Blogging in bed on a Sunday morning

Housemate David did his once-in-a-blue-moon mail check yesterday, and instead of a bunch of bills I got a bunch of bills, PLUS Kasia's mail! The sweet girl sent me a CD of our pictures from the hiking trip in the States, and even printed out some of the pictures.

The sense of yearning within me... it is a feeling of intense longing, to a realm that I can almost sense, just almost. The careless laughter, the outstretched arms against a backdrop of breathtaking landscape, the heat of the sun against the back of my neck, the joy of being right there, right then! But now it is unattainable, and all we have are pictures to look back at, to have nostalgic reminiscences of. The beauty of the moment is sealed, there is no way to go back. The only thing to do is to seize every moment of life, to create more and more of these memories, for that is the only thing we can do.

So here are some pictures captured by the beautiful Kasia, whose photographic skills far surpass that of mine.

Kasia =) hugs

Micah with Bryce National Park. This is one of my favourite pictures, because it captures the vastness and majesty of Bryce. Bryce National Park was one place where I couldn't stop sighing with happiness, because every view, every different angle, was equally beautiful.

An natural arch in the Arches National Park. Notice the tiny specks we call human for scale.

Me, and the waters of Colorado River.

This is Lake Powell, a reservoir on the Colorado River. We swam in the lake, where a native Indian (who looks like a Maori) hit on me, and Kasia almost got swept away by big waves created by a running motorboat.

The Grand Canyon... and I still maintain that you can't fully appreciate its grandness without hiking to the base, not even if you do. I hope to go back someday, and do another trail. Maybe in the winter.

Here's me taking pictures of cacti on the way to Plateau Point at the Grand Canyon, to prove that it is desert conditions that we are talking about. After hiking to the mid point from the base with Kasia, Micah, Vanessa and Michel(e), Kasia and I separated from the rest to take a detour to Plateau Point where we got drunk with nature and even have a video to prove how high we were. Best detour ever.

Me and Kasia finishing the hike from the base of the Grand Canyon. Finally!

Hermit's Rest, the furthest end of Grand Canyon National Park where the shuttle bus can take you. We chased the sun that morning - we woke up at 4 and missed two buses and finally ended up watching the sunrise at the "wrong" place. Fond memories of jogging around the bus stop because it was so cold, exchanging massages to assuage the muscle pains of the crazy hike the day before, and this weird Asian (think he was Japanese?) guy who took our picture at the Hermit's Rest (you can see his shadow) and his request of taking a picture with Vanessa, the girl in pink.

The bus from the back. I was writing in my travel journal that time. The bus accommodates 35 people, but we only had 17, so it wasn't cramped at all. That's Michel(e) from Italy looking towards the camera, his name is Michel but after Vanessa started calling him Michele we all followed suit, much to his annoyance because that sounded like a girl's name.

=)

Great times. Wanderlust is like an addiction - the more I get, the more I can't get enough of. I need to run, to be free, to embrace life with the company of people who, like me, can't get enough of it. Too often I meet people who are just so jaded and so complacent with what they have. They don't hate their lives but they don't like it much either. So day after day they wake up, work, go to bed... and before they know it, the best years of their lives are over, and they wish they'd done this or that, and didn't put it off till later, when they had more time, when they were richer, when they had enough of courage to take the step.

I say, fuck it all, it's my life and I will live it the way I want it. I'm thankful for what I have, and I'm vigilant of opportunities that cross my path, so when I see them I can reach out for them. Whether I get them or not is another matter. At least I tried.

In other unrelated news, I finally had formal training for dragonboating yesterday because they had a boat full of newbies. It feels great to finally know what you're doing, and what exactly you're supposed to do! I wish I had more time to go for practice, they have it three times a week but I can only do once. Body's hurting like a bitch but it feels really good =)

OK need to go cook lunch, my Brazilian couchsurfer is arriving in 2 hours. Another one from Indonesia arriving tonight around 9. Strangers are (Val can chant with me) friends you've not met yet! And sharing, is caring!

Escapism: Gooseneck Campsite

I have to finish this paper to finish this paper to finish this paper. (That is what I call two deja vus in one sentence.)

But at the back of my head I am actually there, in the picture, looking at the river below me, marvelling at the sheer insignificance of myself and my problems in general. I love how nature puts me in my place.

Motivation to finish this paper to finish this paper to finish this paper so that I can write other papers and compile them into a confirmation report so that I can travel again! Ooosh!

Escapism: Sunset/Sunrise Edition

Sunset with Val from a jetty at Perhentian Kecil Island, Malaysia.

Jia Ling's jump while waiting for the sunset, at Tanjung Aru Beach, Sabah, Malaysia

Sunset at Ayutthaya, Thailand with Asa from our beautiful guesthouse

Spectacular sunrise at Pondicherry, India with Asa.

Boston skyline at sunset while walking on some bridge, Boston, USA

Sunset from the Green Tortoise bus, leaving San Francisco, USA

Sunrise from Gooseneck National Park, USA, with a storm in the distance, in a sleeping bag, with Kasia sleeping beside me.

Sunrise at the Grand Canyon, USA. Chasers of the sun: Micah, Michel, Vanessa, Kasia and I.

