There's less than 1 hr before the 2009 begins. I feel obligated to send off 2008 in its own entry.
While I like the "holiday season" for the most part, I dislike the New Year's Day. Not because I hate a new year, but because I have to say good-bye to the old one. And I hate good-byes. I hate giving stuff up, even if that something is as impermanent as time itself.
When 2008 began, I thought things were going to be great. After all, 8 is a lucky number, right? All the Chinese predictions seemed to hype it all up. Fast forward 365 days later...boooooo. The global economy is in the gutter, the war in Iraq is as pointless as ever, and more shenanigans is going on in the Middle East. I can go on, but these things encompass a lot of other stuff (mainly economical).
On a personal note, I've had to say good-bye to many of my friends that I used to see all the time on campus. And say good-bye to the many of things I used to enjoy such as relaxing and chilling and just plain having fun. Fortunately, I've been able to relive some of that for the past several days, but I'm going to have to go back to the daily grind soon.
It just seems that in 2008, I seemed to have lost more than I gained, and I don't mean monetarily or some other kind of tangible form of exchangeable material currency whatever (that wasn't supposed to make sense). It just seems that life is less sweet. But I say that admitting that I'm the type of person who has a large moment of metaphorical inertia. I'm not someone who's inclined to much change in life. At its very best, I'm stable. And its worst, I'm stubborn.
While I hate to say good-bye to anything that I've grown used to (in this example, I mean the year 2008), I do look forward to making progress in life. Progress in the broadest possible sense. I don't know what that may be, but hopefully, it'll be for the better. Don't let us down, 2009.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
On this Christmas Morning
Just a mandatory filler entry here. Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. I think that's the very least you guys can do for yourself to close out such a horrible 2008. (Things started out with so much promise too.)
I hope you got a lot of gifts, spent some time with your family, and just relax. That's what I plan on doing anyways. *phew
I hope you got a lot of gifts, spent some time with your family, and just relax. That's what I plan on doing anyways. *phew
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Jon Stewart is the Comic Philosopher of This Generation of This Decade
The concept of the Comic Philosopher is one that greatly intrigues me. As you can tell from my last post, I like to wax myself a comic, and sometimes I like to wax myself a philosopher. I think good comics are predisposed to being philosophical, because one of the universal traits of comics is that they're observant of the people and things around them. And obviously, good philosophers need to be observant as well.
Being barely over two decades old, I don't know of many people who I think are worthy enough, but the late George Carlin, Bill Maher, and Jon Stewart come to mind quite easily.
George Carlin, as liberal as he is, has always stayed away from the heated debates (as far as I know and can tell from his character). His preference is generally to stay the heck away from those more ignorant than he. Bill Maher, again as far as I can tell, thrives in the debate, in the open forum (Politically Incorrect and Real Time - 'nuff said.)
In contrast, I think Jon Stewart is the one that's perhaps most easily relatable and appealing to the mass population. He has the ability to engage the opposite side without seeming threatening (something the conservative right does all the time) and at the same time, he's able to make his point without looking or sounding like a total whackjob (something the liberal left does all the time).
Instead, he uses real experiences phrased in everyday terms with reasonable comparisons to make very insightful points. On yesterday's episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Jon takes on Gov. Mike Huckabee on politics.
This interview is eyeopening because I can't recall the last time I've seen two people on TV from opposite ends of the political spectrum debate back and forth with each other so respectfully. It is extremely rare, even though (or maybe because of) there are more political pundits than ever reporting during the longest news cycle ever on more channels than ever.
I really want to highlight all of the stuff that I enjoyed in the interview, but then I would just end up typing out the entire transcript. But what I can say is that there's a Pt.1 to the interview too and you can watch clips and full episodes of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart online. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert will definitely inspire an entire generation of Americans. Cross my heart.
Being barely over two decades old, I don't know of many people who I think are worthy enough, but the late George Carlin, Bill Maher, and Jon Stewart come to mind quite easily.
George Carlin, as liberal as he is, has always stayed away from the heated debates (as far as I know and can tell from his character). His preference is generally to stay the heck away from those more ignorant than he. Bill Maher, again as far as I can tell, thrives in the debate, in the open forum (Politically Incorrect and Real Time - 'nuff said.)
In contrast, I think Jon Stewart is the one that's perhaps most easily relatable and appealing to the mass population. He has the ability to engage the opposite side without seeming threatening (something the conservative right does all the time) and at the same time, he's able to make his point without looking or sounding like a total whackjob (something the liberal left does all the time).
Instead, he uses real experiences phrased in everyday terms with reasonable comparisons to make very insightful points. On yesterday's episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Jon takes on Gov. Mike Huckabee on politics.
This interview is eyeopening because I can't recall the last time I've seen two people on TV from opposite ends of the political spectrum debate back and forth with each other so respectfully. It is extremely rare, even though (or maybe because of) there are more political pundits than ever reporting during the longest news cycle ever on more channels than ever.
I really want to highlight all of the stuff that I enjoyed in the interview, but then I would just end up typing out the entire transcript. But what I can say is that there's a Pt.1 to the interview too and you can watch clips and full episodes of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart online. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert will definitely inspire an entire generation of Americans. Cross my heart.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Character Study with Liz Lemon
SPOILER ALERT - This entry contains spoilers to Episode 5 of 30 Rock, "Reunion"
Last Thursday's episode of 30 Rock definitely ranks up there in my all-time favorite episodes. I think I realized why I love Tina Fey's character, Liz Lemon, so much. Certain aspects of her character is a reflection of my own. I did not realize it until I read James Poniewozik's post on TIME magazine's Tuned In blog.
"Reunion," is titled such because Liz's high school reunion was coming up. Liz wasn't going because she was "a bit of a nerd" in high school, but Jack persuades her to go because she's transformed into an attractive and accomplished "vaguely ethnic swan."
The plot twist in this episode is that Liz's classmates actually thought of HER as the bully. Liz flashbacks to a time when she was using a telescope. The popular girl comes up and asks condescendingly, "How's that telescope?" Liz's reply was some shy, soft-spoken mumbling. But what Liz had actually mumbled back was, "How's your mom's pill addiction?" Liz always had harsh comments for her "bullies," but those words made Liz the real bully.
Further analysis of Liz Lemon's character is best provided by James Poniewozik:
"The great thing about that twist is that it underscores how distinctive and non-cliche a character Liz is. ... Rather, she is—and has been all along—self-doubting and self-confident at the same time. (A combination that's not rare in life but is rarer in fiction.)
"Unlike the typical woman in a class-reunion story, Liz is not pretending to be impressive and successful to impress her classmates. She actually is impressive and successful—in fact, even as a teen, she was apparently far more intimidating than she knew she was."
Reading further into the comments section (only 1 comment ATM), an insightful comment reads:
"... What I kept coming back to about it was how it drove home the point that being the funny one in the room very often makes you the mean one! ... I love Liz because she is so real, and the last episode was an almost disconcertingly honest look at the extent to which people deceive themselves about themselves."
I realize I am also "self-doubting and self-confident at the same time." A few years ago, I never would have labeled myself arrogant, but I now understand my type arrogance and how it flows out of me - sometimes quite obnoxiously. Because of my own sharp tongue and cutting sarcasm, I too, am "far more intimidating" than I realize when I say it. But I like to think that I am a servant of humor. And because of that, it is apparently difficult for those around me to know what I am honestly thinking.
Humor is a powerful force, and I think it's probably just as powerful as love or hate. Where I lack in my ability to love and to hate, I make up for in my ability to laugh. I will use humor as a way to open up, but I will use humor to defend myself. Like any predominant personality trait, my sense of humor is my greatest ally, but also my most insurmountable enemy. Being funny is a double-edged sword, because as the commenter correctly points out: being the funny one also means you're probably the mean one.
To close this entry, I will leave you with this humorous, yet insightful, exchange between Jack and Liz at the reunion. (Plot line Note: Jack has lost his chance to become CEO of his company and is finding comfort by pretending to be someone else at the reunion to find companionship amongst "normal guys.")
Liz: If these jagweeds don't want to get to know the nice, new me - then screw them and their rapidly yellowing teeth.
Jack: Wow, Lemon, you really haven't changed, have you?
Liz: Excuse me?
Jack: What happened when I told you Geiss had screwed me over for the CEO job? Did you offer your help as a friend? Or did you make some joke about me being impotent?
Liz: Geez, that was like 8 hours ago! I was just - I don't know - cutting the tension.
Jack: Or as always, you were hiding behind your sense of humor. Instead of engaging in a real way?
Liz: Really? I'm the one that's hiding, "Larry Braverman?"
Jack: There it is, right there. When you feel threatened, you attack. That's why you're almost 40 and still alone.
Let's hope I don't make it all the way to 40! Haha
Last Thursday's episode of 30 Rock definitely ranks up there in my all-time favorite episodes. I think I realized why I love Tina Fey's character, Liz Lemon, so much. Certain aspects of her character is a reflection of my own. I did not realize it until I read James Poniewozik's post on TIME magazine's Tuned In blog.
"Reunion," is titled such because Liz's high school reunion was coming up. Liz wasn't going because she was "a bit of a nerd" in high school, but Jack persuades her to go because she's transformed into an attractive and accomplished "vaguely ethnic swan."
The plot twist in this episode is that Liz's classmates actually thought of HER as the bully. Liz flashbacks to a time when she was using a telescope. The popular girl comes up and asks condescendingly, "How's that telescope?" Liz's reply was some shy, soft-spoken mumbling. But what Liz had actually mumbled back was, "How's your mom's pill addiction?" Liz always had harsh comments for her "bullies," but those words made Liz the real bully.
Further analysis of Liz Lemon's character is best provided by James Poniewozik:
"The great thing about that twist is that it underscores how distinctive and non-cliche a character Liz is. ... Rather, she is—and has been all along—self-doubting and self-confident at the same time. (A combination that's not rare in life but is rarer in fiction.)
"Unlike the typical woman in a class-reunion story, Liz is not pretending to be impressive and successful to impress her classmates. She actually is impressive and successful—in fact, even as a teen, she was apparently far more intimidating than she knew she was."
Reading further into the comments section (only 1 comment ATM), an insightful comment reads:
"... What I kept coming back to about it was how it drove home the point that being the funny one in the room very often makes you the mean one! ... I love Liz because she is so real, and the last episode was an almost disconcertingly honest look at the extent to which people deceive themselves about themselves."
I realize I am also "self-doubting and self-confident at the same time." A few years ago, I never would have labeled myself arrogant, but I now understand my type arrogance and how it flows out of me - sometimes quite obnoxiously. Because of my own sharp tongue and cutting sarcasm, I too, am "far more intimidating" than I realize when I say it. But I like to think that I am a servant of humor. And because of that, it is apparently difficult for those around me to know what I am honestly thinking.
Humor is a powerful force, and I think it's probably just as powerful as love or hate. Where I lack in my ability to love and to hate, I make up for in my ability to laugh. I will use humor as a way to open up, but I will use humor to defend myself. Like any predominant personality trait, my sense of humor is my greatest ally, but also my most insurmountable enemy. Being funny is a double-edged sword, because as the commenter correctly points out: being the funny one also means you're probably the mean one.
To close this entry, I will leave you with this humorous, yet insightful, exchange between Jack and Liz at the reunion. (Plot line Note: Jack has lost his chance to become CEO of his company and is finding comfort by pretending to be someone else at the reunion to find companionship amongst "normal guys.")
Liz: If these jagweeds don't want to get to know the nice, new me - then screw them and their rapidly yellowing teeth.
Jack: Wow, Lemon, you really haven't changed, have you?
Liz: Excuse me?
Jack: What happened when I told you Geiss had screwed me over for the CEO job? Did you offer your help as a friend? Or did you make some joke about me being impotent?
Liz: Geez, that was like 8 hours ago! I was just - I don't know - cutting the tension.
Jack: Or as always, you were hiding behind your sense of humor. Instead of engaging in a real way?
Liz: Really? I'm the one that's hiding, "Larry Braverman?"
Jack: There it is, right there. When you feel threatened, you attack. That's why you're almost 40 and still alone.
Let's hope I don't make it all the way to 40! Haha
Thursday, November 20, 2008
woPrLkAY
As you may or may not be able to see in my title, my work is slowly seeping into my playtime. For almost 2 weeks now, my "supervisor" was traveling abroad (He's back now though). As a direct result, my immediate workload increased slightly, but the decisions I made were more difficult due to the uncertainty of not having a more knowledgeable person to check with. But as an indirect result, I found myself working in the evenings because that's when my supervisor would be sending emails.
