Top 10 "Captain"-Named Superheroes

Aside of “Man” (e.g. Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Power Man), “Captain” is probably the most archetypal or common word attached on a superhero name.   Having the “Captain” in his name doesn’t necessarily mean he has this particular military or maritime title (though there are some in this list who does have the appropriate military background for it), but it does imply that this superhero has some chops as a leader and/or is an “A-list” type of superhero. 

10.) CAPTAIN CAVEMAN

To start this list, let’s have a Hanna-Barbera character, who is an obvious gag of the whole “slapping ‘Captain’ on the superhero’s name” thing.  So with “Captain” preceding “Caveman”, we get a superhero from the Stone Age.  Simple eye-roll inducing superhero christening.  Anyway, I still find Captain Caveman a fun character when I was a kid, especially because of his ability to pull different objects hidden in his hairy body and hilariously crashing whenever he flies (because of losing “energy”). 

9.) CAPTAIN HAMMER

 

Captain Hammer might be a “superhero” but he serves as the antagonist (the only antagonist in this list) of the terrific musical short film Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog.  Being a narcissist, Captain Hammer’s “heroic” actions are more for the sake of feeding his vanity and ego.  Despite of this, he is easily a likable character – probably because of actor Nathan Fillion’s charm and how the story’s climax used Captain Hammer’s super-strength as an illustration to introduce a thought-provoking facet of the said super power: to be invulnerable, due to super strength, means having the whole concept of pain foreign to the one bearing this power; thus, having no idea of what pain is gives him a low tolerance for pain that when he feels it for the first time – no matter how minor – since he’s not used to what pain is and has developed no idea on dealing with it, he will be completely overwhelmed by the feeling, causing massive trauma.      

8.) CAPTAIN COMMANDO

Captain Commando is one of the most fascinating video game characters I’ve encountered as a kid.  I love his self-titled game and he’s one of my favorite characters in the Marvel vs. Capcom game.  Captain Commando is supposed to be a futuristic superhero that fights super-powered crime.  He possesses several gadgets, most notably his “Energy Gloves” which allows him to shoot fire and electricity bolts.  He attaches the word “Captain” in all his techniques, like “Captain Kick”, “Captain Cannon”, “Captain Goggles”, etc.  Now doing this is absolutely corny, but these techniques however are highly invaluable and his fire and electricity attacks are powerfully badass.  He is assisted by the “Commando Team” which is made up of a mummy, a ninja, and a baby piloting a mecha. 

7.) CAPTAIN ATOM

Captain Atom is said to be the inspiration of the nigh omnipotent character in Watchmen, Dr. Manhattan, hence, the almost similar origin stories, powers, and character appearance.  Captain Atom is probably one of the most powerful superheroes in the DC Universe because of his ability to absorb and manipulate infinite amounts of energy to a near limitless extent.  He can manifest the energy he stores through a variety of ways like flight, super strength, self-sustenance, projection of energy attacks in various forms, and even the conversion of energy into matter.  He is also an actual holder of a “captain” rank, being a former Air Force soldier.      

6.) CAPTAIN UNIVERSE

This superhero is somewhat unique.  Captain Universe is not a superhero dependent on a single identity.  Rather, the Captain Universe character is a merger of the Uni-Power, an extra-dimensional force, and its chosen host.  The Uni-Power would impose the power and costume of Captain Universe to a worthy host whenever a severe crisis or threat is at hand.  After the crisis is resolved, the Uni-Mind would usually leave the host immediately, returning the host to his or her status quo.  Dr. Strange (combining with the Micronaut leader, Commander Arcturus Rann), Spider-Man, the Hulk, a toddler, a dog, an astronaut, a small-time crook, and even a pair of identical twins are some of those chosen to become Captain Universe in the past to deal with a situation.  Captain Universe possesses immense amount of power and his (or her) abilities include superhuman strength, flight, time travel, telekinesis, highly enhanced senses, and unlimited projection and supply of energy.  An African-American woman named Tamara Devoux is the current Captain Universe and is, surprisingly, a member of the current roster of Avengers.  It’s still not yet fully revealed what is this Captain Universe’s mission and why she had joined the Avengers.    

