Q2 Called— It Wants Its Marathon, Muscat, and Michelin Stars Back
The World is Wide, the Knees are Weak, and the Rice is Better in Oman
Hey, would you like at that? It’s April May June July! That means we’re closer to the end of the year and does it feel like I’ve aged a decade?
Coming in late to you is my Q2 update. Sit back up straight and speed gloss through this. A lot of my favorite things have happened.
Memo on what I’ve been up to.
Summary
My fitness is steadily pacing itself favorably for Q2.
Never have I been so invested in learning just what is in the OBBB, market structure bills, and boring banking, and how insider vs outsider incentives really drive the economic chaos that it is.
I traveled a lot and now I’m opinionated, oh good ness I’m one of them. Also Breeze Airline doesn’t suck for US Domestic, and they run a 2-3 configuration,
On the Horizon
Future aspirations and commitments
Long Beach Marathon in October, I go weeeee.
I think I miss writing and publishing more often. So shorter unfinished pieces it is.
On Travel
International: Oman is a great place for those that like Joshua Tree & Deserts, and thought “where can I get even more of this”. The people there are authentic, not flashy, and very hospitable and are just happy you are there. It is not an “Easy” country to travel to and get around, but it is very well worth it unique experiences and food. I still have memories about this “Shuwaa” dish I had at “Rosna”. I’d like to visit the South of Oman, Saladah, one day. Oman holds a special geopolitical interest of mine as it’s regarded as 1) the Switzerland of the Arabic world, 2) They are dominantly Ibadi Islam, which is different from dominant Shia Muslim or Sunni Muslim (almost the rest of the Arabic world), 3) had uncorrupted internal growth for at least two ruling family generations, and 4) it’s a stark opposite to Yemen even though they had similar geographic characteristics.
International: Dubai on the other hand is the most generic feeling cosmopolitan feeling city you can come across with access to “everything in the world”. It makes sense as it represents a connecting hub for not only the Arabic world, but the entire world. Where else can one ski, scuba, surf, skydive, and spa without having to fly out or travel great distances for it? I did enjoy sometime Token 2049 festivities. In visiting someone’s villa, it hit me that this is the place for those who have to travel around the world, and want to come home and be able to “easily do just about anything” without getting on yet another plane. That said, what you know about the Arabic world, doesn’t really exist in Dubai - Dubai shares more with Las Vegas, Miami, Newport Beach, than what you think it would.
Domestic: San Francisco called, and I enjoy sometime karl free time there, having found Thai and Burmese food. Oh, and running Bay to Breakers - more on that later. And also Statement of Digital Assets Symposium hosted by Sam Leichman, a driving force behind Statement of Digital Assets. Shoutout to the friends who went to Bay to Breakers with me, and Christina, Javier, Sahib, Mo, Romin, and Chateau Shea for the lovely time in SF.
Domestic: FLORIDA. Have you ever been to Disney World and arrived at one of the parks after lunch, rode every ride, and left? In case you aren’t aware, I find waking up super early to go to a theme park, only to stay all day until closing, to be a very exhausting and not-so-fun endeavor. But if you stay at Disney World resort, you get access to buy Premier Lighting Passes which allow you 1 cut-the-line pass to every single ride without having to make a reservation. It costs the same as ticket itself per person, and is only available to those staying in Disney properties. Best part? There is a Disney property that is 5 minute walking distance to the side entrance of Disney EPCOT (which is worth going to - get sushi in the Japan-area at 8pm, and enjoy the firework show at 9pm while being indoors and avoiding humidity and heat.
Also the answers are: TRON at Magic Kingdom, Guardians at EPCOT. Honorable mention for Tianu’s Bayou Adventure. Dishonorable Mention to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.
On Fitness
Scuba Diving in Dubai counts as fitness, having dove as deep as 40 feet for 50 minutes. I highly recommend Scuba diving to everyone, even if you can’t swim (like me!) because 90% is mental, and 9% is figuring out how to breathe under water, and 1% is not letting you fear of heights as you look in the abyss scare the hell out of you. Never have I ever breathe so well than in Scuba diving. DM me if you want to see the video the diving center made of me.
