I have just got back from the National Competitive Exam of the United Nations. The exam takes place from 6pm to 11pm nonstop, which is another record for me. It was so late that even the subway is out of service. I have to use the expensive taxi to get home.
The questions are not very difficult, most of which are basic economic concepts. However, there are still many that I don't remember very well. But I find that I am very good at those kind of exams. I can keep completely focused the whole time and give detailed answers to the questions that I am not familiar with, hoping to recover at least some of the points.
According to the recruiting regulation of the UN, the results of the exam will ridiculously be released from July to December. Passing the exam means a chance of interview in the UN headquarter in New York city. Even though not very satisfied with the experience today, I still hope to get this chance of the free trip to the big apple.
28 February 2007
17 February 2007
Happy Spring Festival!
Today is the biggest festival of all in China: the Spring Festival, or Chinese new year. Today people are going to get together with their family members, play with fireworks, eat Jiaozi, and watch the traditional evening show on TV. We are going to play a little bit gambling with Majiang too. Hope I can win this time.
Happy Spring Festival!
Happy Spring Festival!
8 February 2007
Going Home
Tomorrow I am going to my parents' place in Huludao city. It is another place that I call home, which makes much more sense than the place I am currently living in. Although I just returned a couple of months ago, I still miss my dad and mum very much. It's not just about nice food and no home-cleaning, although they are certainly pluses. I like walking with my dad after dinner, enjoy teaching my mother English, and everything. And I have a lot of fun playing games with them. I can really feel peaceful in my heart at home.
Recently, I have been studying, working, and studying again away from home. So I can only stay with my parents for less than three weeks each year. Even though they don't talk about it, I know they miss me a lot. I believe that old people's utmost joy comes from being with their family. Since I have the time this year, at least for now, I would like to stay with them as long as possible. They say that there is no place like home and a person with parents should never travel far away from home. How true!
Recently, I have been studying, working, and studying again away from home. So I can only stay with my parents for less than three weeks each year. Even though they don't talk about it, I know they miss me a lot. I believe that old people's utmost joy comes from being with their family. Since I have the time this year, at least for now, I would like to stay with them as long as possible. They say that there is no place like home and a person with parents should never travel far away from home. How true!
6 February 2007
Warm Winter
Recently, the temperature goes up to 10 degrees, which is the highest of the same time in the recent 160 years.
It's really warm outside. But most people including me are not used to it yet and still wear too much clothes. On the street, you cannot help overhearing the complaints of the passersbies, especially in the shopping malls or supermarkets which still keep the warm air blowing.
Forecasts show that there is going to be a snow in a couple of days. I am more than happy with that. It's not that I don't like spring, which I do. Thinking of the steamy and sweaty days of summer, I just want the cool air of the late winter to linger a little longer.
It's really warm outside. But most people including me are not used to it yet and still wear too much clothes. On the street, you cannot help overhearing the complaints of the passersbies, especially in the shopping malls or supermarkets which still keep the warm air blowing.
Forecasts show that there is going to be a snow in a couple of days. I am more than happy with that. It's not that I don't like spring, which I do. Thinking of the steamy and sweaty days of summer, I just want the cool air of the late winter to linger a little longer.
2 February 2007
Master of the Game
I hear from the news that Sydney Sheldon died a few days ago. He is one of my favorist novelists. Since a young boy, I have read and loved most of his novels.
My personal favorites are If Tomorrow Comes (Chinese translation: The Female Count of Monte Cristo) and Master of the Game (Chinese translation: The Diamond Dynasty). Both of them have been adapted into tv series and showed on some local Chinese tevivision. However, they have not been very popular in China. Most people have never heard of Sydney Sheldon and his novels, especially for those born after the 1980s.
Sheldon is very good at telling stories with complicated backgrounds. They are often made up of sagas of 4-5 generations, such as Master of the Game. Violence, sex, love, hate and revenge are all necesarry ingredients of the story, weaved together by different story lines together with unexpected twists.
Most of Sheldon's books are often categoried as pop-sellers, so many critics might not really appreciate his novels. But it really doesn't matter to people like me as long as we enjoy reading them. In my mind, he is really the master of his game.
My personal favorites are If Tomorrow Comes (Chinese translation: The Female Count of Monte Cristo) and Master of the Game (Chinese translation: The Diamond Dynasty). Both of them have been adapted into tv series and showed on some local Chinese tevivision. However, they have not been very popular in China. Most people have never heard of Sydney Sheldon and his novels, especially for those born after the 1980s.
Sheldon is very good at telling stories with complicated backgrounds. They are often made up of sagas of 4-5 generations, such as Master of the Game. Violence, sex, love, hate and revenge are all necesarry ingredients of the story, weaved together by different story lines together with unexpected twists.
Most of Sheldon's books are often categoried as pop-sellers, so many critics might not really appreciate his novels. But it really doesn't matter to people like me as long as we enjoy reading them. In my mind, he is really the master of his game.
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