Having unpacked the last box last night and put its contents in their designated space in our new flat, I can finally--and with much delight--say that things are more or less back to normal. Yes, there are two suitcases full of clothes and a huge box full of readings that still need to be sent home, but that's going to be a breeze. I just need to get a balikbayan box (from some store called Jollibee Boxes no less!), fill it with all the stuff, then have it picked up. It's nothing compared to the big move and all that it entailed.
We moved to a new flat two weeks and two days ago. But a month (or a month and a half) before that, things were already hectic. First, we needed to find a flat. This year's flat hunting was actually smoother than last year's. We knew which area we wanted to live, we had a clear idea of how much we were willing to pay, and we knew how to deal with agents better. So after visiting three flats (the first was asking too much for what it actually offered; the second was very nice but we couldn't afford it; the last, though a bit far from school and the city, was also very nice and we could afford it, but it didn't work out in the end), we found one just a few blocks away from where we previously lived. (It was so close we just needed to change the last two digits of the zip code to show the change in block number. And, oh, the other thing, the flat was on the same floor as the previous one, so we didn't even have to change the floor number.)
The problem with this flat was, it was partially furnished, which meant it didn't have anything but an AC in each room. I was pretty struck by that actually, because I thought 'partially furnished' would at the very least include a fridge and washing machine, apart from the AC units. But no, I was wrong. There was no fridge, no washing machine, no beds, no dining table, no chairs, no sofa, no nothing. Until now, I'm not entirely sure why we decided to take it when it didn't really have anything. I suppose part of the reason was that the flat felt okay, maybe even a little nice, when we went to view it. I don't know if that makes sense, but sometimes, you get a feeling about a place, and I've always believed that if it's an okay, maybe even nice, feeling a place is giving you, then it's not so bad even if there are a few things here and there you want to complain about, and if it's within your budget and in the area you want, maybe you should take it.
I suppose we also took it because we were thinking buying the appliances and furnishing we needed would still be cheaper than getting a higher-priced flat in the end. Our agent was also very pleasant, and assured us it would not be difficult finding second-hand stuff, so that was a big plus. She also said that the tenants would probably leave their fridge, because it was old and it was just given to them, and it would actually be more expensive to move it than just leave it there. Over chicken rice and cheese prata and Milo (for me!) and Tiger beer and a successful finishing-a-dissertation story, we decided to take the flat. Yes, with its 2 AC units and (probably) an old fridge and nothing more.
In the next few weeks, we started looking for the best second-hand stuff. Alright, I'm not sure about the best, but we did get some decent second-hand stuff. Credit should go to the owner of our previous flat, who sold us his washing machine for 80sgd, and then told us to just take whatever else we needed--except for the fridge and tv, which he said would go to his sister (and which we wouldn't have taken for free anyway), and some furniture pieces, which would go to his mother (and which we didn't really want anyway, because they wouldn't go well with what we had in mind for the new place). In the end, we took his stove (+LPG) and stove stand, toaster oven, rice cooker, bed and matching bed frame, and other miscellaneous household items--all for free.
Our next goal was to get furniture. We made a plan to go to the Salvation Army, as we'd been advised by various people that we could get good stuff there. We checked online and found out that some branches of the store were open until 9pm on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Wanting to avoid the sun and the heat of the day, we decided to go on a Friday to the store's Bukit Timah branch. Thea, my flatmate, and I checked streetdirectory.com for bus directions. We got two different sets of directions, but as there were overlaps, we thought they were the same--and the difference was just a glitch in the system, which streedirectory.com is prone to having anyway. We followed Thea's set of directions, because the bus in hers came first. It was only when we reached our destination that we realized the two sets of directions were actually for two different Salvation Army branches. The one we went to, somewhere in Little India, was the one that closed early.
I'm sure, those of you who are more or less familiar with these areas are wondering how we could have mistaken the two directions for the same if one led to Little India and the other to Bukit Timah, but, as you also probably know, Bukit Timah is a very, very, very long road. It went from end to end of, well, I'm not sure, but what I'm trying to say is that it goes on and on. I suppose we were on the right road, but we went the wrong way: we went left when we should have gone right. Also, you have to understand, even after three years in Singapore, my only hope, every time there are friends or relatives visiting, is that I don't get them lost, so it's not actually much of a surprise we ended up in the wrong side of town. But we were not worried, as it was still early, and we could definitely get to the Bukit Timah store before 9pm.
We did get to where we were supposed to be before 9pm, but the store was nowhere in sight. We called one of our friends who knew the place, and he said we were right where we should be. But, yeah, he did wonder why we were there so late. After explaining to him what the store website said, we went to the church lot where the store was supposed to be located and looked around. But, nothing, we couldn't find it. It was dark all around, and all we could see were the church, which was closed, and stores and restaurants, which, to our relief, were still open. At this point, Thea and I were so hungry--because it turned out this part of Bukit Timah was so far out it was probably closer to Malaysia--we didn't even have the energy to ask around. We were just so happy there was a Subway there. So there we went and ate and decided we'd just go to Ikea the next day. So as not to totally waste our time and efforts though, we went to the Cold Storage there and bought some stuff. We also saw a bakery and strudel store, so we bought apple and banana chocolate strudel and eclairs and vanilla rolls and cream puffs. In the end, it turned out we didn't waste our time after all.