5.) CAPTAIN PLANET

Whenever the Planeteers found themselves on a tight corner or in a fight that they couldn’t win on their own, they combine their elemental ring powers – earth, fire, wind, water, and heart (which is supposed to be the element of emotion, if I understood it right) – to summon Captain Planet, who possesses all of these elemental powers magnified (as what the end song of the show said).  Captain Planet has various abilities, which includes weather control; flight; invisibility; telepathy; and fire, water, wind, and earth projection and manipulation.  His power increases whenever he gets in contact with nature or pure, clean forms of natural elements (i.e. clean water, sunlight, lava, etc.).  But despite of being a powerful hero, he is also greatly vulnerable to pollution.  Captain Planet fights in the same way as Spider-Man and Buffy: he makes quips, puns, taunts, and wisecracks during action or combat (probably the main reason I started to like the character).         

4.) CAPTAIN BRITAIN

Though Captain Britain has been meant to be the UK counterpart of Captain America, the character has been able to separate himself from being a mere Captain America rip-off and had made a name for himself as a distinctive and interesting superhero.  Despite of having ties with Science as a brilliant physicist, Captain Britain’s powers, however, originated from magical sources – specifically, Merlyn (yes, an obvious reference to Merlin).  He has the usual package of typical superhero abilities – flight; and superhuman speed, stamina, strength, senses, agility, reflexes, etc. – as well as being able to create force fields.  At the present, Captain Britain’s power is dependent on his confidence and emotions.  Thus, whenever he feels confident, he’s powerful, but whenever he begins to doubt himself, his power grows weaker.  Aside of becoming a prominent member of British superhero teams like Excalibur (UK’s X-Men counterpart) and MI-13 (UK’s S.H.I.E.L.D./Avengers counterpart), Captain Britain had also been an Avenger and is an automatic member of the Captain Britain Corps, a group of superheroes made up of the different Captain Britains of different universes or realities whose purpose is to serve as guardians of the Multiverse.

3.) CAPTAIN MARVEL

 

There had been various supeheroes in Marvel Comics that had taken the name of “Captain Marvel”.  My most favorite among them is the most recent “Captain Marvel”: Carol Danvers, who had been Ms. Marvel for most of her superhero career.  I admit that it’s probably because I greatly adore Ms. Marvel – the most badass female Avenger, in my opinion (wish she’s on the next Avengers movie) – and am apathetic with those different male Captain Marvels.  Recently, she decided to take the mantle of “Captain Marvel” for herself to carry on the legend of the original Captain Marvel (the Kree, Mar-Vell).  And I totally dig this development.  We always assume that a “Captain” superhero should be male when being a “Captain” is not at all limited to males.  Females can have the title of “Captain” as well.  So kudos to whoever had this idea (I like the Ms. Marvel costume though over Carol’s new Captain Marvel look) to make Carol Danvers a female superhero having a “Captain” superhero name.  I strongly support any attempt – if any – of pushing Captain Marvel to become the “Wonder Woman” of Marvel Comics.  The character – when she was still Ms. Marvel – has somewhat earned it in my book. 

2.) CAPTAIN MARVEL

Chosen by the wizard Shazam to inherit his powers and be a champion for good, whenever teenage Billy Batson exclaims the wizard’s name – “Shazam!” – he is struck by a bolt of lightning and transforms into his adult alter-ego, Captain Marvel.  The word “Shazam” also serves as an acronym for Greco-Roman mythological names (with the exception of Solomon) that serve as representation of what powers Batson gains when he becomes Captain Marvel: these are Solomon (vast knowledge and wisdom), Hercules (super strength), Atlas (stamina, endurance, healing factor, invulnerability), Zeus (lightning bolts), Achilles (courage, fighting skills, invulnerability), and Mercury (super speed, flight).  Because Marvel Comics owns the trademark for the Captain Marveltitle, DC’s Captain Marvel has been marketed and alternately referred to as “Shazam” for years, which would ultimately force DC to officially rename the character as “Shazam” in its recent New 52 reboot.  Despite of this, Shazam/Captain Marvel remains the most popular and most remarkable “Captain Marvel” character there has ever been (there was even a time when he was more popular than Superman, in terms of comicbook sales) in the history of comics.  

1.) CAPTAIN AMERICA

Dozens of superheroes may be out there bearing the “Captain” in their names, but there is only one “Captain” that would always stand above them all.   There is only one “Captain” that can be nicknamed and referred to as “Cap” and be distinguished above all other “Captains”.  This “Captain” is THE Captain.  In fact, there had been times Steve Rogers had taken the name of “The Captain” when his birthright superhero name, “Captain America”, is unavailable or unsuitable for use. 

