¡ZOMG! stuff bobo rikes

Happy Halloween, Luchador Style

2011-11-08T12:33:00.001-05:00

Sorry for the musical interlude, kemosabes. I've been busy being out of town on Fridays, and therefore missing out on Menswear Fridays at work. As a token of my ruv, here's a brief pictorial summarizing the Halloween festivities that have overtaken my life.
I went to visit my mom, whose church has a pumpkin patch. Lacking small children, we still decided to go pick out a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch.

It does not faze my mom to take pictures of her adult daughter at the pumpkin patch, along with everybody else. Notice the small children in the background.

As promised, I dressed up as a luchador for halloween. The cape doesn't really match the orange and green theme of Jalapeno Cheetos, but that is because I was going to be a teenage mutant ninja turtle luchador before my co-workers coerced me into paying tribute to my main form of sustenance.

I'm threatening you with a cheeto. GRR.

Made the tail moments before it had to be attached. Stuffed it with the handle of a spatula. Was at the hair salon and the ladies asked if I was going to be an octopus for halloween. WHAT? Are octopi ORANGE? Do octopi have spots? When I told them I was going to be a cheeta they responded, "oh, a tiger! Fabulous!" Uh, no. Jalapeno Cheeta DNE Tiger. I guess that is why they are hair stylists.

Tail.

Check out the sexy cheeto dangling from my lips. James Dean ain't got nothing on me.

And then Lew Zealand hit my crotch with his fish.

Pretty great rendition of Lew Zealand

I had to look it up. Who's ever heard of a muppet who throws fish?
I don't know who this Jessie Ware person is, but she is maekingseks with my ears right now.

Strangest Feeling by JessieWare

Menswear Friday - Lucha Libre Edition

2011-10-14T12:05:00.000-05:00

I had planned on having a lovely and normal menswear friday, just casually wearing a striped button-down shirt from BBDakota. I got a haircute (not a typo), which made me look about 5 years younger. With brogues, I guess I could pass as some adolescent British boy (because of the tight pants). GOODMORNING! WHO'S NOT AWAKE?! (me, duh)

totes normal

...and then I got to work. This is how the first 3 minutes of work panned out for me -
me: good morning everybody.
everybody: good morning/oh hay/hey bobo
I go to set my purse down in the cubby hole facing away from everybody and notice two lucha libre (mexican wrestling) masks sitting in my cubby hole.
me: OMG SUPPLIES! (surprise, in normal English)
everybody looks around with expressions of confusion, jarred by my excitement.
me: mimi, you complete me.
puts mask on.

I don't know how many people out there have co-workers who have mexican wrestler masks sitting around at home; on top of that, I don't think any of them would bring masks to work and expect their co-worker to put the mask on and ape around the office for a few minutes on a Friday morning. That being said, I probably work with the coolest people on earth.

Feliz Viernes?

Grrr

Some guy walked past the office just as we were taking this picture. I'm sure he takes us more seriously now. We are an entity to be feared. RAWR.

I usually listen to pop-y dance-y electric-y music that Dandan hates, but here's something refreshing from Bombay Bicycle Club for your chillaxing weekend. The State Fair is in town and the traffic is going to suck balls all week with peeps from the boonies who want to watch some pig races. I'll keep listening to this song while I'm cursing them during rush hour.
bombay bicycle club - lights out words gone

Just kidding, who am I? What am I without crappy music taste?! Holla!
Azealia Banks- 212 by abeano

iMenswear Friday - Steve Jobs Edition

2011-10-07T14:13:00.000-05:00

The big news, above Wall Street protests and Middle East unrest, is that Steve Jobs passed away. Sadface. Mostly, sadface if you own Apple stock and your net worth happened to dip slightly.

And, to illustrate how big of a douche I really am, an conversation I had with an Applefriend:

me: i'm dressed like steve jobs

black mockneck turtleneck
jeans
new balances

Applefriend: oh
you should innovate some synergy
leverage your core competencies in a Web 2.0-aware world

me: maybe actually own apple products?
LOLZ!~
i have not contributed to Steve Jobs's personal wealth!

Applefriend: the proper tense for that statement is "I did not contribute to Steve Jobs' personal wealth"

me: rearry?
me: past perfect?
"did not" is simple past
I'm going to argue you on this one
I did not contribute to Steve Jobs's personal wealth suggests that the action was completed in the past. However, I continue to not contribute to Steve Jobs's personal wealth. which is why i advocate the use of "have not contributed"

I'm such a jerk.<br>
Speaking of the Middle East, I went there! Two years ago! Which is why my New Balances still to this day leave red sand inside my sock when I wear them.

Look at us having a conga line on top of some giant rock sculpture

Indiana Jones!

I tried to wash the New Balances to get all the red sand out but it didn't really work.

Gratuitous picture of how gross the sand line is on my ankles. Oh yeah, roughin' it!

TEED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have I raved about this song already? No? Yes? I DON'T CARE BECAUSE GARDEN IS AWES! It's like a duet! No, it IS a duet!

(Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs)

Menswear Friday - Southern Otosan Edition

2011-09-30T13:45:00.000-05:00

Blue striped shirt with tuxedo pintuck shirt from Uniqlo, pink bowtie from that lady who makes them, worn with khakis, to truly capture the spirit of a southern gentleman. If you see me walking around though, you'll think that I'm a Japanese dandy, because you can't really tell if I'm male or female today.

Today is proving to be the best Friday ever. The ITGuy from down the hall stopped me as soon as I entered the building this morning, and kidnapped me to go on a donut run. We stole donuts from the 4th floor! WIN!

AND THEN

The peeps at Jezebel saved the world and solved my ringtone problem. My ringtone has been "Like a G6" for about a year, which sorta sucks because it got old after the first 3 times I listened to it. NOT ANYMORE!

RYAN GOSLING NOW LIVES IN MY PHONE!

yes please!

Ryan Gosling Golden Girls (mp3) by jezebeldodai

anyways, to clear your eardrums, Oleku:

...hey girl, sometimes I get so sad ... when we can't watch Golden Girls together...

Menswear Friday - Satin Suspenders Edition

2011-09-23T11:39:00.000-05:00

Blue satin suspenders are actually the ribbon I stole off of gift wrapping from a Christmas present that wasn't even mine! Yes, I still have this scrap piece of ribbon after at least 3 years, because I'm a hoarder! (but mom, I'm totes using this stuff, see?) Look at me being green!

I tied each end of the ribbon to the two front belt loops, and then inserted another shorter white ribbon to cross in the back. The white ribbon is tied to both of my back belt loops so that my back looks like an X. Prob shoulda taken a picture of that, but it's hard to do selcas (korean: self-cam) from the back.

In other news: wearing grey skinny jeans to work is not really that awesome b/c I sit all day.

a little guilty pleasure....I've always loved David Guetta, since his good ol' Ibiza "Fuck me I'm Famous" party days.

Dandan hated that song before Taio Cruz even signed on to do it.

Menswear Friday: Colonial Edition

2011-09-16T10:17:00.000-05:00

Remember when JFK JR started his own magazine and the most remarkable aspect of said magazine was Cindy Crawford posing as George Washington? I do, because I'm old.

Compare Cindy Crawford:

Good ol' George W himself:

And then there's me:

All I can think is, this post needs more DRUMS.

and some more DRUMS

This is what George would look like if he did the robot.

A close-up of the buttons. Huge shoutout to neener for procuring said riding jacket for me. I love her forever.

Check out my cravat-knotting skillz!

Rihanna has a Bieber Haircut TOO!

2011-09-13T18:30:00.000-05:00

All I'm saying is peeps better ess tee eff yu (stfu) about my bieber haircut. Check out Emporio Armani paying a ton of money for Rihanna's bieber haircut to push their clothes!

more lingerie pictures via JustJared

ummmm have I mentioned there's a new Rapture album out?

The Rapture - How Deep Is Your Love? (A-Trak Remix) by Rec Room
You can get the original How Deep Is Your Love from DFA by entering your email. You're welcome.

How Facial Hair Gets You Shots

2011-09-13T13:52:00.001-05:00

It all started out with a housewarming party and a mustache:

The mustache morphed into a beard:

And then Manny Pacquiao bought us shots.

PACQUIAO PO LIPE!

some amazing choreography, via my friend in Taiwan

ZOMG Man U!

2011-09-12T09:04:00.001-05:00

Manchester United, though they not be everybody's favorite male soccer team, has some pretty studly peeps. NYTimes Magazine put them in some studly coats and now I can't focus on work. ZOMG.

I already know dandan hates this:

whatever, dandan!

Menswear Friday (Non-PC edition)

2011-09-10T11:20:00.000-05:00

full disclosure: I am not Thai and do not wish to offend any Thai people. I love Thai food, and my friend made me pose in front of the statue. I'm probz going to be struck by lightning and die a tragic death.

See? I'm enjoying Thai food!

Please don't smite me:

That would be a shirt I stole from duder's closet, a pretty big silver-themed arm party (as the manrepeller calls it), polkadot running jorts from mikkatmarket. Not pictured are my suede brogues, but you've already seen them before. And yes, this is what I wore to work on friday - except I was wearing pants.

OBSESSED with:
New Look - Nap On the Bow by New Look

Menswear Friday (Colorblocking Edition)

2011-08-26T10:23:00.011-05:00

Sometimes I get lazy (ok, all the time) and don't fully butch myself up for Menswear Friday. I am going on a hot date to the opera tonight, so I wanted to wear something that was work-friendly AND opera friendly. (Unrelated: HMS Pinafore is NOT the Pirates of Penzance, to my dismay. Should prove to be a good show anyways.) Cue the colorblocking outfit from Independence Day, rendered redonkulous with the slapping-on of the patriotic bolo tie that I should have been wearing on Independence Day. This is what I like to call, "Independence Day 2.0":

Are you ready for having your mind blown? This is a small white Irish dude, BLOWING YOUR BRAINS with his funky sexy voice. The wee lad calls himself Maverick Sabre, and gives Ceelo Green a run for his money.

UGH. but in a good way. My coworkers and I have been fascinated with the phenomenon known as "Kreayshawn." She is like a small rapping Jewish grandmother, and according to wikipedia, one of her parental units used to be in a punk band. Really? Can you imagine if you were a badass baddy in a punk band, and your offspring grew up to be a small rapping Jewish grandmother? I'd be mortified.

I can't get this crap out of my mind though. I just pretend like that guy in the backgound is saying "one big room, full of sandwiches," instead of "one big room, full of bad bitches." Dear Tina Fey: can we get Liz Lemon to do a cover of this kthxbaiplz?!
-bitch you ain't no barbie, i see you work at arby's-
(Liz Lemon: ARBY'S? YES PLEASE!)

In case anybody was interested, I haven't been posting as much because I've been busy (my loathed figs get a second life as ice cream!) becoming a local meme.

This is why I'm hot

2011-08-18T15:53:00.004-05:00

dude: WOOHOO! ridley scott is going to remake blade runner
me: is that billy bob or wesley snipes
dude: harrison ford
dude: those are slingblade and blade respectively

obvi, I fail at the Jeopardy category, "Films with the word 'blade' in the title."

but that is why I'm hot:

Menswear Friday (Bieber Edition)

2011-08-18T09:27:00.003-05:00

In about 1 week I will have full on Justin Bieber hair. My duder is so excited about that woooooooooo.

Hey girl, do you like me when I smile awkwardly?

At least I have cooler argyle socks than Justin Bieber.

In other news, Afropop is where it's at these days. I think Dibi Dobo is from Benin? He raps in something I don't understand and then every once in a while slaps in some French. I'm totes going to do his fly-flicking dance move next time I go out.

Neckerchief Friday

2011-08-14T15:49:00.001-05:00

I can't wait until the weather gets slightly cooler so I can wear the rest of my men's clothes. Until then, you're just going to have to deal with recycled neck scarves.

I was having Sunday Brunch per usual, talking about electro with my gay (typical), when he pointed me to Azari and III. Why am I just finding out about them right now? They are amazeballs!

I WANT TO MAEKSEKS WITH THIS SONG SO HARD I HAZ EARGASM!

Just heard Manic on the radio and it's equally as great!

Kate Moss is a Baller Kid Pusher

2011-08-08T10:22:00.004-05:00

image via Mcmerc
The best Kate Moss ever! I am pretty convinced that she is the most baller woman in the world at the moment. Freshly wed, still looks pretty good for being middle aged, and looks good while being a bully and pushing some kid off a pier. LOL!

Now I Really Look Like A Man (Happy Menswear Friday!)

2011-08-07T10:30:00.002-05:00

I was annoyed with my dudefriend and had a little bit too much of a good time at the hair salon. I went to get a haircut with sister-out-law and we just kept on chatting with the hair guy and he kept on talking and so now I have man-hair. I am quite keen on it, as it is still hot as balls outside, and the short haircut allows heat to dissipate more readily. I was planning on having my own personal Lilith Fair on my head, hating dudes and loving girl power and whatnot, until dudefriend saw it and liked it. Rame.

I either look like a dude or Wong Faye.

Not very exciting Menswear Friday:

The black cumberbund looking thing is not a cumberbund, but in fact an ebi belt that I bought off urban outfitters' urban renewal thing (where they recycle old clothes or old leather and make it into new things). The tie, you'll no doubt recognize from my Karl Lagerfeld costume many halloweens ago. It is a hand-me-down from a dude friend.

For a change, here is Dandan's favorite Wong Faye song, Hong Dou:

Bonus: Wong Faye being sad robot in Wong Kar Wai's 2046. I love Wong Kar Wai, I love 2046.

And if you love 2046, you should also watch In the Mood for Love.

SIGH. Life.

2011-08-06T14:22:00.003-05:00

Lately I've been feeling more helpless about life and life's circumstances. Peeps getting married, peeps getting engaged, peeps breaking up, peeps getting cancer...all of it is inexplicably and especially overwhelming. I was procrastinating and came across this picture on the Face Hunter's blog that accurately places how I feel about it all:

...exactly, cute Icelandic baby, that is exactly how I feel too.

Stuff My Dad Says

2011-08-04T17:19:00.003-05:00

Had a particularly entertaining conversation with my dad today after taking my java exam. My dad used to be a professor of computer and electrical engineering, so my taking java (and hopefully doing well in it) should be a point of pride.

ring...ring...ring...
Dad: WHAT'S FOR DINNER!?!
Me: ramen.
Dad: ram...what? You can't eat ramen for dinner!
Me: Yes I can. Dad! I just finished my java exam in under 1 hour!
Dad: don't get too cocky. Why don't you go buy some hippie store* and feed yourself?
Dad: I like you when you take care of your body.

peeps won't get it, but my parents entertain me SO MUCH. I can't stop laughing.

*my parents will forever refer to the Wholefoods as the hippie store; any comestibles purchased therein is referred to as, "some hippie store." They also assume anything you can buy at the hippie store is healthy for you.

