Cutback & Cut-in

Announcement

2005-07-18T19:16:00.000-04:00

Since more people can access my msn space, I decided to move my blog address to:

http://spaces.msn.com/members/rockyonly/

Your attention and support, as always, is greatly appreciated.

Ohio (Come Back to Texas)

2005-07-15T14:06:00.000-04:00

I was moved when I first heard "Ohio" on the radio in my car. Not because it is a song related with Ohio since there are many other songs about Ohio; for example, Hawthorne Heights has a song named "Ohio is for Lovers." I love this song because I love narrative lyrics. In China, there is also a singer good at narrative lyrics, and his name is Zhenyue Zhang （张震岳）。

Ohio (Come Back to Texas)
Bowling for Soup

She said she needed a break
a little time to think
but then she went to Cleveland
with some guy named Leelan
that she met at the bank

There's nothing wrong with Ohio
except the snow and the rain
I really like Drew Carey
and I'd love to see the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame

So when your done doing whatever
and when your thru doing whoever
you know Denton County will be right here waiting for you....

Come back to Texas
Its just not the same since you went away
Before you lose your accent
and forget all about the Lonestar State
There's a seat for you at the rodeo
and I've got every slow dance saved
Besides the Mexican food sux north of here anyway

I think I made a mistake
Its not that easy to take
She went to make a deposit
then she cleaned out her closet
Guess I'll sit here and wait

For her to come back home (I'd wish you come back home)
it shouldn't take very long (so long so long)
i bet she misses the sunrise
and misses the fruit flies but i could be wrong

So when your done doing whatever
and when your thru doing whoever
you know Denton County will be right here waiting for you....

Come back to Texas
Its just not the same since you went away
I bet you missed your exit
and drove right on thru the Lone Star State
There's a seat for you at the rodeo
and I've got every slow dance saved
Besides the Mexican food sux north of here anyway

Troy Aikmen wants you back
Willie Nelson wants you back
NASA wants you back
and the Bush twins want you back
and Pantera wants you back
and Blue Bell wants you back

I got a premonition
I'm taking a petition
and the whole state's gonna sign

Come back to Texas
Its just not the same since you went away
Before you lose your accent
and forget all about the Lone Star State
There's a seat for you at the rodeo
and I've got every slow dance saved

Come back to Texas
Its just not the same since you went away
Before you lose your accent
and forget all about the Lone Star State
There's a seat for you at the rodeo
and I've got every slow dance saved
Besides the Mexican food sux north of here anyway
Besides the Mexican food sux north of here anyway
Besides the Mexican food sux north of here anyway

继续改变--2005 (转载大学同学一篇)

2005-07-09T02:17:00.000-04:00

继续改变??2005

考上大学没几天
侄子志鹏来到人间
那一年冬天
鲁能泰山夺得双冠
犹记得那张充满稚气的脸
可惜我们只有一个四年
转眼
我毕业已经两年
当初
我没有读研
而是选择了赚钱
而今
读研的兄弟们也要面对工作
残酷的就业形势
不知你是否还会读博

我还没有忘记昨天的昨天
你是否依然生活在从前的从前

我的组织终于握手连战
“深度撞击”终于上演
环保人士盯上了圆明园
巴黎申奥输在了最后一战

我没有辞职
一个月还是几千
海涛第一个结婚
球场上还是猛男
老朴游了湘西
散记至今未完
存浩交了首付
还要再交几万
阿唐手机用了两年
换新的花了三千
胡嘉面对着剥削
是否还那么坦然
王岍自学着西语
不知巴塞罗那是不是他的明天
陈卓终于考上了研
虽然梦中情人远在天边
小马GRE已过关
梦还未圆
孙福杰还呆在济南
做别人的牛马很难
听说马琳并无大碍
从杂志我还看到了谢春艳
小琼直接升博
研究生只读了两年
海外的殷茵
经常在校友录留言
读研的兄弟姐妹们
是否准备好了迎接明天

我还没有忘记昨天的昨天
你是否依然生活在从前的从前

AC米兰三球领先
却被利物清逆转
阿布还是那么有钱
虽然没有买到自己想要的球员
中国还是那么扯淡
球霸当上了政协委员
芙蓉姐姐红透了天
有人说她是超级自恋
张艺谋离奥斯卡越来越近
离中国人却越来越远
贺卫方罢招
捍卫着中国教育的尊严
审计又出了风暴
制度还是那么混乱
矿井不停坍塌
人命案子不断
社会还是欣欣向荣
该说了算的还说了算

我还没有忘记昨天的昨天
你是否依然生活在从前的从前

2005年的夏天
我毕业已经两年
奄忽兮六年
念之泪涟涟
雨恨复云愁
思之如梦游

我所知道的乔治敦

2005-06-29T00:40:00.000-04:00

初秋，克林顿和母亲弗吉尼亚开车来到乔治敦大学注册，他们做的第一件事情当然是熟悉校园环境。一个耶稣神父带他们到学校转了一圈，然后回到他的办公室，他问比尔：“你会讲几种外语？”比尔回答：“一种也不会，先生。”神父惊讶极了：“以上帝的名义，一个连一门外语都不懂的南方浸礼会会员在耶稣教的学校里能干些什么？”带着满腔兴奋而来的母子俩仿佛当头挨了一棒，在他们走回汽车时，彼此都沉默无言，弗吉尼亚充满了甜美和蜜意的心境给破坏掉了。难道自己优秀的儿子要在这所学校里受尽煎熬吗？但她的情绪波动并没有持续太久，比尔?克林顿很快走到母亲身边，搂住她的肩膀，安慰说：“不要担心，妈妈，他们很快就会知道我能够在乔治敦干些什么。”如今,一不留神,我也成为了克林顿的校友. 乔治敦的一个师姐说经常在校园里碰见奥尔布赖特, 真恐怖.

乔治敦大学是一所四年制私立大学，成立于1780年，获《美国新闻与世界报道》选为全美明星大学第25名，全美学术排名第31名；此外，《纽约时报大学指南》则评为四星大学。这所大学有“政客乐园”之称，因为联邦政府的办公厅，就在咫尺之遥，不少外国使节的儿女，都在这儿念大学，使得大学更具国际色彩。虽然还没有开始上课，我早已感受到了系里同学的交际能力。早在两个月前，同时被录取的新同学就开始互相发Email祝贺并自我介绍了。

据《耶鲁大学日报大学指南》指出，大学共分5所学院，计为：文理学院、商科管理学院、外交事务学院、语文及外文学院、护理学院。其中外交事务学院是全国同类学院中的佼佼者，美国政界的不少人才都出自该学院。由于大学基本上是一所耶稣会的天主教学府，所有学生规定必须修读2个学期的哲学和神学。校园内神父可以说处处可见，事实上全部低年级班的宿舍，每层楼都有一名神父，担任舍监或辅导工作。不过，他们从来不会主动向学生传教，但当学生需要时，他们肯定会竭诚帮忙。研究生到不必选哲学和神学课，但我其实是很希望有机会接触神学知识的，我相信这种机会会出现的。

又据《纽约时报大学指南》报道，乔治敦大学是全美历史最悠久的天主教大学，较优秀的学科包括美国研究、历史、外交事务、政府和神学，事实上美国国务院每年举办的外交部考试，也以乔治敦大学学生报考人数最多。像大部分著名学府一样，乔治敦大学每年1月10日就截止申请，大学则会1月1日公布获取录新生名单；如果学生采用提前申请，提早在11月1日前就报考，大学亦会相应在12月15日就回复。虽然所学专业不是外交，但导师却在政府机关担任要职，人据说还很幽默，我很珍惜跟她学习的机会。

乔治敦大学位于华盛顿西北，湍急的波特马克河上游，占地100英亩。这所耶稣会创办的大学与威斯康辛大街上时髦的商业大厦、高低不平的殖民地时期的砖路、平房、外表简陋的豪宅和木屋相映成趣，构成华盛顿一条独特的风景线。而我住的公寓就在威斯康辛大街上，据说非常吵，不过老妈说了，多吵都吵不醒我的，所以偶是不担心这个问题滴。

Will the Miracle Come True?

2005-06-20T13:45:00.000-04:00

Under the leading of Krautzun Eckhard, the Chinese Youth National soccer team got the entrance ticket to the 1/16 match. In the past initial round, the Chinese youth team beat Turkey, the Republic of Uzbekistan, and the Republic of Panama, by 2-1, 3-2, 4-1 successively.

The next rival will be the German Youth team. Will Krautzun and Chinese youth create a miracle this year? I am looking forward to it. BTW, this German coach was born on Jan. 13th, just one day difference with mine:)

The Chinese Food in America

2005-06-19T18:33:00.000-04:00

If you ask me why I want to go back to China, my first answer might be the traditional Chinese food back home. Well, you might say that there are thousands of Chinese restaurants in America where you can cherish your dining tradition... Know what? I tell those of my American friends that the Chinese food here is NOT Chinese! They are Americanized! They still followed me asking me again and again what differences between Chinese food here and that in China. Well, my answer is that please go to China to taste Chinese food yourself!

That's why when I saw today's news report "The Chinese Restaurants in America" on the frontpage of the NPR, I realized that it's gonna be better to post it here. The menu exhibit looks nice. It makes Chinese cooking is an art, and I believe all overseas Chinese know this exactly.

I am moved!

2005-06-18T16:29:00.000-04:00

Watch the show. This Chinese kid is awesome! I am proud of him!

