Happy New Year everyone!
I worked the entire last week of December, except Monday, which was a
"holiday" and Wednesday.  So I was really productive in the
office, with basically no one there.  Everyone was back today
though.

Went to AC twice; once w/Joanne and her family on the last Wednesday of
December, and again on Monday (Jan 2nd). No, I'm not addicted to
gambling, I just go along.

Well, last year was pretty good.  I got a nice job by leaving a
very large, famous, reputable company, and going with the company
formed by my former coworker.  I graduated with my masters degree
in software engineering by constantly taking 2 classes a semester, and
I still remember all the stress involved.  I finally got the
courage to verbally defend myself against racists. I was finally able
to do a 540 tornado kick, just by messing around in the dojang, but I'm
sure the calf raises and squats helped me jump higher.  Finally,
in 2005, I celebrated three years together w/Joanne. 
 
I don't really have any resolutions for 2006, but I do have
goals.  Save more money, practice writing Chinese characters
again, practice more piano, learn investing through reading websites
and books (currently reading "Rich Dad/Poor Dad's Guide to Investing"),
and hopefully get black belt in TKD this year.

You would think, by looking at these two innocent cats, that they
wouldn't cause any kind of destruction.  Before setting up my
Christmas tree, I asked SleepingCutie if cats would mess with it.  I was assured that cats wouldn't be interested in stuff that doesn't move.

This black and white cat is named "Fancy."  She looks so innocent,
sleeping by the window in the den, where I am typing this.

This little guy looks like he wouldn't bother you, but he meows at 2:30 AM every morning, wanting food. 

Well, this is what I found when I came back from dim sum today. 
Before this, the tree was up for at least a week.  I guess they
couldn't resist!

I went to the dentist today.  Recently, I really don't like
going.  Why? Because the main dentist (not the hygenist) is really
quick, and cleans really quickly.  I want to interrupt and say
there's too much liquid, so I can drain it out, but he seems upset when
I do that.  So I swallowed too much water and started
coughing. 

Yeah, I could change dentists, but I won't.  The hygenist is much
nicer, and is the main reason I went to this office.  She cleans
really well, and has a better bedside manner than the main dentist.

Another thing is recently, I think too much and worry that my tongue is
in the way, and I'm afraid those scrapers will get my tongue.

TKD: I got a letter saying I've been recommended by the instructors to
take part in the new Olympic sparring program, but it costs too much:
$600/year.  I already pay around $139/month, and adding this on
top would be too much.  So, I just get training DVDs from
turtlepress.com, which should help.

Supposed to snow 1" - 5" tonight... we'll see.

The year I don't get a flu shot, I get the flu.  I felt miserable
since 10 AM this morning, with chills, sweating, and vomiting. 
Finally went to the doctor at 5 PM, and they confirmed it was the flu,
by taking a nasal swab sample.

Get your flu shot! Having the flu is not fun.

This week has gone by so fast!  I took off work Wednesday -
Friday.  We planned on going to Atlantic City on Wednesday, but
woke up too late to go.  Thursday, my mom already said to meet her
for dim sum, so that day was gone too.  Ended up watching Harry
Potter.  Friday, I'm in Delaware, visiting my mom and helping her
with some errands. Tomorrow, I have to help her move from MD.

So, basically, two days (Friday and Saturday) that I thought I would
have to myself are being used to help out in DE, which is a two hour
commute (if I speed,and I did... otherwise it's 3 hours.)

So yeah, it's a pretty boring weekend.  My Naruto 3 game for
Gamecube was delivered Monday, and I've been playing it almost every
night. Naruto 4 was came Wednesday, but I didnt' expect it and forgot
to leave a note for UPS saying to leave it at the door.  So
they're not coming back till Monday, which is weird...  I figured
they would try on Friday.
Anyway, it's my Christmas present from Joanne,so I'm gonna wrap it up and put it under the tree.

Black Friday --- didn't feel like waking up that early and there
weren't any deals that were worth it either.  I did want to get
"24", Seasons 1-3 from Best Buy though. 

Today marks the third year that I've been together with Joanne.  I
really can't believe it's been three years!  My longest
relationship ever.

