Dont wanna ruin the surprise, but it's not a car

2009-08-25T08:23:00.001-07:00

i’m not sure how to respond to the fact that Jasmine Fiore’s body was identified cuz of her breast implants…

2009-06-02T08:10:00.000-07:00

Working here makes me realize how smart I am compared to the amount of stupid people living in NY…

2009-05-15T07:44:00.000-07:00

“I find it far more difficult to examine the evidence and yet refuse to see” - Jill Carattini

2009-05-12T12:00:00.000-07:00

Remember it's not what you do in life that counts the most, but who you are - Charles Stanley

2009-05-08T10:59:00.000-07:00

I’m in love with my butt cheeks<3 = ]

2009-05-08T06:56:00.000-07:00

i am so lovestruck<3 = ]

2009-05-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

I seem to have a fierce anger towards mosquitoes… iono why but when I see one I have this urge to annihilate it >=[

2009-05-05T08:29:00.000-07:00

“From the crooked timber of humanity, nothing entirely straight can be built” - Immanuel Kant

2009-05-04T06:45:00.000-07:00

I’m gonna start the trend of years past “oh-9” … “oh-10, oh-11, oh-12” etc lol I’m callin it here

2009-05-04T06:08:00.000-07:00

"A thoughtful Christian doesn't follow the crowd...a thoughtful Christian follows Jesus" (unknown)

2009-05-01T13:22:00.000-07:00

Longest last name ever found – 21 letters … first name is only 6 – go figure

2009-05-01T08:07:00.000-07:00

Some lady’s name is “Precious”… That’s a name that you give to a dog lol

2009-04-29T08:38:00.000-07:00

31cent scoop night at baskin robbins today ^_^

2009-04-29T06:18:00.000-07:00

a stereotype you don’t see everyday- this morning 2 women struggle with changing a tire… 10 mins later I see a guy helping them out

2009-04-24T07:01:00.000-07:00

“man is born broken…he lives by mending…the grace of God is glue” – Anne Lamott

2009-04-23T12:59:00.000-07:00

there’s something about hanging from a pull-up bar that makes it fun… guess I’m not use to “feeling like I’m floating” haha

2009-04-23T09:36:00.000-07:00

I applaud Carrie Prejean for standing up for her convictions – but I don’t applaud her for considering Phelps loll

2009-04-23T06:44:00.000-07:00

“you? 260? You don’t look 260…” from some guy who also works out. I suppose I can take that as a compliment loll

2009-04-22T10:04:00.000-07:00

some lady doesn’t want to give her last name on camera but she tells everyone she lives across the street where the incident happened… noob

2009-04-21T12:17:00.000-07:00

A fan is keeping me cool because my lovely jenny gave me an office fan ^_^

2009-04-20T12:15:00.000-07:00

“Status quo holiness” – that’s an interesting term…

2009-04-17T07:19:00.000-07:00

“you have it many times – I just want it once” a quote from a gay person about marriage. Profound and true I must say but I’m not for it either way

2009-04-16T06:20:00.000-07:00

you definitely know when they gave you too much ice if you can’t even put your straw through the lid -_-“

2009-04-14T11:53:00.000-07:00

a lot of colored folks here are very offended by the place that renamed themselves as, “Obama Friend Chicken”…

2009-04-09T10:17:00.000-07:00

wholefoods isn’t too shabby for lunch everyday if I ever worked near there… lol

2009-04-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

man… people can be real annoying when they want something real bad. they’ll nag, and nag, and nag until they get it, despite the consequences.

2009-04-07T06:35:00.000-07:00

March, April and May stinks lol I don’t have a day off until memorial day -_-

2009-04-07T06:24:00.000-07:00

according to “superstition” (whoever made this up – but maybe to make himself feel better lol) I should be buying a lotto ticket lol

2009-04-02T10:01:00.000-07:00

I guess what they say is true – Americans do live from paycheck to paycheck… that sounds a lot like me unfortunately =X

2009-04-02T08:23:00.000-07:00

useless info alert: each mcD is 85% independently owned… so i guess using the phrase “I want it my way” only works at Burger King lol

2009-04-02T06:20:00.000-07:00

mcD’s really wont let you have the 2for3 w/o cheese… at least for the one at city hall on broadway. “part of the promo” as they said…

2009-04-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

So MTV wants to get back to its original roots so its gonna show music videos continuously again… from 3am to 9am - I’m baffled

2009-04-01T09:40:00.000-07:00

Haha on “Millionaire” someone tried to walk away from a double dip - there was such an awkward silence all around the room lolll

2009-03-31T07:28:00.000-07:00

I always feel like, someone’s watchin me…

2009-03-31T07:21:00.000-07:00

(-_-)zZ Zzz

2009-03-27T07:03:00.000-07:00

the lack of chemistry between the cast in the Twilight movie is definitely noticeable. you’re better off reading the book

2009-03-26T12:52:00.000-07:00

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

2009-03-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

Suleman’s retarded for buying a jacuzzi instead of beefing up security for her kids at home when she 911’d about an intruder…

2009-03-26T07:12:00.000-07:00

worst fashion combination everrrrrr: Uggs + sweatpants. only staten island girls seem to don this thinking they look cute -_-

2009-03-25T13:37:00.000-07:00

someone who doesn’t understand their “Notice of Result” card from a test they took for Police Officer, should not be a PO…unbelievable !