I am incredibly privileged. No more whining.

The Ditty Bops - Walk or Ride

With just one kiss you could change the world,
It might not be much better-- but it certainly couldn't hurt.
When you stomp your feet you aren't hurting me,
But you're always killing something just by living on the Earth...

So who you supposed to listen to when you're looking for something to do?
And all the voices shut you up
-Someone put a brick in your coffee cup.-
When you're trying to decide whether to walk or to ride;
Take the easy way you know that you want to

I saw an educated girl give her hair a twirl
And contemplate the meaning of a man with just one arm.
She's not a genius or a dunce, but it makes no difference;
For at any moment we might find ourselves a charm

But I'm feeling quite confused by the people who refuse to see
A simple way of life don't make you the loser.
They say we won't make it far if we don't drive there in a car,
But we'll be there with time to spare and find our own way home.

You might find the meaning of life in the barrel of a rifle
If it's pointed at a bird or if it's pointed at your head.
But me, I'd rather plant a tree that grows up tall for all to see..
Until I need a pencil, then I'll chop it to the ground

At night falling down, will it make a sound?
Should I even wonder what it'd say?
It's so hard to change yourself, easier to tell someone else
That everything is going to be okay..

Oooh

---

Sidenote: Jim who was the last person that inspired me to turn vegetarian, had one arm in a sling when I met him. His shoulder and arm bones were shattered in an accident two years back, so he has a metal structure where the bones were destroyed, and he met further complications when he got infected in the hospital while he was treated. When I met him on the train, he was on his way to see the doctor in Davis. Thought that it was interesting that the lyrics of this song, which is one of my favouritest songs right now, had a line in there that resonates with this experience.

More from The Burning Man

I'm seriously regretting my lax attitude towards taking pictures while travelling nowadays. Maybe this marks the renaissance of my trigger-happy days when I was in New Zealand. Anyhow here's some pictures that I did manage to get of the Burning Man.

By day:

Where ice is sold.

Huge dome for climbing - I only managed to get to the second level and decided that it wouldn't be fun to be stuck up there. So I clambered down again like the loser that I was.

Limerick in a Porta Potty - good loo reading in bad-smelling conditions.

Center Camp - a good place to chill and enjoy performances and be picked up by guys =D Beverages are sold in this camp too, one of the two places that you can use money in Black Rock City. The performer in this picture was exceptionally good. Her voice was just mesmerizing.

By night:
It's not very apparent, but the thing at the background is a spinning carousel. You hold on to a bar, run as fast as you can, and get on the carousel while it's spinning. While getting on is a problem, getting off is worse, because there are always people who join in later on and the carousel never stops spinning! So what you do is just wait till the carousel is at its slowest (which is still pretty fast), grit your teeth, yell like a madman, tumble out, get flung violently at a tangent, and stagger off in a random direction because of the dizziness. Regain composure, wipe sweaty palms and laugh shakily. Rinse and repeat.

This thing will cause major injuries, I tell you. So would the giant slide that I didn't manage to snap a picture of - I raced Ted twice, rolled off at the end and had a slight carpet burn on my arm. Rumour has it that someone actually broke their collarbone while sliding off that thing.

Thing is, you're expected to take care of yourself while out on the playa. It's stated on the ticket that the Burning Man Organization would not be responsible for any injuries or death. Black Rock City is a giant playground for adults, and accidents can happen. There are medical facilities there but they are just makeshift camps in the middle of the desert after all.


Fire instrument. The girl plays the keyboard, and fire spurts out of the corresponding pipes, and the vibrations actually create music. Cool or what.


A pyromaniac's heaven. Fire spurting randomly or in synchronized movements in the distance. The energy is potent when you are standing near the pipes - the heat scorches your face, the light dilates your pupils, and you hear the fire roar. Fire is truly awe-inspiring.

The Man from a distance.


The burning of the man. I especially liked the silhouette of the base. Towards the end of the burning Man, a naked man tried to run into the fire. The Black Rock Rangers had to tackle him. Crazy people out there.

And more to come still.

Burner Tales Compilation #1

Here's a description of the Burning Man to help you by: *click*
And a funny video of it that features The Simpsons: *click*

I binned the previous endeavour and started anew because that post wasn't going anywhere. Here goes the new one in sections:

#1 - The Carnivorous Wine

Nick, playa name Igneouss, and I

Just by the virtue of hanging out in the Golden Cafe alone and emitting irresistible charms in my salwar-kameez, I was invited by Igneouss to his table and for fine dining in the evening at the Supper Club. There I was served gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches, among other delicacies which I have forgotten, by an award-winning chef. There I was entertained by friendly sparring between the Americans and the Canadians of the old school calibre, gentlemen of average age 55. There I was enthralled by Lucifer who told us the history of the wine that we were drinking, and how they fed lab rats to this rare breed of carnivorous vines that they grew at the edge of the Black Rock Desert.

Brian whom I met later, a ninth-year Burner told me that this was a classic type of jokes that they tell at the Burning Man. I went "allalalalalalala shut up lalalallalalala" but then after googling it when I got home, I am forced to admit that there is no digital evidence of any carnivorous vines online. Therefore it is quite probable that I was had. Bleargh. But the great food and company were real. (Arggh can't believe I fell for that.)

