lull
february 18, 2007
i was reading other people's blogs recently and thinking to myself how boring my life has gotten. there's no single girl drama or married wife drama, catfights, boy problems, girl problems, stress with school, could never really write about work anyway, toxic friends to keep away from....you know, really juicy things that a lot of people come to one's website to read about. the most exciting thing these days is i get asked on how to cook okra from the checkout lady at 99 ranch market. or getting asked which trail mix is the best in the target food aisle. *yawn*
has life truly gotten so sedentary that there isn't much juiciness to write about anymore? in other words...B O R I N G.
people would argue that no news or drama is probably the best thing in one's life. although i would wholeheartedly agree, i think life lacks a certain spice when the seas are too calm. but i should be thankful that DOMO is the only thing that is truly making a blip on the excitement meter these days. and even that is barely hitting the indication marker really.
i should learn to be more grateful to the peace, serenity and calm that the lull in my life is currently bobbing on.
in other news, i'm getting surgery on my hand in 2 weeks or so. it will be on march 9th. after a follow up visit with my ortho, the trigger finger is still acting up. i really don't like the feeling it's in and i can't do a lot of the things i used to....the way i used to. so i'll be going for some outpatient surgery and it should resolved that issue pretty quickly. as always, i'm not a fan of being put under or recovering from any surgery (esp the one from last year removing the endometrioma), but i gotta do what i gotta do.
all they are planning to do is make an incision into my palm about 3/4 inch down from my middle finger and make a slice into the tendon to release the part of the tendon that is "catching" on the bone.
yummy.
keep good thoughts for me please.
due to the aforementioned hand condition, i haven't been knitting as much. it's not that i cannot knit - it's just that i don't want to overuse it so much as to cause unnecessary pain. so i've been continuing my reading quest. i don't think i've read this much in years but it's just a crazy how my hunger for books cannot be satiated. it's much like knitting, if i let the sleeping beast slumber, i don't have much of a craving but when it's awoken, you better watch out. unfortunately, knitting definitely costs me a lot more when the beast is awake. with books, at least i can get them through the library. which reminds me how much i love our library system. i sesarch through the catalogs online and request books to be shipped to my library and then i go and pick em up. love the library.
the queen of tears by chris mckinney: this is mckinney's third novel i believe. i've read his first two as well entitled the tattoo and bolohead row, respectively. all are contemporary hawaiian fiction. i iam always amazed at the way he writes and wishes he has more books out on the market but the queen of tears does not disappoint. it's the saga of a korean orphan who became a famous korean movie star and then left to the united states. the story is written under the narrative of each of the characters as to give you a better visual on their thought processes and backgrounds through their own eyes and mouth. the story weaves the present day main character in her senior years and her relationship with her 3 adult children, in laws and grandchild into vignettes of her past as the story unfolds all the secrets and myseries behind each person. mckinney's books are not soft and comforting types of books but instead reveals raw emotion and reality of life as we all know it. i highly recommend this and all his other books if you are a fan of contemporary hawaiian literature.
behold the many by lois ann yamanka: LAY is hands down one of my favorite contemporary hawaiian writers. she writes in a way that is so deep and poetic that you really need to search into the words for the meanings to see how it all ties into her story. i've been a fan of hers ever since she came out with wild meat and the bully burgers and have read all her books since (including the young adult ones!) :o behold the many however was a tough one to read as it took me a bit to get fully into the story. it's about the story of a portuguese and japanese family whose 3 children succumbed to TB during the plantation era. in particular, it focuses on anah, the eldest daughter and her life. i have to say tha i probably enjoyed her earlier books a tad bit more but still am always impressed by her lyrical writing.
on a sidenote, once i was flying back from hawaii when a stewardess stopped me and asked me if i was lois ann yamanaka. i *guess* i do look a little like her. we are both somewhat thick girls i guess. but it was an honor to be mistaken for her....although i think she is a bit older than i am. hmph!
crossfire by miyuki miyabe: i think miyabe's first novel, all she was worth, is one of my favorite books ever. it was that book that first really fanned the flames for my love of japanese mysteries/fiction. i personally thought she was astounding and waited patiently for her to come out with followup books. she did so with shadow family (another great read but not as good as all she was worth) and now, crossfire. crossfire is about junko, a woman with the supernatural powers of pyrokinesis and her need to control her powers as well as her entanglement one night as a witness to a murder. with her powers, she goes in search of the killer for revenge to the brutality she witnessed and that sparks a whole chain of events for her as she begins to uncover the mysteries surrounding the murderers. as usual, miyabe does an excellent job weaving a story that keeps you flipping to the next page. she also places us in the shoes of someone who is fighting with the power within them and allows us a glimpse into a life like hers. and did i hear that they are making a movie from this book? go read it and go read all she was worth FIRST if you really want to start loving this author.
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yay! the first two photos of the winners of my FSM (free scarf movement) have arrived. behold...the winner of FSM #1, elaine with her baby in some unmarked starbucks in hong kong. :)
and i believe joy is the winner of FSM #3! she looks great in the blue. i haven't received a photo of FSM winner #2 but perhaps she doesn't like the scarf afterall? :p ah well, i'm feeling the love now that i've seen the scarves wrapped around actual people's necks! and seeeeeee....not ALL my readers are angry little asian girls!
anyway, thanks to the both of you for sending me photos of yourselves. it really made my day! now i'll have to dig up more scarves to give out before spring/summer rolls around again.
and oh yes, HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!
currently listening to: feist, secret heart