2009-03-25T11:12:00.000-07:00

Bella’s reaction in the 2^nd book in the beginning is a stereotypical response to which I think it’s being too melo-over-dramatic…

2009-03-25T08:08:00.000-07:00

There’s always food at work… I haven’t decided whether or not it’s a bad thing lol

2009-03-24T13:44:00.000-07:00

<3 i got a date tonight = ]

2009-03-24T08:35:00.000-07:00

Administration for Children Services should take the kids away from the parents who give them retarded names like “Semen”…

2009-03-23T11:05:00.000-07:00

the color printer is almost as great of an invention as the wheel so to speak lol

2009-03-23T06:51:00.000-07:00

As much as I like March… there are no days off which means 5 days of work the whole month -_-“

2009-03-20T11:39:00.000-07:00

Marvin, from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series by Douglas Adams is probably the most amusing character ever lol

2009-03-20T10:25:00.000-07:00

Woori Jip is the new hangout spot… for good cheap food that is lol thanks babe = ]

2009-03-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

Marie Douglas-David says her $53k a week prenup isn’t enough for her… what is she stupid? People are losing their jobs everyday…

2009-03-19T08:05:00.000-07:00

Reminiscing about my time in paris… my entire Europe trip actually

2009-03-19T06:26:00.000-07:00

I wonder what a toasted pop tart tastes like… I’ve always had them straight outta the packet lol

2009-03-18T12:02:00.000-07:00

I used to think that women talking about shoes like men talk about sports was a myth but apparently its true lol

2009-03-18T07:25:00.000-07:00

Jenny made me lunch = ] but I ate it for breakfast loll

2009-03-17T14:24:00.000-07:00

with the right kind of people in your life, you learn a lot of interesting things and perspectives…

2009-03-17T10:41:00.000-07:00

its annoying how Chinese parents and older folks secretly impose the notion they are doctors and/or experts

2009-03-17T07:09:00.000-07:00

I should’ve wore my other jacket because then I wouldn’t blend in with the irish crowd… lol

2009-03-13T14:15:00.000-07:00

If you want to learn how to fly according to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: “knack to flying…lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss” - LOL

2009-03-13T13:42:00.000-07:00

do, do you got a first aid kit handy? do, do you know how to patch up a wound for me? are, are, are, are you, are you patient and understanding… lol <3

2009-03-13T07:00:00.000-07:00

“if the word Savior is in your job description, it’s because you put it there. Your role is to help the world, not save it” – The Great House of God by Max Lucado

2009-03-13T06:46:00.000-07:00

<3 I am so in love with jenny = ]

1

2009-03-12T18:35:00.001-07:00

2009-03-11T22:00:00.001-07:00

111111111

Moved!

2008-09-18T20:47:00.001-07:00

So I've had a wordpress for awhile now but I've never really done anything to it. I'm gonna start posting every things there but if things don't work out I'll come back here. It's really the same name but instead of .blogspot its .wordpress. Don't worry I wasn't planning on getting points for creativity haha.

moved!

Relationships

2008-09-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to write a post about the things that I've been feeling in regards to boyfriend/girlfriend relationships. This post isn't a wishlist of what my relationship could've/would've/should've been, and neither is this post a definitive checklist for the achievement of the perfect relationship.

Rather this post is more about the insights and lessons that I've learned, realized, observed, and experienced from my relationships, friend's relationships, and visual media relationships through the past 24 and a half years living on the earth.

1) It should be known that there are right/wrong reasons to pursue a relationship, and there are right/wrong things to do in a relationship.

2) It should be known that both persons should refrain from using the "L" word. For a period of time, I started loathing the word "love" when hearing/seeing/reading it from other people after going through a long relationship which started in high school. It really begs the question of whether or not the people uttering the word really understand the meaning and all the implications of it. Myself included, I have made many promises and none of those which I can remember have I kept. All was said and made in the name of "love".

Recently a new TV series inadvertently gave me insight into the mind of women when they hear the phrase "I love you". Watching her facial expression when she heard the words was equivalent to the enlightenment age in Philosophy, a "oh I get it now..." moment, the light bulb on top of my head - you get the idea. If you're in a relationship and you haven't uttered the words, I encourage you to think about it thoroughly before you say it. If you're in a relationship and the words have been said, either from you, the other person, or both, unless you're on the course of or seriously thinking about marriage I'd have to say to prepare yourself for heartache - not because you lost someone you love but lost someone who can't fulfill your selfish needs.

3) It should be known that the words "I love you" is not glue for the relationship to continue to exist. In other words just like a car isn't/can't run on water, a relationship is not held together by the words "I love you"; actions precedes words.

4) It should be known that unless you're living in an area with a population of less than a couple thousand, 99.99% of high school relationships do not last. If you fit that .01% just mentioned I will only applaud and give credit if that relationship will last to the end (marriage) without the involvement of sexual intercourse.

5) It should be known that if you've been involved (meaning have the label of bf/gf) with multiple people within a short time frame (4 years - that's not long trust me), most likely you're not looking for love but for companionship. What is companionship? Well its to satisfy your biological needs physically whether by kissing, holding hands, or sex among other things not mentioned; or emotional needs such as making sure there's someone to make you feel like you're not alone in the world, or that person treating you well compared to other guys among other things not mentioned. Only being honest with yourself can you realize if you are solely looking for companionship than a life long partner.

6) It should be known that all the things above mentioned concerning what companionship is are selfish qualities that do not make up what a true relationship is. A genuine love relationship is about giving a lot more than it is about asking for, but not about giving into those selfish needs. The way to approach the relationship is to not get attached until you know that it has the potential to be your lifelong partner. If by mutual understanding and agreement it doesn't end up going all the way, then there isn't the danger of being attached or heartache.

7) It should be known that if you're not in the relationship with marriage in mind then why are you in the relationship anyway? It only follows that if you're not looking for a lifelong partner then companionship is the only other option. The only end result of companionship is separation and it should follow that there isn't any justification for feeling sad/depressed/upset/angry because the other person was in the relationship for the same reason you are. After all if you've been in multiple relationships within a short time frame, not that I'm encouraging the idea, but what is stopping you from getting involved with another person?