My two projects right now are pretty intense right now. Unfortunately, I cannot go into details because of some papers I signed, but there's a lot of big, important, difficult, messy, engineer-y, and ugly stuff going on. It's a headache trying to sort through all the goings-ons not just in my office, but on the other side of the globe while I'm asleep.
To help facilitate all the teams, international companies utilize some magic tricks - such as the conference call. With my supervisor out of the country and my China team pretty powerless, I've had to learn to work with entire teams over the phone at 8 in the evenings. Definitely a hassle - adding to my workload and just overall taking away from my chillaxing utility.
BUT - there is a bright side. I see myself growing more confident, more knowledgeable, and more comfortable in the environment. I am also realizing that in order to make your company competitive, you have to be a more competitive engineer. And there'll have to be sacrifices like working a bit late. (Ahhh, Formula, you've taught me so much!) So far, I am not entirely dissatisfied with my balance, as I've been having fun when I'm not working. But that doesn't mean I don't wish I was still in school sleeping late, waking late, and being late.
My two projects right now are pretty intense right now. Unfortunately, I cannot go into details because of some papers I signed, but there's a lot of big, important, difficult, messy, engineer-y, and ugly stuff going on. It's a headache trying to sort through all the goings-ons not just in my office, but on the other side of the globe while I'm asleep.
To help facilitate all the teams, international companies utilize some magic tricks - such as the conference call. With my supervisor out of the country and my China team pretty powerless, I've had to learn to work with entire teams over the phone at 8 in the evenings. Definitely a hassle - adding to my workload and just overall taking away from my chillaxing utility.
BUT - there is a bright side. I see myself growing more confident, more knowledgeable, and more comfortable in the environment. I am also realizing that in order to make your company competitive, you have to be a more competitive engineer. And there'll have to be sacrifices like working a bit late. (Ahhh, Formula, you've taught me so much!) So far, I am not entirely dissatisfied with my balance, as I've been having fun when I'm not working. But that doesn't mean I don't wish I was still in school sleeping late, waking late, and being late.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
POLYSICS Live!
Earlier this week on Sunday, my friend and I went to see POLYSICS perform live at the Abbey Pub. In the past, I've read that their lives are a lot of fun because they're so energetic. And DAMN WAS IT A LOT OF FUN.
Performances started at 9PM, but POLYSICS was apparently the main act, so they started at 11PM. They were preceded by Black Gold and Jaguar Love. Nothing against them, but they seemed and sounded more like the start-up garage bands while POLYSICS was like...on a totally different level. I don't go to performances like these, so I'm at a loss for words and comparisons, but man they were really awesome.
Before the show began, my friend and I saw the frontman Hiroyuki Hayashi (aka Hiro) at the tables selling albums, vinyls, and various other souvenirs. I really think we were the only ones there at the time who knew who he was because when we started asking for autographed albums and pictures, everyone else around did too. It looked like they were going, "Oh, it looks like this person's worth taking pictures with" or something. I dunno.
Later on, we saw him standing in the back, watching Black Gold perform. I tapped his shoulder and asked him would he play "I My Me Mine" and all he could say was, "Secret!" with a smile. It was pretty awesome. He did ultimately play "I My Me Mine" - I like to think that he obliged my request, but I know that's very unlikely because that's like one of their best songs...haha.
I still can't believe I saw them perform. It's almost surreal. So far this week, there has been two mornings where I wake up, drowsily thinking to myself, "Damn that concert was awesome." I highly recommend POLYSICS to anyone and everyone because in my opinion, their music is impossible to hate. You can maybe not like it, but there is no way you can hate it I can't wait for them to come back!
I embedded a YouTube video of two of their best songs, both of which they played, edited back-to-back.
Performances started at 9PM, but POLYSICS was apparently the main act, so they started at 11PM. They were preceded by Black Gold and Jaguar Love. Nothing against them, but they seemed and sounded more like the start-up garage bands while POLYSICS was like...on a totally different level. I don't go to performances like these, so I'm at a loss for words and comparisons, but man they were really awesome.
Before the show began, my friend and I saw the frontman Hiroyuki Hayashi (aka Hiro) at the tables selling albums, vinyls, and various other souvenirs. I really think we were the only ones there at the time who knew who he was because when we started asking for autographed albums and pictures, everyone else around did too. It looked like they were going, "Oh, it looks like this person's worth taking pictures with" or something. I dunno.
Later on, we saw him standing in the back, watching Black Gold perform. I tapped his shoulder and asked him would he play "I My Me Mine" and all he could say was, "Secret!" with a smile. It was pretty awesome. He did ultimately play "I My Me Mine" - I like to think that he obliged my request, but I know that's very unlikely because that's like one of their best songs...haha.
I still can't believe I saw them perform. It's almost surreal. So far this week, there has been two mornings where I wake up, drowsily thinking to myself, "Damn that concert was awesome." I highly recommend POLYSICS to anyone and everyone because in my opinion, their music is impossible to hate. You can maybe not like it, but there is no way you can hate it I can't wait for them to come back!
I embedded a YouTube video of two of their best songs, both of which they played, edited back-to-back.
POLYSICS - I My Me Mine
POLYSICS - Electric Surfin' Go Go
POLYSICS - Electric Surfin' Go Go
Saturday, November 8, 2008
The Advent and Rise of Hulu
Launched less than 8 months ago, Hulu.com is well on its way to becoming the next YouTube. On TIME's top 50 inventions of 2008, Hulu.com made it all the way up to #4.
For those of you who don't know, Hulu is basically a high-definition version of YouTube. The difference is that all of the content is licensed but legal - the caveat is that it's ad-supported. But in my opinion, ads online are WAY more bareable than ads on TV because: 1) there's only 1 30-second ad per break and 2) even if you're not paying attention to the ad and end up missing a part of the show, you can simply skip back to the parts that you missed. No such luxuries on TV!
There is a ton of video media available on Hulu, ranging from promos, clips, full TV shows, and even full movies - all in HD! The TV show selection is rich, as I see many of today's and yesterday's top shows, including several of my favorites.
Hulu is growing as well. I noticed yesterday that Hulu even added a new anime channel. After sampling the channel for a bit, I was disappointed that the eps are dubbed, but the selection looks pretty good. I hope it'll draw in a lot of new anime fans.
However, it seems like Hulu vids are only available to residents of the US or Canada, so my international friends are left out. But if you can - I highly recommend you sign up for Hulu immediately!
As a side note - HD video via internet is definitely the wave of the future. In mere months, I've been spending a lot of time watching my favorite shows in HD - completely free (but ad-supported). 30 Rock, How I Met Your Mother, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and The Colbert Report are my regular offenders. South Park and Late Night with Conan O'Brien are my less-than-regulars, but I still love 'em.
For those of you who don't know, Hulu is basically a high-definition version of YouTube. The difference is that all of the content is licensed but legal - the caveat is that it's ad-supported. But in my opinion, ads online are WAY more bareable than ads on TV because: 1) there's only 1 30-second ad per break and 2) even if you're not paying attention to the ad and end up missing a part of the show, you can simply skip back to the parts that you missed. No such luxuries on TV!
There is a ton of video media available on Hulu, ranging from promos, clips, full TV shows, and even full movies - all in HD! The TV show selection is rich, as I see many of today's and yesterday's top shows, including several of my favorites.
Hulu is growing as well. I noticed yesterday that Hulu even added a new anime channel. After sampling the channel for a bit, I was disappointed that the eps are dubbed, but the selection looks pretty good. I hope it'll draw in a lot of new anime fans.
However, it seems like Hulu vids are only available to residents of the US or Canada, so my international friends are left out. But if you can - I highly recommend you sign up for Hulu immediately!
As a side note - HD video via internet is definitely the wave of the future. In mere months, I've been spending a lot of time watching my favorite shows in HD - completely free (but ad-supported). 30 Rock, How I Met Your Mother, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and The Colbert Report are my regular offenders. South Park and Late Night with Conan O'Brien are my less-than-regulars, but I still love 'em.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Fall of the Republican Party
In one big swoop, the American people showed their "wholesale rejection of President Bush and the GOP's policies" by electing a Democratic Party majority in the BOTH the House and the Senate. Amazing. The pundits are saying that the Republican party must "think long and hard about who and what they are" now.
I personally noticed and realized the Republican party's downfall during Obama's victory speech on Election Night. At Grant Park, you saw a mix of Caucausians, Africans, Hispanics, Asians, and many others - and they were all cheering and screaming and so enthusiastic. Compare that to McCain's concession speech - the ONLY demographic I saw were whites. Many of them seemed disappointed that McCain did not win but still supportive, which is understandable and expected. But there were also many people there who just sounded angry and McCain had to stop his speech several times to calm them down.
That was when I realized just how "behind the times" the Republican party is. If you treated the Parties as companies, the GOP is the old player with antiquated equipment, using obsolete technology, run by a bunch of old white guys who's play by the same rules for generations. On the flipside, the Democrats looks like the young start-up who's embracing new technology like the internet, run by a group of young, energetic, diverse team recently graduated from the top universities, and ready to revolutionize the world with a fresh outlook and no boundaries. Of course, there are some similarities and there are some "that's what they want you to believe" things in my metaphor. I realize that. I realize what the word "politician" means and I know that politicians will always be politicians.
What I'm saying though, is that if the Republican party wants to survive, they need a new winning strategy. And let me tell you this - their new strategy will have to ditch the extreme-right nutjob "base." They need to lose the hatemongerers like Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly and basically everyone on Fox News. It's okay to be right, but they need to move over to the center and learn to embrace those that are not "like them," meaning other races, other demographics.
Four years is a long time and I'm sure they can change their image if they really wanted. But if they don't, I can easily see the next 12 years belonging to the Democrats.
I personally noticed and realized the Republican party's downfall during Obama's victory speech on Election Night. At Grant Park, you saw a mix of Caucausians, Africans, Hispanics, Asians, and many others - and they were all cheering and screaming and so enthusiastic. Compare that to McCain's concession speech - the ONLY demographic I saw were whites. Many of them seemed disappointed that McCain did not win but still supportive, which is understandable and expected. But there were also many people there who just sounded angry and McCain had to stop his speech several times to calm them down.
That was when I realized just how "behind the times" the Republican party is. If you treated the Parties as companies, the GOP is the old player with antiquated equipment, using obsolete technology, run by a bunch of old white guys who's play by the same rules for generations. On the flipside, the Democrats looks like the young start-up who's embracing new technology like the internet, run by a group of young, energetic, diverse team recently graduated from the top universities, and ready to revolutionize the world with a fresh outlook and no boundaries. Of course, there are some similarities and there are some "that's what they want you to believe" things in my metaphor. I realize that. I realize what the word "politician" means and I know that politicians will always be politicians.
What I'm saying though, is that if the Republican party wants to survive, they need a new winning strategy. And let me tell you this - their new strategy will have to ditch the extreme-right nutjob "base." They need to lose the hatemongerers like Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly and basically everyone on Fox News. It's okay to be right, but they need to move over to the center and learn to embrace those that are not "like them," meaning other races, other demographics.
Four years is a long time and I'm sure they can change their image if they really wanted. But if they don't, I can easily see the next 12 years belonging to the Democrats.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Election Night 2008 (yesterday)
Great heroes emerge from great chaos.
Last night, Barack Hussein Obama was elected the next president of the United States of America. (I don't use his middle name to incite fear. I use it because it's his name and I don't there should be any reason for anyone to use it against him.)
On Tuesday morning, I woke up early before at 6AM to place my first vote. On that day, I did not care if I slept 2 hours less than I usually do. One that day, I did not care if I was going to show up late to work (which I didn't). Like many others, I decided that I had to be a part of this potentially historic moment - and I, like MANY Americans, placed our bets on the right guy.
I stayed up and refused to go to bed until Obama finished his speech and Grant Park had begun clearing. It was an awesome experience, even though I basically experienced it myself. Unfortunately, being at my apartment up in the north, away from my South side home, nobody near me was really as excited as I, or any of the people they show on TV, was.
I voted for and believe in Barack Obama for many reasons. He's educated and eloquent - "elite," you would say. And I think it's great. I think he represents -me- and -so- -many- Chicagoans so well. Having established his political career here, I trust that he understands the problems that are plaguing me and people like me. Having gone to Harvard and working hard to get through his college career, I trust that he understands the plight of college students everywhere - that throughout the 4 years of my college career, I saw my grants and aids and scholarships consistently decrease. Coming from a humble home, I trust he understands how it must be to see your parents work harder and longer but make and enjoy less.
