Craft By Zen by Jeremy Wong

Every year, I share my resolutions in order to help me keep myself on track. Sometimes, goals just aren’t refined enough to do, and sometimes goals are just too hard to do. Here they are, and let’s see which ones I’ve failed.

[Success] Spend at least one month using no credit cards or debit cards to pay for purchases, excluding online purchases. ATM withdrawals are fine. Thanks to being in Munich where cash is the only type of transaction that I can only have, that helped.

[Failed] Keep track of every expense for a month, and can use Mint.com or Quicken, or other financial tracking program if desired. This is still a good idea. I should still do it.

[Failed] List of books - Get it organized and make a queue of what to read next What the bleep was I thinking with this one…

[Failed] Paleo diet for at least 30 consecutive days I started reading into the paleo diet. It sounds great, but I don’t think I’m having that much gastro-inflammation with the current diet I have now.

[Quasi-success] Website redesigning + Create personal Website Blog got redesigned. Personal website = not.

[Failed] $8.00 or less meals What can I say. I was travelling and got guilty.

[Failed] At least 40 new books read I almost did it. I got to 37 books. Lesson learned.

[Failed] Produce a webshow with at least six “pilot” episodes I’m still going to do it. It has a premise now. I finished my other book, so I’ll start script writing soon.

[Failed] No High Fructose Corn Syrup for 2011 Before you know it, you are dipping french fries in ketchup, or use ketchup in some other ways. Gosh, restaurants do not use organic ketchup.

[Failed] Pass my EIT exam I’m signed up for the next test in April. I missed the deadline in August.

[Failed] Cook at least one new recipe every week (Or an accumulation of over 50 new recipes), with documentation
I didn’t document them, but I did cook many different recipes. Probably not 50 new ones though.

Original Post

I realized after a few years of this blog that I really made no formal introduction of myself, and for that, I give you a blog post dedicated to who I am.

Hello, my name is Jeremy Wong, and here are a list of things that I do:

• I run this blog, jermspeaks.com, and have since 2008.
• I also contribute (once in a while) to The Documentary Group on Tumblr
• Learn more about the services I use on my about.me page
• Two defunct Tumblr pages I used to run, and may someday abandon: Everything Clint & 1 Album Everyday
• I’m a college student by occupation right now. The future is looking in all directions though, especially in the direction of a Master’s or Ph.D.
• Born and raised in California. Actually, still living in California in the lovely and sunny Central Coast.
• Ran a daily show that really was not that great looking back: The Daily Jerm
• Podcast Reviewer, now defunct. Got tons of traffic though, and still get annoying requests to review podcasts

Here are some upcoming projects I will be working on:

• The Bible: RPG, a game that circles around the biblical story from Genesis to Revelations, and doesn’t skip a beat on every account of rape and pillaging (and will play out as a parody to the Good Book).
• Writing a short webseries about the Happiest Place on Earth, and how it might not actually be that happy (hoping for dishing out six episodes of well produced laughter).

Original Post

Welcome to Neuschwanstein Castle. This was Day 2 of my travels, and I had read my tour brochure at the last minute. I had meant to do another tour, but I saw a group of people that were going to Neuschwanstein Castle, and I decided, fuck it. I’m going.

So I take the regional train near the Alps on the German-Swiss border. Then I travel by bus to the bottom of the castle, and the castle is within view, shown in the first picture.

Then, I climb up to the Castle, and I see a magnificent view of the lake, as well as the gate (first two pictures) And then, you can see the castle from many meters away from marienbrüke, or Mary’s Bridge, seen from the third picture.

On my way down, taking an alternate path, I saw these stones stacked that means something about balance. Also, it started raining as I got to the bottom of that mountain, so I immediately got shade, and the after picture was spectacular, shown in the last picture.

