3D Printing

Wow, this is just too amazing. Wonder what I can design to make a few bux. =D

http://money.cnn.com/2011/06/17/smallbusiness/3-D_printers_small_business/index.htm

Zediva

So today I was finally "inducted" into Zediva. If you don't know what it is, it's a company that streams movies newly released on DVD. They get around the no-streaming-newly-released-DVD rules by using physical DVDs. Essentially, when you rent a movie, you are controlling a remotely located DVD player.They are a start up with limited resources, so there's a wait list to sign up. After about a month's wait, I finally received the registration link today and I have just watched my first movie.

Pros:

1) new movies
2) no need to wait for it in the mail
3) no need to drive to a redbox/blockbuster (and no need to return it)
4) better than netflix streaming in that it has subtitles
5) $10 for 10 movie credits, cheap like a kiosk

Cons:


1) since you are controlling a remote DVD players, pausing/playing/rewind etc. are not as convenient
2) quality is not as good as Netflix, not sure if it's streaming speed or regular definition DVDs
3) the sound and images are a little out of sync
4) no ipad app

So long as you are not watching a movie that's meant to be watched in HD, it gets the job done. Perfect for lazy people like me who wanted to watch a new movie. :)

Stupid AT&T U-verse Commercial

For reasons beyond understand, I love this stupid commercial. I think it's that stupid song. =

Mobile Version

Cool. Now my blog has a mobile version. Check it out. LOL

End of the World

Harold Camping, a name that we should all have heard of by now. Okay, maybe not, but almost everyone who is not living in a cave should have seen or heard about the May 21, 2011 end of the world prediction and Harold Camping was the guy behind that rumor. I always entertain a good end of the world idea/prediction. For starters, it breaks up the normal monotony of everyday life. I look at it  from a morbid curiosity point of view, "Really? Is this time going to be real?" Of course, they are all disappointingly wrong. All I am trying to say is, at a very minimum, whenever I hear another one of these, I'll at least look it up online to see what are the basis of said prediction. At this day and age, when everyone should at leas, if not a smart phone, why would anyone not look it up, especially those who are susceptible to such things. Evidently, most of my friends have no idea who Harold Camping is and know not much more than what's on the billboards -- May 21, 2011 will be the end of the world. Then again, most of them also paid no attention to the said date and time.

But for people who actually freaked out over the date, shouldn't they at least have Googled the prediction just once and find out what it's all about? At the very minimum, they would have realized that this person had already predicted and fail back in 1994, and take the May 21 date with a grain of salt... Originally, I only find the whole prediction thing entertaining, little do I know people will actually take it as far as quitting their jobs, giving their earthly possession away, or even commit suicides/homicides. Here's a few examples of the extreme.

A 14 year-old teen committed suicide due to Harold Camping’s May 21st Rapture Prediction

Florida man's drowning in Antioch lake related to Rapture prediction, detective says

Man Commits Suicide by Crucifixion in Anticipation of Raptur

Woman Slits Throats of Her Kids and Herself Due to Rapture Prediction

A woman donates around $300,000 estate to a failed prediction

The scariest thing about this entire rapture fiasco was not just that some people buy into his words, it's that these people were so freaked out that they were going to kill themselves, yet it never at any point occurred to them to stop and think, "Let me look up this guy and his theory and see what kind of supporting evidence he has." Don't tell me these people have never heard of the internet, or Google. Had they spend a few minutes on line, they would have learn that this person already had a faulty prediction back in 1994, so even if rapture is real, his date can be off, again. The lack of analytical thinking, heck, the lack of the ability to even realize the possibility of verifying the information independently is appalling.  Perhaps that is more of a problem than individuals like Camping.

Before I read all these crazy stories, I was going to say, This prediction thing can't be good for business.If the prediction is right, there will be nobody left to be believers. If it's wrong, it is going to lose their fans. Or, at the very minimum, why make a date so close? Don't they want to string people along for longer, and maximize the profit? Or does Campbell really believe in his own prediction? If you ask me, he just sounds like an old man who is very afraid to face his own mortality, so instead, he wants to think that he will be able to experience rapture and not face death itself and somehow he was able to convince a relatively small group of people to buy into his words.

