One of my pet peeves: getting a zipper stuck such that it takes a piece
of the fabric with it when it closes.  I just did this to my
pencil bag, made of the same material as most backpacks.

Nothing to write since I'm super busy these days.  Commuting to
work will be easier since we moved locations.  Traffic here sucks;
I left at 10:30 AM thinking everything would be clear, but it was
terrible.  People are too greedy here, only worrying about
themselves, making sure they get to work on time or wherever it is they
are headed.

Joanne hooked me up w/Gran Turismo 4 for PS2.   Actually, we
put down a $5 deposit so we can pick up the game on 2/23.  I think
this version can be played online, so I can test my driving skills.

I'm downloading OpenOffice for Mac as I write this.... my inner geek is
so happy.  I want to see how "compatible" with Windows this
software is, compared to AppleWorks.  It's written for X11, so I
trust it'll be a good port.

I'm going to see a dragon dance at my uncle's restaurant
tomorrow.  It's usually pretty cool, but the food is mainly what
I'm going for.

Update, 11:18PM: OpenOffice
works really well!  I can view and modify Windows' PowerPoint,
Word, and Excel files! Sweet, and it was totally free!

I love open source software.
11:27PM  Verified GT4 is
online-capable!  Yes, watch out you rice-rocket racers who only
know how to go fast in a straight line!  J/K, I used to be like
that when I first started playing, but thanks to a friend, I learned
all the race-driving theory and how to "drive the line".

Sunday:  I've done some research, and now I'm not so sure if it's playable online.

Just came back from TKD.  My left pinky is swollen because my
classmate did an axe kick and kinda missed while I was holding the
boards.  Not good for my profession (software
engineering).   Now is a good time for eXtreme Programming
(XP), but I don't think anyone at work really wants to try paired
programming. [If you're not a software engineer, you probably don't
know what I'm talking about.  But you can find out what it is via
google.]

It doesn't feel like new year, so i've got to say it again: Happy New Year!

WTH did I do???  I went to a website, looking for mp3s.  I
know I have the album (actual, physical CD) and mp3 somewhere on my HD,
but I couldn't find it.  So I searched for the song I wanted on
google, and the first hit let me d/l it.  Well, I clicked on this
button and it had an untrusted cert.  I allowed it access, and to
make a long story short, all these applications started asking for
access to the internet (via ZoneAlarm)!

I started getting worried, so I stopped all internet activity and
rebooted.  When my PC restarted, I got some app that said "Don't
get caught w/porn on your pc!"  Luckily, AdAware runs when I start
up, so I let it do its thing.  It found 20 pieces of malware,
registry hacks, etc!

I should know better......

edit 12:22 PM EST: jw1976, siudindong:
Thanks for the advice.  I do use two different apps, Spybot and
AdAware, but I wasn't using Spy Sweeper.  I'm doing a scan as I
write this, and it's finding a lot more adware/spyware!  Also, my
AVG is finding viruses and trojan horses.  This is fun!  It's
my first time dealing with viruses!

Happy New Year!

Is it me or does it seem like more and more non-asians are aware of
this holiday?  Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's
just I remember some people thinking the "laisee" (red evelopes
w/money) were wallets and asking other silly questions.  Then I
have friends who have to pick at the food served at dim sum,and ask
"what's that?" before they even touch it.

I decided to take the day off today.  Not because of the New Year
(well, maybe) but more so because I've got a load of school work to
do,and  there's no way I can finish it in the one hour that I come
home from work and then go to school.  I feel like one of those
people you see on TV, always going from one thing to the next. Then
what am I doing on xanga?! back to work...

I think the quote from "Back to the Future" is really true : "If you
put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything."  Late last
year, I wasn't totally into TKD, but this year, I said "I'm going to
get at least brown belt".  It made me think of the things I had to
do to accomplish this, and the thing is, it worked -- I broke all the
boards, I learned my poomse (form) very quickly, etc.  and I'll be
testing next week!  It's all about thinking positive and focusing
on what you want to accomplish.

