Ten Things I Enjoy Most At Turning Twenty-Nine (with a nod to Markie)
1. Being old enough to live on my own, but young enough to occassionally play hooky
2. Learning enough lessons in life to not be too idealistic, but not too jaded either (see below)
3. Recovering from my ‘teenage identity crisis’ and my ‘quarter-life’ crisis with not too many scars and scratches
4. Growing up enough to have the wisdom to accept myself, scars and all
5. Growing up enough to see that their own scars sometimes make other people more beautiful
6. Living long enough to make and keep real friends
7. Being old enough to know that my parents did their best in raising me up
8. Learning that a life-changing love can happen to me 
9. Having the wisdom to not believe everything I see and hear, and to sometimes believe what I don’t see and hear
10. Finally figuring out that sometimes I need to play hard and work hard, and sometimes I just really need to get down on my knees and pray hard.
Five books that I’d love to read over and over:
1. Joy Luck Club - Amy Tan
2. American Gods - Neil Gaiman
3. The Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco
4. The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
5. The Sandman graphic novels - Neil Gaiman
My two most favorite Beatles songs:
1. “I Will”
2. “In My Life”
My two most favorite Bob Marley songs:
1. “Waiting in Vain”
2. “No Woman No Cry”
Five people I can talk to for hours without getting bored or tired:
1. Markie
2. My best friends Trixy, Larisa and Jean
3. My younger cousin Sun-Sun (He usually does the talking)
Five important lessons I’ve learned about life:
1. Life ain’t fair. But just like with any other game, you can still win even if the odds are stacked against you. You just gotta find a way to turn the odds in your favor, and whining usually doesn’t do it.
2. When people don’t give you what you want them to, it doesn’t mean they’re not giving you the best they can. This is especially true with our parents. And team members. And our (future) children. And other people who love us. And also with the gifts people give us at Christmas, like fruitcakes.
3. Nothing ever ends. Even when we leave this world the neutrinos that make up our bodies go back and feed the universe. This is cool, in a freaky sort of way.
4. We are all somehow linked. This is related to #3 above. So try to never burn bridges, because you may need one of ‘em to reach your destination, or to get back home. Unless that bridge is owned by a total psycho freak. Then by all means demolish, destroy and raze it and all the little pieces that make it up into the ground.
5. Sometimes when you feel hungry, you’re really only thirsty but your mind gets the signals all mixed up. So drink at least 10 glasses of water a day, and don’t always believe what your senses tell you. Go with your instincts instead.
Posted under Navel-Gazing
