Oh, one more thing...

Oh yeah. One more thing: girls with a beauty mark (a la Cindy Crawford and Marilyn Monroe) = extra hot.

Lost

So, I've starting to re-catch up on Lost again. I was watching the season finale last Wednesday, and, while I plowed through Season 1 a year ago, and stayed caught up for half of season 2, it just kinda faded for me for a while. Yes, House was a big reason, and I started watching Justice League, but I just didn't find the time for it.

Anyway, the season finale got me intersted again, and thus I started to catch up.

Some thoughts:
Libby on the show definitely can look good. She generally does in her curly light dirty blonde hair, usually tied back. But in the flashback sequence where she was a redhead, she looked BAD. I mean, like Charlize Theron in Monster, but add sulfuric acid to her face bad. It isn't the redheaded-ness (my thoughts on redheads in show biz supports this: http://mrssacappella.blogspot.com/2006/04/why-are.html), but rather that it was all frizzy and poofy and stupid looking, making the rest of her just as frizzy and poofy and stupid looking.

Trying to figure out the hottest one on there. Kate is cute, but the buckteeth bugs me. It's a bit of a toss up between Shannon (dead) and Claire. And, while Shannon I think has the more All American hotness, Claire's personality and, y'know where this is going, her accent wins out.

When in a tie situation, the accent (Aussie (Perth > Sydney > Melbourne) > Kiwi > Cape Breton > French > Spanish) wins out. British can do it, but it carries a sense of... prudeness that doesn't fully do it for me. German/Dutch/Russian accents are a bit much. Southern charm doesn't do it for me either. And, of course, Chinese/Indian/Japanese/Korean accents just blows.

That said, Sun on the show is pretty cute. And, surprisingly, her accent doesn't detract anything.

Oh yeah. Michelle Rodriguez can both be somewhat okay looking (e.g. "cleans up nice"), and just plain gross looking.

And girliest man on there? Eko and Boone (also dead) are a toss up. ;)

The corporate world

As for the rest of my trip, nothing crazy. Visiting my old work was good. Seeing old colleagues, catching up, was... as plainly as this word can be, nice. I use this word because the one connotation I'm looking for is offered only by this word. It's the usage where it's... nice. Not overwhelmingly exciting, or as plain as okay. But... nice. It gave me a good sense of why I'm not there anymore. The people were great, for sure, but the environment, in retrospect, and even near the end of my tenure, sapped me. Perhaps it's just the effect of having a job in itself, or more likely, the corporate world, but it just... dulled me a bit. While I probably wasn't spending quite as much time studying for the MCAT and going to school from January to April than when I was working, I felt I had the energy to do something more. Thus the choir and the various volunteering. Even weekends, even though they were study filled, didn't seem so boring, like I was vegging/wasting my time.

I'm not insinuating that the corporate world affects everyone the same way, but the fact of the matter is that it, on average, makes life a little duller for most people. Sure, the money was great, and with those new means, a person can do things that fills their life, but not often enough, not that I have seen with my eyes as the norm, does the money fulfill lives more. A new toy or new additions to toys don't amount to as much as something that hits a person's psyche, a person's emotional, spiritual, and achievement needs. Perhaps for some, it does, but not as much as you'd think.

And if you think that you'd put the money to "good use" and "good will", yeah, you have the means to do it, but it doesn't occur enough. Not as much as you thought you would contribute. Generally not. But, hey, that's okay, too. I don't want to harp on the corporate world. It suits people's needs. It meets people's want of stability and structure. But truly fulfilling? Rarely.

One last note: I was talking and thinking about the big 2 out there, Google and Microsoft, and how they enter new markets and how they enter areas where it's already entrenched (gaming for Microsoft, and a little bit of everything for Google), and my initial thought was: why? They already have billions. The products are good. Why keep expanding? Why can't they just work together, and get along?

Oh yeah. Capitalism.

Naive? No, I don't attribute it to that. I've seen enough to not be surprised about a lot of things, and that having seen the world for twenty odd years has made me realize what's out there.

I attribute it to optimism. I think, I'd like to think, that the world out there is nicer and kinder than it is. I want to. I don't get crushed when I look more closely and see that it's not, but nor does this hope fade. It's what I have to do.

It's like...

So last weekend (you can see where this series of entries are going. I'm catching up), I went down to Seattle. Visited, saw some old friends. Not as many as I could have, but enough to respark the connections.

One of my good friends down there just started dating this girl. The one big thing that I've noticed is how comfortable around each other they are. Maybe I've just been out of the game for this long, or that I haven't seen new couple for a long time, but even after only about 2 or 3 weeks, they connect like they've been together for 2 or 3 months.

I'm pretty sure it's a good sign. I wish it the best, and hope it goes well.

It's finally arrived.

Wow. After about two and a half months, we've finally arrived. The raison d'etre of this blog, is imminent this week.

Wednesday and Thursday are the big performances for my little choir. We have a whopping 2 songs, sung by an astronomical 9 people. While I chide on the numbers, I assure you, that we sounded pretty good on our final rehearsal.