Spider-Man (or Wolverine) might be Marvel Comics’ most popular character but in the Marvel Universe, Captain America is “The Man” – the most respected, esteemed, admired, and beloved superhero in the Marvel U.  He is more than a superhero; he is the icon of the superhero community.   He is easily looked up to as a leader by other superheroes – particularly, the Avengers – not only because of being a superior tactician and brilliant field commander (due to his military background), but also because he has the innate ability to inspire others and bring out the best in them. 

Captain America is selfless, bold, noble, and extremely loyal to the ideas, morals, and principles he stands for – the same ideas, morals, and principles the United States of America had been historically founded upon (which, I like to believe, is a fact and not merely a product of historical romanticism).  He would pursue a righteous objective with dogged determination and burning tenacity, and would make a stand for what he believes is right with uncompromising stubbornness, unshakable conviction, and unflinching courage; regardless if his objective or stand is against impossible odds, unpopular, or/and very costly or dangerous to do.   

Take note that Cap has no superhuman powers whatsoever.  The super-soldier serum that Steve Rogers took only gave him – who was thin and frail prior the treatment he had undergone – a physique that is the zenith of what a human body can attain.  Any physical strength, athleticism, conditioning, and stamina he gained are only that of the extent of what’s humanly possible.  Thus, he is closer to the Batman-type of superhero (no super powers) than to the Superman-type (with super powers).  The difference is Batman attained the apex of human physicality through brutal exercise while Cap attained it through a serum.  However, this doesn’t mean that Captain America is no hard worker.  Not at all.  Captain America became one of the most skilled and deadly combatants in the Marvel Universe because of rigorous and intensive training.  He studied different fighting disciplines and martial arts, assimilating them into his own fighting style, which incorporates the use of his formidable trademark shield.        

Superman is Captain America’s counterpart in DC Universe as the icon that all other superheroes look up to.  Yes, Superman is one of the most heroic of superheroes; uncompromising, morally steadfast, brave in facing threats and danger, selflessly putting himself in harm’s way to protect others, etc.  But Superman is a very powerful superhero. Supes is bullet-proof, nigh invulnerable.  Captain America, however, has these heroic convictions that Superman has and does these heroic things that Superman does despite having no superpowers at all.  He is mortal.  He is not bullet-proof.  And, if you look at it in this light, that is more impressive.  Captain America is sheer heart, guts, and badassery.   

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Top 10 Brain Twisters/Riddles

I consider brain twisters/riddles as one of the most pleasurable types of mental stimulation.  Primarily because – since it’s, first and foremost, designed for fun – they don’t usually have the burden of pressure and consequences, as what is involved with most problem solving thinking situations.  And, of course, the overwhelming experience of getting your “mind blown” is always thrilling (though the best mind blowing experiences are still found in thought experiments, which can be a considered a “higher” kind of brain twisters), and finding a solution to a problem or solving any mystery by using your mind gives a feeling of special satisfaction.        

Throughout my life of enjoying brain twisters, I share here the top 10 that fascinated me most… by the way, the answer to each brain twister is after the “SOLUTION:” notice.  Just highlight the yellow-shaded parts with your mouse to reveal the answers.   

10.) THE SERVANT’S WISH

Once upon a time, in the West Lake village, a servant lived with his master. After service of 30 years, his master became ill and was going to die. One day, the master called his servant and offered him for a wish. It could be any wish but just one. The master gave him one day to think about it. The servant became very happy and went to his mother to discuss the wish. His mother was blind and she asked her son to wish for her eye-sight to come back. Next, the servant went to his wife. She became very excited and asked for a son as they were childless for many years. After that, the servant went to his father who wanted to be rich and so he asked his son to wish for a lot of money. The next day he went to his master and made one wish through which all the three (mother, father, wife) got what they wanted. What was his wish?

To be honest, I wasn’t able to solve this at all. 

SOLUTION: "I wish for my mother to see her grandson swinging on a swing of gold."

  

9.) MISSING SQUARE PUZZLE

This geometrical paradox blew me away when I first encountered it.  “How could this be?  How come when the parts of the 13x5 triangle are rearranged, a missing 1x1 square part is exposed?  Bah, Math is sorcery!”   Clue: It’s an optical illusion (which means it’s not what it seems), thus, trickery is involved.  

SOLUTION: Neither of the “triangles” is actually a triangle.  It only appears that they are.  But they aren’t.  The “hypotenuse” is flawed.  It is bent and doesn’t have a proper slope.  Thus, with no proper slope, a proper 13x5 triangle can’t be actually made from the given parts.      

