New Blog

My little photo project has been going well but choosing which shots to feature has been a toughy. I also don't want to stuff this blog with pictures then not write or randomly start writing. A friend showed me that Blogger had a new template that I feel is very suitable for photos and kindly allows the user to choose the layout they prefer.

Alright enough talk, you can figure it out for yourself.
http://elementsandpieces.blogspot.com/

Pictures 1/1/12 and 2/1/12

Oops, skipped a day in posting these pictures. Since it's a new year I thought I'd throw in a bonus picture. Nothing special, fairly standard/safe subjects. Hopefully these next few days will be more inspiring.

Toasting in a new year

A city skyline is always home to me

Is it night time?

Pictures 30/12/11 and 31/12/11

Oh dear, I'm already behind, even with the difference in time zones! I didn't take any pictures the 31st but I went to late night concert the night before and didn't get home 'till around 4 in the morning. I didn't quite understand what was going on during the concert but the light staging was spectacular so I played around with it. I'll get back on schedule tomorrow (or today for me...).

Macau

Concert lights

And Happy New Year! May your new year be filled with blessings, mistakes, surprises, and prosperity.

Picture 29/12/11

I thought before when I started this mini photo project, I would describe what was going on but I've decided to keep things to one sentence maximum (title, quick caption, that sort of thing). Art can be explained, but if I did I wouldn't be sharing art, I'd simply be calling it my own. 'Art lies in the eyes of the beholder. '


I will post one picture per day and if I have more for that day I'll add it to Google+. The point of this project is to build photography skills and view life from as many perspectives as possible in the moment that it occurs (candid is key). 


I encourage you to publish comments, critiques, thoughts, and questions...anything that pops into your mind. 

I realize I don't like taking [highly-] color[ed] pictures.

Picture 28/12/11

HK Ferry

I'll post more later, but I don't want to break the flow yet before the first date.

Winter To Do's

Hello World!

Me here, regretfully reporting to you as I lounge on my couch. Surprised I'm still alive aren't you? Yes, yes I am still living and breathing. And yes, I know, it's been a while, forgive me, please accept my most humble apologies. Now onward.

So where have I been? School, learning, room, studying, eating, breathing, sleeping. And that's about it. This semester has been exceptionally difficult for me. There were a lot more things I could have done to make it better, but I lack gumption. I feel as if I'm just spewing out excuses to you, honestly, I expect much more of myself, but I hardly found time for myself this semester. I approached things one big step at a time and blundered too many times. I didn't learn from my mistakes either. I continued to make leaps in progress when I knew I should take small definitive steps, but the semester is over and I time to refresh and thoroughly think things through.

I have learned to do lists and agenda books are simply hopeless for me, but stubbornly, I'll make them anyways. Better to write them down then let them float around in my mushed-up brain.


1) Photographs

       This winter break I'm off to my second home, HKSAR. In addition to not blogging, I have hardly picked up my camera. I'm ashamed of it and I'm sure Mr. G10 (that's my camera in case you didn't get that) isn't too happy either. I need practice, it's the only way I'll be able to brush up my "skills." My pictures tend to get blurry or I try to hard, but I love photography, the essence of capturing a fleeting moment. With every blog I post, I'm going to add in at least one picture. I'll ever try to do a picture each day! But baby steps...

2) Organic Chemistry, EMT, and Spanish

       I love chemistry. Yes, ew. Yes, I'm crazy. Yes, I am a nerd. Unfortunately, in balancing all my other work, I haven't been able to focus on it as much as I like. Organic chemistry is quite fascinating. It focuses on the movement of electrons in a [usually] predictable pattern to create new compounds and configurations. So I hope to fill in the missing gaps of what I learned this semester. I only learned a bare minimum, hardly enough to get me through the final exam, and for my love of the subject, I'm ashamed. 

      EMT class is tough. I mean it makes sense because they're in the position to save lives and everything, but man there is a lot to remember. As with most health professions, it's best learned through practice (which without certification, I can't quite do yet) but there's a lot of detailed knowledge that I lack. I don't just want to pass the certification exam, I want to do really well in the field and know my stuff. 

