About CBT

About Chiong Bin To

Chiong Bin To is a Romanization of the Taiwanese pronunciation of my Chinese name, which in Mandarin is Zhang Min Dao. I was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, from a mixed Taiwanese home; my mother was benshenren, my father was waishenren. I was educated up until 18 years of age in the public school system. From the pit of Model Minority Hell, I was plucked and placed onto my path by none other than The Most High. From there, I sojourn to discover all the places through which my path leads. I am first and foremost a student of cultures and languages, from which I draw inspiration to fuel my creativity. My mission is to reveal to all people the beauty of each person, in the context of their native cultures, so that God may be glorified as Creator.

On this page, you will find information as to what I'm doing with my life, with posts published in timely fashion below.

Fall Term Update

I am approximately half-way through the term, now. I'm beginning to suspect, only now, that courses here are loaded on the backside. I only like my women that way. Maybe that's what's missing from my academic life: tender love and care, slow and thorough back rubs, gently romancing my courses until they give it up for me-- "A" grades, I mean.

I'm beginning to understand that I'm not inartistic, nor am I necessarily without fashion sense. I merely do not have the means to purchase my own clothing. I have a very real sense of what it is I like and don't like, aesthetically-- it's merely un-unconventional. There seems to be a certain consensus about what's aesthetically pleasing amongst those who consider themselves artsy, which creates another standard within a group of people that are supposed to be non-standard, unconventional, etc. An anti-establishment establishment, if you will, in art. There's a certain hypocrisy in attempting to define objective qualifications of what makes something aesthetically acceptable. The same goes for literature.

Something I've been wondering about is whether or how to explain spiritual insights to the uninitiated. Put another way, how to phrase God-stuff to those who don't believe in God, at least the way I understand him. I see it as impossible to divorce my experiences from religious perspectives and still explain why those experiences are so forceful. Those explanations of life's events must retain religious perspectives to remain true to the essence of my life lived in Christ; I would not still be here, if not for him. I suppose the solution is just to explain as fully as possible, and hope to bridge any gulfs in understanding with clarifications.

Now, for the rambling portion of this post:
I believe firmly in catharsis. Those who don't believe as I do have never truly experienced it. I haven't eaten Italian in a while; I could drop $30 on a good meal, right now... more than double that if it were to be with somebody special. I'm looking to purchase a set of Chinese seals. I'll stamp my correspondence, my homework, and my non-existent art. I'll carry them in a pouch hung from my belt. My ideal mode of transportation is by motorcycle. I'd have to move somewhere warm for it, like California or someplace like that. I'm gonna see if I can't study abroad for my last term. That'd be so boss. The UK, Ireland, or Australia would be easy, but I'd probably want to see if I couldn't go somewhere more different. One reason I rather like about Taiwanese heritage is my rather shitty connection to traditional Chinese script... it's one of those weird aesthetic things. I find simplified script unappealing, not just visually, but for the absence of cultural and historical components that once were present in that script, and still are present in traditional. Call it pride, I suppose.

posted by Ezra M. Chang at 10/13/2011 10:28:00 PM