.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

The Public Ineffectual

For entertainment purposes only.

Thursday, September 30, 2004

Look...Baby Blogs

Just to be clear: they're the same size as normal blogs. But they're about babies and for grown-ups who love them. Grace Chan (4 months) and Matthew Lee Liu (1 year) are already ahead of the cyber-curve thanks to their parents. They got their own baby blogs! You read right: blogs by babies. For some reason, they keep writing about themselves in the third person.

Goo goo, ga ga!

The difference between The Public Ineffectual and these kids is that they actually HAVE stuff to report. We get to watch them awaken to the world and their own bodies. Click here to watch Matty make rawk 'n roll faces! Click here for a pic of Grace passed out at the pub! Can't wait to party with her. Alright!

The irony that my posts have lately been about regressing to a state where I can barely walk and am drooling all over myself for one reason or another hasn't escaped me.

And, these kids make me want to be a baby again just for the clothes. What are those all over jumpsuits called? You know, the ones with the feet. I'd like to have one, you know, for formal occasions.

Wednesday, September 29, 2004

Water, water everywhere...but not a drop chez nous

Deprive yourself of one modern utility and realise how soft you have become.

I had no choice in the matter this morning. I woke up only to find that there is no running water in the house. Maybe it has something to do with the torn up sidewalks and jackhammers underneath my window (and all down my street) for the last week-and-a-half. This puts a different spin on my morning rituals:

1. no doing last night's dishes this morning
2. wondering if the toilet is going to flush
3. only-just-tolerating my own morning breath
4. using body lotion to smooth out my hair
5. no shower (took one late last night, thankfully)
6. using what little water is left in the brita jug for COFFEE

Apologies to my lunch date for likely having to run straight to the bathroom to avail myself of their amenities.

Tuesday, September 28, 2004

Obliviagate


push it REAL good
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
Soylent offered me a glimpse from his past tonight. Am I ever so grateful!

He claims this was one year at summer camp when the counsellors did a number for "talent night" by dancing for the kiddies to "Push it" by Salt n' Pepa just to make them laugh.

It reminds me that I feel lucky to have escaped my past by moving thousands of kilometers away. Bit of an extreme reaction some might say....it might also beg the question of what I have to hide...nothing, of course. I keep having to remind myself that being honest is better than being right. (Say that 3 times and twirl in a circle counter clockwise and you will be....dizzy.)

On the other hand, it makes me miss the people who know me well, who have the easy familiarity with me and my foibles. Its not so much that I do or say things that I would rather forget, just wish I could make them fail to remember. And this very blog might just come back to bite me on the ass one day. In fact, I'm certain it will. Hopefully it will be at the center of some international scandal. But I guess that IS life, n'est ce pas?

And which one is Soylent? Why, he's the handsome young buck second from the front!

Monday, September 27, 2004

Kissing 2.0

hick·ey
n. Informal pl. hick·eys
1. A device or contrivance; a gadget.
2. a. A reddish mark on the skin caused by amorous kissing, biting, or sucking.
b. A pimple.
3. A pipe-bending apparatus.
4. A threaded electrical fitting used to connect a fixture to an outlet box.


Where have all the hickeys gone? You remember, the "love bite". Those were practically de rigeur back when you used to suck face for hours. My friend * is sporting one right now on the side of her neck that made us both double over in laughter! (I have never heard of the word being used for anything other than 2a.)

The hickey is emblematic of "enthusiasm unleashed, consequences be damned" fervour of youth. So, how come it doesn't happen with the same frequency these days? Improved application of an extant technology, perhaps? Heh heh heh...

Remember when you used to try and cover it over with concealer only to draw more attention to it by making it a giant orange smudge on your neck? Now a mere mention of the word seems like such a throwback to times less remembered or remembered from Happy Days and its spin-off shows.

Yep, those were the good ol' days.

* yes, really.

Saturday, September 25, 2004

Just Married

Jen and Michel were wed last night. Congratulations, my darlings! They had a short and sweet ceremony so we could get on with the business of eating and drinking. Thanks for looking out for our interests guys! In a brave - and smart - twist on the usual i-do's, the parents of both bride and groom were asked to join in the matrimonial vows and pledged to never come between the two! Ha! Brilliant! With that many witnesses, parents had better mean it...

