Interesting....

Your Existing Situation

The situation is difficult and he is trying to persist in his objectives against resistance. Finds it necessary to conceal his intentions as an added precaution, in order to disarm the opposition.

Your Stress Sources

Strives for straight-forward relationships, founded on mutual trust and understanding. Wishes to act only in conformity with his own convictions. Demands freedom to make his own decisions without being subjected to interference, outside influence, or the necessity of making compromises.

Your Restrained Characteristics

Clings to his belief that his hopes and ideas are realistic, but needs encouragement and reassurance. Applies very exacting standards to his choice of a partner and wants guarantees against loss or disappointment.

Feels trapped in a distressing or uncomfortable situation and seeking some way of gaining relief. Able to achieve satisfaction through sexual activity (really? you gotta be kidding me *end edit) providing no turmoil or emotional agitation is involved.

Your Desired Objective

Desires a tranquil, peaceful state of harmony offering quiet contentment and a sense of belonging.

Your Actual Problem

Does not wish to be involved in differences of opinion, contention or argument, preferring to be left in peace.

Your Actual Problem #2

Needs to protect himself against his tendency to be too trusting, as he finds it is liable to be misunderstood or exploited by others. Is therefore seeking a relationship providing peaceful and understanding intimacy, and in which each knows exactly where the other stands.

Funny... especially the bit about my restrained characteristics. Well, that's what the "proven" personality test says about me. Funny part is, it's kinda right. The stranger part is that i didn't take it that seriously. Very interesting indeed...

I spent the weekend just wandering around the city, trying not too sweat too much. It's amazing what a few protests and the presence of politicians will do the dynamics of city. This place is pretty much in lock-down. All sorts of street are closed, traffic diverted, cops with more firepower than probably all of france roaming around looking bored, basically just organized chaos.

For instance, I decided to take a small historical "visit" to the 5 points so dramatically portrayed in the movie "Gangs of New York". For a small refresher for those who have seen the movie, it's basically where all the big blood-fests happen. Supposedly, it was where the worst of the worst mingled and fought and died. But not today. Today, something so simple as walking to this fabled crime-filled historical locale was filled with more drama than a korean soap opera. I could literally see where i had to go, but due to some high-position policital no-name, they shut down a whole section of downtown, making a 5 minute walk into a 45 minute adventure, dodging the feds and nypd armed too the teeth with automatic rifles, sub-machine guns, pistols, guard dogs (which looked they were going to faint even before they around to biting anybody), and fat-ol' moto-cops barking "can't go this way". Yay for the republican national convention...

On a more ironic note, I spent the whole summer trying to go to the beach, which I never went to. But today, after only 3 minutes on the water front (devoid of anything remotely looking like a beach), I got half of my body drenched with this monster wave which decided it would be fun to climb the wall and jump out at the people walking by. So in my 3 months of active search of sea water, it was a small stroll along the harbor that actually got me full of seawater. How sad... at least no sand in the bathing suit =)

I'm back in NYC.

Back to the big apple. It's just hard to believe that i'm back here already, and that summer is just about over.

This is going to be an interesting last semester. So much is different this time around. I'm in a new apartment, living with a new roommate. I'm going to graduate after this semester, so I gotta study and get good grades. I think the biggest change for me is that i'm single now. Just being back is "weird". That's the only word that comes to mind. It's comfortable to be back. Back to where I spent the last school year with people I enjoyed hanging out with, going to new places and trying new things. And living in the same neighborhood is helping with the transistion since I know what to expect from around here. But it's just different being back. I guess i'm just tired. That's the last time i take such an early red-eye flight. I got here in the city at 4:40am.

But all in all, i'm glad to be back. =) Oh, Gray's Papaya... how i've missed thee

You have got to be kidding me...

What is with all this controvery swirling around the men's gymnastics? As soon as the all-around comp ended, people were pretty much fuming about how the korean guy got jacked and how paul hamm is a sore stuck-up loser and how rigged everything is... etc. ad nauseum. To illustrate my point, here's a little excerpt from someone who doesn't think it's fair...

i am furious.


i am furious about the judges' lazy/ignorant/corrupt scoring in the men's gymnastics competition. everything about this whole situation is incredibly ridiculous and unheard of. watching paul hamm telling the news lady, "i believe I AM THE TRUE OLYMPIC CHAMPION" when he himself knows quite well that he really doesn't deserve it utterly disgusts me. i'm sure he's secretly embarassed at the fact that he may not even be the all around gold medalist, after all the tear shedding glory and the standing ovation he received that night. i'm beginning to think there's some really shady business going on when it comes to anything American... i feel like the whole world is rigged.

