Choose Strong
For Tim.
博文
(2022-06-15 09:28:53)
Atayoungage,Irealizedthatmyparentshadaneventfulpast.Itwastypical
forthemtorefertothe1960famine,theFourCleanups,theGreatLeapForward,
theCulturalRevolution,etc.,inconversationsandwhentheydoledoutdaily
parentalguidance.Thefaminewasregularlyemployedtoteachfrugalityand
man-madetragedieswerecitedindiscipliningimpudence.Theyhadhadpainful
lessonsandwereeagertopassonthatknowledgetotheironlys...[閱讀全文]
(2022-06-08 09:13:59)
SamuelHuntington's"Whoarewe?"tookawhiletofinish.Itslanguagewas
distinctfrommostofmyreadingssofar.Jargonsfromsocialsciencesand
politics,subjectsforwhichIhadcaredlittle,slowedmedown.Thankfully,big
wordsdidnotmeansloppywriting.Theprofessorwasconciseandtothepoint.
Therewerejustmuchtosayasthebookcitedresultsfromstudyafterstudyto
proveitspoints.
ThiswasthefirsttimeIno...[閱讀全文]
(2022-06-03 09:26:50)
Attackedbymisinformation,virulentontheInternet,Ihaveturnedtothe
dictionaryandbeenamazedatthegemsthere,hidinginplainsight,andat
thequieteloquenceofthetome.
TheAmericanHeritageDictionary,4thEd.spendshalfapageontheword"head,"
andtwonounalmeaningsstandout.
8.(Usedwithasingleverb)Thesideofacoinhavingtheprincipaldesign,
oftenoftheheadofafamousperson,andthedate.Oftenus...[閱讀全文]
(2022-06-01 09:41:37)
Theinexplicableinjurywentawayintwoweeks,mylowerbackfeltasgoodas
new,andIreturnedtojiu-jitsuwithrenewedcaution.Ihavelongnoticedthat
experiencedguys,especiallyabovethepurplebeltlevel,donotseemto
strugglewithalltheirstrengthinsparring.Iftheyarecaughtinabad
positionandfailtodefend,theysimplytap.Theyseemtotreatfightingasany
otherschoolsubject.CoachGene,everprotective,sometimesremindedmet...[閱讀全文]
(2022-05-29 16:28:10)
Tim'slastEnglishassignmentwastowriteaboutafamilyheirloombasedonan
interviewwithme.Iwassohappyreadinghisseconddraftandreflectionbelow.
Ironingoutafuturewithoutcreases
Thestoryofmyheirloomintertwineswiththatofmygrandmother.In1986,
whenmynow49yearoldfatherlivedinChina’sHebeiProvinceandattended
elementaryschool,hismotherbeganlearningthehumbleartoftailoring.
Shebecam...[閱讀全文]
(2022-05-25 13:17:08)
IneverthoughtIcouldenjoyreadingasocialscientist.FromwhatIknow,from
Taleb'sworksandmyownexperience,manyarepronetoignoremarginalbutvital
datatofittheirmodels.IhavebeenawareoftheauthorSamuelHuntingtonfora
whileandtriedacoupleoftimeshiswell-known"TheClashofCivilizationsand
theRemakingofWorldOrder."Itwasfullofmulti-syllabicwordsandfeltdull.
Instead,Iwasrecentlyattractedtohi...[閱讀全文]
(2022-05-18 16:14:50)
ThepopularTVserieswasbroughtupduringmycalltoafriendonMother'sDay.
Shelikedthediction,shetoldme.Imyselfwasimpressedbythescriptand
actingandstillrememberedafewdialogues.Moreover,Foyle'sWar(andDoc
Martin)mademeanAnglophile,fallinginlovewiththecultureandthescenary
oftheBritishsouthcoast.ItfeltalongtimesinceIlastwatchedit.
"FiftyShips"inseries2wasafavoriteepisodeand...[閱讀全文]
(2022-05-16 10:46:53)
12dayspassedsinceMon,May2whenIinjuredmyselfsparringwithTim.The
backhurtalmostthesamewayafterdeadliftingwithapoorform.Thefirstfew
days,Icouldn'tdoanything.Gettingupfromthecouchtooksomemajoreffort
andalotofgrimaces.Therecoveryhadbeensteady,however.Inoneweek,Iwas
abletoresumemymorningroutine,theTibetanfiverites,plus21bridges.
Itturnedout,however,thatmyrighthandsufferedaworsedam...[閱讀全文]
(2022-05-12 17:15:57)
ThreeWhiteGuards*wereatthedoor.Inchalkycoverallsandwhitemasks
showingnothingbuttheeyesbehindthefacescreens,theylookedchilly,
sterile,andlikebulkyrobotsjustofftheassemblyline.Volunteersforthe
government's"dynamic-zero"effort,theyseemedtransformedoncedonningthe
uniformswhichnotonlyfendedoffthedeadlyvirusbutalsoseemedtoendow
thepowertogiveandtakeaway.
"Youneed...[閱讀全文]
(2022-05-07 07:18:09)
JanuaryhastheNewYear,FeburaryoftenhastheChineseNewYeartolook
forwardto,andMarchusuallyisthebusiestatworkplace.Billhadnotpaid
muchattentiontoApriluntil2022.Thecloudsoftentookhalfoftheskyand
hidthesunbehind,leavingtheotherhalfbrightandsapphireblue.Thebare
branchesofthegingkotreeshadbeengussiedupinafewweekstofulljade
greensummerattire.Rainswereagaintoomuchtoaskandafewshowerswere
che...[閱讀全文]
