Change

I actually wanted to blog about something, but I was drawing a blank.

That is until I looked at my wallet. My brand new, but not so brand new, wallet. I got it on my last birthday and have not used it or wanted to use it until just last week. And it wasn't that I wanted to use it. I had to. There were threads coming loose on my old one. The clear plastic that shows my ID popped right off when I opened my wallet to take out some money. This wallet went through hell with me. I overstuffed it with cards accumulated throughout the years. I don't even know how many times it was left in my pockets only to be washed with the rest of my laundry. I'm like a pack rat. Even though that wallet was the most worn-out thing (actually, 2nd most...I'll get to the first later) I possess, I still wanted to use it.

It all comes down to my stubborn stance to change. The extent of how unwilling I was to make the switch to a nicer, newer wallet is mind-blowing to me now that I look back at it. I am so content with the status-quo that when the slightest opportunity of change comes, I reject it. I complain and am so reluctant when change is forced upon me. But then I get used to it and go through that process again when something newer comes along. It's a constant cycle.

My parents have come to put up with this stubbornness in me. I still have this blue elephant cup from my childhood. I still have my childhood toy, a pink hippo (which explains why the hippopotamus is my favorite animal), placed safely in my room at home. Now this stuffed toy is completely worn out. One of its eyes looks like it was gnawed at. There are patches where pink fur used to be. It's head is fighting to stay attached. But I refuse to ever throw this toy away. Maybe it's my reluctance to change or perhaps it's because it holds sentimental value to me.

No matter how against the idea of change, I always put up with it in the end and enjoy the benefits it reaps. Too bad I don't see that right away.

Just Dance

"Everyone secretly wishes they can just break out and dance" - James

How true. I've heard people say "I can't dance" or "I wish I knew how to dance" so many times. Everyone has the ability to dance. It then goes into if you can do it well or not. But don't fret, no one can be Michael Jackson right off the bat.

There are many reasons why someone should dance. You could be looking for a new hobby. You could be starting it with a bunch of friends for fun.

This brings me down memory lane of why I started dancing. I used to believe that I couldn't dance. I used to say all that stuff (in the first paragraph). I just thought dancing was cool, but it never crossed my mind that I would be a dancer. Then comes the problem every high school boy comes across in their senior year.

Prom is coming and I don't know how to dance.

Basically, my prom date is one heck of dancer. I didn't want to embarrass her by not knowing how to dance. If you're a guy, you know what went through my head. We're supposed to be the guys. We have to take the lead. But how can we take the lead when we have no idea what to do. Solution? The internet. I spent who knows how long looking up videos and browsing forums in hopes of learning how to dance. I asked a friend to help teach me. The months leading up to prom were spent learning how to dance. And you know what? It was fun.

I enjoyed myself learning. I used to practice by myself on an empty train platform as I waited for the train to come. I used to try and play it off if a stranger walked on the platform and saw me. Soon, that didn't even matter anymore. I would just tune them out with the sound of music blasting from my iPod.

If it weren't for the common dilemma guys face when high school prom approaches, I might not be dancing. I look back and I'm proud of the initiative I took to dance. To everyone out there who thinks they can't dance: Yes you can. Incredible dancing skills aren't gonna be served to you on a plate. You're gonna have to practice. But it's fun.

In Gratitude and Thanksgiving

We honestly don't need a single day to remember what we're thankful for. Especially if it's a day created in memories of the Native Americans who helped the pilgrims at Plymouth survive, only to be betrayed and kicked off their homes. Anyways, every day should be a day of Thanksgiving.

My list of things to be thankful for:

1. God
   

   Without Him, I'd be nothing.

2. My family
   

   As much as I get annoyed by them, they are still here for me until the end.

3. The Family Pan
   

   I've known most of these guys for pretty much my entire non-Canadian life. I can tell them anything. Any holiday vacations and it would be with them. 4th of July BBQ's and Thanksgiving meals? With the Family Pan.

   

   Dang, 2006...miss these carefree days.

4. KCS: The Grove
   

   I appreciate you all from the bottom of my heart. You guys are my life at Syracuse. Who knows? I might have left SU already if not for all of you. Thank you!
   Special shout out to the "Hungry Hippos"!

5. OCM
   

   As much as I say I want to find a new church at home, everyone at OCM who I've met and talked to has shaped me into the person I am today. You guys were there for me as I rediscovered myself with Christ. You guys watched as I took my baby steps as a Christian. Hopefully, when I'm a stronger, better Christian...I can come back and be the change I want to see.

6. High School Friends
   

   Because of you guys, I didn't want to join any club activities for three years in high school. I just wanted to hang out with you guys after school. I look at our Senior Poster Day poster and see our "Gorilla" sign. Man, were we unorganized for that. Look at the spacing between the letters. But it's all good. Balling at Broadway and eating pho afterwards. Playing DoTA until our brains died. Hope I get to see you all soon.

   

Man, we ugly.

7. The New York Jets
   

   Thank you for giving me a reason to look forward to the Super Bowl. Jets for Super Bowl Champs!

Our North Korean Allies

I think there's a level of how ignorant Sarah Palin can be towards world politics. For crying out loud, she's planning on running for the Republican nomination in the next election. Good luck with that taking into account her recent statement:

This speaks to a bigger picture here that certainly scares me in terms of our national security policy. But obviously we’ve gotta stand with our North Korean allies.

