I am a Catchy Title

Announcement!

2008-09-25T14:17:00.003-04:00

Because I'm a Finicky little bugger, I'm going to move my shits over to wordpress. I actually had one over at wordpress a while back but just never used it.

They have so many more themes to offer!

mchoun.wordpress.com

Pokemon Battle Pt. 1

2008-09-25T13:57:00.001-04:00

Today was an especially dark and dreary day in Pallet town. Nurse Fiona is stuck in the Pokemon Center left with nothing to do. Of course she has nothing to do because Pallet town has become a very boring place once Pokemon Trainer Merv left.

"I hope he goes out there and catches them all. He was all about that." said Nurse Fiona as she sits at the counter playing with her Chansey.

She's about to doze off when suddenly she hears the sound of the entrance doors sliding open. In a very autonomous response she beings to ask 'How may I...' until she realizes who it is.

Pokemon Trainer Merv takes a cool step into the Pokemon Center. He closes his eyes and takes in the atmosphere taken aback by all the nostalgia. The sound of 8-bit music fills his ears as he opens his eyes and smiles at Nurse Fiona.

Nervously, Nurse Fiona finishes her greeting "H-How may I help you?".

"I'm just here to use the PC," Pokemon Trainer Merv responds in a very non chalant manner.

As he cooly walks over to the PC, Nurse Fiona takes notice to the shiny badges that Trainer Merv has proudly displayed on his vest and his belt which was neatly lined with six pokeballs.

"Wow, six out of the eight gym badges. He must be really good." Nurse Fiona thought to herself.

As Trainer Merv finishes up with some pokemon transfers, he begins to cooly walk back toward the entrance to leave.

Nurse Fiona begins to autonomously beings to say goodbye, "Thank you! Come back..." before she is interrupted by another Pokemon Trainer coming in as Trainer Merv is leaving.

Trainer Merv stops dead in his tracks and is as equally stunned by the new Trainer who has just walked in. This Trainer walks just as cooly as Trainer Merv over to the Pokemon Center counter and places his pokeballs into the healing tray.

"I see you've been busy Merv. It's nice to see you again," says the trainer.

Trainer Merv responds, "I see you have been too, BUG CATCHER KYLE!!"

Announcer: "A strange twist has just occurred!!! Just as Pokemon Trainer Merv is leaving his home town Pokemon Center, Bug Catcher Kyle enters!!! Who is this Mysterious trainer?? How does he know Pokemon Trainer Merv?? Answers will come and Pokemon Battles will happen!!!! NEXT WEEK!!!

Drunken Meditation Doesn't Work.

2008-09-13T01:11:00.003-04:00

So apparently my current thing is to write a totally random blog post when I'm drunk. Actually, it's random drunken post when I'm angry and drunk. But I try not to show my anger because that would just make reading this lame. My emotions aren't for everyone else to know.

But anyways.

I use to meditate a lot back in freshman year. Freshman year was also a tough time for me and meditation help me controll a lot of things. So the combination of angry drunkenness and meditation don't mix.

I believe that when people think of meditation they think of spiritual enlightenment and general lameness when someone other than a monk is doing it. To me, meditation is a moment of calm. A moment of reflection. A moment when I don't have to think about everything else that is going on in my life. It's actually a really wonderful feeling. It's a state of total relaxation with your mind totally open. It feels like my senses are heightened but the outside world is completely dull. A strange balance between total awareness with a sense of disconnection.

The combination of intoxication and meditation don't mix though.

That whole feeling of worldless-ness and combined with my lack of balance. Everything just combines and tears each other apart. The moment of relaxation and happiness is ripped apart by the ridiculous-ness of alcohol. You realize all your greatest weakness and all of your greatest faults. The moment of solitude and reflection becomes a moment of realization and anger.

You're supposed to learn from your mistakes. Your mistakes don't always affect outwardly and toward your surroundings. I haven't learned from my mistakes yet. Maybe it'll all hit me after all my mistakes are done. I'll probably have a huge moment of "Oh shit" ness and I'll realize everything.

Now that I think about it. That moment will probably come with my hang over.

I am another drunken post.

2008-09-06T00:34:00.003-04:00

It's been a long time since I last posted anything that is worth while. I played with the idea of a "Links of the week" post every week because I'm so lazy and I think I might do that. I've been too busy to consider anything though.

