The End of Winter

With the flash of a thought, the cool, wet winter that started after arriving from my eventful and historic trip to Tokyo is now over. In the same period of time, a long-lasting friendship has transformed into a serious, romantic and loving relationship. Yet in reflecting on where and who I was in November 2007 compared to the present, the pivotal winter felt like an eternity of growth and self-discovery.

Driving around New York, I see the colors coming back to life, as spring is showing itself slowly but surely. I am waking up every morning with the hope that what I have found over 5 months ago will transform into several new colorsand shades as well, and that one day, at the soonest time possible, views of the seasons from my bedroom window will be shared with the one person I miss the most.

Jet-Lagged Emotions

I underestimated how difficult it would be to part ways with my girlfriend once again. The all too familiar drama scene at the airport reminded me of the challenging nature of long distance relationships, and reinforced the parameters that I have discerned would keep this particular relationship strong and steady.

Part of my absence from this blog was due to the media/communication hiatus in which my girlfriend and I agreed to partake as we decided to spend some quiet, quality time together during my one week trip home. I did, however, have several opportunities to post something new, but I simply could not clear the clutter in my head that has prevented from me writing anything sound.

Here I am now, jet-lagged like crazy, and the only thing I can say is...I miss my girlfriend immensely. The irony of this extraordinary relationship is the fact that it is surrounded by the most unnatural of circumstances, where services of the internet and telecommunications are relied upon to replace simple touches, affection, nearness, loving stares and sweet nothings...where coming home to an empty apartment is routine for the both of us...where opinions of movies, books, shows, stories are exchanged through the passage of a microphone and speakers, instant messaging windows, daily emails, and blogs, and not face to face, or in a car driving home from work.

I could spend a lot of time dwelling on how difficult the distance has been, and is now that I am re-realizing a life away from her, only a couple of days after sharing food, love and laughter in person, but perhaps I shouldn't. Perhaps I should start thinking about the next steps. Perhaps it is time to bring our relationship one step closer to being physically together on a permanent basis.

Blog Under Spiritual and Visual Renovation

In tune with this ontological change I've been experiencing over my years here in the United States, and in commemoration of its 101st post, I decided to give this blog a makeover and give it some serious traction in terms of viewership. Putter around the page and observe the first round of improvements. I invite you to subscribe when you can.

My 100th Post

About two years later, I have found myself in an entirely different place and living a life that is a far cry from the lost and somewhat slower life that once served as the premise on which this blog was created. To commemorate the life of Confessions of a Sensitive Man, I will list down some random, important and not-so important insights that have, and are continuing to contribute to the shaping of my life:

1. Many people have found this blog and reached out to me because they were part of broken engagements. On that note, I only wish for those readers that which has hopefully been evident from the evolution of this blog: we grow, live, forgive ourselves and others, and become happy.

2. Accordingly, I want this blog to completely shed its identity of being the bulletin board of a once broken man. I am tempted to erase old posts just because I knew I was a different person back then, but then my journey and story would not be so apparent if I did some erasing.

3. I am going home soon, and am damn happy about it.

4. I finally get to see my girlfriend after 4 months of creative relations and communications. Realization: I do not recommend long-distance relationships, unless you believe you've found the one, are creative and disciplined in keeping in touch, and have made some plans to be together in the near future.

5. I listen to classical music on my to work and back home. The opportunity for road rage or even negative thoughts has diminished significantly and miraculously.

6. Not all was lost during the writer's strike. I started getting into "The Office"(http://www.nbc.com/The_Office/) and has been a constant source of crazy entertainment.

7. Today, on my way to the office, I was waiting at an intersection with a school bus in front of me. I noticed a bunch of wacky kids waving at me. I waved back, and one of the girls raised her fist in the air as if she was just chosen from the audience to compete on The Price is Right. The rest of the kids kept on waving and started making weird gestures. After a few bouts of misinterpretation, I realized what it was they wanted from me. So I started honking my horn to a corny playful beat. The kids went into a frenzy and started giving me "thumbs up" signs. I'm glad I contributed to somebody's happiness today.

8. I have a new project in the works, and it involves music. Could this be it?

9. The recurrence of nerve problems down my leg has prompted me to go back to my doctor and a physical therapist. In order for me to avoid surgery, I need to strengthen my back and abdominal area. Perhaps this is the kick in the ass from God that has gotten me to become more disciplined in taking care of my body and shaping up. Perhaps, it is a true blessing in disguise.

10. I bought new hot chocolate flavored Pop-Tarts. Delicious. Get some now.

Mariska Hargitay and Robin Williams Sighting

As soon as I figure out how to transfer photos from my now obsolete mobile phone onto this computer, I will post blurry pics of Robin Williams and Mariska Hargatay shooting several takes for an upcoming Law & Order SVU episode in Grand Central Terminal on a late Friday evening. It's bizarre seeing Robin Williams a good 15 feet away from where I was standing. It almost felt like a cartoon had come to life.

It was a logistical headache for the film staff shooting the country's number one drama in a public commuter area. The handful of floor staff could barely keep the public from inching closer with their cameras and phone cameras aimed at the tandem, like a bunch of neophyte paparazzi trying to get what ever they can. When the staff would push the crowd to one side, the public found another angle from which they could position their curious observations.

To make matters even more interesting, it was quite difficult for the staff to distinguish bystanders from the "bystander" actors directed to walk past the stars during the take. Of course, if you took a look around, those with a bit more make-up, or those who were frozen at the whim of the director were demonstrably the actors called to fill up the crowd scene. Being my randomly insane self, I decided to "freeze" with the acting crowd, hoping that the camera would catch even a glimpse of the serious-looking asian lawyer on screen. I don't watch the show at all, but now I have given myself a reason to check out the episode with Robin Williams guest starring. Vain? Perhaps.

Suffice it to say, I am starstruck yet again and oddly enough, for the third time this year, the starstruck event was related to Law & Order SVU.