Trembling Sleep

With my mind actively working the majority of the night, I woke easily on Friday morning. It was around 5:30. The walls of the house seemed to be trembling. Sleepy-eyed, I squinted out the window looking for any sign of thunder and lightning. It was still. I went to check if it was Gigi on the opposite side of the wall possibly moving stuff around. Nope, she was sleeping soundly and it would be way too early to be shaking the walls.

What could it have been? Could it have been an earthquake? In the Midwestern state of Michigan? Is it really possible? In just a few seconds, the trembling ended. I fell back asleep as easily as I had awoke.

On our drive to school, the radio commentators on Q101, a station in Illinois, were discussing people's reactions to earthquake. I didn't dream the trembles? But if the earthquake was in Illinois, how did I feel it in southwest Michigan?

In my second class, I had braved to ask my seatmates around me whether they may have felt any trembling in the early dawn. I was seeking confirmation that I wasn't crazy. Some girls residing in the dorm noted that they did feel some shaking, but just shrugged it off thinking it was their bunkmate shaking the bed. It was amusing because the girl's roommate argued saying she thought it was her roommate shaking the bed.

I opened up my laptop and went to CNN.com seeking more info on this mysterious trembling. It was on the front page headline. "Midwest quake felt far and wide". So I wasn't crazy after all. whew! The U.S. Geological Survey reports that people over 900 miles away felt the effects of the 5.2 magnitude earthquake that hit southern Illinois.

I was impressed to read the findings and thought I'd share it with you too. Although the earthquake wasn't of extremely high magnitude as they can be in California, it's pretty epic for the Midwest, considering that this is the land of tornados and hurricanes (east coast).

Check out the story for more details.

A Rich and Full Life

umm...per request of some viewers, i'm updating you on why i haven't posted in the past 2 weeks? i really have no good reason other than school's wrapping up in about 2 weeks and i'm trying to get my stuff done.

i've been spending a lot of time at work. just this weekend we had about 150 high school students visit Andrews and you can just imagine what kind of energy is required for that many kids.

however, aside from all the busi-ness of my mundane life, it does feel very rich and full of fun-loving homies. two weekends ago, i enjoyed the presence of our wonderful vimsicle, and up until a couple hours ago, we soaked up Ellen in all her Korean glory (she's really here!). and i got 2 weekends in a row of Nunz, it can't get better than that.

I can't really complain about life right now. nope, whatever Mastercard says, it can't buy this blissful joy i feel. I feel it's exactly the way it should be at this point in my life...*sigh*

Have You Laughed Today?

One of my most favorite classics ever...it brings back so many fond memories. For my freshman Communication Skills class I did a presentation called "Laughter is the Best Form of Medicine," and showed clips of Mary Poppins including this one. Afterwards, I led the entire class in a laughing exercise. Before you knew it we were all rolling on the floor with giggles. *sigh*.... memories that make me laugh, those are my fave ones...hahaha (chuckle chuckle blast)!!!

how do you laugh? how often do you laugh?

lately, i haven't been laughing as much as i like. when did i become so serious? that's why i changed that tonight (with Mary Poppins), maybe it's also the sleep deprivation. mmm...yeah it's the latter. by the way, laughter and tears is proven to be one of the best cathartic therapies to stress (Nursing Forum).

google "laughter is the best form of medicine" or "laughter therapy," you'll get a host of credible sources and silliness.

alright, have fun laughing!!

Don't Just Think, ACT

i spent my last day in DC going through the Holocaust Museum. Although there were hundreds of people and students crammed together in this exhibit (almost as if we really were in a Concentration camp ourselves, literally that many people), the messages still had their full impact on me.

I pray that my existence in this world can truly make a difference for the better and that I don't just watch the events that unfold in front of my eyes but rather become actively involved in pursuing justice and human rights for all.


Upon entering and leaving the museum, visitors are met with a poster that reads the following:

The next time you see injustice,
The next time you witness hatred,
The next time you hear about genocide,
THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU SAW

I challenge you to do the same...And ACT ON WHAT YOU SEE.

