Electric Ladyland

training chopsticks

i went out to do some grocery shopping this afternoon at my favorite local supermarket.  this run was just to get some essentials (milk, oj, etc) for dad's visit this holiday weekend -- tomorrow and/or saturday we are probably going to do the serious recon for what we call the food parade although i must admit i already stashed away pints of this in the freezer to have at the ready.  he'll never know what hit him. 

anyway, i can sense i'm getting distracted here so let me return to my original train of thought.  i was ambling through the aisles of the supermarket when these training-wheel chopsticks caught my eye.   apparently they're for us western types who just can't work out chopsticks no matter how many times we try.  when i got home i tried googling "hold sticks" to find a page on them but no, people, they're holdstix.  and it says so in the ubiquitous chinese menu font just in case you forgot where chopsticks come from.  nothing but class here. 

these chopsticks remind me of a chinese restaurant in the town where i used to live in japan.  a friend and i went there on several occasions throughout the years i was there and the same waitress had to ask me time and again, kind of like it was the movie groundhog day although i couldn't believe she didn't remember my smiling western face from the last time i'd visited, if chopsticks were going to be all right.  oh wait, scratch that -- she didn't actually ask me but instead addressed my japanese companion and always phrased her query the same way:  "お箸大丈夫ですか？"  every time i responded that it would be fine.  it was a bizarre ritual we went through which annoyed me but i put up with it because i liked the food.  i wonder what that waitress would have thought of this contraption.  i half wonder if she wouldn't have come charging up to my friend with a pair of these saying "これなら使えるでしょうね" ("these she can use, right?").

home improvement jamboree

the improvements just keep coming here chez electric ladyland.  today my second order of compact flash bulbs came from the energy federation and, with them, two very nice additions. 

first, i got two of these new night lights to replace the one i have in the hallway.  they automatically turn on at night and shut off in the morning.  they also cast a wider halo of light than my old traditional night light did.  now i've got these two going and (hopefully) will never stumble into the door on my way to the bathroom again.  well, maybe i will but i won't have the darkness for an excuse anymore.

secondly, i got this vornado space heater to step in where our patchy old-school radiators sometimes falter.  it looks just like the air circulators i got this summer (and they are great, let me tell you).  i got this in part specifically for my dad's christmas visit this weekend.  he gets cold more easily than i do and it could be a little tough for him if he gets up to practice the guitar early in the morning, so now there will be something he can do to remedy the situation.  for my own uses, the space heater will keep me cozy while watching star trek at night or on the rare weekday afternoon if i happen to be home from work.

my new neighbor from calligraphy class came by before i took her out on an orientation stroll through astoria and she had nice things to say about how spacious the apartment is.  that's only because i've been working so hard to make it that way -- if she had seen it three weeks ago it would have been a different story.  but i was glad to get confirmation from an outside source that things are going well.  we're thinking of doing a pot luck in my big kitchen before i get another roommate.  that would be fun.  we had dinner at taverna zenon, where the food is always delicious and the people are always warm.  got enough leftovers for lunch tomorrow too!   this is a nice way to begin my winter vacation.

breakfast interlude

breakfast is served!  went for it again this morning.  i put a little more effort into today's version.  it's basically the same as yesterday's but with sauteed pearl onions and two eggs instead of one.  i spiced the tomatoes with herbes de provence and a bit of black pepper;  the eggs got a light dusting of those same herbes but also a touch of paprika and sea salt.  underneath the eggs, though you can't see it, is a trace of light maple syrup atop a slice of multigrain toast.

this worked out well.  i feel completely powered up and ready to start my day.

so i went back to the container store and did another round of shopping for my home.  bought more cork contact paper which i used to finish lining the shelves in the pantry as well as a second oxo drawer organizer, a knife magnet and this neato magnetic memo board which i'm going to use to hold takeout memos. 

as i've been making these improvements one by one i've been chucking a lot of trash dating back from my first roommate four years ago -- this is the first time i've been the only inhabitant here so it's the only time i've been able to be absolutely sure that whatever's here is mine or free to throw away. 

also, while digging around and cleaning up i've been reunited with some old favorite things.  the best one so far is an omamori a close friend gave me back in 2001 the week before i flew back to new york from japan.  it was intended to keep me safe while traveling.   i remember that flight well.  there was no one in the seat next to me and i lay sideways most of the time, listening to music on my minidisc player and feeling as if i were being carried home in someone's hand.  i had no idea what on earth i was going to do after returning and, this being just a few weeks before 9/11, no forewarning of how radically the climate in my native country was about to change while i was in the middle of a critical and emotionally rocky readjustment period.  but as the omamori intended, i did stay safe and over the five years that followed was able to build an enriching life here in a city that always keeps me fascinated and curious to learn more.

happy saturday

saturdays are back!  i've got my kitchen in nice enough shape now to enjoy a weekend morning luxury:  breakfast.  on occasion i do like to slowly rouse myself out of bed and plod off to the kitchen for a good old fashioned american breakfast on a saturday morning.  today i put in a little less effort than i usually would but it was still satisfying.  bacon and eggs with toast and sauteed tomatoes.  coffee on the side.  yum. 

