and the heart of the alvinator.
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Monday, August 30, 2004 Pics from Visiting Lisa Dave and I should have taken photos of the 24Hr. Fitness, but oh well. Here they are: Click Here. posted by alvin | Monday, August 30, 2004 Transition... So, I decided to attend ALCF on Sundays now. I have attended RW for over 3+ years, and still went to my home church where I had been for over 20 years. As ALCF has moved to Mountain View instead of Menlo Park, one of the gating items was that of parking and location. Although it only saves about 5-7 minutes of commute, finding parking also played a large role. Although I don't advocate coming late to worship, now you can arrive late to ALCF, and find a seat. Back in college, I heavily advocated a church-fellowship consistency. Those attending CEF should attend DCCC. Since CEF was a ministry of DCCC, I felt strongly that if we used the church resources, those in CEF should show commitment to DCCC. RW started with very loose affiliations with ALCF, meeting in home groups. Although it was said that RW was the young adult ministry of ALCF, the only mentionings of it dealt with our introductions, and at that time, around 50% of the members attended ALCF. Since then, we have been meeting at the O'Brien site for over 1.5 years. Although I would say the ties are loose, the number of RW attendees from ALCF is near 85% now. =P. I have been attending CBCSJ in this season of my life mainly for the teaching. Although I respect many members there and enjoy the learning from Pastor Harrison, I have a tough time experiencing community there, as there are not a lot of young adults my age. I felt that the church/fellowship dual model was okay for this young adult season of my life. As I have prayed it through (and feel much more comfortable changing churches) and since ALCF has moved down to a closer locale with easier parking, I felt it was time to transition. It is a very difficult transition for me, as I will miss seeing the people who have invested in me as a youngster growing up in the church. They poured into me through teaching Sunday School. I don't remember that much from Sunday School as a youngster, but I do remember the character of each of these people. They are examples of Godly men and women. As I desire also to build deeper community within RW, the transition to ALCF will help facilitate that. As I move into a new community, the Spirit is moving so powerfully at ALCF, it's exciting to be part of the journey. Pastor Paul is a solid biblical teacher, and although I will miss the teaching at CBCSJ, attending ALCF will grow me in different ways. As I looked at some of the ministries that I could invest in at ALCF, I felt excited. I like newness. =P. I am excited. Time to also work through some of my Asian-American identity issues. Yeah!!!!! posted by alvin | Monday, August 30, 2004 Friday, August 27, 2004 My Short-Sleeve Dress Shirt So, this past Tuesday, I was a pallbearer for my uncle's funeral (mom's sister's husband...technically uncle-in-law). He passed away after a bout with severe asthma. He has been sick for awhile, and I am glad that his suffering is now over and that He is now with God. I wasn't that close to him as our family is closer to my father's side of relatives. However, I feel more compelled to hang out with his son, who is now a junior at Mills High School. It was still sad to attend another funeral. Anyways...on to some funny stuff post-funeral. With my pin-striped suit, I wore my classic white short-sleeve dress shirt. I used to wear this quite often, until I got called out at Lily/Jerry's wedding by some college buddies that I looked like a little kid. Getting called out was one of the key prompting factors to my fashion sense entries. Anyways, I have since switched to wearing long sleeve dress shirts to formal occasions. However, since I knew it would be warm, and I would need to exert some strength, I went for the short-sleeve shirt, knowing I would keep my jacket on anyways. During the post-funeral lunch at a Chinese restaurant, I took my suit jacket and tie off. I didn't meet all of the people at the lunch, and I was just hanging out talking with my cousins. Some lady from our party goes, "Can you please bring us some hot water?". I'm like..."What the heck? I don't work here." Then I proceeded to smile, laugh at her and say, "It's pretty easy to mistake me for a waiter here." Another person from our party, points to me, and points to the empty tea kettle. Her brother quickly corrected her and said I was at the funeral. =P. Too funny. =P. posted by alvin | Friday, August 27, 2004 Goodbye I have found myself saying goodbye to more friends lately. It's the transitionary nature of the young adult life. It's with sorrow but also joy that I see my friends moving on, and doing what they feel God is leading them to do. My latest goodbye is to Cory, who is leaving for Korea. He was from RW Gen. 1, and was there before I arrived. He was fundamental for building the RW worship ministry. We served together quite often in the worship ministry. We played ball together, Settlers, goofed off, etc. I will miss him, but glad that he is having the opportunity to try out the next thing. Next to transition...Antung to grad school at UC Santa Barbara. Bittersweet, but joyful. =P. posted by alvin | Friday, August 27, 2004 Wednesday, August 25, 2004 Grace Coming home on Friday after playing Hold'em with Dave and Mike, I rolled through a stop sign very near my home. (Rainbow and Johnson). I was taking a right at the stop sign. I noticed a car coming on Johnson from Bollinger to Prospect about 100 yards away from the intersection. I took the right, and then a left into my home street. I