The highlight of the evening for me was the "surprise musical interlude" that a couple of people had hinted at. (Wink, wink, nudge, nudge) Something about Herr Doctor Doctor Wilde doing a number - which he should well do in his capacity of as best man/newly minted music prof. Dr. Wilde took his place at the piano and Michel hit the stage and asked for his bride to join him. Jen was genuinely taken by surprise in this event that she had meticulously planned from start to finish. Then, in an cataclysmic burst of romantic gelignite, Michel sang to his bride. You know the one:

L is for the way you look at me
O is for the only one I see
V for very very extra-ordinary
E is even more than anyone that you adore *

Crazy!

The Michel I met years ago would simply never have done something like that. That Michel was so very shy - especially around girls. Who ever knew he was such a romantic??? Its amazing what the love of a good woman can do to you. *sigh*

I also asked Rowan if he would marry me last night. He said "noooooooooo!" and tried to run away. My attempt to restrain him proved fruitless and he escaped my clutches, wily thing. He's only four years old so I have plenty of time to turn him around.

And what does a Twenty First Century couple do when they renovate their home? They blog it. (linked above)

*Love Was Made For You and Me - Nat King Cole

Friday, September 24, 2004

Mix n' Mismatch

Went to Bita's Birthday Bash and had a wonderful time...paying for it with my sanity, however. Ms. Nikavee seems to have fared much better...though we both Hit the Horizontal.

The inebriation situation is complicated by the fact that I just started taking cough medicine. I started out easy but really tore the arse out of it by the end of the night. I guess it was to be expected.

Today, I took a little more of the meds on an empty stomach, went to work, got some greasy food for lunch and then, halfway through my burger.......I hit the couch. Not feeling so good. Stared at the clouds for a bit. But I felt restless and discomfited by my flagrant show of delinquency in front of my co-workers.

How does my sanity play into it? I had three distinct conversations in which I could barely put the concepts together. I understood all the words individually and the sentences all made sense in and of themselves. But the sentences group together to make concepts and concepts interplay to make bigger concepts and so on. This is where I came unstuck.

For example, I went to Future Shop to enquire about their photo developing service. You can get your photos developed as per usual, or get them on CD-ROM or get them online and just print just the best ones. The choice is yours. The man at the store was nice enough to explain this all to me. But when push came to shove, we still had some sort of miscommunication there after I handed over the roll of film. I was too ashamed to ask him to explain it again from the beginning because I knew I was starting to look like a bit of a dum dum. And I knew that I probably just wouldn't get it anyway if he did and his misgivings would be right.

So I left.

stevey.com says I'm "stoned"

Thank you co-worker Mike for this damn fine coffee.

Thursday, September 23, 2004

Go Shorty, Its You Birthday


"And I raaaaan/I ran so far away"
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
Bita! Happy Milestone Birthday!

Gather the L'Eighties 'cause we gonna party like its you birthday.

Wednesday, September 22, 2004

Kimchi Chigae Watch

Self-imposed quarantine was broken yesterday with a brief dispatch to the Boite Noire for some distraction. Ran into Matthew from work there, gave him the customary kiss-kiss on either cheek and then told him I was sick. He made an "eeew, gross" face. I told him I'm not contagious anymore because I'm showing symptoms but it didn't make the face go away.

I mentioned in this post that I would likely never hear the words "kimchi chigae" again in a mainstream theatre. Had I gone to see Starsky and Hutch for the 20 minutes it was out in the theatre, I would never have made such a bold claim.

The duo have an attempt made on their lives by an Asian man whom they eventually apprehend. Later, Hutch enters the interrogation room offering kimchi chigae to the captive, in Korean. The man is surprised, as are we all. Hutch speaks Korean though only "chokkum" (a little). Picture me: writhing in my seat in a mix of discomfort and glee. White people speaking Korean is really, REALLY funny especially when said person is that yummy Owen Wilson.

I also rented Why Has Bodhi Dharma Left Us for the East? as I felt in need of some spiritual uplift and movies about Buddhism is as close to meditation I felt I could get. But I still haven't finished watching it. The endless koans are fucking killing me! Now I know why there aren't more Buddhists around. This shit is bloody difficult to comprehend and even more difficult to put into practice. Perhaps for this very reason, most of the people who claim to be Buddhists are also firm in the belief that Zen is a school of thought in interior design.