Obama understands the ordeals and the motivations that drive a lot of working families - families that have been largely ignored or marginalized by many of the Washington veterans. He gives the thoughts and feelings of so many parents a national audience. What he is telling America is the exact same thing my parents have told me all my life. They work hard to make my life better. To give me the things and the life that they could only dream about. To give me the opportunity to become a better person, a more productive member of society, and a person who through their sweat and blood make them proud. And to best repay their commitment, I can only say I will do that when I am in their place. And this is what us minorities are really about. This is why people from all across the world come to America and this is why they love it here.
This morning, when I woke up, my first instinct was to go online and find "international" stories. I easily found articles on CNN talking about how Obama's victory brought joy and happiness - and a sigh of relief - all across the the globe. I doubt that anyone else could bring about such goodwill and emotion so easily. Obama IS a celebrity. But why is that bad?
All over the news, there's been discussion about what Obama has done for African-Americans across the country. When I was younger, I would often come across a Martin Luther King, Jr. quote. Each time I read his words, I would feel a chill down my spine because his words rang so true, deep, and inspiring to me even though I only considered myself the 3rd person looking in. And oftentimes, while I was...trying to grasp and understand the different socioeconomic conditions of my environment (so to speak), I would often wonder what happened to the movement MLK led? Why is there nobody to continue it? To finish it? Is there no one else besides Jesse Jackson?
In Obama, there is a man who echoes the spirit of MLK. And in that, I feel that the seeds of change have been sowed, and that once again, we can write another chapter in the history books of the future that we can be proud of.
Last night, Barack Hussein Obama was elected the next president of the United States of America. (I don't use his middle name to incite fear. I use it because it's his name and I don't there should be any reason for anyone to use it against him.)
On Tuesday morning, I woke up early before at 6AM to place my first vote. On that day, I did not care if I slept 2 hours less than I usually do. One that day, I did not care if I was going to show up late to work (which I didn't). Like many others, I decided that I had to be a part of this potentially historic moment - and I, like MANY Americans, placed our bets on the right guy.
I stayed up and refused to go to bed until Obama finished his speech and Grant Park had begun clearing. It was an awesome experience, even though I basically experienced it myself. Unfortunately, being at my apartment up in the north, away from my South side home, nobody near me was really as excited as I, or any of the people they show on TV, was.
I voted for and believe in Barack Obama for many reasons. He's educated and eloquent - "elite," you would say. And I think it's great. I think he represents -me- and -so- -many- Chicagoans so well. Having established his political career here, I trust that he understands the problems that are plaguing me and people like me. Having gone to Harvard and working hard to get through his college career, I trust that he understands the plight of college students everywhere - that throughout the 4 years of my college career, I saw my grants and aids and scholarships consistently decrease. Coming from a humble home, I trust he understands how it must be to see your parents work harder and longer but make and enjoy less.
Obama understands the ordeals and the motivations that drive a lot of working families - families that have been largely ignored or marginalized by many of the Washington veterans. He gives the thoughts and feelings of so many parents a national audience. What he is telling America is the exact same thing my parents have told me all my life. They work hard to make my life better. To give me the things and the life that they could only dream about. To give me the opportunity to become a better person, a more productive member of society, and a person who through their sweat and blood make them proud. And to best repay their commitment, I can only say I will do that when I am in their place. And this is what us minorities are really about. This is why people from all across the world come to America and this is why they love it here.
This morning, when I woke up, my first instinct was to go online and find "international" stories. I easily found articles on CNN talking about how Obama's victory brought joy and happiness - and a sigh of relief - all across the the globe. I doubt that anyone else could bring about such goodwill and emotion so easily. Obama IS a celebrity. But why is that bad?
All over the news, there's been discussion about what Obama has done for African-Americans across the country. When I was younger, I would often come across a Martin Luther King, Jr. quote. Each time I read his words, I would feel a chill down my spine because his words rang so true, deep, and inspiring to me even though I only considered myself the 3rd person looking in. And oftentimes, while I was...trying to grasp and understand the different socioeconomic conditions of my environment (so to speak), I would often wonder what happened to the movement MLK led? Why is there nobody to continue it? To finish it? Is there no one else besides Jesse Jackson?
In Obama, there is a man who echoes the spirit of MLK. And in that, I feel that the seeds of change have been sowed, and that once again, we can write another chapter in the history books of the future that we can be proud of.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Tina Feylin
Illustration by Francisco Caceres for TIME
Here's a fun picture I found on TIME.com. There was a lot of talk about how 30 Rock star, Tina Fey, has taken over Republican Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin's public persona. This picture really captures that.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Global Spending
Here is an interesting visualization of how different countries spend on items such as clothes, electronics, and recreation.
The things that caught my eye:
- USA spends the most on everything.
- Japan does not spend as much on electronics as you would think.
- Japan spends a lot on alcohol.
- Recreation is expensive!
The things that caught my eye:
- USA spends the most on everything.
- Japan does not spend as much on electronics as you would think.
- Japan spends a lot on alcohol.
- Recreation is expensive!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
You Know What Really Grinds My Gears?
You know what really grinds my gears? When my friends act like bonafide asshats.
Friend: "Hey, guess how much Ioverpaid for this phone?"
(Writer's note: upwards $700)
Me: "Oh let me see it."
Friend: "No, I'm not going to let you see it."
Well fuck you. Seriously. You think you're so cool cause you bought yourself a new phone. Great because I love technology as much as the next guy. But all I want to do is see it, and it's really that hard to let me have me a look at your overpriced phone? Really? Seriously? Go fuck yourself.
Give me one fucking reason why I should drive your cheap ass around town when it's so goddamn hard to let me look at your phone. Give me one fucking reason why I shouldn't toss your ass out in the middle of the street when you make no effort to repay me or show gratitude - not even having a look at your new phone.
Parking downtown - $17 bucks. All I ask for is four fucking dollars from each passenger. Two grown men - one of whom has a paying job, recently switched to a better job; the other one just returning from a 3-week vacation across Asia - "Sorry man, I don't have any cash on me right now. I'll pay you back next time. Oh stop here - we're gonna go play bowling now."
Really? $4? Don't have it? Going to play bowling? How much does a bowling game cost? Around $4? How the flying fuck are you going to brag about how expensive your phone is, when you can't even shell out a few dollars to cover to only partially cover the actual cost of chauffeuring your ass around the city? Fuck both of you, you goddamn pricks.
Now I'm not a money-driven person. That doesn't mean I like spending it, or like to spend it unwisely (occasional indulgences aside). But there's a difference between being cheap and being fair. All I ask is that you be fair. I don't like asking people for money, and sometimes, I'll be the one to pay the difference. But that doesn't mean I am in any way obligated to put up with your bullshit.
Seriously, guys - go fuck yourselves.
Don't get me wrong - on the surface, it's petty. Yes, I admit it. "Oooh he didn't let me look at his new phone." "Ooooh he owes me $4." But like I said before - it's the genuine asshat-ry that REALLY grinds my gears. You can goof around with me, that's fine. Anyone who knows me knows I like to goof around (with the occasional, yet defining explosion). But if you act like a dick to me, then I don't be surprised if I go off on you for being the dillweed that you are.
Friend: "Hey, guess how much I
(Writer's note: upwards $700)
Me: "Oh let me see it."
Friend: "No, I'm not going to let you see it."
Well fuck you. Seriously. You think you're so cool cause you bought yourself a new phone. Great because I love technology as much as the next guy. But all I want to do is see it, and it's really that hard to let me have me a look at your overpriced phone? Really? Seriously? Go fuck yourself.
Give me one fucking reason why I should drive your cheap ass around town when it's so goddamn hard to let me look at your phone. Give me one fucking reason why I shouldn't toss your ass out in the middle of the street when you make no effort to repay me or show gratitude - not even having a look at your new phone.
Parking downtown - $17 bucks. All I ask for is four fucking dollars from each passenger. Two grown men - one of whom has a paying job, recently switched to a better job; the other one just returning from a 3-week vacation across Asia - "Sorry man, I don't have any cash on me right now. I'll pay you back next time. Oh stop here - we're gonna go play bowling now."
Really? $4? Don't have it? Going to play bowling? How much does a bowling game cost? Around $4? How the flying fuck are you going to brag about how expensive your phone is, when you can't even shell out a few dollars to cover to only partially cover the actual cost of chauffeuring your ass around the city? Fuck both of you, you goddamn pricks.
Now I'm not a money-driven person. That doesn't mean I like spending it, or like to spend it unwisely (occasional indulgences aside). But there's a difference between being cheap and being fair. All I ask is that you be fair. I don't like asking people for money, and sometimes, I'll be the one to pay the difference. But that doesn't mean I am in any way obligated to put up with your bullshit.
Seriously, guys - go fuck yourselves.
Don't get me wrong - on the surface, it's petty. Yes, I admit it. "Oooh he didn't let me look at his new phone." "Ooooh he owes me $4." But like I said before - it's the genuine asshat-ry that REALLY grinds my gears. You can goof around with me, that's fine. Anyone who knows me knows I like to goof around (with the occasional, yet defining explosion). But if you act like a dick to me, then I don't be surprised if I go off on you for being the dillweed that you are.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
30 Rock Online Premiere
30 ROCK SEASON 3 EPISODE 1 AVAILABLE ONLINE
You can watch the new season premiere one week before the official television debut. I've been waiting a long time to for season 3. I feel so excited that I just might go buy Season 2 tomorrow.
First and foremost - NBC really needs to work on their website. The shows are in good enough quality, but everything else - the interface and the ads - need retooling. They need to work on synergizing backward overflow.
The first season is starting off real well. It's continuing from last season's storyline more or less seamlessly, although I think that some story elements move faster than I would like, since I think they're pretty creative.
The jokes are still quick and clever and have not lost any of its edge. Best of all, Tina Fey is as adorable as ever. After winning big at the Emmy's and riding high off her Palin fame, she's definitely riding high. I don't really have a sense of where 30 Rock is in terms of rabid fandom (I know shows like Heroes, Lost, Grey's Anatomy, and 24 are very highly regarded in their respective genres, but I don't think comedies don't typically get the same), but I hope this upcoming season will make 30 Rock a household name - if it isn't already.
You can watch the new season premiere one week before the official television debut. I've been waiting a long time to for season 3. I feel so excited that I just might go buy Season 2 tomorrow.
First and foremost - NBC really needs to work on their website. The shows are in good enough quality, but everything else - the interface and the ads - need retooling. They need to work on synergizing backward overflow.
The first season is starting off real well. It's continuing from last season's storyline more or less seamlessly, although I think that some story elements move faster than I would like, since I think they're pretty creative.
The jokes are still quick and clever and have not lost any of its edge. Best of all, Tina Fey is as adorable as ever. After winning big at the Emmy's and riding high off her Palin fame, she's definitely riding high. I don't really have a sense of where 30 Rock is in terms of rabid fandom (I know shows like Heroes, Lost, Grey's Anatomy, and 24 are very highly regarded in their respective genres, but I don't think comedies don't typically get the same), but I hope this upcoming season will make 30 Rock a household name - if it isn't already.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
First Truly Busy Week
As the title of this entry explains - this week has been the first, actually busy week...dare I say..."stressful?"
I say it like that because I don't believe that having work necessarily mean you've got stress. Sometimes, you just have a lot on your plate, but you go about them steadily and git'r'done. Usually, my busy weeks are like that.
With my supervisor gone on Monday, I had to "manage" every little thing going on. At times, it felt like I was wandering around in a dark forest, carefully pacing myself to make sure I wasn't staying in one place too long (lest the wolves jump me by surprise), but also making sure I wasn't rushing myself (lest I go too deep and get lost). I did so much work that day that when I showed up on Tuesday, it immediately felt like Thursday.
And as a result of that, each. and. every. day. afterwards. felt like a neverending Friday. And now it's finally Saturday and I'm still checking my work email.
I can easily see how people, once they get into this daily grind, end up getting consumed by their work. I don't think it's necessarily because of the money. God knows I'm not getting paid by the number of gray hairs I have/am getting/will get. I think it's because it's people's job, it's what they do - that's their profession.
PS. Friday was actually a pretty easy day. My supervisor took off late in the morning, so I got my stuff done and ended up spending most of the afternoon watching videos and reading blogs and schtuff.
I say it like that because I don't believe that having work necessarily mean you've got stress. Sometimes, you just have a lot on your plate, but you go about them steadily and git'r'done. Usually, my busy weeks are like that.
