A new beginning ...

Lost

2006-02-16T21:47:00.000-08:00

It seems I'm back to where I started - walking in circles, without a map, trying to find my way on this road. Although, I'm told that I can find my way, I'm hitting the same dead end over and over each day. And even with the occassional guide and a torn map, hope lies ahead, but hope is gone when I find... another dead end.

Someone get me out of here... PLEASE.

Blue

2006-02-10T10:13:00.000-08:00

BLUES are motivated by INTIMACY, seek opportunities

to genuinely connect with others, and need to

be appreciated. They do everything with

quality and are devoted and loyal friends and

employers/employees. Whatever or whomever

they commit to are their sole (and soul)

focus. They love to serve and will give

freely of themselves in order to nurture

others lives.

BLUES, however, do need to be understood. They have

distinct preferences and occasionally the

somewhat controlling (but always fair)

personality of a confident leader. Their code

of ethics is remarkably strong and they

expect others to live honest, committed lives

as well. They enjoy sharing meaningful

moments in conversation as well as

remembering special life events (i.e.,

birthdays and anniversaries). BLUES are

dependable, thoughtful, nurturing, and can

also be self-righteous, a bit worry-prone,

and emotionally intense. They are like

sainted pit-bulls who never let go of

something once they are committed. When you

deal with a BLUE, be sincere, make an effort

to truly understand them, and truly

appreciate them.

What Color Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Tagged

2005-12-13T20:52:00.000-08:00

5 Random Facts.

1. I also wash my hands when I get home. It makes me feel more clean.
2. I make it a habit to take a nap on a weekend afternoon. It's refreshing.
3. Even though I'm at home, I use my cell phone to call other people more than my landline.
4. I can sleep on cars, buses and trains - but not planes.
5. I found another white hair last time I went to cut my hair.

Surveys

2005-10-30T12:36:00.000-08:00

Your Personality Is

Guardian (SJ)

You are sensible, down to earth, and goal oriented.
Bottom line, you are good at playing by the rules.

You tend to be dominant - and you are a natural leader.
You are interested in rules and order. Morals are important to you.

A hard worker, you give your all at whatever you do.
You're very serious, and people often tell you to lighten up.

In love, you tend to take things carefully and slowly.

At work, you are suited to almost any career - but you excel in leadership positions.

With others, you tend to be polite and formal.

As far as looks go, you are traditionally attractive. You take good care of yourself.

On weekends, you tend to like to do organized activities. In fact, you often organize them!

The Three Question Personality Test

You Are 25 Years Old

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe.

13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world.

20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences.

30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more!

40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

You Should Learn Spanish

For you, learning a language is about career advancement and communication.
Knowing Spanish will bring you tons of possiblities for jobs and travel. Bárbaro!

What Language Should You Learn?

Collecitng thoughts after a hectic week

2005-10-16T19:26:00.000-07:00

So much has happened in the past week ... it was about this time last week that I found out that my uncle was admitted to the hospital for some serious problems. Yet, what really caught me by surprise was that there was a chance the he wouldn't make it through that first night. In that instant, that fear and thought cast a big cloud on our family's spirits. The seriousness hit our family hard, as I watched each member getting scared one by one. The harder I tried to pull myself together, the more the situation consumed the inside of me, and I felt the "collected" me falling apart too. Flashbacks of my grandfather's incident last year began to seep into my mind; having to visit him in the ICU after a huge surgery, all dependent on machines to help him press on, to see dried blood on his face, the gowns and the sheets, and worst of all to see the pain in the expressions of his face.

But in the end, my grandfather got through, as did my uncle. Despite being in the coronary ICU for about a week, my uncle is on his way to a recovery conditioned upon lifestyle change (a turn to a relaxed and less stressful life) . It's great to see that he has his humour and appetiteback. But above all, it was great to realize that our family and a number of friends turned to God and prayed together for God to give him strength to pull through the physical obstacles that he faced. A big thank you to all who prayed for my uncle and our family over the past week.

Where exactly am I going with this post ...? I'm not exactly sure myself. Admist this turbulent time .. I've realized (w/the help of God) that...

1) Work was considered low on my priority list. As much as I'd like I complain about work all the time; in the grand scheme of things; my eyes have opened to realize that work really doesn't compare to family ... This isn't to say that I'm not going to be aggressive in my career - but it shouldn't be a higher priority than family.

2) No matter how "chaotic" things can be; God is faithful and will listen and answer our prayers ... How I seem to forget that God is so much bigger than all of us; and bigger than all our problems ...

