"We who lived in the concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way." 

- Victor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

Dare to Believe

It's feeling like the time's run out,
But the hour glass, just flipped itself over again,
The sun is slowly sinking down,
But on the other side a new day awaits to begin.

If you dare to believe in life,
You might realise that there's no time for talking
Or just wait around while the innocent die.

No more, we're gonna lose everything,
If we believe all the lies,
I may fall but I swear that I'll help you believe.
No more, this one's runnin on empty
And there?s no reason why,
You may fall but I know that you?ll help me believe.

We been in the dark for way too long,
But when we turn around we see light shine through the haze,
So forget about who was wrong,
'Cause I've never been more ready to turn this page.

If you swear you believe in life,
Embrace forgiveness 'cause it?s all that I?m askin',
Or keep holding out while the innocent die.

The starving student

 
This is what I'm craving right now.

Is there a "slap me" sign on my forehead?

I've been feeling like a living doormat lately. If I'm not getting frantic emails from students in my class telling me that my recitation time doesn't fit their preferences, I'm getting frantic emails from my colleague telling me that I'm late in giving him the portion of a paper that he was supposed to be responsible for. Oh, and then there's the "I'm sorry, it's just not my priority" lines being fed to me from committee members right after they say, "But since I made the commitment, I will follow through." Bullsh*t. I'm sick and tired of always being the person who "takes it for the team" and stays up past 4am doing work that no one else wanted to do because they were too busy feeding their own selfish ambitions. I'm sick and tired of having to filter my communications so I can be more diplomatic and make it a "teaching moment." Screw the teaching moment, these people are flakes! Flakes! Flakes! All of them! A combined head of dandruff, I say. It doesn't matter that you see how I've put my heart and soul into this project, and that you've agreed to help me. It doesn't matter that you're causing someone else to suffer for your own selfish ambitions and change of heart. It doesn't even matter if you're supposed to be my friend. It never matters. Because people of this world are ultimately selfish. They care not for the public good, if their private gain is small. Argggh.

A Day with the Dominator :)

From Winter 2009

From Winter 2009

Enter the Photo-Freak

So..I got me-self a Nikon Digital SLR Camera this week, and have been going camera happy with everything around me. While I distract myself from this international trade paper that's still due from last semester, here is my attempt at being artistic.

New Year, New Habits.

Watching my baby niece Caitlyn gurgle and coo as she tried to put everything within arms reach into her mouth, I came to sharp realization that a lot of who we are today started from when we were her age. I mean, look at her. She wakes up every morning to a mother who naturally wakes up at 6:30-7am who has already cleaned the kitchen, written emails, and checked the latest store fliers of the day for sales, and a father who leads everything in our little community almost by accident. She picked a darn good family to be born into. She gets kissed a million times a day, hugged a billion times a day, and her name has probably risen to the top word uttered in our house after "the."

If there's one advantage in life, it's got to be love. It made me remember those children at the Starfish Foster Home in Xi'an, China. With cleft lip and palettes, spina bifida, and a host of other medical conditions these children are also orphans. These children come to Starfish Foster Homes to have their physical ailment fixed via surgery, but it's my hunch that they leave with much more than the benefit of physical health. The question is, is it enough?

Top Ten Song and Dance Numbers of the Decade (er, Year plus a few extras)

Another year, another decade, another passing of time. I've been obsessed lately with choreographed song and dance numbers, which has almost replaced my love for the movie montage this year. So here you go, and I apologize for having to put Taylor Swift in there. Although I'm way past my tween stage, I had to give credit where it's due. It was, afterall, a pretty entertaining performance. Other than that, don't knock the penguins. They're awesome.

10. Slumdog Millionaire Jai Ho



9. Happy Feet's Boogie Wonderland



8. Step Up Till the Dawn



7. SYTYCD Canada's Tara-Jean and Vincent's It Doesn't Hurt



6. Taylor Swift's Should've Said No




5. How Does She Know from Enchanted




4. Oprah's 24th Anniversary Block Party with the Black Eyed Peas




3. America's Best Dance Crew - Jabbawockeez's Apologize




2. Glee's Somebody to Love




1. SYTYCD Chelsea and Mark's Bleeding Love