Menswear Friday (Pink Bow Tie Edition)

2011-08-01T10:17:00.006-05:00

Pink bow tie via that lady-who-makes-bow-ties. I need to stop looking at her etsy page because everytime I go on there she's made some more new bow ties and all of them are EFFING ADORABLE! WANT! SHOULD NOT HAZ!

One of my dude friends who happens to be white commented that pink bow ties are only allowed for RWF (rich white folk of the male gender) and I beg to differ. It's hard enough to get me to wear pink already, so everybody should just be pleasantly elated that I'm wearing a pink bowtie to work. KTHXLUVYOUBAI! That being said, after the acquisition of the pink bow tie, I suddenly had the urge to purchase an entire seersucker suit and white shoes ala Capitol Hill's Seersucker Thursday. I'm from The South! I'm allowed to wear seersucker and pink bow ties!

Another repeater from Katy B, who makes frequent appearances on this here blog.

Happy Menswear Friday (RWF Edition)

2011-07-31T00:17:00.005-05:00

Apologies for the lack of posts lately, but I have a good (didn't say it was rational) explanation. Enough of my friends bugged me about Google+ that I finally gave in and created a profile. One of the first things I noticed was that there were already two albums of photographs associated with my Google+ profile. That is magical (and by magical I mean magically creepy), because I didn't recall uploading any pictures - I HAD SIMPLY CLICKED A BUTTON TO JOIN GOOGLE+! To my horror, the cover of one of the albums was one of my ex-boyfriends, whose appearance prompted me to delete that album posthaste. Little did I know, that deleting those CREEPTASTIC ALBUMS OF RANDOM PHOTOS THAT GOOGLE AGGREGATED FROM MY VARIOUS BLOGS would permanently delete those pictures from my blogs. We're talking half a decade of work, Google. I hope the idiots who made that CREEPTASTIC AGGREGATING ALBUM FEATURE IN Google+ get some stalkers who put nails in their driveway right behind their tires and get into fatal car accidents due to the disparate tire pressure.

So, instead of apologizing for the loss of pictures on this blog, I will simply say this: if you feel strongly about it, go poison a Google employee. That is your best bet. KTHXBAI!

It has been so hot lately I haven't wanted to wear pants. What is a girl to do though, when pink pants are such a staple of the Southern Boy work uniform? I went to a college where it seemed the majority of the students were RWFs (Rich White Folks), and ergo I am well versed in what we called "man salmon." You can call the color whatever you want - light red, "iced latte," salmon, "nantucket red," but guys, GUYS, your pants are PINK. Like a diffusion Victoria Secret line. I bestow myself extra points for wearing pink pants that have pleats, another staple of the Southern Boy wardrobe.

Green bow tie necklace is actually just my green bow tie clipped to a black hair band that I never wear because my hair is ridiculously slippery and won't hold anything. The white shirt with mini tuxedo ruffles is one of two shirts that my aunt got in Japan while I was in high school (see mom? I still wear old clothes! I don't consider it hoarding if I keep on wearing them!)

What you can't see from the crotch shot is that I'm wearing green fake-snake tri-strap ballet shoes from Zara. zexy!

Obsessed with Joe Goddard, aka the chubby one from Hot Chip. He is a musical genius and seriously there is nothing he does that I do not love and stalk actively. On repeat this morning is Gabriel:
Joe Goddard - 'Gabriel' (feat Valentina) by Greco-Roman

Later that night I got tricked into going to one of those "buy stuff parties" at my boss's house and purchased a ring that I did not need. The saleslady made me take off my bow tie so she could use me to model a necklace. SADFACE.

Happy Menswear Friday! (patriotic edition)

2011-07-10T19:03:00.005-05:00

Yellow silk shirt from J.crew (my heterolifepartner has the same shirt in peach), bolo from Texass (but you can get it online here), blue purse custom order from Paulina Carcach.

A friend was going to come visit from Texas, so I assigned him the mission of buying me a bolo tie. On his way to work, he stopped by a boot shop and grabbed me the most ridiculous one. I guess that assignment is not so difficult to complete in Texass. I tried looking in 2 general stores in the mountains and neither had them! Refinery 29 thinks bolo ties are the shit. So does Manrepeller. and Ken Salazar. If you haven't already googled Ken Salazar, you need to GOOGLE IMAGE HIM RIGHT NOW because he is such an adorable old man with his cowboy hat and bolo ties!

and yes, that is an Eagle and a United States flag on my bolo. Amurka fuck yeah. (adds a little patriotism to any shirt)

I don't really enjoy Kelis's voice, but homegirl needs to earn a living after divorcing Nas, so she's come out with this song with the help of Calvin Harris (whom I DO like).

It's alright. I could listen to this on repeat if forced, but only because Calvin Harris touched it.

Colorblocking, not Cockblocking

2011-07-04T10:06:00.007-05:00

I was sitting on the sidewalk waiting for my friends when I heard some pleas for help. A very small blonde child and who I assume was his grandmother were trapped behind bars. LOLZ! They went around the back of the gate and were pretending like they were in jail. SO CUTE!

I ate a bunch of bacon and then sat on the curb and ate ice cream. Curb-sitting is pretty much my favorite activity. A certain somebody would not approve of all the sodium and fat I ate this weekend, but GUESS WHAT? he's not here is he?! I eat what I want!
I also refrain from wearing pants whenever I want, obvi.

Since I drove-of-shame home really early in the morning from my heterolifepartner's house (happy birthday!!!), I had time to put together a brilliant colorblocking outfit for church.
Since my entire wardrobe is black and white and all shades of gray in between, what you are seeing here is all the color I own. Purple cardigan from The Limited (from the days of me being an office lady). Green skirt from United Colors of Bennetton. Coral tank top from some brand that has no label and 4 square dots. No idea. I just liked the flowers on the collar. Belt from Cheap Monday.
I really need to find somebody to take pictures of me FOR me. It's impossible to do it by myself.

So anyways, I was sitting in church feeling pretty great about colorblocking when I looked up at the stained-glass windows and realized that Jesus and his disciples were also colorblocking.

Sweet. Jesus is like, "you think you're so special eh? I was colorblocking MILLENNIA before it was cool to do so!" Jesus also has a Canadian accent.

Of note: hot guy in blue sweater was in church too, a couple of pews behind us. Sighting confirmed by my church buddy, so he was not a figment of my imagination. HI!!! Talk to us!!!

Happy Menswear Friday! (bow tie edition)

2011-07-02T09:39:00.006-05:00

After that failed attempt to crochet a bow tie and wear it with a shirt with no collar, I decided that perhaps I should go back to the basics. Here is me doing my best to channel a good ol' southern boy, fresh with a mint green leaf-print bowtie from this lady from Etsy and a lady's no-wrinkle lavender button down shirt from Uniqlo. Imagine me with a beige panama hat, a stick of wheat in my mouth and some tailored khaki shorts and I'll really be a good ol' southern boy.

Just a quick plug for Uniqlo: I have never purchased anything that I haven't loved from Uniqlo. Their fabrics feel great, and the quality of cotton is wonderful considering their prices are pretty inexpensive. I've gotten to the point where the only jeans I wear are the 2 pairs of skinny jeans I got from Uniqlo a couple of years ago. They don't change shape, stretch, or show signs of wear. It's amazing. I am wearing a U-neck short sleeved shirt from Uniqlo as we speak! ZOMG! Too bad they only have one outpost in SoHo. Dear Uniqlo, move south!

It is Fourth of July weekend and I have no plans and IT FEELS GREAT! So far I've done laundry, made coffee, and picked one fig!

Meanwhile, my musical taste has been having a schizophrenic moment with these two songs on repeat:
Usher and Nicki Minaj - Little Freak

F(x) - Pinocchio (Danger)

Neither are new songs, but they somehow wandered back into my consciousness and refused to leave. Dandan would hate both of them! WIN!

Happy Menswear Friday! (Shirtdress Edition)

2011-06-26T22:01:00.007-05:00

Happy Menswear Friday everybody!

One day I will run out of ties to wear, and all of you are going to think, "zomg why is she wearing the same ties over and over again?" In the meantime, please enjoy this little boy's elephant tie. All my facebookfriends thought I got this tie from Brooks Brothers; I've only set foot in Brooks Brothers once in my life, and that was with a dude, so no. This is a polyester little boy's tie that I got from Monoprix (that urban walmart-like grocery store that is ubiquitous in France) almost a decade ago while studying in France (I AM ABOUT AS OLD AS HARRISON FORD. DEAL WITH IT). The shirt dress is a recent purchase from Urban Outfitters, since it's effing hot and I don't want to wear pants anymore. Raw leather belt is Cheap Monday. It's actually way too big to be worn as a waist belt but you can't tell, so whatevs! Anyways, SHIRTDRESSES! are what to wear when it's too hot to wear pants to work.

I went straight from work to a happy hour function at the art museum, and the elephant tie was a hit! An Indian lady thought that maybe it came from India and got really excited until I told her it was from the little boy's section for 5 euros a decade ago. . . and then she got REALLY excited. The older lady giving out name tags insisted on drawing flowers on mine, and then cupped her hands around my cheeks after she stuck the name tag on my chest FOR ME. That was odd.

This weekend was redonk; these are the things that may or may not have happened:

-received a bolo tie as a gift from a traveling Texan.

-drank alone at the art museum

-saw a movie with Harrison Ford in it.

-there is a vibrator hanging out on the back seat of my car.

-purchased an LSAT book.

-purchased a burrito.

-went to a bar that smelled heavily of durian

(and am never going back because they charged me cover!)

-lost a bet and had to pay for dinner

On repeat: Jamie Woon - Shoulda

...as in, I shoulda been listening to this months ago when I was listening to Night Air on repeat as well, but it's good I wasn't because I haven't played Shoulda on repeat to death yet. YAY.

Happy Menswear Friday! (girly edition)

2011-06-18T09:05:00.004-05:00

Apologies for the lack of posts lately! The powers-that-be blocked blogger at work so I can't do it from work anymore! In the meantime, I have really missed gushing about EVERYTHING, but I'll try not to overwhelm you.

Yesterday was Menswear Friday(!) and I attempted to wear a crochet-ed bow tie that I made last week. At first I tried wearing it with a collared shirt but it is just.too.hot. to wear long sleeves, so I immediately changed to an oversized shirt I got for fi-dolla($5) at Forever21. The Manrepeller wears her clip on bow ties on a bolo, but as I do not own a bolo, the only other option to attaching this bow tie to me was via necklace. Nobody gave me a side look when I walked into work so I think this is a WIN!

...and then I bought two more bow ties from the lady who sold me the bow tie clips. Her bow ties are hyper cute and if you message her with your purchase, you can request them to be made however big you need. I told her to make mine for "teenage boy." I hope this works out, cause I want to buy ALL OF THEM.

On repeat: (I think Dandan would not like this indeed!)

I went to a show as my friend Jenn's +1 (just like the good ol' days!) and ended up taking these peeps home. Sorry about the mess! Welcome to my mancave!

And in other news, I was walking to my car last night when I accidentally fell in a pothole filled with standing water. I can't tell you the last time it rained (probably weeks ago); I think my foot is going to rot and fall off. MAJOR SADFACE!

Die is pronounced "dee"

2011-06-07T21:21:00.003-05:00

Imagine
this:

PLUS

this:

marimekko + converse = I die

...but seriously, one of the annoying peeps from Die Antwoord for real died. Now I feel bad for ever wishing them death because of the murder they were committing on my ears. RIP, DJ Leon Botha, and may our ears rest in peace as well.

Alexandra Stan is probably committing murder on my ears but I don't care. I'm listening to Mr. Saxobeat on repeat while I study for discrete math!

Menswear Friday (Bridal Luncheon Edition)

2011-06-03T15:04:00.008-05:00

My coworker Mimi is getting married to Vossvoss, and today was her bridal luncheon. I'm not sure what the proper attire for a bridal luncheon was, but I figure it should be less manly than full-on Menswear Friday attire.

I really wanted to wear a silk neck scarf with a button down shirt in the style of a late 19th century sea captain on his day off, but decided not to scare the nice moms and aunts who were going to be at said bridal luncheon.

SO, I opted for just the neck knot.

Blue silk scarf from Woo in Nanluogu district in Beijing. Woo is a scarf company based in Shanghai that also has an outpost in Beijing, near the drum and bell tower. They make different sized silk scarves and also cashmere and other fiber scarves. Their patterns are sometimes hand painted and most of the time are inspired by Chinese culture and have incredible color combinations (unless you opt for a two-toned one like I did). The silk is high quality, so as a rule, they are pricey but not outrageously expensive like Hermes scarves. Definitely regret giving my mom the other one that I bought. The blue hoodie is actually a man's hoodie that I bought because I had been looking for a hoodie that zips up all the way, to facilitate me looking ridiculous (sorta like E.T.). It's not part of the outfit but we know that I work in Antarctica and warm clothes are needed to prevent frostbite. Hopefully the new office will have proper heating and lighting.

Even so, I don't think I'd ever be able to wear this to work:

image via NYMag, from the final runway show for the Royal College of Arts.

Also on Fridays, I want to listen to Craig David.

I've probably already posted this but you know what? I WANT TO POST THIS EVERY FRIDAY IT IS SO GOOD ZOMG. Early 2000's I want you!

Made that Deadline!

2011-05-31T23:06:00.004-05:00

I can't believe I made that midnight deadline for submitting my math homework. "Why am I taking math?", you ask. To put it simply: I didn't have to take math in college because I already took the math, but now I have to take it again because I didn't have any math credit in college (because I already fucking took it!). Doesn't make sense to me either. I got the text book on Saturday and the homework was due today, but Sunday and Monday were part of Memorial Day weekend so here we are, Tuesday night, me busting my ass writing T s and F s all over the piece of paper like it's my job, proving if one thing is the equivalent to the other. Nobody really cares.

What we really care about is Jakwob!!!! His (he? she?) new track with Smiler (he? she?) is hawt.
Right Beside You ft. Smiler (Original Mix) by jakwob
It sounds like Die Antwoord except Jakwob does not suck a million turtle toes, so I guess he doesn't sound like Die Antwoord. LOLZ!

Can somebody explain to me why 3000 little beetle looking bugs flew on my math homework while I was trying to get that done? I understand they like to fly at lights but none of the windows are open.

Two little amusing anecdotes from heute that make me love life:

An exchange between me and my minion who sits in the UK (yes! I get to order a British minion around! I can hardly believe it either!)-

Minion: I just finished this, will email it to you.
Me: Thanks! You're the best!
Minion: I know LOL. Speak soon. (that's how British people say TTYL, apparently.)

A phone exchange between me and the Korean restaurant where we always go:
Korean (we refer to the restaurant as just "korean" now): yobusaeyo?
Me: hi, can I put in an order for take out?
Korean: yes of course.
Me: can I have a pork bulgogi box and regular bibimbap?
Korean: ok that will be about 15 minutes.
Me: do you need a phone number or something?
Korean: no, I think I know who you are.
~when I get there 15 minutes after my ETA~
Me: sorry, I'm a little late today
Korean: OMG! was the traffic really bad?! (look of concern)
Me: no? I was just finishing up something at work?

