49...i feel it coming

Heard the Weeknd's song "I feel it coming" (ft. Daft Punk) for the first time today but I'm sure that's one that brings back memories for a lot of you out there. Despite how utterly amazing love is - it's "the only religion" as James Altucher would say - it's as destructive as it is creative and constructive. Cheesy thing to say, but it's definitely not easy. 

There are many people i've loved and currently love in my life right now, and i consider myself a very rich person because of that. An extremely lucky person as well. The amount i've been blessed by the people surrounding me blows my mind away, and to not recognize their kindness would be a true insult. Thus, i've decided to dedicate the next few blog posts to share some anecdotes of them - if you are someone who has lost all faith in humanity, may these remind you that there are still beautiful people out there, and that there is still some good in the world that's worth fighting for.

48...borrowing words

When you're too tired to even write or think, the best thing to do next is find other people's words that you can borrow to express how you feel, since as humans, we constantly need to express ourselves to get anywhere in life. Terribly exhausting but wonderfully rewarding when you get it right. Today, I share the work of Frank O'Hara, a poetic artist (+ former roommate of Edward Gorey), to end this post and leave me a reminder of what i actually wanted to say.

My Heart
(May 1954)

I'm not going to cry all the time
nor shall I laugh all the time,
I don't prefer one "strain" to another.
I'd have the immediacy of a bad movie,
not just a sleeper, but also the big,
overproduced first-run kind. I want to be
at least as alive as the vulgar. And if
some aficionado of my mess says "That's
not like Frank!", all to the good! I
don't wear brown and gray suits all the time,
do I? No. I wear workshirts to the opera,
often. I want my feet to be bare,
I want my face to be shaven, and my heart—
you can't plan on the heart, but
the better part of it, my poetry, is open.

- Frank O’Hara

47...late night thoughts with lots of tea

Its been a while since i felt the need to write. Perhaps more the will to write rather than the need. Overall, its been too long since i've wanted to munch on words and blurt them out. So hello again. Here we go.

45.5...the best kind of energy boost

Maybe it was because i saw Miwa's post yesterday, or maybe it was because i was craving pancakes (i always am...), i was so lucky when my childhood friend suddenly invited me out for pancakes today. I had a four hour class in the afternoon and only half of my reading assignments done, but how could i say no? I hadn't been able to see her properly in a while, and i had so many things i wanted to hear about from her, so it was a lovely catch-up brunch before i dashed off to school. Lovely company + good food has always been the most simple equation to instant happiness in my life.

At Latte Graphic in Japan

44...pot-pourri

Though i didn't get through half the things on my 'TO-DO OVER THE SUMMER' list, one of the unexpected fun things i did do was make pot-pourri from roses - the petals are still in a bag while we wait for their aroma to increase (if that's even possible?) but i can't wait to open it to see the outcome!

(Perhaps this is a bit embarrasing to admit but i didn't know that pot-pourri also meant "A combination of incongruous things" till this summer...well it's always interesting to learn.)

Of course, while we were waiting for them to dry, i took some close ups of these gorgeous petals before they turned brown so i thought i'd post those shots to start my blogs with photos from the summer.

Now i will get back to snacking on chocolate and reading about Antonio Negri and Michael Hardt (the chocolate helps me stay awake) but hope everyone gets some well-needed rest before another busy week. 

Interesting fact of the day that has nothing to do with anything on this post - apparently Mercury reaches it's greatest elongation today so if you're a stargazer, you'll be able to see that along with Spica on its right.

｡:*+゜゜+*:.｡.*:+☆

43...diy

Having spent the first half of my summer vacation travelling around (i will get around to uploading photos soon), i think it's time for me to sit down and sort out things in my room and start...well getting a move on with the next section of my life (way to go at being dramatic!). There are so many clusters of items i've collected over the years, which i can now only see as bits and bobs that take up the majority of the space on my bookshelf, causing the actual books that should be there to be piled up elsewhere in my room. So here i'm making a public announcement of things that i need to clear + do:

1. Sort out whatever it is i've jammed into these drawers.

2. Figure out what to do with these little things.

Too many stuffed animals - they're all too precious to throw away though

(i have too many keyholders hanging around in random places...)