8) It should be known that if the current relationship isn't teaching you anything new, reminding you of the real meaning of love, changing you into someone better and not the same person as you were when the relationship started, then it is a sign that the relationship is not healthy for you, and it's probably not going to work out. Other signs that the relationship isn't going to work and just delaying the inevitable are constant arguments, physical touching, as a means of "assurance", and (but not limited to) the attachment.

9) It should be known that you'll know you are attached if you have what Usher calls, 'got it bad.' Getting attached is also evident if you start acting as if the relationship was going on 6 months when it really only has been 2 weeks.

10) It should be known that the perfect example of a true genuine relationship is the love that God has for us. God offers/offered blessings, sacrifice, mercy, patience, change, and (but certainly not limited to) promises. What more do you want in a relationship than with God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit)?
---------------------------------

Any questions or comments will be address in the following post. Thanks for reading.

Summer '08 - Nothing Like It

2008-08-22T23:02:00.001-07:00

Usually the best indicator for the end of summer is the college students heading back to their respective education institutions. In its own sense this year has been one of the best summers that I've had. Ever. It was due to the fact that I got to spend it with awesome friends everyday on the 8 o'clock ferry. Since starting my new job at the end of June (immeasurable thanks to those who have helped in this process) the one thing that wakes me up on time in the mornings are the same people on that particular ferry. Then at work the emails begin which makes the whole work day bearable and seems to go by faster.

This post is for you guys in making my summer more enjoyable than it would've been, for the pinkberry moments, e-mail spams, lunch gatherings, bubble gum chewing, e-prays, and everything else I missed.

Top row from left to right : Florence, Jenny, Pol, Rachel
Middle row from left to right: Sybil, Dave, Simon, George
Bottom row from left to right: Joanna, George, Victor
Not pictured: Andrew

Random

2008-08-21T22:20:00.001-07:00

Funniest random thing I saw today:
Six NYC Police Officers got on the bus to go three stops down. They looked so awkward and I got the feeling that everyone else felt it was awkward too lol. I mean what NYC PO take public transportation aside from the subway?

Just browsing through my iGoogle and Microsoft Photosynth caught my eye. It's pretty neat really and I'm thinking of giving it a shot. Check it out here. Basically a short description is that you take massive amounts of photos ranging from detailed to far shots so that when it all compiles together it creates a sort of a one-dimensional-3D online view of whatever it is that you took massive amounts of pictures of. Just go to the website and look at it yourself haha.

Responses and Random Pictures for the Month of July

2008-08-19T21:55:00.000-07:00

As speculation for the next Batman movie is flying around on who wants to play what character, and possible characters, this article to me stuck out the most because i would've never guessed or considered this particular actor fit for this type of movie genre (if they were serious to have the next villian as The Riddler that is).
Check this article out

In response to the Anon comment from the previous post, the person was absolutely right that there's no guarantee that Christopher Nolan would return for the third Batman - in fact it was three years since Batman Begins. Christopher Nolan takes his film projects one step at a time so i would not be surprised if it took another three years or more for the next Batman to arrive but I'm pretty confident that Christopher Nolan would see through Christian Bale's contract for the three Batman films.

---------------------------------------

Sorry but since I started work I haven't been carrying my camera around so the camera phone was all I have.

(from left to right)
1 - Since I started working around City Hall I've managed to at least be around the camera, film, and some cast members of various shows but mainly Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Shown are actress Kathryn Erbe and Vincent D'Onofrio.
2 - Some candidate came in and she brought in bootleg Pocky lol. I had to take a picture of it
3 - I doubt anyone wants to take a tour of Staten Island. The tour is only close to an hour and the only site they visit that i can remember is the Alice Austin house but I know that it's mostly the North Shore. I think the price is about 45$ or something - ripoff and boring.
4 - At work I've been buying snacks at the vending machine but this pretty much made me stop. The picture was taken on July 28th 2008... -_-"

(from left to right)
1 - Ugly Betty staff chairs
2 - Eric Mabius
3 - Eric Mabius (and when the person moved...) Rebecca Romijn
4 - I couldn't get a good shot of America while she was heading toward the car since they were filming underneath the arc. So I only got the left back-side of her head.
*honorable mention* - Judith Light was there as well but since she was almost literally walking next to me (it was almost as if no one knew she was part of the show as Mrs. Meade) I didn't want to be rude and shove a camera in her face.

" WHY SO SERIOUS ?! "

2008-08-04T12:00:00.000-07:00

The title is a line from the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight. If you haven't seen the movie yet, I highly encourage you to check out the movie before it comes out on DVD/Blu-ray. This is one of the films that shouldn't be watched when it comes to the discs but on the big screen. The purpose of this post isn't to JUST give praise to the film, but rather after watching the film and describing some of the most memorable moments to my brother I realized that a lot of thought went into the movie in certain areas of thought, relativity, philosophy/acting, and irony. So if you're reading my post and have not watched the movie... SPOILER ALERT !!!

If anyone hasn't watched the movie I'll warn you one more time - SPOILER ALERT !!! Now that I've gotten that away lets go to the movie plot analysis.

From the picture above whoever created this poster/advertisement was a genius. It summarizes all that the movie represents. Batman being in the middle perfectly depicts the notion of being a vigilante but yet in order to do so, requires some taking matters into one's own hands - which to many of us civilians (whether in the movie or real life) feel there are no exceptions to the law. Harvey Dent being on his left and the Joker on his right represents the classical idea of good and evil respectively, though in the end even the best of us falls.

I was never a fan of the Rachel Dawes character in the Batman installments but her role at least was not in vain for the second of three expected films. I initially suspected that the writers for the movie needed some way for Harvey "Two-Face" Dent to legitimately account for how he's destined to become "Two-Face", and that was to kill the Rachel Dawes character. But after some thought it seems that it would be the only legitimate way because of the character that Harvey is - a public protagonist that stands for good, justice and the end of corruption - along with having the new addition (referring to Dawes) as being Harvey's would-have-been wife, only to be killed is what pushed Harvey over the edge.

