I'm starting a reading experiment inspired by this Millions article. I too share the author's problem of having a ever-growing to-read list that becomes overwhelming whenever I try to choose my next read. I have accumulated books from school days, library sales, used bookstore hunts and gift exchanges (but mostly from book sales ... nothing like cheap books to get me into a buying frenzy). Before I know it, there is a huge amount of books sitting on my shelves gathering dust. Nowadays I have the tendency to read books I just acquired because they pique my interest at the moment, and when I don't have a book I really want to read right away, it's hard for me to pick something out of the big pile of old books. That's why I've decided to emulate the author's system of creating a randomized reading queue. Just like the author, I have organized my to-read books alphabetically and assign each of them a number, and from now on I'll let chance decide which book I read next by using the iPhone's number randomizer (another reason to love my iPhone). A newly acquired book will just go into the queue according to the alphabetical order in which everything is organized, so the numbers will not always go with the same books and it's completely random if I get to read a book I bought yesterday or 5 years ago.

I know this sounds incredibly nerdy if not obsessive compulsive, but I'm hoping that adding a bit of a twist to my reading habit would not only help me decide what to read but also help me read more. Even though I must have bought the majority of those books because I wanted to read them, sometimes it's been so long that I don't really remember why. So it's almost like a surprise whenever I 'pick' my next read. It will be systematic and yet completely random. How awesome is that?

Here is a list 65 books currently in my reading queue. It's a long list, but I hope I'll get to read them all ... eventually.

( Lists make me happy )

So my first randomized book is .. drumrolls ... NUMBER 48 - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Alright, it is about time I give this classic a go.

I think this is going to be fun.

Just discovered a new French artist.

I love the art work in this music video and the cover.






Apparently the art was done by a Chinese comic artist known as Benjamin (real name: ZHANG Bin).

( More of his art behind the cut.  )

Oh and her music is also worth checking out. She writes her own music and everything.

Look at this shiny list of Hollywood celebrities who support Roman Polanski.

The man is a child rapist. CHILD. RAPIST. He didn't just sleep with a 13-year-old girl; he drugged and raped her. How could any decent human being support him is beyond me. Maybe some of them are ignorant about what happened 31 years ago. I admit I didn't know much about his crime before his arrest and was only familiar with his name because of his Oscar win a few years back. I mean, I wasn't even born when all that happened. But after reading up on it, I can't believe how many celebrities/artists are defending him. I guess being an Artiste gives you immunity from law and human decency. I hope the US hauls his cowardly ass back and puts him away for a long long time.

Not that it matters, but in case anyone is wondering if he is sorry for what he did, this is what he said when asked if he felt like "the victim of a judiciary error" (so rapists are victims now?):

The young girl admitted in front of a tribunal that she'd already had intercourse with other people before meeting me, though the tribunal wasn't concerned about these other men. When Mr. Smith or Mr. Brown sleeps with fourteen year-old adolescents who look eighteen, it doesn't interest anyone. But when a famous film director does, the law and the press sound the alarm. It seems that I was the only one -- or nearly the only one -- to have found myself before a judge. (Source: ONTD).

So because the girl had sex before and 'looked' eighteen, it wasn't rape? I hope he rots in jail.

Ichiro walk-off heroics two nights in a row! This time, a 2-out 2-run walk-off homer off the nearly unbeatable Yankees closer.

The M's are out of it, but games like this is why I am still watching them play (beside Ichiro of course).

( This picture is scary and awesome at the same time. )

Firefly



Just finished watching the whole series, which only consists of 14 episodes before it was cancelled. The show was first aired in 2002, so yeah it took me 7 years to get around to watching it. Better late than never I guess. What a great series. I think it might have replaced Pushing Daisies as my favourite ill-fated TV show. I haven't watched the movie though. I hope it's as good as the tv show.

The Guild



I didn't think I'd enjoy this since I'm not a gamer an avid gamer, but this quirky webseries is just plain awesome. There are plenty of WoW references I don't get, but I still think the show is hilarious. Just finished the first two seasons and the 3 season premiere. They even had a music video out. I guess geek is the new black.



