I wrote a different post earlier

but then didn't post it. We'll see. Here is something:

Today was Sunday. I recall sneezing at around 3:29 AM. It was upsetting at the time, but then I fell back asleep and dreamed about wearing my ski cap cuz I hadn't taken a shower. I woke up to my alarm at six and, without showering, proceeded to McDonald's where I occasionally scarf Egg McMuffin's somewhat guiltily. I know I could just make my own better ones, I know.

It was still entirely too early, really. I was on my way to tai chi entirely too early. This trend continued even in the train as I read further than today's Required Reading. And when we reached Takao station, it was still, in fact, too early, so I drank too much coffee while reading more. After that I stood near a driveway waiting for my friend to pick me up. I know her car is blue but today she had to honk at me. I forget what I was doing that I wasn't looking. Maybe reading my phone.

We talked about cherry blossoms, but I found it difficult to keep the conversation moving.

(I just paused to eat a handful of tiny dried fish.)

Tai chi was good today. I missed last week due being depressed and fiddling with my iPhone and missing my train stop. We practiced standing still. Our teacher says 力を抜いて and we're supposed to imagine our posture as following from the way we are hung by an invisible string connected to the top of our heads leading to somewhere probably way higher than the ceiling. He said if we can do this for 20 minutes at a time without feeling sore somewhere or like we are falling over or any other abnormalities then...I dunno, I guess we are in good shape. He said really you should aim for 30 minutes. Maybe I'll practice... That is easy enough to do in my room. I will say that doing tai chi after you have practiced standing still is an entirely different experience—actually kind of thrilling, if you can imagine that.

I introduced my friend/English student to the textbook I chose for her. She thinks it is too hard. Textbooks are meant to be studied so it's better if you don't actually know the stuff that is in it beforehand. We're going to have a chat about the weather, but unfortunately it's going to be in three weeks because next week there is no tai chi and the next week I will be in Shikoku for the first time ever.

I walked home from a station farther from where I live than it is necessary for me to stop, admiring the cherry blossoms. At one point three ladies were gesticulating energetically in my direction, but beyond me. It felt weird all the same, so I moved over on the sidewalk.

I continued planning the project that is occupying most of my attention. I'm glad it's there to occupy it cuz it makes all my boyfriend haps, mishaps, and (mostly) lacking easier to relegate to some quieter mental realm where they can graze freely on less shepherded pastures.

Originally I had planned to go to Yurakucho to eat kaitenzushi but then I was worried the place I had in mind might not be open and was too lazy to check, so I just walked down the street and entered the first restaurant serving raw fish. It was pretty good. I'll go back. Apparently they make their own sesame tofu.

I consulted the Facebook of a bar I sometimes go to. I want to say "attend." I feel like you "attend" a bar. If there were roll call, I would learn people's names faster. It's so late for that now. I decided that although they were not open, I would play a game where I would walk over there and see if there were open by the time I arrived. They were not. I refreshed FB furiously all the way home to no avail.

Of course they opened like 6.5 paragraphs ago. I will go because I need to recover something of sentimental value. And because I feel like the reason I skipped the sesame tofu was to drink a glass of water with bourbon in it.

January 3, 2012 in 5 minutes

Ready...go:

Today I woke up ready to study kanji and realized I left it at my friend's house the other day. So instead the day ended up being a mix of Botchan and time wasting. Wish I could just understand that book, then I wouldn't have to waste so much time [dreading the dictionary]. But I'm pretty much running out of time altogether. Only 3 more days before I go back to school...

In the evening I went out with a friend to a vegetable restaurant neither of us had ever been to. I guess they serve some meat and things too; it's not vegetarian or vegan by any means, but just the veggies are super fresh and the variety is impressive. The salad bar had two types of tomatoes, the sweetest carrots I've ever eaten, at least two kinds of daikon, etc. Aside from that we had fried lotus root with melty mozzarella sandwiched in between and kabocha squash with curry gratin on top. That sounds really heavy and gross probably, but it was not. For desert, lemon tart.

And I'm past five minutes...

2012 in 5 minutes

Ready...go:

In January and February I was doing a lot of anime/manga/videogame news blogging and some reviews and things. I was doing a lot a lot of that because I had already quit my job at Twitter. I was basically just chillin' in my studio in SF until moving to Japan.

A co-worker came to visit and we had some really productive working hours followed by really productive (in terms of relaxation and fun) leisure hours. I don't remember what month that was. I guess maybe Feburary?

My mom and her husband came to visit which meant I got to take them to my favorite restaurant before leaving. They also helped me pack up the rest of my apt that the Task Rabbit I hired didn't already help me pack up.

In the end, I moved to a hotel for the last night and then I was gone.

I reappeared, though, in Tokyo. There is some stuff about it on my other blog, but I was in school from April through July. Turned 27, then had summer vacation, which was less productive than hoped but I dunno, I worked on a farm for a week, volunteered as an interpreter at TGS,

*five minutes goes by really fast*

It was mostly school. And strange social relationships. 2012. It was probably the best number of year that I will live, because I like 12. It ended. I'm still in school and being social is still sometimes rather strange.

2013 so far in 5 minutes

Ready...go:

The first maybe 20 minutes or so of New Year's this year were spent in some rowdy gross pub in Shinjuku. The guy I had just met that night for the first time (we ate soba) and I ducked in there because we were in danger of ringing in the New Year on the street and that seemed somehow inadequate, I guess. Really it would have been fine. Anything would have been fine at that point. I had abandoned fineness.

On the 1st I did some laundry, like my sheets. There are some mold spots on my futon but they did not come off when I brushed them with a dish soap-laced toothbrush, so I gave up and just put the clean sheets over it. I also did some homework, like sending a New Year's card to my classic lit prof. Oh, and I cooked for the first time in a really long time. I made spicy nabe with pork and tofu, lots of veggies.

On the 2nd I studied in the morning ("studied?") I am reading Botchan but I have gotten to a point where it's sort of tricky and it's hard to feel like I want to keep reading. I know that if I read more I will have to look up more words in the dictionary, which is a soulless exercise. And then I don't remember the words anyhow. I have learned some words, though, like 親譲り and 無鉄砲 and 無闇.

In the afternoon of the 2nd I went to a New Year's party at a friend's house. Actually, they are more like my Japanese family. We ate a huge spread of traditional Japanese New Year's food and then they made nabe with fish and stuff in it that we dipped in ponzu. Everything was super delicious. We drank a lot. I met some new people and some of them were single. That fact was is always pointed out kind of dramatically because they know I'm single too.

Oops, 6 minutes.

Screw tumblr

I'll stay here. I dunno if I have anything to say, but...

:D

Moved to tumblr

whatevz

Eurovision Party is go

May 29, catz. This year, it will actually happen, unlike last year. Also, did I not get my shit together for a top ten last year? Let's try harder this year.

Honestly, I'm looking forward to this even if only for an excuse to eat lefse. I shouldn't NEED an excuse for that, but considering I seem to have to import it from Wisconsin...

5 steps to furthering food education

The end of chapter three of this book has some exercises, one of which is to set 5 food education goals.

1. I have a few cookbooks I could cook through.
2. Some websites I'd like to look at.
3. Try to find some more friends who are really serious about food...
4. Outfit my own kitchen.
5. Volunteer.

It's all kind of vague stuff that I think about pretty often. I had a cooking club, after all. Just the timing is not quite there. Really I think you can put 4900 on that list. We're eating a lot of things and going out of our way for them. This project is opening up just how much the city has to offer. There are still TONS of places in my neighborhood I haven't eaten. It's good to branch out no matter how great your favorite places are....

Soooooo no deadlines. The book says to have deadlines for each of these thing, but right now. I mean the one deadline I can offer is that by February of next year (and likely before then) Josh and I will have completed the 7X7 list. There are some other lists I can already think of to work on, so I may continue in that vein. And it might be good to start a journal about tasty and whatnot, just notes.

I'm tired again. These late dinner are getting to me. Gonna sack out soon so I can try to make it to the pool in the morning. Tonight I had a date but also ended up working late, so I didn't get to go.

4900 out-take

My roommate and I are writing a blog called 4900 about eating our way through the 7x7 Big Eat 2010 List (100 Things to Try Before You Die). I bought a book about food writing to see if I could maybe I could improve my offerings as we go along. It has some writing exercises in there, so I figure I might as well do them... The intro sort of suggested that might be a good idea even if you are tempted to skip them. Of course I am tempted to skip them. I don't know if I will do all of them, but some of them might help me out, so I might try a few...like one right now:

Eating a pear is a little like biting into someone's leg. Or at least I imagine it might be. Pears don't have the same snap to them that apples do, not in the skin or in the meat; your teeth are able to sink in a little easier. I just always have this odd sensation when I'm eating a pear, that it isn't entirely natural. They're so tender; all the energy that would have gone into wrestling a dent out of an apple can be spent savoring flavors and marveling how convenient the shape is; don't you love holding the skinny end of a pear while chomping away at the tubby body? Yet another advantage. I guess you can't really count that eerie unnatural leg-bitey feeling as a plus, but luckily it really is just a pear and your fangs help you suck only fruit blood.