And, as a friend of mine had casually pointed out (yes, I didn't realize till she asked), "What is the point of giving away one's earthly possession if he/she believes that the world is going to end? How will that benefit the recipients?"

At the very minimum, can we at least make Camping organization pay federal and state taxes so at least some good can come out of it??

How Asians Age

So sad but so true...

Source: YouBentMyWookie.com

Actually, That's Not In the Bible

Actually, That's Not In the Bible
  
So I read this interesting entry on CNN's religion blog today. The Bible may be the most revered book in America, but it’s also one of the most misquoted, it says. That people always think quotes are from the Bible when they were not, or grossly misinterpreted. Here are some examples:

“God helps those who help themselves.”
“Spare the rod, spoil the child.”
“God works in mysterious ways.”
“Cleanliness is next to Godliness.”

Frankly I'm no Bible scholar, and will admit that I have never read the Bible cover to cover, although one day I probably should, just for the sake of it, but I failed to see how any of those quotes even sound like they are from the Bible.

God works in mysterios ways? The only place I've ever heard that quote was from X-files, or so I thought. I have always wonder that why that came from Fox Mulder, whom I assumed, basing on the context of the show, is atheist. The best I could came up with was: he was  being sarcastic.

Cleanliness is next to Godliness? Oh, c'mon. That just sounds like something made up to encourage people to be clean... but hey, that's not the only thing I don't get about religious folks.

Here, however, is a quote from the article that's worthy of mentioning, “Most people who profess a deep love of the Bible have never actually read the book,” says Rabbi Rami Shapiro.

Movie: You Again

Did not realize this is a Disney movie but I still like Kristin Bell nonetheless. I was hoping the movie would not take a turn to the worst and it didn't. Sure, it's a bit childish and simple, but I enjoyed it nevertheless.

Movie: Someone Like You

Broke my own rule of watching a 10-year old movie (normally I cap it at about 3). Got fooled by the Netflix streaming recommendation. I was just putting something on while I do chores around the house but the movie wasn't bad. The references to cows/animals are particularly funny. The ending was a bit cheesy (don't tell me "What do you expect!" >_<). Why do these movies always have to end with one party turning and running out of the building/event and the other one chasing after them down the street/stop a car/bus/airplane? A good ol' hug would have suffice and less cheesy/generic.

Movie: Hereafter

I am not even sure I have an opinion on this. Hmmm, interesting? Not boring, but I won't call it spectacular. The hubby liked it though.

Status Symbol Dogs??

Photo credit: Time.com

Evidently some dogs are also status symbol now... a Samoyed pup can cost up to $3K - $6.5K. Are these people insane?? My cat only cost $100, and have a longer life span, and cheaper pet insurance. :S

A Million-Dollar Mastiff and More: The World's Most Expensive Dog Breeds

Do Normal Girls Hate Goddess Like Girls -- A Closer Look

First of all, I would like to say that I don't have anything against pretty girls, especially if they are nice. As much as we normal females would like to think that pretty women are mean and/or stupid, qualities like beauty, intelligence, and niceness are, unfortunately, not mutually exclusive. Fortunately, being a 40 year old woman in a happy marriage I don't discriminate, I like eye-candies of both genders. Then what is the problem? You may ask.

The problem came with the way men behave around goddess-like females. Let's be honest, we all know that men think with a certain part of their anatomy other than their brains. The symptom is particularly obvious with a pretty girl around. I want to clarify that I have no problems with most of men's behaviors around pretty girls. It is entirely okay that when a pretty girl enters the room, all men will swarm them, like bees attracted to honey, as a Chinese saying would say. As I have stated above, I'm in a happy relationship, I am not going to stand between a man and their shot as procreation, especially with a pretty woman. That is, assuming my husband is not one of those men. :) If a man wants to bend over backward for a woman, whether he has a shot of getting laid or not, that's his prerogative. What is not okay is when their acts of showing fondness towards said females infringe on the rights of other women around. For example, if a man wants to pay for goddess's meal, by all means. If he wants to give up his seat for her, by all means. What is not okay is to suggest that Goddess should eat free, and the bill should be divided among the remainder of the group, both males and females. Look, I am not shooting to get laid with Goddess, even if she's willing to. I have no vested interest. Anything that infringes on my share/perceived share will cause me to harbor negative feelings for Goddess.