I feel a bit like, I believe it was Cary Grant, who stormed out of the 1968 premiere of 2001: A Space Odyssey fuming, "Could someone please explain to me what this movie is supposed to be about?". Now, there is a site that can do exactly that in eight different languages. Its pretty long and ponderous for a flash animation. But at least it has the good graces to explain itself every step of the way to release you from any mental heavy lifting and the discomfort/uncertainty of thinking for yourself.

Now back to Bodhi Dharma. Does anyone know if there are similar "coles notes" type flash animations for Zen Buddhism? It would save me a lot of time and energy. Thank you.

Tuesday, September 21, 2004

Miss Oblivia's Academy of Sass and Coercion


puss will NOT be denied
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
This post will be short because I have to go cough up a lung.

I saw Shrek 2 last night and instantly fell in love with Puss In Boots. Oh man, will you look at him!!! I don't even much like cats but I love this guy. He's smooth, he's loyal...and he's irresistable.

I've been practicing my Puss Face all day to amuse myself as I mope around the house drinking tea. Just thinking of the shit I could get away with if I could just rock this expression makes me giddy.

Get thee ready. Soon, it will be my way or the highway. *meow*

And when I master the Puss Face, I'm going to start a finishing school called...well, I kind of gave it away....

But first, I think need to go check my temperature. I might be suffering from delusions of grandeur.

Sunday, September 19, 2004

*sniff*

I'm getting the beginnings of a sniffle. Expressions of sympathy may be posted below or emailed to thepublicineffectual[at]gmail.com.

On my way down to the pharmacy to get some homeopathic medicine recommended to me by my roomie, I passed the Cinéma L'Amour. Now...um...put delicately, its not quite love they specialise in so much as in, as the saying goes, what women will do for love and what men will affect love in order to get.* Geddit?

As I was riding down the street (on the footpath!) a man exiting L'Amour stepped into my general way which meant having to abate my downhill coast on Boulevard St. Laurent. How fortuitous! I probably would never have seen the "playing now" poster with the simple title "Paris Hilton". I looked more closely and yes, its Paris the Heiress' face in a montage of different angles. Its her mug alright.

Now, I'm REALLY curious. Could they really be showing that infamous home video at the cinema? I wonder how big the screen is and how pixel-ated the image would become? I wonder if its one of those films thats "you really have to see on the big screen" to fully appreciate? You can download it quickly and easily if you were so inclined, who are they expecting is going to show up? If you know who PH is, aren't you somewhat outside the demographic that they serve? What do I know about the demographic they serve anyway?

They DID have an erotic film festival (I wonder what kind of government sponsorship was available for that one) and I know this because a friend of mine had her short film in it (sock puppet porn). I didn't go see the screening because I didn't want to have to sit in the seats. I'm no prude but hygiene is something I hold dear.

Enough about Paris, more about me. I'm bravely fighting off a cold and no one, to my knowledge, has yet invented a pouting emoticon so this will have to do.
:(

If you would care to help invent one, please go ahead. Bragging rights will be yours.


* Women will do anything for love, even sex. Men will do anything for sex, even love.

Don't Over-reach With Your Service Level


mmmmm....riblets
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
Compare and contrast the two service stories - the first from Montreal, the second from LA.

--Saturday Night in Montreal--
8:30pm
Status: hungry
Oblivia: Hi. I would like to order Combo 1 with spring rolls please. How long will that take?
Thai2go: 30-45 minutes

9:30pm
Status: famished
O: Hi. I ordered an hour ago and I was told that it would take 30-45 minutes. Can you tell me how much longer?
T: I don't know.
O: You don't know? (annoyed by stupid answer)
T: I don't know. The delivery guy is new. (She hands me over to someone more senior cause she can tell I'm shitty with her. Well done, she doesn't get paid enough to deal with things that aren't her fault.)
O: Can you tell me if the food has been cooked?
T2: The order hasn't been cooked yet. (WTF???)
O: I'm wondering if I should wait.
T2: Can you wait 15 minutes?
O: OK

10pm
Status: STARVING
O: You told me it was going to take 15 minutes and I've waited 30. I don't think I'm going to wait any longer; cancel my order please.
T: OK, I'm really really sorry. We've been really busy.
O: I don't care. (I really don't. If I wanted to worry about workflow issues, I would have cooked.) You should have called to let me know, at least. (Don't over-promise and under-deliver - - twice.)
T: I'm really sorry. (Don't be sorry without moving into corrective action. I can't eat sorry.)

