i typically don't eat sweets too often, but when i do, these are some of my favorites. 🍩

marabou milk chocolate

link i'm a big fan of milk chocolate. i discovered this brand when i was in scandinavia, and it's probably my favorite. it's pretty smooth and not overly sweet.

andes mints

link i've always liked these. i always put them in the freezer, as it makes it a little crunchier.

matcha kit kat

link i love matcha kit kats. they're pretty addictive. i also want to try the strawberry flavor.

sweetarts

link this is probably my all-time-favorite candy. i've liked this consistently since i was a kid.

jelly belly buttered popcorn

link this is my favorite jelly belly flavor.

donettes

link my favorite donuts, besides a chocolate donut at bob's donuts in sf. i can easily finish off the entire pack in one go.

if you're curious about the fine dining scene in the san francisco bay area beyond what i posted in my favorite sf restaurants and places (recently updated), look no further.

i have a rule of thumb for michelin star restaurants -- add 1 hour to your meal for each star. something to take into consideration.

below are all the restaurants that i have either been to, or want to go to in the future. all of them are good, but i'll put a star next to any that are especially good. some are repeats from my previous post. 🤖

san francisco & peninsula

1 star

• *nari - the best thai fine dining restaurant in the city. excellent cocktail menu.
• 7 adams - i haven't been yet, but this was highly recommended from a foodie friend with excellent food sensibilities.
• *mister jui's - best fine dining chinese cuisine in the city. pro-tip: you can get a seat and eat at the bar if you can't get a reservation, as with most of these restaurants.
• nisei - haven't been, but the photos look really good. i saw shirako in the photos, so if that's not your thing, put in a dietary restriction request.
• *sorrel - went here several years ago before they received a star. i don't remember the food, but i don't remember having a negative impression of the restaurant and the photos look legit.
• *angler - the food is excellent here. i don't know if they still have it on the menu, but avoid the cocktail that has burnt salt on the ice cube. everything else was excellent though.
• *wakuriya - kaiseki. has maintained its one-star status since 2013. it's in downtown san mateo, which is south of the city 20 minutes by car without traffic. downtown san mateo is mostly restaurants, so there isn't much else to do there.

2 stars

• kiln - haven't been here, but the photos look good. i'm a fan of gelée, and it looks like this place has it on the menu often.
• *birdsong - received a michelin star the first year it opened in 2018, and was bumped up to 2 stars in 2021 and has maintained it since. it's in soma, so the location is subpar. don't walk to the restaurant.
• *saison - this was recently featured on an episode of s3, and looked pretty good.

3 stars

• benu - has had 3 stars since 2014. these are obviously talented people, but it fell short of my expectations. perhaps it was an off day. need to go back and try it again, soon.

napa

if you go to napa for dinner, i would suggest getting a hotel for the evening. napa is mostly 2 lane roads, and being napa, there is a higher statistical probability of drunk drivers. it's also an hour drive from sf without traffic. that being said, here's the list for napa.

1 star

• auberge du soleil - had brunch here a long time ago. saw jordan peele and his wife chelsea peretti. it probably didn't inspire his continental breakfast sketch. good vibes here.

3 stars

• the french laundry - this is the quintessential bay area restaurant. haven't been. want to go, soon.

i used to dislike country, but over time my musical tastes have evolved. i recently decided to compile a playlist of what are – by various metrics – considered to be the best country songs of all time. this list is my own distilled version of all the other lists, as i don't think all country music is created equal. i tend to listen to country when i want a certain vibe, such as a carefree afternoon at a barbecue with friends on a warm and sunny day. any song marked with an asterisk is a song i particularly enjoy.

