Posted 1:41 PM by hx

*sniff*

i gloated too soon :) today my colleague told me that Spike's gig has been completely sold out, and she couldn't get tickets. it's too bad. they play in a small club so i guess they run out of space pretty quickly. ah well. $14 to shake a hand... hehe :) sorry Spike fans... there will be no drool-covered report from the sidelines this August 14th :) we'll try again some other time; i understand he does this fairly often. keep your fingers crossed for next time :)

on another note, i am feeling all wrote out today and my muse has declared that she is going on vacation somewhere far far away and will not come back until she's good and ready. we're getting tired out and repetitive; it's time to rack up some new experience so we actually have something to write about. you keep pulling out your guts, sooner or later you run out :) meanwhile, we will either regale you with past favorites, or more of that incoherent stream-of-consciousness babble that you have come to know and "love" so well from halo ;)

and, finally, just as a postscript to the saga, it is good to know that all the trapped miners made it out safe and sound. see, sometimes good things *do* happen ;)

Posted 11:57 AM by Blah blah

I'm stealing this from someplace on the Net. Don't ask:

Dear Backtalk Betty,

I heard something at the Power Exchange the other night about the erotic possibilities of paper cuts. Do you know anything about this? How does it work? What about other office oriented sex play? Mouse pads? Post-It notes? The hot glass of an over-used photocopier?

-A Cut Above the Rest


Dear Cut Happy,

I've heard about sickos like you. You're the kind of lecher who lurks in the shadows near the coffee urn waiting for someone to scald their tongue on their morning java so you can get your Jolly Roger launched. It'd be just your dream come true if some femme fatale sauntered into your cubicle bleeding effusively from a stapler incident, right? Betty thinks you've been cooped up in corporate America a little too long. It's my humble opinion that you need a little dose of what ails you. Someone ought to harness you up to the Clockwork Orange Special and force you to watch endless hours of "It's a Wonderful Life" and "The Bells of St. Mary's". Drum a little purity back into your jaded and twisted soul. Perhaps you should spend your lunchtime breaks taking nice long strolls through a pretty meadow or eating penny candy from the fountain at the General Store. Now behave, or Betty will have to discipline you.

Betty

Posted 10:00 AM by Blah blah

111,111 Visitors!

Today my number of website(s) visitors will hit 111,111! If you are the 111,111th visitor (or very close), please EMAIL ME. I will send you a nice e-card. Let's break out the champagne and celebrate the 222222.5 eyeballs which have graced my pages. The .5 eyeball is for the blue-skinned alien on the planet Zworg who reads this blog, mistaking it for the annual Zworgian Swimsuit Issue.

Posted 8:47 AM by Blah blah

Two Birthdays

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Vanezza (July 30) and Cindy (August 2)!!!

Vanezza (in New York City) keeps saying she wants to be my dance partner. Get in line, girl! HAHA. Actually, her dream, she has said often, is to run her own dance studio.

You still have two days left to buy Cindy (at the U. of Illinois) that present from her wishlist on Delias.com. (Click on wishlist and enter her email: shireelyn@yahoo.com) I was the first one, getting her this white crochet sweater, which she later said was her favorite item (serendipity).

I got this sweet note on July 20:

dear raymond,

the present arrived today. it's beautiful...i mean, i
picked it myself, so of course i think it's beautiful,
haha, but most importantly it's a present of your
goodwill. :)

thanks so much, again. no matter how many time you
tell me i deserve it, a present is still a present and
i just have to you tell how much it means to me.

cindy

Now there's something they should put in a Taiwanese soap opera! It was MY pleasure, lady.

Posted 8:17 AM by Blah blah

Korean Soap Operas

Whoa! Christine in Taipei just started blogging! She sounds like a Dalai Lama/Jack Welch-type here.

She wrote:

I never understood why Korean Soap Operas (dubbed in Mandarin) have become all the rage in Taiwan until I sat down and watched an episode this past weekend.

Turns out that the men on the show act like men, and the women on the show act like women.

This is vastly different from Taiwanese Soap Operas in which the men act like women, and the women act like little girls.

Now I understand.

God, those Taiwanese women in the soap operas can be hella annoying. Beautiful, but annoying. We get Korean and Taiwanese soap operas here in the Bay Area, so I echo her comment. One Taiwanese episode I glimpsed, a woman who was about to get married was talking to her parents. She began wailing like a car-struck fire hydrant, her mom began blubbering, and the two sang a little crying duet that lasted maybe two minutes! People didn't cry this much before Mel Gibson got his head chopped off in Braveheart!

Gimme a break. Which is maybe why some women I met in Taiwan turned out to be 30 but acted 22.

Posted 12:58 AM by DUH

Let's heat up the cafe a bit more. : )

when pen meets paper

the dry rollerball of pen's
long, firm shaft
turned on by the
satiny white blank sheets of paper
her innocent guileless calling,
flirting to be tainted and dirtied
and marked
by pen's seductive turns
rising from pen's desire
the warmth and heat
of creative hands
move pen
first hesitant, then sure
in their up and down
and round and round
with strokes of steel against virgin pulp
the passionate, warm wetness
of ink slowly oozing
then flowing freely in frenzy
leaving a trail of beads of words
that turn
into sentences into paragraphs
into poems into chapters
into books,
a trail of goosebumps
until tired and spent,
pen stops contact, panting, breathless
on top of paper,
spent, released, satisfied, and
quiet with profound
timeless thoughts
spewed out.

oh what timeless beauty
can result with this
coitus
of pen and paper.

get your mind outta the gutter!
what were YOU thinking? hehehe

Posted 11:08 PM by Blah blah

IBM Pulls a Fast One

IBM to Buy Pricewaterhouse Consulting (Reuters): "International Business Machines Corp. on Tuesday made its largest acquisition ever, saying it would buy PriceWaterhouseCoopers Consulting for $3.5 billion in cash and stock. The purchase is aimed at boosting slowing revenues in the computer giant's large services business, which now accounts for more revenue than its well-known computers and mainframes....

IBM's service business, which by itself employs about 150,000 employees and has grown to become larger than its flagship computer hardware division, will take on 30,000 new employees with the acquisition. IBM's head count at the end of 2001 was about 320,000 people but it has since trimmed its ranks by at least 8,000."

What the hell??? As someone from IBM's services division, I am pissed off by this.

These guys explain my view: guy 1, guy 2, and guy 3. PwC Consulting, in its brief effort to go independent, renamed itself "Monday" about two months ago. Dumb name, huh? "Friday Night" would have been better. Now they are trashing that.

Like those guys I linked said, we had been moving lots of IT work to India. And planning more layoffs. This doesn't count the 15,000 or so from the Storage Division who are being forced to leave IBM. What a joke. I feel bad for the PwC folks. I hope they can adjust and survive.

Software companies like Oracle are moving more jobs to India as well. Should I be learning Hindi?

Posted 8:25 PM by Blah blah

With her new poem Foreplay, I'm having halo-cinations. Should we crown her Miss Erotica or what?

A more mundane topic: long distance phone service. It seems like the only people who call me at home nowadays are telemarketers. Recently I got called by what seems like a mainland Chinese company in Los Angeles. They offered the cheapest international rates I have EVER seen. I currently use TCast Communications for all my long distance. They give excellent service and I never have complaints with them. Currently I pay about 7 cents/min to call France, 10 cents to Taiwan, and something equally cheap to China.

This new company blew my earlobes away, and I am now leaving TCast and switching to these astounding rates:

7.9 cents/min to China (except HK), Japan, and Singapore
6.9 cents/min to Hong Kong and Taiwan
9.9 cents/min to Malaysia
5.9 cents/min to France and Canada
4.9 cents/min throughout the whole U.S. (outside of the Bay Area) AND the U.K. Britain and the U.S. are the same!
Here's the catch: 15.9 cents/min to the Philippines. That's gonna shorten my contact with you Filipina bloggers (*sniff*).

For you outside the U.S., you see why the telecommunications industry collapsed the last two years? It has become so DIRT CHEAP to call someone through a land line. That's another fact you can use to prod your lazy boyfriends or girlfriends to call you.

If you want to know what service it is, email me. I don't want to post the name or else they may get swamped.

ALSO, did you know that anyone can call
700-555-4141 to find out his long distance carrier? I just found out. Try it!

Posted 7:32 PM by hx

i just finished a new piece i'm fairly pleased with. it doesn't rhyme (sorry raymond *grin*) but ... mmm... i think it's hot. or maybe that's just me, coz i'm a perv. oops, am i allowed to say that here? where are those guidelines??? :)))

i'm not going to post it here because it's fairly long and it would make raymond's page scroll on forever. but if you want to read it, here's the link. it's called foreplay. :>

read it slowly, preferably with someone cuddled up beside you, and take your time with the visualizing *grinz*

Posted 6:50 PM by Anonymous

It’s just a little crush ...

I wonder if it’s possible that newly single me is emitting some kind of pheramone, a sort of primordial scent to men out there, saying “I’m here, I’m available again, come get me!”

All of a sudden (and for the first time in a year) men are paying me attention again. Or maybe I’m being overly sensitive?

Last nite, I had dinner with an ex, whom I’d also had lunch with on Friday. This is one ex I never fully erased feelings for. Maybe because our relationship was forced to end abruptly because I was leaving the country, maybe because it was so short yet sweet, whatever the reason, I never fully explored the possibilities of a relationship with him. Thus, I’ve been left wondering. And of course it helps that I still find myself attracted to him (in a carnal sort of way!) So, the whole year that I’ve been back in Malaysia, I’d seen him probably twice, spoken to him less than ten times. But in the past few weeks, I’ve spoken to him every week, with the frequency increasing each week, and now, I’ve seen him for 2 meal dates in less than 5 days! Did I mention he’s also in the midst of a breakup? Aaah ... major rebound or what?

