The Holidays are Here!

Well, I am off to Montreal and then CT until the end of the month. Have a good time, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

To leave a smile on your face, I will list some of my favorite "facts" about Chuck Norris that were found in a link my dear buddy Russ sent to me:

• Chuck Norris' tears cure cancer. Too bad he has never cried.
• The chief export of Chuck Norris is pain.
• If you can see Chuck Norris, he can see you. If you can't see Chuck Norris you may be only seconds away from death.
• A Handicap parking sign does not signify that this spot is for handicapped people. It is actually in fact a warning, that the spot belongs to Chuck Norris and that you will be handicapped if you park there.
• Chuck Norris does not hunt because the word hunting infers the probability of failure. Chuck Norris goes killing.
• The quickest way to a man's heart is with Chuck Norris's fist.
• Someone once tried to tell Chuck Norris that roundhouse kicks aren't the best way to kick someone. This has been recorded by historians as the worst mistake anyone has ever made.
• If you ask Chuck Norris what time it is, he always says, "Two seconds till." After you ask, "Two seconds to what?" he roundhouse kicks you in the face.

and my personal favorite:

• Chuck Norris is currently suing NBC, claiming Law and Order are trademarked names for his left and right legs.

Later!

My thesis committee meeting

Yes, what you've all been waiting for...

It went well. I should probably be happy that it was positive and they told me that I should aim to start writing within a year. However, I am a bit tired, emotionally and physically, after busting my butt for the past two weeks. I am sure that I will be happy come tomorrow. :)

In general, they told me that I should write up a plan, i.e. a list of experiments that I should try to get done in order to have a minimally publishable thesis. This plan should not depend on any experiments yielding useful data, only that they should be carried out. Sounds like major publication material in only the most well-regarded academic journals, huh? ;) Well it will be, naysayer!!!

So that's it in a nutshell. Now I am off to have dinner with my lovely girlfriend whom I have woefully been neglecting. Tomorrow night we will go see Handel's Messiah at the Riverside Church, and then it's the midnight express bus to Montreal!

Back to (Somewhat) Normal

Since my committee meeting was postponed and I plan on leaving the country at the end of this week, I got to relax and spend the weekend Christmas shopping. (That was supposed to be funny: Christmas shopping in NYC is anything but relaxing.)

Friday night Yilin and I had dinner at Miracle Bar and Grill, which isn't too far from her apartment. (You can read the review here.) It is a decent Southwestern restaurant, and I am glad that I tried it out. On the way, we saw what Yilin perfectly described as "somebody got rejected":


Nothing says "I don't love you and don't ever talk to me again" like throwing a gift of roses onto a manhole cover in the middle of the street at the feet of your would-be suitor. The guy must've been clearly heartbroken, as he made no attempt to pick them up. Well, at least there were no visible stomps or trample marks. Of course, that would've been comic gold.

Saturday morning I met Yilin at Claude's for breakfast, and then I headed off to the climbing gym, where I took the routesetting course. FInally! The course was offered, I attended, and now I can set routes in the gym. I met up with YIlin afterward near the EMS at Columbus Circle and we (she) did some shopping. (On the way she saw Jean George driving his Mercedes SUV; I missed him, nor would I have recognized him.)

Yilin has professed the desire to snowshoe. Great, I say, as that way she can venture up north with me. While I haul my butt up frozen pillars and waterfalls she can tromp and frolic on the trails. Naturally, I would snowshoe with her if no vertical ice were around. But only then. ;)

We outfitted her with appropriate clothing, winter hiking boots, and a daypack that actually has straps on the back to hold a snowboard (which is the perfect size to hold snowshoes, too). We had a sales rep take the pack off of the wall, as it was part of a display and was the only one left in the store. Let me tell you, at $19.98 (sale price from $50), this pack was the steal of the day. In fact, anything that had GoreTex was 20% off; most EMS brand outerwear was 30-40% off. She made out like a bandit.

While near Columbus Circle, we had lunch at Sarabeth's Bakery (I review it here), which lived up to it's hype, I think. We stopped into the mall at CC while the sun was setting, and I managed a snapshot of their Christmas decorations.


After that we went back to my place, had dinner, and watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and then A Christmas Story, as she had never seen either. (Shocking, yes, but if you were born in Taiwan and moved to Montreal when you were 12 you probably wouldn't have seen those movies either.) We laughed a lot that night, for sure.

Sunday I met up with Yilin again and we did some more shopping. She had to exchange a pair of waterproof pants at EMS because she accidentally bought the "short" size instead of "regular". I used the opportunity to offer her one of two Christmas presents: on the one hand, she could choose a new pair of snowshoes (that way she wouldn't have to borrow any), and on the other hand she could go with the "surprise present" that I was originally going to get her. She is very curious and couldn't stand waiting around to see what this mystery present might be, so she went for the snowshoes. Of course, she asked me a few times the rest of the day about what the present would've been. I only answered, "You'll never know. Hahahaha!" Aren't I hilarious?

After that we went into Prada and Yilin looked over the "sale" racks. (Haha, sale. Right.) I convinced her to try on a $5200+ coat, that was 40% off! What a bargain! Anyway, the only sizes left were slightly too small for her, so there wasn't even an option for temptation. As we were walking out, she confessed in a hushed tone that she had never tried anything on in Prada before.

After that we got lunch at the amazing Italian restaurant Po (you must read this review). Go there if you are in the mood for Italian food whilst in NYC. We fought our way back through the crowds to shop for nasty clothes for The Annual Nasty Clothes Christmas Challenge.

For those of you unfamiliar with this challenge, allow me to describe the event. It all began when my brother and I were in college and saw an ugly shirt at a store while our mom was intent on buying us new clothes. We then went around looking for the ugliest shirts that we could find. Somehow it turned into a matter of bragging "who could pick out the ugliest clothes." So the gloves were thrown down, the date of Christmas was set, and the Challenge was to buy the other person the "nastiest outfit" you could. The rules:

1. The clothes must be men's clothes.
2. The clothes must fit. Tight and baggy are ok, but circulation can't be cut off, nor can the wearer be swimming around in yards of fabric.
3. Clothes can be made or modified by the buyer in anyway, and clothes must be worn by the recipient in a manner that the buyer chooses.
4. The clothes had to be worn everywhere on Christmas Day.

Our mom tried imposing the rule that the clothes couldn't be secondhand, but we blatanly rejected that suggestion, as it became not only cost prohibitive, but prevented True Nastiness from being exhibited.

