Chinese Zodiac Sign - Part I

Your fixed element is Metal

Resoluteness and inflexibility are some of the primary qualities associated with Metal. As a Rooster-sign person you are likely to determinedly work towards your goals. This can lead to your being a perfectionist, which can work for or against you. Taken together these traits have the potential of making you overly critical of others while you reject their constructive criticism. Even when all signs point to a needed change, you tend to stay the course.

These qualities, however, contribute to your probably being quite competitive. You likely have strong determination to finish what you start and win at games or athletic contests. You also tend to be ambitious, and will probably work long and hard to advance your position.

Metal is cold, and you probably tend to be insensitive when it comes to the feelings of others. If, for example, you're not careful, a propensity to nag and carp could be hurtful and cause difficulties in your interpersonal relations

Under the influence of Metal you are likely to have a strong sense of self. This contributes to your self confidence and generally self reliant nature. You probably have an almost unshakable faith in yourself. This is a significant factor in your pluckiness, which is a primary, Rooster characteristic. It also contributes to a desire to be noticed, dress to impress, and be admired. And, as does the metal gold, you will usually shine.

Although the Rooster-sign person is usually sociable and enjoys it, you still have an independent streak and can be alone in a crowd. In general this means you tend to carry your own weight and to not seek outside help with any difficulties you might have. In other words you suffer in silence..

As a Metal-sign person seriousness is likely to characterize your attitude and behavior. You may be accused of not having a sense of humor.

Resilience is another Metal characteristic you're likely to have in abundance. No matter how many times you are knocked down by life's vicissitudes, you're going to find some way to pull yourself up and get going again. As a Metal-sign person you will probably break completely or not at all.

You may, however, be prone to bouts of sadness or melancholy, but they will seldom if ever last for long.


My thoughts:  You bet I have thoughts about this!   Stay tuned for next blog...

One-liner to kick off the week -

This just occured to me:  There's nothing worse than an ugly narcissist. 


Ha ha...

Well well...

Hum. As troubling as emotional turmoil in my life can be, it probably brings out my best writing...??

So now I wonder. What can I blog about as I'm not emotionlly err...turmoiled?  Shush, it's my blog, I'll determine what's grammatically and vocabularily awesome. ;)

I've not yet set aside time to digest my trip to China or come to think of it, Cambodia, but something tells me my long plane ride home will provide ample time for stray thoughts and for drawing conclusions of my overall trip so I'm not in any hurry for that particular subject.  I'm re-reading the Da Vinci Code because Dan Brown's a pretty darn compelling story-teller and the book's a fun read and also not something to blog about. I'm listening to Trance Jazz which I wouldn't know how to identify if I heard it in a club... I don't hear me saying "Err that's not trance, that's so trance jazz" anytime soon in the future.  I definitely don't have any more personal details to overshare at the moment.  I'm saving those for my emo-moments.  I'm not feeling any more narcissistic than usual so even though this whole paragraph has been littered with "I", I won't be adding to my list of 'things to be proud of... about myself'.  Narcissism at its best.

I'm scratching my head, hoping the motion will set a spark to a fresh idea... 

Oh I met a super-cute BIG yellow labrador today in a park up Yanmingshan (National Park in Taipei).  Anytime I stopped petting him he'd paw at me and stick his nose under my hand. At one point he stretched forward with his head down but stayed in the position so his butt was in the air with his tail wagging non-stop.  Good doggie. Let it be known, Taiwan still has the cutest, friendliest and most socialized mutts I've ever met. They also know how to side-step buses and stay in bike lanes.

... and that's all I got. Geez.

Trains of Thoughts...

Found this draft of a blog that I'd started but never posted. In hindsight, it was good, and so I've finished up where I left off...


An evening in late July, 2009 - Home -

Duke's curled up in his donut. Delilah sighs and lays contently at the foot of my bed. All's quiet in the Heights. Hacienda Heights. My home away from... home?

Home sickness strikes me at odd moments. It makes me wonder about where home truly lies. It isn't "home is where the heart is" or anything truly tangible, but a feeling. Earlier in the month, my dad was here for a week and a half, and he told everyone we met up with during this course of time that he was here to give his daughter the feeling of 'home life'. It was a sweet gesture and very much appreciated, especially since even with a bad hip he insisted on having me sit and relax after work, while he washed the dishes even having cooked the entire meal to greet me home in the first place. I'd sit and relish, all the while feeling guilty that I was letting him do all the work, but somehow doing anymore than sit there and be appreciative would've taken something away from him.

