Man on Fire

Something quite interesting transpired towards the end of the night yesterday--> a man at a quaint Korean karaoke bar actually spontaneously combusted and caught on fire similar to the picture below!

JUST JOKING!... it wasn't that extreme, but the guy was definitely half engulfed in flames. Apparently, he was leaning up against a table and his extremely flammable shirt must have come into contact with the tiny candle sitting on the table. By the time he realized what had happened his whole back was burning and he was flailing around like a madman in a desperate attempt to extinguish the flames with his bare hands, but to no avail. Eventually a brave onlooker ran over and helped to put out the fire. We later saw him sitting quietly with his head lowered in agony, probably in pain from his first-degree burn and with a gaping hole exposing a vast portion of his back where his shirt used to be. (unfortunate guy --> both embarrassed and hurting)

Observing the poor man on fire seemed surprisingly surreal, almost as if I was watching a movie being produced in front of my eyes. I have a strange feeling that most of the other patrons at the bar and my friends felt the same way since we were actually laughing at him while he was in anguish. This uncouth reaction was probably due to the combination of being slightly inebriated and the bizarreness of what was occurring. Next time this happens (knock on wood) I will surely attempt to help out by at least yelling out, "Stop, drop, and roll!" just like we learned in elementary school.

How I do Math

I haven't actually solved any real math problems for quite some time, but if I were to attempt to do math, the problem shown above is probably the extent of my mathematics ability. =P Doesn't it seem like more frequently then not women are usually the ones who tend to bring up concerns and create situations when one did not actually exist before? It appears to me that most guys are generally just more laid back and non-confrontational. No wonder the solution to this equation resulted in WOMAN = PROBLEMS.

Got beat by a girl =''(

A recent outing to Fremont gave me an opportunity to rock climb just like the guy in the picture! Just kidding, in actuality I visited City Beach which is an indoor recreational facility with a man-made rock climbing arena. Rock climbing was advertised as a activity that "bridges generational and gender stereotypes with its unique challenges: physical strength, mental conditioning, problem solving, even that fear of heights." Some parts of that sales pitch I find to be a slight exaggeration, but the portion of the statement pertaining to bridging gender stereotypes I find to be completely true.

I actually went rock climbing with a friend who happens to be a petite girl that is practically half my weight; however she could effortlessly climb to the top without stopping or resting in between. While on the other hand, I found it painfully difficult to reach the top without resting and even harder to fit my fat shoes into the tiny footholds without constantly slipping. How pathetic I am that even with my daily running/weight lifting routine... I still get beat by a girl!

My 3 main excuses for losing:
1) My lack of climbing experience
2) Being a cheapass and not renting climbing shoes for a extra $3,
3) Lastly, that she was a hardcore climber for a year with her own equipment.

Still, I give her props for kicking my ass especially after more then 3 years of not climbing... maybe one day I can beat her =P

Like sheep to a flock...

Tagging along with the rest of the world, I have finally succumbed to the craze of owning a ipod. I just purchased a 30 gig black ipod video by justifying to myself that it would be a good investment. My first excuse for this purchase is derived from the viewpoint that if it ain't broken why bother replacing or fixing it. For the past 2 years I have been using a Sony Mp3 Discman during my work out or study sessions and it has been working fine, until recently where it would inadvertently freeze or skip randomly. That's freaking annoying when your trying to concentrate!

In addition to the fact that I have a retarded Discman, I realized that I have close to 20 gigs of music that I have accumulated over the years that I rarely listen to. I merely stick to the new albums/songs that I acquire and throw the rest in my archive. My second reason is that this new purchase will motivate me to actually listen to my collection and finally organize all my songs into the correct genre so they can easily be found and utilized. Does anyone have any suggestions for what type of ipod cover and armbands are better?

Friends.. are they real?

FRIEND defined:

1) A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts.
2) A person whom one knows; an acquaintance. (probably where most of my "friends" fall)
3) A person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade.

Who are your real friends? Who will be there for you in your time of need or will even notice if you disappear off the face of the earth? It seems as though a large number of my "friendships" are fabricated around social gatherings... so what happens when I stop participating in them? Is it really that shocking to discover that I actually study or do other things other then go out?

I hate the impression that the vast majority of people have of me... that the only value I have as a friend is a party buddy. I've always been the one to take initiative and actively solicit people to hang out in a attempt to build a stronger bond but usually to no avail. My faith in people and friends has been dwindling exponentially with each passing day. There are of course a few individuals that still keep me afloat from becoming a absolute hermit. Thanks! You can puke on me and I'll still be your friend =P

In my personal opinion true friends should possess a few simple characteristics:

1) freedom of expression- to be able to freely express ones candid opinions w/o fear of retribution
2) trust- anything articulated to a friend should be kept confidential, especially if told expressly
3) considerate- sincerely concerned about a friends well being, rather then merely using the association to further personal needs

P.S. Bye Friendster, my private life will be forever closed to the general public.

The Last Dance Is With Me

Synopsis:
"Eunsoo (Eugene) is a pure but unsophisticated woman who runs a small resort inn with her father. Eunsoo is just an ordinary girl, but her life changes when she meets a man (Ji Sung) who's completely lost his memory. She takes him in and cares for him, and even gives him a name: "Baek Changho". Love blossoms, and soon wedding bells can be heard. But on the night of their wedding ceremony, Eunsoo's father passes away. And soon after, Changho disappears too! In the blink of an eye, the two people Eunsoo loves most in the world have left her. But Changho had his reasons for disappearing: his real name is Kang Hyunwoo, and he's heir to a large conglomerate. Even more, someone is plotting to kill him..."

Sounds interesting enough eh? This 2004 Korean drama series which consists of 20 episodes should hold me over for the next few weeks. The plethora of great reviews of the story, cast, and soundtrack has created a high expectation for this production... hopefully I won't be disappointed.

Stop the Addiction!

When real money is converted to merely a numerical value placed in front of a avator in a cartoon animated setting, it creates a shockingly surreal style of gambling. Easily accessible from any computer with internet connection, you can easily lose/win a significant amount of money anonymously with a click of a mouse. The attractive bonus offer sent via email once again drew me back into playing online poker. I played for nearly a week losing a significant amount but eventually reclaiming my losses and a bit more. However, after losing $100 of my winnings in a matter of 30 minutes, I decided that if I continued in this manner, a vicious endless cycle would ensue. Therefore, I officially declare to the world or rather to my loyal subscribers that I will NEVER play online poker again! This should also be a word of caution to those that may ever consider partaking in online wagering ----> DON'T DO IT!