3) Single parents are truly incredible. With my parents on vacation, and my aunt and cousins attending to my uncle, I'm trying to hold up the fort at home, and attend to the needs of my grandparents. After a long day of work, I don't know how these single parents have time to slave over a meal and provide an environment of love for their children, who may not always appreciate it. Taking on all this extra responsibility and trying to keep my emotions in check, to pull myself together, while working full-time isn't an easy task. I give my thumbs up to single parents as they have more than double the responsibility of regular parents.

Entry 1

2005-10-10T16:52:00.000-07:00

So as part of the adult cell group at church, we agreed to attempt to journal more often; at least once a week. Seeing as I haven't posted anything since September 19 (our last meeting), I haven't been doing a very good job of journaling :/ As a first post, I've decided to post some of my rough notes from a conference I attended at the beginning of the month, Contempo, which had a theme of finding joy at work - something that I'm finding hard to find. So here it goes. Hopefully things make sense, because after a while of not having to take notes in lecture, it seems like I can't write as fast.

Finding Joy @ Work - Plenary Session #1
Oct. 1, 2005; Speaker: Ken Fong

Some introductory statements taken from the Parable of the Talents (Matt. 25:14-30)

Did you know that God designed us so that going to work is an important and tangible way to experience God's joy?
Do you know how to make the master’s joy more a part of everyone’s experience where you work?

* Key verses: v.21-23: How do we have the right understanding an attitude so that we can bring God’s joy not only to ourselves, but to others around us as well? (Sharing your master’s happiness)

Getting down to the main point ...

According to Dennis Makke’s book entitled Joy @ Work, God worked as He created. As His job was creating the universe, followed by mankind, our job is to manage the Earth (the living things and resources in it) as God has given us the authority and capability to work – (“To manage earth and all that comes from God’s creation” Gen. 1:28)
Clearly, as work isn’t the goal of life; we are created to have a relationship with God, to honour/glorify Him; we honour God by furthering God’s kingdom/creation; when we approach work as worship, God is glorified and pleased with us
What is work pleasing to God?

All kinds of production or management positions are God honour (incl. through the relationships that we build in the process
Seize the opportunity to build relationships with co-workers – take pride in your results; and be enthusiastic
Work that results in things that are worthy for society can be acts of worship to God
“So whether you eat or drink or what you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31)
Half-hearted efforts do not please God – work as if Christ is your boss! – not just when your manager is watching …

Is ministry the highest calling? There isn’t any evidence that it is…

What is work pleasing to God? Interesting fact: Bezalel (not Moses or Joshua) was the first person in the bible who was said to be filled with the Spirit of God (Exo. 31:2-5)
Bezalel was an artist/designer to make designs for work in gold silver, etc. – not a religious leader
Most of the biblical leaders were working in the secular world …

2 Calling as Christians

Use talents and energy to steward Earth’s resources to meet physical needs and the needs of others (being stewards of the Earth) – Parable of the Talents
Present good news of Christ’s redemption and all its implications to people everywhere (Great Commission)

Called to both these jobs though time and effort invest may not be equal
Both these jobs are part of our requirement to seek His holiness; Both require prayer, study, reflection and humility
God is not limited by what we think is ministry
Use Christian values and morals to influence those around us

Closing Thoughts

To what degree, do you appreciate your high and noble calling from the Lord?

How does this change your understanding and appreciation of your wok? How might you become a more God glorifying steward of Earth’s resources and a more obvious follower of Jesus at work?
Are we all climbing up the right ladder in life?

Are we doing something significant in life?

Are we cherishing the opportunities that God has given us to do something significant at work?

Finding Joy @ Work - Plenary Session #2
Oct. 1, 2005; Speaker: Ken Fong

Connecting with joy at work (Ecc. 5:18-20)
Genesis account: God found joy in both the process and the result of creation (His work)
Parable of the Talents

Reinforces the importance of work to God (inc. work as an occupation) – after all, God gives us opportunities at work
2 servants knew the heart of the master to use and put the talents to work
Steward resources with goal of creating products/services to bless others; we are given the authority to decide what to do
Being able to decide – important! Christians should want to be held accountable to how well they steward their work
Nordstrom (US dep’t store) – each clerk is like they are in charge of their own department; and then held responsibility when sales figures come out
We are given the authority and responsibility to get things done: we need authority – not just responsibility; but we must be held accountable for the things we are asked to do

