Keira Brigit Pauline

“Don’t be dependent on anyone else—man, woman, child, or dog. I want to go everywhere, look at and listen to everything. You can go crazy with some of the wonderful stuff there is in life.”--Shel Silverstein

I was reading a post somewhere written by a PhD student in physics. He was lamenting on how degrees have been "dumbed-down" and are no longer for the elite. They have become easier to obtain because of less requirements. Instead of being for the very intelligent and hard-working, those with less than above-average abilities can get college degrees. He said that there are many people who persue master's and doctoral degrees in sciences who don't have big questions they want to answer. It is bad for science to have people studying it who are not passionate enough about what they do. Also, since the degrees have become easier to get, there is not as much knowledge behind that diploma as there used to be. I remember hearing the same thing said by V.S. Naipaul. When I was an undergraduate student, I went to see him speak just after he won the Nobel Prize. During a question and answer period, he stated that it would be better for students to obtain science degrees r...

Today I was teaching my students about future goals. I had them each make a timeline about what they want to do. For an example, go to college at age 20, get a good job at age 24, get married at age 30, etc. I made a timeline for my future. I said that I would like to get a master's degree in a few years, and also would like to get a doctoral degree eventually. The students in the front row (all girls) said "when are you getting married?". I said "I don't know". Truthfully, I believe it doesn't matter anymore. It did matter to me at one time, but not now. I think having academic achievements is more important to me. I do wish that I made different choices in the past. I wish I already had a master's degree. I can't change the past, so it's not worth it to beat myself up over it. I can just look to tomorrow. I am not that old yet, either. I am just going to be 30 in a few more weeks.

I have decided that I need a makeover. I should dress a lot nicer. I have been wearing clothes that have been old or out of style. I decided to get rid of a lot of them. I should also dress up more often when I go out, rather than throwing on a pair of jeans and a shirt. I should try to wear skirts more often too. I do think I should get a friend to go shopping with. I need some feedback on what looks good on me.

Today in class I was talking to my students about changes in life. There was a list of eight things in the lesson. They were, in no order: Getting married Moving Out Graduation Getting promoted Retirement Falling in love Having a baby Getting divorced I asked the students which would be the most happiest of all those things. The girls were almost unanimous that "having a baby" would be the most happiest thing. The next happiest thing would be "falling in love" and "getting married". The boys thought that "graduation" and "getting promoted" would be happiest, and some did say "getting married". Having a baby was about #2, #3, or #4 on their list. What is it about so many women that they think having a baby would be the best thing for them? Well, first there is that motherly instinct that is almost universal about women. Also, society seems to say that having a baby would make any couple deliriously happy. It is like th...

The U.S. military has entrusted the company "Trijicon" with making scopes for its rifles used in combat. The company has been putting coded text references from the Bible next to the serial numbers. It can be dangerous since the USA is trying ot prove that it's not fighting a "holy war" against the Middle East. U.S. military personnel is not allowed to proselytise over there. There is also the separation of church and state that doesn't allow religion to be forced on anyone. The company was founded by a devout Christian who died in 2003.

Going to North Korea will make someone very interesting. In conversations where people talk about their travels, saying you have been to N. Korea will halt conversations. You will suddenly become the most interesting person in the group. North Korea has again opened its doors to U.S. citizens for tours. I was reading www.cnn.com and I was surprised to find that out. There is one company that runs those tours. I went on the " Koryo Tours " website and they have many tour packages. I am not someone who usually likes a tour package because I like to go off the beaten path. Yet, North Korea is one of those places where tourism is restricted and guided tours are a necessity. I know that Geumgangsan (Gold River Mountain) is a popular destination. Kaesong is a seaside city that also attracts tourists. Baekdusan (White Head Mountain) is on the Chinese border. Pyongyang has many things to see such as their subway, an an art museum with North Korean art, and many statues of K...

I haven't had the best of luck until recently. I went to the doctor yesterday and he says I don't need to come back unless I get more lesions on my skin. The psoriasis has gone from my body except my legs, but they are getting better. I do hope it all disappears before late Spring, so I can wear skirts again.

