This is a Temporary Title.

A while ago, I was talking to somebody about love, and he (being married) told me that there is no such thing as love at first sight, no such thing as “the one.” Those concepts were brought about largely through romantic novels and movies and dramas. You just gotta find somebody that’s decently compatible, and stick with her. And you grow.

Today, I was reading Passion and Purity (which is good), and I learned that marital problems weren’t that big of an issue until people gave up arranged marriages in exchange for the do-it-yourself kind.

Part of me wishes arranged marriages were still around. They would just make everything so much simpler. We would take our spouses as gifts, and we wouldn’t give it too much thought because there would be no concept of choosing spouses. And things like jealousy and divorce would just seem less realistic. Of course, I don’t know too much about what it’s like, too much about its pros and cons, so I can’t really have an educated opinion. I can only have an opinion.

I realize that it’s too late to turn back now. Now that people have tasted this freedom, it’s unreasonable to think that society would return to its original state. It just seems that do-it-yourself marriage is reponsible for so many modern issues, and we could all save a lot of time without it. That’s all I have to say, I think.

- Larry

A recent revelation hit me. Not as a truck, but more like a test. Meaning it took some time. About a year or so. I was asked several times in the past few months, “God is all-knowing, so he must have known man was going to fall into sin, and he must have known Jesus was going to die. So why did he allow all of this to happen? Or even better, why does God choose to do anything at all? What’s the point?”

I forgot where I read this, but it’s something like, “If there was a loving God, the most loving thing he could do is to create creatures to receive the love.” That’s exactly what God does. But then there’s a problem. How does a creature receive love unless he knows the love? And for the creature to know the love, God must first show his love. So how does he do that? Romans 5:8 says that “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Amazing. In order for God to show love, two things must happen. We must be sinners, and Christ must die. That is exactly what happened. God allowed us to sin, allowed Christ to die, so that he may show his love to us. And this is very in line with John Piper doctrine (haha). God showing love brings glory to himself, and God showing love brings us the most satisfying gift.

- Larry

Hello.

I’m playing at the Avalon Night Club in San Jose on 6/21. That is a Sunday night, and I will be playing at precisely 6:30pm. Timmy Chuang shall accompany me on drums, and I will be followed by several other bands. It will be a very jolly yet hip time. Tickets are $12 at the door. If you buy from me before Sunday, it is $9. It will be fun indeed.

In addition, I was watching people playing original songs on Youtube today, and I thought, “Maybe I should do that.” That was not the first time I thought that. In fact, I even made an account back in January. Nothing resulted from that experiment. I just found better things to do at the time, I guess. But this time, I mentioned it to a friend, and he said that he was thinking of doing that, too. I have decided to take the initiative. For gain or for loss. I have decided that I shall capitalize on this summer, since I plan on having a busy academic year when it starts. I’ll be posting some videos in the next few days, so come check me out. http://www.youtube.com/larrylinmusic

- Larry

So a few days ago, I was flipping through some TV while eating brunch, and I came across the Food Channel. That capivated me for about a half hour. I never realized how fascinating cooking was. I recall the times in my life after eating a delicious dinner at a barbeque or a potluck or whatever when a friend would ask the cook what special ingredients were in whatever was so delicious, and I would listen very intently because I wanted to be able to cook this for my future family, but I would lose track of all of the ingredients by the fourth or fifth ingredient. I kid you not. I don’t know why I suck at remembering ingredients. I think it is partly because I don’t even know what what half of these things are. I remember hearing on the Food Channel that basil and parsley go well together. I don’t even know what those look like. If I could start everything over, I think I might pursue being a chef, but I think I’m too behind in the game now. Plus I think I have very bad taste buds. I know many people who can tell the difference between Aquafina and Arrowhead and Saratoga Springs. I had no idea. I can barely distinguish Dr. Pepper from Cherry Coke, or lemons from limes. I guess that makes me a pretty tolerable person, in terms of consumption. Anyway, it sucks to realize that a potential passion was never discovered, but it’s comforting to know that the passion would never have stood a chance.

But that’s not the point.

After watching the Food Channel, I watched this Country Music Awards ceremony, and I got to watch some music videos about love, family, and America. And it wasn’t long before I thought, “Hey, I like country music.” My immediate reaction to this thought was, “You can’t like country music. Nobody outside of Tennessee likes country music.” And that was very particular indeed. Why not? Countless times, I have asked people what kind of music they listen to, and they have responded something along the lines of “Everything but country.” Occasionally, there’s the “Everything but country and rap” or even less common is the “Everything but country and rap and opera.” But country is usually one of the most looked-down-upon music genres. That is very peculiar.

For a moment, I liked country music. It seemed like the only musical genre that was dominantly morally upright. Half of all country songs talk about God, and I’ve never heard a country song with swear words. It makes me wonder if most people who hate country music even know what country music is. It’s like they hate country music out of ignorance, or out of bandwagon-hopping, like how Harry Potter hated Sirius Black before he realized that Sirius Black was a goodguy.

So my eyes have been opened. I’m trying to listen to country a bit more. It’s pretty simple and straightforward. Not too innovative. But it makes me happy. That’s all I have to say I guess. Have a good day.

- Larry