Getting Ready

My work schedule had been quite hectic recently.  While working for at least 10 hours a day on-site, I had been writing reports for other projects at home in the evenings and on weekends for the past 3 weeks!  I had never worked under such crazy schedule and stress.  Now I know how it feels like to be an elastic band being stretched like it had never been stretched before...

Tonight, PJ talked about being aware of the spiritual meanings behind everything that happened in our lives.  That was a good reminder for me at the right time.  In such busy schedule and tiring days, I could hardly find time to think deeply about the spiritual meanings behind all these.  God could have molded me for His purposes using different ways, including ways that I would never imagine, like making use of my crazy workload!!

We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.

Isaiah 64:8

I am not sure how things would work out, but knowing that there is a purpose behind all these unbearable workload, my working attitude would become very different.  Maybe all these crazy working hours were just “warm-up” exercises for me to get familiar with what a busy lifestyle is like, so I am getting mentally and physically ready for the coming of little ToTo!  :)

There is one thing I am sure – it’s all in His good hands.

Little ToTo at 12 weeks old.

March Break Getaway

We had been looking forward to visiting Vegas, and decided to go for it during this March Break.  Well, we are not much into gambling, but the food, the show and the neon light city in the desert itself sound exciting enough!

After a long line-up to check in and going through U.S. Customs (not surprising during March Break), we made it on the plane pretty smoothly.  It was a 5 hour flight from Toronto to Vegas, and everything was on time.

Needless to say, Vegas has been famous for its gambling and adult entertainment activities and has earned the title of Sin City.  There were slot machines everywhere, even inside the airport, and believe it or not, people were playing them, considering the closest casino is just 10 minutes drive away!

At around 7:00pm, we arrived at our hotel (Luxor). It has an Egyptian theme and has the shape of a pyramid.  After checking in and dropping off our luggage, we went to Mandalay Bay for dinner based on some highly recommended reviews online, and the reviews were right!  The buffet was excellent there, probably  because of our late arrival (we had dinner at 8:00pm Las Vegas time, which was 11:00pm Toronto time).  Anyhow, all the food taste extra yummy, including some of the biggest crab legs I've ever seen!  It was so good that we almost went there a second time during the rest of the trip.

On the next day we spent most of the afternoon at Premium Outlets, and took a walk on the Strip at night.  It is at night where Vegas really comes alive!  All the drinking and partying usually seen on weekends elsewhere happen here every night!  I just found lots of photo opportunities with all the neon lighting displays around Paris and Bellagio and had a good time snapping shots after shots!

You have to admire the Americans for their determination to transform a desert into what we see here in Vegas today, and there are many crazy stories to tell here.  From what I heard, if you let the casino know that you are going to spend a huge amount of money gambling on their facility, the hotel will give you free vouchers for food (buffet, most likely) and a free room to stay (the luxury level of the room depends on how much money you agree to spend).  Pretty good deal, right?  Thinking that you might have a chance to break even or even able to win a fortune, while enjoy all the free stuff?

Well, imagine how much revenue these casinos/hotels have to generate in order to support the establishment of such spectacular architecture in their facilities, to hire all the staff to work there, and to cover the energy bill they use to light up the desert?  Most likely, this money is coming from the gamblers' own pocket.  What are the odds that people think they are going to be the lucky one hitting the jackpot?  Well, do the math and think again.

Anyhow, I am beginning to understand how come almost every casino has a buffet restaurant... it serves the purpose to feed people quickly, so they can get back to gambling in no time!  For the same reason, I think I know why all casinos are designed in a way that people have to walk through the gambling area before getting back to their hotel rooms or the exits.  Also, no wonder why the casino exits are so difficult to find, yet they never bother putting up more signs and directions to show people where the exits are.

The next day we went to MGM Grand to pickup the tickets for Cirque du Soleil's Ka.  I was really excited seeing the Lion Habitat there and saw some real lions!

 

We then went down to the Venetian, the Mirage and Caesars Palace.  We didn't get to visit the real Rome and Venice, yet we had a chance to see all these European attractions on just one street.  Although all these architecture were great to look at and I still enjoy a walk on the Strip, they are all phony, and the people and the culture behind the real thing are missing.  Maybe that's why I was so excited about seeing the lions earlier, because even though they were trapped behind glass for display, I saw lives in the lions, which was in big contrast with the phony and hollow European landmarks here in Vegas.  Hopefully some time in the future we can see the real thing in Europe ourselves.  Finally, we headed back to MGM Grand for dinner and to see Cirque du Soleil's Ka.  Fabulous show!!