一直很安静

2005-06-14T11:57:00.000-04:00

一直很安静

歌手:阿桑专辑:寂寞在歌唱

空荡的街景

想找个人放感情

做这种决定

是寂寞与我为邻

我们的爱情

像你路过的风景

一直在进行

脚步却从来不会为我而停

给你的爱一直很安静

来交换你偶尔给的关心

明明是三个人的电影

我却始终不能有姓名

你说爱像云

要自在飘浮才美丽

我终於相信

分手的理由有时候很动听

给你的爱一直很安静

来交换你偶尔给的关心

明明是三个人的电影

我却始终不能有姓名

给你的爱一直很安静

我从一开始就下定决心

以为自己要的是曾经

却发现爱一定要有回音

给你的爱一直很安静

来交换你偶尔给的关心

明明是三个人的电影

我却始终不能有姓名

给你的爱一直很安静

除了泪在我的脸上任性

原来缘份是用来说明

你突然不爱我这件事情

Memorial Day

2005-05-30T23:14:00.000-04:00

Today is Memorial Day, the last Monday of May. My parents and I went to Columbus to enjoy the holiday. So, what is Memorial Day?

U.S. Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in the nation's service.Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.

I watched FOX alive news about the big ceremony of the day at Arlington National Cemetery. President Bush and his wife attended the memorial event at the Cemetery as well. I would like to present my honor to my dear friend James, who used to contribute his energy, time, and sweat to the U.S. Army. Have a nice holiday James!

利物浦赢了, 你却输了

2005-05-25T21:24:00.000-04:00

AC米兰输了, 你却输了.
利物浦赢了, 我也赢了.

其实来美国之后基本没看过一场足球，因为美国人不喜欢足球，充斥着新闻媒体的是橄榄球，篮球，棒球，冰球，曲棍球，高尔夫…… 从五岁便开始看足球的我居然连着两年没有看球！更不用说现场直播了。

今天早上刚起床，国内的GG（其实是很好的一个哥们，我一上线他就叫我MM,我自然就叫他GG了）便在MSN上跟我谈个人的感情问题。然后不知怎么又聊起了足球，大概是因为3个小时后就是欧洲杯决赛的原因吧。然后我们就像所有球迷那样打赌。我赌利物浦赢，他当然赌米兰。由于距离的原因，我们下了这样的赌注：

如果MM输了，MM就要连续一个月每天到MSN上给GG问好，如果GG不在线，MM就要发Email给他问好。
如果GG输了，GG就要连续一个月每天早上给MM电话叫MM起床（起床对MM来说的确是件很难的事情）。

结果呢，利物浦赢了，GG输了！耶！

What Kind of American English Do You Say?

2005-05-08T00:37:00.000-04:00

Take this 20-question test to see what kind of American English do you say.
Enter Here

爸爸妈妈...容易吗?!

2005-05-07T00:46:00.000-04:00

和Yumi去吃午饭，突然听到一句中文：“你们是中国人吗？”低头看是一对中国老夫妇坐在ＣＶＳ门口，那妇人仿佛找到救星一样，眼里充满了盼望。我停下来对她笑着说："嘿，我是中国人，她是日本人。有事吗?" 她又接着问：“你是哪里人？”后来我知道他们是来探在这里读书的孩子，过来参加孩子毕业典礼的。她想到CVS买药，但是不懂英文，想让我帮她翻译。

在询问了药房的人之后，和我老妈一样，她拿了那个最便宜的。我想，如果用这药的人是我的话，老妈一定让我买最贵的，而换成老妈用，就变成了最便宜的。天下的妈妈是不是都一样的？

从ＣＶＳ出来后她就头也不回地飞奔到对面的店去找她老伴了。Ｙｕｍｉ说真担心他们两个人，不会说英文还在外面逛。如果是我，我是不会让老爸老妈单独行动的，虽然他们会说一些简单的英文。即便是忙，也要多陪陪他们；即便是忙，也不要让他们自己去买药。

毕业之前让我抱抱你

2005-05-01T20:46:00.000-04:00

我自信地微笑，在大洋彼岸的城市之中，
你投射过来异样的眼神。
明白也好，不解也罢。
并不曾使我的笑容改变。
因为令我乐观的，不是你注视的目光。
而是我执着以守的心。
<<毕业之前让我抱抱你>>

在网上乱翻却不知不觉地又翻到这篇文章，不过已经不想再读了。两年前的毕业前夕，睡在上铺的姐姐扔给我一沓纸，记忆中大概有50多页，看了一眼，居然是打印的。那时候在学校打印一张A4要1块钱，所以我对这沓纸不由产生了尊敬。其实上铺姐姐告诉我，这也不是她打印的，是皮皮打出来看完后传给她看的，怪不得那纸看起来很卷很旧，还不知被翻过多少次了呢。上铺姐姐一向是很爱我的，如果不好看她是不会扔给我看的。的确，第一眼，那题目好煽情，毕业前夕的我们在不浪漫的非典中要想尽办法制造浪漫。虽说现在不会再花时间重读这篇文章，但还是不由自主地瞥了一眼结尾，有点感觉，就贴了上来，也顺便给下个毕业做个铺垫：）

To A Friend -- Tips about Austin

2005-04-27T15:40:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to my friend CMZ! After two years research in Germany, this smart guy got an offer from University of Texas at Austin. Now he can arrive in the US with his 10,000 EURO savings. :) As a friend, I cannot help looking more information about that place where I haven't been before. Why? The more you do "research" on this city, the more exciting information you can dig out!

It is said that Austin city presents the best of America's music from country, blues and folk to rock and roll, bluegrass, and zydeco. From September 23 to 25, there will be a music festival there. More info can be found at Austin City Limits.

Different from New York City, Austin not only has wonderful musical venues, but great natural scences. Mount Bonnell and Rowing Dock are places that worth "killing" time.

I might find more attractions later, but things above have already made me happy:)

Why am I becoming slower?

2005-04-24T21:05:00.000-04:00

I was always wondering why my brain is becoming slower and slower. Neither because of my aged memory nor my busy work, but owing to the text messaging. There is an article about the relationship between brain and texting: the regular use of text messages and emails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking manjuana.

Here is the whole article: "Why Texting Harms Your IQ?"

Today is the Earth Day

2005-04-22T13:20:00.000-04:00

Today is the Earth Day of 2005. Sarah and I had our lunch in downtown. Both of us are pretty busy with our thesis, though she is always faster than me. "I eat faster than everyone." She always said that. Actually she did everything fast: going to graduate school, getting married, etc. She is a fast person in life. A Sonic.

The weather of today is really bad. Sarah picked a "good" day for outside lunch. It is said that it might snow this weekend. Anyway, weather is becoming more and more abnormal, for which I don't know why. Obviously both of us don't like the weather like today, so right after lunch she went back to her office, and I went back to the library and started using this computer to search some info about the Earth Day.

There is an article telling us how we can make our earth better via five ways through the web site of the World Widelife Fund (WWF):

1. Take Action - Many of want to make a difference. WWF's Conservation Action Network allows you to do just that. Stand up and make your voice be heard; grassroots efforts can be even more effective than big money politics.

2. Adopt a Panda - This year marks the 25th anniversary of WWF's panda work in China. Tell the world how important our work is by adopting a panda -- for yourself or a friend!

3. Think (and Act) Green - Keep the environment in mind when shopping and gardening, around the house and in your world.

4. Send an eCard - Be a voice for change. Get your friends involved and wish them a happy earth day!

5. Join WWF - World Wildlife Fund is working around the world to save endangered species, preserve wild places and address global challenges. You can help us save a living planet.

Does these ways work? To me, they are more like advertisments for the WWF network rather than protecting our world itself.

时光共享

2005-04-13T22:20:00.000-04:00

在纽约疾步的时候

不是你走在我前面

就是我走在你前面

哪怕是在博物馆

你我也很少并肩

其实那种感觉是很糟糕的, 至少对于我来说
......

只想跟你挤在一起坐

尽管车上有很多空位

只想跟你躺在一起

尽管有两张床位

只想趴在你肩上看你发短信

其实那短信的内容并不是我的兴趣所在

跟你一起的进行时

感觉才是幸福美好的
......

别再走在我的前面, 我怕跟不上

也别再走在我后面, 我怕带不了路

请陪在我身边, 跟我并肩走。

A Story to Share

2005-04-13T22:05:00.000-04:00

I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school.

His name was Kyle.

It looked like he was carrying all of his books.

I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday?

He must really be a nerd."

I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends
tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.

As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him.

They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so

he landed in the dirt.

His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet
from him.

He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes

My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around

looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye.

As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks.

They really should get lives.

" He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!"

There was a big smile on his face.

It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude.

I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived.

As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him

before.

He said he had gone to private school before now.

I would have never hung out with a private school kid before.

We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books.

He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.

I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends.

He said yes.

We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked
him, and my friends thought the same of him.

Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again.

I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious
muscles with this pile of books everyday!

" He just laughed and handed me half the books.

Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends.

When we were seniors, we began to think about college.

Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I was going to Duke.

I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a
problem.

He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football
scholarship.

Kyle was valedictorian of our class.

I teased him all the time about being a nerd.

He had to prepare a speech for graduation.

I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak

Graduation day, I saw Kyle.

He looked great.

He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school.

He filled out and actually looked good in glasses.

He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him.

Boy, sometimes I was jealous.

Today was one of those days.

I could see that he was nervous about his speech.

So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!"

He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and
smiled.

"Thanks," he said.

As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began

"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those
tough years.

Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your

friends...

I am here to tell all of you that being a
friend to someone is the best gift you can give them.

I am going to tell you a story."

I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first

day we met.

He had planned to kill himself over the weekend.

He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to
do it later and was carrying his stuff home.

He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.

"Thankfully, I was saved.

My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable"

I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us

all about his weakest moment.

I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile.

Not until that moment did I realize it's depth.

Never underestimate the power of your actions.

With one small gesture you can change a person's life.

For better or for worse.

God puts us all in each other's lives to impact one another in some way.

Look for God in others.

"Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble
remembering how to fly."

There is no beginning or end.. Yesterday is history.

Tomorrow is mystery.

Today is a gift.

2005-04-09T19:53:00.000-04:00

引子: 漫长的申请等待结束了. 在最终确定了自己接下来的去向之后, 思想的斗争和心情的郁闷都不在了. 倒不是因为自己去了最牛的学校, 而是这个"失败"的过程让我更清楚了认识了自己和生活. 突然意识到, 这个过程和结局好像好像两年前的第一次签证, 好像好像. 虽是失败, 但得到的却是更多, 更宝贵的, 是一生的财富.