Speaking of the end of the movie, the ending is the only outcome that would have made the movie coherent, logical, and true to the title of the movie. Alfred even made a reference to the end of the movie when he said that Batman can make all the decisions that no one else can make because he is what he is by doing all that he has done.

All throughout the movie you should have realized that Batman was forced to make many Utilitarian (a decision that has the best possible outcome for all scenarios) choices. As in the case of "giving to the demands of the Joker" because people were dying left and right, and saving that one person's life who knew the real identity when the world wanted him dead to save everyone in hospitals. All the decisions in the end led to a world where Batman was not considered a vigilante, a knight in shining armor but rather "The Dark Knight".

The writers also masterminded the logical flow of cause and effect towards the ending of the film. Regular movie goers wouldn't probably have not paid attention to the detail but being a huge fan of Batman help me notice endings that fit the movie and endings that are just to end the movie. All the while Batman is fighting between the obvious evil, all the citizens were fighting along side but in a sense of themselves. The following scenarios encourage this idea:

The "I believe in Harvey Dent" catch-phrase summarizes the hope that the citizens of Gotham need and need to stand behind amidst the internal corruption in the city...

That very same hope was again declared and enforced publicly in Bruce Wayne's fundraiser...

And that very same hope was the reason why Batman imposed the idea on Commissioner Gordon that it was Batman who killed captured and killed Harvey Dent (A little detail here regular movie goers might have missed is that Harvey Dent to all the civilians was missing after the hospital incident until they end of the movie). If the civilians realized that Harvey "Two-Face" Dent became a bad guy, all the hope of a better Gotham would've been shattered...

And that hope for a better Gotham wouldn't have been more clearer than in the "social experiment" set up by the Joker with the two Staten Island Ferry bombing detonators. One can tell that both boats were eager to live, that although the vote was in favor of detonating the convicts no one wanted to get their hands dirty and carry that conscious, and even though in the beginning it was very hectic upon hearing the announcement from the Joker the convicted banked their lives on the hope of the law-abiding citizens - almost to the point where they knew when it came down to it that they deserved what they got if their boat was detonated, and that also when the big black guy said "give me the detonator and I will do what you should have done 10 minutes ago" and threw the detonator out the window.

A quote by C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity says, "Surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for the sort of man he is..." - that quote cannot ring any louder in the movie.

The acting by far was the best in all around superhero movies. Yes the character played by Robert Downy Jr. was superb but one person can only carry the movie so much - whereas the cast for The Dark Knight had three great actors (Batman as a character is a negative when it came to acting but lets be serious... would anyone really take Batman seriously if you heard a soft toned voice like Christian Bale's?) and two of which play off each other very well

Christian Bale - as Bruce Wayne
Aaron Eckhart and Heath Ledger - as Harvey "Two-Face" Dent and the Joker respectively

Christian Bale plays a very good Bruce Wayne - stuck up, and feels that money can get him anything... not that much to say about him since this is his second movie.

There isn't much to say concerning the part that Heath Ledger played because well, its obvious and any sort of description praising him for a great performance would be unjustified. The only thing I will say is that anyone who asks the question, "Is Heath Ledger or Jack Nicholson a better Joker?" - to which the answer is that each was great in their time and their interpretation of the Joker by far exceeded the expectations and doubt that anyone had on depicting an insane, mindless and morbid character.

I'd like to make a point to give credit where it's due and that is the role played by Aaron Eckhart. There can be only so much killing and so much ultimatums from the Joker without having some real purpose behind all that he does and A.E. did a great job in portraying a relentless beacon of hope against all that is evil, until the last 30 minutes of the movie that is. A.E should definitely be up for at least a nomination for best supporting Actor in a movie for his role as Harvey "Two-Face" Dent.

In retrospect the movie even though it's called The Dark Knight, isn't so much about Batman ironically but rather one can sense the film becomes more about Harvey and the Joker, while Batman is just there for the ride, getting caught up in all that Joker plans against Harvey.

Lastly since there will be a third Batman in the Christopher Nolan films, I'd like to present my case and theories for the third installment.

1 - I believe that Batman's third installment will be a battle between the Joker and Batman himself. Why? For a couple of reasons and the main one being that unlike the original Batman in the mid 1980s, Joker in this film does not die. It is understood that the S.W.A.T. team has custody of him.

Another reason is the idea that the Joker hinted at Batman just after he is thrown off the roof, caught and left hanging upside down. He says something along the lines that he and Batman are destined to be arch-rivals in a sense that the epitome of Good vs. Evil is Batman and the Joker respectively.

Another reason why I believe the Joker will be part of the third installment is because an introduction of a new villian such as maybe Mr. Freeze, the Riddler, Poison Ivy, Bane, and the Penguin are all lame and would take away the kind of atmosphere and feeling that the writers and Christopher Nolan worked so hard to create for the audience to be immersed in.

The reason why Christopher Nolan's Batman series is such a success is because of that atmosphere and feeling the audience can relate to. As they watch the two films anyone can relate to the idea that everything that happens in the movie, either has happened (as in the case of corruption of the internal workings of political and government agencies) or has a chance of happening (a ferry boat bombing, a hospital threat, etc). With the introduction of Mr. Freeze, the Riddler, Poison Ivy, Bane and the Penguin all take away that seriousness and swings toward the lighter and more comical sense that Batman Forever and Batman and Robin portrayed (both of which were terrible movies).

I haven't developed an opinion of Cat-woman yet... but I feel its a possibility. But lastly for any Batman fan, the Joker will always be Batman's arch-rival and enemy. Just like X-Men's arch-enemy is Magneto, Batman's arch-enemy is the Joker. The only problem that my theory comes across is finding another Joker... I don't have a solution for it and it is the basis for my second theory.