****buzz**** goes the door. Delivery guy comes up to the apartment while I'm on the phone. You remember: the guy they tried to blame earlier?
O: The delivery guy is here. (I hand the phone over) I want you to tell him why he needs to take the food back.
Delivery guy: Hello? ...... Give it back to her? (he hands the phone back to me).
O: Did you explain to him that I didn't want it? (I give her the chance to give it to me for free, which is what she should do given its a sunk cost at this point that could well mollify a disgruntled customer. She does no such thing.)
D: Ugh! (He's disgusted and he's leaving.) What is she doing? I'm losing money, they're losing money. This is the fourth one rejected tonight.

--Somewhere in Simi Valley, CA--
Crouchingturbo, J, and Herb are eating at Applebees, a chain of restaurants in the US has an all-you-can eat ribs deal which states clearly that "its not over until you decide it is".

Crouchingturbo: I would like more ribs please.
Waitress: I'm sorry but the kitchen is closed.
C: But I didn't say the ribs could stop.
W: But we've turned off all the stoves.
C: Well, I don't think thats good enough. I'm very disappointed. I want more ribs.

The manager comes over apologises and gives ALL THREE free meals and says that he hopes they will consider eating at Applebees in the future.

OK. I'm all for mom and pop shops. I'm realisitic enough to lower my standards of service appropriate to the bracket where I'm spending my money. Clearly, Thai2go is a victim of its own success. The thing they don't know is that I've already had an order messed up by them before but I just sucked it up and paid for the whole thing without so much as a word. The previous fuck up could have been avoided by simply repeating the order back to me confirming what I had ordered. If I called back, they know they already double checked and that, is that. Policies help to handle these situations that can and will come up. There is something to be said for standardisation and completeness in service.

A little bureaucracy goes a long way.

Friday, September 17, 2004

Crouchingturbo's Got a Brand New Bag


Hobo
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.

This post is transmitted directly from the bathroom.

Why am I posting from atop of the can? Because I CAN. (I'm here for pleasure though, not on business!)

On Being a Girl

Crap. Our house has been a parade of men all day.

Bell guy sent from the ISP at 9:21am. Then online back and forth with Michel all day trying to get our router sorted. Michel mostly trying to get this idea of a 'reset' button through my head. I still don't know how to get this PC to jibe with the router.

Then Videotron guy. Our VCR and DVD haven't been hooked up until today when the videotron guy came and hooked up our cable connection. What does that have to do with the VCR and DVD? Not a damn thing. He was convenient to ask...

Then washing machine guy. Trying to engage my french skills and testing my patience. Can't you see I'm trying to get our router sorted??? Aaaaaagh.

Must go make a souffle as I practice my elocution ("The rain in spain stays mainly on the plain."). Then, an hour of harpsichord practise. I'm feeling horribly gender-marked right now. I hate admitting this.

I want the world to know:
1. I can park a car (any car) better than you.
2. I can assemble Ikea furniture with one hand tied behind my back.
3. My right hook is a wonder to behold.

Grrrr.

Thursday, September 16, 2004

SAF Seeks Laksa for Good Times, Companionship


laksa
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
If anyone knows of a Malaysian restaurant in Montreal, please email me at thepublicineffectual@gmail.com.

There was Nanthas for a while there but I found it curious that he'd overlooked curry laksa on the menu. When I asked him if he could make it special-like, he said he did once but people "complained because of the smell" which makes no sense to me. Idiot customers who complain a Malaysian restaurant smells like delicious Malaysian food ought to make themselves useful and BE food. Aaargh.

Its simple fare: yummy creamy curry soup with rice vermicelli; add a few hokkien noodles for colour, a smattering of bean sprouts for texture and prawn or chicken, as you like. The fried tofu soaks up the juice only to explode in your mouth and its customary to add just a small dob of spicy sambal on top for love. Ohhhhh.

Curry laksa can be found in just about any food court in Sydney these days. Its easy to get used to being so indulged. The food court in Chifley Square (beautiful office building that Tiffanys and Max Mara also call home; the site of many a battle in the Matrix) gives its upscale clientele bibs to wear as not to spoil any bespoke shirts with evidence of lunchtime slurping. Anywhere else, you're on your own. It is my mood enhancer of choice.