如果人的一辈子都很顺利, 那这个人会一直很开心吗? 我想不会, 因为她/他不知道什么是流着泪笑的幸福.

我永远铭记2003年7月23号到8月7号的日子, 那是在一签和二签之间的日子, 老爸老妈每天陪着我晚餐后散步, 但对于签证的事情却矢口不提. 他们每天给我讲的是我小时候搞笑的故事, 逗我开心. 那些回忆让我笑着流泪. 是他们给我的爱让我笑着成功地走过二签.

经历了最近几个月的煎熬, 到今天才终于明白, 其实自己一直生活在一签和二签之间, 父母给的爱每天都在, 只是只有在自己最懦弱最需要这爱的时候才感受到罢了.

我不知道自己将来会有多成功, 因为每个人对成功的定义都不同.

但我要感谢上帝赐给我的所有不顺利和挫折, 因为我会因此更加感恩.

谢谢爸爸妈妈.

Have a Fun Friday!

2005-04-08T16:17:00.000-04:00

And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds
fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." So God created the
great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with
which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird
according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them
and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in
the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." And there was
evening, and there was morning -- the fifth day.

(Genesis 1:20-23)

I personally think Friday is beautiful, because:
-- the living creatures are created by God on this day;
-- what we have in the world is no longer just the nature, but living
creatures who breathe, eat, run, jump, love, bear, and nurture...
-- living creatures are not lonely, they have companies.

In this sense, Friday is not the end of the week, it is the new start.

Have fun on Friday!

Stars were Created on Thursday!

2005-04-07T17:33:00.000-04:00

And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to
separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark
seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of
the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. God made two great
lights -- the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to
govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse
of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the
light, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was
good. And there was evening, and there was morning -- the fourth day.

(Genesis 1:14-19)

Enjoy Wednesday!

2005-04-06T16:24:00.000-04:00

Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants
and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to
their various kinds." And it was so. The land produced vegetation:
plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit
with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was
good. And there was evening, and there was morning -- the third day.

Genesis (1:11-13)

Enjoy the only Wednesday this week.

Happy Tuesday!

2005-04-05T14:21:00.000-04:00

And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to spread
water from water." So God made the expanse and separated the water
under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called
the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning -- the
second day.

And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place,
and let dry ground appear." And it was so. God called the dry ground
"land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it
was good.

Genesis (1:6-10)

Happy Happy Tuesday!

Happy Monday!

2005-04-04T00:41:00.000-04:00

And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that
the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God
called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there
was evening, and there was morning -- the first day.

(Genesis 1:3-5)

Happy the first day of the week!

Love is a verb,

Yin

Forward An Hour -- 12 hours lag from China

2005-04-02T23:23:00.000-05:00

TIMEING

我一向是讨厌把时间拨来拨去的, 难道不爱变化的魔羯座都这样? 也可能是我太懒的缘故,每次调手表都要用装了0.7铅的自动铅笔去调.我那只卡西欧的手表戴了快两年,已经被我磨得不像样子了,不过这已经是我戴得最长时间的手表了.之所以不舍得换它,是因为它有两个时间,一个中国时间,一个美国时间.虽然相差不是11个钟头就是12个钟头,但每天戴着中国的时间在手腕上,感觉离国内我爱的那些人很近,自我安慰吧. 不过我喜欢跟国内差整12个钟的时候.这更是一种安慰.

小熊用的牙刷和毛巾都还没有收,每次不经意得看到都会感觉她只是暂时地离开,用不了多久就会回来,可内心却强烈的预感她不会回来了.我哭... 每天还是二十四小时.

Forever Leslie Zhang

2005-04-01T12:41:00.000-05:00

??????

You will be always in my heart.

Canon and Gigue In D

2005-03-31T23:27:00.000-05:00

卡农Canon:复调音乐的一种，并非曲名，而是一种曲式，字面上意思是“轮唱”，原意为“规律”。这种曲式的特征是间隔数音节不停重复同一段乐曲。简单的讲，就是有数个声部的旋律依次出现，交叉进行，互相模仿，互相追随，给人绵延不断的感觉。一个声部的曲调自始至终追逐着另一声部，直到最后……最后的一个小结，最后的一个和弦，它们会融合在一起，永不分离。缠绵极至的音乐，就像两个人生死追随。

最出名的卡农是十七世纪德国作曲家Johann Pachelbel （帕海贝尔, 1653－1706）的卡农，全名是《Canon and Gigue in D》（D大调卡农）。因为有一部被提名为奥斯卡最佳影片奖的电影《凡夫俗子》采用它作为电影配乐，这首曲子便广为人知，《我的野蛮女友》同样也在场景中运用了这首作品。

帕海贝尔是个德国作曲家，但德国实在很难让他产生如此美丽的灵感。这是作者在意大利威尼斯时写的音乐，用了回旋曲曲式，有无穷动音乐的元素在里面。而这个音乐之所以在所有卡侬里面特别有名,因为它带着一丝意大利式的忧伤，甜蜜宁静的忧伤。

http://web.wenxuecity.com/BBSView.php?SubID=music&MsgID=92617

给小熊

2005-03-29T20:03:00.000-05:00

小熊:

谢谢你抽出时间来美国,跟我分享彼此的生活.你在我身边的305个小时,是我来美国后的最开心最幸福最浪漫最自由最放松最舒服和最无法用语言形容的一段时间.本以为一周的出游会体力不支,但没想到自己会吃得好睡得香玩得爽,每天跟你在一起都会精力充沛,不论是在北京,广州还是在太平洋的这端.上帝做事总是很奇妙的.

潜意识当中就不想早起陪你看日出或晨跑吧,又或许下意识地让你参观OU博物馆和体育馆不成?心里很是担心你看过一切计划中要看得东东便带着满足的心态回国,然后便一去不复返了.因为我知道,要让你放弃很多不容易,有得便有失.

这年头做F4也好,做F2也罢,都不容易.其实做什么都不关键,关键是选择自己的生活.

等你一起练跑步!快点来啊,不然这体形...

永远爱你的**和鸭鸭们

Cheer Up -- I am behind you all the way... So please don't make any sudden stops!

2005-03-29T20:00:00.000-05:00

White House before the Dark

2005-03-29T19:54:00.000-05:00

United Nations (NYC)

2005-03-29T19:52:00.000-05:00

World Trade Center (Under Reconstruction)

2005-03-29T19:51:00.000-05:00

St. Patrick Church (NYC)

What Parents Gave

2005-03-10T10:15:00.000-05:00

Picture provided by Dad

My dad sent me the picture above to encourage me to raise my head when I was down, while my mom sent me some words as following:
亲爱的女儿:
辛苦了! 妮,不是学习不在状态,是你的心不静.考虑的太多势必影响精力.从现在开始,放下包袱,全身心的集中精力学习.
房约还是要签,现不考虑住到什么时候,先签了再说吧.
女儿呀,你就是心里不能放事,在别人认为没什么的事,在你这里就是大事.我建意你可以以另一角度或以局外人的身份去看同一问题,答案是会不同的,试试看.我想信你有能力自己调整过来的.
亲爱的女儿,又到了考试的紧张阶段了,吃不好,睡不好,还要用大量的精力去写那一堆堆的论文,其中的辛苦当妈的知道,我帮不上你什么,只能每天为你祷告,上帝会眷顾你这个女儿的!愿轻松,健康,快乐!
爱你的老妈
What my parents gave me are invaluable.

Happy Woman's Day!

2005-03-08T04:20:00.000-05:00

Happy Woman's Day!

When God created man, He made him out of the dust of the ground; when He created woman, He took her from the man. He did not take from his head, that she might lord it over him; He did not take her from his feet, that he trample upon her; but he took her from his side, close to his heart, that she might be his companion, and that he might love and care for her; from under his arm, that he might protect her. ---- by my dear friend James

Parking Life

2005-03-06T01:41:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday Qin Yan and I drove to Columbus to pick up her husband, who flew from China to the US two months after their marriage. As the flight would arrive at 11:30PM, we went to the Eastern Mall, the biggest shopping center to kill the afternoon time. See, it was Saturday, which meant that lots of people went shopping and parking was a big problem. We have to park a little bit far away from the mall in the big muddy field (due to the previous snowy day). The half field was free, but we were kind of picky. First, we wanted to find a relatively clean place without too much mud. Second, we wanted to park closer to the mall. As a result, we circled the whole parking field for three times, though there were many parking lots. More cars were coming then, and no time for us to compare more. Finally, we went back to one of the muddy places, and not very close to the mall, either.

Parking Life

We are just picky people in our lives, which can be told from the parking experiences. I was thinking it is interesting, because choosing the parking lot is like choosing your boyfriend or girlfriend. You always want the best one, but as you are too picky, when you decide and come back, the one you want might be gone. Take it when you like it, otherwise, you have no place to park!

Homesickness

2005-02-28T23:26:00.000-05:00

I Love My Home

When I was suffering homesickness, my dad sent this picture of our lovely home to me. I saw the socking on the Christmas tree. I bought it here and mailed it to my parents this Christmas. I saw my CD cabinet in the corner. I also saw the roosters setting there for the new year... I miss home seriously. When can I go back to my dear home?

It's A Game

2005-02-20T02:12:00.000-05:00

Creative 2008

The Olympic Game is not only a game of sports, but a game about business, politics, and cultures. No matter how much money the Chinese government is gonna to spend on the 2008 Olympics, this cultural game is what exactly I am expecting to see. Show our awesome culture to the world!

Kiss, Money, and Longetivity

2005-02-15T17:05:00.000-05:00

Lip Locked on V's Day

There used to be an interesting discussion in our family. We read an article which stated that a kiss on lips will make you die 3 seconds earlier. From then on, I began to admire those people who kissed in movies, because they die for their acting career. I remember that I was in elementary school at that time.

