78, 79, 80

78 What’s the best gift you’ve ever received? Why was it so special? (05/03/2023)

A mala bracelet from my dad on my 21st birthday. When I was a kid, I received toys like cars and action figures on my birthday. As I grew up into a teenager, most of my gifts were clothes like shirts, jackets, pants, and shoes. I did not wear a large majority of them. It's not that I hated the styles of those clothes. I was in a high schooler phase where the only thing I wore was a shirt, hoodie zipped up, hood over my head, jeans, and running shoes almost everyday. I had the nickname Biraj Blueberry because I would wear all blue from a blue hoodie, blue t-shirt, blue jeans, and my blue running shoes almost everyday at school. All those clothes I received during my birthdays, I never ended up wearing them. 80% of them I only wore once or never before I threw them away or my mom gave them to someone else, donated them, or reused them to clean the house.
My parents were asking me what I wanted for my 21st birthday. They were suggesting, a tablet, a brand new iphone, or clothes. I told them, I want something I can wear everyday for the rest of my life like a bracelet or necklace that doesn't have any jewelery. So, I ended up with a mala bracelet as a gift. Buddhist monks usually use them as prayer bracelets during meditation. It has two red beads which symbolizes detaching oneself from worldy desires. The middle green bead represents balance and harmony.
After wearing it for almost two years, I don't think I have taken it off more than 10 times. It stays on me when I am asleep, running, showering, weightlifting, and working.
Buddhism is the closes thing to a religion that I will ever be a part of. I used to believe in an idea of god and karma. When I was a kid, I used to believe that if you prayed hard enough god will make your wishes come true whether it was me praying for the rain to come or for the bottle that I left in the bus to magically reappear in my room. Sadly, none of my prayers come true. My biggest gripe with god is that he only takes the credit for good world events but never the blame for bad world events. If a miracle happens like a child being saved after a car accident, god gets praise but if there is a natural disaster with thousands of death, god doesn't get the blame. What's wrong with praising god is that it takes credit away from the people who actually made the different whether its the doctor who saved the kid's life, the teacher who made sure his/her students did well in their studies to go to college, or the inspectors making sure that all our food are properly grown and maintained to prevent food poisoning. Why are we thanking god for our meal when it was my mom and dad who bought the groceries, and took out the time and effort to cook them for us?
Sorry, I went off-topic. For the most part I don't believe in god anymore nor prayers other than shooting stars. However, I still have some belief in the ideas of Buddhism such as the idea that our suffering is endless. We humans always want one thing after another. Satisfying one want leads to the creation of another because we always desire something new or greater. Having a place to live isn't enough, you want a bigger apartment, a bigger house, or a taller balcony view. Our problems and suffering is endless until our death.
Buddhism suggests letting go of all wants and worldly desires to achieve enlightenment. However, I disagree. I don't want to let go of everything and be empty inside. I have dreams and people in this world that I care deeply about. They give me meaning and purpose in life and I am willing to suffer for them. I also don't 100% believe in the idea of heaven, hell, or reincarnation. You can call me a fake/lazy Buddhist. I still wear the Buddhist mala bracelet because its how I grew up and I still retain some beliefs about it.

79 What’s the best class you’ve ever taken and why? (05/03/2023)

COMM 11: Public Speaking taught by Darryl-Keith Ogata
At Santa Monica College in Winter 2019.

It's about self-expression. Throughout out the semester, our goal was to give 3 speeches total alongside studying different aspects of communication. The most important lesson is all communication is two-ways. Even when I am listening to someone speak to me, I am always communicating something back. My eye contact whether its pointed at their eyes, on the floor, or away into the scenery communicates something. My head nodding, sudden changes in my breathing, my throat gulping, my hands being in my pocket or folded up also communicate something even though I am not speaking a word and just listening.
Growing up, the large majority of us study different classes ranging from math, english, science, history, etc in school. However, we aren't taught how to manage money as an adult, how to properly express ourselves to others, and learning to critically think for ourselves. I love this class because you get to both express yourself and what you care about while developing your communication skills which affects both your personal and professional life.
Each of us took turns giving speeches to the class and gave feedback to them. Speeches ranged from the legalization of psychedelics, importance of ear protection in concerts, learning different languages through Netflix foreign dubs and subtitles, and why you should visit Japan.
My speeches were about the dangers of loneliness, different resources on campus, and benefits of napping.
We all came from different backgrounds and the speeches allowed each of us to express a part of who we are to the rest of the class. I made two close friends who were international students and we often played Catan and other board games after class in empty classrooms. Growing up in Asian culture, self-expression isn't valued as much compared to getting good grades and earning a high salary. This class helped me and others to receive a much-needed lesson on self-expression. This is one of the classes I believe everyone should take at least once in their life. Even to this day, I have saved the textbook and some of the coursework on my google drive 5 years later.

80 If money were no object, what house would you buy and why? (05/03/2023)

I would buy a house in Culver City, in the same neighborhood as my family. It would be a small one floor house with a small attic. There would also be a garage and a garden in the back. However, my car would always be parked in the driveway since I would use my garage as my home gym. I would have two smith machines, one for squats/shoulder presses and the other for bench-presses. I would have a dip/pull machine as well and a small area with soft pads for deadlifts. Lastly, a treadmill because I am a cardio bunny.
The garden would mainly have grass and a small waterfall machine that repeatedly pushes water up but it to waterfall repeatedly. The only downside would be me watering it every day since Los Angeles is a dry desert where it rarely rains.
Other than the garden and my garage gym, I don't care much about what's in the home as long as it's clean and functioning. I want the floor to be wood with an oil layering to maintain it. Compared to a carpet floor, it will be less dusty, prone to spills, and easier to clean with a wet Swiffer sweeper. The only downside is it will be more slippery. Plus, it will be more enjoyable for my brother whenever he visits me since he is allergic to dust/pollen.
Every morning, I wake up, make myself either tea, coffee, or a flavored caffeinated drink. I relax in my back garden and enjoy my drink on a small wooden bench. I leave my drink in the kitchen sink and start doing my workout for the day. After 1-2 hours of working out, I shower and get ready to head to work.
Some additional thoughts. I want my living room TV to be big. I want to appreciate the 4k graphics of the video games I play whether. My dining room would have a large circle wooden table for when I invite my friends over for either dinner or board game nights. Occasionally, I would reuse the table to prep my meals before I began cooking them. I imagine me and my friends splitting tasks between dicing the vegetables or mixing the minced beef with different spices. As we are prepping, there is music playing in the background from one of our phones and we are sharing banter here and there. That will be a really fun night. I also want my garden to have a small table and 3 chairs for when i want to have an intimate conversation. If my friend needs somebody to talk to, we go to the garden, have some tea and I start listening. Life doesn't seem so bad if it was like that.