The End and the Beginning

I can't believe I'm actually going to respond to a Tag as my first entry since November.  However, since I am waiting for my face mask to dry...

10 Years Ago:
1. I was in 8th grade,
2. and part of the "popular group," mind you,
3. and I wrote a story about my friends, the "popular group," that was supposed to be funny
4. but my friends, the "popular group," didn't think it was quite that funny at all,
5. and the drama that ensued is now known as the movie Mean Girls (except traumatizing enough for me to still be able to recall that period of time and post it on my Xanga, ten years later).

5 Years Ago:
1. I was the Clements Orchestra co-President!  (Jenn Lu was the other co-Pres!)
2. UC-Berkeley was my dream school.
3. I donated blood for the first time, afterwhich I skipped school for the first time, afterwhich I got ticketed for speeding for the first time.
4. I had an 11pm curfew and would be reminded of it by my parents calling me at increments of 10 minutes starting at 10:30pm.
5. The next biggest event of my social life was prom.

5 Biggest Joys:
1. Being with my wonderful, wonderful family.
2. Being loved by others,
3. and showing love to others.
4. Connecting with someone personally and intimately.
5. Freedom.

5 Bad Habits:
1. Choosing to watch hours and hours and hours and hours of E!, MTV, VH1, TBS, and The Disney Channel.
2. Picking my nose (it makes my nostrils big).
3. Doubting my friendships.
4. Comparing my appearance to other females.
5. Choosing to eat an entire bag of my roommate's Flaming Hot Cheetos (Con Limon!) and then having to go out to buy another bag to replace it before she returns home.

5 Favorite Snacks:
1. Flaming Hot Cheetos (Con Limon!).
2. cold, leftover pizza.
3. break n' bake raw cookie dough.
4. chips n' dip!
5. that 99 cent freshly-baked French Bread from HEB.

5 Songs I Know All the Words To:
1. The Little Mermaid's "Part of Your World."
2. The Fresh Prince of Bellaire theme song.
3. Monica's "For You I Will." (yes, I once thought this was "my song.")
4. Ginny Owens' "If You Want Me To."
5. "Lord I Lift Your Name on High" and other various, old-school praise & worship songs.

5 Places I Would Run Away To:
1. the hills that are alive with the sound of music.
2. the arms of someone who loves me.
3. Thailand/Malaysia/Vietnam (what, aren't they all the same?)
4. a Calvin & Hobbes comic.
5. Heaven.

5 Favorite TV Shows:
1. That 70s Show
2. Scrubs
3. Seinfeld
4. Arrested Development
5. America's Next Top Model

5 Things I'd Never Wear:
1. Uggs.
2. tight, white, hot-pants (but I envy those who can pull-off that look!)
3. a velor jump-suit (think Brittney Spear's wedding ensemble).
4. Daisy Dukes. 
5. the same outfit the other girl at the party is wearing (unless it's, coincidentally, Sue, but only b/c we share the same impeccable taste!)

5 Fictional Characters I Would Date:
1. Clive Owen in King Arthur
2. Brad Pitt in Troy
3. "Joey" from Friends
4. Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in Bridget Jones' Diary or Pride & Prejudice
5. tie between Jin from Mortal Kombat or Ranma from "Ranma 1/2" (dang Sue, we have the same taste in anime men too!).

So...I'm tagging the people who subscribe to me and who I don't think have been tagged yet, b/c I don't know of anyone else who reads my Xanga.  Oliver Huang, Jonathan Ramirez, Kym Pham, Andrew Lee, and Sherry Oung, YOU GUYS ARE TAGGED!!

Currently Reading Fluke: Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings (Today Show Book Club #25) By Christopher Moore see related

    Last night, I ate my first real meal in THREE DAYS *gasp*!  As a nutritionist, that is a BIG DEAL.  Because I've been sick since Thanksgiving, my daily consumption of calories has been a measly 1000, if even!  That's nothing!  But I think that I'm on the road to recovery *yay*, because my appetite is BACK in FULL FORCE!!  Last night, I ate a big salad, a spinich quiche from La Madeline, some Russian Spaghetti with Crab and Vodka Sauce, a slice of toast, chocolate cookies, AND an apple and an orange!  HUGE accomplishment from only eating a few slices of bread and water everyday for three days.

    I thought that since my body was capable of eating again that my body would also be able to get back on track with training again.  WRONG.  I woke up early this morning to attempt running, but after just 15 push-ups (as a warm-up), I found myself on the ground panting for breath with my head throbbing, chest tightening up, and snot taking over my nose.  Not cool.  So I guess no running until Monday, when I should hopefully be 100% recovered!

About Thanksgiving...

 

THE KANYE WEST CONCERT!! *ya ha!!*

This was all thanks to Mr. Kevin Kwan for being AWESOME. 



