Sunday, July 29, 2007

Brokenness


見過這樣的照片嗎?通常flickr不時會跳出來:一男一女,看來是在勁舞中吧?女的狂放,舉手繃臉,男的呢?他的表情更豐富,真的,男的總是在表演著,表演醉人,表演狂野,靠近女的身體。

大部份男人都知道,男的在做戲,他配合女的狂野,才能更靠近。

只是,有一天女的會告訴你,她也是在表演,對,她的戲更好,男的以為有機會,跑過去合演。

一夜纏綿,誰騙了誰?誰給誰搞到手了?也許,誰還依戀昨夜的餘溫就是輸家。是的,不當輸家,代價是忘記自己的一部份,早晚,要忘記自己的全部。

其實,沒有贏家,只有輸家。

Link

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Saturday, July 28, 2007

惡人先告狀

【明報專訊】溫市府僱員連日罷工令市內滿地垃圾,特別是煙花匯演過後的海灘一帶滿目瘡痍,有一家公司的好心員工義務清理,昨日卻遭罷工的工人猛烈指摘,一方面懷疑他們是否有暗中收錢,另一方面指稱就算他們是沒有拿錢的義工,實質上仍然是掠奪了原本有人可以拿錢而進行的工作,工會不會容許這樣的事情發生。

但發動義務清理海灘的義工們強調沒有拿取分毫,完全出於愛護溫市,也不是市府暗中請來的,如果工會覺得冒犯,他們在餘下三晚煙花匯演將不敢繼續打掃。

「這些人怎麼可能無緣無故跑出來掃垃圾,他們有拿到什麼好處嗎?」加拿大公共僱員工會第1004分會主席傑克遜(Mike Jackson)質疑這些來自一家清潔公司的義工們清理海灘的背後動機,更指這些義工可能有收錢,但他拿不出證據。

許多正在罷工的垃圾工人,也對義工們感到相當不滿,認為義工是想「搶走他們的工作職位」。部分工人更怒斥這些義工「沒有權來清理垃圾」。

這是甚麼價值觀?這是甚麼樣的世界??!

明報加西版7月28日加聞版

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總體式剝削

從2006到2007年,莫斯科已連續兩年成為全球生活費用最昂貴的城市。如果把在紐約生活的平均花費設定為指數100,莫斯科整整高出了34.4%,倫敦則高出26.3%。這意謂著一個紐約中產階級到莫斯科生活,他就會發現自己居然變成了窮人階級。而莫斯科之所以生活費用騰貴,主因當然是俄國本身新富階級的熱錢,以及國際游資,加上俄國本身黑道的金錢,合力炒高了房價與物價所致。由於俄國本質上仍是貧窮社會,於是普通莫斯科人遂必須面對高房價高物價持續的剝削。在莫斯科舉世第一昂貴這種假性繁榮下,所隱藏的是普通市民的被嚴重剝削,以及暴露在這種剝削所造成的色情氾濫、竊盜大盛、黑道橫行等風險中。普遍莫斯科市民沒有做錯任何事情,卻承擔了政府施政錯誤的一切後果[...]

近年來印度為了追求高成長,而對外國財團和當地財團特別溫馴。它藉著引進外資——其中90%都投入股市房市,而本身則以低利率,快速的信用擴張,單單去年,印度對公司及家庭的信用擴張即達30%,為中國大陸整整兩倍,今年上半年則持續擴張又再28%。由於擴張所造成的通貨膨脹率最高達到6%到8%,遠遠超過短期利率,於是社會資金更加被導向到股市和房市,更造成股市房市的狂飆,以及物價的騰貴。在過去一年裏,印度已出現平民階層反抗物價的流血暴動;也出現印度政府為了炒作房市而徵收貧民用地,貧民社區也流血反抗的多宗事件。印度追求短期繁榮假象的結果,和莫斯科相同,都是使得普通人民遭到嚴重的剝削。

由於世界的變遷、許多政府的短視無能,新形態且大規模的總體式剝削已日趨普遍。

教會的角色(包括當地的教會和異地的教會)是甚麼?

