Sore Loser-Monopoly Deal Edition

When my sister came home for the weekend, I challenged her to a friendly game of Monopoly Deal. For the past year I've been pretty dominant, probably winning 15 of 20 games. But the thing is that this is the case when there are 3 or more people, so I'm able to read and predict a lot more from people's reactions. Playing with 2 people requires you to have a different set of expectations and limits you in strategic game play. Regardless, we played 4 games with my sister winning 3. My sister is really competitive, so she stated at the end that she's back to her winning ways of dominating me. Being very defensive, I pointed out that I would dominate her in 3+ player games, and that her wins were the result of lucky hands (each of her winning hands had deal breakers, just say nos, and most of the 2 card monopoly properties).

Why couldn't I just let her have her moment of winning? Why couldn't I congratulate her on her wins, and then just move on? It's not like the outcome of Monopoly Deal dictates any important decisions in my life or has any affect on how I live my life after the game. My immature response to my sister's wins revealed to me the need for me to acknowledge others' "wins" and celebrate wins with them. Another person's win does not mean I am worse off. Ridiculous. If you lose, then you lose, get better, and try again. You can't win all the time, but when you do win, let's all celebrate. This simple game of Monopoly Deal provided a means for me to once again find an area in which I needed rebuke.

Childhood Summers-Why I don't play piano

Before I go off and forget my childhood memories, I've made it a point to write down things here and there. Well, this post will be dedicated to my childhood summers.

This must have happened 3 or 4 times... near the end of a school year in elementary school, my mother would sign me up for piano lessons or another arts & crafts workshop (ceramics, creative writing, animation, etc)...expecting me to continue into the class in the summer.

However, summer would begin.

Almost every summer I went either to Wagon Train camp or my cousin's house. It was the highlight of my life every year.

Wagon Train Camp

At Hume Lake, I would go to camp with a church friend and would re-unite with fellow campers year after year. From sunrise to lunch, we would participate in camp activities: creative arts, singing, cleaning, group sports...then the fun would begin. Every day after lunch until dinner was free time. With our parents loading our store credit, we would head to the camp store for ice cream. Then whatever we wanted to do was next. This included kayaking, bb gun shooting, archery, slingshotting, giant swing (on which i almost fell off once), zip line, tag, swimming, etc etc. Basically, a boy's paradise. Of course there were the girls, who congregated among themselves...and I have to admit I had a crush on one girl for 3 straight summers. Gosh, she was beautiful. With acres upon acres available to us, our games of capture the flag went for hours as there were an endless number of hiding places. We had built tunnels under the water to travel (I know, impressive), and my team won every time :) At dinner we would get mail from home (my parents never sent me anything...but my friend's parents sent me things from time to time lol). Gosh, wagon train camp was the best. We slept in actual wagon trains with counselors telling scary stories every night (I'm still bitter). Recently I found a camp picture of everyone together (last day goodbyes), and it's pretty funny because I was always the only asian every time. Of course there was drama at camp...gossip of which counselor has a crush on whom, which guys are the wimps, which girls are the prettiest, etc etc. It was at camp where I learned how to make lanyards, shoot arrows, and built teepees from scratch. I love hume lake.

Cousin's House

Now, usually camp was followed up by a couple weeks at my cousin's house in Lancaster. These were my favorite cousins...one was a few months younger than me, another 2 years younger, and another 4 years....all boys. We always had a blast. If you don't know Lancaster, it's basically a desert. My cousins had bb guns, dirt bikes, go-carts, and a boxing gym in the garage. We would shoot birds, burn black widows + egg sacs, race dirt bikes, and beat each other up. Every day someone would cry. Of course not me or Richard (the one a few months younger than me). When it was too hot outside, we would watch movies inside (they had a walk-in closet filled with VHS tapes...my favorite was Little Rascals), play video games, or play with their pets (python, hedgehog, and a snake we caught one time). When my aunt came home we pretended to study (basically, I brought out a chess board and challenged everyone). But it was basically wake up, have fun, eat, and have more fun.

Other summers were either spent playing video games, trips to the library, or playing with neighbors. My parents tried to make me study once...then never tried again lol.

Although I can't play piano nor make pretty ceramic pieces, I will always look back on those childhood summers with a huge smile.

Sports and Dreams

Again, another random post for the purpose of documenting my thoughts for future laughter.

My relationship with basketball. In the latter stages of elementary school, my dream was to be an NBA player. Some kids may say this, but are not serious. I was totally serious. From 4th grade to 7th grade I would dedicate 3 hours every day to practicing my dribble (left + right), post game, and outside game. Defensive drills were done with my dog as I worked on running backwards and laterally. Finally, when my dad would come home I would challenge him to a couple games of one on one. Every day. As I practiced, I visualized myself the star player for the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. Every night I would study my folder of basketball cards, and to this day I can recite a lot of veteran NBA player statistics. Since my mom had cut off cable, I would listen to Chick Hearn describe every Lakers game. My mood ended up becoming a reflection of how the Lakers were playing. You have no idea how estatic I was when the Lakers won the 2000 championship. I have to admit, with those countless hours I became very confident and really good. By the time I reached 6th grade, I believed myself to be the best basketball player at my school (I'm pretty sure others would agree too). Eventually everyone else became taller and faster, and I became more and more dedicated to my studies. These days if I'm lucky, I will play 3 times a year. So, were all those countless hours dedicated to basketball worthless? NO NO NO.

