J.C.T.

Photo

Sun, 12 May 2013 21:44:31 -0400

The little things

Sun, 12 May 2013 01:39:00 -0400

-Mother’s Day dinner with the family
-Starbucks Frappy hour
-Running into a high school friend’s parents and enjoying a nice conversation
-Seeing something on the clearance rack for $15 (originally $45) but thinking that it was not in my size. Realizing that it was in my size and returning to the store five hours later and seeing that it was still there.-Upon taking said item to the checkout counter, having the guy swipe it and it only costing $6.99 + tax.
-Friendly and patient cashier girl at another store.
-JT telling me that Gatsby was a really good movie.

I could stare at this all day and still not understand what the...

Thu, 09 May 2013 05:55:00 -0400

I could stare at this all day and still not understand what the fourth dimension is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:8-cell-simple.gif

lawns-dao: aiyomikeo: nikkiissublime: lackyannie: dreamingof-...

Thu, 02 May 2013 18:43:47 -0400

lawns-dao:

aiyomikeo:

nikkiissublime:

lackyannie:

dreamingof-disney:

chrisalcoran:

“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” - Walt Disney

I absolutely adore these.

SCREAMING MY TWO FAVORITE THINGS DISNEY AND SPACE!

Omg

TAKE ME HOME

Photo

Wed, 01 May 2013 04:48:30 -0400

My, how far we've come

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 04:57:00 -0400

April 19, 2009

Monday musings, Ms. Mooney, AP Literature and Composition

Ever since my first visit to UCLA in February, I have been in love with that school. However, I was very apprehensive about submitting my SIR without giving Berkeley a fair chance. After all, I visited Cal with my parents, an entirely different experience than visiting with friends. Add on the fact that I am a Regent scholar at Cal and not at UCLA (ironically, the only UC where I did not get regents) as well as the (admittedly) better engineering education up north, I felt like I needed to visit Berkeley once again. So, on a whim on Wednesday, Arman and I decided to book plane tickets for Cal Day.

            I enjoyed visiting Norcal, an entirely different life than it is down here in Orange County. I have never been on a train in my life, but I had to ride two to get from SFO to Berkeley. First, we had to ride some monorail-like train to get from our terminal to the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station. Then, we rode the BART all the way from SFO to downtown Berkeley, through South San Francisco, the bay, and Oakland, for only $5.90.

            We met up with some friends from past LDC’s – all second years at Cal – and they showed us around for most of the night: the dorms, the campus, and the city. During dinner at “the House of Curry,” I suddenly realized that I am not a fan of Indian food… However, I must admit that the Berkeley dorm rooms are much nicer than UCLA’s, simply because there is much more space in each room.

            I think that Friday night was actually much better than Cal Day itself. During the open house, there just too many people around the entire campus, and it was somewhat obvious that the school had put its best effort to impress all the visitors. The campus itself is beautiful, but there wasn’t much beyond that for me. Going to the top of the 307-foot Campanile was cool though…

            In the end, I left Berkeley with an opinion not much different than the original. I must admit that I was pretty awed by the appearance of the campus, but I can’t say I liked anything else. More than anything, I felt insecure there, something I can’t completely put my finger on. But I wondered if that was a good enough reason for me to spurn Cal, the setting, the amazing education. I asked my friend and he simply replied, “It’s just not your place then.” And I think that was all I needed.

            So, good-bye UC Berkeley.

            I just closed the URSA website. I am now officially a Bruin, UCLA Class of 2013.

Almost four years to the day…

So much is what we believe is shaped by the world views around us

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 15:52:18 -0400

So much is what we believe is shaped by the world views around us:

The new George W. Bush Presidential Center is being dedicated this week. This seems like a good time to bust a longstanding myth about our former President, my former boss.

Title is a link. Interesting read, especially for those of us who don’t have much political efficacy

LinkedIn has just recommended that i connect with one two three of my TAs from fall quarter freshmen...

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 16:53:00 -0400

LinkedIn has just recommended that i connect with ~~one~~ ~~two~~ three of my TAs from ~~fall quarter~~ freshmen year……

It's a strange juxtaposition

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 03:53:59 -0400

Me, sitting here watching a live news stream about the tragedy in Watertown, Massachusetts, while listening to the cheerful screams and shots coming from down the street indicative of a typical Thursday night on a college campus.

lambchopsil: For the ladies, you are more beautiful than you...

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 03:00:12 -0400

lambchopsil:

For the ladies, you are more beautiful than you think

worthy of a reblog

Last night I had a dream....