The trip wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Grand Canyon.  After a light night’s sleep, we managed to wake up at 6:00am and met up with the tour going to the South Rim.  The drive itself took 5 hours one way.  On our way to the Grand Canyon, we stopped by at Hoover Dam for a 10 minute photo shootout.  At around 1:00pm, we finally arrived at the Grand Canyon and stopped by the Bright Angel Trailhead.  The view was absolutely breathtaking!  During our given 3 hour free time, We took the shuttle bus, stopped off at the Mather Point area of the Canyon, and walked along the trail to the Yavapai Point area.  The view on the way was truly beautiful, and you have to be there to experience and see for yourself how the geologic processes played out over time and how magnificent the landscape is.  What a great piece of nature's artwork!

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
~Psalm 19:1~

During these 4 days in Vegas, I think we had seen everything we wanted to see and we were ready to head home. Vegas is worth the visit but once you've been there, I don't see why you'd go back. Maybe next time we would consider staying at the lodge there, so we have more time hiking down the Canyon and explore its beauty in other ways, like a helicopter ride down the Canyon. Exploring the Red Rock Canyon with a scooter sounds pretty fun, too!

Oh, and of course, thanks Jen for the treat!!

Click HERE to view more photos.

Our 13th Valentine

I love to see and hear you smile;

it seems to take away my trouble.

Your smile has always warmed my heart

like a hot cocoa with floating marshmallows.

I love to sit next to you

to watch an episode of "Chibi Maruko-chan" or two.

Your giggles and laughs are like music to me;

to duet with mine like a symphony.

I love to hear you play piano;

a precious sound from deep in your soul.

Musical notes expressed in an unique way

delivered to God who is worthy of our praise.

I adore your passion on music;

Chopin, Mozart, they all sound romantic.

Learning music is fun but not that easy;

You have opened up a whole new world to me.

I admire your passion on teaching,

even those kids always give you headache.

Your patience and persistence always remind me

"Thy Will Be Done" and it is not me.

But... sometimes we fight, sometimes we quarrel;

the silent treatments had made us sorrow.

But after all things got resolved,

they've made me understand and love you more.

You brighten up my days though you drive me crazy;

You have become the rainbow of my life.

I thank God for giving you to me

to cherish as the apple of my eye.

瓦器內的寶貝

我們有這寶貝放在瓦器裏、要顯明這莫大的能力、是出於　神、不是出於我們。我們四面受敵、卻不被困住．心裏作難、卻不至失望．遭逼迫、卻不被丟棄．打倒了、卻不至死亡．身上常帶著耶穌的死、使耶穌的生、也顯明在我們身上。

~歌林多後書4:7-10~

我的生命，是一盞漂亮但不能發光的燈台，抑或是能夠在軟弱中散發出上帝的光采？

願主叫我時刻緊記有祂這寶貝活在我這個本來就一無是處的瓦器內。

Exam is Over... All Over!!!

After writing 8 technical exams and 1 technical report required by PEO in the past 10 years, I was finally done writing the PPE exam this afternoon! With every single drop of brain juice squeezed out in this 3 hour exam, I was so exhausted afterwards, but felt so relieved and excited. Finally, it's all over now! YEAH!!

I have learnt a great lesson to rely on God during these exam years. There had been a few occasions that I was sick when writing the exams, but amazingly, it turned out that those were the ones I got the highest marks! It is totally by His grace that I have gone this far, and not just by my own effort.

Also, I really have to thank Jen for her support during these years. Without her caring love and continuous encouragement, I would have given up long time ago. I thank God for giving me such a precious life partner!

Trial

Amazing thing happened at my trial for the speeding ticket today! While the judge assistant was taking attendance, she told me that they could reduce the fine to $45 without any demerit point. Knowing that it was the best deal available at that moment, I accepted and pleaded guilty. I thanked God for this arrangement, as I didn't need to worry about the insurance company raising my premium, and I could get back to focus on my PPE exam preparation.

While the judge went over my file, to my surprise, she announced that the charge was dropped and I was free to go, because somehow the ticket was not properly filed! Wow... that was totally unexpected! Praise the Lord, not for letting me get away from speeding, but for giving me a second chance, and let me have one less thing to worry about before the coming PPE exam this Saturday!