Moral of the story: the Korean restaurant CARES. This is why I had it for lunch 4/5 days the week before last. No joke.

Adventures in Blasting Dubstep at 7am

2011-05-31T06:07:00.003-05:00

I have homework and work work due today, but instead of doing either, I am blasting dubstep at my neighbors at 7am. Why? Because it's hawt.

I'm sure everybody reading has heard of Arcade Fire by now; even the lawyer has heard of them and he's old (relatively speaking). They're Canadians signed by a NC label, so HOLLA! Some (probably hawt) Norwegian lady named Mr. Little Jeans turned their song "The Suburbs" around and made it into a grown and sexy womang. I can't stop listening to this and grinding the air. My ear may or may not have jizzed on itself (not sure how, but THAT HAPPENED.) Maybe if I do this enough I, too, will become she-of-the-little-jeans. Unlikely, as I enjoy food a lot.

For realz, I have to go do some discrete math now. Just a quick little blurb to make you excited about TUESDAY! BECAUSE WE DIDN'T WORK YESTERDAY! Thank you, military peeps, for giving us a free day off!

KTHXBAI ROTS OF RUV,

Matt Bomer is a favorite of the ajhummas

2011-05-28T00:53:00.007-05:00

American ones. Like me.

Image via JustJared
DAaaym. Matt Bomer is one Sharp Dressed Man.

...which makes me think about Guitar Hero and how I used to beat all the dudes at it, but now it is a dying franchise. SADTIMES!

To cheer you up, here's a song from 2 Bears that will make you rofl in your pants!
Bear Hug by The 2 Bears
"I don't wanna feel your tits...just wanna give you a bear hug..." - I could dance to this song all day but it would cause me to laugh uncontrollably while doing so and therefore suggest I was losing my mind. Not a good look.

Neither are rodeo queens. What in the world is a rodeo queen? What's a disco queen, for that matter? Americans are weird. Anyhoos, how do you have a rodeo without livestock? Can one still be considered a rodeo queen if one is just riding around on a stick with a plush horse head attached to one end? They should have made these girls gallop around on brooms, that's what they should have done. Then they could rename the competition "Quidditch Queens" and then sell a bunch of tickets to Harry Potter fans and actually stack some cheddar (= make some paper = earn some money). All while taking advantage of some brilliant alliteration behbeh!

Happy Menswear Friday (casual edition)

2011-05-27T10:43:00.003-05:00

Happy menswear Friday everybody! My parents are in town stuffing me with dericious sausages airlifted in from Taiwan, which is the reason why my mom looked at me leaving this house this morning and said, "why do you always want to be a dude?"

For kicks, mom, for kicks.
Today's ensemble is more casual. Same mauve lady's oxford shirt that I wear all the time. Silver and black checked tie inherited from my friend/brother Sean for the purposes of looking like Karl Lagerfeld one halloween a long time ago. Grey zip up jacket acquired from Zara in Ljubljana in 2005 (see mom? I STILL wear old clothes! This is why my clothes room is drowning in clothes!)

Anyhoos, I'm fast running out of ties I would wear in public. Must hit up a goodwill sometime soon.

Non Sequitur

2011-05-23T23:51:00.004-05:00

According to Merriam Webster, Non Sequitur = a statement that does not does not follow logically from or is not clearly related to anything said. I'm going to simplify that as "does not compute." (said in robotic voice)

...Kinda like these officially approved pictures of North Koreans from that Shanghaiist piece that Dandan posted.

Image via Shanghaiist

Is that a chef? in a hospital room? next to a TV? with an antenna? covered in weird lace? Is that North Korean symbolism for, "sombody died in this room, which is why the TV is covered in lace as a tribute to he who died of hunger (insert meaning of chef here)." All I can really conclude from this set of pictures is that the photographer is really great and North Korean fashion is perpetually stuck in the 1980's. Maybe if I were North Korean I'd understand them or even be proud of them.

In other news, a phone call with my HeteroLifePartner about taxes turned into the following exchange -

me: so we went to look at the new office space today and there are 3000 speed bumps between the gate and the office building. One every 3 parking spaces. All the way across into the parking space.
HeteroLifePartner: That's not awesome albert. Wait, is Albert out of the country?
me: yes, he's in Italy. Eating gelato. His pictures make me crave gelato all day at work. It also means I can't drunk dial him.
HLP: bleh. I'm not drinking anymore.

later -
me: So there was the one guy at speed dating who was either super disinterested or totally didn't have the brains to continue my conversation. But that's ok because I got a really good idea for the hat that I'm going to make to wear to my co-worker's wedding. <-----no joke. that hat is going to be the most redonk thing I've made to date. Hopefully will have pictures to document the process.

Another short detail re: speed dating. The organizers gave us little slips of paper with a handful of questions about oneself that one had to answer and give to one's speed dating partner as a conversation starter. This is how I answered, "Two things that your friends say about you."
1. I am too tall for an Asian.
2. I'm Hilar. LOLZ
You bet I was lol-ing as I wrote that.

In financial news:
I am now $500 poorer due to a trip to the car dealership to get new brakes and other stuff done to my car. It was a wholly pleasant experience though, as I had 2 nice chats with the shuttle driver to and from the dealership. It turns out, he is the dad of one of The Annuals, and really likes the music his child produces. Everybody together now, "AWWWWWwwwwwww." In case you didn't know who The Annuals are (and why wouldn't you? They're huge! I've heard them being interviewed on British radio before!):

And then go here to buy their latest. kthxbai ruv you rong time!

bonus picture: the very image of the juxtaposition of beauty and strength.
(LOLZ!)

Tom Brady Brings The LOLz

2011-05-22T20:02:00.006-05:00

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee~

Image via DListed (if you can't tell, I read DListed everyday)

That is basically what I did this weekend instead of going in to work. Sorry, everybody who needed stuff done! The weather was too nice! I also ate froyo and napped a lot. And then I considered going to law school. WHAT? I know I'm asian and all, but law school has never ever been on my radar. I barely speak English as it is, much less read or write. Hence the napping - I was sleeping on the idea of law school.

OK enough seriousness. You kids know how much I love puns and plays-on-words, right? These here are HANDELIERS! Chandelier - C = HANDelier! They are HANDSDOWN a winning concept! What a bag of LOLZ!

by Voila
via DesignMilk

And while we're perusing DesignMilk, let's talk about these DIY shoes from United Nude. I don't get that they are in any way related to the moon, but DIY? SHOES? it sort of sounds like a law suit waiting to happen but I sorta want to construct a pair. From the looks of it, these shoes can only support a very small FAIRY with wings. Prove me wrong, United Nude, prove me wrong! Those laces look like they could sever a toe. I would prob still wear them though! Holla!

all images via DesignMilk

On repeat: Tunisian rap from Balti. Don't know anything about him except that he is Tunisian and raps. LOLZ!
Balti - du ferme

Only 1.28 dollars!

2011-05-17T15:46:00.008-05:00

Happy Menswear Friday everybody! Apologies for the lack of post this week, but I've been so busy at work (what?!)!

white polka dot Geoffrey Beene silk tie, women's light grey striped button down shirt from Uniqlo. Not pictured: grey dress pants and taupe oxford shoes.

Not much to update about my life: I haven't cooked in so long there was a spider attempting to spin a web over the kitchen trash can when I went to throw something in it the other day. I did get to work with an actual attorney for 2 days and he bought me lunch both days, which was pretty much the most awesome time at work I've ever had. I told my parents about the good times at work with the lawyer and my dad, in the background, asks, "was he hot?" That is not something a normal dad asks, dad; that is MY first question when other people talk about dudes. Holla!

Speaking of dudes, I went to hug a dude goodbye last night and he smacked me in the forehead by accident! Awkward turtle!

To make up for the lack of post, I have a bevy of songs for youguys to listen to on repeat!
Various Cruelties sounds like what peeps would have listened to in Back to the Future. I don't usually like motowny songs like this but this is good. I like it. Listen to it. You can also buy it for 79 Ps (ONLY 1.28 DOLLARS! WHAT A STEAL!) from the "Band Camp" link. Or just soundcloud it: NEON TRUTH

SBTRKT (pronounced like the mathematical function) just dropped a new one and it is HAWT. I want to maekseks to Wild Fire. It might be better with a different female vocalist but you can just block it out...that's what I do. Gimme DUB!

New album also out by Metronomy. Fave song of the moment is "The Bay", #7 on the album.

Lastly, can I give a shoutout to Janet Jackson for looking like a winner last night? She is wearing Haider Ackermann and the colorblocking is amazing! I especially like the electric blue thin belt that lightened up the big blocks of dark green and eggplant.

photo via JustJared

Weekend Fashion Roundup

2011-05-16T06:46:00.006-05:00

What happened this weekend? GONADS ON DRESSES happened in Cannes this weekend!!!

Cheryl Cole wore this Stepnane Rolland dress to some film premiere, which is hilar because he has so many other dresses in his couture line that are totes awesome! Oh-KAY, you say, but who is Cheryl Cole? I don't know either. A WAG?

Also, nightmares happened this weekend.

There is nothing more terrifying than Mischa Barton, much less Mischa Barton dressed like an evil clown from Katie Price's worst nightmare.

I need to make a little fascinator to wear to mimi's wedding, and I am taking inspiration right now. Apparently I just need to bedazzle some food and stick it on my head. Anna Dello Russo does it right:

Chiquita that piña, Anna!

I spent the majority of the weekend participating in graduation festivities for samsam, and, grace à the fashion advice of my heterolifepartner, ended up with some winning looks. I accessorized like I've never done before. Per Elle Woods, I can claim to be set apart from animals now?

Check it:
image via samsam
badgley mischka dress from new years a few years ago, pink baroque pearl necklace - Tara Pearls, and fuschia clutch from NY&co, a gift from Sarah. What you can't see are the 4.5 inch United Nude block pumps that are killin' my feet.

(Fabolous calls it shoe-icide)

rebecca taylor (fall 2008) dress from bro's wedding, peach agate necklace - david aubrey, hand me down chanel 2.55 holla!

As a bonus, check out the most awesome wedding picture ever, here. I don't want to spoil how awesome it is by describing it. Just click. IT IS AMAZING.

Are We In the 1990's?

2011-05-10T21:34:00.013-05:00

When was the last time you saw a soul patch? The answer should be "never in real life, only on the TV." Unfortunately for me, my answer to that question is "last weekend." What are we, back in the 90's? Are you a Backstreet Boy?

Image via ThrowThatAway, a blog after my own heart.

I wish I could claim that I jest when I say, "I puked 8000 times in my mouth and some of it spilled on my shirt when I saw that picture of Criss Angel," but I'm totally serious. No girls like soul patches. NONE. NOT A ONE. I asked my oppa (Korean older brother) and even he knew that growing a soul patch meant throwing yourself in woman-repelling hell.

Probability of getting laid at any given moment: 50%; probability of getting laid with a soul patch: 0%.

Taking suggestions on how I can break this news to my friend of whom I am quite fond.

Let's pull a Kelly Rowland/Lil' Wayne and rain on our heads (they call it brainstorming):
-threaten to not shave either, and wear short skirts and sleeveless shirts all the time.
-schedule a drive-by shaving: have a friend show up with a schick quattro randomly.
-draw soul patch on my own chin to show how silly it looks.
-bribery, in the form of Cheddar Jalapeno Cheetos or sexual favors.

(image via FritoLay. Please don't cease-and-desist me because I love your jalapeno cheetos! I eat at least a party-sized bag every week at work! I've converted so may of my friends to eating them! Also, would not mind if youguys shipped me a case of jalapeno cheetos. I'll knock those out in a week. KTHXBAI RUV YOU!)

Any ideas, peanut gallery?

Unrelated: Has anybody ever noticed how people from old movies like to stick their faces on each other to promote intimacy?

The above are pictures of Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda from The Lady Eve, one of my most favoritest movies of all time. I wouldn't mind if society decided to return to face touching to encourage intimacy. It seems so sweet.

Found, in the fashion cybersphere: a ballerina modeling Australian brand Lover. Watch the video.
It makes me want to buy the clothes under the impression that their clothes will give me the grace which I lack.

A Dance For One. from LOVER®

You know how I love French peeps, and French peeps who make funky music. WELL, Justice is back with a vengeance, and I bet even Dandan would want to listen to this on repeat: (Justice - Civilization)
Justice - "Civilization" Full Track by 1077 The End

Hahn-Bin, not Hyun Bin

2011-05-08T19:32:00.009-05:00

I am wearing zebra-flavored underpants as I write this. I would never willingly pay money for zebra-flavoried underpants (these were included in a multipack of other normal-flavored underpants), but you know who would? Yoo Hahn-Bin. That's who. His website calls himself the "renaissance of classical music" which is a group of words that make me LOL huge! Renaissance and Classical are both eras in music! WHAT! That's like saying blue is the purple of pink! He is one scary looking kid, but he is brilliant.

Upon first glance, one wonders what Hahn-Bin must have done to get to study with Itzhak Perlman; you definitely stop wondering as soon as he starts playing. Sure, he's odd looking, but HOLYSHIT homeboy is perfect. He's like the more emotional version of Joshua Bell. SOMEBODY GIVE THIS KID A RECORDING CONTRACT! I'm surprised he hasn't already gotten one, since he's been active on an international level since he was 12 years old. At least give him a Rick Owens endorsement? They look like they could be friends.

I played this Bach piece in high school and it did not sound like that.

What you should gather from him is the delicate emotion that is rare in older violinists. Older violinists have perfect technique, perfect tone, and ample emotion, but what Hahn-Bin has is vulnerability. When he performs, he puts his entire being on display, revealing everything on his mind at that moment in time. Even if he appears confident in interviews, I feel like his violin gives his true feelings away. It is then, very appropriate that he closes his heavily-shadowed eyes during performances, as the window to his soul is in fact, his violin.

I like it when he wears mardi-gras masks to play in. FIERCE. Hahn-Bin-sshi hwaiting!

For my weekend round-up, these are the things I did or did not do:
- a dude (oh, there were fireworks alright, LITERALLY. exploding in the sky. sending smoke wafting in the air. but not the kind you're thinking of though. LOLZ!)
- watched the delicious piece of meat known as Thor in 3D with the outlaws.

- worked. bleh legal research. "chlonic hepatitis," anyone?
- spent mother's day with my mom
- attempted to wingwoman for 11 dudes, 2 nights in a row
- watched an entire baseball game in the rain
- went to church. The pastor said he wanted the church to become a "high-touch" church (as opposed to "high-tech")in order to be less impersonal, and I wanted to tell him that I wouldn't mind touching the hot dude with curly hair sitting in the pew in front of me. LOLZ! j/k I would never do that in church!?!!

