Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

.:William Ernest Henley::1875:.

Another "note"

I'm so in love with Chopin etudes at the moment. Actually, Chopin has always been my favourite composer but recently, I've rediscovered his etudes. They're incredibly difficult to play but the most amazing things to listen to. They're definitely on my list right around Rachmaninoff's piano concertos.

Piano Battle

I wish I could play like this.

Center

Finally finished the class on forensic pathology. What a whirlwind experience! I think it was by far the most frustrating, exciting, fast-paced, time consuming class I've taken (and that includes classes from my undergraduate career!). Just an immense amount of reading and writing and test taking. So what did I learn from it? Beside all the gruesome details like inlet/exit wounds of firearms, sharp force trauma and blunt force trauma patters, asphyxia, I think most was how to stay centered and focused. Face the issue at hand and not get flustered by it. Sometimes you have to jump right in and go head long into the task (like a midterm or a 20 page paper) but other times you just have to find other ways around it, look at it from a different perspective. Yes, I believe I'm applying wing chun principles off the mat. I feel all "mystical and kung fu-ey." Haha!

reflection

there always comes that time every couple of months when i have to poke my head up and see where i am, get my bearings straight. so far it's a vast wilderness that i see before me. some of it looks quite daunting. i guess right now things are pretty good because i have a job, i have income, i have something i'm working toward (masters degree). but there are so many things up in the air like the job i want, the house i want, the ability to breathe and not feel like i'm holding my breath waiting for something. i've come to a decision about things. i don't just have dreams or hope anymore. i have goals. dreams and hope are nice, you know. you can dream about that job or that life. you can hope it happens, but unless you make it into a goal, it's not going to happen. so i'm turning all my hopes and dreams into goals, goals that i can achieve, that i tell myself i have to achieve. anyway, serious post for once. time to make my hope of getting to bed before midnight a reality. haha.

nostalgia

it's always weird to be back home. maybe it's because i don't come back often that when i do, it seems to all hit me at once. well, i did get to meet up with a friend who i haven't seen in six years. six years!!! holy crap i'm old! it's great to catch up though and find out that even though things have changed over the years, friends are still friends. that's always a nice feeling. sometimes it makes me miss the area and then i go all nostalgic. maybe if things work out, i'll move back. who knows. i'll get to see my friends more. now i'm thinking of all the stupid things i did in high school and thinking how stupid and immature i was. haha. well i think i was too mature and too immature all at the same time. oh hindsight, how i love thee! okay enough of the reminiscing. it's all gooey back there.

whoa

wow it's been a whole month since a post. i guess i got busy. *nod, nod, nod* well, that's what happens when you're working and in school. yes, i'm finally pursuing my master in forensic science! huzzah! now hopefully with that comes a job. yes, a reall csi job would be good. i dunno, besides that, i haven't been doing much else. nothing fun or interesting. just a lot of studying, paper writing, test taking, more paper writing, not sleeping. oh and throw in some wing chun into the mix and blend. it's been good though. speaking of wing chun, i'm trying to grade for my orange sash. i really don't think i'm ready but we'll see. hopefully i'll have a couple more weeks to practice. i think i'm learning a lot in the various classes, and i just need time to incorporate it into muscle memory. most of the time, i still don't know what the heck i'm doing. i feel like i've got the technique down when we're drilling, but when it comes to being thrown a random punch or kick, i'm completely at a loss. we'll see how things turn out after i start sparring. that'll be interesting and likely funny to watch.