ele:mental

Return of the Blog

2010-11-07T19:28:00.000-08:00

This blog passed away quietly on December 8, 2007 (it was a Saturday). Today, 1,065 days later, it is being resurrected for no other purpose than to serve as a public sounding board for a self-gratuitous blogger to discuss topics of little consequence. Stay tuned and keep those expectations nice and low.

Free Hugs in Korea

2007-12-08T21:50:00.000-08:00

"Free hugs.There's love in it. There are people's smiles and hope in it. You don't need money to find it. You just need a bit of courage. Don't give up. Look around, look at your family, and share the love."

Motherland

2007-11-25T15:16:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's been roughly six months since my last post here. I guess a lot has happened since then, the most notable thing being that I'm now living in another country (landed in Seoul about two weeks ago). I'll be here for approximately six months, working to hire, manage and lead a Search Quality team for Google Korea. Another critical part of my assignment here is to eat every conceivable

Maserati Purchase

2007-06-01T21:15:00.000-07:00

Now that I have your attention, if you actually believed that I purchased a Maserati, you're out of your mind (or you think that I am). At any rate, the real story is that I test-drove one this past Thursday. Why, you ask? They had been sending me invitations to come test-drive their flagship sedan, the Quattroporte, which I had been ignoring since I'm obviously not their intended target

Updates, Updates.

2007-05-22T00:39:00.000-07:00

Haven't had much time to update lately, but a quick run-down of my moderately eventful life during the past few weeks:I've moved! I'm now living in SF (no more 'burbs pour moi). I'm pretty much all settled in, but still need curtains and a few minor things (will post some pictures later).James Sun didn't win the Apprentice (referencing my previous post); oh well.Recently getting back into the

The Apprentice, LA

2007-04-08T23:52:00.000-07:00

Does anyone still watch the Apprentice? I recently just got back into it and I must say, I'm hooked. Below are my thoughts on the final four candidates:James (Internet Company Founder/CEO)James Sun is the man. He's smart, dedicated and presents well. Obviously a favorite of The Donald (you can tell by the way he always consults James on who should get fired, or who screwed up, etc.), I think he

Mission Statement

2007-03-29T00:45:00.000-07:00

I recently co-facilitated an exercise with my team at work. We called it a "Mission and Values" exercise. The purpose of it was to come up with a Mission Statement that encompassed the values that our team was to operate by. The end result was a white-board and huge sheets of paper crowded with words such as "efficiency," "innovation" and "personal growth" all connected to each other by a series

New Abode

2007-03-05T23:03:00.000-08:00

After many months of searching and heavy thought, it has been done. I've purchased my first home (well, condo). I signed the contract yesterday, which required a great deal of fine-print reading and legalese deciphering (not so much fun when you're mildy hung-over early on a Sunday morning).Next steps are to close escrow (May 15) and finalize the terms of my mortgage (this week). The downside is

Nerdom (and President's Day Weekend)

2007-02-19T18:43:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to resist the urge to post nerdy content here, but I really can't help it; deal with it. As expected, Microsoft Vista was nothing more than a lot of hype followed by confusion and disappointment. It may look pretty, but it's a lot like plastic surgery: knowing what's underneath the pretty facade detracts from its attractiveness. Was that an effective analogy?Poking fun at MSFT.

Email from Mom

2007-02-06T19:35:00.000-08:00

Ah Duhl (son), It is very cold day here in Boston. Mom and dad doing same thing everyday and that makes me sick and tired, but I know that's also blessing. Do you remember the church on the way of home? I saw some words at that church and impressed. "compliment from another is the gift from GOD" so,I think you have so many gifts. right? Mom always wants you be a real man which has a warm heart

BMW Films

2007-01-26T23:07:00.000-08:00

These are three of my favorite short films from Seasons 1 and 2 of the now discontinued "BMW Films" episodes. Talk about good marketing.Featuring Madonna and directed by her husband Guy Ritchie; some very impressive driving (not actually done by Clive Owen, of course). BMW M5 used."Star":From Season 2,"Ticker", featuring the Z4 (directed by John Woo):"Hostage", featuring the Z4:

