{"id":19439,"date":"2025-10-12T21:16:30","date_gmt":"2025-10-13T01:16:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/?p=19439"},"modified":"2025-10-20T20:44:36","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T00:44:36","slug":"journal-of-the-week-87","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/?p=19439","title":{"rendered":"Journal of the Week"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>10\/17\/2025 Friday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>China dumped American soya beans farmers<\/strong>. Trump subsidizing them $13 billions, seeking non-China market for solution. Who else use that much soybeans? Korea?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u7f8e\u570b\u5927\u8c46\u4e1f\u5931\u4e2d\u570b\u5e02\u5834\uff0c\u7279\u6717\u666e\u653f\u5e9c\u5411\u8fb2\u6c11\u767c\u653e\u767e\u5104\u88dc\u8cbc\uff0c\u5e0c\u671b\u53e6\u5c0b\u51fa\u8def\uff0c\u64fa\u812b\u5c0d\u83ef\u4f9d\u8cf4\u3002#\u9cf3\u51f0\u885b\u8996 #\u5927\u8c46 #\u4e2d\u7f8e\u535a\u5f08 #\u7279\u6717\u666e\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uzaIJt-7-2s?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Activated the complimentary 12-month Credit Monitoring IDX Identity Protection Membership<\/strong> after receiving letter from NJ Lenders Corp. regarding their hack on 8\/18\/2025 and offering this deal. I hope I don't regret <a href=\"https:\/\/app.idx.us\/en-US\/alerts-and-notifications\">signing up for it<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Japan's reliance on intellectual property is the wrong way to go. Their government ministy now values comics (<a href=\"https:\/\/tracking.tldrnewsletter.com\/CL0\/https:%2F%2Fwww.ign.com%2Farticles%2Fjapanese-government-calls-on-sora-2-maker-openai-to-refrain-from-copyright-infringement-says-characters-from-manga-and-anime-are-irreplaceable-treasures-that-japan-boasts-to-the-world%3Futm_source=tldrdesign\/1\/01000199f21d69ff-509a84b4-72e5-49eb-8b9b-61ef597c0d24-000000\/HHeWVbAnSZ4eSeBgE44oKakx64JG2rtcjFn7oRMEVwA=427\">banning AI<\/a> <strong>from using Japanese anime and comics icons<\/strong>) as uniquely Japanese culture rather than other more important cultural elements like literatures, history, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>10\/16\/2025 Thursday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Painting of the day:<br><strong>Cain Slaying Abel,<\/strong><br>Painting by&nbsp;<strong>Peter Paul Rubens (1577\u20131640),<br><\/strong>Painted in 1608\u20131609,<br>Oil on panel<br>\u00a9 The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Verses used by <a href=\"https:\/\/christian.art\/daily-gospel-reading\/luke-11-47-54-2025\/\">Fr. Patrick van der Vorst<\/a>: Luke 11:47-54<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/christian.art\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/luke-11-47-54-reflection-peter-paul-Rubens.jpeg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\"<em>In our powerful canvas, Rubens plunges us into the very instant of the first human murder, depicting Cain and Abel, the first two sons of Adam and Eve. <strong>Cain<\/strong>, rigid with rage and strength, drives a weapon downwards; <strong>Abel<\/strong>, in shock and incomprehension, raises his arms, his body twisting in desperate defence. The contrast between the exaggerated muscular tension of Cain and the almost fragile vulnerability of Abel is striking. Behind them, the altar fire burns. Abel\u2019s near-naked form, the cloak slipping, underscores his innocence and vulnerability. The landscape around them is sombre, emphasizing that this act is not just a domestic quarrel but cosmic in its significance: envy, sin, and the rupture of brotherhood. Rubens invites the viewer not merely to witness, but to feel the horror and sorrow of the moment: the first man to be killed in the story of mankind.<\/em>\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>10\/15\/2025 Wednesday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How <strong>AI sort out various English accents<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/accent-explorer.boldvoice.com\/?utm_source=tldrwebdev\">This is a start<\/a>. Quite interesting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Now hackers are doing it through job interviews<\/strong> by <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.daviddodda.com\/how-i-almost-got-hacked-by-a-job-interview?utm_source=tldrwebdev\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/blog.daviddodda.com\/how-i-almost-got-hacked-by-a-job-interview?utm_source=tldrwebdev\">tricking you<\/a> to run maliciously hidden codes in the codebase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.pixelmelt.dev\/kindle-web-drm\/?utm_source=tldrwebdev\">Someone's success story<\/a> on downloading Amazon (already purchased) <strong>ebooks\/Kindle books<\/strong>. There was a guide years ago, which I've used successfully, to convert Kindle books into normal pdf. I need this because I like to print out my pages to read on papers on the train. So I am not certain if the old method still works. I am sure there's going to be always a way to hack this, just a matter of updating the methods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>10\/13\/2025 Monday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There seems to be <strong>bed\/clothing bug problem<\/strong> the last few days. This would be the first bug problem we have since moving from Brooklyn. We tried our best to sanitize all pertaining items by washing the bedsheets, washing clothes, spraying alcohol on clothes, etc. I think this may have come from the backyard shed. I <strong>noticed some itches after working on the wirings<\/strong> (camera PoE cable &amp; 16 gauge power cable). I think some squirrels used to squat in between the walls of the shed by the door. They're probably gone now after I sprayed deer repellent into their hole. These critters may be carrying those bugs. Nadia told me she's gotten a bug bite itch on her leg today. I had sprayed alcohol on our beds this morning, so hopefully this won't spread. At least the Back camera is fixed, after <strong>I replaced the squirrel chewed wires with new ones<\/strong>, protected this time in PVC pipping I bought from HomeDepot. I've also shifted the wires, including the backyard hanging light string, from the neighbor's dead branch to a newly wooden pole I added to the side of the shed. Hopefully, though straining is slightly obvious, the wooden pole would not break. I've painted it in hope to preserve it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dTfBV1M-BvI&amp;t=4522s\">full 90 min interview with Doug Wilson<\/a>, the TYT now interviews the two women (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DPVU1JgjTsw\/\">Susie Forsey<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/berecker\/reel\/DNOBW7POC-o\/\">Margaret Bronson<\/a>) who \"survived\" the <strong>Wilson cult<\/strong>\/homeschool program and speaking out against Wilson:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"LIVE INTERVIEW: Survivors Speak Out Against Doug Wilson\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LMvaEJIGvjQ?start=9034&feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Apple Pencil Pro must know tips<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.creativebloq.com\/news\/apple-pencil-hacks?utm_source=tldrdesign\">This site<\/a> has a video tutorial. I should go over it with the pencil in my hand:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Top 10 VERY Useful Apple Pencil Tips &amp; Tricks\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HfaRbiHxzcs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Understanding <strong>how zip files work<\/strong> via <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/ritiksahni\/zip-over-range\">HTTP method<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>10\/12\/2025 Sunday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because Nadia was feeling a cold coming since last night, we skipped Grace church today. And as Nadia laid in bed recuperating this morning, I took the long awaited chance to visit one of the churches I have on my queue list. <strong>Today, I visited OCM's branch<\/strong>, <a href=\"https:\/\/jirehchurch.org\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/jirehchurch.org\/\"><strong>Jireh Church<\/strong><\/a> in Marlboro. For this week, I start with their Mandarin session.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Adult Sunday School starts at 9:30am-10:30am. Topic is on the book of Ruth, today's first of 11 lessons. A lady leading for the first few weeks before passing the torch to a guy named Ben (Software IT at Oracle). I was given some Japanese fish shaped bread in class by a couple from the Choir team (Jenny &amp; Joey - who retired from IT - Video conferencing at Yorktel and now studying at Southern Baptist Seminary). The teacher led a thorough introduction on the book of Ruth and giving overview of the book's relations to other books. She's doing most of the lecturing from her notes, one guy on zoom, while there were about 11 of us in class, I was the youngest. The last 5 minutes were used for reflections from the class. About 3 of them spoke, from \"us being the true Israel\" to etc. I do find it interesting to make note that not only Ruth and Esther are the only two books in the Bible named after a woman, but also this interesting contrast: <strong>Ruth = Gentile enters Israel nation; Esther = Israel enters Gentile nation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then I attended the Chinese worship service at 11am. They were welcoming enough to make me fill out a welcome card and had me, the only new comer, do a short introduction of myself with a mic towards the end of the service. I was then given a meal ticket for a first timer's free meal for lunch (normally $8 I was told), which I chose rice with chicken string beans for. The pastor preached on 1 Corinthians 1:20-25. I wasn't impressed. Mediocre content. But he certainly had the spirit, even sang a couple of times during sermon, the last song was \"Bring Him Home\" from Les Miserables. He certainly wasn't professional singer but got to give it to him for his candor. During the sermon, this I would like to jot down while contemplating those verses (the larger section being verses 18-31 where some versions titled: <em><strong>Christ the Wisdom and Power of God<\/strong><\/em>): This whole passage is about God's power vs. the Jews' perceived miracles; God's wisdom vs. the Greeks' perceived wisdom. What is interesting is that the <strong>differences of these two (power &amp; wisdom) between God and man aren't quantitative but qualitative<\/strong>. And not only is it <strong>not about how infinitely higher<\/strong> (quantitative) God's power and wisdom are than ours (verse 20d - is <strong>not <\/strong>God made <strong>lesser <\/strong>the wisdom of this world), it is <strong>also not about turning away<\/strong> (Anti-intellectual Fundamentalists) from wisdom and power (I purposely don't mention \"...of God\" here as a gotcha for the narrowminded ones). <strong>The qualitative difference in the Power of God here is the miracle of conversion, not of what we witness; the qualitative difference in the Wisdom of God here is the cross being the only way out for us<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At lunch, I talked with Jenny and Joey, Ben, Jason (also IT, software Architect I think), and Sam from the Cantonese group. The senior pastor Ben Lin also came to talk to me for a little. He leads the English service which I will check out next time. Jenny said that the senior pastor is leaning towards Reformed, as she is herself apparently. I noticed also they read John MacArthur, having seminars on Martin Luther recently. OCM, though non-denominational, I think, has always given me a good vibe as far as Reformed tradition goes, since Manhattan. They've generally all heard of Stephen Tong and seem to have an affinity for him. Some of them invited me to pickleball, though I would prefer <a href=\"https:\/\/jirehchurch.org\/missions\">pingpong<\/a> (Weds 10am-1pm, according to website, but not sure in reality as they just keep talking about pickleball) which they did advertise on their website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of all the Chinese churches I've been in the vicinity, this is my ranking, starting from best\/favorite:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Jireh \u4e2d\u5ba3\u6703\u6fa4\u6069\u5802<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>CABC \u83ef\u7f8e\u8056\u7d93\u6559\u6703<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Monmouth MCCC \u7f8e\u9580\u6559\u6703<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Rutgers RCCC \u82e5\u6b4c\u6559\u6703 (I have more negative feedback than positive for this one)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>10\/17\/2025 Friday China dumped American soya beans farmers. Trump subsidizing them $13 billions, seeking non-China market for solution. Who else use that much soybeans? Korea? Activated the complimentary 12-month Credit Monitoring IDX Identity Protection Membership after receiving letter from NJ &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/?p=19439\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-computer-science","category-theologization"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19439","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=19439"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19439\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19495,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19439\/revisions\/19495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=19439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}