Here's our Krew:

KKwan, Terri, hip-hop sista, Kelf

And the concert was like one HUGE, AWESOME, HIP-HOP PARTY!!  And afterwards, we went and partied with Kanye in his VIP room at the hotel!  Just kidding.  I wish *sigh*.  Jealous you couldn't go?  Let's go to Paradox together!  It'll be almost the same thing!!

    Also, over break...
    My family attended the memorial service for Mr. Tony Lai.

    After the service, while standing at the bottom of the stairway and waiting for the casket to be brought out, I realized the irony of how just four months ago, I was standing in the exact same spot at church, waiting for the newly-wed couple, Patrick and Jade, to happily march down those same stairs.  For one, I'm solemnly dressed in black; for the other, well, I'm still dressed in black because you have to have a little black dress that works for every occassion.  Realizing the cycle of life that continuously passes through the church (Baby Benedictions, Baptisms, Weddings, and Funerals) made me realize just how beautiful, yet short, life is. 

just how beautiful life is.

    Mr. Tony Lai is described to be a man who loved God and who always considerately put others first.  Reading about his life in the ceremony program inspired me to re-evaluate what life is worth to me, what it means to me.  My friends, I firmly believe that

if you're alive today,
that means that God still has a purpose for your existence.

Does that make sense?  I'm alive, here, breathing, with another day to live because God, who loves me and created me and is running out His plan for all of mankind to recognize His love (therefore bringing about His glory), is still working to complete my life for me and also to use my life to bring out His plan (refer to the above statement)! 

I have a purpose in existing.

    Much of this makes a lot of profound sense in my mind.  I wish I could effectively communicate that to you through Xanga.  (What am I thinking?  Through Xanga?!)  Overall, I just wanted to share with you that there is hope and meaning to life .


Also, one last thing...
    To prove that I DO have "White" friends:

Shoutout to my homies from E.Asia!!

the E.Asia Teammates are definitely people I'm thankful for!  They've inspired me to love, they've encouraged me to not be so worried about trying to take care of everything all the time, and, most importantly, they've loved me. 

And they always get excited to see me, which makes me feel good about myself.  Heh heh.
And Jonathan took me on a ride on his motorcycle. *wah ha ha!!*

Okay finished.  It's been an hour!!

Currently Reading Human Physiology : An Integrated Approach, w/ Interactive Physiology 8-System Suite (3rd Edition) By Dee Unglaub Silverthorn see related

Saba Celebration

Congratulations on FIDM, Jenn! 
We'll be lookin' forward to the House of Lay-Su soon!

Jenn gets inspiration off double mojitos

(from the front right) monchow, adrienne, ann, and oliver


wonderful, beautiful former roomies!

    here's lookin' at you kid! 
Cheers to your exciting future in L.A.,
to the many ways God will continue to build your faith,
and to many cups of Peet's that will fuel you along the way!

On a tangent,
    going to the gym after Happy Hour doesn't help much with coordination or awareness, but it sure does dull the pain-sensors enough for you to feel like your 1.5 hour workout was a breeze!

    Xanga-posting may once again resume...

Currently Listening Late Registration By Kanye West see related

sunday, in the midst of my worries and concerns about CBS, the Father pulled aside my heavy curtains and opened my eyes to see the brightness behind it.

and this is what i saw:

CBS has become ALIVE this past year; the Freshman class joined together to organize Freshman Broomballing, the PJ Party, and the S.T.I.M. Silent-Auction Fundraiser; the Sophomore class united to embrace and nurture the Freshmen, to serve the Breakfast Club, to consistently attend and lead P.O.P., and to actively serve and pray for CBS.  Many upper-classmen may have "fallen out" of CBS, but so many more grew to become role models, leaders, care-takers, and servants of the Lord. 

The entire Body of CBS united this year to welcome not only visiting, Asian friends and family, but also Greeks, Buddhists, Pagans, and various cultural groups.  In one, large, beautifully-orchestrated Talent Show, our Lord brought together His Kingdom under one roof, displaying not only the endless variety of His image-reflected, but also a glimpse of what our heavenly, eternal family looks like.  The Lord united the Body of CBS in prayer, in both external and internal publicity stints, in the construction of an entire ballroom stage and sound set, in a glamorous display of gifts and talents, and in Outreach and Follow-Up.

This year, the CBS Body reached out to the Drag Rats, to the homeless, to the dorm-residents, to the floor janitors, to the lunch-line servers,...and to each other. 

And there is still more to come!  Summer Outreach.  Houston.  Austin.  Dallas.  East Asia.  Phillippines.  Haiti.  India.  Hong Kong.  Mexico.  N.S.O.  We have yet to see the fullness of God's glory and His faithfulness revealed!

i cannot look back, still choose to focus on my unmet expectations, and not be in awe of the Lord and have my soul be filled with praise.