Life Changing Digital/Web Technologies

2007-01-15T00:01:00.000-08:00

While "life changing" may sound dramatic, if you take a moment to think about how certain technologies have impacted your life, it's quite appropriate to describe them as such. Even for tech neophytes, it's difficult to argue that there isn't at least one technology that's significantly changed the way we do our work, enjoy life or solve problems small or large. These are the types of

Dear God

2006-12-28T11:46:00.000-08:00

I saw this on a friend's page... the innocence and naivete of children can be pretty amusing sometimes. I'm totally with Ginny below; we definitely need some days off between Christmas and Easter. God?Also taken from a friend's page; Peter seems to be trying his hand at math using the wrong side of his brain. I say give him partial credit for creativity.Hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas

Favorite timepieces

2006-12-17T22:10:00.000-08:00

A watch serves multiple purposes, and telling time is merely just one of them. A meticulously crafted, high-precision watch on your wrist can be akin to the feel of a well-tailored three piece-suit on your back. My appreciation of fine watches extends far beyond the purely aesthetic features, to craftsmanship and complications in movements. Below, I've listed my favorite timepieces, some of which

Top 10 MDKMV

2006-12-10T18:58:00.000-08:00

It's time for the first installment of the TEK Top 10. The TT10 will happen a few times a month, so pay attention, kids. This week, we'll be reviewing the Top 10 Most Depressing Korean Music Videos (or MDKMV). I don't know the titles or artists of most of these, so I'm using some descriptive blurbs. See if you start noticing a trend:10. "Clay-mation rendition of girl falling asleep in snow and...

Back from Seoul

2006-10-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

Too tired to write an actual post tonight, but pictures from Seoul are here.

My Car Got Broken Into, Part II

2006-09-10T21:36:00.000-07:00

Read Part I here.I got home at around 3am this past Friday from a night in the city (Jeff drove) to find both the driver's-side door window and 3/4 panel window on my car smashed via two rocks. The car was parked in my carport, where I park it every night. Questions I asked myself upon seeing the damage:1. Did the factory BMW alarm even go off?1a. If it did, why didn't my neighbors do anything?1b

The "I'm still alive" post

2006-09-02T14:09:00.000-07:00

Whew, long time no blog. I don't really have a good reason as to why I've been MIA on this thing. Actually, I can think of a few: I'm lazy, work 'pwns' me, I'm lazy, etc. Anyhow, I'll attemp to make this post somewhat historically cumulative.My last post was about two plants I picked up at Home Depot. Unlike this blog, they are still alive and well. In retrospect, my life must have been

Home Depot

2006-04-12T21:19:00.000-07:00

I was feeling particularly 'green' this past weekend, so I went to Home Depot and bought two trees: a Blue Point Juniper and a Washington Navel Orange tree. I repotted both of them and put them on my front porch:Blue Point Juniper, spiral trimmed.Washington Navel Orange tree.... very exciting stuff < /sarcasm>. Anyways, this week is going by surprisingly quickly. All this rain is killing me,

Back in the Bay

2006-03-30T13:09:00.000-08:00

03/27, Monday (7:15pm): Returned to the Bay area from Denver, CO.Been back in the Bay area for about a week (and what a week it's been). Now that the weekend is here, I actually have some time to update this thing. Nothing too interesting to report for now. But as promised, some pictures from Colorado and the WBC in San Diego:Mm, topograpy: the Rocky Mountains taken from 30,000 ft.Hotel room view

Defeated...

2006-03-23T21:06:00.000-08:00

but not demoralized.Returned from San Diego on Tuesday morning, tired and saddened from a 6-0 Korea loss in the World Baseball Classic. I'll get over it, but for now, I hate everything and everyone "Nippon" (just kidding!). Japan pitched a flawless game, which was why Korea couldn't really connect on anything. Korea will take it in 2009, when the next WBC is slated to take place. More San Diego/

World Baseball Classic

2006-03-17T22:49:00.000-08:00

Another week completed. Flying down to San Diego tomorrow morning to catch the semi-finals/finals of the World Baseball Classic. If you haven't been watching, Korea has been kicking some serious international ass. So far undefeated, they have a good chance of getting to the finals and winning it all:Korea's Home and Away jerseys (must get both!).I return from San Diego next Monday and then fly

