You have been my friend. That in itself is a tremendous thing. I wove my webs for you because I liked you. After all, what’s a life, anyway? We’re born, we live a little while, we die. A spider’s life can’t help being something of a mess, with all this trapping and eating flies. By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heaven knows anyone’s life can stand a little of that.

-Charlotte, “Charlotte’s Web”

There’s enough time to work
There’s enough time to play
There’s enough time to reflect
There’s enough time to pray

There’s enough time to care
There’s enough time to write
There’s enough time to call
There’s enough time to make things right

There’s enough time to love
There’s enough time to hope
There’s enough time to plan
There’s enough time to remember…

He’s got the whole world, in His hands

‘Now, comrades, what is the nature of this life of ours? Let us face it: our lives are miserable, labourious, and short.  We are born, we are given just so much food as will keep the breath in our bodies, and those of us who are capable of it are forced to work to the last atom of our strength; and the very instant that our usefulness has come to an end we are slaughtered with hideous cruelty.  No animal in England knows the meaning of happiness or leisure after he is a year old.  No animal in England is free.  The life of an animal is misery and slavery: that is the plain truth.’

~The Animal Farm

As I read this quote, I thought “wow, that sounds like my life”.  Even though it really isn’t…and shouldn’t be. (Thank God, I wasn’t slaughtered before turning 1, and I get more than enough food)  The life of a regenerated person should not be thought of as miserable or slavery (at least not slavery in its negative implications).  But lately it’s been an uphill battle against feelings of tiredness, boredom, lack of motivation…I feel absolutely drained from the day in and day out working life.  Being used to change (which is usually something I hate) every 4 months, my I find myself always being…tired.

What is my solution?  I wake up and I don’t want to get up.  I look upon my tasks with dread (besides actual work - Work term report, studying physiology, grad school apps)  Why am I like this?  Is it the seasonal depression kicking in?  “I don’t wanna work, I just wanna bang on my drums all day”.

I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. (Ps 3:5)

ENJOY:)

髮如雪 Snow-Like Hair
fa ru xue
詞:方文山 曲:周杰倫 - Jay Chou

English Translation - Ken Leung

狼牙月 伊人憔悴 In the wolf-tooth shaped new moonlight, missing her I was broken to pieces.
lang ya yue yi ren qiao cui
我舉杯 飲盡了風雪 Bottom up I drank my last drop of tear and sweat cocktail mix.
wo ju bei yin jin le feng xue
是誰打翻前世櫃 Whose fault was it that the wardrobe of incarnation was slammed open?
shi shui da fan qian shi gui
惹塵埃是非 that where vanity fairs thereby launched?
re chen ai shi fei
緣字訣 幾番輪迴 The myth of predestination was hard to fathom, let alone its multi-facetness.
yuan zi jue ji fan lun hui
妳鎖眉 哭紅顏喚不回 You deplored, creeping over the one way ticket of “my fair lady”.
ni suo mei ku hong yan huan bu hui
縱然青史已經成灰 The final chapter of History could have been closed
zong ran qing shi yi jing cheng hui
我愛不滅 yet my love to you would never extinguish.
wo ai bu mie

繁華如三千東流水 Vanity fairs are just like the many rivers flowing to the east.
fan hua ru san qian dong liu shui
我只取一瓢愛了解For me a spoonful that can make me understand love would be enough.
wo zhi qu yi piao ai liao jie
只戀妳化身的蝶 As now I love deadly your incarnated butterfly.
zhi lian ni hua shen de die
Chorus:
妳髮如雪 淒美了離別 The parting was sadly beautified by your snow white greys.
ni fa ru xue qi mei le li bie
我焚香感動了誰 Who would be moved by my offering of incent burning?
wo fen xiang gan dong le shui
邀明月 讓回憶皎潔 Let us invite the moonlight to join that our memoir would be purified
yao ming yue rang hui yi jiao jie
愛在月光下完美 that our love would become perfectly complete.
ai zai yue guang xia wan mei
妳髮如雪 紛飛了眼淚The parting was sadden by your snow white greys and tears.
ni fa ru xue fen fei le yan lei
我等待蒼老了誰 I will be awaiting as we both aging.
wo deng dai cang lao le shui
紅塵醉 微醺的歲月Drink to our vanity fair and those years of hang over.
hong chen zui wei xun de sui yue
我用無悔 刻永世愛妳的碑 I will carve the ever loving you tomb stone with regretlessness.
wo yong wu hui ke yong shi ai ni de bei