After several years of horribly ugly Christmases, the contest expanded from me and my brother to us versus our two younger cousins Ritchie and Russell. These foolish upstarts thought that they could compete with The Brothers Nasty, and were proven wrong last year. Again, they think that they can find nastier clothes, but they will be proven wrong.

Lucky for them, I can't afford to drop $300 on two outfits, or they would cry themselves to sleep. (NYC is a very expensive place to buy clothes secondhand. I wish I could though, because I found the best store for it.) Instead, I bought some cheap slightly less nasty clothes, and with some fabric from Yilin, sewed clothes for them. Yes, I am a master tailor. You will see my handiwork posted on this blog post-Christmas, I promise. Your eyes will burn out of their sockets, too. ;)

On the way to shop for said nasty clothes, I thought I saw Johnny Depp. It turns out that it wasn't Johnny Depp, but some guy named "Brian" who was rolling his own cigarettes and listening to tapes on his boom box. He wasn't selling anything, or begging for money. He was just hanging out. Pretty interesting character, nonetheless.

We went back to Yilin's for dinner, and I did some sewing on her sewing machine. That was my weekend, and you can view the slideshow here.

It's a Mad Mad World

Well, it looks like my thesis committee meeting will be postponed for the 4th time. Hahaha...aha... yeaaaahhhh, great. My advisor is quite ill with the flu, and can't make it. So it looks like my meeting will be next Thursday. There are positive and negative aspects about this. On the plus side I have plenty of time to prepare. (Things were getting tight; you know me, I am a procrastinator extraordinnaire.) On the other hand, I really wanted to get this over with. I will focus on the positive and keep on truckin'.

In other news, I just bought myself a Christmas present: a point-and-shoot 35mm camera. Why?

1. I really would like a camera to take with me whilst ice climbing and mountaineering.
   
2. My kick-butt Canon Powershot S500 Digital Elph has terrible battery life in cold weather, as do many digital cameras.
3. For my price range, film is superior in resolution to digital.
4. While climbing/belaying/shouting through high winds and heavy snow to your partner to turn back, you don't have time to focus, select a shutter speed, and select an aperture. You want to live.
   
5. Point-and-shoot cameras are smaller and lighter than SLRs, TLRs, or rangefinders anyway.
   
6. I don't have a point-and-shoot 35mm camera.

That's my logic, more or less in some progression. Besides, the camera I got is regarded as one of the top 3 cameras to take while climbing/mountaineering as it is small, compact, and has one of the best lenses ever made. If I am going to buy a camera that suits my purpose, I might as well get the best one that I can reasonably afford, right? (This is the cheapest of the three.)

Speaking of price, even though this camera was discontinued more than a year ago, it often sells for higher than the original MSRP on eBay. Higher! I got mine for substantially less, as I spotted a just-posted auction with a very reasonable "Buy It Now" option. No doubt it would've went soon at that price.

By the way, if you are in the market for a small point-and-shoot digital camera (as opposed to a digital SLR), I highly recommend getting the (I think discontinued) Canon S500 ($228 reconditioned or $384 "new"), or better yet, its successors the SD500 or SD550. They are virtually identical 7.1 megapixel cameras, slightly smaller and lighter than my S500, except that the SD550 has a larger LCD and takes MultiMediaCards as well as SD Memory cards. No, I am not sponsored or endorsed by Canon USA in any way, but I might be if I showed them some of the photos I have taken with their camera. ;)

Of course, if you are in the market for a digital camera, I would stop by Digital Photography Review, Steve's Digicams, and Imaging Resource. Those are the sites I use/refer others to when shopping for a digital camera. DPR has a buying guide that lets you search for digital cameras based on the exact features that you want. They also have in-depth reviews. Steve's and IR also have great reviews. I recommend these three sites because if you read one of their reviews, there will no longer be any questions in your mind about the performance of that camera. Besides, at these sites you can also download actual photos from that camera and judge for yourself.

josh out.

I think Yilin likes me...

I don't mean to start rumors here, but I suspect that my girlfriend, Yilin, likes me a lot.

I haven't been updating my blog as often as you would like, I am sure, because I have been working in lab quite a bit in preparation for my thesis committee meeting tomorrow afternoon. (Now, since I have mentioned it 3 times, I suppose I have no choice but to inform everyone of the outcome.) As a result, I haven't seen much of Yilin, or anybody outside of my lab and my roommate.

So imagine my delight when she offered to come all the way up to the nether-realm of Washington Heights (often affectionately referred to as the 'boondocks' of Manhattan) and make me dinner!!! Delightful it was: she made macaroni and cheese (from scratch), hamburgers (using aged ground beef from a steakhouse/butchershop in her neighborhood), and brussel sprouts prepared with garlic and butter. We topped dinner off with half a bottle of red wine. Mmm mmm! Isn't she the best?

In other news, my beard is coming along nicely. It is due for its first clean-up (neck, cheeks, etc) this weekend. I've got at least a third of an inch going. It will keep me nice and cozy while I bash away at ice with my axes 100' off the deck in freezing cold Vermont this February. :)

Let's get interactive since I have been out of touch lately. You, the reader, tell me what you would like to happen on Christmas Day. I will start:

I want to wake up to a foot of freshly fallen snow with 2 more on the way, big fat ice pouring off the cliffs and mountains of upstate New York and New England, and no school. ;)

Now it's your turn. Don't be shy. I know there are many lurkers here who do not post comments. Go ahead, grant me that instead of my actual Christmas wish.

One Million & One Things to Discuss

Wednesday afternoon I hopped on a Chinatown bus bound for Boston, transferred to the Commuter Rail to Worcester, and hung out with my brother until 3am while he prepared for his thesis defense.

Thursday morning we got up, showered, ate breakfast, and then Jay masterfully defended his thesis, earning him the title of... well, Master. His thesis work was on the detection of gaming in computer assisted learning. (Well, that is my summary; it probably is not entirely correct.) Master Jay and myself went to lunch with some of his friends/fellow students. We then went and had a few more beers before dinner. Then it was beer until 11pm.

Friday was Master Jay's birthday, so it was a day of beer, naturally. Wait, we did stop into his lab for about 30 minutes, at which point he told his advisor that he was done for the day. The other 23 hours or so were consumed by beer consumption.