The next day, we went to Ikea. We got a dining table, chairs, and a sofa for the common area. Thea got a mattress (the bed from the former owner is mine!) and I got my chair (which deserves its own blog post!). It took us about an hour to choose the items we wanted and arrange them for delivery. The staff there asked us if we wanted help in putting the furniture together, but we said no. We were confident we could put everything together. We were also thinking that the sofa, which would probably be the hardest to assemble, would come 'as is' and we wouldn't have to assemble it. We just couldn't imagine how it would have come in parts. There was also another reason: we were trying to avoid more expense.
Everything was looking good, and all we needed to do was pack our things and move. A week before the move, our agent informed us that the tenants wanted to sell us their fridge and washing machine together. Since we already secured a washing machine and knew that the fridge that was being sold to us was really old (in fact, we couldn't believe they'd actually sell it, though we think it's probably why they included the washing machine), we declined the offer. This meant we needed to find a fridge--and fast! I went through the online classifieds first, and found two good deals. I was too late on the first one, as it just got sold, and too early on the second, as it wouldn't be available until later. Thea and I decided to look at the newspapers we had accumulated while looking for a flat. Fortunately for us, we found a store that sold reconditioned stuff.
The store was in Ang Mo Kio, another area we weren't really familiar with. This time, though, we didn't get lost, found the place without much difficulty, and got a fridge in about 15 minutes. There was a bit of a suspenseful moment when the sales person told us we needed to add a few more dollars to make the fridge last longer, and then he paused, as if he wanted us to get used to the idea. Thea and I were a bit worried, because we didn't know how much 'a few more dollars' would translate into. And the pause was unnerving. Then he said, "You need to add 9sgd more." I guess you could imagine how relieved we were by that--but we were also curious as to why the sales person thought it was a big deal. On our way back, we decided he probably just had a flair for the dramatic. Or maybe he thought we were very poor. Whatever. The important thing was we got ourselves a fridge.
During our last week at our old place, we also made arrangements for phone and internet transfer. We hired a mover. We packed and packed and packed. When the day finally came to move, we were already so tired it was a wonder we were still able to carry some of our stuff ahead of the movers and cleaned parts of the new flat. That day and in the following days, we waited for deliveries, cleaned out cabinets and drawers and bookcases, soaped and washed and disinfected toilets, sinks, tiles, and floors, unpacked and sorted and organized our clothes, books, readings, etc, assembled furniture (actually, it was mostly Fama who did this, and yes, even the sofa needed to be assembled) and arranged them, and threw out trash again and again and again. My tiredness was such that I couldn't sleep. If I did sleep, it would be uncomfortable, restless like I didn't sleep at all. It was only after the first week in the new flat that I began sleeping properly again.
Complaining about it, I was told by Lis, one of my closest friends, that I should just think of the whole thing as a cleansing process--the cleansing of whatever negatives vibes had been left behind by the former tenants. That made me think, and I realized she was right. After the clean-up, the place felt much lighter, more airy, more open. And to some extent, it wasn't just the cleansing of whatever negative vibes the former tenants left, it was also a cleansing of my own negative vibes as I threw away stuff accumulated over the years, stuff I didn't need, stuff that was taking the space of other things I really needed. I suppose one good thing a move would force you to do is to make a decision about stuff you'd keep and stuff you'd lose. In that moment of decision, you realize that which is really important to you and that which you can let go. I'd like to think that, for that reason, it's not only the place that feels lighter, I also feel lighter (though I think the lightness probably has to do with all the moving about that I've been doing since the move--still a good thing, right?), and it's just what I need to carry out my plans for the second half of the year.
Showing posts with label samu't-sari. Show all posts
Showing posts with label samu't-sari. Show all posts
16 June 2008
05 June 2008
Beginning of the Second Half of the Year
I know, I know, I haven’t been writing. I’ve been wanting to, but there never seems to be time for it. Or when I have the time, I find myself doing something else. I’ve made some kind of promise to myself, however, that I’ll try to come up with something--even if it’s just a paragraph or two--at least once a week beginning this month.
Or this second half of the year, as I’d like to think of it. I suppose I like the idea of ‘the second half of the year’ because to me it signals a more pronounced sense of beginning and end. You know, end of the first half, beginning of the second half. I don’t know if that makes sense, but to me, it means I have this clean slate of a second half, a fresh start. It means I can leave the distractions and addictions (Oh Facebook what have you done to me?!) of the first half and start anew.
I don't think I'd necessarily get to wean myself off at least two Facebook apps, and I also don't think I'd want to, but this time around, I believe I've developed strategies that would allow me to limit my 'play' time. (Well, that's the idea, so good luck to me.) I'm hopeful this would allow me to set some solid objectives, which I'd actually get to realize by year's end.