Sat, 13 Apr 2013 16:05:20 -0400

…that I got promoted to Grandmaster. Then I woke up and remembered that my ZvZ is at 37%

It’s just one of those bouts of joy that cannot be accurately described, just one that leaves...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 05:26:15 -0400

It’s just one of those bouts of joy that cannot be accurately described, just one that leaves nothing but a smile on my face.

Regression

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 04:03:28 -0400

Why can’t I have the same urgency in applying for jobs as I did when I applied to colleges four years ago?

The ignorance of the world is astounding

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 23:50:03 -0400

The ignorance of the world is astounding

When my friends are standing around chatting after service

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 02:09:42 -0400

whatshouldwecallchurch:

THIS IS US AT LIGHTHOUSE!

NTS

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:37:51 -0400

Always wear pants during times when people may be coming to check out your apartment

jeff-witheys-xbox: 2001 Monsters, Inc. 2013 Monsters University When all these little kids try...

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 02:54:10 -0400

jeff-witheys-xbox:

2001 Monsters, Inc.

2013 Monsters University

When all these little kids try to get in line on June 21 before us….

Happily ever after....

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 04:28:56 -0400

We all love a good story. There is something about the fictional that simply just encapsulates our imaginations like the real world never could. It’s funny how we (or I) am so prone to being drawn towards that, probably because the monotony of real life often leaves much to be desired.

I recently blazed through the Heart of the Swarm campaign within a couple days, and I ended up loving the story. Sure, I’m aware that the thing about SC that is most criticized is the story, but I dont know, I really enjoyed it. It was something about the character development, and seeing how Raynor and Kerrigan have changed so much since the original game came out in 1997, that made it really great to me. I ended up watching the last cinematic on Youtube so many times.

Similarly, I’ve been struck with feelings of longing and nostalgia after watching some movies recently. Wreck-It Ralph was stunning, a very classic plot outline and yet creative and beautiful in its own way. The image of Wreck-It Ralph falling towards the mentos and reciting the bad guy affirmation is one that I will remember for a long, long time.

As I was sitting on my computer today, I caught the last half hour of Enchanted on the Disney channel. I turned it on at the scene of the ball, right before Amy Adams and James Mardsen arrive at the dance. And then, ”So Close” starts playing. “So Close” is an interesting song. Not because it reminds me of when I first saw the movie around the family room with my parents and my sister. No, I will always associate “So Close” with World of Color, and in turn, all the good things at Disneyland. World of Color, as it features many of Disney and Pixar’s greatest works, is a wonderful compilation of all the various stories and “happily ever after’s” that I’ve seen throughout my life.

A few days ago, I was watching The Two Towers on TV and, for the first time, I was so moved by the ending, almost to tears (and this is a movie I have seen many many times). There is just something beautiful about Sam’s monologue at the end, and it seems to describe us perfectly.

It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.

I think Sam’s right. We are so captivated by stories because sometimes, in our lives, it’s hard believe that “a new day will come.” But, for Raynor and Ralph and Giselle and Robert and Frodo and Sam, it did come. And it will come. We, too, will have our own happily ever after. Just like the stories, but more wonderful than any story that we have ever known.

Tuesday, March 26. Finally

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 18:31:26 -0400

Tuesday, March 26.

Finally

I have come to realize that there is a lot of bad journalism out there...

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 21:40:00 -0400

I have come to realize that there is a lot of bad journalism out there...:

Title is a link

1. I don’t know how much it makes sense for USC to hire Ben Howland. The writer here does make somewhat of a decent argument….Howland is probably a better coach than the Trojans have had for decades. But he forgets that this is the USC Trojans, and that Howland was a UCLA Bruin. Just as the Bruin faithful did not want Neuheisel to hire Rocky Seto (formerly connected to USC) for defensive coordinator, I don’t think the Trojans would want to hire anyone who has been connected to UCLA, much less someone like Howland who saw so much success with the blue and gold. It’s pathetic really, that this guy is writing for the local O.C. Register and doesn’t even realize how deep this rivalry goes.

2. He tries to argue that UCLA firing Howland didn’t make much sense. Two years without making the tournament, a first round exit, and a second round exit….all within the four years that I’ve been a student here? Yes, maybe that is good at some DII basketball school, but we are UCLA. We have, historically, the greatest basketball program in the nation, and we are arguably the greatest combination of academic and athletic institution in the nation as well. And with that comes a lot of things: money, sponsors, and recruits, to name a few. So forgive us, Mr. Mark Whicker, if we are not content with our basketball program being mediocre as you are.