Saturday I witnessed Katamari Damacy. I won't go into a lengthy explanation of this PS2 video game, as it wouldn't matter. I will just say that I interpreted the storyline as this: the King and Queen of the Cosmos order you to roll a little ball called the katamari around. It picks up objects through gravitational mass, so the more objects you pick up, the bigger the ball gets, the greater the mass, the larger the objects you can pick up, etc, etc, repeat ad nauseum. You can end up picking up people, cars, buildings, and so forth, bringing about a wake of destruction. The whole time, up-beat Japanese pop music plays in the background, over the screams of the terrified citizens. I know that the concept makes no sense. Heck, I saw the game and the concept still made no sense, but trust me in that it is the epitome of Japanese video games.

Saturday evening I finally got to see Yilin again after about 4 days. I did miss her, and I told her so.

Today, I work. This coming Friday is my annual thesis committee meeting, and there is a lot I would like to get done before then. As a result, my updates will be short and sporadic until sometime this weekend. Wish me luck!

Quick Update

Hello faithful readers! I have decided to post a short update while I sit here in lab running an experiment.

Yilin travelled with me to Connecticut for Thanksgiving. She had the distinct pleasure of meeting a large portion of my family (most of my mom's side) and a number of my grade/high school friends. She was a good sport, said she enjoyed meeting everyone, and she was glad that I invited her along.

I ate a fair amount of food on Turkey Day. Not up to my usual amount, but enough to silence my cousin Ritchie who has been claiming for the past 3 years (or more?) that he would out-eat me. (To be fair, he put forth a valiant effort and we ate an equivalent amount of food.) We continued our tradition of watching kung fu movies after dinner (to the chagrine of some of my female cousins), and then crammed some dessert down our throats. "Full" is an understatement.

I will post photos once they are developed/downloaded, and make a slideshow. I was trying out some expired slide film that had been stored at 4 degrees Celsius since it was bought, so I am curious if it is still any good. (I have that film developed in LA at a fancy photo lab, so it will take a week or more to get it back and know the results.) I was also using a 35mm camera that Yilin is letting me borrow out of the kindness of her heart. I will post more about that camera, too, as I am going to write up a blog entry on my cameras in the near future. I know, it is boring unless you know/care about photography, but this is my blog and if you don't like it you can click on the "Next Blog" button in the upper right corner.

'Til I write again my readers,

Josh I remain...

The Lost Turkey of The New World

If you recall, way back in September I blogged my first Christmas tree sighting. Well, this trend towards 'everything Xmas' has continued at a ridiculous pace. I have seen so many "Holiday" (read as "Christmas") decorations weeks before Thanksgiving that I can't take it anymore. OK, so it isn't causing me to have a nervous breakdown, but something has to be said.

I won't rant on the increasing commercialization of Christmas at the cost of what that day is about (whether you are religious or not, it should still be a time of generosity towards those close to you). Instead, I will focus my efforts on the increasing neglect of Thanksgiving, which is without a doubt the most American holiday ever.

Thanksgiving is about being an American: someone who came to this country (or whose ancestors came to this country) to start a new life and seek out new opportunities. It's about hope.

"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

(Lazarus 1888, 202-3)

Thanksgiving is the celebration of immigrating to this country, to the land of Hope and Liberty. Yes, there are many people who struggle once they move here. Yes, it is tough on immigrants. But consider the alternatives. Consider what other places in the world, for the past 400+ years, has one been able to uproot and leave everything behind, and have everything offered to them upon arrival (in the form of opportunity and hope, mixed with elbow grease).

Where else in the world can you be born dirt poor and die fabulously wealthy? Sure, some of these rags-to-riches stories occur at the equivalent odds of winning the lottery, but that isn't the point. The point is that it happens.

We forget this. We forget how much we have, and how much we take for granted. We care too much that our burrito didn't have enough beans in it, rather than caring that we were able to eat enough to fill our bellies. New York City is the best place to observe the ungrateful: I have had a "homeless" guy who was begging for change to buy something to drink refuse a half-full bottle of Snapple that I offered him. WTF? I have seen women in fur coats get into a heated argument about the coffee they just purchased with the guys who work at the donut carts where they purchased it.

These people forget what America is about. They forget what Thanksgiving is about: being grateful for what we have, giving thanks, and celebrating the fact that we are fortunate enough to stuff ourselves with food to the point of exhaustion, illness, and idiocy. Why? Because we can.

So when you are lying on the sofa, with grams of tryptophan flowing through your bloodstream, the post-dinner coffee and 3 slices of pie don't even have enough 'pep' to keep you awake, and you aren't sure if you will slip into a coma or vomit, just think about how fortunate you are to experience that discomfort.

Clean Sweep

Wow. Saturday I went to lab for a few hours. During that time, Yilin did something that no woman other than my mother has done: my laundry. She did about 4 or 5 loads. She then went through ALL of my clothing, sorting it into what stays (separate piles for 'regular clothes', 'gym clothes', and 'climbing/camping clothes') and what goes. When I came back from lab and saw this, I was amazed, impressed, and very grateful. Although this was a Christmas present to her, it benefits me as well (this is definitely something that I've wanted to do for a while now).

This is what is being gotten rid of:

• 32 shirts
• 11 pairs of pants
• 2 pairs of shorts
• 4 pairs of underwear
• 6 pairs of socks (+9 orphans)

I still have that total volume of clothing that I am keeping. Although, by "volume" I mean "actual physical volume", as the distributions are skewed away from pants toward socks and underwear; shirts is probably about the same. Of course, I still have to actually discard the clothing. That is the final committing step.

We then went to Chinatown to do some grocery shopping. We picked up some crazy giant Chinese grapefruit-like thing (I only know the name in Mandarin Chinese, and don't even know how to transliterate it, so I won't), a persimmon, a Chinese pear, Meat, and all sorts of other goodies.

Grocery shopping in Chinatown is a lot of fun. You really never know what sort of incredible "food" you are going to see. Upon seeing something I never even knew existed I immediately ask Yilin, "Have you had this and is it any good?"

We then went to dinner at Sweet-n-Tart, a place that is labelled as 'Dim Sum' by CitySearch, but is not actually that type of restaurant. You can read my review here.

We then went back to Yilin's place. We ate this giant grapefruit. Yilin told me, as she was cutting the peel off in a specific manner,

"You know, every kid in Taiwan likes to wear the peel of this fruit on their head. They all do. And now you have to."

With that, she placed this fruity helmet upon my head. I am not sure if she was telling me the truth, or just wanted me to post a photo of this on my blog. You decide.

We then prepared food for a Thanksgiving Feast we were attending Sunday at Angela Christiano's house. Angela is Hyunmi and Katie's academic advisor. She always invites me to their lab Happy Hour and any lab events. Who am I to turn down free food and beer?