Then there’s this guy at work. I always thought he was sorta cute, that there was something mildly intriguing about him. But lately, I get the feeling that he’s reciprocating. We actually had a proper conversation the other day and it was good. I’ve worked here for a year, and that was the first prolonged talk we had. We sit diagonally across from each other so we see each other every day and there’s this strange awkardness between us ... ok, I think it’s sexual tension.

Oh well, I could be making all this up. My overly active imagination as usual creating a distraction from my breakup.

But I’m still wondering if we humans, react to an instinct, to sensory stimuli without our conscious mind being aware of it? Is this how men and women play their mating game? Is this why for the 20 months I was with the bastard, men just sort of stayed back?

Posted 2:46 PM by hx

this is my brainless girly-girl prose for the day.
my colleague just dropped by to tell me that Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (James Marsters) is going to be performing at a local gig in about two week's time.
i've agreed to go with her and she's going to get the tickets. it'll be on august 14th, i have no idea where but she'll be driving so i don't care :) after four years i'm finally going to reap the benefits of living in earthquake city! yeah!
i haven't been out to a club in forever, and i'm really looking forward to going out and dancing, ogling Spike, and maybe even getting some photos and an autograph.
ROWWWRRRRRR!!!!!!!! have you seen the abs on this man?? have you???? the man is Yummmmmmmmmyyyy!!! :)
(oh, and he's not a bad actor too. really. i think :)
*gloat gloat gloat* *anticipate anticipate anticipate*
if i manage to get good pix maybe i'll post 'em.
or... maybe i'll sell 'em to any desperate droolers who email me... *evilmercenarygrin*
wheeeeee!!! :)

Posted 12:42 PM by Blah blah

Gratuitous link. Here's a chance for all you lurkers-who-never-say-anything-here (LWNSAH) to leave comments. Shall I start naming names? For some reason, most of you LWNSAH have names starting with J.

Man Shot Dead over Heaven and Hell Argument. I think he's being sent to pre-Hell, not kindergarten.

Posted 10:25 AM by Blah blah

From RBJ: What Guy Movies do You Like?

Here's my list:

Just saw "Hart's War" with Bruce Willis and Colin Farrell. EXCELLENT script and acting! It just came out this year. Very much a guy's movie, but a THINKING guy's movie.

Carlos, I cannot get enough of "Ben-Hur" with Charleton Heston!!! It is one of my top 6 movies of all time. I can watch it 10 times and not get tired.

Other "guy's" movies I really enjoy:

Top Gun (Tom Cruise, Anthony Edwards, Val Kilmer)
Terminator 2 (Schwartzenegger)
Supercop (Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh)
Rumble in the Bronx (Jackie Chan)
Eraser (Schwartzenegger and Vanessa Williams)
Air Force One (Harrison Ford)
The Fugitive (Harrison Ford)
Malcolm X (a guy's movie? Denzel Washington)
Braveheart (Mel Gibson, saw it at least 3-4 times)
The Negotiator (Kevin Spacey and Samuel L. Jackson)
Saving Private Ryan (Tom Hanks)
Gladiator (Russell Crowe)
An Officer and a Gentleman (Richard Gere)
The Bridge on the River Kwai (Alec Guiness)
Lawrence of Arabia (Peter O'Toole)
Citizen Kane (Orson Welles)
James Bond: the Sean Connery, no-apologies-for-being-a-man movies. The best is "From Russia with Love," starring the Italian babe, Daniela Bianchi.

Scott poked fun at my tastes:

Um ... Malcolm X, Lawrence of Arabia, Citizen Kane, and
AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN are guy movies??

They may be "movies with men" but I think calling them "guy movies" is a bit of a stretch. You might as well put "Ya Ya Sisterhood" in there too then. That had a guy in it - James Garner, I think, haha.

Night out at Raymond's house:

RAYMOND: "Hey guys, lets all watch some high-powered testosterone real man flick tonight!"

GUYS: "Yeah!! *grunt* Ook! Ook! Ahk! Ahkk!"

RAYMOND: "Here's a great guy's movie! Officer and a Gentleman."

GUYS: "... ?!?!? ... eh ... Oh, man, it's getting late, I have to get up early tomorrow ... Yeah, me too .... My cat's probably missing me ... Seeya Raymond."

RAYMOND: "Hey wait! I've got Citizen Kane too!"
__________
Ouch! Hahaha. I just don't think "guy's movie" means only one dimensional characters, relentless action, and no romantic parts. Or that mainly guys would like "guy's movies." Hey, at least I didn't put "Sense and Sensibility."

Posted 7:02 PM by hx

today's dynamic duo/waste of good white space :) (gee, this is a lot easier than thinking of prose :)

one fresh from the oven...

at the beach
- halo, 29-07-02 , 18:57:24

the sun melted fiery into
dark waters and we
jostled and played,
spitting our sausages and
twirling wings over the
pit. the good smells
of barbecue roused my
stomach to growling,
and you heard it and
laughed.
i wanted to say something,
but i did not.
i will not see you again,
you won't be mine.
the moon rose in silver
streamers, scattering stars
in her wake.
we played the music so
loudly we thought we'd get
yelled at, but
no one came, and the night
was ours.
i wanted to take you aside,
hold you to me,
but i did not.
i will not see you again,
you were not mine.
as the night wore on the
fire died down and we
lay on our backs in
its dwindling warmth,
talking idly of dimensional
portals and the
inevitability of love.
i wanted to pull you to me,
and kiss you slow and soft,
but i did not.
i will not see you again,
you are not mine.

and one oldie but hopefully goodie :

Face
- halo, 11:33 PM, 9-6-98

i think about your face
i think about grace
i think about your kiss
i think about bliss
what force this sensuous heat
this pattern of scars
this satin swirl
what tender touch
what horrified face
such love such hate such lust
too deep too much
i feel
i feel you coming in the night
the moon glows cold and
sometimes i know
how ravens feel
when they take flight
it's nothing like the light
on winter snow
but still i feel
and tender kiss your tattered lace
and tear away
the masks that hide your face

Posted 2:52 AM by Anonymous

Whoah ...

He's here, on IM. I'm seeing him for the first time since he confessed. And it's weird. Because he's so close, yet so far - physcially, I'm not even sure where he is. But virtually, he's barely a mouseclick away. And we're both pretending that we don't see the other. Or at least I am. He's probably too ashamed to acknowledge me.

I was doing so well before this. Barely thinking of him. Feeling almost like my old self again, positive, excited, happy. Any thoughts of him that were poised to enter my mind, I'd somehow, very surely, brush away.

But I wasn't prepared for this reaction. This sudden disgust. An almost nauseating feeling. My heart pounding rapidly in my chest. The anger, the hurt, brewing, threatening to errupt ... it's as if the feelings were simmering, not truly dismissed, not at all. Merely pushed aside. God, I feel sick and awful again.

And I keep clicking over to IM to still see his name there. He's right THERE. And we're not talking. And he's within reach ... do you know, you motherfucker, what you did to me, what you're still doing to me? I didn't realize how much I still detested you. How much what you did fucking hurt me, scarred me. God damn you. God seriously damn you.

Shit ... all my progress is unravelling again ... shit.

Posted 1:19 AM by Anonymous

Just out of curiosity, how many languages do you know, and which languages would you like to learn?

I am fluent in English (my primary language), but I can understand some Cantonese and a tiny bit of Mandarin. I would like to become fluent in Mandarin someday, as well as Japanese, French, Spanish, German, and Hawaiian.

Posted 12:35 AM by hx

okay, let's try again. i like this one, so i'm guessing it'll be a toss up whether anyone else does or not *lol* :)

sounding star
- halo, 28-07-02 , 23:42:14

for you i have the patience
of angels,
of rocks,
of saints.
for you i can wait
forever,
as long as it takes.
you are the
rose of roses,
the star that
will not fall.
for you i have
the patience of
the Sphinx in desert night.
i take my soundings
by you,
i steer by your call.
within the bounds of
this strange bond,
i say that i am
yours.
no quibbling, no promises,
no whispers in the night.
slow are the sounds
that this yearning makes.
there are no guarantees
for the deceits of the flesh,
but for you i can wait,
for you i can wait
as long as it takes.

okay, i just finished another one that i'm kind of pleased with, so i'm just going to tag it on here under the other one...

Bali with you
- halo, 29-07-02 , 01:48:44

on the beach in Bali
we gathered pebbles and
sand-crusted shells.
i draped you with seaweed and
blew in your ear,
made you laugh so i could
feel the movement of your
torso under my arm.
you looked good in the
bikini i bought you,
a dark and witchy mermaid
dressed to kill.
i brought you to the
Marmalade Cafe
and drowsed with coffee
in the incense-stifling air,
watching you with one eye
as you giggling tried
to burn me with the
melting fragments of
mosquito coils.
the scent of the night was
on your skin
as we danced and shared the
sweat of a dozen local boys,
all eager for the heat of
sex and an undiluted dollar.
when did a cold beer
ever taste so good?
when the music died down
we returned to our rooms
and undressed to
the heady whir of
an ancient ceiling fan.
you were soft,
smooth,
warmer than i thought you'd be,
cooler than the beer.
in your lips i tasted
all of Bali,
all its beauty,
shining clear.

