NYC

new york trip was very very fun. the highlight was hanging out with lina and grace. your company has such a huge impact on an experience, huh? more pictures on flickr (link to the top left)!

rowdy

thanks phil for the graduation and christmas gift to the rockets game! one of the best games i've been to bc close game, we won, and cheerful crowd :). i also got a picture with clutch the bear! i watch clutch more than the game :x. i won a wristband and poster from punching out 100 all-star voting things.

happy bday angela!

we went to angela's school to surprise her for her bday! it was fun and so neat seeing her classroom. her classroom is nice and big with lots of decorations with words. supposedly a child learns more if they are surrounded by words.

still in grade school.

whistle while you work

during winter break, i went to eat lunch with my dad at his office. i always cherish one-on-one time with my dad :). afterwards, we went to visit jen in her nicely decorated cubicle. i highly recommend everyone to go visit their parents at work if you ever get the chance.

money penny

i went with mok, peter, oph, grace, and joe (yes, this was an event) to adopt a kitten. here are the proud new fathers :)

urbana

urbana was overwhelming at first but i left feeling good about going. speakers, organization, resources, and seminars were excellent. i could go on and on about what each speaker said but i'll save you from that. i appreciated what oscar said about the global unity between churches and the IJM speaker was sooo powerful - her talk was worth the freaking 28 hour bus ride to st.louis. rick warren's Q&A session was my favorite seminar. overall, urbana was just an affirming time for me because all the things i've been thinking about since manila was expanded upon. and these were things i rarely heard about post-manila. i also left with a trunk full of books which i'll post more about after i finish reading.

look at weili's expresion in this picture. most pics on flickr (link on left)

skiing thru christmas at taos, new mexico

more pics on flickr (see link on left)

sad johnny

the still fighting falcons

"The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles.
From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
""Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!"" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

1 to 233

i read this book on the way back to houston from nyc. in the book, the story is told by a boy (christopher) with autism and it reminded me of flowers for algernon's format. since christopher is a genius of math and science, you learn neat things about these 2 topics that you normally wouldnt encounter. because of that, i wished i sat next to a friend on the plane so i could share with them all these random, neat, and intelligent tid-bits from the book. also, it was so moving seeing the depth of love, patience, and dedication christopher's parents had for him despite the frustrations and hardships that come with raising a son with autism. and this book gave me a clearer understanding of autism but i still find this condition mysterious. o yeah, there was a mystery element to the book which i always welcome :)

massimo

here's my italian dad picking olives to make olive oil. wish i could be there to help.

my goddaughter