Rap:
妳髮如雪 淒美了離別The parting was sadly beautified by your snow white greys.
ni fa ru xue qi mei le li bie
我焚香感動了誰Who would be moved by my offering of incent burning?
wo fen xiang gan dong le shui
邀明月 讓回憶皎潔
yao ming yue rang hui yi jiao jie
愛在月光下完美
ai zai yue guang xia wan mei
妳髮如雪 紛飛了眼淚
ni fa ru xue fen fei le yan lei
我等待蒼老了誰
wo deng dai cang lao le shui
紅塵醉 微醺的歲月
hong chen zui wei xun de sui yue

Repeat from the top
啦兒啦 啦兒啦 啦兒啦兒啦
la er la la er la la er la er la
啦兒啦 啦兒啦 啦兒啦兒啦
la er la la er la la er la er la
銅鏡映無邪 紮馬尾 Watch ! Your girlish pony tail and innocence were well reflected on the bronze mirror.
tong jing ying wu xie zha ma wei
妳若撒野 今生我把酒奉陪 Should you square the circle on me I would finish the game with wine all my life.
ni re sa ye jin sheng wo ba jiu feng pei

Roger Ellis, you light up my mornings..

So this is my schedule for next term. It’s pretty sweet:)

Biol 373 - Human Physiology II
Geron 400 - Seminar on Aging
China 120R - Advanced first-year Chinese (Mandarin)
Psych 257 - Psychopathology
Socwk 120R DE- Intro to Social Work (Distance Education)

6:55am - Rise and shine…[ it's still pitch black outside ] Brush my teeth, wash my face, get dressed and grab my lunch/breakfast (thanks mum:P)
7:25 - Hit the road…Dad drops me off at the RT where I begin my journey to work (RT + 2 subways + walk for less than 5 min from the subway stop)
8:30 - Arrive promptly on time for work, if the TTC hasn’t been delayed (this is usually when I start actually waking up)
12pm - Lunch time. Fb. That sort of thing.
1 - Time to work again
4:30 - Home time…I begin my journey back (short walk, 2 subways, RT, bus, short walk)
6 - I’m home, if the TTC hasn’t been delayed…eat Salsa and tortilla chips, watch CSI on Spike and wait for dinner
7:15 - Dinner time
8 - I have 2.5-3 hours to 1) Read 2) Study physiology, 3) Shower 4) Clean my room or doing any other type of chores like dishes 5) Chat on gtalk/talk to friends 6) Spend time to family 7) talk to Gordon Do some sort of physical activity (volleyball actually begins at 7 so i eat an early supper) 9) meet up with anyone
10:30/11pm - Hit the sack

So there you have it. Considering I need about 8 hours of sleep, and that usually I am reading/sleeping on the subway ride to and from work, I figured I have 4 hours in my day outside of work and commuting to do everything.

FOUR hours. Can you imagine if I had to make dinner and take care of kids?

The working life…it’s something we all look forward to.

Beyonce: The heart is stronger than you think,
It’s like it can go through anything.
And even when you think it can’t it finds a way to still push on, though

Carrie: Sometimes you want to run away, Ain’t got the patience for the pain
And if you don’t believe it look into, your heart the beat goes on

Rihanna: I’m tellin’ you that,

Rihanna/Miley: Things get better, Through whatever

Rihanna: If you fall, dust it off, don’t let up

Sheryl: Don’t you know you can go be your own miracle

Beyonce: You need to know

CHORUS :
Sheryl: If the mind keeps thinking you’ve had enough, But the heart keeps telling you don’t give up

Sheryl/Beyonce: Who are we to be..questioning, wondering what is what
Don’t give up…THROUGH IT ALL, JUST STAND UP!

Fergie: It’s like we all have better days
Problems getting all up in your face

Leona: Just because you go through it

Fergie: Don’t mean it got to take control, no

Leona: You ain’t gotta find no hiding place

Keyshia: Because the heart can beat the hate

Leona: Don’t wanna let your mind keep playin’ you

Keyshia: And sayin’ you can’t go on

Rihanna: I’m tellin’ you that

Miley: Things get better
Through whatever

Rihanna: If you fall

Miley: Dust if off, don’t let up

LeAnn: Don’t you know you

Natasha: Can go

LeAnn: Be your own

Natasha: Miracle

Carrie: You need to know

Ensemble: CHORUS

Mary: You don’t gotta be a prisoner in your mind

Ciara: If you fall, dust it off

Mary: You can live your life

Rihanna/Carrie: Yeah

Mary: Let your heart be your guide

Rihanna/Carrie: Yeah yeah yeah

Mariah: And you will know that you’re good if you trust in the good

Ashanti: Everything will be alright, yeah
Light up the dark, if you follow your heart

Mary: And it will get better

Mariah: Through whatever

CHORUS

Fergie: You got it in you, find it within
You got in now, find it within now
You got in you, find it within
You got in now, find it within now
You got in you, find it within
Find it within you, find it within

Everyone: THROUGH IT ALL, JUST STAND UP!