With my supervisor gone on Monday, I had to "manage" every little thing going on. At times, it felt like I was wandering around in a dark forest, carefully pacing myself to make sure I wasn't staying in one place too long (lest the wolves jump me by surprise), but also making sure I wasn't rushing myself (lest I go too deep and get lost). I did so much work that day that when I showed up on Tuesday, it immediately felt like Thursday.
And as a result of that, each. and. every. day. afterwards. felt like a neverending Friday. And now it's finally Saturday and I'm still checking my work email.
I can easily see how people, once they get into this daily grind, end up getting consumed by their work. I don't think it's necessarily because of the money. God knows I'm not getting paid by the number of gray hairs I have/am getting/will get. I think it's because it's people's job, it's what they do - that's their profession.
PS. Friday was actually a pretty easy day. My supervisor took off late in the morning, so I got my stuff done and ended up spending most of the afternoon watching videos and reading blogs and schtuff.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Random Thought #1
For breakfast, I had an energy drink and a bag of Skittles(R).
-That's- how my day went.
-That's- how my day went.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Haha...Interesting...
I saw this entry on Engadget:
SonyEricsson Xperia X1: Unboxed, Played with on video/
Interestingly enough, I already got a chance to play with it when I went to visit Sony on my business trip. =]
SonyEricsson Xperia X1: Unboxed, Played with on video/
Interestingly enough, I already got a chance to play with it when I went to visit Sony on my business trip. =]
Saturday, October 11, 2008
8 Hours at the Airport
For the return flight from RDU, I was stuck at the airport for 8 hours due to limited availability of earlier flights during booking and consistently delayed flights.
The worst part of it was that I left my laptop charger at work, so I was not only very unproductive, I was also very bored. Due to my unproductivity, I had to stay up until 2AM to work on my presentation. I was surprised I wasn't late. But man, this whole week has been a roller coaster ride of only going straight down.
To be fair though, worse things are happening around the world, so I can't complain too much.
Saturday is great.
The worst part of it was that I left my laptop charger at work, so I was not only very unproductive, I was also very bored. Due to my unproductivity, I had to stay up until 2AM to work on my presentation. I was surprised I wasn't late. But man, this whole week has been a roller coaster ride of only going straight down.
To be fair though, worse things are happening around the world, so I can't complain too much.
Saturday is great.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
When It Rains, It Pours
A cliche, I know. And I'm not just referring to the fact that it rained for the better part of the afternoon today. It's just Tuesday, but the week's been pretty shitty so far.
On Sunday night, my mom called at 3AM asking me how to change the channel on the TV. =_=
That wasn't too bad, except the call killed off the last 5% of power I had left in my cell. As a result, my morning alarm did not go off and I overslept by an hour.
Rolling into work an hour late is bad, but rolling into work late with a deflated tire is even worse. During my lunch break, I drove slowly into the nearest gas station and took care of my tire. Fortunately, the tire does not seem to be leaking anymore, but WTF? Why was the air gone? Tires are expensive man...
On top of being nervous the entire day, I also felt icky cuz I didn't shower that morning. Monday = sucky.
On Tuesday (today), I found that my alarm only went off once. It's supposed to go off like 3-4 times! MAYBE it did. But it sure as hell did not wake me up. As a result, I woke up at the time I usually leave the apartment. But fortunately, I was quick about my morning routine and was only 10 minutes late - which isn't even "late" since work starts within a 30-min window.
But my car troubles weren't over. Apparently, the battery in my car key is weak or something and refuses to open the doors. I will have to resort of manual entry, which isn't horrible, but damnit - another thing to take care of?
Factor in the fact that I have my official 3-month presentation to take care at the end of the week, and barely any time to "practice" for it due to travel this week - and it'll be a pretty rough week.
Even with all the shittiness, I don't even think my life is too shitty. I don't usually complain about the things life throws at me, but this had a different flavor to it. Dissatisfaction level = 7/10.
PS - To top off my the shittiness of my real life, my virtual life is also taking a hit. In Travian, an enemy alliance is most likely going to wipe out my original (thus my most sentimental) village. Lame. =[
On Sunday night, my mom called at 3AM asking me how to change the channel on the TV. =_=
That wasn't too bad, except the call killed off the last 5% of power I had left in my cell. As a result, my morning alarm did not go off and I overslept by an hour.
Rolling into work an hour late is bad, but rolling into work late with a deflated tire is even worse. During my lunch break, I drove slowly into the nearest gas station and took care of my tire. Fortunately, the tire does not seem to be leaking anymore, but WTF? Why was the air gone? Tires are expensive man...
On top of being nervous the entire day, I also felt icky cuz I didn't shower that morning. Monday = sucky.
On Tuesday (today), I found that my alarm only went off once. It's supposed to go off like 3-4 times! MAYBE it did. But it sure as hell did not wake me up. As a result, I woke up at the time I usually leave the apartment. But fortunately, I was quick about my morning routine and was only 10 minutes late - which isn't even "late" since work starts within a 30-min window.
But my car troubles weren't over. Apparently, the battery in my car key is weak or something and refuses to open the doors. I will have to resort of manual entry, which isn't horrible, but damnit - another thing to take care of?
Factor in the fact that I have my official 3-month presentation to take care at the end of the week, and barely any time to "practice" for it due to travel this week - and it'll be a pretty rough week.
Even with all the shittiness, I don't even think my life is too shitty. I don't usually complain about the things life throws at me, but this had a different flavor to it. Dissatisfaction level = 7/10.
PS - To top off my the shittiness of my real life, my virtual life is also taking a hit. In Travian, an enemy alliance is most likely going to wipe out my original (thus my most sentimental) village. Lame. =[
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Top 5 Anime Gunfights
I spent a good portion of the day reconnecting with my inner otaku, and I found this little gem:
This video is this person's Top 5 Anime Gunfights. The order here is:
5. Hanai vs. Harima [School Rumble]
4. Revy vs. Luak's Gang [Black Lagoon]
3. Spike vs. Vicious [Cowboy Bebop]
2. Alucard vs. Alhambra [Hellsing]
1. Ryushuna vs. Setsuna [Grenadier]
My point here isn't to dis/agree with his/her choices, nor am I here to spaz about how awesome the gunfights are, etc. The point of this entry is really to attest to the quality of each respective series.
For starters, at #5, School Rumble isn't even an action anime [not really, anyways]. It's a parody anime whose encompassing theme is about young students in a comedic web of romantic crushes that never get anywhere. The fact that a gunfight that only exists metaphorically in the minds of 2 confused boys is on this top 5 list only highlights the "jack-of-all-trades" quality of this show.
#4. Black Lagoon is to anime what Crank is to movies. 90% of the this series is adrenaline-pumping pistol/rifle/bazooka/missile/grenade/chainsaw/knives/katana/you-name-it action. This particular scene takes place relatively early, and even to this day, I remember I "rewound" the video to watch it again.
#3. To be honest, Cowboy Bebop never made much of an impact on me as a whole. It's a pity though, because it is very highly regarded. However, after watching the scene in the video, it was a pretty damn good fight - minus the distracting music.
#2. This is the only gunfight that I hadn't seen. I think this was from the newer, remade Hellsing OVAs - the ones that take so long to release [every 6-12 months] that I easily forget to keep up. Hellsing features the gunslinging vampire, Alucard, and his awesome sidekick Seras Victoria, in their ongoing fight to kill the monsters created by Neo-Nazis, all while stepping on the toes of super-elite Catholic and Protestant warrior-priests. So...what's not to like?
#1. This was a MAJOR surprise, and the one that convinced me to write this entry. Grenadier was one of the animes that spurred my addiction to anime a few years back. On the surface, it looks like another superficial anime that features a blonde, big-boobed bimbo on a generic adventure. To be perfectly honest - it is. But that's really not telling the whole [cheesy] story. Underneath, there's actually a pretty deep and prevalent theme of peace [preaching peace in a wild west-inspired gunslinging show = cheesy story] - but as this person's top 5 gunfight video suggests - it also has a ton of intense and unique gunfighting scenes with a lot of comedy that makes this series really enjoyable [for guys?].
This video is this person's Top 5 Anime Gunfights. The order here is:
5. Hanai vs. Harima [School Rumble]
4. Revy vs. Luak's Gang [Black Lagoon]
3. Spike vs. Vicious [Cowboy Bebop]
2. Alucard vs. Alhambra [Hellsing]
1. Ryushuna vs. Setsuna [Grenadier]
My point here isn't to dis/agree with his/her choices, nor am I here to spaz about how awesome the gunfights are, etc. The point of this entry is really to attest to the quality of each respective series.
For starters, at #5, School Rumble isn't even an action anime [not really, anyways]. It's a parody anime whose encompassing theme is about young students in a comedic web of romantic crushes that never get anywhere. The fact that a gunfight that only exists metaphorically in the minds of 2 confused boys is on this top 5 list only highlights the "jack-of-all-trades" quality of this show.
#4. Black Lagoon is to anime what Crank is to movies. 90% of the this series is adrenaline-pumping pistol/rifle/bazooka/missile/grenade/chainsaw/knives/katana/you-name-it action. This particular scene takes place relatively early, and even to this day, I remember I "rewound" the video to watch it again.
#3. To be honest, Cowboy Bebop never made much of an impact on me as a whole. It's a pity though, because it is very highly regarded. However, after watching the scene in the video, it was a pretty damn good fight - minus the distracting music.
#2. This is the only gunfight that I hadn't seen. I think this was from the newer, remade Hellsing OVAs - the ones that take so long to release [every 6-12 months] that I easily forget to keep up. Hellsing features the gunslinging vampire, Alucard, and his awesome sidekick Seras Victoria, in their ongoing fight to kill the monsters created by Neo-Nazis, all while stepping on the toes of super-elite Catholic and Protestant warrior-priests. So...what's not to like?
#1. This was a MAJOR surprise, and the one that convinced me to write this entry. Grenadier was one of the animes that spurred my addiction to anime a few years back. On the surface, it looks like another superficial anime that features a blonde, big-boobed bimbo on a generic adventure. To be perfectly honest - it is. But that's really not telling the whole [cheesy] story. Underneath, there's actually a pretty deep and prevalent theme of peace [preaching peace in a wild west-inspired gunslinging show = cheesy story] - but as this person's top 5 gunfight video suggests - it also has a ton of intense and unique gunfighting scenes with a lot of comedy that makes this series really enjoyable [for guys?].
Blog Revision Log
From this point on, I'm creating a "Tina Fey" category, and a "Random Thought" category.
Tina Fey gets her own category because she deserves it.
The Random Thought category will be done similar to how The Truth About Cars does their "___ Death Watch #" series. It has occurred to me that throughout the day, I have random thoughts, insights, and ideas that could very well be worth something. And thus, it is in my best interest to write them down.
Cheers!
Tina Fey gets her own category because she deserves it.
The Random Thought category will be done similar to how The Truth About Cars does their "___ Death Watch #" series. It has occurred to me that throughout the day, I have random thoughts, insights, and ideas that could very well be worth something. And thus, it is in my best interest to write them down.
Cheers!
Bailout WTF?
I am stunned that Congress did not pass a $700 billion "rescue" bill because that was the "will of the American people" - because the people did not want their money to bail out Wall Street - yet they manage to pass the even BIGGER $850 billion bill.
I always knew that a bailout bill (I refuse to call it a rescue bill just because John McCain thinks so) would be passed, but I always thought it'd be for less than $700b, just because it's been receiving so much flack.
But to give out 20% MORE than they originally asked - money that we don't even have, mind you - is just another example of how out-of-touch politicians really are.
Holy shit.
I always knew that a bailout bill (I refuse to call it a rescue bill just because John McCain thinks so) would be passed, but I always thought it'd be for less than $700b, just because it's been receiving so much flack.
But to give out 20% MORE than they originally asked - money that we don't even have, mind you - is just another example of how out-of-touch politicians really are.
Holy shit.
Friday, September 26, 2008
What I Do For a Living
It's been almost 3 months since I've started my job - and according to company policy, I have to prepare for my 3-month evaluation presentation. By now, I have a good enough grasp to describe what I do.
My company is a Taiwan-based manufacturing company, whose core competencies are in metal stamping and decoration and plastic injection molding for consumer electronics, from mobile phones to digital cameras. Recently, we have also been branching into the medical industry.
My office is based outside Chicago, where we work mainly with Motorola and their engineering locations. We sometimes get to see preliminary design ideas for their phones before anyone else does, and thus get to see the final design before they're released to market. This is definitely one of the most fun parts of my job - when I open up electronics blogs like Engadget and Gizmodo, and see projects that my office gets to work on. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten a chance to see any of my own yet since my projects aren't far along enough.