The stipulation of attending Angela's Thanksgiving feast is that you must bring a dish from "your country of origin". Being the European mutt that I am, and as American as one could get, in a sense, I brought homemade chocolate chip cookies. Nestle Tollhouse for the win!

Yilin made a Chinese dish that is like a cold cut. It's a specific cut of beef marinated/simmered for an hour in a wine/anise sauce and then marinated/cooled overnight in the fridge. In the morning it is cut into thin slices and covered with a bit of the sauce and allowed to warm to room temperature. Yes, it is darn tasty.

Sunday morning we went to breakfast at Claude's. I suppose I could link my earlier review here, but it's moot: Claude still rules the world of French pastry with an iron fist.

In the afternoon we met up with a slew of people attending Angela's party and rode in the van to Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, where her new house resides. Concerning the house, all I will say is that the master bathroom is nearly half the size of my apartment. Honestly. (Her new house is amazing.)

The party was a lot of fun, and as per The Official Rules of Thanksgiving, I stuffed myself stupid. Oh, glorious day of thanks! Yilin's dish went over really well; it was one of the few that was totally finished. (There are so many dishes that not all of them can possibly get eaten.)

We got back to Manhattan early enough to vegetate for a while, digesting the day's intake of food, alcohol, and sugar. You can view a photo slideshow here.

The Great American Novel

About one year ago (give or take), I began writing a book. A fictional book about stuff that isn't real. Stuff that doesn't always happen. An everchanging book with a new plot every time you read it. No, I wasn't struggling with the story and continuously scrapping ideas. I was writing a piece of nonlinear fiction, aka "Choose Your Own Adventure"-type story. And a darn funny one at that, in my opinion.

My brother wrote me a simple program to help organize my story. However, my needs eventually outgrew the program: the large file size took a long time to load, different choices were supposed to lead to the same page but couldn't, and no real way to export the book (yet). He has been quite busy with his graduate school education, so I didn't bother and harass him to beef up the program from its beta version (or perhaps alpha; I don't recall if there is a version number). Ergo, I let the story sit aside.

Recently, I have been re-inspired to finish this miasma of tangled prose. How so? My buddy Dan is writing a novel. That fact alone made me want to breathe life into this project once more. Where to begin?

Well, my dad forwarded a link to my brother and myself, which points to Freemind, an open source mind-mapping software program. I have heard of similar programs before, and looked at a few, but never tried one. Thus far, Freemind has helped me organize my thoughts (I had an 8.5x11" piece of paper with about 100 text-containing bubbles and arrows everywhere) and take notes on what is written and what isn't. However, it is not suited to inserting the actual text of the story within the flow chart-like map.

So I printed out a hardcopy of what I had, grabbed a bunch of blank sheets, and in conjunction with Freemind I will be writing this story by hand. Good ole pencil 'n paper. In my few spare moments here and there (on the subway, waiting for an incubation in lab, etc), the story will be completed. I only need to write a few paragraphs at a time, because that is all the text necessary before the reader must make the decision.

What can I tell you thus far? Well, here is My Book FAQ:

Q: What is it about?
A: The story begins in early 19th Century France, where you, the main character lives lavishly.

Q: Is writing a piece of nonlinear fiction difficult?
A: Yes and No. It's tough, but you only need to write a few paragraphs at a time. Also, finding ways to end the story or tie in possible plot lines is difficult. Thus far I have about 20 ways for the main character (that's you) to die, and I have written about 20% of the book. It can't be written in a formulaic manner; rather, one should embrace the chaos.

Q: When will I be able to read it?
A: It's not like I can post chapters, so you will just have to wait. Also, whilst penning this parody I have already violated several copyrights by referencing fictional characters not of my devise, so don't expect it to go anywhere 'real'. Just wait until the release (and nag me to get it 'released').

Q: Is it really funny?
A: Hilarious. Of course, I think I am funny, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.

Q: Why are you blogging this?
A: Because, just like my second post in this blog, if I don't tell anyone, I won't feel obligated to go through with it.

Let the question and answer sessions continue...

Where do I begin?

This weekend was rather eventful. Saturday, Yilin and I went climbing in the 'Gunks. We climbed for a little bit, and then went on an easy hike. The weather was fantastic and the foliage was just after the peak, but still very nice. I was very glad to get out of NYC, and I believe that Yilin was as well.


You can read about our adventure here, and view a photo slide show here.

Sunday we met up in the afternoon at my place (I had some lab work to do) and she began to utilize one of her Christmas presents. I have given Yilin something that I have never given any woman: I am allowing her to go through my wardrobe and remove anything that she doesn't think I should wear. I figure she has been buying me clothes anyway, trying to effectively get me to self-regulate my wardrobe. But she didn't realize that I don't throw clothes out. Not even if they are full of holes. My family can attest to this.

So, while she has virtually unfettered power, I set a few rules:

1. She must leave me with enough clothing so that I do not have to go shopping for more right away.
2. She is not allowed to get rid of any climbing/hiking/camping clothing.
3. Clothes to be thrown out can become workout clothes, but I still need enough clothing to exercise at least 1x/day for a week.
4. I choose what happens to removed items (donate, trash, Dad or Jay).
   
5. I am allowed on 3 occasions to veto the removal of an item.

I realize that Rule #1 is subjective, but I told her that we will negotiate what is "enough clothing." She had no intention of violating rule #2 when I told it to her, which earned her bonus points.

So far, she has gone through about 1/3 of my clothing (while I was shaving and in the shower). She laughed and told me that I am going to hate her. Well, I don't, but not surprisingly a lot of my wardrobe will no longer exist. Anyone want a Hawaiian shirt? However, I found a way to keep 2 of them without using my powers of veto: I will use them exclusively as climbing shirts, and only when she is not around. They are made of polyester, and as synthetics should function well as climbing shirts, which I don't have (I usually use cotton t-shirts, which are not ideal). A large number of items will be given to my father or brother (if they want them), while some will be donated. I now have a lot of workout t-shirts, and most of my existing workout t-shirts are going to New Jersey landfills.

I am surprisingly OK with this. I knew it had to be done sooner or later, but I've always had trouble throwing out what I consider to be a perfectly functional piece of clothing (i.e., it covers my chest/abdomen/crotch/butt >75%). I am sure that my mom will be happy.

Some items she wants me to try on to see how they fit me before deciding if they should go. There is also a mountain of dirty clothing that will have to be sorted. (I am hoping to get her to go through it before I wash it. That way, I save time and quarters.)

After the closet cleansing, we went to Radio City Music Hall to see The Radio City Christmas Spectacular. While not entirely spectacular, it was entertaining. The most impressive parts were those in performed by The Rockettes themselves. The other dancers/performers were pretty good, but not as good as those long-legged ladies.