Meh, it's different, anyways.

The cheese was as ripe as... the overflow laundry from last weekend that had fermented under my desk for a whole other week.

The donut smelled stale, like a... box of dead bugs in a long forgotten cellar.

The roast beef sandwich tasted as though... "roasted" was its own separate entity, concentrated into a syrup and drizzled generously over the top of the cow on its bed of ciabatta until the bread was also somehow roasty.

I'm really glad that for this exercise we don't actually have to taste anything to write the sentence. I'm not sure I could find a food that would be able to pull those examples off, ha.

I would go to Nombe every night it weren't for extenuating social circumstances. My friends will not be dragged to my favorite restaurant every time, and sometimes they should be given the opportunity to drag me. So it happens that I escape the mercury poisoning, for the moment, at least. A fish special is averted now and then, so I live another day or two. Once to watch the chalkboard for is the tuna temari.

The first day I ordered this dish and the tuna balls came rolled in toasted nori and sesame seeds instead of powdered aomori I was surprised and intrigued. This perhaps seemingly insignificant change (from seaweed to seaweed, after all) actually turned out to be the work of a chef inspired. Where the aomori tended to make the mouthful feel too much like a paste, the bits of crisped-up nori actually added texture instead of taking it away, and highlighted the individual flavors of the fish and the seaweed rather than muddling them. Dipped in whatever ratio of wasabi to soy sauce serves you best, the number of flavors double and your tongue is on a pleasure cruise that will make you forgot all the mediocre tuna you've had in the past.

Dang, I got tired and it got bedtime. When did that happen? Think I will get up early tomorrow and walk to work...

V-day portrait as usual

This is what I look like single on Valentine's Day in 2010.

2009
2008

Too early

I took on more work than I could feasibly complete, especially since I have been trying to cut OUT time so I can actually do my Japanese homework in a timely manner and study in addition so everything actually sticks. This resulted in me having to wake up very very early (about quarter to four) and work like a maniac before actually going into work. I think things turned out ok, but I was just very tired all day, drinking coffee, etc. etc. It's not a good situation.

That said, what else happened today? Had some meetings at work, helped some people out, good news, bad news, trying to refind my niche a bit.

Incidentally, I have a new emo blog (which you will not read), so this one should remain refreshingly free of bs regarding, oh, insecurities about work, insecurities about food, insecurities about my social life, insecurities and insecurities ;)

After the teleconference with Japan I went to dinner at probably now my second-favorite restaurant, Gracias Madre. OD'd on spinach a bit, but it was tasty.

Came home, practiced guitar for a bit (sore fingers), and have been meaning to get down to business with Japanese, but I may just sack out early and see if I can't wake up a bit before normal to do some then. I would do a bunch during lunch tomorrow except that I have lunch with a co-worker tomorrow...

Maybe this is me overcomplicating things, but I'm thinking that To Do lists should maybe include how. Or maybe you just need a separate How To list. You could do one of them on paper that is a little see through and then line up the To part in the middle for dramatic effect.

ギターブラザー

Nicole is the one helping to perpetuate this voice in my head (re: title of this post).

Anyhow, guitar is going well. I need to find more time to practice, but that is the general state of all things I do.

I think I might turn this into a real journal again instead of just an emo "I need to exercise" blog.

Today I:

- woke up and had an Americano at Borderlands
- had a great guitar lesson. My teacher is really great, has lots of good advice, ultra patient.
- missed my favorite restaurant because they were closed for brunch due to Super Bowl holidayness.
- worked on a freelance project.
- didn't have enough time to study kanji : /
- went to the name of that store we can never remember.
- learned some things about Japanese cuisine that I had never heard.
- treated myself to a fantastic Sardinian Italian dinner.
- got sort of lost in the wide world of Internet, which was pretty relaxing.

Hopefully in the future this will be less of a list and more of a paragraph. I'll try to keep it short and sweet. I sort of miss being able to look back at a day 2 years ago and see what I was doing. Or rather, I know I will miss it in a couple years when I can't look back.

Yeahhhh, I didn't do any of that stuff (but I bought a guitar)

For a brief time I tried wushu, but eventually I decided I needed less obligation and not more. Plus I decided I would rather get serious about guitar (to be able to play はっぴいえんど songs -- yes, the ones I am translating at my Japanese blog) instead of spending money to work out. So I did that.

Had my first lesson today. Think this teacher is going to work out. He's interested in teaching me more than just how to strum, which is cool. We'll be working in plenty of theory and stuff, too. We did six chords today which I can't really remember, and my fingers are sorrrrre, but if I do a little every day hopefully I will have them down by next Sunday.

I say that about kanji, too, and then get busy, so I'm gonna have to implement a little more discipline here! Gotta build up calluses. My fingers are sore...

Enshin Karate

Ok, I think I have this figured out. Enshin karate seems like it fits exactly what I want to get out of martial arts — Japanese and not just grappling or weird elbow bends :) Karate was the obvious choice, but most of the highly rated places in San Francisco are out where I used to live (Taravalish). This place I'm looking into now, though, is in Japantown, which is ideal. Not that the Mission wouldn't be ideal, but...Japantown is nice because I like to be there anyways. Also, the instructor is Japanese. I really hope that a) their schedule fits my schedule and b) they have room for me. I hope I hope.

Boxingかな

I've been thinking about the Third Street Gym for a pretty long time now. In fact, I wonder if I blogged about it the last time I looked at it...(but I'm not going to go look and see). Anyways, it is an actual possibility now, to join.

Hesitation:

1) Lots of people. I watched their training video and it looks really good for you and fun, but it also looks like a TON TON TON of people.

2) I don't want to like...get in the head and be injured forever. I guess there is the danger of that with many things. And I guess you just have to be a good boxer and not get hit? Is that the idea? lol

I dunno. I think I would enjoy it, and I think it would get me in really good shape. Just being a pussy, I guess. Maybe I will try their beginner class on Saturday if they are open...

Thinking about tris again. Thinking about lots.

I went jogging yesterday for 7 minutes and I'm very sore today to the point where I had to flake on a potential tennis partner. Luckily, he was hungover this morning and was also inclined to flake :)

Things are going pretty well in general. I never update this blog anymore, I see, but I'm not sure what it would be for when I have Twitter and my study blog.

Jogging was interesting. I felt pretty good until the muscles in my back started getting tight. Today I am feeling it a lot in my left ankle/calf (which is a little scary since that was the tendinitis foot last winter). I stopped at a stoplight, though, and nearly threw up. That's when I decided to start walking, so I could concentrate on continuing to not throw up.

Today back, calves (especially left), thighs all sore. Knees are fine, though, which is good. Maybe I'll give it another shot tomorrow, after drinking more water. I need to get some good headphones that I can run with. Buds don't work for me.

Psych Dump: I have a talent for making things unfun

Last night and this morning I sort of had a breakthrough about triathlon training:

I don't have to do it.

I set this goal that I would complete a triathlon by the time I'm 30, which is totally doable. I could do a triathlon next YEAR if I really wanted to. (Maybe the excessive time span is a hint about how badly I really want to do it...)

Look, here are the reasons I did it:

- I like to bike.
- I like to swim.
- I would like to improve at both.
- Learning how to run would be good for me.
- Goals are good.

None of this necessarily SAYS triathlon. It says, "Ride your bike and swim!"

That is what it says to me. Running is good for everyone, that doesn't mean we all have to do it. I hate running. You know what I like? Sure you do: biking and swimming.

And tennis.
And tap dancing.
And studying Japanese.
And working.
And watching old movies.
etc.

I don't need to complete a triathlon, I need to have FUN. I am sooooo good at setting goals and giving myself unnecessary challenges. All of my hobbies turn into chores because I think I need to accomplish certain things by certain times and be the best and blah blah blah. I'm not gonna be the best at anything. That's not pessimism, that's just recognizing that even if I get really good at something there will be someone who has fewer hobbies than me (i.e. razor focus) and probably a better memory who is the best. In the whole world. And that is toooootally fine. I want to ENJOY MYSELF and meet people who also enjoy themselves. Happy people. I'm a happy person, but all of this attempting to be over-productive in every field is just going to wear me out...

not to mention distract me from fun.

I'm gonna try NOT to make my life harder for a while. I'm one of those people who likes to cram cram cram till there isn't a second to breathe, but trying to rock all socks at once is probably the best way to rock no socks. And doubly so for socks you don't really want to rock.