What are these objectives exactly? The first one, as I mentioned earlier, is to keep this blogging thing alive at least one post a week. The second is to keep to my writing deadlines for the completion of my dissertation. Just for the fun of it, I'll give you an idea of the kind of deadlines I'm up against: a chapter or two for every month, beginning this one. (It should have begun months ago actually, but remember, this is the beginning of the second half of the year, and I'm starting fresh. So let's just say, it all begins now. And for more fun, I also have a paper for possible publication due at the end of the month. I've definitely lots to fill my clean slate. Happiness!) The third thing is to respond to emails as they come--no more waiting for the right time to respond; I'll respond right away. The fourth and last one, perhaps the most important, is to stick to a writing routine. In the end, I think it is this routine that will save me.
I've always been a bit of a 'photo-finish' kind of person, and all these years, it's worked for me. I'm beginning to realize though that, when confronted with long-term writing like dissertation writing, 'photo-finish' just won't cut it. I have to have a routine. I have to have the discipline to keep to this routine. And if I do decide to seriously venture into academic life (read: publishing) later on, which, I suppose, is the inevitable course for someone wanting to get a PhD anyway, having a writing routine will probably make things less difficult for me.
I definitely have goals other than the ones above. I mean, goals that are not work-related, for after all, it can't be all work, right? I still intend to go to the beach, at least twice, and if I can help it, thrice. I'll go to Boracay. I'll go to Panglao. I'll go to Panglao again. I'll go to Tagaytay and eat lots of greens and tapa and bulalo. I'll visit all the restaurants I've been missing and visit new ones. I'll drink like there's no tomorrow. I'll really try to squeeze in a trip to the mountains. And I'll do all these with the people I love the most. In short, I intend to go home, and I really hope to do this very soon.
Before going home though, I'll go to the Bird Park and conquer my fear. I'll go to Sentosa, the Zoo, the Botanic Gardens, the Science Center, the National Library. I'll visit museums, walk around favorite spots in the city, maybe go on the Flyer. I'll watch a local movie or two. I'll go out more. I'll try to see and take in as much of this place that is not home, will never be home, but sometimes feels like home.
Now I know why I didn't have any resolutions when this year started. I'm to make them now.
Or this second half of the year, as I’d like to think of it. I suppose I like the idea of ‘the second half of the year’ because to me it signals a more pronounced sense of beginning and end. You know, end of the first half, beginning of the second half. I don’t know if that makes sense, but to me, it means I have this clean slate of a second half, a fresh start. It means I can leave the distractions and addictions (Oh Facebook what have you done to me?!) of the first half and start anew.
I don't think I'd necessarily get to wean myself off at least two Facebook apps, and I also don't think I'd want to, but this time around, I believe I've developed strategies that would allow me to limit my 'play' time. (Well, that's the idea, so good luck to me.) I'm hopeful this would allow me to set some solid objectives, which I'd actually get to realize by year's end.
What are these objectives exactly? The first one, as I mentioned earlier, is to keep this blogging thing alive at least one post a week. The second is to keep to my writing deadlines for the completion of my dissertation. Just for the fun of it, I'll give you an idea of the kind of deadlines I'm up against: a chapter or two for every month, beginning this one. (It should have begun months ago actually, but remember, this is the beginning of the second half of the year, and I'm starting fresh. So let's just say, it all begins now. And for more fun, I also have a paper for possible publication due at the end of the month. I've definitely lots to fill my clean slate. Happiness!) The third thing is to respond to emails as they come--no more waiting for the right time to respond; I'll respond right away. The fourth and last one, perhaps the most important, is to stick to a writing routine. In the end, I think it is this routine that will save me.
I've always been a bit of a 'photo-finish' kind of person, and all these years, it's worked for me. I'm beginning to realize though that, when confronted with long-term writing like dissertation writing, 'photo-finish' just won't cut it. I have to have a routine. I have to have the discipline to keep to this routine. And if I do decide to seriously venture into academic life (read: publishing) later on, which, I suppose, is the inevitable course for someone wanting to get a PhD anyway, having a writing routine will probably make things less difficult for me.
I definitely have goals other than the ones above. I mean, goals that are not work-related, for after all, it can't be all work, right? I still intend to go to the beach, at least twice, and if I can help it, thrice. I'll go to Boracay. I'll go to Panglao. I'll go to Panglao again. I'll go to Tagaytay and eat lots of greens and tapa and bulalo. I'll visit all the restaurants I've been missing and visit new ones. I'll drink like there's no tomorrow. I'll really try to squeeze in a trip to the mountains. And I'll do all these with the people I love the most. In short, I intend to go home, and I really hope to do this very soon.
