Prize

I was pleasantly surprised to find my prize in the letterbox today! Won it through one of Fishtail's entries. :D

Thank you Fishtail!

Something for Lent

Sounds familiar? ;)

American Idol Entry: Cousins or Coincidence II

Mandisa and Ursula. Hmm. It seems that almost half of the contestants of Idol '06 resembles peculiar characters. Or is it just me?

OK, it's just me. :P

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

Got reminded that it was St. Pat's Day through Monastic Mumblings; which by the way has quite a bit of info on this Irish saint. :) Do you know that shamrocks (the symbol of this holiday and incidentally the national emblem of Ireland) was actually a religious teaching tool used by St. Pat in those days?

"The Celtic people were much closer to nature than their Roman counterparts back in the Empire, so Patrick used a simple shamrock to explain how the Trinity can be Three and One."

- Patrick of Ireland 17 March 461 A. D., via Monastic Mumblings

Interesting eh? ;)

God sponsored billboard

Cute - although I am not sure how much of it is from the Guy Upstairs. ;)

Source: ATLGospel.com

MY American Idol: Taylor Hicks

I was contemplating of posting something on stem-cell research but after chatting with a friend, I decided I needed more information in order to give a more objective view... Then I thought of blogging about the nature of God, but I was not in the mood.

However I am now in the mood for an Idol post! Hehe. My favorite contestant is Taylor Hicks. Yeah, the dude with the grey hair and sings like ... hmm. Ray Charles? Actually, I am not sure who he sings like 'cos to me he created his own genre. Initially I found his antics / dance moves a lil' "spastic" (if you know what I mean) but he grows on you after some time and it becomes rather endearing. Taylor is unpretentiousness and you can feel his sincerity when he sings. He presents himself "as-he-is", kinda like "love or leave me". Raw and honest, that's what I like. :)


Can't wait for the next episode of Idol! Go Taylor! WoooOOT! :D

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CLICK HERE For MP3s and Videos of Taylor Hicks! Highly Recommended!

New Perspective

I'll take you back always
Even when your fight is over now
Even when your fight is over now
I'll take you back always
Even when the pain is coming through
Even when the pain is coming through
I'll take you back

- chorus from Take You Back by Jeremy Camp

This is for me the flavor of the week. :) The song was written based on the story of the Prodigal Son and when I had my first listen to it what caught my attention was the chorus. I like the choice of words - "take you back"; to me that sounds real, sounds like what a father would say to his child who is unsure whether the father still loves him/her after the child has left him to pursue his/her own selfish wants. That struck a chord in me. And I guess that's what every "seasoned" Christian needs; a fresh perspective of looking at God's all-inclusive love.

I believe this Lent is more purifying for me, not that other Lents are less purifying. It's just that this Lent I am more open to the God's work in my life. I am more willing, i think. So therefore I have started the discipline of fasting and the rosary, but I have not done so for about 1 week plus as I have been terribly ill (98% recovered now, 1 more antibiotic to go, thank God!).

Soon I'll blog more on stem-cell research/the nature of God/AmericanIdol5 (I am fan of Taylor Hicks!) ;) Meanwhile I'd like to know the opinion of the general public on stem-cell research, please post your opinions in the comments area. :)

You take me back always
Even when my fight is over now
Even when my fight is over now
You take me back always
Even when my pain is coming through
Even when my pain is coming through
You take me back

- final chorus from Take You Back by Jeremy Camp

American Idol Entry: Cousins or Coincidence?

Sorry guys look like I am gonna commit the sin of Idolatry... [ Lame. I know. :) ]

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Carrie Underwood: Jesus Take The Wheel

[courtesy of Cowboylyrics.com]

She was driving last Friday on her way to Cincinnati
On a snow white Christmas Eve
Going home to see her Mama and her Daddy with the baby in the backseat
Fifty miles to go and she was running low on faith and gasoline
It been a long hard year
She had a lot on her mind and she didn't pay attention
She was going way to fast
Before she knew it she was spinning on a thin black sheet of glass
She saw both their lives flash before her eyes
She didn't even have time to cry
She was sooo scared
She threw her hands up in the air

Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this all on my own
I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
To save me from this road I'm on
Jesus take the wheel

It was still getting colder when she made it to the shoulder
And the car came to a stop
She cried when she saw that baby in the backseat sleeping like a rock
And for the first time in a long time
She bowed her head to pray
She said I'm sorry for the way
I've been living my life
I know I've got to change
So from now on tonight

Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this all my own
I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
To save me from this road I'm on

Oh, Jesus take the wheel
Oh, I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
Save me from this road I'm on
From this road I'm on

Jesus take the wheel

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Beautiful song deep with meaning.