2007年7月23日明報筆陣版,作者南方朔

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Friday, July 27, 2007

政客廢話寶鑑

“Expert”——那些knows more and more about less and less的人。還有,當官員說「我們要先聽聽專家的意見」,又或者「more research needs to be done」,就是當政府感到一籌莫展,唔知點應付的時候,搬出來令人覺得政府做緊野的擋箭牌。
“This is a hypothetical question”——即係話我唔想答,因為這是答�會對我不利的問題。
“I am glad you asked me that”——傻仔,呢條問題其實我一早預左,答案亦早已準備好,而家正好畀個機會我借題發揮。(順帶一提,如果你問唔岩問題,他就會說:「Yes, but the important thing to understand is....然後照把上述準備好的,照講一次。」)
“I hear what you are saying, but....”——除了「but」以後的說話之外,前面幾隻字全屬廢話。
“Inappropriate”——政客或律師為了逃避法律責任而套用的「溫吞」字眼。例如,你說某位議員當眾豎起中指是「不恰當」的行為,比起說這是無恥、下流、賤格……被人告的風險要細得多。
“Investment”——即係spending咁解,例如we are investing in schools.
“Mistake”——記住永遠要用past tense及passive voice,例如mistakes were made,千祈唔好講I made mistakes,更加不可以講I am making mistakes!
“Monitor”——官員說We will monitor this issue,即係除了睇電視、看報紙之外,他們什麼也不會做。
“Move on”——我們要向前看,即係唔該忘記我們以前做過的衰野,拜託大家再次投我們一票,再畀我們「滾」多次。
“Source close to”——即是政府某位高官的新聞官,而且他(其實十個有九個係女人,應該用「她」)想「點」大家,所以唔好意思出真名,於是吹風前,特地補上一句「off the record」。
“Spin Doctor”——相等於「廢話吹水學」的博士學位(Doctorate in Bullshit, BsD)。
“我唔想咁講”——其實即係:我好想咁講。
“我唔係呢個意思”——其實即係:我正正係呢個意思。
“現在未係適當時候,到時機成熟,我一定會「第一」時間通知大家”——咁即係「第三」、「第四」時間……
“個人意見”——當民建聯說那是馬力的個人意見時,意思就是該黨打算與他劃清界線,千祈唔好拖埋佢地落水。


7月26日明報論壇版,作者蔡子強

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Thursday, July 26, 2007

方太與馬太與你與塔理班

今日突然想起這個陳年笑話:
我最叻!
你點叻?
我識得方太,佢寫《方太與你》!
我仲叻!
你點叻?
我識得馬太,佢寫《馬太福音》!


黑暗的日子居然只想起笑話。

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Wednesday, July 25, 2007

衰佬事工


最近也看了這本震動香港的書:《天水圍十二師奶》。
書中訪問了生活艱苦的十二個天水圍師奶,揭示了社會福利政策的無能和官僚氣;但一切悲劇的根源,不是政府,是每一個苦命婦背後的衰佬。
今日在祈禱會,聽同事訴說別人的苦故事,根源也是衰佬。
教會極需要發展衰佬事工。
我是認真的。

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Tuesday, July 24, 2007

黏在天花上的燈泡

今日無聊,再拾起龍應台的《沙灣徑25號》來看,於是又再看到這則喻言:

有一個鄉下人第一次出城,見到打開水龍頭就有水,按制燈泡就有光,覺得很厲害,於是帶了一個水龍頭和一個燈泡回鄉。他把水龍頭黏在牆上,把燈泡黏在天花上,卻怎也不明白,為何水龍頭不出水,燈泡也沒有光。

原來故事的意思是,香港人以為自己懂英文,便是有所謂國際視野,情況就像喻言中的人一樣無知。但想深一層,當我們作事工時,又可曾試過把燈泡黏在天花上?我們的屬靈生命呢?是否又只是把水龍頭黏在牆上?敬拜呢?是否也只是把燈泡黏在天花上?