Long Beach Beer Relay - There’s something about running and drinking beer that makes it one of the worst things I can think of doing on a hot summer day. So anyway I did that, and thankfully I had a decently short leg. I commend those who ran the entire thing.
San Francisco Bay to Breakers 12k + 3k bonus happened and it’s extremely fun and worth it. It should not be taken seriously, don’t expect to “race”, and really expect to vibe. It carries the same energy as a Halloween walk. I got tortillaed in the face, traffic coned, did a “car pitstop”, and had a grand ol marry time. I recommend ditching the extra 3k if you are considering this. Want to run it in 2026? Let me know, I think I’ll form a gaggle of us - Bay to Breakers its great as a group.
Self Marathon - Unbeknownst to me, I was able to achieve a goal for the first 6 months of 2025 by running a full marathon. Logically, it made sense as my body was at it’s peak to do it after months of build up then a month of tapering. Results are on Strava.
Swimming & Deep End Fitness, a Sprint Triathlon - I’ve taken upon myself to learn a bit of swimming, inspired by just being around water. I’ve relied on the the backstroke, and I can tell you my freestyle is absolute trash. But it didn’t stop me from doing a 5k run, 20km bike ride, and 750m swim in 2 hours at the gym which I find more enjoyable than a direct half marathon run. My gym offers a heated pool which is great to be in in the morning, and also some more advanced aquatic fitness classes which was hilarious to get into.
Pilates - Or because I’m an idiot, PyLaTezzz, Lifetime fitness has a new class called “CTR”, st anding for Core Tone Reform and it’s phenomenal. For no additional cost to my membership there, I get group-pilates fitness on Reformers. And while yes, it’s fast and it’s not personal, it’s enough to get me exposed to the benefits of Pilates (it’s calisthenics meets HIIT as a class).
Running - I also retired my Mount to Coast S1, finishing it off at 333 miles after the last run gave me a repeat injury that I noticed was only coming from that shoe. Farewell great shoe, you were the shoe that gave me the confidence that I could go half marathon, 20 miles, and full marathon, all in a 6 month window. Picking it’s place is the New Balance FuelCell V4 and V5; I may find myself getting another pair for Mount to Coast S1 as it is such a great daily trainer (Hoka Clifton Recovery vibes).
btw I use Mount to Coast P1 when I travel as my daily walker, and running shoe, and I still have the R1 in rotation.
Special Shoutout
To Endel, a Soundscape app meant to play the exact same sounds you get at yoga studio that allow you to really get “lost in a trance”. I took a Wim Hof Breathing class and found myself enjoying Endel that I went a bought a 1 year premium subscription. It now is my default play for my 1 to 2 hour exercise sets since time is very hard to tell with Endel.
Yes there’s a referral, get 14 days of science-backed sounds to help you focus, relax, and sleep. (Dm if it doesn’t work…) https://endelreferral.page.link/rkax
On Media Consumption
Football: Watching Angel City FC cleanout Utah Royals at the LA BMO Stadium was a treat; watching Christen Press (beginning of 2nd half) and Alyssa Thompson (overtime) bring in an ending score of 2-0? Worth it. Thanks Jason.
Live Performance: The Grand National Tour featuring Kendrick Lamar and SZA was a hoot at SoFi stadium.
lmao Eurovision - let me tell you, I got into Eurovision 24 hours before the actual Eurovision finale on May 17, and it powered by entire Bay to Breakers Run. My top favorites were Wasted Love (Austria), Espresso Macchiato (Estonia), and Zjerm (Albania), with Wasted Love winning Eurovision.
These are great to watch when you realize it’s mocking Italy.
For us Americans, Eurovision is basically every country competing in an Olympic style singing contest except the rules are hilarious restrictive, and yes it’s basically a popularity contest.
Andor Season 2 ended, and it was one of the best TV series I’ve seen in the last 5 years, giving me the payoff that I wish the rest of Game of Thrones offered. You don’t need to know anything about Star Wars to enjoy Andor- Andor has create its own world, niche, and style that transcend the fable action western of Star Wars and gives me that HBO-action-drama I am looking for. Watch it on Disney+.
