To advance, to transpire, to transcent, through music, through space, from mountain to mountian, ocean to ocean, one night club to one religious retreat...
Chopin Nocturn No. 1
Malher Sym. No.4
Elgar Cello Concerto
Sealed with a Kiss
Everything I do I do It for You
Lady in Red
Special Love for You
Saint Sean Piano Concerto No. 2
My Heart Will Go On
Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5
Everyday in My Life 天涯歌女
Hello Dear Wake Up
Angels
Bravo!!!!!!
Kissin Fulfilled our night with all Lizst Piano Works!
Heavy yet mesmerizing....
In my opinion, he is the one, the most vibrant, fluent, and has the cleanest tone quality and of cousrse artistic, musical and poetic concert pianist, among the younger generation in the world!
The Guitarist Tunes Up...
"With what attentive courtesy he bent,
Over his instrument;
Not as alordly conqueror who could command both wire and wood.
But as a man with a loved woman might,
Inquiring with delight
What slight essential things she had to say
Before they started, he and she, to Play."
----- F.Cornford ( Grand Daughter of Charles Darwin )
If music be the food of love, play on,
Give me excess of it; that surfeiting,
The appetite may sicken, and so die.~~Duke Orsino
From the Twelfth Night by Shakespeare
Duke is in love with the concept of love!
There is a difference!
3:00 am. 半夜裡，手腳都塗上最愛的亮麗桃紅色指甲油。身上擦着甜甜的CoCo~~
只因在半山上，秋月惆悵的令人打寒顫，細雨把心窩錐得疼。
看著庭院裡的楓樹，慢慢的凋零，溫柔的凝視，火紅金黃的透露出原本的脆弱，淒美的嬌縱!
— at 陽明山夜景.
And still, I have this impeccable sadness suffocates me, deeper and deeper.
There seems no point of escaping as there is also no point of reference down to the path in samsara. I am entering a black hole where no one can hear my voice, where I could not utter a word from my mouth.
I think only mantra accompanies this sadness will safe me from explosion.....But still, I shed tears, like sparkling pearls, one by one.
"Share your great moments with all sentient beings.
Let them have the great moment too;
it is beautiful.
That is the dedication .
Share your beauty with everyone, then let it go…" --- Kalu Rinpoche
"May you see your beauty and glory in all beings as you continue to shine from within ! " ---- Prayer from F. Jen
Apples add just a hint of sweetness to this velvety pumpkin soup. Try it as a delightful first course for a special meal or for dinner with grilled sharp Cheddar sandwiches.
Calories 180 per serving
Yields: 12 servings, about 1 cup each
Total Time: 1 hr 10 min
4 pound(s) pie pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 2-inch chunks (see Tips & Techniques)
4 large sweet-tart apples, such as Empire, Cameo, or Braeburn, unpeeled, cored, and cut into eighths
1/4 cup(s) extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon(s) freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon(s) chopped fresh sage
6 cup(s) reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1/3 cup(s) chopped hazelnuts, toasted (see Tips & Techniques)
2 tablespoon(s) hazelnut oil Directions
1.Preheat oven to 450°F.
2.Toss pumpkin (or squash), apples, olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Spread evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. Roast, stirring once, for 30 minutes. Stir in sage and continue roasting until very tender and starting to brown, 15 to 20 minutes more.
3.Transfer about one-third of the pumpkin (or squash) and apples to a blender along with 2 cups broth. Puree until smooth. Transfer to a Dutch oven and repeat for two more batches. Season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and heat through over medium-low heat, stirring constantly to prevent splattering, for about 6 minutes. Serve each portion topped with hazelnuts and a drizzle of hazelnut oil.
The concert in Taipei on 10/9 was exciting, for the big number of performers and an ardent conductor. However, in my opinion, the chorus was not professional enough, where combined 2/3 of non professional choruses members, sounding unfocoused. And the balance amid orchestra , chorus and vocalists could be much better....
In honoring the 100 birthday of the Republic of China, and the 100 anniversary of the death of Gustavo Mahler, NSO gave a grand performance of the Symphony #8 in Taipei on 10/9/2011.
The work was composed in a single inspired burst, at Maiernigg in southern Austria in the summer of 1906. The last of Mahler's works that was premiered in his lifetime, the symphony was a critical and popular success when he conducted its first performance in Munich on 12 September 1910.
The structure of the work is unconventional; instead of the normal framework of several movements, the piece is in two parts. Part I is based on the Latin text of a 9th-century Christian hymn for Pentecost, Veni creator spiritus ("Come, Creator Spirit"), and Part II is a setting of the words from the closing scene of Goethe's Faust.The two parts are unified by a common idea, that of redemption through the power of love, a unity conveyed through shared musical themes.
