Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Fictions
Most of books in English I read are non fiction. It's not that I don't like fictions. I enjoy Chinese Ku-fu fictions, Chinese romantic novels, Chinese history novels, etc. Well, I guess I like Chinese fiction. Fictions, like jokes and humors, demand culture, history, value, even religion understanding to be entertained. In addition, fictions bring something that people can relate to or fantasize with. As a Chinese born and raised in China, I can't relate many things in the US, even though I have been living in the US for almost eight years. Or it also might be everything in the US is (or encouraged to be) individualized that collective identities are understood or interpreted differently.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Crater Lake
Last weekend, I went to Crater Lake National Park with a friend of mine. The lake is very beautiful. The water is super clear and blue. Of course, I couldn't resist to swim in the lake.
Crater Lake
I'm at Crater Lake taking pictures
nearby the boat tour dock
The water, the lake
close look at the water where I swam
Crater Lake
I'm at Crater Lake taking pictures
nearby the boat tour dock
The water, the lake
close look at the water where I swam
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Fortune Telling
My parents told me that some fortune teller had foreseen that I would have high education when I was still a baby.
In college, I was stopped by a palm reader after I visited a temple. He said I would marry late.
A few years ago, I did palm reading to a person I didn't know. I told him that he would be a bachelor until when he reached 40. He told me later that he got married at 39.
I remember in a documentary about a woman looking for her biological parents in Cambodia. The woman did some fortune telling to see if she could find her parents during her trip. The fortune teller told her that she wouldn't find her parents, but she would find a husband. At the end, she indeed couldn't find her parents, and found a husband instead.
Fortune telling is very fascinating. Or I just choose those tend to be true to remember?
In college, I was stopped by a palm reader after I visited a temple. He said I would marry late.
A few years ago, I did palm reading to a person I didn't know. I told him that he would be a bachelor until when he reached 40. He told me later that he got married at 39.
I remember in a documentary about a woman looking for her biological parents in Cambodia. The woman did some fortune telling to see if she could find her parents during her trip. The fortune teller told her that she wouldn't find her parents, but she would find a husband. At the end, she indeed couldn't find her parents, and found a husband instead.
Fortune telling is very fascinating. Or I just choose those tend to be true to remember?
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Olympic National Park
I went camping at the Olympic National Park two weekends ago with some friends.
Here are some pictures taken by my friends.
Here are some pictures taken by my friends.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Urumqi
In the afternoon, I saw a friend of mine who lived in Urumqi to study Uyghur traditional medicine last year. She has been very upset since she heard the news of the riots. She lived at the street where the riot happened last Sunday. She taught classes at a university in Urumqi with both Han and Uyghur students. She has both Han and Uyghur friends in Urumqi.
On the other hand, I haven't been to the region. I don't have any Uyghur friends. Thanks to courses that I have taken at the school of international studies and the experience of living in the US and China, I understand things always have more than one perspectives. I'm standing in the middle of chaos.
Both of us agreed that it was very strange for the Chinese government to finger Rebiya Kadeer responsible for the riots in Urumqi. It is like the Chinese government wants to create a leader for the Uyghurs, like Dalai for the Tibetans? Or there are something needed to be covered up?
On the other hand, I haven't been to the region. I don't have any Uyghur friends. Thanks to courses that I have taken at the school of international studies and the experience of living in the US and China, I understand things always have more than one perspectives. I'm standing in the middle of chaos.
Both of us agreed that it was very strange for the Chinese government to finger Rebiya Kadeer responsible for the riots in Urumqi. It is like the Chinese government wants to create a leader for the Uyghurs, like Dalai for the Tibetans? Or there are something needed to be covered up?
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Lake Serene Revisit
One of my first blog entries is about Lake Serene hike in July 2005. I enjoyed the hike a lot. The only thing I didn't try that time was swimming in the lake. I finally did it today!
The weather was sunny and warm today. Even though half of the lake is still covered with flowing ice, there were a few people before me jumping into the lake. All of them came out of the water speechless. The person just right before me said even his teeth felt cold. I'm very glad that I finally swam in Lake Serene.