In short, we normal girls really don't have anything against goddesses, other than maybe a tinge of jealousy. It's the men around them that made us dislike them.

Pheromone

What I am saying below I have absolutely no way of substantiating except with my wild imagination. Given the ways the internet are nowadays, I'm SURE I can find websites that will support just about any crazy theories that I can come up with; nonetheless, I am just too lazy to do the research.

Pheromone, a completely unproven concept, I think has it merits. Ever noticed that sometimes we are just attracted to the worst possible person? That you are in a relationship that you are utterly miserably, but there are just some fatal (and sometimes quite literally) attraction? I think that's pheromone at work. That's your body somehow (pheromone) detecting that the other person, biologically, complement you the best. Nature does not take personality/compatibility into consideration, given that we have not always been in long term, monogamous relationships.

But now that we have developed intelligence, we should know when's a good time to leave a toxic relationship, no matter how strong the unexplainable attraction.

Creativity

So my friend, J, is the artistic type who aspires to become a director. Artistic type, in my eyes, are anyone who wants to pursue a career in film-making, writing, drawing, performance arts, actors/actresses, musicians, etc. As Asians, or at least in my family, pursuing of artistic talent is discouraged. I supposed there is a possibility that things might be different should I demonstrated remarkable artistic talent at a young age, but I didn't. I was raised that your number one concern is roof over head and food on table, and sufficient money so you are not miserable, anything else, especially a hobby, can come after that. There is a reason why there is an abundant amount of Asian engineers, doctors, pharmacists. It may not be your passion and being a professional of the above listed might not bring you happiness, in fact, you may or may not hate life, but you will be financially stable. That's the #1 goal.

As much as my mother has a crazy way of showing her love, I must say she nailed this one head on -- financial stability is the single most important thing. (And I have subsequently married a White guy with very Asian values....) But my point is, because I was brain washed at such an early age, that is how I will always view pursuing such a passion as a career path. You see, in my opinion, pursuing an artistic path is like a gamble -- some people make it, others don't -- it's a combination of talent and some luck. You just never know. In my opinion (again, brain washed value), you first get a job that will provide you with roof and food, then you pursue your passion; however, we have all heard the story of J.K. Rowling. Had she pursued her writing career as a part-time job, she might never have succeeded. In the end, it was her decision (?) to pursue it till the very last moment -- on welfare.

Recently, J's girlfriend asked him, "At which point will you give up becoming a director?" J's response, "I will never give up." As a female, I entirely saw where she was coming from. Now I am not writing this to judge whether J should or should not give up his passion or at which point he should give up. That's entirely his decision. The important part was he realized that it was unfair of him to expect her to wait for him, but also equally as unfair for her to expect him to give up his dreams for her. In the end, they parted ways. It was his prerogative to decided when he will (or will not) quit, and it was hers to decided when she is done waiting. If he ended up never succeeded, that's his decision. If he became the next James Cameron the day after she left him, that's her decision. In the end, we are all adults who are responsible for our own actions. We made our beds, and we will have to lay in them.

Why Can't You Leave Religion Alone?

Just discovered this page on Facebook while look for a quote. Thought I'd share.

Religious Belief Is Human Nature?

So CNN has an article on Religious Belief Is Human Nature, Huge New Study Claims. I don't know if I necessarily believe in that, or that the result necessarily support that point, for that matter. I believe that human, with our consciousness and because of our attachment to the existential world, would definitely like to think that there is a cause/reason for all these (life, etc.); that there will be life after death; that life after death will hopefully be able to answer questions that we can't at our current stage. That said, even the article itself had pointed out, the purpose of the study was not to proof whether God, gods or an afterlife exist. It is important to keep in mind that, just because we desperately want something to be true does not make it true.