     Alright, so far I'm making my winter break sound like a chore, it won't be! These are just things I want to maintain and clean up. I also have to keep up with my Spanish. This semester I took my very last Spanish grammar class (hopefully until grad school) and I can hold back my [imaginary] tears. It's my goal one day to be fluent in writing and speaking, so I cannot forget everything I learned. I still have to take some Spanish Humanities classes, but it won't be the same. Hopefully I'll spare some time to conjugate and learn new vocab.

3) Read, Read, Read

       The fortunate and unfortunate thing about be a health science major is that I can get by quite easily without reading or writing anything extensive. The sciences have made me fearful of the English subject. Reading puts me to sleep in two seconds fast and writing keeps me up with blank pages for hours on end. I didn't have to write any papers this semester or read anything longer than a few 8x11 pages unless I wanted to. It is quite a shame, but I cannot wait for subways and impatiently waiting for people to finish talking/shopping/whatevering because those are golden times for me to get some reading in and develop my thoughts. If there's anywhere I can read it's busy, public places. Fear-inducing books, I cannot wait to love you again. 

4) Poverty Project

       Last year I presented MDGs to my church and this semester I hardly thought about it this semester. I want my career to surround healthcare and poverty and I hardly made any effort to keep up with worldly events. I know many college students don't have the time, but with poverty and healthcare being such perpetually evolving subjects, I need to catch up and understand what's going on. I'm going to present the topic to my church again so I need to refresh my ideas. Reading about health and the battle against poverty revamps my courage and excitement to go down that path.

5) Zen

      I'm at the end of this list! This one's simple. I want to reflect on my life so far and find times to relax. I haven't had much time to breathe in the life around me and find pleasure in it. Amidst the frenzy of meeting family and friends, I know I need some alone time and just be me. I'll find when doing the things above, but I need to reestablish some inner peace. I've been so angry and irritable this semester, I'm not proud. It's time to change that. 

This was way too long, but hopefully it's alleviated some of your missing me. I've missed talking to you too.

Ciao!

(I just realized it's almost a year since I've started this blog! Wowzers, that's quite beautiful)

Oh those late, late sleepless nights

You know what I absolutely hate and yet absolutely adore? Those moments before falling asleep that for some bizarre reason compels my brain to be brilliant and start thinking. I mean why, oh why, must my brain torture me and begin functioning at the most unnecessary times? Dear thing that occupies (hopefully) most of the empty space in my head, thank you for proving that you work, but this child needs you to sleep so you can function the next day (or should I say in a couple of hours?).


And so I need to blog about it, or do something that will busy myself and make me sleepy. Its. Not. Working. Yet. (Perhaps it's that iced coffee I had after dinner that's keeping me awake...I know now you, Reader, want to bonk me in the head right now - actually, making me unconscious sounds amazing right about not - but that coffee + condensed milk was just begging to be finished and I refuse to believe it has any affect on me)


But this explains why most of my blogs occur at the most absurd hour. I'd like to change this, but old habits die hard.


That idea I had though, is just an activity I'd like to plan with an organization at school. I don't feel like explaining it, but I think it's an amazing idea and it would tons of work to plan. Tons but wonderful. And I'm really excited, I hope to works. The idea started out with a personal, selfish reason, but I believe that it be would be helpful/interesting to tons of other students...so it's not really that selfish. Or perhaps egotistical, self-conscious me is rationalizing things. Psychological can trump my reasons for thinking, but I don't care.


Mmmm, still not sleepy. Well, I can explain why I haven't blogged for about a month and a half (I know, shame, shame, SHAME). And my explanation to you is that I can't explain why (wrap your head around that!). I had some ideas but I just ended up writing long dragged out flubs. "Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent." (Proverbs 17:28) Actually silence isn't completely wise, there would be a lot more terrible things in the world if we kept silent, but you know I mean that quote lightly, not to the extreme. Quotes should generally be superficially examined. Oy, imagine if every single, possible advice/quote in the world was regarded as definitive boundaries.


I'll stop now before this also turns into another unpublished flub. Just want to take the time again, to thank you, for wasting a couple minutes and reading my word vomit. You're a wonderful, don't ever think otherwise.