My only other theory for the third installment for Christopher Nolan's Batman series stems from the Joker theory - and that is Batman dies. For real I honestly believe that Christopher Nolan did such an excellent job of recreating the Batman hero for the new generation, that it would only be right and symbolic of the writers to end the "trilogy" so to speak by killing Batman off as Christopher Nolan planned to only direct three Batman movies.

All in all, The Dark Knight is the best superhero movie of this decade. I used to go around saying it's the best superhero movie of all time but I also happen to like Tim Burton's version of Batman and that still ranks as number one in super-hero movies.

Anyone that says Iron Man was a better super-hero movie and only basing that on visually tantalizing stimulus to the eyes loses all credibility when it comes to judging what is good and what is a bad movie. I liked the Iron Man film but the movie was not as intricately weaved and complex in terms of storyline and the villian in the end was just as predictable as the sun rising every day.

Can't wait for The Dark Knight to come out on Blu-ray.

" LET'S PUT A SMILE ON THAT FACE !! "

Random Photos for the Month of June 2008, The best of my EuroTrip, and The Coronation of Napoleon

2008-07-19T12:44:00.000-07:00

Here are the photos for the month of June. Most of the pictures from my Europe trip are on my Facebook so I'll post the best picture from each place that I've visited as a summation.

Golden Flow... sometimes I wonder if people who create names really think about whether or not it has other connotations to it. Then there's the phrase that goes after it doesn't help with regards as to what the Golden Flow product is if it's "the taste we grew up on"

I can't believe the dog is still here from the last time I posted about it! The price from when I took it back in April was $7.99 and now they raised it a dollar to $8.99 -_-

So this was pretty interesting when I spotted it. There seems to be four cameras hoisted on the roof of the chevy cobalt - anyone who has any sort of photography or film background please feel free to fill me in on this contraption lol

Three of the Four Waterfalls in NYC, "Presented by the Public Art Fund in collaboration with New York City." This is Olafur Eliason's art project and I'll acknowledge his creativity but I don't really find it all that fascinating aside from being pointless. Neither do I think it's really worth the four months that it'll be here (June 26th - October 13th).

I had to get my Mercedes Benz brakes fixed so the tune-up shop is the Ray Catena in Edison, NJ. They have free fast internet, a fridge for cold soda, juice, and water as well as two different types of sandwiches and wraps. The picture on the right you can see that they have bagels in the morning for those who have appointments in the morning. Everytime I go I have to be Asian and grab all that my two hands can fit lol. Usually its like two sandwiches and two bottles of water haha. I guess when you get a luxury car you also get treated luxuriously.

------------- The Best of EuroTrip 2008 -------------

London's Buckingham Palace.

The Vatican in Rome

Florence Cathedral, otherwise known as Basilica di Santa Maria Del Fiore

The Gondola ride in Venice

The Milan Cathedral

The insanely clean waters of Switzerland

The Mona Lisa by Leonardo DaVinci at the Louvre Museum in Paris.

The Peeing boy in Brussels, Belgium

The Clog making factory in Holland

The Diamond Factory (Coster Diamonds) in Amsterstam which houses the diamond encrusted tennis racquet and ball.

------------- The Coronation of Napoleon -------------

The above picture is a painting done by Jacques-Louis David done at the request of Napoleon. Some quick tidbits about the photo. This was the first of two that Jacques-Louis David did. The second painting was exactly the same except some minor differences to which I'll show at the end of the post. The obvious difference is easy to point out so I'll leave that for you to catch it.

Towards the background the woman in the middle of the row that looks important - that is Napoleon's mother. Story has it that her and Napoleon got into an argument beforehand and she never showed up for the actual event and Napoleon had asked David to paint her in. In the row above Napoleon's mother, and to her right (our left) there's a guy that looks like he's taking notes during the ceremony. That's Jacques-Louis David and in front of him are his three daughters.

There was something about this painting when I first saw it at Versailles that captured me and won my heart. So at the gift shop when I came across the puzzle it was just something I had to have. So I bought it but i haven't opened it up yet till just now lol.

The picture below was taken at Versailles, the second of the Coronation of Napoleon by Jacques-Louis David done about nine years later after the first one.

Lazy... and Happy Birthday !

2008-07-17T21:12:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of ideas and things I planning to write about but I'm just lazy... I'll just leave you guys with two entertaining things. An American Idol star and a random comment from a "Pervert". Enjoy !

*out of nowhere this person says*
"I don't mean to be perverted or anything... but your pants are pretty tight!"

Flo Rida ft. TPain - Low (as sung by Joshua Lam)
*note - I was shocked when I heard him sing randomly so I decided to record it lol*

Happy Birthday to my cousin Ed
and Happy Birthday to my mui Joanna (7/16)

LOST

2008-07-04T23:37:00.001-07:00

So after two months of not seeing LOST, I'm glad that I waited this long to see it because the season finale never fails to leave me hanging for more. For anyone who has not seen LOST or happens to be a hater, you can find out what the buzz is all about because ABC.com has all the episodes from all four seasons so anyone who has not caught the bandwagon can now join and be up to date.

But seriously... LOST is awesome. I can't think of another TV show that is like it with such intrigue and mystery or at least comes close. I'll admit that there were some bad episodes or some boring ones (especially after I started watching Heroes), but the writers for ABC's LOST stepped up their game for this season.

If you haven't seen the season finale... I'd probably advise you to watch it the week before the new season comes out - you'll thank me ^_^

Prayer

2008-06-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

Dear Heavenly Father,

I thank you Lord for the chance to be blessed with today's technology, using it for your glory. I thank you for the opportunity to use this blog, with the capability to publish posts in advance so that I don't have to say a certain thing at that moment in time.

