二

“Things That Are 17″

* Chlorine’s atomic number.
* The dissolvement of the Warsaw Pact at a meeting in Prague.
* The Sex Pistols song.
* Beauty and the Beast, The Addams Family, and Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
* Emma Roberts.
* Harry Potter in the 7th book.
* The legal age to be able to watch R-rated movies in the U.S.
* A mild swear word in Swedish.
* The end of the Gulf War.
* The age of the boy who submitted this hilarious job application to McDonald’s and was hired.
* The collapse of the Soviet Union.
* Bill Clinton’s announcement that he will seek the 1992 Democratic nomination for President of the United States.
* The death of a spectator struck by lightning at the U.S. Open.
* The Chicago Bulls winning their 1st NBA championship by defeating the Los Angeles Lakers.
* This Trix cereal commerical.
* The length in seconds of Smashing Pumpkin’s song “17″.
* Me.

Amy

一

Ah, the summer is going well. It is nice and hot, very toasty. （＾-＾）

My mum sent me this short story the other day. I thought it was very insightful, yes.

…

Hot Chocolate

A group of graduates, well established in their careers, were talking at a reunion and decided to go visit their old university professor, now retired. During their visit, the conversation turned to complaints about stress in their work and lives.Offering his guests hot chocolate, the professor went into the kitchen and returned with a large pot of hot chocolate and an assortment of cups-porcelain, glass, crystal, some plain-looking, some expensive, some exquisite — telling them to help themselves to the hot chocolate.When they all had a cup of hot chocolate in hand, the professor said:

“Notice that all the nice looking; expensive cups were taken, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. The cup that you’re drinking from adds nothing to the quality of the hot chocolate. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was hot chocolate, not the cup; but you consciously went for the best cups… And then you began eyeing each others cups.”Now consider this: Life is the hot chocolate; your job, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life. The cup you have does not define, nor change the quality of life you have. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the hot chocolate we have.”

The happiest people don’t have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything that they have. Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. And enjoy your hot chocolate!

…

Amy

I Dream of Subways

Every summer, when I visit China, I always use the subway. It’s reliable and cheap, and the reason why I almost never have to ride a taxi over there. The subway system in Japan is also worth noting. It’s clean; it’s always on time; and the seats are heated. There are even underground malls!

After experiencing on multiple occasions the delight of riding a subway, I am extremely disappointed that California does not have its own statewide subway system. Sure, the Bay Area has BART, but it’s not nearly as extensive and complete as I would like it to be. Picture Japan’s Tokyo subway system. With that extensive of a subway system, we would have no need for gas-guzzling SUVs and trucks. Pollution would go down, obesity would go down (you have to walk to the stations), and gas money could be used for other necessities. The installation of a large subway system would also benefit large businesses, corporations, and etc., because subways equal more advertising space equals more consumers/awareness. Simply put, we should lobby the Governator for plans to construct a statewide subway system.

So why am I rambling on about subways? Because today, I was scared senseless when a policeman walked out into the middle of the road and stopped me on my way to class. We exchanged looks and he let me drive on. Double-You-Tee-Eff. I glanced into my rear view mirror and realized that he wanted to pull over the car right behind me. Poor thing. But I’m thankful, since I was driving 40 mph in a 35 mph zone. (Is that a crime?) Anyway, if we had a subway system, I wouldn’t need to drive a car or worry about getting a ticket for speeding. Hubba hubba for reducing stress.

On a side note, I took my microecon final today. 67 multiple-choice and 4 paragraph questions. Done. Finished. Lo acabé. Until we meet again, Dr. Liu*.

*Advice From My Econ Professor: “Start saving money with compound interest now! You could become a (multi)millionaire by the time you retire at age 65. You won’t need to rely on that shitty social security.”

Oh goody! Where’s my piggy bank?

EDIT:// The above argument is obsolete, because California is earthquake-prone, and therefore an entire underground subway system would be unwise. Duh. We could have a more extensive BART system, though. :):)

"Why so serious?"

My economics professor was discussing in class earlier today about a prisoner’s dilemma scene from The Dark Knight, so I decided to watch the movie online. I needed a break from studying for the final tomorrow (oligopoly? game theory? international trade?), and this was the perfect way to do just that without actually “taking a break.” Of course, I could have just skipped to the scene, but why would I want to do that? It conveniently takes place at the end of the movie, so I sat through the whole thing.

The movie was great, though the grainy quality of the video I streamed diminished the value of the experience. It doesn’t get interesting until the middle of the film; that’s where all the action starts to pick up. Heath’s performance was simply superb. That grungy makeup and maniacal laugh – wow. I have only watched one other movie of his, 10 Things I Hate About You, so this updated acting was all the more phenomenal. It’s a shame that such a great actor is no longer here with us today. I fully support those who are trying to get Heath nominated for an Oscar. If he wins, he will be the first actor to win a posthumous Oscar since Peter Finch in 1976. Right on!

Anyway, I just wanted to quickly type something up before I start studying again. There’s only one more day…

“Some men,” observes the unflappable butler Alfred (Michael Caine), “just want to watch the world burn.”

In “The Dark Knight,” the latest masterful chapter in Christopher Nolan’s Batman franchise, just such a man is introduced to us. The Joker (Heath Ledger) is the most chilling kind of villain: one who’s amoral for no particular reason.

Read the entire review here.