30?30!

Hard to believe I'm inching close to that time of life. After the big party we held last Sat, although it's still about 1 month from my real 29th birthday, it's inevitably incredibly close.

Some crazy pictures of our celebration/mourning: http://s88134149.onlinehome.us/gallery

Ok, think I'll stop here, before I sound like a age-whining sissy :) Anyway, the record that party set is, at least 5 totally drunk, and numerous quite drunk, and yet some slightly drunk. When things were quite out of control, threats about eating the pet bird, driving in reverse on RT-1 at 60 mph etc were proposed; it was quite close to the point where the house could be burnt down.

64.5

kg, minimum

That's fast! :(

Speed Limitless

J-132, CA

On our way to Yosemite, we were detoured on to SR-49 => J-132 from SR-120. This detour was not only very long, but exciting; J-132 was mostly without a posted speed limit during the detour. Driving through it, you could see "Speed Zone Ahead", followed by "End Speed Zone" a few miles further; within those speed zones, the limit was usually 40 or 30; between them, it was like autobarn in Germany, no posted speed limit. Unlike autobarn, I could hardly reach 60 mph; it was treacherous paths meandering through mountain ranges; there were places where suggested cornering speed of 20 mph or even 10 mph. Usually when the suggested cornering speed is above 30, you could safely do it with at least 20 mph above that; but when that gets down to 20 or below, it means business. I was doing 30 at a corner marked with 20, and heard the squealing sound from the tires; I definitely didn't intend to screw that one, as the cliff beside that gave no forgiveness.

The more exciting experience was in the night. As usual, we left the destination after dark. My adrenaline rushed to the head for what I saw; total darkness was what covered us. High beam could not serve the purpose at all on winding roads; light travels straight lines, it's that simple. Balancing among the urge to experience the extreme, the eagerness to get back earlier, and the fear for anything unexpected, it was surely the experience I would like to put down in records. Even in this wilderness, signs were posted marking "Residential Zone", and those were where we sighted a coyote, where the stars outshine lights, where the only evidence of residence were the road and sporadic mailboxes by it. By the time we reached places where we badged suburban in the morning, they looked welcomingly mordern.

Last weekend was the Rodeo festival of Oakdale, CA. When passing through Oakdale, the festive dust stired up by hooves, together with the cowboy hats, painted a subtle image of cowboy into our journey.

Google Analytics

I pointed Google Analytics to my blog, and here's the result I'm getting:

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Profile Name: scentofoat.blogspot.com
# Report Name: Executive Overview
# Date Range: 4/3/2006 - 4/9/2006
#--------------------------------------------------------

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Visits and Pageviews
#--------------------------------------------------------
Date Range Visits Pageviews
Mon 4/3 14 40
Tue 4/4 14 16
Wed 4/5 6 6
Thu 4/6 7 11
Fri 4/7 14 17
Sat 4/8 3 3
Sun 4/9 4 4

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Visits by New and Returning
#--------------------------------------------------------
Visitor Types Visits
Returning Visitor 40
New Visitor 22

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Geo Map Overlay
#--------------------------------------------------------
Country/Region/City Visits
Edison|405378|-743714 10
Alviso|374412|-1219905 7
Pasadena|337866|-1182987 6
(not set)|(not set)|(not set) 6
Philadelphia|399597|-751968 3
Redmond|476706|-1220685 3
San Mateo|375550|-1222687 3
New Brunswick|404834|-744433 3
Berkeley|378668|-1222536 2
Jersey City|407245|-740621 2
Hayward|376503|-1220730 2
San Leandro|377035|-1221484 2
Monterrey|256667|-1003167 1
New York|407267|-739981 1
Wichita|376910|-973292 1
Poreba|504833|193500 1
Oakland|377950|-1222193 1
Ottawa|454167|-757000 1
New York|407619|-739763 1
Wantirna South|-378833|1452167 1
Piscataway|405516|-744637 1
Farmington|424831|-833774 1
Kirkland|476966|-1221970 1
Zapopan|207167|-1034000 1

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Visits by Source
#--------------------------------------------------------
Sources Visits
thelustforlife.blogspot.com 33
(direct) 19
google 3
msn 2
spaces.msn.com 2

Interesting facts:

1. I'm losing traffic, mainly due to lack of activity I guess
2. Visits are mostly accounted for by the list of my friends
3. More than half visits are from Six Crawl's blog, that's a good place to place ads :)
   
4. Due to the massive success of Six Crawl's novel, I got most clicks on Monday

Browsers:

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Profile Name: scentofoat.blogspot.com
# Date Range: 4/3/2006 - 4/9/2006
#--------------------------------------------------------

