Monthly Archives: November 2010

It was very hard to pay attention to the panel with all the students around you doing something. Students were on their lab tops, texting on their phones, and just talking. Also, it was very hot and it was crowded. With all this going it was hard for me to grasp anything the speakers were saying. But I did remember Mr. Li talking about identity and how it is hard to find. Mr. Li went through many difficult times from being forced to move because his father was arrested to living in Communist China. He finally was able to leave China for America and this is were he established his identity. Its amazing how his life was and how after all his struggles he was able to find himself and succeed.

As for the other panelists, I didn’t really pay as much attention. I know three of them were professors and the other person is a moderator. I’m sure all of them had interesting things to say but I zoned out.

I feel the people running it should have shortened it because it made it drag on. Also, I don’t know if it would have been possible but maybe they could have broken it up into four groups instead of having every freshman in their at once.

Alright well first of all, sitting way back up in the balcony didn’t help my concentration and hearing at all. I’d have to admit I wasn’t paying attention when I thought it was pretty much useless. The three panelists come from very unique backgrounds, yet they were all tied to one unifying theme. Like Stan Altman and Charles N. Li, they talked about realities and identities. Of course, Mr. Li used his past experiences to serve as the backbone for his discussion about it. He had two cultures to base his discussion on, nonetheless. From East Asia, mostly China, and the west, the United States of America. There was also a discussion on that as well. The third panelist, I have about no clue what she was saying. But I’m sure it was very “enriching” as well.

The workshop was certainly very interesting. I learned so much from Mr. Li’s accounts of how he wrote his book, his thought process, and his personal experiences in Communist China. I learned never to take the freedom I have in this country for granted because it gives me a sense of individuality. Although if I did grow up in Communist China I could also write a book and make a fair amount of money. Overall I thought it was interesting. One thing, may I add that I saw people sleeping and talking and texting and listening to music during the workshop and I got very very angry and wanted to tell them to STOP but you know people these days. I cant believe it.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t paying much attention to the discussion panel and panelists. It was sweaty hot and it smelled very NASTY on the balcony. Never the less I found some way to entertain myself (with Rebecca 😀 )

But I can say that, during the times I paid attention, I heard some pretty interesting things:

I specifically liked the fact that every one of these panelists had troublesome and tough backgrounds yet they each found a way to contribute and build the community. Tashi Chodron contributed much to through film, books, artwork and cultural events. Katrin Hansing, Charles N. Li, and Bruce Payne are professors. They struggled for their careers and once successful, they decided to help the community build as well.

😀

             We have been studying in Baruch for more than one month. In early September, I finish my assignment a day before the due date and I am doing the same thing now. I think I didn’t improve myself but I will still keep trying to change this bad habit. I would like to share some of my goals with you since we have just finished writing our short term goals and long term goals recently. I think you guys know Lily wants to be an event planner because she always keeps saying it. I also want to be an event planner, but actually I just want to be a wedding planner. I love to see a couple wear the wedding gown and hand in hand to walk along the streets. I want to plan for their wedding and think of all the ideas to make the wedding party more perfect so the wedding would be very memorable for them and all the guests. Besides a wedding planner, I also want to have my own wedding company so I can achieve all my ideas without any restrictions. If I have some more time, I would like to learn how to design a wedding gown, too. I love reading the wedding magazines to focus on the design for the dresses.

            I also want to share another goal with you which are building a primary school in mainland China. One day, I watched TV about an artist who is retired and she have got $80,000HKD which is around $10,400 USD for retirement. She used this money to build a whole primary school in mainland China and provides some stationery for the school. I believe $10,400USD will not be too much for me when I am retired so I also want to devote money to build a school to help more children to be educated.

            These two goals may not be a big thing for some people but I want to realize them and I would like to spend my time doing it.