#2 Flavour-tripping berries
I went for a tasting of this miracle berry with Ted and Dave, roommates from New York, the most energetic and chipmunk-like duo that I've met, my buddies in camp. The miracle berry does things to your taste buds and for about half an hour, you are unable to taste sourness.

I had lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and balsamic vinegar like I never had before. The best was the balsamic vinegar, it was so sweet! The cool thing about flavour tripping is that the vinegar still burns your throat a little when it goes down, so you know it's still vinegar, but when it is in your mouth it is deliciously sweet and aromatic.

#3 Carving with the Sun
I was walking along the dust road with Brett the Brit that I had met in the Centre Camp, when we saw this man sitting beside the road concentrating very hard on something. We stopped and observed.

It is one of the coolest art forms that I have seen in a while. This man was using a magnifying glass to burn patterns onto some wooden ladles. I was so intrigued that I stopped and helped.

Picture expertly taken to block the true star of the show and to convey no meaning whatsoever on what I am doing. Check out the hot girls on bikes at the background though.

Up close shot

Apparently it's very good for meditation too. Just remember to wear protection for your eyes.

#4 The Golden Cafe Bar Procession


I went back to the Golden Cafe to gift Igneouss a pewter keychain that I had brought from KL, when they were about to start the march. Somehow I was roped into being one of the shield bearers, and we set off carrying the Golden Calf, mascot of the cafe and collector of kisses from hot ladies. It was a very merry affair, with us marching and yelling and setting up the bar at random camps. Then we offered cocktail shots to anyone within the vicinity, and sneaked shots ourselves, so by the time when the procession ended, all were tipsy and having a whale of a good time.

---

More still to come. I have to prepare for going to the university now. Oh btw, Jia Ling managed to convince me that the house that I am going to shake on later today, is a bad idea. She is truly the beacon of my life. However I am homeless, yet again. O sigh.

My Burn

I'm at Hong Kong International Airport now folks. The connection at the airport is remarkably slow. It is 30 degrees Celsius out there, but about 20 hours ago I was in chilly San Francisco, lugging my 23kg worth of luggage around and nodding off on the BART (subway in SF).

I am seated on a carpet of geometrical patterns and looking around at luggage trolleys passing by, people staring off into space and the blurred images of duty free brand names which are too far for me to read. The announcements are made in Cantonese and English. My flight leaves at 10:30am, it's 6:30am now. I have a feeling that this is going to be a long, long blog post. You ready?

Burning of the Temple at the Burning Man

Right now - the Burning Man, the Canyons of the West trip, chilling out in San Francisco, the museums and skyscrapers in New York, the conference and the beautiful city that is Boston - they're all swirling in my head and I want to pin everything down. I don't know where to start. I know that I won't be able to do the experiences justice, but I need to put everything down before I forget. Especially the Burning Man. Maybe I'll start with the Burning Man.

Read up what Burning Man is. To me, it was a giant playground for adults, a wonderful example of gift economy, an opportunity to learn so much more about myself, and a venue for people to be the best people that they can. In the span of about a week, I was removed from worldly concerns such as the need to be connected to the Internet or my phone. There was no need to use money because there is strictly no vending in Black Rock City, except for ice, coffee and the shuttle bus ride to the nearest town. I did not see my wallet for a week. Can you imagine not needing your wallet for a week?

I added Xiao Hui to the wall

And the experiences! Oh the experiences. Surreal happenings were the norm. I will do a mini-series of Burning Man experiences after this, because I don't want to breeze through all the precious and often bizarre things that happened to me. One of the stories involves naked ladies. A story that could have been involves an orgy tent. The man in charge of the tent invited me to come later, which I politely declined. Absolutely no pun intended.

Barbie Death Camp

For my first year at the Burn (because it's so good that I am seriously considering on going back if I have the opportunity), I didn't really run around to catch all the performances and artwork, nor take too many pictures. I think, for me, Black Rock City was about the people. The kindly man operating a stall giving out free freshly squeezed orange juice. The person who granted my wish at the wishing well. The lady who gave me a sandwich upon seeing my "If you can read this: Make me a sandwich" t-shirt (It finally worked! After all these years of wearing that shirt!).

Black Rock Desert

There's something about the Burning Man that makes you want to give. I mean, receiving is great, I got many gifts to bring home, but giving is even better. And goodwill on the playa returns to you almost instantaneously. The more you give, the more will come back to you. For instance, I offered some extra masks that I had to this random couple who were sitting beside me during a dust storm. They declined, and gave me a mask instead. A beautiful maroon one with The Man and "Burning Man 2009" embroidered on it.

Giant Rubik's Cube operated by three control stations. For scale, look at that little light on the bottom right and there's one person operating the controls.

I have more to say about the Burning Man. But right now I need to go check the gate that I'm supposed to wait at. Wouldn't be fun to be stranded at Hong Kong when I'm practically broke, as much as I dread the arrival at Singapore. Check back soon.

I am back

but not for long.

