How to Blog?

I am a blogger but only a beginner. Despite my inexperience, I learn a lot these days from my teacher Ruth about how to blog! Below are what I have learned during the last several weeks:

Blog. Blogging seems to be easy, but not at all! To be a good blogger, you need to learn a lot of things. (Photo from Intetrnet)

1. To be a good blogger, what you need to do first is to choose a topic! To decide what you are going to write about, to create a theme that you like and to choose your own voice! Like me, I am quite shy and want to be brave, so I build this blog to cultivate my courage and to express my own opinion.

Choose a topic. This is an essential step of blogging! (Photo from Internet)

Reflection #5 Happy & Lucky!

These days, super busy! But today, I feel super happy, and, lucky!

The happy thing is, today is the birthday of my roommate Mochong! Happy birthday to her! She is such a nice girl! Very optimistic, very generous and very considerate! I still remember the day she prepared food with me. All other people went to play and only she chose to stay and work with me. I was totally moved at that time! Again, Mochong, Happy birthday and wish you all the best!!
 

Working. Mochong is very good at preparing food! (Photo by Summer)

Ice Cake. Very delicious ice cake although it is a little bit too sweet. (Photo by Summer)

A late "Thank you"

I should write this on Thanksgiving. But... Anyway, I hope it is not too late.

Thank you, mam and dad! You are so warm and supportive! I know that you want me not to be too far away from home but you also agree me to further my education in the United States. You encourage me to chase my dream and be what I want to be. Thank you!

Family. Family is such a warm word! Thank you mam and dad! (photo from Internet)

Thank you, my dear friends! My life become much more colorful because of you! Thank you for staying with me when I am sad! Thank you for listening to my complain when I am angry! I will always remind myself the happy time we have!

Friends. Thank you friends! (photo from Internet)

And thank you to everyone I know! You make my life being like a life!


Saying thank you shouldn't be limited only on Thanksgiving day and I will keep a heart of gratitude!

Thank you!

Fragments of My Life

This is a story of a Chinese girl studying in Georgia Tech as a visiting student and wanting to pursuing her further education in the United States...

You know, Chinese food is famous all over the world and so let's begin with lunch:



Chinese Lunch in the United States.   This is a typical lunch of me in the United States: instant noodle and yogurt. In fact, before coming here, I seldom eat these kind of food because they are not very nutrient. But now, it seems like that I will eat these "junk food" everyday. One main reason is that it is easy to prepare. Uh-ah  I'm a little bit lazy to cook food... I really miss the delicious food in China! (photo by Summer)



My desk.  Here comes a photo of my desk. Maybe the most "odd" thing is that there are two laptops. Yeah, I bought a new one several weeks ago. Not because computer in the United States is cheaper, but because my old one crashed down!! Oh, what a terrible thing!! There are a lot of important materials in it especially those paper work for my application! Luckily,  I took out these important data and put in my new ultrabook. By the way, I really love my new computer since it is very thin and light, and I can carry it with me easily. That does help me a lot in application! (Photo by Summer)



My favorite piece of cloth. This photo was taken when I was ten years old and from that time on, obtaining more about the nature, pursuing a higher degree and further my education in America has become my dreams. I hope in the near future, I will put on a real doctor's academic dress! (Photo by photographer)

Reflection #4 A peace day

Today is a quite peace and normal day. But I don't want to stop reflection just because it is peace. So I searched the Internet to find some inspirations. Here I read some good articles about how to gain courage and I will arrange them in an interesting way:

Article #1: How to Cultivate the Courage to Deal with Daily Challenges (3 tips)

Article #2: How to Have Courage (5 tips)

Article #3: how to increase your courage: 7 tips

Article #4: 20 Steps to Courage

It's a little bit late and I don't want to spend too much time on summarizing these articles. The key point, in my opinion, is: JUST DO IT! 

Most of the time, we need to jump out of our comfort zone! (photo from Internet)

Reflection #3 Brave will pay off

What a beautiful day!

I feel so lucky to take part in the seminar about MRI and waited for 30 minutes to talk with the lecture! I feel so happy to ask my teacher for help and really appreciate her reply! I feel so wise to put down my "stubborn" and listen to opinions from other people. I feel that brave begin pay off!

