Deep Thought Of The Day

I noticed 3 morning radio shows are holding contests that send people to Jamaica, Mexico, or Costa Freak-a. I wonder if the radio stations in Jamaica give out vacations to Chicago. Probably not.

Song Of The Day

Alice In Chains - No Excuses

Yeah it's fine
Leave our rain
a cold trade for warm sunshine
You my friend
I will defend
And if we change
Well I love you anyway

Word Of The Day

Ostentatious

Joke Of The Day

Hydrogen Atom #1: Oh man, I lost an electron!
Hydrogen Atom #2: Are you sure?
Hydrogen Atom #1: Yes, I'm positive

Picture Of The Day

Normal Blog

I guess lately my blogs have been extra long and all based on a certain topic. It's time for a break, this is gonna just be a normal blog on what's goin on in my life. There's still a lot going on so I can't promise it won't be long.

Some of you probably already know this, but Olivia's brother bought a townhouse in Palatine and he asked if I wanted to be a housemate. So within a few weeks you all might see me leave hometown Darien to the Northsiiiiiiiiiiide.

The most exciting thing is the location. It's about 2-3 miles from where I work, which will save me at least an hour and a half of driving a day (and 1000 miles put on my car per month). Not only that, it's about 5 mins from Miss Cindylee's townhouse. So then it will be easy for us to continue the old school tradition of eating out and washing cars together, started way back in the Champaign days. We might even be able to study for the GMAT together. Unfortunately, she has already vowed to screen my calls on her caller ID. That calls for a furrowed eyebrow, gaping mouthed angry face >:-O.

My mom is in Taiwan until next week. So lately, it's been just me and my dad (and today, my sis came home). I was supposed to share the cooking/cleaning duties with him, but he's ended up doing all the cooking pretty much, and I just wash the dishes. Until yesterday... I decided to be clutch and pick up some Quarter Pounders and Big Macs with the 2 for 2 deal at Fricky D's. That's good stuff.

It's been kind of a cute thing to see how my dad is when my mom isn't around. Like when he had a bad day, I noticed he kept checking the clock at night, mentally figuring out if it was late enough in Taipei to call my mother. And almost every day my mom calls here to check up on him. It reminds me of back in the day when me and Olivia first started, we were at different schools so we talked on the phone every night cause that's all we had.

My lips were so dry last week it wasn't even funny. It cracked in the middle bottom, and on the side where the top lip meets the bottom. Not only did it look nasty, it hurt like hell. Unless it has happened to you, you have no idea how much pain and misery it is when your lips crack on the side. It hurts when you open your mouth to eat, or to talk, or even just to breathe. Sucks.

I don't know why it is especially bad this year, maybe it's extra cold. But if I had to guess, I would blame Chapstick. See, before this year, I never used any of that stuff. Then after I started using it, my lips must have developed a tolerance for it and now it needs more and more. I don't know if that theory is medically sound, but think about it - if Chapstick really did its job and healed your lips, they would've been out of business a long time ago. But no, it has expanded. There's medicated chapstick, SPF 15 chapstick, all these new flavors, plus competitors like Blistex, Carmex, or N Sync Lip Gloss. I dunno, but something shady must be going on there, I'm telling you.

If it isn't Chapstick's fault, it's definitely the cold. I grew up around here so I'm used to it by now. But I'm ready for spring to get here. I'm sick of having to wear a scarf around and looking flamish. I'm sick of waking up when it's dark outside. I'm sick of all the salt on my car. Hopefully I'll be able to give my baby a bath sometime soon. This year I'm gonna start using Zaino stuff. Before, it was all Meguiars Gold Class everything, but I'm gonna see how the Z1/Z4/Z6 combo works. Or is it Z5/Z6? I forgot.

Currently playing on my Winamp: Linkin Park - Somewhere I Belong
After downloading about 10 files that turned out not to be this song, I finally got it. Kazaa is pretty ridiculous sometimes with all the fakeys and looped songs floating around.

