The beginning of the end... and then a beginning.

It's hard to believe that in three months' time, I will be done optometry school and even board exams. The most incredible thought is that it isn't an end that I will be coming to, but rather, a new beginning. Although it's easy to get caught up in the now - this class, this exam, this internship - everything has merely been preparation: training sessions before the big game.
I need a bigger lens for looking at life.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

- 1 John 2:15-17

Windy City Part II

Monday I went to the Museum of Science and Industry. It's conveniently located in Hyde Park so it was only a ten minute walk. I was most pumped about the You! exhibit, although they were also featuring an exhibit about storms and natural disasters. I thought that 4 hours would be more than enough time to go through the museum so I took my time getting ready in the morning and only planned to get there around noon.
Boy, was I wrong.
When I arrived, I decided to start at the lower floors and work my way up to the storm and You! exhibits on the top floor. I started with an exhibit about ideas and innovations for the future. Even if the ideas seemed really far-fetched or seemingly useless, it's amazing what some people can come up with; amongst them were vertical farms to cultivate food in unlikely conditions, aerodynamic cars that reduce drag and fuel usage, and flavoured inks to make food for astronauts while they're in space.
The exhibits on navy technology and German U-boats were surprisingly intriguing! They walk you through WWII history and information about the havoc that the Germans wreaked on the Allied boats, until the Allies captured a U-boat of their very own. U-505 was then donated to the museum, so it is physically kept inside the museum. For an extra fee you can take a tour on board the vessel.
One hour before the museum closing time, I went to the You! exhibit. Participating in an ER experience took 35 min - I got to play the part of a cardiologist on a team of doctors who needed to diagnose a simulation patient. In retrospect I'm not sure why I took part in this; I already know how to measure heart rates and blood pressure. It took up a precious 35 minutes and I had to speed through the rest of the exhibit, missing lots before the museum closed at 4.

I went back to Dan's apartment after to unwind before our night activity - watching the Blackhawks face the Blues at the United Center! Unfortunately Dan and I didn't have any Hawks gear, and our seats were way up high in the sky, but it was still a super fun experience! Dan brought his opera glasses in case we needed to zoom in on something on the ice, but it was hard to track the fast-moving puck through zoom lenses. The Hawks played terrible for the 5/6 of the game, but Marian Hossa saved the day and his team by tying up the game with half of a period left in the game, and then the Hawks managed to win in overtime! I was hoping the game would go to a shootout actually, but it was still an impressive comeback.

Tuesday...
Thanks to brochures and websites, I was able to find out ahead of time that Tuesday the 18th, there would be free admission to the Shedd Aquarium and the Field Museum (and the Contemporary Art Museum, and the Lincoln Zoo...) I chose these two attractions over the others mainly because they're close to each other, located at the Museum Campus on 11th St along with the Adler Planetarium. I also had wanted to go to the aquarium in DC but was disappointed to see how small and drab it looked, so I was pretty excited to finally see some aquatic animals.
The aquarium did not disappoint! There were lots of tanks of different fish and frogs separated in to lake species or river species, organized by countries. The oceanarium contained beluga whales, dolphins, sea otters and penguins. There was also a separate exhibit for sharks, but I didn't know ahead of time that you needed a wristband to access it.

In front of the Caribbean Reef exhibit (greenscreened)

After a couple of hours wandering at the aquarium, I made it to the Field Museum just in time for a 1pm tour of their ancient Egyptian artifacts. It was a really long tour, over an hour long, and I was glad I went because the docent was able to explain a lot of things I would never have known about Egyptian history and culture just by looking at the pieces on my own, but by the end I was exhausted. I had no energy left to read about the ancient Americans or Myan ruins. And after watching live animals all morning, it wasn't that exciting looking at stuffed animals or bones that just stood still behind glass. I quickly looked through the Precious Gems exhibit, which featured lots of sparkling jewelry; sometimes you wanted to look for a price tag beside the identification card.