After ups and downs, extra people and more than warranted dropping out (started with 14, went to 15, now 8 plus me), and many missed rehearsals due to holidays and pro-D days, we've reached the penultimate point a couple of days ago.

Ran California Dreamin' briefly. Thank heavens, people remembered the nuances that we've painstakingly worked on the rehearsal before, 4 weeks ago. Only minor touch ups, and we spent only 15 minutes on it, as I wanted to.

Sweet Surrender. I surrendered last time. We had 15 minutes left, but it wasn't going anywhere. It was somewhat looking the same, in that we alwasy go sharp. Now, normally, going sharp is not unacceptable. If the whole group does so together. But with this group, everyone seems to go up individually. I'm quite sure it starts with the basses (guilty here), but we don't even sync up when we go up. After anoub 20 bars, half the choir's gone up. It takes another 20 bars for the rest to catch up.

So, a student suggested we just start a semi-tone higher. I've never done that before, and immediately assumed that we'd just continue to go up. But, miraculously (and not quite so), it worked. I guess either the group just natrually wants to sing the song at the new key, or, more likely, it just starts to get too high, and it's just not possible to go another semi-tone up.

Spent the bulk of the time on it, even worked in some dynamics. By the end, we sounded good.

I'm going to miss the choir and the singing. Most definitely. But there's still two performances, and still need to do a coffee house type thing for all the non school attendees, such as you guys who read this blog.
Polished up Sweet Surrender, and (we start on an F#, but

Yeah, but how'd it get here?

So, apparently, they found the source of HIV to have originated from chimpanzees: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/26/content_4604113.htm.

The much more interesting yet disturbing question is: how did it get to humans???

Did I just see...? Nope. Mistaken.

As some of you know, I'm not the biggest Asian girls fan. No offense to them, many who are very pretty, but usually, they just don't catch my eye.

So, I was watching MI:3 today, and Maggie Q, the, um, whatever expert she is in the movie - I haven't figured out her exact role, not like Ving Rhames is the "observer", and the other guy is the pilot, like "Face" of the A-Team - and she is absolutely gorgeous.

I thought I've found a prime counter example to defeat my views.

But I've a lingering feeling that she ain't 100%. The nose is very telltale.

So I looked her up, and, sure enough, half-breed.

And, damn, she's definitely a prime example of that.

Side Note...

So, Canada's coming out with our own "Canada's Next Top Model".

You know what? There's 10 contestants, and 5 of them are from BC, 4 of which are from Lower Mainland.

Oh yeah. Another reason why BC rocks (particularly Lower Mainland).

Side note: The Asian girl - surprise! From Richmond - looks freaky. Not the good freaky, like "I'm a brotha and the sista is freaky", but alien freaky. I think all my female Asian friends are prettier than she is (but then again, all of them are pretty good looking ;) )

ANTM/Other beauties

So, I watch ANTM - America's Next Top Model - once in a while. Not an avid fan, but I'll catch it if my parents aren't watching TV. That timeslot doesn't have anything else worthwhile anyway.

As I've alluded to in the past, there were really only 2 decent looking girls on the show this time around. And, unfortunately, the cutest/hottest one - Sara - got the boot. She was super tall (6' or 6'1"), and had a great face. Her body a tad angular (as many tall girls are), but she looked *good*. She's one reason I watch her, the other being Joanie (both, coincidentally, are blonde, as a side note, not that I have a particular thing for blondes). Apparently, she didn't even apply for the show. She just happened to be in the mall when they were doing trials, and she was picked out by the show to try out. And she got to be 4th. Not too shabby.

My final rant. Scarlett Johansson is gorgeous. It is ridiculous how ridiculously good-lookingly she is, and her body is, as some of my Seattle friends would put it, bangin'.

So, where's my rant? A lot of people I've expressed my feelings about don't find her in the same regard. Not even close. Fine, if you like some other actress, etc., but Scarlett Johansson is at least up there, no? No, apparently.

And thus is my rant. All you crazies out there.

Not all bad...

So, while yesterday had its frustrating moments, it was not all bad (as evidenced first by my final enrolment).

First off, the stupid UBC registration process finally sorted out, and I can enrol in the course that I need in the second half of the semester.

Secondly, I had my second interview/audition for teaching at Kaplan, the MCAT prep course that I took the past four months. My first interview, which I wrote about but didn't end up posting to the blog, went... frustratingly. Basically, the interview consisted of me teaching a topic, any topic, for 5 minutes. As you know, I've taught various things in myriad capacities before, and I consider myself a decent teacher. This time, I was rejected, and was told that I was confusing.

Me? Confusing? Wow. I was ready to blow a gasket. And I did.

But perseverance prevailed, and, knowing that I am better than I was judged, I told my case, and asked for a second chance. Thankfully, they allowed me a second passage.

This time, I took an easier topic (my first was to teach people how to read music... in 5 minutes) - which was how to fly an airplane - and dissected it. While I was obviously more nervous this time around (more pressure), I hung on to my plan. I didn't think too well of my performance, but I got more than was required of them to give me, and all I can do now is wait.

Lo and behold, after I got home, checked my e-mail, Kaplan already replied. They said that it was rare for them to grant second opportunities, and that they thought I might be able to better than the first time. And, it paid off for both of us. I got in.