On Repeat:
One time I was listening to BBC Radio1 and they interviewed Example (eggs-ahm-pol). The only thing I remember from that interview is them referring to Example's wife/girl friend as Mrs. Example, which made me chuckle. He has a new song and you know that shit's on repeat on my white mp3 player of evil.

So there you go...from orchestral music to electro in one post. Typical.

UPDATE: CHRIS HEMSWORTH POSING LIKE AN ASIAN!!!

Image via JustJared

Happy Menswear Friday!

2011-05-06T09:30:00.006-05:00

On Fridays, I give myself a wardrobe challenge to dress like a man (JUST KIDDING! I FREQUENTLY DRESS LIKE A MAN in order to MANREPEL!), which usually involves me wearing a collared shirt and one of my many many ties. I really have more ties than a girl should own, and to justify their expense (both in time and money), I make up challenges for myself so I get proper use out of my ties. This is today's look:

black polka dot Geoffrey Beane silk tie on a black and white striped lady's shirt. Double windsor knot with a poorly executed dimple. That is a fat knot though. @Jehiel would be proud.

This was from a couple of weeks ago:

Mauve lady's oxford shirt with pink patterned tie that I bought at some store on Cat street in Tokyo, grey waistcoat purchased from an old HongKonger in one of the small shops in Ximending, Taipei, and a cheap 3/4 sleeve blazer procured from Nordstrom's junior's department. The hairpin was purchased at the same time as the tie in Tokyo, which I have repurposed here as a tie clip. WIN!

Unrelated:
I had a brunch reunion with my college era brunchers, and took this picture of Jimmy with promises that when my heterolifepartner sees his bike, she will want to sleep with it/him. I don't know if that's true, but the bike is hot and I totally fondled it's handles. White handles? WHAT?! hot.

oh, and Photek is on repeat:

I want to maekseks to/at/with that dub. It is so hot.

You'll Look Like a Door!

2011-05-05T08:34:00.005-05:00

I told my mom I went to the gym last night and she said, "good, because as tall as you are, you will look like a door if you got fat." Thanks for the vote of confidence mom!

And then I told her I was roasting potatoes in the oven, and she was like, "DON'T EAT STARCH OMG YOU ARE GOING TO BE A DOOR!" These are no ordinary potatoes, mom, these are FINGERLINGS! While some of my friends believe I eat fingerlings only for the sake of saying the word, "fingerling!" over and over again, they are quite special little potatoes. They are thus named because they are thin and long like fingers (dur!). They're chewier and have a different flavor than regular starchy potatoes. If you're having a fancy dinner party and everybody is tired of regular ol' mashed potatoes, halve some fingerlings and pop them in the oven for a good time!

Sofia Vergara is pretty hot. And by hot I mean ¡HILARIOUS! on Modern Family!!! I watched the mother's day episode last night while gymming and rofled in my pants. The way she saidpersnickety was so adorable! Why don't you esteal something?! omg I die. The public (me) demands more Sofia Vergara and more espanish!

No new song today; just this good ol' oldie from Glen Miller to stir those feelings of ruv in your cold icy hearts. I listen to this when I'm trying to force myself to like a dude, and you can bet your pants that I'll be dancing to this shiz if I ever get married. Holla!

The State of Dance

2011-05-04T10:12:00.006-05:00

Brace yourselves (esp. Dandan), I'm about to talk about songs that all sound the same!

I was listening to BBC Radio1 today because that is what I do when I'm at work, and this song with Pitbull, Ne-yo, AND Afrojack came on. WHAT? That is totally like a Taiwanese clubber's wetdream. Taiwanese people love Pitbull and Ne-yo; Afrojack is like the icing on the cake. Afrojack is also a small child. Is he really a 87'er? I feel old. Anyways, the song is called Give Me Everything (Tonight)

...which is not a title you need to remember, since it sounds exactly like Where Dem Girls At, by David Guetta, Nicki Minaj, and FloRida (it's going to be awesome when FloRida gets old...he won't need to change his hiphop name! It's already where old people go when they retire! Way to think ahead!):

...but WAIT! It gets more confusing! There's an Afrojack remix of Where dem girls at!

To be honest, they all sound the same to me, and they all sound like LMFAO.

except I like listening to the LMFAO song because "everyday I'm shufflin'"

Also, peeps on the internet make me LOL in my pants. My dog coughed and fell over? What?

For cleaning the ear drums (ear palettes?), I recommend Totally Extinct Enormous Dinosaurs (or Orlando Higgenbottom tee heee heeeee). He just dropped a new song called Trouble that I am def listening to on repeat A CE MOMENT!
Trouble [Soundcloud edit] NEW SINGLE! by T-E-E-D

Things I did or did not do or discuss this past weekend:
-if Beyonce is a Tragic Mulatta, then Justin Timberlake is a Tragic Mulatto?
-spent no less than $80 on gas
-spoke Danish, Dutch, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, English
-ate a small crab while walking
-swam
-went to the Triangle Beach Music Festival
-pulled a Bones Dancing Phalanges moment on a baby:

-watched NBA playoffs
-ran into Dr. Tran

Something I did do: got a haircute. Also bought the shampoo that the hair dude uses. A giant tub for $14, from 2600Y?!!?! What a steal! My hair's going to be awesomesauce from here on out.

Yelle and French Horn Rebellion

2011-04-28T09:39:00.010-05:00

Two electropop acts, one IS FRENCH, on has "FRENCH" in their name!!! Both are arm-waving, booty-swaying good times!

A number of years ago, my little brother returned from a summer in Singapore, went back to school, and discovered a bunch of new(!) and awesome(!) things that one is supposed to discover in college. Among them was a new(!) dance called Tecktonik. He called me to tell me about this new arm-flailing dance, but little did he know, his old sister (老姊) was already working hard at learning those sweet sweet moves, courtesy of this little video right here:

I don't quite remember how I heard about Yelle, but it was most likely from listening to Lemouv, since I don't really talk about music with my Frenchiefriends. Yelle re-entered my life last year when my heterolifepartner and I went to a Tektonik party at the Frenchiefriends' apartment that began with me wearing some totally sweet Rudolf Dassler schuhfabrik for Puma high top Wellengangs

and ended with the entire party groaning audibly every 15 seconds because another old dude and his peen popped up in the Chatroulette shuffle. (c'est la vie...of Chatroulette. no link b/c chatroulette died.).

Anyways, I digress. My heterolifepartner informed me that Yelle was going to be at el cradle, so I went. My gay backed out so I danced by myself at a show filled with people under the age of 20. Awktur. I didn't even know the South had so many gay teenagers; and, according to my musical taste, I might be a gay teenager.

UGH I just lost everything I wrote. LAME! Youguys will have to deal with an abbreviated version of everything. Pai sei (how you say sorry in taiwanese).

French Horn Rebellion - French horn playing version of Girltalk who look like Darwin Deez. (I just dropped a bunch of hipster music references. Click on them. Look them up. but only with PBR in hand.) Very good dance party if ever I heard one. The only awkward moment was when Robert started to rap a remix of MC Hammer and I was thinking, "dude, everybody here is like 13 years old. They have no idea who MC Hammer is."

Yelle was an even better dance party than French Horn Rebellion, if that's even possible. Best show ever. Go see them. Sing along in jibberish if you have to.

Julie emerging from the depths of the jungle in camoflage jungle covering:

pre-costume change:

She looks like a model.

Can you think of anything hotter than a red leopard print unitard with shoulder pads and a hood? I can't.

Que Veux-tu? I think. Everybody pulled out their inner asian and held up heart signs.

I totally busted out the tecktonic during A Cause des garcons at the end. I'm no gay teenager, but I can hold my own!

Open Letter to Karl Lagerfeld and Magnum

2011-04-25T05:01:00.007-05:00

Dear Uncle Karl,

I hear you made some videos with Rachel Bilson and your small-child-toy Baptiste Giabiconi for Magnum ice cream. I watched it. It was painful. What say you we leave the film directing to Joe Wright or only films that are about you. I quite liked both of those.

KTHXBAI!

That Keira Knightley for Coco Mademoiselle ad was like fashion porn; partially because of semi-naked Keira, partially because of those super hot Ruby helmets that they wear.

I would ride my bicycle that has been sitting unused for years, if I had a $1000 helmet, you bet I would.
I first saw them on Coolhunter, and then randomly saw it in the window of Duncan Quinn one day. At $650, the Duncan Quinn helmets are a steal! They are way cooler than Orlando Bloom's (Keira Knightley co-star! everything comes full circle!) helmet.

image via JustJared

You can customize your own helmet here, if you have a grand to drop. The helmets are pretty sexy. Girls will want to do you, so it's worth the money.

Enough about the helmets, let's get back to how Karl Lagerfeld + Baptiste + Rachel Bilson + Magnum totally sucks ass. I love Magnum; we used to eat them all the time at the beach in France, but WHY are they just now entering the American market? gimme. Rachel Bilson was, like, soo early 2000's; so, as one commenter put it, "stop trying to make Rachel Bilson happen." She's a bad actress and she's not going to sell your ice cream bars. I will. Who are you going to believe? A has-been starlet who doesn't eat, or me, a consummate night-eater*? I'd take the fatty's word over the starlet anyday.

If you care to burn your eyes, here's one of the painful painful videos that Uncle Karl made, which feels like the Forever 21 remake of that Coco Mademoiselle film. I didn't embed it because it was so awful. Click at your own risk. Karl Lagerfeld using Baptiste Giabiconi really surprises me. He's so eurotrash/chav/uncultured. This music video he made is straight out of eastern european Eurovision hell.

Is he singing in English? I can't even tell. I remember reading an article about Karl Lagerfeld one time where he said he liked using certain European aristocrat's children for his muses because they speak so many languages, are well traveled, and generally very cultured. Baptiste Giabiconi is the antithesis of that. What gives?!

I think I need a magnum bar now. gimme.

*one who eats full meals after 10pm

UPDATE 4-28-2011: UNCLE KARL MADE HIS SMALL-CHILD TOY OUT OF CHOCOLATE AND CHOCOLATE BAPTISTE LIVES IN A ROOM MADE OF CHOCOLATE!!! Stop it, uncle Karl, stop it. Baptiste is not worthy of the attention you give him (by which means you force the rest of us to pay attention to him too). Baptiste is a Jersey Shore wannabe, which is even worse than being a cast member of Jersey Shore.

Peeps In Angola Speak Portuguese?!

2011-04-20T09:41:00.005-05:00

Forgive me for living under a rock, but I just discovered that they speak Portuguese in Angola. WUT?! It all started when I was clicking around on the BBC Radio1Xtra microsite and "Destination Africa" caught my eye. Does America have a mainstream radio station who plays modern African music? The answer is proably no. I really dislike radio stations that say they're "world music" and it's really just white hippies plucking around on "tribal" instruments and pretending like they sound like Africa. Whatever yo, real Africans listen to Dancehall and Kwaito.

I was listening to this here song when I became puzzled by why I could understand some of it and how some was like Spanish and some was like French.

Somebody is doing a bad job pouring that champagne into the flute. Does not make me want to drink it. However, I'm going to listen to it on repeat. kthxbai rotsofruv!
The wikipedia pictures of Angola look really pretty. I want to go to there*.

In other news, I'm up to Episode 19 of Secret Garden. They're sorta dragging on about plot points that I don't care about and not really exploiting the fact that Hyun Bin is super cute acting like a dumb 21 year old. Holla! Mostly, the coats were not so good in this episode. I did covet Seul's full skirt coat when she takes a public walk with Oska, but you can't really see it all that well in this picture. The flaring skirt of the coat makes her legs look even skinnier.

screencap via DramaBeans

I think the combination of passing out from happy hour with the oppas, spicy fried shrimp, and watching korean dramas at 3am (and I'm lonelay..) made me have weird dreams. OK just kidding I always have effed up dreams. Last night, I dreamt that I was reading a calculus text book from the 1980's in the bathroom and that it was a gift from one of my dad's classmates to him. WUT?! And then somehow Jake Gyllenhaal went to the same gastroenterologist that I went to, and we were trying to make an escape from his crazed fans.

The odd thing was that his crazed fans were manly, sweaty construction workers who hopped in the bed of my truck (I don't drive a truck), and we couldn't escape because I didn't have keyless entry on my car. Awesome. I haven't even liked Jake Gyllenhaal since like the early 2000's. WUT.

*Liz Lemon catchphrase from 30Rock

The Power Just Went Out

2011-04-19T12:31:00.004-05:00

...buuuut I still have wireless internets and 4+ hours left on my laptop battery! I don't know how the lights and the air conditioning don't work but the wireless does. I ruv technology!

So I've been annoying all of my friends about watching Secret Garden lately, as you probably have heard me gush about it. I'm taking it slow, watching no more than one episode per night (and even skipping some nights) because IT IS SO GOOD! I never want it to end. That is the reason why I've been watching this drama for a month now and I'm only on episode 17. One thing that is worth mentioning is that every single one of their coats/jackets in the drama is excellent. ALL OF THEM. If I had to pick a favorite jacket so far though, it would have to be this sex-tastic number that Hyun Bin wears to the airport to pick up the random white person pretending to be a film director from his private jet at the beginning of Episode 16.

It's very Michael Jackson-esque (heterolifepartner's words, not mine), but the detail on it is impeccable. Quilted leather shoulders on grey wool. What you can't see is that the jacket doesn't have a typical motorcycle jacket hem. IT HAS A TULIP HEM OMG AND I DIE. Imagine the bottom ending like this:

The line of red down the front isn't just solid red stitching. It's a thin red line with fuzzy bits at regular intervals!

I looked up all of the menswear collections from Fall 2009 until Spring 2011 and I couldn't find this jacket anywhere (They usually use big name designers from the current season for costumes in Korean Dramas). While browsing the usual suspects (Alexander McQueen, Balmain, Jean Paul Gaultier...) though, I found these awesome coats that I wish they made for women.

Both are from Jean Paul Gaultier Spring 2010. On a side note, Spring 2010 is way better than Fall 2010, which is a recycling of the boxing costumes that he designed for Regine Chopinot's K.O.K. in 1988. (SORRY IF I REMEMBER THINGS JPG! I'M CREEPY LIKE THAT!) No, actually, I cheated. I saw the exhibition Le Defile in Taipei last summer, and watched the entire effing boxing ballet. Perhaps the artistic interpretation of Sting like a bee, float like a butterfly?

But I digress. If anybody can tell me who designed the totally hot jacket that Hyun Bin wears in Episode 16 of Secret Garden, that would be totes awes! (totally awesome)

And in case anybody wanted to know, I'm still listening to Frank Ocean on repeat.
Swim Good by refinery29

OMG Danny DeVito I Love Your Work!*

2011-04-16T23:04:00.007-05:00

One of my favorite scenes in Mean Girls:

Which is what I imagine this girl is doing to Danny DeVito at Coachella. HAHAHAHA

(image via DListed)

Have we even thought about WHY Danny Devito is at Coachella to begin with? It's full of young hippies, and apparently, asians who don't give a damn about those young hippies.
(image via JustJared)
The AZN on the right is like, "OMG, that albino dude from True Blood is totes blocking my view of Mumford and Sons, RAME." And the other Asian dude is like, "I know right? [ROLLS EYES HARD] Bobblehead silhouettes are soo early 2000's, kinda like the last time that blond chick was relevant." OH SNAP! palabra!