As a side note: It surprises me that I'm not a power-vacationer. When I go on vacation I pretty much want to do nothing. I don't need to see much or do much. I just want to wander around and eat local food. You'd think with the cramming personality, I would be one of those over-schedulers (like I am normally) and try to fit every point of interest in in like two days, but I'm not at all. Sort of bizarre.

Anyhow, that is all. I'm gonna try to have more fun and set fewer stupid goals that aren't actually things I care about :)

PS - if you are from Twitter and still reading -- wow! This blog kind of sucks ;) There may or may not be revitalization plans in the works, but eve if there are, the last thing I would do is set a goal about them ;)

PPS - OMG -- my motto: "More hobby, less bullshit." It's so fitting.

I don't blog anymore!

It's a little alarming, too, since although tweets don't really disappear, they don't archive either. These past couple months are pretty much lost to the ether. Might try to pop in here more often for a check-up (and not just when it's emo time).

Work...

is going well. Twitter is great. I dunno what else to say about that. Still trying to get clear of my own personal backlog. There's no pressure, apparently, but I think that might just make it harder!

Reading...

need to do more. I subscribed to The New Yorker and Wired, which are the two magazines I always grab at airports for long flights, so now I can just...bring my copies ;) but there are other things I'd like to be reading, too. I haven't finished any books since starting at Twitter, ha...ha...sigh. Also haven't checked my google reader at all, despite the fact that it is stocked with really great stuff.

Social stuff...

same. old. But not really, since I have lots of new friends from work. Been especially enjoying tap class. And you would think I might meet some people at the SF Bay Club, too (where I go to swim, etc.)

Videogames...

not finding time to play! I brought a bunch with me for the trip to NYC but forgot my DS charger, heh...ha...CRY.

The Internet...

OMG I MISS YOU. It's weird that when you work for the Internet, you suddenly have no time to take it in anymore. I need a good rickroll.

A second degree does not help you focus

and am I really trying to prove anything? (No.)

So maybe I will just take this book my friend gave me and see what I can do with it.

Lately I'm in that ultra planning mode that results from thoughts going too fast. You can plan a thousand different things and not actually do any of them. I'm gonna join the athletic's club tomorrow. Maybe swimming will clear my head ;D

Computer Science

requires a LOT of math, and I never really took most of it. And even if I had, it was in high school. If I can test out of elementary algebra, I will be really excited. I'm hoping that I'll be able to take Math 860 Tuesday/Thursday and the Intro to Programming M-W in the morning. Then I could even take the Asian American Experience Since 1820 on Saturday and maybe LGBT Studies or Economics. I need to remember that I also have a full-time job and tap-dancing lessons and a Japanese tutor ;) I think, though, that I will not get a gym membership if I decide to do school. I'll be biking so much. That and the Ocean Campus has a pool that I could probably use if I were a student there!

Not out of the woods

I'm frustrated because I have a lot of things I want to do and a lot of catching up do to before I can do them. Actually, a guy gave a speech about this at work yesterday -- "yak shaving" -- don't things that don't relate to your ultimate goal, but are necessary before you can proceed. 

Everything is going fantastically well right now, but I have to roll out my new plans in stages to avoid, well...running out of money, basically. How disappointing. Why does it always have to be about that? Well, it is, so...*sigh*

The thing I want to squeeze into the budget as soon as possible is Japanese lessons. I've been recommended a tutor, so I'm really looking forward to seeing how that goes. It looks like I will be ok to start next month. 

Actually, next month might be when it's ok to start tap dancing, too. (Yeah, I'm gonna learn how to tap dance, I decided.) We'll see...

I AM WASTING TIME

once again, trying to figure out how to fit all of my hobbies in. And I forgot trumpet. Damn.

Well, there are just so many things to do. I've inadvertently found myself in the middle of way too many books, which I have collapsed down to two, but one is in desperate need of attention. There's also my completely neglected GoogleReader, which contains things I really do want to look at. Let's not also forget Twitter. I'm thinking of starting one in Japanese (and Spanish?) I guess maybe to go along with my blogs, but more just for practice. I can follow Japanese people, too. Although that could end up taking a lot of time, especially since I'm already going over the Twitter.jp site for vocab, etc. so I can be useful at work when Japanese support tickets come in.

I've been actually managing to stick with those three anime shows I have been watching, even while watching another one for work. I think my goal will be to finish the box I am working on this week. That doesn't seem impossible.

I dunno, though. I have a lot of goals. Like picking back up the push-ups and crunches. Not to mention tennis. Not to mention bicycle commuting. (Yeah, I've had a cold, so it's been less cycly around here than normal.)

I guess I'm just wondering if I have time for everything.

Push-ups/Crunches
Tennis
Cycling
Japanese
Spanish
Anime
Freelancing
Videogames

It seems like the only freelancing I do anymore is for Otaku USA, which I guess is fine. I'm clearly off in Twitterland, anyhow, and Otaku USA is fun, pretty low-key, etc.

Emo "lifestyle" post, ahoy! Like, how do I fit all my hobbies into my day and still make the number of support tickets go down? This is where I go all schedule crazy and try to make a table or something like this

MONDAY-WEDNESDAY-FRIDAY
push-ups
japanese
bike to work
work
bike home
shower
spanish
work
read
freelance
sleep

TUESDAY-THURSDAY
tennis
shower
bike to work
work
bike home
japanese
spanish
work
read
freelance
sleep

SATURDAY
anime
tennis
shower
japanese
work
spanish
videogames
read
work
freelance
sleep

SUNDAY
cycling
shower
work
anime
japanese
work
spanish
videogames
read
work
freelance
sleep

Theoretically that is all totally possible, even with food, and some social interaction, but of course, the age old conundrum that has come up time and time again IN THIS VERY BLOG is that you just can't do that unless you are a robot, which I sometimes wish I were... There needs to be more flex room.

I AM SO BAD AT THIS!

This is about where the post started (two attempts) to go off the deep end, so I'll spare you the outcome. Rest assured, I still have no idea how to budget my free time, or perhaps it's that I haven't learned that free time shouldn't have a budget. We'll see. Stay tuned. I promise to post something more interesting next time.

I work for Twitter! :D

I think the whole world knows about it now except this blog. Poor blog! Even the bike blog got the news before you!

Let's see, though. It's funny, because it's not as if I was expressingly looking to escape Cryptic or something. No, I loved my job! And the commute was treating me as well as it could have. I just saw the posting on their site over the three-day weekend, wrote what I considered to be a kick-ass application, and apparently someone at Twitter was a) reading applications on Memorial Day b) agreed with me, because they requested a phone interview between the 1st and 12th.

The 1st worked for me, so we did that. I was locked out of my house at the time, so I took the call in Dolores Park, which was fabulous. It went very well -- so well that I had my second phone interview that afternoon (from my friend, Daniel's, living room). Then they wanted me in the office -- asap! So I went in on Wednesday and met six people, all of whom seemed really cool. Biz Stone and I talked about random life stuff (in addition to Twitter). It was so chill, haha. The next day I met two more people, and that was that. It really was, too. Got the offer that afternoon, bing-bam-pow, start on Tuesday.

I'm still not entirely sure how it happened, even though I feel like I just explained it.

Quite excited about the whole thing. There are less than 60 people who work for Twitter and now I am one of them o_O Can't wait to start!

If you ever want to learn Danish...

check here. The free resources listed there are pretty much incredible, and include all-important (especially in Danish) audio samples.

How cool would it be to help rewrite the California constitution?

"First, delegates to the convention should be chosen through the general jury pool to ensure that the whole population, as opposed to partisans or voters, is represented." ("The Ungovernable State" The Economist)

Post-Eurovision: Top Three

Surprisingly, I managed to pick the winner. HOW did Norway win? I have no idea. As I tweeted, it must have been all teen girls voting or something, because he was certainly the cutest, and his whimsically emo (as I FB'd) song surely stole more than just MY heart ;p

My top three:

Moldova (from the 2nd semi-final, but obviously they did a decent job to make it through)



Armenia (video from the first semi-final)



and finally, Norway -- w00t

Fairytale Official ESC 2009 Video


I'm part Norwegian, although I don't speak it...yet. How cool would it be to study for a year and then go to the freaking Eurovision finals? I dunno how I would make enough money for a trip like that, but boy it would kick ass.

Edit: Wow, apparently no country has every scored as many points as his song did: 387. Way to freaking go, man.

Train time is "me" time

It is really hard to get it through my head that, no, on a work day I do not get to do ANYTHING besides come home and sleep. That is going to have to be The Way It Is. I can't keep on with this four-five hour a night stuff, so tonight after Jenn's party that will have to be the end of the Doing Things. 

Last night I just needed groceries pretty badly, so I hit up Whole Foods on the way home. Managed to get out of there pretty affordably, actually. Some sale items, yadda.

