't push things and that things will fall into your lap when you least expect it.  I used to embrace that philosophy, but I'm starting to have second thoughts.  The characteristic I'm gonna focus on for this discussion is whether the girl picks me or I pick the girl.  The last four girls I've dated where the girl came onto me, it has turned out horribly.  One girl was a sorostitute, a stereotypical daddy's girl who wanted to be pampered like a princess, had two tiny chihuahuas she could carry around in her purse.  Another turned out to be a black-out alcholic, who you pretty much shouldn't have taken to Cabo because she would just passout from day drinking too hard, oh and then she cheats on you when you get back home.  Then there's the worst of them all, the literally crazy type that insists on cheating on you so hard and making it sound like everything was your fault, only to break up with you, get knocked up by someone else a month later, and decides a shotgun marriage (and not abortion) is the right thing to do.  The last girl seemed most sensible of the group, but when they pitch to you to join a pyramid scheme after four dates, you can't help but be deterred.

I know I'd like to be open about dating, especially when they ask me out (it's easier knowing they like you ahead of time), but I can't help but see the trends and patterns.  The girls I have gone after, while it obviously didn't work out, at least it never ended that badly.  The unfortunate problem is that I rarely meet anyone I'm even interested in anymore, which is a bad sign if you're rooting for me.  I'm not saying I'm gonna stop dating altogether, I think I just need to be more careful in my decision making.

Anyway, I don't want to just blog about myself today.  I have a friend who recently broke up with his girlfriend of 8-years and I can only imagine how difficult that must've been for him.  He has always been there for me, but because I cannot fully relate to what he's been through, I tried my best to cheer him up.  I decided to write him a list, which started in October shortly after the breakup and I finally finished it last week!

The list includes the time I sent each text message and you'll find that some of them may pertain to him or myself.  Basically whenever I thought of something, I sent it his way.  At first he thought I was getting these from a book, but I assured him that they are all Andy Lin originals. I'm happy with how it turned out and I think he enjoyed it as well! :)

30 Reasons It's Great Being Single

by Andy Lin

Author's Warning: The following material contains adult themes and may not be suitable for all audiences.  Reader discretion is advised.

1. I don't have a girl eating all my food that I want to eat! (Oct 25, 2012, 10:36 AM)

2. I can stay up as late as I want without feeling guilty about not going to bed at the same time as someone else. (Oct 27, 2012, 3:13 AM)

3. I can stay focused on exercising and keeping my body in good shape. No letting myself "go"! (Oct 27, 2012, 4:13 PM)

4. Don't have to worry about where you end up at the end of the night. (Oct 28, 2012, 3:19 AM)

5. I can sleep in without being interrupted because they have to get up early. (Oct 30, 2012, 11:22 AM)

6. I can go out and play wingman for my buddy. (Oct 31, 2012, 7:51 PM)

7. You can go to Day Glow and flirt with anyone! Yay! (Nov 2, 2012, 3:04 PM)

8. Can stay out late past 2am with friends and not have to head back early to Skype with someone...someone who might not even be there anyway even though she said she would! (Nov 10, 2012, 11:10 AM)

9. You don't run the risk of knocking up a girl and having your life change completely. (Nov 21, 2012, 11:44 AM)

10. You don't have to worry about going to multiple Thanksgiving dinners for each side of the family. Happy Thanksgiving! (Nov 22, 2012, 9:14 PM)

11. You nail the best man speech at your friend's wedding and then you nail all the hot broads who are gonna want you for your best man capabilities. :D (Nov 24, 2012, 11:53 AM)

12. You're less stressed out because you need not worry about anyone's life but your own! (Nov 29, 2012, 2:50 PM)

13. You can smoke freely and not have them get upset that you're smoking. (Dec 7, 2012, 11:13 PM)

14. Don't have to argue with anyone while I'm driving. So many couples fight in the car lol. (Dec 19, 2012, 1:29 PM)

15. No need to buy extra gifts. Merry Christmas! (Dec 25, 2012, 11:24 AM)

16. Don't feel guilty waking up in someone else's bed. O.o Happy New Year! (Jan 1, 2013, 10:55 AM)

17. Can go to the strip club whenever you want! (Jan 2, 2013, 9:08 PM)

18. Don't have to worry about someone borrowing my stuff and never getting it back. (Jan 7, 2013, 1:16 PM)

19. Don't ever have to feel jealous or betrayed. (Jan 8, 2013, 4:36 PM)

20. Don't have to meet someone's family, a family that might reject you anyways. (Jan 11, 2013, 2:16 PM)

21. You aren't responsible for someone else's terrible decisions. (Jan 12, 2013, 10:18 PM)

22. Don't have to take care of someone else when they've drank way too much. (Jan 19, 2013, 12:07 PM)

23. No need to cater your life around someone else's schedule. Do what you want, when you want! (Jan 19, 2013, 9:39 PM)

24. More money for myself! At this rate, retirement before the age of 50 is very doable! (Jan 21, 2013, 11:42 PM)

25. Don't have to worry about some jealous prick trying to steal your girl and sabotage everything. (Jan 31, 2013, 9:45 PM)

26. If you don't have any exes, you wouldn't have to worry about them awkwardly crashing your friend's party and causing unnecessary drama. (Feb 12, 2013, 1:00 PM)

27. It's Valentine's Day and I don't have to do jack shit tonight! Woohoo! (Feb 14, 2013, 11:22 AM)

28. No wasting time with foreplay. Rub one out, whenever you want, quick happy ending, and move on! (Feb 18, 2013, 12:57 AM)

29. No guilty conscience when you check out other girls, flirt, or hook up with someone new. (Feb 27, 2013, 11:16 AM)

...and the best reason to be single...
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30. When you finally meet the right girl, the one you can spend the rest of your life with, the one where #1-29 won't even matter anymore, you'll be available so you can be with her! (Mar 7, 2013, 2:02 PM)