I am back to civilization, transferring in Sydney for a week.  The number changes from less than 100 to over 4 million.  Of course the change is not just the number.

 

    Every one is working, only I am on holiday.  I can sleep in as late as I wish even though transferring life means to cram in friends' living room.  I can do the 'headache' part shopping for mom and dad's associates with Becky; I can also do the 'fun' part shopping for my family, friends and myself with Becky (wait, except food and book, I didn't really buy anything for myself, am I boring or what? )  I can walk in the rain, checking out the Eastern bay area where I would only need a cozy studio apartment for myself when I return.  I can go for a swim in the apartment building while every one else is at work (felt like in Jundah - I still have the entire pool.  Sweet!)  I can choose to catch up with people or not.  I can live my life without routine, with no worries.  I can have yummy rich chocolate drink, Singapore noodle, cappucino, Japanese Sushi, Indian curry, smoothies, Chinese Yum-cha...

 

    Life while transferring seems the best.  It's not an ending, it's not a beginning yet.  I try not to think too much about the upcoming Life for Rent.  Ewu...

8/25 傍晚抵达上海

8/26-9/4 天伦之乐 (8/31-9/4 井冈山周末游)

9/5 云南行前驴友碰面会

9/8-16 昆明，丽江，香格里拉，泸沽湖

9/22,23 初中同学聚会(TBC)

10/1-4 高中同学聚会

10/6 傍晚返回悉尼

 

 

小的时候，爸爸是魔术师，可以在眨眼之间，把我饭碗里的鸡腿变到他的饭碗里；

上学的时候，爸爸是车夫，把我架在自行车的书包架上送去上学，送去考试，送去学画；

学画的时候，爸爸是卷笔刀，因为刀片削出的笔最适合画素描，可是泡泡糖只会画不会削；

学骑车的时候，爸爸是护驾，陪着骑到这里，陪着骑到那里，直到泡泡糖会独自＂飞车＂；

独自上路的时候，爸爸是地图，爸爸的地图外面买不到，而且是世界上最简单易懂的地图；

假装生病的时候，爸爸是医生，用手背摸摸泡泡糖的额头说：＂没有发烧，心理作用！＂

真的生病的时候，爸爸是护士，喂药送水，清粥水果，打针吊水，请假看护；

爸爸是闹钟，每天准时叫醒贪睡的泡泡糖，从＂太阳晒屁股＂细语到＂再不起床挠痒痒＂要挟；

闹钟不灵的时候，爸爸是同犯，写假条送学校，一脸严肃地当着老师的面说：＂记得吃药！＂

上班的时候，爸爸是镜子，直到泡泡糖在换了三套衣服还不满意的时候，无奈地说：＂都很好！＂

周末的时候，爸爸是大厨师，烧煮泡泡糖最喜欢的食物，作为周一到周五随便吃吃的调剂；

手机没钱的时候，爸爸是充值卡，紧急求援后电话继续畅通；银行卡没钱的时候，爸爸是ATM；

在悉尼老房子里看到老鼠，躲在床上打国际长途时，爸爸是开心果：＂你不是最喜欢米老鼠吗？＂

会用中文打字发邮件后，爸爸自称为＂老记者＂，隔三岔五地把上海和中国最新的消息传递到澳洲；

学会删除MSN表情后，爸爸又自动改名为＂老枪＂，因为在泡泡糖的指使下＂杀＂死了可爱的表情们；

．．．．．．

爸爸的七十二变

是为泡泡糖而变

祝爸爸生日快乐

 

I am not an anniversary-type person, but I am writing this. It's more a reflection than a celebration.  2 Years in the Outback - to be precise, it is 1 year and 11 months on 17 August 2007.

 

Friends: Are you crazy? I will probabaly kill myself in a month, living in a small town less than 100 people.

Korean Friend's Mom: Oh, Jenny! Just think about our boys serving in the army for 2 years.

Bank Manager: What are you doing there?  Are you a teacher?

Friend's Colleague: She's very brave.

