"We see things as we are, not as they are"

- Leo Rosten

"Your class is my favorite."

How touching.

Can we fall in love with anyone that fits within broad parameters of our expectations of a partner? E.g. their physical characteristics match ok, their education and socioeconomic status isn't too different from yours, etc.

Or does love emerge more from a recognition and connection with a particular individual, not paying so much attention to their major characteristics?

I think when people are younger, they'll tend to operate more in the first realm. When people are older & wiser I think they can be more discerning.

Would you be willing to die for your hobby/sport/passion? Or would you switch to something else?

"Do I ever say things I don't mean?"

"You never get emotional"

I get the feeling that I have a tough act to follow. Why?

The worst thing to dress up as on Halloween - a suicide bomber. While this is genuinely scary, you'll probably get taken out (shot).

Last night I dreamt of the apocalypse, the previous night I dreamt I was taking an organic chemistry exam. Both are pretty bad events, some would argue the scariest perceived by humankind. But I was handling both pretty well. I wasn't nervous, just somewhat confused.

"Wash your hands before and after using this product."

What if you are using it on your hands?

Do people from warmer countries have "warmer" personalities?

An average of 4 people in Britain are killed each year by writing instruments (Source: BBC Radio 1).

I wonder how.

Very often we have questions and are looking for answers. The questions could be academic, practical, work-related, metaphysical, interpersonal, etc. But most of the time answering one just raises the next question. And the subsequent answer will raise another question and so on and so forth.

What's it all for? We should try to calm the mice that are running around in our head. I use "mice" as a metaphor on purpose because they are small creatures, and aren't known to be profound/deep. A lot of the times the mental gymnastics aren't necessary. Just be happy and do some good. Right now, I think that's what it's all about.

Alex (a NY native): "You speak better English than I do, went to college, and you need a visa to stay here? I should be the one that may get deported."

Me: "The world's a funny place." (My polite way of saying yes it's unfair)