JYG

26:40 mins

It pays to keep your body warm before a run. I was flying today. Every stride powered on with determination and purpose. I am satisfied. A month of going pari passu 5K few times a week has brought with it a sense of accomplishment. Perhaps this tyro in running should start increasing his mileage a bit. My asics are doing wonders.

I figured out how I should be spending my God-given time for the next 30 days.

1. Practice my horn 2-3 hours a day. I'm changing my embouchure (go check the dictionary) so my ability to produce the same level of competence on the horn has been significantly deterred. But it's for the better on the long run. Just like any other discipline.

2. Practice Meditation. Not of yoga fame. But allowing the ideas in the Book to fill and permeate my mind so that I may live and know the Word. The practice of medieval monks. The Oratio and Contemplatio. Not just think nice thoughts about biblical verses. Which I tend to do, a lot.

3. Swim 10 laps a week.

4. I'm currently reading "How to read a book". Don't laugh, it's actually quite good. Next literary venture will be Bono's autography, followed by Martin Buber's I and Thou. That would be all for this month.

5. Guess what? I'm just started cooking one dish from Jamie's recipes - Today!

Seabass stuffed with fresh mixed herbs..... (basil, dill, tarragon, parsley, marjoram... la la la)
swimming in rich extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Wicked!

The best compliment to any fine dish. Da Red. Exquisitely decanted.

I have a feeling it's going to be a great month. I'll be back in KL tomorrow! My first interview!

G

p/s - Did I tell you? I love my country. Happy Birthday.

Posted at 11:07 pm by jyg2
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Happy 48th Merdeka Day!

To traffic jams, Petronas Twin Towers, sizzling hot days, monsoon seasons, Protons, Chinese, Indians, Malays, Dusuns, Kadazans, Ibans, Baba Nyonyas, crazy Johor drivers, nasi lemak, bah kut teh, chicken rice, 3-in-1 shake, Hari Raya kuih-muih, Chinese New Year ang pows, Sepet, Gol & Gincu, Siti Nurhaliza, Jaclyn Victor, pirated VCDs, going out to malls in T-shirt and shorts, Genting, Port Dickson, Langkawi, Kuala Lumpur, Sabah, mamak at 4am, driving at 120kmh...

We salute you.

And for those who always pull down Malaysia and have nothing good to say about the country, the JYG has this message for you:

You don't know shit.

j

Posted at 12:01 pm by jyg2
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There are two things that disrupt the rhythm of our lives. Hurry and Procrastination.

-Eugene Peterson

One month.

30 days before I start my adventure as a fitness instructor trainee. The gym will be undergoing renovations at the moment.

The sense of restlessness is creeping slowly. It results in an increasing tendency to indulge in my peccadillo of sloth, marked by rising failed attempts to begin doing something that has meaning or purpose. All too many times I want to start something that is sparked by some embryonic grand idea in my head, only to succumb to distractions and ultimately overcomed by my dilatory nature. I want to do everything, only to end up doing nothing. I knew this would happen, predictably so. (Romans 7:19) Yet when push comes to shove, willpower becomes nugatory.

Time to make good choices. Utterly inspired by the 30-day Artist. (thanks deadpo8t) The bold strokes, the reckless plunge into his cavern of creativity and a huge heart to go through a period in his life whose tales could be passed on to his children's children. That's how I perceive adventure nowadays. You never know what would come out of a single step of courageous abandonment. You never really can tell what's on the other side of the cliff until you jumped over it. Sure there are careers to be build, families to be raised and bills to be paid. But weren't we are told once upon a time that we are allowed to dream? And not just that, but dream big? Thank God for those youth conferences. We are after all, only young once.

I shall list down some 30-day things to do. PLEASE help me add to em. From there, I shall choose what I shall embark on.

1. Start drawing comics and caricatures. (I can produce some decent sketches)

2. Practice piano/guitar/trumpet 2 hours a day. (scales, arpeggios, tone)

3. Read a philosophy series from some author. eg. Nietzsche, Michael Polanyi, Popper

4. Make 500 jumpers a day every morning (basketball if you wondering)

5. Do sprint work on top of my 5K run. (necessary for marathon running)

6. Take mandarin classes.

7. Swim 10 laps a day.

8. Exegetical Study on Genesis.

9. Cook one dish a week from Jamie's Recipes.

10. One Spiritual Discipline. (Simplicity, Prayer, Meditation)

11. One good deed for family a day. (this is not as easy as you think)

12. One good deed for a stranger.

13. Keep a plant or a small animal. (i'm in the creation-keeping mode now)

14. Crossword puzzles?

Help me with ideas. You guys have large hearts and big minds. Remember, it's me doing this. Don't ask me to draw some engineering plan of the next tallest building, though I got skills for that. You know how I hate engineering.

G

Something that the artist wrote which made me welled up and go, "Oh yeah."

Posted at 06:38 pm by jyg2
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I finally deflowered Bach today by blasting a few arpeggios. My sound needs a lot more fine-tuning but the overall tonality is still there. In other words, I'm a bit rusty. Even struggled to hit the high C I used to reach with ease. Nothing five hours of practice a day won't remedy. I hope.

I have named before my idols in Wynton Marsalis and Sergei Nakariakov. Of course, the prize for looking good while playing the horn would go to Chris Botti. Today I went on in search for more inspirations who have climbed the Mount Olympus of trumpet-playing. And was pleasantly surprised to find his site updated with enough multimedia videos to send me into a musical orgasm. He is none other than the pride of Australian jazz scene, James "The Genius" Morrison. Even if you are not a Morrison aficionado, you should really check it out. Begin by watching "The Scream Machine" and "I asked for Blues".

The next toy I would really like to get is this. Highly recommended for those worship bands who are always short on budget yet dream of getting every single instrument they could lay their hands on. This baby has it all.

And finally to show how naughty i was.

Bottiology

Gregoriology

C'mon. Ain't I so much better-looking than him?

G

Posted at 11:01 pm by jyg2
Comments (8) Permalink