Week in Review

Friday's exam was a test of endurance as much as technical knowledge. I sat through the 8-hour exam. Believe me... my butt was never detached from the chair in each of the 4-hour sessions. Didn't even go the bathroom for 4 hours at a time. My back hurt badly at the end of the day. I think I did ok. At least I finished all the problems. We'll see in ... 3 months?

This week had been a heck of a week. Exam and all. I am happy and content by the end of the week. So a good thing.

Went to The Morton Arboretum to see the foliage. Very nice park. I will go back definitely... probably in winter and spring.

The Morton Arboretum

Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate Cupcakes

mom and chocolate cupcake

Finally tonight, I was able to dispute the myth or blame that my mom had been spreading since who knows when. The blame goes like this:

The reason that my mom has such a loud voice, according to her, was that she had to yell at me when I was little or she has been yelling at me since I was little... and as a result, her voice was made louder because of all the yelling and the root cause was that I was naughty and disobedient.

Hmmm... I don't know why I had been taking her blame for years without properly refuting her erroneous claim. And I don't know why it took me so long to figure out a way to refute her claim. But finally, I thought of something to say tonight at dinner when my mom made that statement again.

I said to my mom, "The reason your voice was getting louder and louder was not because of me, but because you've been losing your hearing!" Hahaha... finally.

Well... I wouldn't be able to say that years before because my mom, at that time, had not come to term with the fact that her hearing was bad and it was never going to get better. For years, she refused to go see the doctor and have her hearing checked. But a few year ago, she decided on her own to see the doc and got a hearing aid. Although the hearing aid doesn't help a whole lot. But she finally was able to accept that fact that she was probably born with weak hearing and her hearing ability got worse as she ages.

I have seen quite a few changes in Mom in recent years. She has gotten happier despite occasional emotional breakdown. But she's been trying very hard to deal with her emotion and trying very hard to accept the reality of things that sometimes she has difficulty taking in. And she is a good mom, very good mom regardless of how she would sometimes drive me nuts.

And tonight, she made this chocolate cupcake. Amazing... You know... I don't usually like chocolate cake that much. But this one... it's got melted chocolate inside with crusty top. Never had a cupcake this good. Oh... I asked how she put the melted chocolate inside... she said it just baked out like that. Unbelievable.

cool and windy

I finally got a chance to do some exercise this evening. I went running for a couple of miles. The weather was cool and windy, so I didn't break much sweat. It's getting dark earlier now. By the time I got back, it was quite dark and the cloud cover didn't help either.

Didn't accomplish much at work this week. Couldn't really focus... partly because of the upcoming exam and partly because of the lack of motivation. And there is this uncertain and at a loss kinda feeling all week. Well, hope everything will be better by the end of the month. I will be a happier man once the clouds are dispersed and sunshine is returned for better or worse.

Sunrise

I guess I do like sunrise too. Just I don't get up as early as I used to and just not able to appreciate the beauty of it. Sunrise does give you hope.

~~~~

Time flies,
or does it?
Not at this moment,
I believe.
The second ticks by
but slowly and slowly it goes.
Until time stops.
Everything stands still.

Wait, no...
It is not time that stops.
It is me, who is stuck
in the quicksand.
As I struggle,
I sink quickly.
I am wishing that time would stop
for a moment.

Yet, no...
I don't want to be stuck
forever.
What can I do
to escape the inescapable?
Or should I just be still,
very still,
waiting for the judgment of time?

A little prayer

My goddaughter is doing well so far and so are her parents. Thank you Lord for watching over them. May you continue to bless them and provide for them each step of the way.

~~~~

Just got a picture of Agnes. She is so cute! I am very proud to be her godfather.

Sunset

As I was driving home this evening (from a singout), the golden sun was setting behind the western sky. From blue to yellow to gold, the colors were further enhanced by the clouds that looked like cotton balls scattered all over the edge of the sky. By the way the sun has been hiding for almost two days.

I wonder why it is always the sunset that is the most beautiful. Though it signifies the end of the day, it is the prettiest moment of the entire day, even more so than the sunrise. No wonder we always want or hope for a good ending, an ending that is perhaps as pretty, if not prettier, than the evening sunset. I don't want an end, but if the end does come, I wish it would be a pleasant one, one that I will forever treasure and remember.

static electricity

Dad said he was almost electrocuted when he tried to turn on the lights just now. He said it was fortunate that he was wearing plastic slippers.

Turned out he was shocked by static coz he was wearing plastic slippers.

特首講文革

This is an absolutely horrid comment from our 特首 on democracy. Cultural revolution is an extreme example of democracy??? Unbelievable...

特首講文革原文

god-daugther

Ces and Robin gave birth to little Agnes last night. And I have the honor to be Agnes' god-father. I am overjoyed. Ces' pregnancy has been a bit of a bumpy road. But God is good and He certainly has blessed them every step of the way. Thank you Lord.

tired

one feels the loneliest when he is tired and exhausted.

