Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Japanese Name Translation

I found the neatest thing!



Go to the bottom of my blog, and see and hear your name written in Japanese!


Also check out the website: Japanese Name Translation

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

A Tribute to Calvin and Hobbes (Part I)

I am posting a five-part series showcasing some of my favorite Calvin and Hobbes moments. However, this blog does not handle pictures very well, so I am posting the series on my other blog.

Enjoy and make sure you laugh! :)


A Tribute to Calvin and Hobbes (Part I)


















Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Shirley Temple Drawing

Four months ago, I posted the Shirley Temple Portrait Series, and for my final addition to the series, I have converted The "Dimples" portrait from black-and-white, to color.

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Before . . .






and after!




I did all of the coloring and touch up by hand on Arcsoft PhotoImpression 3. Yes 'tis a pathetic program, I know, but it works! :)


I think the original drawing looks the best, but I do like the colored one, as well. Voice your opinion! :)

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If you would like to see the pictures in a larger size, go to my blog of graphic art:

AnnaPavlovaFan














Friday, November 02, 2007

Happily Ever After

I thought this quote from Ever After was funny:

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Henry: Do you really think there is only one true mate?

Leonardo: As a matter of fact, I do.

Henry: Well, then how can you be certain to find them? And if you do find them, are they really the one for you, or do you only think they are?
And what happens to the person you’re supposed to be with – what if she never appears, or she does, but you’re too distracted to notice?

Leonardo: You learn to pay attention.

Henry: Then let’s say... God puts two people on earth and they are lucky enough to find one another. But - one of them gets hit by lightning. Well then what? Is that it? Or perchance you marry all over again – is that the lady you were supposed to be with or was it the first? And if so, if the both of them were walking side by side, were they both the one for you and you just happened to meet the first one first, or… was the second one supposed to be first?
And is everything just chance or... are some things meant to be.

Leonardo: You cannot leave everything to fate boy. She has a lot to do - sometimes you must give her a hand!

Thursday, November 01, 2007

Places in the World I would like to go to…



Some of the places in the world I would like to go to someday are:




Australia...

Because Australians are cool (and I love their accents!)



*

The Sydney Opera House in Australia boasts the largest display of fireworks on New Year's Eve.


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China ...

Because I like China


*

*
Beautiful China

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France...

Because it would be neat to visit the palace of Versailles and other places





Eiffel Tower at dusk

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Germany...

Because I’m learning German



Unter der Linde, East Berlin, Germany

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Greece...

Because I’m reading ancient Greek and Roman mythology and it would be neat to visit some of the places I’m reading about




The Parthenon in Athens, Greece

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Ireland...

Because the Irish are cool






Mourne Mountains, Northern Ireland

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Israel...

Because it would be really neat to visit Jerusalem and to walk where Jesus walked 2000 years ago




Golden Gate, Jerusalem, Israel



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Italy...

Because I’m still studying ancient Greek and Roman mythology




Ruins of Pompeii, Italy, damaged by an earthquake in AD 63 and totally covered in AD 79 by the great eruption of Mount Vesuvius


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Japan...


Because I love Japan!!!!!!



*
The Portland Japanese Garden


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New Zealand...

Because you wouldn’t want to leave New Zealand out, now would you? Besides, I hear it’s pretty this time of year.




East Cape Island, New Zealand


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Russia...

Because Russians are awesome, and I love the language!




Early morning street scene, Moscow

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South Korea...
Because I love Korea!!!!!!




Confucian monastery, Seoul, South Korea

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United Kingdom...

Because British accents are cool and it would be a neat place to visit.






Stonehenge, Wiltshire, UK







Wales, UK





Isle of Wight, UK


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Vietnam...

Because I love Vietnam!!!




Cu Chi tunnels, Vietnam



Common mode of transport, Nha Trang, Vietnam




Hoi Anh, Vietnam




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Thank you for sharing this journey with me across the world!

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(Countries are in alphabetical order)


~~ All pictures are the courtesy of "Webster's Encyclopedia 2005" unless otherwise noted: (e.g: * ) ~~

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

On the Outside and Barely Able to Look In

A few months ago, I heard about this new internet thing called “FaceBook”. What was it? I wondered. I heard mention that it was something like MySpace, except better. Well, in my opinion, if FaceBook was in any comparison with MySpace, I wasn’t going to get involved.