People who interviewed me: You are very interesting.

 

    Yesterday I was told by someone that if I add an on and off switch to relationships, I will be the one who misses out.  So I gave it some thoughts - do I need a switch to control my life/relationships?  And the answer is -Yes, I do.

  Life is a Switchgustav bjorklind

    We shape our life in the way we want it; or put it in this way, the way we are brought up, the way we are educated, the way we interact with people, the way we view the world, and the way we see ourselves shape our lives.  We are not born with the ability to know what we want.  We learn every day how to make the choices, right or wrong.  Every time we make a decision, we turn on the switch to the thing or the person we want while turning off the switch to that we don't.

 

    When it comes to relationships, switch seems even more important.  A lot of us get stuck because we do not know when the switch should be on and when it should be off.  It is like in a dark room with the light on for so long.  We just hang on to it because we cannot stand the darkness after we switch it off.  The thing is that if one cannot make the first move to switch it off, one can never walk out of the dark room to see a brighter world.

    首先，感谢参与头脑风暴I-学习新乐器的朋友们，泡泡糖最终决定选择竹笛．多亏，竹笛家教已找到．鉴于下周五为本人目前工作的最后一天，大家再来一下头脑风暴II:-

 

　　前天，把新闻里澳大利亚统计局(ABS)的数据告诉爸爸：澳大利亚有740万人体重超重；26%男性选择终身不娶，23%的女性选择终身不嫁；三分之一在2000/02年间结婚的人最终以离婚告终．搞笑的老爸居然脱口就问我：＂澳大利亚人因为太胖所以不结婚吗？＂我晕．可能平时生活中超重的人看多了，也没有把他们当成异类，所以也根本没有把体重超重和选择单身联系在一起．况且，如果这个理论成立，那么很多身材很好的人选择单身又如何解释呢？

 

　　虽然澳大利亚社会总体比较忌讳谈论体重，但是我发现身材标准的澳大利亚人还是喜欢在我面前谈论体重超重的人．和所有的人一样，他们会以歧视的口吻分析：体重超重是因为饮食不健康，不注重运动，归根到底就是不懂节制，将物欲化为食欲．转念一想：是不是当食欲化为脂肪后，就没有了性欲，所以也不需要结婚了呢？

Cathy passed the ball to me, so I will do it for our friendship

 

1.你认为分手后的男女朋友还能做普通朋友吗？
    Yes, but not immediately after the break-up, i.e., when both of us stop having romantic feelings for the other.

 

2.你怎么知道自己爱上了一个人？
    You just do when it happens.

 

3.有没有想过如果以后结婚对象不是现在的恋人，会是什么感觉？ 
    Don't have a boyfriend at the moment, so this question doesn't apply.

 
4.你最希望从朋友（不包括爱人）那里得到的是什么？
    Friends accept me as who I am, not judging me.
 
5.最近最郁闷的事? 
    Not much to do at work (but still get paid), pretty boring.
 
6.你最想去哪个地方？ 
    Spain
 
7.最受不了自己哪个缺点?
    Always speak out my mind.  It hurts people sometimes.
 
8.如果有不开心的事情，你会怎么办? 
    #1. Sleep; #2. Sleep; #3. still Sleep...Zzzzz~~~
 
9.最近最快乐的事情是什么?
    Having a holiday back home soon.  Hooray!!!

 

10.你觉得在一生中必定要去的有哪几个地方？
    #1. Europe; #2. Africa; #3. South America, actually if I have enough time and money, I want it all.

 
11.分别各用一句话概括你的爱情观和价值观?

16.你对你的近况满意吗？有什么需要改变？
    A lot is going to change.  Will move to a new place, find a new job, make new friends, start a new life.

17.爱人和被爱，哪一种更幸福? 
    I prefer to be loved by the one I love.
    
18. 当你知道你的爱人有让你无法接受的过去且将来也无法改变的时候，你会怎幺做？
    As long as he lives in the moment, not the past.  Otherwise, I will let go.
   