Happy New Year!  It's sad that I'm up working on homework, but
that's how it is for part-time graduate students.  Hopefully
everything I'm typing up for this presentation is coherent.

Joanne and I had Chipotle for lunch. I really like the tacos but you don't get as much food as the burrito.

The Sony PSP is coming out in March!  I'm excited but I'm not a
high schooler anymore, nor do I commute to work using public
transportation, so when else can I play?

Geek alert:  I installed CVS on my Window$ box.  It's so
cool!  I'm using it to store my school project, and it works with
binary files too (like *.doc files). 

edit: Classic video game music,
streaming from Winamp, is awesome!  Keeps me busy when I'm doing
my homework, and helps me relive my childhood.  NEO GEO, Genesis,
Super NES, NES, and gameboy. 

edit: Anyone have recommendtions for a wireless router? I'm looking for one that is compatible with my WinXP box as well as my iBook.

How to drive in VA
If there are only two lanes on the road you're travelling, make sure to
get in the left lane.  Then go any speed you want, but preferably
slower than or equal to the speed of the car in the right lane. 
This speed can be below the speed limit if you like.  If someone
behind you flashes their high beams or honks, it doesn't mean for you
to move over so they can pass; you can safely ignore these gestures.

Also, don't stay in the middle of your lane.  Try to drive close
enough to the other lane so you almost sideswipe the other car. 
Remember, never stay in the middle. Even better, straddle both lanes so
that any cars in the other lane can't pass you.

In rush hour traffic where you literally can't move, honk your horn at
the car in front of you.  That will make the traffic move and
won't make the person in front of you think that you're crazy.

[There are many other tips for driving in VA, but that would take forever to type.]

I'm trying hard to stay up as I write this, and it's only 10:54 PM,
EST.  I'm barely home during weeknights with this schedule. I just
wonder what the mininum number of hours to sleep and still remain
healthy is.  Whatever it is, I don't want to go anywhere near
it... I'm gonna try to sleep at least 8 per night.

Good news: The Naruto movie is coming to DVD this April!  Only $47
US!  Not bad, IMHO, but the writer of narutofan.com said
"YIKES".  I wouldn't mind paying that much to support my Naruto
addiction.  I've got a lot of cool figures (straight from HK
thanks to Joanne), the metal headband, and a wall scroll.  I need
more!

CSS is my new tech addiction.  I stopped learning HTML back in
1997, figuring I already learned what I needed to learn.  Then all
of a sudden, around 2000, everything changed.  Anyway, I quickly
got up to speed on CSS in a few days, and I'm going to remove any style
markup tags from any web pages I create from now on, and put them into
external style sheets.  What gave me this motivation? 
www.csszengarden.com.    They have a plain page, but its
looks can be modified on the fly by clicking on one of the many css
stylesheet links on the page.

It was Joanne's birthday last Jan 28.  I don't think she was happy, but I will make it up to her on Valentine's Day.

I don't know how it is in other parts of the country, but people here
in MD/Northern VA always have to be asked twice "How's everyone doing
tonight?" when in a meeting or presentation of some sort.  Then
the speaker always says "I always get this response from people
here." 

I may be too "good" -- I've seen dollar bills on the floor twice while
at work, and both times, I didn't pick them up.  The first time,
there were many people around, and I thought I knew who dropped it, but
they left so quickly I couldn't ask them about it, so some guy picked
it up and said "have a free coffee" to some lady.

The second time was today.  I was in line paying for lunch, when I
saw a dollar bill, on the floor between the guy and the cashier. 
The thought entered my mind to take it.  But I wanted to do the
right thing, and I asked the guy (after he finished paying), "did you
drop a dollar?"  He didn't say "yes" or "no", but said "thanks"
and picked it up immediately.  That could've been the
cashier's!  Now she'll be short and get in trouble.  I
could've said, "Did you drop $5?" and he probably would've said the
same thing.   Lying in my profession is not a good thing --
you can get fired.  Hopefully, he wasn't.