Time to Move

Chinese Food

Random trivia facts that I'm sure you've always wanted to know! 

Stuck

The things you do if you're ever locked inside an airport.

Punching = Happiness

Adam Sandburg is a genius!

Nuclear Boy Has A Stomachache

The story of a potential nuclear fallout in Japan told the Japanese way:

Thoughts and prayers for my adopted homeland...

Swimming

It's been said that the optimist lives on the peninsula of infinite possibilities; the pessimist is stranded on the island of perpetual indecision. (Thank you, Anthony Bourdain!)

I have been stuck on an island for a while, but I'm heading towards the peninsula now. I've got a lot of big decisions to make in the next few weeks, but I think it's all for the purpose of the greater good. How will I come to these decisions? I don't know. (Coin flipping? Pulling numbers out of a hat? Or the trusty Rock, Paper, Scissors? Good old rock...) Now, if only life was as simple as picking a peninsula...

I've claimed this one mine! Cape Peninsula, South Africa. One day, I shall meet you, my friend.

St. Valentine's Day

Yes, today is Valentine's Day, the day where you're suppose to say how much to love someone by giving chocolates, flowers and greeting cards (or so the people who sell these things say). Ok, I might have a more cynical take on this day because I don't have anyone to shower me with heart-shaped chocolate boxes and metallic balloons that say "I love you" on it, but I digress. My point is we should be saying this to the ones nearest and dearest to us every day, or at least once in a while, but definitely not only once a year on February 14th.

So, as part of my spiritual journey for 2011, I've decided I'm going to send out emails (or call) certain people who has made a huge difference in my life. A bit of warning...  I'm writing this in bed slightly delusional with a 101˚F/38˚C fever and the inside of my head feeling like a bongo drum practice session. If things are a bit confusing, ask me in a couple of days when the drugs start kicking in.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Actions With No Consequences

Imagine yourself at 19-20 years old. You couldn't get into college in your country, so your parents decided to send you overseas to study English. They already paid $5,000 to guarantee you a spot in an American junior college that if you study hard will get you into a prestigious university. All you have to do is attend a private language school and pass their tests and be labeled as a "high-intermediate English speaker". Your parents have also decided to give you a bottomless bank account and a $5,000 allowance per month. What would you do?

Today, I found out that two of my students who haven't been to class in almost two weeks got stupidly drunk and drove off an embankment. They rolled the car three times before it finally stopped. I'm not sure what is the extent of their injuries, but they did go to the hospital, were treated and released.

The driver is 19 years old. The legal drinking age in the States is 21 years old. Nobody was killed. There was no major property damage, just a totaled car. The passenger of the car got into an accident himself a few weeks before. Again, he got stupidly drunk and ran his car through somebody's brick wall and into the front yard of someone's house. So, what do you think was their punishments? Do they even deserve any punishment?

Well, the driver who rolled three times has his license revoked for one year. The passenger did a switch-a-roo when the police came and a sober person in the group got the blame. I have absolutely no idea if their parents know anything. I asked my boss what will happen to them in terms of school. Technically, they both violated the terms of their student visa and broke the law. My boss just shrugged her shoulders and said as of now, they're still students at the school.

At the end of the day, I don't work at a school but a business. If the students (customers) are not happy, then they won't recommend the place to any of their friends. Most days, I like what I do. I get to teach international students and I get to see their progress as they increase their abilities to communicate in a foreign language in a foreign place. However, today, I left work feeling disgusted because the company I work for is more concerned about making money than a student's well-being.

Should someone be rewarded for breaking the law? I have a friend from Brazil who really wants to return to the States to visit her family and friends. The first time I met her, she could barely string a word of English together. Two years later, she's now an English teacher. However, the US consulate denied her twice because she doesn't have enough money and may end up staying illegally. Why isn't she allowed a visa while these two morons who has spent the last 6 months in the US drinking and crashing cars have visas?

I just have to keep telling myself there is a light at the end of this tunnel. It will all end in a few months, and I will embark on something new, exciting, and scary. I just have to ride out the storm first.

The Day After Tomorrow

How would you react if you saw the following lead and accompanying picture?

Scientists warn California could be struck by winter ‘superstorm’

In a nutshell, because of global warming, scientists predict that California will have a 'superstorm' that will be worse than "The Big One" sometime in the mere future. I think it's time to leave.

A Musing

This is dedicated to a certain someone... although it really should be you dedicating this to me. (But that's just a personal opinion.)

(On a side note, I'm absolutely gutted that Matt Bellamy knocked up his girlfriend. There goes my chances! Sigh...)

Out with the Old, In with the New

2010... The year that was. A lot of good and a lot of bad happened, but I think at the end, I gained more than I lost. And with that, here are my New Year's resolutions for 2011:

1. The big goal for the year is to find something careerwise that will make me happy. Ok, I may be asking for much with the economy being the way it is now , but if I have to go back to school to get to this point, then it will be done.
2. "The Things That People Think But Do Not Say." I'm borrowing this from Jerry Maguire. The main point here is I need to say what I feel and not become a ticking time bomb (or someone else becomes one).
3. Figure out how to get onto the show "What Not To Wear." Or get a style makeover of my own minus the $1,000 budget they give on the show.
4. Don't care so much what others think of me. As long as I'm happy, then it'll be all good.
5. What happens in the past will stay in the past. The future is now! (Ok, that was a resolution filled with clichés...) This is meant for the family. There's a reason why people have them. And yeah, they may be difficult to be around, but at the end of the day, I should be grateful that I have one who cares about me.
6. Use that camera!!! Pictures can't magically be taken by itself in a bag buried underneath the table.
7. Yes, the always present "lose weight" resolution that everyone makes every year. I know I'll never be as skinny as a Brazilian supermodel, but I would like to get to a point where I am confident in myself and my physical appearance.
8. Put myself out there. I know I don't have the "everyone will be my friend" mentality, but I can slowly mill around.
9. Don't be so independent. Yes, this sounds weird, but people do want to help. If I brush someone off because I know I can do something myself, how will the other person feel?
10. Drink more water. It's good for me!

And that's it for this year's edition. I really should print out a copy and paste it next to the wall of my bed so I can see it every day. But at least it's been blogged and (if you're reading this now) read by others. No backing out now...

The end!