The weather was sunny and warm today. Even though half of the lake is still covered with flowing ice, there were a few people before me jumping into the lake. All of them came out of the water speechless. The person just right before me said even his teeth felt cold. I'm very glad that I finally swam in Lake Serene.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
TV
Do you know that recently CNN reported that a study found that teens who watched more TV were more likely to be pregnant?
Really?
Do you watch TV?
I even don't have a TV at my apartment.
No wonder at 30 you're still single without a kid.
Kendo
For some reason, I think I can excel in Kendo. I'll start my first ever Kendo class next Wednesday!!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Yosemite
Six years ago, I went to Yosemite first time with one of my good friends, Sylvia. We bought train passes and took a ten-day trip to California in September. Yosemite was our second stop. It was beautiful.
Last weekend, another good friend of mine, Guilan, invited me to go to Yosemite again. I have to go of course. Not only because it is Yosemite, but also it is spring! There will be famous waterfalls I missed last time! We even hiked up to Half Dome!
Last weekend, another good friend of mine, Guilan, invited me to go to Yosemite again. I have to go of course. Not only because it is Yosemite, but also it is spring! There will be famous waterfalls I missed last time! We even hiked up to Half Dome!
Friday, April 03, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Movies
I love movies. I like watching other people's stories.
Last month, I saw "Slumdog Millionaire". When I got back home from the movie, I couldn't help searching the related information/comments/movie critics online. The scene the young Jamal holding the picture of Amitabh Bachchan and jumping into a pile of excrement to seek Amitabh Bachchan's autograph has stuck in my mind.
Three weeks ago, I saw "He's Just Not That Into You". After the movie, my girl friends and I couldn't stop talking about the movie.
About two weeks ago, I saw "Watchman". I didn't remember the movie very much, except a sentence by one of the characters.
Yesterday, I saw another movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". I was very touched.
Am I also looking for myself in the movies?
Last month, I saw "Slumdog Millionaire". When I got back home from the movie, I couldn't help searching the related information/comments/movie critics online. The scene the young Jamal holding the picture of Amitabh Bachchan and jumping into a pile of excrement to seek Amitabh Bachchan's autograph has stuck in my mind.
Three weeks ago, I saw "He's Just Not That Into You". After the movie, my girl friends and I couldn't stop talking about the movie.
About two weeks ago, I saw "Watchman". I didn't remember the movie very much, except a sentence by one of the characters.
When you left me, I left Earth.
Yesterday, I saw another movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". I was very touched.
Am I also looking for myself in the movies?
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Lost and Found
It happened yesterday.
I was reaching out to my belt to get my house keys. I didn't feel my keys. I turned around and found that there was only a key holder hanging on my belt. My heart started to sink. I had a very quick flashback what I did. I just finished a class about one hour ago. I took the bus to school in the morning. I said to myself I must have lost my keys in the classroom or in the bus. Somehow I felt like the chance that I lost my keys in the classroom was bigger. I graped my lab keys and put on my coat, and left my department building to the classroom where I had a morning class. There was no keys in the classroom. Then, I went to the lost and found desk in the HUB. No keys were turned in the morning. My heart sunk.
On the way back to the Gould Hall, I played back in my head what I had done in the morning. I remembered when I closed the door behind me, I put my gloves in one of the pockets of my coat, the same side I hanged my house keys. My handbag was just sitting on the pocket. Was it possible I lost the keys on the way to the bus stop? The chance of recovering my keys was getting slimmer. I started to feel a bit of panic.
I was very glad that I called Susan. She suggested me to call my property manager first. She also gave me a few numbers of locksmiths. I didn't have the phone number of the property manager with me. I had to call the locksmiths. The first one asked for $100 to open my door. The second one asked for $80. The third one asked for $100 as well. Hearing such high cost of the locksmiths just made me feel bad that I lost my keys. I said to myself at least I found out I lost the keys early. It would be worse if I had found that out at night.
I decided that I should go back home first and then asked the locksmith who asked for $80 to come open the door for me. On the way home, I got a phone call from the third locksmith I called. He said he would offer me the lowest price. I told him that I would call him when I got back home.
When I got off the bus, I started to search around as I walked home. I couldn't find any keys. When I was crossing the street and got closer to my apartment, I started to get nervous. For a second, I wish I would find my keys by the door. Standing in front of my door, I was stunned. My keys were hanging on the door. One of the keys was still in the lock on my door!!!