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Monday, July 23, 2007

雞翼


香港雞翼文化獨步天下,甚至有自己一套的命名學。「雞翼」是個非常詩意優雅的粵語辭彙,普通話叫「雞翅」,以它的三個主要組成部分:「雞槌」,「雞中翼」和「雞翼尖」,如果請講普通話或其他外語的人用他們的語言來表達,肯定沒有香港人如此厲害,立刻可以說出這三個部位的名稱,一般可能只能支支吾吾說那是雞翼的上面、下面、中間部分。難怪朋友來到香港,力讚港式中文的表達之精確。


我唔鐘意食雞翼。所以我唔算好香港。
我個仔係CBC,不過勁鐘意食雞翼。
凡事有例外。

Link

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Sunday, July 22, 2007

Web 2.0 路線圖



看似巴黎或倫敦地鐵圖,其實是網絡生活路線圖。Where do you want to go today?

Link

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Saturday, July 21, 2007

無獎競猜遊戲(開估)

既然被Gabriel答中,不如順勢開估。
答案是:大陸的樓盤。

更精警的還有:
親愛的Villa,Nolita那裡,飄Home,SM廣場,1+1大廈


看來地產商的創意比我們為團契週會命名時更高。



來自加西明報7月19日副刊

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無獎競猜遊戲

你猜以下的是甚麼?

楓渡萊茵,水倚梟銅,都江森林,徐匯晶典,順發傾城之戀,九如通津,上善若水,東山水戀,雲山熹景,柏菲美泉中,時代花生,藍寶愛琴海,八王子旗,陽光星期八,非中心...


明天揭曉。

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Friday, July 20, 2007

玩具


私人幼兒教育機構「早期教育發展」最近向426個家庭調查,發現15%家庭擁有100件以上的玩具,逾三成幼童家中玩具總值達2萬至5萬元


5萬!即是7000加幣!
玩高達都未駛咁多!
兒童果然是推動經濟的一大動力!

Link

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Thursday, July 19, 2007

Minority Report

Design software company Adobe installed an interactive billboard in New York City that has drawn much attention. Equipped with motion sensors, the graphics on the billboard will change along with the movement of the people passing by.
Well, I'm not exactly impressed by the technology - I don't think it is really really superb. But look at the size of that LCD screen (7 by 15 feet) !!!



The biggest achievement of this is: it gets people really engaged.

Link

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Wednesday, July 18, 2007

市民甲


你終於捨得斷定,你生活在一個怎樣的城市。

下班時份,因為多置了兩張新簽單據在錢包裡,八達通感應器上,你拍卡兩次仍未能前進,不過是三十秒間的事,你身後已傳來一陣怨念,轉頭一看,是三個人六隻仇視的眼睛。你焦慮又狼狽,只好羞愧地避過一旁…… 可是當你的角色換成隊伍中等著他人拍卡前進之時,他人往往能夠氣定神閒、不慌不忙地,無限次嘗試隔著手袋銀包和雜物,拍,再拍,再拍,再拍……

你再累,總不忘讓座,當年你的小學老師教你要禮讓。但那一天你突然身體不適面青唇白的蹲在地鐵月台上,一個又一個行人走過,他們瞟你一眼,沒有人問你可需要幫忙。

你勤懇工作態度認真,你的客戶非常滿意你的表現,認為你是盡責的可靠的。可是你老闆跟你說,你不夠落力,因為你想有下班時間,你想在法定假期放假,你想有社交生活。

你記得當年逆境,沒辦法之下唯有接受短期合約和大幅減薪的事實,數年來薪金沒調整過,租金和柴米油鹽價錢漲得比你的薪水快。如今終於有加薪的機會了,但你知道那微薄的小恩小惠,遠低於管理層的薪水加幅,因為這裡流行「肥上瘦下」政策。

你年紀還小的時候,父母教你要努力讀書努力工作,因為他們眼看,社會給予個人發展機會。你三十歲時,父母知道你夠辛苦了,卻還負擔不起自置物業或年終旅行,他們沒再對你嘮叨什麼。你也漸漸認同,那些人在報上寫的甚麼「三十不出頭」之類的說法。

你從小長大的社區,你熟悉的街道和店舖,後來,悉數變成大大小小的商場。

你也曾上街遊行,在自己的網誌右上角掛上爭取普選的旗幟。有一晚你跟伴侶看新聞節目,突然轉頭問她,你我有生之年,會看見普選嗎?她聳聳肩,又搖搖頭。你也開始覺得,算吧。