For those of you who stalk me as much as I stalk you, you'll know that I've been on ¡yayvaycay!, which is the predominant reason why I haven't posted in well over a week. It was the most romantic vacation I've ever been on with a GIRL: there was sun, ocean, rum (ron), horseback riding, seafood (mariscos), pina coladas, yoga on the beach, and lots of sunscreen. I'm pretty proud of myself for staying unburnt (although I do have very very tan feet), which is more than I can say for my icelandic dancer friend. She was impersonating a lobster (her words, not mine). When I look back at the pictures I took, I realize how similar they are to the pictures from a honeymoon trip that two of my friends took (who just got married to each other). That is hilar. I die. My vaycay = normal people's honeymoons. I'm so spoiled.

My view for the weekend:
Look at your man, now back at me. It's an oyster with two tickets to that thing you love. Look again! The tickets are now diamonds! I'M ON A HORSE!

Totally worth watching again:

So yeah, good times. Sat next to a super anxious guy who kept on talking to himself and fidgeting on the way to the Dominican Republic, and then a farter on the way back. Awesome.

Now everybody knows how I'm so confused by Snoop Dogg singing, but secretly (overtly) I'm listening to him on repeat. Everybody also knows that I ruv Far East Movement pretty hard because they are Asian. Well, here's the song I've been listening to on repeat today, a magical combination of my two obsessions-du-jour:

Which is quite fitting because OMG is in the title of this post. Also, if that song were a survey, I would check the "all of the above" box. I do just dance with myself when I show up in the club, and I stand up in the mirror and stare at myself (wondering why my thighs touch). Dudes do tend to stare hard at my b-o-o-t-y, and since they don't actually holla at me, I hop under the covers and...well, you get the point. (oh I would, cause I AM me.)

*probably copyrighted by Tina Fey. Don't sue me, I love you! I've watched every episode of 30 Rock EVER! Mean Girls is my most quoted movie EVER!

Meh Work Meh

2011-04-04T09:18:00.006-05:00

No guessing game of what I did or did not do this weekend, as all I did this weekend was work. Yayvaycay on Thursday = haulin' ass to get stuff done at work until then. This song by Katy B is the latest in songs I would like to make sex with:

You might know Katy B from Katy on a Mission, basically layering Katy's voice over Magnetic Man's "On a Mission" riddim (can it be considered a riddim if it's not reggae? I don't know...the backing track...the beats...whatever you call it). Not to be confused with Magnitude...
POP! POP!
I'm not that big of a fan of her voice, because it always sounds like she is short of breath or doesn't have complete control over the note. Nothing a few voice lessons won't fix. Anyways, Skream, Benga, and Magnetic Man are excellent producers, and their work is really what's selling the record. High five at you dudes!

In other news, I'm contemplating the purchase of a salmon colored pair of pants with pleats...which means that I've turned into an RWF (rich white folk) teenager. Holla!

They would go well with those Heavy Machine Macho Splits, am I right or am I right?

A Flashback of Last Night's Drunkenness

2011-04-02T10:06:00.004-05:00

Just kidding, who got drunk last night? Not this crazn! I actually worked late last night, which meant that I was still at work when Annie Mac did her Friday night radio show on BBC Radio1. She makes DJs give her "minimixes" lasting 5 minutes, and then calls them while she's on the air and plays their minimix. Sometimes they're brilliant, sometimes they're just meh. Last night's minimix by DJ Cable/Yasmin was THE BEST THING I've heard, EVER. I'm not even exaggerating. It encompasses every single booty shaking anthem I've ever listened to on repeat. Give it a go:
Yasmin & DJ Cable - BBC Radio 1 Mini Mix by djcable
Here's the tracklisting for this magical piece of music.

My heterolifepartner wishes it were longer than 5 minutes, and I agree. If they let the songs play a little longer, you would have one BANGIN' playlist for a night of drunken bootydancing. Listening to it now is like I'm having a flashback of a night of drunken dancing that did not happen last night.

Stripes of Varied Thicknesses

2011-03-30T00:34:00.003-05:00

Nothing important to share at 1:35am on a Wednesday. Just that I saw some horizontal stripes of varied thicknesses on the wall in the background of a Wonder Girls music video...

...and immediately thought "Prada Spring/Summer 2011." I'm not normal.

Image via Style.com

Snoop Dogg Why Are You Singing?

2011-03-29T10:57:00.002-05:00

David Guetta (dah-veed get-ah), the French DJ dude who is producing everybody from Rihanna to Kid Cudi, is now messing with Snoop.

The original (Rated R, if you have small children around):

I like the song, but I'm so confused. Why is the D-O-double-G singing? That being said, you know I'm listening to this on repeat. Holla!

Things I did or did not do this weekend:
-watch NCAA Tournament
-watch The Mechanic
-knit a hat for my grandma
-wear my Heavy Machine Macho Splits out
-shower before going to church
-hot dates with Hyun Bin on Friday AND Saturday
-go to the gym

I didn't do 2 of the above. I'm ok with Jason Statham playing the same car-driving, gun-shooting role everytime though. He does it well.

Mohawk Part?

2011-03-27T17:15:00.004-05:00

Somebody tell me what's going on with Zhang Ziyi's hair here: (HK film festival)

On a more unpleasant note, some peasant in China smashed his Lamborghini. I'm willing to bet that he was too ignorant to understand what needed to be fixed about the car and so pinned all the fault on the dealership. This is why uneducated people should not have lots of money.
1. They don't appreciate craftsmanship and artistry; they just see objects for how much they are worth in cash and not for ingenuity, beauty, or any of these intangible qualities.
2. you can never take the peasant out of a Mainland Chinese businessman. Go back to your farms and stop wasting money. Donate it if you don't know what to do with it. Sheesh. Better yet, use the money to GET A FUCKING EDUCATION (and I mean that in the most comprehensive way, not the memorizing stuff they make Mainland kids do; but something more like a well-rounded liberal arts degree)

I Own Rompers and other awesome things

2011-03-21T09:23:00.008-05:00

Hi everybody!!! You know what'll wake you up on a Monday morning?! EASTERN EUROPEAN ELECTROPOP!!!

I wish somebody had blasted Inna this morning so I wouldn't end up rolling into work at 9:30am. (WIN!) I kinda want to mute her voice and just listen to the music in the background; the producers (Play&Win) are brills on the same level as Stuart Price in my book. I'm gonna download me some Inna and go pump it in the gym (on repeat, of course).

My weekend was full of win. Here's the list of things I may or may not have done:

-watched the NCAA tournament
-purchased the fashion disaster known as a(?) romper
-yelled "nobody wants to sleep with you!" at a gang of bikers riding Harley-Davidsons
-showered before going to church
-joined a gym after eating a bacon cheeseburger
-salvaged a happy birthday tiara from the trash and got free shots all night
-went to the opening of 30 Americans at the NC Museum of Art
-fell in love with Hyun Bin

(he makes fun of dudes with bad haircuts and bad clothes, and then the last line he says is "that's why you don't have a woman" OH SNAP!)
-made a beer stew
-got my watch fixed
-finished filing taxes

4 of the above I did not do. Today's story comes from Friday rush hour. The on-ramp is usually a little congested going home, but on Friday, the traffic was completely stopped for at least 30 miles. I got on the highway in the opposite direction, hoping to go one or two exits and then joining traffic that way, but saw that there was no hope for miles, so I went to the mall and bought a romper. I have sworn never to wear one, but it was so soft (Gap Body ftw). It's technically sleepwear, but I'm wearing that ish OUT! And then I had Haagen Dazs for dinner.

While I was out with a friend who was visiting from out-of-town, we salvaged two "happy birthday" tiaras from certain destruction by the hand of our waitress, because it was my friend's grandma's birthday (not that that makes any sense). When I came out from the bathroom, somebody across the bar bought a round (10+) of shots for all of us because it was "our birthday." Also got a round of free shots from a cougar with fake boobs. Despite wearing my Heavy Machine macho splits with drop-crotch harem pants, dorky glasses, and a t-shirt, some dude chased me down the street to ask for my number. Manrepel fail! But you know what's not a fail? Chili cheeseburgers at 3am. That's a total WIN!

I want this guy's lips:

Sometimes Wishes Do Come True

2011-03-15T21:48:00.008-05:00

I was scanning Just Jared today for pictures of famous peeps walking around holding Starbucks cups and this picture of Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender from W Magazine came up with the catch. Doesn't it look like what would happen if Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer were fencing each other in matching one-shouldered tank tops? I ruv that they're looking at each other with apprehension and attraction instead of just gooey infatuation. Yay! for Jean-Baptiste Mondino (the photographer who caught this moment)!

A few years ago, MGMT exploded onto the scene and I was all like, "meh! hipsters!" and my roommate was all like "meh! that guy was in yearbook with me in high school and we were dorks together!" Lately though, I've been finding myself with the instrument parts of Electric Feel stuck in my head. The song would be excellent if they didn't sing so whiny. That's why they're not completely on repeat on my little white mp3 player of evil yet.

The funky bassline does make me want to Move Like Bernie, apparently the dance move that is supposed to supplant the Dougie as the-next-big-dance-move. I am technically challenged. Somebody else put Electric Feel on in the background of the Bernie video. kthxbai! (Also, I love how they spelled Bernie incorrectly.)

UPDATE: My wish has been granted! Somebody with a decent singing voice sang over the awesome composition by MGMT! Frank Ocean - Nature Feels

Granted, it's a pretty cheap version that's basically a cover, but this is what we need to be doing! Mutanizing against bad vocalists who sing over excellent background music!

There's a Reason for Everything! I Promise!

2011-03-14T08:04:00.007-05:00

Things I did or did not do this weekend:

- watch ACC basketball
- ride in a Maserati

- take a walk in the park
- drink green beer
- go to church
- dougie
- Heavy Machine Challenge Day#1
- ate kimchee jigae cooked by a dude
- baked a Funfetti cake and ate it

I have photographic evidence of only one of the above activities, but 2 of the above I did not do this weekend.

Got a lot of compliments on the HM Macho Splits, and am glad I took pictures before wearing them out, b/c drunk white peeps kept on spilling beer on me and my shoes. Sadface.

My story of the weekend comes from going to church on Sunday, the only time I've ever seen a hot dude in church. Because of the daylight savings time change, I woke up late for church and rolled into church in a dress and heels, but also with the sweat and grease from the night before still in my hair. Unbeknownst to me, my right contact lens was also ripping, which made my eye water, which made my right nostril a neverending fountain of snot. Attractive! Oh, don't mind me, I'm just a greaseball snotting all over my hands. I guess my body got the manrepelling memo, even if I didn't intend for it to happen. Fail.

UPDATE: I forgot to link my song-on-repeat! Reggae Rihanna is good for Sunday nights spent recovering.

English Muffins

2011-03-09T10:06:00.004-05:00

After a hiatus of 3 years, peanut butter reappeared in my pantry. I had never been that big of a peanut butter fan, except for in peanut-butter-fudge-banana milkshakes from Cookout, so it comes as no surprise that I hadn't purchased peanut butter in at least 3 years. In fact, I think I threw out 1/3 of a jar when I moved, because I couldn't remember when I bought that jar. Anyways, I was making crepes for brunch for my brother- and sister-out-law (married to each other but not related to me), and had to get stuff to put in the crepes, including nutella, peanut butter, strawberry jam, gruyere, fresh strawberries, and fresh bananas. I obvi still have huge jars left over, so have been spreading peanut butter and nutella on 2 english muffins every morning for breakfast this week.

The thing about nutella on a hot english muffin is that the heat dissipates the chocolate hazelnut aroma, and it makes me think I'm having a French morning again. In short, coffee + nutella = am I in France again? wuh?

I'm not listening to Cee Lo Green on repeat today, but I heard this song again on the radio and it is such a clutch tune that you must listen to this on repeat. For the record, I hate that Fuck You/Forget You song. They should have just made Bright Lights Bigger City the single.

Do they call english muffins just muffins in England?

¡NEW! Concept

2011-03-07T21:21:00.005-05:00

The reason why my little mp3 player of evil* hilariously only holds 1G is not because I cannot afford to buy more gigs of memory, but because I really don't want to skip over a bunch of lame songs from the 1990's to hear my song-of-the-moment again on repeat. I'd rather just have one song on my mp3 player. Ex. when it was first released, I listened to Hot Chip Over and Over again on repeat, just as they wanted me to do.

I've made the executive decision to change the direction of the blog to gushing about ¡stuff I rike! in an effort to relieve my friends of my constant babble about ¡stuff they don't care about!

My parents turned me on to spicy 麻辣 peanuts. In other words, my parents got me addicted to spicy nuts in my MOUUUUUTH. awk. Whatever, I can't stop eating them.

I am slightly ashamed that I've been listening to this cheesy song by Imran Khan on repeat today at work...ok no I'm not. Most of the things I listen to on repeat are pretty hilarious and make dandan want to disown me.
I want Imran Khan to stop driving his car so slowly and also to stop gratuitously licking his lips. kthx bai!

On this blog, I will be documenting the Heavy Machine Challenge, songs I can't stop listening to, and other stuff I'm obsessed with. Don't change the dial, crocodile!

*provenance: dandan, "Bobo, if there is one thing that is evil in this world, it's your little white mp3 player"

Tom Brady Probably Doesn't Want This Public

2010-10-20T09:52:00.004-05:00

Jak and Jil blog caught Tom Brady in an awwwwwwwwww moment, picking something off of Gisele's shoulder. What an adorable sensitive side! What if this were broadcast all over ESPN Sportscenter?!

JYP - No Love

2010-10-19T08:17:00.001-05:00

Had a sudden craving for JYP (Park Jin Yong) this morning...which is pretty disturbing, as is the beginning of this video. That being said, he's come a long way since his clear-pants-and-man-thong days. I think he's k-pop at it's best/simplest. also, he loves michael jackson.

bonus: clear pants and man thong

Solange Azagury-Partridge Wedding Collection

2010-08-12T01:09:00.004-05:00

I generally don't pay attention to jewelery designers and jewelery in general, but The Cool Hunter recently featured a shop interior that made me totally want to be Solange Azagury-Partridge. Wedding and engagement rings all look the same to me - ring, rock on a ring, repeat. Any variation in the size of the rock is totally lost on me, as are differences in metals.

In contraste, Solange Azagury-Partridge has collections upon collections of mindblowing designs that are far from rock-on-a-ring,-repeat. I like that there's a slight delay when the image is loading, because then you get to guess what a particular piece will look like based on it's name. Some items are more macabre than others, but there are also very rockstar pieces, like the "poison" line, and cute pieces, like the "posy" line.