學習感恩

今天中午在401開車時親眼目睹一宗交通意外。當時交通不算繁忙，車子都保持著安全距離以正常速度行駛；忽然間，一輛小型客貨車從右前方閃出，並意圖向左方轉線，心想：以當時的車速及我跟前面車子的距離，前方應該沒有足夠空間讓他切入的。於是我下意識地收油，並作好剎車準備。說時遲，那時快，小型客貨車已狠狠地撞向前方車子的尾部，頓時碎片橫飛！幸好我已減速，不致被碎片打中，可憐前面被撞的車子尾燈盡毀，雖然被撞後有少許失控，但總算能安全地靠邊停下，小型客貨車在碰撞後也靠邊停下來。還好當時附近車子不多，不然，這種意外發生在高速公路上是可以很嚴重的。

其實在前一路段中，我已留意到這輛小型客貨車在行駛時左搖右擺的，不知道司機是喝醉酒還是在打磕睡，唯有避之則吉，滿以為自己已離他很遠，誰知道意外就發生在我眼前，腎上腺素一下子的衝擊已足夠提醒我開車要打醒十二分精神！

心神稍為安定下來後，心裡滿是感恩。心想：假如我的車子開快三秒鐘的話，被撞的可能是我。其實那位被撞的仁兄也很無辜，要是我反應快一點的話，可能來得及晌銨提醒前面的車子小心防避一下，意外就可能不會發生，想到這裡，心內不禁有點兒內咎......

我為著能「避過一劫」而感恩，這種心態並沒有甚麼不妥，但深入一點去想：如果我是被撞的那位的話，我還能心存感恩嗎？極可能我早已破口大罵，怨天尤人為何我那麼倒霉！？

保羅說：「要常常喜樂；不住的禱告；凡事謝恩；因為這是上帝在基督耶穌裡向你們所定的旨意。」（帖前5：16-18）「凡事謝恩」，就是無論在順境或逆境中都要存感謝上帝恩典的心。我們活在這個物質豐富的社會中，很容易會把生活中的平穩安舒都視作理所當然，能夠在順境中懂得感恩，已是難能可貴，更遑論在逆境中仍存感恩的心！

可能中國人對「拜得神多自有神庇祐」這個觀念已是根深蒂固，以致我們很多時候只會為得著了某些東西而感恩，也很容易為著在困境當中尋找到出路而獻上感恩。不是說這樣的感恩有甚麼不好，祗是，基督徒真正的感恩不應只停留於此；要是我們處於逆境當中而又苦無對策時，只懂呼天叫地求問神「為甚麼？」或「為甚麼會是我？」，到最終聳聳肩無奈接受「神有祂的心意」的話，試問這樣的態度跟拜偶像有甚麼分別？

要存感恩的心去面對逆境，除非有上帝的恩典在其中，否則真的很難做到。同時，能夠在逆境中感恩也表明我們信得過上帝的帶領，因為「我們曉得萬事都互相效力，叫愛神的人得益處。」（羅馬書8：28）

「凡事謝恩」是一生難學的功課，盼望我真的能夠學習和實踐。

Political Mafia

It is unbelievable that $1 billion (that’s $1,000,000,000) got wasted in the eHealth scandal, yet neither fines nor criminal charges was laid for the parties involved!  Bryn Weese from Toronto Sun gave us a rough idea what this $1 billion could get us if it was spent wisely:

Instead of buying consultants coffee, and paying them to consult with themselves and edit voicemail greetings, here's what Premier Dalton McGuinty could have bought for the health-care system with $1 billion:

- 500 MRI machines at $2 million each.
- Two mega-hospitals with more than 500 beds, similar to the new Brampton Civic.
- 50 smaller community hospitals.
- 5,000 doctors at $200,000 each.
- 17,466 first-year nurses at $57,252.
- 11,720 nurse practitioners at $85,320.
- 33,333 cancer treatments at $30,000 each.

If taxpayers happen to file their taxes late, they would be promptly charged with an incredible amount of interest.  If you or I did this at work, we would lose our jobs, got our professional licenses revoked, and probably got thrown to jail.  Plus, no one would hire us when we are released.  However, the government is getting away with this!?  I don’t get it!

Apparently, it is obvious why Caplan agreed to drop the outside review back in July, which is supposed to be reported earlier than the Ontario Auditor General’s report.  Finally, Caplan stepped down the night before the Auditor General’s report was released, but so what?  He probably resigned with a fat severance package anyway, just like the departure of the former Hydro One CEO back in 2007.

Are we seeing a pattern here?  Scandal uncovered--> Audit --> Personnel in charge got replaced --> Another Scandal uncovered --> ...... another one...... and another one ............ Not to mention that the cases got uncovered were probably just a tip of the iceberg.  The funniest (or saddest) thing is, for some reason, the same government got elected again!  How did they do it?

Well, just two more years before the next election in which we have our chances to vote off this incompetent government.  I hope Ontarians still have good memories by then.

If the government used our money more efficiently, we probably wouldn’t need to pay so many taxes, like GST, PST, the Ontario Health Premium, and the upcoming HST, in which businesses would benefit the most, but not consumers.  Since each political party is getting sponsored by different businesses, it is quite obvious that the winning party is likely to setup some policies that would benefit their supporters, especially those “favorite” businesses closely related to the winning party.