Yilin and I were a bit surprised at how kid-oriented the show was, but we were entertained nonetheless. As it was only one and a half hours long (it started at 7pm and we were out by 8:30), we didn't know what to do since we had gotten used to 4 hour operas. So we took our time and walked up to Columbus Circle, talking all the while.

Now it's back to the regular work week!

Are you an Idiot?

Yes, the question that men have queried for centuries: Are you, in fact, an Idiot?

To get at the answer we must be able to define an 'Idiot' or 'the state of Idiocy' (political jokes aside). I have chosen to capitalize the word 'Idiot' because it has become so commonplace that its weight has been lost. From Answers.com:

The introduction of the IQ test was followed by a classification system that used such terms as moron (IQ of 51-70), imbecile (26-50), and idiot (0-25);

Think about that. If, by definition, the 'average' IQ is 100, an Idiot is at least 4x less capable than the average person, and 3x less capable than someone who falls just within the category of 'developmentally disabled' (aka 'mentally retarded'). Remember that kid in your third grade class who had a to wear a helmet and ate dirt all the time? Yeah, he is 3x smarter than an Idiot.

Which leads me to why I am posting this. I answered the phone at lab this morning, and on the other end was a women who asked, "Is this Columbia University?" Well, it is, so I replied, "Yes." She then uttered this gem, "I am from ------ (company). Could you please transfer me to Accounts Payable?"

What? First of all, I don't even know if Columbia University has a centralized Accounts Payable office. As far as I know, all of the individual departments pay their own accounts. This isn't a corporation (although sometimes I wonder). Second, I don't think our phones allow us to transfer calls, if I even knew what number to transfer her to.

I explained to her that she had called a research laboratory, one of hundreds at Columbia. She didn't get it. "This is Columbia University, right? Can you just transfer me?" I tell her straight up, "I don't even know what that number might be." She then asks if anyone else at this number can help her. I explain that Columbia has thousands of phone numbers, and randomly drawing one out of a hat will not get you to where you want to go. It's like walking up to the counter at an airport and buying a ticket for the next flight out of there, hoping that it takes you to Hawaii. Still, the concept that she effectively called the state of Montana and asked to be transferred to the Governor eluded her.

I tried explaining to her that I am a graduate student, I have no idea if Columbia even has an Accounts Payable, and she is better off using a web browser to look on Columbia's web site for any administrative number, rather than call me. I should've given her the Dean's number. Instead, I said, "Goodbye." Click.

Sadly, this is not the first time this has happened. A few months ago a similar scenario occurred. Perhaps you think I am being a little harsh. Well, if as many as 3 in 100 people are mentally retarded, then I probably correctly diagnosed her condition. Josh off.

Birthday Week Aftershock

Last night my dear friend Katie took my to dinner and a movie as a Birthday present, as she was unable to go to Peter Luger Steakhouse with us. Yilin joined us for dinner at MaryAnn's, a TexMex restaurant that always hits the spot. Yilin then went home and Katie and I went to see a scary movie...

We saw "Three... Extremes", an independent movie comprised of 3 short films by some leading Asian directors (Fruit Chan, who I am unfamiliar with but is the driving force behind this film; Park Chanwook who directed the kickass "Old Boy", and Takashi Miike, who has directed the unnerving "Audition" and surreal "Ichi the Killer").

It was good. If you think you are going to a horror movie, you are wrong. Instead of being scared, it leaves you feeling freaked out or disturbed. The three short films are titled "Dumplings", "Cut", and "Box", and are directed by those above, in that order. Katie and I both felt that "Dumplings" was the best of the three, with "Box" being second and "Cut" third. I was so impressed by Fruit Chan's short film, that I will be intentionally watching films of his in the near future. It was very well done.

That is all I will tell you, in the event that you are interested in seeing "Three... Extremes". However, since the large majority of my readers do not live in one of the six cities in this country where it is showing, you will have to wait until a region 1 DVD is released (which will probably be never).

I had a great time with Katie, as always, and look forward to the next time we will hang out.

Opera Redux

Last night Yilin and I saw Mozart's 'Le Nozze di Figaro' ('The Marriage of Figaro') at the Metropolitan Opera House. It was great. Of course, it was a really late night, even considering the fact that Acts III and IV did not have an intermission. I got back to my apartment at 12:40am.

I enjoyed 'Cosi fan Tutte' more, for a few reasons: Some of the parts in Figaro were sung in a manner that made them sound spoken in an operatic voice, if that makes sense. These parts were more like dialogue than songs. Which is fine, but after witnessing how complex a plot could be advanced through song alone in 'Cosi', I was left feeling a little cheated. "Cosi fan tutte' was also a lot funnier. Not that opera needs to be funny, but both are comedies (as far as I know), and therefore the degree of 'funniness' matters.

I came to realize that I find the voices of the women much more impressive and amazing than those of the men. Sure, the men sound great, but the women sound divine. I wonder if I am biased because I like women... Who knows.

Afterward, Yilin mentioned something that I was wondering as well: Mozart apparently didn't trust women. Of course, none of his female lead characters was anything other than honorable in love, but the male characters always doubted and were jealous. In fact, most of the characters have doubts and jealousies in their minds. Interesting.

What a Weekend

Wow. So much happened this weekend that I feel I won't be able to adequately discuss any particular event. I almost feel guilt for not working at all this weekend. Almost. :)

Friday night Yilin and I went to the Metropolitan Opera to see Mozart's 'Cosi Fan Tutte' ("Women are like that"). It is a quite humorous story about two brothers who are convinced that their fiancees could never love anyone else, and their friend who teaches them that women are only human. The production was incredible: the sets were amazing, the lighting fantastic, the symphony outstanding and the voice talent extremely impressive. But then again, this is one of the greatest opera houses in the world, so should I really be surprised?

What made this opera especially enjoyable to me was that the performers incorporated a lot of physical comedy into the story. Sure, some of the lines delivered were humorous on their own, but it was how other lines were delivered, the expressions or gestures or downright brazen body language of some of the characters, which made this story live up to its potential as a comedy.

Unfortunately for you, this opera is no longer showing at the Met this season.

Saturday was a rugby day. We had our annual Fall tournament in honor of a former P&S rugger who was murdered in a mugging about 23 years ago. Naturally, winning this tournament is very important to us. At the end of the day, we were victorious. We ended up winning the tournament by soundly drubbing the one team that had beaten us earlier in the day. It was sweet. So we began drinking beer.

