That title is Korean for “Herbs.” Predictably, it’s pronounced “Huh-beu.” Almost like the word “hub”, with an “eugh” added to the b at the end, to make it two syllables. (Have I ever mentioned that “crazy,” when pronounced with a Korean accent, has four syllables?) After a few years of my fruitlessly trying to score basil leaves and fresh oregano or lemongrass or any number of other things, I began begging Lime to get online and see if these things can be gotten in Korea. Online, because even years ago, I’d figured out that all kinds of stuff is available …
Category: PERSONAL
No Art Ever Came From Such a Dulled Soul
A few weeks ago, Lime and I had argued about something — one of those dumb, petty, transient arguments that all couples have — and I went for a walk to cool off. As I walked along the street, I saw something awful happen. There was a thin black cat on the sidewalk, coming towards me, and it was so skinny that it reminded me of that poem of Basho’s about the girl cat, so thin on love and barley. Except that this cat wasn’t beloved, wasn’t fed on barley. It was so thin on rats and garbage, poor thing. …
Tech We Need
Boing-Boing reports: Biologist Rupert Sheldrake stabbed at lecture. And to think I imagined, immediately, that it was some IDiot. But it was, apparently, a deranged visitor from Japan. I seriously wonder whether it’s going to become easier, or harder, to pinpoint whether another person is a nutball or not as we get more deeply embedded into the Net in our daily lives — I mean, as the interfaces get more and more distributed to everywhere instead of just on little screens in front of us. The scary thing is that to use the advantage, we’d have to be giving up …
Eh?
This Associated Press article had me saying, “Eh?” Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton accused rival Sen. Barack Obama and his allies of trying to stop people from voting as some of his backers have called on her to drop out of the presidential race. The Obama campaign rejected the charge, dismissing Clinton’s criticism as “completely laughable.” Yeah, I don’t know that I have an opinion on this whole Obama/Clinton thing — I’m more disenchanted with Clinton, like most people, for the obvious reasosn, but I’m honestly dubious about the ability of anyone to change Washington, let alone America, with all …
Gaaah! (With a Smile)
Got my first writing cheque of the year. And it’s a good one! And a contract, from the same publisher. (Asimov’s.) And that other project I might be working on? We’re in. Today is a good day!
Extra D’oh…
I slept 2 hours on Wednesday night. It’s not that I’m that busy, mind you. I was supposed to sleep four. I just lay down and couldn’t sleep until 6:00am, and I had a class at 8:00am. But I am that busy, that I could only fit in four hours. Partly, I suspect, I just take my classes too seriously, and partly, I try not to let me job get too much in the way of my writing. Except, of course, that this would lead to letting my health get in the way of my writing, so I am cutting …
많이먹어라…
Sometimes, you just have to wonder what makes people behave the way they do. When I arrived at the professors’ cafeteria this evening for dinner, I noticed this weird-looking guy staring at me constantly as I made my way up the line, adding food to my tray. When I’d finished, I stopped to get a cup of water, and by then he was staring directly at me. I noticed that he had a face like, well, like a slab of tenderized beef… meaning, I think the man had partaken in more than his fair share of fisticuffs. And, of course, …
Define “Muslim” (UPDATED)
UPDATE: See the comments section, particularly Liadnan’s comment and my reply to it. Maybe the news report was even less competent than I thought! Richard Dawkins has been taken to task at times for his assertion that raising a child in one or another religious tradition is a form of child abuse, as it constitutes an abuse of the trust given one with a child. My friend Marvin and I have been discussing the intricacies of this issue over at his LJ (in the comments, but do read the post!) but I ran across an article online that demonstrates how …
Weekend Update
This weekend I: and Lime met some people for dinner. Not all of whom I expected would be there, but the ones seated nearest us were cool. However, at an adjoining table was a student invited by one of the LEC teachers. The student is a nice enough guy but I’m kind of annoyed since, when around a student from my own department, I always have to be a little on my guard, or, at least, can’t quite relax and be myself. But happily after the dinner a few of us got together and hung out, particularly the people upstairs …
Meme Madness
Ganked off Marvin, who rocks. 1. What bill do you hate paying the most? Paying? What, are you in some kind of third world country? I don’t pay bills — it’s all automated. Oh, wait, most semester-breaks I travel, and I have to go to the bank machine to transfer money to pay for my plane tickets. They’re not cheap. I hate that! 2. Where was the last place you had a romantic dinner? At home. I made it. Slaved. For hours.