19.如果你的爱情不被家人接受，你会坚持吗？
    No.  If it's meant for me, then it will.  I am not that type of person who pushes people into a relationship with me.

20.如果可以变身地球上任何一种动物、东西或者人，你要变什么？
    I still choose to be a human being.  Why would I wanna be an animal or an object anyway?

Sorry, Cathy.  I didn't bother to change one of the questions or pass it on to another 5 people.  Bless all!

　　The reason I wrote this was because yesterday I received a Space message (haha, space message, sounds like from an alien) from a stranger who wants to be friends with me.  So I was just wondering how I should respond to such a one-sentence request?  Making friends is a process.  You cannot just say, "okay, let's be friends from today on." without even knowing the person, can you?  But I am open to people who are beautiful, smart, humorous, sweet in their own way.

 

     交朋友应该是有条件的吧．我交朋友的条件是什么呢？其实，结交的时候我是不设定条件的，毕竟，交朋友不是面试，需要在有限的时间里做出决定．通常都是在结识了以后才会知道我对于朋友的条件是什么．

 

　　好比：结交美丽的人，自己也变得美丽，因为美丽的人喜欢和美丽的人在一起，也不会担心别人抢夺他们的光芒；结交聪明的人，自己也学会聪明，因为聪明的人也喜欢和聪明的人在一起，总会有具有挑战性的话题共同探讨；结交幽默的人，自己也变得开朗，因为幽默的人喜欢和懂幽默的人在一起，偶尔彼此嘲弄一下让瑕疵显得也有可爱之处；结交善良的人，自己也学会善意，因为善良的人也喜欢和友善的人在一起，善意加倍总好过与恶意的抵消；当然，还有，结交能干的人，结交积极的人，结交自信的人，结交细心的人，结交大方的人......

 

　　我还是虔诚地相信每个人是拥有自己发挥能量的＂小宇宙＂，周围积极的能量都会对自身的能量产生积极的影响，反之亦然．我的＂小宇宙＂随时吸纳积极的能量，反弹消极的能量．

     Have you ever noticed that life seems more bearable when you put a count-down to it?

 

    I count down the years before my graduation; I count down the months before my next holiday; I count down the days before the exam results come out; I count down the hours before my first date; I count down the minutes before the landing of the plane; I count down the seconds before New Year arrives; Beijing has been counting down the days to the 2008 Olympics; Shanghai has been counting down the days to 2010 World Expo; mom has been counting down the days to my next visit home; dad has been counting down the days to his retirement.

 

    I do quote "life is too short" now and then, but no matter how short life seems to be, I still like counting down so that I always have things to look forward to, have things to keep me going.  When one count-down is over, I start a new one.  Sometimes the new count-down is unbearable, sometimes it is exciting.  I see the end of each count-down as a milestone of my life.  So do you count down life?

 

　　有没有注意到当倒数人生的时候，生命就显得不那么难以承受了？

 

　　我倒数着毕业前的年数；倒数着下一个假期前的月数；倒数着考试结果揭晓前的天数；倒数着第一次约会前的小时数；倒数着飞机降落前的分钟数；倒数着新年到来前的秒钟数；北京倒数着2008年奥运会；上海倒数着2010年的世博会；妈妈倒数着我回家的日子；爸爸倒数着退休前的日子．

 

　　我的确也会时不时地引用＂人生苦短（及时行乐）＂这个说法，但是不管人生看似多么短暂，我还是喜欢倒数，让我的人生总显得有期待，总有前进的动力．当一个倒数结束，就开始新的倒数．有的时候新的倒数会显得难以承受，有的时候则令人兴奋．每个倒数的结束就好似我人生的一个里程碑．你有没有倒数人生？

　　今天，我的新加坡朋友Jerry Kho在MSN上问我回上海的时候是否愿意到他的公司帮助他．Jerry是我在澳大利亚读书的时候在语言交换网站上认识的一个朋友．当时的他刚开始开拓集团公司在中国大陆的业务，所以急切想提高中文书写能力．不记得自己有否帮他提高普通话，反正在我学成回沪的时候，他就成了我一年见一两次的酒肉朋友，因为Jerry和我都是工作狂，他经常在新加坡，中国，英国之间当＂飞人＂，我则在中国国内当＂小飞人＂．