你終於斷定,這是一個,除了你自己之外,為所欲為的城市。啊,這城市為所欲為。這城市為所欲為。

你不願再多想甚麼,你買了新的遊戲機,並在考慮要不要跟他們一樣炒股票。


Link

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Tuesday, July 17, 2007

「治怕醜」噴霧

怕醜都有得醫?瑞士科學家最近發明神奇「治怕醜」噴霧。怕醜人士只要用鼻子索一索,便能在大庭廣眾下處變不驚,趕絕面紅和口窒。
瑞士蘇黎世大學的科學家花了近10年時間,將催產素轉化為「治怕醜」噴霧。科學家早前邀請70名有社交障礙人士參與研究。他們在出席社交場合前半小時使用噴霧,結果顯示每個人在與他人溝通時都不再焦慮。科學家目前正對噴霧作更大型測試,料5年內正式推出市面。


感覺很叮噹。但我想要啊!

來自明報7月15日國際版

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Monday, July 16, 2007

傳道人(那邊)



Christianity Today, May 2007, Comic by Kevin Frank

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Sunday, July 15, 2007

傳道人(這邊)

「傳道是永遠沒法做完、做夠、做好的工作。倒過來說,人們總可從一位傳道的工作中,找到未做完、做得不夠、做得不好的地方。」


Link

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Saturday, July 14, 2007

Effective Design


Effective design communicates emotions.

Link

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Friday, July 13, 2007

The church needs a global paradigm

The church cannot escape globalization. The world is so different now. Words like "mission", "fellowship", "community" have all taken on new meanings. It's time for a paradigm shift - is there a stronger word than "shift"?

That America continues to look inward is no secret. While Americans may be among the most info-saturated people in the world, their knowledge of the world around them continues to dwindle. Few Americans have traveled the globe, fewer still have worked in the global marketplace.


...why the American evangelical community did “not pause for a moment in the rush to war to consider the near-unanimous disapproval of the global Christian community?” As America launched its war in Iraq (or on Iraq – as the European media sees it), The White House’s Christian supporters stood silent as their co-religionists across the globe spoke in unison against the invasion of Iraq.


America’s Christians must “reach out to our brothers and sisters abroad. We must reshape the way we live in the global Christian community…” Going global has become an imperative – businesses, students, politicians, thinkers, doers…and now believers must redouble their efforts to understand and integrate with the rest of the world.


Link

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Thursday, July 12, 2007

常識不常

來自今日明報國際版:
加拿大的研究發現,如配戴iPod等音樂裝置被雷電擊中,將加強傷勢,所以在雷雨中跑步,不要帶iPod。

加拿大的研究指出,一名39歲牙醫於去年在溫哥華跑步時,被雷電擊中,電流通過iPod的機身及耳筒,傳至的胸部、頸部、耳及頭部,令耳膜破裂,耳骨移位,顎骨出現四處骨折,胸部及頸部被灼傷。

醫生相信,使用iPod雖不會增加被雷電擊中的機會,但可能令傷勢加劇,所以外出跑步時,如遇上雷雨天氣,最好將iPod留在家中。


有雷雨,根本就不應外出跑步啦!常識!

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Wednesday, July 11, 2007

「香港始終有你」 vs. 「香港始終屬祢」


聖潔公義的主,來到你面前,
我們要為個人和整體的失敗向你認罪,
我們只顧發展經濟,忽視公義,分配不均,
貧富懸殊更加嚴重,貧窮問題更為惡化。
我們貪愛物質,只求個人慾念得著滿足,
價值扭曲、是非顛倒,
不法不義增多,道德不再重視。
求你除掉我們的自私和貪婪,
教導我們肯定真理、尊重生命,
款待外人、關愛弱小,
好讓城市充滿尊重及和諧。


胡志偉牧師所寫的「香港回歸十周年禱文」

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Tuesday, July 10, 2007

表皮消費

有看回歸騷嗎? 你認為, 楊千嬅小姐的《小城大事》, 聽過後, 應該快樂, 抑或憂戚? [...]「吻下來, 豁出去, 這吻別似覆水; 再來也許要天上團聚。我下來, 你出去, 如曾經不登對, 你何以雙眼總在流淚。每年這天記得再流淚......」你是英國, 我是中國? 是英國吻過香港, 中國才豁出去? 抑或原來是修辭技巧中的「意會」, 我(英國旗)下來, 你(中國旗)出去? [...] 唯一可以想像,《小城大事》跟「回歸」唯一的關係, 只有歌名。歌手、聽眾, 都不會聽真歌詞是在唱什麼。那就是「表皮消費」。

