Miss ya 2008!

What? Already the last hour of the last day of 2008? Where did the year go? What have I accomplished? Has 2008 been AWESOME?!

#1 Awesomeness
I'm still alive. I'm still able to laugh and cry, to enjoy precious moments with family and friends. My family is well. My friends are happy. Yes, I'm extremely thankful for every tiny bit of these mundane things that we take for granted until they are snatched away from us, especially in this turbulent year, filled with more sorrow than joy for most. Thank God, it's been more cheer for me. May the new year put an even wider smile on my face for the next 365 days (^___^*)

#2 Awesomeness
I've escaped a restrictive work environment into one that liberates, to continue to do what I enjoy with an awesome team whose spirit bears the same flame of passion. One of the best calls I made this year was to use my right brain, to reject a very attractive job offer in March because I was following my heart, and my heart said it belonged to the creative circle. After 10 years of love and sweat, I couldn't just quit being around the creatives, or rather, being creative (^___^*)

#3 Awesomeness
I discovered 2 great new places which will see me going back for more - ONE, the natural beauty of the great wilderness of Sichuan, and TWO, the natural beauty of the metropolis of Tokyo waiting to be discovered by those who look hard. And not too far away from the hustle bustle of Shinjuku lies the wild side of Japan, still waiting to be discovered by yours truly in the new year. In April (^___^*)

#4 Awesomeness
I haven't had so much faith in fate lately if not for what I've experienced this year. Many things had seemed pre-orchestrated by powers greater than myself. For a start, I made a new friend out of nowhere in Feb when he stumbled upon my contact while researching L&Y for his job interview. It turned out he's my ex-classmate's brother! A new friend from Wales who taught me what free-spiritedness really meant when I traveled in Sichuan, new friends in my final weeks at L&Y, and of course, the wonderful new friends at ASUS who are the reason I don't mind going to work everyday! But even more precious are the old friends with whom I'm having the chance to soldier on once again, an old friend whom I care for in Chengdu whom I didn't expect to see this year cuz the earthquake had somewhat foiled my plan but somehow, I still managed to visit (^___^*)

#5 Awesomeness
WALL-E and Ponyo. In all the craziness of our daily lives, sometimes it really helps to take a step back and reflect on the things that matter the most to us. WALL-E tickles my sentimental vein while hand-drawn Ponyo trips me back to the good ol' days before 3D when good stories could carry themselves just as well, if not better, on the pencil tips of animation artists like my Uncle Walt in the 1930s to 50s, and Uncle Miyazaki today. Ponyo, dear Ponyo, when was the last time I felt happy and smiled everytime I saw the trailer for a film on TV? (^___^*)

So I guess it's been a truly AWESOME year for me and I hope it's the same for you guys too. I would ask for more time to see through some of the things which are still sorta up in the air ... but hey, that's what 2009 is for rite!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 充实的过了2008， 2009 会更美好哦！