"He knows so little yet knows so fluently."

From Bloomberg website, September 10, 1997.

"Nothing is so admirable in politics as a short memory"

Many years ago, Bloomberg website was the primary information source for the type of jobs I was seeking. As I visited it often, I noticed its daily quote. Indeed, its web pages were later arranged in such a way that, anybody who wanted to reach the employment page had to see the quote first. It looked like somebody was trying to teach us job seekers some lessons, or, gradually as I became aware, let me personally know I was under their watch because a lot of the quotes were selected to cater to my specific and personal situation. The above quote was from October 3, 1997.

The feeling of being watched was not a pleasant one. But lessons I did learn a few. One was that some politicians do have short memories. Say, a few weeks?

About this Blog

The following was supposed to be just under my blog title. But it kept disappearing from there every time I added a new post. (Does anybody have similar problem?)

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On May 21, 2004, I stumbled on this blogosphere and immediately grabbed a spot. Intuitively, blogging seemed to be a helpful tool for what I was about to do.

However, I was still "in a daze" from years of being stalked, harassed, intruded and threatened. And Internet has been a huge part of that dreadful experience. That's why I haven't blogged a single word so far.

Anyway, I used to call myself Internet-challenged. Now, I want to change that, and everything in between, come hell or high water.

Just read me. 07/25/2004

Week in Review: Political Media (or, Media Politics?)

Most people would choose Cabinet making as the top story of the week. Taking a back-door approach following the Prime Minister, I ended up with quite different picks.

Monday, 07/19/2004
Something irks Kinsella

Tuesday, 07/20/2004
Liberals attempt making-up

Wednesday, 07/21/2004
Bourque features Alcock re-appointment

Thursday, 07/22/2004
Motive unknown: suspect arrested in Cecilia Zhang murder

Friday, 07/23/2004
Motive still unknown in Cecilia Zhang murder

Weekend, 07/24-25/2004
With lots of waiting, some journalists take a vacation

I Thought About My Father

As I pondered the many possibilities of my first blogpost, I thought about my father, who passed away on February 19, 1994 because of cancer. He was 70.

My father had taught me many and influenced me much. As a former high-school principal in a small town in central China, he is still remembered by many people as a decent, upright man.

Was he a successful man? Well, successfulness is a hot topic nowadays. What I heard about my father was that he had passed up many promotion opportunities in the school system in his dozens of years as principal. I never got the chance to ask him why. But I knew he was not the type who seeks power or wealth at any cost. Fundamentally, I guess he was content with his life and enjoyed his work enormously, even though it was a demanding one. In the end, what mattered to him was that he had the respect of his family, his colleague and his students.

I feel very fortunate to have been under his upbringing and influence. I would not be the person I am today without him.

I remember one of the last pieces of advice my father gave me was to stay away from politics. At this moment in time though, it looks like I won't be able to do that.

Sorry, dad. You know I would never disappoint you. But I do need to take back control of my life first so that I can live the way you always wanted me to live.