Not suitable for those with heart abnormalities and first dates. Ideal for anyone else who likes to their food to make them break into a sweat.

Wednesday, September 15, 2004

Boy Crazy 4 Eva

In keeping with the hysterical, boy crazy posts of late (really, I'm much more multi-faceted) I would like to direct your attention to Plank's latest creation, the Drop Manufacturing web site.

A few weeks back at the St. Laurent Street fair, Soylent, his friend Shevaughn and I went to Drop's installation - a halfpipe demonstration. Skater boys aplenty, their skate team and cronies only....Mmmmm - I can't get enough of flat abs and gnarly scars.

I've found instant kinship with women who also have a weakness for adulescents* in baggy pants. When I first came to know Petra in Germany, I will never forget walking with her one evening and hearing the familiar thwap! of plywood against concrete. Both of our heads whipped around fast as lightning to check out the scene. I was amazed. I thought, "She's my kind."

I know why we're this way. We're scarred from early formative experiences with skater boys. Way back when they were fewer and further between, they were outcasts of a sort; anti-social, homo-social and, you know, difficult.

OK. I've said enough.

[Shaun, where are you?]



* That is, adult crossed with adolescent. Thank you, Xi, for this fine contribution to my vocab.

Tuesday, September 14, 2004

You've Got (G)mail!

I have been invited to open a Gmail account, the new email service with 1 gigabyte* of storage that is currently being beta tested by Google. It bears repeating that I was invited to open said account which means that I have entered a circle that is necessarily exclusive for one simple instrumental reason; making sure the damn thing works as it should before offering it to the plebeian masses. Me, being me, can't help to think of it but in a frame of social status. *I* have the distinction of being close enough to someone who is a vector of transmission that emanates from powers that be at Google (cue: angels singing).

A new acquaintance (not Ms. Nikavee) whom I recently directed to this blog, remarked that I'm "a bit of a geek". Friendster, papernapkin.com, blogging...I'm fairly sure (at least, I hope) he meant it as a term of endearment but I have to admit that the observation took me a bit by surprise. In fact, I thought I was lagging on the whole blogging phenomenon. I viewed it as something of a case of "old wine in new bottles" insofar as personal web pages have been around since (internet) time imemorial. But the relative ease with which publishing occurs opens the activity up to a larger slice of the population that happens to include yours truly (you all know my problems with HTML). This, to my mind, makes me feel like I've entered at the level of blogging's commodity status. To use a music analogy, I'm walking around telling people how much this band called Nirvana rocks out. Yet, I've been truly surprised how many people have asked me what a "blog" was.

I don't consider myself a geek. The only reason I have Panther (OS X.Something) on my computer is because Michel put it on there for me - I barely feel competent to do it myself. I can scarcely burn a CD to back up my work. But I am surrounded by geeks. Attending a university, I am exposed to geeks of every persuasion; you name it, we got it.

This made me think of Sociology 101 and the idea of social comparison. I think it was Thorsten Veblen who said that we tend to compare ourselves to the people directly "above" us in social status. Thus, we compare ourselves to those who live just beyond our means whose luxuries we would like to afford and not the insanely rich whose-names-you-don't-even-need-to-know. Gmail and this site give me a geeky aura to some, whereas I feel like a hunkering luddite next to others like my Ex and his engineering pals.

Does this mean that I'm actually missing a step and comparing too far up? Does this mean I'm a social climber or does it mean I have a low self-opinion? Or both?

Bonus question: Is it possible to ever get a reliable sense of where we sit on the continuum of adoption of ANY innovation?

I can now be reached on thepublicineffectual[at]gmail.com. You know, Gmail is going to be the new black.




* I really have no idea how much that is, I just know its a lot.

Sunday, September 12, 2004

Big Trouble on St. Laurent

Went out with Nikavee and her friend Cee last night and - wow - these girls blow my mind! We met through a mutual friend who insisted that I read her blog because we have a lot in common. This turned out to be an understatement - superficially, at least, we lead parallel lives. Same drink, same smokes, same penchant for drinks and smokes. Cee lives upstairs from Soylent, as it happens also. The gurls turned out to be fabulous, articulate and truckload of fun. We spent hours gleefully discussing the quirks of our mutual friends and bitching about their inadequacies.