The first time that I knew there were some contests on kiss might be in high school. Now it is so normal to have some contests like that; you will know it well if you watch disgusting Fear Factor. However, I still don't like the kiss contest on Valentine's Day, which made the day ***. Anyway, I was busy with classes on this V's Day, so no longly feelings.

I came back home tiredly at aoround 11pm after class, put some leftover into the micro-oven, and then had a look on my cell phone. There was a "Happy V's Day" message from my dear "lover" in China. Joan asked me if she spelt the word "Valentine" correctly in the message; in fact, she always made some mistakes in English spelling. However, she doesn't know that in my eyes, she never spell this word wrongly.

Look at the picture above, are they tired with this type of kissing? Kiss for money with the cost of longetivity?

2005-02-07T00:08:00.000-05:00

Me & Yan in 2005 Spring Festival Celebration

2005-02-06T02:54:00.000-05:00

Happy 2005 Chinese New Year

"Don't Gain the World and Lose Your Soul"

2005-01-27T23:09:00.000-05:00

I feel unhappy these days for some reasons, and sometimes I feel like a loser. Nobody understands me, and what I heard most were those senses that I cannot bear more in my life. When my tears came down in front of Ms. Linda Clark this afternoon, she asked me with tears in her eyes: "Where is your spiritual life?" I have no clue at that moment. I know that I don't need to worry, and I can put all in God's hand. However, I just couldn't be happy. My mom criticized me a lot these days on my blue mood, coz she thought my performance was not a true Christian. Again, I have no clue.

"Nobody can understand me." I couldn't help saying this to my best friend in China. She called me and listened to me. I just couldn't talk a lot on the phone this time as I used to do. We didn't speak, and she just listened carefully to my tears on the phone. Later, she sent a Chinese poem to my cell phone, which brought me more tears:

热爱生命 -- 汪国真
我不去想是否能够成功
既然选择了远方
便只顾风雨兼程
我不去想能否赢得爱情
既然钟情于玫瑰
就勇敢的吐露真诚
我不去想身后会不会袭来寒风冷雨
既然目标是地平线
留给世界的只能是背影
我不去想未来是平坦还是泥泞
只要热爱生命
一切都在意料之中

Why people are still not happy even if they have friends there in lives? I have no clue.

Buried By Snow

2005-01-22T19:25:00.000-05:00

Buried By Snow

Weather is becoming more and more like winter now. Many cars outside of my window are buried. You cannot tell that they are cars or small hills. The temperature in my apartment is 70 degree, but I can tell you that my ten fingers and ten toes don't know what warmness is. Although I like snow very much, I do hope the roads are clean and safe for us to drive. I heard the news from CNN, which said the bad weather made the Time Square horrible. Chicago also was buried by snow; my friend in Boston said they would welcome a snow storm tonight.

"Weather forecasters warn a fierce storm slamming the East Coast could turn into a blizzard. With snow falling on his city, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said conditions could become "life threatening" and he asked residents to stay off the streets as he activated an emergency operations center."
--CNN News

Seems we got many chances to learn weather terms this year. At first was tsunami, and now is the turn for blizzard. Snowing is good, but enough is enough.

"Treat Yourself Well"

2005-01-20T21:26:00.000-05:00

My friend Dan Li listed 7 reasons to blog on her blog today. I thought about it for a while after I read it. I started blogging after she encouraged me to. In some way, I did it for her, as all that I did for my friends before, though I don't know if my friends read my blogs or not. Before I blogged, I used to keep diary on traditional notebooks. It is no wonder that the big difference between blog and diary is the publicity. I once tried to share my diary with Joan, one of my best friends in SDU, but failed. My diary never go to the public, but I wish it will in the future, which means that I might become a public person first.

On the way to the library just now, I was thinking what I can write for today's blog. As I have just finished one paper and would like to relax for a while, blogging might be a good way. The snowing night is beautiful, and I never realized it before. The white snow comes down from the black sky, shining. If it is not cold outside, I think I will find a place to sit down and enjoy the shining snows coming down to my body. Does it fit with Qin Yan's "Treat Yourself Well" theory?

She once told me on the MSN that treat yourself well. I guess it is a good theory in life, but difficult to estimate. How to measure "well" or not? Eat well? Have fun well? Study well? I cannot find an accurate definition of it. To me, living happily and positively is "well," no, it is fantastic, because I know living happily and positively every miniute in every day is not a easy thing to do. To me, treating myself well is to treat others well. Little things I can do to treat myself well:

-- Smile to the people you meet on campus, and 99% of them will smile back;
-- Call dad and mom frequently just to say hello and "I love you";
-- Cook for your friends with heart, or even make some so called pearl milk tea by searching instructions on google;
-- Talk with people you know who don't look happy on that day; no matter what you talk, just make them laugh (that feels great)
-- Read friends' blog and leave comments:) ...

These are the tiny things I can think of at the moment, but I believe that there are more we can do to treat others, and yourself, well.

I got to go, coz two friends in the library are waiting for me to give them a ride back home...:)

What is Love?

2005-01-18T19:37:00.000-05:00

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined...

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her
toe nails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even
when his hands got arthritis too. That's love." (Rebecca - age 8)

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You
just know that your name is safe in their mouth." (Billy - age 4)

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne
and they go out and smell each other." (Karl - age 5)

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French
fries without making them give you any of theirs." (Chrissie - age 6)

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." (Terri - age 4)

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip
before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." (Danny - age 7)

"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing,
you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are
like that. They look gross when they kiss" (Emily - age 8)

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening
presents and listen" (Bobby - age 7)

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend
who you hate," (Nikka - age 6)

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, and then he wears it
everyday." (Noelle - age 7)

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still
friends even after they know each other so well." (Tommy - age 6)

"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at
all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was
the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore." (Cindy - age 8)

"My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing
me to sleep at night." (Clare - age 6)

"Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken. (Elaine-age
5)

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is
handsomer than Robert Redford." (Chris - age 7)

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone
all day." (Mary Ann - age 4)

"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old
clothes and has to go out and buy new ones." (Lauren - age 4)

"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars
come out of you." (Karen - age 7)

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you
mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget." (Jessica - age 8)

I read these answers above many years ago, but today, when I got an email from a friend who forwarded these answers to "what is love," I couldn't help reading them again and posting them here. These answers indeed reminds me of another friend's email signiture, which says "Love is a verb."

A Letter From Mom (一封家书)

2005-01-13T23:59:00.000-05:00

亲爱的女儿:
生日快乐!
哈哈,又长一岁了! 正是: 年年岁岁花象似,岁岁年年人不同啊! 每一年你都会做出新的成绩,每一年你都在努力攀登新的目标,使主荣耀! 作为你的娘只有欣慰,骄傲,自豪!
借生日之际,祝我的小寿星在神的护佑下健康,喜乐,平安成长!
祝我的小寿星在主的恩惠慈爱中心想事成!!
小寿星生日快乐!!!
永远爱你的妈妈

感谢主赐给的救恩,让我的生活荣耀主,让我为主做见证.感谢主给了我一个充满爱的家,在这个家里不仅有爱我的爸爸妈妈,还有互相关爱的兄弟姐妹,感谢主关心我们生命中的每一个细节. 求主保守还没有信主的亲人和朋友,让我们家中的每个人都不会在您的怜悯之门关上之时被您摒弃在外.求主赐圣灵给我们的中文查经班,让每年过往的学生都能受圣灵的感动,在您的带领下活出生活的呼召和目的来.求圣灵使我们的生命成为悦人的香气. 愿主向我们施恩,是我们能在您的面前及世界面前作完全的人,请主改变我们,使用我们,让我们荣上加荣,让我们活得更像您,直到我们变成您的形状.天父,我们敬畏您,你用话语告诉我们"敬畏耶和华是智慧的开端." 愿我们有您赐给的智慧,也因着这智慧更加顺服与您. 我们身穿基督的义来到您的面前,主啊,请您使我们像以诺那样与您同行,荣耀您,也让我们的子孙跟从你.我们为您公正的审判赞美您,愿主的名得称颂.请主教我们祷告,让圣灵指引我们的祷告和每天的决定,而不是顺着自己的意愿祷告.以上祷告不配,奉我主耶稣基督的圣名求,阿门!

Quest for Economic Development

2005-01-09T02:30:00.000-05:00

This short video clip speaks a lot... Please click the title of this post to watch it. People are starving to death, but money are spent on military instead of food, which is killing more people. Among war victims, 34% are children, 59% are civilians (both men and women), and 7% are soldiers. "When the elephants fight, is the grass who are going to die." This is the last sentence appearing in the flash We are humans.

The FBI is Going to Watch Us More!

2005-01-05T19:43:00.000-05:00

Today, I got a message from an American friend James Coey, who informed me that the New Homeland Security Bill had just passed. He said, "things will be different now and the Internet surfing will be tracked by what the FBI calls a 'non-intrusive method'." He also attached a link to explain, but I didn't find much more info on this web except a pair of movable eyes (Click here). The FBI says we will not notice anything different.

Background Info: To respond the attack on September 11th, 2001, the Senate approved 90-9 a bill that will create a Department of Homeland Security on November 19, 2002. President Bush signed the Homeland Security Bill on November 25, 2002.

What is Economic Development?

2005-01-04T23:13:00.000-05:00

"We have the cash, we have the drugs, we have the science - but do we have the will? Do we have the will to make poverty history?" ---- Bono

I am taking the course called Economic Development, but I could not find the exact definition of it. So far, I think development does not only mean the development of economy, but also includes a good government, social security, equal education, unpolluted environment, entertaining satisfaction, etc. However, all of those are correlations of economy. For example, Lant Pritchett, from Havard's Kennedy School of Government, and Larry Summers, the former U.S. secretary of the treasury, once found out in their research that as income increases, mortality will be reduced accordingly (Easterly, 2002).