Creationism

http://www.ted.com/talks/angela_belcher_using_nature_to_grow_batteries.htmlWay back in college, being an anthropology major, I've already learned that using the mitochondria DNA in human, the origin of all mankind was traced back to one African female, approximately 20,000 years ago. Interestingly enough, this fact can support both evolution or creationism, depending on your perspective. Being a strong Darwinian believer, I naturally take that as evidence of evolution, although I have always thought of it as the "Eve's theory." It was only until a few months ago when I heard that all mankind came from a male and a female 20,000 years ago, and that the "Bible had that right" (said in a joking manner). I have no idea why I never put one and one together. If the mitochondria DNA traced back to one female, more likely than not it's from the same male and female. After all, while a male can technically produce enough sperms in his lifetime to impregnate every female in the world, a female can have very limited number of offspring in her lifetime (I guess she could still have multiple partners). That really got me thinking. Let's be honest, the Bible is never known for it's logic, even the moral stories that did not involve any miracles. They always left me thinking, "What the hell? How does that make any sense? What exactly is the lesson here?" Again, these are not the ones that involved miracles. So, when the science inadvertently supported the Bible, perhaps there are some merits to it.

Nowadays, it's almost hip to talk about sustainability etc, etc. And even though I'm not in a field that can assist/improve on our environmental sustainability, I like to think about it. Food for thought, you know? And as far as energy sustainability is concerned, the ultimate solution is going to have to be solar and/or wind power (or tidal, I guess). And recently I have listened to this other TED talk -- Angela Belcher: Using nature to grow batteries. It is almost, almost, as though there is a creator after all. It is almost as though everything is by design, that every pieces needed to solve the puzzle has been placed here, and we just have to figure out how to utilize them. It is almost eerie.

However, before we start rejoicing on my conversion from evolution to creationism, let's not forget that alien intervention can also explain the exact same phenomena. I still do not believe in an all-caring God who loves all of his creatures. Nobody can believe that literally, just look at all the sufferings on earth -- earth really consists of more than just US, and I'm by no means suggesting that we don't have any form of sufferings in our country. In fact, in I have to make an analogy, the earth is almost like an ant farm, we put in the soil, we put in the nutrients, we put in the ants. They really exist for our entertainment. While the owner of the ant farm doesn't want all the ants to die -- then there will be no farm -- he/she certainly does not concern about the well being of each individual. Taking this analogy one step further, who is to say the "truth" is not that while we create ant farms, and "alien/God" created earth, and that they, in turn, are ant farms to other existence? In the end, none of us can figure out what the point is, in this lifetime. Or perhaps, if there is a point at all, or, who's at the very top of the chain... and what is the purpose of all these?

Bluntness

I have been told quite a few times that I'm blunt. First couple times I was shocked. I didn't know I was like taht. By the third and fourth time, I have came to accept that the others are probably right and that is just the way I am. After all these years, I am perfectly happy with the way I am. Honey coating something is a lot of work. Lying (as defined by saying something that I don't believe in, not necessarily malicious) is a lot of work. So when my livelihood (work) is not being affected, I just don't care to be so subtle.

Do understand that there is a difference between bluntness and verbal diarrhea. While I have an opinion on just about anything, I do not have the desperate urge to share those opinions. I am perfectly happy keeping my opinions to myself. In fact, I will warn people about my bluntness, and if they don't want to hear the truth (people usually have an inkling, they just hope you will tell them what they want to hear instead), they probably should not solicit my comments.

There is nothing I hate more than delusional people asking me to perpetuate their delusions. It is their prerogative to be delusion and I certainly don't have the right or authority to burst their bubbles. However, if I have to listen to their delusional thoughts repeatedly, there will come a point when I'll just snap, and the truth will follow.

Oil Dependency

Gas is now over $4/gallon in most part of the country and if you are lucky enough to live in California, then you are looking at $4.30 - $4.60/gallon of gas. Despite that face that the average American household is spending an average of $368/month on gas (source: CNN Money), people does not seen to think that their action has a direct impact on gas prices.

"I didn't ask for the oil prices to go up!!" you may say.

No, darling, not directly, you did not, but let me introduce you to the concept of demand and supply. The higher the demand, the shorter the supply, the higher the prices. Then, you throw in the concept of pricing at "what the market will bear." The oil companies are here to make money. Last I checked, none of them are charitable organizations. They already know that people will and can shell out $4+ for a gallon of gas, why would they bring it back down? Believe me, we are all made of greed. The loudest protestor today, if put in the same shoe, will not be selling gas for less than $2/gal if he knows he can get $4.

