Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Walkman of the 21st Century

Today was a great day. I purchased a cool little gadget that people seem to have barely noticed (mostly due to bad marketing). I'm sure it will catch on once people recognize what it is. What I am talking about is the new Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP). I was at a loss as to which gaming device I wanted to purchase between the new slim PS2 and the PSP. I had sold my PS2 back in December, but I missed it. After talking with my cousin last night, he convinced me to choose the PSP over the PS2. He was right on. There are so many features to this handheld. I can play games, watch movies, store photos, and listen to music. The PSP came with Spider-Man 2 on a UMD disk. I was just blown away at how clear and brilliant the colours were on the small screen. It's DVD quality. I also bought Ridge Racer which is a fantastic racing game. It pretty much resonates PS2 graphics with awesome sound.

I was lucky to get the PSP today. I went down to Wal-Mart and they only had the Gretzky bundle. I was like boo-urns. Nobody wants a PSP with a game you don't want. They had a ton of those, but the basic units were all gone. I then went to Best Buy next door and they had two basic units left. They had twenty shipped and eighteen were sold already. I was like yes! I picked one up and then went back to Wal-Mart to buy the only copy of Ridge Racer left. It worked out well.

I have four days off which gives me lots of time to play. Woohoo!

Peace.



Sunday, March 27, 2005

Quarter of a Century

I'm now officially a quarter of a century year's old. It doesn't feel different, and I still feel like a kid. I think there is a lot more maturing to do, but some feel I've already attained it. I had a pretty good birthday. Last night, Brian and Chanceton took me out for some Taiwanese food. It was different but good. I love trying new foods. We went to Crystal Mall near Metrotown where the "Honger-style cafe" was located. I don't know what that means. Chanceton coined the term. We then went to Brian's house and played X-Box all night eating chips, beef jerky, and ice cream until we got sick.

Tonight, my family took me out for all you can eat Japanese food. We went to this place call Tanpopo on English Bay. It was really good and we ordered a lot of different dishes. We were going to go up to Grouse Mountain, but it rained today. The view of Vancouver would have been poor although it did clear up a bit.

I got some money from my parents and I'm seriously condering buying a PS2 that I sold during Christmas. I think I miss it and there's this really cool game called Gran Turismo 4 that I want to play. I'll have to consider it over the week.

My buddy, Dean, e-mailed me with a birthday acknowledgement. I was pretty impressed. He's the only bud from high school I've kept in touch with all these years. Time flys.

Peace.

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Family of Academics

I come from a family who is proud of academic acheivement. It has always played a central role in my family life and has been the centre piece of discussion at any family gathering I've attended. I used to think what an ego boost it's been to my aunts and uncles who brag about their childrens' successes. I use to judge them in a negative way, but I realize they are truly proud of their childrens' accomplishments and there is nothing wrong with that. I'm pretty proud of what my cousins have accomplished in life thus far. It's only when my parents play the comparison game that it gets on my nerves. I've compiled a list of some of my family's accomplishments to personally archive for future reference.

There are three primary careers a Korean parent would want their children to choose: Medical Doctor, Lawyer, or Dentist :) A stereotype but true.

Arnold, BA - Simon Fraser University (Geography) - Project Manager
Byron, BSc - University of British Columbia (Biochemistry, Psychology) - Undergrad Student
James, BSc - Queen's University (Life Sciences, Business Administration) - Pharmaceutical Industry, Executive MBA Student
Joanne, BSc - University of British Columbia (Nursing), University of Toronto - Hospital Administration, Masters Student
Karen, BA, MA - University of British Columbia (English Literature), Ohio University - University Lecturer
David, BSc, DDS - McGill University, Columbia University - Dentist
Gina, BSc, DDS - The University of Chicago, Columbia University - Dentist
Howard, DipEng - British Columbia Institute of Technology (Plastics Engineering) - Entrepreneur
Arthur - Harvard University - Pre-Med Student
Sharon, BA - University of British Columbia (Linguistics) - Law Student
Ryan, BSc - University of British Columbia (Biological Sciences), Langara College - Artist
Cecilia, BSc, MA - University of Toronto (Biomedical Engineering) - Medical Student
Martin, BSc - University of British Columbia, McGill University - Dentistry Student
Bommy, BA, MA - Carleton University (Journalism) - Journalist in France
Lawrence - University of Waterloo (Electrical Engineering) - Undergrad Student

Peace.

Saturday, March 12, 2005

Keane

This morning I picked up two tickets to see Keane live at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on May 10 at 7 pm. I'm totally stoked. They are a tight band from the UK that I discovered while watching their "Somewhere Only We Know" music video on Much Music a while back. They fall in the same genre as Coldplay and Radiohead. Keane consists of Tom Chaplin (vocals), Tim Rice-Oxley (piano), and Richard Hughes (drums). They formed in 1997 when they were at school together. Notice there is no guitarist whom they lost in 2002, but that didn't stop them from playing gigs. They went big in the UK and now they're bringing it to North America. Keane is unique in that they are a piano-driven band. The music is fresh and Tom's voice can just soar.

Peace.

Monday, March 07, 2005

Night Tennis

My friends, Brian and Andy, started a men's bible study group recently. Last week, we got together with some guys from Pilgrim Baptist and we had a blast. It's so good to be with a group of guys to just chill with and talk about our lives, what we struggle with, where we want to go, and who we want to hook up with (ha ha...only some of us). On our first night, we played outdoor night tennis in Richmond. It was so fun! Only in Vancouver can you play with a t-shirt on in February. The courts were lit up quite nicely. We could actually see the ball. We all played hard, but not well. It was a good time to laugh. After some tennis, we went to Andy's place and had some spaghetti his wife prepared for us. It was nice! We then had a discussion about what we wanted to do with the group. Any fellowship is good for me and to chill with the boys was great. On another night, I could use a hot date.

Peace.