As busy as a bee

I suppose that describes my life recently. But I feel that despite the tiring schedule at times, I am enjoying every moment, be it work or play. Speaking of work, I presented at my first conference as a Master student and my second conference overall (the first was in my undegraduate year) this week, and I realize that I have to drastically improve my presentation skills if I am to be able to convince people that my presentation is interesting and worth listening to.

This conference sobered me up, and revealed to me one of the areas for improvement. On a brighter note, I am looking forward to next week, although my preparations are not quite done yet. I will be heading to Belgium, the land of waffles, chocolate, and Tintin for my second conference as a Master student. My first international conference, so I am filled with a mixture of anticipation and nervousness. In any case, it will be good to visit Europe(again), even if I am not able to travel to Spain or Scandinavia this time.

Well Done!!!

What a great way to demonstrate our potential! The final score was 2-1, what I had more or less expected, since games between the Red Devils and the Reds tend to be close affairs. However, I had not counted on us being on the wrong side of the scoreline. Yes, finally we lost to Liverpool.

A die-hard Man Utd fan would not have believed that we could be defeated, even away at Anfield, but if you saw how we played, I assure you, you would have agreed with the commentator that Liverpool deserved to win, or rather, Man Utd deserved to lose.

We started off brightly, with a goal by Tevez in the 3rd or 4th minute, but the own goal by Wes Brown or should I say Van der Sar reignited Liverpool's hopes. How can you come out and try to palm the ball away?! Still, that was not the main reason behind our downfall. We lost to a better team, because we didn't really play. You could see it in the way we passed, the way we gave away space, the way we gave away the ball, the way we gave away the game and the 3 points.

A few questions that came to mind after watching us make a fool of ourselves.
1)Are we missing Ronaldo?
2)What is Rooney doing?
3)Are we still thinking about the Double that we won last season?
4)Are we so full of arrogance that we think we are invincible?
5)Where are our supersubs?
6)Are we really hungry for another Double or even Triple?

The answers according to yours truly are as follows:
1)Much as I hate to admit it, I think there is a void without Ronaldo. His assists, his dribbles, and of course his goals, all of these we miss.
Come back soon, Mr WonderWhiz.
2)You can argue that a good striker does not only score goals, and I concur that Rooney has run his socks off and done a lot of off-the-ball running, tackling, etc, but when we lack an edge, when we need some incisive penetration, why can't Rooney provide us with it? Obviously he has the ability, and instead of doing that, he is dropping back to defend, something which the defenders or other midfielders can do.
We need to be aware of our priorities, Mr Child Prodigy.
3)Yes, the Double is our pride and our inspiration, but shouldn't we put the beautiful memories together with the trophy in the display cabinet and focus on this season?
Let's go one better this time, and get the Treble, guys.
4)The cliche goes, "Pride goes before a fall", and the way we played tonight revealed the extent of our arrogance. Maybe not all of us were guilty, but at the very least some of us were. Thinking that all we had to do was show up and the points would be in the bag. Even Giggs was guilty when he kept the ball in play instead of playing it out for a corner, and his actions led to the winning goal by Babel.
We are only human, but I expected more from my idol.
5)The answer is, we have none. Unlike the good old days of 1999, where we had the SAS (Solsjkaer and Sheringham), these days we have no one on the bench to change and win the game for us. Look at Liverpool, and you can see that they have Babel, and for a limited period of time, Torres and Gerrard. Who do we have? Giggs, Hargreaves, and Nani came on, but I didn't feel that they were a threat to Liverpool, and I believe the Reds supporters felt the same way.
Where is Cantona when you need him?
6)Maybe we are still digesting the fact that we won the Double not too long ago, but what I feel is this: If you lack the hunger, if you do not desire it enough, that you won't get it, no matter how good your credentials are.