I was reaching out to my belt to get my house keys. I didn't feel my keys. I turned around and found that there was only a key holder hanging on my belt. My heart started to sink. I had a very quick flashback what I did. I just finished a class about one hour ago. I took the bus to school in the morning. I said to myself I must have lost my keys in the classroom or in the bus. Somehow I felt like the chance that I lost my keys in the classroom was bigger. I graped my lab keys and put on my coat, and left my department building to the classroom where I had a morning class. There was no keys in the classroom. Then, I went to the lost and found desk in the HUB. No keys were turned in the morning. My heart sunk.
On the way back to the Gould Hall, I played back in my head what I had done in the morning. I remembered when I closed the door behind me, I put my gloves in one of the pockets of my coat, the same side I hanged my house keys. My handbag was just sitting on the pocket. Was it possible I lost the keys on the way to the bus stop? The chance of recovering my keys was getting slimmer. I started to feel a bit of panic.
I was very glad that I called Susan. She suggested me to call my property manager first. She also gave me a few numbers of locksmiths. I didn't have the phone number of the property manager with me. I had to call the locksmiths. The first one asked for $100 to open my door. The second one asked for $80. The third one asked for $100 as well. Hearing such high cost of the locksmiths just made me feel bad that I lost my keys. I said to myself at least I found out I lost the keys early. It would be worse if I had found that out at night.
I decided that I should go back home first and then asked the locksmith who asked for $80 to come open the door for me. On the way home, I got a phone call from the third locksmith I called. He said he would offer me the lowest price. I told him that I would call him when I got back home.
When I got off the bus, I started to search around as I walked home. I couldn't find any keys. When I was crossing the street and got closer to my apartment, I started to get nervous. For a second, I wish I would find my keys by the door. Standing in front of my door, I was stunned. My keys were hanging on the door. One of the keys was still in the lock on my door!!!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
30
I turned 30 a few weeks ago.
I still remember 4 years ago when I was chatting with my housemates about what I wanted to achieve before I turned 30, I said I wanted to have a publication, travel to some places in Europe, and getting a boyfriend. At that time, I thought the easiest thing was to get a boyfriend. The most difficult one was going to Europe. It turned out I went to Europe the next summer, I had a first journal article as a second author last year, but I am still single.
Confucius said: "At thirty, I established my stand." It seems like I am still establishing my stand.
I still remember 4 years ago when I was chatting with my housemates about what I wanted to achieve before I turned 30, I said I wanted to have a publication, travel to some places in Europe, and getting a boyfriend. At that time, I thought the easiest thing was to get a boyfriend. The most difficult one was going to Europe. It turned out I went to Europe the next summer, I had a first journal article as a second author last year, but I am still single.
Confucius said: "At thirty, I established my stand." It seems like I am still establishing my stand.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Gaza, Palestine, and Israel
If I didn't have any friends from Palestine and Israel, I wouldn't have felt so much for the people who live in that region. Specially what has happened for the last three weeks there.
If my Palestinian friends hadn't told me the situations in Gaza and the West Bank, I wouldn't have any idea that Palestine dose not have their own currency. People who live in the West Bank have to use different kinds of foreign currency the region. I wouldn't have known that Gaza is like a concentration camp, etc. Even though my friends have filled me with information about the region, I still can't image the life in Gaza and the West Bank.
When I asked my friend who is from Israel the population of the state, I was very surprised to hear it only has about 7-8 million people. On the other hand, my friend was shocked to hear I said that it was just like two median size cities or one large city in China. Just Shanghai alone has more population than the whole state of Israel.
20 years, 50 years, 100 years and many years later, I hope I can still see Palestine stand in the region.
If my Palestinian friends hadn't told me the situations in Gaza and the West Bank, I wouldn't have any idea that Palestine dose not have their own currency. People who live in the West Bank have to use different kinds of foreign currency the region. I wouldn't have known that Gaza is like a concentration camp, etc. Even though my friends have filled me with information about the region, I still can't image the life in Gaza and the West Bank.
When I asked my friend who is from Israel the population of the state, I was very surprised to hear it only has about 7-8 million people. On the other hand, my friend was shocked to hear I said that it was just like two median size cities or one large city in China. Just Shanghai alone has more population than the whole state of Israel.