I feel like I had something more important to say than, "Why the hell am I here blogging when I have 15 minutes to shower and get out the door?" but maybe what is important that I answer that question with an "Exactly!" and run for it : /

Oh, my final work schedule, if you haven't seen it in every other location yet:

M-R, 11PM - 10AM

i.e. three-day weekends on the actual weekends

I almost feel like a pussy for taking this shift, and I'm realizing that it will be easier than most of them, probably, since the weekend is the busiest time. I better have some kickass weekends if I'm not gonna be working lol 

The job is going well, but I don't have time to talk about it. At all. Haha, CANNOT BE LATE for the train, although I do at least have a ticket this time. "Thanks, bank, for believing me when I say that I am not committing fraud by buying my monthly CalTrain ticket!" Just gotta find the validation box...

Volunteering for the San Francisco International Film Festival

IS SO MUCH FUN. I'm really glad I decided to do it. It's keeping me really busy this weekend, so I don't have to just sit here and think about how cool my new job at Cryptic is going to be tomorrow ;D

My first day was Friday, when I did two shifts at the Kabuki. First I was line wrangling, which was pretty easy. This nice lady was talking to me the whole time and this cheerful Australian guy kept bringing me water and programs to leaf through, etc. Very easy way to start off. The second shift that night was part line wrangling OUTside (much more exciting since there is more actual wrangling) and then devolved into taking ballots and seating the late show. 

Saturday I worked at a hall at the not-yet-open Disney Museum in the Presidio. Had a hell of a time getting there, but once I did it was great. I first helped other people figure out where to go and then go to bus tables. The coolest part was that one of the brothers who wrote a ton of songs for old Disney stuff (back when Walt was around) was there playing the piano and singing. Really classic stuff, and he was a classic showman, too. Very entertaining. Lots of the songs everyone knew, of course, so it was sort of heart-warming to have all these adult cinema patrons singing along to Winnie-the-Pooh, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, etc.

Bussing tables at a cocktail party is actually more complicated than you might think. You have to be sort of aggressive with some glasses that are half full or a plate with a crumb of cheese left if it looks like no one is around, but on the other hand, you don't want to take away a glass that someone is still working on, or saving for another round of the traveling wine. I love when you can walk up to someone right when they need you, like right as they put that last bite-sized cream pie in their mouth, so you can take their plate in one smooth motion and they thank you for being so attentive. So satisfying. I could definitely see myself doing more catering-type stuff. It's really fun to work schnazzy events. 

Incidentally, a tangent: I've meet at least two people who do this sort of thing for a living -- traveling around working different film festivals while freelance writing or maybe having one main gig (at Sundance, in the case of the Australian guy) and then loaning themselves out to other places. That is a lifestyle I would be very interested in. It's really eye-opening lately, the amount of jobs I'm seeing that I think I could be quite happy doing. 

Today I met a really cool lady at the Kabuki. We chatted a lot while working the will call table together. Will call is pretty fun, except when the tickets aren't in the box. Then customers get upset (understandably) and we have to call over a box office manager *sigh sigh*

Anyhow later on I will be at the Castro doing line wrangling or ushering or whatever they assign me ;D Looking forward to it. I'm gonna try to pick up some hours next Saturday morning, I think. This is really one of the coolest things I've done in the city (as I tweeted earlier) so I want to take advantage while it's around. (Not to mention that I'm going to get a free San Francisco Film Society membership :D) W00t!

Please to Bike and How to not suck at Spanish

Yep, not just one, but TWO more blogs:

Please to Bicycle 

How to not suck at Spanish

Excellent.

Urgh @_@ Plus: Mates of State, Haircut, Jury Duty, Cycling Adventures

Urgh @_@

So I'm running completely on sugar free RockStar right now, feeling a bit horrible, haha. I decided it would be smart to walk home at 3 am, stopping off at Orphan Andy's for some late night food, uhm, and generally not sleeping. My allergies are going bonkers for some reason. Dust, pollen, all that air junk is messing me up.

Mates of State

Were in town tonight at The Independent. I felt sort of bad because the bf had meant to make it (had a ticket and all) but MoS went on second instead of last. Anyways, I was really excited to see them. It's been quite a while, and this time I got up really close (only one girl between me and the stage) and really rocked out. Love their music, love the chemistry they radiate as they play together. They smile at each other and the whole world feels right.

Haircut

I'm gonna link to another Yelp review, mostly because I have been Yelping a lot, but also because it will be a good illustration of how awesome the salon is and what a deal I got. Then I can just focus on the haircut itself.



Yep, that's the one. What's interesting is that despite the fact that it is a boy haircut, people seem to think I'm a girl now. I guess the boy cut highlights what little femininity I possess. Of course, I'm pretty sure all the lesbians are checking me out now, but that is fine. What is hilarious, is that I think I caught the eye of some tourists in the Castro today, "Look honey, a real live twink!" (Nobody actually said this, but this is the feeling I got. I could just be high on my haircut ;D) Anyways, time will tell whether I am still ambiguous or really just broadcasting lesbian all over the place.

Jury Duty

...is officially over as of Thursday of last week. Nope, I didn't think of baking cookies for everyone until after. I could describe the trial in detail now (domestic violence in my neighborhood, albeit not the exact part of it that I live in), but I think I will just say that I actually really enjoyed the experience and would recommend not trying to get around it. That is really just me. I think for many people it stresses them out to have to shoulder the responsibility of making such an important decision and also feels like a hassle since you miss work, but it's great to exercise some critical thinking and group facilitation and things. During the deliberation phase I talked a lot, took notes on the blackboard while we compared inconsistencies in testimonies from both sides, pushed early for a vote just to gauge how aligned we were (had to be unanimous, which it was in the end). We found our defendant not guilty. The prosecution had a very tough case, and he knew it. I think my favorite part was getting the chance to talk with the lawyers afterwards. I expected to just sort of head out, but the judge mentioned that the lawyers would really appreciate feedback, so we all hung out in the hall for a bit, and I learned that you CAN ask leading questions on a cross-examination.

Anyways, I know that my experience was a really easy one (just four days a week, three hours in the afternoon, a tad over two weeks like that) and more interesting than many cases (people were mentioning asbestos trials that last for months), but I would still like to do it again. I'll never try to purposely get dismissed.

Cycling Adventures

I had planned on keeping a better record of where I've been biking. In fact, I'm considering starting a biking blog, since I am going to be doing so much of it and am really getting into it. Bicycling is one of the most exciting things I have going on, really, and it just seems like it would be more of a resource for people if I break off the topic. Maybe I will just do that (and NOT call it "Cycling Adventures" ;p)

Anime is cheap?

I was just reading this blog that says anime is cheap now. AND HOMICRAP if each slayers SEASON doesn't cost $24.99 on Amazon!! I need to make more money so I can afford cheap anime and take myself on awesome memory road trips. Seeing Slayers again would be such a great time *tear tear* YOU GUYS REMEMBER THAT'S HOW I GOT INTO JAPANESE? RIGHT? RIGHT? T_T I'm becoming a geek all over again. Whenever I have free time I feel so good. I got so much done today but I also got to watch anime and blog and read and I even when on a bike ride. Was this the most productive day EVER? So happy! Yeah, man, sometime soon I will get some Slayers and force my boyfriend to watch it with me. AT LEAST A DISK OR SO. You didn't have to be there, I promise. Slayers rocks!! Everyone should watch this show. SO MANY GOOD SHOWS!!!

More hobby, less bullshit :D

Guilty Pleasure, tra la la

It's only the first episode and she already has a crush on a married guy! YES--I mean....



Nope, this show really does rock. We totally deserve some fan service in the opposite direction now and then. I know there's plenty of shonen ai floating around, but this is completely different, you'll agree. Like that whole scene of close-ups on Claudio suiting up for work? Come on, it's so great.

And I LOVE Nicoletta. She's sooooo adorable. When she smiles??? AH! I'm hooked.

w00t six miles

On a bike. Let's recall my schedule:

2.7ish miles to CalTrain

an hour to an hour.5 on the train

8-9 miles to work

Then the whole thing in reverse 11 hours later:

8-9 miles to CalTrain

an hour to an hour.5 on the train

2.7ish miles home

So even at the most taxing of any one technical "time" I still only did about 3/4 of the ride. And it's give or take a quarter of what I will be expected to ride in a whole day (~24 miles because I need room to make mistakes).

I did make some mistakes, but what's nice about being on a bike and making mistakes is that you can just hop onto the sidewalk to figure out what to do next.

Despite a couple incidents like these, today went really well. I biked to Caltrain and back all in one go, got a little lost because of some one ways and some freeway entrances, but it really didn't go so horrible as you might expect. Of course, I'm exhausted, and that will never do, but Cryptic has showers, I found out, so we already know who will be arriving early to take care of THAT. I'm feeling more optimistic, although I haven't ridden at night yet. I will be doing that during this week, though, and then next weekend I will go south to figure out a route from San Jose. 