So tonight, in my drunken stupor, I've decided to define Life. At least what I consider life. I considered certain aspects of life but maybe that's not right. Maybe it should be categorized as stages.

The young stage. The fucking rebel stage. The "I think I found what I really am" in high school stage. The "Oh shit, this is what I really am" in college stage. The "Lets party all the time cause It's fucking cool" stage. Then maybe the stage where everyone else parties while you sit back and be anti social stage.

I think I'm at that last stage.

But from that last stage comes random blog post and random stuff at a totally random time.

And from that comes the realization that everyone is one way or another put into a cookie cutter sheet and comes out the exact same way.

People try so hard to distinguish themselves from other people but in reality EVERYONE IS EXACTLY THE SAME.

Maybe I'm just saying that cause I'm in the bitter anti social stage. Then again I'm only in this bitter anti social stage because I'm jealous of everyone else and how I'm not getting anywhere.

Oh wait. That's depression.

Of course with my super POSI attitude that I apparently have allll the time, this doesn't affect me. I have no depression because that's the way life is. This happen for a reason and this is why it's happening to me. Any attempts that happen end in failure but those failures mean nothing. Because that's the way things are supposed to happen.

Things will fall into place for me and I won't have to worry about anything. Although this may seem like a large amount of sarcasm, this is actually what I believe in. Surprisingly I could be pushed around by people and stepped all over but I think that things will right themselves and I'll be just fine.

Life isn't worth anything without emotional and physcial struggle.

And now my rant comes to an end. I realized what I have just done, which involved writing about ridiculous things that doesn't matter to anyone else except me. I'll read back on this and think that I shouldn't have written this but I'll keep it because it's part of my life. This snapshot of my life will be open for anyone on the massive amounts of tubes called the internet can see instead of my little black notebook that no one has seen.

I am Slowing Down.

2008-08-21T18:35:00.006-04:00

I don't know if I've ever talked about it on this blog but I've always enjoyed and promoted the idea of slowing down your life and taking it all in. I try to do this myself but it's something hard to do especially with the way American culture is.

This video is a talk by journalist Carl Honore who believes that the speed that we crave in our culture is shortening our lives. Eating slower would be healthier, working slower would produce better work, having sex slower would provide a better orgasm. This talk is definitely something worth watching.

[via ted.com]

I am updating after a long time

2008-08-12T13:29:00.002-04:00

It's been a long while since I've posted anything. I've come across a bunch of articles that I wanted to talk about but just never got around to writing anything about it. Mostly because I've been busy lately but that really is just an excuse for my laziness. Maybe I'll start a "links of the week" post.

Anyways, what sparked my motivation to finally write a post was this article from NYTimes.

Almost everyone has heard the news of the NYC Critical Mass violence. Almost everyone have been a part of or seen bicycle violence. It's ridiculous but even I have had my fair share of tussles with drivers in Philadelphia. I actually hate all of the drivers in Philadelphia, myself included. But as the article pointed out, drivers are only learning to cope with the increase in bikers. It's something new and they don't know how to handle themselves. The same could also be said about the bikers. Many of them are inexperienced when it comes to city biking.

Hopefully bikers and motorist will be able to co-exist soon. I'm sick almost getting hit.

I am the new Facebook.

2008-07-21T18:22:00.003-04:00

Kelly Sutton over at Hackcollege wrote an interesting article about the new changes that Facebook have planned. What's even better is you could check it out yourself and do a little test run.

www.new.facebook.com

I personally think that facebook should stick with what they have now. The new changes almost makes things very cluttered. For profile pages, wall post and the mini feed have decided form into one super mega beast of information... and that super mega beast is way too crowded.

One thing that did tickle my "oh that's cool" button was the tabs on top of the profile page. It makes it a lot nice instead of having the stuff on the side or all up in your profile page.

To get the full effect of the changes, click on your name on the top left or check out someone else profile page. Also, keep in mind that after visiting the above url your default will be the new layout. To change back to it there's a link that says "back to old layout" in the upper right hand corner.

If you guys notice anything else interesting or just want to leave how you feel about it. Leave a comment!