My job is actually focused on communication - communication between the US customer and the Chinese/Taiwanese engineers/staff. This is done primarily through email, so I would say 80% of my work is email, and the remaining 20% is reliant on the internet in some way, shape, or form.
So far, I've only had to go on 1 business trip - to visit a medical devices company out on the East coast. Another one is planned in the next month to visit a big mobile phones company in the Southeast part of the US. My boss and supervisor have to travel much much more, visiting cities like Seattle, San Francisco, and Cupertino, and countries like China and Taiwan - sometimes weeks at a time.
Pretty crazy. This is a competitive business, but there's a lot of exciting stuff to see and learn. Fortunately, I'm along for the ride and only watching from the backseat.
My company is a Taiwan-based manufacturing company, whose core competencies are in metal stamping and decoration and plastic injection molding for consumer electronics, from mobile phones to digital cameras. Recently, we have also been branching into the medical industry.
My office is based outside Chicago, where we work mainly with Motorola and their engineering locations. We sometimes get to see preliminary design ideas for their phones before anyone else does, and thus get to see the final design before they're released to market. This is definitely one of the most fun parts of my job - when I open up electronics blogs like Engadget and Gizmodo, and see projects that my office gets to work on. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten a chance to see any of my own yet since my projects aren't far along enough.
My job is actually focused on communication - communication between the US customer and the Chinese/Taiwanese engineers/staff. This is done primarily through email, so I would say 80% of my work is email, and the remaining 20% is reliant on the internet in some way, shape, or form.
So far, I've only had to go on 1 business trip - to visit a medical devices company out on the East coast. Another one is planned in the next month to visit a big mobile phones company in the Southeast part of the US. My boss and supervisor have to travel much much more, visiting cities like Seattle, San Francisco, and Cupertino, and countries like China and Taiwan - sometimes weeks at a time.
Pretty crazy. This is a competitive business, but there's a lot of exciting stuff to see and learn. Fortunately, I'm along for the ride and only watching from the backseat.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
30 Rock Takes Gold at Emmys!
Okay, so the Emmys don't do gold medals, but still - CONGRATULATIONS TO 30 ROCK for winning Outstanding Comedy Series. Congratulations to Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin for winning Lead Actress and Actor in Comedy Series.
Tina Fey is truly a great and talented writer and actress. I wish her the best of success. She is one of the bright stars in Hollywood, with her humor, smarts, and looks. Keep up the great work, everybody! I'm pulling for ya!
Tina Fey is truly a great and talented writer and actress. I wish her the best of success. She is one of the bright stars in Hollywood, with her humor, smarts, and looks. Keep up the great work, everybody! I'm pulling for ya!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
New Apartment
I moved into my new apartment earlier this month. It's going well - my roommates are cool, the area's good, the rent's cheap, and the place is nice. My commute still isn't as good as I hoped, so I think for now, I'm in the "loss" zone. But I'm not fretting or anything - s'all good.
These past 2 weeks, I'm coming home to Chicago for the weekends, where I get to hang out with my friends and family - and eat some real food. The first week, my dinner consisted of oatmeal, cereal, and apple sauce. Hahaha - awesome.
I'm going to have to learn how to cook or find a girlfriend - both of which are mendoukusai. But one plus is that I've gotten not-bad with cleaning. Even still, I foresee many more "tortilla chips and salsa" nights.
A couple of days ago, I played frisbee, tennis, and racquetball with my roommates + their friends. I ended up getting 4 mosquito bites so that'll teach me to go outside. Haha j/k...I played some baseball and football with my friends today too - felt great. I'm pretty tired right now, but I've still got a long night of entertainment ahead of me...so I'm gonna log.
I should probably write an entry on work, games, politics, and the economy in the future. In the meantime, stay classy, Chicago.
These past 2 weeks, I'm coming home to Chicago for the weekends, where I get to hang out with my friends and family - and eat some real food. The first week, my dinner consisted of oatmeal, cereal, and apple sauce. Hahaha - awesome.
I'm going to have to learn how to cook or find a girlfriend - both of which are mendoukusai. But one plus is that I've gotten not-bad with cleaning. Even still, I foresee many more "tortilla chips and salsa" nights.
A couple of days ago, I played frisbee, tennis, and racquetball with my roommates + their friends. I ended up getting 4 mosquito bites so that'll teach me to go outside. Haha j/k...I played some baseball and football with my friends today too - felt great. I'm pretty tired right now, but I've still got a long night of entertainment ahead of me...so I'm gonna log.
I should probably write an entry on work, games, politics, and the economy in the future. In the meantime, stay classy, Chicago.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Heroes
I was late on the bandwagon, but I started watching season 1 on like Sunday and just finished last night.
If it could be renamed, it would've been called, "X-Men: The Origin: The TV Series" or something. The premise is basically some people who have unique abilities that make them "special (mutants!)."
Shows like that are really interesting, plus when they mix in a good plot with deep character development, it really draws you in immediately. I started watching because I was bored, but after the first episode, I was totally hooked. I rewatched the beginning twice already because I was watching it with different people, and I got pretty much the same response.
Another interesting tidbit of information is that I did not realize each episode was "1-hour" long (more like 42 minutes) until the 10th episode. I just thought it was so well done that they were able to cover a lot of story deeply in a short amount of time. Talk about bias...haha.
If it could be renamed, it would've been called, "X-Men: The Origin: The TV Series" or something. The premise is basically some people who have unique abilities that make them "special (mutants!)."
Shows like that are really interesting, plus when they mix in a good plot with deep character development, it really draws you in immediately. I started watching because I was bored, but after the first episode, I was totally hooked. I rewatched the beginning twice already because I was watching it with different people, and I got pretty much the same response.
Another interesting tidbit of information is that I did not realize each episode was "1-hour" long (more like 42 minutes) until the 10th episode. I just thought it was so well done that they were able to cover a lot of story deeply in a short amount of time. Talk about bias...haha.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
"Red Cliff" aka "Dynasty Warriros: The Movie"
Being the Three Kingdoms enthusiast that I am, I'm glad to report that I finally watched the new Red Cliff movie, "directed by John Woo and stars Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Zhang Fengyi, Chang Chen, Hu Jun, Lin Chi-ling and Zhao Wei," three of whom I actually knew about prior to watching the film. This movie review is going to be from the perspective of someone who's a big fan of the history behind Three Kingdoms era, and have read and studied it during my own free time, as well as played the Koei Dynasty Warriors and Romance of the Three Kingdom series.
For starters, I agree with the review summary of LoveHKFilm.com, saying that movie is "a notch less than the stunning masterpiece everyone hoped for." The movie had quite a bit of hype during its production and there's a slight feeling of disappointment that lingers in the back of your mind. Movies based on the Three Kingdoms, or historical pictures in general, tend to be grandiose and epic in scale. RC is no different, but there is more focus on the "individual," especially Tony Leung's Zhou Yu and Takeshi Kaneshiro's Zhuge Liang.
The individuals also play a very large role during the battle scenes, where it's really all about 1 general at a time. If you had 10 Jet Lis, how do you give all of them enough camera time? The obvious answer is to give each of them 1/10 of the time you'd give 1 Jet Li. *shrug* In that sense, there are whole stretches of just Dynasty Warriors-style combat. One man vs One army.
The special effects and battle scenes are done pretty well, even if it is over-the-top. The Eight-Array Maze devised by Zhuge Liang is one of the his greatest early military accomplishments, and John Woo does a good job translating it on-screen. It's a difficult thing to do, considering that I don't think anyone, to this day, knows what the Eight-Array Maze is exactly...Haha.
I do have a handful of dissatisfactions with the movie, however. For one, I felt there were some unnecessary scenes as well as a few scenes that dragged longer than it should have. They provided no importance in "the grand scheme of things" and existed only to remind tell a more long-winded version of the story.
Also, coming from someone who knows the actual story better than most others, I am slightly irritated by some of the things that were neglected in the movie. I say 'slightly' because I also know that given the direction, there would be no real good way to integrate it.
Overall, the movie was solid and well-done, with some good performances from the leads. The things that take away from the experience are the extra scenes that do little to move the story and only slightly develop the [unimportant?] characters.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
First Business Trip
Last Friday, my supervisor asked me if I was open to flying out to Boston on Monday. Yes, a whopping 1 business-day notice! Of course, I really had no reason to say no, so I went.
Man, I always knew that companies shelled out big money for their employees to go on business trips, but even me?! I only started for 3 weeks and I think the total for my expenses was about $800.
I didn't get to go for the heck of it though. One of the customers that I'll be working with is based out there, so I got to meet them and talk with them about the project. These guys make an awesome disposable surgical device that can move all sorts of ways inside your body. So cool.
Anyways, I was accommodated pretty darn well (I got 2 beds for some reason!) so I really can't complain.
On the way there, I had middle seat on the plane. You know that "worst-case scenario" story of the fat, sweaty, smelly guy next to you while you're in the middle seat? That was me. Fortunately, he was much bigger than me so I slotted in pretty well, strangely enough. Fate wasn't all that cruel though. The cutest girl on the plane sat next to me on my left. That never happens!
Boston seems like an an interesting place, but I didn't get to sightsee or anything, which is pretty typical from what I hear. Either way, it was sort of a 1-day thing. If SonyEricsson hadn't laid off 2000 workers, I'd probably be in NC right now too. I think I'm probably gonna have to leave my suitcase out. I'm headed back there in less than a month. *phew
Man, I always knew that companies shelled out big money for their employees to go on business trips, but even me?! I only started for 3 weeks and I think the total for my expenses was about $800.
I didn't get to go for the heck of it though. One of the customers that I'll be working with is based out there, so I got to meet them and talk with them about the project. These guys make an awesome disposable surgical device that can move all sorts of ways inside your body. So cool.
Anyways, I was accommodated pretty darn well (I got 2 beds for some reason!) so I really can't complain.
On the way there, I had middle seat on the plane. You know that "worst-case scenario" story of the fat, sweaty, smelly guy next to you while you're in the middle seat? That was me. Fortunately, he was much bigger than me so I slotted in pretty well, strangely enough. Fate wasn't all that cruel though. The cutest girl on the plane sat next to me on my left. That never happens!
Boston seems like an an interesting place, but I didn't get to sightsee or anything, which is pretty typical from what I hear. Either way, it was sort of a 1-day thing. If SonyEricsson hadn't laid off 2000 workers, I'd probably be in NC right now too. I think I'm probably gonna have to leave my suitcase out. I'm headed back there in less than a month. *phew
Friday, July 11, 2008
HandMC
Two weeks ago, it was announced that Maaki, the lead singer of HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR (one of my favorite Japanese bands), will be leaving the group by the end of the year! Reason being because she's marrying a man almost 30 years her senior, so somehow, she has to quit her job. ヽ(ｏ`皿′ｏ)ﾉ
I'm disappointed to find out about this news, because I really like her vocals, which is a defining point for any band. HandMC will be auditioning for a new member, but it just won't be the same. However, to be fair, I'm sure I'll "get used to it."
But at least they're still working to release something for their fans before she moves on!
To show my support during this period of transition, I've been promoting their latest single, Hot Limit, on facebook. Below is a video, which is a homage to TM Revolution's Hot Limit video from 1998. TMR even makes a cameo appearance in the video!
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Big Update
Phew - quite a few things have happened that I guess I should write on my blog.
#1. Believe it or not, I found a job! I actually got it about 3 weeks ago, but decided to keep it on the DL. This company is a Taiwanese manufacturer that specializes in plastic injected and metal stamping parts for cellular phones. The position requires me to communicate with the "customer" and the plants in Taiwan and China. It's awesome because these "customers" include many familiar names!
Interestingly enough, proficiency in Mandarin is not required. Once things get into full swing, however, I will be required to do traveling. It's not a deal breaker, but it's supposedly quite stressful. I think I deal with stress pretty well, plus I am fairly good at adaptation anyhow.
The big thing I'm most "worried" about is the drive to work. Taking public transportation isn't entirely out of the question, but traveling might be required during regular work hours, although the boss-lady says I can take her car if needed. Weird, but cool.
The pay isn't spectacular, the drive is pretty long, and the benefits are pretty basic. But even with all of these things, I still accepted the position. I did it because I believe in the future of Asia, I believe in traveling for work, and I believe in the consumer electronics industry. During my job search, I found that it is surprisingly difficult to find this sort of combination. However, I think I was fortunate enough to find it.
#2. Last weekend, I went on a roadtrip with a few friends to Toronto, Ontario, Canada! The drive was long and I was sick throughout the trip, but it was so much fun! We stopped at London, Ontario. Then to Niagara Falls. Then to Toronto.