Posted 11:39 PM by Blah blah

More Pix

From the beach party (left to right):
1. Steve and Amabelle
2. Jasmin and her boyfriend Mike (AHA we gotcha, Jasmin!)
3. A bunch of people looking lost



Here is Mike's story of Amabelle and Felicia's May BBQ (with photos).

I met several cool people:
- Amabelle, whom I met last December when Christine was in town.
- Chris, the gay Malaysian guy whom I said is really cool! He just finished a 24 hour Blog-a-thon yesterday.
- Felicia, Amabelle's sister, who's in law school at Berkeley and about to leave for Vietnam.
- James, a Berkeley English major who took a couple of years off of school to edit a gaming magazine, FiringSquad.
- Jasmin and Mike, above.
- Mike, whom I also met last December.
- Min Jung came over to give me a hug. She had some of her writing recently published in a Canadian magazine, and she has a nice low voice.
- Nicole, a cute blonde who wants to study international law.
- Peter, the guy I mentioned below.
- Rita, Mike's girlfriend.
- Shinobu, a Japanese guy originally from Vancouver who works here at Oracle. We may hook up later.

I just took these pix of myself tonight:

Posted 2:24 PM by Blah blah

Ernie reinstated his blog comments! This week we get one of his infamous Ernie's mom posts. Plus designer Cheshire Dave made this funny Flash history of the Cooper Black typeface. Oh God. Ernie's starting yet another reality webgame to fill his lunch breaks. My housemate used to work with Ernie in the same group, a few dot-coms ago.

I see Unica Hija is dating a new guy. And she likes "being treated like a child." Spill spill spill, girl! Or it's NO ice cream and halo-halo for you tonight.

My new links:

Chris, a gay Chinese guy in San Francisco, from Malaysia, whom I met at Amabelle's beach party and whom I think is really cool and good for asking about gay clubs this fall;
Esther, a UCLA girl who's entering the financial investment world;
Miyuki, a pretty British Japanese girl in London who's a dancer and blogs with her two sisters---also dancers;
Pjammer, a handsome, cocky financial guy I met at the beach party who actually brought a LAPTOP to the beach, who is trying to make a short film and use it to help break into Hollywood;
Pylduck, an intellectual gay Asian guy in grad school at the U. of North Carolina;
Susan, a graphic design grad from the U. of Arizona who looks very much like my Taiwanese friend Irene;
Susie, girl about to start college who is a good source for your angst-fix, Halo;
and Victor, a Chinese guy in S. California who has travelled much and is an e-business consultant.

Posted 2:48 AM by Blah blah

Three Poems (forgive me Halo...I could not resist printing this):

Tonight

For my Queen of Clubs, who else?
27-07-02, 23:31:36 by halo

Tonight I will bring you tulips;
the champagne orange ones you love.
You will wrinkle your nose cutely
and pretend to be a fluffy bunny
when really we both know you are
a kitten with claws ready-sharpened.
I will ask you to go out with me,
and you will think about it, and
say, "Okay, he's not free tonight."
I will buy you dinner, and
we will go dancing, and
I will buy you drinks.
You will giggle and turn away boys
and men, and pretend to be drunk.
In the restroom you will admire
yourself in the mirror,
touch up your lipstick,
and pretend you don't know I'm
watching.
When the club closes at four,
I will walk you home, in the
still cold air with the
lonely wash of cars passing,
and we will talk of the things
that you refuse to discuss in
the day.
At your apartment, you will
invite me in, and we will get
drinks from your kitchen,
and go up to your bedroom.
You will call one of your men
and tell him about your day
while I lie across your bed
and calculate the number of
items of clothing you are
wearing.
As you talk about nothing,
I will come behind you
and slide my arms around your
waist, breathe on the back of
your neck, and kiss
your ear
gently,
gently.
Slowly I will
slide my tongue over
salt smooth skin and run
light fingers through the
waves of your hair.
When I reach your shoulders,
you will hang up and turn
to me,
and I will kiss my way up
the long line of your neck
and the curve of your chin.
My mouth will meet yours
in one slow fragment of
time and I will taste the
fruit scent of your
lipstick, your perfume,
your hair.
Your eyes will fall shut,
your hands will tighten
around me as mine hold
you close.
We will kiss,
we will kiss,
we will fall to the bed
and four a.m. will
become five,
then six.
Tonight I will bring you tulips,
and tomorrow,
and tomorrow,
and tomorrow the same.
I will never
tire of this game.

bg : soundtrack to the thomas crown affair

forever
26-07-02, 13:53:16 by halo

forever was
not so long ago,
when milk ran
red with blood and
the sun shone in
spear-glints off the
rings in your ears.
i am the
voice in your ear,
the whisper in your heart.
i make the dolls dance,
the sea churn
and the
stones break.
you pay no
attention to the things
that are forever.
in your tongue,
life lasts
as long as it needs to
and whatever melts,
melts.

taste
25-07-02, 18:34:41 by halo

the night hangs in
dark folds about
us and everywhere
in the red blood is
this pounding beat
of sound.
in the dusk i will
wrap your coils
around me,
top and toe.
i will taste the
scent of
sweat and leather
on my tongue
and in that
one sure instant of
silvered flash and
fevered movement i
will know.
the joy will
come in bitter
shreds somewhere
between the flames of
purgatory and hell,
as certain as the
shattered
dreams you sell.
i will wind your
strength around me
and with that taste
of darkness i
will know.
but where i go,
and what i know,
i will not tell.

Posted 12:42 PM by Blah blah

Two great things last night: I met Jasmin for the first time! She came with her boyfriend Mike to Amabelle's beach bonfire. I will post pix and details later. Jasmin is definitely a shy sweetie! Beautiful new blog design, lady! Second: I watched Hart's War, with Bruce Willis and Colin Farrell. Although somewhat unrealistic, it's an excellently written and touchingly acted movie. EXCELLENT and I HIGHLY recommend it! All the main characters were Oscar-worthy actors. The Nazi POW leader and the black airman Scott were nuanced, complex, and otherwise fantastic! I know S X would watch Colin Farrell anyway, even if he were wearing a potato sack and reading lines from a circuit diagram. Just bring an extra bib, S, to catch your drool.

In a few hours I'm attending another BBQ. It's the annual summer BBQ for our political club. I'm on the board of our county Democratic club (it's related to the TV talk show I do), and we'll be honoring women Democrats. A couple of women political candidates will be there---one running for Congress and one running for the California State Assembly.

Just a pipe dream?

From RBJ: What college did you attend?

Me:

I graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in Chemical Engineering (which means three years of chemistry and four of engineering). I took the Applied Physics option (two years of physics). (I never took an English course.)

I want to go for an MBA. Not sure about the details yet. But I think ultimately I will end up more on the business/marketing side of things, since that is closer to my personality.

What would I really like to get into? Maybe it's just a dream, but---the entertainment business. I would like to help make movies or TV shows. I find technology for its own sake extremely boring, but science and technology for artistic purposes---that would drive me.

Posted 8:13 PM by DUH

just wondering why . . .

children's books use font size 14 or even bigger.
adult books use font size 11.
newspapers, 10.
legal fine print, even smaller.

and, it seems, the smaller the font size, the more serious a document appears to be. would you take someone seriously if he, say, sent a contract to you that used a font size 14 typeface? i don't think so.

let's use our human brain here.

don't people START losing their eyesight as they grow older? then, shouldn't publishers ENLARGE the font size for adults and use smaller fonts for kids?

let me analyze. does this happen because as we grow older, we tend to have too many things to say or is it because we try to make SURE we get our point across to cover our asses?

case in point: legal documents. they're so long. so wordy. so complicated. why do we have to go through all the whereas and therefore mumbo jumbo to reach an agreement? wasn't it easier back when we were kids? if we made an agreement, we spit on it and we were as good as our word. scout's honor. if you didn't, man, you'd be laughing stock of the entire kindergarten playground.

therefore, it seems apparent, that humans get more stupid as they grow older simply because, we complicate things too much.

Posted 3:46 PM by hx

here is today's poem. come back winter, i can't stand this heat!! :)

this day
24-07-02 , 20:07:08

this day the heat was a
warm thickness on the skin,
so dense you would expect
to see things as through jelly.
instead it had a clarity
the angel city rarely does,
outlines stark and barely
shimmering,
the chrome on cars gleaming
fit to scar.
the latinos on their
front steps
popped sharply out like
3D paper dolls,
the color of their clothes
blinding.
even the pigeons
had difficulty flying.
the homeless folks lay
on their backs in the
shade of McDonald's,
and their dogs
panted in tandem.
on the telephone pole,
my mockingbird watched it
all,
and laughed his tail off.
this day it was easier
to remember that L.A.
was scooped from the desert,
its trees planted whole.