 

　　知道自己想要什么的人计划人生，然后按照计划向目标前进．当有机会出现的时候，他们会衡量这个机会是否契合计划．如果是，把握机会可以帮助他们更快地接近目标，如果不是，可以轻松地放手．而机会，对于象我这个不知道自己想要什么的人而言，究竟是什么呢？我走得虽然一路顺利，可是却走得扭扭歪歪，因为我的道路是由机会来决定的．机会就好像路边飞出的美丽蝴蝶；或者是途中一处令人驻足的美景，一旦出现，我就不自觉地被吸引着往岔道上走去，反正本来也是漫无目标地走着．就好像＜爱丽丝漫游仙境＞中爱丽丝与猫的对话：

 

　　爱丽丝：我该走那条路？(Which road do I take?)

　　猫：你想去哪里？(Where do you want to go?)

　　爱丽丝：我不知道．(I don't know.)

　　猫：既然如此，走哪条都无所谓了．(Then, it doesn't matter.)

 

朋友们忙着结婚

然后又忙着离婚

我在这纷乱世界

冷眼旁观着变故

 

我们究竟为什么

取悦家人或朋友

追随常人的步伐

还是因为爱相随

 

请不要让我违愿

轻易对我的不知

作出随意的承诺

我想要的是永远

 　　对于很多事情，我似乎总喜欢追求之最．希望自己是最听话的女儿，最聪明的学生，最优秀的员工，最可靠的朋友，最完美的恋人，吃过最美味的食物，闻过最妖媚的香水，穿过最高贵的衣服，听过最美妙的音乐，弹过最动听的曲子，......甚至，去过最偏远的地方．

 

　　爸爸看了我到昆士兰州最偏远的小镇后拍的照片后说：＂我不理解！你为什么去那袅无人烟，一毛不拔的地方？究竟去看什么？＂

 

　　是噢！我究竟去看什么？其实，在爸爸这么问之前，我并没有这样问过自己，也没有想到要这样问自己．我只知道自己想去那个被众人称为＂最偏远的小镇＂，只知道自己想告诉大家我去过了那个被众人称为＂最偏远的小镇＂．我并没有要象早期的探险家们，去探索那些无人涉足之地，去征服大自然．只是觉得如果我去了，我有满足感，如果我去了，我有成就感．就好比其他的那些我希望的之最，并不是我有虚荣心，也并不是我有占有欲，或许只是那个触及到之最的过程让我心动．

    In Macquarie Study Dictionary, the first definition for "baggage" is "all the bags, etc., of a person travelling." When it comes to relationship, our "emotional baggage" is something that we drag from our past relationships along the way we travel into new relationships.

 

    People who carry too much emotional baggage are usually seen as "damaged goods" from past relationships.  However, some psychologists believe that every one is consciously or unconsciously carrying emotional baggage.  They do not agree that the baggage we take from one relationship and bring to another has to be the negative.

 

    Are you carrying emotional baggage?  How can you make the baggage work for you in new relationship?

 

    Here is my 2 cents.  I love travelling, and I love travelling lightly.  When I do not carry too much baggage, I walk fast and steady; I accept new things and new people without reservation; I capture new pictures and build up new relationship; I am relieved and relaxed; I am 100% there.  What if I carry too much baggage with me while travelling?  I walk slowly because I get too busy looking after all the baggage on my shoulders; I do not engage fully into new things or new people because half of my mind is focused on the baggage that I carry; I am frustrated and stressed; I am only 50% there.

 

    Not carrying emotional baggage does not mean that we forget.  Every past relationship should be remembered, but there are lots of ways to remember.  People who move on are those who learn from the past, who invest in the present, who nurture in the future.  This is the day when I'm ready for a light journey again!