Mahler had been convinced from the start of the work's significance; in renouncing the pessimism that had marked much of his music, he offered the Eighth as an expression of confidence in the eternal human spirit.
From Wiki~~
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” "Stay hungry, stay foolish!" - Steve Jobs
1. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.
擁有追隨自己內心與直覺的勇氣，你的內心與直覺多少已經知道你真正想要成為什麼樣的人。
2. Stay hungry. Stay foolish.
求知若飢，虛心若愚。
3. Much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on.
追隨我的好奇與直覺，大部分我所投入過的事務，後來看來都成了無比珍貴的經歷。
4. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did.
我確信我愛我所做的事情，這就是這些年來支持我繼續走下去的唯一理由。
5. If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right.
把每一天都當成生命中的最後一天，你就會輕鬆自在。
6. Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.
提醒自己快死了，是我在人生中面臨重大決定時，所用過最重要的方法。因為幾乎每件事－所有外界期望、所有的名聲、所有對困窘或失敗的恐懼－在面對死亡時，都消失了，只有最真實重要的東西才會留下.
7. No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there.
沒有人想死。即使那些想上天堂的人，也想活著上天堂。
8. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life.
你們的時間有限，所以不要浪費時間活在別人的生活裡。
9. Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent.
死亡很可能就是生命中最偉大的發明，是生命交替的媒介。
10. The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste. They have absolutely no taste. And I don't mean that in a small way, I mean that in a big way, in the sense that they don't think of original ideas, and they don't bring much culture into their products.
微軟唯一的問題是完全沒有品味。我不是指在小節上，而是大節上。即是他們沒有自己的創新意念，也沒有把他們自身的文化貫注入自己的產品中.
Let us pray for Steve Jobs: May he purify all his defilements, and attain enlightenment. And so does every one.
I was at a "wine and cheese" class in Bella Vita Cooking Studio today, and discovered a delicious favor :"French Creme Calvados". It tastes so special to spread this apple wine Creme cheese on a piece of French bread or any pastry. :)
今日於Bella Vita 新發現： ＂蘋果酒乳酪＂。好特別的好吃！塗在法國麵包或任何麵包點心上都很棒!!
Other Cheeese:
1. Bel Paese: Meaning Beautiful Country 。Soft White Cheese.
2. Parmigiano : Hard Cheese. King of Cheese. Manufacture only in Mid Italy, Lombardi and Emiia Romagan.
3. St Agur: Blue Cheese. Manufactured in Mid France.
White Wine from Italy: Cortese: in Piedmont
Red Wine from Italy: Barbera : in Piedmont. Alba, Asti, Mnferrato.
King of red in Italy: Barbaresco.
Queen of red in Italy: Gaya
If I can fly,
I would discover my own sky,
I would find my roses and Proses,
I would struggle through all the barriers,
I would fly as low as the surface of the sea,
As high as the cloud.
Not in the cage like this.
A small playground with old tricks,
With same nutrient to feed ...
With non loving caretaker,
With no identity at all!
Although cage is the secure certainty,
Pretending to be my heaven...
Only if I do not have the ability to recognize the sky....
However, .....
String Quartet no.16 in F major op. 135 by Beethoven
Some notes on the composition :
1st movement: Lots of Repetition with tension. Tension.
2nd movement: Solomn without much hope in the beginning, but follows with several 7th chords with surprises, ends with tranquility.
3rd movement: Contrasting 3 chords repetition for introduction. Counter point continues, Fugue. Sounding characteristics with 2 bars of repeated notes on the accompaniment playing with the melody line.
4th movement: Ending with some recapitulations of the 1 st movement's motif, With Tension released. Personally I feel it is a weak ending....
Performance by Hagen Quartett.
In comparison with the String Quartet in D minor, " Death and the Maiden", D 810 in the same CD, musicians seem to love this piece much more, performed with extreme moving and Dramatic passion.
I love the dotted main motif in 1 st movement, chromatic ascending makes it very Grand...
2nd movement: Sorrow in the beginning, theme and variation form , change to pure romantic...playful..Majestic ...peace.
3rd movement, ABA . Scherzo
4th movement, introduces with unison theme brings out the inviting leadership atmosphere.
Again, dotted theme with 16th notes accompaniments which imitates the horse running
Lots of unison makes a strong ending.
He wrote his piece when he realized that his health is in danger. As he wrote to his friend : "Think of a man whose health can never be restored, and who from sheer despair makes matters worse instead of better. Think, I say, of a man whose brightest hopes have come to nothing, to whom love and friendship are but torture, and whose enthusiasm for the beautiful is fast vanishing; and ask yourself if such a man is not truly unhappy."
If we can live and cherish for the moment, we will not have regrets ! ~~ The film "One Day" touched my heart, although I did not have tears in my eyes, ... almost.