F1 is a great film to watch in theaters and it captured the same magic I had when I spent a weekend in the Red Bull Paddock at the Las Vegas F1 last November. Fun fact, I only recently got into F1 (that’s a stretch to say I know something) and the movie does a great job teaching you the same fundamentals I learned when I tried to figure it out. The roar of the engine, the sparks, and yes there is about 100 seconds to go around the Abu Dhabi F1 track and they do a single camera shot of it with no sound at the end. Ignore the 5 minute love plot.
KPOP Demon Hunters has the most memorable songs (there’s only 4), iconic animation style similar to Arcane, and extremely fast pacing for a family movie. My top 3 song order is: Strategy (by Twice)…wheres the url, Golden, and What it Sounds Like.
Blood of Zeus Season 3 ended and well, it’s not as great as Season 1, they wrote themselves into impossible plots, and really I don’t know how that was going to resolve. What I severely disliked about Season 3 is that it was just a continuation of Season 2; where as Season 1 was a great standalone.
Lost in Starlight has the best first half of the movie, and the most okayest second half.
Gladiator 2 is a tragic mess that didn’t make flight time go any faster. Arguably, slower. I want those hours back.
I’m Glad My Mom Died is a great autobiography told by the former Icarly star Jeannette McCardy from Garden Grove. I think the best part of the book is the way the Grandma get’s introduced.
The Martian Audible narrated by Will Wheaton is also in my current rotation. It’s great for the running.
I’m picking up my literary joy for Warhammer franchise with “the Infinite and Divine”, which is basically two immortal beings trolling each other at this point. The narration is fan-fucking-fantastic, and the punitive pettiness shows.
Best Purchase of the Year
I was shopping for a cooling solution for my bed, and I can’t really stomach getting the current generation EightSleep beds with a silly annual AI powered subscription because I don’t enjoy those business practices, so instead I got a bedjet, a simple fan (pictured above) that performs miracles on your existing bed.
My summer sleeps are infinitely better as it not only keeps my dry and cool, I can sleep in comfort with comforter and still be cool. Plus it also has a heating function; save on whole house AC and reduce fan noise by simply having this bedjet! Yes get the cloudsheet. Here’s my referral link.
I love it. I will rave about it.
On Video Games
Split Fiction was a lovely release, hailing from the same co-op developers behind It Takes Two. If you have a partner, grab two controllers and a couch because Split Fiction is the game to play (along with It Takes Two!). Story wise, It Takes Two is better; gameplay mechanic wise - Split Fiction is better.
Starcraft 2 dominates my recurring plays with me leveling up my Co-Op commanders, playing Cute Defense, and exploring another custom map called Stellar Horizons. The custom maps and mode scene in SC2 is great.
Helldivers 2 gave the most epic campaign with the introduction of a 3rd enemy faction that invades Super Earth, rallying all the patriotic Super Earth defenders to a week long campaign. The rework equipment system plus the enemy squid invasion gave me the Fall of Halo Reach vibes we’re all chasing for.
Tower Dominion, an indie tower defense game, released and has been in my rotation. I’m a fan of 3rd maze Tower Defense games, hailing that love from the times of Warcraft 3 back when Cube Maze and Tower Wars were the mainstays. One of the few games I hit 100% achievements in, joining Space Marine 2 and Helldivers 2 in recent years.
Sirocco debutted, having found its origin in Warcraft 3 15 years ago, and I’ve had my fun. There’s something about seafaring strategy combat that satisfies a specific itch. Unfortunately, like Legion 2 TD, it is having a very rough start getting a niche as its player base has dwindled so what remains is Pros meaning the skill floor required to play and enjoy a game is too high for even me to get into.
9 Kings, a card deck base builder, also got a fair amount time played when it was a demo in Q2. I enjoy it for it’s progressive difficulty though it’s possible for it to get stale fast.
On Restaurants
Most of this comes from my time in Oman and Dubai.
