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    April 22

    Short sleeve summer top

    Hehehe, my first knitted summer top with short sleeves....
    February 16

    I shouldn't be alive

    I have been watching a true story program called "I shouldn't be alive" on discovery channel for several weeks. Each story is 1 hour with survivors describing about their death-defying experience. I cannot find any words to describe the show, you'll have to try it yourself. However, I've always ask myself, if that's me, what would I do?
    January 01

    Started a knitting blog

    I finally started my knitting blog on blogspot.com. The decision was made around mid December, but I waited till Jan 1 of 2007 to start my first post -- a fresh new beginning.   http://sherryknits.blogspot.com
     
     
    November 16

    www.blogthings.com/whatgenderisyourbrainquiz/

    Your Brain is 60% Female, 40% Male

    Your brain is a healthy mix of male and female
    You are both sensitive and savvy
    Rational and reasonable, you tend to keep level headed
    But you also tend to wear your heart on your sleeve

    What Gender Is Your Brain?
    September 17

    My 2nd knitting project

    My 2nd knitting project is done.
    I wanna thank Fergus for getting Keito Dama magazine from Japan for me.
    July 23

    My first knitting project - purple tank top

    My FIRST knitting project, other than the scarfs.
    April 17

    Five Lessons from Heaven

    I recently read the book "The five people you meet in heaven", by Mitch Albom. A lot of friends told me that it's a really good book to read, and it would make you think about your life. So I decided to give it a try. It's very easy to read, the words are simple, yet it really makes its points.
    The five people Eddie met in the heaven after he died represented five lessons:
    1. Strangers, are just family you have yet to come to know. No life is a waste, the only time we waste is the time we spend thinking we are alone.
    2. Sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be. It's not something to regret. It's something to aspire to.
    3. Holding anger is a poison. It eats you from inside. We think that hating is a weapon that attacks the person who harmed us. But hatred is a curved blade. And the harm we do, we do to ourselves. So forgive.
    4. Life has to end, love doesn't. Lost love is still love. It takes a different form, that's all. You can't see their smile or bring them food or tousle their hair or move them around a dance floor. But when those senses weaken, another heightens. Memory. Memory becomes your partner. You nurtune it. You hold it. You dance with it.
    5. Never think that you did not do anything with your life. Never think that you accomplished nothing. There's a reason for everything.

    I really liked the ending of the novel.

    April 14

    Strength Finder

    Thanks to my manager, Adam, I had a chance to read the book called "Now, Discover your strengths" by Marcus Buckingham. And I did an online test for finding my own strength. The theme of the book is that you need to focus on developing your strength, instead of improving your weakness.  Here are my top 5 strength:
    1. Empathy - You can sense the emotions of those around you. You can feel what they are feeling as though their feelings are your own. Intuitively, you are able to see the world through their eyes and share their perspective. You do not necessarily agree with each person's perspective. You do not necessarily feel pity for each person's predicament-this would be sympathy, not Empathy. You do not necessarily condone the choices each person makes, but you do understand. This instincitve ability to understand is powerful. You hear the unvoiced questions. You anticipate the need. Where others grapple for words, you seem to find the right words and the right tone. You help people find the right phrases to express their feelings to themselves as well as to others. You help them give voice to their emotional life. For all these reasons other people are drawn to you.
    2. Relator - Relator describes your attitude toward your relationships. In simple terms, the Relator theme pulls you toward people you already know. You do not necessarily shy away from meeting new people, in fact, you may have other themes that cause you to enjoy the thrill of turning strangers into friends, but you do derive a great deal of pleasure and strength from being around your close friends. You are comfortable with intimacy. Once the initial connection has been made, you deliberately encourage a deepening of the relationship. You want to understand their feelings, their goals, their fears, and their dreams; and you want them to understand yours. You know that this kind of closeness implies a certain amount of risk-you might be taken advantage of-but you are willing to accept that risk. For you a relationship has value only if it is genuine. And the only way to know that is to entrust yourself to the other person. The more you share with each other, the more you risk together. The more you risk together, the more each of you proves your caring is genuine. These are your steps toward real friendship, and you take them willingly.
    3. Deliberative - You are careful. You are vigilant. You are a private person. You know that the world is an unpredictable place. Everything may seem in order, but beneath the surfact you sense the many risks. Rather than denying these risks, you draw each one out into the open. Then each risk can be identified, assessed, and ultimately reduced. Thus, you are a fairly serious person who approaches life with a certain reserve.  For example, you like to plan ahead so as to anticipate what might go wrong. You select your friends cautiously and keep your own counsel when the conversation turns to personal matters. You are careful not to give too much praise and recognition, lest it be miscounstrued. If some people don't like you because you are not as effusive as others, then so be it. For you, life is not a popularity contest. Life is something of a minefield. Others can run through it recklessly if they so choose, but you take a different approach. You identify the dangers, weigh their relative impact, and then place your feet deliberately. You walk with care.
    4. Responsibility - Your Responsibility theme forces you to take psychological ownership for anything you commit to, and whether large or small, you feel emotionally bound to follow it through to completion. Your good name depends on it. If for some reason you cannot deliver, you automatically start to look for ways to make it up to that other person. Apologies are not enough. Excuses and rationalizations are totally unacceptable. You will not quite be able to live with yourself until you have made restitution. This conscientiousness, this near obsession for doing things right, and your impeccable ethics, combine to create your reputation: utterly dependable. When assigning new responsibilities, people will look to you first because they know it will get done. When people come to you for help and they soon will, you must be selective. Your willingness to volunteer may sometimes lead you to take on more than you should.
    5. Analytical - Your Analytical theme challenges other people: "Prove it. Show me why what you are claiming is true." In the face of this kind of questioning some will find that their brilliant theories wither and die. For you, this is precisely the point. You do not necessarily want to destory other people's ideas, but you do insist that their theories be sound. You see yourself as objective and dispassionate. You like data because they are value free. They have no agenda. Armed with these data, you search for patterns and connections. You want to understand how certain patterns affect one another. How do they combine? What is their outcome? Does this outcome fit with the theory being offered or the situation being comfronted? These are your questions. You  peel the layers back until, gradually, the root cause or causes are revealed. Others see you as logical and rigorous. Over time they will come to you in order to expose someone's "wishful thinking" or "clumsy thinking" to your refining mind. It is hoped that your analysis is never delivered too harshly. Otherwise, others may avoid you when that "wishful thinking" is their own.
    March 21