In Toronto, my first sight upon waking up was seeing a homeless man urinate in public, on this restaurant called "Ho Lee Chow." I got to see his pee-pee and everything. It was such a disgusting sight! Hahaha...priceless. We got to walk around downtown Toronto and go through a few landmarks and locales. We spent a lot of time [mostly window] shopping and then we went to the suburbs to visit Chinatown, because that's what we do, haha!
The trip was great - we had a lot of fun, ate some great food, spent a lot of money, and coughed a lot...yea. Haha.
#3. Last night, somebody broke into my garage! WTF?! They managed to break in, but they didn't steal anything and didn't damage any of the cars! WTF?!
I filed a popo report, took pics and everything. Right now, I'm waiting for my dad to get home with the new supplies so we can fix the thing. Friggin' thieves. At least the baby's fine. I washed her today too! *hugz*
#4. This next coming week is going to be a bit stressful though. I've got to go to the restaurant these next few days. Tomorrow's a retirement party and my mom wants all the help she can get. The day after, I'm supposed to help move this ginormous 70+" HDTV that's been given to us as a gift - because the guy's getting a bigger and better TV. No complaints here! And on Sunday, there's the annual street fair that's going on. After a 2-day break, I have to start my job!
#1. Believe it or not, I found a job! I actually got it about 3 weeks ago, but decided to keep it on the DL. This company is a Taiwanese manufacturer that specializes in plastic injected and metal stamping parts for cellular phones. The position requires me to communicate with the "customer" and the plants in Taiwan and China. It's awesome because these "customers" include many familiar names!
Interestingly enough, proficiency in Mandarin is not required. Once things get into full swing, however, I will be required to do traveling. It's not a deal breaker, but it's supposedly quite stressful. I think I deal with stress pretty well, plus I am fairly good at adaptation anyhow.
The big thing I'm most "worried" about is the drive to work. Taking public transportation isn't entirely out of the question, but traveling might be required during regular work hours, although the boss-lady says I can take her car if needed. Weird, but cool.
The pay isn't spectacular, the drive is pretty long, and the benefits are pretty basic. But even with all of these things, I still accepted the position. I did it because I believe in the future of Asia, I believe in traveling for work, and I believe in the consumer electronics industry. During my job search, I found that it is surprisingly difficult to find this sort of combination. However, I think I was fortunate enough to find it.
#2. Last weekend, I went on a roadtrip with a few friends to Toronto, Ontario, Canada! The drive was long and I was sick throughout the trip, but it was so much fun! We stopped at London, Ontario. Then to Niagara Falls. Then to Toronto.
In Toronto, my first sight upon waking up was seeing a homeless man urinate in public, on this restaurant called "Ho Lee Chow." I got to see his pee-pee and everything. It was such a disgusting sight! Hahaha...priceless. We got to walk around downtown Toronto and go through a few landmarks and locales. We spent a lot of time [mostly window] shopping and then we went to the suburbs to visit Chinatown, because that's what we do, haha!
The trip was great - we had a lot of fun, ate some great food, spent a lot of money, and coughed a lot...yea. Haha.
#3. Last night, somebody broke into my garage! WTF?! They managed to break in, but they didn't steal anything and didn't damage any of the cars! WTF?!
I filed a popo report, took pics and everything. Right now, I'm waiting for my dad to get home with the new supplies so we can fix the thing. Friggin' thieves. At least the baby's fine. I washed her today too! *hugz*
#4. This next coming week is going to be a bit stressful though. I've got to go to the restaurant these next few days. Tomorrow's a retirement party and my mom wants all the help she can get. The day after, I'm supposed to help move this ginormous 70+" HDTV that's been given to us as a gift - because the guy's getting a bigger and better TV. No complaints here! And on Sunday, there's the annual street fair that's going on. After a 2-day break, I have to start my job!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Kidou Senshi Mobile Suit Gundam 00
It's been a long time since I've felt like this. There's always a sense of sadness and void whenever I finish a GREAT anime. I just finished watching the 25-episode series, Gundam 00 - and seriously, I'm like all shook up right now. My heart is still in shock, my mind is scrambling for answers, and my body is still feeling gross for not having showered today. You know when the characters scream, "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING OOOOOON?!" It's kinda like that.
The story is of a divided world engaged in heavy fighting. A secret organization called Celestial Being, armed with 4 Gundams, begin "armed intervention" - to "eradicate war from the world through force." They have a noble cause, but draw the ire of all of Earth's military groups.
The story starts off a bit far-fetched and similar Gundam Wing. I was surprised to find that Wikipedia agreed with me on this as well, haha. But after you get used to it and start to get a grasp of the characters, you (read: I) get really into it. The story seriously picks up after the midway point. This can be shown by the fact that I just watched the last 8-9 episodes today when i started 5 days ago.
In the words of Griz from 30 Rock, "It's like a rollercoaster ride of emotions in here." And what a ride! What really sucks though is that I can't even say I'm satisfied. The finale was intense, don't get me wrong. But...why did they turn out like this for everyone?!
There's no way I can fully restrain myself from telling spoilers, so if you plan to watch it stop now.
SPOILER ALERT
1. First and foremost, the characters (and young lovers), Saji and Louise (girl). I thought that they were so irrelevant. And indeed, they still were up until the end. But their story is shown more as the innocent civilian who is forced to live through, and survive, the "war" with the Gundams. Louise is an annoying girl who comes from an affluent family. She's a very needy girl who pushes Saji around, but I admit they make a pretty fun couple.
As the story progresses, Louise leaves for home to attend a family wedding. During the wedding, an enemy Gundam opens fire on the ceremony on a whim - killing the whole family and everyone in attendance, except for Louise (go figure). Upon hearing the news, Saji flies to Louise, who is hospitalized. Saji remembers that Louise once asked him to buy her an expensive ring, which Saji could not afford - but worked his ass off to buy it and bring it to her. At the hospital, Louise tells Saji, "The ring is so beautiful, but I cannot wear it." and starts to cry. When Saji asks why not, Louise reveals to him that her left hand has been blown off as a result of the attack.
After several more heart-wrenching scenes, Louise tells Saji to return to home and go back to school. It was Saji's dream to work in space and that he should work towards that dream for the both of them. Saji reluctantly returns. In the epilogue, it is revealed that Saji does indeed end up working in space, but also that Louise stopped keeping in contact with Saji. Her story is not known, but she is shown later with one of the surviving Gundam pilots. Their love story is very sad indeed.
2. The "relationship" between the Gundam pilot Lockon (guy) and Felt (girl) is one of those...unspoken loves...the would've could'ves that never were because...Lockon dies in battle. With the intention of avenging his family, who died in a terrorist attack in Europe, Lockon gives chase to his target (who was responsible for his family's death).
Lockon, who specializes in sniping and recently lost his sniping eye in a previous battle, is outgunned but puts up an outstanding fight. After his Gundam is blown up, he sends his robotic companion, Haro, to return to the mothership with the Gundam remains. Meanwhile, Lockon decides to take out the enemy mobile suit without having one himself, and with an amazing display of resourcefulness, severely damages his enemy, forcing him to retreat. However, Lockon dies in the ensuing explosions as a result.
Meanwhile, everyone on the mothership receives transmission that Lockon's mobile suit is returning. For a moment, they think that everyone is safe, not knowing that Lockon is not inside. However, Haro begins transmission, saying only, "Lockon! Lockon! Lockon!" Knowing something was amiss, everyone realizes that Lockon has died, being the first of the pilots to die. Lockon was my favorite pilot, too.
3. Another Gundam pilot, Allelujah (peaceful), with split personality Hallelujah (violent), was created to be a "supersoldier" on earth. As a result, he ends up with an alter ego. (You can tell who is who by the way his hair is parted.) As a kid, Hallelujah took over and goes on a murder spree at the facility he was created in, and is rejected as a failed experiment.
Throughout the series, Allelujah often engages in battle with another supersoldier just like him by the codename Soma. Whenever he comes into contact with her, however, Hallelujah appears. The two personalities often fight with each other, but in the finale, they both come to terms and agree that they must fight together to live. In a final display of cooperation, H/Allelujah throws his hair back so that you cannot tell who is who anymore. They end up "defeating" his supersoldier rival, but also finds out that Soma is in fact someone from his past, but is never revealed who exactly.
Badly injured and floating in space, Hallelujah tells Allelujah, in Full Metal Alchemist-fashion, "I'm going first." It is unclear what happens to Allelujah, but it appears as though he survives.
4. There's a lot more, but it would be too difficult to tell all the backstory. Plus I'm now put at ease, having written all of that. Phew. Great anime...great anime. *salute*
Mission Incomplete! Get ready for season 2 in Oct 2008!
The story is of a divided world engaged in heavy fighting. A secret organization called Celestial Being, armed with 4 Gundams, begin "armed intervention" - to "eradicate war from the world through force." They have a noble cause, but draw the ire of all of Earth's military groups.
The story starts off a bit far-fetched and similar Gundam Wing. I was surprised to find that Wikipedia agreed with me on this as well, haha. But after you get used to it and start to get a grasp of the characters, you (read: I) get really into it. The story seriously picks up after the midway point. This can be shown by the fact that I just watched the last 8-9 episodes today when i started 5 days ago.
In the words of Griz from 30 Rock, "It's like a rollercoaster ride of emotions in here." And what a ride! What really sucks though is that I can't even say I'm satisfied. The finale was intense, don't get me wrong. But...why did they turn out like this for everyone?!
There's no way I can fully restrain myself from telling spoilers, so if you plan to watch it stop now.
SPOILER ALERT
1. First and foremost, the characters (and young lovers), Saji and Louise (girl). I thought that they were so irrelevant. And indeed, they still were up until the end. But their story is shown more as the innocent civilian who is forced to live through, and survive, the "war" with the Gundams. Louise is an annoying girl who comes from an affluent family. She's a very needy girl who pushes Saji around, but I admit they make a pretty fun couple.
As the story progresses, Louise leaves for home to attend a family wedding. During the wedding, an enemy Gundam opens fire on the ceremony on a whim - killing the whole family and everyone in attendance, except for Louise (go figure). Upon hearing the news, Saji flies to Louise, who is hospitalized. Saji remembers that Louise once asked him to buy her an expensive ring, which Saji could not afford - but worked his ass off to buy it and bring it to her. At the hospital, Louise tells Saji, "The ring is so beautiful, but I cannot wear it." and starts to cry. When Saji asks why not, Louise reveals to him that her left hand has been blown off as a result of the attack.
After several more heart-wrenching scenes, Louise tells Saji to return to home and go back to school. It was Saji's dream to work in space and that he should work towards that dream for the both of them. Saji reluctantly returns. In the epilogue, it is revealed that Saji does indeed end up working in space, but also that Louise stopped keeping in contact with Saji. Her story is not known, but she is shown later with one of the surviving Gundam pilots. Their love story is very sad indeed.
2. The "relationship" between the Gundam pilot Lockon (guy) and Felt (girl) is one of those...unspoken loves...the would've could'ves that never were because...Lockon dies in battle. With the intention of avenging his family, who died in a terrorist attack in Europe, Lockon gives chase to his target (who was responsible for his family's death).
Lockon, who specializes in sniping and recently lost his sniping eye in a previous battle, is outgunned but puts up an outstanding fight. After his Gundam is blown up, he sends his robotic companion, Haro, to return to the mothership with the Gundam remains. Meanwhile, Lockon decides to take out the enemy mobile suit without having one himself, and with an amazing display of resourcefulness, severely damages his enemy, forcing him to retreat. However, Lockon dies in the ensuing explosions as a result.
Meanwhile, everyone on the mothership receives transmission that Lockon's mobile suit is returning. For a moment, they think that everyone is safe, not knowing that Lockon is not inside. However, Haro begins transmission, saying only, "Lockon! Lockon! Lockon!" Knowing something was amiss, everyone realizes that Lockon has died, being the first of the pilots to die. Lockon was my favorite pilot, too.
3. Another Gundam pilot, Allelujah (peaceful), with split personality Hallelujah (violent), was created to be a "supersoldier" on earth. As a result, he ends up with an alter ego. (You can tell who is who by the way his hair is parted.) As a kid, Hallelujah took over and goes on a murder spree at the facility he was created in, and is rejected as a failed experiment.
Throughout the series, Allelujah often engages in battle with another supersoldier just like him by the codename Soma. Whenever he comes into contact with her, however, Hallelujah appears. The two personalities often fight with each other, but in the finale, they both come to terms and agree that they must fight together to live. In a final display of cooperation, H/Allelujah throws his hair back so that you cannot tell who is who anymore. They end up "defeating" his supersoldier rival, but also finds out that Soma is in fact someone from his past, but is never revealed who exactly.
