HI BLOGSPOT

I'm back. Well, I decided to keep both tumblr and blogspot :)
It's actually quite difficult to choose between the two.

Well, starting the spring semester with an all nighter was definitely the cherry on top of a wonderful break (kidding. I absolutely abhor all nighters, and myself for resorting to them). But honestly, this was the best winter break ever (awesome awesome). Though going out too often and pushing aside the homework did hurt in the end, I'd say it was worth it. Oh and I can't forget the warm, sunny and breezy weather (Socal<3).

Hello.

Adieu

Bye blogspot.

I'm going to leave for tumblr. Maybe I'll come back, maybe I won't. Who knows!

Farewell :)

Follow me on tumblr if you have one!

joannechoi.tumblr.com

AH

It's so hard to start reading.

Especially when you have to finish reading Hamlet & "Waiting for Godot" in like four days...

AH! Whatever. 2009-2010 winter break was totally worth it. And it's second semester now, so I don't really have to worry about school.

There are so many things I want to do, so many thought-provoking books I want to read and so many beautiful places I want to visit. When will I ever make the time?

Food for thought

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”

- Ray Bradbury.

I remember the good old days in Ms. Foster's class (HAH!), when we read Fahrenheit 451. A good book, yet slightly (or extremely...) frightening. Ray Bradbury wrote it approximately fifty years ago and it scares me how he predicted bits and pieces of the future so accurately; nowadays we don't read, we zone out by listening to music with our earphones, we use freeways and we have huge television screens in our living rooms. He portrayed a society full of mindless people and a world in which firemen burned books.

When was the last time you picked up a book on your own will and finished it? Sadly, it's been awhile for me too. With facebook, AIM, oovoo, and iTunes available so readily as I wish, I hardly ever think to open up a book. But reading is too good for the soul, too good for the mind and too good for the heart. I feel that letting months pass by without a good reading is like letting your brain rot slowly.

So today, I managed to compile my own personal reading list. I looked through dozens of "top 100 books" websites, and picked the ones I'm familiar with (mainly classics, along with a bit of romance). I feel oddly accomplished, yet overwhelmed with the thought of how long it'll take to read all of these books (101 in total).

Well, I have no excuses now. Mark Twain said, "I never let schooling interfere with my education," and I really should apply this to my life.

If you want the reading list, ask me and I'll email it to you. It would be too selfish to keep this to myself :) and I want to share with the fellow book worms out there. I apologize in advance if some of the books are ridiculously boring; I wouldn't know since I only added the books that I haven't read myself.

Raw

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "Earth laughs in flowers." What an adorable remark! These past few days, I've put an effort in noticing the unrefined things in life. Nature. It feels amazing to enjoy the cool, crisp night air.

All things in life are good, at the original state. Where do we go wrong?

I really do want to see the raw beauty in everything, including people. A profound girl once reminded me that we are all made in God's image, and the reason why we love someone is because we see a glimpse of God's love and beauty in them. I'm paraphrasing, but the very idea of this touched me. Wouldn't it be absolutely wonderful to categorize the joys as well as the hardships we face in life as simply 'LIFE,' nothing more and nothing less?

I love watching things fall into place, in the midst of this chaotic and complicated world. "Simplify, simplify, simplify" (Thoreau)...possible new year's resolution?

2010 hehe.

Just a year closer

to the year of death.

HAHAHAHAHHAA just kidding. I'll snap out of the Lucy mode now.

The real blog title should be: Pursuit of Happiness.

I mean, we all want happiness. We all pursue happiness in one way or another. I want to be happy. You want to be happy. We all want to be happy. The conflict arises when our terms of happiness clash. How do you prevent that? Don't.

Pursue Happiness. And I don't mean happiness in a shallow, meaningless, pleasure-seeking way. I guess I mean a peace of mind, or just having peace at heart. I think I should just leave it at that.

I loved 2009. I think I'll love 2010; I started on the right path this time.

Hm

It's like

running,

stopping for some rest,

and not being able to run again.