Although I just started the first chapter of his book The Elusive Quest for Growth, I was inspired by his words in describing Lahore and other places he stayed and experienced. I can feel that he was not just writing about helping the poor, but meant to care about the poor. The language he used in his writing was vivid. That's one of the motivations for me to read through without pause. I believe that I will understand further about "economic development" from this book.

I truly want to say "yes, I do" to answer the question at the beginning of this post.

Reference and recommended book: Easterly, William (2002) The Elusive Quest for Growth, The MIT Press.

The Rule of 70

2005-01-03T19:48:00.000-05:00

In my first class of Economics of Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia, I was taught the rule of 70. If some valuable (your bank account, your city population or your debt) growth at a rate of X percent a year, then that valuable doubles in approximately 70/X years. For example, if the US economy grows 3% per year (actually it grows less than 3% per year), it will become a $35 trillion economy 40 years from now on. Also, China grows 8-9% per year, and if it grows at this speed for the next 40 years, its economy will be $40 trillion in 40 years. See, 40 years later, China will be have a bigger economy than the US! (Don't divide it by population, please)

The rule of 70 is often used in bank accounting. If you make a deposit of $10,000 dollars now, and the rate for this deposit is 1%, you will get $20,000 after 70 years. Therefore, never wish you can become a millionaire through saving money in the bank! The rule of 70 proved one of my mottos on money: wealth cannot be achieved through saving, but earning. Yeah.

那些价格昂贵的牛仔啊

2005-01-02T14:31:00.000-05:00

I don't know why my parents love G-Star jeans so much. Maybe they love me so much. At the end of 2004, I received a big pacel from my parents. They told me that these are my Christmas gift and birthday gift. Actually, there is no need to send me gifts all the time, but it seems to me that buying gifts and sending them is their major now. Every time I opened the parcel, one old Chinese saying will come out of my mind: that's the heart of parents (Ke Lian Tian Xia Fu Mu Xin).

Well, I like the gifts especially jeans, but not the prices. One of the G-Star jackets is RMB1,298, which equals more than $150. I wish I am a princess who don't need to study and work in the future. If I am a princess, I won't care about prices any more. I talked about this with my dad on MSN when we were chatting, he said, "yeah, you are always our princess." Faint. It is truly a dilemma for me: okay, I like G-Star, GAP, Calvin Klein..., but I don't want my parents to buy them for me all the time.

What does the brand truly mean to me?!

40 Q & A of the year 2004

2005-01-01T13:36:00.000-05:00

Following Li Dan, Lilia Efimova,Liz Lawley, and Jack Vinson, I gave my own answers to these 40 questions of the past year 2004. Let's go back to my horrible memory now:

1. What did you do in 2004 that you'd never done before?
(1) I got saved on Jan.2nd, and had my baptism on Sep.12th.
(2) I drove for 5.5 hours without rest but with a good map guide sitting beside me.
(3) My parents and I spent a whole day in the Disney World. Happy!

2. Did you keep your New Years resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Yeah, making more friends, and yeah, definitely more and more.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yep, my cousin got a son named Maomao in Ji'ning, China.
My classmate in middle school. She had a big son in Ji'ning, China.
Juhong got a son in Guangzhou, China.
Nianchiu and Yining got a son in Athens, OH.
Alan and Jiaching got a daughter in Athens, OH.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No.

5. What countries did you visit?
Due to visa problem, I dare not go anywhere.

6. What would you like to have in 2005 that you lacked in 2004?
A lover, if possible.

7. What date from 2004 will remain etched upon your memory?
September 12th, 2004.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Define myself in a new way. Hey, I am a good cook!

9. What was your biggest failure?
Failure is the mom of success. I might answer this question after I get my biggest success.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Homesickness.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
The Christmas gift for my parents.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
All selfishless behaviors.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
All selfish behaviors.

14. Where did most of your money go?
My car eats money.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Jumping on the big trampoline with Yutao and Babara (names of two horses) looking at me.

16. What song/album will always remind you of 2004?
Fan Wei Qi Those Flowers

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
happier or sadder? Happier.
thinner or fatter? Same fat.
richer or poorer? Same Rich.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Reading more books.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Eating.

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
For 2005? I wish I can spend it with my lover.

21. Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?
My mom pays for my phone bill. Okay, mom.

22. Did you fall in love in 2004?
Almost. Wish every single good luck in 2005!

23. How many one night stands in this last year?
I didn't get the question. Sorry.

24. What was your favorite TV program?
Friends.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
No hatred.

26. What was the best book(s) you read?
Diffusion of Innovation (5th Edition). The author died in October.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Maybe Cook'in? A broadway show created by Korean.

28. What did you want and get?
A good friend who can cook well.
An internship.

29. What did you want and not get?
Transfer to MU. Better to stay.:)

30. What were your favorite films of this year?
The Passion of Christ. Shreck 2 is not bad,huh?

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Taking the driving test. 22.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Spend time in Yellowstone with Li Dan, Tianyi, Yuying, Qinyan...

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2004?
Enjoy Life, coz I only have one.

34. What kept you sane?
My dream in life.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Maggie Zhang

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
2004 Presidential Campaign.

37. Who did you miss?
All of those that missed me.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
Qin Yan. Is she new?

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2004.
Everybody is beautiful in God's eyes.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year?
风吹乱了我的发
雨打湿我翅膀
天空依然为我而宽广
学会了坚强...别让自己失去了方向

No One Knows the Future: Horrible Tsunami

2004-12-29T01:05:00.000-05:00

"The most powerful earthquake in 40 years erupted under the Indian Ocean near Sumatra on Dec. 26, 2004. It caused giant, deadly waves to crash ashore in nearly a dozen countries, killing tens of thousands. " -- Geoffrey Gaudreault, NPR

"The death toll keeps rising from giant waves that crashed ashore in many Asian nations Sunday, destroying villages in Sri Lanka, India and Indonesia. The waves were spawned by a magnitude 9.0 quake." -- Reuters

From NPR's reports, the horrible waves were called Tsunamis. Tsunami is from the Japanese word for harbor wave. Tsunamis are large water waves, typically generated by seismic activity, that have historically caused significant damage to coastal communities throughout the world. Hawaii is the state at greatest risk for a tsunami. They get about one a year, with a damaging tsunami happening about every seven years. Alaska is also at high risk. California, Oregon and Washington experience a damaging tsunami about every 18 years. In 1964, an Alaskan earthquake generated a tsunami with waves between 10 and 20 feet high along parts of the California, Oregon and Washington coasts. The tsunami caused more than $84 million in damage and killed about 123 people. In 1946, a tsunami with waves of 20 to 32 feet crashed into Hilo, Hawaii, flooding the downtown area and killing 159 people. Now Asian nations and people are suffering this huge catastrophe.

My Chinese friend has just come back from Thailand last week, so she felt cold when she thought about her trip. She said she was lucky to come back earlier, otherwise she might die. She also worried about the safty of her tourist in Thailand, who is a Thai working in the Phuket Island now.

Merry Christmas and A Blessed Year

2004-12-24T23:19:00.000-05:00

God bless America. My Lord, please also keep and bless China and Chinese people.

The year of 2004 is a blessed year to me. I got saved on Jan.2, 2004 and got baptized on September 12, 2004. All in God's plan. I feel so blessed this year because of my Lord's love, peace, hope, strength, and wisdom.

Tonight, brothers and sisters in Chinese Bible Study Group had a dinner together and played games after that. In the drama we played, I acted Joseph, Mary's husband. I still remember the last sentence I said to the audience, "Please present yourself to God and accpet His gift, too." In the game we played, our group read the Proverbs 3:3-7. I know our Father prepared me to recite and remeber these verses: "Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledging him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones." My LORD, my dear Father, I will keep your words in my heart forever.

I love you, my Father. Thanks to be God for his indescribable gift!

Stop Wal-Mart?

2004-12-07T15:06:00.000-05:00

I read an article titled "10 Reasons to Stop Wal-Mart," which was based on the rejection of a proposal to establish Wal-Mart stores in communities in California. As the holiday is approaching and people are rushing for shopping, will this article once publised this summer be noticed again?

Here are the 10 arguements on reasons to stop Wal-Mart:

1. Wal-Mart Supercenters, with their big-box design, remote locations, and sprawling parking lots, increase automobile pollution.
2. Wal-Mart's strategy of undercutting local businesses destroys traditional, walkable, transit-friendly downtowns and neighborhood shopping areas.
3. One Wal-Mart Supercenter can cover up to 1.2 million square feet with pavement. This can create major drainage problems, leading to flooding and ground subsidence. In 2001, Wal-Mart paid a $5.5 million settlement for violating storm-water-discharge laws at 17 stores.
4. This May, Wal-Mart agreed to pay a $3.1 million settlement for violating the Clean Water Act due to shoddy construction practices at 24 stores in nine states.
5. Wal-Mart has a history of labor-law violations, including unpaid overtime, discriminatory hiring practices, and illegal use of undocumented workers.
6. A new Wal-Mart Supercenter with a grocery facility can put two area supermarkets out of business and all their employees out of work. In California, the mere threat of 40 new Supercenters is driving down working conditions in the grocery industry.
7. Wal-Mart tries to place itself above the law. Its initiative in Inglewood would have exempted the project from local zoning, planning, and environmental rules.
8. Wal-Mart's tremendous buying power can force suppliers to cut costs to the point where they outsource American jobs, close factories, and move abroad. Wal-Mart now imports over half of its products, up from only 6 percent in 1995.
9. When manufacturing moves abroad, the environmental costs of shipping products to the United States can be huge.
10. Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton said in his autobiography, "If some community, for whatever reason, doesn't want us in there, we aren't interested in going in and creating a fuss." In practice, however, the chain won't take no for an answer.

I was a little bit shocked by those sparwls: www.sierraclub.org/sprawl. Honestly speaking, no matter what I say here, I till drive to Wal-Mart and shop there every week. Should I be guilty for that?

