RSSNot A Tree
30 Mar 2010 No Comments
in Quotes
If you don’t like how things are, change it! You’re not a tree. ~ Jim Rohn
Of Mice, Men & Cannery Row
28 Mar 2010 No Comments
Oh I love reading. It is the cheapest and easiest way to teleport oneself to a different time and space.
John Steinbeck is my current favorite American author. And this kinda bumped Mark Twain to second place. 
I think my change of heart has to do with age, life experiences, and the availability of English-language literature at the local library. I am no longer the little girl who climbed trees despite warnings and threats. I no longer think of America as the Great Mississippi of black and white people. It is sad that I find loneliness, alcoholism, racism, more intriguing than childlike craftiness and white washed fences.
Of Men And Mice made me ponder long and hard. What is it that makes us do the things we do? How do we decide? What do we do with the people in our lives? I felt a teeny tiny shadow in my heart after reading this book. What am I going to do with the Lennies and Georges in my life?
In Cannery Row, Steinbeck has captured and immortalized the colorful and diverse characters who lived on the coast of California. I laughed out loud several times while reading it. It was definitely an enjoyable read. I can’t wait to read the sequel Sweet Thursday.
Automatic Transmission
26 Mar 2010 No Comments
‘It is not real driving!’ say most men, with genuine frustration.
Why all these silly rejections and remarks? Automatic transmission is obviously an improvement. An evolution from what our fathers were used to.
Do you write with quill pens when ball pens are readily available? Would you hand wash your laundry and your dishes when your house is equipped with today’s appliances? Or do you insist in cooking with fire because that is real cooking while 3 starred restaurants use induction. Shouldn’t we all evolve along with our technological advancements?
Driving a stick-shift means stepping on clutch, change gear, release clutch and give gas; while you can just step on the gas pedal if driving an automatic car. You save 3 steps, keep both your hands on the steering wheel, and thus paying more attention in driving your vehicle. There’s nothing wrong with that.
Let’s Not Barter
25 Mar 2010 No Comments
Oh, I hate the barter system! Especially when it involves intangible matters like useless emotions, unwarranted dramas, and non money IOUs…
Really?! I scratch your back then you scratch mine? One can’t create a perfectly equal deed to return a favour. Nonetheless, most people expect that from each other. What nonsense, and how very annoying!
Show me the money or the bill anytime. Let me pay and repay with paper and metal. Don’t expect me to scratch your back as many times as you have scratched mine.
Enough with the free tasks, the ‘you-should-because’, and God forgive me for despising all the free and ugly stuff that I get!
Serenity Prayer
23 Mar 2010 No Comments
in Quotes
God grant me the serenity to accept
the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference.
~ Reinhold Niebuhr, The Serenity Prayer
Healthcare
21 Mar 2010 No Comments
in Happenings, Health
The US House of Representative passed the healthcare measures today! I never thought I’ll see this day. Well, I never thought I’ll see this day so soon…
Getting enough votes for the approval was a huge obstacle, thus making this a wondrous victory for Obama. Anyhow, this will be nothing compare to what is to come. The overhaul of a nation’s health care system… I can’t even fathom it.
I wish the US and its people all the best. Maybe in 10 years, my American friends can enjoy the kind of health benefits that I am enjoying as a Malaysian and Belgian.
Bus Ride
17 Mar 2010 1 Comment
in Belgium
As a follow up action to my post on the 9th of this month, I took my first bus ride in Belgium yesterday!
It has been a while since I took a bus. So, I was quite relieved to have Liu, my classmate, guiding me through the system. No need to fumble about … though I am no stranger to that. I can be the idiotic foreigner if the occasion calls for it.
Anyway, the bus ride from Kortrijk to Harelbeke was quite nice. Not too many passengers, no one got loud or rowdy (San Francisco), no noisy teenagers (Kalamazoo), and no stinky people (Las Vegas), well at least not yet…
From now on, I will be taking the bus after school. Save D some time and trouble. There will be a short walk from bus stop to home. But I like taking walks. It clears my head and free my thoughts.
I’ll be taking the bus to school one day soon … but one thing at a time.
Courage & Wisdom
15 Mar 2010 No Comments
in Quotes
Without courage, wisdom bears no fruit. ~ Baltasar Gracián
1984
13 Mar 2010 No Comments
After finishing Animal Farm, I am interested in reading more of George Orwell’s books. The obvious choice is his most renown work 1984.
It is too bad that the Harelbeke Library does not have it, so I am resorting to read it online via Wikilivres. And since I do not turn on my laptop till after noon, it is slow going.
I am only at chapter 3 at the moment. As he was in writing Animal Farm, Mr Orwell’s pessimism and mistrust of the government is unwavering.
I shall do a follow up when I am done. Stay tune…