比方說, 我相信, 何超儀在巴士的回歸騷中, 唱搖滾版的《勇敢的中國人》, 是別開生面的。最驚喜的, 都應該是黃家強來一扣偷天換日, 摻入私貨。他在那個晚會中, 唱了Beyond的《長城》。是, 歌名是對的, 可是, 只要大家不太善忘, 這首歌, 是說六四的。[...] 就是這種「表皮消費」[...]

像某些女性偶像出書, 就得到一個「才女」的光環一樣。大眾的認知是: 阿邊個出書架喎, 仲唔係才女? 好勁呀, 去睇《××愛》囉。[...] 就是這種「表皮消費」[...]

當咖啡店賣咖啡豆又要公平貿易, 去馬莎買茶包又要公平, T恤又說要公平, 可是, 有沒有人想過, 那些「公平」, 跟有機蔬菜一樣, 又有多有機, 有多公平? 歸根究底,「不公平貿易」是如何形式的? 是什麼人把貿易變得不公平, 再把「貿易公平過來」變成賣點?

這幾天的環保袋風雲就更令我下巴也跌到不知何處去。[...] 這批所謂環保袋, 原來不只是不特別環保, 它的用棉有可能不是公平貿易的棉、而且它的製造地區, 是中國, 即是世界工廠那些1小時只有20至30便士的工人, 一針一血的做出來的。而且, 這些袋子, 運送到英國的時候, 也有排放大量的二氧化碳。環保?

對香港人來說, 這些東西重要嗎? 不。因為, 香港人真的不在乎他們買的東西, 究竟是什麼。只要Wyman說好、Juno穿過、在Milk見過、Edison賣的, 就是潮。

消費主義, 是一種你情我願的勾當。如果人家有辦法「笑你班友低B」都仍可以賺你錢, 除了怨自己低B, 還有什麼好說? 香港這一個南中國的沿岸城市, 將來10年, 真的有黃金十年嗎? 一些聽《小城大事》也不會「留意歌詞」的人, 有資格有黃金十年嗎?



原文來自明報2007年7月8日副刊,作者健吾。

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Monday, July 09, 2007

A Perfect Mess


I want to read this book. It may be a strong support for how I "organize" my study room... (and my desks... and my bedroom... and my closet... and my bookcases... everything...)

The authors argue that when you add up all the time you might spend cleaning up your office, that the actual time savings gained in finding things later falls short of the total time you spent cleaning. In other words, that there is no savings in time by being tidy. Furthermore they make a case for messiness as an all-important catalyst for being creative.

Link

Flying utterly in the face of conventional wisdom, the authors turn the world of organization on its head to examine how messy systems can be more effective than highly organized ones. Neatness for its own sake, they say, not only has hidden costs in terms of man-hours that could be spent doing other work but it turns out that the highly touted advantages may not even exist. More loosely defined, moderately disorganized people and businesses seem to be more efficient, more robust, and more creative than the obsessively neat. As examples, the authors cite a hardware store crammed to the gills with every sort of product in seemingly disorganized fashion that does twice the business of the "neat" one down the block; a grade school where the students are allowed random access to learning materials with no structured lessons, and no discipline problems; and the seemingly chaotic life of Arnold Schwarzenegger, who refuses to make appointments and sees everyone on the fly. The chronically messy will revel in the anecdotes but may need to skip the terminology.

Reviews on Amazon

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Saturday, July 07, 2007

Does the iPhone Look So Great Because Everything Else is So Bad?


It's not over yet. I think the iPhone phenomenon will still be talked about for a while. And people keep on finding new perspectives to approach it. Here is an interesting one from Fast Company (again).

When was the last time a car made anyone’s spirits soar? GM just had their worst June in nine years. And it’s not like the foreign automakers are bringing any turbo-charge of excitement to their showrooms, either. BMW, Mercedes, Lexus and Audio make perfectly fine vehicles, but there are only predictable, incremental improvements from model year to model year. The only semblance of consumer intensity – for hybrid vehicles – is fueled by politics, not engineering.