Posted 1:27 PM by Anonymous

Can you function well in social situations? Can you easily talk to strangers you've just met for the first time? I personally don't like big crowds, and I'm usually not bold enough to speak my mind to a bunch of strangers. I always have a fear of people judging me, so I tend to believe that my opinions aren't good enough for their tastes. However, I intend to meet a bunch of new people tonight, and I'm going to try my best to be myself and not let my fears get the best of me. It's weird that I have this phobia, because both my parents are extroverts. I grew up in a loud household, but I turned out to be so quiet. If I happen to meet any of you tonight, I will try my best to be more social. Give me a beer, and I'll be your best friend...haha.. :)

Posted 11:44 AM by hx

keeping the babble alive

wow, another girl's gone missing. they're really on a roll, aren't they? she looks pretty cute. we were looking at her pic on CNN's website this morning and my colleague said she looks just like her younger sister did when she was little. i hope they find her before anything happens. once it's past a day the chances get exponentially tinier of finding missing people alive...

and then there's those miners trapped in the shaft that got flooded. thank goodness for modern technology. i was relieved to hear that they were sending in compressed air. they were talking about the danger of hypothermia since the water's cold. i was wondering how hard it would be for them to stick a couple of heaters in the water while they were at it. after all, if we're good enough now to send in air and rescue stuck people, what's a little water-heating? :) it's too bad it didn't happen here in LA, it's so damn hot here right now i feel like a boiled lobster.

the air i see from my window here is smoggy and a strange cross between grey and yellow. with that tricky little shimmer that makes me keep wondering if spielberg is going to pop up at any second with a megaphone shouting "unleash the zoids!" or something. and then all the buildings in front of me will suddenly vanish as the holograms are turned off, and i'll find i've been working in the matrix all along... oh wait, wrong movie.

hey, aren't you guys going to post anything? i don't wanna be the only chickie talking to myself here... *whimper*

:)

Posted 7:46 PM by hx

okay raymond, you can quit nagging me now :P :) a poem a day? here's two! LOL :)

monsters
21-07-02 , 23:54:10

we are not monsters,
to sink so slow...
we are not monsters,
to quiet go
into that night that day
and take what's given
as our lot.
inside you reach and
fail to find
the tail of the serpent
hissing still.
mea culpa, mea culpa,
for we have failed
in this as in the rest
there is no rest
we wicked ones
we draw the curtains,
shut the blinds.
we pretend we see nothing.
in your light we
find false courage and
think we see the
tunnel's end
but come tomorrow
all is weed and warp and
once again the water
beckons deep and dark.
we are not monsters,
to sink so low,
we are not monsters,
and yet we go.

believe
20-07-02 , 11:30:26

believe,
if you believe in nothing else,
in this.
the touch of the wind
on your skin,
the heat of the sun
on red earth.
the flight of doves
a thunderclap in shining air.
nothing moves you now,
i know,
not moonlight, not starlight,
not eye-ache of neon glow.
you don't remember.
once there was something,
an intangible promise
of better to come,
and you smiled at the
touch of my fingers.
nothing moves you now,
i know.
but if you believe no longer
in anything else,
believe in this :
the sound of my heart
singing,
the sight of my smile
when i see you,
the way our bodies
fit together
when we kiss.

Posted 4:29 PM by Blah blah

Am gonna be busy for the next week or so. Go ahead and make yourself at home. Have fun without me! I was invited by the Sze sisters, Amabelle and Felicia, to their San Francisco beach party this Friday night. We'll just relax, chat, make s'mores and toast marshmallows. Last time I did that was last summer with Jennifer and her buddies. We were lucky enough to pick a place on the beach that didn't require any pit or permit to build a bonfire. I haven't been getting enough rest recently, partly due to the long talks I've been having with bloggers like YOU! Time to get some more sleeeeeep.

I just deleted about 30 people from my address book. (I have a big book.) Don't you just get tired of maintaining contacts with people who don't seem to care? I certainly do. Out with the old. In with the new! A question: how do YOU decide when a relationship or friendship is dead or nonexistent enough that you delete the person from your book?

See you soon! In the meantime, remember...at least Raymond cares!

Posted 6:51 PM by hx

love again
o elusive, delusive, illusive Love!

i still don't know what it feels like. i don't know if what i feel is what everyone else feels. this is one of the things i always thought made a damn good reason for wanting human beings to be telepathic. it sure would help in getting the intangibles across.

it seems that in all this time, i've only found what love is not, rather than what it is.

love is not abusive.
it is not someone asking you to do things for them in its name.
it is not someone putting you down in its name.
it is not someone beating you up in its name.
it is not someone taking everything you have in its name.
it is not a ticket for expectations.
it is not a demand for gratitude.
it is not lust.
it is not pity.
it is not compassion.
it is not greed.
it is not hunger.
it is not desire.

does it have aspects or bits of these elements in its components? i don't know.

love is not rage.
love is not the desire to hurt.
love is not the desire for revenge.

sometimes i think i have learned about the nature of love by blocking in the shadows, rather than walking in its light. from the negative that has been done to me, i learn what it is not.

from F, i am slowly, slowly, very slowly learning what it is.
it is so deep.
this patience, this kindness, this gentleness, this caring.
i know what it seems to be, coming from him.
i don't know if my feelings are the same, because i don't know what my feelings are.
i know i feel.. but i have no labels for my feelings.

how does a child know love without being shown it?

i know rage intimately well. fear. spite. malice. the desire to hurt and destroy and bring down into nothing. bitterness, loneliness, desperation. these things the world has shown me well. not of mine own origin, but of those who were thrown into my path. but they demonstrated their points very well.

only F...

one broken child clinging to another... we two cripples, learning to walk by imitating each other. was the world trying to make up for our pasts, by giving us to each other in our present?

only F...

is this gratitude i feel a part of love?

Posted 8:52 AM by Blah blah

The Shear Stress of Our Love

From RBJ, the topic: Love Lessons.

Phil said:

"My heartbreaks have strengthened me emotionally - much like conditioning my shins by kicking a heavy bag. The micro fractures caused by the impact heal to make my shins tougher.

Though much like my shins, my emotions have since numbed a bit and my feelings are no longer as extreme. While I feel emotionally stronger and less prone to the extremities of heartbreak, I find myself no longer feeling the highs offered by deep infatuation and blind romance."

I was inspired to reply, Halo. REALLY really, Ellen! :D
___________
"Microfractures"? Sounds like you took materials science, Phil.
Here's my song for you:

The Shear Stress of Our Love

I am on the grain boundary,
Not knowin' whether to live or dieeee...,
My love has grown epitaxially,
And nobody knows how or whyyyyy...

I am developin' a "creep resistance"...
I've reached the limits of my lattice constraints.
My heart is up to 10% porosity,
All this torsion just ain't worth the paaaains!

I can't take more of this and just feel duuuumb,
We've gotta walk away to save us from
The shear stress of our looooove,
Oh BABY, yeah...the shear stress of our looooove!

[Goes wild on the electric guitar.]

(In looking up words for this poem, I found that materials science actually has a lot of references to sex. Who would have known?)

Thus have I learned about love:

Talk not of wasted affection, affection never was wasted.
If it enrich not the heart of another, its waters, returning
Back to their springs, like the rain, still fill them full of refreshment;
That which the fountain sends forth returns again to the fountain.

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, "Evangeline" (pt. II, st. 1)

Posted 3:02 AM by Anonymous

So, my very gay cousin just called me. Finally. And we’re supposed to meet up for drinks over the weekend. I have to admit, I’m quite looking forward to it.

OK, the fact that he’s gay has never been, naturally, alluded to. Afterall, we’re a traditional, very Catholic family living in conservative ol’ Malaysia. Even though everyone KNOWS he’s gay, we don’t actually say so to his face and he never claims (or denies, come to think of it) to be so. It’s probably the biggest well-known secret in the family.

For years, people have always made fun of him. It’s almost the norm here – to make fun that is, of gay people, darker skinned people, fat people, mentally challenged people, generally anyone who’s “different”. It never used to faze me. After all, I didn’t know any better. But after I went away ... well, I remember coming back that first summer and hearing someone in the family making a joke about his feminine, disgusting ways. Calling him something along the lines of a big poof ... I was offended. I was. And upset.

But I still didn’t actually think I’d like to be friends with him. Cousin of mine though he may have been, he was still too odd, too easy to mock, too easy to look at and feel superior to because I was normal. In a way, I was as guilty as the rest of my family of prejudice and double standards.

Cut to the present. A wiser, more tolerant me. A me who’s been humbled by the fact that I too can be mocked by others simply because I was from a foreign land or because I didn’t have the perfect size 6 body. A me who appreciates now the differences in others, and not the familiar. Also, a me who’s a little lonely. A me who hung out with him at another cousin’s wedding and found him to be the most entertaining person there. A me who found that I could talk to him about clothes and fashion and beauty and hot men.

A me who’s changed my mind about the way I judge people, gay or otherwise.

So, I’m meeting him for drinks this weekend. And I am. Really looking foward to it.

Posted 7:37 PM by DUH

Top 10 Jeopardy! Dream Categories

Speaking of game shows, I love Jeopardy!. Lately, I haven't been seeing it on air in the local cable channels here in Manila. I really don't know if it's still in existence. Anyone know? Yeah, I miss Alex Trebek and the Jeopardy theme: tan-ne-nan-tan-tan-nen-nan-tan-nen-na-tan-ten-tenanenanen. . .

So what's my point? One of my favorite authors, Douglas Coupland, wrote a book titled "Microserfs." The main character is Daniel, a smart-as-a-whip tester/bug checker at Microsoft. And he came up with the idea of Jeopardy! dream categories. Here's an excerpt:

"I am danielu@microsoft.com. If my life was a game of Jeopardy! my seven dream categories would be:

*Tandy products
*Trash TV of the late 70s and early 80s
*The history of Apple
*Career anxieties
*Tabloids
*Plant life of the Pacific Northwest
*Jell-O 1-2-3"

At the moment, my own top ten Jeopardy! dream categories would be:

1. Douglas Coupland
2. Award winning advertising campaigns
3. Beauty Products
4. Self-help Jargon
5. Shoe Fetish
6. Coffee Mania
7. Pop Psychology for the Millennium
8. Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus
9. Design 100
10. Acid Jazz Artists

What's yours?

Posted 7:54 AM by j.

Trivia
So, Raymond asked me when I'd write here again. It's been quite a while, and I told him that I felt too awed by the other co-writers since they're so good, so he told me to feel free to write something trivial.