Basketball has taught me many things, as I am sure sports has done for many people.

1) Practice and hard work is key to becoming better.

2) People who are flashy and offensively gifted are not always the people I want on my team.

3) Good things happen for teams with players who play their heart out.

4) A lot of facades fade away when playing...you get a real glimpse of how a person really is when you watch them play basketball.

5) Don't take things too seriously. You don't need to win every time.

Although I don't play basketball as much as I used to, I still enjoy watching and analyzing people play. This is why I will always be a basketball fan.

Current pursuits:

Running + Jiu-jitsu

Running is very personal. Everyone runs for different reasons. My reason is simplicity. When running, everything becomes simple. It's you versus the trail. I don't have time to think about outside issues because I must concentrate on what is directly in front of me. Losing focus usually leads to you falling or not challenging yourself. When the fatigue takes over, I love it. It's strange, but I like to embrace the SUCK. At this point, it's a test of your resolve. Running at night is preferred by me because it allows me to unplug from the day.

Jiu-jitsu is chess with the body. I've fallen in love with this martial art because I can see how I've grown from practicing it. When rolling, you are often put in many high pressure situations (come on, you are about to be choked or a limb is on its way to be broken), so I've noticed how I've become much more calm in these situations. Jiu-jitsu is about finding a way to counter, execute, and utilize what's given to you with efficiency. Practicing this martial art has also given me confidence in myself should I ever be physically attacked by anyone. Yes, having earned a 2nd degree black belt in taekwondo should give me confidence, but learning jiu-jistu is on another level.

I'm a big fan of physical activities because of the awesome fun and the lessons they teach us.

Steak & Raisins

Steak and raisins...what could these two possibly have in common to warrant inclusion in the same sentence?

Childhood.

I despised steak and raisins in my youth. And I still despise raisins to this day.

Steak

It was the summer before 3rd grade at a winter camp with my family. The main dinner item on the menu: steak. So, without other choices, I decided to stand in the line headed out to the BBQ pit for the grilled steaks. When my turn came, a piece of charred meat was slapped onto my plate. It was well-done. My mom had to cut the steak for me, and I distinctly remember saying to myself: I will never eat steak again. This piece of charred meat does not even compare to juicy burger patties (my favorite was the whopper) or any other meat I had eaten up to that point in my life.

This all changed when I took a trip to Sizzlers in 8th grade with my family. Remember, for 6 years I had refused to eat steak as the thought of it disgusted me. I decided to give it another shot, and ordered the sizzler steak and grilled shrimp combo. Changed my life. I remember biting into the juicy (at that time) medium steak and supplementing it with succulent shrimp and bbq sauce. From that point forward Sizzler's has always had a special place in my heart, and I love to eat steak.

Raisins

Recently I've been getting a lot of flak for not eat raisins. Whether in cereal, yogurt, bread, dessert...I just despise raisins. Even after learning they were dried grapes (I love grapes), it had no effect...the thought of raisins makes me cringe. So why?

In elementary school I always looked forward to Halloween. The one day I get to stock pile candy and eat for the next 2 months. All the snickers, reeses, milk ways, butterfingers, baby ruths, sugar babies, etc etc I could eat. Whenever I came upon Almond Joys or candy corn, any smile I had vanished. And whenever I came across a small red box of Sun-maid raisins I became infuriated. I want candy, not these weird little thingies! And for weird reason, to this day I hate raisins. Sometimes I will randomly eat them, and say to myself...they don't taste bad at all. But when I remember it's a raisin I spit it out. Strange. Perfect example: My former co-worker brought me a delicious medley of dried pineapple, chocolate, almonds, peanuts, cashews, and ....After eating a handful, I spit out the little dried fruits because I believed they were raisins. They turned out to be dried blueberries! After realizing this, I ate the delicious mix freely.

I never thought it strange to dislike raisins until recently. Just shows the influence of perception on our everyday lives.

We all have strange childhood memories that have faded or continue to affect us to the present.

Chaotic organization.

Golden Silence

People tend to be very uncomfortable with silence.

And empty spaces.

But empty spaces and silence can say a lot more than many words.

Communication is much more than the diction that somehow makes its way out of your mouth. From tone of voice, facial movements, hand movements, speed of delivery, pauses, etc etc...communication is so much more complex than the actual words. After having had led many workshops, classes, and discussion sections, a common theme is the discomfort people have with silence. To be honest, I am still uncomfortable with it, but much more understanding than when I started to speak publicly. Pauses give moments of contemplation and even simplicity. Better to say nothing than something that discourages or a bunch of empty words. I can often fall victim to empty words...and must catch myself. Remember, more can be said with less. Try to become more comfortable with silence. Hey, with all the input we experience every second...we are in danger of being inundated with catalysts that may end up starting nothing. Be happy with silence.

That being said...

So I just finished the book Unbroken. Recommended from a lot of friends, specifically my friend Cho, I finally came around to read it. A story of potential, triumph, disaster, torture, reconciliation, and triumph again....this is a book I would recommend anyone to read.

To end:

Ecclesiastes 3 1:8

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

2a time to be born, and a time to die;

a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;

3a time to kill, and a time to heal;

a time to break down, and a time to build up;

4a time to weep, and a time to laugh;

a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

5a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;

a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

6a time to seek, and a time to lose;

a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

7a time to tear, and a time to sew;

a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

8a time to love, and a time to hate;

a time for war, and a time for peace.