Also, I'm still on antibiotics with puffy nodes, so I think when all is said and done today rocked. I'm also getting work done, so that is awesome. I'm gonna do another level on this guide and then reward myself with dinner and some an episode of Ristorante Paradiso. 

w-h00t!

Now for an orange...

Chocolate Work Day

Yeah, despite my virus issues I am eating peeps (ok, just one) and chocolate eggs on Easter morning because that is what I have done for 23 years (or this is 24, maybe). So tasty! 

But wait, there was an actual purpose to this post! Oh, I know. I was going to discuss some anime because for some reason I was being really nerdy and watching some shows from THIS SEASON (cutting edge!) yesterday. I would have taken screens, but I don't know how on my Mac...and I'm supposed to be working now. This is a quick post!

Eden of the East

Actually, this is how I got started on this quest. They promised exhibitionist boys. Oops? Did that really lure me in? I guess so. Well, I mean. I saw the screens they had, so it wasn't really necessary, but then I was looking up the show because I liked the character designs (no, not THOSE designs; jeez, they wouldn't actually show it) and the story sounded cliché as usual, but interesting enough, given the cute characters. I also like the look of the secret agent cell phone. 

Anyways the first episode was pretty much what we were told to expect! Nudity! It's amusing that it starts off in the United States and even more amusing that the girl gets in trouble for throwing things at the White House haha (She wants to make a wish in the fountain, but it's so far away!!) I will definitely watch more of this show, partly because I am a sucker for cute boys with amnesia, and...ok, maybe that's the entire reason. Go superficiality!

K-On!

While I was browsing the streaming site I was on, I noticed they had K-On!, too. I remember hearing this was about a group of cute girls who makes a band, or something like that, and that sounded appealing given the cross-like tendancies it could have between something like Beck and, say, I dunno...Azumanga or Lucky Star? I was hoping sort of. And it IS high school freshman being sort of cute. And the main girl is a total weirdo space-case with no life. It could work, we'll see. 

Ristorante Paradiso

I haven't actually checked this out yet, but just read the description:

"21 year-old Nicoletta leaves her grandparents' home in the countryside to work in Rome at a restaurant owned by her estranged mother's lover. But something sets the popular and elegant Casetta Dell'orso apart from its rivals: the entire restaurant is staffed by older gentlemen wearing glasses (as per her mother's preference). Thrown into this adult world, Nicoletta must try to find personal and professional stability - things that become increasingly difficult to achieve as she falls under the spell of Casetta Dell'orso."

RIDICULOUS! And I love it!

Oh, and I learned how to take screens now, but it's too late! You'll all just have to suffer through another boring textwall! 

Back to that work, now. Enjoy your bunnies or Jesus or whatnot :D

In sickness

Today I am at home working all day because there are so many things to get done. 

Also, I am sick. Yesterday pretty much all I did was go to the doctor (the thing on my head is a lymph node, reacting to [some virus?], go to jury service, and go to bed.

I continue to be motivated an astonishing amount towards a great many things (PMI certification, C++!), none of which help me immediately RIGHT NOW. 

But let's see, I gave my trumpet a bath. It still looks like hell, which is fitting, because right now it sound a bit like hell, too. Not like it's a terribly good trumpet, but hey, I refuse to be limited. I will rock this thing (eventually). For right now I am lucky if I can hit an E at the top. I remember those days, though, and how if you just work at it, you'll be at the point where hitting a G above the staff is nothing and hitting a C off in the stratosphere is just what you do. I mean, the pros do it, right? So it must be possible ;D I've nailed the D above that C, back when I was a trumpet player who actually played trumpet, so I know it is possible for me, too. Practice, etc.

So far none of the neighbors have come knocking down the walls. I'm not sure if they realize this could be a daily event. Well, that's the thing, isn't it? Four days a week I will be unable to continue what should be a daily ritual. The plan is to bring my mouthpiece to work, I guess, and buzz around outside for a bit before having lunch. That doesn't help your fingers much, but it does wonders for your chops, really. I guess it's also really boring, since you don't sound like a trumpet, but more like a kazoo or something. I'll have to find some interesting exercises to work on.

But yeah, high, don't play trumpet when you have a swollen lymph node in your head. It sort of hurts. Go eat an orange instead, and get to the post office before it closes, and finish clearing your inbox so you can attend to all the rest of your PRESSING MATTERS.

Some good goals

Again, it's really hard to be getting excited about LIFE AND STUFF when there are things to take care of, but I've been thinking of some good goals as we move forward with, uh, LIFE AND STUFF: 

1. Obviously I'm committed to living in the Mission. If I'm going to train up to biking around 24 miles a day to work, and buy a 200 dollar train pass, then that much is clear. Why don't we take that a step further by paying more attention to local news and taking up Spanish (and not jut for a lark like in high school)? 

1a. I guess the understated goal here is my commitment to biking. I NEED to bike everyday, at least a little, and more likely, a lot. Otherwise I will never get up to doing the commute and I NEED to get up to that as fast as possible. This weekend will be a big push, for sure. 

2. The programming thing, I'm actually pretty excited about this idea. I think it will really help me gain some cred at work if I can show that I'm not just some customer service chick, and I bet it would also be really fun. Plus, what if I could get involved in some indie projects? Maybe there is some awesome designer out there who just needs a programmer zombie to put their ideas into code. I will be that guy! And I will be a more well-rounded producer eventually, because of it.

3. Let's please not forget Japanese. There are good books lying all over my room, just need some time, which I will have. 

4. Lately I've been doing a good job of this, but ALWAYS READ. Always! There is no excuse for not having a book with me at all times. I don't have to go fast, just pay attention. Novels and non-fic and magazines. Just keep reading. It's not like I run out of stuff!

5. Play tennis on a least one of my days off, if not two. Swimming, maybe, but it's probably not really in the budget at this point.

Anyways, maybe you can tell I'm feeling inspired. Unfortunately, being inspired doesn't help me get any work done. FUNNY HOW THAT WORKS. I did get my oranges, though. And strawberries! They were really cheap because they are going to go bad, like, tomorrow ;D

I'm in a good mood.

Further afield

but not by much. Today was similar to yesterday in that upon my return from jury duty I decided I had better, once again, take the bike out. I really do have to force myself, because it is, as I have stated previously, terrifying. Besides that, jury duty tends to leave me a little sleepy, not because it's boring, but I guess just because I'm walking several blocks, listening intently, and then walking several more blocks, lounging in the BART, and slumping home, so I really have to drink some water, get psyched, get alert, and then, well, get in the street. 

*eats the carrots out of her stir fry* I am liking carrots less and less all the time, it seems -- at least the frozen ones that come in my stir fry veggie packs. Maybe I should just start buying fresh veggies so I can pick what I want in my dinner ;D I'm sure fresh carrots would be fine...

Anyways, the plan was to take Capp all the way to where it runs into Mission, go left down Mission until it runs into Valencia, and then return on Valencia, but when I reached the end of Capp, it was right turn only, so I ended up actually riding down Mission to the next intersection where I had a tiny bit of difficulty turning left because one guy thought he would just go. I guess maybe I should've yielded to him : / 

Actually I had some trouble with a bus before getting on Mission, too, but I think that was actually him being lame. I had stopped and then he stopped so I figured it was my turn to go, but he start going straight away again. Not much else I could do at that point besides wait, unless I wanted to broadside a bus with my new bike ;D

So I think then after turning left off of Mission I turned...onto...Valencia, going left, because I figured it would be good to take advantage of the bike path, which it was. That, of course, runs into Mission, so I did that for a while, and then turned and came back down San Jose, which was pretty easy. Took that all the way to 22nd, turned right, had a pretty easy time taking the left onto Capp and then walked my bike across the street to my house. 

*nom nom nom* This stir fry is so much better once the carrots are gone. It's amazing. I'm almost tempted to start throwing them out before I cook it, but that would be such a waste...of yucky carrots. 

Overall, I'd say today was...the same as yesterday. I didn't sense cars being more or less annoyed by me than yesterday, and I didn't feel like I had any more or less trouble communicating what I was trying to do, either. The only time I changed my plan was because the road wasn't going to let me go the right way, not because the cars intimidated me, so I guess in that sense I did better, but I also didn't really have much of a plan, either. But that's not true, because I did plan to take San Jose to 22nd and then turn, etc., so I guess I was successful. You wouldn't really expect less than that, though. It's not complicated (like riding from downtown San Jose to Los Gatos...)

