For as long as I can remember, I've always wanted a personal motto. I wanted a saying that I could really try to live my life by. I mean all the humorous book and storybook heroes always have a personal principle they follow. Good manners! Courage! Keenness! But a part of me could never get myself to create my own motto because I never knew where to start and I never thought I could give one.

    “With great power comes great responsibility.” is a quote by the great writer and philosopher, Voltaire. More familiar, it makes an appearance in the modern day movie performance of the superhero Spider-Man. This saying provides a sense of responsibility for those with actually limitless power.

    “Be good to others and others will be good to you.” is another well-known proverb that has roots in almost all of the major religions. Although it is less practiced today than it is lectured, it is a powerful and good motto to live by. Kindness, in this sense, is the final power in judging every action.

    My personal motto today has an idea – being efficient. Through my limited knowledge, I have come to find that this is simply the best way for me to give insight about who I am and what I believe in.

 Efficiency is a quality that everyone desires for, right? Who doesn't want to be able to not only work fast but to achieve great results? To some, it may appear to be a frightening journey. But to me, it means that I have a lifelong journey to improve the methods and ideas with which I come near my tasks.

    Regardless of what motto you want to live by, I believe that everyone should have one, or two or more. These are all symbols of a perfect story of us, in our own view. And it immediately provides insight to the type of person we were, we are and what we strive to be. We are never meant to be perfect, but it is important to try and live by a belief that will help us reach our potential. All you have to do is know what your excitement is and live by it.

    The gray-haired lady can't wait to leave the building to search for her dad. Unless watched, she will walk in the streets in an effort to find her father, who died 30 years ago.

    Not all cases of Alzheimer's disease look like this, but Alzheimer's is a serious disease that is said to be the fourth or fifth leading cause of death for people over age 75. It is said that about three percent of the U.S. population over age 65 have Alzheimer's. In the early stages; people may exhibit short-term memory loss. Some may experience changes in personality, easy to be angry. As the disease progresses, patients might lose the ability to move and may be unable to speak or move at all. This progressive disease generally lasts 8 to 10 years before death occurs.

    While no one is certain what causes these changes in the brain's nerve fibers, their effect is certain. Alzheimer's destroys not only the patients, but also spouses（配偶）, friends and families.

    What should you do if you notice progressive memory loss in yourself or a loved one? Have the person examined by a doctor who is a specialist in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Though many reasons other than Alzheimer's disease may cause memory loss, its early diagnosis（诊断）and treatment may delay some of the most serious effects.

    What feeling will you likely experience if a loved one suffers from Alzheimer's disease? A person will often go through the various stages of sadness, shock, anger, and so on. If the spouse develops the disease, you may experience hurt and disappointment when he or she doesn't remember you are married.

    Life for the Alzheimer's patients and their loved ones will never be the same as the disease progresses, bringing a deep sorrow, loss and even anger towards God. No matter what feelings are present, facing them honestly will serve one better than burying them.

    In the latest romance-drama, Descendants of the Sun (《太阳的后裔》), a handsome soldier Yoo Shi-jin(柳时镇) (Song Joong-ki)(宋仲基) meets the pretty doctor Kang Mo-yeon(姜暮烟) (Song Hye-kyo)(宋慧乔) in a hospital, and he doesn't hesitate to hit on her.

    The dialogue, which takes place early in the first episode(集), immediately indicates that this is no ordinary South Korean drama. There's no family feud (不睦), or love tangles, or guesses and misunderstandings. The 16-episode show is set in the fictional war-torn country of Uruk(乌鲁克). Song Joong-ki is the leader of a special warfare command unit, while Song Hye-kyo plays a doctor who works for a humanitarian medical organization. Both are sent in the midst of disaster and disease as part of their work with UN peacekeeping troops. Both know and show clearly what they want and what they hate.

    But what stands out the most are Song's skills as a pick-up artist(撩妹技能).

    Boldness and creativity are the key weapons in his arsenal. When Kang invites Yoo to drink wine with her, Yoo, who is not allowed to drink alcohol as a soldier, says, ＂There is a way.＂ before kissing her. Forget about the ＂eighth-episode rule＂ . This kiss happens in the fourth.

    Humor also does the trick. On their first date in a cinema, Yoo says, ＂This is the most exciting moment of my life. The moment I am with a beautiful woman before the theater lights go out.＂ When Kang tries to give Yoo a hard time, Yoo jokes, ＂I mistook you for a beautiful woman because it's dark.＂

    And actor Song Joong-ki, who just came back from two years of military service last May, makes sure he delivers his pick-up lines just right.

