Busy Weekend In Brief

So my throat is recovering from yesterday's game. I'm proud of the Cardinals. They played a good game despite all the low expectations. I can't imagine them making it to the Super Bowl again, so it was good to cherish it while it lasted.

So quite a few thoughts from the weekend. I'm gonna try to parse it out.

1) I cannot believe how many people have done that random 25 things list. I feel pretty spiffy being an early adopter. And that's all thanks to my teenage cousins that keep me in with the times.

2) Redeemer Membership Interview = intense + affirming + convicting The deaconess and elder pairing (that happened to be a married couple) that interviewed me were pretty awesome. They made me re-think certain things about my story that I never even thought about or re-considered (a lot of things in life need re-considering I realize, none of it is set, at least if you realize that you're not always right). Also, while looking through my application, I realized that nowhere else was my entire testimony written out like that. The couple remarked how I shouldn't under estimate what God has done with my life and what I can do with it for His glory. I gotta say, I am so like the Israelites forgetting not just God's goodness, but how good He has been. Praise Jesus and may he be glorified in my life! Anyhoo, I'm gonna be a member!

3) Installed some new apps to my BBerry. One of which was Opera Mini which I only found out about last week. That's the thing about BBerry's, I'd probably have not much of a different experience on a G1 or even an iPhone if not for the easy access to an app maarket. Anyway, waaaaay cool because I can now access websites I couldn't on the 8800 Series version of the web browser (most important of which is Mint).

4) I had my first two guinea pigs (I hold guinea pigs in high regard, so don't be offended if this was you) with budget counseling. It was a great opportunity for me because they had completely different financial situations that I had to come up with different solutions. Plus, it's really quite exhausting, you can really feel the "counseling" part of it sometimes. I heard myself saying things like "Look at this number, how does it make you feel?" It was just weird having to nudge people and kick them in the butt to help them reconsider some things. Also, it kinda helps me figure out what I know exactly and how to go about doing stuff like this, since just like any talent we are given, its purpose is to serve other people, so fine-tuning how I present information is a good idea. If anyone else wants to go through this with me, let me know!

5) I never thought running into your counselor on the street would be such a non-awkward and even happy experience. I would definitely be this woman's friend if I wasn't paying her.

6) Ben makes me like old people more than I probably would.

7) Thought on the opera we saw Orfeo ed Euridice. At first you think it's just this simple myth, but I thought about it some more.

Here's a brief Xaris synopsis: Orfeo is the child of one of the muses and a mortal (I forget who) so he has the gift of music. So Orfeo's wife Euridice dies right after their wedding. He's all sad about it so Cupid (Amor) comes down and offers him a deal. He can go to the land of the dead to retrieve his wife as long as he can get through the gates of Hades and he cannot actually look at his wife nor tell her why he can't. So he gets through the gates because the Furies and the ghosts all feel bad for him via his use of song. He gets to the Elysian fields and heroes and other good souls bring him his wife. As they're trying to go back to the living world, Euridice gets all angsty and upset because Orfeo won't look at her. She thinks their love is lost and that she's bound to this life of grief and would rather have stayed dead. In anguish, Orfeo looks at her. She dies, again. Orfeo tries to kill himself but Amor stops him and tells him that he's shown his devotion and will bring Euridice back to life again. Then they (Amor, nymphs, and some shepherds) all dance and sing in celebration of the power of love.

It sounds pretty la-di-da and simplistic, of course theologically wrong. However, I thought about the whole Orfeo can't look at her thing. Cupid sings about it saying something like, because lovers can be blind and unable to see the truth. So what does it mean when Orfeo looks at Euridice? I thought maybe it's like he finally sees her truly so she dies because her true self is revealed and dead, and Orfeo wants to die because he's killed his love then only Cupid (Amor/love) can save both Orfeo and Euridice granting them mercy.