Again, what a wonderful day!

Still on the way. Just keep smiling and be positive. Looking forward to the new day!

New day. Waiting for the new day and waiting for bathing in the sunshine! (Photo from Internet)

Reflection #2: Be positive

Today, I find a poem by chance and want to share with you:

REALITY OF FEAR:

You’re not scared of the dark;

you’re scared of what’s in it.

You’re not afraid of heights;

you’re afraid of falling.

You’re not afraid of the people around you;

Fear (from Internet)

you’re afraid of rejection.

You’re not afraid to love;

you’re just afraid of not being loved back.

You’re not afraid to let go;

you’re just afraid of accept the fact it’s gone.

You’re not afraid to try again;

you’re just afraid of getting hurt for the same reason.

Reminiscent: a brave story of mine

Believe it or not, I used to be quite brave. And if you want to listen I will tell you the story...

Tengfei Tower. This is one landmark in my university: Xi'an Jiaotong University. When I first entered it, I was curious about everything: huge campus, grandiose library and most importantly, the various activities. I took part in four clubs and countless activities and among them is the debate competition. That's the beginning of my story...(photo from Internet)

Me and my best friend Yue Sun. Yue is one of my best friends in university. Actually I am quite hesitate about whether to participate in such a competition. You know, I am not good at debating and quite shy when speak in public. It was Yue who encouraged me a lot and finally I agreed to challenge myself and have a try! (Photo by our friend)

Reflection #1 Keep going~

Before going to bed, it is time to do a reflection. 

I believe an important source of improving is to look back and think about what you did and what you thought during the daytime. So reflection will help us mature and keep on reflecting is a great way to kick away the yellw pig. One great philosopher Tseng once said:

Each day I examine myself in three ways: in doing things for others, have I been disloyal? In my interactions with friends, have I been untrustworthy? Have not practiced what I have preached?

Tseng One great philosopher in China. He is a student of  Confucius and  is credited with having authored a large portion of the Great Learning, including its foreword. Zengzi's disciples are believed to have been among the most important compilers of the Analects of Confucius and other Confucian classics. (from wikipedia. Photo from Internet)

And I may also examine myself in three ways: in doing things, have I been active and grasped the opportunity? In my interaction with people, have I been brave enough to express my unique voice? In the way of chasing my dream, have I keep faith and havn't waste too much time? Aha, maybe not so strict, just a reflection.

Restart

I'm a little ashamed of my laziness. I've promised I will kick away the yellow pig, but it seems like the passion just  fade away quickly...

Thank you, Naho. Thank you, Ruth. Your replies let me realize that there are others who care. So I decided to restart and I hope it is not too late...

Busy can never be an excuse! I do have time for coffee although most of the time it is for refreshing rather than relaxing.

LITANY

To my upright and tenacious farther! I always love you!

You are the aspen and the oak,   

the marvelous evergreen and the pine.   

You are the spartina native to the salt marshes

and the sunflower under the sun.   

You are the imperial lion in the prairie
and the free eagle soaring in sky. 
  

Sunflower

However, you are not the mimose in the grassland,   

the epiphyllum in the garden,   

or the mouse ready to escape.   

And you are certainly not the lamb flinches in the sheepfold.   

There is just no way you are the lamb flinches in the sheepfold. 
  

Lamb

This I Believe

What is BELIEF and what's my core belief? It seems to be a quite broad question. By reading numerous stories in THIS I BELIEVE, I begin thinking this question seriously. We can believe in everything: believe in Peace Can Happen, believe in Becoming a Parent Is a Gift, believe in Never Give Up, and believe in I Am Not My Body! The core belief we have is what we say to ourselves when we are alone and it supports us when we things do not go well.   

I believe

For me, I believe all difficulties are not as difficult as we think and we can conquer them by taking the first step bravely! 

We are Together!