I am in love with Google

2008-07-16T11:32:00.004-04:00

It's been almost two weeks since my last post and I think I'm due for another. I've actually had a couple things I wanted to write about but no time really to write about them. This one website has probably been sitting in my tab bar for about two weeks because I'm afraid that if I close it, I'll lose it forever. Which, really, wouldn't be that big of a deal.

I love Google. You have your Mac fanboys, your Windows fanboys, and your weird Linux cultist, but I love my Google. I started using Gmail back when it was still invite only. I have had my account since June 2004 which is over four years, 637 mbs of space, and over 13,975 emails. I love it.

But what really attracts me about the vast amounts of Google applications is the simplicity of it all and also the attention that Google gives to the work that they do. For example, they recently changed their homepage to allow quicker access to their Privacy page. They didn't just stick the link on the homepage though, they considered the amount of words actually on the homepage. It's a minor thing, but that attention to small detail is what's great about Google.

"This mystery and its revelation was really interesting because I thought about the homepage, and how to keep it simple, all the time. Yet I hadn't thought to look at it through this very simple lens: just count the words. The fewer, the better. Ever since that night, this has been our discipline, and everyone who works on the homepage and its design knows the current number: 28."

[via Official Google Blog]

I am the Chinese Armed Police

2008-07-03T13:36:00.002-04:00

What do Segways and Asian men with guns have to do with keeping the Chinese Olympic games safe?

Clearly, everything.

I have to admit, as dorky as this looks, this is frickin' awesome. Why don't we have the Philadelphia Police Force out and about on these things? Better yet, Drexel campus security!

I especially like the guy in the back with the camouflaged rifle with a scope and knife bayonet. It must be from his personal collection.

[via Geekologie via BBC News]

I am a couple of cups sitting on a coffee table.

2008-06-28T01:44:00.002-04:00

This post is only to point out the fact that I like to think in really odd ways and personify strange things. I just like to personify. For example, "The laptop squeals in anguish as his owner, Mervin Choun, types out an agonizing blog post about cups on his coffee table."

Like the cups that are sitting in front of me right now. Left out by their respective owners who actually grabbed them in the first place. Left out to be forgotten and left out to be left there for a long time. A combination of mugs, free plastic drexel cups, fancy glass cups, and a lonely Poland Springs water bottle. All standing up right but one knocked over.

Who do these cups belong to? All six of them don't know. Except for one. The writer of this post. The one with the plastic drexel cup. Claimed by him for all to know. That cup is fucking mine.

But what about the others? Oh wait, another one just popped up. Hidden by the screen of this laptop is another mug. Strangely enough, one of the mugs that the writer of this post brought to this house and is usually reserved for him. What's it doing out here? Good question.

All of them almost empty except for the last drops that the last user had left. The last drops that we like to call "backwash". We all know that the last bits of a bottle or a cup are really the saliva of the previous user (or users). All of that backwash is the only evidence of the previous owners.This is a sad and lonely story. A sad and lonely story that could only be reserved for these type of cups. The futures of these cups are unpredictable and probably wild. They could be used once or they could be use various times. They could be used by the same person or by multiple people confusing that cup as their own. They could be filled with the pureness of Philadelphia tap water or possibly by the vile and evil liquid of liquor or beer. They could end up being left there for days without being washed or being washed immediately after use, ready for another rotation of lips coming to their lips.

Of course, that's what these cups live for. The lip to lip action! No matter what they were originally crafted for, these cups need the be drank from. Without it, they are no long cups but merely containers of liquid. Simple tupperwear without a lid! And without a doubt, these cups do not want to be pushed down to the lowely class of tupperwear. Although they may be kings of leftovers, they are merely paupers to the fine china.

As said before, the future of these warriors of liquid may be uncertain. But one thing is certain to this drunken writer. They all will end up getting washed, and they will all ended up in the exact same spot.

I am a little taste.

2008-06-27T20:35:00.000-04:00

You took a little sip didn't you? You popped and now you can't stop. Greed, Lust, Gluttony. You dipped your finger into the peanut butter jar, spread it over the celery, and fucking chomped on it. Satisfying? Of course. But who knows where that finger's been. In fact, who knows where that celery has been.

It feels familiar doesn't it? Rain that is. That smell is is usually distinctive but it never is for me. It reminds me of fish. Or the times when I was little and I didn't care about getting wet. I'd still stay outside until it started to lighting. Puddles weren't a nusiance but an awesome source of entertainment.

