The Evolution of Jumping Shots

Dear friends, 

I am quite certain that everyone has their shining moments of jumping shots. Whether it is stupid, silly, ugly, epic, or unforgettable. Each of us has experienced the ecstasy from that familiar adrenaline rush from reaching the sky. Not all of them ends well, yet at the end of each leap, you found yourself grinning and hoping that the moment captured lacks of your shameful double chins or that awkward weak knees upon your landing. Don't bother trying to hide it. Rather, better just to embrace moments of youth, and remember it well. 

"King of Silly Melon" and his epic clumsiness - by M.L.

The idea of "evolution of jumping shots" pop up the other day while I was thinking about the fun I had running across the beach islands, taking that leap off the edge, doing the craziest poses, falling into the refreshing pool of seawater. Thinking back to when I started to do jumping shots. To be honest, I have never been that person, the outshining ones that are EPIC-ly good at 'looking just right' or even downright amazing mid-air. Me? I prefer those shutter sounds, clicking away, trying to capture all the emotions of those leapers. Regardless, I also occasionally take the opportunity to enjoy those adrenaline rush myself as well.

After some careful analysis, I have come up two different ways to categories these shots. How about going through them together? Sounds like a good idea? Sure, it is. Here we go...

I.   Years:

• Highschool (or prior) Jumping.
  Definition: These shots, they are certainly silly and dramatic. Due to its explorative nature, they are expressive, spontaneous and certainly shameless. It may even tell stories. These are your first times. Here are some examples for me to prove my points. 

Left: Epic mid-air hairdo; Right: Is she boxing? - what are they wearing anyway!? (Lol, it was vintage day.)

Left: Jumping with all her might; Right: Silly person not even trying to jump.

Downright crazy.

          Good examples for Highschool jumping shots? You guys tell me.

• College Jumping.
  Definition: These.. these are the shy shots (meeting new people and all that.. you gotta hold your cool for a while you know?), these are a bit less shameful, more elegant, and often are more meaningful and meant to be remembered. Taken in places that are amazing, somewhere memorable. Here goes come example:

Aftermath, yes still shy there. People don't know my true nature just yet. 

Epic moment. Maehongsorn, Thailand. 

• Post-college Jumping.
  Definition: And.. Lastly the Post-College Jumping Shots. These are either (i) awkward jumping shots for those who had less experience, or (ii) they are sillier and crazier than ever, and you know why? Because we miss the feeling of being young again. These are rare as you're running a different crowds. It's a lot about the moment. Rolling out some examples as we speak..

      To the point? These are ridiculously hilarious.

II.   Purposes:

• Epic Location and Experience Gaining.
  Definition: the name kinda spell the definition out already. Epic moments, epic places. 

Uh huh, yeah right. Big Air Experience at the Victoria Falls (mid-way through Zimbabwe and Zambia), baby!
Those kinds of Leap of Faith.

Cape of Good Hope (Cape Town, South Africa) moments, you need a jumping shot. 

• Just to feel like those Cool Kids.
  Definition: Or at least try to look like those cool kids. 

Amateurs, and a bit of stories telling. 

That is about it for me, I'm out of stories and pictures to tell.

Hope you guys enjoy it!

Love you all, 

Emily A. 

Beijing, the symbol of change

My dearest friends, 

I have just got back from a 4 nights and 4 days trip in Beijing, China. On this trip, I finally got to visit the places that you know you have to visit at least once in your life, e.g. The Great Wall (cloudy, foggy wall for us unfortunately), the forbidden city, the tian'anmen square, etc. More importantly, since I have such a knowledgable travel partner (aka my dad), I think this trip is very mind-opening in term of my perspective of Chinese people, socialism and definitely it's potential as the world's biggest power (no kidding). Well, I don't want to share too much about what we do or where we went during this trip, but I would like to share my thoughts and the reflection on what I have learned on this trip. I hope I wouldn't bore you guys too much. 

