Based on odds alone, an unknown player will win this year’s WSOP.  However, if I had to bet on a pro to win it, right now, it’d be Minh Ly (unless he’s out already).  Minh’s one of the most underrated players and excels at both tournament and cash games (he plays in the big game).  For whatever reason, he’s not as feared as say, Phil Ivey, Johnny Chan, Gus Hansen, etc, so I think that gives him an edge.  He doesn’t give anything away at the table and he can switch between playing very aggressively (borderline reckless at times) and conservatively.  He made it pretty deep (19th) at last year’s Main Event.   

Hopefully, I’ll have time to play next year.    

I watched this documentary on Stu “The Kid” Ungar last night.  Apparently, he was that good in poker.  He had that clairvoyance where he could sense with incredible precision whether he was ahead or behind in a hand.  And from Wikipedia, he was an even better gin rummy player–so good that the game lost popularity after he killed the game (no one dared to play against him). 

 

If the probability that a visitor at a store buys a pack of gum is 30%.  Then if 3 visitors come to the store today, what is the probability that exactly two will buy a pack of gum?

A) 0.343   B) 0.147  C) 0.189  D) 0.063  E) 0.027

Bought some new shoes on eBay for $44 (includes S&H).  Wanted something plain-looking and comfortable enough for walking, but also not something that everyone’s got.   

I took my second GMAT practice exam (first one–a Diagnostic test–was on July 4th).  Because I had the IBS flare-up and got distracted working on my car (brake upgrades, fixing car stereo, etc) I’m at least a week behind schedule. 

The results of my second exam show a slight improvement from the first (but this could be due to chance).  According to their scale, I scored somewhere in the 650-690 range this time around (up from 600-640 range last time).   I think as a general rule, it’s safer to take the lower number of the range.  I think I’m looking out for traps more and am making fewer careless mistakes on the Quantitative than before.  As in the diagnostic exam, I tend to do better with Problem Solving than Data Sufficiency questions (i made a couple careless errors in DS section). 

For the Verbal, as with the Diagnostic exam, Reading Comprehension questions are my forte, whereas those related to Critical Reasoning and Sentence Corrections definitely can be improved.   I’ll take my first practice CAT next weekend and so will really need to work on a lot of problems during the week.  My goal for this week is to do 100 problems each in Sentence Correction and Critical Reasoning, and complete 3 Quantitative Challenges (#4–Monday, #5–Wednesday, #6–Friday). I’ll spend Saturday reviewing my mistakes.  Of course, I’ll MindMap my mistakes to better reinforce the learned concepts. 

 

In November 2003, I purchased some nice car stereo equipment (Alpine CD/MP3/WMA, XM Radio ready head unit, Infinity Kappa component systems, capacitor, etc) and moved over my Infinity sub and amps from my old car to my WRX myself.  I had assumed that it would be fairly easy to do, since I had installed these in my previous car.  Boy, did I regret doing this as I would be without music in my car for 2.5 years.  Lesson learned: Only attempt something like this if you know what you’re doing. 

Last Saturday, I took it upon myself to rip out all the wiring and amps, and head unit (preamp only, so have to use my factory stereo) and tried to fix the front speakers (no sound) to no avail (back speakers worked, but there was a lot of static (i.e., usually due to bad wiring).  Bought some Sony 6.5 inch speakers for the front and back (turns out that my back speakers were 4 inch ones so had to return one pair).  Circuit City had a promotion where if I bought one pair ($69.99), I’d get the second pair for half off (34.99).  When they told me that it wouldn’t fit for my back speakers, I then returned a pair and their computer system somehow refunded me 56 dollars which meant that I actually made 15-20 bucks from buying two pairs and then returning one!  Too bad I was already outside before I realized what had happened.  Total for front speakers + installation (front) and rewiring of existing rear speakers + wiring harnesses came out to about $128 dollars (saved almost $95 from what I originally had planned to spend there). 

It’s great to be able to listen to music while driving again.       

After my second Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) episode in the last 5 weeks–not only was it a very unpleasant feeling, not easy getting your mind off of it–I decided to take a more proactive approach.  After doing some research on more ‘objective’ sites such as NIH’s and those that on one hand seem very informative, despite the cloaked endorsements for the products (see this one).  

Last time I had this was maybe 5 weeks ago in Vegas.  I had an In-n-out burger and chocolate shake for dinner and took a 2 hour nap shortly afterwards.  When I woke up I felt that my lower left abdomen (maybe a couple inches below my navel) felt a bit tight.  I then went to the bathroom (loose stools) and thought that’d be the end of it.  It was only until the day I got back home when it started to go away. 