Fun. What happened to it? It use to walk up to me and we use to spend hours just exploring and satisfying our curiousities. Now? I have to find it cause it's usually hiding. Then it's a short time and I'm already missing it.

I am tired of all of this

2008-06-24T23:56:00.000-04:00

I'll do it myself.

Real post coming tomorrow.

I am cursed with a small tongue.

2008-06-22T22:57:00.002-04:00

Really, I am cursed with a small tongue. I mean, it's really not that big of a deal but it makes it tough to eat soup sometimes. Lollipops take forever to get to the center to. It's kind of hard to whistle. Living a life with a small tongue is tough.

After spending exactly two minutes brushing my teeth in the morning with my Sonicare elite toothbrush, I spend exactly two minutes more looking at my tongue in the mirror.

Look at this guy!

[via BoingBoing]

I am trying to win a new black notebook

2008-06-16T18:48:00.002-04:00

Many of you people that actually know me know that I carry around a black notebook. Although it's no where near being full, it'd be nice to have one lined up to be filled with my random stuff.

Sooooo, blackcover.net is giving away a notebook and I'm trying to win it. Check out the website! They have some awesome stuff on there.

I am an underwear model

2008-06-15T10:57:00.001-04:00

Wearing Gap underwear makes me feel sexy.

Even when I'm mowing my lawn.

I am a character without a name -- Sound

2008-06-13T18:28:00.005-04:00

"Don't worry! Everything will be fine"

That was the last thing he said to me when he left. Those words were the last words I heard him say. Those are the last sounds I'll ever hear him make.

When he said those words though, I didn't think anything of it. He's always been a positive guy, always encouraging and never a downer. I just wish that he would have realized that everything wouldn't be ok. I just wish I could have said "I love you!" for one last time.

Now I'm stuck here in this shelter with the soft rustling sounds of other women moving about, doing their work, and children playing. If only they could hear what's going on outside. If only they could hear the monotonous and mind numbing moans of what's going on outside.

I wish I could hear for one last time, "Don't worry! Everything will be fine."

[image from Alexey Titarenko Photography]

I am a break from the normal programming

2008-06-08T19:17:00.002-04:00

"I give up too easy"

A group of words that could mean "I give up to easily."

But is that what it really means? It is just a group of words with a definition except order.

I actually don't know where this post is going. Just take out the punctuation and figure it out for yourself.

I am a character without a name -- Smells

2008-06-08T01:10:00.004-04:00

The character of this story is not what you would consider as a normal person. Actually, if you would meet this character in real life, you would probably be scared and confused. Your mind would probably go crazy from the sheer unrealistic-ness of his existence.

But he doesn't know this.

The first thing that the character of this story realized as he regained consciousness was the smell of death. The decaying of flesh. The smell of recently burnt hair and skin. It was all a combination of new death and old death. The strange thing about this situation though is not the smell, but the fact the the character of this story was not disgusted or repulsed by it all. Actually, the character of this story was attracted to the smell. Aroused by the smell. Soaking in the pure ecstasy that the smell was bringing him. And ultimately, craving the smell.

The character of this story had to do something about this craving. Something deep inside their mind was telling them to seek action. And with that, his eyes were open.

I am a character without a name

2008-06-07T17:48:00.003-04:00

Death. Death. Death.

That's all he could smell when became conscious.

Blood. Blood. Blood.

That's all he could see when he opened his eyes.

Pain. Pain. Pain.

That's all he could feel when his adrenaline stopped flowing.

Scream. Scream. Scream.

That's all he could hear when his head stopped pounding.

"What is this place?" was all that he could think.

I am a real fictitious person

2008-06-01T17:38:00.002-04:00

There's a new micro blogging personality on Twitter.

Her name....

Liz Kantner in real life.

I am extracurricular triathlon training, not really

2008-06-01T01:31:00.003-04:00

Here is my current train of thought:

Six Flags equals amusement park

amusement parks equals arcades

arcades equals DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION

It has been a long time since I played that sweet sweet dance simulator. The strong bass beat pounding in my head. Those beautifully high pitched Japanese singers singing "Captain Jack". The multi-colored lights dancing around my feet as I step, step, step, to the beat of "Dam Dariam".

Anyways, I played DDR today after not having played it in a long time. Stillll out of shape.