Ha ha ha! No we didn't!!! I swear!!!

Actually, there was getting-to-know-you conversation, blogging conversation and many many drinks. We beautified the bar of the "Saturn Chamber" and stayed there until closing. We took turns to sashay across the dance floor and up to the bathrooms to pee. The bathrooms used to be black, covered in graffiti and the doors were sprung shut. You had to push the stall door and squeeze through as if breaking into your little sister's room with her on the other side pushing back. Now, they're beige, functional and completely out of step with the joint.

The ceiling "rains" condensation that I know from eighth grade science is supposed to be pure water. If you're of sound mind, however, you can't help but be grossed out by the thought that the moisture originates from sweat and rank alcohol breath. I'd never been there on a Saturday night and was pleasantly surprised - they played mostly the New Rawk. Its not exactly on high rotation at home but familiar to me as I've been living above ground for the last couple of years. Cee marched right up to the DJ when he played some Eurotrash music ("runaway/run-away/runaway if you want to survive/you've got to break free/uh-uh-oh-oh") and the exchange went something like this:

C: Change the music. It sucks.
DJ: Its a request. Come on -- its funny!
C: No, its not. It just sucks.

Track gets ripped off mid-song in favour of something listenable. I was duly impressed. She's a Leo, you know.

We mused: what is the girl equivalent of a "sausage party" (meaning a joint regrettably full of boys)? A "Y Convention"? If the collective noun of crow is a "murder" and geese come in a "gaggle", the collective noun for women MUST BE a "wiggle" and "giggle" for girls. So then -- a "wiggle party"? A "giggle fest"? EUREKA! A "Beaver Jam"!!! (On a completely different topic, I misheard "Paperjam", works well, no?)

Oh, and speaking of sausage...We were being seriously cruised by some 24 year old boys from out West. Not that that is a bad thing, necessarily. They drank with us toward the end of the night, bummed ciggies and then accompanied us outside. One of them asked if we "girls get it on when you're alone and horny". I told him that it was, in fact, a blind date, so, "no". Guy (Nikavee said his friends call him "Meathead") asked me if I had a broken heart, I said "yes". I asked him how old he was and he asked how old I was. I told him he should not mess with this shit. To his credit, he tried.

These girls had digital cameras so we took a pic with one who whipped out his dick for the photo for no particular reason except for maybe he doesn't know how to hold his liquor. Or perhaps he figures that because it impressed his fraternity brothers, it ought also to work on us. Inspired, we then walk up the street which is now full drunk kids purged from the surrounding bars asking guys if they wanted to whip out their Honorable Member for a photo. No takers!

Thanks B.

Friday, September 10, 2004

When I'm good I'm very good, but when I'm bad I'm better.


bad girl
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.

Wednesday, September 08, 2004

Black Eye Design - Site Relaunch!


Black Guy Design
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
I've been working for dear friend Michel's company for some time now. We have a new web site with a portfolio for your ocular pleasure.

No photos of me...but its still well worth checking out! (www.blackeye.com)

Tuesday, September 07, 2004

Cosmic Interference


vodka's best friend
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
A round of vodka shots arrived at the table accompanied by lime slices arranged around a saucer over a bed of sugar at Bily Kun. This little exchange takes place over the usual bar din:

T: Look at these lime slices, why so teeny?
B: They're not zucchini!

I don't know why but it made me larf and larf and larf.

Not just me! Not just me!

A little addendum to my Montreal Men Rant below. Not just me folks, check this one out...

Monday, September 06, 2004

Labour Day Dinner

Happy Labour Day everybody. I'm celebrating with a wee dinner party. Actually, its the biggest dinner party I've had for a long time. I forgot the stresses of being a host - eeek! Must run out and buy napkins and candles...

I bought some beef, rump steak cut into strips at the butchers because, well, I don't have the stomach for it. I opened up the meat when I got home and oooooh, uh, it made me reel for a sec. Just cut up a bunch of evil little red chilies and was reminded of the time my ex-boyfriend made my skin BURN because he'd been cooking with chilis. Touch no pink bits with those hands...

Wish me luck!