#--------------------------------------------------------
# Browser & Platform Combos
#--------------------------------------------------------
Browsers - Platform Visits
Internet Explorer 6.0 - Windows XP 24
Firefox 1.5.0.1 - Windows XP 14
Firefox 1.0.7 - Linux (unknown version) 5
Mozilla 1.7.8 - Linux (unknown version) 3
Firefox 1.0.6 - Windows XP 3
Firefox 1.0.7 - Windows 2000 3
Internet Explorer 6.0 - Windows 2000 3
Firefox 1.5 - Linux (unknown version) 2
Firefox 1.5.0.1 - Macintosh PPC 2
Mozilla 1.7.12 - Linux (unknown version) 2
Firefox 1.5.0.1 - Linux (unknown version) 1

Firefox is used more widely than IE in my audience; however, sadly on windows IE is still dominant.

Funny Numbers

These numbers are from a research in the database of a dating service website.

• Male and female users typically reported that they are about 1 inch taller than the national average
• Men are in line with the national average on weight, women typically said they weighted about 20 punds less than the national average
• 70% women claimed "above average" looks, including 24% claiming "very good looks"; 67% men claimed "above average", including 21% "very good looks"; 1% chose "less than average"
• 4% of men and women claimed more than $200k annual income, while less than 1% of typical internet users actually earn that (here one doubt is where that 1% stat comes from)
• Men who posted a photo get 4 times more emails than the ones who didn't; for women, that ration becomes 6 to 1
• And here is the best; men who say they want a long-term relationship do much better than men looking for an occasional lover; but women looking for an occasional lover do great

Now what are your thoughts besides saying these numbers are hilarious but imaginable.

Flame Teasers

Obviously a lame topic I posted last night started a fire. It's not hard to foresee though; one topic is guaranteed to be eternal: girls.

Boys talking about girls, girls talking about girls, that is endless. Girls flattered, girls offended, boys joking, boys mocking, girls revenging, girls biting, boys wincing, boys execusing; nasty, but hot.

Travellers

• Dipper
Who would like to see the world outside, but feels quite insecure when being away from home for a short while.

• Kite
Who has a home, but can rarely stay there for long; the heart is always in somewhere far away.

• Roamer
Who is comfortable everywhere; who can pack all he has into a car or even a suitcase anytime, getting into a completely new place, and start a life.

What kind do you think you are? I would love to be the latter two; but it seems my expertise is one of the most useless ones for that purpose. Being a construction worker, or a mechanic, or a doctor would be good.

Tricks to Lure Girls

It's really not wise to leave such a nostalgic post at the top, it only shows my weekness; I'm obliged to write a new post, and another post soon only to drown that one deep into history.

This topic should be pretty provoking: what are the most effective tricks in luring girls. As surely I'm not good at these tricks, and history has proven my failure in using any of these, they only serve as a theoretical weapons of mass seduction, without any first-hand applications.

• Playing guitar
Playing guitar, as described by Auntie Sun, is very effective on music loving girls; she was once almost captured by this simple trick ---- being invited to listen and sing along, she was mesmerized ...

• Taking girls for a ride on a motocycle
This trick emerged from the book I recently read; let the open road lead two free souls to the open unknown. This should work well in places like Montana or Iowa, not in New Jersey. For the rough type, you could wear a T-shirt which says "If you can see this, the bitch fell off" on the back, which seems pretty popular in the biker circle.

Obviously I'm quite ignorant in this field, suggestions? This could be a good reference for the Var and Zhanna kind.

The Other End of the Tunnel

Saturday, March 18; Saturday evening.

This probably was my first time driving throught Holland Tunnel, or at least the first time I could remember. I was stuck in traffic for more than half an hour before entering; as soon as I was inside, the dim light, the off-white walls, even the whirling sound of the air circulation system, vaguely hinted something to me; suddenly I felt lost in the time-space. It felt like I was only minutes' drive from my parents, my home in Shanghai ---- the tunnel is so much like Da Pu Bridge Tunnel. Driving alone, without the interruption of any conversation, I was able to let my thoughts wander. I have always favored a song by Jacky Cheung (张学友), named 纽约的司机驾着北京的梦; however, it could only be a dream, as always. On the other end of the tunnel, how I wished it would be the familiar signs and roads guiding me home; instead, this tunnel was only on my way to pick my wife up at the airport, who just came from the home on the other end of the globe.

I hate to admit I've finally got a bit of homesickness after more than 3 years of no returning. There is even no reason for this hating. Maybe it's only because I'm too aware that even after so many years from home, I can still hardly call this place a home; even if I could visit *home* for several weeks, it is never the same sweet place as before; everything, whatever sweetness deeply planted in my memory, can only be memory forever.

Sleepy Now, Kind of Early

As days passed by, I didn't make any attempt to post any thing here. It seems the fate of my previous journals is inching closer towards this blog as well. At the beginning, I fervently posted multiple posts in a single day, only to see this trend dimishing to less that a trickle.

