Good Friday dream
Friday, April 6th, 2012
A couple nights ago I had a strange dream which turned out to be the main inspiration behind building a giant star of David out of Popsicle sticks. In my dream, I had seen a diorama of a city (built like the Disneyland diorama I had just seen recently), and underneath the city was a bunch of popsicle sticks woven together in a cobra weave fashion (in a cobra weave, if you let go of one stick, they will all explode in a big chain reaction, blowing up the entire pattern). In the dream, the critical point of the cobra weave was held together under a statue of Jesus, and I knew that if Jesus had been taken out of the picture, the entire foundation of the city would crumble in a chain-reaction explosion.I had learned how to do the cobra weave recently when showing my nephew over Christmas, so shortly after having this dream, I was in the Michaels and picked up some popsicle sticks (I was in there for something else, but just "happened to stumble" upon the popsicle sticks nearby). I decided instead of building a cobra weave this time, I realized I could make the sticks into stars, and after some experimenting, I noticed the stars could be woven together. With 60 sticks, you could make a 3rd-order Star of David, and on the morning of Good Friday, I completed it.
Imagination is healthy for the mind
Saturday, March 10th, 2012
Over the weekend, we went up to San Francisco to tour the Disney museum - dedicated to Walt Disney's films and creation and honoring his imagination. As a kid I had always enjoyed Disney cartoons since they were so creative but silly at the same time but as an adult, I've gotten to admire the imagination that has gone into his works. Many of the cartoons have wonderful classical music which feels like it's a lost art these days. And the fact the frames had to be animated by hand, one picture at a time is impressive!I feel as if I'm too busy to indulge in simple entertainment that may appear frivolous and a waste of time, since there are more important adult matters to attend to. It's as if we've lost our childlike innocence and fallen into a pattern of drudgery in everyday life. I remember visiting Disneyland as an adult several years ago and really enjoying it - letting ourselves be lost in the moment for a little while. It's in those moments our minds can be restored.
We need to be taken back to a world where imagination can know no bounds and we can be free to let our minds wander. I've been having some interesting dreams in the last few nights and decided to start recording the dreams and seeing how my mind has been processing and rearranging different thoughts. I feel my imagination is one of God's greatest gifts and I want to be able to hold onto it as long as I can.
Nike Missile Site
Saturday, March 3rd, 2012
This last weekend, I took my friend Chris up to Angel Island for his final hurrah to the SF bay area before he moves back for good to NY. It's been years since I've been to Angel Island, and being with a big group last time, we only got to see part of it. This time, we had the whole day to enjoy.We saw many of the wonderful sights including great views of SF and the golden gate bridge, as well as the immigration museum and some of the old batteries from the early 1900's. But one thing that stuck out in my mind was seeing an old Nike missile site from the early 1960's. I had forgotten that Angel Island had a Nike site (I had only been to one up in Marin), so this one caught me by surprise. There were actually dozens of Nike sites all around the bay area but most have been long abandoned.
Now forgotten to time and the elements, it still stands as a reminder of the tense days in the 1960's when the world was at the brink of nuclear war. The steel doors we walked by were once part of a top-secret nuclear base where dozens of missiles could have been launched at a moment's notice. With wars being fought in Iraq and Afghanistan and other faraway places, I see war as something on TV and not so much a threat on our lives back home.
I just have to be thankful for each day God gives me in relative peace and prosperity - so many people don't have that luxury since they live in fear and violence. You never know when that could change, but I'm blessed with knowing that He will never leave or forsake us whatever the circumstances.
Sugar Bowl
Monday, February 20th, 2012
What a contrast with last year's snow - it was wonderful last year with over 200% of our average snow, and this year has only been about 30%. My manager decided to cancel his ski vacation due to lack of snow - and I went to Yosemite to go ice skating since the high country roads were still open!I finally headed up to Tahoe to go skiing - the first trip of the season. With so little snow in the early part of they year, I started to wonder if I'd make it at all this year. Plans for several ski trips with friends fell through, though I didn't mind as much since the conditions were marginal.
I took the ski bus to Sugar Bowl and was pleasantly surprised - it had snowed several inches in the last couple days, glazing the terrain with a bit of fresh snow - even though there were a lot more rocks than last year, I could still hit several of the chutes and bowls. The clouds parted later in the day to reveal many of my favorite parts of the North Lake Tahoe area - Granite Chief, Tinker Knob and Castle Peak - even the Sierra Buttes came out of the clouds! We got a nice little party as we got back on the bus and enjoyed a bunch of silly movies on the way back - a great day!
Egyptian Museum
Sunday, February 19th, 2012
Last weekend, we went to an Egyptian history museum in San Jose - just a few miles from home. Although we had lived there for many years, it often takes many years before we decide to visit something in our own backyard!The museum was fascinating - providing a window to an ancient civilization that prospered for thousands of years. Although I had learned a lot about Egyptian history over the years and seen many wonderful exhibits about their civilization, it struck me a bit when I saw one of the mummies that had been preserved and was still amazingly intact. It was fascinating to peer into his eyes and imagine all that they had seen and witnessed thousands of years ago. They believed that people could live forever if embalmed properly for the afterlife. As Christians I believe we have eternal life in heaven with Jesus - the "embalming" is a spiritual one. In Egypt the mummies were placed in tombs with many earthly treasures they believed they would take to the afterlife, but I am reminded of Job 1:21 - "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked will I depart." We can't take anything out of this world. But I'm sure in heaven we will be so in love with Jesus that any earthly treasures would seem so worthless anyway!