I remember all the days and hours when I couldn't wait to get away from home. I'd lived under the same roof with my parents for what felt like centuries. Forever. A lifetime. Granted, this liftime that I'd felt didn't even in hindsight, pass by in the wink of an eye, nor was it filled with sunshine and puppies. There were epic battles, there was a great deal of hurt and many a tears. I'd cried for independence, the need to 'make my own mistakes' and to 'forge my own path'. My parents must've had many sleepless nights (well more so my mom since my dad's an earthquake-sleeper-througher...) The idiocy of youth, my youth quietly astounds me. Precious precious moments wasted.


Same evening in late July, 2009 - Hot Hot Heat -

The heat of Summer has caused a stir. While not as poetic nor as symbolic as its Broadway Musical counterpart of a different season, "Summer Awakening" seems to best describe what I've been experiencing. It's growing pains that I hadn't felt in years. My head is filled with the w's.... why...what... answers aren't forthcoming. Everything's a bit hazy. Moments of lucidity are quickly followed by extended periods of complete and utter confusion.


Tonight, October something, 2009 - Confessions -

I can say simply that the extended periods of complete and utter confusion have passed. A sense of calm has since settled in. Like anyone else, I've gone through significant phases in my life marked by notable events, irrevocable changes take place and ideally I come out having learned something valuable, having grown as a person just a little bit more. This past Summer saw me make decisions that caused... ripples. Large, circular, deeply felt, ripples. Not just in my own life, but lives of others. What I've learned will be at the end of this whole... essay.

I NEVER make decisions lightly. EVER. You'd know this just shopping with me... it's an exhausting experience really. "I want it, I really would love to have it, but do I really need it, what if I find it cheaper somewhere else, it'll probably go on sale, don't I have enough of the same color, it's so cute, ugh but really what would I wear with it, is it practical, but that other one looks nice too, but this one has that sparkly..." 9 out of 10 times I leave the store empty-handed. Or I end up returning it to the store just a day after having spent an hour in that one little corner of the shop. Indecisive or smart shopper? I can argue both points effectively.

I apply the same (il)logic to all decisions I make in life. I am my own pro- and con- column. There might as well be two marquees simultaneously streaming through my head, with the headlines shouting out the whys and why not's. I quit my job during the middle of this recession. I sloppily broke up with my boyfriend who was my best friend and family of 3 and half years.

With regards to the former, I quit my job at the company that I'd grown to care deeply for was because it wasn't going to grow in the right direction or with the right people. Would I have side-stepped the fact that it wasn't my passion in life had the conditions been better? In the end, probably not, so I'm ok with leaving on that note. As for the latter, I essentially 'quit' my relationship because I had without notice or warning, wanted to be without the person I loved most because he wasn't right for me. I realized I not only wanted more but I needed more. It broke my heart to face this realization and to have to subject him to my decision. Nothing 'happened' in either case that pushed the decisions, I didn't find a better job or meet someone new, which made me wonder whether what I did exemplified the idea that 'women are fickle'. I've since looked up the word fickle and it isn't true. To be fickle is to be casually changeable, which I'm not. There was nothing casual about either situation. Not to be dramatic, but I'm pushing 30. While it's just a number and what it means is strictly self-imposed, I should be getting financially secured and settling down and not going in the other direction.

Given this thought, as for the aftermath...

I've pushed the reset button on my life. I'm traveling abroad. Spending time with family. Rebuilding and building relationships. Thinking of this past Summer. Wondering about my future. I'm looking at the world with a great deal of curiousity and just a slightest bit of trepidation. I've thoroughly vetted myself and have discovered someone who's become surprisingly pragmatic, yet one who's still realistically optimistic and reassuringly confident not only of myself, the choices I make, but also that everything's going to work out for the best.

That's something I now know at 28 that I didn't at 18 or perhaps the decade that followed.

I'm shelving these thoughts. Chapter closed. :)

Geez. Singapore - Last Note

How did I forget to mention the Singapore National History Museum?!
Two thumbs WAY up. A must-see.
Also, apparently I should've gone to Bukit Timah - highest hill of the island at 500ft, large reserve and huge Monkey population and a gorgeous hike. OOPS.

Next entry: I may attempt to tackle China.

By that I mean putting down my thoughts on China. Not physically... well you know. Tackle.

Singapore continued...

