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| So I'm sitting here studying for finals, and after staring at these two econ topics for 2 hours, I finally conclude that I have absolutely no idea what the hell I'm looking at. I go to ask someone... the enlightening explanation? "Oh, that's not on the exam." Haha. I'm so cool, guys.
The Xanga paradox
Consider this scenario: Let's say person A, after careful deliberation and consideration, finally presses the sacred submit button on that new entry, and shares with the world the following snippet of infinite wisdom:
Mary had a little lamb. Its fleece was white as snow.
Person B, who has 12 midterms on Monday and really has no business reading blogs nevertheless decides to view his subscriptions. To his utter delight, he discovers that since he last checked 53 seconds ago, the muse of the cyber world has once again been invoked, rewarding him new, invaluable procrastination material. To his dismay, he discovers that the entry has utterly exhausted the tolerance of his 5-word attention span, which probably drew him away from his studying in the first place. He proceeds to find that one keyword, shall we say, "snow," and faithfully submits his obligatory eprops with the following comment: "OMG! I KNOW! WASN'T THAT SNOW STORM RIDICULOUS?! I was piss drunk that night and I think I almost froze my..."
Thankfully, his attention span once again trumps his literary productive capability, as he prematurely hits the submit button, and we are left in limbo, never to find out what exactly he did almost freeze. He is cursed to return to his studying until his ADD once again returns him to his subscriptions. He will read 5 words of the newest subscription, and lose interest. He will then be forced to return to his studying. It's a vicious, vicious cycle.
Headphones are amazing. Sitting in the library one night, I looked up and saw a girl bobbing away enthusiastically to what must have been quite a ... spirited song. At that exact second, my iTunes begins to play Under The Sea, from that timeless classic, The Little Mermaid. In that moment, we made eye contact. So she sat, and smiled, bobbing away to what was most likely hip and cool, as I sat... raging away to the Little Mermaid. And no one will ever know the difference. She then got this elusive, far away expression on her face, and I wonder if she was thinking the same thing. Sadly, she then promptly belched, and went back to her reading, killing what really was quite a nice moment.
And finally, the ultimate prank to pull on a female room:
We bike chained the seat to the pipe, and left a note that says "Sorry we left the seat up." It was glorious. Aww, girls, don't be pissed. Oh wait, you CAN'T! Muahahaha.
Ok, I'm done. Home for spring break on the 15th. Hope to see you then. Back to econ. And the Little Mermaid. | | |
| So I was kicked out of the gym today. Apparently you have to be at least 18 years of age to be there by yourself. Tragically I had left my license at home, evidently an all-too-convenient lie to cover up the undeniable fact that I am "clearly underaged." To be in the gym. Haha... luckily I was pretty much done with my workout when the lady approached me so I merrily went on my way... but geez, God forbid some poor 17 year old try to .. get healthy or something.
So sophomore fall - done, and here's what I've concluded. After ... oh 10 odd years of half-assing my way through the public school system, I am academically out of shape. Ok... deep breath, I'm just going to say it - My name is Jiayi, and I am intellectually obese. Whew. Glad I got that off my chest. Out of the hardcore suckage that will thenceforth be known as sophomore fall, I've tried long and hard to draw some profound truths (yes, I just used long, hard, suckage, and hardcore in the same sentence. You're going to have to deal with that on your own terms). Sadly, my noggin did not tolerate this exercise very well, and now we're sort of in a fight. Now that I think of about it... these are the most semi-related sentences of English I've strung together all term. Yea man. Fob it up. V ^_^ V <(eeeee!)*
* If this allusion evades you, please, just... let it go. For my sake.
Fall term photo summary:
>> Day 1: Unpacking. Discover broken LCD screen on camera. Observe absence of substitutable viewfinder on back. With characteristically breathtaking display of logical analysis, I conclude that this is indeed a problem. Well, so much for that.