Would the RCMP do the same kind of investigation in Ontario as they did to the B.C. Health Ministry?  I definitely hope so!

野柳

在台北休息一天後，我們今天來到位於台灣東北角的野柳。這裡怪石嶙峋，堅硬度不一樣的岩石因風化和海蝕作用的影響，形成了各具特色的奇岩怪石，又彷彿一具具美淪美渙的雕像，彰顯著大自然經年累月的雕塑工藝。這裡沒有什麼樹蔭可以遮擋猛烈的太陽，這樣子在石灘上走著其實蠻辛苦的，但可能我對地理科情有獨鍾，所以縱使大汗淋漓也不覺得怎麼樣，這次來台灣遊覽了那麼多的境點，這裡可以說是我最喜愛的地方了！

接下來在台北逗留多三天的時間，期間除了回西門町萬年大廈掃貨外，還到了台北市立動物園探望熊貓「團團」和「圓圓」、台北101、和師大夜市，這樣便結束了為期三星期的假期，感謝岳父母熱情招待及帶我們四處遊玩，聽說東部的風境也是很漂亮的，希望下次再來的時候有空能到那邊走走。Bye!!

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南部之旅

從台北開車，大約三個小時後便到達位於中部的彰化縣鹿港鎮；鎮內廟宇林立，製造及售賣神桌、佛像、及石碑的工場更是隨處可見。鎮上除了保存了很多清代及日治時期遺留下來的古蹟外，鋪滿了紅磚頭的街道更是鹿港的一大特色。

開車往南再走兩個小時左右便來到台南，在這裡參觀了一系列台灣在荷蘭、明鄭、滿清、及日本統治時期遺留下來的古蹟，如赤崁樓、安平古堡、億載金城、延平郡王祠等，上了一堂寶貴的歷史課。

台灣又名Formosa，源於在16世紀時的葡萄牙船隻發現台灣島的美麗而高呼「Ilha Formosa！」（葡萄牙語 “Formosa”= 美麗，“Ilha”= 島嶼），所以，早期台灣被翻譯為「美麗島」；然而，西方國家不但不懂珍惜這片美麗的土地，為了營商的緣故更隨意對這地作出侵略行為，又運進鴉片作「貿易」之用，及後日治時期日本人因喜愛這地的木材而大量砍伐山區的神木（超過1000年以上的巨樹）運回日本建造宮殿、廟宇和製造傢俱，再加上近代農民過度抽取地下水作灌溉用途，嚴重影響生態環境，更導致山區土壤疏鬆，加速水土流失和侵蝕作用，尤其在颱風或暴雨季節時，山泥傾瀉的危機更是一觸即發！人類為了短線的經濟利益而隨意開採天然資源，卻苦了生活在當地的老百姓......

開車往南再走差不多一個小時便來到高雄市，正好遇著世運會在高雄市開幕，電視上也有直播，但我們還是覺得逛逛當地的六合夜市比較吸引！這邊的夜市規模不算很大，但可能靠近港口的緣故，海產類的小食看來比較多，也很新鮮。

參觀過前英領事館後，開車穿過高雄港過港隧道便到達了旗津，這裡的海產豐富新鮮，享受一頓海鮮餐是基本指定動作。

飽餐一頓後，便往附近的旗津海岸公園散散步、消消滯；這裡的海灘不算美麗，但在炎炎夏日之下迎著陣陣海風散步，挺不錯的！回到高雄後再到澄清湖走一走，便差不多是時候回程了。

在回台北的路上，經過雲林縣古坑鄉，順道參觀一下當地有名的咖啡加工廠。古坑以生產咖啡聞名，更是台灣唯一出產本地咖啡的地方，但由於天氣太熱及趕路的緣故，都沒有心情喝熱騰騰的咖啡，只買了些手信便離開了，後來得知這裡出產的咖啡曾為日治時期獻給日本天皇作貢品之用，真有點後悔沒有點來喝看看呢！

差不多到了傍晚時分我們才到達新竹市，在前往探望Jen在新竹的親戚前，我們先在城隍廟口吃過著名的肉圓、燕丸湯及潤餅作晚餐。肉圓的粉皮非常煙韌，醬汁甜辣適中；真材實料的燕丸（魚旦）放涼後還是那麼大顆，應該沒有用上水陽酸的；郭潤餅店還是跟四年前來的時候一樣，門口大排長龍，潤餅依舊足料味美。

回到台北時已是晚上十一點多了（有勞岳父全程充當司機和導遊），這樣便結束了短短四天但卻十分充實的南部之旅！

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