B'z Glory Days

They have been playing since 1988, and this year marks their 20th anniversary. They are my favorite band, B'z. I thought the ACTION concert in Yokohama in June was my last B'z concert for this year, and maybe for a while, but thanks to some kind-hearted B'z brothers/sisters, I managed to get tickets for the Glory Days tour, and though I thought I was crazy when I got tickets for all 3 venues, I guess it is ok to be crazy once in a while. After all, we only live once, and the 20th anniversary of B'z comes only once.

I went for the B'z concert on the 6th, in Kobe, and it was a glorious day/night to remember. Here are some photos. I loved all the songs they sang, and I stood from start to end. That was how SHIOK it was!!! I am looking forward to Toyota and Nissan too!!!


With my BROTHERHOOD T-Shirt

Posing with the Poster

B'z Glory Days

Full House Stadium

Life is good

I guess waking up at 7am is a good habit that I should cultivate. Today, I woke up before 7am without setting my alarm, and it felt good to be up early, despite my sleepiness.

If I am to do that, I will have to stop staying up till the wee hours of the morning. Perhaps the time difference of 2 hours made a difference. After all, having just come back from Bangkok only a few days ago, where bedtime for me was around 4am Japan time, I found myself awake till 2,3am when I returned to Tokyo.

Achieving a balance between sleeping too little and sleeping too much is not that difficult me; it is only a matter of how much you want it. Life is good, and at this moment, what I want is what I have got, mas o menos, so I am happy. The only thing I wish I had more of, other than money, is time. Of course, that is what all of us desire.

Life is good, because I am here, and I am happy to be here. In the now, in the present.

The trip to Bangkok was a fitting finale to the culmination of the various phases of that journey that I had been on since... say last autumn? Quizas...

I love to travel, and although that accident during the futsal competition last June put my plans on hold for a while, in the end I managed to visit Karuizawa, followed by the Kansai region (Himeji, Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto), Yamanashi, Kyoto & Nara, Niigata, Taiwan, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Okayama & Kurashiki, followed by the Hokkaido trio of Sapporo, Hakodate & Otaru, and then Yamagata, Mt Fuji, Aomori & Hakodate, and most recently, Bangkok, Thailand.

Karuizawa was the beginning of the end for a phase of my life, even though I didn't realize it at that time. I will not say that I will always remember, but I know that I will never forget that trip, because it was a special trip. Nothing out of the ordinary, yet extraordinary in its own way.

The Kansai region was a Brotherhood trip, with my brother, and it made me realize that blood is really thicker than water, if you know what I mean.

Yamanashi was a BSUR trip, and I was touched that after so many years, the old (and core) members still care enough to meet up.

I visited Kyoto & Nara in autumn for the first time, and it was memorable, although I should have seen that life is not a drama like PRIDE.

Niigata was a trip to visit my host family and at the same time a pilgrimage to exorcise the ghosts of that freak night in winter so many years ago. There were quite a few changes - one of the Huskies had passed away, for example. On the other hand, some things never change, as exemplified by the kindness and warmth demonstrated by my host family. They made the wintry cold vanish, and warmed that crimson chamber.

Taiwan was a trip to celebrate the reunion with my godsisters, and also to celebrate one of my godsisters' wedding. At the same time, it was a trip for me to remember and pay my respects to the dead.

Hiroshima, Miyajima, Okayama and Kurashiki was a pleasure trip, although my foolish antics on Miyajima induced much pain. >_<>

Yet, barely a few months later, I found myself doing jump shots in Hokkaido, albeit with more caution. My second visit to Hakodate seemed colder than the first, although it was no less beautiful. Otaru was pretty too, and my musical box is one of the best presents that I have given myself.

Yamagata was a M2 trip, and despite the 4/5 attendance, we had a great time. Despite my aloofness and nonchalance at times, my M2 comrades accept me for who I am, and I feel very blessed indeed.

Mt Fuji was a strange trip because it turned out to be better than expected although I was a little disappointed that we were unable to climb a little higher.