One of the more ingenious lines is her new "Tough Love" wedding ring line. It includes "offering," which makes me love the ring just because of the pun.
Visually, it's like wearing a hadouken on your finger,
and if you ever get annoyed at anybody, you can just extend a fist in the manner of Captain Planet and underhandedly hadouken the offender.

For the more traditional set, there's also the claw, sure to remind you of that awkward first date to the arcade and that elusive fluffy animal that just would not surrender itself.

Does it make a difference?

2010-08-08T19:57:00.003-05:00

I ran into a patient of mine whilst at brunch today. I saw him as soon as he sat down at the bar on the other side of my dining partner, but didn't say hi to him until we got up to leave, as he didn't seem to be able to see me from where he was sitting. He is the sweetest man, perpetual bachelor, and every time he came in to the office I always tried to be extra nice to him. I asked him how he liked the new girl, as I had moved on to a different job, and he said, "fine, I only saw her for about a minute." It makes me wonder if his and other patients' impressions of me were the same. Do they care that it was me, or was I only there for serving a function? How much do people really remember you and your efforts made on their behalf?

I guess I'm thinking about that question also because my platonic boyfriend recently passed away, and I tried to shower him with as much affection and care as I could while he was alive, as I try to do with patients. He was kind, intelligent, accomplished, selfless, honorable, and devastatingly good looking. He was loved by and loved his family. But, despite this, he seemed pained most of the time, as if the world were just a bit too cruel, just a bit too heartless for his generous heart. His departure makes me wonder if all of the love that his friends and family had for him made any difference, or were we merely just present?

Dear Jay Chou, I like Chopin as well

2010-07-16T10:59:00.002-05:00

I'm not that big of a fan of Jay Chou, but I just thought perhaps he would be delighted to know that I, too, enjoy listening to Chopin while reading a book or staring at old things in the National Palace Museum.
我其實不是周杰倫的粉絲，但是今天早上聽蕭邦的時候想到周董也喜歡，總覺得周董如果知道我也喜歡聽蕭邦看故宮的古董的話，他一定會覺得開心。

Moss Green Balenciaga Stiletto Sandals

2010-07-14T18:26:00.004-05:00

Saw these beautiful stiletto heels on RAW shoe blog today and could not stop staring at them. I'm really glad Balenciaga finally decided to abandon the overused tribal print pattern that they made Jennifer Connelly wear so much.

Apparently they are made of industrial cotton felt and snake skin in moss green - I love this, because the color is unconventional, and the texture is brilliant! Now if I can just find where they are carrying Balenciaga's Cruise 2011 collection, life would be perfect.

I love my camera

2010-06-26T23:23:00.003-05:00

Taken with Fujifilm 200EXR. The EXR setting takes amazing pictures in low light. I highly recommend this camera whether you're taking landscapes or close-ups in low light!!! This is a harbor in Taipei. I took this a while ago, but just now noticed the detail in the clouds in the sky. LOVE.

Pretty sure they filmed an episode of Devil Beside You at this ramp.

New Hyori!

2010-04-12T19:55:00.004-05:00

It's so hard to not have a crush on Lee Hyori. She's not exceptionally gorgeous or dewy-eyed, but there is just something about her that makes me not want to look away. Her new album drops sometime now, and the title track Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (don't ask. k-pop never makes sense) is seriously Bang-Bangin'

It's like District 9 met Lady Gaga

and they produced offspring in the form of 2NE1!

As unoriginal as it is, Hyori still claims it as her own. LOVE!

In other non-related news, the lunar calendar says today is good for doing acupuncture, building houses, cutting hair, and offering sacrifices. Not a good day to bury people.

AIAIAI! Y-Model Earphones

2010-03-25T21:10:00.009-05:00

I never get too excited about electronics and peripherals, but these AIAIAI Y-Model earphones are just too good to not gush about. Here are some pictures. I was originally going to make a decent meal but got so distracted trying out all my music with, literally, new ears. For the longest time I had an old trusty pair of phillips earbuds with the silicone tips that fit inside your ears. They sounded ok, but one would always fall out as soon as you put the other one in your ear. NOT A PROBLEM WITH AIAIAI! The earphones come in a sturdy clear plastic(?) tube with the two stoppers at the ends forming little pill-box like containers for 5, count them, 5!! differently-shaped silicone covers for your ear buds just in case the custom-fit foam tips that come with them don't do the trick.

From what I can tell, the orange foam on mine resemble the earplugs that hunters put in their ears to not become deaf from their gun shot sounds.

A good song to try these out is the brand new single by Breakage featuring Donaeo:

The bass booms like I'm in a room surrounded by giant speakers! I can't even hear my phone ring and it's right next to my face!

AIAIAI is a group of way too cool hipsters from Copenhagen who make electronics accessories that hipsters want to buy.

In other unrelated news, the lunar calendar says today is good for getting married, going on a trip, offering sacrifices, and making deals. Not a good day to open up your storeroom or finding your source of wealth(? no idea what it means).

Blue Screen of Death

2010-03-04T20:53:00.002-05:00

Not that I use Windows anymore, but sometimes I feel as if my brain pulls a Blue Screen of Death after an exam and proceeds to dump all physical memory. I really have been quite good this week, compared to last week's olympics-watching. Now that I only have two classes left for the semester (beasted the third class in 1.5 months with a final average of 97.7 - I win), why do I feel like I'm spending more time studying? My life goes something like this: 5am - wake up to study, 9am - go to work, 6pm - come home from work and surf the interwebs for an hour or so, 7pm-1am - study. I miss all the things that I could be doing while I'm being good, such as marathon-watching of K-dramas, knitting while marathonning K-dramas, and wikipedia chain-clicking.

Wikipedia chain-clicking is like chain-smoking. You go click on a link within the body of a wikipedia article and so on and so forth. Yesterday while my brain was dumping physical memory, I spent 3 hours clicking through from sweetened condensed milk to 17th century European nobility. Actually, almost all of my chain-clicking episodes end in 17th century European nobility wikipedia articles. I guess not much has changed since I was 10.

The lunar calendar for March 4 says today is good for offering sacrifices and making alloys(?) - yeah, I don't know how to do that either. Not a good day for moving dirt or poetry recitation - phew!

I'll Show You a Magnus Moan

2010-03-01T19:17:00.004-05:00

My favorite olympics are definitely the winter olympics, because there's 1)figure skating and 2)gnomadscands*! Lots and lots of hot scandinavian dudes in tight spandex huffing their lungs out for 30 kilometers at a time! At the winter olympics of 2010 in Vancouver, I found a new favorite gnomadscand - Magnus Moan. I can't think of a more scandalous name, and he happens to be very good looking. His sport is nordic combined, where he is not so good at ski jumping but then usually is excellent at the cross country skiing part and therefore can catch up. The biggest margin ever for catching up from way behind was from 43rd place to bronze - by Magnus Moan...or as The Awl calls him, "MAGNUS! MMMOOOOAAANN!!!"

It's too bad the wind gods were against him during ski jump. Apparently the wind gods only liked the americans, and were favorable until just after the americans made their jumps. It put Magnus back too far at the start of the cross country skiing to catch back up, even for someone who usually passes everybody to win medals. Magnus, you win gold in my world anytime!

Who's your favorite gnomadscand*?

*goodlooking scandinavian dude who travels

In other unrelated news, the lunar calendar says yesterday was a good day to bury (I caught a mouse on the sticky mouse trap). Today is a good day to enter school (must study huge tonight for test tomorrow) and sweep one's domicile (vacuuming up any traces of mouse left in my house); but not a good day for making clothes (I guess that means no knitting today).

Chinese Lunar Calendar

2010-01-31T23:03:00.003-05:00

Ever since I bought a bunch of stuff at the Asian grocery store a few weeks back, I've been occasionally taking a peek at the free calendar they gave me to see what the lunar people think is good to do/not to do.

There is only 1 hour left of January 31 where I am, and if you haven't already done these things, you should: enter into a contract, offer sacrifices, get engaged, meet friends.

things you should not do: mix sauces (!), travel far.

Not that I really believe in these (I mean, come on, is there ever a bad day to mix sauces?), but it is interesting that the calendar tells you not to travel far - it has been snowing pretty bad here and it would definitely not have been a good idea to drive on the icy roads.

As I am immensely amused by what the calendar thinks, I might post interesting dos and don'ts in the future.

and that is all.

PS if there ever was one moment in K-dramas that you should watch, it would be the first scene of Episode 22 of Shining Inheritance (aka Brilliant Legacy). It's one of my favorite dramas - the plot is old but the production very well-made and the clothes very comfort-chic. Loves it.

Do mineundae; chuendae; kagoshipeundae. <- so hot

Fist Pumping Cows!

2010-01-26T20:20:00.003-05:00

Sometimes I have conversations with my friends, and at the end of them, I wonder how we got there.

me: my dad brings the lols
today we were at chik-fil-a
cause my dad loves chicky-filay
Jench: hahaha
me: and the stupid cow was walking around shaking people's hands
and we sit down to eat
and my dad looks at his hands and is like, 'ew i just shook the cow hand. that prob has a buncha germs.' so he goes to the bathroom to wash his hands and comes back and we eat.
Jench: mad cow disease
me: i know right? there's a pill for that.
me: then the stupid cow came around again
Jench: oh god
hahahaha
me: and then my dad sticks out his fist
Jench: that's not awesome albert
fistful of meat!
me: meanwhile i'm watching this with intense interest
and then i realize my dad is trying to give the cow some dap!
hahahahha
hahahahhaa
Jench: dap?
me: like fist bump
Jench: oh
haha
ok
me: and then the cow leaves and my dad is chuckling and he's like
i thought about doing that while i was in the bathroom.
me: if the cow came back, i would give him a deal
Jench: hahhahaha
me: i'm like
wut
a deal?
he's like,
'yeah! on deal or no deal, howie mandel does that!'
'a deal!'
Jench: ahhhh
hahahahaha
me: wutttttt
and then he drove to durham
my dad gave the cow a fistbump
Jench: your dad is awesome
killing the buffalo
Jench: fist pumping cows!
me: jersey cows?
i'm pretty sure those exist
right?
they make milk?

My Review of MONKEY POT HOOKS

2009-12-13T15:26:00.001-05:00

Originally submitted at UncommonGoods

These playful stainless steel pot hooks may be practical, but they also have personality to boot. Hanging from any pot rack or ceiling hook, these monkeys are here to give you a hand, hanging pots, pans, utensils, dried herbs, or whatever you need up and out of the way. They're happy to help ...

Hangs anywhere!

By optimoasiatico from North Carolina on 12/13/2009

Gift: Yes

Pros: Nice Weight, Attractive Design, Many Uses, Unique, Durable, Easy To Clean

Cons: Edges are sharp

Best Uses: Daily Use, Decorative

Describe Yourself: Practical, Stylish

These monkey hooks are super cute and can fit over any handle, from cabinet knobs to door knobs. Aside from being pot hooks, I plan on hanging oven mitts and kitchen towels on them. The only thing unpleasant about them is that the edges are a bit sharp, so it might be easy to accidentally scratch yourself.

(legalese)

From the House of the Dead, Metropolitan Opera

2009-11-28T21:00:00.004-05:00

I went to see From the House of the Dead last weekend at the Met, partially because I wanted to try a contemporary opera, and partially because I had already seen Turandot (the opera that was playing in the matinee slot that day). After reading the NYTimes review of the opera, I became very excited, as the review gave the impression that 1)From the House of the Dead was a piece to be anticipated and 2)it had a lot of slavic folk music influences (for which I have a special affinity).

I must honestly say that even though I did not quite arrive at disappointment, From the House of the Dead was indeed a very very difficult piece of opera for me to sit through. I applaud it for being dark and contemplative; indeed, the production made me very interested in reading the original novel by Dostoyevsky. I think perhaps it was better left as a novel than forcing it into a show. To me, the allure of opera is the music, the spectacle (doesn't have to be flashy, but at least some elements of set design or costume design), and the emotion that any work of art seeks to draw out from its audience. The opera version is just a little too simple - it seemed like the only message meant for the audience was that prisoners are also their mothers' sons, also human. Excepting music, From the House of the Dead had very little of the above qualities. The setting is a Siberian prison, which you can imagine is as grey and drab as the convicts' prison uniform costumes. All of what little storyline the opera has was delivered through the prisoners recounting their lives before incarceration. I would have liked to see any bit of glimmer in the entire production - whether in the anecdote about the prostitutes or in the play-within-a-play (that all the reviewers play up so much but really is not very entertaining). I think they tried to inject that little bit of hope at the very end, when the prisoners released the eagle, but it was hard to tell, as they just lifted the eagle over their heads and then some old guy took it away with him (while remaining on stage!). Could they not have afforded some string to at least make the eagle actually fly up in the sky? SIGH.

I understand the opera itself is not supposed to have a plot, much like the original novel, but it was very hard to follow. The opera is sung in Czech (which I don't understand), with Met Titles in English (I understand well), German (I sort of understand) and Spanish (I can also understand a little). Since they were projecting the English titles up on the stage, I turned my Met Titles to the German out of curiosity. There were definitely many moments where the German and English proclaimed different things, at the same time not matching the actions of the performers on stage. (I guess that discrepancy was entertaining.)

Even though I would have liked to have more female voices (give the prostitutes more face time!) and more dazzle, I would not be against giving From the House of the Dead another try. Perhaps if I had watched this opera towards the end of their run, everybody would have been more familiar with their roles and the overall presentation would be more cohesive. The cast and crew seemed a bit uneasy, as it was one of their first runs of this opera. Even the ever professional orchestra seemed to stumble over a few notes. One thing I now know, is that I will go for an opera with more female voices next time.

Woody Sambo 無敵珊寶妹

2009-10-07T23:06:00.005-05:00

I spent 18 episodes watching Woody Sambo, or a pretty dumb Taiwanese idol drama starring two singers, when I could have watched this little blip and gotten the same exact content:

Actually, come to think of it, this pretty much summarizes all asian dramas: love triangle, cars running into people, and then in the end, meeting someone you thought had been lost/dead for a lifetime.

我看了18集無敵珊寶妹，卻到了第19集發現我本來看這個“30秒看懂無敵珊寶妹“就行了。　天下的電視劇也都基乎這樣吧：三角戀情，　車禍，　然後到最後又遇到一位曾今以為早就失去的家人或戀人。

too bad the 公阿騎士 part only had a fraction of a milisecond. WHAT?!

Morning Coffee

2009-09-30T12:24:00.002-05:00

I am a huge fan of coffee at all hours of the day, but this house up for sale for 1.25 million dollars in Texas totally wins the morning coffee prize. According to the NYTimes, there's a switch in the master bedroom that controls one outlet in the kitchen - so you can start brewing the coffee before you get out of bed! WIN!