Now that is a mess. 

3. Find a better way to store my bags.

i feel like this picture says it all ^^;

4. Think of a more practical way to store posters and fliers (since they sadly don't have a place on my wall)

5. Dig deep and find my creative mojo and diy this bag.

What're things you need to do over this summer:)?

40...yokohama

Intern/job hunting is tough & i have a ton of photos to upload - aiaiai, thank you Karin for reminding me to keep this up - i will be going to document bits of the lgbt rainbow parade tomorrow (@ Yoyogi park!) so will definitely have to blog about that which means see you in two days...i won't forget;)

39...its been a long week

The title of this post says it all!
Now, since it's March 11th, i know that i would have blogged about that if it weren't for something else that happened last week. Connecting this with all that's being posted and broadcasted about the 3/11 on the media, it makes me think about and reflect on everyone around me, my relation to them, and on myself. What are accomplishments and what do they mean in this ever-flowing indescribable thing called life? Usually (and in this case too) these thoughts are left unanswered inside me, and kind of just hang around in my head, waiting to be dealt with again, but the fogginess around them seems to be clearing.

Going back to the title of this post, sometimes i think "aiaiai, is this week ever going to end?" and then before i know it, a week and a day has gone by without me being able to process any of the events that went by. It took me a while to realise that time isn't being unkind by constantly flowing by; it's merely doing its job and letting us move on and face the day (literally) when we don't have the strength or courage to do so by ourselves. So for today, i'm really thankful for that.

38...there...and back again

First i need to apologise again for the lack of posts. It was lovely though that a friend i made through google+ had noticed my absence and said "welcome back" when she saw i came back. I think that its small things like this that make everything worth it all.
Now that my exams are over, and my papers carelessly done and tossed aside, i finally have more time to be a sloth and catch up on some long neglected books that i've piled on the floor.
Empty Cradles & The Dark Room are two of them but can't wait to tackle them.

ただいま!

36...barbara

There are many women that i admire and think are wonderful, not only from the people around me but also people i've never met, or even characters who don't live in the same dimension as me. One of those women happen to be Barbara Streisand. Of course, i've never met her and most likely (or even definitely) what i know might simply be just a tiny portion of what makes up 'Barbara Streisand' - but for that small portion i know, i think she's wonderful. I mean, i don't know any other actress who has made such an impact to have a phenomenon named after her.
Now, i've never actually seen Oprah, and i never really intended to (simply because 1) i never lived in a country where it was broadcasted on tv and due to 1), 2) i never really knew what it was about) but i suddenly had the urge to look Barbara up and found an interview she did on Oprah, and well, just thought i'd share. Just because. And i doubt it was just me who melted over Robert Redford...

35...which to let win - procrastination or sleep?

Happy hump day!
I think this feeling comes to me every year but once again, it's getting quite cold here and i start wishing we could hibernate like bears to wait for the winter to pass...but then we'd miss out on good food and enjoying the winter scenery that has its charms unlike any other. But on some days, it's nice to cuddle up in your blankets, have someone pour you a warm mug of cocoa, and slug out to ignore the weather outside.
(←my cat trying to hide? we bought her a new play house but what we didn't realize when we did was that our cat was too darn big now to fit T.T So she now uses it as a head warmer)

Aaand chosen from the ones i've seen during this winter so far, here are a few movies you could watch while you do:)

1. Cloud Atlas (2012)
I'd have to say that for me, the book was definitely easier to follow compared to the movie - but nonetheless that didn't stop me from enjoying this film. I actually went to see this when it came out two years ago, and re-watched it over this break; The transformations of the actors who play multiple roles throughout the film are worth checking out.

2. Hairspray (1988)
If you've seen the recent version, don't be discouraged to see this: this version has different songs, a different twist in the main story, and is probably more entertaining for teens/adults. The political and social fight to end racism is more intense in this first version - and you'd get to see a Tracy thats more daring and quite the flirt!

3. 20 Feet From Stardom (2013)
Back-up singers - I can't speak for all but i'm pretty sure most of us take them for granted. I recently saw this documentary but it is powerful; i like movies/documentaries like this where those we take for granted or who we don't even acknowledge at all have a chance to voice their opinions and this one does just that.

