Joy over reconnecting with a friend and ...

...learning that he's become a Christian!

It was a surprise that he responded to one of my "sermon listening" updates. I thought to myself -- did I forget that he was a Christian, or did he become one during the 2 decades that we lost contact?

After I inquired about it, what joy it is to learn that he's genuinely converted and was baptized in 2003! I really didn't see it coming.

Boy enthusiasm

I haven't seen Ethan being so enthusiastic since he came to study with me a little more than a year ago. Which music piece did he learn? You may ask. Let me tell you -- it's not about music but about a glass tea kettle that I burned! It's one similar to the one shown here.

We were having piano lesson in one of the rooms and I began to smell something like automobile exhaust fumes. Ethan could smell it too. I then remembered that I was boiling water quite a while ago, so I ran to the kitchen. Ethan was following me around but I asked him to stay put because my instinct wanted to keep him away from the "danger zone." (Note that he's the kind of kid who would ask even before going to the washroom to wash his hands. However, he didn't ask this time.)

While in the kitchen, I realized that I forgot to cover the "whistler" kettle with its lid. No wonder there was no whistling sound when the water was boiling. By the time I smelled something, the glass kettle was all dry up, the glass above the handle was melting and creating some white smoke! I turned off the stove, and quickly opened all the doors, windows.

After the lesson was over, Ethan immediately went to the kitchen (again without asking me) in search of the burned/melted glass tea kettle. I'm simply amused to see how boy got excited when something got destroyed.

Low point re: teaching

I don't have the energy to evaluate what happened or what went wrong.

Tonight I just let myself take a break: I watched a couple hours of "Ugly Betty," "Private Practice," a re-run of "Friends" and a Korean drama. I also ground 4 bags of almonds, took a hot bath, and now I listened to some old sermons posted online.

Don't want to go to sleep in a sour mood.

Four more weeks until the quarter ends. I need to figure out a way to turn things around.

Nail polish remover

Ever since I moved to this place, I have had the problem of wiring my phone, computer, and internet. The phone jack in the study room had a thick layer of paint, which blocked the jack opening. As a result, I couldn't use it and have to use extension cord for plugging several lines from another room. This small yet annoying problem has dragged on for several months because I didn't know what to do, and my home looked like it's under construction.

To solve the problem, I was going to replace the old phone-plate. The new one was bought several months ago.



I couldn't unscrew the old one because my set of screwdrivers was too mini for the task.



And so, I bought a regular-size one. Still that didn't work. The screw was so glued to the plastic cover because of the old paint.



One friend suggested that I use some paint remover or nail polish remover, which I did. After using Q-tips to wipe the area several times, the screw remained unloosened.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that I could wipe the plug-in area instead of the screw with some nail polish remover.



Voila. Here's the delightful outcome. It turns out that the solution to the annoying problem is so simple. The nail polish remover has been sitting on the shelf but I didn't think of using it sooner. I didn't even have to buy the new wall-plate or screwdriver.

Life lesson: sometimes it's not whether the problem one faces is big or small, but whether one can find a solution.

It's a scam!

I had a recent email exchange with an old colleague from graduate school. I was venting, in my email, how illusive the outlook of getting a full-time academic job is and that the whole thing is a scam.   As far as I know, only 1 out of the 7 of us who started our 1st year graduate work together got a permanent full-time teaching position.  Here's an excerpt of his reply:

"...I had part-time choral singing and part-time teaching in Canada until the spring of 2007, but I basically lost both of those things to do the UCLA gig for the 2007-08 academic year. I can really only make a maximum of about $450-500 (US) per month writing reference articles, so I’m now considering declaring Canadian bankruptcy, because I’m so badly in debt. Unfortunately, though, I can’t do anything about my US debt while I’m living in Canada.

It’s been a very tough last seven months: at least you have the piano teaching! I lived in three different places from July to late-October (house-sitting at two different places for a total of seven weeks and in my parents’ small, camper-trailer “cottage” for another eight weeks), and since late-Oct. I’ve been living in a very cheap (and very crappy) basement apartment that I will probably only be able to keep until the spring or summer.

Of course the academic world is a scam (only about a quarter of humanities Ph.D.s ever get full-time academic jobs), but I nonetheless believe in my work and my accomplishments, and I still hope that somebody who can give me a job will also eventually believe in me!"

