An funny and excellent article from a chemistry prof.
- posted by Philip

 
An interesting post from Dan.

I wonder who of us hasn't had that feeling that we are just floating around, without a goal in sight. Maybe it's a male thing, but I find that us males are typically goal oriented. We like doing things, and we like achieving goals. And when we aren't achieving goals, we are pretty much miserable, unless we have just come back from achieving a goal.

For example, that happy rest time in between exams. That moment is pure bliss. But that bliss only comes from the achievement of finishing exams.

As for me, I find that life after university seems free form. A break from the guidelines and rules of my previous chapter in life. Now I can do what I want .. when I want.. without a care in the world.

I actually wish that previous statement was true. No.. life is never that simple. But thinking upon what makes me happy, and why I remain happy to this day, is two simple reasons:

1) I find enjoyable yet challenging goals.
2) I have people to share my achievements with.

The first point is pretty obvious. Guys like to find things to do. I figure if I'm not doing anything, I might as well be dead. I find things I like to do .. and I do them when time permits. I can't say that achieving my goals is stress free.. but the bliss that comes from figuring out a difficult problem outweighs the stress.

The second point, that's a bit more subtle. Sometimes I believe that people have relationships for the reason that they now have someone to validate their goals. At least there is someone to say "yay" when you finish something.. or give you that strength to keep trying. This also works vice versa. So there is double the enjoyment of achieving goals.
- posted by Philip

 
The past.

Sitting back in my cozy little chair (this work chair better be cozy, I have spent a great deal of time and effort making it cushy), I was remembering some fun times that I've had.

Driving from Waterloo to Montreal in 2 days with T,
Eating Korean bacon with Daniel,
Grocery shopping with Ho,
Badminton with Trinh.

Great times. I miss Waterloo, not the school itself, but the friends.. and the pseudo-family we had there.

It was great back then.. everyone had the same schedule, we worked hard (oh boy did we work hard)... but given the chance, we played pretty hard too.

So maybe it wasn't the fact that university was super fun, but its the fact that we had fun when given the chance to. Plus there was more opportunity to have fun!

So here's a toast to all me mates. Go out, enjoy life. Hopefully sometime later in life.. we can meet again to have a blast.
- posted by Philip

 
Speakers!

Wood!

FUN!

I'm going to educate myself in the necessary skills to build myself some proper speakers. Been reading too much about audio, and now I've finally bit the bullet to buy all the parts to assemble some serious speakers. I'm even taking classes at a local woodworking shop to relearn how to use the tools of the workshop. This is going to be fun!
- posted by Philip

 
Crazy Crazy Life.

It is an interesting life I lead. For one, I was pretty sure that I wouldn't be in the USA, working for US dollars. Only smart people get to do that.

I also figured that I would be driving some practical car (civic, accord, etc).. not my 200HP white prelude..

I also figured life would be kinda boring.. stay at home.. veg a lot, watch too much tv.. and play too much on the computer. I am actually doing none of that.

So... lesson learned from all of this.. don't bother planning for life. Sometimes it can suprise you in mysterious ways. Don't get pissed off if life isn't going your way, and always be on the lookout for the next opportunity.
- posted by Philip

 
Carl Jung - The Persona Archetype

Ever notice that people that you know, whether they be close friends, or family, seem to behave differently in public? This is known as the Persona Archetype. Persona, in latin, means mask. So the Persona is a mask that we put on as we enter the public domain. It is sometimes subtle, to the point that we, ourselves don't realise that we have this mask on. But the funny thing is that we all put on our mask.

Our mask is a facet of our personality that we wish to present to the public eye. It often aligns well with the instantaneous stereotype that associate when they see on first sight. Sometimes, it can be the false impression we use to manipulate people's opinions and behaviours.

Now the real question. Have you thought about your mask recently? If you had a chance to change your mask, what would it look like?

On a side note to all of this, is perhaps an interesting idea. There is a movie, of which I cannot remember the name, but in essence, the main character has sufferent amnesia, and cannot even remember what his name was. What's interesting about the concept is that his post amnesia persona is different from his pre-amnesia persona, and it basically is confusing all the people he knows. It's interesting to think that the persona that we wear is based on our past experiences, and without those past experiences, our persona changes.
- posted by Philip

 
hello.

it looks like my re-entry into the world of blogging has already been discovered. Boo!. I should have known he would have some sort of utility that tracks when web sites have been updated. I knew that it existed, but then promptly forgot about it. ah well.

so.. i should really set expectations.

don't expect proper spelling, or punctuation, or even capitalization. i'm sometimes too lazy to bother to even hit the shift button. extra calories burnt i say.

don't bother expecting any sort of order, or flow, or even consistant thought pattern. those who know me well, know that i'm pretty much a scatterbrain.

so.. what is this blog about then. hmm. i think i'll write about the random things that happen to me, and the random thoughts i have. sometimes i may respond to posts from friends.
- posted by Philip