Thoughts Of A 23 Year Old

I got to talk briefly with birthday girl Lizzie this weekend and it made me suddenly more conscious about my age. When I turned 23 last month, I didn't think much about it at the time. But now, it's kind of hit me that I'm officially knee-deep in the post-college, early-career stage of my life.

Which may or may not be a good thing, I haven't decided yet. You know, my whole life, I've always wanted to get older. In elementary school, you looked up to teenagers because they seemed so cool. Once you become a teen, you can't wait to turn 16 so you can drive. Then you want to turn 18 so you can graduate high school, and feel like an official adult. Of course, you're not really an adult at 18. After 18 the next big age is 21, when you can get into bars and drink legally.

Since I turned 21, what's left for me to look forward to? Turning 25 and watching my car insurance rates drop? Not really. My 22nd and 23rd birthdays were fun, but not so much as a celebration of getting older, more because it was a good excuse to get everyone together and hang out.

There's a certain something special about being 21 that makes it different from any other age. I mean, girls buy clothes at Forever XXI, but how many people would shop at a place called "Forever XXIII"? It's an age when most of us feel young and invincible, when all we really have to worry about is studying, and the rest of the time is spent meeting new people and chilling with the people you already know. You can eat the most unhealthy food and live the unhealthiest life without caring about consequences. You can skip class if you really don't feel like going. You work a job not because you need to pay the bills, but because it lets you spend more on things that are fun. You have no idea where you are gonna be at in 2 years, but you couldn't care less.

At 23, I guess I don't really feel like I've passed my prime or anything. But there's definitely been moments when I have noticed myself getting older when I never have in the past. I can't stay up much later than 11 or 12 without getting tired anymore, when that used to be the beginning of my night. I go to the movie theater, and I'm like the oldest person there. I eat the same things for breakfast and lunch every day and my weeks have become a routine cycle.

I find myself taking my paycheck and leaving it in the bank so I can save up for a house, when in the past that money would probably have gone to modding my car or buying more clothes. Pretty soon, I'll be filing my own taxes for the first time. I'm thinking more about the future; where I'll be in 5 years, 10 years, not just worrying about the exam next week.

My mom and dad's friends start asking me when I'm gonna invite them to my wedding. Some of my own friends are starting to get engaged and married. I'm meeting new people, but not on a daily or weekly basis like it used to be. When I talk to old friends, half of our comments start with "remember when..." because those times past were so much more interesting than times present.

Don't get me wrong, it's not all a bad thing becoming older. At some point, we all have to grow up. Unlike Stork, I don't wanna be Wooderson in Dazed and Confused, or Trip McNeely in Can't Hardly Wait.

The working life might not be as exciting as college life, but I honestly do appreciate being where I am. For once, I'm doing something real, not just working out a made-up math problem for homework. When I leave my cube to go home every day, I'm tired but also feel a strong sense of accomplishment, like I earned the right to sit down and relax on the couch for an hour or two.

Something entirely new to me is that when I talk to my mom and dad these days, I feel like they treat me more as an equal than as a kid. Of course, Chinese parents never quite see their children as being on the same level, but our relationship is definitely different now than before. It's feels a little weird, but it's a good sign which shows that you are truly grown up now and your parents can see that as a fact.

Eventually, I'll be moving into my own house, get married and have kids of my own. At this point, it all seems so far away, but in reality, right now is not too early to at least be thinking and planning for those days. It's actually exciting to me to know that I'm moving along in life, towards different, bigger and better things, and I do want to continue moving forward.

Though I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss college, I'd also be cheating myself of enjoying the life I have right now if I kept focusing on the past. When I stop and think about it, being 23 isn't bad at all, and I don't see why anyone should fear being 24, 25, 30, 60, or 100 for that matter. When the time comes, it comes. That's how life goes.

At this age, I no longer look forward in anticipation of getting older, but I don't wish to be younger either. So far, the first month of 23 has treated me pretty well. I think I'm just gonna ride it out and see where this 23 business takes me.

Currently playing on my Winamp: A Tribe Called Quest - Can I Kick It
Can I kick it? Yes you can!

