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| I have bested my previous weigh-in by a substantial amount. Those close to me comprehend how much "substantial" actually means. Haha.
I had a chance to weigh myself last night and was surprised at the result. Any guesses on the weight in pounds? And the difference from my last weigh-in (which was early January in Hong Kong)? You will get a prize.
Any insult, heckling, wise cracks, or mocking will not be tolerated -- I will throw you with my new found weight.
(My wife is not able to participate in this, she witnessed the historic weighing). | | |
| A shocker, but a pleasant surprise, especially after this article earlier last week. Maybe more thoughts later? Hehe.
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| It's been too long and I'm lost without you
What am I gonna do
Said I've been needin' you
Wantin' you
Wonderin' if you're the same and
Who's been with you
Is your heart still mine
I wanna cry sometimes
I miss you
-- I Miss You, Aaliyah
Missing xanga much? That's right sports fans, bit long since I've posted on xanga much? Since the last time I've posted, these crazy guy A and crazy guy B have been having a good time posting. Just giving them some of that xanga lovin'. Also, let's pray for crazy guy X, he recently had some surgery and can use some lovin' as well.
Oh yes, how can I forget! Since my last post, I also got married to the woman of my dreams. She makes me feel very xin fu! Maybe that's why people keep saying that I look younger these days. I also gained some weight, but I started to think that it might be the hair that hasn't been cut since I got married. And no, I am not trying to look like Bruce Lee or Gary Sun. Freakers.
Let me get to the real purpose of writing for the first time in a million years. Lately, things at work have been dull, more excitement can be generated at church, the market has taken a hit because of the subprime issues, and it's hard to root for any sports team not from Beantown. Who knows if one post can change all of that, but I will try my best. Mang.
On work.
I've been more vocal about complaining and whining and moaning about work having long release cycles that never seem to end recently. I go to work asking for good news from everyone, because the mood seems to be less energetic, less enthusiastic. Every morning, I will message this guy and say "Tell me good news!" Don't get me wrong, I like my work environment, I love working with everyone that is there, I get Beard Papa's every so often with this guy. But then there is the never ending queue of bugs to fix, the weekends to work, and the feeling of little vertical movement in an engineering start-up. My latest thoughts and conviction about these struggles is that, we are always in search of a perfect job, someplace that we feel excited to go to every morning, someplace where we can make some difference. Why not make our present job the perfect job? I have been blessed abundantly, and though I may also feel the grass is greener on another side, I can also plant green grass too. So, may I be less vocal and more proactive about doing good works where I am, I am in a good spot where my complaints should be lessened.
On church.
Our church has been having a lot of struggles in getting a building, with leaders feeling tired and burnt out, and retaining people in small groups. Sometimes it's hard to get excited about ministry when there are a lot of these discouraging things happening, but there is probably a purpose and a reason beyond our knowledge of it. Today, my accountability partner shared with me some interesting statistics from a research study on unchurched Americans. For those who want a summary of some of the statistics, the highest percentage of unchurched Americans in their respective categories are: by race, Asians ("Asians, however, doubled the national average: 63% were unchurched!"), by location, West coast ("Residents of the West (42%) and Northeast (39%) remain the most church resistant..."), and by marital status, single ("Single adults continued a historic pattern of being more likely than married adults to stay away from religious services (37% versus 29%, respectively)"). Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised by these results, and found much encouragement in the study. So while many of us may be longing for different things at GrX -- maybe thinking that we should raise up more leaders in the church, maybe thinking that the campaign was too forceful and partnership too pushy, maybe desiring more of a multi-cultural presence -- I hope we also see the purpose and the good news that the study brings, that GrX is directly impacting the most difficult demographics to reach. So for those who are feeling tired and worn out, maybe jaded and uninterested, I hope this bit of news speaks to you a bit as much as it did to me.
On finances.
I've been following the market a little more closely recently, given that I am thinking about ways to support a family and provide a good life for my wife. It has definitely been hard to enter right now, and with such limited knowledge of investing, I think it'll be a while before I make a move really. Sometimes I can't fall asleep at night thinking about more ways to generate income, it's really silly actually -- I once had a thought to play Heroclix again to win Limited Edition figures at tournaments to sell for a profit. Good times! Well, one encouragement I can give myself and for others thinking about these things is from the book of Matthew: No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? -- Matthew 6:24-25. Maybe this can help me sleep better at night!
On sports.
