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| i just watched where the wild things are, and it made me cry. why is it that kid's films almost always make me cry? i cried during toy story, toy story 2, finding nemo, wall-e, up...o man i cried a lot during up.
maybe it isn't that kid's films make me cry. rather, it's that i typically choose to watch kid's films. i do try to pick good ones (no vin diesel in tooth fairy, thanks). imagine if a child's film can make me so emotional, then watching a well-made "grown-up' movie may paralyze me.
some memorable quotes from the movie (courtesy imdb):
"you know what it feels like when all your teeth are falling out really slowly and you don't realize and then you notice that, well, they're really far apart. And then one day... you don't have any teeth anymore."- carol the monster
"Carol, did you know the sun was gonna die?" -max the little boy
"What? I never heard that... Oh, come on. That can't happen. I mean you're the king, and look at me, I'm big! how can guys like us worry about a tiny little thing like the sun, hmm?" - carol the monster
for me, the power of the film came from the scenes without dialogue, so it's hard to write about it using words. one scene at the end of the film shows the wild things watching max sail away from the shore of their island. they can't express what they feel in words, so they howl in sorrow. or perhaps it's joy from remembering their times together. maybe they howl to honor him, to thank him. in any event, he howls back to them. the perfect send-off, a chorus of roars and not one single word.
i need to remember that sometimes. i'm a person of words. i like manipulating words. i like the feel of typing them out. i like trying new words out to see how they feel on the tongue, to see how they appear on the page. i like learning about new words. i like rearranging and rewriting words to make the perfect sentence, to create the exact thought or feeling i want to capture. i like using words to express myself- why else would i be thinking and laboring over this entry for an hour after i watched the movie?
but words are limited. and they're failing me now since i can't find a way to tie together in all the thoughts in my head to form a neat little conclusion. man i'm out of practice with writing. there are no neat little conclusions because this is not a simple topic. and oh the irony! using a blog entry to write about non-verbal communication...i should be recording some music, drawing a picture, or performing interpretive dance. capturing pure sound, image, movement...and yet, there are limits to all those art forms as well.
i think too much don't i?
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| holy.
moly.
i can't believe it's april 2010. and the last time i updated was in october 2008, when i was proud of using a kick scooter to get to work. for anyone interested, about two days after i posted that entry, i fell off my scooter and tore a hole in my gray business pants. *pats self on back for trying to be "unique" or "different" or "quirky." fail* the scooter has since been banished to the neglected corner of my office where i have an ever growing pile of recyclable scrap paper.
let's see...still in philly. still in my south philly neighborhood. still love my coworkers :) so i guess not too much has changed. though i'm not a fan of pat's or geno's anymore- too much trash accumulates in the neighborhood because of them.
new things in my life: last september, i joined a gym and was pretty good about going 3x/week, until march. and then i fell off the bandwagon. now it's about 1x/week. going to run a 5 mile race in a week though, so gonna have to pick it up again...like tomorrow :p though i just re-read my old entry where it said that walking to work took about 23 minutes. now it takes me 20! from door to door (including an elevator ride up 19 floors). woot! the gym works!
in december, i started tutoring at an adult literacy center. my partner is working towards her GED, and while it started off rough, i think we're in a good place now. it's tough to always come prepared...i give massive props (eprops? :) to all of my teacher friends.
i think those are the big things, though they seem relatively small now that i type them out.
one thing i am grateful for currently: spring weather! nice weather brings out all the dogs and babies :) when i walk to work and see a corgi with his belly almost touching the sidewalk, it just makes my day :) even though it makes me feel bad for him b/c clearly he has some health issues....but really now. corgies are adorable no matter their health status.
spring weather also equals more lunch outings and exploration of the city. so far, this includes sandwiches at le bus bakery, grass-fed beef burger + duck fat fries at village whiskey from IRON CHEF GARCES (!), and yogorino, a fro yo place. my home cooking adventures are still continuing- just can't wait until better produce and fruit comes to the markets.
it feels...good to be writing again on xanga. or at least, writing about something that isn't work related. feels a bit rusty, but i'm sure the self-editing skills and particular writing style associated with blogging will come again with time.
cheers to the weirdly public, yet private, 21st century institution of blogging :)
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| dunno who reads these things anymore, but i thought i'd give a quick update on philly.
