xteethx

Running

Just finished “Born to Run” by Chirstopher McDougall.  I found it randomly in a friend’s car and I frantically finished it 10 minutes ago at 3:20 a.m. because I need to return it by this afternoon.

I was interested in reading the book since I started running longer and more consistently this summer.  I wanted to learn how to run better and discover the secret behind running the way that the reclusive super running tribe called the Tarahumara in Mexico do it.  McDougall discusses how well-equipped our bodies are made for running and how we learned to screw it up in the last few decades when we wore expensive sneakers that only increased our running injuries.  He doesn’t go over technique or form in so much detail, although he does go over our anatomy and physique and how it’s evolved to help us run, even outrun, animals.

But the biggest lesson I learned from his book, other than that sneakers hinder your running, is that the key to running is really love and love for life. It sounds so stupid and cheesy but it’s true.  I found this true in my own running although I didn’t quite realize it.  When I run, it takes me a good ten minutes to calm my mind down. My mind starts to wander a lot and I get easily distracted when I think about how tired I am or the mundane things of life like jobs, dating, who I’m mad at and what not. But when I’m in the present, when I’m in the moment and I focus on how great it is for me to be running, how thankful I am to be healthy, how beautiful nature is when I take in my surroundings and my heart is full of gratitude for God’s blessing in my life, or if I’m praying for others, I feel like I can run forever.  Sure nice weather or friendly competition helps, but it’s really just gratitude and love that can help me focus and continuing running.

There was this one time where I was running for almost two hours and although I was tired, I felt this incredible joy and I started laughing.  I have never felt anything like that when I was running and thought it must be what it’s like to take drugs.  Call it  second wind or runner’s high, I feel like the secret to running is really love.  When you run solely for pride, competition or to have a firmer butt, running is a chore.  When you run for love and gratitude, you can really enjoy running for hours.

Dr. Joe Vigil, a long distance running coach with a Ph.D, two masters, made this discovery after figuring out the science end of it. Vigil has 26 national titles for Adams College’s cross-country program, won National Coach of the Year fourteen times  and trained Olympians.  McDougall writes, “…Vigil had become convinced that the next leap forward in human endurance would come from a dimension he dreaded getting into: character.Vigil’s notion of character wasn’t toughness.  It was compassion. Kindness. Love. ”

To exemplify this point, McDougall recounts the life of a Czech soldier, Emil Zatopek, who “ran with such horrendous form that he looked “as if he’d just been stabbed through the heart.”  In the late ’40s, he raced nearly every other week for three years and never lost, going 69-0.  In the ‘52 Olympics, he won gold in the 5,000 meters, 10,000 meters and the marathon, which he ran for the first time in his life.    When the Russian Red Army took over Prague, they gave Zatopek a choice to run for them or to clean toilets.  Zatopek chose the latter and faded into history.

Zapotek’s accomplishments, humility, character and enthusiasm was unbridled.  His competitor, Ron Clarke, had this to say about him: “There is not, and never was, a greater man than Emil Zapotek.”  If your opponent can say that about you, then you’ve already won everything.

Can’t get no…satisfaction

“At the end of the day sitting in your cubicle, after you’ve been done playing Solitaire and hanging out at Facebook all day, what have you really done? So they’re looking for an authentic work experience.”

The quote is hilarious because it’s true.

Crop Mob.   “Trace Ramsey says its popularity is tied to a growing disillusionment among 30-somethings with white-collar careers. He and his peers were taught that manual labor is beneath them. But Ramsey says they’re no longer satisfied with office jobs either.”

There’s been more articles on finding meaning through work and being happy with less.

Speaking of, I watched a Danish film called “After the Wedding,” which touched upon the question of what we live for.  It dealt with quite a few themes such as our mortality, ideals, power, fidelity and love.  It was a strangely powerful movie. Of course I cried because they played “untitled” by Sigur Ros in the moving scenes.

Mads Mikkelsen’s role as a manger of an orphanage in India reminded me of unsung heroes of those who quietly dedicate their lives serving the poor, such as the ten aid workers who were killed in Afghanistan.

Nothing but the Truth

Why is it so hard for people to handle the truth? I would always rather know the truth than to live in deception and I dislike having to compromise truth to prevent hurting people’s feelings or egos.

For example, I hate vanity sizing because you’re living under the false pretense that your waist is smaller than it actually is. It’s ridiculous that a size 2 is falling off my hips. Just tell me that I’m a size 4 or 6 or 8…I don’t even  know what’s right anymore.

Castaway on the Moon

What a fascinating movie from the NYAFF.  It’s left such a lasting impression on me even though the director himself introduced the movie by saying it got negative reviews in Korea and the sponsors also introduced the film by saying that it almost didn’t make the cut.  I went to see it on the fourth of July and it was a packed house that was pretty diverse.  Judging by the round of applause at the end of the film, I think a lot of people enjoyed it.