notice the car following me. I pull into my driveway, and a bright light starts shining in my face. I look back at his car, and notice he's a policeman. It's like 3 in the morning. I roll down my window. Policeman: "You rolled through that stop sign. I know it's late out, and there's not many cars in the road, but stop signs are used as deterrents." Me: "Sorry." Policeman: "I'm not going to give you a ticket. Do you live here?" Me: "Yes." Policeman: "Park your car, roll up window and go inside." Me: "Yes." First time I have been pulled over. Pretty lucky to not have gotten a ticket. I rolled through another stop sign earlier on Rainbow, and was wondering that if there was a policeman, I would probably get pulled over. Hehe. So lucky...but I would say...God's grace. =P. posted by alvin | Wednesday, August 25, 2004 Thoughts from SoCal I was in SoCal this weekend, not LA, I guess the Ontario/Diamond Bar/Corona area. My SoCal geography is poor, but let's just say it's east of LA. It's too hot in SoCal. Some highlights: 1. Bball. Spent lots of time playing bball. The 24Hr. Fitnesses down in SoCal are AWESOME. They are so big compared to NorCal. The ones we went too, were both 24Hr. Fitness sports, with bball gyms. It's like having a free open gym. I miss it already. It's not that crowded either. So much land down in SoCal, it's easy to have a gyms like that. Argh...wish NorCal would have stuff like that. 2. Saddleback Church. Dave and I went to visit Saddleback (Pastor Rick Warren: Purpose Driven Life author.) He didn't speak that day, but boy, oh boy...the church is AWESOME. The church has an attendance of 15k, with 6 services. It was like going to a concert. The children's ministry center was amazing. Dave will post pics soon on his site. I was impressed by just how many people go there, and the manpower it takes to run a church of that size. I would never attend the church regularly, as it is too big for me. Getting plugged in seems difficult. However, if my children attended their ministries, I don't think they could ever go to another church...hehe. =P. 3. Toll Roads. Dave and I took toll roads to get to Saddleback. These are private roads, that people use to bypass traffic. Round-trip it cost us $8.25 in tolls to go to Saddleback. Well worth the experience. Hahahaha. Most normal SoCal peeps don't take the toll roads. We didn't know better. 4. Rental Car. I did all of the driving while down there. We got a red Chevy Aveo as our car rental. I had fun flooring it, and with a smaller car, it's much easier to handle than my camry. I had fun driving in SoCal, as it was new to me to drive in that area. It only cost $11 a day too. Thanks Priceline. =P. 5. Shared Experiences. Spent a lot of time with Dave this weekend. This was the most time we spent probably since college. It was good. We also spent time with Lisa (who we stayed with...and the reason for our trip was her housewarming party), and her bf Ryan. We didn't know Ryan that well, but in spending more time with them, we got to know him better. It was fun. Dave and I also caught up with Herman and Ellie from Davis. Small world. We saw them at Saddleback, and they came for Lisa's housewarming too. Overall, pretty relaxing time in LA. Ryan's roommate Alan, provided us with some very funny laughs. He's hilarious. posted by alvin | Wednesday, August 25, 2004 Tuesday, August 17, 2004 Hilarious I picked this up from MattyLee's xanga site. It's called "Buttprints in the Sand." Hilarious. It's not theological correct, as it talks about God giving up on us and dropping us on our butts, but it's worth a chuckle. posted by alvin | Tuesday, August 17, 2004 Thursday, August 12, 2004 Feeling Better... Thanks to all the well-wishers out there. I feel normal today, except that my recurring hip injury. I walk funny. Oh well. Anyways, I'm shopping for a new furnace. Anybody have recommendations? Finally had a chance to talk with Randy, the PESI coordinator of China programs. Got a better grasp of what we will be doing. Still will need lots of flexibility. Excited though. posted by alvin | Thursday, August 12, 2004 Monday, August 09, 2004 Zonked Hmm...usually I don't get sick, but yesterday I was zonked out. Although I typically have a ton of energy to do lots of things, I realized how frail I can be. On Friday night, I didn't get much sleep (about 4.5 hrs.), and then helped Mike move from Foster City to Mountain View. I was running on adrenaline most of the day. After the move, and lunch (including gelato), headed to Jason and Iris' missions sharing at Calvin's place. Then, after that, went to Karen, Rosaline and Emily's luau party. Being an introvert, I was really tired for most of the night as I spent a bulk of it extroverting and meeting new people. Anyways, I ended up throwing up a couple times on Sunday morning, missed church, missed RW bball (although we played at new courts), missed dinner with Charlene, and missed Anthony's b'day celebration. So, I spent most of the day sleeping and watching TV. I had a hard time eating too, and basically skipped dinner. I feel much better today, but still feel a little weak. I think I pulled something in my abs, and God gave me a clear signal to slow down some. My body shuts down like this, when I'm super tired. No need to run at 100% all the time, and always be super productive. It helps me reflect on how without physical strength, every other aspect of life is kinda' put on hold. Thanks for the perspective. posted by alvin | Monday, August 09, 2004 Thursday, August 05, 2004 Happy Birthday Happy birthday to my mom today. Funny now that at her current church, the children call her "grandma" anita instead of "auntie" anita. All my friends say my mom is cool, and I have to agree. Mom