Bruins2003's Xanga

Bling bling!

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 03:59:50 GMT

For the past 16 months, I've been using blingo.com. It's a site where you can search for stuff with the Google search engine, but with some ads on the sides (no pop-ups). The results are the same as if you searched directly with google.com. Every time you search for something (up to 25 searches per day), you have a chance to win a prize. A few days ago, my roommate Joe asked me what it was, since he sees me use it from time to time. And whatdya know...I just won $50 cash today! Since my bro referred me, he got a matching prize of $50. If you sign up here, I'll get a matching prize each time you win: http://www.blingo.com/friends?ref=gzaGTV5tpcTGq05Mak4yITqPdE8

You can use the site and get a chance to win without signing up. I just won't get the matching prize and you won't be able to refer others. This was my first prize ever. So it's pretty rare, but of minimal (or no) extra cost to me. As long as I'm searching for stuff, I might as well get a chance to win something.

Mama knows best...

Sat, 05 May 2007 19:10:53 GMT

I was talking with my mom on the phone earlier this week, telling her how busy I've been. After we talked, I put my phone on silent to go study in the library. When I was leaving, I realized that she called and left me a message that went like this: "Larry, I forgot to tell you...no matter how busy you are, if you need to go to the bathroom, just go. Don't hold it in." Umm...okay, ma.

She told me later that her co-worker got some kind of bladder infection from that. Now go use the bathroom!

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 04:26:39 GMT

It's my last quarter of school as an undergrad! I remember when I made this Xanga account, I didn't know when I'd graduate, so I just put 2003, the year I came to UCLA. And now, it's almost over! It's been quite a ride, and it continues to be. Some things I wish I had done differently:

1) Be more social. During my first year, I didn't meet very many people. I guess it sorta came from living in Canyon Point, where there was almost no interaction between floormates and housemates. But that's no excuse. I had plenty of chances to meet people, in all my lectures, discussion sections, and the various student groups on campus. I guess I just had no initiative.

2) Be more studious. I didn't study much my first two years, and my GPA really suffered. At one point, I was quite sure I wouldn't even get into my major. But one day, by God's grace, things turned around. I became much more serious about classes, and even learned to enjoy them. You can now find me in the library at least 3 times a week! :P

3) Plan better. Because I wasn't serious about my studies early on, I didn't carefully consider what I really wanted to study in college. I didn't really decide until just over a year ago. Now, I'm trying to cram in my last classes so that I can graduate on time. Also, I wish I had a better idea of where I'd go in my career. I still don't know. I don't know what I'll be doing in my job next year, and my backup is law school, also something I don't know much about. I should have made better use of the career center, job fairs, and on-campus presentations.

4) Waste less time. 'Nuff said.

Despite all this, I'd have to say my overall college experience has been better than what I had ever seriously hoped for. Praise God! Some of the people I have met are super cool, people I hope to continue to get to know in the coming years. Some of the things I learned will certainly be indispensable in my future relationships, jobs, and other responsibilities. And this struggle to find my way without a plan has given me invaluable experiences, while teaching me the importance of planning and maintaining a proper perspective on things. I will try to sort out some of this life stuff by the end of the quarter.

Mr. Chou Strikes Again!

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 01:55:53 GMT

The other day, after a long day of studying, I decided to treat myself to a yummy Rubio's burrito. I've always loved the food, except it was a bit expensive.

That time, my receipt came with a $2 off coupon for completing a survey online, which takes like 2 minutes. So after filling it out and writing down the discount code from the survey, I went again today to claim my cheaper burrito. I thought, I wonder if they'll give me another discount coupon. Nah, that'd be too good to be true. Continuous $2 offs...plus, they already have my opinion! But when I got my receipt today, there was another $2 off coupon!

I then looked at the menu, wondering if I could buy something priced marginally over $2 and get another coupon. I finished my burrito and hopped onto the nearby computer to fill out the survey again. I went back to the cashier and asked for a taco and churro, which was like $2.19. I showed the coupon and basically paid nickels for my second helpings. And yes, I got yet another coupon!

I wonder how long this is gonna last. For now, I shall fill out the survey again. "Very satisfied."

Better late than never...