Sunday I woke up and felt broken. I was sore from head to toe and covered with bruises. I drank as much water as I could and made myself move around to flush out the lactic acid in my system. I began to feel somewhat normal after an hour of this. Continual slamming of your body into opponents, teammates, and the ground results in tenderized meat. Add dehydration and a few beers to the mix and you get quite the marinade, if you know what I mean.

I met up with Yilin for breakfast at Patisserie Claude. We then went up to Midtown so she could attend church and I 'roam about'. I had secret plans, however, and went to Fauchon. I met her outside of her church at 12:30pm and gave her a present: some marron glace (candied chestnuts) and a chocolate bar. Needless to say I was her favorite person for at least an hour or two.

We eventually made it to Brooklyn and had lunch at Grimaldi's. In the event that you don't read my review, then read this: go there. That's all there is to it. After an excellent lunch, we walked back to Manhattan across the Brooklyn Bridge. Apparently Yilin is scared of something to do with walking across bridges. I think it has to do with heights. Wait 'til I take her climbing. ;)

We made our way back to her apartment where I took a nap to aid in my recovery from rugby. She was cooking and paying bills I think. I don't really know since I was sleeping. I got up and we went to Elephant and Castle for dinner. Stay away. My review tells all. I walked her back to her apartment and we chatted, thankfully forgetting dinner. (It wasn't all bad, but... well, just read my review.) I got to bed rather early and slept like a petrified log.

It was a good weekend. (Photo slideshow visible here.)

Another truism from the Simpsons

The Simpsons has been, and will always be one of my favorite TV shows. To be honest, I stopped watching around the time I moved to NYC to begin grad school (August 15th 1999). I didn't have a TV, and once I got one, without cable or an antenna I got zero reception. OK, so I half got Telemundo. However, since I don't speak Spanish other than "pollo", "gato", and "arroz", Telemundo did me no good.

So it is without a doubt that I laughed and cried when I saw this clip purely because it is true. OK, not really true, but still funny. (I believe the clip requires RealPlayer, but I am not sure.) Aaah, those wacky Simpsons...

(Thanks to my good pal Katie for sending me the link.)

Finger Hypertrophy

I think my fingers are getting larger. By 'larger' I don't mean 'longer', but just 'thicker'. While my mom was visiting I was twice thwarted in holding a tea cup by putting the tip of my index finger into the handle. Two different tea cups at two different restaurants would not allow the last phalange to grip the handle from the inside. I had to hold them like Japanese tea cups.

I know it sounds ridiculous, but my mom and Yilin both witnessed it, and both were stupefied by the situation. Granted, I would say that the handles were on the small side, but they were ordinary tea cups. I know that fingers can continue to grow thicker, particularly when subjected to frequent repetitive labor, like fixing motorcycle engines or even rock climbing. But I haven't been doing much of either recently. I guess I am just getting older. Or delusional. You decide.

Student Discounts and Broccoflower

Student discounts are a great thing. I take advantage of them occasionally, but not that often. Yilin wants to see a few operas that are playing this season at the Metropolitan Opera. She suggested that I try to buy tickets using my student ID, as it will be much cheaper. She had done so in the past and was pleased with it.

So last night we went down to the Met and got in line to buy tickets. Student tickets are only available 2 weeks prior to a performance, cost a mere $25 for weeknight performances and $35 for weekend performances, and you don't choose your seating area; they choose for you. That last detail is key.

We bought tickets for Cosi fan tutte this Friday night and Le Nozze Di Figaro on the 8th. Total cost: $120. Our 'student' seats: Orchestra seating, quite far upfront and slightly offcenter. Total savings: $640. Amazing.

Possibly even more amazing is the fact that student tickets to the New York Philharmonic Orchestra run at $10 each. You can only get them about 3 days in advance of a performance, and I don't know if the seats are as good, but it is still dirt cheap.

After we bought the tickets, we went grocery shopping at Whole Foods and saw some crazy fruits and vegetables. We decided that every time we go there we will get something new. Last night we bought broccoflower. I have never seen anything so crazy. I can't wait to photograph it! (Pictures will accompany this post soon.)

Birthday Week: Concluding Weekend

What can I say? Last week was the greatest week I have had in a long while. To top it off, my mom came and stayed Saturday and Sunday. What more could a guy want?

It all began with a birthday dinner at Peter Luger Steakhouse with Yilin, Hyunmi, Mike, and Virginia. If you haven't heard of it, read my review. If you have heard of it, then you needn't bother reading my review because my praises are lost amongst all the others, for sure. What a great night.

Saturday, Yilin and I met my mom at Grand Central Station. Yilin took her shopping at many fabric, trim, button, housewares, and clothing stores, as well as the quilting store in NYC. Saturday night we dined at Gonzo, which was excellent. (Yilin is great at coming up with a restaurant to match multiple criteria in a short period of time. I realize that I put her on the spot by doing so, and I am grateful that she came through and wasn't mad or upset with me.)

Sunday was more shopping and a walk through Central Park. Yilin and I grabbed some El Malecon for an early dinner. How blessed am I to have spent so much time with friends and family this weekend, as well as dine at my two favorite restaurants? (That's a rhetorical question, so don't bother commenting on my damnable qualities, thank you very much.)

Photos will be posted soon.

Birthday Week: Day 5

Last night Yilin and I went to the AAF (Affordable Art Fair), where hundreds of artists were represented by about 140 galleries from around the world. Art was supposed to be priced between $100 and $10,000 (hence the term "affordable"). There were a few pieces above $10k. I only saw one piece that was $100. It was fairly crappy. Most of the decent stuff was priced between $1k and $2k.

It was fun. I felt inspired to pull out my brushes or pencils and create stuff. Even take more photos and plunge into the dark room. I am still inspired. We'll see what comes of it...

Afterward we went to a diner and I had a kickass BLT. Gotta love bacon on anything.

Birthday Week: The Big Day

Well, last night was the Big Day, if that makes sense. Twenty-Eight years young, that's for sure! Yilin surprised me again and again. First, she took me to Chumley's, a very famous brew pub in NYC that has fed and inebriated the likes of J.D. Salinger, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, and many more. They brew a plethora of beers, which I discuss in my review.

After Chumley's, we were walking towards her place when she said, "I want to go in here." 'Here' being 'Magnolia Bakery.' She bought me a slice of red velvet cake and then, as we stood outside, she whipped out a pack of candles and matches and lit up my birthday cake. I had to laugh at the situation. Despite the wind, we managed to get it lit and I made my obligatory birthday wish as I blew out the candles. We then proceeded to her place to eat the cake.