still puts together leftovers for me for lunch...hehe. I love my mommy. posted by alvin | Thursday, August 05, 2004 Bun/Edie's Wedding Album Here you go. Click here. posted by alvin | Thursday, August 05, 2004 Wednesday, August 04, 2004 Full Circle/Small World My former HP co-worker, who started on the same day as me, is now working at Broadcom in Irvine. We grew up together in HP, both being new college grads. Even funnier is that he is in the same group in Irvine that I had a design review for my latest project. Good stuff. Next time I go to Irvine, I definitely will sync up with him. Lesson learned is that industry is much smaller than you think. It's important to keep good rapport with many different people. posted by alvin | Wednesday, August 04, 2004 Tuesday, August 03, 2004 The Newer Friendlier Catan Player (NFCP) In Tahoe over July 4th, Anthony gave me a tip to improve my Settlers play. I had the chance to apply his simple statement when playing last week. As I was reading on my personality profile again, it started me thinking. From http://www.personalitypage.com/INTJ.html, it says , "The INTJ is usually quite open to hearing an alternative way of doing something." The tip he said was to be more open to trading, instead of trying to sway trades totally in favor of myself. (i.e. Trading 3 for 1, plus a future something). As a NFCP, I will trade something even if it's not that beneficial for myself early on in the game...so as to build friendlier relations for future negotiations. Trading is even more important in a 4-person game. Anthony tried to explain the psychology behind friendlier negotations using this inmates theory. However, he never finished...maybe he'll blog about it. Anyways, through this tip, I am working on becoming a more complete SOC player. So, in conclusion, INTJs are very open to finding new ways to doing something. However, the game is still based on a lot of luck, and winning depends heavily on lucky dice rolls. posted by alvin | Tuesday, August 03, 2004 Home I was thinking about the concept of home the other day as I was falling asleep. One of home's definitions is "an environment offering security and happiness." It's at home where we can be ourselves, where we feel comfortable just being who we are. Having people come into your home, sometimes is a bit scary, as they can see you in a different light and environment...maybe giving the feeling of vulnerability. I was thinking that a home offers security and stability, and I'm happy I have a home where I can feel safe, secure and stable. As 20-somethings, moving is a very common thing. For me, it's fairly uncommon, but for many of my friends, it's fairly common. It's usually in the midst of transition that forces people to examine where they are "at home." Thankfully, as Christians, our home, no matter where physically we are, our home is found solely in Christ and God. When all things crumble away, God is still constant. He is the one stable, he is the one offering perfect security. It's definitely comforting to know that. posted by alvin | Tuesday, August 03, 2004 Monday, August 02, 2004 Birthday Shout Out Happy birthday to Ellie. Ellie has been in my small group for awhile now, and has helped out with the hospitality ministry at RW. Very sweet girl, with a passion for social justice issues. Happy birthday to Tilden. Tilden was there when RW started...over 5 years ago. Very good at many different sports. He has written all the bible studies for RW for the past couple years too. So committed to community. Tremendous man of God. posted by alvin | Monday, August 02, 2004 Congrats to Bun and Edie I wanted to express my congrats to Mr. and Mrs. Bun and Edie Lau, who tied the knot on Sat. July 31st. Being the busy people they are, they don't read my blog, but that's okay. So, some thoughts. I met Bun at the West Coast Chinese Christian Conference back in '97. That was the only year that each of us went to the conference. I was the small group leader, and he was in my small group. We had a relationship discussion during a bonus small group time (late at night), and Bun provided fantastic insight into relationships. Hahahahaha. We kept in touch since then, and I got to know more of his community when being part of his support team while he was in China for a year. Bun is a guy I respect very much, and I'm glad we have kept in touch through these years. I was the one who invited him to come and check out RW...his first official encounter with Edie. I'll give myself 2 eprops for playing "wingman" in the beginning. I met Edie at RW back during the time we met in Mountain View. Edie was fairly quiet, and it wasn't until there was a hangout at the Baylor house when I talked with her at a deeper level. I remember people were watching "A Knight's Tale" and Edie and I talked about life. It was a good conversation as she gave me some relationship advice. I gave her some advice during the course of Bun and Edie's relationship, so again I'll give myself 2 more eprops for helping them out. Of course, infinite eprops to God for making it all happen. The wedding ceremony was beautiful, and went extremely well. Clean-shaved Bun looks much younger. The church was too hot, and I was sweating through the opening prayer and praise songs. After I took off my jacket, the ushers also opened the doors to get some ventilation going. I was much happier. Good stuff. I shed some tears during the parents appreciation time...but it was actually sweat...hahaha. No, I'm man enough to accept that I cry. Okay. Anyways, it was Bun's crying that triggered me. =P. I'm very happy that Bun and Edie got married. They are awesome. posted by alvin | Monday, August 02, 2004 |
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