It's been such a crazy ten days. I am back at the Green Tortoise Hostel now but I will be moving to Micah's, one of my travel buddies on the Canyons of the West tour, for tonight. Yay to saving money on accommodation!

Tomorrow the bus for the Burning Man leaves at 10am, and to tell the truth, I am quite knackered and not really in the frame of mind to go. We just arrived back from the trip yesterday, reluctant goodbyes and all, and I'm really not in the mood to get used to a new set of travel buddies so quickly.

Let's see. What we did this past week. I'm just going to list stuff that I remember, things were happening so quickly that I find my short term memory being overwritten to make room for new stuff. This computer that I'm using does not have a memory card reader so I shall just steal pictures from all over to illustrate the scenery that I'm talking about.

1. In the span of ten days I took a grand total of two showers and swam twice in lakes. Baby wipes did wonders for the rest.
   
2. I hiked this really steep and nerve-wracking trail at Zion National Park called the Angel's Landing (see the peak of this orange black mountain thing, photo credit to David Pettit), at the beginning of the trip, and was really proud of myself.
   
3. I owned a horse called Harry Killer for two hours. The guide told me that his name was Killer at first, for whatever reason he had in mind, and later decided to tell me that it was Harry instead =_=. Since I had been going "Good boy, Killer, good Killer" for most of the trip, and I named him Harry Killer instead. He was gentle and patient, but fast. We galloped and I bruised my butt and thighs. It was painful but fun. This was where I went horseback riding at, at Monument Valley. Photo credits go here.
4. I contemplated about the insignificance of my existence at the Gooseneck State Park, overlooking the Horseshoe Bend, right at the U-shape that you see in this following picture (photo credit). I don't know why this site had this effect on me, when Bryce National Park was much more impressive looking (see next picture, I couldn't find a good photo that would illustrate the sheer beauty of what I saw, but photo credit anyway), but I guess you can't really explain stuff like that.
5. I was bathing in the hot springs while looking at a night sky full of stars.
6. We were camping at Gold Bar Campsite, next to the Colorado river, and I woke up to scenery similar to this, but imagine the mountains being a terracota orange, the sky being blue, cloudless and clear, the fence being behind me and me holding a mug of hot chocolate + coffee with my feet tucked into my sleeping bag. (photo credit)
7. Me and four other buddies (Polish Kasia, American Micah, Italian Michael and Spanish Vanessa) spent the night at the Bright Angel Campground, which is at the base of the Grand Canyon. We reached there past sundown, so we didn't really get to see much of the Bright Angel Campground nor the Phantom Ranch where I sent a postcard home to (the mail is delivered up by mules). What we did see were wee scorpions scuttling on the ground, a family of deer and the ringtailed cat, shown in the picture below (photo credit). To give you an idea, the Grand Canyon is about a mile deep, i.e. 1.6km vertical distance. The guide, Lucas, said that we were doing 8 miles per vertical mile, if you understand what that means. The heat is intense when you hike down the Grand Canyon, and mostly rangers advise people not to hike between 10am and 3pm, because that is when the sun is the deadliest. The day when we were hiking up, the max temperature was at 105F (i.e. 40.5 deg C). Thing is, early in the morning, the temperature drops to about 16C, and because we didn't bring anything down besides sleeping pads, we ended up huddling together because of the cold.
   
   The interesting thing about hiking the Grand Canyon is that the first half is going down, not up. So you do one vertical mile down, feeling proud of your accomplishment of being at the base of the Grand Canyon, and the second day you are faced with the spirit-breaking prospect of having to hike up, the way you came down, one vertical mile. In total I think we accomplished around 20 miles (plus side trails) in two days, half of it being downhill and half of it being up. When me and Kasia made it to the top, we were so happy that we were just hugging each other with huge smiles on our faces!
   
8. Right after the Grand Canyon, our last night was spent at Las Vegas. It was the most mindfucking thing ever. To build things up a little bit we had alcohol in the bus, so when we got off the bus I was slightly tipsy and laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of everything that was in Las Vegas, such as Disney castles and Egyptian buildings and pimps handing out calling cards on the streets, but then the novelty wore out and the heat set in, Vegas being in the middle of the desert and all, and I started to be really glum.
   
   It's a little like eating a really great meal with a wonderful aftertaste, and suddenly someone forces coriander into your mouth and ruins the whole moment. I mean, after about 9 days of nature and breathtaking views of nature's works of art, you get doused with a ridiculously concentrated dose of city. It's not one city. It's one city that has the Eiffel Tower, a pyramid, Statue of Liberty, a replica of Venice by day in the Venetian... and so on and so forth... all rolled into one. God that was dispiriting. I wish we didn't have to end the trip that way.
   

So anyway - I don't think I have time for more, I have to collect my laundry and make my way to Micah's place now. And the Burning Man awaits tomorrow morning. I don't know how I'm going to adjust my head, but I will do it, and hopefully come back with more stories and genuine pictures this time.

Dear all,

I'm just writing to let you know that I camped out under the stars next to Colorado River on a ledge last night, and I am going to go horseback riding at Monument Valley tomorrow, and I am camping out at the base at Grand Canyon a few nights later. Oh yeah my hair is just dry from swimming in a beautiful lake surrounded by sunflowers with an imminent thunderstorm coming from ahead, with lightning and such. (We didn't get caught in the storm.)