20 years, 50 years, 100 years and many years later, I hope I can still see Palestine stand in the region.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Two-Week Vacation in Zhongshan
I got back to Seattle yesterday. I finished a two-week vacation at home with my parents. It had been a very relaxing time. I attended one of my cousins' one-month "anniversary" celebration, but missed my high-school's 100 anniversary celebration. I also saw some of high-school classmates and visited Macau.
I booked the discounted airline tickets. I had to get back to Seattle on December 26th. Meanwhile, my high-school was having 100th anniversary celebration on December 27th. I missed it just by one day. I'm looking forward to seeing pictures of the celebration.
On the other hand, one of my cousins got married last month. Somehow he and his wife and their families decided to celebrate their one-month "anniversary". They had a grand wedding ceremony with more than 500 people attending. Since I was at home, I was invited to their anniversary dinner.
I graduated from high school for more than 10 years. We are doing different things. I saw some of my classmates from high school during my visit. Surprisingly, I heard another two of them got married with each other!
Macau is just south of Zhongshan. It takes less than one hour to get there from Zhongshan. I finally visited it on December 18th with my parents. Here are some pictures.
I booked the discounted airline tickets. I had to get back to Seattle on December 26th. Meanwhile, my high-school was having 100th anniversary celebration on December 27th. I missed it just by one day. I'm looking forward to seeing pictures of the celebration.
On the other hand, one of my cousins got married last month. Somehow he and his wife and their families decided to celebrate their one-month "anniversary". They had a grand wedding ceremony with more than 500 people attending. Since I was at home, I was invited to their anniversary dinner.
I graduated from high school for more than 10 years. We are doing different things. I saw some of my classmates from high school during my visit. Surprisingly, I heard another two of them got married with each other!
Macau is just south of Zhongshan. It takes less than one hour to get there from Zhongshan. I finally visited it on December 18th with my parents. Here are some pictures.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Grown-Up
My friends say I have grown up.
I just moved to a one-bedroom apartment last weekend. I have the whole apartment to myself. It's my first time living alone. My friends said I have finally "grown up".
I just moved to a one-bedroom apartment last weekend. I have the whole apartment to myself. It's my first time living alone. My friends said I have finally "grown up".
Baby Formula
I still remember the milk disaster in China back in September. Two weeks ago, I got an email from a high school classmate out of blue. He asked me to buy 12 big cans of baby formula from the US. They're so heavy that I had to take two trips. Last week, I bought 6 cans. This afternoon, I bought another 6 cans. The 12 cans of baby formula weight 20 pounds. I have to use EMS to send them back to China. It'll cost more than $120 on shipping!
Maybe I should open an import/export business on baby formula?
Maybe I should open an import/export business on baby formula?
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Steamed Eggs
I have decided that I should cook more often. Since the beginning of this year, I had been eating out a lot. If I cooked, I would just cook Korean spicy instant noodles. I have gained about 10 pounds. During the summer holiday, I went back to China to visit my parents and friends. My mother told me I should do more exercise. I knew she wanted to tell me that I should lose some weight. One of my parents' friend, who cares about me a lot ever since I was little, saw me again in August. She gave me tips on how to lose weight, even though I didn't ask for it!
Last week, I wanted to cook steamed egg, a simple dish that my grandmother used to make. I also had it at a friend's before she went back to China for her field trips. I stirred three chicken eggs, added some water, and put it on the stove to steam. It turned out not tasty at all! I called my parents and asked them how to make steamed eggs. Then I found out that I forgot to add some oil, but I added too much water. The good thing is that the dogs aren't too picky. I tried a second time. This time, it was only eatable. I think I have to try several times before it tastes good.
Last week, I wanted to cook steamed egg, a simple dish that my grandmother used to make. I also had it at a friend's before she went back to China for her field trips. I stirred three chicken eggs, added some water, and put it on the stove to steam. It turned out not tasty at all! I called my parents and asked them how to make steamed eggs. Then I found out that I forgot to add some oil, but I added too much water. The good thing is that the dogs aren't too picky. I tried a second time. This time, it was only eatable. I think I have to try several times before it tastes good.
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