MLB The Show



I never thought I'd get sucked into gaming by a sports game, but I'm addict to this PS3 game right now. I guess being a baseball fan is the main reason why I like this game, but MLB The Show has gotta be the most realistic baseball game out there. I don't think I'd have enjoyed it as much if I was only playing against the computer though. I mostly play it against Robyn, and it's really fun trying to out play each other. We're having quite a rivalry going on.

Boggle!



I'm obsessed with iPhone word games. I have like 11 different word games installed on my iPod Touch right now - Scramble, Quordy, Boggle, Scrabble, Bookworm, WordFu, Wordology, Chicktionary, Wordulous, Moxie and Dungeon Scroll. Can you spell GEEK?

I feel like an old crazy cat lady for posting cat videos two times in a row, but this is too good to pass up.




I love how blissful the cat looks with the massager.

Via Japan Probe.

For some reason, this video makes me very happy. I guess it`s because it combines my two favorite things - travel and cats!




"This cat wanted to see the world, so he made his master carry him around the globe."

Via Cute Overload.


On a cat unrelated note, the weather is finally cooling down. Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm hoping for some rain tonight. The poor dry Vancouver earth could use watering.

“Eternity”
William Blake

He who binds to himself a joy
Does the winged life destroy;
But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity’s sun rise.

How true and how succinctly beautiful.

Thanks to exceptindreams for posting this little gem.

Oh Japan, why do you insist on being behind the times?

Via Japan Probe

Japanese brokerage firm Nomura Holdings Inc. kicked off a training session for new hires in April by separating the men and women. The women, including Harvard graduates hired by Lehman Brothers before it collapsed, were taught how to wear their hair, serve tea and choose their wardrobes according to the season, say executives who fielded a complaint about the session.

Maybe more OLs should join Shomuni. At least those ladies don't take crap from anyone.

That was a weird day. Gorgeous weather during the day and then a thunderstorm in the evening.

I want to go see the Celebration of Light this year. I think the last time I went to one was like 5 or 6 years ago. We'll see if I can conquer my aversion to crowds and catch the Canada's fireworks this week. Apparently they are doing a Wizard of Oz theme this year.

photofunia.com



( Read more... )

Robyn's going to kill me for posting the last one.

Go Mariners!

Yay, the Mariners won one against the Red Sox. Now we can lose the next two and still call it a good road trip. The M's aren't great this year by any means, but they're no longer cringe-worthily bad either. It helps that Ichiro is having a great season so far. I hope both the M's and Ichi will keep this up so there will still be a reason to watch them play come September.

Damn, it's a hot day. Feeling lethargic and lazy. Wish I was up in the mountains and splashing in the water!

Yesterday marked the 7th year that Robyn and I have been together. How crazy is that?

Instead of celebrating our anniversary on Canada Day like we usually do, Robyn took me on a road trip to Chilliwack yesterday. He didn't tell me where we were going, just that I needed to wear causal clothes and sensible shoes, while he secretly packed lunch and even my swimming suit. The drive took about two hours and was accompanied by the perfect summer weather for a road trip. Robyn hinted that there might be hiking, so I knew we were going somewhere in the mountains, and it turned out to be Chilliwack Lake National Park. I had never been there before, but Robyn knows how much I love lakes (they're so pretty!). It was a very nice surprise. His original plan was for us to hike up to another lake up in the mountain, but we got there late in the afternoon and decided to just stay at Chilliwack Lake. We walked along the rocky shore, which had a few campers/swimmers sprinkled here and there but was not really busy on a weekday, until we settled on a semi-secluded spot away from the other people. Then Robyn and I got into the water and almost killed ourselves.

The water was freaking cold! Robyn was brave enough to swim out into the middle of the lake, but I only got half of my body into the water before I rushed back to the shore. The fact that I don't really know how to swim didn't help either. I was terrified that I was going to either drown or freeze to death. I wanted originally to go deeper and splash in the water a bit with Robyn's help, but it wasn't really possible in that freezing water. Guess we should have stayed in the sunny area with the other sensible people. We had fun though. I definitely wanted to go back and try to hike up to the other two lakes (one is an hour's hike away while the other will take 3 hours to get to). Hey, maybe those lakes would be better for swimming. I really want to learn how to swim ... it's like on my To-Do-Before-I-Croak List.