Before going home though, I'll go to the Bird Park and conquer my fear. I'll go to Sentosa, the Zoo, the Botanic Gardens, the Science Center, the National Library. I'll visit museums, walk around favorite spots in the city, maybe go on the Flyer. I'll watch a local movie or two. I'll go out more. I'll try to see and take in as much of this place that is not home, will never be home, but sometimes feels like home.
Now I know why I didn't have any resolutions when this year started. I'm to make them now.
06 December 2007
So NOT My Day
Today, well, yesterday actually, was one of the worst days I've ever had in this country. It rained all day, and it rained really, really hard. I suppose if I had stayed in, it would have been ok (I probably would have enjoyed it actually given it could be the perfect excuse to stay in bed and sleep all day), but I had to be out to meet my supervisor for lunch and do some express photocopying of stuff I just realized I would need for the papers that I couldn't seem to write. Sigh. Then, I also had to pick up something after my errands at NUS.
Anyway, I thought at first the rain would let up after a few hours, because that's how it rains here. 'Pabugso-bugso' is, I think, the perfect word to describe it. But it just went on and on, even gaining strength as the day wore on. I wouldn't have minded if I were to stay only in NUS, but as I said, I had to go somewhere else after NUS. It was just so uncomfortable, quite a balancing act actually, getting on the bus, then on the MRT with loads of photocopies, a bottle of water, an umbrella, and my big black bag with my big, fat notebooks. (I wish I could go digital on everything and not use notebooks, but I love notebooks, big, fat ones, and I love writing on them.)
So I finally reached my destination at exactly that time when everyone else was rushing to get into the train station. I swear I was swept by the current once or twice. At one point, I really had to fight my way against the crowd. Around this time too, I was already beginning to get a little dizzy. My hyperacidity was also beginning to act up. I told myself I shouldn't have had that third cup of coffee and that I should have eaten before I left the campus. But, well, too late for that.
Good thing the person I was meeting up with was there already, so getting the package was pretty easy and didn't give me any trouble. I suppose this would be the highlight of the day, too. Remember the perfect gift I was talking about last time? That was the thing I had to pick up. :) And remember I said I'd get one for myself? Well, I did. :) I got the small red one. Hee! Until now, I can't believe how small it is. And there's actually a part of me that can't believe I paid some good money for it. Oh well, we'll see if it's worth it in a month or two.
Getting back to the flat was definitely easier than all the trips I had to take earlier, but it was still very tiring. Plus, this time, I had two additional packages: the thing--and dinner. I had thought of eating at the restaurant, but I also wanted to just go home and be comfortable, so I decided on takeaway. I thought my arms were going to fall off as I walked to the flat from the MRT station. It was still raining at this point, though not as hard as earlier, and I had to walk real slow, because the roads were slippery. But still, I was inching closer and closer to home, and I could already see my building, so it wasn't so bad.
Finally, finally, I was at the flat. I changed into comfy 'pambahay' clothes and got the food out. I was so looking forward to enjoying my fried mozzarella, creamy mushroom pasta, and ribs. But I suppose it just wasn't my day. While the mozzarella and ribs were okay (note: 'okay,' not 'really good' or 'good'), the pasta was the sweetest creamy mushroom pasta I'd ever tasted. It was like eating some kind of weird dessert. To top it all off, a monster of a headache began to make its presence felt just when I gave up on the pasta.
Hay. I should sleep now.
Anyway, I thought at first the rain would let up after a few hours, because that's how it rains here. 'Pabugso-bugso' is, I think, the perfect word to describe it. But it just went on and on, even gaining strength as the day wore on. I wouldn't have minded if I were to stay only in NUS, but as I said, I had to go somewhere else after NUS. It was just so uncomfortable, quite a balancing act actually, getting on the bus, then on the MRT with loads of photocopies, a bottle of water, an umbrella, and my big black bag with my big, fat notebooks. (I wish I could go digital on everything and not use notebooks, but I love notebooks, big, fat ones, and I love writing on them.)
So I finally reached my destination at exactly that time when everyone else was rushing to get into the train station. I swear I was swept by the current once or twice. At one point, I really had to fight my way against the crowd. Around this time too, I was already beginning to get a little dizzy. My hyperacidity was also beginning to act up. I told myself I shouldn't have had that third cup of coffee and that I should have eaten before I left the campus. But, well, too late for that.
Good thing the person I was meeting up with was there already, so getting the package was pretty easy and didn't give me any trouble. I suppose this would be the highlight of the day, too. Remember the perfect gift I was talking about last time? That was the thing I had to pick up. :) And remember I said I'd get one for myself? Well, I did. :) I got the small red one. Hee! Until now, I can't believe how small it is. And there's actually a part of me that can't believe I paid some good money for it. Oh well, we'll see if it's worth it in a month or two.
Getting back to the flat was definitely easier than all the trips I had to take earlier, but it was still very tiring. Plus, this time, I had two additional packages: the thing--and dinner. I had thought of eating at the restaurant, but I also wanted to just go home and be comfortable, so I decided on takeaway. I thought my arms were going to fall off as I walked to the flat from the MRT station. It was still raining at this point, though not as hard as earlier, and I had to walk real slow, because the roads were slippery. But still, I was inching closer and closer to home, and I could already see my building, so it wasn't so bad.
