Posted 1:30 PM by Blah blah

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Arrgh. You know I'm addicted to writing when I keep writing. Bad boy, Raymond! Stop! STOP.

Today was a pivotal day for the computer industry, as shareholders of HP voted on the merger of HP and Compaq. As of now, voting is still incomplete and too close to call. However, HP CEO Carly Fiorina has claimed victory. Here's a blog of developments in the vote in the Mercury News.

Withdrawal pains from HP-Compaq drama (funny!)
"You'll miss it then.
Miss it? It's like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, except with older people."

I leave you with these lovely poems I just got today from L. They are by the lyrical writer Khalil Gibran:

On Marriage

Love one another but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together, yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.

On Love

When love beckons to you follow him,
Though his ways are hard and steep.
And when his wings enfold you yield to him,
Though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you.
And when he speaks to you believe in him,
Though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.
For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning.
Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun,
So shall he descend to your roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth.
Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself.
He threshes you to make you naked.
He sifts you to free you from your husks.
He grinds you to whiteness.
He kneads you until you are pliant;
And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God's sacred feast.
All these things shall love do unto you that you may know the secrets of your heart, and in that knowledge become a fragment of Life's heart.
But if in your fear you would seek only love's peace and love's pleasure,
Then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love's threshing-floor,
Into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears.
Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.
Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;
For love is sufficient unto love.
When you love you should not say, "God is in my heart," but rather, I am in the heart of God."
And think not you can direct the course of love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.
Love has no other desire but to fulfil itself.
But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires:
To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.
To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And to bleed willingly and joyfully.
To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;
To rest at the noon hour and meditate love's ecstasy;
To return home at eventide with gratitude;
And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.

Posted 3:40 PM by Blah blah

One more thing about the Andersen case. This reads like a TV drama! Talks about why the government decided THIS time to become so impatient and strict with Andersen. And describes what probably happened to cause the massive Enron shredding.

Andersen Misread Depths of the Government's Anger (NY Times):

"Obviously," said one person involved in the case, "the question finally came down to, `How many times do investors have to lose millions of dollars because they relied on Andersen before somebody finally charges them with a crime?' "

Some more plugs. Two ethnically based magazines at which you should look. Fantastic writing.

- Yisei, Korean-American literary student mag at Harvard.
- The Iranian.

This interesting lady, Jaz Gordon, just linked to my Cooking Blog. On her beautiful site, she has her own cooking log and a self-improvement journal. What do you guys think about using an online journal to improve your bad habits? I think it's a wonderful idea and wonder how well it has worked for you personally. Sorry Jaz, I don't feel like recording a regular journal any more, although I still do cook. If you wanna find out what I'm making, y'all have to come over and try it yourself!

Winding down

Well guys, I've been writing for almost a year and a half, and I've had fun. Met a lot of interesting people and got many unusual and rewarding perspectives. Have been moved, angered, dejected, and inspired by you and your lives.

Unfortunately, I have this strong urge to move on and do other things with my time. Work/school is my main focus now, and I realized recently that I need to develop my skills much more if I ever want to get out of the loop I'm in right now---to move on to the next phase of my life.

That takes more time and intense dedication. Online friends are fine, but I still prefer to know people in the flesh and deal with the imperfect but challenging problems of the real world.

I'm not abandoning this journal, but I am seriously cutting down. Maybe once a month. Maybe more when I have something I need to get off my chest. But I will not write regularly here any more, as far as I forsee.

Keep in touch, as always, by phone and email and chat (Yahoo Messenger). I'll be here and sometimes on the Rice Bowl Journals Discussion Boards.

And if we are ever gonna be in the same part of the country at the same time, please let me know. Let's drink and talk great dreams together. I'll post here if something major happens. Au revoir for now!

Warm wishes,
Raymond