This prayer I bring to you I lift up my sister in Christ, Jenny, for she will be teaching Sunday School. In all that she has gone through during the past couple of years in which You have molded her, I pray that she would be willing to give it all to you. Letting go of any fears she may have about leading a group, and leaning on your strength Lord because there is only so much we can do on our own. I pray that she would have a willing hear to be used as an instrument to get your message across because once we start teaching and relying on ourselves we start bringing glory to ourselves.

I also lift up a fellow brother in Christ, Simon, who has been feeling burdened. Lord you know what it is that is occupying his mind and although we know it in our heads that you are sovereign, forgive us for not fully believing that as we worry about things in life. I pray that you would give strength and encouragement to Simon whatever way possible and that he would feel refreshed because your Spirit is upon him.

Lord I want to lift up the youth on sunday who will hear the second part of the Foundations series and that they would be encouraged to read your word and seek to hold precious the words you have spoken in the Bible. I pray for open eyes so that they may see your glory, open ears that they would hear and open hearts that they may obey what they hear.

In Jesus name,
Amen

Random Photos for the Month of May 2008

2008-06-12T22:42:00.001-07:00

I know I haven't been updating but here are some pictures that were taken during the month of May I thought was pretty random. I'll be on vacation so I wont be updating for awhile. Here are the places I'll be in Europe for the next week and a half or so:

London
Rome
Florence
Venice
Milan
Luzern
Paris
Brussels
Amsterdam

Enjoy the pictures!

I was at a travel agency picking up the vacation itinerary and happened to come across this poster of a province in Thailand. It's pronounced "poo-ket" but thats not what came to my mind at first lol.

Well I never would've thought that this corner on Baxter and Canal in Chinatown would close down but apparently it has and the reason is for safety measures....

An old Chinese superstition is that if you make 1,000 paper cranes, your wish will come true...

The pictures speak for itself lol.

Was walking around in Chinatown when I saw an elementary school kid doing his HW on the sidewalk next to his parent's newstand...

Haven't seen old school Vespas in awhile...

And for the last photo... while picking up Jeff from Penn State, came across this truck. It's just asking for a kidnapping to happen lol.

See you all when I get back !

^_^

2008-05-28T00:40:00.001-07:00

More Ragnarok Online screenshots

2008-05-14T21:37:00.001-07:00

So we decided to mess around with more pictures and poses and here is what we came up with.

1 - Since our merchants were all dress in black and Jeff's Assassin Cross was black why not take a picture of a "gang" lol

2 - Dave has a gunner and we used the @die command to the fullest lol.

3 - More dead bodies and we used the merchants to look like Death Angels

4 - The Liu Dynasty has taken over...

5 - Okay so what really happened here is that after i took the picture for number 4... a monster came by and killed all the merchants LOL. It was hilarious just witnessing it haha. So it was perfect for a new shot which is what you see.

Ragnarok Online

2008-05-07T20:31:00.000-07:00

A bunch of us messing around during the game with poses and whatnot, as well as just me taking random screen shots of the game. The photos are numbered from left to right. The private server (link provided) we play on is RebirthRO and the official website for the game itself for more information is here.

1 - A GM (Game Master - pretty much holds the power to do anything on the private server) was hosting some sorta event with everyone who had a Mage character to join. I decided to join in with the people sitting in a line lol. I'm the girl Mage on the right and Jeff is the guy Mage on the left. The GMs muted him for awhile haha.

2 - My Archer character glowing because she hit base level 99. The glow usually stays after base level 99 and is an indication that I can start on the Transcendent Classes.

3 - Dave's Archer on the left (base level mid 120s Transcended roughly at that time) and my Archer on the right (roughly around high level 90s Transcended at the time). When I hit base level 99 Transcended again I'll start glowing forever. My "pet" is on the right... and she's supposed to represent a Geisha lol.

4 - I changed the hair and clothing color of both my merchant characters to black and made them equip the "Mr. Scream" mask. Scary? Their names are Bloomingdale's and Macy's lol

5 - Jeff, DaveL, and I with my two characters messing around and taking screenshots of our "totem pole" lol. Jeff's the one with the antennas coming out from his head haha.

6 - The online player stores. You can shop for anything from dolls, swords, binoculars and even cooking kits ! lol The prices range from the cheapest worthless items to the most sought after items from 1 zeny (which is money in this game) to about 350 million zeny. The most expensive item I bought is a Lord Kaho's Horn that costed me 12,999,999 zeny -_-".

Random Photos for the month of April 2008

2008-05-01T14:34:00.000-07:00

I guess to encourage myself to post more entries on my blog... I've come up with an idea of putting up photos that I randomly took during the month whether because it was interesting or random. If I have anything to say I'll probably put comments on there too. If you want a better view of the photo just click on it. Enjoy!

So this is my first ever "myspace" picture (you know... the one where you stick a camera in front of a mirror and you take a picture of yourself). I was bored waiting for my Grandma since she had a doctor's appointment so I decided to one. You probably can't tell unless you click on the picture but my side view mirror is quite dirty lol.

I decided to take a photo of an area of Chinatown that I'd say I'm probably the most familiar with or at least my favorite place to walk past every time. This photo on Mott Street (perpendicular to Canal Street) has my favorite Chinese fast food place ever since I can remember anything - "Big Wong". Its the restaurant with the signature big yellow sign with their signature yellow takeout bag. Best Cheap eat place in NYC, hands down. I'll be taking another photo years down the line and compare the two for an artistic shot.

House of Vegetarian. The reason for this photo is that I'm amazed this restaurant still exists for as long as I can remember. It's a vegetarian restaurant! Sorry, I'm a carnivore and I do eat vegetables but preferably not a whole dinner set with items that resemble meat. Mind boggling while there is this other place on Mott Street that changed names numerous times. Simply amazing...