Winter Break Tidbits:
>> I don't like it when people move my cheese... that is to say I'm a status quo kind of guy when it comes to everyday things. Then my eyes get kind of misaligned and @_@-like, see? and I don't think you would like that very much SO STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM MY CHEESE. Ok. Yea. Sketchy... let's just step slowly away from the weird guy. *step*... *step*... Like, wtf man, stop following me...
>> I opened my high school backpack for the first time. It really was less of a nostalgic touchy-feely-reminiscing kind of thing, and more of a ... mother said she'd cause me physical pain me if I didn't move the #%$*@ bag from the living room since it's been there for two $#@! years kind of thing. But of course, I ended up thinking about senior year... and how markedly the life-enjoyment meter has fallen since those lazy days of chillin', drivin', needlessly omittin' g's in gerunds... dang, we were such rebels. I felt like I could have sat there in that little reverie forever. But then my mother decided to stay good to her word, and chased me with the broom since I still hadn't moved the %@#!$ bag.
Two firsts... and hopefully lasts.
1. According to Tim the Roomie, finals stress apparently got the best of me and I began to utter cross, and probably profane words in my sleep... in Chinese. Interesting...
2. Looking back, not sure how I got talked into wearing that for the DCCS show.
So yea, give me a call if you want to chill over break. Knowing me, I probably won't be on this thing for a while, so um, Happy Holidays! =) | | |
| Like a waterfall, You fill my heart and overflow,
Like a candleflame, You light my way and lead me as I go
It's one of those days where you just want to sit lazily in the room. So maybe not studying for midterms weighs on your conscience like an orgo textbook, but c'est la vie. Like so many bums before me, it takes an impossible deadline for me to sit down and begin to whittle away at a problem or task. If no such deadline exists, I'm sure that I'd wait until eventually and inevitably the "impossible" threshold is breached. I guess I'm still searching for direction. Fellow collegiates can probably relate... you know how one day you've figured out your life and you're ready to go into the world and kick some ass, Starbucks Double Shot Espresso in hand, entourage of theme-song playing band and self-mascot in tow... and the next day you feel kind of like that mystery sock left on the bottom of the laundry basket after every other garment's been paired, folded, and stowed. What are you doing, sock? You had a purpose... but now what? What use does this world have with a solitary sock?
This is where I'll insert my obligatory apology for the lack of updates. Before, I think I always offered some sort of bad explanation. At this point, I think we can all agree that it's really just because I'm a lazy bum. As such, I'd confined myself to a strictly read-only Xanga regimen. I think you all have more interesting lives than me anyway. So this term has thus far been characterized by:
- Chipmunk tripping. Yes, I did. "Oh, no you didn't?" *snap snap snap*. Oh yes. I did. Shazam. It was actually a bit surreal. I was walking to food court in my usual alert manner when all of a sudden this thing zooms across the sidewalk, crossing my path at the exact moment my foot strode forward. Who would have thought the darn thing actually made me stumble? It defies all physics that it possibly could have survived my body weight, but not only did it not die, but it ran a little further, turned back towards me, and performed what I guess is the chipmunk equivalent to flipping me off. Yes. Pwned by a chipmunk. That's hot.
- Lost in Translation. I'm assisting in a translation of an instruction manual for some sort of woodlands stove... burner... something or other. You could call it cultural differences, but I just can't see this marketing line being terribly appealing: "If you’re Godzilla with PMS before your morning cup ‘o Joe, then the Jetboil Personal Cooking System is probably worth the investment for those days you stumble out of a tent and a Starbucks is nowhere in sight."
- Mario Tennis. Man... so this is what my parents were depriving me of? Gosh, to think that I actually believed them when they insisted algebra was more fun than Nintendo. I mean... so the game is like a super graphics-intense Pong, and Luigi sounds horny everytime he hits the ball (oh YEAAA), but c'mon. You gotta admit, the entertainment value is high when the IQ-use is low.