Menu:
* Vietnamese style wraps
* Chilli beef stir fry
* Ice cream

Sunday, September 05, 2004

Seoul Food


Redoxon B
Originally uploaded by Oblivia.
This stuff has been my mainstay all week - I used to use those tabs when I was in my early twenties when I hardly ever drank at all. I've needed them more than ever this week. Phew.

A unofficial Week of Partying has came to a close with an official Night In. We (me and my girls) are putting it down to trying to make the most of a summer that is fast fading. I marked my return to sobriety with a nice Korean meal of mee-yuk guk, jap chae and sang choo sam and kim. Bear in mind that this is the Korean equivalent of eating like someone on the verge of destitution - peasants sniff at meals like this. Big step up in the world for me! Unfortunately, Korean food is just too difficult to do regularly. Too much handling involved (vegetables have to be prepared in a very particular way) ingredients are difficult to get my hands on and I lack the required level of skill.

Claire and I spoke for two hours and I had a late night snack of kimchee and rice and realised that I'm truly my mother's daughter. I miss both of them terribly.

Saturday, September 04, 2004

"Paper Napkin is a service to help passive-agressive cowards avoid people who would like to date them."

Given all the shit slinging I've been doing about dating and stuff, perhaps this one is a bit out of turn but whatever...

There is a site called Paper Napkin and their proposition is simple as you can see above.

You know how it goes: you meet someone and they think things are going swell but you don't. They want to contact you; you don't want to see them again. Get them to send an email to anythingthatsoundsrealistic@papernapkin.net - and voila! They get this message. * wince *

They were inspired by the inspired Rejection Line.

Beautiful Baby


Baxter Puppy
Originally uploaded by Cade.

Thursday, September 02, 2004

Regime Change NOW!

Sounds like the shit is hitting the fan in *celebration* of the Republican National Convention.

Here's something interesting from this site we should all bookmark because its terribly interesting:

There are almost 2,000 people in jail. The system is overwhelmed.

Many of these prisoners will go to court. Some of these people have committed nonviolent acts of civil disobedience and will be prosecuted more severely than your average rapist.

Please don't make it more difficult for these folks. During the 2000 RNC during which only 480 people were detained/arrested and 420 faced charges, prosecution had to prove that the defendants were at the "scene of the crime". Without video or photo evidence, charges were often dropped.

During the trials resulting from Bush's inaguration, police successfully used photos pulled from indymedia to prosecute protesters.

Therefore, when you post your pictures (which are fantastic, by the way - keep them coming!), please smudge the faces of the people in them if they're doing civil disobedience. Just because the prison system thinks you should spend a year in jail for nonviolent protest, that doesn't mean we need to enable them and put good activists behind bars.


And a little something from the friend of listserv acquaintance who was on the ground in NYC:
>the city is exploding. more than 1000 arrests tonight, waves of civil
>disobedience throughout the day, almost all the major avenues blocked off
>downtown. the biggest intersections shut down by demonstrators, ringed by
>police and paddy wagons. cops have apparently lost the restraint they
>showed on sunday, shutting down anything before it starts, arresting
>independent media and legal observers.


People of the United States, if you rise up against your oppressors we will hear your calls and support you. (Replace "United States" with "Iran" and it pretty much paraphrases what GWB said about a year ago.)

Wednesday, September 01, 2004

*psych!*

Ha! You thought you heard the last of my rants but ooooooh, no, she won't go away and she won't shut up. Ha!

I met this bartend-ress the Green Room last night called Arlen. She's my new hero and I told her as much. Arlen is so rock 'n roll and totally great at what she does.

AND ANOTHER THING: doesn't "fecund" sound like a swear word? ["Fecund you, man!"] Try this at home, its a lot of fun.

I'm feeling so much better than I did this morning, you'll be glad to know.

Gotta run to Thomson House for the PGSS meeting. This meeting is going to go on forever because the hottest, most contested issue issue we've had on the table in my memory is the issue of smoking at Thomson House.

I love politics.

This may be my last post ever

I have serious doubts about being able to make it through this day. I imbibed enough substances to stop a horse in its tracks. I have not slept. I carried the weight of the world on my shoulders only to throw it down again like a backpack. Sometimes difficult relationships are better than smooth ones. Decisions I make with my gut are the right decisions.

I am off to work shortly.

Bye Geoff. Bye Aleksandra.

Happy Birthday Mark S.

Irresponsibly yours,

Oblivia