Redeeming Our Work

Pre-fall working environment was paradise

Work > central element of paradise (not reverse)

Act of Worship
Fulfilling and rewarding

Post-fall: all of life, including work, became troublesome (and obligatory)

Biblical Leadership: those in authority must serve those they lead

Good leaders delegate decisions and create an environment in which others can manage

Application

Joy @ Work

Find the value of every person
Foster greater fellowship and friendship
Fine-tune everyone’s job, starting with yours

Accurate position descriptions
Insight into each person’s work temperament: resolve differences
Expectation of the job-holder and the supervisor (Conflicts arise due to undiscussed/unresolved expectations – ensure expectations are clear)
Personal Preference Inventory (PPI)
Job Preference Inventory (JPI)

Provide accountability at church for how everyone is using the authority from God to manage God’s resources, find meaning and have more fun!
Understand how you work, and hw you work best
No one is well-rounded; don’t waste time in your areas of weakness

Relieved

2005-09-19T19:24:00.000-07:00

I'm glad I'm not the only one who felt the same way yesterday... *PHEW* ...

Directionless

2005-09-18T20:21:00.000-07:00

Distracting examples ...
Minimal "substance" ...
Lacking direction ...
Sitting in a state of "Ok, ... and?" ...
Stopped writing after 15 minutes ...
Leaving in frustration ...

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH! :(

Trying out Hello/Picasa

2005-09-13T21:32:00.000-07:00

So after downloading Picasa and Hello, it's a lot easier for me to post pictures on my blog now :) Anyway, testing things out, here's what happens when 7 people dig into a very hard ice cream cake.

The aftermath...hehe

New car .... ? Not for this Richard Lee

2005-08-17T20:08:00.000-07:00

So this is what I found in my inbox. Unfortunately, I'm not the one who purchased a new Acura. Well, next time ...

Dear Richard:

Congratulations on the purchase of your MDX. My name is Bob Gelske and I am the Service Manager at Sterling McCall Acura.

The Service Department at Sterling McCall Acura is committed to making your ownership experience a positive one. When you visit for service or repairs, you can count on a fast, friendly write up, work completed right the 1st time, and fair, competitive prices.

Our hours are Monday - Friday 7:30am to 7:00pm and Saturday 9:00am to 4:00pm.

Should you ever have any questions regarding your vehicle or be in need of service, please feel free to call the Service Department directly at 713-270-3793 or to schedule an appointment online click here: schedule appointment

Thank you for your time and enjoy your new MDX.

Sincerely,
Bob Gelske
Service Manager
Sterling McCall Acura
bgelske2@sterlingmccallacura.com
713-596-2326 x 226

For the new grad that is money-conscious (aka. cheap)

2005-08-16T19:17:00.000-07:00

Don't know why I was thinking back to last year, and going out to lunch some coworkers.

Lesson: When you go to a western place for lunch, regardless of how much your individual meal costs, the bill is always split evenly. Unfortunately, I didn't know this, so I didn't order a drink (while everyone else did), and tried to order the most filling (and cheap) thing on the menu. Little did I know that I'd be paying for a portion of someone else's meal. Hasn't happened this year =D

Getting fat

2005-08-08T21:08:00.000-07:00

No, this is not a post about me getting fat. But this an interesting analogy that someone told me recently tonight.

Assume that we live in a world where everyone is fat. You look in the mirror and you notice yourself getting fat too. But knowing that being fat is bad/unhealthy for you, do you go against the norm of society and take that stand?

Interesting conversations that I had with my friend tonight. Looking at the past, it seems that we've all grown up as we face/are facing the harsh realities of the real world.

More pictures

2005-07-25T21:14:00.000-07:00

So I uploaded all of my pictures from Summerlicious onto my imagestation website. (http://www.imagestation.com/members/rich.lee) Such a long day at work. I haven't stayed at work for so long ever. Got in around 8:20 and didn't leave until 5:45. Remember that I'm working at a telco with lots of older people that are waiting for retirement. So the culture at work isn't working lengthy hours. On the other hand, I managed to get both Friday and Monday off, so it will be a super long weekend :) Looking forward to it... greatly!

Not sure why, felt very frustrated at work today. Realized I have to go back and re-do quite a bit of stuff. And with all the coordination that I'm doing on some projects, it's sucking up so much of my time that I can't focus my attention on my more important (but less time sensitive) projects. Maybe it's the Monday blues ... but, I sure hope tomorrow is far more productive. Feel like there's a gazillion e-mails to write at work requesting people to do this and that. Ugh. Enough venting.