• alabama - mountain music
• alan jackson + martina mcbride - louisiana woman, mississippi man
• bob wills - san antonio rose
• bobbie gentry - ode to billie joe
• brooks and dunn - boot scootin' boogie **
• carrie underwood - before he cheats
• the carter family - can the circle be unbroken
• charley pride - kiss an angel good mornin'
• the charlie daniels band - the devil went down to georgia
• charlie rich - behind closed doors
• chris stapleton - tennessee whiskey
• corey kent - wild as her
• darius rucker - wagon wheel *
• deford bailey - fox chase - deford bailey is widely considered to be the first african american country music star.
• deford bailey - pan american blues
• dolly parton - i will always love you
• dolly parton - jolene
• dwight yoakam - a thousand miles from nowhere
• dwight yoakam - guitars, cadillacs - dwight has a cameo in the opening scene of weddings crashers.
• dwight yoakam - honky tonk man
• eddy arnold - make the world go away
• ernest tubb - walking the floor over you
• faron young - hello walls
• george jones - the race is on
• george strait - amarillo by morning
• george strait - the chair
• hank williams - a country boy can survive
• hank williams - family tradition
• hank williams - i'm so lonesome i could cry
• hank williams - your cheatin' heart
• highwayman - highwayman
• john denver - take me home, country roads *
• johnny cash - a boy named sue
• johnny cash - big river
• johnny cash - folsom prison blues
• johnny cash - get rhythm *
• johnny cash - home of the blues
• johnny cash - i walk the line **
• johnny cash - personal jesus
• johnny cash - ring of fire **
• johnny cash - rock 'n' roll ruby
• johnny cash + june carter cash - jackson **
• keith whitley - i'm no stranger to the rain
• kenny rogers - the gambler
• kris kristofferson - me and bobby mcgee
• lady a - need you now *
• leann rimes - blue
• lee ann womack - i hope you dance
• lefty frizzell - long black veil
• loretta lynn - coal miner's daughter
• luke combs - ain't no love in oklahoma *
• luke combs - fast car * - tracy chapman wrote the original version of this song in 1988.
• marty robbins - el paso
• merle haggard - mama tried
• merle haggard + willie nelson - pancho and lefty
• merle haggard and the strangers - if we make it through december
• morgan wallen - cowgirls *
• morgan wallen - last night *
• morgan wallen - you proof
• patsy cline - crazy
• patsy cline - i fall to pieces
• randy travis - forever and ever, amen
• ray charles - you don't know me
• reba mcentire - fancy
• roger miller - king of the road
• roy acuff - wabash cannonball
• sam hunt - body like a back road
• shania twain - man! i feel like a woman!
• shania twain - that don't impress me much
• shania twain - you're still the one
• skeeter davis - the end of the world
• tammy wynette - stand by your man - this song was used to comedic effect in goldeneye.
• tim mcgraw - just to see you smile
• tim mcgraw - something like that *
• tim mcgraw - where the green grass grows
• toby keith - should've been a cowboy
• tom t. hall - old dogs, children and watermelon wine
• waylon jennings - luckenbach, texas
• waylon jennings + willie nelson - mammas don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys
• webb pierce - there stands the glass
• willie nelson - on the road again *

• logic (feat. eminem) - homicide
• a$ap rocky - l$d
• a$ap rocky - tailor swif
• a$ap rocky - punk rocky
• quavo & takeoff - hotel lobby
• masked wolf - astronaut in the ocean
• sir (feat. kendrick lamar) - hair down
• kendrick lamar - not like us
• childish gambino - this is america
• dj shadow (feat. run the jewels) - nobody speak
• run the jewels - legend has it
• run the jewels - talk to me
• run the jewels - blockbuster night pt. 1
• kendrick lamar - wesley's theory
• kendrick lamar - alright
• lil wayne - a milli
• n.w.a. - f*** tha police
• 2pac - ambitionz az a ridah
• 2pac - changes
• eminem - my name is
• ice cube - it was a good day
• jay-z - 99 problems
• nas - n.y. state of mind
• the notorious b.i.g. - hypnotize
• the notorious b.i.g. - big poppa
• ll cool j - mama said knock you out
• busta rhymes - gimme some more
• beastie boys - intergalactic
• jay-z - big pimpin'
• public enemy - rebel without a pause
• n.w.a. - straight outta compton
• public enemy - fight the power
• grandmaster flash and the furious five - the message
• dr. dre - still d.r.e.
• dr. dre - forgot about dre
• dr. dre - the next episode
• luniz - i got 5 on it
• blackstreet - no diggity
• 69 boyz - tootsee roll
• tommy richman - million dollar baby
• glorilla and megan thee stallion - wanna be
• glorilla - yeah glo!
• flo milli - never lose me
• bad bunny - monaco
• travis scott (feat. playboi carti) - fe!n
• coi leray - players
• doechii - nissan altima
• doechii - denial is a river
• doechii and jt - alter ego
• doechii (feat. sza) - girl, get up
• tyler, the creator - igor
• tyler, the creator (feat. doechii) - balloon
• tinashe (feat. schoolboy q) - 2 on
• dizee rascal - fix up, look sharp
• shindy - affalterbach
• the weeknd - house of balloons / glass table girls
• post malone - wow.