Anyways, I didn’t know anyone there, but I had a lot of fun!  Most of the players are pretty old…(well, older than me).  Average age is around 40 years I think.  Although it may not be a big deal, it took a bit of courage for me to step out and play with strangers.  It felt really good though:)  Not only cuz I got sweaty and got the winning spike (YAH!), but because I did something I like, without fear of what others think of me.

Soooo…

I finally discovered the “blog this” feature on flickr. it requires to make my pics public tho..pooey.

In any case, hopefully there’ll be more visuals to spice this page up:)

Christians say, “What’s mine is God’s and I’ll share it.”

Yesterday night was my 22nd birthday celebration. It was fun sharing a meal, cake and movie with a few of the friends I’ve made along life’s journey thus far…it meant a lot to me that you guys came out. Even though I often feel unworthy of your friendship, I thank God for you. I think it shows that you guys are graceful for putting up with me for X number of years:P

I’ve liked this Chinese song for a long time…finally got the chance to look it up. It talks about praising God giving meaning in life..I think. My chinese ain’t so great, but enjoy the funny youtube video:)

全因為你 - All because of You

English translation by Kenneth Leung and Jacqueline Leung:) (Copyright 2008)

常言道：人生像演戲，回看這生精彩：因有你，
There’s an old saying: life is but a stage.  Looking back, my life has become so wonderful only because of You.
 
人在世永恆何在？或如流星閃耀掠過，是你令我人生找到靠依。
Where can one find eternity? It’s just like a shooting star flashing across the dark sky.  But in You I find my hiding place.

死蔭幽谷中，你伴我過渡，歡欣裡，風光裡你共我同在；
In the valley of the shadow of death, You walk with me side by side; You celebrate with me in my rejoicing and good times.

當身處孤單傷痛，來擁我入懷，你是我神，是我奇妙救恩。
When suffering in solitude, you embrace me. You are my God, my wonderful Saviour.

全因為你，令我一生都佳美，你令我生命從空虛，化做傳奇；
All because of You, my life has become so wonderful.  You have turned my life from nothing to a miracle.
 
無論我壯如紅日，或如黃昏般漸漸老，是你令我如鷹般高飛。
Whether I’m  strong like the red hot sun, or fading weak in the evening dusk, You keep me soaring like an eagle.

全因為你，令我一生都佳美，你令我生命從空虛，化做傳奇；
All because of you, my life has become so wonderful.  You have turned my life from nothing to a miracle.

唯獨你是我拯救，我總不至死，直到永遠，從心底讚美！
You are the only one that provides me salvation, that I have eternal life.   I will praise You from the bottom of my heart, forever and ever.

I am thankful for the quiet summer I had this year. Although I didn’t get to play softball, which is a big deal for me (I’ve played pretty much every summer that I’ve been in Toronto), I’m glad I had the extra time to myself. As well, I didn’t take on any “leadership” roles, which is a nice change… Last summer was such a drain with running around trying to do everything and hang out with everyone. I’ve learned to be happy without always having to be around people. My summer consisted mainly of school and work, but it was pretty refreshing:)

The “new term” for me officially began on Tuesday. I’m still at the same co-op position at the same company, so the things I’m doing are the same. But now I have a new co-worker - a kinesiology student from UW as well. I’m still getting used to the transition…I miss my old co-workers and I keep thinking they’ll just show up at work tomorrow. I guess I tend to not like change. As well…AH and NP are still in the process of hiring a new research coordinator in place of EM. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to pretend I know what I’m doing while getting the new student can get settled in…

***

I wonder where I’ll be next year, at this time. I know I’m not alone in this thought…It’s a transitional period for many of us. And many have already moved on to grad schools and further studies. I’m still holding onto the hope of getting into OT, but I know I have to be realistic and seek alternate options. Although I sometimes get bouts of anxiety when thinking about the future (and not knowing what will happen), I know that God has been faithful and He will lead me to where I’m supposed to be. So no worries.

***

Summing up the week:
Asian legend X 2, Hollywood Gelato, Gr 12 night, Transformers, and Jack Astor’s + skinny jeans.

My summer song:P I don’t really get the lyrics…they seem to be bits and pieces from the bible.

I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sleep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own

I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemies eyes
Listen as the crowd would sing:
“Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!”

One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt, and pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
Once you know there was never, never an honest word
That was when I ruled the world
(Ohhh)

It was the wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in.
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People could not believe what I’d become
Revolutionaries Wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
I know Saint Peter won’t call my name
Never an honest word
And that was when I ruled the world
(Ohhhhh Ohhh Ohhh)

Hear Jerusalem bells are ringings
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
I know Saint Peter will call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world
Oooooh Oooooh Oooooh

And I quote:

The idea is that when a first messenger hits the cell, often there are many steps before the ultimate response. Each step involve the conversion of something from an inactive form to an active form, which then catalyzes the conversion of another thing form inactive to active and so on…

Isn’t that how it is when you share the gospel with someone? I’ve heard somewhere that it takes several people to share the gospel message to someone before he/she finally accepts. And so, we must remember that it’s not in our power to make seeds grow.