The house itself is not so much a win as a really gaudy replica of a gas station, but hey! You can make coffee without getting out of bed! WIN!

Vintage Curling Irons In Action

2009-08-26T11:50:00.003-05:00

I've seen every single episode of Family Outing, and it still doesn't cease to surprise/delight me. I thought that the departure of Lee Chunhee and Park Yejin after their contract ended would make Family Outing go the way of We Got Married, but not so. Park Haejin has filled in the role of clumsy good looking guy who loses whenever they play games; cannot say the same about Park Siyeon...she just squeals and cries a lot.

In episode 59 (pt 2 of special guest Song JiHyo, of Goong fame), Haejin, Daesung and Song Jihyo go to town in search of ingredients with which to make breakfast. What they find is a town full of beauty salons. The following video features them exploring a salon full of ajummas (old ladies) and vintage(!) curling irons (that you heat on an open flame!). Two dudes getting their hair curled!-yes please!

I love Family Outing.

Don't Laugh at RBC

2009-08-25T21:55:00.005-05:00

To me, RBC mostly means red blood cells, but it also means Royal Bank of Canada. If I had blown all my Christmas money on RBC stock sometime in January, I would have a lot more Christmas money now.

Fat Eames Chairs

2009-08-24T11:56:00.002-05:00

I was looking at Metropolitan Home's website for remodeling ideas when I came across a news tidbit about a guy named Mark Wentzel who made fat versions of the iconic Eames lounge chairs + ottomans. This is how the Eames's invisioned them:

This is what the Eames chairs would look like if they live in America for a number of years:

What is exceptional about these fat chairs is that they are on exhibit at the CDC, part of an exhibit addressing obesity and America, as opposed to being on exhibit in just some random gallery somewhere. They remind me of the humans in Wall-E, after being sedentary on a spaceship for eons. Working in family medicine, it feels as if we are managing "fat" diseases for 90% of our patients (high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol...etc). Perhaps these chairs will remind some people to put down their McDonald's angus burger with supersized fries and take a walk with their kids.

Wedding Ties

2009-07-21T12:08:00.005-05:00

I went to a wedding this weekend and here is how my date asked which tie he should wear.
What did we do before the advent of digital cameras?

Suit by Hickey Freeman
Ties by Ferragamo, Lanvin, and a few others I forget
Shoes by Cole Haan

K-pop Update 7/13/09

2009-07-12T14:29:00.006-05:00

Filming commercials (Brit.: advert; Asian: CF) is associated with huge popularity and huge money in any asian country, even western stars can't resist the lucrative purses that come with 30 seconds worth of reel. My question is, is it really worth it if they make you change the lyrics of your hit song to be about chicken and then make you dance the soothsayer's "SA!" dance while making out with a chicken thigh? Here, Kim Jong Kook and Kim Soo Ro from Family Outing (and other singing and acting careers) do a commercial for Hoolalah Chicken:

Did Super Junior's Eunhyukie get buff or is it just the cut of his shirt? Either way, he looks 100x manlier than the beanpole he used to be:
(Kangin, Shindong, and Eunhyuk of Super Junior hosting at MBC Music Core this past weekend.)

Speaking of Super Junior, right after the Filipino prisoners danced a tribute to Michael Jackson, they busted out a lighthearted routine to "Sorry Sorry". Seriously, I would only commit crimes in the Philipines. The prisoners are like rockstars! Just listen to those girls scream and sing along!

Here's some INCREDIBLY ADORABLE vintage Lee Junki in a Clazziquai music video. Warning: almost as adorable as baby bunnies. The song is called "Sweety." I can only assume he signed on to star in this video right before he made it big. It is embarassingly cute.

K-pop Update 7/5/09

2009-07-05T15:25:00.006-05:00

Now that Super Junior is preparing for their pan-asian tour, I have to fill my k-pop obsession time with other people.

First, decent actor and surprisingly sexy girly-man Lee Junki is once again trying to break the acting-singing barrier by putting out another music video. The first one (J-style) really puzzled me, but I'm ok with the second one - Soliloquize is upbeat and cute despite his emo concept throughout. Actually, he's so hot I'd sip that gatorade regardless of the flavor.

I guess the added benefit of being an actor is that if you put out a music video you can save money by acting in it yourself, in lieu of hiring other actors to act in it. (see: Wilber Pan and Lee Da Hae).

Girl's Generation (SNSD or So Nyo Shi Dae) just hit the airwaves with their "come back" song, Genie. I think the head of SM, their management company, realizes that they suck at singing and dancing, which is why he dressed them in cos-play uniforms and very short shorts to promote the song. Here is the video if you're a teenage male and like to see leg.
I am not really impressed, especially since some random Uzbek singer lady did the same song and it sounds 100x better. I mean, yeah, since SM bought the rights to the song and stuff, Dineyra is in the wrong for making money off of it. Too bad she did a better job than SM and Girl's Generation, who wasted a good tune with a bad job. Oops. I don't think it really is a big issue that the Dineyra sang it first, since the market for Uzbek songs in Korea is probably less than 0.00001 percent. It would take more money and effort to sue than to realize that nobody speaks Uzbek and therefore Dineyra is probably making $5.00 on that song. Also, double thumbs-up for her chola eyebrows!

JYP's boyband 2PM is largely filling the void that Super Junior has left in my consciousness. They have only 7 kids, compared to Super Junior's 13, and they are younger and do acrobatics in addition to the usual singing and dancing. Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do if you want to differentiate yourself from the other 50 boy bands on the variety show circuit in South Korea. After their wildly popular song "Again & Again," which I listened to, literally, again and again, they are out to get the rest of the teenage girls with "I hate you." This is their promotional uniforms for that song:

I personally hate that bousouzoku mask that the one guy is wearing. It reminds me of a bling-ed out banana hammock, and generally just makes me think he has some sort of serious air-borne illness that he is trying to contain. Are you sick? Your mask is covering your chin and no matter how bedazzled it is, I will always think about the amahs (or ajumma in Korean) mopping the MRT (Taipei's subway) at night in their own surgical masks. I Hate You: (seriously, JYP, you need to hire an native English speaker if you want to put English lyrics into a song. "Now I'm Cry" is wholly awkward and not acceptable as lyrics, thanks.

Pan Hsin Hua (潘信華) Notebook

2009-07-01T20:40:00.008-05:00

Once upon a time, I got a freebie notebook from a table in front of the cafeteria during my pharmworker days. It has stayed on the shelf, due to the absolute ugliness of the cover (as made even more obvious by the photo below).
The paper is decent and I was bored, so I gave the notebook a makeover.
Every once in a while I get news releases or preview announcements from the Gagosian or Goedhuis Gallery in NY. Something about the color made me keep this brochure instead of toss it in the trash like the other ones. For once, Goedhuis actually featured a worthy artist! Note that they spell Pan Hsin-Hua the way a Taiwanese person would, since Pan Hsin-Hua is from Taiwan. The most bizarre thing is that they used simplified Chinese to write his name in Chinese (not shown because I cut it out already). Why don't we stick with one or the other? Either use traditional Chinese for his name in Chinese or pinyin for the English spelling.
There were 3 panels to the brochure. I used the panel on the right.
This is where the notebook fits with the rest of the panels. It took me a few minutes to cut out the square holes one by one with a sculpting knife.
Ta Da! New customized Pan Hsin-Hua notebook worthy of any museum gift shop!
I believe this is a part of "Practicing Qi III" (2008). Once again, why are they using pinyin for a Taiwanese artist's work? It should be "Practicing Chi III."

Airlines Frequent Flyer Miles Offers

2009-06-30T22:02:00.003-05:00

I've been on a total of 3 international trips in the past 10 years (hardly a large sum at all), but the aftermath of which is that I now get weekly solicitations for opening credit cards to get frequent flyer miles. Delta (AmEx) and American Airlines (Mastercard) are most persistent with their offers of tens of thousands of miles, but every once in a while, Korean Air drops me a letter.

It perplexes me immensely, as the main body of the letter is in Korean. I assume it tells me I am such a qualified applicant for credit and how signing up with their credit card will make my dreams come true and I'll never have to pay any fees***. I really have no idea, because, I, like many others who fly Korean Air by mere chance, do not speak Korean. Even more curious is the reverse of the letter, where all the usual credit card fine print is in English. The credit card company thereby assumes that their audience, people who fly Korean Air, are fluent in Korean AND English legalese. That, my friends, is a magic combination.

***until the end of the first month honeymoon period

Research Triangle PARK

2009-06-12T11:29:00.005-05:00

Uh, New York Times? I believe the name you are searching for is "Research Triangle PARK." Nobody knows what or where "Research Triangle" is. It is also correct to refer to the area as "The Triangle". And, for the record, (as I have been on one too many flights who identify the "city" as "RaleighDurham") the airport is RDU, or Raleigh Durham International Airport. There are two cities that are near it, Raleigh, and Durham, wholly independent of each other; just like St. Paul and Minneapolis are two distinct cities. Just like Tokyo and New York City are distinct cities. Got it?

Also, how about adding real "fine dining" restaurants like Provence in Carrboro/Chapel Hill or the iconic Second Empire in downtown Raleigh, or Rue Cler in Durham? Even a newcomer like An of SAS affiliation would have been more relavent. Oh, and for those readers interested in finding an excellent hole in the wall, check out The Rockford on Glenwood Ave. (in that hopping strip of downtown called Glenwood South, upstairs and across the street from Sushi Blues and the Hibernian).

Family Outing, Mexican Version (墨西哥版)

2009-06-02T11:34:00.003-05:00

One of the funnier outings that I've watched on Family Outing is the episode where Kim Jong Kook and Cha Tae Hyun cook breakfast. For those of you who need flashcards to navigate k-pop, Kim Jong Kook is a muscular dude who was just released from his military duty. Despite his large stature, KJK sings like a "mosquito." Cha Tae Hun is an actor who is KJK's age. He was the daydream of every girl back in the days of "My Sassy Girl." Both of them together = ridiculous cooking time.

Kim Jong Kook and Cha Tae Hyun cooking breakfast, in which they befriend a praying mantis named "Samacho":

Watch the first minute or so of this video:

Then start at 1:30 for this one:

Quarter Century Birthday Presents

2009-05-31T12:19:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year where I blog gift suggestions for the clueless and curious. This year, my birthday wishes are as follows (links are example suggestions):

-plane ticket money for Jordan - my first vacation in three years, with my France travel buddies; I already bought the ticket, so am now accepting donations.
-Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers anthology - for those rainy Saturday afternoons. It's a little expensive at ~$75, but so worth it.
-A new digital camera - mine is from 2005 and it is huge. I hear you can get way more megapixels now for the same price that I paid for mine in 2005.
-a chair - I'm ok with sitting on the floor but my legs are starting to complain about being folded up all the time.
-meals of food - and if you pick this one, you get an added bonus of a stuffed ninja!

Mod Kiddie Houses! So cute! So modern!

2009-05-29T20:37:00.003-05:00

When I pop out babies I will buy this for them. The full name is "Modularean Eco House," but let's just call it "my kids will not be playing with frilly doll houses."

Seriously? I love this. You can even make your own mid-century modern art and put it in the house!

JYP Speaks Good English

2009-05-21T21:30:00.001-05:00

All I have to say is, JYP's English is lightyears ahead of every other Korean star EVER. He totally used "gullible" to describe a Wonder Girl.

Joe Turner's Come and Gone

2009-05-06T11:21:00.002-05:00

My high school friend is assistant directing a play that's nominated for a bunch of Tony Awards! Hopefully I can catch Joe Turner's Come and Gone this weekend. Congrats Lileana!

Daniel Henney asks, "are you gentle?"

2009-05-04T21:56:00.004-05:00

When I saw a clip of this in the previously mentioned Family Outing episode with Daniel Henney, I seriously thought I was going to die of laughter. It's even funnier when Yoo Jae Suk asks Henney, "are you gentle?" The hilarious (but still very charismatic) line happens at 0:25.

Seriously Henney? Seriously?

GM Daewoo Gentra commercial

Daniel Henney vs. squids

2009-05-04T00:19:00.004-05:00

Super hot Korean model Daniel Henney cleans some squids:

He sounds like a douche but boy is he easy on the eyes. I love that Yoo Jae Sook calls him "Henney" as opposed to "Daniel."

You can catch him in the new X-Man movie, Wolverine. It personally makes me happy he is in an English language film, as I hear his Korean is atrocious.

Polo Horses

2009-04-23T23:51:00.002-05:00

A bunch of polo ponies died because some dumb dumb somewhere messed up their vitamins. The ponies are worth $100,000 each. That is definitely a lot more than my net worth. Ponies are worth more than me!

Wholetrain, Graffiti, Martha Cooper

2009-04-12T12:02:00.006-05:00

On the front page of NYTimes online today is a slideshow of photographs of graffiti by Martha Cooper. It reminded me of a German film I saw in 2007 at River Run Film Festival called Wholetrain (trailer below).

With explosive energy and an excellent soundtrack, I would have expected Wholetrain to have made a bigger splash than it did, even if it was relegated to "documentary" status at River Run and no doubt other festivals. Perhaps there wasn't enough marketing to hipsters and other people who consider themselves anti-establishment. I certainly loved the film, and did not consider it a documentary. In a small narrative, NYU film school-educated Florian Gaag captures the spirit of youth and its constant growing pains. He is to film what Martha Cooper is to photography. Though the subject is a group of late-teens/early-twenties guys and their nightly exploits on the Munich U-bahn, viewers also get a good dose of what the NYTimes calls "the furtive arts" and the quotidien family lives of their creators. The title, "wholetrain," refers to the accomplishment of painting all the cars of a train, and being able to capture it on film before the authorities remove the spraypaint.

Last I checked, Netflix did not carry this film. Errr. Maybe Martha Cooper can twist somebody's arm and add it to their collection.

I took some pictures of a graffiti show (塗鴉展) at Ben Deli in Taipei in 2006 that have never seen the light of day until this appropriate post. BEN DELI is a Taiwanese clothing brand that takes pride in creating and producing all of their clothing in Taiwan. They are mostly known for youthful lines of graffiti-themed T-shirts. When I went by their store, they were having a graffiti show in the basement of the store.

Ben Deli - 台北市大安區忠孝東路四段 169-1 號

Commentary on Modern Life

2009-04-11T08:41:00.005-05:00

Whenever applications want me to answer an essay question about my reaction to modern life, I want to reply, "It's just not like the good ol' days." Instead, I make something up that brings up something in current events.

This is what I really think about what's going on in the world today:
1. Gwen Stefani has an unbelievable talent of making adorable babies while still looking adorable herself.
photo via JustJared

2. I hate how self-reported "christians" work so hard to project a righteous image of themselves. The truth is, we all know Miley Cyrus is a spoiled ho who takes advantage of other ignorant self-reported "christians" by making them buy her stuff. I just want her to shut up and go away before she does more damage to genuine christians. Also, stop talking like a man.