I wonder if in the same way the great ancient Egyptian civilization declined and collapsed, if and when our civilization in America might suffer a similar fate. I feel every time I worship and think about having eternal life with Jesus, I am being spiritually embalmed in preparing for my own death, being reminded of my own mortality in the physical world but immortality in the spiritual realm.
Old Siemens re-visit
Saturday, February 18th, 2012
Nisha and I drove by the site of one of the companies where she had worked many years ago. She worked at Siemens in Santa Clara just a couple miles from home (she could walk on nice days) and she had many fond memories before being laid off. She missed the place a lot and was greatly saddened to be let go. Last time we visited the site of her old company, it was quite run-down after they had moved to a new building - and since many of her happy memories were in that building, it felt insulting to see the decay of the place - plants growing through the windows, parts of the ceiling collapsed, and the walkways overgrown with wild vines.It reminded me of the post-apocalyptic theme from "The World Without Us" - a book written by Alan Weisman talking about if humanity was going to suddenly vanish, how long it would take for our greatest achievements to be totally forgotten and overtaken by nature. Without humans to continually maintain society and our works, they degrade faster than one would think. In the same way, I'm glad we know a God who holds us in the palm of His hands - I feel if He were removed from the picture, society would fade and crumble quite rapidly.
Nisha heard a rumor that they were finally demolishing some of the old buildings nearby and they may have cleaned up the old Siemens site - we drove by and to our relief, the buildings had been completely removed - it was just a fenced-in empty lot waiting for a new construction when the economy improves. I felt the ghosts of the past could finally be put to rest, and the grief of the loss was finally complete.
USS Iowa part II
Sunday, February 12th, 2012
After volunteering on the Iowa battleship last month, I was eager to go back to help again. Knowing we could be part of history instead of merely observing it was a treasured opportunity. It was a rather humbling experience to be working on a ship where countless men through several wars gave their lives for defending America.Although my work may have seem small - we were tearing up some of the old floorboards, and in several hours, we only managed to get about 20 feet of boards up! The work was so that contractors after us could sand the old paint, repaint the ship and replace the boards. I almost felt un-deserving to be out there working alongside professionals, but I know God honors our hearts when we work, even if our contributions may not seem all that important.
A wave of sadness fell over me as I was learning more about the history on the ship - back on April 19, 1989, there was a deadly explosion on Turret 2 which killed 47 people. A close look at all the bolts on top of the turret shows 47 of them are missing, a tribute to those men whose lives were lost on that fateful day. It really struck me how powerful the guns were and what could happen if something went wrong.
As a bit of reward for our hard work, we were treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of the engine room - seeing the 10 MW generators, the 20 inch diameter drive shafts and the enormous boilers was quite humbling. I can't wait for the Iowa to be made open to the public for all to see and learn about.
Ulistac park clean-up
Monday, January 16th, 2012
For several years, Nisha and I have enjoyed walks in the park near our house at Ulistac park - it is nice to have a community park nearby with many of the local plants and shrubs that are native to the area. Over the years and with many rounds of budget cuts, it's been getting increasingly difficult to maintain the scenic trails and the surroundings for the public. I'm glad that instead of the city government just shutting down the park, that assemblyman Paul Fong organized a community clean-up project instead.On MLK day, Paul Fong was there, getting volunteers to work in the park - planting deer grass, watering small trees, and cutting back non-native coyote brush and pampas grass. I felt honored to be able to participate in the local community - I feel our lives are so compartmentalized and we've forgotten who our neighbors are. I'm glad to work with our neighbors to make the park a better place for everyone. And when I go walking with Nisha through the park, we'll be able to see our contributions for years to come.
Yosemite Ice
Sunday, January 15th, 2012
This is the first year in decades the Tioga road has been open in January - they said in the news over the holidays that people were going up to go ice skating on Tenaya Lake! Indeed when I was flying back to SF after New Years we flew over Mono Lake and eastern Yosemite and I could see car headlights far below!On January 15, I had a free day and on a whim, grabbed my ice skates to head to the high country! I would have never imagined this would have been possible - 2012 is shaping up to be a most unusual year indeed so far. Probably 50 people were out there on Tenaya Lake - the traffic on 120 was like what you'd find in the summer.
Heading out on the ice, hearing it creak under my feet while 1/2 mile from the shore was a bit disconcerting. As the ice was expanding and contracting, long and deep cracks would develop making sounds like a whip snapping by. Looking deep into the clear ice, you could tell it was several feet thick - you could see deeper cracks and bubbles far down.
Intersection
Saturday, January 14th, 2012
I attended a conference called "Intersection" which was held at Pixar studios in Emeryville. Seeing where the innovation happened for such blockbuster films like "Cars", "Toy Story" and "Up" was a moving experience. In all these movies, we see how ideas that would not normally be associated, that when combined can provide a dynamic new experience.I feel life is all about intersections - being involved in my church, choir, a caving club, and MIT's alumni club, I've been able to experience many different combinations of ideas. One of my friends I went caving in Hawaii turns out to be a member of one of my choirs, and some former MIT classmates introduced me to my church at PBC. One of my classmates even was in the same choir as well. It is a small world indeed.
A little while back, Nisha's high-school classmate Patti Casey's band came out to Half Moon bay for a concert, and at the concert we were introduced to another classmate Jeff Pidgeon (who knows Nisha and Patti quite well). Turns out Jeff Pidgeon works at Pixar as one of the chief animators (his name is in the credits 3 times in Toy Story). And to cap it off, when my choir was invited to sing at Pixar for the Intersection conference, Jeff and Nisha got to hear us perform.