Featuring Sue the T-rex

By about 4pm I'd had enough, and took a walk along the lakeshore towards the downtown Loop. I found a bookstore and sat down to have a drink and read a magazine while I waited for Dan and another old high school friend to meet up for dinner. We went to a fantastic Spanish tapas restaurant, Cafe Iberico, where we all partook in grilled octopus, grilled Spanish sausages, paella, and lots and lots of Sangria. The service was wonderful, although by the end they were very anxious for us to leave because they were getting busy and we were sitting around just chatting.
Afterward Dan and I walked towards the bus stop on State street again - my very last time. I will never forget how beautiful the city is at night, and yet a little somber, probably thanks to the Dark Knight.

When I first arrived, Dan likened Chicago to Toronto's cooler, better-looking older brother. It didn't take me long at all to understand what he meant and to wholeheartedly agree.
Could I see myself living there? In an alternate universe not too far off, perhaps. (That would require me to finish Parts II & III of the NBEO...)
Would I come back, or recommend other people to visit it? Absolutely.

The Windy City Part I

Today wraps up my whirlwind getaway to Chicago. With four full days in the city (and two traveling days), I think I did pretty well for myself in getting a feel for the city. I also owe it to my friend Dan who kindly hosted me during my stay, made recommendations, and took me around.

The first thing I did when I got to Chicago was obviously have pizza! We went to Pizza Capri in Hyde Park near where I was staying. Unfortunately the server mixed up our order so we didn't have deep dish, but the pizza was still fantastically cheesy. The tiramisu is also pretty authentic there, but the cheesecake leaves much to be desired. (Probably from being spoiled by the Cheesecake Factory)
After dinner Dan showed me the U of Chicago film society cinema, Doc Films, where he volunteers. Each night you can catch a movie for $5, following a different theme for each day of the week. Later on around 9pm, their annual Blues 'n Ribs night began - live music and free ribs! And beer! I can't remember the last time I was even at a school event, but this one felt like something out of the movies. The building was so grand. There were two huge halls where two bands were doing their own thing, lots of tables set up, and a dance floor. It was neat also because I hadn't really been dancing in a setting other than a club.

Saturday was my day for roaming around downtown on my own. Naturally my stop was Barnes & Noble so I could peruse their travel books for ideas on what to do. Local hotels are also a great resource for brochures and maps of the area. I ended up going to the Chicago Cultural Center
for a tour of the building. The docent was a really sweet and knowledgeable old lady, and it was a great way to get a bit of Chicago history.
After that I of course went to take some pictures of Cloud Gate (the big bean) at Millennium Park, and walked the Magnificent Mile until I reached North Bridge Shops. There I did some shopping and waited for Dan to meet me for dinner, and we ate at an Irish restaurant. I had skipped lunch earlier because I didn't want to miss the tour, and after the tour it was too late, so I devoured my angus burger with gouda, onion and avocado like there was no tomorrow.
After dinner, Dan and I wandered some more. We took a stroll by the Chicago River and headed towards Navy Pier for a fireworks show. Navy Pier was very CNE-esque, with its boardwalks and the midway. It was a beautiful night out and the fireworks were fantastic! Afterward we also walked through the stained glass exhibits featuring works by Louis Comfort Tiffany before heading home.

On Sunday we decided to do a walking tour with the Chicago Architectural Foundation. We got our tickets for the Modern Skyscrapers tour first to make sure it wouldn't be sold out, and then went to Gold Coast Dogs for my Chicago hot dog experience. I was a little nervous at first (a hot dog without ketchup? What's up with that?), but it felt like something I had to just try. At the last second, and when presented the opportunity, I chickened out of having the relish on my hot dog, but otherwise I went the whole nine yards - pickles, onions, mustard and all. And surprisingly, it wasn't bad. It was a very interesting combination and interaction of tastes and textures.
The walking tour was two hours long but it went by surprisingly quickly. It was a fun way just to see the city and learn little tidbits about the buildings. People always talked about the beautiful architecture in Chicago and I thought it was just something for artsy people, but it doesn't take an art major to realize it's a gorgeous city. You literally never get tired at looking at the buildings. I found out there's a penitentiary/correctional facility right in downtown Chicago.
Afterward we took in a movie at the Chicago International Film Festival. The movie we watched, Problema, was only okay, but just being there was cool first for me. The director was there for a Q&A session after the screening, and we were given cards to rate the movie. Definitely makes me pumped for going to the Toronto film festival next year.
By that time, the day was long enough. We went home to make shrimp risotto for dinner, rest our achy feet, and take it easy!