- like the job, mostly love the people :)
- like my house/room (especially how affordable it is)
- like my neighborhood, except for the fact my laptop and digital camera got stolen, and i was given the run around by the pawn shop owner and the police
- like the italian market close by, even though they mock you if you only buy 2 pounds of zucchini for 50cents when you should be buying 4 pounds for $1. but c'mon, 4 pounds of zucchini?! now, 8 bell peppers for $1, i can do.
- like the vietnamese strip mall close by, where i can get my pho fix and asian groceries. it also reminds me of houston :)
- love my coworkers
- like the proximity to princeton and green space and beautiful fall colors
- like the proximity to home (MD)
- like the proximity to Penn (sister)
- like my ability to walk (or subway) to most places (including work, 1 mile=23 minutes or so). but now i have a SCOOTER! so i can scooter around (work, 17 mins?). pretty. awesome. with my backpack and scooter, i'm sure i look real professional. a razor scooter, not some high falootin electric one.
- like the high-end shopping options around downtown where i work, even though i have yet to make a big purchase. and am less likely to if i have to carry around my scooter into burberry.
- like capogiro's next to rittenhouse square- best gelato, nice sandwiches, and close to the park! what more can you ask for?
- like being close to pat's and geno's, even though i think their cheesesteaks are overrated
- like finding old friends via facebook who now live in philly
- did i mention that i really really like my coworkers?
that's all i can think of now. it's been a really good move overall, and i'm happy with where i am :) please let me know if you're ever in the area!
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green lights. american flag. tons of media. dc event yesterday around noon. any ideas? 
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| update on job status: i'm going to philly to start work on sept. 2! i'm going to be a research associate with philadelphia health management corporation, www.phmc.org. so now, i'm looking for apartments/roommates, which is exciting :)
overall, i spent about a month and a half looking for jobs (mid-may to end of june). those times were not fun- i even briefly considered working for a pharmaceutical marketing firm....the dark side. my personal public health ethical dilemma. but soon after re-emailing pharma about setting up an in-person interview, i got a call from phmc with the job offer, so i was really happy (though i'm sure pharma was not pleased). PHMC is a pretty big nonprofit in philly and do work in public health research. i should have a variety of projects to work on, from anti-smoking to juvenile deliquency stuff to minority health issues. i don't think i'll be bored.
in the meantime, i'm going to try and do all the touristy-things in dc that i haven't done before (or haven't done in a while). first thing was going to the fourth of july get together at papa g's house. that was really fun :) seeing rice ppl, meeting new ppl, and going to the mall to see the fireworks for the first time. pretty lame that i hadn't gone before, but that's what you get for being a local :p next, i want to hit up the art and science museums in dc. probably going to bum a ride off of my parents and just wander around :) i have a trip to philly/princeton/nyc planned in mid-july, and then probably going to baltimore for a week in august as well. so gonna keep things fairly low key (= low budget) and enjoy the things around the metro area before i have to leave. this is the first time i don't have to work over a summer! probably the last time too. i'm going to be a true metro dc area local dangit! venture beyond rockville town center, haha.
other free/cheap things i've been up to: cooking crepes, making ice cream, nutella rice krispy treats, and other experiments. reading lots of books- working on freakonomics now. read through the first two books of eragon (yes, geeky), some margaret atwood, random adult fiction books, agatha christie (always a favorite). i forgot how much i like reading for fun :) i've watched wall-e (sooooo good), music and lyrics (not bad), and tons of food network (yay for cable!). watched wimbledon- omg crazy men's final. practicing my tennis w/my family. avoiding cleaning up my room. good times good times :) time to read another chapter of freakonomics. i'll try to take pics of museums and food and other adventures, so that there will be more color and less text for future entries :)
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