There are many themes which the movie touches upon but the most memorable is its exploration of relationships and intimacy in an overwhelmingly crowded world like Seoul.  The main protagonist survives an attempted suicide jump from a bridge over the Han river and ends up on an isolated little island. (It actually exists unbeknown even to most Koreans.)

It inevitably conjures up memories from Tom Hanks’ Castaway but the director, Lee Hey-June, has a knack for creating such poignant or comical moments that keeps the storyline on a deserted island from dragging.  He also has a knack for finding humor in sad things and overwhelming joy in the most mundane things.  It felt weird to laugh hysterically when the protagonist was crying in anguish, snot dripping and all, over his failures in the real world.  Since he has to start from scratch to feed himself, the movie touches upon the theme of work and the satisfaction we get out of it.

But I wouldn’t say this is the main point of the movie; at least for me it wasn’t.  While on the island, an internet-addicted woman who holes herself up in the room, observes him through her camera. The two isolated individuals, outcasts from society, make contact.   It’s scary, it’s joyous,  it’s heart-wrenching and it’s like high school all over again as these two learn to communicate with each other. You laugh so easily and feel so deeply through the most simple words and interactions.

Society, especially in a city like Seoul, can be burdensome and cruel with its expectations.  He drowns in them; she floats up when the streets are emptied of people during a civilian defense drill. But can you really be your own island? Perhaps, but you would be robbed of the riches and intimacy of connecting with others when all you have is a virtual world or a volleyball named Wilson.

World Cup 2010

You should go to http://fuckyeahworldcup.tumblr.com/ for great WC 2010 photos.  USA’s last goal that was disallowed in today’s game against Slovenia was the greatest robbery of all time.

Live to Work

I met up with a friend whom I haven’t seen for awhile. She’s a lawyer in the city and lives in a decent high rise in Manhattan. So it depressed me to hear that she’s not happy with her job, which she really worked hard for many years to get. She completely took me by surprise when she told me she would rather make creative stuff like stationery and sell it on Etsy…

Is something different with my generation? (Somewhere between what the media calls the X and Y generation) My friend seemed to think that we’re just itching to do so much more. I wonder if we were given these high expectations that make us so restless until we fulfill another accomplishment on our checklists. Maybe we’re just all spoiled and should suck it up and keep the jobs that make us unhappy.

I went to graduate school to change careers from finance. After every job, I would always hit a plateau where I would feel completely bored and unchallenged by my work. I couldn’t see myself waking up every morning to go to a job I hated. I hated pretending to look busy and getting paid for it. I hated looking at the clock. I hated feeling depressed Sunday nights because the weekend was over. And I hated hearing people complain about their work and I don’t want to be one of those people. I wanted to be happy and do something I love that is meaningful or creative so I jumped into grad school.

Even though I don’t have a job, I can’t regret my decision to go to grad school. At least I had to give myself that chance. I know so many bright people from top schools who are unemployed now and I know it’s more an indication of the economy and about having luck and connections.

But even if I reach the mountaintop, I wonder if it would still be a matter of time before I get disillusioned and unhappy. Over and over again, I hear some of my most successful friends feeling unhappy with their jobs even though they get to help people and travel all over the world on their company’s dime. If they can’t be happy with their dream jobs, what is work exactly supposed to mean for us?

Of course there are those who are completely happy with what they’re doing. I just wonder why some people still can’t be happy with their ideal jobs and if their unhappiness comes from something else.

In the end I realize that work doesn’t define us. Personally, I feel like I have to be great in some way; I think we all do. But it’s not about that at all. I believe we’re all just given different roles and none are better or worse than the other.

I found some quote on a friend’s blog that resonated with me:

I don’t think God said, ‘I have something greater for you to do.’ This life is not greater than the other, but it is different. That is all. For some our Father chooses one, for some He chooses the other, all that matters is that we should be obedient ‘unto all meeting of His wishes.’”

This doesn’t answer anything about getting a job that can make me happy, but just allows myself to be… happy.

Purple Yam

Has it really been six months since I wrote about food on my blog? I blame www.eatclub.wordpress.com since I’ve been writing there and not here.  Anyway, consider these posts as rare gems; I only blog when I find things really, really interesting.

I went to Purple Yam on Memorial Day since I figured eating at a Filipino restaurant would be appropriate if I’m missing out on barbecue.  First oddity I noticed is that there are quite a few Korean dishes on there.  I later learned that the restaurant is known for its expansive menu and fusion tendencies. While reviews can help you steer clear of bad choices, I’m glad I didn’t read anything about the restaurant beforehand because I would’ve been a lot more selective and less adventurous.

My friend and I settled on the shrimp and scallion pancake (it screams Korean), adobo chicken and Korean meatballs. (I didn’t even know Koreans had meatballs but here it was, so I had to get it.) The scallion and shrimp pancake was similar to the Korean “pajun”, except it was a bit thicker. So far so good.