i've posted a lot of individual songs, but these are the albums that have made a significant impression on me over time:

• alanis morissette - jagged little pill
• a perfect circle - mer de noms
• a perfect circle - thirteenth step
• charli xcx - brat
• grimes - art angels
• grimes - visions
• incubus - make yourself
• incubus - morning view
• the internet - ego death
• kendrick lamar - to pimp a butterfly
• lady gaga - born this way
• lady gaga - the fame monster
• limp bizkit - significant other
• massive attack - 100th window
• massive attack - protection
• muse - absolution
• muse - black holes and revelations
• muse - origin of symmetry
• muse - showbiz
• nin - the downward spiral
• nin - still
• nin - with teeth
• nin - the fragile
• phaeleh - within the emptiness
• radiohead - ok computer
• radiohead - kid a
• radiohead - in rainbows
• radiohead - the king of limbs
• red hot chili peppers - californication
• röyksopp - the inevitable end
• st. vincent - masseduction
• tame impala - currents
• thom yorke - the eraser
• tool - lateralus
• tool - ænima
• tool - 10,000 days
• trent reznor and atticus ross - the social network
• twenty one pilots - trench

i don't currently drink, as i'm prioritizing a healthy and active lifestyle. alcohol definitely doesn't fit into that. however, i still wanted to share some of my favorite drinks.

favorite whiskeys

• macallan rare cask, or anything 18+ years from macallan.
• hibiki 21+ years
• want to try pappy van winkle. when i was in oregon, this scandal happened with pappy van winkle.
• buffalo trace (same distiller as pappy van winkle). more affordable, but still very good.
• woodford reserve

favorite cocktails

• diet coke + whiskey + ice: simple, classic.
• whiskey sour (with egg whites)
• pina colada: best one i've had so far was here in cassis, france.
• bloody mary
• victory sour monkey: high abv + sour. better when on tap, as with most beers.
• guinness. classic.
• shiner bock: they've changed the formula over the years. it's not as good as it used to be, but still pretty good.
• rosé. this one is pretty good.
• txakoli. my favorite white wine. otherwise, any white wine that is crisp, sour, and not sweet.
• i dislike red wine. it's too acidic for me.

other favorites

• sake (junmai daiginjo)
• soju (has to be near frozen to counter the alcohol taste)
• krug grande cuvée champagne

i'm constantly working with code/text. below are a few macOS keyboard shortcuts i use all the time to speed up my work. these shortcuts can be applied to anywhere system wide where there is editable text. the icons next to the spelled out keyboard keys are how they appear on your keyboard symbolically.

• move cursor position to next word boundary: option + right arrow (⌥ →)
• move cursor position to previous word boundary: option + left arrow (⌥ ←)
• select from cursor position to the next word boundary: shift + option + right arrow (shift ⌥ →)
• select from cursor position to the previous word boundary: shift + option + left arrow (shift ⌥ ←)
• select from cursor to end of line: shift + command + right arrow (shift ⌘ →)
• select from cursor to beginning of line: shift + command + left arrow (shift ⌘ ←)
• select from cursor to beginning of document: shift + cmd + up arrow (shift ⌘ ↑)
• select from cursor to end of document: shift + cmd + down arrow (shift ⌘ ↓)
• select from cursor to the line above: shift + up arrow (shift ↑)
• select from cursor to the line below: shift + up arrow (shift ↓)

with the last two shortcuts (line by line selection), you can start with shift + up/down arrow, and then press the option (⌥) key to change to word boundary selection mid-selection.

my most common use is option + right/left arrow in conjunction with shift + option + right/left arrow since i'm constantly making typos.

barcelona

• soma - didn't get to go here, but it looks good.
• miam - didn't go here, but the brunch food looks legit.
• maleducat - probably the best meal i had in barcelona.
• amar - nice fine dining restaurant. can't go wrong with this one.