Jump off the log.

Three frogs are sitting on a log in a pond. One decides to jump off.
How many frogs are left on the log?

I heard this during the children's sermon at church today. All the children answered two - three minus one - but I figured that's too simple so I thought the answer would be zero: one frog jumping off would cause the log to become unbalanced, or to spin, and the other two frogs would fall off in suit.
The answer though, was three. The frog had decided to jump off the log, but it doesn't mean that it actually did.

Many times in life, we know the things we should do, and we even resolve to do them: study, start a new diet, do devotions daily. But it all means nothing if we don't actually follow through and do them.

Yesterday I went to the metro station to put money on my farecard. Just as I was about to put in my ten-dollar bill, a man approached me and asked for some change to put money on his card. I didn't know anything about him except that looked a little worse for wear, and he wanted some money to head to Wheaton.
My first instinct was to find a way to talk my way out of it or to say no. But there was no way for me to do that - I obviously had money in my hand, and I didn't need all $10 for bus fare to church tomorrow. So I let him talk me through how to only put $7 of it on my card, and gave him the change for his fare.
As I was handing him the money, I was presented with two options: give him the change and some variation of a cut-eye for bullying me and then walk away complaining to my friend; or give him more than he was asking for. I was still a little shaken though so the best I could do was force out a half-smile. I told him I hoped the money would help, wished him a nice day and left.

It wasn't till later, after the shock had passed, that I was able to appreciate what had happened. So many times I see homeless people in the streets and just pass them, thinking that I ought to do something to help, or even just make eye contact. But I don't. Even though I feel for them, I walk on by. We ought to have compassion for those less fortunate, but what is compassion for if it doesn't lead us into action?

Yesterday's experience put me out of my comfort zone. It was an abrupt, unexpected encounter that forced me to stop thinking and just act. And it's probably just what I needed to wake me out of merely wishing, hoping and feeling, and into doing, helping, and living.

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. - 2 Cor 9:6-8

Eating in Maryland

It's been three weeks since I've been living in Rockville, and here are some of the places I've eaten at so far.

Silver Diner - your typical 50's diner. The menu is just a little small, but has the main necessities. I've had the meatloaf dinner and the open-faced turkey sandwich, both of which were decent. We frequent this joint mostly out of convenience, since it's located a short walk from the apartment. ★★✩✩

Cheesecake Factory - its reputation precedes it and it doesn't disappoint. The meal prices are very reasonable for the monstrous portions, it's just the price of the cheesecake that gets you. I had the spicy meat pizza, which was delicious and also lasted a good four meals for me. You have to stop eating purposefully to leave room for dessert. I had a slice of lemon raspberry cheesecake, which was a great combination of sweet and tart. ★★★✩

Asian Spices - 3333 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington DC - Asian fusion. The deep fried onion cakes weren't by any means authentic, but were still really good. My curry laksa noodles were very tasty, but seemed like it was just the luck of the draw; two of my friends ordered the same but the soup base seemed inconsistent amongst all three dishes. ★★✩✩

Maria's Bakery - 1701 Rockville Pike # B, Rockville - America's version of a Chinese cafe. It had the staples, like Portuguese chicken, spaghetti bolognese, etc. Can't compare to Toronto calibre but not bad when in a bind. ★★✩✩