Badly injured and floating in space, Hallelujah tells Allelujah, in Full Metal Alchemist-fashion, "I'm going first." It is unclear what happens to Allelujah, but it appears as though he survives.
4. There's a lot more, but it would be too difficult to tell all the backstory. Plus I'm now put at ease, having written all of that. Phew. Great anime...great anime. *salute*
Mission Incomplete! Get ready for season 2 in Oct 2008!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Gintama Rush
It's been a while since I wrote a new post, but I've been busy looking for a job and cleaning my room and all that post-graduation jazz.
But I spent my free time catching up in Gintama. I love Gintama because of its off-the-wall humor - parodies, sarcasm, spontaneity, third-part references, first-party references - I LOVE that kind of comedy!
I finished up season 1 and that was great. Surprisingly, season 2 takes a more serious route, where the first several episodes try to have some sort of touching message. And then they do the abnormally-serious "Benizakura" arc. Having just finished that arc, I must say it was awesome-possum!
The picture above is from one of the fight scenes, where Kagura catches a few bullets that were shot at her while falling through the air before she kicks Matako. The look on her face + intensity of fight scene = WIN.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Good night, Formula
Three years ago, I went to my first Formula class on Monday afternoon, even though I wasn't registered. Two years ago, I changed my major from a general engineer to a mechanical engineer partly because I wanted to be "useful" on Formula. One year ago, I undertook the task, along with my team of course, of building a new car. And less than one week ago, it all came to an end.
People say that Formula takes over your life. While I personally tried to balance my life as best I can - between academia, family, friends, and Formula - there is no question that Formula came to squeeze a little bit of everything else so that it could fit snuggly in the elevator of obligations.
I admit that when I started, I was going in blind and basing things only on hearsay. But after going to competitions, after seeing the car start and end its purpose, I saw the goal that I and many of my teammates were working towards.
Looking back, I think I could have done this for 2 years. Starting out as a 1-hour two years ago, I knew absolutely nothing about suspension. (But after the first meeting, I did learn that suspension systems are frightening beasts.) And even though I can't explicitly list out all the things I did learn this year, I know that I gained a lot from working with Formula. I really want to know how useful I could be if I had one more year.
Never in my life have I worked with people as talented, skilled, and dedicated as those on Formula. They were on a level that I never felt I could reach and on one that I really respect. From them, I draw motivation and I slowly found myself saying, "I bet the Formula guys wouldn't have trouble with this" as a way of pushing myself to do just a little bit more.
A couple days ago, I redid my resume. And I'm proud to say that almost half of it is Formula. Even though we've said good-byes, I know it's not the end. It never is, really. As an alumnus, I now realize the connection that I always hear about. And the Illinois and Illini Motorsports connection will always be there. Because that's my obligation.
People say that Formula takes over your life. While I personally tried to balance my life as best I can - between academia, family, friends, and Formula - there is no question that Formula came to squeeze a little bit of everything else so that it could fit snuggly in the elevator of obligations.
I admit that when I started, I was going in blind and basing things only on hearsay. But after going to competitions, after seeing the car start and end its purpose, I saw the goal that I and many of my teammates were working towards.
Looking back, I think I could have done this for 2 years. Starting out as a 1-hour two years ago, I knew absolutely nothing about suspension. (But after the first meeting, I did learn that suspension systems are frightening beasts.) And even though I can't explicitly list out all the things I did learn this year, I know that I gained a lot from working with Formula. I really want to know how useful I could be if I had one more year.
Never in my life have I worked with people as talented, skilled, and dedicated as those on Formula. They were on a level that I never felt I could reach and on one that I really respect. From them, I draw motivation and I slowly found myself saying, "I bet the Formula guys wouldn't have trouble with this" as a way of pushing myself to do just a little bit more.
A couple days ago, I redid my resume. And I'm proud to say that almost half of it is Formula. Even though we've said good-byes, I know it's not the end. It never is, really. As an alumnus, I now realize the connection that I always hear about. And the Illinois and Illini Motorsports connection will always be there. Because that's my obligation.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Congratulations, My Friends
[Started on 5/8/08]
I just sent off my roommate, as he's moved out for the time being. It is a strange feeling, watching him pack his things. I've seen him do it 3 times already before, but realizing that this is the last time was...
[Continued on 5/10/08]
Sorry, my entry was interrupted last time, but I will continue where I left off.
I guess it wasn't his last time moving out, since he'll still have stuff to move soon. Originally, I was going to write about the sad part of graduating. And, I still am. But I also want to write about the good things.
Without a doubt, I am going to miss this place. But what I'm really going to miss are all of my friends, and not being able to share each others' happiness in this setting. That is without a doubt, my greatest sadness.
I couldn't help but remember the last two times I had to graduate and leave behind all the things that were familiar with me. The first time was STS. I still remember that night, when Daniel and I were walking around Chinatown and we were near this bridge. And I told him about my sadness of leaving my friends behind. What ended up happening was for a while, I really lost touch with many of my friends. But, after a couple years, a good number of us came back together, and I consider them nothing less than brothers to me.
The second time was when I graduated from SICP. I admit that I was sort of a loner in high school. But not in an angry or psychotic or emo way, although I hardly ever cracked a smile. I think it was because I was shy. I felt out of place. I felt alienated. But no matter what, I came out of there with a handful of close friends. But with the exception of 1, I really don't talk to them anymore. But to this day, I really cherish those days. And looking back at it, I remember missing those days too. For some reason, I really miss the times when I used to color these worksheets with my friend and his then-girlfriend in the library for our human anatomy class. Something so simple...meant so much to me. But today, we're all living our own lives. Graduating from HS, I really didn't feel as much sadness from leaving as I felt excitement for starting my college career with my "brothers."
And now, it's coming to an end. No - it's over. We all get caught up with "the end's" and "the last's". And, it's so sad to say that. Because here, in college, I actually feel like I will be leaving a part of myself here, while the rest of me will have dispersed throughout the rest of the country, the rest of the world. And I feel like I'm becoming an empty shell. With no real, no fulfilling purpose or meaning. Of course, I know that is not true at all. But, that's just how much it means to me.
My only wish is that my friends, whether I've known them for a long or short amount of time, will know that I miss them.
BUT
I don't want to only talk about the sad stuff. Because it's unhealthy, and perhaps missing the whole point of graduation.
I remember, when 4 years ago, my 3 friends - then my only friends - first came down to this campus for orientation at ISR. And I remember when we came down again to move into FAR/PAR. And we were ready to embrace our new and exciting lives. Granted, I admit that I wasn't very "exciting" back then, but all I wanted then was to be content. And, as far as I remember, with the exception of my GPA, I was the most content with my life back then.
But that is besides the point. Back then, we had set out to begin our journey to graduate from college. And it warms my heart to know that all of our hard work has culminated to this point. And along the way, I have met many people who have embarked on that same journey.
I know that they have left their image in my being, and I hope that I have left mine in theirs as well. And to all of my friends who have left - please wait for me. And to all of my friends who aren't leaving yet - I will wait for you. And to all of my friends who are leaving - let us walk together.
I just sent off my roommate, as he's moved out for the time being. It is a strange feeling, watching him pack his things. I've seen him do it 3 times already before, but realizing that this is the last time was...
[Continued on 5/10/08]
Sorry, my entry was interrupted last time, but I will continue where I left off.
I guess it wasn't his last time moving out, since he'll still have stuff to move soon. Originally, I was going to write about the sad part of graduating. And, I still am. But I also want to write about the good things.
Without a doubt, I am going to miss this place. But what I'm really going to miss are all of my friends, and not being able to share each others' happiness in this setting. That is without a doubt, my greatest sadness.
I couldn't help but remember the last two times I had to graduate and leave behind all the things that were familiar with me. The first time was STS. I still remember that night, when Daniel and I were walking around Chinatown and we were near this bridge. And I told him about my sadness of leaving my friends behind. What ended up happening was for a while, I really lost touch with many of my friends. But, after a couple years, a good number of us came back together, and I consider them nothing less than brothers to me.
The second time was when I graduated from SICP. I admit that I was sort of a loner in high school. But not in an angry or psychotic or emo way, although I hardly ever cracked a smile. I think it was because I was shy. I felt out of place. I felt alienated. But no matter what, I came out of there with a handful of close friends. But with the exception of 1, I really don't talk to them anymore. But to this day, I really cherish those days. And looking back at it, I remember missing those days too. For some reason, I really miss the times when I used to color these worksheets with my friend and his then-girlfriend in the library for our human anatomy class. Something so simple...meant so much to me. But today, we're all living our own lives. Graduating from HS, I really didn't feel as much sadness from leaving as I felt excitement for starting my college career with my "brothers."
And now, it's coming to an end. No - it's over. We all get caught up with "the end's" and "the last's". And, it's so sad to say that. Because here, in college, I actually feel like I will be leaving a part of myself here, while the rest of me will have dispersed throughout the rest of the country, the rest of the world. And I feel like I'm becoming an empty shell. With no real, no fulfilling purpose or meaning. Of course, I know that is not true at all. But, that's just how much it means to me.
My only wish is that my friends, whether I've known them for a long or short amount of time, will know that I miss them.
BUT
I don't want to only talk about the sad stuff. Because it's unhealthy, and perhaps missing the whole point of graduation.
I remember, when 4 years ago, my 3 friends - then my only friends - first came down to this campus for orientation at ISR. And I remember when we came down again to move into FAR/PAR. And we were ready to embrace our new and exciting lives. Granted, I admit that I wasn't very "exciting" back then, but all I wanted then was to be content. And, as far as I remember, with the exception of my GPA, I was the most content with my life back then.
But that is besides the point. Back then, we had set out to begin our journey to graduate from college. And it warms my heart to know that all of our hard work has culminated to this point. And along the way, I have met many people who have embarked on that same journey.
I know that they have left their image in my being, and I hope that I have left mine in theirs as well. And to all of my friends who have left - please wait for me. And to all of my friends who aren't leaving yet - I will wait for you. And to all of my friends who are leaving - let us walk together.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Iron Man
Yesterday/This morning, a few of my friends and I went to watch the midnight showing of Iron Man.
Personally, I think that the movie was everything I wanted/expected it to be. I can talk about the story or the characters or the Marvel universe, but in my opinion, if you've read the reviews on other superhero movies like Spiderman or X-Men, you wouldn't be hearing anything new from me.
The thing that I feel really sets Iron Man apart from the other Marvel movies is the emphasis it has on the Iron Man suit. The effects and the visuals are awesome and in the words of Kenneth the Page, it "just makes me perspire." The tools that Tony Stark has at his disposal - to die for.
I wish I could describe it better, but I really can't without sounding really nerdy. Sexy-looking machines FTW.
Personally, I think that the movie was everything I wanted/expected it to be. I can talk about the story or the characters or the Marvel universe, but in my opinion, if you've read the reviews on other superhero movies like Spiderman or X-Men, you wouldn't be hearing anything new from me.
The thing that I feel really sets Iron Man apart from the other Marvel movies is the emphasis it has on the Iron Man suit. The effects and the visuals are awesome and in the words of Kenneth the Page, it "just makes me perspire." The tools that Tony Stark has at his disposal - to die for.
I wish I could describe it better, but I really can't without sounding really nerdy. Sexy-looking machines FTW.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
FSAE at VIR
So I missed about a week's worth of classes last week to attend my first ever Formula competition at VIRginia International Raceway.
It was a very exciting and grueling experience. I got about 5-6 hours of sleep each night, but was working under the heat of the Virginian sun for about 12 hours straight.
But it was all worth it though, because when all was said and done, my team had placed 3rd overall - our first podium finish since 1982.
Formula SAE VIR Series - Final Standings
Static Events
- Presentation: 9th
- Cost: 6th
- Design: 5th
Dynamic Events
- Skidpad: 4th
- Acceleration: 3rd
- Autocross: 3rd
- Endurance: 3rd
Overall: 3rd Place!
We placed top 10 in all events, and we know we could have done better if our driver wasn't stuck in 2nd gear due to a chain tensioning problem during the endurance race. We will see the top 2 teams in Detroit, along with several other big players. We shall see who's left standing in a few weeks!
Saturday, April 19, 2008
East Coast Xcape
Haha. I sincerely apologize for using the letter "X" in two consecutive blog titles. It is not helped by the fact that I've been listening to X-Japan a lot recently. I also burned an X-Japan DVD that is playing on my TV right now. Xsssssssss! So good.