I never knew that hourly parking (in Chinatown at least) starts at 7:30AM and ends MIDNIGHT. I've always thought that the hourly parking ends around 8:30PM. Another way the city looking to get more money from us... parking. What's next... congestion tax? hehe

Last year I went to China for a family vacation with a tour group and they used a Purple flag so that everyone in the tour group can have a focal point of gathering or following if walking. As I just happened to sit there in the car waiting for my grandma these tourists are following the tour guide and she's using... a Hobby Horse (see wikipedia here). It was a pretty amusing site to see I'll admit haha.

This toy possibly ranks among the most annoying toys ever made. The things that the toy dog does is mainly bark practically nonstop until it moves at the timed interval, walks a couple of steps and then does a wheelie type thing, and then starts barking again. The sign in front of it says "Take me home" for $7.99 USD. I'll take a picture of it for next month and we'll see if the toy dog still needs a home. The shop owner probably wastes more batteries keeping the thing barking than the chances of someone actually purchasing one.

Happy Birthday !!

2008-04-19T01:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to Dianna !!

and a Happy Belated Birthday to Simon !! (4/15)

My baby is broken = (

2008-04-10T21:45:00.001-07:00

My tennis racquet has three strings that are broken. It only lasted for about four months worth of playing. On a lighter note... an abridged AIM conversation with Jeff about my "baby".

Brian: = ( my baby broke...
Jeff: your zune? your racquet? wing zero*? freedom**?
Brian: my racquet... you listed out four things ! LOL
Jeff: well those seemed like the top things lol. welcome to the club

*Wing Zero is a Gundam Model I have that's in a 1/60 scale
**Freedom is a Gundam Model I have that's in a 1/60 scale

Happy Birthday !!

2008-04-03T01:19:00.001-07:00

Wanted to wish Florence a Happy 21st Birthday = ]
Don't go too crazy now ^_^

Flirt To Convert... (edited 4/2/08)

2008-04-01T19:00:00.000-07:00

As I'm posting this entry, it may very well be a joke by Intervarsity Press (to be more specific, Berkeley) but they unveiled a new book called "Flirt To Convert". I'm stating this now that if this is indeed an April Fool's Prank... you got me. But for everyone who isn't afraid to be fooled but curious here's the link:

Flirt To Convert

Here are some of the most absurd things I've ever read on the back cover:

"Growing up in church I've always felt guilt about looking so hot. But after reading this book I realized God have given me gifts a long skirt just can't hide!"
Grace, 32

What ever happened to humbleness and humility?

"Now when boys ask me out I really know they're really just seeking God"
Christine, 22

Anyone with common sense knows the initial reason for asking someone out isn't because they're seeking God, but rather they're seeking companionship and a sense of belonging (and in some cases it's for marriage but we all know anyone in junior high and high school isn't looking for marriage).

Apparently there's an actual following for this so called cause. If you care to read what is written in the first website, I'm sure you'll have the same look as me ... o_O, especially when I read the following, "Not only can we date hot guys (as only hot Christian girls could do)...[bold and italics added]". If you care to read what's in the second website, take note of the drop down menus and the default checked box.

For those who don't know, missionary dating (which is dating people for the sake of evangelizing to them) is wrong and discouraged. That's a topic worth covering another time, but at the moment you can look at these baffling websites if you're in the mood to be bemused.

Hot Girls and Hot Women for Missionary Dating
Flirt To Convert: Religious Matchmaking Made Easy

---------edited 4/02/08---------
So it turned out the book was an April Fool's prank. The above websites though I'm not too sure it is.

Restaurant Review: J.C. Chikurin

2008-03-29T00:33:00.000-07:00

1777 Ocean Ave (Avenue M cross-street)
Brooklyn, NY 11230

- serves typical Japanese dishes but their specialty is 50% off anything sushi and sashimi

When anyone thinks of sushi there are certain things that come to mind:
- Such as how fresh the raw fish are because no one wants to eat fish that is old and stale.
- The overall size of the pieces of sushi rolls in comparison with previous sushi restaurant ventures because unlike cell phones that are small, slim and compact, we want the pieces as generously big as possible.
- Going along with the size of the piece, the amount of rice surrounding the "meat" cannot be significantly greater than the amount of "meat" itself, just like I doubt anyone who orders a pepperoni pizza slice expects 1 slice of a pepperoni circle on their triangle (or square in some cases)... same rule of thumb.

So with all that said and done lets get to the review. Please note however that this review is only applicable for the sushi due to the fact that although the other day was not my first time there, (this restaurant was first introduced to me by a friend in late august of last year, and since then until the beginning of this year J.C. Chikurin saw me at least once a week if not twice on some occasions) to me it would be an injustice to order anything other than sushi because let's be honest... it's half off !! (meaning rolls start around 2.50 and sushi/sashimi pieces are $1 and up).

Contrary to popular thought amongst my friends this restaurant is not called "Half Off Sushi", though it's really hard to come to grips with it because as you can see from the picture, the sign "50% OFF SUSHI" is thugnormous and displayed three times. I already knew when I first sat down the place wasn't called "Half Off Sushi" but it's honestly just easier to say when everyone's suggesting where to go for dinner (or no one suggesting because that happens more often than you realize).