speaking of kitchen victories, last night after work i hopped on over to the container store for a second round of purchasing upgrades for my home.  the last time i was there i'd bought the super-duper wastebasket i have now so i couldn't carry much more than that, but this time i bought an expandable flatware organizer, some cork contact paper for our pantry shelves and a brilliant oxo-designed all-in-one dustbin.  very cool. 

i put these things into use when i got home and already they're making me much happier just to be in the kitchen.  the flatware organizer fits perfectly in my drawer and doesn't jostle around and the dividers are adjustable so i was able to set it up in a way that makes sense.  now when i open that drawer i can see everything so much more clearly and -- bonus here -- it's not all dingy and ratty-looking like the old one i inherited two roommates ago.  the dustbin was useful in cleaning up one of the pantry shelves before i put the cork contact paper on it and now that that's there i can see everything on the shelves much more clearly.  my landlords had put some kind of tacky floral-designed one but i much prefer simple colors with as little decoration as possible to divert the eye.  now you open the pantry door and see what's there -- your eye doesn't have to search around.  i really like the way these oxo products are designed.  i'm about to sound like a commercial but it's true -- they make sense and are lovely.   you feel better when you  live in a space that makes sense and is beautiful.  conversely, you don't feel so great when you live in a space that makes no sense and has been neglected or given no thought in terms of design and comfort.  i don't know anything about design but i'm developing an admiration for the people who put their creative energy into ventures like this.  another outfit on my radar whose web page i was scouring for ideas last night is umbra -- i've bought a few very useful household gadgets from them in the past and their stuff is both beautiful and highly functional.

more improvements to come.  i took copious notes last night while at the container store and i've located a handy type person in the neighborhood who can install my coat rack and some other little things that i'd like to have mounted on the walls to make the place still easier and more logical to live in.  good things are afoot.

but now i have to jet!  just got a call from a friend in my calligraphy class who moved to the neighborhood -- one block away from me, in fact -- and i am going to welcome her to the area before we go into the city for the world premiere of our mutual friend and classmate's film at imaginasian.  later today another friend and i are going to see an a capella group starring a friend of mine from work.  should be a fun day!

cell phones and human rights abuses

the times has an article up on the diamond industry and its links to human rights abuses in africa.  i'd been hearing about this through my coworkers so it was not new on my radar, but a new twist came along later today.  i got a thank you email from collective good acknowledging my used cell phone donation from october.  i went back to their web site to read up on their latest news and found this interesting piece:  "war, murder, rape... all for your cell phone."  it seems that no matter what the purchase we confront issues of the moral practices behind its production.  cell phones are a nasty one-two punch involving both human rights and the environment in this case.  as a techie working at a nonprofit i find this especially interesting.  are there nonprofit techies out there advocating and educating on this issue?

valuing matsuzaka

hot stove action afoot:  the new york times reports that matsuzaka and the red sox are approaching an agreement that could bring the star japanese pitcher to boston.  would he be the first major japanese player we've landed since nomo?  others would know better than i but i am encouraged.  i'm also finding the accounts of this whole negotation process rather amusing.  first off, an article i read last night had people referring to him as "matsuzaka-san" (that was theo), "daisuke" (his agent scott boras) and "d-mat" (forget who that was).  the name d-mat just makes me think of a laundromat.  can't they think of anything better?

there was a choice passage betraying boras's unbelievable phoniness in today's times article which i would like to share with you.  look at how he's representing matsuzaka here:

“His biggest issue is the respect of the Japanese player,” Boras said. “The issue is he wants the Japanese player to be treated with respect in the American system. If he’s not respected, then he’ll go back to a system where he is respected.” [...]  Still, Boras’s plea for respect for Matsuzaka may not be understood by his fellow Japanese. Bobby Valentine, the former Mets manager who now manages the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan, said Japanese fans typically do not equate money as a sign of respect."

zing.  that about says it all. 

JETs and where they land

while on vacation in the bahamas i saw a post on one of the JET alum lists mentioning that a journalist for the daily yomiuri sought JET alums for email interviews on where they have gone since finishing the program.  i wrote him a brief message detailing some of my impressions and experiences but never heard back.  to my surprise, google alerts found his article, part of a series the yomiuri is publishing in commemoration of JET's 20th anniversary, which i didn't even know had made it to press.  i'm quoted in it.  who knew!  well, google knew, that's who...

home-making

here we are, sunday morning.

life is good and i'm sipping some coffee as i get started on my day.  mom's almost here.  we're going out to brunch and then coming back for a day of cooking and strategizing, not necessarily in that order.  more on that in a bit.

at your left you see a remnant of my former apartment regime.  i am now 30 and i have finally taken the little word magnets off my refrigerator.  over the past four years some interesting/salacious/humorous bits of poetry have cropped up there ("my latex fashion masterpiece" was a good one) as people have come to visit, but now it's time for a new world order here at my place in astoria.

