Surf Roots, Software Thoughts

I just got a new Macbook Pro.  Wow.

The packaging is unbelievable.  Seriously.  I wanted to cry when I was opening the box.  The computer is just sitting there waiting for you, even staring at you with its puppy dog face.  It was one of the happiest moments of my life.

And I thought the packaging was good … The computer is awesome.  Insanely beautiful.  Sleek.  Mysterious.  Exotic.  Take every good adjective, add them up, and that sum can only partially describe my first impression of the new Macbook Pro.  Apple, the world would not be as beautiful, in reach, or fun without you.

I want to run around the streets of Berlingame (where the Cloudera office is), skipping with glee and joy and excitement, while bumping “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” by Wham! on my shoulder mounted boom box.

Apple: Computer Nirvana

I would estimate between 5,000 and 10,000 people were grouped around the steps of City Hall, listening to stories, hoping for change, and believing that Gays will have equal rights soon.  I was utterly touched by my experience today.  I laughed at a few signs like the following:

I was sapping towards signs like the following:

And I was moved by the turnout, speakers, and general essence of such a wonderful movement.  With the passing of Prop 8, a proposition that creates an amendment to the California constitution outlawing same-sex marriage, Gays are no longer recognizes as equals by our governing doctrine.  This is despicable.  Every man and woman enters this world as an equal, some loving the opposite sex, and some loving the same sex.  Certain religious organizations made large contributions to the Yes on 8 campaign, the most notable being the Mormon Church, who donated over $20,000,000 (that’s 7 zeros).

Reverend Amos Brown, one of Martin Luther King Jr.’s six students, gave the best, most motivational, moving speech I have ever witnessed.  His booming, powerful voice echoed off the concrete and steal buildings which house our governing body, preaching love and equality and peace and happiness.  His words touched our hearts, and his presence gave us that tingly feeling in our spine that makes us understand that this is something, that there is something here, something worth fighting for.  Here is the speech, though the video isn’t all that good:

After the speeches had finished, the whole crowd proceeded to march to Market Street, the most famous street in San Francisco, towards the Castro, which is perhaps the largest Gay neighborhood in the world.  Thousands marched as millions watched.  They marched for their rights to love whom they have wanted to love since they were born.  They marched for their friends and family, loved ones and childrens, in hopes of one day having equal rights.

America has fought for equality before, and now it fights again.  It fights now, not for gender or race, but for love.  It fights for love, and what a wonderful thing to fight for.  Love.

Today is my fifth day in Shanghai.  Though five days may seem short to most, I’ve had quite the journey thus far.  I was worn out from an epic seven-week adventure, and now I’m faced with the challenge of starting a new job at a new company in a new city in a new country.  The transition has not been easy for me, as the tone of this post may reveal, but the point I’m trying to make is that it would be impossible without the support from others.

I’m fortunate enough to have my Dad here with me for the first week of this new journey, who is a constant reminder that it’s all good.  Just today he presented me with a simple, small laughing Buddha made of Jade, whose happy, smiling face made me forget about my worries.

There are many paths to happiness, but the most obvious for me is to surround myself with people I love and love them back as best I can.  Buddha himself said, “Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart to give yourself to it.“  I think my world is the people around me.  What’s your world?

One of these guys had chemotherapy for his cancer and lost his hair.  All the rest are his friends.

Seeing this picture on Facebook made me so happy that I decided to share it.  It turns out that one of these guys is my best friend, and this photo reminds me how grateful I am to have great friends and family.

“A friend is someone who is there for you when he’d rather be anywhere else.” - Len Wein

While driving back from a sushi happy hour tonight, a friend of mine asked me if I thought a genocide similar to the Holocaust could ever happen again in a westernized country. My immediate, gut-level answer was “no,” but it was unjustified at the time. I’ve since had an opportunity to think about why I was so quick to answer “no,” though my reasons are still perhaps unjustified.

Speculative questions such as the one stated above are, well, speculative. There is no way we can provide answers to them; we can merely make guesses at them. No one can predict a mass genocide with 100% certainty, especially someone as poorly educated in history as me. I think the reason why I was so quick to answer “no” was because I’m very positive. I don’t know if a genocide can occur again, so I answer “no” because it’s a positive answer. Perhaps having a positive attitude is unrealistic, but hoping and dreaming is the first step to getting anywhere, right? Being positive will lead to more internal happiness, which will then rub off on other people. Especially for me, being around positive people like Jim, Eric, and others really gets me pumped and makes me feel good. As you become positive, your friends will become positive as well, making their friends positive, and the cycle will continue.

I think my claims here are very subjective, so perhaps many of you won’t agree with me. However, I will say that a world with 100% positive thoughts is better than a world with 100% negative thoughts, so I believe in working towards the 100% positive world, despite how unrealistic that might be. Someone might argue, “Well some people just aren’t naturally positive.” My response to that is that I will continue to be positive and try to have an optimistic view and a smile on my face as often as possible; I’ll have positive thoughts that I’ll rub off on them :).

Today I was one of a few thousand who was fortunate enough to hear the Dalai Lama speak. He visited the University of Washington to receive an honorary doctorate degree and graced the audience, mostly composed of students and faculty, with advise and wisdom.

Applaud started right as the marshal welcomed His Holiness into the arena. Everyone was clapping and happy. Then suddenly when he finished climbing the stairs onto the stage, the applaud escalated to a level that I’ve only heard at sports arenas. Students were hooting and yelling, clapping and whistling. It was almost as though the room had been filled by hundreds of thousands of new people, when really only His Holiness and a few apprentices had entered.

My first impression of the Dalai Lama was that of a humble and grateful man. He bowed and smiled as he entered the room and insisted that people sit down, for he was of no importance. He walked slowly with his hands together in the prayer position, smiling all the while. President Emmert and other high educators said a few short words and eventually gave the Dalai Lama a purple graduation gown and a large plaque. Everyone was applauding, but really they were waiting for him to speak.

He began by speaking his native tongue to ensure that his gratitude was accurately communicated. His translator said how grateful he was to be given this degree and to be given the opportunity to speak in front of a crowd of students. After his thanks he told a few jokes about his poor English and his degree for which he didn’t study at all for. He spoke slowly and carefully, and his English was broken but understandable.

He started by explaining that peace does not depend on the sky but instead on ourselves. Violence, hatred, and war are human inventions, and only compassion and wisdom can be the basis for peace. One must be truly at peace with oneself before sharing peace with others, and to be at peace with oneself, you have to be able to use your mind to expel violent and angry thoughts, which come naturally to anyone included His Holiness. Conflict is also natural and unavoidable, and his hope was that dialog would be used to unite conflicting opinions instead of war being used to destroy them.

The talk was absolutely wonderful and enlightening, and though I could put more detail into my story I chose not to. Instead of supplying more detail I want to share one of the stories he told, which touched me the most of anything he said. He was telling a story about enemies and people who do not have compassion or internal peace. One of the students who was elected to ask him a question asked him, “How do you share your compassion with your enemies and with those who do not have compassion?” He answered, and I paraphrase, “I do not know (chuckling). When in the presence of such people I try to smile, tell jokes, and be as happy as possible.” I can’t help but smile and feel totally happy when I envision his kind, loving, welcoming face say these words.

There is more that I’d like to say, but I don’t think my small blog post would do his message any justice at all. I instead plan to try and be good to my neighbors and respect those around me as est I can. I will try to not let anger, greed, or jealousy affect me, and I will try to smile as much as I can. I’m very grateful I was given this opportunity to be in his presence, and I hope that you too will be given an opportunity to see the Dalai Lama speak.

Photo credit: here and Jeff Prouty.