Adventures in MV and NY

2006-03-01T23:03:00.000-08:00

Nearly two months without a post. Why? I guess I've been keeping myself occupied with work (or maybe vice-versa) and well, my life just isn't all that interesting. But I'll try to be more consistent about updating this.I ended up heading to New York again two weekends ago (this time for a Local/Maps Product Summit), which gave me a chance to work in-person with the people I see via

Beantown

2006-01-08T17:42:00.000-08:00

Good times in Beantown. Spent some quality time with family and old friends. Got back about a week ago. Random pictures...Nothing like an over-sized can of Heineken with the guys.Gift swap @Benny's (the semi-crazy version).Ahh, Boston. Sometimes, I miss driving down Comm. Ave.Uh oh...It's the retun of the infamous "Bunny."Things I didn't miss: the pot hole-filled roads, "Masshole" drivers and

No time...

2005-12-04T16:40:00.000-08:00

for a real update today, but here are some recent photo albums from the past few weeks:Google Holiday Party pictures here:Thanks to Ah Young for coming from L.A...SF Car Show pictures here:If I ever become this guy, could someone please kick my ass? Thanks. Have a great week everyone.

Blogger On The Go!

2005-11-17T15:27:00.000-08:00

In addendum to my previous post, you can also shoot and click with your camera phone and send directly to your blog. I'll try to take some interesting pictures and send them here periodically. One might ask, don't you have to live an interesting life to take interesting pictures? Therein lies the challenge...A quick shot of my workspace; fun times...

AudioBlogger

2005-11-17T14:59:00.000-08:00

Did you know that you can have "audio blog posts" on Blogger? A short sample clip I made below:On a side note, not only do they eat our food, but they're also using one of their prdoucts (which looks suscpiciously similar to Local) to prank Google! It sucks being #2, doesn't it?Disclaimer: All views expressed here are my own, and not that of my employer's.

New toy

2005-11-06T17:09:00.000-08:00

So I've been talking about getting a mountain bike for a long time (since I moved into my apartment), but never got around to it. This weekend, I decided that it was time. I ended up picking up a Specialized Enduro Comp 130 (click "USA" if page asks)..It's amazing how much bike technology has progessed since I was 14 years old and thought my Trek 800 Mountain Trail was the best thing since sliced

Back from New York

2005-10-17T23:01:00.000-07:00

Got back from New York last night. Overall, a good trip. Got a change of scenery, but it felt good to come back.The good:Successfully accomplished what I went to do, project-wise.Saw old friends and met new ones.Got to spend some time with my parents.Experienced the circus that is Times Square for seven days straight (not necessarily good, but a good experience I guess) and also visited other

I am now

2005-10-01T12:16:00.000-07:00

officially a citizen of the United States of America (as of 09/22/2005). I think I'll go run for president. Alright, I know that I can't technically become president because I'm not a "natural-born citizen." Chill out, I was only kidding. But hey, it's comforting to know that our country is currently in good hands otherwise:I'll be working in New York city between the dates of October 7-16. The

My mind has

2005-09-18T22:18:00.000-07:00

been totally consumed by work lately; when I'm in the shower, I'm thinking about what has to be done for one launch, and while driving home, I'm going through a laundry list of outstanding issues for another. Relief should come in the form of the second week of October, when I plan to take a much needed vacation. For now, weekends are really good.On a side note, hide your gym bags; they appear to

Bathroom etiquette

2005-09-12T21:04:00.000-07:00

I went into the bathroom today at work and was pleased to find it empty (you'll know why in a bit). I proceeded to do my business when someone I know vaguely, but have absolutely no close working or personal relationship with starts using the urinal right next to me. I could feel him looking at me so I quickly glanced at him. He then greeted me with a "hey man." I responded with a quick "what's

Katrina...

2005-09-05T23:31:00.000-07:00

Just one area of the devastation (toggle between the "Satellite" and "Katrina" buttons to see before and after). It's unbelievable how much of Louisiana is under water. Sometimes it's easy to neglect the pain and suffering felt by those who are far away and continue to focus only on what is around us; things we can see. While I'm not sure how I feel about the whole race issue that has become

Finally got...