All the frustration (from work and other things) seemed to be gone as I got to chat with one of my friends in depth tonight. Just for someone to listen was a relief, and allowed me to take a load off my shoulders. Thanks for listening!

Laziness

2005-07-24T18:31:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure why it's so hard for me to sit down and write in my blog. I'll just attribute it to laziness and the lack of interesting things that happen in my life. I spent most of July catching up on some of the TV shows that I missed in the past few years. First, I finished watching first two seasons of Alias, and then recently finished the first season of the OC. Unfortunately, when I went to rent Alias season 3, one of the discs were scratched :( So, I couldn't continue watching. In the meantime, I skipped ahead and watched the first half of season 4! I think after I finish Alias, I'll move on to watching 24. I've heard good it's a good show!

July has also been busy with Summerlicious as well. Originally, I wasn't going to go to that many, but somehow with different groups of people, it added up. I was excited that I finally got to try North 44 and Bymark. The food was really good, but I ended up spending quite a bit of money due to the drinks. Can you believe a Martini at North 44 cost $16? :| I'm actually quite relieved that it's over since I've been charging quite a bit to my credit card lately.

Went to church retreat last week at McMaster. It was my second time at the campus, and it was a little strange to see the entire campus abandoned. Unfortunately, it was dead hot last weekend and the A/C wasn't really on. Felt so nasty. But aside from that, in my quest to search to have a deeper relationship with Christ, I committed myself to reading the bible everyday and finishing the bible within one year of the start date (July 28). It's definitely going to be a big struggle for me. I've already tried once to read the bible through, but I just got stuck at Leviticus and Numbers :\ Argh!! Perhaps I'll write about my progress on the bible-reading as part of my blog!

Taking an annual family vacation for long weekend. Going to visit my cousin who will be taking a course in NYC for a month. I'm crossing my fingers that I won't get sick last minute like what happened last month. It'll be a totally different experience traveling with parents, but it'll be quality family time, I guess.

It's just not my month ...

2005-06-29T20:08:00.000-07:00

So sadly, I got sick today. I have a fever, and the doctor gave me a whole bunch of medication to cure a whole bunch of symptoms I'm faced with. It definitely was the combination of humid weather followed by a blast of AC. The change was too much for me :( Now, I don't even know if I can head off to NYC for Canada Day long weekend because of this fever/cold. It sucks because its been in the planning for a few weeks now.

This is on top of some "incidents" at softball practice/games the week before. Having the ball thrown at my shoulder during a practice game, having a bad fall during a game, and then having the ball hit my head during the same game.

Definitely not my month at all...

Back to Normal

2005-06-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

I survived my first week of work. It feels good to go back to an environment where most people know who you are and not have to go through the whole introductions phase one more time. I went back to my window cubicle, had the same slow computer and the same phone number. Everything was in its place - the way that I left it. Even the stuff that I wrote on my whiteboard was as is. It's nice not to have the title of a "summer student" and have a real title now :) I get to sit in on more meetings - which is probably a good thing because I hate the feeling of having nothing to do at work. That seems like a big waste of time.

On another note, I've found a young kid at church who likes writing poetry now. Haha..it's so hilarious. I thought I'd post his "poem" on my blog, lol. The assignment for history class was to write a peom about an atom bomb (who knows why? :|) Lol.. i'm curious to see what the teacher writes as a comment :)

Have a good week everyone.

War is in brawl
It’s affecting all

You then see Paul
Above a shopping mall
With a bomb

Not just a bomb
It’s an atom bomb.

The peoples so small
When you see from the plane hall
But you can hear them shout and call
You can see some run and crawl

Then Paul said "drop it, don’t stall"
"aye aye... look at it fall!!!"

jiuuuuuuuuuu~~~ (bomb dropping)

BOOMMMMMMMM

Squashed like meatballs.

Feeling of the moment ....

2005-06-02T20:31:00.000-07:00

Call it immature or that I just need to vent, but why does it seem that those who fly under the radar usually get what they want? *sigh*

More time on my hands...

