I had the most awesome time watching the Men's Olympic Ice-Skating program yesterday night. I couldn't keep my eyes off the skaters and their brilliant performances. They looked so free; so beautiful on the ice. I was gushing about most of the skaters throughout the entire program.

Though I am only a beginner skater, I knew plenty about ice-skating. I watched Katerina Witt (of Germany) performed in the early 1990s, and I was so inspired then that I wanted to take up ice-skating myself, but my parents refused because it was too dangerous. Still, even though I didn't learn to skate until late last year, I really love the sport - both as a beginner and as a spectator. In fact, I loved it so much that every time I come home from my lessons, I researched on the web for tips to improve on the techniques. I love being on the ice. I don't care about getting bruises from falling; I just want to skate, skate, and skate.

I was rooting for Todd Elgeridge. Even though I knew he won't be on the Olympic podium because he placed 8th on the short program, I think he did a wonderful performance. I was also playing the judge. Last night, I was watching the program, listening to him skate gracefully to the music, and taking it all in. The music struck a chord with me and I commented to my brother that I knew the music. After a moment's pause, I exclaimed, "it's from the Lord of the Rings!" I've only seen the movie once, so I was surprised at how quickly I remembered it. As if to confirm what I said, the commentator said only seconds later that the music was from the movie 'Lord of the Rings'."

(By the way, Lord of the Rings has 11 nominations. I liked the movie, but I didn't think the plot or the characters were as well-developed. The movie definitely deserves the Best Picture - it has breathtaking scenery - and Best Original Score nominations. I am faily confident that it will win or at least should win in those catogories.)

I was also a darn good judge yesterday too. I was in awe of Timothy Gaebel (representing USA)'s quadruples because he did them with such ease, as such, his nickname "Quad King" was well deserved. I commented that he would get high technical marks, but mentioned (rather disappointingly) that his presentation was lacking. Unlike the Russian competitors, there was something missing from his performance. I said he could possibly take the lead, but it's more likely that he would take second. And so he did. The last skater was Alexi (representing Russia), who was the leader after the short program. His performance was marvelous; he didn't do quads like Gaebel, but his triples and other elements were clean, strong, and consistent. Halfway into the program, I knew he won the gold. His technical marks were bound to be solid, and his presentation was even better. And so he did, with four perfect 6.0s for his presentation marks - and also became the Olympic gold medalist.

It. was. just. amazing.

Next week is the Ladies' Figure Skating competition. Michelle Kwan, Sasha Cohen, and Sarah Hughes are representing the USA team. I like Michelle Kwan for her artistry; I like Sasha Cohen for her power/energy, and I like Sarah Hughes for her grace. If Michelle Kwan skates as well as she did in the Nationals, then she has a good shot at winning (although she has a tough Russian rival to beat). Sasha Cohen is a powerful skater; she also has the same type of energy as Tara Lipiniski. While her jumps aren't always perfect and her artistry might not be as strong as Michelle's, no one doubts that she has a good shot at winning. Then there's Sarah Hughes, who I think also has a good shot because she's very graceful and her skating and jumps are very consistent.

I just can't wait to see. :)

There are some blogs/journals that I read daily. Never mind the fact that I don't know most of the people; there's just something about their stories and writing that just kept me coming back for more.

Most of my favorite webblogs are listed on the sidebar. For example, I read Mollie's LiveJournal daily, because I like her stories and I like the way she tells them. I used to read her other site, Book of Days . While I am disappointed that she said goodbye to that site, I realized that she had to do what she had to do. I am simply glad that she shared her LiveJournal link with us. Book of Days or LiveJournal; it doesn't make much of a difference to me. It's her writing that I like. :)

Noah Grey has a very nicely designed site and he writes with much feelings. He is taking a hiatus from webblogging. I guessed he is starting a new chapter of his life since he recently agreed to married his boyfriend. It's sweet.

Then, there's Rabi of Wockerjabby. We went to the same high school, but I didn't know her too well then. I didn't even know she had a weblog then! I don't need to explain why I like her site; just visit it and you'll see for yourself. :P

Today and the day after is inspirational and uplifting. Crushing Krisis - I don't quite know what to think of it yet. I obviously like it; that's why I visit it often. It's sometimes very odd, sometimes hilarious, and sometimes something else that I can't quite pinpoint that made it all the more interesting.

Then, of course, there are other sites that I visit often, but have yet to update them on the sidebar. I will continue to blog, but I am having difficulties with one of my courses (see post below) and I really need to spend more hours on it. I could manage to spend several more hours a week on it, only because unlike other semesters, I am not taking 6 classes.

I do need to do well in this course in order to graduate. I don't feel like giving it up just because it's hard, although I seriously thought about dropping it. That, however, would mean I would have to make it up (another business elective) during the summer - after graduation. That's not something I wanted to do, especially after I graduated from college. But it's also obviously something I am not good at. Besides, I've worked so hard for so long just to get here and I don't want to mess it up. I will be the second person (my sister, who graduated last year with the highest honors, was the first) in my family to graduate from college. :) Because of this course, though, there is a likely possibility that I might not get honors for graduation - I am on the borderline right now. I don't want to give up just yet. You know, it's not over until it's over, right?

So if you don't hear from me in a little while, that's because I am hard at work. I have a feeling that I will write again soon, especially since Olympics Ice-Skating is starting next week! In the meantime, check out the other links on the sidebar. Really. They're great. You'll know what I mean. :)

I spent countless hours last week on a programming assignment. The assignment looked simple enough - four parts, write four different programs, and do it in two weeks. Well, you would think I am done by now, but noooooooo. While I am not completely without progress, it has been slow - especially thinking through the logic behind the programs. I should've figured out that programming is not for me; after all, I disliked all my math courses in high school (especially calculus). This is great. Just great. I chose one of the most difficult courses - thinking that it would provide a challege - as one of my electives. I am such an idiot sometimes. Sure, it's challenging, but it's also frustrating enough that I feel like throwing my computer out the window. Maybe you've known that feeling too. Grrrrrrrr. At least I have a great professor who does an excellent job of explaining the materials. If it were otherwise, I would be in huge trouble.

Another one of my electives is Creative Writing - Poetry, and that's a small, fun class. We will have our first workshop tomorrow. Some of the poems from my fellow peers were amazing; they are naturals at it! Not surprisingly, it's turning out to be one of my favorite courses this semester.

I have lots to say about ice-skating, but I'll save the details for another time. It's just wonderful and I have an awesome instructor. He looked slightly older than me (early twenties), and he's a strong and powerful skater. I loved it when he spins (they were the fastest spins I've seen on the ice rink), and I could hear the swishing sounds while he was spinning so gracefully and effortlessly. (It's obviously much harder than it looks). It's just great. Awesome. Fantastic. I am gushing; I know, but I just can't help it. :)