Soon after, however, I got 'invites' in emails from two friends of mine asking me to join FaceBook, and it made me curious as to what exactly FaceBook actually was. I asked two of my friends, but both of their responses were almost identical:

“Well, I can’t really explain it. You’ll just have to sign up and see for yourself”

I then started to get frustrated. Obviously, I wasn’t going to sign up for some internet site I knew nothing about. Then one day, I nearly begged a friend to tell me what FaceBook was, because no one else was giving me any hint whatsoever! He then told me that it is merely a place online to easily interact with people and post pictures and so on. He also mentioned that since many friends are using it, FaceBook can become very addicting and time-consuming, because you know, you just have to find out if your buddy put a ‘Post’ on your ‘Wall’! ;)

I was so relieved and I thought,

“Phew! I thought I was missing out on something. Besides, I don’t need any internet 'addictions' in my life, and I can get to know people well enough in person!”

Satisfied, I continued with my life. However, I would hear from my friends about all of their ‘going-ons’ on FaceBook, and I would get almost frustrated.

“Oh forget it, people!” I would think. “It’s just a silly internet site!”

A few weeks later, I heard about how many of my friends and more were using FaceBooks, and it started to don on me. All of these people were interacting, having fun, and getting to know one another with these FaceBooks. I started to think,

“Maybe getting a FaceBook wouldn’t be so bad. I could get to know a lot of people and get to know my friends a lot better. I could post and share cute pictures with my friends, and . . . Wait! What am I thinking?!? Ah! I can’t! I have too much on my plate! I don’t want to get addicted to FaceBook – because I know I will! No – I can’t!!”

Still the thoughts and longings to have fun with friends and getting to know people kept taunting me.

It would be as if you heard about this great and fun party at a friend’s house and everyone you knew was going to it. You show up somewhat late, but there is still a long line leading into the house. You watch the crowd for a while, filled with all of your friends and other people whom you’ve seen, but never talked to, and would like to get to know. This party would be the perfect place to socialize, get to know them, and have fun!

As you are still standing off to the side and watching the crowd, the last group enters the house, and you notice your best friend walking through the doorway. She notices you and stops and says with a smile,

“What are you waiting for? Come on! The party’s already started!”

You’re not really sure what to say, and in no time at all, you’re standing all alone on the lawn. You can hear the music and laughter coming from inside, and you go up to a window to see what’s going on.

“I know it would be easier and quicker for me to go in the house,” You think, “but I want to see what’s going on first”.

You notice that the curtains are drawn, and you can’t see a thing. With a sigh, you step back onto the front lawn and stare at the house. Music and laughter from people taunt you as you realize that you couldn’t possibly enter that house. You know that the party will last for hours and hours, and you don’t have that kind of time. It would be such a simple step of walking through that door, and letting the fun and socialization begin, but you just know you can’t risk it! So you stand there all alone . . . torn . . .

After what seems an eternity, your best friend comes outside to get some fresh air. She notices you and asks,

“Where on earth have you been? You’ve been missing out on all the action!”

You tell her your dilemma.

“Yeah, you’re totally right,” She says. “It is super fun in there, but it’s almost too much fun. I needed a break, so I came outside to get some air”.

She pauses and says, “But, yeah, I’m really sorry you don’t want to come in. I miss you in there”.

This makes you almost go insane. What do you do? Go with the ‘in crowd’ and have a blast with your friends and have sweet fellowship, or follow your convictions and feel completely left out of everything (and it wouldn’t be for the first time in your life)?



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



I know it’s just a ‘fad’ and that everyone I know will have participated in it and then in a year or two it’ll all be gone. However, in that year, people will have gotten to know one another better (I mean, as much as people can get to know one another online), and I will have missed it all.

I don’t know . . . maybe my motivations are wrong for wanting to have a FaceBook. Maybe it’s just me wanting to be in with ‘the latest fad’ for once in my life, or to be ‘in’ with the ‘cool kids’ and get to know and hang out with them.