Finally, finally, I was at the flat. I changed into comfy 'pambahay' clothes and got the food out. I was so looking forward to enjoying my fried mozzarella, creamy mushroom pasta, and ribs. But I suppose it just wasn't my day. While the mozzarella and ribs were okay (note: 'okay,' not 'really good' or 'good'), the pasta was the sweetest creamy mushroom pasta I'd ever tasted. It was like eating some kind of weird dessert. To top it all off, a monster of a headache began to make its presence felt just when I gave up on the pasta.
Hay. I should sleep now.
02 December 2007
Still
still unable to write. and it's not like i haven't tried. it's just that i feel as if all the stuff i have to do are closing in on me, and there's no way i'll be able to finish everything on time. all i really want to do now is sleep, but no: "the woods are lovely, dark, and deep/but i have promises to keep/and miles to go before i sleep/and miles to go before i sleep."
*****
in other news, i have found the perfect gift. i don't know if it will work, but i sure hope so. operative word: lomo. i'm actually very excited about it. i'm thinking of getting one for myself, too, but i'll get the 'baby' version, the 'pa-cute' version. in RED. hee!
*****
i played tour guide yesterday to my father's sister's family. they were here only for a day--they just hopped over from KL is why--so we had to move on a very tight schedule. it was very tiring walking around, but it had been quite fun, too. my achievement for the day was, i didn't get them lost. well, uhm, maybe once. hehe.
*****
i guess i have to go and try writing again. i know i just have to keep at it no matter how slow i go. as a friend said, "just don't let go. never let go." i suppose writing is, in a lot of ways, like being in a relationship. right now, it's a relationship i'm not really happy about having. sigh.
*****
in other news, i have found the perfect gift. i don't know if it will work, but i sure hope so. operative word: lomo. i'm actually very excited about it. i'm thinking of getting one for myself, too, but i'll get the 'baby' version, the 'pa-cute' version. in RED. hee!
*****
i played tour guide yesterday to my father's sister's family. they were here only for a day--they just hopped over from KL is why--so we had to move on a very tight schedule. it was very tiring walking around, but it had been quite fun, too. my achievement for the day was, i didn't get them lost. well, uhm, maybe once. hehe.
*****
i guess i have to go and try writing again. i know i just have to keep at it no matter how slow i go. as a friend said, "just don't let go. never let go." i suppose writing is, in a lot of ways, like being in a relationship. right now, it's a relationship i'm not really happy about having. sigh.
25 November 2007
Weekend Updates
ONE: Saturday's invigilation for a level 4000 Theater class--which I'm pleased to announce took place without any disruptions. Final exams in NUS usually go smooth and undisturbed, despite all the horror stories and warnings during the invigilators' briefing, but sometimes, things do happen. For instance, during Thea's invigilation last semester, one student got sick and had to to be pulled out of the room, so she could lie down. Thankfully, the student got well enough to resume the exam and did not have to be brought to the hospital, so that Thea only had to stay a bit longer to wait for the student to finish and didn't have to accompany her to the hospital. While I wasn't really worried that something like that was going to happen, I couldn't rule it out, so I was just happy the exam went as it should be: smooth and undisturbed.
There was one noteworthy thing about this final exam though. When I checked the venue of the exam, I saw that it was in one of the LTs (Lecture Theatre). Seeing that it was a big venue--an LT could seat about 165 people--I thought there would be a lot of students--at least half of the total number of seats if the space between students was factored in. When I saw the module though, it was a level 4000 class, which would generally mean a small class, so I thought that there'd probably be another 4000 level module in the venue, and one other invigilator.
When I got to the exam venue, I found out it was indeed a small class, 10 students, and it was the only module in that room. The reason the module was assigned to an LT was that they needed a video wall, because part of the exam was a clip that would be shown for the students to analyze. Can you believe it--10 students in an LT with 165 seats because the class needed a video wall?! I suppose this is another indication of how important final exams are in NUS.
Oh, and another thing: there are special desks for the chairs in the LTs during final exams. The everyday desks are small--the movable type ones that you can use as a desk or move/fold over to the side if you don't want one--which I suppose are ok for taking down notes. For final exams, however, they have these brown desks the size of children's writing desks which can be attached to the existing structure. My thought when I saw the desks and the whole process of bringing them out and fixing them was explained to me: "Ok, this is serious!"
TWO: The Annual Christmas Tree at Takashimaya, which is awesome, because it's a giant tree. Look!