    ＂In Deep Rooted Tree (《树大根深》) and The Innocent Man (《善良的男人》), he [Song Joong-ki] showed he had the steel to play fearless and heartless men — that he could be taken seriously as an actor, despite his pretty face. In Descendants, he hits the emotional core of every scene, whether he has to be bold and amorous, guarded and mysterious, or sad,＂said critic Foong Woei Wan in The Straits Times.

    I was in the middle of coding a web page when my wife emailed me these questions: Ever wonder what it would be like to have the face, the brains, the personality and the body? What it would be like to have everyone stop when you walk in a room? What it would be like to be able to get anything or anyone you want? I stopped for a moment and thought about it because my wife wouldn't email me this unless something had driven her to do so. I emailed her back with what I thought was a pretty good answer. Here is what I wrote her back.

    Yes, I had thought many times about what it would be like to be one of the beautiful people. To be able to take your breath away when I walked into a room, or to be the life of the party and have everyone fawning (奉承) over me as I wore only the finest clothes and sported the perfect body? But then I always came back to the realization that a lifestyle like that is so fragile. As you get older, your body changes; as you get older, the money changes. Your body never looks the same, the clothes become more and more expensive to maintain. And once you have crossed the line, suddenly you are out. The next fresh face comes in and you are quickly forgotten.

    All through growing up I was never an attractive person. I was overweight and picked on. But that didn't stop me from being a nice person — a good, clean, funny and helpful person. I was the person who you came to when you needed a friend after a breakup. I was the one you came to when you needed a joke to brighten up your day. And in the long run, I will be the one you remember, not the new face, or the fresh style.

    In closing, I would like to say that we, as a people, have developed into looking (or things that are bigger and better instead of what will last. I don't know about you, but I will remember the friend who helped me when I was down, more than the hot girl I just saw walking down the street.

    I wish I could teach the world some more jokes.

The Trip to Alishan in Taiwan

    It was the fourth day of our trip to Taiwan, bright but cold. After a good breakfast we put on our jackets and gloves, pulled on our hats and got into a car. We travelled for about two hours, up, and up, and up the mountain road.

    We finally arrived at the top of the mountain. It was Christmas Day. So imagine my joy to see icicles(冰柱)hanging form branches and the whiteness of the scenery. Indeed, it was my first Christmas in the northern hemisphere(半球)and, guess what? It even started snowing too. How amazingly exciting for me to have Christmas in my grandmother's hometown, and to experience icicles and snow. Alishan is really beautiful, especially seen form this dizzy height. After Sun parked the car, we got out and looked down through the trees. It hadn't snowed hard enough so there was no snow on the ground, just loads of pine needles. There was a most wonderful smell of pine sap(松液)drifting up to us form the ground. It was very quiet, except for the twittering of birds, and the odd car passing along the road. Quietness in Taiwan is something to treasure.

    Over the road was a small stall so we went over to it. They were selling some drink steaming hot in paper cups, too hot to hold immediately. We jumped around to get warm. There was a cool wind blowing up the side of the mountain, and the clouds above us were moving along quickly. I could imagine there was quite a strong wind blowing up there, so I was glad we were down on the ground! The drink cooled down fairly rapidly. I picked up my share and, wow, what a lovely smell was coming from it. It was the smell of ginger(姜).I took a sip. How delicious, and so this was ginger tea, which I had never tried before. It warmed my body so quickly that I could feel the heat travel right down to my fingers and to my toes. This was very good stuff. And then it was time to leave as we were going down to Hualian to attend a Buddha bi-bi, eat hot pot, and drink some Shaoxing rice wine.

Hot Technology Products at CES 2020

The consumer electronics show, or CES, presents new technology developments annually. Here are some latest products launched at CES 2020.

The Sero TV

Samsung introduced a TV that can be used to watch video designed for a smartphone. The Sero TV does this by turning itself from the normal TV position to an upright position that looks like the shape of a phone. The V can connect to mobile devices to play video directly from the phone.

Smart waste can

A company called TOWNEW presented; waste can designed for the home that does a lot of the dirty work on its own. When the can is full, the user touches a button to activate the machine's smart abilities. The device then completely closes off the waste bag inside, puts a new one in place, all by itself, and raises its top so the user can pick up and throw away the bag.

Invisible car hood(引擎盖)

Automobile industry company Continental showed off a new technology that seems to make the front end of a vehicle disappear. The technology, called "Transparent Hood," aims to make driving safer and easier. Cameras provide video of the area underneath the vehicle, permitting the driver to see objects and road conditions that might present danger.

Wearable air purifier

A company called Aō Air introduced a wearable air purifier. Designed to be a high-tech face covering to block pollution, the device pulls air through a filtration(过滤)system and then uses fans to create a small area of clean air at its front, allowing the air to be purified-without the need for a solid container.