The weather has turned from warm to extremely cold (30s).  Well,
since tomorrow's my normal day off, I'll spend it indoors, watching all
the anime I can, and playing some piano.  I ordered Naruto3 for
Gamecube, but even with 2-day air, it's not coming till Monday. 
Oh well, at least I have something to look forward to when I get off
from work.  I've turned into such a anime geek in the past year.

I'm sure most of you have heard about this cell-phone bank
robber.  Why would someone even do that?  I mean, at least
wear a ski mask!  Anyway, the suspect and her boyfriend are in
custody, and supposedly, they've stolen $14,000 from four local banks
in VA.

I barely eat fast food except for breakfast, and even then, it's on the
weekends.  I mean, I probably eat a value meal about once a year,
or less.  Anyway, I went to Mc Donald's this past Monday and last
Monday.  I'll never eat it again!  I went to TKD and felt
sluggish, out of breath, and like I wanted to throw up and just go
home.  I've never felt that bad or out of shape in my entire
life.  I only went to Mc D's out of convenience because I wouldn't
be able to eat before piano class, and after watching Super Size Me, I
really wanted to have a big mac.

I just got back from the tae kwon do tournament.  I think it's a
good lesson in performing under stress.  There weren't that many
students from my school and I only went up against 3-4 people in each
event: sparring, breaking, and forms.

Forms: I have no idea why, but I ended up getting last place.  I
wish there was some kind of feedback given in class...anyway, not a big
deal, it was fun. A green belt from my class got 2nd, and a red belt
doing koryo got first since his movements were really crisp and sharp.

Sparring: I sparred the green belt, Carlos, from my school.  He
should've been easy competition, but I was too nervous and really
didn't give 100%.  However, he is fast and a good opponent and
kicked me in the head, but he admitted that was a lucky hit.  I've
got to apply pressure and use my speed, and not hold back.  I hold
back in life too, sometimes not really showing my true self. 

I ended up not sparring anymore after that, and then realized I had
lost to Carlos.  Carlos even beat the red belt too!  Just
goes to show you that it's not about colors, but technique, ability,
and confidence that you can do it.

Breaking:  I was thoroughly warmed up for this event and was
worried I didn't buy enough boards, because I can easily break four (4)
boards with a standing back kick or side kick.  During the setup,
I showed my jump front, elbow and hook kick. The judges asked if the
holder should use a chair for my jump front, because I was jumping so
high!  My hook kick was high too, so this 6foot+ guy had to hold
it. I broke the 2-board jump front on the first try.  The 2-board
elbow: I had to try twice, because the holder didn't know what kind of
elbow I was doing.  Finally, my first hook kick (1-board) totally
missed the target, but my 2nd try was direct and it broke right
away.  I was so happy to get gold!

Happy Friday, everyone!
I have another Friday off... I'm sitting at home, waiting for my new laptop
to be delivered, which is paid for in FULL by my company.  I chose
this over the Acer Ferrari (which has a carbon fiber case and Ferrari
logo) because I don't really want top-of-the-line, and this is a
comparable model, and cheaper.

Being a team lead isn't as fun as I thought it would be. Perhaps
because I'm too hard on myself.  It's still early in the project
so I really haven't contributed as much as I would like.  I guess
in time, things will change.  Also, I have to get used to new
people and the new environment, so that's a little stressful.

I'll be participating in a tae kwon do tournament tomorrow.  Hopefully I'll do well!

For those of you with iPod nanos, what kind of case, if any did you
get?  I ordered the shield by Agent18 from Apple's site, but they
postponed delivery until 11/23, so I cancelled and orderded directly
from Agent18, and it should be here next Wednesday.  Apple is
unbelievable!  I ordered from them on Oct 16, and it's not even
here yet!

Nothing really exciting going on.  My last day at my other project
was yesterday since I usually take Fridays off.  I'm just sitting
at home, messing with my computer (I added a USB 2.0 card) and
listening to old CDs while I import them into iTunes.

Apple's online store is so slow!  I ordered a hard-shell case for
my nano on Sunday, and it hasn't even been shipped!  It's still in
the processing stage.

I've got a TKD belt test tonight (brown-stripe).  After this, I
will test for red, then black!  Hopefully I get black before I
turn 30.