Beijing (北京) has blown my mind in oh-so-many ways. The buildings, the urban planning, the redevelopments.. are in so many ways, much greater than I have imagined. I have been to temples and older area in China before, so I was expecting all these attractions in Beijing to be somewhat the same. But.. To y surprise, the buildings here are very grand (yes, you may argue that they are showing off their wealth, but who wouldn't?) I was staying at Dongzhimen area and the weather sucked for the first three days (foggy, cloudy, smoggy, whatever you chose to call it, I just can't see shit. Pls excuse my language). So I didn't get the see the lines of these beautifully designed buildings. I was really really impressed! Though my second thoughts after seeing that was "such a waste of space". The impression of how beautiful these buildings are.. Definitely overruns my efficient self. To be honest, people kept telling me these things but I failed to accept it, only have accepted the negative perspective that people have of Chinese people (not that it is not true, I definitely have experienced the moment that I know it happened from time to time). I definitely learned on this trip that they can be very helpful and very nice. It is just that it's in their culture, they have always done things this way, of course going outside of China, it may appears as they are being rude.. But it is the norm here. And maybe I should once again try to be open-mind of the people. 

Back to my points on their capacity in urban planning and redevelopment. First, the forbidden city. What. The. Heck. Why is it so freakishly big!? It's tiring just to walk from front gate to the inner city wall. Not to mention all these small halls inside the inner city.. And, all these halls that are practically serving the same purpose! I bet all the people who worked inside the palace (what Thai people call "ขันที") must be really fit walking at that length just to go see the emperor or talk to someone from another hall. I'll for sure get lost from time to time. But all these halls, they have such great characters. Great meanings. I mean someone told me it get redundant and repetitive over awhile, which I have the agreed, but I found it is very interesting to see the meaning of the structures. It is as though they have thought through the planning process many many times before they can come up with such a grand yet very symbolic structures. And it actually fit quite well to the newer buildings nearby, i.e. national museum, hall of people. 

Another example would be the "altar of heaven" at the temple of heaven park. The nine layer of everything they do. Nine bricks from the center, nine stairs and floors, it's very interesting! So beautiful and also so meaningful. The Art 798 (七九八 as the locals call the area). It used to be factories and storage space. Now it has been redeveloped to be a creative space, where everyone is free to create (of course there are some limitations, no political incentives). I mean, the reason I value that so much because there is a similar sort of space in Thailand, which I love so much. You can walk there and explore new ideas. It's a space where I can get inspired, and 798 gave me that same feeling. I dare say that this type of space is very very limited in Hong Kong. Something I can never really get over with (sorry Hong Kong, I miss this uniqueness and small startups, not so much corporations and franchises. But my point on 798 is actually.. The fact that it is so well-developed using the old factory and warehouses, changing them into the galleries and artsy stores (ugh, I wish we have more time to explore!)

Now a bit more about what I learned about Chinese people. 

1. They know how to "obtain" what they want, not waiting for it to happened. I mean that is admiring. They took the steps necessary without fear of embarrassment. Sometimes I wish I am like that as well. Sometimes. 
2. They can be really nice. I just need to learn and practice more of my mandarin! People can be redundant but they are helpful. Service are quite good (compared to HK. in Thailand it might be the same, but maybe that is so because I was staying in the city). 
3. They are just like us and why are we comparing culture to cultures and making judgment based on individual cases should not be assumed to be the same as the mass. Do you know what I mean? I think I've been indulging myself without taking a step back to trying to understand their cultures. I need to remind myself that next time. 

Anyway, I am now waiting at the airport, Beijing capital airport, somewhat praying that my flight won't be delayed. But also, I've found their airport to be quite epic! It's so pretty!! Sometimes it reminds me of HK and BKK airports (except the flights delaying part). Anyway, this is quite long, so I think I should end it here. I hope everyone would get a chance to go visit Beijing and feel as impressed as I am. Next stop in china maybe Shanghai or Yunnan or Tibet! Weeeee! Maybe I should start planning with ms. Lek! 

