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Wednesday, 18 November 2009

You plus Me vs. We

In a relationship, the math's a little tricky.
You + Me ≠ We
The We is a different entity. It's not simply a combination of You and Me.
If you put Me and You together, it doesn't automatically add up to a We.
In fact, the only way to establish a We is by putting aside our You and Me egos.

Allow me to illustrate this with photos.

You might be wondering if we planned this photo essay. But no, we didn't. We're just dorks who have a tough time in front of the camera. It took us numerous takes before we could look like we actually love each other.

(Thanks Albert for these candids! They're a riot.)

Also, HAPPY 3 YEAR ANNIVERSARY to the better half of my We. Go team!

Tuesday, 17 November 2009

A Long Ways

I am so very far from the me I want to be.

When I think about where I am in my personal development, I cringe. Character flaws and social blunders haunt me. I mentally replay mistakes I've made over and over and over. I should have said that differently. I could have handled that better. Things would have turned out better if only I did X instead of Y.

I am in awe of my remarkable friends and their impressive emotional intelligence (EI). How does he always say the right thing at the right time? How does she establish immediate rapport with the entire gamut of personalities? How do they do it all and do it so well? And why does it seem to come so easily to them? I am constantly taking notes and learning from them.

I know I was handicapped by a violently toxic household and the lack of any role models throughout my first 18 years. Looking back at high school, I honestly had one of the lowest EI's out of my peers. And that's amongst high-schoolers, folks! Truly cringe-worthy.

I had a lot of catching up to do in terms of maturity and interpersonal skills. Thanks to the extraordinary people in my life (including my lovely blogosphere buddies ), my personal development has grown immensely. Why these wonderful individuals decided to befriend me, mentor me, guide me, and even love me... I will never understand. When I think about the people in my life, I feel blessed. When I think about how far I've come, I feel encouraged.

I've come a long way. However, there is still so much further to go. It's a moving target, so I doubt that I'll ever be satisfied with my self-development. But I'm proud that I'm not letting my past hold me back or lower my standards. I *will* be the best me that I can be!

Tuesday, 27 October 2009

Pop Quiz: Male or Female?

Guess whether friends A through E are male or female. And no peeking at my facebook profile!

Friday, 16 October 2009

Prosecuting Conversations
Sometimes I wish I could filter out lengthy conversations in much the same way that the patent system filters out ideas and inventions.

If you're going to talk at length about something, it better be:
- appropriate subject matter
- novel
- useful
- non-obvious
- and reasonably enabled
To borrow and modify a quote from Winston Churchill...
"The best argument against freedom of speech is a 20-minute conversation with the average person."

Wednesday, 07 October 2009

IT'S RAINING GARTERS AND BOUQUETS!

Make love, not war. Or get married and do both!
Congratulations to our sickeningly lucky-in-love friends who tied the knot this summer.

Anyway, this image-intensive post is really for myself. My forgetful, ol' self. I just wanted to document these celebrations so that I could remember my favorite parts when I looked back.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

S & S had one of the greatest wedding ceremonies I've ever witnessed. The guests knew it was going to be a good one when the officiant opened with a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reference. And then there were the awesome "Why S (the bride)?" and "Why S (the groom)?" essay assignments that were read aloud. I giggled, I aww'ed, I laughed, I sniffled, I cried. Seriously, it was better than most romantic comedies.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

M & P took out all the silly wedding fluff they didn't care for and kept just the best parts: great music, hors d'oeuvres, cake, a steady stream of alcohol, and ... neon glow sticks. I really think they're on to something!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

C & K's flawless wedding managed to accomplish something I never expected to experience. ...
They actually showed us that New Jersey could be really beautiful! And delicious. And, gasp, FUN!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

J & J's outdoor ceremony was held in a truly stunning locale (Nestldown in the Bay area). I gasped in awe when we reached the clearing surrounded by majestic Redwood trees and a pond. One of my favorite touches was when the bride and groom planted a sapling together using soil from their parents' actual homes. What a meaningful and symbolic gesture!

Derek and I had a lot of fun goofing off at the picturesque photo station. Can you tell these were taken during the cocktail hour? Hehe.

The menu for the chinese banquet included an interesting item: concubine chicken. Which made me scratch my head and ask, "How does a chicken become a concubine?" To which Derek replied, "By sucking up to a royal cock!" (Admit it. You laughed out loud, too!)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

K & M actually got engaged during our wedding weekend in Negril back in 2006. They had so much fun at our destination wedding that they were inspired to have one of their own. *pats self on back* But sadly, I couldn't make it to their castle wedding in Portugal. *kicks self in back* Sigh... At least I was able to meet up with them when they visited the city to hear all the craaaazy stories from their wild celebration.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Once again, congratulations to all the happy newlyweds!
As for marital advice, just keep in mind that

LOVE IS A VERB, NOT A NOUN
... especially during your honeymoon phase!