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My eyes probably are getting old. I used to be able to play game all day, but now I can only use my iMac for around 2 hours. After that, I would start to feel the screen is so bright, and I can barely keep my eyes open.

So is it time to blog on iPad? I tried, but there are not many AP available. Can you believe that? I tried blogger's web based tool, but unfortunately the button for uploading picture is always greyed out, and I really like to have a picture or two here and there.

After a few googling, I decided to buy something (and I thought there is some free AP available), blogsy, that cost me 5USD. I'm going to publish this one, and we'll know if it is worth the money.

 

Long break

It has been a year since I last updated my blog. Many things happened, but when I looked back, everything seemed so trivial. The reason I stopped blogging is that I found another source to share. It was plurk and then google plus. Plurk is quick and small. I can just post a sentence or two to quickly share what I see and how I feel. No hassle to reorganize information in my head like blogging. then I don't feel like writing the second time on blogger. But why do I come back to blogger? Maybe I am just tired of those tiny information. There is always so much to keep track of, so many people like to pretend, that I start to get weary of it. But how am I be different now? A failed romance, a new TV, a new iPad for most computer work, and a year older, getting notice from my landlord that she is not going to renew my lease this year. Ouch. Moving again. I can feel my life tumbling now.

Milestone

There are so many milestones in each life, kids learning to walk, first kiss, first heartbreak, first job, wedding. We remember those things, but more often than not, it is not dated.

A friend sent me a link to 1000 No.1s. The web page shows all the No. 1 songs on the billboard across decades. Out of curiosity, I tried to search the very first English song in my life, and it is Diana Ross & Lionel Richie’s Endless Love.

Why is it the very first? Surprisingly, I hardly know any of the songs before it, and I pretty much know EVERY single song after it. Some of the songs are so familiar that I can just close my eyes, and the song starts to play automatically in my mind. It was like, I heard Endless Love, and decided I liked English songs, and started to track Top 10 on billboards for a few years to come.

The date on the song is August 15, 1981. I was 10 and barely knew any English. That tells me how music affects me. I could love it without knowing what it is. Even now, I have songs in my iPhone that I love dearly but do not have a clue what the song is talking about, some Spanish, some Russian, some Thai.

My All-in-one Computer

My computer has been too much of an entertainment center, or more precisely, the center of my life, to a point that I felt I did not have a life. Well, the problem is about the computer desk. When I bought it, it was meant to be “something that I could use temporarily before I figure out where I want my life to lead” that kind of thing, but then ‘temporary’ becomes a year, 2 years, and now 2 years and a half. The computer desk is now battered, and I have not yet found anything else, or I have not even tried.

I could pretty much sit at the computer desk all day, day after day, browsing the internet, chatting with friends, reading wikipedia, watching some videos, playing games. Because the desk is small, the computer was always in the way when I wanted to do something else, so few minutes into doing what I was supposed to do, I found myself using the computer again, mindlessly clicking. In early March, I decided it was time to make some changes.

First thing that had to go was the TV. It was an old 20” CRT TV. I used to watch news in the morning, but when I moved out to live alone, I could not justify spending around 20 USD for the cable and only watch the news occasionally in the morning. I chose to spend a bit more on internet connection for faster speed and do without the cable. The TV sat in the living room for the whole time I am here, well taken care of, dusted and all that. I realized it would probably sit there forever if I did not do anything about it; however, if I removed it to free up the space, then I could have a better idea how to re-arrange the space.

Surprisingly, after the TV was gone, everything seemed to fall into place automatically. I moved the computer and the speaker system to the living room, and put them on the original TV stand. I started to watch some streaming TV shows on the computer in full screen mode. Thanks to the technologies that have improved over the years, streaming video is mature, and I really have a good time watching the shows on this 24-inch ‘TV’.

Now I spend more time  in the living room, watching shows or reading, and less time on the computer. Gaming has been given a much lower priority due to space restriction of where the computer currently sits. Computer desk is free of clutters, so when I’d like to do something , I can do it without being sidetracked. The apartment is still very empty and full of potentials. I love it.

Ran

I signed up for a course one month and a half ago. It’s regarding project management, very intensive. I have to be in the class from 9 to 6 on Saturday, and have group discussion the next day. We met for group discussion at 10, and normally we left at 5. So pretty much the whole weekend has been devoted to the class. I have to find time in the evening to do grocery shopping and the chores.

Yesterday was the last day for the course. The teature showed us an example how everything is used in the real project, and we had a chance (finally) to have hands-on experience writing related document for project management. That was cool.

After everyone presented his material, the teacher gave everyone few cards and asked us to write cards to appreciate people who had helped us go through the class. We could write one for the whole class, one for the coach, one for the significant half, and one for ourselves. I was pretty uneasy then, as I could not come up with anything to write on the card. I felt I was compelled to do this superficial thing, and everything I had to write down at that moment would not be my true feeling and it is wrong.

