I spent like an hour or two everyday reading news from various websites - I am not a big fan of watching news on TV unless it's a super-breaking news. But I would not know if there is a breaking news unless something happens while I read news online.
I try to read New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Financial Times and 조선일보 online. On my iPhone, I read NYTimes, WSJ, USA Today and Bloomberg. These are what I feel obliged to read, not really for pleasure. It's almost automatic that I open one of those websites at work when I am taking a break or at home after my dinner. I try to follow general issues plus details on economies and financial markets as the selections of publications show. The Economist still gives the most touchy analysis on economic events, I think - yes, it can be also seriously long and boring beyond necessary but that's when the theoretical analysis kicks in.
For pleasure readings, I read Tech Crunch, Engadget, Mashable, Silicon Alley Insider, Yahoo Sports and ESPN. I recently started reading ESPN for sports since they were somewhat more accurate and faster on other sports than NBA. (Yahoo Sports and USA Today gives pretty fast and accurate NBA news, but Yahoo Sports showed several hiccups on MLB).
(I do receive The Economist, Wired, Sports Illustrated, and several other magazines on tech and finances in mail, too.)
I try not to read Engadget much since it makes me wanna spend, but I can't help it much. Tech Crunch is still my favorite among all tech related websites tho. Silicon Alley Insider can be more helpful when it deals with less-tech related details like when or how a company receives new funding.
Why do I read all that? I feel like I need to. I also like to know more what's going on and where things are headed.
And in San Francisco Bay Area, I know that I am not the only person like this.
Well, especially in SF Bay Area, I know most of the people are aware of all the things I am interested in just as much. This is one of many things makes me love this place a lot. There are knowledgeable people here although not everyone can be smart(er). I know there are still some people here who don't gives a damn on those things I read about, but I think about 80% of people know just as much as what I know on current events, if not more - I am not a great/fast reader.
Also since they know how things have been going, people in discussion usually end up in the same conclusions or opinions towards particular events, which makes the discussion more fun.
(I know I am biased, but this is also one of the reasons why I or we NorCal people look down on media-only SoCal dudes. Angelina Jolie may be hot, but whatever she does doesn't have any impact on us while whatever Obama does does.)
Like on last Friday, over a Chinese dinner at Sunset, I was with my friend CH and her husband LH, who were visiting from DC, including her friends. So, our table had 5 MDs and 2 MA Economics. We were talking how weird it is to have Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize (but his speech was actually great), the China trip made by CH and LH, economic development in China (or lack there of), Chinese labor market, and honeymoon in Spain (+ some voluntary works). After dinner, we were sitting in a bar talking about health care and how it's cost structures are fucked up including pays to doctors (and their disparities), how it's like that in economics, and how California budget crisis is hurting UCSF and its medical programs.
Of course, when EH and SM joined us, we also talked a little about the job I am doing and the jobs he is looking at, and how Wells Fargo has been expanding branches again after trying to close several branches down like 2-3 years ago.
I also talk things like these with N-nuna, too.
I don't think I didn't have this many people around me to talk about things that matters in the world and in our lives.
That's why I love here.
In the Philippines, I don't seriously talk about this thing with my high school friends - partly because I knew them since I was a kid. Just a couple of college friends, whom are now scattered all over. We often disagree but at least we could talk about things like that.
Those may be heavy stuff to talk about over some nice Chinese dinner on a Friday night or a glass of light beer, but those things are actually very interesting to talk about. Yes, I don't hope to talk about them a lot more frequently since I am a lot more interested in economics and sports than political or general issues, but these should be discussed more easily since the details of stories are available very easily - on the front page of websites.
I don't have to talk to everyone of my friends about these things.
I don't have to have everyone I can discuss these things with as my friends.
But this place and this people surely give me a sense that I belong here.
I was never this much attached to a place, so it's very hard for me to move to somewhere else and leave SF Bay Area for good.
I try to read New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Financial Times and 조선일보 online. On my iPhone, I read NYTimes, WSJ, USA Today and Bloomberg. These are what I feel obliged to read, not really for pleasure. It's almost automatic that I open one of those websites at work when I am taking a break or at home after my dinner. I try to follow general issues plus details on economies and financial markets as the selections of publications show. The Economist still gives the most touchy analysis on economic events, I think - yes, it can be also seriously long and boring beyond necessary but that's when the theoretical analysis kicks in.
For pleasure readings, I read Tech Crunch, Engadget, Mashable, Silicon Alley Insider, Yahoo Sports and ESPN. I recently started reading ESPN for sports since they were somewhat more accurate and faster on other sports than NBA. (Yahoo Sports and USA Today gives pretty fast and accurate NBA news, but Yahoo Sports showed several hiccups on MLB).
(I do receive The Economist, Wired, Sports Illustrated, and several other magazines on tech and finances in mail, too.)
I try not to read Engadget much since it makes me wanna spend, but I can't help it much. Tech Crunch is still my favorite among all tech related websites tho. Silicon Alley Insider can be more helpful when it deals with less-tech related details like when or how a company receives new funding.
Why do I read all that? I feel like I need to. I also like to know more what's going on and where things are headed.
And in San Francisco Bay Area, I know that I am not the only person like this.
Well, especially in SF Bay Area, I know most of the people are aware of all the things I am interested in just as much. This is one of many things makes me love this place a lot. There are knowledgeable people here although not everyone can be smart(er). I know there are still some people here who don't gives a damn on those things I read about, but I think about 80% of people know just as much as what I know on current events, if not more - I am not a great/fast reader.
Also since they know how things have been going, people in discussion usually end up in the same conclusions or opinions towards particular events, which makes the discussion more fun.
(I know I am biased, but this is also one of the reasons why I or we NorCal people look down on media-only SoCal dudes. Angelina Jolie may be hot, but whatever she does doesn't have any impact on us while whatever Obama does does.)
Like on last Friday, over a Chinese dinner at Sunset, I was with my friend CH and her husband LH, who were visiting from DC, including her friends. So, our table had 5 MDs and 2 MA Economics. We were talking how weird it is to have Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize (but his speech was actually great), the China trip made by CH and LH, economic development in China (or lack there of), Chinese labor market, and honeymoon in Spain (+ some voluntary works). After dinner, we were sitting in a bar talking about health care and how it's cost structures are fucked up including pays to doctors (and their disparities), how it's like that in economics, and how California budget crisis is hurting UCSF and its medical programs.
Of course, when EH and SM joined us, we also talked a little about the job I am doing and the jobs he is looking at, and how Wells Fargo has been expanding branches again after trying to close several branches down like 2-3 years ago.
I also talk things like these with N-nuna, too.
I don't think I didn't have this many people around me to talk about things that matters in the world and in our lives.
That's why I love here.
In the Philippines, I don't seriously talk about this thing with my high school friends - partly because I knew them since I was a kid. Just a couple of college friends, whom are now scattered all over. We often disagree but at least we could talk about things like that.
Those may be heavy stuff to talk about over some nice Chinese dinner on a Friday night or a glass of light beer, but those things are actually very interesting to talk about. Yes, I don't hope to talk about them a lot more frequently since I am a lot more interested in economics and sports than political or general issues, but these should be discussed more easily since the details of stories are available very easily - on the front page of websites.
I don't have to talk to everyone of my friends about these things.
I don't have to have everyone I can discuss these things with as my friends.
But this place and this people surely give me a sense that I belong here.
I was never this much attached to a place, so it's very hard for me to move to somewhere else and leave SF Bay Area for good.