If you ever get the chance, visit the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC or the Museum of Tolerance in LA. I hear that's also very good.

my kinda town...

so i went to Maryland/DC area for spring break and found myself falling in love with the quaint towns and the sweet, clean metro system. i had a chance to relax, sleep in a little past 8:00 (i can't sleep til noon anymore without feeling guilty or completely hating myself), read some books, reflect, spend time with people i love, of course shop a little, and just wander.



i've just been too busy this week after i came back that i just haven't had much time to do anything online besides check my mail. so here are a few highlights...

i love trains.

and cute old people [tired from a long day]. i couldn't help myself sneaking a shot.

there's something about secret alley's i like too.
by the Federal triangle.

meng and her alley's

i don't like traffic jams.
seriously, they don't joke about their traffic.

i like parades. i made meng watch it with me for a while before she convinced me on shopping.
st. patty's craziness.

i guess i always secretly wanted to be a "Miss" something. Miss Maryland waved straight at my camera!

apparently, i didn't take enough pictures with people. oops...i was too busy going gu-gu-ga-ga over the buildings and colorful doors. next trip: people pictures.

There is a rainbow at the end of a dark road...

Just a quick update on my mundane little life: the stress began last week as I began preparing for midterm week with one looming darkly over the other minor ones--Human Rights. The stress continued to mount throughout the rest of this week as I had three other midterms to study for as well as some other pressing matters I just don't want to think about right now.

Basically, I could only maintain a strong face for so long until I reached the point of breakdown on Thursday. Bust just like how in a business cycle an economy experiences a recessionary period, it eventually hits the trough and rises back up in the expansionary period was my experience this week. Finally, I became aware that I hit the trough period on Thursday, however signs of an expansionary period were not apparent to me until later that night. After a couple of hours studying I was returning home when I received word that a couple of my friends were visiting for the weekend. Their loving hugs and fun laughs definitely brightened my spirits, but I had to break away to resume my studying. When I finally arrived at my house and opened the door to the kitchen (I usually enter through the garage), I saw a suitcase full of Filipino food spread open in the middle of the floor. I heard a familiar voice call out my name that did not belong to any of my housemates, but a voice I had not heard in almost two years.

The person whom I thought the voice belonged to was really the person sitting in the living room. We screamed and hugged and hugged and screamed until I dunno...What seemed to be one of the darkest and stressful weeks ever turned out to be quite beautiful. People truly make [my] life much more enjoyable and fuller. I dunno how I could ever do without them :-)

So this week will continue the expansionary period that I call happiness and hopefully will last much longer than the recent recessionary period that now has passed. And in just 05 days, I will be traveling to the East Coast where I will enjoy a restful week with my BFF whom I haven't seen since last summer.

Twenty-Three Years Fly By

* Sorry, I didn't realize how long my ramblings would go on, but you're not required to read it all. You may skim if you wish, however if you do read it in all its entirety, you'll gain better insight into me and my thoughts.

When I get tired and restless, time seems to stand still. To some a week feels it couldn't be longer (hurry and get to Friday already!), a month seems like forever, and a WHOLE year sounds like an eternity! In the life of the world, a lot happens in a year. In the life of a human being, change may not appear to be as obvious, but a lot could change in a year. For some humans, one year does not change a thing. They are still the exact same person they were one year ago, no growth happened. Oh of course events may have taken place in the course of their life that year, but none of it may have fazed them. For those humans whose lives did experience change in some form(s) or another, it's because they accepted whatever circumstance came their way and dealt with it. They live life, not avoid it. Because of it, they grow. And with growth, comes change.

Change often carries a negative connotation. Why? Why do we humans fear change like no other? When change often leads to positive results. In the case of personal growth and birthdays, change is good.

Yesterday, I turned 23 years old. To my wiser elders, I'm still a baby. I have a lot of life to live they would say! "There's still so much ahead of you!" To my younger peers, I'm looked up to (not literally cause I'm still shorter than most of them). Today, one of them, four years my junior, said to me, "man, you're old! I can't imagine what I'm going to be like when I'm 23."

When I was 19, what did I think I'd be like when I became 23?