Director: Lone Scherfig. 2011
Writers: David Nicholls
Stars:Anne Hathaway, Jim Sturgess and Patricia Clarkson
Pearl: So, you did see the movie. I don't really think there is much regret in terms of "love" in this movie. After all, they did have each other after a long exploration. But, who cares? The long exploration is also THE process to enjoy while fairy tale "love-at-the-first-sight" normally won't last.
However, the regret is more about the eternal departure that came so suddenly though inevitable. If only people would realize change could come any moment, they will cherish any moment like never before. And, the scene where father and son sat together talking about the 9pm TV movie did make me cry. Rationally, I know losing someone you love and love you is better than never loved or being loved, I can't help feeling sad for the loss.
Blessing Angel: When she was unanticipated struck off by the truck, I, at the very moment, felt the impertinence trumpeted in the air penetrating my senses; when he was severely wounded laying on the stairway, I, in the bottom of my heart, felt his hopeless fear and sorrow. As I recall, those are the moments I almost shedding my tear, with empathy. Yes, I agree with you in terms of no regrets on this love story. Since they were together after all and he had made her happy during the time. However, he became so emotionally dependent on her, which crippled his ability to grow and to live his life with hope. I think the foremost touching elements are one's realization of impertinance and their confrontation of the dificulties in life itselfe.
Pearl, I like the results of the story, because in the end, he became a real man who can take responsibilitise and appreciate his love, his mother, his father, and his daughter, those who had been disappointed in him before.
What do you think an artist is? ...he is a political being, constantly aware of the heart breaking, passionate, or delightful things that happen in the world, shaping himself completely in their image. Painting is not done to decorate apartments. It is an instrument of war." — Pablo Picasso
If I can walk on the top of water,
as light as feather,
If wind can blow through my spine,
as tender as color laser,
If I can penetrate the cloud and the woods,
as they belong parts of mine,
If I can look into your eyes,
as your whisper flowing into my mind,
Sandel's discussion, based on a popular course he teaches at Harvard, mixes a pretty good dose of 'history of political philosophy' with an interesting selection of hypothetical and real life 'cases', meant to stimulate thinking and understanding of the difficulties one faces when one's mission is to distribute 'justice'.
Is affirmative action justified as a criterion for college admission? Are the handicapped entitled to jobs their handicaps prevent them from performing well? Are abortions 'murder' or an expression of free choice? Should the State get out of the 'marriage' business altogether? Is it okay to kill and eat a sick boy about to die anyway if that would save the lives of three men? These are some of the dilemmas Sandel presents his students. And, for context - or is this the true purpose of the course? - he presents a summary of what he considers to be some of the more prominent thinking on the matters of morality and justice: the Utilitarians, Kant, Aristotle, John Rawls.
The journey ends with an attempt to answer the initial question: what is Justice for? And, now, that we better understand the main arguments and their proponents and we saw how they applied in 'real life', Sandel is ready to reveal his preference. He rejects Justice as a means to maximize the collective welfare because there's no way to accurately measure happiness and because not everything that gives us pleasure is worth pursuing or even 'good'. He dismisses the libertarian view of Justice as defender of our freedoms and individual rights because we are a society, not isolated individuals and because there are moral standards that are imposed by society on us. He supports a Justice that promotes a community where Virtue is celebrated, where civilized debate is possible, where good people and good deeds are recognized, and honor rewarded. Who wouldn't?
I found the history part of the course to be the most interesting. The author's deep understanding of the philosophers and thinkers he covers gives him the ability to present them to the students in a manner that's succinct and interesting without missing the essence. His presentation of Kant and Aristotle are among the best 'introductions' I've heard or read anywhere. While I respect the author's choice of what to cover and what not to, I feel that there were too many missing views if this was meant to be a brief history of moral thinking and political philosophy. There was nothing on the revolutionary, especially Marxist notions of class struggle and the class nature of morality. Nothing or very little on Religion and its views on morality and its role in enforcing it and dispensing Justice. Nothing on anything or anyone outside of what we usually call 'the Western world'. Were/are there any moral thinkers or political philosophers in China? India? I can think of a few. Nothing on nationalism, feminism or ethnocentrism and the way they view Justice.
The cases presented were by and large interesting even though, most of them being recent 'real-life' issues decided and settled by the courts or legislatures, the outcome was not a surprise and some of the arguments should be familiar. Almost with no exception, Sandel appears to be supporting the establishment's view, agreeing with the way all settled cases were settled and disagreeing with those who opposed the settlement and staying neutral and presenting 'both sides' on some issues not yet settled - abortion, same-sex marriage, stem cell research.
