Lost in Stockholm

I attended a funeral today. My first American funeral (well Vietnamese American). It was somber and beautiful. I did not know KH well but she did intern for my group at my last job and she helped me out (a lot) on a couple projects. I felt it respectful to see her off.

(and bear with my disjointed thoughts)

The funeral procession snaked 60 cars…I wish I had my camera to shoot blocks of cars with a neon “FUNERAL” sticker attached to the front.

There truly was no greater pain than seeing a mother cry for her deceased child. And the sound of crying from a mother, reverberates through your soul. I know if it were not for other mothers holding her down, she would have jumped down into the earth.

The rain and fog were cued perfectly for the burial…just made it that much more somber.

What I learned today from KH’s death is that we have to live life to the fullest, have no regrets, and take risks. We never know what may happen the next day.

If you have a child, husband, wife, lover, or friend around you today, give them an extra hug and tell them they are important part of your life.

In memory of KH who passed away exactly 22 years after she was born.

So Hairy Swede (check out his blog: A Swedish American in Sweden) inspired me to write seven things about myself. Some of you may know these truths, but most of you, probably not.

I have finally closed chapter on the ex. He was a good guy but we never shared common ground and the relationship devolved into a disaster. As cruel as it sounds (and I am not going to get into an argument here with anyone), I decided I no longer want to speak to him. I have plenty of my own problems and silly issues that I do not need to deal with his.

Deep down inside, I am shy when I meet new people. (This is especially true when I meet guys I’m interested in.) Ask the right questions and I will entertain you with stories from around the world. Really ask the right questions and I may take off the Venetian mask and tell you something about myself.

I love ice cream. Any time of the year, come rain, hail, snow, sun. Enough said.

I dislike the dating game. It’s a game like any other we play (work, sports, society) but I dislike it. Doesn’t matter what country you are in, men and women always play games.
And to go on a tangent, the few times I expressed my interest in someone, I lost. I get the “I like you too” but it quickly falls into an abyss. People need to be more direct. If you no longer like/are interested in a person, say it.

I have zero attention span. What did you say? I was not listening. =D

The most important thing to me is family. I’m called the wild child and probably need another year or two to get that out of my system. Given the opportunity however, I would not mind settling down with someone and begin building my own family.

My dream job is to work for a chocolatier doing international marketing and brand management. That would be the good life.

I love being silly. If we all let out the inner child in us out every once in a while, the world would be a better place. Sounds naiive but I believe it is true. Ran around IKEA with stuffed toys and tried out every sofa? Awesome. Jumped off a 30ft pole (had a harness of course)? Very cool. Spoke with funny accents for a weekend? Y’all are dandy!
And I’ll give credit to all the witty, intelligent men out there who know how to be silly…very rad. =)

Okay maybe that was eight. Better than sju. ;)