Mon, 08 Jan 2007 08:51:02 GMT

New Year's Resolution: To learn how to love freely and wastefully.

All too often I get absorbed by the "scarcity mentality," where I measure the justification of an action by the dollar, with self-interested, cost-benefit analysis. There's never enough to go around, so I gotta take initiative and grab it before others do. And then I end up tightening up and saving what I have, leaving very little to give to others. I think it comes from being an econ major, where all we learn is how to maximize profits. We learn about competitive behavior, and how to gain an edge over other people. Also, I play board games where I treat people as mere instruments or obstacles to my goal of developing my resources and winning. Should I trade with this person? Yes, it will help me. In fact, now I can cut him off and effectively knock him out of the game. If he's out, I'm probably gonna win. Okay.

Now of course this is what board games are about, and the competition is what makes them fun. However, this behavior (or at least thought process) seems to bleed into my real-world life. Instead of applying this skill only to games and wise spending habits for a small, fixed amount of money, it sometimes affects how I spend everything, including my time. And then I miss the reality that the things I'm interacting with are actually people with lives, feelings, and needs of their own.

It's a good thing I study ethics, too. Because it lets me take a step back and consider the moral and situational scopes of the philosophy of economics.

But at the same time, philosophy makes me somewhat inert. It's the old paralysis of analysis. Before changing anything, or doing something that might be good, I often have to stop and state reasons for doing so. And then I consider different possible outcomes and their likelihoods. And then by the time I finally arrive at a justification for the action, the opportunity passes.

I want to learn how to switch on and off my knack for making cold calculations. So that in the appropriate situations, I can be wise with my money, time, and relationships.

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Wed, 06 Dec 2006 02:15:35 GMT

This quarter feels like the longest one ever. By far. Today I was thinking about a conversation I had with a friend during Week 2, and it seemed like so long ago! I guess it's good...if it went too fast, I'd regret it after I graduate. Yeah, I think I'm gonna miss school. But for now, I'm ready to be done with this paper and finals. One more week!

My funny professor

Fri, 27 Oct 2006 04:18:42 GMT

Professor Kelsey during lecture:
We’re having technical difficulties with TurnItIn, so you might not be able to submit your homework until tomorrow. By the way, a word about the homework: TurnItIn is designed to catch cheaters. Okay? If you try to copy someone or something from the Internet, it will catch you. It saddens me that people even try to do it. You gotta understand...TurnItIn is a machine; it’s a buster. You will get busted, I promise you, so don’t even try it. That said, uh…as I was saying before, TurnItIn isn’t working.

Later in an email:
Good news! TurnItIn is working again.

-Prof. Kelsey

PS Don't cheat.

Job hunting...

Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:25:06 GMT

stinks. I had classes in the morning, and I skipped half of one lecture to go to my interview at 1pm. It felt okay...wasn't great, and I don't think I made a stunning impression. So I thought I'd read up on interviewing skills and stuff. So right after, I went to the Career Center library to look through some books. At about 2:30pm, my stomach started to hurt, and I thought, "Geez, what did I eat?" Nothing since my early breakfast. Man, I never forget to eat!

Monday, July 31, 2006

Mon, 31 Jul 2006 05:24:10 GMT

What the heck... where did the past two weeks go?? So fast! I am planning my LSAT study schedule for the next two months. I have quite a bit to do, so I better kick it up a few notches. At least I'm enjoying summer.

Go, Spidey!

Fri, 02 Jun 2006 08:50:49 GMT

Hehe, I know how to make titles now...I think. Anyway, Spider-Man 2 is one of my favorite movies ever. I recently got the pleasure of watching it again. It is a very full movie, in that it so clearly combines humor, action, romance, character development, and life lessons. However, one thing not as obvious is the Christian message that can be pulled from it.

People may think I’m stretching it, for the screenwriters probably weren’t trying to make the message explicitly Christian. Nevertheless, I think a strong message can be taken from it, since Peter Parker’s life somewhat parallels that of Christ’s. Of course the analogy is not perfect, for Peter is not without flaws. However, at the very least, he lives what can be comparable to a good Christian life because of the temptations he deals with, and how he decides to respond to his calling in the end.