Click here to watch the video

Event: Bio-Ethics Talk

If...

1. you have not planned anything tomorrow [Friday, 3rd March 2006]
   
2. you are free between 8pm to 10pm
3. you don't mind traveling to Damansara Jaya, Petaling Jaya
4. issues like abortion, euthanasia and cloning interests you

Do come for a bioethics talk by Dr. Ignaccio Segarra, a pharmacologist from Spain, who has done post-doctoral work in the US and currently resides in Singapore.

According to a friend of mine,

"...his presentation will be presented from the point of view of "Natural Law" (natural law ethical theory states that the moral standards that govern human behavior are, in some sense, objectively derived from the nature of human beings), it is suitable for you to bring any non-Christian friend of yours. He concludes with the Catholic / Christian moral position without resorting to simply throwing Bible verses but by resorting to your reason."

I don't know about you but that sounds pretty interesting to me. It has been a long time since I had any serious intellectual stimulation. This might be it. ;)

Anyway, if you are interested do drop me an email at celestinetan@gmail.com for the further details of the location. By the way, the talk is FREE OF CHARGE. :)

p/s: yea, I know this post is last minute... but it's better late than never! hehe.

Missing Mass. Gasp!

Mass has started and I am AT HOME. Blame the rain, blame the rain. I thought I could go and get a "ash cross" on my forehead and blog about it. But I guess that's where I slipped. :) And I believe through this (i.e. missing Ash Wed's Mass) God might be reminding me that Mass is all about Him (yeah, sounds like God is full of Himself but hey! He IS God...) and not about good homilies/great music/great atmosphere/etc.

Besides I have yet to finish studying for my Human Communications quiz tomorrow, complete an in-house seminar review on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (which is also due tomorrow) AND on top of that I have yet to study for this week's Abnormal Psychology class. However that's not all but I shall not elaborate further.

I've light up all the candles on my altar to commemorate Ash Wednesday. Although I will not be able to be celebrate Mass in church tonight, at least I will be doing so in spirit. :)

Off I go study.

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p/s: CLICK HERE for a comprehensive FAQ on Ash Wednesday by James Akin (EWTN.com)

Not very penitential.

I know what I have said about abstinence. But... I just. couldn't. help. it.

I spent RM116 altogether during Times Warehouse Sale @ The Atria, Damansara Jaya! Bought those mini Penguin books with short stories by Washing Irving, Robert Frost, Grimm's Fairy Tales, John Steinbeck, James Joyce, H. G. Wells, Anton Chekhov, Mother Goose, Hans Christian Andersen, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Oscar Wilde and Fyodor Dostoyevsky for only RM1 each! [Insane!] That's not all, I got two books by G. K. Chesterton: The Club of Queer Trades and Father Brown for RM5 each AND Mother Teresa's Audiobook A Simple Path for RM10. Wait, I have not finished listing... what's more I got myself Tash Aw's The Harmony Silk Factory [RM27], Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident [RM25] and Joey Yap's Stories and Lessons on Feng Shui [RM28]. OK, it's not what you think. I am reading Joey Yap for research purposes. After all the Art of War says: "to know your enemy is to win half the battle". ;) Finally, I got myself Garfield's 2006 Day-to-Day Calendar for only... RM5 (it was originally RM49); what a steal!!

Ahh... it's been a long time since I felt so good after buying something.

Yes, yes. I'll be going to Mass later to do my penance. ;)

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P/s: Sale is until 5th March /1st Floor, The Atria Shopping Centre, Jalan SS22/23, Damansara Jaya, 47400 Petaling Jaya / Sunday-Thursday (10am - 8pm) and Friday and Saturday (10am - 9pm)