2005-06-02T15:51:00.000-07:00

With only a few more days of being able to do absolutely nothing, I'm just resting up and enjoying the time off. So I stumbled upon this quiz called "Get to know yourself better." from http://www.quizbox.com/personality/test82.aspx. For the record, it's a more accurate assessment than that love-quiz I did before... so these are the results:

Get to know yourself better

Your view on yourself:
You are down-to-earth and people like you because you are so straightforward. You are an efficient problem solver because you will listen to both sides of an argument before making a decision that usually appeals to both parties.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:
You like serious, smart and determined people. You don't judge a book by its cover, so good-looking people aren't necessarily your style. This makes you an attractive person in many people's eyes.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:
You are ready to commit as soon as you meet the right person. And you believe you will pretty much know as soon as you might that person.

The seriousness of your love:
You like to flirt and behave seductively. The opposite sex finds this very attractive, and that's why you'll always have admirers hanging off your arms. But how serious are you about choosing someone to be in a relationship with?

Your views on education
Education is less important than the real world out there, away from the classroom. Deep inside you want to start working, earning money and living on your own.

The right job for you:
You have many goals and want to achieve as much as you can. The jobs you enjoy are those that let you burn off your considerable excess energy.

How do you view success:
You are afraid of failure and scared to have a go at the career you would like to have in case you don't succeed. Don't give up when you haven't yet even started! Be courageous.

What are you most afraid of:
You are concerned about your image and the way others see you. This means that you try very hard to be accepted by other people. It's time for you to believe in who you are, not what you wear.

Who is your true self:
You are full of energy and confidence. You are unpredictable, with moods changing as quickly as an ocean. You might occasionally be calm and still, but never for long.

Convocation #2

2005-05-30T15:31:00.000-07:00

I've received confirmation from UT that I've fulfilled all the requirements for me to obtain my Master degree. Feel free to drop by and take a picture with me at my convocation ceremony on Thursday June 16. The ceremony starts around 10am, so I'm guess I should be out of there by noon? Yaaay! More letters after my name, lol!

New Pictures

2005-05-26T20:04:00.000-07:00

So after trying to resolve problems of uploading pictures onto Imagestation, I finally got the pictures on!

I have pictures posted from: Krakow, Warsaw, Prague, and Albert's Europe pictures in addition to new pictures from this past weekend from Collingwood/Wasaga Beach and New York City.

Happy viewing.

Time off

2005-05-24T20:39:00.000-07:00

I must say, I certainly am enjoying my time off in this transition period. Not having to worry about anything is great. But we'll see how long I can keep this up for before I get bored :) So this year was the first year where I didn't go to CC since the first time I went in 2002. Instead, two extremely different road trips. One to the quiet countryside, and the other to hustle bustle capital of the world. Some highlights of this weekend are: the bmw convention up north as spotted by the numerous numbers of bmw going north on 400 Saturday midday, that Ontario's longest suspension bridge isn't really that long, Wasaga Beach is really for little kiddies wanting to show off their parents' cars, there are always traffic jams going into/out of Manhattan, lots of things to do around NYC, there's a White Castle in Jersey City, NJ, etc etc. What a great weekend!

I'm in the process of uploading the remaining pictures from Europe, and Collingwood/Wasaga Beach, and NYC. Stay tuned!

Chapter 1: Education .. done! :D

2005-05-12T19:12:00.000-07:00

I think I'm finally done. After cramming to get my research done for this conference over the past two months, tonight is the first night where I'm under absolutely no pressure. I'm not sure how to describe what I'm feeling right now kind of like walking on a cloud? Perhaps the feeling of relief? Or that feeling like the piece of heavy baggage I've been carrying around has been put down (kinda like when I was backpacking through Europe). The feeling that I've made it to the end of the race is rewarding, but I know that it's not really the end but just a pit stop.

So tomorrow is my official goodbye to the University of Toronto, as the conference I've been doing work for ends tomorrow. Despite the times of frustration and uncertainity, it's been a great 6 years at UT. With all the hours of lecture finished, it's time to say goodbye! I stink at goodbyes. I recently found out that I was the last student for one of my professors. I must say this is one of the rare professors that has truly helped me so much in my journey at UT. He has helped me bring out what I'm good at, strengthened it, and has broadened my view on my ideal job. That's one thing I liked more about grad school ... much more interaction with professors. I must say I've learned so much from my one-on-one or one-on-two professor meetings over the last year - much more than any classroom environment.

Anyway, just going to enjoy and reflect on the close of the first major chapter in my life. Saying goodbye is always so bitter-sweet, especially when you are saying goodbye to such an unforgettable and major part of life.