2005-08-26T19:00:00.000-07:00

a new phoneto replace my old one:The most useful feature on the LG is that it has Bluetooth, which allows you to wirelessly connect it to various devices (ie. headsets, car speaker, etc). I got it with this, which I use in my car.I was trying to find out whether the Ralph Lauren car show was going to come to San Francisco. It looks like it was only featured at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. I'm

In retrospect...

2005-08-24T23:51:00.000-07:00

things seemed much simpler back then; all you had to do was color within the lines and you were straight.Been in a funk lately. I think it's mostly attributed to work. Although I just got back from Boston not too long ago, I feel the need to get away again for a bit. Don't get me wrong; I love the Bay Area. But I just need more of a break from routine.I went to Alcatraz for a team offsite

Back from Boston

2005-08-18T22:03:00.000-07:00

Prepare yourselves for what may quite possibly be the longest update in 'ele:mental' history...My trip to Boston spanned six days. The primary purpose of my trip was to witness and be a part of the marriage of my older sister, Heidi. It was definitely an experience and to be honest, seeing how much work went into it makes me want to just run away with my (future) wife and get married under a tree

To the person

2005-07-31T12:40:00.000-07:00

who smashed through the passenger-side window of my car on Townsend St. in SF last night, I want to lay out a few things for you:You must have mistaken my gym bag for something really expensive. Sorry to have misled you, but it was really just a gym bag. I wasn't trying to be crafty and hide my life savings in cash in there or anything like that. With that said, I truly hope you enjoy my unwashed

Heat

2005-07-24T18:10:00.000-07:00

Yea, funny 'cause it's true.It hit 101 degrees in south bay this weekend. :(Bring on another week!

"EOW"

2005-07-22T19:24:00.000-07:00

Yes, that stands for "end of week." One of many corporate acronyms, ie. "I'll have those internationalization spec sheets to you by EOW." Ever feel like this at work?:My friend thinks that this guy's frustration stems from the fact that he's probably programming and getting syntax errors left and right; add to that, his inability to type with more than two fingers and you get one disgruntled

Contemplation

2005-07-19T22:33:00.000-07:00

I was too tired (make that lazy) to cook last weekend, so I drove down Castro St. and hit up KFC on El Camino (healthy, I know). I parked my car and as I approached the door, there were two bums sitting on the curb. One of them looked at me and gave me a head nod. As I walked by, I asked him how he was doing. He replied by saying "you're doin' better than I am." It kind of caught me off guard,

Comcast sucks.

2005-07-17T14:54:00.000-07:00

Here's why:I've had to schedule four appointments for a tech to come replace my cable modem, because they flaked the first three times with no call or notice.The fourth appointment was "scheduled," but when I called the day before to confirm, it didn't exist. Good thing I called.Everytime I call 1-800-COMCAST, I find myself having to explain my problem to three different people before actually

Monday down...

2005-07-11T21:17:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this?Well, check this out. A very cool ad by VW. (.mov, 5.6MB)Whew. Monday down, four more to go. I finally bought my ticket to go to Boston; I'll be flying out on 8/10 and returning on 8/16 (any volunteers for airport duty? Bueller?). My sister is getting married(!), which is the primary reason for my visit, but it'll be nice to see my family, friends, and dog while I'm there

X3 loaner

2005-07-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

I took my 3 in for a regularly scheduled maintenance visit on Thursday. The dealer was really booked and asked if I could leave the car overnight, so I agreed under the condition that I get a loaner car until they finished. They obliged and gave me with an '04 X3 with the 2.5L engine, steptronic transmission, the Premium package, and 5,100 miles on it. Since I'm a car nut, here's a short review

Started brushing up

2005-06-25T14:43:00.000-07:00

on my XML and Python knowledge this weekend, which has largely been unused since college. Maybe I'll post some mindless samples here as I go.I was comparing some world maps this week and came upon some interesting distinctions between two methods of projecting a spherical map on a 2-dimensional plane; Mercator Projection and Cylindrical Equidistant projection. Mercator projection uses the

Got pulled over...