Ahh...trivial..just my cup of tea. Heh. But instead of trivial, why not talk about trivia instead. Do you like trivia? Are you the sort of person who tunes in to Jeopardy or Who Wants to be a Millionaire and can actually give the correct answer to the questions? It's weird how the brain can pick up all sorts of interesting stuff even if you don't order it to. Trivia. All the little pieces of information that you know you absolutely have no use for, unless you're planning to join game shows, but get stuck in your brain anyway.

So just for fun, let's test your braintrapping skills! Post your answers in the comment box and the winner gets to be queen/king for the day. Heh.

1. Who was the first actor to be given a posthumous Oscar award?

2. What does James bond drink, and how does he take it?

3. Who was the first lady who led the first televised tour of the White House?

4. Who was the first African-American news co-anchor on a local US TV station?

5. Who appeared on the first cover of "Rolling Stone" magazine, which debuted on November 9, 1967?

6. This is the symbol for tin.

7. Which state was briefly known as "The Bear Flag Republic"?

8. How much internal memory did the early personal computer, the Sinclair ZX80, have?

9. Which river contains the most fresh water?

10. Name the world's most photographed and most climbed mountain.

Have fun!

Posted 6:42 PM by hx

it comes swiftly

i was looking through some old photos and was struck by the changes time has wrought. it's hard to imagine that some of these faces no longer exist, are dust and ashes in some cold urn on a bricked-up shelf.

the hardest photos to look at are those of my father in the last year or so before his death. he was always large, loud and vigorous. the cancer left him a wisp, a shell i could have lifted with one finger. all the cliches you read in books are true. in the last months, the light of his life burned so fiercely in his eyes. they shone so brightly, as if to make up for the flesh that was being stripped from his bones. that life still burns in those photos. it's hard to reconcile those last photos with the man i remember from my childhood, or the man i know now, post-death. i can never look at those photos for long, because of the terrible pity they arouse in me.

i don't really have any photos of my old boss, C. he was the nicest man in the whole place, and the sharks all looked down on him and made fun of him behind his back because he didn't behave as meanly as they did. he gave me my job, took a chance on me when no one else did, and he was always decent to me. the first time he had to scold me for something i screwed up, he did it so gently that i didn't even realize how serious my mistake was until years later. not a year after i left, he was dead of cancer, completely unexpectedly. i wish i could have been there for his goodbyes.

unreal. we're old, but not that old. certainly not at the age where we should be thinking about death, not in our generation. but already i have lost... how many people from my years in school? freak accidents, cancer... not things you expect.

i looked at T's photos. they were easier to look at than those of my father, because these were from back in the old days, when we were all fresh and young and healthy. or thought we were healthy. i didn't know him all that well. he was from a rich family and popular, and good-looking to boot. yet he was always very humble and nice, and never put on airs. apart from being schoolmates, the one thing we had in common was our birthdays - we shared the same date of birth, and when we found that out we laughed about it. now one of us is no longer here. i look at his photos and i can't quite grasp that he's no longer on this earth. perhaps it would have been more real if i had been back home for the funeral. as it was, i only heard about it through the old grapevine.

i wish i could have been there to say goodbye, even though we never knew each other that well. death makes us all comrades by default.

sometimes i'm very reluctant to go back home. i don't want to see how much things have changed from what i remember. i don't want to see the beautiful boys i used to have crushes on turned into men with greying hair and potbellies, mortgages and three kids. time creeps up on us so swiftly, and sometimes it seems that the only ones who remain the same are ourselves, or the dead.

(i know, i did it again. i'm just not very good at not being angsty when i try to think of something to write. sowwiee!! :)

Posted 6:21 PM by hx

spam

since we're on a monty python kick, i just have to take the opportunity to say that I Like Spam!

no, not junk email. i mean the stuff in cans :)

i don't understand why it's so reviled. i suppose it's terribly unhealthy and poor quality meat or something, but... i can't help it. i like spam. i just had some for lunch, so i suppose the monty python post was fortuitous :)

of course i also like pork rinds and the sound of nails on a chalkboard, so i guess my taste is never going to be mainstream :)

on the opposite tack - things people like which i don't. classic example : why do so many people think brad pitt is cute? i don't find him attractive at all. in Interview with the Vampire he looked like he had mumps; his jaw stuck out so much. then again, most people seem to think jennifer aniston is attractive too, and i don't see that at all either...

Back to Monty : oddly enough, i've never watched Monty Python. not a single episode. and my best friend was a total Monty Python fan, too. but somehow we just never got around to watching some tapes together.

there's a british sitcom i really loved, and i cannot for the life of me remember what it was called. the main character was a painter, and he used to go to a pub with this rather funny big bartender who had sticky-outy teeth and bug eyes. uh. anyone know what i'm talking about? it had a really nice theme song too...

(see what kind of silly entries i post when i try not to be angsty??? :)

Posted 3:54 PM by Blah blah

Monty Python and British Comedy

Do you guys like Monty Python, the wacky six member British comedy group that had Britain and the English-speaking world rolling on their "apple butts" with laughter from 1969-1974 till now? I think they are a riot! Sharper, faster, weirder, and more intelligent than a lot of American stuff. I LOVE a lot of British TV comedy, especially shows like that science fiction comedy Red Dwarf, which is supposed to become a movie soon.

Some of my favorite British comedy shows are: Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, Mr. Bean, Black Adder, "Yes, Minister," Chef!, and Coupling (like Friends, but sexier and funnier). If you've never tried any of these, you are seriously missing out! And that's NOT funny.

Here's a skit from a collection of Monty Python scripts. And Now For Something Completely Different...
________________
Title: Argument Sketch
From: Monty Python's Flying Circus

A man walks into an office.

Man (John Cleese): Good morning, I'd like to have an argument, please.

Receptionist: Certainly, sir. Have you been here before?

Man: No, this is my first time.

Receptionist: I see, well we'll see who's free at the moment.
Mr. Bakely's free, but he's a little bit concilliatory. No.
Try Mr. Barnhart, room 12.

Man: Thank you.


He enters room 12.


Angry man: WHADDAYOU WANT?

Man: Well, Well, I was told outside that...

Angry man: DON'T GIVE ME THAT, YOU SNOTTY-FACED EVIL PAN OF DROPPINGS!

Man: What?

A: SHUT YOUR FESTERING GOB, YOU TIT! YOUR TYPE MAKES ME PUKE! YOU VACUOUS
STUFFY-NOSED MALODOROUS PERVERT!!!

M: Yes, but I came here for an argument!!

A: OH! Oh! I'm sorry! This is abuse!

M: Oh! Oh I see!

A: Aha! No, you want room 12A, next door.

M: Oh...Sorry...

A: Not at all!

A: (under his breath) stupid git.


The man goes into room 12A. Another man is sitting behind a desk.


Man: Is this the right room for an argument?

Other Man:(pause) I've told you once.

Man: No you haven't!

Other Man: Yes I have.

M: When?

O: Just now.

M: No you didn't!

O: Yes I did!

M: You didn't!

O: I did!

M: You didn't!

O: I'm telling you, I did!

M: You didn't!

O: Oh I'm sorry, is this a five minute argument, or the full half hour?

M: Ah! (taking out his wallet and paying) Just the five minutes.

O: Just the five minutes. Thank you.

O: Anyway, I did.

M: You most certainly did not!

O: Now let's get one thing perfectly clear: I most definitely told you!

M: Oh no you didn't!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: Oh no you didn't!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: Oh no you didn't!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: Oh no you didn't!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: Oh no you didn't!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: Oh no you didn't!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: No you DIDN'T!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: No you DIDN'T!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: No you DIDN'T!

O: Oh yes I did!

M: Oh look, this isn't an argument!

(pause)

O: Yes it is!

M: No it isn't!

(pause)

M: It's just contradiction!

O: No it isn't!

M: It IS!

O: It is NOT!

M: You just contradicted me!

O: No I didn't!

M: You DID!

O: No no no!

M: You did just then!

O: Nonsense!

M: (exasperated) Oh, this is futile!!

(pause)

O: No it isn't!

M: Yes it is!

(pause)

M: I came here for a good argument!

O: AH, no you didn't, you came here for an argument!

M: An argument isn't just contradiction.

O: Well! it CAN be!

M: No it can't!

M: An argument is a connected series of statement intended to establish a proposition.

O: No it isn't!

M: Yes it is! 'tisn't just contradiction.

O: Look, if I *argue* with you, I must take up a contrary position!

M: Yes but it isn't just saying "no it isn't".

O: Yes it is!

M: No it isn't!

O: Yes it is!

M: No it isn't!

O: Yes it is!

M: No it ISN'T! Argument is an intellectual process. Contradiction is just
the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says.

O: It is NOT!

M: It is!

O: Not at all!

M: It is!


The Arguer hits a bell on his desk and stops.


O: Thank you, that's it.

M: (stunned) What?

O: That's it. Good morning.

M: But I was just getting interested!

O: I'm sorry, the five minutes is up.

M: That was never five minutes!!

O: I'm afraid it was.

M: (leading on) No it wasn't.....

O: I'm sorry, I'm not allowed to argue any more.

M: WHAT??

O: If you want me to go on arguing, you'll have to pay for another five minutes.

M: But that was never five minutes just now!
Oh Come on!
Oh this is...
This is ridiculous!

O: I told you...
I told you, I'm not allowed to argue unless you PAY!

M: Oh all right. (takes out his wallet and pays again.) There you are.

O: Thank you.

M: (clears throat) Well...

O: Well WHAT?

M: That was never five minutes just now.

O: I told you, I'm not allowed to argue unless you've paid!

M: Well I just paid!

