Cheat Work Thursday

Hi, all (three of you), It's 2AM here on my bed. I'm in the midst of writing a six-paragraph e-mail for my sister, which she needs tomorrow (today!). Thought I should blog something, reporting what depressing movie I watched this week 🎉🎊. But before that, let's talk about the internet. Last year, I read a lot of travel blogs. They were all exhilarating, making your pulse race reading each page. And this year, I've been reading a lot of art and creative blogs. They are very inspiring* and very kind to the soul too. (*As in it makes me believe that I can be at least half that creative but does not necessarily make me do the actual creating-thing, you know, because that requires effort.) A must-read is oliviaraejames.com. Wherever Charleston is, I want to live there too. I've listed a few of the blogs on my sidebar, but it's not fully updated yet, as there are so many great blogs out there and I'm still exploring. For every one art blog you find, you...

Do I hear a collective sigh from adults around the world, now it's time of the week again? Lucky you people in LA, it's still 9AM Sunday at your place... Wait, there are people out there who would love to have our jobs, or any job actually. We are the lucky ones here. (But seriously, why are we doing this to ourselves?) It's 1AM. I wish my Sunday nights were filled with laughter that makes me roll on the floor. Sometimes they are; other times like tonight -- not really. Because Sunday nights also mean watching Homeland and The Walking Dead. Really, why is the latter getting more gory by each episode? (Also, give these guys a break please, they need a shower.) And Homeland is just being Homeland: depressing, no character to root for, gives you breath-holding suspense, superb acting and, worst, is addictive. I can't wait to watch Argo. I feel fresh now, though. I think I've recovered all the lost sleep from my reading bootcamp . So I'm currently thinking ...

I woke up this morning with the biggest gratitude that it was still weekend. I spent the whole of Friday night to early Sunday morning with a total of six hours of sleep in between, speed-reading and trying to finish a material. No one forced me to squeeze in that much reading, but I had to do it and finish it quickly. Even if it meant sleep reading for a few seconds here and there. A few times, I looked at a sentence three times, still not understanding what was going on with it, and I had to mentally whip my brain to just get up and get it done. I finished the last ones this morning. My body aches, but it was satisfying. Right now, I'm closing all the windows and drawing half of the curtains, staying away from noise and harsh lights, and allowing only kind music playing in the background. (Ok, I don't know if 'kind' is the best word to describe Cough Syrup by Young the Giant. In fact, it's actually kind of dark and sad. But at least no one screams or abuse...

@ 9to5Life In real life, if a political campaign staffer meets with a staffer from the other camp, could he/she get fired for that? Yes, I just saw The Ides of March . So seriously, could someone get fired for that? Sure, they are meeting about the possibility of jumping ship, but doesn't that sound like a case of being oversensitive to you? Or is this just happening in a movie? In which case I've been meaning to remind myself to start learning all my life skills from outside of a movie. Speaking of politics, it recently hit me that probably... probably I'm fascinated with the US presidential election the same way I'm fascinated with American Idol. You'd like anything if you hear about it often enough. I'm so easy to figure out. So, Obama is going to win the reelection tomorrow, right? Although, they now say "It's a deadlocked race", and there were a few times in the past few weeks when I thought Romney had a good case with the econ...

I was shocked when I heard the "S*icide is for M*slims" line on True Blood a while ago. So I went on the internet for reviews and recaps. Many viewers were shocked and found it offensive too. Then I came across this post on Tumblr. I think the author is right, I was missing a point earlier. Quoting a paragraph: "The writers did not write their own sentiments in this line. They wrote their characters. We are meant to be disgusted, just as we were meant to be disgusted at their actions in Iraq. Every moment where two different groups fail to coexist in this show, we are meant to be disgusted." _____ When I was mad with Mad Men in this post , I was taking the show too seriously too. I forgot that sexism and sexual harassment were not challenged and punished 50 years ago the same way they are today, not that they are already two archaic issues by now. I actually continued watching more episodes but was restless the whole time. My blood boiled watching the sce...

I made it through the week ok, I guess. I only almost got caught lying once and only sent one text to the wrong person. You know when you want to text A about B, and your brain is thinking about B, so you send the text to B instead? No? Never happened to you? But I can tell you what I did right this week: Completing a short e-learning class (it's super short), and I can proudly say I even understood some of the content. (Now I know what it really means when people say they study via e-learning / distance learning. *wink*wink* Your secret is safe with me.) Exercising for a total of four hours this week. That probably makes almost 15 hours this year alone! I checked my weight on the scale every 30 reps I did. Replying e-mails and clearing out my mailbox. I'd do alright if I never had to e-mail anything ever again. I started the week with a list of 30 works to follow up. I've crossed off 14 as at today. (I've probably reached my peak, so I'm just going to igno...

I don't know which one is more wrong: buying the roadside egg, cheese and dripping mayonnaise hotdog, or buying it in a nightdress and cardigan. But I just did both. However, instead of focusing on what's wrong with me, I'd rather we focus on what's wrong with the society or the world. I was flipping through an old newspaper and found this section publishing letters from readers, and it annoyed me. These readers were appalled by the standard of English usage in Malaysia. The letters sounded like this: "The standard of English is appalling..." "The decline of English proficiency is a serious issue..." " We are heading into a dark age... " ..... The language privilege. I read all the letters twice. None of them suggested a solution. If you think the state of English usage is worrying, tell the readers what they can do to improve it, so it will be up to your standard: Urge the government to continue teaching Maths and Scien...

Tomorrow is going to be the first day of a few busy weeks for me. In some lines of work, busy is good. It could mean you are doing things right. Right? I think. Maybe. I don't know. And the first step is to achieve the next two weeks' goals. As expected, I'm insomniac tonight. I wish I had finally found a way to control my nerves already and get a good night's sleep. So I'm trying to psych myself up right now. I have to go into tomorrow (today) with a clear mind. What would I do in the next two weeks if I could not fail? What if I get all the good things that I want? What if everything goes smoothly? What if I get one thing done after another with ease? And without embarrassing incidents too? That would be perfect, thank You. I spent all afternoon today with the preparation, and I'm going to wake up early tomorrow and kick-start my day with Tracy Anderson series. I hope. It just sounds like a good plan. So I was hungry an hour ago. There were crackers...

While I do keep travel souvenirs (and old perfume bottles, which I feel so not cool admitting), I'm not a hoarder. Especially in these past few years, I throw away useless things all the time. It makes my life simpler (imagine when it's not). Last night I took out my document and work folders and tore up my old payslips, among others. There's no way I'll ever need them again. I feel sorry for the trees that were sacrificed to print this stuff. And what perfect timing. I went down to buy breakfast lunch this afternoon and found a letter in the mailbox. It's from the LHDN. This is supposed to be embarrassing and not the kind of thing people announce on the internet, but since I've admitted other embarrassing things on this blog... So apparently, I still owe the government some money. This is so ironic in so many ways. The amount is manageable -- I think, wish me luck -- but I need the documents that I've shredded with the highest satisfaction just ...

Finally! Someone smart made my day. I can look in the mirror again (just focus on the haircut) without bursting into tears . And it only cost RM10! Images: dailyglow.com, glamour.com, haironthebrain.com