Archive for September, 2008

Date: September 23rd, 2008
Cate: Uncategorized

Money to Burn

Dear Miss Tai,
Thank you for joining the Waiting List for our Limited Edition Metal Spiked Clutch.
Due to the exceptional response we have received we wanted to contact you to confirm your continued interest in this sought-after piece.
At £1,495 this soft leather Metal Spiked Clutch will only be available in very limited numbers.
To confirm your interest, please reply to this email and our Customer Services Associates will contact you shortly.
Kind regards,
Burberry Customer Services
Let me know if you are interested (have 3000USD to burn).
Date: September 14th, 2008
Cate: Complaints & Confessions, School
2 msgs

Life’s Interruptions

As summer vacation draws to a close, I can’t help but try to imagine what sophomore year of college will be like. Having gone through one year away from home, I now know what I really need to survive away at school.

I hope having my own room this year will help. I don’t have to accommodate roommates’ weird sleeping habits or worry about being considerate. Now I have room to decorate and personalize - to really make school seem more personal, not like some sleep-away camp.

I don’t have to worry about unwanted interruptions and distractions because I can fully control who goes in and out of my room. But I can’t help but think that I will be my own biggest distraction/interruption. Knowing me, I always opt out of schoolwork for fun. I’ll do anything to avoid doing work: laundry, accompanying friends to do something, eating, cleaning even!

One thing will be for sure: it is going to be difficult adjusting. This was one loong summer. Getting back on track and a regular academic schedule will be tough. The other day my interruption was so trivial: suffering from a headache, I tried to take a nap because closing my eyes was the only way to stop the pounding, but then I suddenly got the hiccups and I couldn’t fall asleep! You don’t know how infuriated I was. First of all, I never get headaches. Second of all, I don’t nap. Third of all, I hate getting hiccups and out of all the rare times I get hiccups in a year, this had to be one of them. I was fuming the rest of the day, head still pounding away.

Some interruptions were good. When I was supposed to be packing today, I instead decided to make something to drink. First I had a soy banana and strawberry smoothie for breakfast. And then I realized I could make strawberry lemonade with the Simply Lemonade and fresh strawberries in the fridge. Best and easiest refreshment ever.

What did you do this summer?

Date: September 12th, 2008
Cate: Family, Home & Pets
6 msgs

“Can You Tell Him I’m Letting the Pregnant Bug Go?”

Kids are really weird these days.

My brother’s friend called, twice, and the second time asked to leave a message: “Can you tell him I’m letting the pregnant bug go?”

My brother has been bringing home an insect the past several days. First it was a blue dragonfly and then a butterfly. Of course, he let them go in the backyard after. I think it’s something he and his friends do during lunch time.

Actually, this is what kids should be doing - playing outside, running around on the grass, making mud pies and whatnot. I can’t wait until he starts bringing home wild rabbits and gophers. Just kidding!

I relayed the message to my brother when he came home. He was out with my mother, who brought him to buy some water guns. On a school night. In the middle of the week.

Look! My basil is finally beginning to sprout!

Date: September 10th, 2008
Cate: Home & Pets, Television
2 msgs

Nothing Like a Gleaming Toilet Bowl

My bathroom has to be cleaner than my bedroom. I can sleep in a messy room, wading through piles of clothes to get to my bed, but I cannot even look in the mirror in a dirty bathroom. So this week was the every other week, and since my lazy sister didn’t have time to do her share, I cleaned the entire bathroom.

Lemme tell you, nothing made me prouder than staring at that gleaming porcelain of my Kohler toilet. Well, maybe, showering in the newly-cleaned shower topped that - all that gleaming tile and shiny, clear glass doors.

Since it took me around two hours to finish the job, more))

Date: September 7th, 2008
Cate: Complaints & Confessions, Family
4 msgs

Time to Cut the Umbilical Cord

Another week of summer spent lazing around. Sometimes I revel in the chance to eat whenever, whatever (well, whatever’s in the pantry) and however much I want, to lounge on the couch where the only pressing matter is what channel to watch, to think about and do frivolous tasks (like building an agility course for my dog or printing recipe cards); it’s all the appeal of being home.

On the flipside, while I was looking forward to meeting up with friends and going out in my hometown, I’ve done almost none of the sort. I’ve seen a couple of people and each time, it was a meet up at their house. I haven’t even gone out to eat with anybody! Maybe I’m too much of a homebody, maybe I’m too lazy, maybe I’m just too self-conscious to even go outside my driveway nowadays.

Maybe it’s because I’ve no money of my own! I’m not working, I’ve blown all my previous funds on stupid things (mostly for other people) and I practically have to beg my parents for spending money. I feel guilty asking them to cover my entertainment expenses. And then it’s kind of irritating to have to report to them when I go out, now that I’m in college.

So when is it time to cut the umbilical cord? more))

Date: September 3rd, 2008
Cate: Home & Pets, Television
1 msg

I Would “Stop Dressing Like a Little Girl” for Don Draper

…in fact, I would strip down to my knickers! Episode 206 of Mad Men, “Maidenform”, is my favorite ever. It even made me cry this time (spoiler alert).

“Mad Men” refers to the men of 1960’s Madison Avenue advertising who lead whirlwind lives filled to the brim with booze, women and egos. Part of its charm is its period quality: vintage wardrobe, upscale restaurants of olden day Manhattan and tons of cigarettes. Don Draper is the high-power creative director at Sterling and Cooper. 

I don’t know how Jon Hamm can be Don Draper without actually being Don Draper. Maybe that’s why he’s nominated for an Emmy! Don is a complex character, good and bad and blah blah blah. Silently powerful in his well-made grey suit, he loves his children and has countless affairs; he demeans his colleague while still showing concern for his secretary; he’s a stone in the office but cannot control his emotions for other women. I was so jealous when he showed up in person, bedside, when Peggy was at the hospital, looking miserable and fat; heartwarmed as he looked down with pride into Sally’s admiring eyes; hopeful everytime he called his wife “Bets”; sympathetic when he was rejected by Rachel Mencken, who unforgettably, and tearfully, realized: “You don’t want to run away with me, you just want to run away.”

I don’t feel I watch Mad Men for the romance so much more))

Date: September 1st, 2008
Cate: Miscellaneous, Reminiscence
2 msgs

Unparalleled, Unmatchable, Unbelievable

The Games of the XXIX Olympiad were hosted by Beijing and no one will ever forget that. Grand ceremonies, Chinese hospitality and unforgettable athletic moments ensured that.

The opening and closing ceremonies were as aesthetically pleasing as conceptually creative. House of Flying Daggers and The Curse of the Golden Flower’s Zhang Yimou really capture the essence of China: incredible human power and rich history and culture. I have looked at diagrams of my cousin’s marching band formations. I couldn’t imagine anyone translating that many x’s onto the football field, let alone hundreds of x’s onto the field at the Bird’s Nest! It was a show of technology, too, not forgetting to showcase China’s impressive industrial capacity.

I won’t forget all of Nastia’s Olympic moments (and Bela Karolyi’s outbursts on NBC) - more))