A Story about Turkey

2004-11-24T23:31:00.000-05:00

Talking Turkey: The Story of How the Unofficial Bird
of the United States Got Named After a Middle Eastern Country (by Giancarlo Casale)

How did the turkey get its name? This seemingly harmless question popped into my head one morning as I realized that the holidays were once again upon us. After all, I thought, there's nothing more American than a turkey. Their meat saved the pilgrims from starvation during their first winter in New England. Out of gratitude, if you can call it that, we eat them for Thanksgiving dinner, and again at Christmas, and gobble them up in sandwiches all year long. Every fourth grader can tell you that Benjamin Franklin was particularly fond of the wild turkey, and even
campaigned to make it, and not the bald eagle, the national symbol. So how did such a creature end up taking its name from a medium sized country in the Middle East? Was it just a coincidence? I wondered.

The next day I mentioned my musings to my landlord, whose wife is from Brazil. "That's funny," he said, "In Portuguese the word for turkey is 'peru.' Same bird, different country." Hmm. With my curiosity piqued, I decided to go straight to
the source. That very afternoon I found myself a Turk and asked him how to say turkey in Turkish.

"Turkey?" he said. "Well, we call turkeys 'hindi,' which means, you know, from India." India? This was getting weird. I spent the next few days finding out the word for turkey in as many languages as I could think of, and the more I found
out, the weirder things got. In Arabic, for instance, the word for turkey is
"Ethiopian bird," while in Greek it is "gallapoula" or "French girl." The Persians, meanwhile, call them "buchalamun" which means, appropriately enough, "chameleon." In Italian, on the other hand, the word for turkey is "tacchino" which, my Italian relatives assured me, means nothing but the bird. "But," they added, "it reminds us of something else. In Italy we call corn, which as everybody knows comes from America, 'grano turco,' or 'Turkish grain.'" So here we were back to Turkey again! And as if things weren't already confusing enough, a further consultation with my Turkish informant revealed that the Turks call corn "misir" which is also their word for Egypt!

By this point, things were clearly getting out of hand. But I persevered nonetheless, and just as I was about to give up hope, a pattern finally seemed to emerge from this bewildering labyrinth. In French, it turns out, the word for turkey is "dinde," meaning "from India," just like in Turkish. The words in both German and Russian had similar meanings, so I was clearly on to something. The key, I reasoned, was to find out what turkeys are called in India, so I called up my high school friend's wife, who is from an old Bengali family, and popped her the question. "Oh," she said, "We don't have turkeys in India. They come from America. Everybody knows that."

"Yes," I insisted, "but what do you call them?"
"Well, we don't have them!" she said. She wasn't being very helpful. Still, I persisted, "Look, you must have a word for them. Say you were watching an American
movie translated from English and the actors were all talking about turkeys. What would they say?" "Well...I suppose in that case they would just say the American word, 'turkey.' Like I said, we don't have them."

So there I was, at a dead end. I began to realize only too late that I had unwittingly stumbled upon a problem whose solution lay far beyond the capacity of my own limited resources. Obviously I needed serious professional assistance. So the next morning I scheduled an appointment with Prof. Sinasi Tekin of Harvard University, a world-renowned philologist and expert on Turkic languages. If anyone could help me, I figured it would be Professor Tekin. As I walked into his office on the following Tuesday, I knew I would not be disappointed. Prof. Tekin had a wizened, grandfatherly face, a white, bushy, knowledgeable beard, and was surrounded by stack upon stack of just the sort of hefty, authoritative books which were sure to
contain a solution to my vexing Turkish mystery. I introduced myself, sat down, and eagerly awaited a dose of Prof. Tekin's erudition. "You see," he said, "In the Turkish countryside there is a kind of bird, which is called a ?ulluk. It looks like a turkey but it is much smaller, and its meat is very delicious. Long before the discovery of America, English merchants had already discovered the delicious ?ulluk, and began exporting it back to England, where it became very popular, and was known as a 'Turkey bird' or simply a 'turkey.' Then, when the English came to America, they mistook the birds here for ?ulluks, and so they began calling them 'turkey" also. But other peoples weren't so easily fooled. They knew that these new birds came from America, and so they called them things like 'India birds,' 'Peruvian birds,' or 'Ethiopian birds.' You see, 'India,' 'Peru' and 'Ethiopia' were all common names for the New World in the early centuries, both because people had a hazier understanding of geography, and because it took a while for the name 'America' to catch on. "Anyway, since that time Americans have begun exporting their birds everywhere, and even in Turkey people have started eating them, and have
forgotten all about their delicious ?ulluk. This is a shame, because ?ulluk meat is really much, much tastier." Prof. Tekin seemed genuinely sad as he explained all
this to me. I did my best to comfort him, and tried to express my regret at hearing of the unfairly cruel fate of the delicious ?ulluk. Deep down, however, I was ecstatic. I finally had a solution to this holiday problem, and knew I would
be able once again to enjoy the main course of my traditional Thanksgiving dinner without reservation.

Now if I could just figure out why they call those little teeny dogs
Chihuahuas....
*** end ***

“Changing Face of HIV/AIDS”

2004-10-10T13:11:00.000-04:00

What does the sign of a bow mean? After I saw the same sign on different cars many times when driving, I had to keep asking this question. Later when I picked up the book “Combating Aids: Communication Strategies in Action,” written by Dr. Singhal and Dr. Rogers, I saw the similar sign again on the book cover and inside of the book. I guess this sign means the union of people. It is a symbol of united power towards the same goal.

According to the world health report, more than 90% people with HIV in the world don’t know they are HIV positive. Why should I get a blood test just after my wedding? I am healthy; why should I take an HIV test? What am I going to do if people know I am HIV positive? How will my relatives and friends look at me? Apparently, people will never get an HIV test due to one stereotype: HIV/AIDS is a stigma. How can we change people’s behaviors if we do not change their attitude first? Strategies of combating HIV/AIDS cannot work effectively without a right attitude.

To change the ugly face of HIV/AIDS, our action really counts. The NBA player, Magic Johnson, has set a good example for us. As a celebrity, he came out, explained the difference between HIV and AIDS, and spread strategies of prevention. I also admire the words from President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, “AIDS is not someone else’s problem. It is my problem. It is your problem.”

We don’t want AIDS disease, but we do need aid from others. In July, 2004, the 15th International AIDS Conference was held in Bangkok, Thailand; more than 17,000 policy makers, researchers, and activists attended this meeting. Conquering HIV/AIDS will not be a dream as more and more of us are united to fight together.

P.S. After I finished this short essay, a friend explained the meanings of bows to me: the yellow bow stands for supporting troops; the pink one means supporting cancer foundations; while the red one is the symbol of againsting HIV/AIDS. I guess I am right. Bows are a token of united power towards the same goal.

“watching while being watched”

2004-09-28T13:02:00.000-04:00

When I read the part with the subtitle “watching while being watched” in the “diffusion networks” chapter, the first thing that jumped into my mind was a popular tool on the Internet: the blog. Although other tools online are also charming, the blog is one of the best to let you watch others and be watched; the personal website has the same role in this aspect. The popularity of blogs results from their ease of use and the interactive characteristics which meet people’s needs.

There is little complexity in establishing a blog online. With just three steps, you can own a cyber-home on the Internet. Compared with the personal website, it is much easier to adopt without professional technological skills.

The difference between diffusing an innovation and diffusing an interactive innovation lies in the relationship between early adopters and the later adopters. In the diffusion of an interactive innovation, early adopters are not only the models for later adopters to learn from, but they are also influenced by the later adopters. Apparently, bloggers always log on, read and comment on others’ blogs. This interaction between early bloggers and later ones assists the continuance of blogging.

The occurrence and development of blogs is resulted from the needs of people. It is said that nobody knows if you are a person or a dog when you are online. Blogs provided the opportunity for people to share their personal things, such as personalities, hobbies, emotions, and even more personal information. In a certain way, blogs satisfy people’s curiosities about others and needs for communication with others in this world. No wonder the number of blogs has increased so fast in the past few years.

2004-09-27T13:57:00.000-04:00

mooncakes2004

When I was in China, I seldom ate mooncakes; but now it means to me.

I went to New Market (the only Chinese store in Athens, OH) last Saturday, just for mooncakes. $14 for four different mooncakes and I will share them with my good friends who are my family members here on Sep 28, though we just have no more than an hour dinner time. With love, everything can be as beautiful as these mooncakes; with love, everywhere is home. Cheers! (I also bought a bottle of cocktail mix from Kroger,hoho...)

September 12, 2004

2004-09-14T20:34:00.000-04:00

MY BAPTISM

I got saved on January 2, 2004 and got my baptism on September 12, 2004. Praise God!

Clusters: Boundaries of Innovation?

2004-09-14T11:46:00.000-04:00

When talking about concepts of an innovation, “cluster” is perceived as boundaries of innovation. For example, a cluster in the store can be that salads are put on one shelf while the salad dressings are put on the other shelf. When I heard this example, I did not think it was a cluster. Holding an opposite opinion, I think the separate arrangement of salads and salad dressings has its reasons. I remembered that we once talked about the arrangement of Wal-Mart. It is obvious that Wal-Mart always puts the daily food like milk, eggs, and drinks at the back. Why? If you want to buy milk, you have to pass those shelves packed with clothes, desserts, or some other “less possible to buy” products. The more products you pass through, you are more likely to buy them. This previous discussion made me rethink about the role “cluster” plays in diffusion of innovation.

Of course, if we want people to use condoms, it is better to put it together with related products. But putting condoms with snacks in the same vending machine also works in universities in China. Here I am talking about other possibilities of persuading people to adopt an innovation. The cluster can be boundaries of innovation, but it also can create other possibilities which might promote the diffusion of innovation.

Create Contexts: Maggi 2 Minute Noodles

2004-09-07T11:51:00.000-04:00

Two days after the innovation class, I went to one of my Indian female friend’s apartment, and she was cooking instant noodles in the kitchen. It reminded me of the advertisement of “Maggi 2 minute noodles” that we just watched in class. I told her the content of that video, and surprisingly, she knew it so well that she recited the lines in that advertisement. At that time, the noodles she was eating were exactly “Maggi 2 minute noodles,” but she said it took around 10 minutes not 2 minutes. Anyway, she likes this brand of noodles and she often has it as a snack.

