Pride Parade Houston

Went to PRIDE parade Houston yesterday night. (Saturday)


Quite an eye opener.


Nothing to report for now, since I am busy packing for Alaska.


But I was really glad to see Timothy taking part in the parade, and finally being able to express himself as he truly is... hope you all accept him as what he is...


Enjoy the picture...


Picture of Timothy Rodriguez... just in case of mistaken identity

Rewards of my passion

Recently, my love and I went to the Northwest... Portland, Seattle... and areas around.

Of course, my love has painstakingly selected the nicer looking photos (only about 400 of them.... it speaks volume of what she thought of my photography skill... or is it the nice scenery... I choose to think it's the former)

You can see them in the link here:
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2091454865&code=28289230&mode=invite&DCMP=isc-email-AlbumInvite


Nevertheless, being less deligent, I selected some that i like more... and have them posted here on my blog.

This is Seattle.... not as romantic as it was made out to be... a city like we know.. it did leave me with a positive feeling.

Behind the ball park and the stadium, you get to see Mount Rainer... one of the amazing thing about being here... being in the city... yet being so near this majestic moutain.Mount Rainer.... isnt it so bloody cool?

A yatch club in the middle of downtown Seattle... this is what we call the "high life"

Who is stupid not to exploit the waterfront.... shops and restaurants... not overly congested... i think it was sufficiently busy."Stop looking at me!" Shouts the sea lion... I forgot to mention that topless sunbathing is prohibited on mainland USA... hence this sea lion had to be on the float. Poor thing.

One of the things being sold at the Pike fish market... fishes... Apparantly... there were about 70% of the people here to see some fish throwing...than fish selling

Yes, they did throw some fishes, when on rare ocassion, people buy fishes from them. And I caught one of those moments (pun not intended)

We also went to Mount St Helen. It was one of those days that the weather was not perfect... it was just cold and cloudy, nothing that is not typical of the northwest. We did have some wonderful views of the place though.

This is one of the lakes created after the volcanic eruption happened lately. Nice place to chill out... and..

Catch some fishes..

It's a huge place... as you can see.

We were at the elevation of about 2000 meters... obviously, some didnt think it's high enough.

We drove the scenic highway 101... and here are two pretty pictures i like.

I am never a big fan of phone cameras. In one of the 28days that I owned the treo 750, it did give me some fantastic shots. Below is one of them... of Mount Hood.

Guess the name of the lake below... Mirror lake? Good guess, that is correct.

Ok, it's 5am, and almost time to hit the deck. God keep me awake tomorrow... please.

Count your blessings... and be prepared to be amazed

We passed our 3rd CPA paper..... Thank GOD!

CPA exam is a very complicated thing... it is like a double edged sword.... eating all your time and getting you depressed and stressed while sacrificing all other things when preparing for it... and giving you much joy when u passed it (nothing much else tangible... except more job opportunities)

Just a quick background. US CPA is unlike the Singapore style of "go eat buffet, get tips, and pass exam"... it involves months of preparation and failing is not an uncommon thing (amongst the Americans, not Singaporeans). There are 4 parts to it, and we must complete all within 18 months.

So far, we have completed Financials, Business Environment, and now.. Audit. Last and supposedly the hardest part is Regulation.

Back to my main topic. People tend to study so hard for it, and when they finally got it over... they feel... empty...? I think they do... it's like many things in life... a good phone, a good camera... good grades... good house... good ____ (fill in the blanks). One puts in so much effort into something... and when you get there... you feel elated... for a min? then... ironically feels empty... and hmm... lost?

I think the one thing that is missing IS.... the focus of your efforts.... when I am focusing on myself... good grades for myself... by myself... through my own efforts... using my own strengths... i think i will feel empty... i will find myself wanting something else to feel this void within me..

Thank God.... I can channel my sense of elation onto him.. I can channel my thanks to him... it does not leave me with an "empty tank" feeling... rather.. it makes me so grateful for knowing God... so happy to be blessed... Each blessing He gives me... I remember... and thank Him

Today, with the results... i count one more blessing from God... I thank Him once again... it is He who gives me this and all that is already given... and all that is going to come...

Honestly my friend, if you have that feeling that i just describe.... maybe one of these times you want to just talk to God... just ask Him... "did you give me that?" (The answer is YES.) Learn to thank Him... learn to talk to Him..

I praise Him... I give Him all the honour He deserves... I thank God....

The object of my affection

As I know myself well, I am someone who is always thrilled with the wonders of technology. While I am not the most tech savvy person, I would rate myself as someone that is kind of in the middle. I love gadgets, I am totally fascinated by them, I adore many, yet... often, I dont do as well in exploring much more than it can offer. I have my O2 XDA mini, which served me so well, and completely bought me over to the dark side... (PPC Phone). I cant praise the usuability and the form of the phone enough. Besides the rare glitch due to the transciber (letter recognition), it has been one of my favourite piece of technology.

One month ago, due to some fantastic deal, I managed to get a Treo 750 for US$100++. The fact is I paid $35 for activation, and about $20+ for tax, so it was effectively a US$150 phone (not including the risk of the $100 rebate not coming back). This Treo was much hyped about, and did not disappoint.

However, it was not meant to be... I "test drived" it for almost a month and decided that I much prefer a bigger screen which it does not have. I also thought wifi would be useful when I bring the phone back to Singapore (the data plan here is cheap and really good- so i wont have to use much wifi here). With a heavy heart, I returned the Treo to the store... (YES... Returned without questions within 30 days... welcome to the United States of America)

This is also fueled by the opportunity of getting a phone that is similar to my O2 (called Cingular 8525- aka Dopod 838 Pro) on this website called AT&T Premier. Somehow, they have an amazing deal which allows you to get both phones for FREE!!! (Singapore is selling with 2 years plan for S$940!!)

It gives us 21% off plans and 25% off accessories... and the ultimate best part... ELEVEN MONTH CONTRACT!!! What a God-send!!!

Sorry... coming to my main point. Of course, I got the phone last week on Monday. And from then till now, I have spend like 60% of my time playing with the phone, exploring it, full utilising all the functions which are practical and useful.

I installed quite a number of programs, and a few hacks.

I also bought quite a few accessories thusfar:

1) GPS Receiver

2) Car charger

3) Car charger with dual outlet

4) A 3-way adaptor for the car charger and for the audio jack (the phone uses a different audio jack)

5) An Iriver FM Transmitter to allow me to listen music on my car system from the phone (complicated?)

6) 2gb Micro SD card

7) A metal case (coming)

Some of the things it does:

1) When I am at the airport without internet connection, it allows me to connect my laptop through my phone, to the internet. I tried it, it works really well! It can be through a USB connection... or even blue tooth!

2) Read maps. I can get on Microsoft Live Search to search for addresses, restaurant, shops... and best of all... check live traffic.

3) Read my bible

4) Act as a webcam

5) Save all my passwords and info

6) MSN

7) Skype- I can call home even when I am not in Houston.

8) Listen to music (one of the least used functions I am sure)

9) Voice command. When you are driving, and you need to call someone, the voice command works really well! I have all the dodos' names saved... so in future, calling y'all will be easy... lucky you!

All in all, this is such an amazing phone... besides the chunky side, which doesnt affect me too much, it is almost a do-all phone. I love it love it love it....