2005-06-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

again last night, near Cupertino while trying to get onto 85-N (second time since getting my car). Not knowing which de-facto law I had broken this time, I calmly got my driver's license, ownership title, and insurance papers ready for the cop. He told me that I waited too long to turn right at a red light and followed me to the highway, "just in case." Translation: he wanted to make sure that

I saw...

2005-06-11T08:20:00.000-07:00

some preliminary pictures of the new 3 Series coupe and contrary to my opinion of the 2005 3 sedan, it's beautiful. Kind of makes me wish I waited, but I still love the E46 coupe design. ... Pretty. ... Back looks like a Kia.I think the coupe above is actually a mock-up of the new, up-and-coming M3 (or M4?). BMW may change their naming scheme so that all coupes are even numbers (i.e, the current

I'll confess...

2005-06-07T22:57:00.000-07:00

I watched "The Classic" (a sappy Korean drama flick) last night. My friend Young picked it up for me in SF this past weekend. Overall, it was alright, but nothing to write home about. I give it a 3/5 (2 points deducted for excessively cheesy scenes and the lack of an attractive female cast). If you want to see a good Korean movie, go watch "Tae Guk Ki."I've been trying hard lately to understand

Been too busy

2005-06-05T21:38:00.000-07:00

to post regularly here, but I guess I'll just run through a few updates:I finally bought and installed OS X Tiger on my 17" iMac last week (soon to be installed on my 15" Al.PowerBook). In a nutshell, the upgrade was a subtle one. No significant changes to the UI and the only noticeable features at this point are Widgets, Spotlight, and Automator. A few screenshots for the 2% of people who

Currently listening to

2005-05-23T22:03:00.000-07:00

Mika Nakashima, "True" (among other things). Although she may look like a high school sophomore on this CD cover, she doesn't sound like one. Overall, a pretty good album.I'm realizing how dependent I am on music. I'm always listening to it in the car, at the gym, and at work. It's cool how music can always turn a mundane Monday morning into something a bit less mundane, a routine drive to the

Taking time to

2005-05-22T11:52:00.000-07:00

appreciate the finer (often more simple) things in life is always good.I took this picture on a mild Monday morning walking out of my apartment. The leaf, the delicate drops of water; everything about it is simple. Yet, it has the ability to make you feel a certain way just by looking at it. Proof that you can find beautiful things in the most simple places; you just have to know where to look.

Goodbye old friend...

2005-05-20T20:06:00.000-07:00

We've had many a good memory together, but now it's time to say goodbye. You truly made the journey the reward.

I purchased

2005-05-15T23:20:00.000-07:00

a car today. It feels weird saying it. This is my first automobile purchase (since I was both blessed and lucky enough to have parents who provided me with cars throughout high school and college). At the end of it all, I have to say that it was a tiresome experience. I did all my research, brought all of the numbers to the table and negotiated for hours. I was at the dealer for most of the day

After all is said and done,

2005-05-15T08:23:00.000-07:00

the most logical choice with regard to Giselle was to sell her as is. I spent hours crunching numbers and crafting hypothetical situations and that was the best conclusion I could come to. With that said, I can honestly say that Craigslist is key; I posted my ad there at the beginning of the week and by Wednesday, I already had several legitimate offers. The final selling price was $5,500 (which

Giselle got hurt

2005-05-08T23:45:00.000-07:00

badly today. I was driving up to the city to see some friends and it was raining pretty hard. As I was getting on the I-880 -> I-980 interchange, my rear wheels hydroplaned and my car did a 360 on the highway and then crashed into the cement wall near the breakdown lane. So much for quattro I guess... the problem was most likely the lack of traction on my rear tires. I was going to get them all

l'anniversaire

2005-04-27T22:41:00.000-07:00

So it was my birthday yesterday. How old did I turn, you ask? If you don't know me, you'll have to figure that one out. Just know that I'm "getting there." It's been a fun, not-too-crazy experience (I take that back; Saturday night was some crazy sh!+). A couple of friends from New Jersey and SoCal flew in to relive our Bostonian collegiate memories while helping me get completely wasted. It was