In the process of diffusion of innovation, not every new product can be as successful as “Maggi 2 minute noodles.” The success of “Maggi 2 minute noodles” in the Indian market implicates that successful diffusion of innovation must be based on the cultural context. All kinds of research of marketing and advertising should be involved in this cultural context. Cultural characteristics, traditional values, and taboos should be paid attention to before the diffusion. According to the local culture and traditional values, who is going to be the target of your innovation? What characteristics do they possess? What can we do with these characteristics to promote the effect of our diffusion? The diffusion of “Maggi 2 minute noodles” successfully answered these questions. With these questions in mind, the target if this product became children at home and it was consistent with the Indian social values in which children should be taken good care of by their moms. Based on these values in Indian context, “Maggi noodles” became “2 minute” noodles, no matter it really cost you 2 minutes or more.

Leadershape: We Are Leaders!

2004-09-06T19:43:00.000-04:00

WE ROCK!

From Aug 28 to Sep 6, as the communication director for ISU, I spent one week with other orgnization officials in Bur Oak, Ohio. The activity is called Leadershape Activity, which aims to help us understand the real meaning of being a leader and how to be a successful leader in an org. I was the only Chinese student among 45 student leaders. I am proud of it, and, I met "culture shock" again. My fabulous family helped me recognize it and it is the first time I saw myself so clearly. I thought a lot after this activity and I believe that I can be a leader in the future, no kidding. Dream first, then it comes true.

To Remember My Arrival in the USA with Thankfulness

2004-08-27T16:17:00.000-04:00

On August 26, 2003, I began my journey in the US. I guess in the following days, I will start reading my diaries in the past year to recall pieces of memories.

On August 26, 2003, I arrived at the International Airport in Columbus, Ohio. The first night I spent in the US was in my dear uncle and aunt's lovely house.

On August 27, 2003, I arrived in Athens, Ohio. The first American person I met with was a couple, Bill & Gladene, who drove me to Credit Union to open my first account in the US. It was my first lunch in China Fortune; beef with onion and tomato-egg soup. It was ridiculous that there were more eggs and less tomatoes in the soup, which is just opposite with the tomato-egg soup in China. Tonight, I attended the first small orientation given by David Tucker, where I met Ma Shuang and other Chinese new students. I still remember very well that we walked back to Garden together, with stars starring on the sky.

On August 28, 2003, I met more new graduate students in our orientation. I remember that Wang Yunjing, Qin Yan, and Shi Xiaokai were sitting with me in the same table. I also remember that Qin Yan seldom showed interest in talking with me, while Yunjing always listened to me with smiles. Later in one or two weeks, Qin Yan and I became deskmates in OPIE's writing class, but we still sledom talked with each other. We can hardly predict what will gonna happen in our lives.

One year passed, I am still on my way and I believe my journey will gonna to be more and more colorful. I believe so.

Welcome New Students

2004-08-27T02:33:00.000-04:00

Suddenly I became a busy person in OU campus, coz new students are coming from everywhere in the world. Prepare for the welcome parties, send out flyers I made, introduce the life here to them... In a word, I am helping them as much as I can. One new graduate student, Ji Fang, who is gonna to be the Master student in TCOM, also a sister in Christ, is living in my living room with her husband now. Thanks to God, we found a nice apt in courtyard apts and wish God bless her in her future life and study.

In the morning I accompanied with Ji Fang to our college and met a professor and then checked in at the ISFS. The CSSA had the welcome party tonight and it seemed to me that more Chinese students came to OU than last year, and girls and boys got balanced. After attending the CSSA meeting, I went to the ISU meeting, talking about activities that are gonna to be held soon by ISU. Oh my, I have to get up at 7:30 tomorrow morning to make flyer copies and send them out and I guess I will stand at Baker Center from 9:30am to 1:00pm. Now is already 2:27am. I must go to bed ASAP; otherwise the genius will become mad mentally.

BTW, I saw Qin Yan, on our way to the college of communication this morning. We were in my car stopped by the red light at that time; I tried to shout at that happy girl, but she was walking slimly and gracefully, the right hand with an umbrella and the left hand with a cell phone, talking happily. Guess, whom she was talking to? ^0^

Shoot, Yao!

2004-08-24T12:15:00.000-04:00

I Love This Guy!

I remember when I was a basketball player at Shandong University in China, I insisted on changing the number on my sports shirt, coz I was given the number 13, which was regarded as an unlucky number in many people's eyes. Today, this man with 13 on his sports shirt is leading Chinese national basketball team to the top 8 in 2004 Olympics. Greece is not lack of myths. We need myths in our lives and we can create them. In this Olympics, our basketball team was once beaten by Spain (58-83), Argentina (57-82), Italy (52-89), but we didn't give up; we created a new myth. I love a team like that. Please allow me to cite Jordan's words said many years ago, "I never give up. If I fail, I pick myself up and move on."

P.S. On the afternoon of August 23 in Athens, Greece, Chinese national basketball team beat Yugoslavia, the former champion, by 67-66, by one gold point.

Remember Akron, Remember This Special Trip

2004-08-21T23:59:00.000-04:00

Akron Trip with Qin Yan

It's so funny to reserve a room like that, with a broad bed and a super bathtub next to it. Oh my, I felt so embrrassed when Qin Yan and I entered the room I've reserved at the Radisson Hotel. Whatever, I had no choice and I had to let her laugh at me as much as she wanted. However, I also have to admit, she is almost like an angel. Without her, I don't think I can successfully drive there and drive back. She is calm, helpful, lovely, unselfish, and cool. No doubt. I enjoyed this trip greatly and I would love to keep it deeply in my memory as long as I can. Although it was raining on the highway, it's amazing that I was not afraid at all with this girl sitting beside me.

Hope my companion enjoyed the trip too. As time was limited, we didn't take many photos. This picture was taken in downtown of Akron, which is also close to our hotel. We walked together along the farmer market after one preceding day's raining. I guess the words printed on that heating balloon can express my feelings at that time; my friend gave me "so much" and I felt that we were "so close". What my beautiful life... The sun shine after raining made me comfortable and happy. No matter where we are, remember to enjoy our lives forever!

Dayton Trip

2004-08-17T12:09:00.000-04:00

Brothers&Sisters in Dayton

Abnormal Weather, Abnormal "Roses"

2004-08-12T14:11:00.000-04:00

Cold, freezing, icy, frosty... Power 105 said it would be near lower 50 tomorrow. That's really abnormal; it's time for me to throw away all my summer clothes... And I remember my friend Li Dan said that they were experiencing the same abnormal weather in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. However, the most abnormal thing could be an unexpected result at the beginning of 2004 Olympic female football match!

"It's Chinese football's shame; I want to cry." Sun Wen, the former Chinese female football team player and team leader said, right after the first match between China and Germany. 8-0, I want to cry too. We never have such a shamful experience in our female football history. Everybody knows that our female football team was named "Majestic Roses". For one thing, it did perform wonderfully in the past international matches and it showed us what roses' spirit is. For the other, we often compare it with our male football team. It is definitely that no one football team in the world can make our Chinese people feel so proud. When the abnormal news came into my eyes, no, my heart, I felt chilly and then I ate a lot of chocolates (that's my way to release myself). It is usually said that "A good beginning is a half success." So how about "a bad beginning in 2004 Olympics?" I hope our "roses" can walk out of the shadow from this bad beginning ASAP in Athens, Greece, even if the abnormal weather might continue for a few days in Athens, Ohio.

Music Background Adding

2004-08-11T05:56:00.000-04:00

Now I am totally adapt to the Chinese time. Couldn't fall into sleep and added one song to my blog... Is it bothering to you? Tell me what do you think about it and I will change... Go to bed now...Zzzzzzzz

Slogan Age

2004-08-10T02:15:00.000-04:00

A public ad in front of Columbia University, NYC.

Ads in NYC

My favorite radio channel in Athens is "Power 105". It is a pop music fans' channel, providing ranks every week, special music for house parties every weekend, and sometimes, free pizzas. Certainly, as the hottest channel in southeast Ohio, it appeals to ADs. I don't want to remember how many times when I have been in my car with my radio on, gotten out, and hours later, had some jingle playing in my head. Good advertising. The ad slogan for "Power 105" is "Southeast Ohio's No.1 Radio Station" and it was repeated appropriately again and again in the slots. Why they use slogans? Self-advertising is one reason but not the only one. Even those media empires, who don't need self-advertising any more, create slogans like "All the News That's Fit to Print" (New York Times), "You & Me & ABC" (ABC,1980. "you & me" seems like we stand for different people), "Be the First to Know" (CNN), etc. Ironically, they seldom work with their slogans. Just give one example here: "CBS 60 Minutes" was the first to report the "Iraq abuse"; and CNN was accepting censorship from the Bush administration at that time. In a word, freedome of press or pure democracy only means freedom to brainwash the public.

It is no wonder that journalism or the medium itself needs advertising to set up its public image, like the commercials do. However, when this kind of ads were put up close to the university, I have to doubt if it is one more ad for journalism or it is another ad for the university itself, or maybe it kills two birds with one stone.

I never doubt the position and strength of CU's journalism school in nurturing journalists in the US, though I heard a lot of criticism from many so called academic people. And I don't want to criticize this ad either, coz whatever encouraging ads can be regarded as good ones. No matter the ad reflects the true reality or not, it represents the ideal WE dream of and We stuggle for. I just wanna to say, I hate newspapers that tell me what to think, but I like the ads that tell me what to think and how to think.