Finally, for those hating the Red Sox, the Patriots, and the Celtics, I actually do not have much encouragement. I heard their soccer team is also doing very well, as is Boston College in college football. My lovely wife graduated from MIT, so I guess I am partially associated with Beantown. Freak me. But seriously, what kind of water are they drinking out there? What gives man? Can't the Mets and Giants get some love out in NYC? Come on man.
Anyhow, I didn't want to leave without giving you guys a glimpse of why I am so happy these days. Here is a nice little picture of my wife and I enjoying a sunset during our honeymoon.
Oh ya, last bit of encouragement... It's FRIDAY! TGIF! HAPPY FRIDAY!!!
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| A month of searching for our first home has gone by, and BrownieBear27 and I have finally found a place that we will call our first home! YAY! We'll be in Sunnyvale, right smack between where she works and where I work. So it works well for the both of us, and I thank God for the lessons learned, for the provisions, and for what is to come.
I've been living in Mission Pointe for over two years now, but my memories of this place extend beyond my stay here. I remember helping away24 move here the first weekend. We had a sandwich at some mom and pop place nearby, but it doesn't exist here anymore.I remember sleeping on his floor before he gave me a ride to the airport at 6am for a flight down to LA.
In no particular order, here are some of my most memorable moments at Mission Pointe:
- Heroclix - What a fun game.
- Late night backgammon - Doubles would be nice.
- Hsu's gyration - Luckily he doesn't do it anymore.
- Dai's surprise birthday party - The jabroni had no idea.
- My "surprise" birthday party - Call the cops!
- City of Heroes - Running around like crazy.
- Chuck accidentally flossing his plaque onto my face while I was laying down on a sleeping bag - The grossest thing ever.
- Pong bachelor party - No comment.
 - Early morning workout and devotions with Drew - Purpose driven lives.
- Less drink sahm sols! Less smoke sahm see-gars! - Impromptu.
- Kimchee flavored seaweed - The best snack ever.
- First time hosting Cross Training - Sharing stuff I typically do not share.
- Thanksgiving and Christmas 2005 - Spending holidays with people without family in the Bay Area.
The greatest memories that I will have with me forever about Mission Pointe come from these events:
- A Wednesday night in the summer of 2005. Dai had stopped by our apartment either after pool or after coming back from the airport. Hsu and Drew were here too -- Drew was working, Hsu and I were watching Conan. Hsu did his (at the time very regularly) woo hu huu huuuuuuu with his hand covering his mouth. Little did we know his laugh traveled through our windows to Pong downstairs, who was enjoying the cool summer breeze through his open window. Dai and Hsu decided to screw around, so Dai prevents Hsu from getting out the door, and I enter the fray and mess around with Hsu too. We cause a ruckus, and our downstairs neighbor comes storming up. He bangs on the door, which scares the living begeezus out of us, and we're completely silent at this point. We open the door, and Hsu is released from our wrath and heads downstairs to hit the sack. Meanwhile, Dai and I try to go to sleep, but Pong, irritated by all of our actions, decides to prevent us from sleeping. We decide to go to Denny's at 2am, but not without waking up Hsu (who started this mess in the first place), and asked him to come along too. The look on his face was priceless when we woke him up. Drew, Pong, Dai, and I went to Denny's, and we all didn't wind up sleeping until 4am. It was ridiculous. Good times!
- 12/13/2005 and 10/6/2006.
The first date is the day I realized that I liked Grace. We enjoyed a meal at home, we watched The Apprentice, and we sang songs while I played guitar. Something happened later that night that got me thinking about her more seriously (you can ask me personally what that was), so that was the day God planted the seed that has grown to what our relationship is today.
The second date is the day I proposed to Grace, in the living room of our apartment complex. I wrote a poem, gave her some flowers, gave her a photo frame, washed her feet, and gave her a ring. She said yes! (Or did she say "okay" at first?) You can check back in my xanga history to find out.
Ahhhh, the memories...
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There are those who live in the past. The ones who can't let go of what haunts them, who take pride in their greatest achievements, who say what could have been or should of been.
There are those who live in the now. The ones who live day by day, who worry only about today, who see exactly what is presented in front of them.
There are those who live in the future. The ones who are optimistic about what is to come, who look forward to brighter days, who say what can be done and will be done.
I don't really know if it's accurate to generalize people to these categories. More to the point, I think these generalizations are not black and white, but there are the gray areas between the continuum as well. For me, I find that I am pretty idealistic about things, so I would probably tend to live in the future, longing for what is to come. Of course, I do have symptoms of living in the past and living in the now, but my personality seems to fit "living in the future" more.
Where do you guys live?
2 Corinthians 5:17. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
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