I am Day Two -- Swimming with Alex

2008-05-28T21:00:00.002-04:00

Day Two of my wonderful training consisted of swimming at the DAC with the wonderful Ms. Alex.

I know that right now swimming is my weakest thing. Actually, anybody that knows me well enough knows that I don't like water. At all. Maybe to drink. But being in water is completely different. There's just waaay too much to think about. You have to move your arms, kick your legs, and then breath. Why do I have to think about breathing!? I'm sure it'll become second nature though.

I also realized that everyone I know use to be a swimmer, being on the swim team and stuff. Where was I when everyone else was swimming?

And now, biking tomorrow.

I am Day One -- Running with Jeff

2008-05-27T21:02:00.003-04:00

Yeah, I'm eventually going to do this Triathlon. And yeah, I'm going to have to train a lot. A LOT A LOT.

So day one consisted of running with Jeffery. I'm sure you're on the edge of your seating wondering, "I wonder how he did?!", or maybe you're just imagining me running and then collapsing on my face. That's actually a close approximation of what really happened. It has definitely been a while since I've done any physical activity other than biking. I need to start running more.

Next on the agenda is swimming.

I am a Bad Omen

2008-05-23T09:46:00.002-04:00

You know the day won't be a good day when the first thing you put on are your socks.

Something is definitely on your mind if skip the rest of your clothes and go straight to your socks when you're getting dressed.

I am Uncomfortable

2008-05-22T10:55:00.003-04:00

Everyone likes to be comfortable. Change is a scary thing so people usually just revert back to their old ways even if they try to change. After reading this article though, I thought about it.

If you're comfortable all your life, you really aren't doing anything with your life.

An excerpt from that article:

Yep, being addicted to comfort can be somewhat problematic, if not catastrophic, for the wanna-be, modern-day success story. The truth is, if you’re not experiencing and dealing with pain, discomfort and fear on at least a semi-regular basis, you’re probably not learning, growing, changing, adapting and exploring your potential as you should be. If you’re all about personal growth, maximising your ability and positive change, then avoid the tough (uncomfortable, inconvenient, painful) stuff at your peril.

[via lifehack.org]

I am a Real Man

2008-05-19T12:55:00.004-04:00

I believe that there are two essentials skills that every man should posses. The ability to work with machines and the ability to undress a woman.

This guy can do both. With a pretty badass machine.

I wonder how this ability came about...

"Well boys, we're ahead of schedule and we have nothing to do."
"Hey you! Pretty woman! Let me undress with these gigantic digging claws of DEATH!"

[via Gizmodo]

I am a shitty metaphor

2008-04-16T20:36:00.002-04:00

You know, somedays I like to think of my life like riding a fixed gear up a mountain.

Sometimes I just fly up that hill.

Other days, I just don't feel like pushing anymore.

That was lame.

I am the sound of a Dive into water

2008-03-12T13:55:00.003-04:00

The final days of co-op are quickly approaching.

That statement is true but I feel like I have so much work today I'll still be here for another 6 months.

Regardless, I feel compelled to share this article that I have come across about a certain topic that many of us don't mention in our daily lives. Actually, that's not true if you're a man and you just took a HUGE one. I'm sure you've guessed it by now.

That's right.

Poo.

I'll let the article speak for it self, but first, I'll give a small excerpt that I found rather "moving". (see how I made that into a funny?)

"You want to hear what the stool, the poop, sounds like when it hits the water," Oz instructs. "If it sounds like a bombardier, you know, 'plop, plop, plop,' that's not right because it means you're constipated. It means the food is too hard by the time it comes out. It should hit the water like a diver from Acapulco hits the water." Oz makes a "swoosh" sound -- the sound of an Olympian excrement champion.

Poo and your Health

p.s. I hate it when writers put stupid witty jokes relating to the topic in their writing.

I am a Feverish Dream

2008-03-10T20:51:00.007-04:00

Of all the common sickness, the fever is probably my most hated sickness. Colds stuff you up and just generally sap all your energy but fevers mess with your head on top of the physical exhaustion.

One of the worst things about a fever is trying to sleep. You're just laying there and tossing turning and then you think, "This fever sucks." After getting to sleep, you have to deal with all those trippy dreams you have when you have a fever.