Uh, sorry to be such a sore thumb, but who cares? Do I care about the korean dude? No. Do I care about the american? Not any more than the korean guy. But think about the whole situation before you make some brash judgement about who got screwed. Gymnastics is judged by people, not a computer. Did the judges make mistakes? Sure. We're human. But in the end, who did a better job? It's not about who did the harder routine, but the person who did their routine with less mistakes. Period. "Oh, but the judges screwed up and jacked the korean". Sure, the judges made a mistake in the starting score, but they also didn't tell people that they missed some more deductions. So if they had actually gone back and rescored the routine, he would have gotten an extra 2/10 of a deduction. So, in the end of things, he would have actually done worse than his original score. And why is everyone hating on Paul Hamm? That guy WAS really good. "But he's such a whiner..." Wouldn't you? You just won the top honors of the sport. The first american to win that honor is who knows how long. And all you hear is "you're a fake, you're not the real winner". What would you do? It's not like was handed the medal for doing a ho-hum performance. It's like Lance Armstrong being told "you don't get the victory for the Tour de France because you're the favorite and we didn't score one section correctly". Paul Hamm went out there and performed. Just like everyone else. Only he got high scores for routines that were performed with less mistakes than his competitors. And once it's over, it's OVER. Fin. Done. If you lost, suck it up. You did your best, but someone else did better. Move on, you're still a winner. You're in the olympics competing among the best. But apparently for some, because the winner is american and the favorite, it's foul play. And then the next day, the korean judge happens to score him a whole 1/10 point lower than the rest of the judges. Hmmm... makes you wonder.

And to all of you who are huffin' and puffin' about how I'm not a korean supporter, that i'm such a scumbag for not supporting my country, keep spewing. Why should I root for Korea? Not that I don't feel a connection or anything, but I'm an American. I was born and raised here. Given amazing opportunities. Provided the means to excel, to grow. I'm an American first. I'm an American with Korean ancestry. I'm proud to be korean, and proud to be american. But to all of you out there who think "that's just jacked up, you're a hater, you're not a korean", you're right. I'm an American. I carry an American Passport. I'm sorry that I make up my own mind after looking at the facts. Try to get as much information and then make a decision. I'm sorry I don't just jump up and be all pissed off because of some small and petty thing like a korean being misjudged. Would you jump up and down and be pissed off if that person being jacked was chinese? Russian? Afghani? I don't think so. Just because he was korean, everyone's feathers are ruffled. But why? Honestly, why? Because he's korean? Then in all fairness, I should just call you racist and elitist. That kind of attitude is exactly what causes all this ethnic genocide. People thinking one race/ethnicity is inherintly better than another.

But why all the flared tempers? It's just a sport. It's gymnastics. Nobody's life is at stake. No one is going to get killed for this mishap. Just somebody's pride. Your pride because a korean didn't win gold. Because you think that it's not fair. And what about the american? The gold medal winner, who should be basking in the glory because he put up a performance to be envied, is now enduring hell because of one little mistake which HE DIDN'T MAKE. Is it his fault? The least you can do is place the blame where it needs to be placed. Blame not one, not two, but three judges who messed up. Blame the korean for not doing a better performance. And blame yourself for getting so worked up for something that doesn't affect you, except your pride.

What's the point of all of this? Just let it slide. Worry about something real which affects you, something that truly demands attention, like if you're wearing clean underwear. Or if you have a chive in your teeth from lunch. Or what to eat for dinner. And if you're at work reading this, shame on you. Get back to work you lazy bum...

Change

Where did all the time go? It's almost the end of August. Summer is coming to a close. School is about to start up again. I catch myself thinking that "there's tons of time left, it's only june", but it's august. I'm sitting here, trying to think of something profound to put down for the few people who read this (probably just me), and all I can think of is it's august. This summer went by in such a hurried frenzy, I feel like i just got off the plane coming back from school. But so much did happen this summer, it's kind of amazing that it even happened at all. I guess what hits me the most is how much change has happened right before my eyes. Even in my own life, things are moving at an unbelievable pace that it's kind of hard to find time to sit down and reflect upon things. I've been so busy since i came home that it's hard to believe that it's time to head back and start school again. Even with going back to school, there's hardly anything 'routine' about it: I have to look for a new place to live, I have to pick what classes I'm going to take knowing that there's only 1 semester left to enjoy being a student, have to start looking for that all-important "first job out of college", and other things that I just can't think of right now.

What happened to the simplicity of our childhood? When did things suddently get so complicated?

Update is coming...