Also, I'm gonna bite Vira's idea and put a pic from school on my page. It's Chras, P, Anuj, Greg, Cindy, and Me outside Foellinger after a CLCIV 100 test. For kicks and giggles, I'll also put up a picture of me tackling Chras about 5 minutes later.

Top 10 CDs

As promised, here is the list of my top 10 favorite CDs. Keep in mind that this list fluctuates from time to time, especially in the order, but for the most part it is pretty much the same.

10. Boyz II Men - Evolution



This one was supposed to be a gimme. Since I kicked off the contest by saying how "A Song For Mama" is on one of my favorite CDs of all time, I expected everyone to get it. But unfortunately, not everyone did. Most people think "II" is the best Boyz album, and I do like that CD a lot II, but I personally prefer Evolution. "Human II" is one of the best songs made that was never released as a single, and the remake of "Can You Stand The Rain" is awesome. I love the words to that song. Also, you can definitely tell that Babyface had his influence on this album. Except maybe for R. Kelly, I can't think of any artist more musically gifted in singing/songwriting in the R&B world during the past 10-15 years than Babyface.

9. Britney Spears - Baby One More Time



It's hard to pick between her first and second album, cause they're both good. The tiebreaker is the fact that "You Drive Me Crazy" is on the first, which is by far the best song and video ever done by her. One reason it's not higher on my list is because of the song "Soda Pop", which is just piss poor. But the rest of it is quality sappy music. Something people may not know is that I haven't bought her third CD, "Britney". I guess I'm still a big fan of her, just not as obsessive as some people think. But I did get the McDonald's CD that came out a few years ago. And try to ignore the fact that I have stickers of her in my wallet.

8. Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie



Mellon Collie was more than a 2-CD set, it was a complete musical experience. Of course there are the many famous songs (1979, Tonight Tonight, thirty-three, Zero, Bullet With Butterfly Wings, the list goes on). But there's plenty of good music besides those songs in this set. It came out of the era when their creativity overflowed far beyond what would fit on one disc, and the amazing thing is how smoothly the set is put together.

7. Pearl Jam - Ten



Even though I like Nirvana better overall than Pearl Jam, I think "Ten" is far better than "Nevermind". I like to think of the two bands in terms of their top 2 albums, and "Ten"-"Vs." is still slightly behind "In Utero"-"Nevermind". But of the four, I like "Ten" the best. "Black" is the best Pearl Jam song of all time, at least in my opinion, but it's far from being the only quality song on this album. A definite Top 10 CD fo shizzle.

6. Stone Temple Pilots - Purple



Long before Scott Weiland got too heroin-ed out, STP was the best band of all in my mind. "Big Empty" was a breakthrough song, and "Interstate Love Song" is my favorite of them all. Not to mention the hidden track "12 Gracious Melodies" sealing the deal, that song's hilarious. Sandwiched between the also good "Core" and "Tiny Music", "Purple" was pretty much the reason I started listening to alternative music in the first place, and it's one of the best CDs out of the time when alternative was in its prime.

5. Jars of Clay - Jars of Clay



As expected, nobody got this one, not even my sister. I've always thought of "Christian Rock" to be kind of a hokey term. But if you were to consider it a genre, this album pretty much defines that category. There's good heavy songs like "Liquid" and "Flood", while "Like a Child" and "Love Song for a Savior" make for softer but still great tracks which make this CD so well rounded. Then, "Worlds Apart" just blew me away and maybe because of that song alone, I can't leave it off my top 10 list.

4. Snoop Doggy Dogg - Doggystyle



In case you didn't know, I got the title for my blog ("It's a crazy mixed up world, it's a bloggy blog world") from the song "Doggy Dogg World". But that song is probably only the 5th or 6th best track off of "Doggystyle". This CD was revolutionary in the music world and it's stacked with awesome song after awesome song. There was a time in my life when I knew all the words to "Gin and Juice", "Lodi Dodi", and "Tha Shiznit", but not so much anymore. That's how I know I'm getting old, cause I'm forgetting Snoop lyrics.