Sleepless Beijing

2004-08-08T14:41:00.000-04:00

与郝海东吊儿郎当地跻着球鞋换穿周海滨的球衣头缠蚊帐一幅十足少年酷样上台领奖还笑眯眯地与哈曼维拉潘等握手致意形成鲜明对比，阿里汉拒绝登台领奖，他的最后致辞是，要让他们知道----这是我们的主场。所以，下半时他曾有意将三到五个矿泉水瓶踢向第四官员，对方没敢吱声。

P.S. 北京时间8月7日晚北京工体，2004亚洲杯决赛日本3-1中国。2003年的同一天，北京秀水东街，我乐呵呵地手举美利坚合众国签证，和同样乐呵呵的老妈合影留念。

The Fastest Move

2004-08-06T17:10:00.000-04:00

Just went back from moving for Qin Yan. The whole process of moving was no more than one hour. It was the fastest move I've ever joined. More people means more power. Besides QY, Dabo, Shuang, Yizhu, John and I are the labors. We moved fast by successfully using "human chain" (John, 2004). QY must be busy with her trivial stuffs now; anyway, may my Lord bless her in her new living place.

From the Second-hand Car to My Friends

2004-08-05T23:55:00.000-04:00

It is not easy to live in any place far away from our relatives; fortunately we possess friends everywhere. A friend, bought a second-hand car but could not find anybody to go with her to process the title stuffs. As I knew nothing about the second-hand car, I tired to contact some Chinese guys I know in campus, but without any result. Of course, I went, for my friend. I am not trying to boost myself here, coz it's very natural to do things for friends. Indeed, during the whole process, my patience let me know that I could be a good friend for my friend. Also, some interesting thing happened after that. The former car owner, a French girl, asked me for my email to keep in contact after today's meeting. I felt a little bit surprised when she asked for that. We've never met each other, and we just knew each other since I helped my friend with the process today. How can we tell the reason that people want to make friends with you? Meanwhile, I understand why our world is becoming smaller and smaller like a village, because of friends everywhere!

No kidding, I have many friends in every province in China. Some of them used to be my classmates, while some are not. Probably we just met each other occasionally, but we became truly friends. "My friends gave me so much," when I told this to my mom, the response from my mom was "because you gave much to them, too." I've never noticed that before, and I seldom thought what I've given to my friends but maybe they remembered.

One night in Georgia last winter, Sarah, Daniel and I had a wonderful conversation about friendship. What is friendship? We asked each other. Now they still remember my answer: friendship is a ship, all friends are on it; we take risks together, obtain treasures together and die together. Some people think that I always help others, because I am a Christian. Not for that. I do all the things, for my friends.

With God's Faithfulness

2004-08-04T13:17:00.000-04:00

These days I am busy translating parts of a book for a Hong Kong publisher. Here is one of the stories in the book that I just translated, to share with you, believers or potential believers:

Thomas Hauker, a bright, well-favored, good-looking young gentleman, would not deny his personal relationship with Christ. For this he was sentenced to die at the stake.

Days before his execution, Thomas’s friends came to his English prison cell. One said, “I’ve heard that God gives a special grace to those who die in the fire that enables them to bear the flames. For your sake, that I might be able to bear this cruelty to you, can you give us some sign of it? Without knowing this, I don’t believe I can bear that day.” Thomas thought for a moment. “If the rage of pain can be tolerated, before I die I will lift up my hands to heaven as an indication.”

On the day of execution, the crowd was abuzz with Thomas’s promise. As he was chained to the stake, he spoke quietly and with great grace to the men who laid the wood. Then he closed his eyes and the fire was kindled. Thomas continued to preach to those around him, but soon, for the roar of the flames, he could not. All were sure he had died. Suddenly, his hands rose above his head to his God and, with praise and thanksgiving, clapped together three times. A shout arose in the crowd, and Thomas sank into the fire and gave up his spirit.

“I can’t take it anymore.” How often we catch ourselves expressing frustration at the least little trial. A crying child. A stuck doorknob. A late-night project deadline. However, the story of the martyrs haunts our petty thoughts when we are tempted to give up under pressure. We often overstate our problems and underestimate our ability to bear up under them. In fact, God promises he will not allow anything into our lives that will be more than we can endure. Thomas, hands upraised in worship, signaling his triumph over the flames, is evidence enough. When you think you can’t take much more of a certain situation, remember Thomas. And remember God’s faithfulness. He knows exactly what you can and cannot take.

AFC Asian Cup(China 2004): 20场不败？！

2004-08-03T02:26:00.000-04:00

北京时间8月3日21：00，北京工体，中国5-4伊朗，一比一平后点球制胜，晋级决赛，佳一无疑成为本场英雄，当然，郝董仍是功不可没。如今，在阿里-哈恩的率领下，中国国家队已经在19场A级比赛中保持不败，对于欧洲大牌球队来说这显然是小儿科，但对中国球迷来说，这无疑是一个令人兴奋的数字。如果中国能够最终获得亚洲杯冠军，那么这个数字将上升到20。以下是国家队19场比赛不败完全记录：
　
　 2003年12月10日，中国3-1中国香港（东亚四强赛）
　　2004年1月27日，中国0-0马其顿（友谊赛）
　　2004年1月29日，中国1-0马其顿（友谊赛）
　　2004年2月3日，中国2-1芬兰（友谊赛）
　　2004年2月7日，中国2-1芬兰（友谊赛）
　　2004年2月18日，中国1-0科威特（世界杯预选赛）
　　2004年3月17日，中国2-0缅甸（友谊赛）
　　2004年3月31日，中国1-0中国香港（世界杯预选赛）
　　2004年4月14日，中国0-0安道尔（友谊赛）
　　2004年4月28日，中国1-0阿尔及利亚（友谊赛）
　　2004年6月1日，中国2-1匈牙利（友谊赛）
　　2004年6月9日，中国4-0马来西亚（世界杯预选赛）
　　2004年7月3日，中国6-0黎巴嫩（亚洲杯热身赛）
　　2004年7月10日，中国2-2阿联酋（亚洲杯热身赛）
　　2004年7月17日，中国2-2巴林（亚洲杯）
　　2004年7月21日，中国5-0印度尼西亚（亚洲杯）
　　2004年7月25日，中国1-0卡塔尔（亚洲杯）
　　2004年7月30日，中国3-0伊拉克（亚洲杯）
2004年8月3日，中国5-4伊朗（亚洲杯）

2004年8月7日20：00，中国人将在北京家门口教日本人怎么踢球。刘云飞同学已经当着全国观众的面说了，“小日本，我觉得一定要灭掉……”

Experiencing a Psycholinguistic Experiment

2004-08-02T23:48:00.000-04:00

I saw an ad in my CSSA email reading as follows:

"I'm looking for 40 Chinese speakers for a psycholinguistic experiment. If you are a native speaker of Mandarin (Putonghua) between 18-35 years of age with normal hearing, you are eligible to participate and receive $10 upon completion of the experiment.This study investigates how human listeners process speech. You will sit in a quiet room listening to Mandarin words and give simple responses by pressing buttons. The experiment takes about 30-40 minutes."

I have friends in psychology, and friends in liguistics, but not in psycholinguistics. I decided to go for it. The man who picked up my phone has a magnetic voice; though he was born in Taiwan, he speaks traditional Mandarin beautifully. No doubt; I'll go. He said I was the first person to call him and we made an appointment at 5pm this afternoon.:) At around 4:35pm, my friend Yuxia came to my apt to return me $10 and I asked her if she wanted to earn it back in half an hour. Then she followed me to that magnetic voice's office. However, the lab is too small to have two people take experiments together, so I took it first. It was not a complicated experiment, but it needed full concentration; and I could hardly breathe in the soundproof room. Unexpectedly, I had a wonderful conversation with that magnetic voice during the time when Yuxia took her experiment. I got his general background: two-year soldier's life in Taiwan, ten year academic life in east coast of the US, and now a faculty in OU. Experiencing different lifestyles, he stated his views of living in this country, which also made sense to me. I wish Yuxia's experiment could last longer. One more point is that I didn't notice any rings on his figures... A joke.

We went back home with our 20 bucks, happily. Actually, the experience is so relaxed that both of us thought we could do studies in speech & hearings in future. Especially Yuxia, a Ph.D in organizational communication, who has been thinking of transferring to communication disorders for a long time, received much info from the magnetic voice this afternoon. Our big dinner lasted till 10pm and I really appreciated the inspirations and encouragements my friends gave to me tonight. Yuxia, Lin Wei, and Qin Yan, no more words, thanks.

Fagro's Wedding Sinfonia Woke Me Up this Morning

2004-08-01T07:30:00.000-04:00

Every morning or noon, I would like to take a CD out from my album and turn on the stereo, right after I open my eyes, just to make sure I am awake. The following jobs, like teeth brushing, face washing, and brunch having, are all enjoyed within the music. This morning, the black covered Mozart's Fagro's Wedding Sinfonia became my prey. The whole story of this opera can be found here: http://www.reginaopera.org/figaro.htm

It worked well. I was woken up. However, it overworked. It reminded me of a big task. My friend ZX, a voilin player, once asked me for certain documents of the voilin concerto, about four months ago. After having a light brunch and moving Qinyan's bed, I ran to the library with my car. Thanks to God, I met a graduate student with an arts major unexpectedly. From her mouth, I got to know that there is a musical library in campus! I've never been there before, but it must be a cool and quiet place, coz it is next to Dr. Everts's classical green wooden house. The searching result was that there were so many info about Berg, Elgar and Britten. What are the differences among them? I decided to send my SSN to her and let her search for herself with Ohiolink. Hope she will not get mad about me.

One of my roommates in SDU once said to me, Mozart can make people smart. Still doubt it.

To a New Born Life

2004-07-31T23:55:00.000-04:00

Today in Athens, Ohio, is July 31, 2004. My first blog, named Cutback & Cut-in was born! I don't know how many bloggers now in the world http://www.dijest.com/bc/ , now I am one of them. After keeping reading others' weblogs, I FINALLY decided to own one. As one of my friends has ever recommended me this blogger.com, I chose it. Simple. On the upper right corner, I found "Edit HTML". I wish I could use it now. Many things to learn; it is just the first step. God bless this first step and the following steps!