If she's truly considering the side with the crazy dictator and nuclear weapons, and not the side with American troops in it, our allies...then she's out of her mind. I'm glad this was on Glenn Beck's radio show. I can't really stand either of them.

This comment tops her not being able to name a founding father of the United States.

Censorship and Procrastination

I don't understand censorship on television. I just finished watching Bad Santa on TV and apparently it's not ok to say f*** (or any of its other variations) or s***, but saying "bitch" is a-OK.

Yeah, this post is extremely short so I'll just add in random thoughts I have right now.

I have a paper due in about eight hours and I have yet to properly read through my assignment sheet. I know the basics of my assignment, but I don't know any specific details. I'm supposed to write my paper about movie trailers and the good stuff about them. We are to choose any film to use as our base. Considering that I may have to watch the film on the spot to make specific references, I decided to do it the only DVD I have on me right now...(500) Days of Summer. I didn't even realize I brought it up with me. It just happened to still be in my CD drive when I came back up to college.

I could always just stream a movie, but that takes too long for it fully buffer. I'm crossing my finger that the (500) Days of Summer has a good trailer for me write about.

The Social Game

One of the few things to brighten up a predictable, routine day is an awesome game of Words With Friends (technically Scrabble) with a random stranger.

Most of the people I play with normally resign when they start to lose too much or just finish off unsatisfactory games. But this one (the picture above) was close to the end. Both of us tried to shy away from the left side where all the "Double Word" and "Triple Word" were waiting to be used. We were both waiting for each other to open access to them. He even made good use of the chat function commenting on my apparent "relentlessness" and "good plays" in Scrabble.

I wish every game went on like this. People should make better use of the chat function. It's such a good way to interact with random strangers who you'll probably never have a chance of meeting face-to-face. It's like a small form of Facebook without the stalking options.

Now if only Hasbro would speed up and make a Monopoly Deal app for the iPhone...(someone get this post out to Hasbro ASAP) If you do not know what Monopoly Deal is, I would be more than happy to show you how to play and whatnot. My friends and I like to say that it's the game that breaks friendships. Don't worry, it doesn't.

Time to be UNproductive

I have a Calc II exam in roughly three hours. I know I have to cram and study the materials in the section because my professor honestly cannot teach. He assumes we all know the material and speeds his way through his lessons. I've been doing well in this class so far for two reasons:

1. For anyone who has any knowledge in Calculus, everything up until now have been kind of a breeze.
2. Shockingly, I spend hours going through the textbook on sections that downright confuse me. How is that shocking? I have never actually studied in high school. I hardly studied freshman year (my mistake there). Now if only I could make this a habit.

There are (to be politically correct) three African-American females that sit at the table I sit at in class. Wow, they make me feel like a true Asian. I spend at least 70% of class time wondering how they made it to college.

How did you get the '2'?

The line directly above it has a '4'. The next line is missing a '2'. Hmm, perhaps he divided by 2? Division. Really? You learn this in elementary school.

There was this one time in class that the professor was generous enough to go over test corrections before we handed it in. I sat there watching two of them discussing with each out loud (it's like they never learned how to whisper) how to do the first problem. I watched as they completely got the problem wrong. One of them, thinking she got it right, showed the other her answer and said that's how you do it. I couldn't just sit idly any longer. I just handed them my exam and told them I got #1 correct. The next second, I saw erasers fly across their papers like erasing became an Olympic sport. Pretty funny.

I'm No Clown

I'm normally on Tumblr, but there are some things that aren't meant for Tumblr. Crazy that a few months ago, I would happily put anything on Tumblr. I soon realized it's no blog though. I can't post in-depth ramblings on it. Sure, I can post a a 3 paragraph post that's either humorous or sounds like I have an ax in my hand. But, no one is going to pay attention to a block of text that takes up half the page. There are some things that just aren't meant for it.

Blogspot (or I guess 'Blogger' to be more precise) will have to do. Xanga confuses me, so that's a no. I'm already familiar with Blogspot having used it for blog projects and an actual blog when I was in high school. I would use that blog, but I'd rather start off new. I'm a different person than when I was in high school.

Now if only Blogspot had Cambria as a default font. I'm too lazy to type in the HTML code and everything.

Now onto my actual post.

Just because I'm carefree on the surface and always firing off witty remarks does not make me a guy with no limits. You can push and I'll just laugh it off. But when you continually shove, that's where I draw my line. I am sick of working for a bunch of people who don't show proper respect. I try to be funny and light-hearted to soften the awkward work environment. Who wants to work with a bunch of people who keep to themselves? And that I accomplished. I've gotten the more recently hired employees to break out of their comfort zone and enjoy coming to work.

Perhaps I overdid it. Regardless, you should be able to tell when someone is pissed off. Don't go to them and push their buttons. Many people I know have told me they rarely see me upset or angry. I'd rather mask my unhappiness with a smile to brush off any burdens I would give people. But when I do show it, give me my space.

I ask a simple question to speed up the cleaning process and you treat it like I just asked for both your kidneys. I help a co-worker with his tasks after I finish everything I need to do, and I am reprimanded. I ask a co-worker to help me make a sandwich to bring home. I request no pickles. What does he do? You guessed it. He throws in extra pickles and even writes PICKLES on the wrapper. RESPECT. Is that so hard to ask for?

Should I stop being the fun co-worker? Should I go to work like a robot without any emotions? Will that give you guys a hint?

I actually had an actual point that I wanted to get across, but I got sidetracked venting about work. Now I can't even tie in that message with this post. But it felt good. I can't do this on Tumblr.