Finding Friends with you is a good idea to start a journey! We can have fun when travelling, encourage each other when facing difficulty and share our ideas when discussing around the table. That sounds like so great! So I use Google to search people who want to be brave, who love life and who enjoy thinking and reflection. Below are the treasures I find:

Friends

Coffee With Hallelujah

What an interesting blog name! Actually it’s my English teacher’s blog. Despite she declares it’s a blog about art and there are a lot of fantastic pictures drawn by her, I can read more than art: her positive attitude towards life, her original ideas about humanity and her feminism. All these are very inspiring to me! Open your mind, be creative! Fear not, be yourself! I have so many to learn from her!

Hallelujah Truth's Friends

3rd 4th day: Breaking Down

Oh, I have to say I fail to take out my plan these two days.

Yesterday I did went to the seminar about Hyperplane Conjecture, but since the English ends at 12 and that is exactly when the seminar begin. So I missed the first part and did not know what the lecturer is talking about! Alas, I should prepare for it before.

Seminar

The rest of yesterday I was busy with rewriting my Research Proposal and totally forgot kicking away the yellow pig! Perhaps I should think out some "punishments" so that I could keep on reflecting every day. But I am afraid this will make this journey less enjoyable. Oh, oh, what should I do? My dear, friends, do you have any suggestion?

Second Day: Finish Research Proposal

Yesterday I did finished my Research Proposal and send it to the professor I want to apply for. But this morning I received his reply saying that my proposal is too dilute. Multiscale modeling is a totally new area to me but I only spent two days to read literature in this area. So what I wrote are all generally ideas about its development. But to be a PhD student, I must pinpoint the specific area I want to indulge in! Deadline is Nov.15, I must hurry up!

This afternoon, I am going to attend a seminar about Hyperplane Conjecture, a totally new area too. It is a great opportunity for me to train courage. So I will force myself to ask a question or talk with the professor. It’s much harder than asking question to Ruth. But the harder it is, the more I can learn from it.

Say hello to the new day!

New Day!

 

First Day: Be Brave to Ask a Question!

I should write this yesterday! But I “forgive” my tardiness because I am quite satisfied with my performance yesterday: asking Ruth a question in class.

Since I knew I have a task to finish, I remind myself at the very beginning of the class: find something you are not clear about, stand up and speak out loudly! But I have to say that does affect my listening. Instead of paying attention to the lecture, I kept on finding question. Yes, asking question should be a natural and spontaneous action and I am not good at that. Finally I got a chance and asked a small question. It is so minor that I now forget what it is!

As the saying goes, opportunity favors the prepared mind. Then there came the chance: Ruth asked us what we’ve learned from the activity! I tried to organize my language but just at that moment, Ruth decided to choose a student to answer. Oh, she must be upset about us inactive Chinese guys. What should I do? Stand up despite I am not well-prepared? Or let the great chance slip away. A voice appeared: do wait for the perfect idea, just go for the good one! Then I raised my hand! I am a little surprised by that! I achieved!

Stand out!

I find that asking question is not as easy as I think but stand out is not very hard! Just be brave!

Tomorrow, oh no, today, will be a diligent day! I plan to finish my Research Proposal about Multiscale Modeling. It’s gonna be very challenging, but I have to because the deadline is around the corner! I am ready!

Research Proposal

 

At the Beginning of the Journey!

Welcome! Welcome to my blog! Welcome to kick away the yellow pig with me! I will write down my journey of overcoming my laziness and timidity. As long as you like thinking, like reading and like challenging yourself, welcome! Let reflect every day and overcome our weakness during this journey!

Welcome!

As I said in “about me”, I am an idealist and have a lot of dream. But laziness and timidity make me lost a lot of great opportunities. I do not want to flinch behind and regret afterwards, so I have to change! Every day, I will give me an “assignment”, either about “brave” or “diligent” and then I will try to finish the next day! It’s gonna be quite interesting at first but very challenging to keep on doing.

The first day of my journey is a brave day which may provide me the courage I need. My first task is asking Ruth a question in class! Sounds like quite easy but I am sure I can learn a lot from that. Oh, I am eager to begin!

Asking Question!

Are you with me my dear friends? Do you like reading and reflecting? Do you have the same problems as me? Do you have similar dreams with me? Do you want to have a change? Let’s start! Let’s kick away the yellow pig in our heart! Let’s go!

Journey