I got a green thumb

My landlord planted a few rose bushes to beautify the front yard shortly after I moved in last September. I was then told to water them every two to three days, which I did diligently. Nevertheless, to my disappointment, the flowers and leaves withered after two rounds of blooming. Since this was my first experience tending the flowers, I didn't realize they were in hibernation mode and I thought they were dying.

Not expecting anything brilliant to come out, I saw this last week!


I also planted something outside the house because the plant (forgetting what it is called, and wondering if it's another pot of Gerbera Daisy) seemed to be dying in the pot that was placed inside the house. It's more an experiment when I moved it outdoor. And look -- the unexpected again!

My landlord said that I must have a green thumb.

牛年願望與行動

我与胞姐对於照料妈妈的合作与安排，有很多arguments，大家的沟通往往不欢而散。 虽然我从没有说出口，但是心里是埋怨她作得不够好，不够appreciate我所作的，也不懂做一个好的姐姐。

最近与在Scotland的Amy电邮联络，知到她胞妹每每帮她减压。 我便反问自己： 我与胞姐沟通是带给她压力居多，还是帮她减压居多呢？ 不用多说，相信你也猜到答案。

Amy与胞妹的关系提醒我从另一角度去看事情。 其实，除了对于照料妈妈的安排上，我与姐姐生活上各也面对不同的压力，我或者可以尝试多谅解她的情况，再调较我的期望，不单要求她体谅我。

当然，不是一想通就能解决所有问题。但正如最近学的，不是所有问题也可以或是需要解决的。 也如圣经中所说的：「一天的难处，一天当就够了。」

另外，也感谢神，我们能达到共识，一齐为妈妈的将来储备。 总括来说，牛年的願望就是要孝敬妈妈，作一个不要老是给别人压力的妹妹吧。

Rick Warren's Inauguration Prayer

Amen.

Almighty God, our Father:

Everything we see, and everything we can’t see, exists because of you alone. It all comes from you, it all belongs to you, it all exists for your glory. History is your story.

The Scripture tells us, "Hear, O Israel, the LORD is our God, the LORD is one." And you are the compassionate and merciful one. And you are loving to everyone you have made.

Now today we rejoice not only in America’s peaceful transfer of power for the 44th time, we celebrate a hinge point of history with the inauguration of our first African American president of the United States.

We are so grateful to live in this land, a land of unequaled possibility, where a son of an African immigrant can rise to the highest level of our leadership. And we know today that Dr. King and a great cloud of witnesses are shouting in heaven.

Give to our new president, Barack Obama, the wisdom to lead us with humility, the courage to lead us with integrity, the compassion to lead us with generosity. Bless and protect him, his family, Vice President Biden, the Cabinet, and every one of our freely elected leaders.

Help us, O God, to remember that we are Americans--united not by race or religion or blood, but to our commitment to freedom and justice for all. When we focus on ourselves, when we fight each other, when we forget you--forgive us. When we presume that our greatness and our prosperity is ours alone--forgive us. When we fail to treat our fellow human beings and all the earth with the respect that they deserve--forgive us.

And as we face these difficult days ahead, may we have a new birth of clarity in our aims, responsibility in our actions, humility in our approaches, and civility in our attitudes—even when we differ. Help us to share, to serve, and to seek the common good of all.

May all people of good will today join together to work for a more just, a more healthy, and a more prosperous nation and a peaceful planet. And may we never forget that one day, all nations--and all people--will stand accountable before you.

We now commit our new president and his wife, Michelle, and his daughters, Malia and Sasha, into your loving care.

I humbly ask this in the name of the one who changed my life—Yeshua, 'Isa, Jesus [Spanish pronunciation], Jesus—who taught us to pray:

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Neglecting my blog

Sorry, I have been neglecting my blog these days.

Ever since I joined Facebook, I have gotten reconnected first with my UCSD friends, followed by a couple of high school buddies, then the Baptist University folks, and my relatives in Vancouver & Hong Kong. These two days I'm networking with some ex-colleagues from UCLA.

I shall return to blogging. Although Facebook makes it easy to interact with people, it's still right here, RenaissanceOfGrace, where I write about the real stuff.

I do like to teach

As much as I loathed that the holiday ended too soon and felt not ready to begin class, the truth is that I felt energized right after my first day of class.

I enjoy teaching in a classroom setting, interacting with the college students and the faculty on the side. These experiences are different from my one-on-one piano teaching in private with kids and parents.