Kelly the Beijinger

Photo

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 10:34:35 +0800

The Mighty Jungle

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 00:18:13 +0800

So I wrote this blog post on a bus across the Malaysian-Thai border a few weeks ago. Not sure that it’s my best writing, but here goes nothing.

I have been through the jungle in Borneo.

I am overflowing with excitement about this fact. Sure, it’s cool to tell all my friends as like a crazy fun-fact, but the real excitement came from a new experience I never thought I’d have. I mean, the jungle?!

I felt excitement of a child again as I sloshed almost near knee-deep mud and avoided razor sharp plants to see bright yellow funghis, fresh elephant tracks (and not-so-fresh elephant feces), and fascinating insects, not to mention MONKEYS.

Incidentally, I found out first-hand how leeches attach to your skin and how to gently pull them off, while luckily learning that they’re harmless. Also, did you know they use heat sensitivity to find their host? Me either! It was pret-ty neat seeing them wave up and down as I moved my hand near them.

More than anything, I’m excited because I’m doing what I want with my life. If I had stayed plugged into what I thought I “should” do a few years ago, I’d never be writing this. I thought by now I’d be finishing graduate school and finding a full-time job soon and letting job offers dictate where I go.

My time wouldn’t be solely mine to go anywhere I want with no plan or time constraints. If I’d submitted to making my life choices based on what society, my professors, my parents, said I should do, I wouldn’t be truly getting what I want out of my own life.

I’m trying to act on what I want and make my own choices for my own life and stop feeling held back by things like society’s idea of a career path, or pressures to act based on other people through relationships, money, whatever. I’m eliminating outside influences and taking control of my own happiness.

I’d say it’s going pretty well at the moment.

I’m moving on to find a relaxing beach in Thailand with no plans of how long I’ll stay. I’ll leave when I’m sick of the delicious Thai food, clear blue ocean, and relaxed lifestyle. Or if I run out of travel money, which I managed to set aside while working about 20 hours a week and using the rest of my time to explore new interests.

Speaking of new interests, I’ve gotten really into playing the guitar and learning to code javascript, and I have read way more in the past six months than I ever have before. I’m just having a great time.

Again, I finally feel like I’m truly living. At the risk of sounding cliche, immersing myself in nature’s wonders really brings to light how awesome life is when I live it on my own terms.

Loved it. thestrutny: Eclectic Method has put together an...

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 21:46:27 +0800

Loved it.

thestrutny:

Eclectic Method has put together an incredible video that takes lines from movies like Pulp Fiction, Forest Gump, and Ace Ventura and re-cuts them as Jay-Z’s ’99 Problems.’ Watch after the jump:

(via Video: See Jay-Z’s ’99 Problems’ recreated with film clips)

Love. It.

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 02:40:48 +0800

Love. It.

Well played, sir.

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 10:10:39 +0800

Well played, sir.

Photo

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:48:58 +0800

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/09/20119775453842191.html

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 23:12:03 +0800

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/09/20119775453842191.html

whiteboydanceparty: thecuckooclock: monsterfrog: lumineon: am...

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 12:16:35 +0800

whiteboydanceparty:

thecuckooclock:

monsterfrog:

lumineon:

amandatanen:

oh my god jesus has returned

and brought pizza burgers

i’m hungry

too bad I’m not sharing.

Undecided, will have to further evaluate

Just in case you had any doubt in your mind that Burger King was run by stoned college kids.

I see America has come a long way since I left!

Photo

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 17:52:40 +0800

My new resume is up, thanks Will Moyer!

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 23:53:07 +0800

My new resume is up, thanks Will Moyer!

"We reach backward to our parents and forward to our children, and through their children to a future..."

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:05:00 +0800

“We reach backward to our parents and forward to our children, and through their children to a future we will never see, but about which we need to care.”

- Carl Jung (via acciomethemoon)

friendlyatheist: Tolerance of personal intolerance.

Mon, 04 Jul 2011 19:42:17 +0800

friendlyatheist:

Tolerance of personal intolerance.

The “Barrel Monster” that caused such a stir in...

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 20:12:00 +0800

The “Barrel Monster” that caused such a stir in Raleigh/Chapel Hill a couple years ago… I’d forgotten how funny the whole thing was until I stumbled upon the article today.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/crime/barrel-monster-bust

I love the bit in the article about campaigns ironically having...

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 20:50:47 +0800

I love the bit in the article about campaigns ironically having to back down and stop using “I Won’t Back Down”. Also, this is reason number 95352809 why Michele Bachmann sucks.

rollingstone:

Self-proclaimed “American Girl” and presidential candidate Michele Bachmann may be a fan of Tom Petty, but the liberal rocker made it clear that the feeling is not mutual – in the form of a cease and desist letter to her campaign.

As Rolling Stone reported, Petty’s management contacted Bachmann following her use of Petty’s “American Girl” during a rally on Monday. How did the congresswoman respond? By playing the song at a rally in South Carolina on Tuesday.

For more on the Petty/Bachmann dispute, a brief history of politically co-opted music and to read Matt Taibbi’s “Michelle Bachmann’s Holy War”, check out Rollingstone.com.

The Eternal Shame of Your First Online Handle

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:19:00 +0800

The Eternal Shame of Your First Online Handle:

ceasaigh:

This is a fun and somewhat cringe-inducing piece.

A friend recently reminded me of my first AOL screen name: beachebumm85. Cheeseball for sure, but when I was 14, I thought it was so clever. Because I lived at the Jersey Shore and loved the beach and all.

What was yours?

Well, I’m sure some of you aren’t surprised that my first one was food-related (and lame, of course). It was kickinchickin13, after a restaurant I absolutely loved. Also I played soccer so including ‘kick’ or ‘soccer’ or something like that was absolutely necessary.

because it's healthy: Italian Tofu Lettuce Wraps

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:13:00 +0800

because it's healthy: Italian Tofu Lettuce Wraps:

I love this blog! And not just because I get to be the one who tries all the dishes…although it helps :)

Well done, Abby!

eatmorefeelbetter:

Cooking in China has been frustrating at times.

The essential items I kept stocked in my kitchen at home either are not available here or ridiculously priced. I miss different kinds of vinegar (apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar). Also, spices! No cumin. I love cumin. Quinoa, too. BUT, I am…

Photo

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 13:18:40 +0800

thestrutny: Some of the greatest names in music history have...

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 18:04:20 +0800

thestrutny:

Some of the greatest names in music history have hung out with The Muppets. Click through to see more photos and your music pairing.

Photos: Old Pictures of Famous Musicians With The Muppets | The Strut

I always loved Sesame Street. And music. So naturally I love these pictures too.

I love my first graders.

Sat, 05 Mar 2011 14:27:22 +0800

A silly interaction among me, Bill (my Chinese first grader with an awesome flat-top), and Angela (my perfectly bilingual first grader).

Angela: Teacher, Bill wants me to ask what the black mark is on your face.
Me: Oh, did I get marker on my face?
Angela: No, like all over.
Me (realizing Chinese kids haven’t seen freckles before): Oh, these things? They’re called freckles.
Angela: How do you get them?
Me: Well you see, I’m really pale so when I go in the sun I get freckles.
Angela: Oh. Bill said he thought they were from the ants.

I love how imaginative they are at this age!

Two Buddhas in the back of a pickup…?! Bangkok, Thailand

Fri, 04 Mar 2011 18:00:35 +0800

Two Buddhas in the back of a pickup…?! Bangkok, Thailand