Essentially, I'm still the same Karen. The one that cries hard-core in movies, makes comments during movies, gives high-fives, takes notes and quotes wherever she goes, befriends foreigners and asks them to teach her key phrases of their language, has a different laugh for different occasions, loves adventure and cultural immersion. Yet, this is also the same person with a lot of flaws and a lot of fears.

The following are some insights I gained while heading towards the age of 23.

1. I found my first two (or is it three) silver-grey hairs. I refuse to pull them in fear of gaining more. Whatever it's not superstition.

2. Wear and tear is starting to show from the permanent pillowy bags below my eyes. Sleeping a full 8 hours/night and drinking plenty of water doesn't seem to make them go away. I've begun to think I was born with baggy eyes (or that's what I like to think). Maybe, it's because I've also developed workaholicism. I'm more like my mother than I care to admit.

3. A dollar goes a long way. I have become more financially responsible and learned the importance of budgeting and adjusting my life to live within my means. In this, I have changed. I no longer throw down hundreds of dollars here, there, everywhere like I once used to in the earlier part of college. For some humans, this financial maturity comes early in their life like when they are six years old and learned that if they eat only half of their cookie today and save the other half, they'd still have something to enjoy tomorrow! For other humans...ahem, me...they learn this important life principle hopefully in their 20-somethings.

4. Mind Over Matter isn't just life-coach psychology advice. It's real life. When my body says, "you've never tried to run 5k before, you're not going to do it now!" The mind says, "yes, you can body. I said so, therfore you will. No choice about it." The mind is a powerful tool. Use it wisely.

5. I realized there is a very real quiet, melancholy side of me. When I met her, I embraced her, welcomed her, and kept her.

6. I learned that THIS is never just IT. Missed opportunities are not the same thing as a Last Chance. It's not a reason to settle for almosts. Just because he almost fits the profile, like 98% close, does not and should not be a cause to settle. God will present THE opportunity in His perfect time.

7. Despite the fact that I've devoted four years of my life to studying theories of communication and learning how to become an Effective Communicator, I still suck. Somehow I still struggle communicating when and why I'm upset with someone. I avoid conflict like the plague. I hesitate and shrink bank at the thought of being 100% completely vulnerable, honest and open. To me, it's the most frightening thing in the world! Slowly but surely, I'm trying. I'm making very small baby steps towards being open and communicative. Why do you think I'm doing this (blogging)? Oh, if it weren't such a complex and painful process, I'd take bigger steps.

8. The metabolism has begun its decent and it requires more work, more effort each year to break through those stubborn fatty deposits. I know it sounds ugly, but I'm learning to bare the truth and come to terms with it.

9. When I was 19, I wanted to be one of the nicest people you'd ever run into. People like to think I'm nice. I was NICE. I don't think I'm as nice today as I was a year ago. Actually, I'm probably four times meaner in general than I was a whole year ago. I used to think that by letting everyone have their way with me even if I didn't necessarily agree, that I was being nice. And then, I'd smack myself upon finding that I'm grumbling and complaining about why I agreed to this or that. How did I allow myself to grow so old and sour? This year, it's time to change that. In the course of this year, I've learned to discern the difference between being a nice person and being a floormat. This floormat has gotten old, dingy, weak, torn up and it's time to finally throw it away! FINALLY! This is year 23 of Karen's life and she is throwing old floormats and no longer buying any new ones!

10. Sometimes I just draw a blank. I like to act like I have all the answers, but I really don't. Not even half. I only know what these T W E N T Y - T H R E E years have brought to my life...and sometimes, I even have to struggle to retrieve and dust off the old cob-webbed archives shoved at the back of what we call memory. I've learned something important: It's perfectly okay not to know-it-all.

I didn't have overly-dramatic epiphanies and discoveries about myself. But I do believe that change did occur in my life. I don't routinely do this after every birthday, but now that I have, I have to say it's been quite cathartic and helpful. This exercise helped me be a little more objective with myself. I encourage anyone who's never tried it, during your birthday (or within close range of it) to reflect on the change(s) you experienced that year.