Feel free to be jealous.

Love,
Me
from somewhere between Arches National Park and Monument Valley

Yes, it is I, the misplacer of debit cards!

Aha, didn't expect to see this post did you? I am such a bag of surprises.

My bus does not leave till 7pm, and in the meanwhile I have rode on a cable car, checked out the Musee Mechanique, laughed at people who got scared by the Bush Man, got waylaid by a gay marriage rights canvasser (which was where I couldn't find my debit visa card and luckily it was in my bag) and walked through Chinatown. All in all, not a bad day. Except when I was tracking down the percussion of a lion dance in Chinatown, and it turned out to be a soundtrack. Lion dance soundtracks? Who does that to people??

So I'm just waiting around the hostel until it is time to leave. I am a teeny bit apprehensive, like I always am before the unknown, but in no time at all I'm sure I'll adapt and grow to like the people that I'll be travelling with at close proximity. A busload of people with stinky feet is the only thing I can think of now though. I say that because I'm pretty sure my feet stink after the long walk in my hiking shoes just now. San Francisco is pretty warm today.

"Just remember, not all who wander are lost," says a quaint little pendant that I passed by today. I find that quite energizing. Next time when someone tells me to quit my PhD, instead of saying "well fuck you" under my breath I shall say this in a sagely manner instead. Makes me sound philosophical and if you look between the lines it doesn't say anything about me not being lost at all, so I wouldn't be lying.

I'm sure at this point you would've discovered that I'm just rambling here. Please keep me company until my time is up, or when I muster enough of momentum to actually go pee instead of just pondering about it. (Should I go pee? Maybe I can hold it out longer. What about now? It's just been three seconds you ninny. I'll tell you when we're there.)

Oh also I have this instant tomyam rice thing that I bought some days ago, being absolutely sure that I would need it at some point - and I haven't eaten it till now. It has become somewhat of a liability to my luggage space. I need to eat it before I leave the hostel. Luggage space is at an absolute premium here. Right now I have three bags - a backpack that holds all my worldly belongings, a sling bag that holds my essentials (like my passport and the gold coin Peter gave me this morning before I left) and a bag that holds my tent and my sleeping bag.

I feel like a snail.

Do snails pee? Anyway I have to, so I shall close this post. Goodbye for real for at least 10 days. Be good and eat your vegetables!

Post from the Green Tortoise

I'm going camping tomorrow! Shall be away from civilization (well sorta - first night we're going to be at Las Vegas), or the online world anyway, so I'm putting down a post right now to appease my hordes of readers who hopefully will not suffer from withdrawal symptoms while I'm gone.

San Francisco has been great. I'm sharing the room with a writer guy who sold all of his possessions after spending 65 years accumulating them. We share a bunk bed, he sleeps on the lower bunk. He has nightmares every night involving scumbags and fuckers. I know that because he yells threats and insults at them in his sleep. It is definitely a very interesting way to wake up, and my only regret is that I am unable to recall any of his colourful monologues because I go back to sleep and forget everything. Damn.

So Peter the Writer is a member of the Asian Art Museum, so I was his guest for today and managed to get in for free. I am proud to say that I have not paid for any museums in the US so far, amazingly. I've always been able to freeload one way or another. In New York it was Jian Hui with his corporate passes, that got me into The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA). (I was even able to pawn one extra ticket at the Met Museum that Jian Hui gave me for $10 - half price - the French family was happy, I was happy.)

Then in San Francisco, on Wednesday, coincidentally it was the third Wednesday of the month and the free day of California Academy of Sciences. I had to queue for 2 hours to get in though. It was insane, probably the longest queue I've ever queued at, ever. I reached the Academy at 9:20am, it starts at 9:30am. By the time I got to the end of the queue, according to the guy who was standing there counting the people that were in the line, there were about 2,700 people in front of me. I only got to see the actual building after 1 hour of being in the queue. The family behind me was very entertaining though, and I spent the best part of the two hours just eavesdropping on their conversations.

Hmm they're going to have Beer Olympics in the Green Tortoise Hostel, but I'm not really in the mood to drink tonight so I'm actually going to commit the sacrilege of saying no to free beer. A polar bear probably died somewhere in response. Oh wait - that wasn't me. That was CLIMATE CHANGE!!! I was reading The Drug Issue by the San Francisco Bay Guardian (a whole issue laced with articles on substances that make you high, no shit, SF is cool like that) and there was this advertisement inside by the Republicans, I assume, since they were dissing Obama and the Democrats, that actually claims that manmade global warming is a scam. I think my blood pressure rose significantly.

If any of these people behind the ad actually took the trouble to queue for 2 hours like I did to enter the California Academy of Sciences (for free, since they sound like cheapskates who wouldn't pay 20 bucks to go into a museum) they would know that manmade global warming is scientifically proven and we are this close to crossing the threshold of no return. Mass extinction would occur. This is not the first time that mass extinction has occurred because of climate change, it would be the 6th. But all the consumption of humankind has caused unprecedented levels of carbon dioxide which positively correlates with rising temperatures. In other words, we are causing this.