I've been to this restaurant more times eating sushi than I've ever eaten full price sushi in all my years combined. Sushi as anyone knows is not a cheap eat and since I'm a very big eater, so my wallet suffers in size to satisfy my consumption level. Being honest and blunt this place puts to shame anyone who is willing to pay full price for sushi. Granted I'm not a sushi connoisseur don't be fooled by the half price sign thinking the quality will be half as good as well. The moments after your sushi dinner you and others including myself will know the true meaning of being spoiled. Regular price sushi will never taste or look the same again. The picture above is a visual representation of some typical rolls I always order. The "must have" rolls for me are always Spicy Tuna, Spicy Salmon and the Dynamite Roll (tuna and salmon together, which are reddish and striped orange respectively). The above mentioned spicy rolls are the diagonal six piece set on the left and the Dynamite Roll is split into two three piece set on the right next to the East Roll (egg omelette, avocado and the crabmeat found in California Rolls). The spicy looking roll straight down the middle of the plate is the Spicy White Tuna Roll. The sushi pieces on the right are Octopus (top) and the Red Clam (bottom).

Just some things worth noting:
- As you can see the spicy rolls are bulging with "meat" and doesn't match the rice quantity
- The Tuna and Salmon pieces from the Dynamite Roll are abnormally big considering it's two fishes for one roll.
- I've ordered Octopus from other sushi restaurants before and the slices are never that large

Usually rolls go for close to about $4.50 per but it also really depends on what you have in the roll as well because California Rolls are the cheapest (ranging no more than $4) so a regular priced sushi restaurant if they have the Dynamite roll will cost roughly around $6.50 or so. Let's do the math with rough guesstimations:
- The three spicy rolls are usually five dollars each, the East roll will roughly be $4.50, and the Dynamite roll I'll put it at 6.50. The Octopus and Red Clam regular priced sushi pieces are roughly $2.50 each. The grand total my sushi dinner at regular priced will be roughly around $36.
- Contrast that price with J.C. Chikurin. Three spicy rolls and East Roll are $2.50 each, the Dynamite Roll is $3 and the four sushi pieces are $1 each. The grand total at the half price sushi restaurant was $17.

J.C. Chikurin also has a leg up on other half priced places with their large selection of rolls. There is a place in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn called Omiya on 86th Street (4th Avenue cross-street) that is half off sushi as well but their selection is literally about a third of what J.C. Chikurin offers. I don't plan on going there any time soon or ever so the other only two things I really have to say for my review of this place is that the pieces are small in comparison to J.C. Chikurin and even though their menu says "buy one special roll get one free", aside from five special rolls they start at roughly $15 and up to maybe about $30. Seriously who in their right mind is willing to order a $30 six piece sushi roll?

All in all this restaurant sets the bar for other half priced sushi restaurants and although I don't have a picture of the inside of the restaurant, I do have a picture of one of the waiters there. We don't know his name so we just called him Hector lol.

*One last note as I think should be stated. Being part of a middle class family (and not that I'm ungrateful by the way) I don't have the finances to eat at a thugtardly expensive sushi restaurants in Manhattan. I have a friend who's parents on their birthday treated out to one of those places and each person was minimum $300. One could only imagine the difference between regular priced sushi and whatever it is they offer at those kind of restaurants. here is the website for Megu

Interesting Excerpts From Authors@Google: Tim Keller's book, "Reason for God"

2008-03-26T14:47:00.000-07:00

[ The link to the video can be found on the right side of the Video Links section. The whole video is worth watching if you have time, there is simply too many points to publish. ]

On talking about the atheistic view...
5:00 - The new atheist's books... when they say religion is bad, that is not a new thesis... What is new about the books is they don't just say religion is bad, respect for religion is bad. If you counsel one section of your population to belittle and disdain... to show no respect for the beliefs of this group of people... that is a recipe for social disaster if anybody actually takes the advice.

On talking about the third reason, Social, for believing/disbelieving in God...
8:50 - ...the Sociology of Knowledge says you tend to find most plausible, the beliefs of people...the people that you need, and people that you're depended on, people who are in the community you're in or want to be part of, their beliefs tend to be plausible than the beliefs of people who are in communities you don't like, or aren't interested in, or don't want to be a part of... you believe what you believe because of the social support.

On talking about agnostics asking for rational/empirical proof for God, there is no need to believe or there is no God...
23:45 - ...that's a big leap of faith... If you have a creator God... why should you assume that God would actually be someone or something so inside the world that he can be provable? It may be right and you may be wrong, but you have to admit its a leap of faith. You're actually assuming something about the nature of God in order to say that he doesn't exist... C.S. Lewis wrote an article that says, "If there is a God that created the world and created us, you don't relate to God the way a person in the first story relates to the man in the second story. Rather you would relate to God the way Hamlet relates to Shakespeare. If Hamlet wants to prove there is a Shakespeare, he's not going to be able do that in a lab... The only way he's ever going to know anything about Shakespeare, is if Shakespeare writes something about himself into the play. And what that would mean is if there is a creator God, there probably should be evidence. But the idea that you can't believe in Him until someone proves Him is actually an assumption, a faith leap about the existence or the nature of God before you are even willing to admit He is there." And besides that you cant prove anything... didn't you take philosophy 101? ...you can hardly prove anything and yet you live your life on the basis of that. So should you say to God, "If you're there you prove yourself to me, or I have no responsibility to you" ?

on talking about God making sense of the universe the way it is now based on the fine tunings...
29:20 - A guy like Richard Dawkins very rightly says, "That is not proof... What if at the Big Bang there were a million parallel universes, infinite universes created at once... and we just happen to be in the one? That doesn't prove God." And he's right [here he goes into the Alvin Plantinga rebuttal]...Though the fine tuning of the universe does not prove the existence of God, if there is a God it makes sense, if there is not a God then it's a long shot.

on talking about the probability of faith and God...
39:00 - ...weak faith in a strong object is infinitely better than a strong faith in a weak object because its the object of your faith, not the strength of your faith that saves you.

Yep...

2008-03-25T14:16:00.000-07:00

...I made one lol.
Xanga got old and I suppose I wanted something different.
So here's a gift for all - the beginning half of the first verse and the ending half of the second verse of the theme song for the Disney animated film "Beauty and the Beast" sang by a four year old girl.
Enjoy!