Unnecessary Credit Cards

2005-05-04T15:30:00.000-07:00

So I have been approved for a UT Alumni credit card. I'm tempted to get one, partially of the free fleece blanket that comes along with it, but it has the pictures of Con. Hall on it. Ohhh...and because it also has the word "Platinum" on it too :) Problem is I don't want another credit card. I have enough credit cards as is and I rarely use the one of them. It'd serve as a nice memorabilia for UT. And, I don't have a master card... ahh.... wasting time once again :P

Dating Quiz

2005-04-14T07:24:00.000-07:00

All right, I got this dating quiz from Albert's website. I'm not sure how much agree with how the general results, but then again, it is just an online quiz. I'm surprised "practical" didn't wind up on my list, and I'm not sure how "athletic" ranked #2 on "her" list. Ah, it's just a computer algorithm :)

Your dating personality profile:

Religious - Faith matters to you. It is the foundation that you build your life upon. You trust that God has a plan for you.
Adventurous - Just sitting around the house is not something that appeals to you. You love to be out trying new things and really experiencing life.
Traditional - Modern culture does not move you. You hold traditional values dear to your heart.

Your date match profile:

Adventurous - You are looking for someone who is willing to try new things and experience life to its fullest. You need a companion who encourages you to take risks and do exciting things.
Athletic - You aren't looking for a couch potato. You seek someone who is active and who keeps her body in top shape.
Practical - You are drawn to people who are sensible and smart. Flashy, materialistic people turn you off. You appreciate the simpler side of living.

Your Top Ten Traits

1. Religious
2. Adventurous
3. Traditional
4. Stylish
5. Athletic
6. Conservative
7. Wealthy/Ambitious
8. Funny
9. Romantic
10. Outgoing

Your Top Ten Match Traits

1. Adventurous
2. Athletic
3. Practical
4. Conservative
5. Traditional
6. Religious
7. Wealthy/Ambitious
8. Stylish
9. Intellectual
10. Shy

Take the Online Dating Personality Quiz at Dating Diversions

Busy Busy Busy

2005-04-12T21:27:00.000-07:00

Just when I thought things were dying down with school ending, this part-time research isn't so part time after all. Argh. Nonetheless, it pays, so whatever helps get me by. Well, only a month more - but it seems like there's so much more to prepare!

The other night, I had a discussion with one of the members of "Europe Group" and commented that we went to Europe almost 2 years ago. Weird enough, this time 2 years ago, we were all planning our Europe trip and were wondering if would be permitted entry into the UK because of the whole SARS thing. Now looking back, as that first Europe trip was supposed to be a "grad trip" for most of us, all of us wound up to be in school the following September. So we've gone our separate ways and find ourselves in different cities, and in so occupied in our own worlds. So much has changed in these past two years... Oddly enough, it is a little ironic that I am sort of in a similar situation right now. Newly graduated and looking for work once again except most people are either still in school or are already working!

On another note, I was watching Leno, and Leno is on the streets asking couples questions about everyday questions, and they gave completely wrong answers it gave me a good laugh :)

Q: To an aspiring lawyer ... "What is the Bill of Rights?"
A:... *i dunno*

Q: To the aspiring lawyer's girlfriend ... "What is the Fifth Ammendment?"
A:... Where you can't drink unless you are 21

Q: To a youth pastor ... "What are the 7 Deadly Sins?"
A: .. (after a long time) .. Gluttony, Greed Envy, Lust, Wrath ...uhh..two other ones.
Jay's Response: Aren't you a pastor? Shouldn't you know the 7 Deadly Sins?
A: That's for the Senior Pastor, I'm a youth pastor.

Q: "What state is the Kentucky Derby held in?"
A: Kansas
Jay's Response .. Kansas, eh?
Response: Is Kentucky a state?

Just gave me a few laughs :)

Travel Bug

2005-03-28T11:19:00.000-08:00

So Albert sent me this site which shows the percentage of countries in the world that you've been to. I scored only 22 countries or 9% of the world. Red = visited; So many more countries to visit :D

create your own visited countries map

Good Friday

2005-03-25T11:44:00.000-08:00

Just to update you all, I've uploaded the first half of my Europe trip to my imagestation website. It includes my visits to Vienna, Budapest, Berlin, Geneva, and back to Berlin again. There are even picture of Albert for some of you who haven't seen him a while!

I realized that I haven't written here for over a month now. Oops. Soon after I got back from Europe, I spent all my energy editing my thesis, and I finally submitted last Wednesday March 16. Those countless nights of staying up late, preparing for presentations, and my formal education has come to a temporary pause. Sooo..I'm DONE :D You can call me Master now .. j/k. I have the extra "M. Eng. Tel." after my name too. It's been quite the journey through so many ups and downs, struggling and fighting my way to the finish line.