I’m sure there are some Bible verses to help me with this silly thing, but I cannot think of any, otherwise I probably would not have written this irrelevant post.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Your Music Tastes Shows Your Character

If you're hearing music and you don't know where it's coming from, have no fear! I have recently added a music player called Project Playlist, where it harmlessly plays music that I know and love, and wish to share with all of you! The Player is located at the bottom of my blog, where you can browse the several songs I have added. Enjoy!

I have always thought that the music someone listens to shows a little bit about that person, and I thought what better way to express myself a little more to you all with my choice and style of music that I listen to!

Thursday, October 11, 2007

The Big Red Button Game

Warning:
Not recommended for people without humor




This is really silly, but I personally think it is hilarious!

So, go ahead and press The Big Red Button!!





Put The Big Red Button on your site

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

The Highlights of My Summer

This past summer of 2007 had probably been the busiest summer of my life so far. It had been filled with get-togethers with friends and families, summer classes, vacations, and above all, growing in Christ. In this post, I will lead you through the sweet and forever memorable highlights of my summer of 2007.

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My first “official” vacation of my life began in May, when my best friend, Hannah P. invited me to go with her and her family to a few of Oregon’s beaches. After traveling on a few-hours-long road trip, among other things, we stopped and visited the Tillamook cheese factory where we got some of the famous Tillamook ice-cream, which I thought was quite a treat. We then continued on our trip and stayed at three different time-shares where we experienced three different beaches; one of which was Cannon Beach (while we were driving through a small neighborhood in the Cannon Beach area, we saw several doe just standing in twos and threes munching grass and shrubbery!).



At whichever beach we would be staying, Hannah and I would walk the beaches several times daily. There we would comb the sands, looking for shells and unique rocks while we would let the waves chase us as we would laugh and giggle hysterically.

As I would watch the beautiful and powerful ocean, I would be in awe at God’s glory shining through His creation, and I would think how wonderful God was (and is) that He made all of it and gave it to us, His creation. The beautifulness of it all would make me want to cry with joy.

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Another highlight in May was that Mother’s Day. My Dad had suggested to Christopher and me to gather pictures from photo albums of Michael and us when we were young, scan them onto a computer, and create a slideshow as a gift for our Mom. Scavenging through several photo albums and pictures on our computers, we gathered 69 photos and put them together into a delightful slideshow which was accompanied by some audios of our favorite movie quotes that went perfectly with some of the cutest and funniest pictures. Our Mom enjoyed it immensely.



One of the pictures featured in the slideshow

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On June 2nd, I had the privilege and pleasure to be in On Your Toes Studios Ballet recital “The Promise” where I was blessed to play the lead role, Josie. The recital had been probably the most creative recital the studio had seen: it demonstrated some of the wonderful usages of dancers with props, and creative, yet simple sets all accompanied by imaginative and beautiful choreography and dancers.




One of my favorite pictures of the recital taken by a friend

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Also in June was my friend Lu'o'ng Linh's birthday and goodbye party (she was an exchange student from Vietnam, and she went by the name of Vivian). I had gotten to know her that past school year and we became friends. On June 10th, she hosted a birthday and goodbye party, because she was going to go back to Vietnam and her birthday was that week. Two of her Vietnamese friends were there whose names were Teresa and [oo-E-en] (I have no idea how to spell her name!).

We all immensely enjoyed playing Slap Jack together, and we were so hyperactive, that we would laugh and scream in hysterics almost the entire time (at least I know I did!)! We ate cake and ice-cream and we all gave gifts to Linh. I am so thankful that she has come back to Oregon and will remain here for a full year!



[oo-E-en], Teresa, Lu'o'ng Linh, and me (wearing a Vietnamese bracelet/hair-band I got from Linh :) )

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On June 29th, I went over to Joelle L.’s house for a sleepover, and the next day, she and several of her friends and I went to Mount Tabor in Portland where we filmed portions of Amber C.’s medieval-fiction novel, “Chronicles”. All prepared with costumes and props, we had a wonderful time having fun and deciding what to do (we only filmed two shots in the few hours we were there). Later, we came back to Joelle’s house and shot a part of a scene that had many lines spoken by my character, Evelyn. After several takes and bloopers on my part, we finally finished part of the scene. Afterwards, when we all sat down and watched what we filmed, almost everyone commented on my acting abilities and I was indeed very pleased and humble.