Chili's - we went for the two-can-dine-for-$20 deal - great value. You get two full-sized entrees and an appetizer to share, from a select list. The Texas cheese fries were fantastically cheesy. I had a half-rack of chipotle ribs, but they come in other flavors too, and loaded potatoes as a side - definite win. Service was great as well. Next time I'll have to try the molten lava cake, and apparently there's a white chocolate version too! ★★★★

The Original Pancake House - I had the pancakes, eggs & hash brown combo, which is a great choice if you want a bit of everything. For a fee you can substitute buttermilk pancakes for specialty ones, so I had blueberry pancakes served with fresh blueberry sauce - well worth the upgrade so that you can try out their different types of pancakes without having to commit to a huge tower of them. They also employ an efficient system of clearing tables by having patrons pay out front, so the wait wasn't very long. ★★★★

Tastee Diner - 7731 Woodmont Ave, Bethesda - great grilled tuna melt, delicious crispy fries. Roast beef sandwich turned out pretty soggy though since they piled the mashed potatoes and gravy on top of the actual sandwich. Small joint, so the service was good, and prices were reasonable. ★★★✩

Work.

from The Book of Virtues, Ed/Commentary by William J. Bennett - c. 1993

"What are you going to be when you grow up?" is a question about work. What is your work in the world going to be? What will be you work? These are not fundamentally questions about jobs and pay, but questions about life. Work is applied effort; it is whatever we put ourselves into, whatever we expend our energy on for the sake of accomplishing or achieving something. Work in this fundamental sense is not what we do for a living but what we do with our living.

Parents and teachers both work at the upbringing of children, but only teachers receive paychecks for it. The housework of parents is real work, though it brings in no revenue. The schoolwork, homework, and teamwork of children are all real work, though the payoff is not in dollars. A child's household chores may be accompanied by an allowance, but they are not done for an allowance. They are done because they need to be done.

The opposite of work is not leisure or play or having fun but idleness - not investing ourselves in anything. Even sleeping can be a form of investment if it is done for the sake of future activity. But sleep, like amusement, can also be a form of escape - oblivion sought for its own sake rather than for its own sake rather than for the sake of renewal. It can be a waste of time. Leisure activity or play or having fun, on the other hand, can involve genuine investment of the self and not be a waste of time at all.

We want our children to flourish, to live well and fare well - to be happy. Happiness, as Aristotle long ago pointed out, resides in activity, both physical and mental. It resides in doing things that one can take pride in doing well, and hence that one can enjoy doing. It is a great mistake to identify enjoyment with mere amusement or relaxing or being entertained. Life's greatest joys are not what one does apart from the work of one's life, but with the work of one's life. Those who have missed the joy of work, of a job well done, have missed something very important. This applies to our children, too. When we want our children to be happy, we want them to enjoy life. We want them to find and enjoy their work in the world.

How do we help prepare our children for lives like that? Once again, the keys are practice and example: practice in doing various things that require a level of effort and engagement compatible with some personal investment in the activity, and the examples of our own lives.

The first steps in doing so is learning how to do them... Good habits of personal hygiene, and helping with meals or bed-making or laundry or caring for pets or any other such household chores all require learning. All can be done well or poorly. All can be done cheerfully and with pride, or grudgingly and with distaste. And which way we do them is really up to us. It is a matter of choice. This is perhaps the greatest insight that the ancient Roman Stoics championed for humanity. There are no menial jobs, only menial attitudes. And our attitudes are up to us.

Parents show their children how to enjoy doing the things that have to be done by working with them, by encouraging and appreciating their efforts, and by the witness of their own cheerful and conscientious example. And since the possibilities for happy and productive lives are largely opened up for youth by the quality and extent of their education, parents who work most effectively at providing their offspring with what it takes to lead flourishing lives take education very seriously.

Work is effort applied toward some end. The most satisfying work involves directing our efforts toward achieving ends that we ourselves endorse as worthy expressions of our talent and character. Volunteer service work, if it is genuinely voluntary and exercises our talents in providing needed service, is typically satisfying in this way. Youth needs experience of this kind of work. It is a good model for our working lives.