"But I need to drive (to work/pick up kids, etc. etc.)!!"

I WILL give the benefit of doubt to those who actually cannot afford a new more gas efficient car; however, many Americans do not seem to factor the gas mileage into their decision of car purchasing. In fact, many doesn't even factor in their financial situation when making that decision. I've driven a Dodge Neon for 8 years. Almost all of my friends who are in a financial bind drive a better car than me. The word affordability seems to have no meaning. They may live paycheck to paycheck -- actually, that assumes their income are still covering their expenses, it's more like credit card to credit card -- but the car must have to be the status symbol. Okay, perhaps you can use reliability as an argument. That a slightly more expensive Japanese car  arguably offers more reliability than an American car (although my Neon had never given me any issues, nor have our Pontiac Vibe). The other thing I heard the most is power. His/her car must have this mythical power. Never mind that it will only go 13 mpg (is it at least up to 23 mpg now?) -- it has power. If he/she has to spend an entire paycheck a month on filling up the car, it's okay, it has power.

The concept of power eludes me. As an anthropology major in college, I distinctively remember my professor saying that most hominids do not tend to survive a pelvic fracture. Our body is simply not made to absorb that kind of an impact. Yet we love speed. We love driving at 70, 80, 90, 100+ mph. Evolution had totally failed us here.

Nevertheless, it's a personal choice. Just don't say that you did not contribute to the gas price. You can doubt global warming/climate change. It's very arguable, but that's a different topic for a different date. But judging at all the extreme drilling (deep sea oil drilling and sand oil) we have been resolving to, I'd say the evidence does support that fact that the resource is limited. I am not saying that hybrid and/or electric is the be all end all solution to our oil dependency or environmental issues, afterall, oil and natural gas are still used in the production of energy. Not to mention how our current power grid really cannot support everybody switching to an electric car tomorrow. Nevertheless, it does use less gas to power your car with electricity versus gasoline.

My point is: do keep in mind how your demand for gas helps perpetuate this seemingly capless increase in gas prices. Once upon a time, my 23 mpg little Neon was considered gas efficient. Now we all laugh at that. Car manufacturers had finally caught onto the fact that many consumers are looking for more gas efficient. Let's keep that up, slowly and gradually, switch to more gas efficient cars, drive down the demand, drive down the oil cost, while we continue to look for more sustainable ways to maintain our lifestyle.

That said, here's a very promising TED.com about potential future clean battery production:

Solar

So couple of weeks ago our company had a solar workshop. That's about the most ingenious way to call a sales pitch. That didn't matter to me. It provided free lunch (which did not taste good at all), and I was interested in the sales pitch. Now that we have bought a new house, a hybrid car, and performed an energy usage analysis at home, solar panel seems the next logical step. Let me put it into perspective for you:

A small unit for a household cost about $35,000.

At our current rate of $35 a month, it will take approximately 1000 months or 83.33 years to break even.

Okay, that's not fair. Let's throw in the tax credit and PG&E rebate, which will knock the total upfront cost down to $25,000.

That will come out to be 714 months or 59.52 years.

Awesome!

Apps?

So I've seen these advertisements on how intuitive the iPad is for kids (talking about REALLY young kids) to use. (And you can see YouTube videos of kids -- single digit age -- using it like a pro.) Call me old fashion, but isn't that one very expensive toy? And, risking dating myself, but when I was a kid, these are not apps, these are the real things, that clutter up the house:

Has there been any study done on the effect on kids playing EVERYTHING on a computer screen? Is it just as good developmentally speaking, or not? I'm skeptical... but I also belong to a totally different generation. More importantly, I have no kids... and have no inkling whatsoever to have any.

Donald Trump

I am very ashamed to admit that for a split second there, I seriously considered voting for Donald Trump should he runs for presidency. "WWWHHHHYYYY?" was the response I got every time I said that. My answer is simple: desperation.