Thank you for reading. I would love to discuss more about what I learned or listen to your perspectives on china, so please feel free to comment! 

Also, thanks to my love or being so patient when I cannot contact him during my time in Beijing. Thanks for understanding. ;) 

A little something to share before I end this post..

Tian'anmen Square (天安门)  and Forbidden City from afar

:)

Love, 

Emily

Squid fishing, only in Hong Kong.

Dear friends, 

Last night, I got a chance to go squid fishing in Hong Kong! I mean I heard about this activity before but I were not too interested. But since my friends/colleagues are going, of course, I've tagged along.  

So having to be in Seattle for quite some times. When I think any kind of fishing. I think BIG. Big size, big boats, big equipment. I think "the Deadliest Catch" (Yes! I really thought). Well, I know...that isnt really pragmatic. And I thought about different more realistic scenarios for HK waters. It was involved lots of like random equipments and really churning water (I remember watching the perfect storm when I was younger, that image of the big waves turning the ship over is quite traumatizing really).

But the experience was much less dramatic but definitely was as much fun as I thought. The satisfaction of catching just one damn squid is much more than you think! (Yes, even if it's smaller than a palm size. 

The group first met up in Sai Kung to board the boat at around 7pm. Squids are typically caught at night because they are attracted to lights. I recalled seeing all these fishing boats with ridiculously BIG bulbs in Taiwan earlier last August. Then at night during my visit, I also saw a lot of bright ships over the sky line. 

Sai Kung piers are the most crowded on Saturday night. "Ah, I guess the locals do this a lot too!" I have seen lots of groupons but have never really thought about buying as I have mentioned. Anyway, we hop on the boat and off we go..!

One of the batches that we've got that evening.

On the junk boat, heading off to our "squid fishing" spot.

The apparatus that we used to catch them squids!! Just hooks and strings!

After one hour of moving my arm and throwing out the hooks over and over again, and complaining out loud. I successfully got two squid!! Woot woot!! Anyway, my colleague is a pro, she got 13 (grrrr...!!). It was fun and a good experience. The squids were delicio as well! ngum ngum ngum.

oh yeah, we've got enough for four dishes.

Anyway, this should really sum up the experience. Wheee! More to update about my upcoming birthday weekend!

Lots of love,
Emily

Things I'm grateful for..

My dear friends, 

This is a much.. overdue post. To be honest, part of my new year resolutions was to do at least one post per month, and yet.. here we are, 6 months later. But I am here to tell you a quick brief updates about my life. It has been a little difficult and stressful lately. Nevertheless I would like to devote this post to tell you guys about things I am grateful for. 

Over this past 6 months, there were times when I was idle and bored (yes, out of my mind). And, there were times that I was overwhelmed (yes, again out of my mind). But here now thinking back to those times, I really a lot of people. I mentioned in the last posts that I don't want to take things for granted, and I wish to do this reflection every once in a while, to be a better person and to grow a bit by bit from the self-reflection. 

And since I love making list.. (here we go again, another damn list!)

1. A couple of things that I signed up for earlier this year when I was feeling rather idle were: (i)  volunteering with the "School-Company-Parents (SCP)" with Young entrepreneurs Development Councils (YDC), and (ii) my Putonghua class (woot, woot! 我是中文棵的学生! ). Both of them are going great at the moment, but the things that I would like to mention here is the SCP program. Since I moved to Hong Kong, due to language limitations, I have also limited my opportunity to volunteer locally. Through this program, however, I managed to work through those language barrier and get involved again. These guys here are the kids that I worked with. Teaching them about "Career Choice" makes me reflect upon my own. Thinking about why I have chosen to study Economics and Biology, and also how I ended up here in Hong Kong, and most importantly being able to guide someone with that experience are quite rewarding. These guys remind me of how much how much I have grown.

Note: SCP Program is started with YDC organization and technically we were to guide these secondary school kids to face the business world and the reality of job hunting and career planning. 