O: No you didn't!

M: I DID!!!

O: YOU didn't!

M: I DID!!!

O: YOU didn't!

M: I DID!!!

O: YOU didn't!

M: I DID!!!

O: YOU didn't!

M: I-dbct-fd-tq! I don't want to argue about it!

O: Well I'm very sorry but you didn't pay!

M: Ah hah! Well if I didn't pay, why are you arguing??? Ah HAAAAAAHHH!
Gotcha!

O: No you haven't!

M: Yes I have!
If you're arguing, I must have paid.

O: Not necessarily.
I *could* be arguing in my spare time.

M: I've had enough of this!

O: No you haven't.

(door slam)

Posted 3:03 PM by Blah blah

It's Official: The Economy Stinks

Yahoo! Finance Update:
"The markets got slaughtered Friday as the Dow, the Nasdaq, and the S&P 500 closed at new lows for the year. In fact, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 closed at their worst levels since 1997. The Dow Industrials, which closed just over the 8,000 mark, finished at its worst level since October of 1998...
Dow component Johnson & Johnson (JNJ -16.2%) contributed to the pronounced weakness in the averages. The company announced Friday morning that U.S. regulators are conducting an investigation it believes is related to alleged fraudulent record-keeping at a Puerto Rico plant. That plant makes Eprex, the firm's anemia drug that has been linked to serious side effects. While the drug doesn't contribute substantially to JNJ's revenue, worries regarding potential liability served to place pressure on the shares...

Separately, results from Sun Microsystems (SUNW -26.7%) released Thursday night also contributed to the negative market tone. The company lost more than one quarter of its value Friday after it reported in line fourth quarter results, and subsequently reduced its guidance for fiscal 2003. In the wake of its report, CSFB downgraded SUNW to Hold from Buy citing cautious guidance, and inconsistent global IT spending patterns... In the face of broad market sell pressure, the defensively oriented Gold & Silver Index was strong Friday as the XAU managed a 1.1% one-day gain. The relative strength was not entirely surprising as in times of broad market uncertainty, many traders move towards gold in a flight to quality...

Looking towards the week ahead, there are a few potential catalysts worth mentioning. On the economic front, the schedule is relatively light as second-tier reports clutter the schedule. Yet outside of the economic activity, corporate earnings reports will be the real driver of market direction. With the overwhelming number of reports due next week, catalysts are likely to come from some unexpected sources."

Dow Falls 390 Points, Tumbles to Post-Sept. 11th Lows (Yahoo Full Coverage).

Adding to Loss of Investments, a Loss of Faith in the Market (NY Times).

Treasuries Higher as Stock Markets Plunge (Reuters).

2 Brokers Offer Warm Comfort in a Cold Market (NY Times).

Who Can Crow In This Market? Short-Selling Pros Sitting Pretty (Investor's Business Daily):

Diving for stock opportunities in the pile of wreckage (CBS MarketWatch).

Repositioning for a market upswing (CBS MarketWatch).

Posted 11:25 AM by Blah blah

What I Look For in a Woman

Here's what I seek or have sought in an "ideal" girl. It's my "LIST." I stress that this is IDEAL and I am willing to accept and work with differences from it.

Since I know several girls, mostly taken, who fit most or all of these qualities, I don't think my requirements are THAT super demanding. I've thought about my list very carefully and wrote it after lots of soul-searching. Like Jenny Cu says, everything on these lists is there for a reason. I've tried to cut out optional stuff and put only REQUIRED stuff or very common patterns for me in girls I date.

I believe that everyone should have a "list." Yes, we must be flexible, patient, and tolerant with each other, especially after we get married. Yay for great patience. However, we still need to clearly understand ourselves and what qualities work with us. It saves time and heartache in finding our mates. It relieves some uncertainty and helps prevent us from being fully swept up in someone's sexual attraction or the emotion of a moment.

I've known guys who really had no clue what they wanted, who went after any girl they found cute. In the end, they are unhappy but don't know why, waste lots of energy trying to change the girl, and leave with a sour taste. I find it much better to find the essential qualities in a girl there to start with.

Here are, in a nutshell,

MY FAVORITE WOMEN.

It's hard to find people with whom I can have really great (wide-ranging, deep, funny) conversations, who really try to understand who I am and are articulate and expressive themselves. That's one of the main traits I find attractive. I see so little of it in normal life.

Another major trait is someone who inspires me. How she deals with adversity and tragedy, how she organizes or works towards her ambitions in life, despite her weaknesses. This type of person makes me want to become a better person.

Also, someone who appreciates me (in all aspects) and sees the good and potential in me, instead of dwelling on the negative or the present. She must have imagination. Again, this is very attractive.
_____________
Short version of my lists...

FOR INITIAL ATTRACTION:

1) Cuteness
2) Communication skills, especially with ME. Skill to make witty banter with me.
3) Intelligence (book and street smarts)
4) A good and easy laugh
5) An artistic side and way of viewing life
6) Maturity

WOMEN I LIKE DATING TEND TO BE: [These are details I've noticed, from my past history.]

- Artistic.
- Romantic.
- Very feminine, but with substantial inner strength for the troubles of life.
- Laughing often with a delightful voice, even at my poor attempts to be funny. Good at telling a riproaring story herself.
- Empathic, with great insight into people.
- Maybe a little shy with strangers but can open up completely to me.
- Willing to try new, crazy schemes for fun, or at least consider them with a wink.
- Working in marketing, media/journalism, health care, sales, finance, science, technology, education, fashion, or the liberal arts.
- A travel-bug who thinks spending two weeks with me in India or Saudi Arabia is a great adventure.
- Foreign-born. (Not required, just was that way before.)
- Pretty enough.
- They have a sense of style. Know how to dress. Tend to like fashion magazines like In Style or Vogue.

LONG-TERM QUALITIES:

1. Courage and self-confidence
2. Maturity
3. Cheerfulness and optimism
4. Curiosity and sense of humor
5. Energy and liveliness
6. Loyalty, determination, and dedication
7. Style and fashion
8. Capacity to inspire
9. Good communication skills and ability to banter with me
10. MOST importantly, appreciation of and chemistry with me

I divided it into three parts, because that's how we approach potential girlfriends. There's the initial attraction, where a guy makes the crucial decision to go for a girl or not.

Then there's the "beginning to date" stage. I have a pattern of dating girls that fit this middle list. But I stress that these things, like being "foreign-born," are not absolute requirements. Actually, I've met some great American-born girls this year.

Finally, I list the "long-term qualities" that make me want to keep the fire burning with someone. I really want this in a wife.

Let me explain each.

For Initial Attraction

1. Cuteness. I have a wide range of looks I consider physically attractive. Compared to some of my guy friends, I am actually less demanding in the looks department. The girl with whom I had a three-year relationship would be considered "overweight" by Asian standards. I didn't care. She was so wonderful in everything else, that her chubbiness actually grew sexy to me. Sigh. I have a lot of women friends I consider "pretty." If you look in my photo album or have seen some of the girls' pictures in this blog, you'll get my idea of what I mean by "cute."

2. Communication skills. Since I love to listen, write, and speak, I find any woman who does these things well instantly more attractive. But it's not being a master of eloquence or English grammar. What's more important is how well we communicate with each OTHER. Whether we have that easy wit, the give-and-take of a fast tennis match, the ability to stop talking on a dime and blink those baby eyes and just LISTEN to each other. A perceptive, highly responsive listener is one of the most flattering and attractive things I know on earth. Of course I equally try to listen with the same intensity and 100%
concentration.

3. Intelligence. Both book and street smarts, preferably. A little sophistication about how the world works shows curiosity and an interest in life outside ME ME ME. Emotional and social intelligence is a must. I love people who are sensitive to non-verbal communication and know how to enjoy themselves in any social setting. Curiosity is also a must. No one is more boring than a person without curiosity, without the continual desire to learn, who thinks she knows it all.

4. Laughter and cheerfulness. Having grown up in a negative family, and having been surrounded by pessimists, I don't want any draining, depressing relationships. Having the wacky sense of humor I do, and being an optimist, I look for someone who shares that romantic, quirky view of life and who greets you and negative situations with a twinkle in her eye. Someone who laughs easily will enjoy the ride. Someone who's uptight will spoil it.

5. Artistic side. I have an artistic nature. That writer's view of life is an essential part of my being. Yes, I can sometimes be dreamy, but then I was a chemical engineer, one of the most practical ugly majors around. If a woman doesn't have an artistic view of life, she takes things more literally, gets upset by conventional problems like waiting in long lines, gets bored easily when she has free time, etc. She lacks the ability to transcend the humdrum of everyday life. She lacks romance. Plus she probably doesn't dress with style.

6. Maturity. Mainly I seek emotional maturity. The ability to deal with all sorts of unpredictable mishaps in life, to stay calm and look at problems with perspective, to bounce back smiling from failure, to keep promises, to deal well with various types of people, and to show leadership qualities. Intellectual maturity is also a plus. Having studied something with some depth, being a thoughtful person who likes to read, and being a good listener.

I Tend to Date This Type

1, 2. Artistic and romantic. Explained above. I am not a sappy romantic. Too much drippy sentiment is nauseous. Subtle and quiet romance is best.

3. Feminine. I do not like to date "masculine" women, whether they are super businesslike, very competitive, abrupt speakers, or speak coarsely and rudely, etc. I don't find them romantic or relaxing, plus I wonder if they will ever find five minutes to fit me into their schedules. A girl with a soft voice is also a turn-on. As you know from reading this blog, I love women who push themselves to their maximum potential, who challenge themselves to be better. You can be ambitious but still be girly and feminine.