Friday - Driving day
3:30am - Packed up our bags, gassed up and picked up Gordon from his house
4:00am - Left tdot for Kentucky
7:00am - Pit stop for gas, washroom, and Mickey D’s
8:00am - Crossed the border
1:30pm - Arrival in Kenwood shopping center in Cincinnati for Chick Fil A (MUCH better than KFC), and Bath & Body Works
4:30pm - Arrival in Louisville, KY, hug Alex, unload all his stuff (my mom bought his 12 boxes of chips ahoy cookies…at least 6 bottles of maple syrup…just because), settle into hotel and shower
7:00pm - Walk around the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and take pics
7:30pm - Meet K (Alex’s new female friend:P) and her sister, have dinner with them at Oriental House (one of like, 2 chinese restaurants in Louisville=P)
9:00pm - FROZEN CUSTARD! What a delightful (fattening) treat. I had the butterscotch pecan crunch with vanilla custard. YUM.
10:00pm - Back in the hotel room, read with Gordon, CRASHED

Saturday - Shopping day
7:30am - Dad wakes up and makes noise. He likes to wake everyone up when he’s up.
8:30am - I decided to get up.
9:25am - Alex is annoyed cuz he had told us to be ready and downstairs at 9:15am. Don’t you love family?
10:00am - Breakfast at IHOP with K and family+G. I ordered Fruity Tooty Fresh ‘N Fruity!!!! (just like Lucy from “I am Sam” :D)
11:30am - Off to go shopping at Edinburgh!! (80 miles away)
1:00am - Arrival at shopping outlet. Commence mad shopping. I bought:
-J. Crew plaid shorts - 7$!!
-Nike cleats (for softball next year) - 15$!!!
-Crocs - 10$
-Leather purse - 20$
-Presents for my co-workers…
8:00pm - arrive back in Louisville, go back to Oriental House for congee and noodles & choy
9:30pm - Arrival back at hotel. We rummage through our stuff and discover we have lost two bags: a bag with my birkenstocks (just got them last week before the trip), my dad’s birkenstocks (just got them for him for Father’s Day), and a bag with 3 pairs of crocs. (My dad and I had taken off our birks when we got our new crocs, and put it in a separate bag along with the other 3 new pairs of crocs). Jacqueline is of course, extremely upset.
10:30pm - Tired of trying to retrace our steps; off to bed.

Sunday - Day of rest
8:00am - Rise and shine
9:15am - Meet Alex and follow him to Immanuel Baptist Church (I had to wear my crocs to church:(:()
9:30am - Sunday school (Biblical womenhood)
10:40am - Worship service
12:30pm - Call Edinburgh outlets’ management office to ask about our stuff - Gordon called and they told us someone had dropped off our stuff! PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!! We decide to go back on Monday, on our way back home, instead of spend another 3 hours in the car driving there and back.
2:30pm - Arrive at Mark’s Feedhouse for some lunch grub. Waited foreeeeeever for a table (we had a large group). Played with the kids (Alex has married friends). I tried FRIED PICKLES (so good!) and fried corn. Everything is fried in Kentucky.
5:00pm - Change and head out to Chickodee (sp?) - a park nearby. Walked around and enjoyed the sunshine (actually, it was quite HOT), and the outdoors. Took some pics and pretended to be a model.
7:00pm - Back in the hotel room watched STREET FIGHTER, the Later Years with Gordon.
8:00pm - Dinner with Alex’s friends, K, family + G at the Red Pepper
10:30pm - Hotel and crash

Monday - Driving day II
7:30am - Rise and shine
8:30am - Leave KY for Edinburgh, then Tdot
10:00am - WE GET OUR STUFF BACK, and buy another present for a coworker
11:00am - Back on I-65 to Home
6:00pm - Arrive at border, stop at Duty free for some cheap beer (my dad’s idea, not mine)
10:30pm - Back in Tdot, get some congee and fast chinese food at local restaurant
11:30pm - Drop Gordon off and go home

So that’s your play-by-play. Lots of fun times. I enjoyed the fried pickles and Chick Fil’ A:) I like frozen custard too. And the company of Alex, K and family…and of course Gman:P

I’ll be uploading pics on my flickr later (add me as a friend).

I found it really neat that after spending time with God, and talking to him, Moses’ face was radiant.  It makes me think that when we experience God’s presence in our lives, how we might shine a little (or a lot) brighter..

**

Exam in 24 hours.  I wonder what made me think I could do biology…maybe because it’s actually a “sci” course.