Rather than going to the doctor in the morning to see what there is to see about the mysterious hurting bump on my head (which is not a bruise), I think I will go inquire about lights for my bike, and a rack. I definitely need front and back lights, but I'm still sort of on the fence about a rack, just because I think it will make me feel like I can take a whole bunch of stuff with me, when really I want to be traveling as lightly as possible. 

Ideally I would pack some a book or magazine, my DS/PSP, Japanese books, my laptop, food, and water. That's a lot of stuff. If I were just taking trains I would actually carry all of that with me everyday, but on a bike that is way too much, even if you're lugging it in panniers. I will have to think every morning what I really want to bring. I will have at least three hours everyday (train rides and lunch) where I can just do whatever, so it'd be good to have some Japanese to study or some kind of diversion. That said, I've proven time and time again that sometimes all I want to do in a train is chill out, stare out the window, or at the seat in front of me, and think about nothing (although that still seems like a waste of time)...

Even if I pack light, though, I don't think I will want to carry it on my back. I will be disgusting enough after all that riding without a backpack making my back even sweatier. So, I will need something suuuuuper sturdy that will not fall off the back of my bike during bumps in the road, where I can keep at the very least some books and videogames, if not my laptop. Hopefully the shop can help me out with all of these things and make it relatively inexpensive. (I know it's possible to spend 400 on a front beam alone -- not happening!)

As for everything else besides the bike, there is just a lot to do. I'm nearly done playing catch up, but there is still one titanic obstacle left. There are no more hoops to jump there, though, so I just have to set about the conquering. Originally the idea was that everything would be square by tomorrow night, but having my computer in the shop really borked that, so I have to just accept that it will take longer. Difficult, but not impossible! I think the hard part is understanding that yes, it will take longer, but no, that doesn't mean you don't have to start work on it right now and bust your ass till you are barely awake anymore. 

I am gonna go buy some oranges first, though ;p The bf has me sort of hooked and I think it will be a perfect wake up tactic when I start to get sleepy later. 

Probably this weekend I will try to take a more sizable ride. Hopefully actually TO somewhere, if my lock shows up in the mail. In fact, there will be a slow trickle of packages arriving at my house, since my trumpet should get here tomorrow, and I also ordered a book (which will be written off taxes next year) for work that was recommended to me at GDC. 

Oh, and I'm gonna try to learn some programming. Ahem. Yes. If anyone has any advice here, that would be great, since I'm starting from scratch! Unless someone highly derecommends it, I'm going to learn Python first... Edit: C++ it is!

Anyways, now I'm really frustrated that I can't just get excited about this. I don't have time right now. Otherwise I'd be reading this textbook I just found, etc. Grr. Ohhhhh well. 

For a spin

Today after jury duty I decided I had better take the bike out. I already know it's going to be impossible to get up to 24 miles a day by the 27th, but it I won't be able to ride at all if I never start. I need to find a loop I can do in the mornings once I get some of these loose end work assignments out of the way, something where I know how many miles it is so I can just keep looping until my ass is sufficiently kicked. As for today, well, it went ok.

It took me a second to get used to how the gears work. It was set pretty low and at first I could only figure out how to get it to go lower, which obviously didn't help me at all. Then I realized that there were two buttons, that it didn't just loop, and that helped. Of course, it just means I was able to tire myself out embarrassingly fast, for someone who is planning on biking 24 miles a day in the not tooooo distant future.

I just took it easy around the back of the Mission today, pretty much between 21st and 23rd, I think. I'm still terrified of riding with cars. There was one intersection, I don't remember which one, where I was going to turn left, but got freaked out and went right instead. That was obviously pretty lame, though, so I made myself go around the block and do it again turning left. You just have to be assertive.

Anyways, it's hard to tell if I was annoying any cars -- one guy definitely zoomed past at an intersection -- but I don't think I was doing anything wrong. Needless to say, I'm still really nervous. Yawn, mrrf, mlah.

Only other news is that the local tech dudes changed their prices, so that while some services are cheaper, the specific one I require (and I'm sure one of their most popular requests, hence the raise) went up 20 bucks. "Gotta pay rent..." Yeah, me too : / I am so poor, but hey, my PC is back. Let's hope it works. Gotta crank on some things.

What day is it? Oh, Tuesday.

Is it more hardcore to move or commute?

I think finally being down in Campbell/Los Gatos has taught me that the one true path is going to have to be commuting. Moving down there would not be hardcore, it would be masochistic. I'm not saying that it's not possible to be happy down there, I'm just saying that it's not possible for me, especially given everything up here I'd be unceremoniously scrapping for no good reason. Oh wait, my job is a good reason.

And it really should be, I think. But you know, being so miserable this morning (and talking to my dad) made me remember that this is just a 3 month contract. I'm sure they would love to see me being so gung ho as to move down there, but isn't it also ridiculously gung ho to bike 24 miles a day? I thought so. I still think so. Let's get me on the freaking bike already. Maybe when they are ready to commit a little more to me, I would be willing to sacrifice more. But hell, sacrificing the entirety of your waking hours four days a week is a pretty big sacrifice already.

The other thing is that my concern is reliability. I don't really EXPECT my bike to break. What I expect is to be hit by a car. If I get hit by a car, whether during a 3.5 mile commute or a 12 mile commute, the result will still be me probably not being able to quite make it to work that day. And they should understand that. So, I don't know what my problem is. I'll just pack dry clothes in a waterproof bag and go with the rain jacket. Yee hoo.

I will either be the healthiest I have ever been or the least healthiest I have ever been. I think that will just depend on what I eat and the quality of the sleep I get. No sore shoulders!

Party = canceled (and other assorted end of the day ramblings)

My new job is so cool that I cannot have a Eurovision party this year. WOWOW -_-

...

Meh, it's ok. I can still watch the videos and everything will be on youtube later, anyhow.

I guess.

Booo.

In other news, I'm really tired? That isn't news these days. Spending time with the 9er (Is that nickname number three now? It won't last much longer, but it should still count. For some reason this kid is really good at sprouting spontaneous nicknames...) is reminding me how weird it is the way being a kid works. I mean, we all used to be goofy little kids. What the heck? There was a period of time in high school where I was really upset about the ways I had changed. Now I guess I'm over it. Maybe I've had a paradigm shift, or maybe I don't care, or maybe I really was a little too silly sometimes as a kid.

Who am I kidding? I'm still a little too silly sometimes.

I'm guessing I will have to go be on a jury tomorrow. That sort of throws a wrench or five in a lot of things.

I really really really need a vacation more than anything right now. Just some time for nothing. For lolling about drinking tea and reading books and playing videogames and watching cartoons and learning to ride my new bike@ around the best city in the world*.

@ Yeah, I might be getting a bike tomorrow. Then it's time to train train train until I am pro-commuter girl.

*Heartfelt hyperbole. Despite loving Paris and Tokyo and New York, though, San Francisco really does have something pretty freaking rad. Maybe it's the hills. I keep coming back to that.

007 and other such fun

I learned this game from a fourth grader yesterday. It's like janken only with deeper strategy. Or at least I feel like the strategy is deeper.

Pat your legs as you chant "double" and then "O" ending with two beats of hand gesture "se-ven" in one of three positions:

reloading your gun
arms crossed over your chest (defense)
shooting

You can only shoot if you have loaded, but if you are loading when someone is shooting, you die. So for instance let me see if I can remember what happened last night.

Double O: We both loaded.

Double O: I let him shoot and blocked, myself.

Double O: I think we both reloaded.

Double O: I let him shoot and blocked, myself.

Double O: I shot and won.

If you want to be no fun you could just block the whole time, but that would get old.

Maybe I will teach him how to play jan-ken with "atchi muite hoi," although I would have to practice myself first.

Oh that reminds me of standing in line for the Ghibli Museum last time I was in Japan. There were these kids playing and instead of saying, "Aiko desho?" the boy said, "Atchi muite hoi" and his sister started making SO MUCH fun of him, even to the point of calling her mom and dad, "Hahaha, he said atchi muite hoi instead of aiko desho!!!! XD XD XD"

There was also a really good jump rope chant (apparently he can double dutch) but I can't remember it. It's not one we used when I was a kid, but I never really know the jump rope chants. This one was something about yadda yadda "Who's your girlfriend? I forgot! Is she A? Is she B? Is she C?" etc. Something like that. Very cute.

My friend (formerly known as Nila) Reon is in Japan and her blog is fantastic

Please to read and enjoy

Eurovision TOP TEN TO WATCH Coming Soon

And yes, I will embed the freaking videos this year. Sheesh.

Can't wait to have time to peruse this stuff, man. You better all come to my party.

Oh, it's spring

How nice.

Now if only I could spend a little more time outside? Soon, soon.

Distracted by the future

I'm REALLY preoccupied, which is bad because I have so many things to do RIGHT NOW. It's another one of those hinge moments, though, where everything is going to change DRAMATICALLY so you just want to know what's going on, don't want to/can't make too many plans, need to just hold tight a little longer.