Top of the tree
Base of the tree
The tree
THREE: Kinokuniya, which over the weekend, was having a 20% discount for its Privilege Card members. I'm not a member but Fama is, so YAY! :) Finally got Books 4, 5, and 6 of 'Strangers in Paradise.' I also learned there's a new Winterson novel, 'The Stone Gods,' which, according to reviews is "Winterson at her finest." I shall see. I also got another book, and reading parts of it last night, I thought I might have discovered a new favorite writer. But I shall see about that, too, as I'm not done with the book yet. So far though, brilliant prose. :) And also, Stargirl is back with 'Love, Stargirl,' but this one will probably have to wait until January--that is, if I myself am able to wait until then. Hehe.
FOUR: This:
I didn't realize I had missed Tracy Chapman until I heard this song playing somewhere yesterday. 'The Promise' is one of my favorite songs. It's simple and sweet, and, I don't know, it just seems so right that it's Tracy Chapman singing it. I've been playing this song since this morning. Hee!
That's about it for the weekend, I suppose. I'm kind of dreading this coming week, as it only means I'm getting ever closer to all the deadlines I've been trying not think about. Well, at least, I have a few hours more of Sunday, and I can (and will) spend them any way I want. :)
There was one noteworthy thing about this final exam though. When I checked the venue of the exam, I saw that it was in one of the LTs (Lecture Theatre). Seeing that it was a big venue--an LT could seat about 165 people--I thought there would be a lot of students--at least half of the total number of seats if the space between students was factored in. When I saw the module though, it was a level 4000 class, which would generally mean a small class, so I thought that there'd probably be another 4000 level module in the venue, and one other invigilator.
When I got to the exam venue, I found out it was indeed a small class, 10 students, and it was the only module in that room. The reason the module was assigned to an LT was that they needed a video wall, because part of the exam was a clip that would be shown for the students to analyze. Can you believe it--10 students in an LT with 165 seats because the class needed a video wall?! I suppose this is another indication of how important final exams are in NUS.
Oh, and another thing: there are special desks for the chairs in the LTs during final exams. The everyday desks are small--the movable type ones that you can use as a desk or move/fold over to the side if you don't want one--which I suppose are ok for taking down notes. For final exams, however, they have these brown desks the size of children's writing desks which can be attached to the existing structure. My thought when I saw the desks and the whole process of bringing them out and fixing them was explained to me: "Ok, this is serious!"
TWO: The Annual Christmas Tree at Takashimaya, which is awesome, because it's a giant tree. Look!
Top of the tree
Base of the tree
The tree
THREE: Kinokuniya, which over the weekend, was having a 20% discount for its Privilege Card members. I'm not a member but Fama is, so YAY! :) Finally got Books 4, 5, and 6 of 'Strangers in Paradise.' I also learned there's a new Winterson novel, 'The Stone Gods,' which, according to reviews is "Winterson at her finest." I shall see. I also got another book, and reading parts of it last night, I thought I might have discovered a new favorite writer. But I shall see about that, too, as I'm not done with the book yet. So far though, brilliant prose. :) And also, Stargirl is back with 'Love, Stargirl,' but this one will probably have to wait until January--that is, if I myself am able to wait until then. Hehe.
FOUR: This:
I didn't realize I had missed Tracy Chapman until I heard this song playing somewhere yesterday. 'The Promise' is one of my favorite songs. It's simple and sweet, and, I don't know, it just seems so right that it's Tracy Chapman singing it. I've been playing this song since this morning. Hee!
That's about it for the weekend, I suppose. I'm kind of dreading this coming week, as it only means I'm getting ever closer to all the deadlines I've been trying not think about. Well, at least, I have a few hours more of Sunday, and I can (and will) spend them any way I want. :)
31 October 2007
All Set!
Originally posted on 22 October 2007.
-----
After much planning and lots of careful attention to details (translation: stressful stuff), I finally got to book tickets for home this December, and I'm proud to announce it's reasonably priced, given the peak rates of the holiday season, the rather late hour in which I booked them, and my flight dates.:-) I'm flying with PAL en route to the Philippines and Cebu Pacific when I return back here. Would you believe this deal is actually 50sgd cheaper than if I had flown Cebu Pacific both ways?! I know it's just 50sgd, but still, I feel as if I've done a bit of good strategizing here and won something.
I mean, you couldn't possibly imagine the sick, miserable feeling I had when I went to the Cebu Pacific website early last week and saw that there were no more available flights beginning 17 Dec. It turned out that it was a glitch--there were available flights actually--but at that time, I didn't know that, so I was all panicky. Tiger Airways had sold out all their flights for the period in question weeks and weeks ago. I had vowed never to fly Jetstar again unless my destination was not the Philippines and only for a really unbelievably cheap ticket price. (The reason for this, as they say, is another story, and in this case, a long one, which I really don't want to recall.)
So, at that time, it was a very real possibility that I would have to fly PAL both ways. That would have cost me 200sgd more than the deal I got, and it would have been simply heartbreaking to pay that much after having experienced traveling for so much less before. I know it's Christmas anyway, but still, all the more reason to try to get affordable tickets, right? I mean, gifts need to be bought and parties attended and people to be made happy, after all. And that doesn't come cheap. :-) But I also told myself that if PAL was the last resort, then so be it. I should just resign myself to not being able to buy some things I wanted for myself this Christmas.