8.) 5 APPLES IN A BASKET

A basket contains 5 apples.  There are 5 people in the room.  You need to distribute the apples among the 5 people so that each one has an apple, with one apple still remaining in the basket.  How can it be done? 

The answer to this riddle is very easy.  You just need to think out of the box.  Tip: some simple smartassery is required.  I’ve always been a smartass that on the first time I encountered this riddle, I gave the correct answer in a second. 

SOLUTION: 4 persons each get an apple.  The fifth gets the basket with the fifth apple still in it.   

7.) CLEVEREST FUNNY RIDDLE EVER

The Pope has it but he does not use it.  

Your father has it but your mother uses it. 

Nuns do not need it. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger has a big one, 

Michael J. Fox’s is quite small. 

What is it?

This one is guaranteed to incite chuckles and giggles.  Especially if it’s the first time you hear this.  The answer is obvious when you think about it (and, oh, it’s not green at all!).  

SOLUTION: Surname

6.) SOCKS IN THE DARKNESS

There are several variations of this sock riddle.  But the first time I encountered this riddle was on the Vol. 1 No. 2 issue of the International Edition of Disney Adventures magazine.  Here’s how it went:

Jacquie got up before sunrise to set off on the annual family holiday.  She was a hopeless early-morning riser, so before she went to bed she had packed her bags and carefully laid out on the chair at the end of her bed the clothes she would wear on the first day of journey. 

When Jacquie awoke and began to get ready, the light globe in her room blew.  She managed to find all her clothes in the dark except her socks, which she had forgotten to lay out.  She knew she had 10 red socks and 10 polka-dot socks in her drawer, and could find them by touch, but the trouble was the socks were not paired. 

She didn’t care whether she wore red socks or polka-dot socks that day, but she did want to wear a matching pair. 

Jacquie could hear her folks yelling at her to hurry up.  She didn’t have much time.  What was the least number of socks Jacquie would have to take from her drawer to make sure she had a matching pair of socks?  

Again, this is actually quite easy when you carefully think about it. 

SOLUTION: Three.  The possible combinations are: a.) she’ll get three red socks; b.) she’ll get three polka-dot socks; c.) she’ll get two red socks and a polka-dot sock; and d.) she’ll get two polka-dot socks and a red sock.  No matter what of the four possibilities turns up, she’ll surely get a matching pair.    

5.) BEAR HUNTING

Much like number 6, there are several variations of this.  But the first one I encountered – and still the best so far – went something like this:

A hunter returns to his tent to find it trashed by a bear.  Furious, the hunter quickly went back out to search for the bear.  He walked one mile south and then one mile west.  He found the bear and killed it with his rifle.  He then traveled one mile north back to his tenth.  What color was the bear?  

This brain twister would require someone to have decent analytical and logical skills.  Once a proper train of thought or reasoning is established with the help of the given facts, an answer can be easily derived. 

SOLUTION: White.  It was a polar bear since the hunter’s tent was located on the North Pole (as established by the description of the hunter’s journey from and back to the cabin). 

4.) THE HARDEST LOGIC PUZZLE EVER

Three gods A , B , and C are called, in some order, True, False, and Random. True always speaks truly, False always speaks falsely, but whether Random speaks truly or falsely is a completely random matter. Your task is to determine the identities of A , B , and C by asking three yes-no questions; each question must be put to exactly one god. The gods understand English, but will answer in their own language, in which the words for yes and no are “da” and “ja”, in some order. You do not know which word means which.

Now, I don’t expect you to be able to solve this puzzle.  There’s a reason that this puzzle invented by the logician and puzzle-master Raymond Smullyan, and slightly modified by the computer scientist John McCarthy, has been coined “The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever” by George Boolos (a legendary philosopher, logician, and teacher in MIT).  You should be a logician in the super-genius level to solve this.  Nonetheless, this puzzle is pretty fascinating to me.  I was intrigued that a puzzle has been given such a title as “The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever”.  This hard, complex problem puts perspective on, no matter how good of a logician I am, I am still so far off from the big leagues.  Really made me feel small.  LOL.

Anyway, just Google for the solution if you are interested in knowing the solution.