I just want to know what my life is going to be like. No matter what I have to make some changes:

On the one hand we have the super commuter girl, gradually working up to CalTraining with her bike (new hobby) and riding 24 miles a day, employed full-time at an awesome company, presumably making an actual living.

On the other we have isolationist contractor girl, holed up in her house doing work online, walking everywhere to save money on BART, ultra poor, getting creative with meal planning (new hobby).

Granted the latter is just about what I am now, except I think I would really have to take a harder look at my budget, since things aren't really working.

Can't wait until things pan out!

What I had for lunch on Sunday

No joke:

Spicy Black Bean Soup
Antipasto Salad with Green Olive Tapenade (which I made)
Bruschetta with Broccoli Rabe Pesto and Pecorino

Crispy Chicken Parmesan with Homemade Marinara
Chiang Mai Curry Noodles
Gemelli with Peas, Lemon, and Black Pepper
Individual Meatloaves with Carmelized Onions
Spinach, Prosciutto, and Goat Cheese (switched to Gruyère) Frittata
Quick Cioppino (which I also made)
Szechuan Pork with Basmati Rice

Strawberry Cupcakes
Milk and Dark Chocolate Pots de Crème
Vanilla Scented Beignets
Tart Lime Wafers

Yeah, we were pretty full at the end. My dad got me a cooking workshop at Tante Marie's, in town, for X-mas, which I attended this past Sunday. There were 13 students, including me, so they paired us off and set us to make two recipes each. I think I was the youngest person there, but I got paired with the probably the oldest person. He was sort of a kooky guy, but very friendly. Sang a lot. He ended up cutting his fingers and bleeding all over our work space, which was a little (ok, a lot) stressful, but we got everything made and it was delicious :D

Actually it was pretty cool that we got paired together. He was in awe of my planning prowess (Basically, I just said we should make the salad while the soup simmers, lol), so he always just asked what he should do, and I was perfectly comfortable with delegating responsibilities, although I felt bad that I made him mince so much garlic, especially since the first thing he did, as I said, was chop his fingers.

Cooking is a lot better with a partner! That is for sure. I hope to replicate some of this tastiness at home, but I need a pal, for sure. OLEYA, I MISS YOU! We could've made so many tasty vegetarian variants!

Another blog, wtf?

Yes, it's true, but this one is different:

http:://www.duckduckgame.com

Right now it is still just a hosted blogger blog, but we shall see what the future holds *squints nobly towards the horizon*

Please to read about videogame adventures (and other such geekery).

So much to do, so...much to do

Even when I have a little time, I end up trying to go in so many directions at once, I get stuck. Example, I finished work before bedtime (NO WAI!) so I have a couple hours here to do something really great. Any number of things:

*read some fiction
*watch a TV show
*watch some anime
*read manga
*read some other comics
*read The New Yorker
*read Google News
*read about videogames
*translate some Famitsu
*translate some Japanese Google News
*play videogames
*practice kanji
*do some [Japanese] grammar drills
*work more

This is such epic fail. How can I be so good at thinking about all the things I want to be doing and be so bad at doing them? My brain hurts so much with all the stress of "free time" that I kind of just want to go to bed. Lame!

I was just trying to do some kanji and I couldn't even concentrate because of this game I found out about that I feel like I have to cover IMMEDIATELY, but I can't do that because I should be writing about Onechanbara RIGHT NOW, but I wanted to take a break from work first! Round and round...

And now it gets really meta, cuz what am I doing now? I'm blogging about it. Ugh. And I already updated my FaceBook status about it. The only reason Twitter doesn't know is because they are down for updates. I.e. they are accomplishing things while I think myself into total paralysis.

The other thing that is bugging me is how I'm supposed to eat out twice this weekend on a budget of approximately 3 dollars.

And as long as I'm emptying my brain here I've been having some issues trying to figure out who to pitch stuff to. Obviously I need to get paid, but obviously I also need to just BE WRITING. It's very important that I just produce SOMETHING. I should be writing everyday. Should I make my own game blog? I have a blogger address all set aside, but who will read it? Should I work for free? Once again I'm at a loss because all this thinking is meaning that I'm not actually PRODUCING. Maybe I'll register a domain and do something.

Trend pic

I took one last year, so I might as well this year. It's me! Single! On Valentine's Day. Mom sent me some cash dollars for a treat, which probably means ice cream. I got some work done this morning, so maybe I deserve it.

Valentine's Day on a three-day weekend

Non-single people must feel so lucky!

Notice my new Twitter sidebar

I joined a lonnnnng time ago, but just realized that it's handy for updating my FaceBook status remotely. We'll see how that works out. I've read other user's complaints about the FaceBook app, mainly that they don't want EVERY tweet going up. I feel like if there is something I'd rather say privately to someone, though, I can just text their phone? That makes sense to me.

In other news, uh, work :D lol What did you expect? I might play tennis tomorrow if it's nice. I will eat half a burrito for lunch and return the iPod I borrowed from my friend. I will review write my Crayon Physics Deluxe review, finally, and be ready for the new deluge of stuff from Otaku USA (as much as they will give me). I will play Flower and Henry Hatsworth. Hopefully there will be other exciting things to get up to...

Encouraging discovery for those rainy no tennis sadface days

I don't remember if I mentioned it or not, but over X-mas was I realized I am much better at running in place than at running running. It was snowy and icy and freezing outside, so I jogged for a while in the basement and felt really good.

Granted running in place is way easier, but maybe if I start there I can work my way up to running forward. I did some sprints on the tennis court the other day and it nearly killed me ;D This way I was actually succumbing to muscle fatigue before breathing problems or weird heart palpitations could crop up, which, you know, IS AWESOME. It's awesome to not feel your heart trying to flutter up your throat when you're trying to just work out and have fun.

The i.e. of all of that is that the tennis courts were soggy today, so I jogged in the apt. Feels more purposeful than dancing around ;D although Perfume is some good dancing around music...

Back to the dating, chillins

Singleness. I guess it's silly to note having a boyfriend and then not note being broken up. Things weren't working out at all, really.

Keeping myself busy, though. Lots of work to do, even if it isn't always writing about videogames. Actually, it seems like it rarely is these days, what with all the slashed freelance budgets.

I know I need to update my study blog, more, but you know, I also need to study more ;D

It's been suggested that I learn Spanish, and at this point, I don't think I'm against that (not that I ever was, obviously...but I've just been trying to find a way to get to Japan). I'm sure I could get a good job if I were bilingual Spanish, and it would be a hell of a lot easier to do that around here. I mean, I could just hang out with the people at the gelato shop downstairs, even. We'll see. I really want to just get fluent in Japanese -_- It seems like focusing would be best, but I dunno. I was learning three languages successfully in college, so...I dunno, I dunno.

Tennis is still going well, I think. Trying to figure out my serve. It's been rough. I have a new partner, although I think our first meet-up will be rained out. It's decided to be winter proper again, for a bit.

Tonight had dinner with some colleagues. Pretty exciting to see people, actually. I really like feeling like I have co-workers, or at least, you know...colleagues. People. I don't like being alone in the living room all day...

Tomorrow I'm going to Berkeley. I haven't been in ages, and really the only time I was downtown in the happening area was for an event at the comic shop. Gotta make sure I get a bunch of work done before that, though. Like maybe some user support and at least one article. I can take Henry Hatsworth with me on the BART. Working on that review has been the highlight of my week, probably.

Huge oversight (the return of sucknot)

Wow, so check out the TOP LINK in my blogroll now. Yes, it's mine. Maybe that is tacky, but I don't care. It's BACK and it's ROCKIN', so check it out.

EDIT: 9 months ago to the day I started the first post on that blog like so,

This is the first step to not sucking at Japanese. Admit it, you suck! I suck! We try and try, but we are un-near to fluency. We are far. Knowing you don't know is much better than assuming you do. You can say まだまだ行きます and keep on plugging away.

KEEP ON PLUGGING AWAY! :D

Also, Happy Obama Day. Damn, I gotta go to bed so I can wake up in the morning, lol.

So, you know what is going well?

Tennis! Oh, hell yes. Started last week. Played Monday, Wednesday; skipped Friday in favor of Saturday--a mistake which will not be repeated--and got pushed back to today. It's been lovely. No sore hand, no sore foot. Just the minor, oh-hey-it's-working muscle aches. So far been playing just an hour, but I'm kinda hoping to up it a bit soon. 90 minutes seems fair. Haven't been playing sets yet, so it's mostly just whacking back and forth.