my roommate moved out (well, mostly) last sunday and i'm handling the place on my own for the time being.  i will start looking for a roommate in a bit but for now i am reassessing how i want this house to be, specifically the kitchen.  as soon as she left i embarked on a huge cleaning project that isn't finished yet. 

i also got new chairs for the kitchen table.  if you've been to my house, you don't even need me to finish this sentence -- these chairs were necessary because my roommate's chairs had the unique "self-disassemblement" feature to which our guests were frequently treated over the years.  my dad was particularly frustrated by this while trying to practice on the guitar.  strum-strum BANGCRASH does not a happy practice session make.

on wednesday i hit up the container store for a new wastebasket that didn't look horribly dingy and stained.  this one is a real beaut, kind of reminiscent of the 1950s.  i didn't think i could ever get very excited about anything as mundane as a trash can but i guess i was wrong. 

some of my ceiling lights are out and this morning i bought environmentally-friendly compact flash light bulbs for the house.  i'm excited about that as it means that (a) i won't be as irresponsible towards the environment anymore (b) i won't have to change the light bulbs as often ... and (c) i'll save money on my con ed bill.   hooray.  i had already stealthily changed our  energy plan to a "green" plan at con ed so this ups the ante a little.  one thing i enjoy noting in this politically polarized environment we have:  my ostensibly "conservative" father (who also wears birks and drives a volvo while being a member of the NRA so i think he'd already cause a pollster's head to explode as it is) beat me to the punch on this one.  go dad.

more improvements are afoot.  overall i'm just amazed at how much cleaning needs to be done.  if you really pay attention you just keep uncovering layer after layer.  i've got a list that seems to replenish itself on its own volition and i have to keep adding new items as i cross the old ones off.  however, with each day i get one more thing spruced up and living at home is more enjoyable than it has been in a good long time.

anyway, momma's here and we've got business to attend to.  until later.

i will boldly go... after i take a nap

i love the onion.  i used to read it at my desk from time to time while working as an assistant language teacher in japan and while it looked like a legitimate newspaper to my japanese colleagues, it had me in stitches half the time.   actually led to some fun discussions about american humor with some of the english teachers. 

well, courtesy of my beloved journal of satire i have this keeping me giggling:  "i was placed on this earth to put off doing something extraordinary."  i drive myself too hard sometimes and i know it, so it's good sometimes to look at the lighter side.  in doggedly pursuing my goals, i will not rest -- until i have rested, that is.  we all need a catnap now and then. 

had calligraphy class last night and it seemed that i was handling the brush more comfortably than i have in quite some time.  i hope that was the case -- initially my teacher said the strokes were thin and a bit timid.  one of the things i was a little surprised to learn about calligraphy somehow is that you are expected to let your personality come through and to some degree the force of it, the energy of it, is what is valued.  you will not be rewarded for putting forth anything timid or half-hearted.  i think it's interesting and can be applied to other areas of life as well but it's clearly understood within the context of calligraphy.

got kanji class tonight, the last class before our test on sunday.  here goes! 

in other news, i heard the rumbling sounds of someone moving out yesterday.  i was hoping it was biff (my nickname for the annoying jerk who moved in next door some months ago and unknowingly regaled both my roommate and i with vicarious access to all sorts of sordid details about how his girlfriend kicked him out of their house, holding his stuff ransom for thousands of dollars).  alas, it was the nice couple from downstairs.  i always liked them.  wonder where they went. 

i went on a cleaning spree in my room yesterday.  i love it here now, feel free and easy in this space.  i've been curling up and watching star trek these past few nights, revisiting the great TNG episodes ("q who?" and "the best of both worlds I & II") and some of my favorite movies.  i forgot how much i love that stuff, i mean really love it.  after burning some hours reading about trek on wikipedia i decided to buckle down and watch enterprise, that show that started airing in 2001.  i had watched the premiere when it aired but then boycotted the show in disgust because of the gratuitous flesh-a-thon (vulcans and humans getting oiled up in the shower room?  wtf?!).  yeah, upn is all about pandering to horny pimpled 13-year-old boys but bejeesus, star trek is not about gratuitous sex, people! 

wait a minute, maybe writing about this isn't the best idea because i'm getting annoyed the more that i remember how insipid that show was.  buuuut i learned that they did fill in some of the backstory on the borg a little later on and there were some interesting things in the final seasons.  as we all know, TNG and DS9 weren't stellar when they first aired either but they developed into classic tv that never gets old, never loses its appeal to those of us who love trek.  ok, i'm going to try and watch enterprise this time.  we'll see how far i make it.  hopefully i can grin and bear it.  i figure if i can watch korean dramas where the boy finds out his girlfriend is his sister and there's car crashes, amnesia and cancer all involved then maybe i can take watching enterprise.  we'll see.  i'm not sure!