Think of all the problems that rising temperatures would cause. Some examples: changes in migratory patterns, destruction of sensitive ecosystems, ocean warming, rising sea levels, extreme weather conditions, better environments for mosquitoes and diseases that they spread... the list goes ON AND ON. And these people have the cheek to deny everything.

Oh yeah. The ice caps on Mount Kilimanjaro are going to be gone by 2020. Catch them while you can.

*deep breaths*

OK the rant has ruined my mood somewhat. I shall stop here.

Byebye Laptop

I'm leaving my laptop and a bunch of other stuff with Yao Hua... I'll have to come back to Davis to get them but this seems to be the best solution to all the crap that I have, bar actually throwing them away.


Here's the top view of my new tent with me in it, in Yao Hua's living room. This is probably also the only picture that you'll get in a while. I've been so lax in taking pictures lately, I have to be in the mood of taking them, and I don't really know when I get in the mood. So for instance I don't have any pictures of the Crazy Hat and Wig Party. For all you know I could've made that up to appear cool. I mean, me, in a crazy hat? *projects image of serious looking self at work station watching Youtube*

OKlah need to go and continue packing, leaving Davis in 3 hours. Been great hanging out with Yao Hua and his girlfriend Kumitaa though, with uninhibited Manglish with all the lahs and ahs and lohs and mahs. Didn't realize how much I missed it!

Random stuff within 24 hours.

1. I won second prize for Best Hat Contest in a Crazy Wig and Hat party. It was the hat that my mum gave to me to bring to the Burning Man. It transforms into a Hat+Mask at the whim of its owner. They called it the Swine Flu Hat.
   
2. I gave $2 to a person who lost his BART ticket to get home.
   
3. I didn't have change to take the bus ($2) and a random stranger paid for me. Karma is very real.
   
4. I bought a bottle of wine labeled "Cheap Red Wine" for $6.50.
   
5. I had the best shower ever. It was the best shower ever.
   
6. I had a huge omelette with spinach, cheese, mushroom, hollandaise sauce and tomatoes in it. Yum.
   
7. I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and it was wonderful.
8. A guy walked by me and said "You're very beautiful. I saw you walking up there just now, and I told myself that I need to let you know that you're very beautiful." Then he walked away.
   
9. I witnessed a shouting match between two white guys, in Japanese.
   
10. I was given a personal tour of an antique shop by the owner that I met in a flea market.
    

I am sure there are more but I can't keep my eyes open so here goes.

In case anyone's interested -

I've got 10 quarters, 10 dimes, 4 five-cents and 20 pennies in my wallet. And no the numbers are not contrived - I just happen to have really nice even numbers of the coins. Quarter = 25cents, dime = 10cents, penny = 1cent. I had to google dime up because it doesn't say on the coin how much it's worth.

So all in all I have $3.90 in the form of coins. I have been forced to accumulate them because I always use bills because coins are just too confusing, especially when I don't really know the difference between dimes and five-cents, and didn't want to squint every time I had to use coins. Need to get rid of all of these.

I am staying in a student cooperative now, in a building that used to be a commune. In fact I am staying in this room which used to be "The Guru's Room", which has a big heavy wooden door like what leads to dungeons, and the key that opens the room has "Dharma" labeled on it. The key to the main door says "Love". There are also Buddha outlines on the wooden walls, and mysteriously, a 囍 engraved on the wall as well. Gotta love the hippies.

This is not my host's room, btw. What happened was that my host and I did not meet up yesterday. I was waiting for her outside the cooperative when this guy came out, and we started chatting, and he gave me the keys to his room because he was moving out. So after waiting a bit for my host who didn't show up, I ended up sleeping at 7pm in this guy's room because I was so tired. So today I've actually met up with the host, who was super sweet and made hot chocolate for me, but am still sleeping at the Guru room since it's empty. It is also a really dirty room, but since beggars can't be choosers, I shall not complain. It doesn't smell and I didn't get bed bug bites through my sleeping bag, so all is good.

Word has it that public transport in San Fran's going into a strike on Monday, so I'm leaving for Davis to find Yao Hua on Sunday I think. I should probably tell him that.

This one's for Jason.

"You just have to be there 20 minutes before departure," said Kingston. "I don't like reaching early because I feel stupid wasting time in the airport."

"So let me get this straight. You'd rather miss your flight than feel stupid?"

"Yup pretty much." With this seemingly innocuous ending to our conversation, we bade each other goodnight and goodbye. I was to leave early in the morning so he wouldn't be able to send me off then.

Kingston and I had not met for about two years, but we clicked immediately, as evident from our endless conversations on his couch that I claimed as mine in New York. I was sorry that I had to leave, but San Francisco was waiting. My flight was at 7am this morning. The plan was to get out the house at 5am, and with any luck I would reach the airport by 6:30am.

When I said "with any luck" I did not foresee that I would actually need it. The first thing that went wrong was me waking up late, and after double and triple checking that I did not leave anything behind, I left the house 15 minutes off schedule. I reached the subway station, huffing and puffing with my ridiculously heavy trolley bag in tow. It was 5:30am. Seemed like I could still make it.