3. Radiohead - OK Computer



It's amazing how an album can have almost zero hits but be so good. None of the songs on this CD really stick out from the rest, but they are all so good. Put together, it's easily top 5, arguably #1 even. Paranoid Android is one of the weirdest songs ever made, even by Radiohead standards, but it's also one of my favorites. Most people have heard "Karma Police" and of course it's a quality song too. It's a good CD to listen all the way through without ever having to touch the FWD button.

2. Janet Jackson - Velvet Rope



I'm at least a little surprised nobody mentioned this one. I think this album is just awesome, the best Janet CD among a lot of other good ones by her. There's 22 total tracks, which is nuts, even though 7 of them are short interludes. Even more impressive is how many of these songs are big hits. Pretty much all of my favorite Janet Jackson songs are on here, such as "Go Deep", "I Get Lonely", and "Everytime". Then there's Q-Tip and Joni Mitchell on track 4 "Got Til It's Gone", her remake of Rod Stewart's "Tonight's The Night", and "Together Again", the best live song I heard at her concert last year. It's too bad she peaked with this album and her later stuff after it isn't nearly as good.

1. Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream



From the beginning to end, this is the CD that defines Smashing Pumpkins and showed me why they were such an elite band. I love the opening drums of "Cherub Rock," the opening guitar of "Today", and the solos in almost all of the songs. I mentioned earlier how Boyz II Men's "Human II" was among the best unreleased songs, well "Mayonaise" probably has to be the tops on that list. This is the purest albums I can think of in terms of its sound, its lyrics, and how it spoke to and for our generation. Not to mention that they are the pride of Chicago.

Honorable Mentions

Nirvana - Nevermind
Dave Matthews Band - Under the Table and Dreaming
DMX - It's Dark and Hell is Hot
Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
Fugees - The Score

The Winner

And yes, the moment all three of you who entered have been waiting for. The winner of this contest is.... Piya. Congrats goes to him for naming 7 of my top 10. You will receive your reward soon.

Close behind was my sister, who got 6 of the 10. Definitely a good effort. She told me that after she entered her contest, she had a nightmare about losing to Piya. How prophetic. Hope you aren't crying now, meh.

Finally, Vira came in third with a respectable 5 correct. I was very impressed, I didn't think someone who I've only known for a few months would be able to get that many. I'll try to think of a consolation prize for you. Also, she listed the Aladdin Soundtrack, which had me laughing to myself all day. The one bad thing was, she missed Boyz II Men "Evolution". That was supposed to be a gimme, Vira... but it's ok. Didn't end up being too costly of a mistake.

There will be more contests in the future. I'll try to think of better prizes and a topic that more people would participate in next time.

Currently playing on my Winamp - Bombs over Baghdad

Baseball is so close I can breath it. And fantasy baseball is already alive and kicking. That leaves me too excited to write a new blog. So I will dig into my reserves and release the first of my promised political blogs. Assuming I don't get stoned for expressing my opinion, I'll probably eventually release the others.

Political Blog #1 - War on Iraq?

For months now, the top debate in this country (and maybe the world) has been the issue of "disarming" Saddam Hussein and his weapons of mass destructions. We've seen UN Resolutions, we've seen weapons inspectors sent, Bush's State of the Union speech and plenty of rhetoric in regards to the question of whether or not we need to use military force on Iraq. A few weeks ago, "chemical warheads" were found, and the world braced for war. Not too long after that, Saddam Hussein vowed to "break the neck" of America if war were to occur. Not too long ago, Colin Powell presented the UN with intelligence showing how Iraqi officials have been grossly misleading and deceiving UN inspectors. President Bush has given Saddam "one last chance", the UN has given "one last chance", and now the EU has given "one last chance".