Time for a post

Well... it's been a while since last post. Sorry for the rather long absence. Just busy studying... and perhaps playing too much with facebook. So... my pe exam will be in less than 3 weeks. I'll study my butt off. Wish me luck.

squirrels

I was out running this morning and the squirrels were everywhere. They were usually in pairs too. One chasing another. As acorns drop, the squirrels are preparing for winter by collecting them and hiding them. I always marvel at their ability to remember where they hide their acorns.

草蜢 失樂園

Haven't been listening to this song (草蜢 失樂園) a lot lately.

To give and forgive

We lie. It is a human nature to lie. We lie to cover up things. We lie more to cover up lies. Being in a relationship is more than being physically together, but also the union of the mind and soul. Lies and dishonesty stand between this union, as if they are knives, ready to rip this union apart and shed it to pieces. A relationship is fragile--it doesn't take much to ruin it. All it takes is a small lie.

To rebuild a relationship takes probably ten times more effort than to ruin it.

The lie, however, is not the root of the problem. Most of the time, a lie is used to disguise one's intention and motive. The ill intention or motive is the real problem. And if that underlying problem is not resolved, the relationship will go sour eventually. In trying to resolve the problem, there is no equality--one side has to take the initiative and do more than the other. In fact, the one who's being lied to is often the one who has do more and also take the initiative, because that means forgiveness from the side who is hurt and relationship can only be rebuilt based on this forgiveness.

All things happen for a reason. A trial can only make a relationship grow and get stronger if both sides are willing to give and forgive.

trust

Trust is paramount in any relationship, especially so in a love relationship.

When I was once young and reckless (ok, I am not so young anymore but maybe still reckless sometimes), I had put this paramount trust in jeopardy a few times, and I learned my lessons.

All it takes is a little misstep. No matter how small that misstep is, once the boundary is crossed, the trust between two individuals is breached.

Have a forgiving heart. Give the one next you a chance to make it right.

Shark Fin Gwa Update

Well the "gwa" plant's flower finally opened up yesterday morning. Big showy flower. And I looked up on the internet and learned that this plant belongs to the gourd family (Cucurbitacea) under the same family with cucumber and squash. They have male and female flowers. So... the flower in the picture above is female. Only the female blossom can turn into fruit. Ha... one thing odd is that none of the male flowers were in bloom yet. Anyway... the flower only opened up for one morning. In the afternoon it was closed off. This morning it's still closed. I guess the flower only last for one day? oh well.

cuckoo clock

Spent all day up in Frankfort, IL. There's this fall festival... with over 300 arts and craft booths. Passed by this German cuckoo clock booth. Mom was really excited. So we ended up getting this small "1-day" cuckoo clock for $200. Hand-crafted, all mechanical. Got 2 quarrels on two sides of the clock and a peacock up top. Then of course the cuckoo, which comes out every half hour. I know it is expensive. But as jasper said the following...

cuckoo clock, hand crafted, made in Germany - $200
for something mom wants - priceless

Indeed, priceless. Ha.. the cuckoo just did "cuckoo" 9 times. Nine o'clock!

After the festival (and parade), we went for a party hosted by the other barbershop chapter. Lots of food and beer. We had this quartet contest, and I was in 3 quartets. I (with two of the quartets) ended up winning the both first and second place! There were a total of 13 or 14 quartets. Got a can of peanuts for the prize. Nice to be out in the sun all day. The weather was just absolutely beautiful!

shark fin gwa

Mom has been growing this "shark fin gwa" in a bucket outside my apartment. Even with only 4-5 inch of soil, the plant has been growing pretty well and even have flower buds all over. My mom has been wishing the flowers to bloom and eventually have "gwa" to eat. But the flower buds just get bigger and bigger and haven't opened up yet. A couple of flower buds, instead of opening up, at the base of it... have started to swell up, looking like a "gwa." But I kept telling my mom that it is not possible to have "gwa" without the flower in bloom first. And my mom kept saying, it has skipped flowering and gone right to the "gwa-ing" stage. So this morning, I used an analogy to explain that a woman won't get pregnant without having sex, which is why you don't have gwa without the flower. Then she replied, "of course you can! Mary was like that!" I was like... arrrgh...

Anyway, my allergy has been pretty bad this week. I think it's a combination of cold and allergy.

I really need to study for the PE exam which will be on Oct 26. I'll be taking a review class up in Schaumburg starting Sept 10. There are a lot of topics I don't know and not familiar with, like structural and transportation. I am a little worried now. I don't have all the reference books I need yet... you know, those codes and stuff. Anyway, I'll try my best and see what happen.

On poverty

Come across this article on Washington Post.
On Poverty, Maybe We're All Wrong

Interesting idea. I'll post some graphs later to look at this idea further.