Although I don't really remember what I was dreaming about, I do remember dreaming about old TV shows I use to watch and somehow interacting with them.

For example,

I'm not sure how he was in my dream, but that damn cute dog was there.

Actually, he was probably fighting these guys.

Go go Power rangers!

I am a moment of calm.

2008-02-25T09:12:00.000-05:00

This was posted in another blog as well!

The morning commute is, for many people, sometimes worse than actual work itself. You got slow moving traffic, fast moving traffic, people that drive like crazy, big ass trucks, and overall SUCK. Commuting by car is probably one the of things I hate the most in life. It's rarely enjoyable.

Today was an exception. Traffic was generally not crowded and it all went by quickly (which could be a good or a bad thing depending on your outlook on life). I even experienced a moment that I decided to call "Traffic Zen".

It was that one moment of peace that you find in a chaotic event. The "Eye of the storm" if you will. All the cars were moving at a comfortable speed, evenly spaced out, and the sun was rising. For me, it was just a moment of clarity in such a monotonous task. It made me smile a bit and then I wanted to write about it.

When was the last time you had a moment of "Traffic Zen"?

Personal Life Update!!

Frustration is an emotion I feel almost everyday. It comes and goes but sometimes there are just somethings that just sit there and taunt you. For me, that very thing is the front wheel of my bike.

The front wheel of my bike was possibly the most beautiful feature of Prudence. I would sit there and look at my bike and think, "Damn! You look so damn good with those nice, long deep-V's." A sexy Mavic CXP 33 deep-V rim laced to shiny Suze hubs. I mean, Prudence's front wheel is comparable to piercing green eyes of a beautiful woman, the nice fine curves of a beautiful woman, or just Scarlett Johansson, such a beautiful woman.

The frustration comes from the fact that this beautiful front wheel was destroyed in my recent run in (pun intended) with a car. Bent in half and unrepairable, I was left to weep as I cradled my bike in my arms. The frustration continued when I tried to slide the mangled front wheel out of the fork. I struggled slightly but decided to leave it for another day.

But last night, I had success! In an odd surge of energy last night around 11 pm, I decided that tonight was the night. I'm going to slide that rabbit out of its rabbit hole. I even brought the hammer out in preparation for some "tough love". In the end, I didn't need to use the hammer but just had to buckle down and spread the forks a little bit. I did end up with a nice little mark when the whole frame come up and smacked me in the shoulder. But alas! She was out and I went to bed with a victory under my belt.

I am feeling Lame

2008-02-20T20:46:00.003-05:00

The past couple days I've been feeling kinda lame. Like the "Man, I'm really bored but I have nothing to do and no one to hang out with" kind of lame. Maybe it's because of co-op stressing me out. Or maybe it's because of my lack of exercise since Prudence (my bike) is severely injured.

Actually, I think it's because of this guy.

At age 59, Richard Simmons is still a large fuzzy ball of energy.

I am a wall of bananas

2008-02-20T09:29:00.000-05:00

Yes Sir, that is a wall of bananas

Fruit is delicious.

A banana is a fruit.

So, Bananas = Crazy delicious

Now imagine eating ALL THAT DELICOUS-NESS!!! 7,200 bananas all ready for my mouth to consume. How awesome.

Link

I am a collaborative blog

2008-02-19T14:05:00.000-05:00

Well it seems like today is a good day for the blogosphere. Not only have I started THIS blog but I am also going to start writing for the collaborative blog that some friends and I have started.

Friends with blogging benefits

I am the title of the first post

2008-02-19T09:13:00.000-05:00

So I have decided to try once again to document the various parts of my life in an online journal that we more commonly know as a "Blog". I have tried to do this plenty of times but they usually fizzle into nothing because I get bored or I don't really have anything to say. I went from the good ole' high school-ish Xanga which was full of teenage anger to a photoblog hosted of blogger back before Google bought them. I tried to start one when I began college because we were given webspace and I figured I'll make it look all fancy but that ended with a post about a Drunken Groundhog.

Now we have my latest attempt at impacting the vast tubes of the Interweb. This was mostly brought on by a few of my friends that have been blogging for a while or just started. The peer pressure got to me.

I'm not going to try to make this a blog about my personal life but more of a traditional blog where I'll find interesting things and post it for you to read.

Well, I guess that's all for now.

Seacrest out.