madrid

• streetxo - the best meal i had in spain. if you pick one restaurant, make it this one. this is the sister restaurant to the 4th best restaurant in the world (as of this posting) – diverxo. make sure to make a reservation.
• el retiro park - really nice place to walk around. i was running at the time and pulled a muscle here.
• barracuda - after a walk in el retiro, go to this place for some of the best mexican food ever.
• honest greens - spain is notorious for not having vegetables in their cuisine. this is a good place to get a salad. you can order via their app for pickup or delivery. nice vibes at this location.
• mercado de san miguel - really great food market. make sure to get a beer along with all your food.
• álex cordobés - you can get basque cheesecake here. be prepared for a line. it moves quickly though.
• alma bakery - didn't get to go here, but looks really good.
• torrons vicens - sweets shop with a bunch of goodies.

bilbao

• restaurante viña del ensanche - if you can't make it to san sebastián to the original location, you can get your cheesecake at their bilbao location.
• guggenheim museum bilbao - nice museum. lots of interesting exhibits. worth a visit.
• café bar bilbao - nice tapas place. there are a lot of different places in nueva plaza. fun place to spend time and bounce around all the different shops.
• salmon guru - didn't get to go here, but really good cocktails.

san sebastián

• atari gastrolekua - i visited this place on a rainy day, but the kitchen was closed. i didn't get to try the menu, but the tapas were still good. featured in the travel man basque country episode
• la cuchara de san telmo - this was by far the best meal i had in the city. the indoor area is extremely cramped, but they have seating outside. there's always a line here. make sure to get txakoli with your meal.
• la viña - this is the home to the original basque cheesecake. it's good, but i think the basque cheesecake at ernest in san francisco is the best.

• adam sandler - 100% fresh (2018)
• adam sandler - love you (2024)
• ali wong - baby cobra (2016)
• ali wong - hard knock wife (2018)
• ali wong - single lady (2024)
• chris rock - bring the pain (1998)
• chris rock - selective outrage (2023)
• dave chappelle - equanimity (2017)
• dave chappelle - killin' them softly (2000)
• dave chappelle - sticks and stones (2019)
• dave chappelle - the closer (2021)
• dave chappelle - the dreamer (2023)
• dave chappelle - what's in a name (2022)
• eddie izzard - dress to kill (1999)
• john mulaney - baby j (2023)
• john mulaney - kid gorgeous at radio city (2018)
• lewis black - black on broadway (2004)
• lewis black - black to the future (2016)
• robin williams - an evening with robin williams (1984)
• robin williams - live at the met (1986)
• robin williams - live on broadway (2002)
• ronny chieng - asian comedian destroys america! (2019)
• ronny chieng - love to hate it (2024)
• ronny chieng - speakeasy (2022)

• charli xcx - beg for you - my most listened to song recently.
• masked wolf - astronaut in the ocean
• sza - saturn
• doechii - what it is
• flo milli - never lose me
• henry and the waiter - our free souls
• trent reznor and atticus ross - intriguing possibilities
• lana del rey - doin' time
• haim - relationships
• alissic - be no body
• quavo + takeoff - hotel lobby
• run the jewels - never look back
• moon panda - slow drive
• the 1975 - chocolate
• tinashe - 2 on
• justin bieber - ghost
• charli xcx - anthems
• health - vibe cop
• above and beyond - peace of mind
• charli xcx - 360

• the daily show - they upload their shows to youtube after they air.
• track star* - i love music. this is a fun series to watch.
• amelia dimoldenberg - comedy gold.
• s3 - food and restaurant videos done right.
• travel man - the best travel show. most of their old episodes are on their channel.
• auto focus - i'm not a 'car person', but i like seeing people make cool things.
• james popsys - interesting photography channel
• gawx 2 - i like his short travel videos. very artistic.
• beardmeatsfood - entertaining food challenges. don't know how he does it.
• grainydays - deadpan photography channel. talented photographer.
• marques brownlee - best tech review channel on youtube.
• munchies chef's night out - if you're stuck at home and want to go out and party, but don't want the hangover, watch this. lots of fun.
• topjaw - fun travel and food videos. made me want to go to lisbon.
• pewdiepie - i like watching his vlogs.
• the endless adventure - fun travel channel. i have family from poplar bluff, mo, and these two hail from there.