Our country is going to hell in a hand basket. We have the lovely Republicans on one end of the spectrum just wanting to let the Rich keep their money, then we have the lovely Democrat that just wants to throw money to the poor. (To clarify, I'm okay with welfare helping those that needed a temporary help to get back on their feet; I'm very NOT okay to those who consider welfare as a lifetime career. If you can sit in front of the computer for 5+ hours playing video game, you can get an effing job. You don't have a mental problem that make you unable to work at least a part time job.) I want to see a "cafeteria" president who can pick and choose the doctrines he/she believes in. If you are not even capable of independent analytical thinking, how can I trust you to run our country?

So... I thought Trump might offer a sliver of hope that can perhaps derail this train from it's destined doom. My hope was not long lived. He started the whole birther thing... which at first we just thought he was creating some spotlight on himself, getting notice. After the publication of President Obama's long form birth certificate and listening to Trump's response. "I accomplished something nobody did before." THAT was his response? I finally realized that the whole he wanted to run for president thing was probably just a hoax, to get some attention for as long as he could.

Where? Where is this independent president that we so desperately need?

Banana Ice-Cream Crepe =)

I need the hubby to make this for me:

with this:

Then my life will be complete (again). =)

Jennifer Aniston's $42 Million Home

And people asked me "Why do you need an iPad?" Why do anyone need a $42 million house? And without sounding too sour-grapish, can you call a house that looks like a 4-star hotel a home? And the living testimonial that money cannot buy you a happy marriage. On a different note, she bought the house for $13 mil and selling it for $42 mil? If she can sell it at that price, that's what you'd call a killing.


I wonder how often this kitchen has been used. But I supposed you can always hire a chef. Heh.

The bedroom is kind of nice though. I like the bed. Hmmmm, I think Ikea sells something similar. LOL

Photo credits: CNN Money

Why Our Country Is Going to Hell In a Handbasket

Need I to say more?

That would have been a very good screening question when I was trolling dating sites years ago.... If you can't answer that correctly, you probably should not breed (that's only about whopping 2.3 million people.)

Just saw another one, not sure which one is sadder....

Verbal Diarrhea

Not even sure how I learned of the saying "verbal diarrhea," but I've consulted urban dictionary prior to sitting down and typing this up so at least I know it's a "real saying" and I didn't just make it up in my head.

I feel that the term verbal diarrhea is extremely fitting and we've all had diarrhea so there is no need to go into the technical details here. What I wanted to say is, I've been blogging on and off for about seven years now, and I've tried very hard to keep my online persona separated to my real life one. I value internet anonymity and this generation of oversharing really eludes me (and according to whatever spell check blogger is using, "oversharing," as of the time this is written, is not yet considered a real word). I don't blog about extreme hate stuff like racism or anything else, but let's be honest, half the stuff that I like to talk about on my blog are probably not the best subject to broach with a coworker. And you never know who is going to see what online and it might negatively impact me one day. But, as I become more comfortable with my online personality I started getting careless, and my online and real life identity started to merge. After a few painful months of mulling, I finally decided to give up my alias the I have so loved for the last seven years and adopt a new one.

As painful as it was to make that decision, all of a sudden I can write without filter again and that was a good feeling. Being able to write unfiltered was not exactly like verbal diarrhea, but definitely felt like some good bowel movement after a long time of constipation. =D

Minimum Requirement

There should be some sort of a minimum requirement for people to leave evaluation on products on websites. Many comments just bare no relevancy to the product performance... or am I the one who's in the wrong? Maybe when I look under a product evluation on Amazon, I am really look at the entire purchase experience?

I mean if you placed an order and received it broken, that sucks, but it happens, it doesn't have anything to do with the product performance. It's a package or seller issue. Unless, of course, if that happened a few times and it really is an issue with the product. (And on Amazon they actually let you rate the seller/vendor separately now.)

If the product does not meet your expectation because you did not do the bare minimum research and just assumed that it should perform certain acts and turned out that it doesn't. That's the problem with the user, not the problem.

If you don't like the pricing of a product (for some reason, people always feel that apps should be dirt cheap), that, again, has nothing to do with the performance. RATE THE PRODUCT BY THEIR PERORMANCE -- what they CLAIMED they do, not your unrealistic expectations.