And after all this, what? Absolutely nothing has happened. Every day, I read and watch the news, and it's the same thing. United States and Great Britain trying to prove that Iraq is not disarming and force is necessary, the other major countries reluctant to follow. The Iraqi UN Ambassador claiming that George Bush and Tony Blair are lying, that Iraq has disarmed and has no weapons of mass destruction. The American people being polled and saying they would only support war if the UN backed it.

Now, I should mention that I work at a large defense contractor which is (supposedly) in a position to benefit from this potential war. Maybe this is a fact that would sway my opinion. But, in all honesty, I am writing this with as little bias as I can imagine. In reality, Northrop Grumman does not gain in direct relation to what happens in Iraq; its fate lies in the hands of existing contracts and the federal defense budget in coming years. Even if it did, the effect that such a gain would have on me as an individual is rather minimal. So everything that I am writing is based on how I feel and have felt anyways, independent of where I'm working.

So how do I feel about war on Iraq? Well, first of all, let's not kid ourselves here - this whole thing is not all about removing weapons of mass destruction or saving the Iraqi people from the oppression from evil Saddam. There's plenty of countries in this world that are developing these weapons, and there's plenty of evil rulers out there besides Saddam. North Korea is only the most recently available example. If there was anything worth fighting for in North Korea, believe me, we would've hit those fools a long time ago. But all they have is an evil leader, a lot of starving and suffering people, and a bunch of missiles aimed at the South. That's about it, and sadly it's not enough to make that situation a priority.

But with that said, I still believe we need to support our president in this cause, however tainted his intentions may be. First of all, it's annoying to listen to some of the people talk about why we shouldn't to go to war. They're led by "celebrity activists", 95% of whom don't know jack about the real world. Inevitably, you end up hearing things like "this doesn't affect me" or "I don't see a 'smoking gun' that requires us to go to war".

People, it's been less than 2 years since we watched our own planes being flown into the tallest buildings in our largest city, causing mass chaos and killing thousands of American citizens within our very own country in which we are supposed to feel so safe in. It's been only 60 years since the world narrowly escaped being overrun by Nazis and Japanese imperialists while the American people sat around saying "this war doesn't have anything to do with me".

Is it going to take another 9/11, another Pearl Harbor to wake up this lazy and ignorant public consciousness? Let's face it, things that happen around the world do affect us, one way or another. Guys like Saddam having VX and nerve gas does matter. Why sit around waiting until things have built up beyond our control to do something? Certain disasters are preventable, but not by people standing by and looking the other way.

Now, it doesn't help that Saddam Hussein is one of the shadiest men on this planet right now. Whether or not he starves and tortures his own people, I don't know for sure. But from the Gulf War experience, we do know that the guy has no qualms about using chemical and biological weapons if he has them. We know that he was crazy enough to set his own oil fields on fire when defeat was imminent. Do you think we should sit around and wait for a guy like him to build up weapons of mass destruction? Removing a guy like him from power would be doing his people, and the world a giant favor anyways.

So while this potential war on Iraq might still be more oil-motivated than anything, it is not without other justifications. If you are against war, I urge you to stop and think for a moment, why? If it's because you think this subject doesn't affect you, think again. If it's reluctance to serve your country, shame on you. As for me, I may not agree wholeheartedly with this war, and I might not like everything the President is saying. But I strongly believe in supporting our leader in this situation, not undermining his authority. "United we stand, Divided we fall." Right now we see not only a nation, but a world divided, because of what? Because there's no overt "smoking gun"? Because he doesn't have nukes? Because he hasn't yet made any attacks on American soil?

Nobody likes to go to war. But we would not be sitting here, enjoying our freedoms, watching Joe Millionaire and the Bachelorette, were it not for brave souls who fought the Revolutionary War. We would probably still have slavery if the Civil War was never fought. No, war was not "necessary" in either case either, and yes, innocent people died in those wars. But it was for the greater good of mankind. This Iraq situation may not be as noble as fighting for liberty or to free slaves, but I believe it will improve the lives of many (including the Iraqis themselves) and provide greater security and stability in this world. I end with just the following quote, one of my favorites:

"All that is necessary for the forces of evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing" - Edmund Burke, English philosopher