4. Laughs easily. Covered above. If she can tell funny stories herself, that's a big plus. I don't know many girls who are good at telling them.

5. Empathic. EQ, or emotional intelligence. Covered above. Since I call myself the "male Oprah" and am an amateur psychologist, it's a pleasure to find someone who understands what makes people tick. It also makes life with someone that much easier.

6. Can open up completely to me. I've known a lot of "shy" girls who act completely boldly and non-shy with me. If she can show vulnerability and openness, that's the main way to forge that deep emotional bond with someone. If she's very suspicious and cautious about revealing who she is or how she feels, forget it. Next.

7. Adventurous. Life is a risk. To enjoy and get the most from it, we need to be courageous, do things without all the information, and be the naughty rebel sometimes. That means both physically and emotionally adventurous.

8. Working in... Don't take this list of fields that literally. I tend to like and get along well with scientists, marketers, journalists, teachers, and artists (fashion designers, entertainers, writers, singers). That girl I was with for three years was a chemist. Accountants? No thanks.

9. Enjoys adventurous travel. When I travel, I talk shamelessly to strangers, try all the local languages and cuisines, endure physical discomfort for the sake of interesting experiences, and so on. Life itself is the most adventurous journey we could ever take. If she has no joy for travel or adventure, she might as well go back to her convent.

10. Foreign-born. Again, not a requirement. I just tend to get along well with foreigners. I dated a girl from Italy before. A French woman with whom I had dinner last year said I have a more European way of thinking. Most of my friends tend to be from big cosmopolitan cities (Paris, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Shanghai, Seoul, Manila, Taipei, etc.) I lived in International House Berkeley for four years, dealing with people from over 60 countries.

11. Looks. Again, cute is enough. Not sizzlingly beautiful. Of course I won't complain if she's a hottie. But we all have our beautiful days and our ugly days, our times when we look like a mess. I understand that and don't judge women by that standard of appearance all the time. I know how much work women must go through to stay beautiful and kissable. Guys too!

12. Fashion sense. Style. This relates to being artistic. For women who wear jeans, T-shirts, or sneakers on a date---sorry, please go back to the drawing board. The women I like tend to like fashion magazines and women's magazines. One of my Filipina women friends is actually an image consultant on the side. She helps women look more beautiful. That said, I'm not exactly the most stylish guy. But I keep working at it and like to dress nicely. Ask Sandy (*wink*).

Long-Term Qualities

I've explained them here in detail. Some overlap with those above.

So you see, I'm picky but not unrealistically picky. When I do meet girls like these, I get their numbers right away.

For some other people's lists of their ideal girl/guy, here are

- Phlin's list (his name is Paul)
- Sonially's list
- Jenny Cu's "perfect guy" list
- Bruinwill's "perfect girl" list. See how much more reasonable I am? *Wink*

Posted 11:25 AM by Blah blah

Unica Hija, I agree with much of this and wish I could live up to its ideals (which I don't). Thank you very much for posting it! :D

1. ABSOLUTELY. The number one cause of conflict is trying to get the other person to change to fit your liking (or having someone try to change you.) See if you can live with his or her faults NOW.

2. True, for the long-term. Someone who's a good laugh but who never shows up or calls is no deal.

3. I'll pass on this. I don't think you feel strongly about this "Jewish intimacy" either, U H.

4. I think this has been the main cause of my breakups. We may get along well and be attracted to each other, but our goals and priorities are askew.

5. I see that happening. Not to me.

6. This definitely has happened to me. Being an NF (Myers-Briggs) type, I cannot go long for flash without emotional substance.

7. I see it happening to others. And yeah, when someone incessantly nags and criticizes you, goodbye safety net!

8. Very perceptive. I have been guilty of this.

9. Yes. We need to have that sense of our own identity and strength before we can maturely get together with someone. But then we also need to have a longing, a gap somewhere, to justify us seeking a partner in the first place! We can't be TOO aloof and independent.

10. Yes. Triangles tend to happen to me. :(

Posted 6:36 AM by DUH

A fellow single friend sent me this e-mail (which, interestingly, I noticed, was forwarded to her by her ex). I found myself nodding as I went through it. I think other singles will get a lot from it. I don't know the source (there are references to Jewish practices) and I don't agree with everything it says, but it does have nuggets of very important advice. Take with a grain of salt. : )

With the divorce rate over 50 percent, too many are apparently making a serious mistake in deciding who to spend the rest of their life with. To avoid becoming a "statistic," try to internalize these 10 insights.

#1. You pick the wrong person because you expect him/her to change after you're married.

The classic mistake. Never marry potential. The golden rule is, if you can't be happy with the person the way he or she is now, don't get married. As a colleague of mine so wisely put it, "You actually can expect people to change after their married... for the worst!"

So when it comes to the other person's spirituality, character, personal hygiene, communication skills, and personal habits, make sure you can live with these as they are now.

#2. You pick the wrong person because you focus more on chemistry than on character.

Chemistry ignites the fire, but good character keeps it burning. Beware of the "I'm in love" syndrome. "I'm in love" often means, "I'm in lust." Attraction is there, but have you carefully checked out this person's character?

Here are four character traits to definitely check for:

Humility: Does this person believe that "doing the right thing" is more important than personal comfort?

Do I want to be more like this person? Would I like my child to turn out like him or her?

Kindness: Does this person enjoy giving pleasure to other people? How does s/he treat people s/he doesn't have to be nice to? Does s/he do volunteer work? Give charity?

Responsibility: Can I depend on this person to do what s/he says s/he's going to do?

Happiness: Does this person like himself? Does s/he enjoy life? Is s/he emotionally stable?

Ask yourself: Do I want to be more like this person? Do I want to have a child with this person? Would I like my child to turn out like him or her?

#3. You pick the wrong person because the man doesn't understand what a woman needs most.

Men and women have unique emotional needs, and more often than not, it is the man who just doesn't "get it." Jewish tradition places the onus on the man to understand the emotional needs of a woman and to satisfythem.

The unique need of a woman is to be loved -- to feel that she is the most important person in her husband's life. The husband needs to give her consistent, quality attention.

This is most apparent in Judaism's approach to sexual intimacy. The Torah obligates the husband to meet the sexual needs of his wife. Sexual intimacy is always on the woman's terms. Men are goal-oriented, especially when it comes this area. As a wise woman once pointed out, "Men have two speeds: on and off." Women are experience-oriented. When a man is able to switch gears and become more experience-oriented, he will discover what makes his wife very happy. When the man forgets about his own needs and focuses on giving his wife pleasure, amazing things happen.

#4. You choose the wrong person because you do not share a common life goals and priorities.

There are three basic ways we connect with another person:

1. Chemistry and compatibility

2. Share common interests

3. Share common life goal

Make sure you share the deeper level of connection that sharing life goals provide. After marriage, the two of you will either grow together or grow apart. To avoid growing apart, you must figure out what you're "living for," while you're single -- and then find someone who has come to the same conclusion as you.

This is the true definition of a "soul mate." A soul mate is a goal mate-- two people who ultimately share the same understanding of life's purpose and therefore share the same priorities, values and goals.

#5. You choose the wrong person because you get involved sexually too quickly.

Sexual involvement before the commitment of marriage can be a big problem because it often precludes a fully honest exploration of important issues. Sexual involvement tends to cloud one's mind. And a clouded mind is not inclined to make good decisions.

Of all the studies done on divorce, sexual incompatibility is never cited as a main factor. It is not necessary to take a "test drive" in order to find out if a couple is sexually compatible. If you do your homework and make sure you are intellectually and emotionally compatible, you don't have to worry about sexual compatibility. Of all the studies done on divorce, sexual incompatibility is never cited as a main reason why people divorce.

#6. You pick the wrong person because you do not have a deeper emotional connection with this person.

To evaluate whether you have a deeper emotional connection or not, ask: "Do I respect and admire this person?"

This does not mean, "Am I impressed by this person?" We are impressed by a Mercedes. We do not respect someone because they own a Mercedes. You should be impressed by qualities of creativity, loyalty, determination, etc.

Also ask: "Do I trust this person?" This also means, "Is he/she emotionally stable? Do I feel I can rely on him/her?

#7. You pick the wrong person because you choose someone with whom you don't feel emotionally safe.

Ask yourself the following questions: Do I feel calm, peaceful and relaxed with this person? Can I fully be myself and express myself with this person? Does this person make me feel good about myself? Do you have a really close friend who does make you feel this way? Make sure the person you marry makes you feel the same way!

Are you afraid of this person in any way? You should not feel you need to monitor what you say because you are afraid of how the other person will view it. If you're afraid to express your feelings and opinions openly, there's a problem with the relationship.

Be on the look out for someone who is always trying to change you.

Another aspect of feeling safe is that you don't feel the other person is trying to control you. Controlling behaviors are a sign of an abusive person. Be on the look out for someone who is always trying to change you. There's a big difference between "controlling" and "making suggestions." A suggestion is made for your benefit; a control statement is made for their benefit.

#8. You pick the wrong person because you don't put everything on the table.

Anything that bothers you about the relationship must be brought up for discussion. Bringing up the uncomfortable stuff is the only way to evaluate how well the two of you communicate, negotiate, and work together. Over the course of a lifetime, difficulties will inevitably arise. You need to know now, before making a commitment: Can you resolve your differences and find compromises that work for both of you?

Never be afraid to let the person know what bothers you. This is also a way for you to test how vulnerable you can be with this person. If you can't be vulnerable, then you can't be intimate. The two go hand in hand.

#9. You pick the wrong person because you use the relationship to escape from personal problems and unhappiness.