Lastly, and about the most ridiculous ones I have seen. (People rating on iTunes seem to be the worst.) This individual started with "I don't own this app (i.e. never used it), but based on the other apps made by this developer....." What??? I can't believe I'm saying this, but that is worse than Mr. Delusional/Unrealistic Expectation. How can you rate a product based purely on your imagination? What has this world came to?? (Of course, I'd be happy if that's the only/worst problem of this country right now....)

Movie: The People I've Slept With

Watched this movie today. Not half bad. Normal looking attractive Asian girls, and a couple cute guys too! IMDB rated it 3.9 out of 10. Totally did not do it justice. If anything, it's very refreshing, not your average big explosion Hollywood flicks. And it's available to stream on Netflix. Highly recommended!

Passion

A friend I know told me that one of the many reasons his ex wanted to break up was because "he didn't have a passion (about anything.)" First of all, she was wrong. He does have a passion. His passion is to make a lot of money, legally, of course. He is just not particularly fixated on any particular career path.

Of course, the ex was only in her twenties when she said that. Of course, she also, at the time, had her eyes on a guy, whom she later on dated, who was a fan of fixing cars. Of course, when you were twenties, and wanted to end one relationship and jump into another, and you were constantly being asked, "Why? What is wrong with me? What can I do to change?" You will say just about anything. But, passion was about the worst reason I've heard.

And, how exactly do you define passion? Everybody knows that the writer of Harry Potter was on welfare when Harry Potter finally caught on and became a phenomenal success. But will I follow/support a guy to that point? The answer is no. Perhaps he will make it one day, perhaps he will not. If he doesn't, I will be an idiot to have wasted so much time with him. If he does, then it will be my lost. But I will not follow a guy to that point. But, at the very minimum, I can understand a passion for creativity -- writing a screen play, writing a book, becoming an actor/actress/dancer/world-renowned athlete/programmer/noble prize winner. At least I get those. I will not personally pursue it to the point of poverty (not how I was raised), but at least I understand. But how is car-fixing a passion? I'm sorry, unless this "passion" can, at some point, turn into a livelihood, it's just a hobby. And, yes, aspiring to one day have your own auto-shop count. It doesn't have to be a ridiculous amount of money, but if you are living in your parents house, barely making ends meet, and/or not have a job that can pay your expenses, then your hobby -- not passion, very different -- is just making you a loser.

Sales Pitch

So, continuing my thought of carrying my own atheism/agnostic pamphlets, I've got to think that it's a lot harder to convert a religious person to non-religious versus vice versa. Just think, bottom line, religious is selling you something -- a hope, a supernatural being looking down (kindly) on us, life after death, that life has a purpose after all. Whereas atheism is selling nothing. It's like saying, "Sorry, buddy, all you see is all you get." There are no extra stock in the back (afterlife). Or, agnostic, "Sorry, buddy, there might or might not be something after death. Life might or might not have a meaning -- we just don't know."

When a person is in distress, it is natural to turn to a superpower, or at least hope against hope that there is one. Hence the saying "there is no atheist in a foxhole." Even the most logical person is willing to give up logic, when logic is not offering a way out, i.e. a loved one is diagnosed with terminal illness. All of a sudden they are willing to try prayer (can't hurt), or try any natural/homeopathic concoction of vegetables that allegedly will make your love ones' cancer go away.

And, most importantly, it is going to turn many people's lives upside down, if they decided to give up their religions. Religion, for the most part, in my opinion, is a clutch; a clutch that allow one to deal with the hardship, desperation, or just the mundaneness of everyday life. It is, for this very reason, that atheism will be a hard sell.

Cute Girls

So these two cute girls came up to me and my husband one Friday night when we were walking around downtown, looking for place to eat. They stopped us in the middle of our path, give us pamphlets and invited us to go to dinner at their church. Reflexively, I ripped the pamphlet out of my husband's hands, and handed both of them back to them and politely (I thought I was at the time) told them that we are atheists. The two poor girls were so shocked they looked as though I had physically slapped them across their faces. On hindsight, I may have overreacted a little bit and my punishment was that I felt bad for half of my dinner. Yes, that was punishment for a Friday night fine dining! In my defense, I probably would have reacted the same way when anyone come up to me and peddle just about anything, and worse if they are at my door, invading my personal time.