- The times they are a-changin.Even hackers have realized that they might as well spend their time doing something more productive than writing viruses, and so do it more out of duty. My email client intercepted an "infected message" from a certain Hacker198473@aol.com. Gee, I sure wonder what this could be... *click*...
Yay, 09's on campus. Prospies on campus. Moose on campus. 
We're really not in the middle of nowhere guys.
Out of the woods. Out of place. Someday we'll find that other sock. | | |
| Coming home!... well, on Sunday, June 5th. As soon as I bend over and get thoroughly violated by finals, I'll be free to scamper on back. I miss everybody back home. How have things been? Actually, I have a pretty good idea. I've thoroughly enjoyed stalking you kiddies on Xanga... haha. When I get back I'm going to need to live on AIM for a couple of days to make up for this last term. It's sad and frankly, a little pathetic... having not been online, I have no idea who's doing what this summer, who's going where, who's still alive, etc. Word on the street is that the Ridge graduation is on a Friday this year? What's up with that? That be messed up. Yo.
For the awesomely cool high school seniors of the class of 2005, a few things I wish someone had told me before college:
>> Know who you are. Ok, got a pretty good picture in your head? Now press ctrl-S, and make that file read-only. Whether they admit it or not, all college freshmen go through a time of self-questioning and self-doubt. From the moment you step into wherever it is you'll be calling home for the next 4 years, you're going to be interrogated both directly and indirectly about your values, identity, talents. If you can't convince yourself what these are, how will you convince everyone else?
>> You're the baby, and that's ok. So finally, you survived four years of high school, and countless awkward semesters of grade school. You've been through so many clothing, hobby, and music phases it's disturbing, and finally, you've earned your degree in coolness... or at least have finally successfully deluded yourself into thinking you have. Now, you're a freshman again and thinking, what the crap. You are the shizzle. Everyone can talk to the hand, kiss your ass, or perform any other curious English idiom involving a verb and a body part. Well, unlike high school, in college arrogance tends to diminish year by year. There simply isn't enough time in college for the kind of uninhibited trial and error exploration known as high school. You can save yourself a lot of grief (and major cards) by humbling yourself and seeking the advice of the upperclassmen. After all, they're still alive and kicking after 4 years. They must be doing something right (After fall term, you'll see what I mean =P).
>> Do things because you love to do them. I think this one's especially hard. Consider this: all those extracurriculars you had success with in high school required significant time commitments. In college, you really can't devote yourself to a million and one activities and still maintain a GPA that justifies your $40,000 a year tuition. Enough of you seem to understand this, but eventually, those activities you used to pwn the world at... you don't quite... pwn as much anymore. This is profoundly and personally frustrating in a way that others can't really empathize with. You need to ask yourself two things: why are you at college, and why do you do those extracurriculars. Hopefully, you will arrive at the answers to learn, and because you love them.
>> God loves you! Even if your profs don't. Maybe you'll continue to be the perfect Asian kid in college. More power to you. But for us mortals, continue to put things into perspective. When you force yourself to become cynical (which doesn't require much effort in some of your cases) and identify the worst case scenario, you'll realize that every negative consequence you've listed is of the world. No matter what happens, heaven's promise never changes, His sacrifice doesn't depreciate in value, and that is... indescribable.
::Freshman Year::
It started out as carefree as the summer it preceded
It seemed like one giant party... and er... it was.
From the overabundance of Boston trips...
To the overdone "surprise" birthday parties, which became surprising only when we didn't have them...
We learned that Christmas never gets old...
Nor does good Korean food...
The year was about reacquainting old friends...
... including the non-personified kind
We were unabashedly cheesy...
and... really not very thug at all.
Exit 13. Sucks to be you if you miss it. Next exit: 10 miles.
I'll see you all in a few days =). | | |
| "Every night in my dreams..."