After the lake, we stopped by Chilliwack River and found a random spot to eat the yummy sandwiches Robyn packed for us. The sound of the running water and the river shimmering in the sun made for a great backdrop while we enjoyed our lunch. Call me a simple girl, but eating a sandwich on a river rock with the person I love is one of those moments that will stay with me while the others fade away. Or as Renée, the character from The Elegance of the Hedgehog would say, it is a moment of "always within never". Well, I hope to have many more those "always within never" moments with Robyn in the years to come.

Follow the trail to get to the photos:



& a video:

Robyn's officially finished with school. His family and I attended his graduation last Thursday. It was a small but very nice ceremony and we got to see him receive not just his hard-earned diploma but also two awards (he was nominated for 5). He got a chance to stand on the podium and give a thank you speech in which he also embarrassed me by mentioning my name. It was a sweet gesture and all but it was just too Oscar-y. We had a good time though, and I know his parents are very proud of him. We all are.

( Photos from the graduation. )

Robyn's busy job hunting right now. One of his instructors recommended him for a position with a game company just before his graduation, but it didn't turn out. The company decided to hire someone with more experience at the last minute. He was disappointed, but I believe this small setback will only lead him to something better. With his ability and work ethic, he'll find something eventually. I'm not worried. I'm excited about our future. It's going to be quite a ride.

This is the song that made me fall in love with Radwimps. Someone awesome just translated the lyrics for it, and now I love the song even more!

And yeah, I'll be studying Japanese. It's such a beautiful language.



( いいんですよ! )

These are the top 106 books most often marked as "unread" by LibraryThing’s users. Bold the ones you've read, italicize the ones you own but have not read.

Note: I also underlined the ones I am either reading right now or have started reading but stopped for various reasons. The ones with asterisks are the ones I don't have but I'd like to read someday.

( Read more... )

So I only own 8 books from this list that I haven't read or finished reading yet. I guess I'm not such a poser, but I DO have a lot of books sitting on my shelves waiting to be read. I should use this time to get a lot of reading done before I head back to school.

Robyn's out drinking with his classmates and I'm alone at home watching tv and surfing the net. It sounds kind of pathetic, but I feel serene. Robyn deserves to go out and celebrate. Today was the all so important 'industry night' where he and his team presented their finished final project in front of people from the game industry. Robyn and his team has spent the last 3 months working on their game that they made from scratch, and the last 2-3 weeks had been such a crazy time for him. During the final crunch I barely saw him at all as he usually didn't get home until 11 at night. It was tough but at the same time I was proud of him for working so hard and doing so well. Now the hardest part is over. He called me earlier to let me know that their presentation went well before he went with his class to .. well somewhere with a lot of alcohol I assume. I hope he's having a great time.

To think that in a month he'll be done with school and impart on a new journey .. with me. I feel happy. So much has happened lately that I can hardly believe that things are going to get better, but I think they will. When we came back from Japan a year and a half ago, I wasn't sure how we could get to this point. All those jobs I went through and all the boredom and misery I felt 'waiting' for this moment to realize ... it seemed like forever and yet here we are. Yes, I know that Robyn's not quite done yet, but his last month of school will basically be all about putting together a portfolio and getting himself out there in the job market. He's optimistic about his job prospects and I cannot have more faith in him.

Yeah, I'm getting maudlin just thinking about what it took to get to this point. I'm not going to call the last year and a half 'hardship' because c'mon, we are freaking lucky compared to lots of people. But I will be so relieved when Robyn gets his first career job and I get to go back to school and work on my own career. I have pretty much decided to go the academic route, and in spite of whatever doubts I might harbour, I know in the end I have to do whatever feels right to me. I need to take that first step before I can find my path.

Changing is coming. I can't wait.

Ah-ma, rest in peace.