Okay, so I probably could have reacted a little bit better BUT I do insist on two things:

1) Identifying that I am atheist (actually agnostic, but I'm not sure they know what that is, and it's just too much hassle to explain); and

2) Return their so-called "reading material."

You should be very proud that I didn't add "save a tree" at the end of my fiasco.

On a side note, when my husband says no to a sales person, they will continue their sales pitch; somehow, when I say no, people will just go, "Oh," and move along. It must be my tone or something.

Regardless, the husband later on commented that I was being "vindictive" when I identify myself as an atheist. Now, don't get me wrong, I will freely admit to it that I'm a vindictive person. I know I am and proud to be so. I just don't think in this particular instance I was being vindictive. However, even for me, I always feel that I am being very confrontation when I identify myself as an atheist but couldn't figure out why. Why is it that a Christian can identify themselves as a Christian and it doesn't feel confrontational (fundamentalists not withstanding) but it just sounds "bad" when an atheist does the same?

Finally, I came to this conclusion: When someone say they are Christian (or Mormon, or Catholic, or Presbyterian), they are stating what they believe. When an atheist identify themselves, we are saying what we don't believe. And the underlying message was: I don't agree with you and you are wrong.

That said, that was the third time I "openly" identified myself as an atheist and the other two person, including an 18-year-old attending school to become a pastor, reacted much better. Perhaps, just perhaps, instead of insisting on returning their "reading material," I should start carrying my own propaganda and exchange them with these passionate folks. The front of it will read, "Have you ever considered that perhaps there is no God?"

Turning 40

So, my cousin, who's a mere three months older than me, asked me if I was subconsciously in denial when I turned 40. The answer, I can honestly say, is no. I will admit to it, turning 30 was a lot more scarier and depressing than turning 40, and here's why:

1) You feel young when you were in your 20's, turning 30 was simply unimaginable.

2) 20's went by in a breeze, 30's just crept up on you.

3) When I turned 30, I had neither a career (still don't) nor a significant other.

4) People were not kidding about once you hit 30, you start going downhill. You took the brunt of the transformation here.

During your 30's, you start gaining consciousness, quite literally. You are, sometimes painfully, well aware that you are getting old, relatively speaking. At about 37, 38, you are already in your "late 30's." I'm quite certain that I was already referring to myself as "40" starting around 38 or so, though the husband liked to correct me.

So, the transition from 39 to 40 was seamless, if I may say so. It's like getting married to the same person you have co-habited with for the last five years. Sure, you can say that you are entering into a new phase, but nothing really changed. So I can honestly say that, "No, I did not consciously or subconsciously deny/avoid thinking about turning 40." It's just another day.

My Illusion, My Mistake

Once upon a time, I was very naive. I thought only real friends share their inner thoughts and feelings. In fact, once upon a time, I'd feel hurt if I shared my feelings but that act was not reciprocated. I guess over the years I realized that some people are just very private and don't like to share anything about themselves, and that doesn't mean they don't value the friendship... I guess? But I continued to believe that if someone is willing to share with me their thoughts and feelings, we have moved beyond acquaintance and became closer friends. My mistake was: I forgot to take into consideration the oversharing nature of Gen Y. Evidently, some people just like to share, just about anything to anyone who'd listen. In that case, his sharing with you is merely fulfilling his need to share and it means nothing more than that. As much as the stories are dramatic and entertaining, but when all the person does is to show up, went yak, yak, yak about his life, then tell you, "Oh, I got to run, I'm, like, soooo busy," you can't shake the feeling of being used. So, if you are in that situation, the sooner you are disillusioned, the better. It doesn't mean you should stop being "friends" with the said individual, especially if the stories he's telling are juicy. It just means you should adjust your expectation accordingly. That he or she might not be as much of a real friend as you might think.

Billboard Battle Over Judgement Day

This is too funny.

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/04/25/billboard-battle-over-judgment-day/?iref=allsearch