Good thing though I checked at Kabayan, a Pinoy-run (not sure if it's also Pinoy-owned) travel agency at Lucky Plaza, the Pinoy hangout/mall/destination in Singapore, before purchasing any tickets. Thanks to Dayen for the tip-off on the PAL one-way fare, which cost less than Cebu Pacific's, the further 10sgd deduction, and the interesting conversation. :-) If I had gone the other way and taken a two-way ticket with Cebu Pacific, you know, after I had found out about the glitch, I would have paid 50sgd more and missed airplane food (hehe) and lost Miles, which could help, if only a little bit, the sorry state of my mileage account. Plus, the PAL flight departs at a better, more convenient time.
In the end, I really think it's a good deal all around, and the best one I could have gotten under the circumstances. Sometimes, I really think I'm kind of a winner. Hahaha.
Manila, here I come! Well, not quite yet, but you get my drift. :-)
P.S. Please forgive me if I sound too self-congratulatory. It's very seldom that things of this nature, you know, successful execution after careful deliberation of details and such like, work out for me. Hee.
-----
After much planning and lots of careful attention to details (translation: stressful stuff), I finally got to book tickets for home this December, and I'm proud to announce it's reasonably priced, given the peak rates of the holiday season, the rather late hour in which I booked them, and my flight dates.:-) I'm flying with PAL en route to the Philippines and Cebu Pacific when I return back here. Would you believe this deal is actually 50sgd cheaper than if I had flown Cebu Pacific both ways?! I know it's just 50sgd, but still, I feel as if I've done a bit of good strategizing here and won something.
I mean, you couldn't possibly imagine the sick, miserable feeling I had when I went to the Cebu Pacific website early last week and saw that there were no more available flights beginning 17 Dec. It turned out that it was a glitch--there were available flights actually--but at that time, I didn't know that, so I was all panicky. Tiger Airways had sold out all their flights for the period in question weeks and weeks ago. I had vowed never to fly Jetstar again unless my destination was not the Philippines and only for a really unbelievably cheap ticket price. (The reason for this, as they say, is another story, and in this case, a long one, which I really don't want to recall.)
So, at that time, it was a very real possibility that I would have to fly PAL both ways. That would have cost me 200sgd more than the deal I got, and it would have been simply heartbreaking to pay that much after having experienced traveling for so much less before. I know it's Christmas anyway, but still, all the more reason to try to get affordable tickets, right? I mean, gifts need to be bought and parties attended and people to be made happy, after all. And that doesn't come cheap. :-) But I also told myself that if PAL was the last resort, then so be it. I should just resign myself to not being able to buy some things I wanted for myself this Christmas.
Good thing though I checked at Kabayan, a Pinoy-run (not sure if it's also Pinoy-owned) travel agency at Lucky Plaza, the Pinoy hangout/mall/destination in Singapore, before purchasing any tickets. Thanks to Dayen for the tip-off on the PAL one-way fare, which cost less than Cebu Pacific's, the further 10sgd deduction, and the interesting conversation. :-) If I had gone the other way and taken a two-way ticket with Cebu Pacific, you know, after I had found out about the glitch, I would have paid 50sgd more and missed airplane food (hehe) and lost Miles, which could help, if only a little bit, the sorry state of my mileage account. Plus, the PAL flight departs at a better, more convenient time.
In the end, I really think it's a good deal all around, and the best one I could have gotten under the circumstances. Sometimes, I really think I'm kind of a winner. Hahaha.
Manila, here I come! Well, not quite yet, but you get my drift. :-)
P.S. Please forgive me if I sound too self-congratulatory. It's very seldom that things of this nature, you know, successful execution after careful deliberation of details and such like, work out for me. Hee.
30 October 2007
Horoscope
Originally posted on my Friendster blog on 19 August 2007, right about the time I started this.
-----
"It's time for you to organize the different elements of your life and get things on a coherent schedule. Your work or school obligations, your friendships and your romantic relationships are all pulling you in different directions, and the problem will only get bigger if you put off getting things in line. Be a lot more structured about how you plan your days -- get it down to the minute if you have to. These drastic measures don't have to be permanent, but they'll get you going down the right track."
that chunk above is my horoscope for the day. it's crazy how i've done nothing the past few weeks but try to organize my life, and and still, the horoscope i get tells me to do more of it. then again, as i begin thinking about how i've spent the last few weeks, i realize that, perhaps, what it's telling me is to organize ALL aspects of my life, not just certain aspects of it, as i'm prone to do. in particular, i think it's telling me to start attending to my school obligations--instead of organizing and re-organizing my photos and uploading them. ahem. i also think it's telling me to start transcribing my data and writing my first chapter--instead of starting this. ahem. ahem.