So when the time was up, and the teacher asked group leader to take one card from each person and read it in front of the whole class, I refused. Not sure how I composed myself, and I’m sure I looked like an idiot.

Then comes another game.

Since it was officially the last class, we were asked to meet classmates, one at a time, and evaluate how we felt for each other. If I felt the other personwas just ok, I barely knew him, then we counted one, two, three, and I showed him one finger (index finter). If he also showed one finger, then we had a mutual agreement for each other, and then we nodded. If I showed one and he showed two, then we did not have an agreement, we crossed out arms in front of our chest, and walked away to find the next person.

If we both liked each other and both showed 2 fingers, then we shook hands. If we both liked each other a lot and both showed 3 fingers, then we high-fived. If we both felt like we really went through something together and great friends, and showed 4 fingers, then we hugged. So one to four fingers.

So that was pretty much like a group hug game. I do not think anyone, in their good consicousness, would show one to three fingers in that scenario. However I was very very uneasy and uncomfortable. One person from my group approached, and I had to apologized this is really not my type of game. And when another person from another group approached, I was actually frightened. I must have looked like a really idiot. And I picked up my backpack and coat, and ran to the door. I ran, literally.

I was very upset, and the first real feeling that I felt was anger. I signed up for a class, and definitely not religious type of thing. That company has not right to put me in an awkard situation like this. But there has to be a combination of many subconsious reasons that is way beyong my apprehension.

RED

If I wanna go see a movie myself, I would never pick this one. First of all, I am not a fan of Bruce Willis. Secondly, I am not that into action movies. Action is fine, but is just never my first choice.

But school has just started, and there are not that many choices around. J does not read Chinese, so any non-English is out. He asked me to have a look what is available, and the only 2 choices are ‘the town’ and RED.

The town features robbery (ouch) and some romances (yeah), but I’m not familiar with the cast (ouch). RED is action movie (ouch), but I’m more familiar with the cast, Helen Mirren (yeah), Morgan Freeman (yeah), and Bruce Willis (kindof ouch actually). Touch choice, and I still decided to see RED.

It turns out to be a very good choice. The story is kind of stupid of course, but it is very funny. After around 30 minutes, I was totally relaxed, entertained, and had a very good laugh when gunshots were not meant to see blood, but a way to to funny. I was especially impressed with the way Bruce talks, and he appears to be a gentle and romantic. J had a good time too. Good choice.

Drapes Up

I finally decided to make some changes to my apartment.

For a long while, I thought it was a temporary place, and I would be moving very soon. I kept the place clean, got some furniture to make it liveable, but would not buy anything to make it more comfortable. I always told friends that I’m going back, or I’m going back to my place, but I never said home. 

It is hard to explain the way the brain works, like people really cannot learn to cherish something until they almost lose it.

I have been looking for a job, off and on, for a while. I had an offer back in September. The company is located in Nantou county. The distance and location makes it impossible for me to commute from Taipei. Of course during the interview, location was not a problem, commute was not a problem, relocation was not a problem.  I was so determined that nothing, and nothing could stop me from taking this positin. I negotiated with the HR, asked for a couple of weeks to clean up my mess in Taipei and was about to get ready to go south to find another place to live. That’s when I had a second thought.

I felt the urge to stay.

Yes, urge. It was so strong that I almost could not bear the thought of moving out at all, out of this apartment, or out of Taipei. Yes, I know I am renting, and do not have the ownership to this place, but I did not want to leave. I declined the offer.

I sought to change.

The owner had large wide windows built in the living room. However, they could not seem to find blinds that fits the windows, so the current blinds installed are few inches shorter than the windows. It would be fine during the day; however, I never felt I had complete privacy at night when the living room was bright, and the neighbors across the narrow alley could see right through. I want drapes, and always wanted to have drapes up to block some sunlights in the winter and add some colors to the living room. The blinds are dusty and in very bad shape. They are bolted right in to the concrete, so I have no way to remove and clean them.

That’s when friends came to help.

Those helps are just little talks over supper or over MSN, or some other fancy modern online chat. One advised me to buy those removeable 3M tape to put on the wall to support the drapes, and be sure to get the strongest kind. Some told me there is a new store right by IKEA that sells all kinds of Japanese merchanise. I went to supermarket, looked at the 3M tape, wrote down the maximum weight that they could support. I went to the Japanese store, and they have a very good selection of drapes, well marked with the dimensions, installation guides, accessories displayed.

I did not get everything right in the first place. Had to go back and forth because I did not get the dimensions right, because I forgot to buy the rings for the drapes, because I could not wait for the tape to set and put the drapes up right away and the whole thing ended up collapsing and made an astounding noise. A friend came to my aid and showed me how to use epoxy to glue the hook to the wall properly.

At least now the living room has a new look. Something new, something refreshing, something different, something comfortable, and something homey. After nearly 2 years, I’m making it home.