  

3.) LOGIC PROBLEMS

I think the most popular of this is the “Who owns the fish?” Logic Problem, which is a variation of the “Zebra Puzzle.”  The “Zebra Puzzle” is also known as “Einstein’s Puzzle” or “Einstein’s Riddle” because, according to legend, he invented it when he was a boy.  It is very hard to solve (but easier than number 3) that it’s sometimes said that only 2% of the world’s population can solve it.  Anyway, this is how the “Who owns the fish?” variation goes:

There are five houses in a row and each house is a different color.

A different man lives in each house and is from a different country.

Each person drinks a certain drink, plays a certain sport, and keeps a certain pet.

No two people drink the same drink, play the same sport, or raise the same pet.

Use the following 15 facts to determine who owns the fish:
-The Brit lives in a red house
-The Swede keeps dogs
-The Dane drinks tea
-The green house is on the left of the white house
-The green house owner drinks coffee
-The person who plays polo rears birds
-The owner of the yellow house plays hockey
-The man living in the house right in the center drinks milk
-The Norwegian lives in the first house
-The man who plays baseball lives next to the man who keeps cats
-The man who keeps horses lives next to the one who plays hockey
-The man who plays billiards drinks beer
-The German plays soccer
-The Norwegian lives next to the blue house
-The man who plays baseball has a neighbor who drinks water.  

SOLUTION: The German owns the fish.  (Google for yourself the process how)

This kind of logic problems is solvable by the help of making matrixes.  Example, if you have five characters with five different things for five different occasions, you’ll need three 5-by-5 charts: characters to things, characters to occasions, and things to occasions. (If you have four things to solve for, you’ll need six charts.  You get the idea.)  Then merely use logic to eliminate and connect.

Here’s an easier Logic Problem, one of the earliest I have encountered and was able to solve (this is found in the book “The Complete Book of Bible Puzzles 1” by Randy Petersen):

Zechariah saw a vision of seven lamps on a lampstand.  Each was connected by a pipe to a bowl of oil, which was supplied by olive trees.  Well, let’s play with this picture a bit.  Let’s say each of the lamps bears a different name – in honor of the promised Messiah.  The names are “Branch”, “Son of Man”, “Ancient of Days”, “Root”, “Ruler”, “Prince of Peace”, and “Sun of Righteousness.”

In addition, each of the pipes is made of a different metal – gold, silver, bronze, zinc, iron, copper, and tin.  Each pipe connects with one of the two trees – either to the left one or the right one.  See if you can determine which metal made up the pipe leading to which lamp, and which of the two trees it got its oil from.

Info:

1.) The gold pipe leads to the lamp that gets its name from Zechariah 6:12.

2.) The olive tree on the left supplies tree of the lamps.

3.) The silver and tin pipes lead to lamps whose names begin with the same letter.  Those two pipes also hook up to the same tree.

4.) There are two lamps that get their names from Daniel 7:13.  These are connected to two pipes whose metals are mentioned in Daniel 2:32.

5.) Two of the pipes leading from the left tree are copper and zinc.

6.) The lamp whose name comes from Isaiah 9:6 is hooked up to the same tree that supplies the iron pipe.

7.) The names of the lamps supplied by the copper and zinc pipes begin with different letters.

8.) The lamp named “Ruler” is supplied by a pipe whose metal also ends with an R.

 Those clues should be enough. But if you need more, here are some more clues…

9.) Only one name starts with a vowel.  Its lamp is hooked up to the tree on the right.

10.) The lamps named “Baruch” and “Root” are hooked up to different trees.

11.) The lamp whose name comes from Micah 5:2 is connected to a different tree from the one that supplies the bronze pipe.

12.) Of the lamps named “Ancient of Day”, “Ruler”, and “Prince of Peace”, only one hooks up to the tree on the right.

This time, I won’t provide the solution.   (Too lazy to type it. LOL)  It’s easy.  Just work on it.

2.) DINGBATS/REBUS PUZZLES

I was first introduced to this kind of puzzle during my freshmen English class (our English teacher was awesome; she is probably my most favorite teacher ever).  The objective of the puzzle is to determine what common saying, term, word, or phrase is being interpreted by the picture.  Example:

The answer is “Tricycle” because of the word “Cycle” being repeated three times. 

Another example:

That’s “Reading between the lines”.