Anyways. I took a 3-day trip to the East coast for a job interview earlier this week. It was tons of fun. It started off kind of frustrating, but it ended on a high note.
I first landed in DC and immediately got lost after about 15 minutes of driving (rented a Chrysler 300). I even unintentionally passed by the White House, which I later found out had the Pope visiting on that day too! After about 5 hours (should have been 2.5) and help from some people (you get interesting looks when you ask, "Excuse me, but where am I?"), I finally reached my destination.
There was a small misunderstanding at first, so I was unable to get on the military base at first. But afterwards, I showed the soldier-guard some government issued document, and they let me in. I'm not even joking. I just don't want to get into too much detail because...I dunno...big brother reads my blogs?
The base is an interesting place. During the tour, we got to see drive around, and you know how when you're driving and you have to stop and wait for a train to finish crossing? Well, we had to stop and wait for a jet to finish crossing. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed on the base, but when I had the chance, I drove off-base for a few hours and took a bunch of pictures at the nearby museum and some other locales.
On the last day, I decided to get up early and check out early so I could drive into DC and find parking at a good time. One of my interviewing managers told me that I could find parking between 14th and 15th street, and that's exactly where I parked haha. I walked around DC all by myself among the many other tourists and snapped several pictures around town.
Near the end of my stroll, I was lucky enough to see a family of ducks crossing 15th street. It was quite adorable, but 3 of the ducklings couldn't jump the curb and was stuck in the road. Fortunately, a few other people and I were able to get the ducklings off the street and back to their mother. It was uber-cool.
What's not uber-cool though, is that even though time felt like it stood still when I was there, I came back to be reminded that life goes on and that I still have homework to turn in. Boo.
Anyways. I took a 3-day trip to the East coast for a job interview earlier this week. It was tons of fun. It started off kind of frustrating, but it ended on a high note.
I first landed in DC and immediately got lost after about 15 minutes of driving (rented a Chrysler 300). I even unintentionally passed by the White House, which I later found out had the Pope visiting on that day too! After about 5 hours (should have been 2.5) and help from some people (you get interesting looks when you ask, "Excuse me, but where am I?"), I finally reached my destination.
There was a small misunderstanding at first, so I was unable to get on the military base at first. But afterwards, I showed the soldier-guard some government issued document, and they let me in. I'm not even joking. I just don't want to get into too much detail because...I dunno...big brother reads my blogs?
The base is an interesting place. During the tour, we got to see drive around, and you know how when you're driving and you have to stop and wait for a train to finish crossing? Well, we had to stop and wait for a jet to finish crossing. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed on the base, but when I had the chance, I drove off-base for a few hours and took a bunch of pictures at the nearby museum and some other locales.
On the last day, I decided to get up early and check out early so I could drive into DC and find parking at a good time. One of my interviewing managers told me that I could find parking between 14th and 15th street, and that's exactly where I parked haha. I walked around DC all by myself among the many other tourists and snapped several pictures around town.
Near the end of my stroll, I was lucky enough to see a family of ducks crossing 15th street. It was quite adorable, but 3 of the ducklings couldn't jump the curb and was stuck in the road. Fortunately, a few other people and I were able to get the ducklings off the street and back to their mother. It was uber-cool.
What's not uber-cool though, is that even though time felt like it stood still when I was there, I came back to be reminded that life goes on and that I still have homework to turn in. Boo.
Monday, April 14, 2008
X-amination
I took the FE exam on Saturday morning. It was a mentally and physically grueling session, but I got through it (I think).
The FE exam is the Fundamentals of Engineering exam, which lasts for a grand total of eight (8) hours. 4 hours in the morning, and 4 in the afternoon, after lunch. I woke up at 5AM (since it starts at 7), armed with two bottles of Rockstar and a calculator the non-engineers use (stupid rules).
120 questions in first 4 hours. 60 questions in last 4 hours. I made the error of taking it easy for the first 4 hours (I mean, we got 4 frickin' hours), but I was too slow, and was forced to randomly guess like 10 answers. I got the hang of it in the last 4 hours though, I think. I learned that the way to go is not necessarily to find the right answer, but to immediately pick out the wrong answers.
The pass rate for this exam is 95% for engineers from my college. So...I wasn't sure if I should have been more or less worried (I don't want to be in the bottom 5%, that's for sure). But I will find out in about 2 or 3 months whether I pass or not.
But, regardless, I'm going to try to stay HIV-positive. (South Park, anyone?)
========================================================
And of course, I made sure I rewarded myself with some "relaxation" time, characterized by my not doing anything productive for myself, but for other people. Hah
The FE exam is the Fundamentals of Engineering exam, which lasts for a grand total of eight (8) hours. 4 hours in the morning, and 4 in the afternoon, after lunch. I woke up at 5AM (since it starts at 7), armed with two bottles of Rockstar and a calculator the non-engineers use (stupid rules).
120 questions in first 4 hours. 60 questions in last 4 hours. I made the error of taking it easy for the first 4 hours (I mean, we got 4 frickin' hours), but I was too slow, and was forced to randomly guess like 10 answers. I got the hang of it in the last 4 hours though, I think. I learned that the way to go is not necessarily to find the right answer, but to immediately pick out the wrong answers.
The pass rate for this exam is 95% for engineers from my college. So...I wasn't sure if I should have been more or less worried (I don't want to be in the bottom 5%, that's for sure). But I will find out in about 2 or 3 months whether I pass or not.
But, regardless, I'm going to try to stay HIV-positive. (South Park, anyone?)
========================================================
And of course, I made sure I rewarded myself with some "relaxation" time, characterized by my not doing anything productive for myself, but for other people. Hah
Friday, April 11, 2008
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
I think it's kind of funny that even though I've been "very busy" this past week, I'm still able to put in about 3-4 hours of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII every night. And really - I AM busy. I guess there's just 3 hours of rest in between busy-streaks.
Needless to say, I am almost done with CC. The game was actually shorter than I expected, but it's still longer than God of War (40 bucks, 6 hours of gameplay).
I am very satisfied with the game so far. At first, I had a little bit of doubt, wondering how they're going to "rehash" this. I never thought it would be a bad game. I just wasn't sure if the original FFVII story would be kept intact. And now that I'm about 90% through with the story, I'm happy to report that it is.
AND, even though the original VII story did not have Crisis Core in mind, I REALLY like how they developed the characters. The relationship between Zack and Aeris - truly a masterpiece. Before I knew Zack, I always had this, "Who the heck is this guy?" attitude towards him. And I always thought, "Aeris/Aerith is the one for Cloud!" But CC really changed my mind. Aerith's heart has been with Zack from the very beginning, and vice-versa. And nothing should change that. But...it's just so sad.
And the later development of camaraderie between Zack and Cloud...it really puts things into perspective for me, knowing that Cloud will go on with severe amnesia, thinking he was Zack. And through the Buster sword, Zack actually lives on through Cloud. And again...it's just so sad.
Square Enix does it again with this masterpiece. I leave you with this touching scene.
Aerith: A little luxury is all I ask for.
Zack: You say it's only a little but really it's a lot right?
Aerith: Yup! Will you hear me out?
Zack: How many is it?
Aerith: Umm. 23?
Zack: Write it down on paper since I'll probably forget.
Aerith: Um...There are 23 little luxuries. But you probably won't remember. There's only one thing I want the most - to be together with you more often.
Needless to say, I am almost done with CC. The game was actually shorter than I expected, but it's still longer than God of War (40 bucks, 6 hours of gameplay).
I am very satisfied with the game so far. At first, I had a little bit of doubt, wondering how they're going to "rehash" this. I never thought it would be a bad game. I just wasn't sure if the original FFVII story would be kept intact. And now that I'm about 90% through with the story, I'm happy to report that it is.
AND, even though the original VII story did not have Crisis Core in mind, I REALLY like how they developed the characters. The relationship between Zack and Aeris - truly a masterpiece. Before I knew Zack, I always had this, "Who the heck is this guy?" attitude towards him. And I always thought, "Aeris/Aerith is the one for Cloud!" But CC really changed my mind. Aerith's heart has been with Zack from the very beginning, and vice-versa. And nothing should change that. But...it's just so sad.
And the later development of camaraderie between Zack and Cloud...it really puts things into perspective for me, knowing that Cloud will go on with severe amnesia, thinking he was Zack. And through the Buster sword, Zack actually lives on through Cloud. And again...it's just so sad.
Square Enix does it again with this masterpiece. I leave you with this touching scene.
Aerith: A little luxury is all I ask for.
Zack: You say it's only a little but really it's a lot right?
Aerith: Yup! Will you hear me out?
Zack: How many is it?
Aerith: Umm. 23?
Zack: Write it down on paper since I'll probably forget.
Aerith: Um...There are 23 little luxuries. But you probably won't remember. There's only one thing I want the most - to be together with you more often.
Friday, April 4, 2008
The Bravery
I was watching a couple-days-old episode of Conan O'Brien last night online* and The Bravery performed Believe at the end of the show. I really liked the song, so I obtained for myself their albums.
(*You can watch a ton of NBC shows on their website now. It's ad-supported, but it's either: 1) Watch any time you want with 1 commercial each break for 4 breaks, or 2) Watch at a specific time with several commercials over several breaks.)
Below are their music videos for Believe and an Honest Mistake, respectively. Good sound, good sound.
(*You can watch a ton of NBC shows on their website now. It's ad-supported, but it's either: 1) Watch any time you want with 1 commercial each break for 4 breaks, or 2) Watch at a specific time with several commercials over several breaks.)
Below are their music videos for Believe and an Honest Mistake, respectively. Good sound, good sound.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Wild Weekend
So a few weeks ago, a Denise and I decided to go to Nashville to visit the temple of my patron goddess, Athena. In more simpler terms, we wanted to visit the Parthenon in Tennessee. And we decided that last Saturday would be the day. I got Kendrick, Kento, and even Yukari to come along. It was a metric shit-ton of fun, even though we were on the road for a total of about 10 hours (Google Maps said 12, so I was able to cut the time by 15%!) The trip was straining and I was a bit worried about keeping everyone enthusiastic (visiting a life-sized replica of the Parthenon is random no matter how you spin it), but I know that everyone had a great time! My pictures are on facebook, in case anyone wanted to see.
The Nashville Parthenon there is "the only life-sized replica of" the Greek Parthenon. Inside, there's a huge statue of the goddess Athena gilded in gold. There are a ton of sculptures of the human form and of many other gods of Greek mythology. Educational? Maybe not so much. But fun and interesting? By the hammer of Thor, yes.
Since we were on the road for 10 hours, we saw a lot of beautiful scenery and encountered a couple of very interesting landmarks. The first one was this gigantic white cross. If you want info on it, visit www.crossusa.org to see what it looked like. This thing was huge! And secondly, we encountered billboards pointing to a town called "Metropolis" that has a "Giant Superman statue." We just couldn't resist this sight, so I took the exit and found the statue. It was ridiculously awesome hahaha!
A lot of pictures were put up on facebook, and my roommate hasn't even uploaded his yet. I'm not going to post them here though, since I think anyone who reads this already has facebook.
In other news, I finally beat Patapon. It was a great game and totally worth $20. To fill my void of fun and new games, I decided to spoil myself and bought both Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core AND God of War: Chains of Olympus at one time. I'm currently playing GoW, and man - it is good. Not very smart as I promised myself to be productive again...haha
The Nashville Parthenon there is "the only life-sized replica of" the Greek Parthenon. Inside, there's a huge statue of the goddess Athena gilded in gold. There are a ton of sculptures of the human form and of many other gods of Greek mythology. Educational? Maybe not so much. But fun and interesting? By the hammer of Thor, yes.
Since we were on the road for 10 hours, we saw a lot of beautiful scenery and encountered a couple of very interesting landmarks. The first one was this gigantic white cross. If you want info on it, visit www.crossusa.org to see what it looked like. This thing was huge! And secondly, we encountered billboards pointing to a town called "Metropolis" that has a "Giant Superman statue." We just couldn't resist this sight, so I took the exit and found the statue. It was ridiculously awesome hahaha!
A lot of pictures were put up on facebook, and my roommate hasn't even uploaded his yet. I'm not going to post them here though, since I think anyone who reads this already has facebook.
In other news, I finally beat Patapon. It was a great game and totally worth $20. To fill my void of fun and new games, I decided to spoil myself and bought both Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core AND God of War: Chains of Olympus at one time. I'm currently playing GoW, and man - it is good. Not very smart as I promised myself to be productive again...haha
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