This blog was started less than 2 months ago, 1 week after my wife left for Shanghai. At this moment, she should be already onboard the flight to Seoul, where she'll transfer for JFK. I have a window open on the other monitor beside me, keeping an eye on the status of the flight, just as what I did for her departure flight. It is hard to say why I am doing this, maybe a mixed feeling of eagerness for a change of life style, in both cases.

I have been reading a book about a solitary journal of a woman on a bike, across the continent. It is not a book with dramatic story lines; it more or less just followed the timeline of the author's travel, and the flow of her thoughts. As I read throught it, I am almost 100% sure I won't remember those roads, towns, or people; at most I might remember some nice places she laborously depicted. I still enjoyed it, as she did something I might never be able to achieve. That actually is the main thing that kept me engaged in the past several days and not posting anything there.

Something about Quail

Quail is suspicious in every way these days.

Last Friday, Milk Bottle called him up to invite him for a dinner gathering with two of their high school classmates, both beautiful ladies; Quail rejected saying he had plan.

Doggie invited us for a hike in Delaware Water Gap on last Saturday; Quail rejected saying he was sick with bird flu.

Now story from Six Crawl saying Quail was using the excuse that he didn't want to be a light bulb in Doggie couple's hike, while not mentioning anything about the fictional bird flu at all.

From all these facts, it is pretty sure that Quail did not *want* light bulbs.

鹌鹑有问题！

Peace Corps

When read about Peace Corps, I bacame interested and did some search. It is a volunteer based non-profit organization. The missions last for 27 months, without home visits during that. It also provides allowances for living and traveling; sounds like a pretty good experience. However, I am not qualified for one reason, that is I'm not a US citizen.

But anyway, there is still hope, as there is not upper limit on age in volunteering. Spending a little bit more than 2 years, experiencing places in greatest needs, would be a very nice touch for the life. This might well be the reason for me to apply for US citizenship in the future. (Otherwise, why bother?)

NYPL

New York Public Library is superb. Years ago I applied for a card, but didn't use it even once. Today I went there again, trying to get a new card, only to be told that my old card is still valid. Suspicious, I tried to borrow a book with it, and succeeded.

As I live in NJ, I also have a library card there. When compared side by side, it becomes obvious that the NY one is far superior in every aspect. I can request hold online, request books to be shipped to a particular branch, borrow audio and video materials, all free of charge; let alone the abundance of books; there are a long list of painstaking services, for the only purpose of making books accessible to every one. Just seeing such a well organized effort makes me feel happy that my NY state tax dollars are at work.

Train Delay

The 7:44 pm NJ Transit train was delayed for more than 1 and half hours, due to an accident near Newark Airport station involving fatality.

Wife's Job Scratched

For whatever reason, she is not going to work in Beijing. Don't know whether I should be happy or be sad for her.

Too Lazy to Find A Title

It's been several days of lazying around without writing anything; not that I don't have a topic, just laziness. However, now I don't really have a good topic. When I think of something writeable, I usually write down a title. This works fine if I pick it up soon enough, I can usually still remember what I want to write and some cue lines. This time when I have a couple of days-old titles, I don't have a clue on how to flesh those out.

One of the titles is Mike Mullane. That's the name of an astronaut, who wrote the book I just finished reading a couple of days ago. That guy is pretty good at writing. Sometimes he would resort to the accumulation of dazzling adjectives, to express some of the poetic thoughts; unfortunately that feels like too much condiments in a fine dish, which tends to spoil it. That said, I still like the book; simply because it's a book about his own life, and his life is as an astronaut.

I guess most boys once had a dream about space trips. What we have never realized is the risk incurred in this dream. The space shuttles have more problems than Microsoft software; some are design flaws, some are simply fatal bugs. If I were to take such a wonderful trip with a 90% chance of survival, would I take it? That's a very good question. I want to jump up and say yes, only to balk when seeing my wife's face in my mind's eye.

I like the narrative tone of Mike Mullane, he was telling his real stories, his joy when getting a mission assignment, his fear before the launch, and their faked smile in group photos before launch. These tiny little details are drastically different from the pompous official propaganda, morphing steely and brave astronauts into earthlings with joy, tear, and most importantly, fear. Therefore, the lives lost in the failed Challenger and Columbia missions are no more represented by weary numbers, they are sons, daughters, fathers, monthers, and friends.