    Brain Maintenance Tips

    Today, I bought the latest issue of Psychology Today magazine, and I saw an advertisement giving tips for brain maintenance:
    Follow these tips to keep your nerve cells and your brain working at top speed:
    • Exercise your mind by reading, playing challenging games, and following current affairs
    • Exercise your body to help keep your heart and blood vessels healthy and increase blood flow to the brain
    • Eat a healthy diet to provide your brain with plenty of fuel
    • Get a good night's sleep to help you retain information
    • Stay socially active and learn new hobbies to engage your imaginzation

    Although it's part of advertisement, I think it's pretty good information for brain maintenance.

    January 12

    Do you have a good manager?

    I am reading an interesting book these days, the title is " First, Break all the rules -- what the world's greatest managers do differently". Here are the 12 important questions that you can ask yourself:
    1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
    2. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
    3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
    4. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for doing good work?
    5. Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person?
    6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
    7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
    8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel my job is important?
    9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
    10. Do I have a best friend at work?
    11. In the last six months, has someone at work talked to me about my progress?
    12. This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?

    If you answer "strongly agree" to most of these questions, that means your manager is not bad at all.

    December 10

    你的快樂鑰匙在那裡?

    名專欄作家哈理斯(Sydney J. Harries)和朋友在報攤上買報紙,那朋友禮貌地對報販說了聲謝謝,但報販卻冷口冷臉,沒發一言。
    「這傢伙態度很差,是不是?」他們繼續前行時,哈理斯問道。
    「他每天晚上都是這樣的,」朋友說。
    「那麼你為甚麼還是對他那麼客氣?」哈理斯問他。
    朋友答道:「為甚麼我要讓他決定我的行為?」

    一個成熟的人握住自己快樂鑰匙,他不期待別人使他快樂,反而能將快樂與幸福帶給別人。每人心中都有把「快樂的鑰匙」,但我們卻常在不知不覺中把它交給別人掌管。

    一位女士抱怨道:「我活得很不快樂,因為先生常出差不在家。」她把快樂的鑰匙放在先生手裡。一位媽媽說:「我的孩子不聽話,叫我很生氣!」她把鑰匙交在孩子手中。

    男人可能說:「上司不賞識我,所以我情緒低落。」這把快樂鑰匙又被塞在老闆手裡。

    婆婆說:「我的媳婦不孝順,我真命苦!」

    年輕人從文具店走出來說:「那位老闆服務態度 惡劣,把我氣炸了!」

    這些人都做了相同的決定,就是讓別人來控制他的心情。當我們容許別人掌控我們的情緒時,我們便覺得自己是受害者,對現況無能為力,抱怨與憤怒成為我們唯一的選擇。我們開始怪罪他人,並且傳達一個訊息:「我這樣痛苦,都是你造成的,你要為我的痛苦負責!」此時我們就把一重大的責任托給週圍的人,即要求他們使我們快樂。

    我們似乎承認自己無法掌控自己,只能可憐的任人擺佈。這樣的人使別人不喜歡接近,甚至望而生畏。

    一個成熟的人握住自己快樂的鑰匙,他不期待別人使他快樂,反而能將快樂與幸福帶給別人。他的情緒穩定,為自己負責,和他在一起是種享受,而不是壓力。

    你的鑰匙在那裡?在別人手中嗎?快去把它拿回來吧!

    愛的反面不是仇恨,而是漠視且不關心。

    這篇文章希望------你能體會到它的涵意。其實我們身處的地方,不論是環境、人、事、物都很容易影響我們的情緒起伏,可是千萬別忘了!!不要因為他人的一句話,而在意太久哦!!
     
    -- I read this article in a forum which created by my UW friends. Since then, I've always used this concept for any hardship or unhappiness in my life.  Where is your key of happiness?
    September 27

    Welcome to Amethystus Plateia

    Thanks for visiting Amethystus Plateia. It means "Violet crystal place". This site is created for personal memory, interest, knowledge and entertainment.