After about my third bite of cake she dashes off into her room. All I hear is rustling coming from her closet and then she appears, laughing, with two large boxes. Despite my protests, she had gotten me presents. I tore into them to discover an olive green, light weight, fine merino wool sweater. (She somehow seems to know what sort of colors I like.) I then proceeded to open the second box, which contained a brown corduroy sport coat with brown leather buttons and patches on the elbows. The jacket is lined with flannel, as well.
I put on the sweater and jacket and remarked how I felt like a professor, to which she replied that she thought of that when she was buying it. Yilin then kept telling me how handsome I looked, how nice the clothes fit me, and how handsome I looked. (Note to self: This may be some sort of subtle hint about how I should dress. Think it over.) I really like the sweater, and the jacket is definitely nice for dressier occasions. At the rate with which she has been shopping with me, or outright buying me clothes, I may have an entirely new wardrobe soon. ;)

I must say that I had an excellent birthday evening. Yilin did everything right.You can see a slideshow of photos here on my photography page. Check them out!

Preparation is the better half of Adventure

I have been reading about alpinism and training over the past few months. The goal is to get ready for a winter traverse of the Presidential Range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire. Recently, my brother and I had a short conversation about the trip. Basically he asked if I am committed to it, and I resoundingly stated, "YES!"

It really means doing cardio work, climbing stairs, and acclimating to the cold. Do not overestimate climatization. Mount Washington gets pretty darn cold, and the whole traverse is often used as a preparatory trip in summitting Denali. So, if you can suck it up in the cold, you will be much better off. Especially if you can feel your toes. ;)

In other news, a recent article about mind control was posted on SFGate.com. Read my little summary and find the link.

Birthday Week: Day 2

Last night Yilin took me to a ramen shop named Momofuku, which means 'lucky peach' in Japanese. You can read my review here.

After that we went and saw "Grizzly Man", a movie which I have been wanting to see for some time. It was a good movie, and quite interesting. It is a documentary about a man named Timothy Treadwell who lived amongst the grizzly bears of Alaska for 13 years. He shot about 100 hours of video footage, mostly him talking about the bears while sitting a few yards away from them. He wanted to protect the bears (and other wildlife) and educate people as well. Ironically, he was killed and eaten by a grizzly bear.

However, the director (Werner Herzog) coupled Tim's footage with that of interviews he conducted, and cut the whole film in a manner which ends up giving a sort of psychological profile of this strange and eccentric man. It is rather captivating, and some of the footage is stunning.

I feel that different people will walk away from the film with different feelings: Some will think that Tim was a madman and got what he deserved. Perhaps they will laugh at him. Some will think that he had good intentions and was trying to do something noble, albeit in a misguided manner. Others will probably be more interested in the macabre aspect of the film.

Afterward I was unsure how I felt about the movie. I guess it is difficult to say much more than that I enjoyed it and I was definitely interested for the entire 103 minutes.

Two posts in one day?

This past weekend I went home for my 10 year high school reunion. Needless to say, it was good to see all of my friends that I regularly keep in touch with. It was also good to see some of my friends that I haven't talked to in nearly a decade. Most people looked pretty much the same. Some hadn't changed at all, and others were unrecognizable until close scrutiny. Not surprising, really, as a lot can happen in ten years.

Just as good as seeing old friends was getting to hang out with my parents. We did a lot of running around and shopping early on Saturday, but got to kick back and do nothing but relax that same evening. Oh yeah, and they bought me birthday presents: a new knife to replace the one that I lost, a shiny new cam, and a double-length sling and 'biners for the cam. Kick ass.

Make sure you read the next post as well. It attempts to describe my Sunday, a feat the English language is incapable of.

Reason #200 why Yilin is the best girlfriend ever.

Last night I went over to her apartment because she was making me dinner for my upcoming birthday and knew she might not have time on the actual day. So she is cooking away, and apparently had been for a while. The only task I was allowed to perform was opening the bottle of wine. She told me to watch TV while she cooked, so I flipped through the channels until I came across "Rush Hour 2". (Gotta love Jackie Chan.)

She informs me that dinner is ready, so we sit down at the table and begin an amazing meal. First course was an elegantly simple salad that was made with endives and arugula (and another green that I am unsure of; probably something standard that I just can't identify). The dressing was a red wine/balsamic vinegar and olive oil concoction with black pepper. Topping the salad were grated parmigiano reggiano and candied walnuts. She made the candied walnuts herself. Never have I seen anyone do that.

Then came a kick-ass main course: short ribs marinated in red wine and slow cooked over several hours. 'Delectable' barely describes this dish. The meat was falling off of the bones, and was so tender I could've eaten it with a spoon. Along side the ribs was a not-quite-mashed potato dish with plenty of garlic. Nothing complements meat quite like potatoes, that's for damn sure.

Once I had my fill of that, Yilin vanished into the kitchen to prepare dessert: an exploding dark chocolate cake with Haagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream. What can be better than a dark chocolate cake with a warm gooey center that contains not much other than chocolate and butter? Well, it is a rhetorical question, but here is the answer: Nothing, that's what.

That meal (and the fact that she washed all of the dishes herself and wouldn't let me help) was reason #199 why Yilin is the best girlfriend ever. Reason #200 is what she said afterward: "This is the first day of your birthday week. This week is all about you." That's right. I get a whole week of this kind of treatment. Let me tell you, I am going to take advantage of this situation. Why? Well, it wasn't specifically stated, but implied, that while this week is mine, the other 51 weeks are hers. Therefore I will take what I can get while the taking is good...

Dinner at Chez Josh

Last night Hyunmi and Mike joined Yilin and myself for dinner at my place. I prepared Beef Stew for the Masses while Mike tossed a refreshingly crisp salad. A loaf of bread from Gristede's rounded out the meal. Good food, good company, and good conversation. That is the way every meal should be.

Hmm... I think I am hungry again...

I am Weaker than Bud Light

It's true. I am weaker than Bud Light. I am barely 185 pounds (if even that much) and with that loss of nearly 15 pounds of muscle (with no apparent change in body fat) came quite a significant loss of strength. Right now I am barely stronger than two able-bodied men. Pathetic. My rugby team moved me to a position more fitting for my smaller size. (Although, my new position is much more fun as my job is solely to hit people hard and fast.)

I attribute this to the amount of running I have been doing (about 20+ miles per week) and lack of weight room appearances.