2. I've also got a chance to travel a bit. Explore unknown space. Though I am not going to discuss much about this because we all know what I am talking about (Explore, explore, explore, and never say no to an adventure!), I've learned that we can always do the smallest things like explore a park on a rainy day, watching the sunset and eating cold cakes. Yes, that makes the best memories. Indeed, the best.

3. My dearest. He gave me so much support. I ranted and ranted everyday, mood swings and all those emo moments. He was there. Supporting me and making me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. Really, I do feel that way sometimes! I am forever grateful. I really hope I am the same to you. You keep me silly. You are keeping my young.

4. Family. When I am at my saddest moments, I long for them. And I have not felt this way in a long time. Yes, there are times that I am homesick. But I am been on my own for so long that I forgot what it is like to feel like you can depends on someone.  They give me so much more than I thought I am receiving. Simplest words. would lift me up. I miss them so. I really do.

5. Sigur Ros and cute puppies (yes, cute puppies).

Sigur ros first.. Their musics, their epic concert. (not so much the ticket price, but hey, it is Sigur Ros afterall). I finally got the chance to go see them live. Jonsi again did not disappoint. Went to their concert at Asia-World Expo on May 21 (long-awaited since the beginning of the year!) Listening to them live reminds me so much of why I am so attracted to their music. Ah.. 2009 till now, I am very happy I have learned about them.

Secondly, puppies. I can not not give them credits, for I am very much grateful for their cuteness! These babies lift up my spirits a lot. When I'm down, when I'm bored, when I'm stressed. But look at those puppies, they make me smile big every single time. soo cute! 

6. Coursera.org This online class platform has helped to remind me of how much I am learned from moving here in Hong Kong. It's not just about learning new things, I realized how much I can contribute and that, honestly, build up my self-esteem again. Currently I am taking Professor Henry Perry's class on Health for All through Primary Healthcare with John Hopkins! My first public health related class after undergrad career! Let's see where this class lead me!

So that were the lists of things that I am recently very grateful of. Of course, a lot of it has sounds quite depressing. I have to admit that over the pass few weeks, I was unhappy and stressed and therefore, these things are quite crucial and more significant to me that you might understand. Anyhow, I hope again to update the blog more regularly since this proposal preparation madness! Of course... after I catch up with my putonghua class, my online class, the traveling scrapbook, and a lot of other things... hehe I am a busy girl ;).

Don't forget to stay silly!

Till next time,
Emily

Golden Kiwis

Dear Friends,

Today marks an amazing discovery. That is why I decided to make a once-in-a-while post on Thoughts of Emily. Actually, Emily hasn't been around much ever since we left Seattle. But hey... I am Emily, right? (Oh gosh I sound super creepy).

Anyway, my discovery. Yes, I made an EPIC discovery today here in Tai Wai, HK. I encountered my FIRST "GOLDEN KIWI"!!! (yes, indeed you read it right...!)

I'm not sure whether you would understand. BUT I had never seen a golden Kiwi before. Yesterday I bought a pack of kiwis on discount. (because I am a poor AEC.....) and after dinner today, I was thinking hey, I should have some before I forgot about them. I figure this kiwi looks kinda funny. BUT THEN....!!!! When I cut it open! It's GOLD!!! 

Okay, now I think I'm overreacting....... But I was actually very excited. It's like seeing yellow watermelon for the first time. :p (yes, they do actually exist!)

Anyway, since I plan to write about my unforgettable encounter... I should update you all about my exploration in this new territory. Here are some pictures:

Well, actually.. these pictures are not so much just HK island. They also include other adventure and journey I made elsewhere as well. But here, let's continue for the time being.

ประตูชัย เวียงจันทร์, สปป.ลาว (Patuxay, Vientiane, Lao PDR)

another one of my self-proclaimed epic discovery :) Tintin Bar aka Chokdee Bar in Vientiane!

I'm gonna end it as this. Since I have some important reading to do! :)

I'll be back soon (I hope)!!

Best of my love,

emily alexandreta