The other book I skimmed through in this week is Generation Debt. The author is a beautiful girl graduated from Yale. The main topic in this book is the yonger generation are facing much more dire problems than the previous generation, listing education cost, job availability, future prospect etc in a hopeless tone; although the last chapter is named Waking Up and Taking Charge, the wake up call is dry and weary. It is true that the government, and the whole elder generation, are slowly going down a path that would result in deserting the younger and providing them a dire future by living in the present. However, it is hard to be convinced that the minimum wage here is more than three times of the daily living expense for almost half of the world population. Anyway, this is a complicated problem with intricate reasonings, I'm not going to dive deeper, so that book was put away.

The Super Gs

As while reading Riding Rockets, I did some calculations. According to the astronaut, the acceleration during launch could reach a little bit more than 3Gs. Be noted that is pure forward acceleration, which builds up the speed travelling forward. As 3G really sounds exciting, I scratched on a piece of paper, trying to see how many Gs we could usually experience, in a passenger car, or even a super car.

For that purpose, I used well publicised 0-60 mph data. 60 mph is roughly 26.67 m/s. For my car, it can reach 60 mph in a pathetic 7.5 seconds. That translates to 0.36G. If your car can reach 60 mph in 6 seconds, you can experience 0.45G if you floor the gas. Now comes the super car, the most powerful and fastest passenger car, Bugatti Veyron; it can do 0-60 in 3 seconds, still that's less than 1G. Maybe the only way to experience an acceleration of 1G in my life time would be jumping off a mountain, head first; even strapping a big rock on me won't make that more than 1G.

抚琴

There is no English translation for this.

Several days ago, I received a catalog through mail from musiciansfriends.com; a review comparing several models of Cordoba guitars caught my attention. I had noticed Cordoba a long time ago, mainly because of their relatively low price on finely made classical guitars; this review reinforced my perception. For a moment, I felt the urge to order one right away. However, given the famous admonition "impulse is a devil", I allowed a certain cooling period, then chickened out.

抚琴 is the exact expression to describe the intimacy between the player and the instrument; it gives life to this interaction. Through smooth and fluent glides of fingers, life is infused into the instrument, which in turn emanates the vibration through the air, eliciting a zen like pleasure; the sound is not only heard by the ears, but also felt through the finger tips, all the ten of them; when a harmony of all the senses echoes inside the body, a transcending ecstacy overwhelms. Damn it I could only salivate at this heavenly experience without being able to reach it.

Near Death Experience, Ross Style

When I was walking into Penn Station in the evening, many people started running towards the exit, shouting "Get out, police said get out"; a pretty scary scene. I started sniffing around, but couldn't sense any smell of exploded explosives. Soon the hallway, usually quite crowded at this time of day, became empty. I was suspicious, because obviously some military person on duty was as confused as I was. As my train was already boarding, and I didn't have any time to spare, I headed towards the track ignoring those runners. Soon announcement came saying previously broadcasted warning was only a drill; I doubt it, could be some screw-up of our dear safe-guards again. But anyway, it seems no one died of a heart attack.

Tears

Tear is a weird stuff; people shed those when they are sad, happy, excited, surprised ...

Tear, as a word, is also a strange combination of seemingly unrelated things. The salty water drops we excrete, versus the action of ripping apart, those do not look too related in my eyes, although it might make a tiny bit of sense when you say ripping hearts apart invokes tears; but that is quite far fetched.

Although tears are not so enjoyable, people love them. There have been numerous songs containing "Don't Cry" or "Tears" in the title or the words, countless TV series and books counting on eliciting as much tear as possible in order to make big bucks. Even in classic works, tragedies seem to overwhelm comedies in the number.

Nevertheless, I have been infused with "man shed no tears" ever since I could understand the first word. Obviously it was partly because of my parents' selfishness, because me no cry would give them a much easier life; only I was not a man yet at that time, sorry for them.

Grown up, I can hardly remember when was the last time I shed a drop of tear. Most recent such incidents happened in dreams, always some eternal departure with closest family member, friend etc; not too many of those, so I guess shedding tears in dreams is only a way to let out the overflowing tear gland. Further back, there was a time when I first arrived in the US for a couple of weeks, and wife started weeping with homesickness; I felt exhausted and helpless and weak, then shed a few drops of tears. Before that it would be more than 10 years of absense of tears as far as I could remember. I would choke on something really touching, like Kevin's picture I posted the other day; but no damp eyes.

When I saw men openly crying for a new baby, a new house, or even a surprise party, I got stunned. Since when tears are so cheap? But slowly, it came to me that tears are cheap; what is not cheap is the real feelings behind that, and the heartily exchange of those with the closest. Tears are cheap so that it could be easily accessible to express yourself fully, no matter what occassion. Despite that, I would not follow that path; partly because after so many years of abstaining from crying, my tear glands are more or less dysfunctional.

In Brokeback Mountain, the cowboys would rather shed blood than tears; this alone has flooded Six Crawl's eyes and noses and the whole face. I was simply envious.

Tears and cheers are close.