Here’s some that you can try solving:

SOLUTION: “Six feet underground”, “Apple pie”, “Seven seas”, “Three degrees below zero”, “Standing ovation”, “Just around the corner”, and “Jack in a box”

1.) TWO-MINUTE MYSTERIES

This is my most favorite kind of brain twister.  “Two-Minute Mysteries” (written by Donald J. Sobol) are bite-sized cases (which had been compiled into paperback volumes) featuring Dr. Haledjian, who is arguably one of the most brilliant detectives in fiction.  After each short tale (in which the clues and details are presented), the reader is given the opportunity to solve the mystery.  Thus, reading “Two-Minute Mysteries” is guaranteed to be both engagingly entertaining and mentally stimulating.  It tests the extent of the reader’s stock knowledge, attention to detail, and analytical skill.  Here’s a two-minute mystery sample, “The Case of the Dead Frenchman”:

The body of Yves du Motier was found in the bedroom of the apartment belonging to Silas Howe, the coin collector.
Du Motier had been stabbed to death with a letter opener.  The body lay four feet from the rumpled bed.
“Death occurred about 8:30 am, or half an hour before the body was discovered,” Inspector Winters told Dr. Haledjian.
“I telephoned Silas Howe, who has been in Philadelphia attending a numismatics convention.  He says that last month he brought du Motier, a French coin collector and an old friend, from France for an operation to restore du Motier’s hearing.
“The way it looks, somebody used a skeleton key to get into Howe’s apartment and tried to steal his rare coin.  Du Motier must have awakened, seen the intruder, and in the struggle was slain.  The safe where Howe keeps his coins was unopened.  No coins are missing as far as we can tell.”
“Who notified the police?” inquired Haledjian.
“James Wilkes, a neighbor in the apartment house.  Wilkes was on his way to work when he saw Howe’s door open, and hearing the alarm clock ringing, investigated.  He found the Frenchman dead on the floor.”
“When did Howe leave for Philadelphia, and who can verify his presence there?” asked Haledjian.
“He left three days ago,” said the Insepector.  “We contacted his hotel manager, who swears Howe was in and out on each of the past three days. Say – I see what you’re getting at!”
Whom did Haledjian suspect?        

SOLUTION: Wilkes – who claimed to have been attracted by the ringing of the alarm clock – a fatal slip, since du Motier who was deaf would not have set the alarm. 

If you are able to find a volume of “Two-Minute Mysteries” in a bookstore, buy it.  It’s going to be worth it.  

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A Weather Storm is Brewing

Just around the corner, a Weather Machine sits…

A terrifying storm is brewing…

You can feel it in the air.

Tingling feeling from increasing static. 

Rapid change in pressure.

You can almost smell the ozone forming.

It’s coming soon...
  

00:00

Suddenly…

Thick, dark clouds swiftly gather above

Darkness envelopes the place.

Then… the Wrath of Heaven blasts down!

Massive devastation.

The scariest thing about this is:

Even if you aren’t the target all,

With all those deadly lightning bolts chaotically striking about,

You can easily become part of the collateral damage.

Lightning storms almost spare no one.

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2012 in Review (Part 7): Wrap-Up

I would have wanted to do two or three more parts for this series, but it’s March already and I have to wrap this up.  Maybe having a series format for the review of 2012 wasn’t a good idea after all; never found the time to finish all the parts in January, as intended.  Won’t do this again for the review of 2013. LOL.

So how would I evaluate 2012? Hmmm.  It was okay… but could have been better.  Both 2010 and 2011 had been more awesomely notable.  Since 2009, I felt that each successive year has been better than the previous.  Now 2012 had some amazing stuff for me, however, I can’t say it was a better year than 2011.  Let’s say, that with 2012, I feel like I’m still stuck with the “step one.”  Still, I am thankful of 2012.        

In 2012, I screwed up aplenty, but God is so gracious, He bailed me a lot, too.  Of course, I’m deeply sorry of all my mistakes, but eternally grateful for God’s mercy and protection. 

God has shielded me from any major tragedies and sufferings (and I pray He would continually do so).  There were some heartbreaks, but, because of God’s grace, immediate speedy healing follows.  There were some discouragements, but I was always reminded to put my hope in God always and trust His wisdom. 

There weren’t much personal glory obtained during the year, but that doesn’t matter; I just hope I was able to amply give glory to God in 2012, which is more important.

Lastly, I think the top highlight of 2012 in my life is the fact that I gained a lot of weight that I’m now officially fat (never had a fat physique since I was in my early parts of being a twelve year old).  Hehe.

2012 wasn’t really as terrific as I wanted it to be.  But it didn’t suck either.  I had a blessed year as always.  Life has always been full of struggles.  But God is good.  And everyday in my life, He makes sure that I am reminded of this.    

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