It's kind of interesting to think about. I would die if I were to be seen as I truly am, and only God's love can save me. I would be filled with anguish if I harm someone so deeply, that only God's love can ease my burden and give me joy. I think this is just one of those stories that no one ever thinks much about, but for some reason everyone likes. And it's because it points to a longing within ourselves for grace and hope. It points to a fulfilled need of Jesus.

Man, Con West was totally worth it. Those Ancient Greeks sure were in touch with the psychology and mental psyche of man.

I am extremely lucky

This is a picture I didn't get in time for yesterday. Look at how red my cheeks are! So rosy.

So I added a Label cloud (finally!) to the right. It's lots of fun. Funny how God and giggles are the things I write most about...kinda accurate no?

I won some pretty baller rush tickets for $25 each to the Met Opera on Saturday night! We got orchestra seats towards the middle! I have never been all the way down there! So exciting! The opera is Orfeo ed Euridice, which is great because I like mythical operas.

There's been some work drama going on. Things shift pretty quickly. I'm so grateful for where I'm at and what I get to do and learn. My boss is gone for the week (because his wife is having a baby! YAY!) so I'm supposed to fill in for him. So weird to realize how much I know now and how different that was 6 months ago. It's true ya'll, it doesn't matter what you majored in, everything that's important I've learned on the job. Like it doesn't matter what shape pot you are because they all get melted back down, it just matters what kind of clay you're made of.

I've been really amazed recently at how important certain things are to me. The way my money works, my spirituality and sense of the world, etc. I'm just hoping that I've remained teachable and that these things are held with an open hand.

I know it's way early, but so far 2009 has been an AWESOME year! This January has probably been one of the if not the best January's I've ever had in my life. There I said it. I will stand by my claim. Also, being Asian, I do pay attention to what year it is in the Chinese calendar and it's the year of the Ox. I was born in the year of the Ox...I subconsciously think this means I'll be lucky.

The Great White Way

As if God were granting my wish, Ben and I saw Wicked last night...for free!! That's right free c/o Columbia. I went up to the main campus to meet Ben first in line for the tickets and I realized that the last time I was there was October 2003, when I was terribly sick and didn't even go through the campus tour. And it dawned on me that Ben goes to Columbia...Columbia! What? Weird. Truly the med school is NOT like the main campus at all. A logical debate even ensued while we were in line (about whether a girl was cutting or not). The other girl articulated her argument well, but NYU students would've just put in expletives and a bit more drama and accusation into it.

Anyway, as I was watching the show, I realized that I hadn't seen Wicked since Freshman year. A lot has happened. Which means I didn't really see the show the same way I did before. I remember crying more and generally feeling that real life was unfair. Essentially, thinking the story was completely improbable and had nothing to do with my real life. I think most women who see that show feel empowered, but I just felt like it was all wishful thinking, that I was too weak for it to be true. I was pretty depressing. I think this is the reason why I never really was one of those people who liked to sing or hear Wicked songs. It reminded me of hopelessness, even now.

This time I watched it with a sense of distance and nostalgia. With a sense that, wow, it kinda mirrored the last four years quite nicely. There's facing the core lie, being freed from the bondage of old idols, being loved and accepted for who I really am, making (unexpected) friends, self-doubt and struggle, being given a vision for life, forgiveness, redemption and more. Wicked is a coming of age story, basically, that really happens to parallel my own.

Oh and we saw Equus on Tuesday (this one was paid for and planned). We got seats on stage, so we were the closest we'll probably ever be to Daniel Radcliffe (in case you don't know, he gets completely naked). And it was just so wonderfully good. I can't believe how great it was theologically. Basically talking about how we all need to worship something, to be passionate for something. Ben and I thought how weird it was that BECAUSE we're Christians, we could relate to the crazy 17-year-old better. We recognized our own craziness and depravity in him as well as the desperate need for a Savior. We aren't really "normal" in this broken world.

It's been pretty exhausting. Not only are my sleep patterns messed up, but there's all of that stuff to think about, all stuck in my head with nowhere to go. It feels like it's already Friday today.