Yay!

Hardest time ever

I just had the most ridiculous time ever trying to register for a course. I was originally going to go to UBC to pick up Organic Chem, not wanting a bunch of credits from a million different schools. However, even though I did everything on time, somehow, it still took them a lot longer then it should have to even process my stuff to allow me to register. By the time that I actually could register (and I've called once a week to update my status), the class was already over full, and the waitlist has grown to ridiculous portions, and there's no way I can get in, with lab space super limited as is.

Thus, I had to resort to going somewhere else. Douglas, where I went this past semester. The class had a short waitlist, but I thought that I would be able to talk my way in, seeing how I was in the same predicament last semester. However, this time was different. I tried as many ways as possible, but the prof wouldn't even budge. At all. I sensed no mercy, a complete stickler to the rules, and, even though she could bend the rules herself, she did not give one iota. Just something about her demeanor (although she was reportedly a nice prof) in the way she handled the situation really put me off.

So, frantically, I looked elsewhere. Langara was a good call, since I'd be in Van for the second half of the summer anyway, so that would've worked out beatifully. While they only offered the second half of the course, I thought that I can get in, seeing how I have a proven track record through grades, as well as prior O. Chem knowledge from the MCAT. I phoned in, and talked. And they prof was at least helpful and somewhat accommodating. Asked for transcripts and whatnot, and had to check with the lab TA. I thought I was golden.

The next day, before I set off for Langara, I decided to check my e-mail. Lo and behold, rejected. Wow. I am flabbergasted. I couldn't get into a 2nd year chemistry course. Why are professors so afraid to let a person's grades ride on their shoulders? Perhaps they don't want to deal with the possibility of my going to them for questions, as I don't have the prereqs on paper, but can't they deal with it at that point? Ultimately, I guess I really lucked out with professors at Douglas the first semester around.

Time waning, I looked at UCFV. I didn't want to go there, since the drive was in completely the wrong direction, but I was desperate. I got there, and after some wrangling, and at least a friendly, though pointed, offer was made, and I just have a few minor hoops left before I'm officially enrolled.

WOW. I never thought it could get this ugly, thought there'd be more trust and compassion in the world.

I guess not.

It's just sad to see the world so hung up on formalities, rules, and non-trusting of other people. While I know that the world is indeed skeptical and people need to be guarded, I will never let my optimism fall. That is not to say that I won't be astute in my dealings with others, but that I would give them the benefit of the doubt. Especially when the outcome cannot harm me, and can only aid the other, as in the cases listed above.

Now on the top 3 search engines!

So, my dad's pottery site, www.choispottery.com, is now officially on Google, Yahoo, and MSN Search. If you search for "choi's pottery", the site will be the FIRST THING that you see. This is absolutely exciting for me, since Google took *forever* for us to be at the top (MSN put us at the top before any of the other search engines... Must be some crazy inside connection :D ).

Brain and Energy

So, I've put on weight. First time in years that my body weight has fluctuated beyond the 4 lb. range that it normally rests in. And first time ever that I gain insight of my female friends saying "I know I gained 2 lbs, because these jeans fit differently". I guess with guys' much looser jeans, it needs a few more than 2 lbs. to make pants fitting noticeable.

Now, I know I've been eating very well since I've been home, but the weight gain didn't really feel gradual. It feels that the past couple of weeks was when this sudden increase in mass occurred.

And I have a theory: brain usage.

The brain normally consumes ~25% of energy intake. So that 4 pieces of chicken you just had? 1 went straight to the brain.

With the past months of MCAT preparation, my brain was in high gear. Even though I wasn't working out as much as I normally do (which isn't that much to start with), and with the added good and steady meals, I didn't feel like I gained weight. Starting from the week before the MCAT up to now, I think the mass was added. This is because when MCAT prep was happening (along with courses), my brain totally geared up. I bet it used at least 1/3 of all the energy intake, maybe even more. But now, no more MCAT, so my brain isn't as taxed, and all this extra energy is just kicking around. Yes, I started working out again, so not all the weight is "bad" weight, but whenever you gain weigh, you NEVER gain only good weight.

So I have a bit more mass to work with. More to sculpt with. I'll play Michelangelo, and aim for a masterpiece over the summer.

Accidentally Not In Love

Well, after finally starting Accidentally in Love the last rehearsal, I find out a couple pieces of bad news.

First off, we lost another bass. Because a lot of scholarship stuff happens during rehearsal, he won't be able to make it. It's too bad, since we lost another guy, but best of luck to him.

Second, I just found out that we'll lose 2 weeks for sure, possibly 3. 3 freakin' weeks. Band trip. Clinic, then ANOTHER Pro-D day.

Oh, on that rant: Since my graduation at MRSS years ago, school is now one hour shorter. One freakin' hour. 8:30 - 2:30. Wow. And this deluge of Pro-D days??? Don't they go to school anymore? Don't they need to learn???

Anyway, because of the couple of weeks of cancellations, there's no way in hell we can pull off Accidentally in Love. Man, another chance of knowing what my freakin' arrangement sounds like gone to drain...