I feel myself grasping for situations, circumstances, or events that help my logic reinforce how good my life is. I guess it's my way of remaining grounded; humble. I just came across something while browsing Mel's blog.

I've heard news articles reference 'the working poor' - I know that term. I don't know many people in that situation. This is a short still/audio documentary of San Francisco's hotels, entitled Hotel Poverty.

On Saturday, I had another battle with the insects of southeastern Wisconsin. I am pleased to announce that I am undefeated.

I just finished watching a documentary entitled Air Guitar Nation. You're probably wondering:

A) why are you watching this?

B) someone made a film about playing the air guitar?

while some others are thinking

C) what the hell is an air guitar?

A: I rented this from Netflix because it sounded hilarious. The weather was bad today, so I watched it while I exercised.

B: Yes - I never knew you could make an interesting film that lasts for 120 minutes, based on people that are pretending to play the guitar.

C: People compete to determine who is the best at pretending to play a guitar to music. Each contestant chooses one song, and then all of the contestants have to 'play' a song that they haven't practiced. A world air guitar championship is held in Finland once per year, starting in 1996. Winners from many countries (Belguim, UK, Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, US, etc) compete at the world championships.

When I started watching the film, I was ready for everything to be hilarious & filled with comedy. By the end of the film, I found myself critiquing the contests air guitar skills! I haven't gained a single brain cell, but at least the film was entertaining. It also illustrates that there is something that every person can do well - you just need to find your niche.

I rode in the Miller Lite Ride for the Arts last Sunday. I'm happy to say that I set a personal best record - I covered 75 miles in 3hr 59min. I had help - I was cycling with a guy by the name of Rick. He was just a random cyclist that was pedaling at the same speed that I was, so we decided to team up. Thanks for the help Rick - I would have never finished that quickly if I had been riding by myself.

I've never run into so many bugs at once...it was like it was raining bugs. In total, I'd say that I am responsible for the death of about 500.

I rode my motorcycle today, it made me happy for a while.

Chill of the torch

I met my friend Gege in Seoul today. I originally met him in Mongolia, where he served as my guide for 3 weeks as we drove around the Mongolia countryside northwest of Ulanbaatar. He is working 6 days a week from 6p to 6a, so we only had a few hours to hang out this afternoon. It was great catching up with him. He moved her from Mongolia a few months ago, and he's currently learning Korean, working 72 hours a week, and taking several hours of class each week at a local university. Every time I think that my situation is bad, I will think of Gege & realize that I haven't learned the definition of hardship or even hard work. Gege - if you read this, I hope that you are successful in your goal of making it to the US. I'll do whatever I can to help you get established - your persistence gives me faith in mankind.

The police & Chinese students were out in mobs today. I saw more Chinese flags today than I saw during my entire week in Shanghai. In total, there were probably about 1000 - 2000 students in the area of Seoul that I was passing through. I made the assumption that the Olympic torch was coming through town in the next few days, since there were mobs of Chinese students who were peacefully demonstrating.

After I parted with Gege, I started to walk back to my hotel. About 2 km into my walk, the street was booming with voices. I increased my pace to see what the commotion was about. As I drew on further, there were a few Olympic floats so I assumed there was a little parade. About 2 minutes later, the yelling turned into a roar. The chanting was laced with so much emotion that I had a feeling shoot towards the end of my limbs. I think that my brain realized that I was in the middle of so many people who were pro-China, and I hold the opinion that Tibet should be its own sovereign nation. Needless to say, I think that I was surprised & fearful of the power that radiated from the crowd.

Before I knew it, there were buses of athletes passing by. About 20 seconds later, I saw the Olympic torch run past in a mob of about 100 runners. I tried to take some photos, but unfortunately I wasn't prepared.

I'm very fortunate to have seen the torch being carried through Seoul, as I doubt that I'll ever see it carried through the streets of Milwaukee. The experience resonates within me; anyone that sees the power & feels the desire of the Chinese people will understand. China will become the world's next superpower. While there will be some transition time, I think about all of the poor decisions that superpowers make; and specifically how the rest of the world must just watch it happen. I think of the US and it's push to start the Iraq war - these types of unsubstantiated decisions & injustices will only feel more bitter when another country commits them.

Somewhere in Seoul...

I had an awesome food experience last night. Awesome like the first time that I had gelato in Italy or sushi in Japan. What made the experience even better is that this was my first time. I recall eating Korean food on a number of occasions back home, but this was beyond what those restaurants could only hope to attain.

I found the place within 15 minutes of my hotel last night; the name is Pool Hyang Ki. I walked in, replied to a greeting that I didn't understand with 'hello', and took off my shoes. The restaurant was empty, save for the 50+ year old women who were working there. My server pointed to the a page on the menu, and said '[korean words I don't understand] vegetarian [more korean]'. I nodded & smiled in approval, not knowing what was coming next.

Soon enough, she came back with a serving tray of food. 5 to 8 dishes, at least. I started to dig into the food, chopsticks in hand. She came back with a fork - I shook my head no; I don't need those things! Before long, I had 18 dishes of food set in front of me. Good thing that I was sitting at a table for 4 people...

The tastes were amazing, savory soy flavors with the sour & salty flavors of the kim chee. Other dishes were extremely spicy. I was smiling. This is the best food experience that I've had in months. I had a table of food in front of me; I didn't know the names of any dishes, and I didn't recognize many of the ingredients, but all of them were incredible. One of life's moments, where I sit back & smile, happy that I'm alive.

I came across an article on BBC that showcased some medical studies that were happening in Europe. It seems that we cannot rely on pills/supplements alone to keep us healthy! Anyone that knows me knows that I'm a bit of a health freak, and I find it humourous that (time & time again) the advice from medical experts recommends eating a well balanced diet.

It's further proof of one of two things - vitamin marketing really works or we ignore 'ideal' suggestions in favor of convenience. I wonder if the day will come where we can take meal pills, instead of the tedious task of preparing & eating food...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7349980.stm

Last week we had turned our FNP into a Saturday night party. The theme was red; the menu included borsch, Thai red curry w/ vegetables (and chicken), red wine, and creme brulee. I think I may have usurped Leah's position of dessert chef, as evidenced by the ravenous devouring of the creme brulee!