I went to see an Andy Warhol exhibit at the Seoul Museum of Art today. I liked it a lot. Warhol was an interesting character. He supposedly had an I.Q. of around 86, which would be bordering retarded, but would still be in the normal range. It is also suspected that he had an autistic disorder. If he did have an autism spectrum disorder, that would explain the way he obsessively collected things, made many pieces of art that were similar and yet had their differences in shades and colours. I didn't know much about Warhol before I saw the exhibit. There were his famous drawings of Campbell soup cans, a portrait of a boy picking his nose, and his Marilyn Monroe portraits. There were also portraits of other celebrities like Sylvester Stallone, Princess Diana, and Ingrid Bergman. He had a sort of fascination with death. He made an art print of the 1962 jet crash at Orly in Paris. It was en route to Atlanta, Georgia, USA and was carrying mostly art enthusiasts from an art society...

HAITI, POPULATION 0, HAS BEEN DESTROYED BY THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE OF 2010. FOR MORE INFORMATION, SEE: THE ISLAND FORMALLY KNOWN AS HAITI The Island sunk into the sea Wednesday afternoon That was actually on Wikipedia this morning. I hate it when people write stupid stuff like that on the site!

Darn. Here in Korea there's a similar chain store called "E-Mart". I don't think I see many entertaining people there though. Americans are entertaining. Wal-Mart has become a freak show.

I went home for 2 1/2 weeks. I lived with my mother and aunt. There were also five cats and two dogs. I brought over the two kittens I rescued a few months ago. They are doing good in their new home. Suzy already likes to sit on my mother and aunt. Jasmine is more shy though. Violet, my Siamese cat, likes to antagonise her because she is jealous that I left her for a year and brought home two kittens. It was good to see everyone. I didn't think it was enough time to really see everyone I wanted to see, and do everything I wanted to do. I left for Korea by first going to Hartford, Connecticut and then to Washington/Dulles airport. I then flew straight to Tokyo. The ride was 13 hours long and my leg was throbbing badly. I couldn't sleep at all because of the pain. I have had psoriasis for a few months now and it is still on my legs. One of the sores has become infected. This morning I went to see the dermatologist again and he prescribed some antibiotics by mouth, but ...

I made it back to Korea in one piece. I went from Hartford, Connecticut to Washington D.C./Dulles to Tokyo/Narita and then to Seoul. What a trip. I had a bad nosebleed for a while and my leg throbbed. My psoriasis is still on my legs and one of the lesions on my right leg is infected. :(

I have been in the USA for two weeks now. I have been able to see the USA from an outsider's prospective, since I have spent at least two and a half years abroad. I realise how silly typical American culture is. I have been watching television because it has been cold and snowy outside. I think so many of the things they try to sell on television are totally ridiculous. No wonder so many Americans are in debt, they buy so many things they don't really need. Clutter is a common problem in many American homes because of all the stuff people buy. Here is a "potty patch" for your dog to whiz inside the house. Wow, keep your dog peeing in the house! It looks like real grass!!!! Here is a neck exerciser. Yes, people can waste their money on this crap. Can't someone just do some neck exercises by just using their hand to their neck and just move their neck up and down? It does work, and it will save money. Those are just a sampling of the stupidity I have seen o...

Honestly, I think that the 00s was a stupid decade. When it was the 1990s, people complained about how silly the music was, how terrible the fashion was, and how society had degraded. I would like the 1990s back please. Yes, even with the ugly grunge style and the Monica Lewinsky saga. I am sure most of the world would agree with me. The 00s Hall of Shame: George W. Bush!!! Reality TV Recession Bank Bailouts Hurricane Katrina Mugabe Terrible girl groups/pop princesses like Destiny's Child, Hannah Montana, Britney Spears, Avril Lavigne, Miley Cyrus, etc, and etc. Yet there were some good things: Lord of the Rings Pixar (then they sold out to Disney, noooooo) better cellphones and laptops China opened up more (and more jobs moved over there) North Korea had more talks (yet they fired off some missiles) YUCK! What a stupid decade! And what on Earth was Jennifer Lopez wearing on New Year's Eve in New York City?!!!