Last week, I ran on a treadmill for 20 minutes or so and then ate a quick dinner (indian ‘masala’ with rice, a banana, godiva chocolate ice cream bar; for lunch I had chicken rigatoni with a side house salad at Macaroni Grill).  I then took a nap.  When I woke up, i remember feeling the same way as I did in Vegas a month earlier.  A couple days later, I ‘thought’ i was feeling better so a couple of my co-workers and I went to a local tex-mex place known for its ’dangerously’-spicy hot sauces.  I ordered a beef taco salad with jalapeno peppers, salsa, and their medium-hot salsa, with sweet tea for my beverage. Boy, was that a mistake.  Later that night, I woke up to a buildup of gas or pressure in the lower left/sigmoid region (i was sleeping on my left side) and sat on the john wondering when my colon was gonna burst and how this was gonna look when I’m discovered a week later.  I was able to expel some gas but not much of anything else.  I then got on the treadmill for 10 minutes (slow walking pace) to see if that can alleviate the pressure (seemed to help a bit) and then hopped online to do more research.  At first, I thought I had diverticulitis since my symptoms seemed to indicate so, but it seemed unlikely because most people who have it tend to be older.  Then I remembered that my physician 4-5 years back told me that I probably had IBS (i went in to complain about tightness in that same area), so I researched on IBS and read some of the posts on the user forums (some complained of the same types of symptoms in same area, etc).  Learned about the therapeutic benefits of peppermint oil (apparently, it helps relax muscles in GI tract) and a lot of IBS sufferers either drink peppermint tea or take peppermint oil capsules with enteric coating.  Also learned that not all fiber’s the same.  Lately, I’ve been taking FiberChoice orange candy (contains inulin).  It really helps with regularity but you also get more gas.  Read up on the differences and have decided to go with the ones that don’t cause bloating/gas.  Benefiber and Acacia Pure Organic Soluble Fiber fit the bill and are of good value.   I placed an order online for peppermint oil capsules (around 10 bucks) for 30 and 2-3 month supply of fiber powder (30 bucks).  I saw a heat pad laying around and also applied some heat to the affected areas.  Seemed to help the most. 

Went to the grocery store the next morning and bought some Celestial Seasonings Peppermint Tea and bought some anti-gas over-the-counter pills (one that didn’t contain sorbitol, which may hurt intestinal lining).  Seemed to work pretty well. 

In addition to regular exercise, eating more fruits/veggies + fiber powder supplements, peppermint tea (regular basis) and peppermint oil capsules (when symptoms seem imminent), I’m also going to take Probiotics.  The idea is that our gut relies on healthy bacteria eliminating toxins and maintaining good balance is important to maintaining health.  Not sure how much of this is exaggerated but I’m gonna give it a shot.  This site claims it can help everything from diarrhea, canker sores, Crohn’s disease, Pancreatitis (acute), etc.  Going to buy some tomorrow (less than 20 bucks).  Worth a shot. 

I’m feeling a lot better since then and gotta be more proactive about this. 

 

Bought some Axxis Ultimate brake pads (front and rear) for my ‘02 WRX.  The stock rear pads are wearing thin (can hear squeak every now and then) and my front EBC green (decent pads) installed 2 years ago probably are getting there as well. 

From reading the online reviews, the Axxis Ultimate pads makes for pretty good stopping ability and is cheaper than most aftermarket brake pads in its category (e.g., Hawk HPS).  The only complaint I’ve come across is a lot of brake dust (non-asbestos) compared to other brands.  Total with shipping for the pads came out to a little over $100.  (Hawk HPS would’ve cost $150). 

Originally, I was going to install these myself (i installed the EBC greens on the front brakes 2 years ago).  It’s not that hard to do except when you screw up and it can be real mess.  A few years ago, my friend and I worked on my brakes for my Honda and the next day I nearly wrecked my car (apparently, there was a leak somewhere; took it to a shop and mechanic said that the master cylinder needed to be replaced.  hmm).  So spending $200-300 dollars for brake service isn’t too bad.  Plus I wanted to get my rotors resurfaced.  Got a few quotes from my dealership and other shops and decided on Meineke (saved ~40 dollars by going there instead of dealership).  Cost of labor: ~$211.  

I’ll get my brake fluid replaced in a few months (included in the 60,000 maintenance) as well as fuel system, spark plugs then.    

Finished GMAC Challenge #2.  Seemed a lot easier than Challenge #1.  Perhaps I rushed through Challenge #1 and made a lot of careless errors (or just wasn’t as cognizant of the ’traps’ during the first challenge).  Mindmapped the tough questions and reviewed the explanations.  Here was the toughest problem I came across (actually got it right!).  See if you can solve it under 2 minutes:

There are four distinct pairs of brothers and sisters.  In how many ways can a committee of 3 be formed and not have siblings in it?

A) 8   B) 24   C) 32  D) 56  E) 80

I’ll be doing 5 challenges per week and 1-2 practice tests a week on average.  Bought Franklin Covey PlanPlus for Outlook v.3 that will help me stay on top of things (Outlook Inbox, Tasks, Calendar, Notes in one view!). 

Just kidding about the girls (i’ll save that for another conversation).  Since some have commented on my last post. 

I sometimes kick myself for not getting the STI (additional 13k) back in 2003, but looking back, it would have been the incorrect move since I made a career switch a year earlier from science to corporate life (the transition phase was buying used textbooks for really cheap at libraries and book fairs across Florida and Georgia and selling them online for a profit).  I had only been in the company for 4 months then and was on the bottom of the pay scale.  The money I saved that day eventually went to pay for my sister’s college tuition–a much better investment.  So in the end, I’m happy with the decision not to go with the STI. 