4. Argo (2012)
I remember when this won the academy and thinking to myself 'i should watch this' - and after two years, it just so happened to be showing on the tv when i switched it on. Although it may not be a perfectly accurate portrayal of what truly happened during the escape of the American embassy staff during the Iranian revolution, i thought it was quite a cleverly made film.

5. While You Were Sleeping (1995)
Sandra Bullock is an actress who i've admired for as long as i can remember, and i thought i'd seen most of her films but somewhere along the road i missed this one - and i'm glad i came across it. It's a sweet love comedy film that perhaps would make most think 'typical' while watching, but if you just want to end your day with a feel-good film, here's a good one.

Any recommendations:)?

33...almost there

It's almost 12 in Japan, So as cliche as this is going to sound, 2014 is just around the corner - an hour away to be precise. There are so many things that i would mention here about this year, but for now, i'll just mention one thing for next year:

My sister (who recently came home for the holidays from Thailand) and also Maya (a few minutes ago) asked me what i was gonna aim for next year, which made me think...i like having goals etc but i forget them as quick as i am to make them. But one thing my sister mentioned was to try appreciating the people she cares about more, and i agree that that's one thing i need to do. Therefore, starting here, beginning with Miwa who always leaves lovely comments & my friends who give me feedback, thank you. May 2014 be a year filled with more laughs for you since laughing always seems to make things better ;)

31...sleeping like a log

i've been so behind on updating this but it's because i've been a lump in my bed for the past few days with a stomach virus so everyone out there: Please be careful of what you touch, eat and breathe because these nasty little buggers are a literally a big pain in the butt! But enough of that, i meant to come up with 10 things to do until Christmas but aiaiai, like every year it's already almost here and i'm not even done with buying presents yet (our tree is quite sad this year since we failed to find the star that's supposed to go on the top...).
One thing that happened after my previous post was that i aged a year. But just as Jenny says in 'An Education' (and one of my favourite lines + if you haven't seen the movie, sorry for the spoiler) "i feel old. But not very wise". So if anything, i'll be spending my free time during this winter vacation reading and well, okay who am i kidding, watching tv shows and movies to entertain my brain and humour myself (i'm currently stuck on 'Community' which my love told me was good - she's right most if not all the time!). Happy holidays everyone!

29...baam let it out

i have recently discovered a new favourite pasttime - which is similar to my other favourite pasttimes since they only require me to sit in front of my computer and watch my screen. It's Poetry slam. I recently came across a video of a girl reciting a poem which led to others (since i'm one of those people who like to oogle the links on the side on youtube) and one of them turned out to be this one:

and then this one:

to this:

And i was blown away by the intensity, the honesty and the charisma that they were emitting - i love people like this, doing things like this, expressing their feelings openly and unashamedly since, what should they be ashamed of in the first place. These are all from Button Poetry and i'm sure that there are more brilliant poetry slam videos out there but this was an awesome place to start; i went from video to video to video (as you can see). 

Not only through poetry slams or even poetry itself, i think it's wonderful to have an output to your emotions or ideas or well anything. As i mentioned before on this blog, sometimes it's difficult for me to word things verbally and much easier writing them, but i think i'd like to give this a try someday; yell my feelings through a mic? very cool.

25...looking back

Since it's almost the end of the year i thought it'd be nice to 'look back' on 2013...with photos.

Part 1 - Places & Things (場所 & 物)

1. Bird gatherings (Yokohama)

i thought this was so darn adorable, how they all came to this spot - it looked like they were having an international conference on the telephone lines.

 When i passed by the same place a different day, they were still deep in conversation.

2. Tokyo as a miniature scale model (Tokyo, Skytree)

3. Out and about (Yokohama, Tokyo)

↓ Asakusa

↓ At the beach in Enoshima

↓ At a park in Yokohama,

was experimenting and took a picture through the view-finder of another camera.

4. Finding dainty little buildings (Sapporo)

5. Enjoying the view (Kyoto)

Going into the bamboo forest at Arashiyama (嵐山の竹林)

↓ If you go to Kyoto during the summer,

the tanabata displays are definitely worth suffering mosquito bites for.

6. Into the wild (Chiba)

"thnks fr th mmrs"

♡