I've never had a bad gimbap. That's an important statement because I've had plenty of bad (insert other food items): bad hamburger, bad hot dog, bad taco, bad Chipotle burrito. Of all the Chipotles in the world, I bought a condo above the worst Chipotle location in the world: no fajitas EVER, often running out of sofritas (the only type of burrito MJ usually eats), often gets the order wrong, often has boned chicken (you bite into the chicken and feel something bony, an indication of lower-quality chicken), often is too salty, and something is just off about their sauce and Chipotle mix. I know how bad my "home base Chipotle" is because when I go to any other Chipotle in the world, I rediscover the magic of what made made like Chipotle in the first place back in college and then more so during busy nights at law school. So yes, Chipotles can be bad, which is all the more reason that I appreciate the consistency of kimbap: very simple ingredients of rice, vegetables (apparently something known in Chinese as "purple vegetable), and rolled up in seaweed and served in bite-sized shapes). Healthy, nutritious, and consistent in flavor; no hidden doses of salt, just a little hint of egg (for those that use it, don't have to), and a great combination of all major food groups. And if we're talking about presentation, aesthetically it looks pleasing to the eye: at least 6 different colors in a kimbap squeezed together in an orderly fashion, not all collapsed like a burrito often ends up for me.
Recently I discovered something about my enjoyment of sport: I like when 2 evenly matched teams are giving it their all and it's a close, back-and-forth matchup. "Well, duh," one might say. I don't know if that's such an obvious statement. There are those out there who prefer watching 60-3 beatdowns in a ballgame. I also think that even if I was a player participating in one of those games, I want the more competitive games rather than the one-sided matchups. One-sided matchups are joyless for both sides: the winning team that's dominating thinks it's too easy and wants better competition, the losing team is getting beat so mercilessly as to feel helpless and give up for having no chance to win. The sweet spot is trying to get equally-matched opponents; it's why most combat sports are organized by weight divisions: you don't want a 250-pound man fighting a 130-pound man. It's just not fair for either competitor. I had this revelation when playing chess today against some evenly-matched competition: it's even more pronounced and obvious in chess how good your opponent is, and I'm usually able to tell within about 7-8 moves how good the opponent is, with more information coming in as more moves get played. Obviously as a competitor I want to challenge myself and play better people, but it'd just be a throwaway to play a grandmaster (or gasp!) the smartest chess computers because I'd just get crushed; it's like mathematically impossible for me to win. Those type of matches are for learning and research only; The real sport and excitement is playing someone who's just like yourself, and both players start getting into the rhythm and playing exciting moves to the best of their ability, all the while complimenting each other for making good moves. That's what chess (and other competitions/sports, whatever you want to call it) is all about, bringing out the best in both teams/players. There's something magical in those games, like a weird synergy or flow where even though I know the game could come to an end at any time due to a blunder or something, it just feels like we could continue playing forever, like that heaven-like scenario of an infinite library or infinite baseball game that I wrote about long ago. Maybe the afterlife is just playing 10-minute speedchess over and over again and going through infinite variations of moves in chess.
You know what's almost/just as/more than (I can't decide which one is more fun) than playing chess against level competition? Driving on the road on a clear day down an uncrowded highway. I think my early days of driving poisoned my experiences with driving, having to slog through traffic every day and being pressured to get to work on time, raising my blood pressure along the way. Driving in itself with a clear destination and no traffic ahead can actually be therapeutic, lowering blood pressure and allowing one to just enjoy the open road. MJ likes it too when I drive, she gets to ride what's called "business class" on the Bobby Express, taking her shoes off and putting her legs up, her favorite position when driving. Maybe that's what heaven is too, just an endless drive on an interestate without traffic, passing through tunnels, bridges, exotic locales, deserts, forests, (but no mountain roads because I get dizzy on curvy and winding streets) and just enjoying great days in the world before climate change takes over. With endless gimbap packed to be eaten in the car.
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