Recent Updates


TRAVEL & FOOD

  • (Feb 25, 2009) When was the last time you had dined in a upscaled Chinese restaurant in America? read more ...

ARTS & LITERATURE

  • (Feb 20, 2009) Do you know the differences between lotus and water-lily? Did you know 蓮花 are the same thing? But "Sleeping Lotus" is not lotus 睡 蓮非蓮? read more ...
  • (Feb 8, 2009)  Have you ever had doubts?  Doubts about your self?  your belief?  Doubts about others?  Doubts about doubt? You should go see the movie Doubt (2008 John Shanley), a great movie written/directed by John Shanley with incredible actings of Maryl Steep and Philip Seymor Hoffman.  The movie begins with the sermon on doubt by Father Flynn (Philip Seymor Hoffman) and ends with Sister Aloysius' (Maryl Steep) confessing of having doubts.  It explores the darkest human struggle in combating self-righteousness and conviction. The contrast between the progressive Father and traditonal Sister can not be stonger.  At the end, audiences are left with the certainty of doubt but well, that is not important any longer, isn't?  The movie deserves few 2009 oscars. 
  • (Feb 7, 2009) Clint Eastwood has been busy.  This time, he is not a cool bounty hunter fighting against the Western outlaws and Mexican gansters with his amazing shooting skill.  He is not a righteous cop of San Francisco who stares down the worst murders and criminals to "make my day" with his powerful .44 Magnum.  This time, in the movie Gran Torino (2008 Clint Eastwood)   he is an old, lonely, disgruntle Korean war veteran and racist who over time bounded with his next door Hmong immigrant teenager Thao, not unlike he did as a trainer with his woman boxer in Million Dollar Baby (2004 Clint Eastwood)   Of course, the other reason I needed to see this movie is we used to own a Gran Torino when I was in graduate school.

SOCIAL & POLITICAL

  • (Feb 8, 2009) Is President Obama continung Bush's attempt in transforming our secular government into a religious one?  On Thurs, Feb 5th, he announced the establishment of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships which expands the Faith-Based and Community Initiatives that former President G.W. Bush created back on Jan 29, 2001.  Read More ...