I hear my freaking alarm (ha, and you thought that I found a woman? =P). This is getting to be a problem. I'll wake up like four times a night thinking that my alarm is going off, and then when I'm awake, it takes at least five minutes for me to ascertain that my alarm wasn't actually going off. This leads me to hypothesize three possible explanations about my current mental state:
1. I'm crazy: Hmm, well I guess this is certainly a possibility. It's really bad when you can't distinguish reality from imagination (Hanusi's psych class all over again...). I wonder what the DSM-IV has to say about me. Then again, I probably don't want to know. But it can't be that bad. It's not like I'm hearing nonexistent voices or anything. GAHH WHO SAID THAT?! Oh, no one. Doh.
2. I'm not crazy: Duh... that's an obvious alternative. You know, the whole if not A, then B, if not B, then A thing. Ok what the hell am I talking about. I have no idea. They say college is a place of higher education. First off, who's "they" anyway? Everyone always says "you know what they say," and then tries to cleverly embed a ridiculous pseudo-fact (also known as BS) into their sentence to flaunt their "knowledge." Well, who's they? The CDC? The APA? The Surgeon General? The Teletubbies?
3. I'm crazy, and in denial: Ok, this one's just stupid.
I really don't have anything remotely coherent to say to you, but somehow I feel compelled to share my (very) limited version of College 101:
- Use discretion in your vocabulary. High-school definitions apparently don't transcend into the realm of higher learning. For example, table tennis, otherwise known as ping pong, has often been affectionately abbreviated a la Chinese or Spanish to simply "pong." Oh don't laugh, jaded ones. I'm sure there are those out there who've not yet been enlightened to the fact that any prefix other than "ping" could possibly be attached to "pong." Don't fret. Your eye-opening day (probably night) will soon come. Just don't blame me if you don't remember any of it.
- Find pleasure in the simple things in life. Like taking lint out of the dryer. Yea, that may seem gross to some of you. Sure, lint is not the most physically attractive substance out there, but hey, give it a break; chances are, neither are you. There's just something that's inexplicably refreshing about taking out that lint screen and tearing through it for all that it's worth (which... may not actually be very much...)... a catharsicito (That's "small catharsis" for those of you who are less informed in the Spanish linguistic tradition). Believe me, in college, there's a lot that you get caught up in that you would do anything to be rid of. Don't turn to drugs. Turn to lint. And don't be grossed out... it's laundered.
- Face your fears. And that might not even involve eating cow testicles or driving a car on a balance beam with your nose (while collecting as many flags as you can of course). For the sake of illustration, I will through what little shame I have left out there. I hate bugs. Any sort of bugs (you can ask my roommate, who btw has just abandoned me in the Cool Kids Who Don't Have Facebook Club, membership: 2 1) So I'm sitting here at my desk minding my own business when suddenly I look up, and stare into the eyes of this baseball-sized monstronsity of a spider (ok, that was for my pride. It was probably about an inch long). Now I know exactly how poor Little Miss Muffet felt, sitting there all lady-like on her tuffet, not bothering anyone. So, courageously repressing all desire to scream like a little schoolgirl, I grab a tissue and snatch the little bastard off of its string. Who does it think it is, anyway, hanging off the ceiling like that... Spiderman? Oh wait...
- Be careful what gets out, and don't take yourself too seriously. Point in question: Remember those jokes we had in high school? Yea, I'm trying to forget those. But they're not forgetting me. So we were in Boston's Prudential Center last term doing a little bit of masculine... shopping, ahem. All was going well, until I went into the French Connection. So there's this sales rep that looked like he was about 16 who was obviously trying to sell me more than clothes. The story was leaked at DCCS, and now, randomly people are asking me to accompany them to FCUK. Haha. Aren't you a witty linguist. Someone, of course, had to point out that I looked like I would be a perfect match for a 16 year old. Lovely. Some familiar? You never escape the past. James suggested that once I hit puberty (haha. I'm again overwhelmed by your cleverness) I'd skip right into middle age. That's a truly depressing thought. So I'm supposed to be in diapers one day, and a wheelchair the next. I love you all. And don't ever say French Connection around me.
 Midori =). Wow... | | |
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