MOTD

Life is being particularly odd at the moment. I suspect some cosmic plan has been hatched to shake me up, challenge my preconceptions and stop me from feeling safe. People upon whom I can normally rely are betraying me or otherwise letting me down. Others are stepping in from nowhere to help me out a little. In some ways I am enjoying it as it makes me question what I believe in and what I am doing. I need to make an active choice rather than letting things drift. Two of the positive turns of the wheel had; 1) The Brother and I in comfortable conversation (which is profoundly reassuring) and 2) a word from the recruiter telling me that I shouldn't give up hope about the west coast (although the east coast is apparently now being very persistent). Our new manager is proving not to be the panacea for the department's ills. Politically motivated folk grabbed her attention on day 1 and now have her ear so it looks as if Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose... Since there's more definite talk about me getting some more responsibility things are balanced so that I can stay or leave without too much overhead. It can really be free will in action. Maybe.

Zhiwen listened to my complaints about my poor listening comprehension and promptly brought me discs containing 25 episodes of the apparently famous soap, 《大宅门》, which has no subtitles and the actors generally speak in textbook Mandarin at a measured pace. Unfortunately I keep getting distracted by the plot. It is something like a Chinese versions of Upstairs Downstairs and the characters are the stereotypes from soap operas everywhere, Powerful Woman with Troubled Past, Cinderella-like Girl, Bratty Girl, Henpecked Husband, Quiet but Conscientious Wife... You name it, they're all there. My guess is that there'll soon be the special episode, Who killed 鸡. 儿.?

I've been listening to the sound track from The Thin Red Line and it is completely spookadelic. The outright winner is the Vanuatu God U Tekem Laef Blong Mi which is truly uplifting, something like a Polynesian Hymn to Joy. Some part of me wants to know the lyrics but another part tells me to just listen to the whole thing and enjoy the spirit. Another positive side-effect of this aural addiction is that I have been cured of listening to that famous Icelandic, Ragnar Bjarnason, singing Nirvana. I have also finished reading The Thin Red Line which basically comprises the script of the film but Mr. Jones writes well and made me take my time. The current book is one I spotted on the apartment building's free shelf and I picked it up only because I was intrigued by the cover. I am thus now reading Robert Cohen's Inspired Sleep the style of which amazes me by its resemblance to that of Mr. Palahniuk.

O.K. April Winchell doesn't like direct links to the songs. In that case go to this page and search for Ragnar. There's lots of other bad craziness to be had while you are there.