Why is so much of the consumer economy so boring? In large part, marketers talk about creating a culture of innovation, but then either isolate the truly original ideas, Guantanamo-style, or subject them to death-by-PowerPoint and death by research. It’s easy to look at the iPhone and then reverse-engineer the arguments that would have killed it off at damn near any other company:

  • “Consumers will reject a keyboard they can’t feel.”

  • “No one will spend that much for a phone.”

  • “You can’t expect people to get a new number online.”

  • “You can’t succeed working with just one carrier.”


The objections would have gone on and on – almost as long as the lines outside the Apple store last week. C’mon now, Steve Jobs is good, but he shouldn’t be lapping the rest of the American consumer economy.


Link

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Friday, July 06, 2007

Extreme Makeover


How would you describe Al Gore? He said in "An Inconvenient Truth", "I used to be the next president of United States." But 7 years after the nonelection, he is now "an Academy Award winner, a bestselling author, a front-runner for the Nobel Prize, and a concert promoter who turned out to be a bigger rock star at this year's Grammys than the rock stars themselves." And he's also a successful businessman who has gained over $100 million net in 7 years.

This article in Fast Company is an interesting one which analyse the story of Al Gore from a "rebranding" point-of-view. I've never thought of Al Gore from this perspective. Great insight on career management. A bit long though.

After the 2000 election, Gore might have slunk away to a loser's life: a memoir here, a visiting professorship there, the occasional keynote speech or celebrity golf tournament. Instead, in what may be the greatest brand makeover in history, Gore is being hailed as a visionary who was right about everything from global warming to Iraq.


Link

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Thursday, July 05, 2007

Vacation with a meaning

For some, the ideal vacation is a week on the beach, slathered in sunscreen, relaxing and reading a trashy novel. For others, a vacation's purpose is to go someplace new, eat great food, and visit a few historical sites or museums. Yet, some travelers want more from a vacation than a tan and some souvenirs. For them, the ideal vacation not only includes visiting a new place and interacting with its people, but it's also about giving something back to the community at the same time.

Volunteering vacations give busy professionals a chance to try their hand at working in a new field such as teaching, construction, or scientific research. While teaching English in China, helping an entomologist study caterpillars in Louisiana, or helping an archeologist preserve a dig site in Albania, volunteers can use their vacation time to learn new skills as well as about a new place.


想來使者vacation的,聯絡我。
講真的。你要如何使用你的假期呢?

Link

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Wednesday, July 04, 2007

名嘴

阿中剛剛post了這video,精彩!這才是名嘴。香港那些,未夠班。



Link
Who is this guy?

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面書


阿榮在他的blog講面書(中文o黎o既),大家去捧捧場啦!

Facebook is becoming a platform. It's already more than a website, it cannot even be call an application. But what's more inspiring is that Facebook is an actualization of a highly viral distribution engine.


Link

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Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Reflections of the Pi Class (14)

This is strickingly average.

-a random comment made in class.

end of series.

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Monday, July 02, 2007

Reflections of the Pi Class (13b)

How do you know you've worshipped?

The answer by Dr. Robert Webber when asked the above question by a student:
I have worshipped when I obey.

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Cities that win in the future

Smart people are choosing to live near smart people.

[...] there are winners in this battle for the future. We call them Fast Cities. They are cauldrons of creativity where the most important ideas and the organizations of tomorrow are centered. They attract the best and brightest. They are great places to work and live.

What makes a Fast City? It starts with opportunity.[...] The second component: innovation. [...] Finally, Fast Cities have energy, that ethereal thing that happens when creative people collect in one place.


Link
Map

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Sunday, July 01, 2007

Reflections of the Pi Class (13)

How do you know you've worshipped?

I'll tell you the answer of Dr. Robert Webber tomorrow.

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  • 正如林一峰話齋,閱讀,也是一種 state of mind。
  • 所以不限文字,還有聲音影像一切雜崩能東西,都在涉獵反思消化乾坤大挪移之列。
  • 看重的只有一個字:Insight

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I work at Westside Baptist Church. Of course, that doesn't mean they agree with everything I post or link here. Everything here is my personal opinion and is not read or approved in advance. Consider yourself warned.