I waited at the subway station until about 5:55am, when I felt that something was terribly wrong. At first I persuaded myself that it was just a normal occurrence for the train to be late for ten minutes. With every passing minute I grew more and more fidgety. But when someone actually went and queried the station master, it turned out that someone had pulled the emergency brake at one of the prior stations. The whole track was at a standstill. This did not look good at all.

One of the waiting passengers, after he learned about my dire situation, proposed that we share a cab to the airport. Apparently he was working in the JFK airport at one of the control stations. So off we went. At this time I was rather relieved that the cab solution presented itself. I still had about 40 minutes till 6:40. Once we boarded the cab (which he had to run into the middle of the road to flag down), I relaxed and felt that I would make it after all. Thus I started making small talk and learned that my saviour's name was Jason.

In contrast with my chilled attitude, Jason still seemed highly strung. When he started to check my flight number and making calls to his colleague - "I can't promise you anything, but we'll try to get you through" - I realized that I was totally oblivious to the fact that I was still in high risk of missing my plane. Delta had a 30-minute check-in policy. It was 6:10am and we were still on the highway. It was probably a good time to start panicking.

When we finally reached Terminal 2, it was about 6:20am. Jason took care of the taxi bill by credit card and wouldn't accept anything from me except a $2 to get a coffee later. Plus tip it was almost a $40 ride. I was quite overwhelmed with gratitude but there was no time for that. We broke into a sprint once we got off the taxi. Jason cut me through all the queues with his work badge and outraged "someone pulled the subway brakes today, we were both fucked" pitch, and got me successfully to the security check. It was 6:40am. There was no time to check in my luggage. We had to dispose of all my toiletries above 100ml (T_T mahalnya) to put everything in as hand luggage.

Jason left me at the security gates with a hurried goodbye and good luck. He was also late for work, and I could only thank his fleeting silhouette as he bounded off towards another direction. His random act of kindness saved me at least $150. Pity I don't even know his last name.

The plane left the dock at 6:55am. I had scraped through, just barely. In the plane one of the stewards approached me to ask me if I had any problems "on the ground". After a moment of puzzlement and checking my feet out, I realized that he was asking me about my almost missing the flight back in New York. Looks like Jason's phone call did get through to someone.

So this one's for the great guy Jason who was originally from LA, who's working at the control station of Terminal 2, JFK International Airport, New York. I would also like to take the opportunity to thank another kind old lady who I met in Nelson, NZ, whom I desperately flagged down with my thumb to get me to the bus station for the bus to Greymouth. She managed to stop the moving bus by pulling over right in front of its path, so that I could get on it. The feat was ever more daring when we consider that the kind old lady was probably at least 65 years old and logically would not have much practical bus-stopping experiences as such.

And yes, I should really learn from my near misses by now.

I'm typing this in Berkeley now, where I'm just hanging out in a cafe that has free wifi, until my host returns from work. I'm pretty tired, having slept for only 2 hours yesterday night. And today's going to be longer because there is a 3-hour time difference between the east coast and the west coast. It's 5:45pm at New York/Boston now but only 2:45pm at San Francisco. I think I might still have time to do another post with pictures. Taking that back. Too lazy.

Stepping out of the Asia Pacific

It's about time and I'm rather excited =) I'm at Changi Airport now and just had a completely lacklustre Singapore laksa for breakfast - it's exactly how I do not want to remember the last meal in Southeast Asia till five weeks later. Killney Kopitiam at Terminal 2 - stay away from it.

To those who sent emails to me that I haven't replied - I'm sorry! Just too busy lately, preparing my posters and packing for conference, leisure and camping. I'll get back to you soon (hopefully)!

OK I have to run - need to board the plane - US here I come!

Meltdown sikit

OK We're finally in July. I'm finally in the battle zone that I've been looking at afar from June, speculating about the craziness but never actually registering that with every passing day, the dates come closer. I am at the point where I finally see, that I am going to be the person carrying out my haphazardly engineered back-to-back schedule for the following three months - and it is not going to be pretty.

Right now you're looking at a deer staring into the headlights of an oncoming truck named Self-Inflicted Stress.

There's so many thoughts in my head, all not related to each other, some research, some travel, some homelessness, a fair bit of homelessness actually, and all the hell that is spawned from these sources. OK to put it in perspective:

July
7/7
Leave Singapore for KL after putting my whole room into boxes. Which is something that I should do from right now.
8/7 - 11/7
In KL. Running errands (India visa, ISIC card, shopping for formal wear, somehow fix my hair), multiple gatherings (Asa, LL, XiaoCi, my NZ Aunt).
12/7
Return to Singapore with my World's Greatest Parents and move everything to Jia Ling's place.
13/7 - 17/7
Some graduate forum. Whole-day affairs. I'm presenting a paper. Which means that I need to prepare for my paper as well.
17/7 - 25/7
India. Haven't got CSers for Bangalore yet. I am nervous. Also I think India's going to be really intense, and at this point it looks intimidating. Thanks to my mum who was collecting horror stories in attempt to dissuade me from going. We'll be covering Bangalore, Mysore, Chennai and Pondicherry.
27/7 - 31/7
Some course for graduate students. Also whole-day affairs. Right after India. Have to adjust my mind straight after I come back.