Unfortunately, as I thought things were starting to wind down after I submitted my thesis, things never really died down in the past week. With my parents having gone to Europe for a week (they are back now), learning to do things on my own, experimenting with cooking, and busy with some part-time research and church stuff, does this life ever stop and pause? Well...I was really relaxed for a few days after I submitted, but I seem to be in high gear once again.

On Wednesday morning, I was asked my pastor to share what I would envision life owuld be like in the absence of hope. The theme of our Good Friday service today was a reverse advent, in which th emain message was "Life without Christ." So there are four of us who try to paint a picture about how life would be like without love, joy, peace, and hope. It seemed like an ok topic to share about at first, but then I relaized the further I dug into the topic, there were very few examples that I could think of that had no hope whatsoever.

The process of thinking things through and realizing that hope what motivates and drives us everyday, gives us goals to strive for or a purpose, and something to cling to when things get tough. Although my sharing turned out to be more formal that I expected (I wrote everything out like an essay first), and someone commented that I used big words (perhaps I'm still in thesis writing mode), I'm glad I had the opportunity to think everything through! Personally, my hope is placed into many things .. but to be without hope, former President of the Czech Republic who brought democracy to the country, writes the following:

"Hope is the feeling that life and work have a meaning. You either have it or you don’t, regardless of the state of the world that surrounds you. Life without hope is an empty, boring, and a useless life. I cannot imagine that I could strive for something if I did not carry hope in me." ~ Vaclav Havel

And so my conclusion was that I really couldn't picture my life without hope. It'd be meaningless, and frankly, it'd be a life that I wouldn't want to live.

European Updates (Part 2)

2005-02-24T14:02:00.000-08:00

I'm just here at an Internet cafe in Krakow, Poland as my friend wants to check his email. There isn't much to update, but I've continued to reflect on the different things that I am going through right now. I don't feel like I am 100% on vacation as a large part of my mind and heart is glues to school/work stuff back home in Toronto. I guess I'm just a little bit frustrated with myself that I can't fully concentrate on having a good time and having to worry about all the things that I need to do when I get home. It's rather sad ... now definitely is not the time to be thinking about my to-do list except for enjoying myself. *SIGH*

European Updates

2005-02-20T15:56:00.000-08:00

So, once again, I've somewhat neglected my blog for the last little while since I've been extremely busy writing the thesis up until I left Toronto on Feb. 9 (Chinese New Year). Just checking e-mail now and realizing that there's quite a bit of work to be done when I get back, but I'm not trying to think about that right now!

I'm writing from Geneva now where I'm staying with my friend Albert, and I don't have to pay to use the Internet :) But the last week has been pretty interesting, not to say the least. Since my friend left Vienna on Sunday afternoon, I've spent about 6 days traveling on my own - discovering the pros and cons of doing so. Well, it's very clear what the pros and cons ..but for me the whole idea of living hostels has really got me thinking. Perhaps living in a 8 bedded room in Budapest with people who are ultra nice and friendly and seeing lots of new people come in and out has really made me think about change, or even the rate of change of change. I mean it's kinda weird that you have such a large influx and flux of people in and out each day, which makes me think ... is there such thing as a constant atmosphere?

Personally, studying telecom, it has been said that the only thing is constant is change. And certainly, that applies to life in general as well. With so much change going on everyday, it just makes it more important to appreciate each day as they go by since you never know if you can get back to the same point once again. But thinking beyond that, I remembered the song "Unchanging." Admist all this hustle and bustle when it comes to traveling, why haven't I thought to the one thing that is unchanging ...

Coming to Europe and meeting lots of different people in hostels (mainly from UK and Australia..one from Canada), I've really tried hard to break out of my narrow-minded thinking. Understanding that there are numerous problems around the world, and just focusing on my own problems. After disliking my roomates in Berlin (luckily it was only 2 nights), I have really looked forward to my trip to Geneva and seeing a familiar face. I had the opportunity to go to church in the morning and hanging out with some church kids in the afternoon before going to a bible study at a locals' house in the evening. How appropriate that both the message of the sermon and the bible study touched on loving one another. Something that I have failed to do, and perhaps this is a sign that I need to start working in that area. But all in all, very glad to have went to church today.

So, those were just a few of my thoughts thus far ...

Interesting enough ...

