2002 AUG 07 NATURAL MISUNDERSTANDINGS

Drifting in and out of days; the hours add up fine, but the intervals are stretched out in an unorthodox fashion. Time becomes twisted, reflecting your existence in a house of mirrors, forcing past, present and future to entangle and lose identity. It gets cold, you shiver constantly and curse the fact you left your jacket at home. But then you realize, you don't even remember leaving home. In fact, you don't even know where you're at.

I wonder if that is what death feels like.

In exactly three weeks, I become of legal age. The downhill parade is preparing for showtime. Time is no longer my friend; it taunts me continuously, telling me secrets and lies about what my future holds. I half-heartedly listen, not knowing if the friend is a foe or if my imagination has gone wild.

Yeah, I miss my Matchbox cars.

2002 AUG 05 BACK TO BASICS

I find it very ironic that the very first time I do well in DPChallenge is when the topic is "The Corporate World" and its effect on society. And not only did I do well, I actually get first place—a week after coming in 198th out of 218. I'm quite glad.

The idea behind the photograph is simple: For all the joy and happiness it has brought, the rise and fall of the new economy has equally welcomed grief and sorrow. The man is supposed to symbolize the prime catalyst of this boom: the Wall Street analyst. At 3AM one night, while waiting for the subway, he realizes that, "Wow. This is it. This is my life." And that causes him to go into a state of sadness. Because after all, when the dust clears, his ability to do derivatives is as important as his ability to add 15 and 40 as long as it's done with a strong sense of ethics and integrity.

To thank: Josh Li for the camera, Alex Pan for being a model in the wee hours of the morning, John Han for the backpack and Langdon and Drew for an absolutely great website.