If you are unhappy and single, you'll probably be unhappy and married,too. If you are unhappy and single, you'll probably be unhappy and married, too. Marriage does not fix personal, psychological and emotional problems. If anything, marriage will exacerbate them. If you are not happy with yourself and your life, take responsibility to fix it now while you are single. You'll feel better, and your future spouse will thank you.

#10. You pick the wrong person because he/she is involved in a triangle.

To be "triangulated" means a person is emotionally dependent on someone or something else while trying to develop another relationship. A person who hasn't separated from his or her parents is the classic example of triangulation. People can also be triangulated with things as well, such as work, drugs, Internet, hobbies, sports or money.

Be careful that you and your partner are free of triangles. The person caught in the triangle cannot be fully emotionally available to you. You will not be their number one priority. And that's no basis for a marriage.

Posted 11:55 AM by hx

kind of makes you want to stay away from doctors, huh?

Dr Death : extry extry, read all about it :)

Posted 11:35 AM by hx

Since Raymond is going to make fun of me, I might as well give him more fuel for the fire :P
Today's random idiocy :

meaningless
why is it that when i'm not AT the keyboard, my brain is full of thoughts about the things i want to write about, but when i'm finally sitting down at the puter and have time to ramble... i can't remember any of it???

typical conversational snippet between F (my partner) and myself :

Me : "Ooh, ooh! i have something to tell you!"
F : "yeah? what?"
Me : "Uh... um... uh... i forgot *blush*"
F : "Uh huh. i thought so."

:")

this actually happens rather often :")

Posted 9:06 AM by Blah blah

Dental Eureka

I'm going to the dentist today. In that spirit I print this post by Halo, so you know more about what kind of talented, intelligent people you are reading here:

"i just discovered for the first time the other day that you can open up a box of dental floss. i never knew that. i know, this is really stupid. but it was a Discovery, damnit! :)

it was the first time i lost the end of my floss. it vanished inside the little box and i was staring at it and thinking, "Oh. Great. Now what?!" and i was just starting to laugh when something made me try to pry it open.

i was completely taken by surprise when the front of the box just opened up perfectly easily. i should have guessed that the companies would have prepared for this sort of situation.

heh :)"

All of the people who have been staring at that broccoli in your teeth, day in and day out, thank you.

Reminds me of the time I was helping this scientist girl move to an apartment. She was a biologist who had graduated from Beijing University, gotten her PhD from Duke, and worked as a research assistant at UC San Francisco studying eyeballs. I was carrying a box of her stuff to my car:

Me: Boy, this box is big. Let's take this through the garage instead of the front door.
She: Well I don't think we can open the garage door. We need a key or something.
Me: Let's see...[goes into garage, pushes the button, and door opens]. Like that!
She: WOW! How did you do that?
Me: [scratches head] Haven't you ever opened the garage door?
She: I never tried it. I always just use the front door. That's incredible!
Me: I'll say [shakes head]. How long have you been renting a room in this house?
She: Oh, a few months.

(When I went into her bedroom, by the way, she had barely packed and hadn't even unhooked her computer. She ended up throwing a lot of her clothes in big plastic bags and putting a partially opened bottle of soy sauce into my car, which spilled over the foot rug.) The types of women I meet! And yeah, she was older.

Posted 7:11 PM by Blah blah

In the spirit of tremendous laziness, I reprint this entry I wrote last April:

Dating Requirements

First, how could we ever forget crazy Mary, the Gentle, Strong, Seeks Chivalrous Agnostic or Atheist woman? [Check her out. She will drive you nuts with her lawyer's brief disguised as a personal ad.]

Breakupgirl [now out of business] writes her (imaginary) Big Daddy of dating requirements:

Otherwise easygoing SF, 29, in urban environment near excellent day school and gourmet supermarket with world-class cheese selection, seeks 31 to 36 year-old, Ivy League grad (except Penn), at least 5' 10", maximum 180 lbs., manageable hair, Fight Club physique (pec to waist ratio .33). Fiscal conservative/social liberal. Profession: law, medicine, banking, Internet (post-IPO); company must have groundbreaking paternity leave policy. Acceptable college majors: Economics, East Asian Studies, Pre-Med (no Theatre). Hobbies: eastern philosophies, pan-Asian cooking, puppies (yet still masculine). Conversational/business Japanese a must; also, two romance languages and ability to recite by heart prologue of Canterbury Tales (Ellesmere manuscript). SAT score at least 1550 (math-to-verbal ratio .66). No family history of medical problems (hypertension, osteoporosis, myopia, anemia, acne vulgaris, orthodonture, lazy eye, scoliosis; tennis elbow ok) or mass-market inclinations (angels, "Jekyll and Hyde," Nicholas Sparks, waving outside Today Show). Must be civil to (but not "friends" with) ex-girlfriends (maximum: 2). Informed, witty, self-starter: equally comfortable chatting at state dinners or changing a tire. Please send letter, photo, high school and college transcripts, 3 recommendations (1 academic, 1 professional, 1 non-threatening yet savvy friend-girl) plus two 750-word essays on the topics: (1) "What Foucault's Pendulum Means to Me" and (2) "Why I Always Share My Feelings." As I have no time to date, let's meet and break up over macchiatos. (You forgot to add: "tells the truth during impeachment hearings.")

Breakupgirl, who got dumped herself by her parent company Oxygen Media, [was] my favorite relationship columnist. Walk with me as I shop through some of her (American) readers' requirements:

"I won't date smokers, fundamentalists, guys who hate cities, guys who want kids, guys who have kids, or guys who think 'personal growth' refers to athlete's foot. Know anyone?" -- Fawn (You are so vivid. Hold on, I am still erasing that foot image...)

"I will never date a man who doesn't love pickles." -- Angie (Umm...check!...I think. It's McDonald's tonight, baby!)

"Have a dog; Have short hair. Short hair. Look at a seal to see what I mean by "short." (Actually, here's my super bonus ready-made standard of comparison. "How like Lisa Simpson are you?") -- Londonien (After 7 years of marriage she plans to turn LESBIAN.)

"I date only ranchers and cowboys because they tend to possess the qualities/attributes I want in a man. A professional, 'sensitive' man in Dockers just doesn't do it for me, so I'll leave those guys to the multitudes of women who lust after them. It all works out if we just stick with what makes our heart skip a beat and stay true to ourselves. Gotta have: hat, boots, full-size ext-cab truck, mutt, distaste for cultural activities, and a confident strut in jeans." -- Jennie (Hey Jennie! I have a friend named "Boss Hogg" you should meet...)

"I've realized that he has to want me as badly as I want him. He has to be prepared to make the effort. I'm not going to spend my life with someone I have to persuade. Maybe that's why I'm so damn single. I'm tired of the relationships that made me feel worthless if he didn't wake up next to me each morning unable to believe his luck. I'm lonely -- but I was lonely then, too, really -- and at least now I have my dignity to keep me warm." -- Eleanor (Christine! You already put up your requirements on your own website. Please get off mine... :p)

Hmmm, let's check out some of these requirements of mainland Chinese girls, shall we?:

"Do you know that I’m still waiting for you? I’m looking for you, who love me, coming to find me...I dislike to have so many money, grand house, and luxury car. I want to be loved by you. When you love me, I’m not sure it will be long lasting,. If you happen to meet a new one, I will be off you without any hesitation, for I love you more. You’re happy, so I’m happy, too. However, I expect from the bottom of my heart, that we will be together forever, till someday we will recall our life wonderfully. It is beautiful for me to be loved with your heart and soul. I’m the only daughter of my mother, please do not cheat and hurt me with you mercy. For you’re really doing harm to her. I love my mother." -- Laixi (She's romantic and frugal---plus you get TWO women for the price of one)

"Considerate man." -- Joyce (Short and to the point. Maybe she's really a gay man?)

"l looking a husber i knew a little english and i am studing english hardly
Ideal match: anyone who can accept me as his life partner" -- Pedisan (I keep reading "husber" as "hustler," for some reason. Must be my LASIK. The Ken doll might be a good start. He doesn't talk much either.)

Finally,
"ÄãÐèÒªÒ»¸öÎÂÈáÃÀÀöµÄ¶«·½ÆÞ×ÓÂ𣿶øÁ¢Ö®ÄêµÄÎÒÎÂÈáæµÊ磬 ÉƽâÈËÒ⣬¿ªÀÊ´ó·½£¬ÊǵäÐ͵ÄÏÍÆÞÁ¼Ä¸£¬°®ºÃÒôÀÖ£¬Åëµ÷£¬ÈËÉú·ÉÏ·ç·çÓêÓ꣬ϣÍû½áʶÓÐÔµµÄÄ㣡Çë¸øÎÒÀ´ÐÅ°É£¡³ÉÊìÎÈÖØ£¬»áÌÛ°®ºÍ¹ØÐÄËûµÄ°®ÈË£¬ÓÐÔðÈÎÐĺÍÎȶ¨¾­¼Ã µÄµ¥ÉíÄÐÊ¿¡£ "
-- Mimi (So right! The less you understand, the fewer arguments you have. Ok, hands off! Mimi's MINE!)

[Actually, now I know how to use Babelfish, the computer translation says, roughly:

"Do you need a gentle, beautiful Eastern wife? Here is my gentle Xian Shu, the friendly answer to people's desires, naturally open and bright, a typical good wife and mother, with hobbies like music, cooking, in the person way out the repeated difficulties. She hopes she has a reason to know you! Please send a letter! Wants an unmarried gentleman who is mature and steady, who can dote on and care about his wife, has a sense of responsibility, and is stable economically."]