Leaving for a 'sidetrip' to Shanghai in the morning... all thanks to the fact that I've learned that it's in my best interest to respond with a simple 'yes' when I'm asked questions.

"Would you like to try this mooncake?"
"Would you like to do your laundry?"
"Would you like to visit Shanghai?"

Really, would you decline? Saying yes has thrown open doors that I never saw in front of me. What I find behind each door has been surprising and delightful. I've been enjoying the word 'delightful' immensely... or is it that I've been immensely delighted as of late. Regardless, I am both and it is good!

The whole idea of a travel-blog has been tossed to the winds. I've just had a short discussion (Hi Grace!) regarding documenting one's experiences while on a trip. I've taken half as many pictures as I'd expected to, having been rather content to see my surroundings with my own eyes and not necessarily through a lens. I could see with my own eyes and then document it with my camera, but this motion inevitably becomes repetitive and it almost gets in the way of one's natural movements... bottomline, I've been too busy experiencing my trip to formally document it. Blogging is an afterthought, to debrief, and I hope it'll suffice for you the reader... and any of my friends who were hoping to live vicariously through this 2-month trip. :)

I thought this blog would be more about Singapore, but I'm struggling with well, my words. I'd concocted an entire paragraph on how I see the country as a visitor (rather than a family member visiting family), but the only remnant of that paragraph will be this shortened version which unfortunately still sounds like a thesis statement to a stale school essay:

I'd described Singapore as glossy. I stand by the observation (not a difficult one to make) that Shopping is a national sport. Yes the S in Shopping was capitalized. It's THAT serious. Any features that may have been authentic has been replaced by rampant commercialization. The country is constantly making 'improvements' and the entire island is under construction, all on pace to turn it into what appears to be, sadly,... one gigantic resort. It does still impress with its world-class attractions and super-chic shopping districts, but as a whole. It just... isn't...charming?

Whew. Strangely enough, that was not easy to type.

So onto fun and easy: I had fun. Truly. Different if not normal type of fun. MRT-hopping' Hawker-centers-piggin' out type of fun. I went to F-1 and saw a variety of... well I think technically they're called 'vroom-vrooms'... only in practice, but nontheless, fun. I saw the views from the 38th floor of a condo-showroom... stunning. I sat by the Esplanade and enjoyed the lull and lights of the Singaporean skyline at night. I played Street Fighter at the Arcades under Bughis Junction... I ate Satay (meat on sticks!) and drank a pint of Tiger Beer at the Satay Club in Clarke Quay and chuckled at the sight of Hooter Girls...

But what MADE this part of my journey... is this little place in the Chinatown district when you exit the Outram Park MRT station. OSO Ristorante is the name, I'll never forget the music, the magic, the moment... when I... bit... into... my first morsel of foie gras. I may not have a dish like that anytime soon, if ever, but I'll always have that moment... that night... sigh. Beautiful. Just... beautiful. This place will stay with me for a long time.

I think I'll leave Singapore on this delicious note... :)

A quick look at the date indicated on the computer confirms it, it's been a month since I flew out of Los Angeles. It - the city - feels very very far away.


A cool breeze is coming through the kitchen window, the season's changing into Fall, although it could also just be the two storm systems that's threatening the coast of Taiwan that's causing the temperature to drop overnight. Nontheless it's a welcomed change to the constant humidity and heat that may not have dampened my spirits, but definitely my clothes. I will NOT miss the parts of this trip that found me sweating uncomfortably in inappropriate places...


To start, Singapore was a revelation.

At the heart of my trip, or the deciding factor that brought me to Singapore, was the celebration of my grandfather turning 98. It's difficult to describe what it's like to have a grandfather who is 98, or a grandma who is turning 94 but whose health is failing. They've lived in the same house for the past 40 plus years, the same furnishings still adorn the same floors, the orange carpet remains orange, although infinitely lighter in shade, not that the occupants of the house would even remember what shade it had been...

The pace of the house has not changed since I visited as a little girl, it's as if in this house, time slows down. This house IS the heart of the Chee Clan. Grandfather or Gong-Gong as we call him, had his birthday feted by his children, grand-grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Four generations under one roof, eating the same foods we've always enjoyed, conversing in the manner in which we always have, and sitting on the same stairs that seated us as children. The new generation scampered about the dining room unaware... it will be years before they realize how blessed they were to have been a part of such a celebration, to be able to be in the house, in the company of family, to have that moment in time.

... to be continued.