Yesterday marked my return to the weight room. Part of me would be ok if I didn't gain all of the muscle weight back. True, I don't feel like myself when I am this small, but extra weight without a lot of extra strength won't help my climbing endeavors. Up on the ice (and rock) strength-to-weight ratio is what counts. So I am focusing on building pure strength. Any additional muscle mass will just be a bonus.

In blogging news, I have altered this site and the photography site slightly so that I can incorporate photo-slide shows. I hope to put some up soon, starting with a montage of my trip last year to Canada as those seem to be my most popular photos. Other, less popular, future photoshoots will include NYC fire hydrants, the ever-elusive empty parking spaces of Manhattan, and all the dog crap I see on the sidewalks.

Canadian Thanksgiving

This past weekend I went with Yilin to her parents' house outside of Montreal (in the town of Rigaud), as it was Thanksgiving in Canada and her brother would be home from college. It was a rather long drive up on Saturday as the rain slowed everything down by a good 10-15mph which translates into an extra hour to an hour and a half. That was long forgotten when dinner arrived on the table. We ate a number of traditional Chinese dishes, none of which I know the real names.

There was spicy chicken with peppers, a seaweed salad, a tofu dish, bean sprouts, plenty of rice, a noodle dish that Yilin loves, and pig's feet. (Of course, I may need to update this list if Yilin informs me of anything I forgot or got wrong; my food memory only lasts about 1 day.) I ate so much that I was in pain, which is par for the course on Thanksgiving. Just when I thought I might rupture my stomach, her mom brings out a pumpkin pie and ice cream. Naturally, I flex my abs to keep my stomach under pressure and down a slice. It didn't take long fot the food coma to overtake me, rendering me useless for all but target practice.

On Sunday we drove into Montreal for church. There we then met up with her brother and went to Chinatown for lunch. Yilin and her mom remembered that it was Taiwan National Day (at least that is what I think it is called), which explained the parade and firecrackers everywhere. Lunch was at a really good Chinese restaurant, where I stuffed myself. (That was the general theme of the weekend.)

I went with Yilin and her mom to do a little clothes shoppnig for Yilin (she wanted a shirt that her mom had, so she was going to buy one just like it). Unfortunately, the 'system' was down, so no credit card or debit card payments could be processed, so she didn't get the shirt.

We then went to visit Dayana and Artur, who were preparing a Thanksgiving feast. She was trying out a turkey recipe which calls for brining the bird overnight, letting it sit in the open air in the fridge to dry the skin overnight, and then roasting the thing for 2.5 hours. The idea is that the salt and drying will make the skin crispy, yet keep the turkey moist. (She has since told me that it worked wonderfully.) It was so good to see Dayana again, even if it was only for a couple of hours.

After a good dinner that night back in Rigaud, we lit a fire in the fireplace and relaxed until heading off to bed. Monday morning meant breakfast, a drive into Montreal for lunch at a great patisserie (that's French/Quebecois for "bakery"), and off to NYC. Of course, it rained most of the way, slowing everything down. We got back at about 8:30pm, turning the car in just in time.

Suffice it to say, I can't wait to go back! (But in the winter next time.)

Drunken Science

I updated my Science blog and posted about an interesting seminar I attended today. It was about research towards cybernetic arms. How could I possibly skip that?

This weekend Yilin and I will be headed up to Montreal to visit her parents and brother. As it is Canadian Thanksgiving on Monday (it's the same day as Columbus Day in the U.S.), I anticipate good food. Heck, as Yilin is a good cook, and she learned from her mom, I anticipate good food anyway. And we all know how I feel about eating. Mmmm...

Rant...

Standards. You know, the kind established by large international consortiums like W3C (World Wide Web Consortium). These are established to make sure that competitors in a market have interoperable products. Much like DVD formats (but don't get me started there; that's a whole 'nother rant), standards allow competitors to offer non-proprietary solutions.

In the case of the web, the competitors are Microsoft, Netscape, Safari, etc. The solutions are, of course, their web browsers. Which leads me to the subject of my rant: Why aren't any of the major browsers able to implement and comply with all of the W3C standards for html and css? I noticed how my blog didn't look like it should when viewed with Netscape or Internet Explorer. So a few days and a smattering of hours of coding later, I have newly revised blog pages that should look similar on any browser.

But I had to compromise. Before I had randomly selected subtitles appear on each page. But the lack of compliance with text-shadow tag made it difficult to read any of these subtitles in a browser other than Safari. So I embedded them into the header images. I like the idea of constantly changing subtitles, but their reappearance will have to wait until the other browsers catch up with the times.

I put a new restaurant review up on my cuisine page: Kum Gang San. Check it out.

Sailing the High Seas!

Yesterday Yilin and I took a trip with Adirondack Sailing Excursions. What a great time! The weather was perfect, the crew were amiable, and they serve you beer as well! Two hours sailing around lower Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty, before docking back at Chelsea Piers. I recommend this activity if you have an afternoon to kill on a nice day.

As for the site, I reformatted some of the pages (Food, Adventures, Art) and added a review of the restaurant Yilin and I dined at last night. More to come, but for now I will leave you with this:

Updates

Been figuring out more of this CSS stuff. Updated and posted on my climbing page (check the links on the right). I will figure out how to directly link to posts on my other page soon, but I have got some work to do now...

But first, let me mention something. Yesterday in New Jersey I saw something shocking. Christmas trees. Yes, Christmas-freakin'-trees in September! Is nothing sacred?

creationist theories

so i did it. i created a blog. why? well, to answer that we need to explore aspects of my childhood... just kidding. the real reason is this: for some time now, i have had the desire to create a web page where i could post examples of my creative output on the internet. except that i haven't had creative output. the great hope here is that by starting small i overcome my other inhibitions/activation energies towards creating.

the major impediment in this endeavor, laziness, has intervened in the actual creation of a personal website. oh sure, i've spent quite a bit of time learning html and java script. i've even made logos and animated graphic buttons that 'do their thing' when your cursor moves over them. but they were never seen because i had nothing to show.

until now! (hahaha.) actually, i am hoping that merely by using this free service (that gives me a url, designs everything for me, and allows me to do as little as possible) i might create something to post. besides, if i tell everyone about it, i can't just let it die, now can i?

expect many changes to take place. grandiose design changes will be the most noticeable. i will create a more complicated design than the average blog has. why? because i can't do this the easy way. (in reality, i sometimes feel compelled to organize things in a very particular manner understood only by myself. thanks mom.) hmm, i should create a 'mission statement' or 'note' of some sort that aids people in navigating my (future) blog...

Alpha

This is how it always begins: very small.