Aomori & Hakodate was a long, tiring trip, and I wished the weather could have been better at times, i.e. the sky a deeper shade of blue, the temperature a little lower, etc. Other than that, it was a good recharger, and we managed to get in touch with Mother Nature and witness her in her stunning splendor. The fireworks seen from Mt. Hakodate were a surprise bonus.

Bangkok was hot in every sense of the word, and I liked what I saw. My favorite was the Floating Market and the Chatuchak Market. It was good to have Thai friends who showed us around. Meeting up with Pam after so long also invoked much nostalgia. I think it is quite cool that you can be friends with an ex-lover; of course, not everyone can do that, because some people are not strong enough, some are still immature while others are simply unable to forgive. There is also the "I haved moved on, so I cannot meet my ex anymore." case, which sounds contradictory, because if one has moved on already, then meeting one's ex should not pose any problems, right? In any case, I don't really have time to talk about ex-lovers, because I am here to experience and enjoy life.

Life is good, simply because it is.
I am happy, happy to be here, simply because I am.

『The grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.』
~Allan K. Chalmers

我就是这样

I like this song the first time I heard it. The rhythm is catchy, and the lyrics, although simple, are quite meaningful. It has been some time since I listened to newer Chinese songs, but this is definitely one of my current faves.

我就是这样 天马行空的磁场
或许你还不习惯 我在等你变成拍档
我就是这样 注定和你不一样
谢谢你欣不欣赏 我的风格是限量
摊开的手掌 柔软又刚强
（十指纤长 指尖藏着一股力量）
安静的目光 温柔却也狂放
（眼神明亮 有好多话想对你讲）
我独特的模样 是全新的信仰
我就是这样 天马行空的磁场
或许你还不习惯 我在等你变成拍档
我就是这样 注定和你不一样
谢谢你欣不欣赏 我的风格是限量
RAP(tank):
你不会躲在 不长不短的裙摆
耍无赖太依赖 都不符合你的心态
乖乖早过了时代 怪怪才有人青睐
不需要表态 让大家慢慢猜
既古代又现代 爱HIP HOP也爱李白
是女孩像男孩 这次出场注定精彩
我嗅到英雄神采 我瞄到美人姿态
多变的节拍 接下来该是你拽
诗人的滥觞 刻板的印象
（没有文字 足以介绍你的出场）
你爱晒太阳 我赏我的月亮
(井水河水 各自徜徉各的海洋 )
想发出一道光 让世间不平凡
我就是这样 天马行空的磁场
或许你还不习惯 我在等你变成拍档
我就是这样 注定和你不一样
谢谢你欣不欣赏 我的风格是限量
温柔 倔强 勇敢 都是我
我拥有太多 不同基因
安静 吵闹 沉默 都是我
分钟 不同的颜色

Putting pen to paper...

I am doing the 21st century version anyway. lol

Putting fingers to keyboard,

My hands start to dance,

To the rhythm of the tunes

Flowing in that half-asleep brain of mine

Once I start I cannot stop,

Like a sleepwalker in a trance,

Reminds me of the sand dunes,

Incessantly changing with time

He thought he could write

For ever and ever

All the way till Eternity

Yet for quite a while

The ink did run dry

The poet did ran out

Into the pouring rain

While waiting for the train

He heard a shout

"Why? Tell me why!"

That voice made him smile

A voice reminding him of Destiny

"I will never forget you. Never!"

Her words on that winter night

And now a miracle appears
They finally meet again

In the most unlikely of places,

that city by the sea

"Do you remember"

The refrain came unbidden

He knew the lyrics by heart

For sometime they were kept apart

Contact was forbidden

From December till November

Till the war ceased to be

That insane battle between races

That brought nothing but pain
And fragments of fickle fear

"It's been a while
since I saw your smile"

His tender words enveloped her
In his arms she felt safe
On her cheeks there was a glitter
A teardrop of requited faith

"It's been a while
since I saw your smile"