August
1/8 - 3/8
Prep for US
4/8
Flight to Boston. Reach Boston at 10:30pm.
5/8 - 8/8
Conference. Presenting paper on the 6th. Need to prepare some kind of poster session. Have no idea how it's going to be like.
9/8 - 13/8
Bus to New York from Boston. Bunk at Kingston's, meet up with XC and Jian Hui. Probably the only relaxed part of my trip to the US.
13/8 - 20/8
Research week at San Francisco where I try to talk to people. I haven't planned it yet. My theoretical framework, my interview questions, my EVERYTHING. Kill me now please.
21/8 - 30/8
Camping Part 1 - Going with the Green Tortoise for its Canyons of the West trip, covering Las Vegas, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon NP, Arches NP, Monument Valley, Lake Powell, Grand Canyon NP.

September
1/9 - 7/9
Camping Part 2 - Burning Man. Also going with Green Tortoise. Intense desert camping, but at least I'll have someone to take care of my food and water and transport. Highlight of my trip. And I am still bloody scared.
9/9
Arrive in Singapore. Back. Finally. Start to look for a new room. Move house from Jia Ling's, as soon as possible. This will take me at least 2 weeks. At least. But can't mooch off Jia Ling's hospitality too much.

OK Siao onot. Two months, four countries. (And check all that KL-Singapore-India-Singapore action.) The panic has kicked in, and according to past experience, action will kick in soon after, but I'm at that paralyzed stage where I need extra push from panic to get away from the inertia, and then the two months will fly by. The details of the plans still have to be executed, and I have to come up with some extensive to-do list, extensive packing list, extensive people-to-bother list.

I like lists. I now have a list of lists. This should be heaven for me. AAAARrrrggggh the truck's gonna hit me!!!!

Adrenaline rush, danger danger danger. Then after moving have to get my confirmation report ready, as my goal is to complete it by the end of this year. October, November, December. 2009 will then be gone, we'll be one decade into the 2000's, and climate change effects are going to happen even more frequently, and we're all going to die!!!!!!!

Shhhhh. Everything's going to be ok. Shhhhhh.

I am surrounded by wise (and crazy) people.

Sometimes I get too wrapped up, too lost in my little world, too engrossed in the mess of things. These are the times when I pull my hair, with the tangled web of pros and cons in my perplexed face. The mix and match of solutions, weighing the probability of me dying a slow and thirsty (but frugal) death.... the usual stuff.

Then I seek out LL and Asa because they are my mind-clones, minus the clutter, and they are able to tell me what I want. You want to go to the Burning Man, says LL. I go, really? You think so? Everyone else thinks it's a crazy idea! Follow your heart, she says. Thus a light shines through the dark clouds and I realize that it is the only thing that will make me happy - a week-long camping trip in a desert in Nevada, in a temporary city constructed by 50,000 people (of questionable sanity).

Then I realize that logistically, it is quite impossible for me to just buy a ticket and show up there. For one, I have never pitched a tent, in my life. I have yet to buy a tent, actually. Secondly, I don't think 35 litres of water will fall from the sky, unless it's one helluva climate change that we're talking about, and I have no feasible means to transport food and water (5l per day) into the desert. Unless I enrol myself into a tour group, and they will take care of food, water and transport. And presumably help me with my tent. Which will take USD520 out of my Miniscule Student Budget (MSB), sans tent expenses.

I sink into deep and dark depression again.

Thus I knock on Asa's MSN door. Asaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, I go. Yo! she answers. Tell me to spend USD520 on the desert trip! I implore her. After running through some details, with me pulling anguished faces at my laptop, she calmly asks me, In your lifetime, how often will you get to camp in the desert for a week? I reflect for a second and decide, not often i guess. Then she says, how many USD350 (difference between taking a tour and not taking a tour) can you earn in your lifetime?"

I am struck by a bolt of simple logic and wonder how much permanent damage the PhD has done to my head. Damn you, institutions of higher learning!

So after sending an email to the tour agency, I cross my fingers that they still have availability, and regain my peace of mind, somewhat. A call from my mum comes in. We talk about mundane stuff (swine flu and random mother-daughter gossip) and I bring up my decision to take a tour to the desert. A little pensively. I agree fully with Xin Fu (she calls Asa that)! She goes. This is a good chance for you! Don't worry about the money, just go!

Sometimes I do think my mum is the coolest mum on earth.

Also, that I am surrounded by wise (and crazy) people.

---

Another random snippet of conversation

ling says:
ahahha like popeye
ahaha
the sailor man
pi pi!!
*Jun-E says:
ei is pi pi meh
not pu pu?
ling says:
ahaha
i thought is pi pi mar
*Jun-E says:
ahaahahahahha
ling says:
ahaha is pu pu arr~~??
ahaha paiseh paiseh
*Jun-E says:
our conversation damn funny lah hahahaha
i have to blog about this

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Was it "pi pi" or "pu pu"?