The course ends with the author's expressing a preference for a view of Justice as promoter and perhaps enforcer of the good, virtuous and communal life where the rich are happily sharing their bounty with the less fortunate who, far from resenting them, stay engaged in a civil, open and never-violent debate and dialogue on the good life and how to make it even better. If it sounds as an over-simplification it's probably because it is. We receive very few hints on how we can move from our current litigious, ethnocentric, highly income-polarized, over-materialistic, voluntarily segregated society to the ideal Polis that Plato, Aristotle and, with some adjustments, Sandel dream of.
Mindancer: 揪心肝 ~~ Absolutely !
一齣很癡情又不專情的藝術好片....總覺得不是偶然也不是巧合，而是在每一個當下的際遇與決定，讓劇中的人物失落,絕望,重生,興奮...不斷的重演著.
"hazards ou coincidences " in English
hazards or coincidences, 危害或是巧合。比較接近。片中的主角在真實與虛幻，死亡與再生間經歷著不幸，妳說，這是一種有價值的危害？還是幸運的巧合？
Pearl : hazards or coincidences! That makes more sense 因為可以扣上那句名言：愈大的不幸愈值得去經歷，就算是危險和不幸，但還是要去經歷，像是巧合似的，其實卻是無可迴避的選擇，因為世人總是把一切當成真的，就算只是去錄影（you see, just a vision or illusion actually) 都要執著地去完成，可只有死亡是真的讓那些死去的人不會再出現在我們的這輩子裡，卻被說是最大的謊言，一切都是真真假假，假假真真，...像那位教授的舞台劇一樣，人活著就是這樣在心中有點明白的狀態下去執著一些假的東西，就像那個畫家說的，買到傑出的假畫比買到平庸的真畫還值得高興，只要你是真的enjoy the painting instead of the price tag or resale value. 不明白的話，太苦；太明白的話，則又太無趣，另外我很喜歡裡面那個黑人的角色，上帝活在愛人的眼睛裡面！還有，裡面的舞蹈太棒了，女主角太美了，如果她不是那麼美，那劇情很大一部份可能會不成立
Mindancer: Pearl 說的真好！有些人生活的會很有活力很悅樂都是因為他們活在真實與幻像之間。我們相信幻像，就如同我們相信這個由別人或是自己所創造的謊言。而我們執著着這種illusion, 如同愛情會永恆的信念。當她得知情人與兒子落水時，死亡把她暫時拉回真實，帶回悲傷與痛苦，卻也把她帶入另一個夢的追尋。第一段感情是在舞台演戲時盟生的火花；卻也在另個舞台結束；第二段的皮耶是位懂得在真假幸與不幸中生活的快樂人，女主角融入其中，但被死神巧妙的終止，女主角完全失去自我存在的價值；第三個似乎開始的愛情，是因他真正的懂她的執著，了解她的悲傷，不論這些執著有何意義。中間穿插的黑人畫家，是個相信自己相信愛也勇於冒險的藝術家，是他讓她在重創之後重心愛自己。不幸是不是值得經驗的？我想不幸是相對的，勇敢的熱情的去愛人去做一件美麗的事，若真有危險，那也值得！ Pearl: 說得好！我最高興的是看到她回家看她爸爸，很怕她就跟著那個燃燒的渡假小屋而香消玉殞了，她畢竟還是找到繼續活下去的勇氣，那是每個人都該努力去做到的 no matter what!
From the moment the 2000 people Viutual choir sang together, the entire world was connected with only vibrations, without any physical presentation. This is an evolutionary era of universal networking in the manifestation through music, an oldest, and the most authentic communication method in human civilization.
Hotel Yountville is such a relaxing Spa Resort in Napa. In addition to its spacy and delicate accommodations, their services were the most friendly and excellent indeed.
At the Rocky View Restaurant, South of Carmel, CA. Wonderful Views but terrible food !
While coming from New York and Taipei,
Clock slows down, seems not ticking any more,
by the sea of Carmel.
Every breath lingers each dash fragrance of salt;
Each wave caresses those intolerable branches;
Unwillingly subdue,
by the power of Nature. ----- May, 2011
Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.--- Douglus MacAuthor
''Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.''--- Steve Jobs
Sadly I admit that sometimes, I feel like 100 years old....
Scary as I realized it.
But I am fortounate enough to have an opportunity to touch my inner most soul in my meditation session . I have touched the truth of emptiness, the core concept of impermanence and the truth of ever lasting consciousness. I realize that of course I am feeling 100 years old, because I have been living in the universe for thousand years already....
Nevertheless, everybody has !
As a result, How to differenciate real young and real old?
Having faith vs. Being Skeptical, embracing new concepts vs. Clinging Outdated traditions, feeling innovatively optimistic vs. Sensing hopeless Depression, to love one another vs. To emancipate from the society.
However, the difference between being reckless and courageous is the question.
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. --- Robert Lee Frost