2005-01-30T18:31:00.000-08:00

As I woke up early (~7:30am) ... extremely tired from last night, I checked my e-mail and here was something the daily verse that I get and have been subscribing to the for the last 2+ years.

"Many are the plan's in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21

Thought it was kind of cool, and wanted to share it :)

Great Expectations

2005-01-28T16:52:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone who kept me in their prayers yesterday. Everything seemed a lot different than I expected - the room, the audience, the flow of my presentation, etc etc etc. In the end, when everything was all said and done, I survived. Now, I'm onto days of writing, writing and more writing. So what happened? It seems like I always have such great expectations for whatever I do, and it turns out that what really happens is never how I envision it. So why am I always thinking about things that are so ideal that it never meets reality? Is it that I am expecting too much from myself? Attempting to the unthinkable, or to do things that I'm not capable of doing?

Throughout this journey of preparing for my presentation, with all these distractions and interruptions at home, God has truly been faithful. It's been a while since I've felt like I've really gave my all to a task, and to have a mindset of knowing that I couldn't have prepared anymore. This experience has enabled a little voice inside of me to tell myself that I'm ready, and that with all the skills that God has given on to me, I'm ready to use them to glorify Him, and that this presentation was for Him (and not so much for the people in the room). I constantly repeated, "I can do all things through Him who gives me strength!" over and over again!

Which brings me to the question, realizing that you've done something as best as possible, and to use all the abilities that God has given you, why am I not content with the outcome? If God's plan has already played out, why am I not pleased with the outcome? Why do my plans always deviate from His? Are the expectations that I impose on myself even greater than what God's expectations of me really are?

Full but empty

2004-12-26T22:16:00.000-08:00

With all these gathering during Christmas time, things seem quite different this year. Having been busier out and about doing this and that, I'm not sure what's really missing to complete the circle. On one hand, it's great to see so many people and what they've been up to, etc etc etc. But at the same time, I must say things feel quite empty at times. Maybe it's that I'm distracted by being under a tight deadline, or that I'm overanalyzing the circumstances. I would hope that it's not a "fitting-in" issue or a "lack of common interests" issue :/

Perhaps it's just that when people ask how are you, I don't feel like presenting such an elaborate answer to encompass some of the challenges that I'm facing - or frankly, I'm just in no mood to tell what's really going aside from the "I'm busy, I'm fine" generic answer that I sometimes give. But at the same time, sometimes I expect an elaborate answer when I ask people how they are doing. I think there's my problem - being able to formulate and share an elaborate answer to the question "how are you." After all sharing is contagious. But sharing it in the appropriate environment is another challenging thing.

Just something I thought about today.

Questions to ask myself

2004-12-22T23:21:00.000-08:00

To update everyone, I've opted to wrap up my internship and work on my thesis full-time for two months to get the last requirement for the degree over and done with (as of early Dec.). As much as I would have liked to continue at my internship placement, to gain more experience, and earn some cash for the holidays, I was just faced with a constant struggle to focus on things that I needed to get done. At face value, it seemed like I was crazy to give up a job that helped me learned more about what I was studying, gave me a rather comfortable salary (although it could be better), a big cube with a window looking out to University Ave., and a few friends at work that were always willing to help me when I was stuck. But then I realized that the purpose of the internship was to get a glimpse of what working in industry is really like. In that respect, the purpose of the internship was successfully fulfilled.

In hindsight, what baffles me most is why I was so hesitant to tell people that I was leaving/quitting work. On one hand I was hoping to hang on as long as I could so that I would be able to convert the contract work into a full-time job - and that didn't seem to be happening with the company being acquired and having a big management change. On the other hand, it was some kind of pride "thing" that I wasn't able to rough out balancing school and work at the same time. I can't figure it out. I need to add admiting that each person has their own limits to my list of things to improve on.

More importantly this leads me to ask myself the questions, why am I so prideful that I dislike admitting that I can't do something? Is it the whole macho-guy attitude that society has artificially imposed on me? Or, why do I care so much what other people think of me - or extending that to a more general questions, why do I even care (excessively)? I see a clear and "easy" way out of my dilemma, but why have I chosen NOT to take it (do a half-ass job on my thesis and continue working)? Is there any reason why I must give every task my 100%? *sigh*....

A new beginning.

2004-12-17T02:49:00.000-08:00

So I've deleted all my previous entries and decided to start from scratch again. Seems like there are so many new features on blogger now - and even nicer templates. Here's to another attempt to writing my thoughts online.