Today was sort of frustrating. I think I just need to keep hitting. I seem to be able to adjust my swings pretty well when I screw up, but there is still a wide range of errors: the over-lobbed, the over-spun, the just plain wrong angles that your racket should never be held at. Most of the time I just feel like I'm not hitting that sweet magical spot. I sort of wish I could spend some quality time with a ball machine and drill drill drill drill drill drill drill. I'm big on placement. Straight down the line, crossing to the line--I just want to be able to whip the balls wherever. I know my swings just need work. I mean, especially when I'm backed up practically to the wall. It's hard to know how far back you can get without running into something. I've been slicing a lot of backhands to compensate which is not what I need to be doing right now. Every once in a while I really rip a cross court backhand, and that's the kind of thing I need to be looking to do.

Other than that, what, I need to eat healthier and all the fish lately is a good start. Still trying to come down off the holidays both in terms of food and just work ethic. I've been super lazy , but the gearing up for Japanese grad school has given me some pretty ambitious goals to work with. I should really try to figure out exactly how much money I need, so I can figure out how much money I should try to somehow make. Luckily, it sounds like I can keep my (new, upgraded) user support/spam warrior job even while I'm in Japan, as long as I can keep it up everyday (which, why couldn't I?)

I guess for the first time ever I'm going to watch the inauguration. That should be interesting.

I need to keep up with my blog better, even if it's just two sentences, because otherwise I'll be really upset when I look back in a year or two and find that I hadn't been keeping a record ;p

LOLtastic

So last night driving home from seeing Milk (Awesome movie on an important topic! Please go!) with my boyfriend (which, yeah, what? When did that happen? XD XD XD I guess I should post more often...) I very nearly said "lol" with my laugh response. It wasn't going to be instead of laughing, but rather that the "lol" would set up the laughter. Or who knows, maybe I wouldn't have ended up laughing. It's hard to say, because the sudden "lol" impulse REALLY cracked me up. Is this true geekhood?

Today Three is visiting from Japan, which rocks. I'm excited to do pretty much whatever he wants to do, although it sounds like our interests for this lazy Saturday coincide pretty well: movies and videogames. We'll have dinner with Mikael (=boy) at El Metate. I wish I could bring Oleya, too.

For now I really need to do some work.

But what about weaknesses? That's more interesting, I think.

Your Top Character Strength

Honesty, authenticity, and genuineness
You are an honest person, not only by speaking the truth but by living your life in a genuine and authentic way. You are down to earth and without pretense; you are a "real" person.

Your Second Character Strength

Love of learning
You love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn.

Your Third Character Strength

Curiosity and interest in the world
You are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery.

Your Fourth Character Strength

Fairness, equity, and justice
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.

Your Fifth Character Strength

Zest, enthusiasm, and energy
Regardless of what you do, you approach it with excitement and energy. You never do anything halfway or halfheartedly. For you, life is an adventure.

Via Survey

Pannnnnnndemoniummmmmm!!!

So today is the day--buy the book! Make Daryl Gregory's mom proud (I'm sure she already is ;D) and all that jazz. I got my copy at Borderlands, down the street. They weren't open when I dropped by the first time so I actually ended up checking like 5 or 6 different places in the meantime haha, but I figured they were the most likely to have a copy. Sure enough, they had three! I would've bought them all, if I could've. Happy Pandemonium Day :D

Life is so good sometimes

GTD FTW

i lose at GTD...

?

oh

yeah

we've been over this ;D

uhhhh

i was gonna say

yeah me too, but not really

i'm gonna GTD

no, you have too many T to GD

;_;

but i will G some TD

if not all T

GTD is one of my favorite T ;D

and one i'm D with T then I'll be G something else ;D

feeling motivated

also, i think i just ROCKED at talking about GTD

so we'll see if i can walk it

i think you just blew a fuse in my brain o.O

FUCK YEAH BABY!

pwnt

Life on Mars Ep 4

So good! Go watch it! That's all. And yes, that's right. I took a break from work. It was wonderful.

Double Oh -freaking- Seven

If you are having trouble getting ahold of me, it's because I'm TOO BUSY being a secret agent.

Ok catz, are you ready for this? I'm telling you what book to buy and when ;p

This is what you do: you...

BUY PANDEMONIUM DEC 15!!!

And tell your friends.

Taken by a fit of whimsy, I launch myself whole-heartedly into the promotion of a book I have not read, by an author I don't know, because of a blog post I happened across at work.

But ok, if you haven't clicked through, I'm gonna repost the salient quote yet:

Why should Pandemonium be the next book that everyone reads?

DJG: Do it for my mother. When I started my writing career, she said, You know what you ought to do, DJ? (My family calls me DJ.) You should write a best-seller.

This seemed like excellent advice. But how to execute it?

Your question, Ken, points the way. If everyone—and I mean everyone, each man, woman, and child on this planet, plus any Russians and billionaires currently in orbit—makes Pandemonium the next book they read, then my mother’s dream can become a reality. You don’t even have to read the book, you just have to buy it. Let’s pick a day in December. December 15th. On that day, go out or get online and buy a copy for yourself and one for any relative that is bed-ridden and/or computer illiterate.

Come on, people, we can do this. If we can just put aside our petty excuses—for example, that you don’t like science fiction, or that you don’t read English, or that your refugee camp doesn’t have a decent internet connection—if we can just stop all that whining for a minute and buy my book, then, finally, my mother, Thelma Gregory, will know I’m a success. For more information on Do It For Thelma Day, see my website.

So yeah, we've been blogging. And I made a couple groups, which you should join, especially the Facebook one, which I have linked again twice now. All you have to do is buy a book in like a month, and rally as many catz as you can to follow suite. It doesn't seem that hard. Someone needs to design a t-shirt, though. That I can't do.

10 Minutes of Cereal Bliss

1. The hall light was flickering when I walked out so that even though it was more light than dark, it felt like a survival horror game. It had stopped when I came back.

2. There was a guy riding a unicycle while carrying a box. It looked really difficult, but I'm glad I didn't see him wipe as I looked over my shoulder. (He could have since then, I suppose.)

3. I now have milk to pour over this DELICIOUS freaking cereal.

Loving Daniel Craig is a little like loving David Tennant...

but that don't make me love him any less ;D

Watching my first Bond movie. It wasn't meant to be like this lol. I was supposed to start at the beginning with Dr. No. Anyhow, given that I'm doing a guide for the Quantum of Solace game, I figured I should see [Casino Royale]. New movie next week! Yeeeeee-hoo.

Anyways this is trippy enough in and of itself given how much I love the other Casino Royale.

OH WOW SO GOOD

Obama-rama on Valencia

I was at a s.f. bookstore event, but right as it ended the news came through. Phew, right? And everyone was screaming and honking their horns. A party in Modern Times spilled onto the sidewalk; they offered me champagne in a plastic cup. Fireworks in the street. Every intersection! Honking cars! It was a good feeling. I had felt good on the way to the bookstore, too, because it was so quintessentially autumn--crispy, that smell the air takes on. And then on the way back I get to smile and eat the rest of my macaroon and think about how awesome THE FUTURE will be. Science fiction, indeed :D

Perfume was meant to be played on a Mac

and danced to.

42Blips Book Club Starts Today

I started a book club over at my new(ish) part-time job, 42Blips.com. We're reading Ender's Game, a chapter on Monday--that means today (!!) chapter 1 (!!)--and a chapter on Friday.

Unfortunately, I waited until exactly the lost possible instant to find a copy and ended up wandering around in the rain to all the used bookstores I could think of. That didn't work. They had OTHER Orson Scott Card books, but not that one. I guess because it's good, so people keep it when they buy it. End result: I'm now the proud owner of a shiny, new, expensive reissue. Better be worth it ;D It does say it's the "Author's Definitive Edition" though, so that is something.

The Halloween Post

So this year Halloween was a Friday. All day it was totally, gloomy, drizzly, not conducive to trick-or-treaters at all. That said, it was pretty warm, and then in the evening it cleared up. Amazing weather. I don't even know how it happened.

Of course, I figured I would be working anyhow, so it didn't really matter to me. Been very busy with some reviews and a guide for Wii Music, so I didn't really expect to do anything, although I had been craigslisting for someone to watch a Vincent Price movie with (since that is what I almost always do on Halloween).

Had mostly given up but then I got a promising e-mail, which turned into a groovy date, so that was good. I like surprise awesome. We ate sushi (at We Be, where I almost always order nigiri: hamachi, sake, nasu--they always bring miso, too), talked about videogames, and watched Vincent Price at my awesome house.

Yes, my house is awesome, still. I love living here.

Yesterday had lunch with a guy from Brookfield (WI, for those keeping track) which was trippy. He actually lived on Prospect for a while, just a few blocks down from me, although he left soon after I moved in.

If anyone has a copy of Ender's Game I can borrow, that would be great.

As for the rest of the weekend, I am finally getting my new-old laptop today, and then it will be work work work unless I can find a distraction later. I know Josh and I will watch some BSG, as well...