Joelle took this picture of me while I was eating a “Barbossa Apple”

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In July, A Friend invited me to go to the Lost Lake resort in Oregon, with her, her sisters, and three of her friends. There we had fun and delightful fellowship by canoeing, craw-dad catching, swimming, picking mulberries, and hiking. My most favorite of the activities was the canoeing, for those were the first times I had ever gone canoeing – not to mention the first times in boats!
As we would canoe across the vast lake, sometimes in the morning when mist and fog covered the lake and the treetops, I would sit and watch the fish jumping and the clouds slowly swirling around Mount Hood. The lake was so big, and Mount Hood was so enormous and beautiful! It made me realize how big Oregon really was. And if Oregon was big, the world was so much bigger than I had ever imagined! It once again brought me to God in awe and thankfulness.



Mount Hood from the view of the Lost Lake resort



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One day in the beginning of August, while visiting A Friend’s home, she told me something very interesting. She informed me that my room had nothing that glorified God in it. My room was dripping with Star Wars and Lord of the Rings related items which consisted of posters, bedding, toys, and books. She encouraged me that if I replaced them with God glorifying items, it would ultimately glorify God. At first I could not imagine taking down and putting away all of my items I had poured my money, time, and imagination into. However, as I thought about it, I realized it would be better for me in the end, because in fact I had recently begun to realize that I had made Star Wars and Lord of the Rings my idols and I almost constantly thought about them. I know that sounds childish for a seventeen year-old, but that’s the truth.

A few days later, I put away all of my Star Wars and Lord of the Rings items, and it made me feel so much better! It felt like I had a brand new start (the fact that it made my room looked bigger was pretty neat, as well)! I am looking forward to redecorating my room this upcoming year with God-glorifying items.



Before…




and After!




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On August 19th, my oldest brother Michael came home from Army Airborne School. It was so wonderful to have him back! We spent a lot of time with him and his girlfriend, Nichole.

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On August 23rd, my family (accompanied with Michael and Nichole) all traveled to my Grandmother’s house in Astoria to celebrate her seventy-fifth birthday. Several other family members were there as well. We had a lot of fun and my Grandmother was completely surprised because she did not know that we all had the party planned.

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On the 25th, while still in Astoria, my family, including Michael and Nichole and an Aunt and Uncle, went to the Astoria Column where we climbed the stairs to the top. After enjoying the sights and views, Michael dropped to one knee and asked Nichole to be his wife. She accepted.




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Michael left on the first of September to go to Oahu, Hawaii, where he will be stationed for two years. He and Nichole plan to have their wedding in the December Christmas break of this year if Michael is not transferred to Iraq. If he does get transferred, they will have to have the wedding after his two years of enlistment is up.



On our way to the airport: Michael, Me, Nichole, and Christopher

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Thank you for letting me share the highlights of my summer of 2007 with you. It was a very good summer filled with sweet fellowship and memories.

Monday, September 03, 2007

An Anniversary...

I have found out that I have had my blog for approximately a year and eight days today!


Here is my very first post I published on the 29th of August, 2006:



I have also had my other updated blog for approximately a year and ten days! There I publish my graphic art and other fun projects I work on. I encourage you to check it out! :)



Monday, August 27, 2007

A Special Surprise...


On August 25, at the top of the Astoria Column, my brother Michael asked his girlfriend, Nicole to be his wife.



They plan to get married around the Christmas season break when Michael will be back for a short leave from his station in Hawaii (he is enlisted in the Army).

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Shirley Temple Portrait series (Part IV "Dimples")


Here is the last portrait in this series. So far, this is the best picture I have ever drawn in my life, and that is very encouraging because I had not drawn anything for months when I drew it.

Since there were so many choices, I asked my mom to help pick which doll that I should draw and she suggested the “Dimples” Shirley doll because of the shading techniques and the 3D look. It turned out great – thanks mom! :)

This drawing has rekindled the love I have for drawing, and I am looking forward to drawing many more pictures of the adorable Shirley Temple and others!

Read: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV

Monday, July 09, 2007