Artsy Stuff

2005-04-17T12:42:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I picked up two pieces of artwork at a street side exhibit during a trip up to Lake Tahoe. Little did I know of the additional costs that would ensue; framing them turned out to be more costly than the pieces themselves. Lesson learned. Regardless, I'm happy with the way they turned out and according to my nerdy KPMG accountant friend, art never depreciates so I guess they were

Aspiring journalists discovered

2005-04-12T12:12:00.000-07:00

YJC: hahha, i wrote this article on vicky and sent it to herYJC: cuz she was telling me that she figured out a new dietYJC: she called it the "staple" dietYJC: where you eat something (ie. bag of chips, snacks, etc)...and after you eat a little, you "staple staple staple"YJC: and you put it aside so you won't eat anymoreTEK: hahahaTEK: then whatYJC: so then later today, she wrote me an email

Mountain View musings

2005-02-21T12:25:00.000-08:00

I'm a true believer in the little things that make life bearable, enjoyable, and memorable on a day-to-day basis. I recently purchased two boxes of Girl Scout cookies from the daughter of a co-worker's friend. They came in today and as excited as I was to consume them, I couldn't overlook the note that accompanied them. It read:Kids are great, aren't they? The fact that this little girl took the

The Long Flight Home

2004-12-24T19:54:00.000-08:00

I am now at my parent's home in the suburban jungles of Boston, MA for the holidays. Although the cold air greeted me with a bittersweet welcome as I stepped out of the airport, it felt good to be back in some ways. I never thought I would feel this way, as I love Northern California way too much. But a change of pace never hurts.I had an interesting flight from San Francisco to Boston. Having

Long time, no blog.

2004-06-21T22:33:00.000-07:00

I've been neglecting my weblog these days, but my defense is this: I spend 40+ hours/week in front of a computer, so when I get home from work, the last thing I want to do is sit down in front of my computer and pull a Doogie Howser. It's just that when I get home, I want to do one thing and one thing only: Nothing. But here I am on my laptop, typing a Blogger entry. How ironic. I went to a

Weekend happenings.

2004-05-09T21:58:00.000-07:00

Last night, we went to Joanie and Sabrina's house-warming party at their new apartment. There was a good amount of drinking to be done there. Afterwards, we headed over to VBar on Santana Row (personally, my favorite lounge here) and mingled with a few more drinks. Overall, good times. Some pictures from the evening: Sabrina, Maria, Kev and Ray | Me giving Nino some love | Chris, Jeff, Joanie

RIP: Alpha Kim 2/3/2004 - 4/19/2004.

2004-04-19T21:57:00.000-07:00

I came home from work tonight and and started watching the Rockets/Lakers game. It was pretty much dead even until the 4th quarter, when the Lakers started dominating and the Rockets started well, sucking... damnit I hate the Lakers. Anyways, at one point during the game, I looked over at my beta Japanese fighting fish Alpha, who was motionless. I tapped the glass but much to my dismay, he was

Visual Stimulation.

2004-04-11T18:49:00.028-07:00

Happy Easter everyone. I should have gone to church this morning, but I went to the Coliseum in Oakland to watch the A's play the Mariners instead. I couldn't back out because we had already bought the tickets well in advance and I didn't realize that it was on Easter Sunday. It was a good game and it went into extra innings, but I don't think I could justify going to hell for it. I should go

Hefeweizen, high-speed Internet and the art of Bonsai

2004-03-25T19:51:00.002-08:00

I bought a small bonsai plant a few months ago and it's currently withering away on my desk as I type this. For the first few weeks, it looked healthy and I was convinced that it was doing just fine when in actuality, it was dying a slow death in its pot. In a desperate fight to keep it alive, I tried watering it constantly, but to no avail. It just continued to turn brown. Despite this, it has

The inevitable occurs

2004-03-20T16:32:00.016-08:00

So I had decided to stop using Xanga, deeming it stupid and pointless. Here I am, only six months later writing my first entry on Blogger. I could justify my hypocritical actions by saying that I'm just using Blogger to support Google, but I'll admit that it's a useful tool to keep track of people that you haven't seen in awhile. Here's some history for those of you who I haven't really spoken