In the first movie, Uncle Ben tells Peter, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Peter takes these words to heart and goes out to save people. He does this not to glorify himself (for he hides his identity with his costume), but rather for the higher purpose of justice.

Not only does Spider-Man not gain anything for his heroics, he is actually ridiculed for it. The news points out that he always flees the scene of a crime, and it even accuses him of robbing the bank with Doc Ock. Even the good-natured Aunt May is against Spide-Man until he saves her. In fact, it seems like the only people that like Spidey are the ones he saves (and maybe little kids like Henry). This treatment can be seen in Jesus’ life, as well. He would heal people on the Sabbath, and Pharisees would criticize him for not strictly obeying the laws. When Peter tries to stop the rumors by taking pictures of things other than Spider-Man, Jameson threatens to fire him.

Peter suffers problems in many other ways when he takes up the responsibility of being Spider-Man. He gets fired from his pizza delivery job, he becomes distanced from Mary Jane, and he frequently misses classes and deadlines. In fact, he even forgot it was his birthday, because he was so busy saving people! Christ himself sacrificed his life for others, and he asked his followers to hate their families and their own lives, and to carry their own cross (Luke 14). Spider-Man indeed does just this when he cannot find enough time for his family, friends, or schoolwork amidst all the crime-fighting. At the end of the first movie, he walks away from MJ and thinks, No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, it’s the ones I love who will always be the ones who pay. He can’t even make a simple 8 o’clock curtain for his life-long crush. Further, he is somewhat crucified when he stands in front of the train to stop it with his webbing, arms stretched out. As Spider-Man, he gives it is his all, and even wears that itchy suit that rides up in the crotch.

You might be thinking, Okay, nice message…but Peter has special powers, so he’s just a special case of responsibility. But it’s got nothing to do with normal me. Well, yes and no. On the one hand, he has great powers, so he has great responsibility. But then Aunt May gives that speech that goes like, “I believe there’s a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and lets us die with pride, even though sometimes we have to be steady and give up the thing we want the most...even our dreams.” Each person does have his own way of contributing to the kingdom of God, and therefore has some responsibility. We may not have Spidey’s powers, but we still have to use our gifts to do what’s right, before we pursue our dreams. Sometimes when we do the right thing, we won’t get anything in return immediately. We might even be punished or ridiculed by the world.

As mentioned earlier, Peter, too, is not perfect. He wants a life of his own, and gives up being Spider-Man for a short period of time. His life dramatically improves; his grades are up, he’s happy, and he gets Mary Jane’s attention and love again. His professor congratulates him, and Mary Jane comments on how he looks different (better). He probably got enough sleep and time to groom himself. However, these are things that the world values. They aren’t bad in themselves, but they can get in the way of one’s purpose.

After he quits, he sees someone getting beat up, and he just walks away. Crime goes up 75%, and the people are in panic. This connects with James 4:17, which says that it is a sin to not do the good one knows he ought to do. After Aunt May’s hero speech, he sees that he shouldn’t be living just for himself. “There are bigger things than me and you,” he tells Harry as he gets ready to save MJ and New York. Peter’s been given a gift, a curse, and he must live up to his responsibility. He realizes that he has this duty, and that it is his first priority. Matthew 6:24 addresses this when it says no one can serve two masters. Because of this, Peter’s ready to run off to fight crime, even during the dramatic moment when he finally gets together with MJ at the end.

I notice new things every time I watch this movie. This time, it made me think of the game Mafia. During the retreat, Winnie said that she liked being a regular civilian. And I was like, "But the doctor and cop are strictly better! You can heal yourself or know who's innocent or guilty!" But then wise Winnie replied that then you would have more responsibility for healing/accusing the right people. Because of this, one could have reason to want to leave that task to someone else, and just play as a regular civilian. It's not a direct analogy to Spider-Man, for the doctor wants to heal the right people so that he has a greater chance of winning, whereas Spider-Man saves others simply because it's the right thing to do. However, it did get at the issue of power and responsibility. Would you really want Spider-Man’s powers, knowing that you would have to take on the responsibility that comes with it? It could mean missing appointments, getting fired, losing friends, and, of course, losing one’s own life.

Anyway, that question is for another day. For now, I shall conclude that Spider-Man 2 rules. Go, Spidey! Go!