Original Post Part 1
Original Post Part 2

It’s been over three weeks since the last post, and now I can finally share some interesting photos of my first day of Munich (of many days I’ve been here). This is mainly of the city center region, Marienplatz, and surrounding area. A few hours after landing from Chicago to Munich, I immediately checked into the hostel, which would not have my room until after 4

So I get to the meeting place on my tour (which was Mary’s column, shown above), and I was off. I met some interesting travelers from all over the world, and saw some interesting architecture that was mainly rebuilt after the war because Munich wanted to keep some of its old buildings to have that rustic look. My tour guide, Adam, was from Australia and had a few cheezy, yet funny jokes to keep us entertained. Also, being a sponge of historical information, I just soaked everything he said. There was the church that built by the devil, the Opera House, Viktualienmarkt, the Hofbrauhaus (oldest beer hall in Munich), and much more. Also, we passed by a Michael Jackson tribute, which was almost a little bit too creepy.

All in all, I get a beer from the hostel, an Augustiner Hell, and drink it while I shower. Incidentally, the weather was really sunny all day up until nightfall, in which I hear lightning, followed by heavy rain. I pass out before 10

So check out my next post as I talk about Neuschwanstein!

Original Post

At the dawn of the world, I take out my shovel
And dig and dig and dig,
Like the early pioneers would do
finding resources that the earth lain
And I continued throughout the entire day
finding my own resources in order to live through the night.
Oh how awful the night has become
With the crawlers and creepers infested over the twilight land

But alas, day is not their time
and I must collect as much as I can
Except for shoal
Unbearable, unspeakable shoal
Oh, why has the creators invent such a useless resource
Neither coal nor sand
It can not be crafted for other purposes
Your so close to being obsidian
I can’t even bear to carry one around

But that’s where I was wrong

I had not noticed said shoal
upon my inventory or belt
And there appeared only my sword, my axe, and tree bark
But twas the nightfall
Shoal was present, and I did the most respectable thing
I threw it out hastily
And it wobbled up and down
spinning around
Dancing upon the pixelated ground floor
Why have you forsaken me, ole shoal

“Out and away with you, I’ll tear you apart!”
My anger said
And I took the shoal with me to the depths of the mines
Where lava was to be found
And that’s not all I intended
I’ll find all of the shoal in the world
And burn them too!
That way I’ll never have to see one again
But it wasn’t easy;
the shoal had disappeared

The anger has flustered me to no ends that I made a huge mistake
I was in the wrong home
Well not even a home but an open cave
Open for the dark lurkers intending to do me harm
And I rushed out into the dark despair
Running as fast as I could to Hideout D
So I took off, trying to avoid as many enemies
But in no time, I was surrounded
And I had a dull blade and no back-up supplies
So I did the most logical thing
And I dug as fast as I could

The shovel took me as far down as another cave
And I once escaped my enemies
But now I was in another enemy territory
With only one light to illuminate my space
And I heard groaning in the seemingly still space
”A creeper,” I thought
The noise grew louder and louder
And I just stood there. Afraid.

As the acrid sound touched my ear drum
I felt fear, and other tingling sensations
How was I so powerless
Not being able to defend myself
It was unbearable; but I didn’t want to surrender
I saw the creeper and I leapt away as it noticed me
It charged toward me and then
And then, and then, the end?

Shoal came from the hole I dug earlier
And landed on the creeper
Exploding on impact.
Shoal split into a thousand pieces
And it disappeared
Before my very own eyes
Thank you shoal
For saving my many lives
I take back everything I said in the past about you
I take back all the times I left you hovering in those caves
Shoal, I liked our time together
And you have a purpose

Morning came, and I escaped the cave
Going back to HQ for resources
Carrying with me a bag of shoal
For safe keeping.

—a by Jeremy Wong

Last year I was wrong for the most part, especially the Apple announcement of the iPad. But I got one or two right, like increased android sales. w00t!

Well, here goes nothing yet again.

• Another devastation of a EU country on the brink of economic collapse that gets a bailout
• Groupon does not get acquired
• iPad 2 (Or other name) will outsell more than iPad (4.19 million worldwide, from an article written on November 2nd)
• 3D televisions will not make it big
• Superbowl commercials will not create another viral hit (Old Spice last year)
• No alien diplomacy

Original Post