Those Were The Days

When I used to work in San Francisco, I had to cross the Bay Bridge in Highway 80. It is crowded during commute hours (at all times now). There is a special lane for cars with 3 or more passengers. I lived in El Cerrito and it would take about one hour and 15 minutes to reach my office. Thru car pool lane, I could reach my office in 25 minutes.

 

People who drive cars and don’t have 3 passengers in their cars will stop at the bus stop or the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) station to pick up passengers. I used to go to the bus stop and everyday different people in different model cars will pick me up and drop me in my office.

 

 

One day, a stretch limousine stopped and the driver asked me if I wanted to go to San Francisco. I agreed and took the back seat. In the front was the driver and his wife. They both run a funeral home in San Francisco. He had 4 stretch limos for use during funeral services.

 

He asked me if I would like to be the third passenger every day. I agreed. He used to live very close to my home. He said he would pick me up at my home every morning and drop me off in my office. He thought I was doing him a big favor by being in his car as a third passenger.

 

Ricky (the driver) was a big showman. When we reach our office, he would ask me to wait in the car. He will come out of the driver seat, open the back door and let me out. When I get out of the limo, he will give me a big salute and bow slightly and say “have a good day sir”. Just to make fun so others who are entering the office building notice that.

 

One day when he was doing that routine, my Regional Vice President (Number 1 man for the entire Western Region) who was entering the office noticed that. He asked me if I was coming from the airport. (Side bar: Managers are allowed to go in limousine to and from the airport.) I said I am coming from home. He had a puzzled look. He asked coming from home in a stretch limo? I said yes and this is how I come every day.

 

He stared at me for 10 seconds and said “I think I am paying you too much money”. He then entered the office.

 

I went to office like this for 3 years until they transferred me to Salt Lake City, Utah.

Big Game Postponed

Last week I wrote about the Big Game to be played today, November 17, between Stanford University and University of California, Berkeley.

 

U.C. Berkeley Football Stadium

 

Today’s game has been postponed due to poor air quality caused by wild fire smoke. This game has been rescheduled for December 1.

 

This is the second time in history the Big Game has been postponed. The only other time the Big Game was postponed was in 1963, the day after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

 

This is not a sarcastic question. I am really curious. Do you know of any game/match being postponed due to any tragic event?

The Big Game

Next Saturday, November 17, 2018, the Big Game will be played in Berkeley, California. It is an American football game between Stanford University (Stanford Cardinals) and University of California, Berkeley (Cal Golden Bears). They meet once a year. This will be their 121st meeting.

 

Side Bar: In USA, it is a rule that if anyone wants to turn professional in any sports, they should have attended 4 years of college. (Some athletes have successfully challenged that rule.) Because of this and enthusiasm of alumni, college sports, especially American football and basketball are very famous. More famous than the professional teams.

 

Usually each college football game is attended by 40,000 to 60,000 people. Each spectator pays an average price of $50. In addition, the colleges are getting revenue by selling television rights. These colleges play 12 regular games a year. So it is a big revenue maker for the colleges and universities.

 

Who do I support in this week’s Big Game? Stanford vs Cal. I am torn. In our family, we have alumnus from both Stanford and Cal.

 

According to Las Vegas odds, Stanford is a slight favorite.

 

Here is Wikipedia link on the Big Game.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Game_(American_football)