3. Lee Minho for Cass beer adverts does not make me want to buy beer. How does dressing like a tranny circa Grease make beer more appetizing?
picture via PopSeoul .

4. I love Lee Joonki. He amazingly looks attractive as a man or a woman. Il est comme metier acteur, donc, je ne comprends pas pourquoi il a fait un clip. He doesn't even sing in real life or in this music video. It kind of just looks like a trailer to some movie where he is angry about life. What's the point of spending the money on the set and costumes? I don't get it.

5. The small army of k-poppers known as Super Junior have put out an excellent 3rd album. I took a listen to some of their old songs and I pretty much hated how ignorantly blissful their songs were. Though they have a few of those types of songs (as is mandatory for remaining Korean pop idols) on their new album, it is surprisingly urban and, even a little sophisticated.

I especially love their package concept. Like many other products marketing themselves with a high-fashion flair (adamo by Dell; it's not even called a Dell Adamo, like one would refer to a Dell XPS or a Sony Vaio. Adamo by Dell sounds more like Topshop by Kate Moss or Balanciaga by Nicholas Ghesquiere), the cover for the 3rd album looks like it could be from any Comme des Garcons fashion show.

They make stuttering cool again in the title track, Sorry, Sorry. It is the most catchy tune ever - I have listened to it at least 300 times already.

Rebound in Taiwanese Slang

2009-04-06T22:53:00.003-05:00

Watching Defeated Queen (敗犬女王). Just learned how to say rebound (in terms of romantic relationship) in Taiwanese colloquialism.

慰藉 (wei4 jie4) - after a break up, the person with which the hurt party seeks to develop a quick rebound relationship. Literally, the object (jie - excuse) with which you console (wei) yourself.

Side note: 敗犬女王 (bai4 chuan3 nu3 wang2) is totally killing all the ratings week after week.

Orlando Bloom is going to be in Durham, NC!

2009-04-03T12:06:00.004-05:00

Orlando Bloom is going to be in Durham! Apparently his new movie is being filmed in Durham, NC. They must be short on cash, because Durham is the least attractive place ever. Go here for details. Here is the tentative filming schedule. If I make a point of hanging around Durham, what are the chances I'll run into either Colin Firth or Orlando Bloom?

Better yet, what are the chances that 2 british accents will be in Durham, EVER?

Linux! Taiwan! Stating the Obvious!

2009-04-02T11:48:00.002-05:00

"Linux! Taiwan!" pretty much sums up my thoughts on this NYTimes article. I really love them both.

The NYTimes is also very good at stating the obvious: doctors not accepting Medicare? no~ really? Let's think about this. Your friendly family doctor spends $200,000 and many sleepless nights studying hard just so they can deal with paperwork for a living? Add to that not having a life and another few years of sloshing away in the bowels of a hospital for residency, and that's REALLY not a good deal. Why would the best and brightest ever think it would be a viable option for a living?

I'd say that out of ever 100 med school graduates who go into primary care, maybe 30 of them go out of business or retire early because the costs of maintaining a practice often exceeds any little bits of money one can wrangle from Medicare and insurance companies. Is it any wonder there's a shortage of primary care doctors? For a patient who is diagnosed with cancer, I spend probably 10 hours in the week following the diagnosis coordinating their care. There's the pulmonologist to call, who will take a biopsy of the lung cancer. There's the radiologist to call, to get the imaging reports. There's the oncologist to call, to make sure the medicines they're prescribing don't interact with any other medicine the patient is already taking. On top of that, count in a few more hours for yelling at the staff at specialists' offices for not doing their job, not following up on a patient, and not giving us any information - THAT'S A LOT OF UNPAID SERVICE!

Before the healthcare system pays the specialists to mess up patients, I believe they should pay primary care doctors for all the footwork involved in diagnosing and then fixing other people's mistakes. I would be very wealthy indeed, if I had even as little as $10 every time I catch a mistake from another doctor's office (TIME UNPAID!)

So, Medicare patients, before you get into a fury about why a certain physician won't see you, call up your congressman/woman and complain to them about it. They make the rules, not doctors.

Rice Farming in Japan

2009-03-28T11:17:00.002-05:00

I have a weak spot for old people; whenever I see old people having a bad time with life, it lights this cube of fire right under my sternum and makes me want to stomp up to somebody or something and correct the problem.

In the NYTimes today, it's rice farmers in Japan who are finding it hard to survive. One such farmer runs a 450 year old rice farm, and I have no doubts that he has toiled very hard in his long life to maintain the family tradition. Now, with young people moving to big cities and abandoning agriculture everywhere, it comes as no surprise that Japan, a land of technical innovation, should be experiencing problems with growth of agriculture.

I have one possible solution for the elderly rice farmers: Japanese products are generally seen as superior in their quality and craftsmanship. If these few rice farmers can market their rice as having received more tender love and care, with a 450 year old family secret to cultivation, I am SURE they can sell the rice for much higher prices anywhere. For example, when I go to the asian store, I always buy the Japanese brand of short rice even though it is more expensive than any other kind. I know that the rice I get will be just chewy enough and just soft enough, whereas the other brands of rice produce longish (though not long) dry or starchy rice. Though the global economy is bad at the moment, it certainly is a good time for these farmers to find a way to specially market their rice as "Made in Japan," with the understanding that the consumer will get the highest quality rice in exchange for higher prices.

Forseeing the onslaught of cheap and bad quality tea (pesticides in your tea, anyone?) flooding out of Mainland China, the tea makers in Taiwan have created a market for organic, high quality tea that they in turn can sell for higher prices. This is the luxury market that Japanese farmers need to delve into. Americans buy more expensive produce from Wholefoods and other organic markets believing they are getting a healthier and higher quality product - why wouldn't anybody else do exactly the same when buying healthier, higher quality, Japan-made rice?

Kkotboda Namja (Boys Over Flowers/Boys Above Flowers)

2009-03-27T11:46:00.004-05:00

I saw the Taiwanese idol drama version of Hana Yori Dango, Meteor Garden, a few years ago. It was so bad and cheesy I wanted to kill myself. Curious about how the Koreans would make their version of the popular manga, I watched the first episode on Youtube and was hooked. If there's one thing Koreans know how to do, it is to represent opulence in their idol dramas. What better way to sell consumer products (cell phone product placement anyone? You'll see what I'm talking about when you watch the drama) than to have 4 good looking guys and one cute girl hawking them for you? At first, I didn't think Lee Minho (the main guy, Goo Jun Pyo; Dao Ming Si in the Taiwanese version) was that big of a deal, but he turns out to be a pretty believable actor. He also trips and falls on his face at red carpet events at which he wins awards!

The girl who plays Geum Jandi (Shan Tsai in the Taiwanese version) is about as interesting as watching coffee brew. She has one look, and that is to look to her side and down while looking like she's about to doze off.

In any case, word has it that perhaps they will not end the story with Geum Jandi getting together with Goo Jun Pyo! !ESCANDALO! How will I ever survive until Monday not knowing?!?!?! I actually don't mind the girl getting together with Joon Ji Hoo (played by Kim Hyun Joong, part of k-pop boy band SS501, or as I like to call him, Bae Yong Joon Jr.). He is so incredibly sweet and reticent in the drama. Seriously though, after all the work done on Kim Hyun Joong's nose, he totally looks like Bae Yong Joon. In one episode he even dons the infamous thick rimmed glasses ala Bae Yong Joon in Winter Sonata.

I can't wait for the end. In other news, I have a bunch of pictures to load from eating in NY. Stay tuned!

Heidi Klum in a VW Beetle

2009-03-12T12:25:00.001-05:00

Heidi Klum was photographed in a pink VW Beetle promoting something for Barbie. Please tell me she said "German engineering in da haus, ja."

Happy Birthday! + Biking to the Grocery Store + 天才衝衝衝

2009-03-07T13:16:00.007-05:00

We have a patient who has gotten lost the last 2 times she has visited the office; I suspect it is because she is pretty healthy and hardly ever comes in aside from yearly physical exams. After some protest, we finally got her to come in to be examined. After weighing her, I motioned for her to sit on the exam table, so that I could take her blood pressure. She set her bag down on the floor, at which point it started singing Happy Birthday gaily in a way that only artificial electronic beeps can. Stethoscope in ears, I waited as she dug through her bag, pulling out bundles of mail and all forms of personal electronics. The bag was still singing after everything had been taken out. This went on for at least a few minutes, me watching amusedly, she searching frantically, and happy birthday playing craftily. She swore that she indeed had a birthday card, but that card was big and could not fit in her bag, and was therefore left outside in the car. I just nodded and motioned again for her to get up on the exam table again. After her appointment, she said with determination, "I am going to go out to my car and find that birthday card and show you that it was in the car the whole time!" I smiled and nodded. A minute later, she returned, triumphantly, "See? The card WAS in the car the whole time!...And listen to this!" At that moment, she opened the card and a recorded voice sang, "Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~"

I have no idea why one person should have 2 different types of birthday songs, or why we couldn't find the source of the artificial tone version.

* * *

I went to the grocery store today by bike. I usually don't do that because I am still getting used to the size of my bicycle, and I am paranoid that the hippies in the town I live in will steal my bike. I had a cart full of groceries by the time I was done, including:

Groceries in book bag:
4 cans of condensed milk (14 oz x4 = ~4 lbs)
1 gallon 2% milk (~8.5 lbs)
2 jars of spaghetti sauce (24 oz x2 = 3 lbs)
1 thermal heat pad (it was pretty weighty)
1 bag of Cadbury mini eggs (24 oz = 1.5 lbs)
2 large cantaloupes (~8 lbs x2 = 16 lbs)
1 container of ricotta cheese (15 oz = ~1 lb)
1 box of frozen broccoli
1 box of frozen peas

I rode my bike home with about 36 pounds of stuff on my back, in addition to 2 bell peppers, 1 box of pasta, 1 dozen eggs, 1 shallot, 24 mini bagels, and 1 tray of mushrooms. My back is killing me. At least I have a heat pad.

* * *

Was watching 天才衝衝衝 again, noting that this week was not as funny as other weeks. One thing that was pretty amazing was 從從 (short guy in glasses) rattling off all 18 weapons of a traditional Chinese arsenal. Skip to 1:50 in the video to see him in action. 不愧是戲劇系畢業的，國戲很熟！ Although, I think you would be hard pressed to find the same sort of talent graduating with theater majors from any Taiwan university nowadays.

the breakdown:
刀槍劍戟斧鉞鉤叉鎲棍槊棒鞭鐧錘抓拐子流星
(I don't even know what half of them look like)

李聖傑 Sam Lee, in sign language

2009-03-04T12:58:00.004-05:00

Every Saturday, I faithfully watch 天才衝衝衝 as uploaded by some kind soul across the world. I can watch it on Saturday night too, when the show is aired in Taiwan, because of the time difference! This week had Sam Lee 李聖傑 as a guest. He's 1/4 Deutsch! This video was by far the highlight of the night:

The original clip to which the above clip refers. It shows 王耀慶 (David Wong) in an especially flamboyant performance of 手放開（Sam Lee's song).

Tofu, Kid CuDi, Fall 2009 Runway Highlights

2009-02-22T20:51:00.016-05:00

I stole some pictures from Style.com of my favorite pieces from Fall 2009 NY fashion week runways. Overall, I thought most of the collections were not very original. Almost every show had the same mini tulip skirt cocktail dresses and somber colors (and then I realized the somber colors were probably because this is for fall). I just want to say to them, "hey! The people are tired of short skirts! Think up something fresh for a change!"

Thakoon has recently found mainstream name recognition for outfitting Michelle Obama at the Democratic National Convention. I liked this green dress because it is simple enough that any woman would wear it, but if you look closely they've replaced the neck ribbon you see on 1950's secretary outfits with a burnt velvet silhouette of a bow. Brilliant! Kind of like a subtle finger poke to the eye to boring traditional work clothes.

Rodarte continues with it's streak of deconstructed/reconstructed contrasting ribbons of color from last season. People didn't like the awkwardly placed swaths of fabric on Reese Witherspoon at the 2009 Oscars, but I expect they'll be more receptive of the same swaths of fabric in lighter colors and a more lighthearted dress. The dress sort of looks like it fits in better in a mixed media show in an art gallery than on a model.

Some people like fashion because it's acceptible to be crazy. I like Narcisco Rodriguez because he isn't. Also known for being a Michelle Obama favorite, you can count on him to make sophisticated and feminine dresses and suits. I probably wouldn't wear the bucket over my head though.

One of my favorite pieces of all the designs I saw was this Nanette Lepore shirt. It is all the subdued splash of color that is required in such recessionary times. People feel guilty wearing big flashy colors, but I feel like the colors on this shirt lend their spirit without being gaudy.

I think it goes without saying that Catherine Malandrino is the definition of colorful party dress, but before now, I had not thought much about her other pieces. Even though I usually stick with minimalist pieces, I like the texture of this coat.
I am also a huge fan of a designer who shows up to her own show with the best dress of the night. The dresses she was showing were a bit humdrum, but this one (don't know if it's in her collection) is excellent! The cut is flattering, the black lace overlay is sexy but not slutty.

I'm trying hard to think of an occasion where such a two toned dress from Kai Kuhne would be acceptable and am drawing a blank. Nonetheless, I love the V-ish neckline.

I never like Marc Jacobs runway pieces - they are always too overdone. I do like the shade of blue on this cape though. I would totally wear this cape!

Of all the formal gowns I saw, this silver Badgley Mischka dress caught my attention. I like the unconventional straps (if you can call them that) and the way it drapes.

I liked this Abaete dress because of the pink peeping out where the right boob should be. Hilarious!

Yohji Yamamoto! I always thought Y-3 was a mostly sporty line (afterall, it is a collaboration with adidas), but this suit is sharp!

I thought Jason Wu was the only one who got somber colors right. His collection was not cohesive at all, but at least that means it will appeal to a wide variety of tastes? Among the highlights: this grey dress with black cap sleeves. It reminds me of Carolina Herrera. What you can't see is that the soles of all the shoes were a fantastic shade of blue.

Hard to imagine these two lumberjacks can produce something as exciting and feminine as the orange dress below. Costello and Tagliapietra make nicely tailored-looking dresses unexpected from such burly men.
This shade of orange is the epitome of fall. I love the cut of this dress enormously.
Speaking of Carolina Herrera, she never fails to put out really feminine dresses that women actually want to wear. Even without color, she makes this dress/suit visually interesting with the knobby texture.

Completely unrelated to fashion, I came across this Japanese promotional video for tofu. I don't really speak Japanese, but I can pick out a few words from what I learned watching Japanese films. The weird thing is, I feel like I can understand some of the words because they sound like Taiwanese (I don't speak Taiwanese either). I think maybe they are part of the everyday Taiwanese lexicon, just adopted from Japanese over time?

Taylor sent me a link to this video of Kid CuDi. I have no idea who he is or what he does, but I like the animated parts of this video. It reminds me of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. I also like that all the beer turns into baked goods.