I’ve got my eyes on possibly another Subaru, a VW GTI (sport), Audi A4/S4, Saab 9-3 Sport, Lexus IS 250/350 (manual transmission only in the 250…).  A car with personality that’s also not on everyone’s wish list (BMW, Mercedes, etc). 

I’ll need to replace my stock brake pads (front and rear) with some aftermarket (Axxis Ultimates) ones for better braking.  After that, get my stereo fixed (hasn’t worked since late 2003). 

I’m not a huge soccer fan, but I do like wearing soccer apparrel (preferrably without team logos).  Usually very lightweight and breathable for outdoors stuff and not too thuggish-looking (unlike basketball apparrel) for casual wear.  But I sense that Italy will win on Sunday. 

While the officiating during the Finals wasn’t all that great (though not nearly as bad as that of the SuperBowl), what did the Mavs in was their passive play in the second half of Games 3,4, and 6, where they just settled for the jump shot.  The fact that they didn’t drive to the basket all that much also meant that they missed out on some opportunities to get some calls, since the odds of a player driving to the basket getting a call is greater than someone taking a jump shot (the article on 82games misses this point).  The ‘touch’ foul in Game 5 was questionable, although I thought the call in Game 6 where they called a foul on Nowitzki when it seemed like Wade initiated the contact was more dubious.      

Maybe it started with poor rebounding which meant less fast breaks (the Mavs’ offense is built on medium-fast tempo).  It was ripe for the Mavs’ taking, considering how ineffective Shaq was in the series.  If Dirk had been a tad more aggressive on the offensive end down the stretch (not sure why he was seen guarding Wade towards the end of ballgames…a clear mismatch), perhaps the Mavs probably would’ve won the series.  

I personally wasn’t a big fan of the J.J. Redick selection (especially coming off a DWI).  DeShawn Stevenson (who they’re trying to re-sign) is a pretty good defender though, so maybe that’s a good balancing act?

 

Spent 4-5 hours today doing the MindMaps of the last two class recordings (Session 8, 9) of Manhattan GMAT class.  

Didn’t get to the GMAC Challenge #1 today (~2 hours).  Will work on this after 6:30pm tomorrow.  Also, will review MindMaps of Quantitative subjects (~2-3 hours). 

 

The Chicago Bulls look pretty darn good on paper with all the offseason acquisitions.  All they need now is KG. 

I got my stock exhaust system re-installed today (for a number of reasons).  Cost: $400.  If you witnessed what I went through installing the uppipe two years ago (and troubleshooting problems), you would easily fork over $400 too.  It’s ironic that although I have less hp now, the car’s actually faster.  It’s because before with my modified exhaust system, my WRX would get really loud when i revved-up so I wouldn’t step on the gas that quickly or all the way.  Now, because it’s a lot quieter, i’ll stomp on the pedal and rev the car to 700-1,000 more revolutions more than usual between shifts.  As a result, the car’s faster.  See, less is more.  I don’t think I’ll ever do any major mods again, considering that I don’t really have the luxury of time and money to spend on this type of hobby (plus it can get kinda dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing). 

Yes, I’ve been considering getting a new car, knowing fully well that right now is not the best time for me to buy one (B-school tuition, 401k, Roth IRA, Vanguard Index funds, and other investment opportunities).  I’ll be patient then and wait 3-4 years (when my WRX’s got 100k-120k miles).  My next car will most likely will be another Subaru, a Lexus IS, Audi, Saab, or VW GTI (sport). 

Finished Geometry Mindmap (Geometry’s probably the easiest Quantitative subject for me) today.  Didn’t do any problems today. Will need to review the verbal mistakes on the Diagnostic test tomorrow and spend a couple hours doing a Quantitative Challenge (#1) tomorrow night. 

Took my first GMAT practice exam (Diagnostic Exam) this afternoon.  The exam took about 80 minutes to complete.  The online Diagnostic Test (Cambridge) contains a little less than half the questions one will see on a regular practice exam or real exam and doesn’t cover the AWA (essay writing section).  Although I have no idea of knowing this, I suspect that the questions are also a bit easier than those on a real exam. 

Here are my results: 

Quantitative: 19/25 questions correct.  Verbal: 21/27 questions correct.

Total: 40/52 questions correct = ~640. 

Analysis:  For Quantitative, I’ll need to improve on Data Sufficiency and seeing that I missed one of the easiest questions due to carelessness, will need to be more careful. I felt the questions were easier than I had expected (there were no word translations or tough number properties questions), so I’m not thrilled with the Quantitative results.  On the verbal section, I did well on the Reading Comprehension (8/9), but mediocre in the Critical Reasoning section (.  The Sentence Correction was ok (8/10). 

I’ve got 2.5 months left to study for the test.  The goal is to score 700+.  The key is to do as many difficult problems and review my mistakes (and make sure I don’t make the same mistake again).  Mastery of material, speed, focus. 

My gameplan

1.  Every weekend, do a full practice computer-adaptive test (CAT) and review mistakes.

2.  Do 3 GMAC Quantitative Challenge tests (difficult problems) per week and review the results.