Rosna, an Omani Traditional Classic, dominants my heart and stomach with its terrific Shuwa and Tandoori fish. What stands out about Omani cuisine is just how flavorful, and individually pronounced, their rice is, sharing more characteristics with Basmati rice but taking in the expected flavorings that you get in Mexican and South American rice cuisines. It beats regular rice for me, and I’m the Asian guy. But the meat? I have cravings. This is where the Arabic tourists go, and it doesn’t disappoint.
Que Viet in San Francisco holds a special place not for it’s Pho (it’s passable that great),but for its Banh Hoi which are do-it-yourself wrapping dishes, offering you interlaced noodles as the wrapper and a great assortment of meats, herbs, and dips.
Orfali Bros in Dubai hails as one of the best restaurants of the Arabic World, and while it’s hard to say I agree with the claim, what I can say is that it has the most hit-or-miss menu, and where it hits, it hits hard. My favorite all time dish will be the Adobo Sticky Rice Chicken, which is effectively an entire Chicken Wing section with the internal meat and bones removed and replaced with sticky rice, glazed in a stick Adobo sauce. It was divine.
Kin Khao - I enjoyed Kin Khao, but didn’t realize it was Michelin star restaurant when I did a last minute phone call booking for a group, unbeknownst to all of us. Sorry for the bill guys, but the food was solid. I very much enjoyed their wrings, octopus, and soft shell crab curry. Pro tip I learned from my wife: You are 1 phone call away from having a great meal.
Kalbi Social Club - Located in Irvine at the Irvine Spectrum, what has a fun upscale vibe, doesn’t really have that great of a KBBQ. I can’t say I’ll go back. That said, what I would do as take away is their kimchee - like holy shit was that the best I’m going to get.
Battambong BBQ - a small scale pop-up Cambodian American BBQ, is worth the grease.
When in Dubai, go to the Al Maha luxury resort - their lunches and dinners, available at the only restaurant on the premise, are winners. Which is rare, because almost every hotel I’ve been to has the most okayest restaurant possible.
The Original Dubai Chocolate by Fix clocks in at a $20-25 price tag, has so many fakes and copycats, can only be purchased online delivery only at 2pm and 5pm, and has a 3 day shelf life because it has to be refrigerated, is… well overrated. It offends me with a chocolate bar that falls apart like a terrible burger, with the chocolate shell not being memorable (just get a Theo chocolate bar instead from the U.S.). I sound like a hater, and it’s because I think I am.
Shvili Dubai, a Georgian Restaurant (no not the American Georgia), holds the record as my most memorable Dubai eat with a dumpling that makes Din Tai Fung no longer desirable to me. A Georgian Dumpling, also known as Khinkali, is essentially a massive bao-sized xiao lao bao, packed with extremely well season filling (similar to Lamb schwarma) - the fun part is that their “Stem” is so thick they recommend you skip that, but I just eat the straight dough. Combined it with a Georgian Cheese Pizza (Khachapuri), and you have a repeat customer in me.
Kucu in Oman holds a special appeal, hailing as the absolute cheapest meal you’ll get in Oman at 1 OMR (so $2) for a Popeyes sized Fried Chicken Sandwich. That said, for $2, it’s also messy and can fall apart so eater be ware. I jest, I actually hated the experience but it’s worth mentioning here.
Iraq Style Avenues in the Oman Muscat Mall holds a special charm in that their grilled chicken is ridiculously good, and their different flavored rices hit the right spot in jetlagged me.
Irvine Marble Steakhouse Slaps, being one of the few places I can get KBBQ cooked by the restaurant staff in front of you, great banchan, and raw marinated crab. Shoutout to Theo for meeting me and my wife there after, wait a minute, Grand Prix?
Bopomofo is open in Irvine, with a radically different menu then when I first had them 6 years ago. And you know what, I think it’s better, albeit fried-food-centric.
I am once again, recommending Intercrew, but this time for events having had my 1 year Celebration of Marriage festivity there which included food, drinks, company, and singing.
If you’re reading this between 8 am and 10 am on July 9, 2025, I’m currently in a Tax Webinar of my own free will. Relevant reaction video.
Did I distract you enough?
Shoot a note or dm me on my TG @allentau. Or read the last update.