The adobo chicken was pretty good; I honestly have nothing to compare it to since I don’t eat adobo on a regular basis. I found it a little sour but it was enjoyable with the rice.

The Korean meatballs were served on a yam baguette with a side of 1 mm cubic radish kimchi and hot pepper sauce.  It was pretty good but pretty greasy.  I’m not sure what was so Korean about it, save for the kimchi condiment.  I opted not to use the hot red pepper sauce because it overpowered the sandwich.  Overall, it was good but it seems much more like an experimental item than a mainstay on a menu.

The second oddity I must mention here is that none of the plates and silverware matched. They looked like dishes they picked up at a garage sale. But when I noticed that the patron next to me also had one pink chopstick and one beige chopstick, I figured that this rag-tag look was intentional. Check out the chips on pot of adobo chicken and the missing handle. If anything I found it more off-putting than endearing but when it comes to Filipino food, I feel like it’s more about the comfort than presentation.

For dessert, I ordered a scoop of the banana rum and coffee ice cream, both of which were excellent. The banana rum had chocolate chips in it and the coffee ice cream was as rich as your morning espresso. Of course we had to try the halo halo. I found the best part to be the flan and the purple yam ice cream; such an awesome combo.  I didn’t find the rest of it that great; I’ve had better with Korean “pat bing soo” and I think you would too, with its crazy variety of fruits, red bean and different toppings like Fruity Pebbles.

I would definitely like to go back to Purple Yam and try all the other appetizing items I missed like the different lumpiyas and the pancit.  And I’d definitely have to go back just to order the flan with a nice heaping of purple yam ice cream for dessert.

Seoulful

Stumbled upon Tommy Kane’s art work through a Spraygraphic newsletter.  I absolutely loves his illustrations of Seoul; it made me miss Korea immediately.  His drawings are almost cartoonish and pleasant to look at because his colors are bright.  But the amount of detail and his thoughtful commentary he scatters around makes me appreciate his work even more.

Oh, and I liked what he said about Korean girls. (although some of us truly do not require plastic surgery)

You can find more of Tommy on his blog or buy his stuff here.

My Blog Type

However I think, I mean I feel, that Typealyzer is generally right about my personality in terms of friendly disposition and wanting to help others.  I don’t need to surround myself with aesthetically pleasing things, but who doesn’t mind them? Certainly I don’t like looking for conflict but I will definitely confront if I feel it’s necessary.

Nothing to Envy

(Kim Il-Sung mural)

Just read “Nothing to Envy” by Barbara Demick.  It’s a good read of five different North Korean defectors and their harrowing accounts of escaping to South Korea.  I couldn’t put the book down and stayed up until 5:30 a.m. to finish reading it.

This was quite different from other books I read about North Korean defectors.  “Aquariums of Pyongyang” and “Eyes of the Tailless Animal” were written by North Koreans who were imprisoned in the gulags.  The accounts were horrifying; too gruesome to believe.

Other interesting books on North Korea are “Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea“, by Guy Delisle and “Rogue Regime” by  Jasper Becker.  The former book is a comic strip account of Delisle’s experience there as a supervisor over a kids cartoon show and the latter details how Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il were able to stay in power and provides figures on everything from famine-related deaths to North Korea’s nuclear weapons arsenal.

But Demick’s book is an intimate look of everyday life in North Korea through five different people.  Through their accounts, you see how their lives, their jobs, their potential suitors, are randomly ruled by rigid class lines much not unlike the Indian caste system.  When Miran realizes that her father’s background from South Korea has decided her future – “a job in a factory, marriage (most likely to a fellow factory worker), children, old age, death,” – she blurted to her boyfriend, ” I feel I have no purpose in life.”

Still, even good standing and job performance will not guarantee you security, promotion or even food.  When a frail Dr. Kim crossed over to China, she was surprised to see a bowl of rice mixed with meat on the ground outside a house.  As she heard a dog barking,  she realized that dogs in China ate better than doctors in North Korea.

What’s tragic of course, is that these realizations and self-epiphanies can’t be voiced or shared without the risk of imprisonment, torture, beatings or execution.  Spies are everywhere, even among your families and friends, so who’s to be trusted?  Plans to escape the country could not even be shared between two star-crossed lovers who sacrificed and risked so much to date each other for nine years.  One can’t help but to see their story be made into a movie when they do end up meeting again in South Korea.  These are extraordinary stories of sacrifice, survival, risk and guilt that need to be told.

There is one quote from the book that resonated with me and sums up the heartbreaking decisions North Korean defectors need to make:

“Liberty and love

These two I must have.

For my love I’ll sacrifice

My life.

For liberty I’ll sacrifice

My love.”

Sándor Petőfi

(1823- 1849)