-----
"It's time for you to organize the different elements of your life and get things on a coherent schedule. Your work or school obligations, your friendships and your romantic relationships are all pulling you in different directions, and the problem will only get bigger if you put off getting things in line. Be a lot more structured about how you plan your days -- get it down to the minute if you have to. These drastic measures don't have to be permanent, but they'll get you going down the right track."
that chunk above is my horoscope for the day. it's crazy how i've done nothing the past few weeks but try to organize my life, and and still, the horoscope i get tells me to do more of it. then again, as i begin thinking about how i've spent the last few weeks, i realize that, perhaps, what it's telling me is to organize ALL aspects of my life, not just certain aspects of it, as i'm prone to do. in particular, i think it's telling me to start attending to my school obligations--instead of organizing and re-organizing my photos and uploading them. ahem. i also think it's telling me to start transcribing my data and writing my first chapter--instead of starting this. ahem. ahem.
Touching Base
Originally posted on my Friendster blog on 24 February 2007, after a long silence, which this post tries to account for. Hehe.
-----
this blog looks so sad. from the tone of my previous post, you would perhaps think that the reason i haven't checked in is that i've been busy with school stuff. i'd really like to say that, yes, i've been really busy reading, uhm, the theory of structuration or the sociolinguistics of globalization or the structure vs agency debate or the glocalization of English or some other big-sounding category of knowledge, but, uhm, no, not really. i haven't really done any of that. i've been trying though. i've been trying really hard. (and don't you think props should be given to me for that, and the fact that i've got my big jargon words down pat? hee.)
so what have i been doing all this time? well, christmas came, and it was sheer craziness. with all the parties, the shopping and gift-giving, the constant moving around, and my general state of lethargy, there wasn't any time to think, much less write. the early part of january was hectic, too, because, well, it was time to clean up the mess of the holiday season--and eat all the leftovers. then, it was my birthday. you know how birthdays are, right? they usually last more than one day. so mine, it took a while, too. it was all good though, because it's always nice to be reminded that you're loved, and that you've been blessed, and that you have so much to be thankful for.
what's hard to account for is the time after that. i did meet up with my supervisor, and we talked about organizing my life. so i did that for about a month. in the best way i could. i made about a hundred more folders on my iBook, colorcoded them, shuffled my files, and assigned more specific labels to each one. i tried at first to come up with witty titles for my folders, e.g., The Rather Tentative but Definitely Important Topic of Meta-Talk in a Globalizing World, but i soon realized i couldn't possibly do that for each of the hundred folders that i just created (and really, i was doing it to avoid categorizing my files), so i ended up with rather boring, basic kinds of titles, e.g., Globalization&Theories of Communication. (oh, alright, it's not exactly a hundred folders, but it's close. i'm telling you it's close. please believe me.)
why it took a month, when i haven't even touched my gazillion photocopies (yes, photocopies. i tell you, when i return back home, i'll have a library full of photocopies. and mind you, i myself was the one who photocopied them all. i often tell my friends that if i didn't finish this freakin degree, i could always apply at the SC for a photocopying job. hee!), i'm not really sure. perhaps, because on the side, i was also organizing my photo and music library and spending more time doing that. i mean, in this case, i really had to come up with inventive labels for my photos. i just couldn't say 'vacation' or 'christmas' like it was just that, right? the labels had to be funny, quirky, witty. as for my music, i had to redo my playlists, because the previous ones didn't apply anymore, and then come up with, you guessed it right, new labels. you could imagine the time it took.
or maybe, it was because i was on youtube practically all the time, getting the latest episodes of 'maging sino ka man' and scenes from previous episodes i didn't get to see (celine's 'i'm the best slut in town' scene totally rocked, i thought) or tegan and sara videos or american idol auditions i missed or harry potter&the order of the phoenix previews or MADtv spoofs or full-length movies of this and that or something this and that. there was just always something for me to view on youtube. youtube, as you probably know by now, is my happy place, so i stay there as much as i can.
or perhaps, it was because on top of everything else, i was also trying to catch up with all the recaps and forum discussions and blog posts (definitely not mine!) i missed over the break. just as i was getting on the latest pages of my regular online destinations and beginning to think i could finally start with organizing my gazillion photocopies, a friend texted me to say that the final harry potter book was due to come out on 21 feb, er, july (love you, kla!). right after that, i was googling all HP7-related news, which then led me to two HP sites that got me into reading essays upon essays on who R.A.B. really was, whether or not snape was really dumbledore's man, and which characters would die. and finally, a little after the HP7 excitement/anticipation had subsided, THIS, which took a really huge chunk of that one month.
i don't really think these online activities would do me good in the real world, but still: i know all about the latest american idol gossip, britney's bald head and in-and-out of rehab dance, the latest scientology recruits, and the possibility that george clooney had his eyes done. more, i think i have a better insight now on snape's character, the pendant lying around at number 12 grimmauld place, and the significance of harry having his mother's eyes. i also realized that no matter how upset i've been about dumbledore's death, even shedding a few tears, there are at least ten people more upset about it than me, so i should just pull myself together and get on with my life. and, best of all, and this may not make sense at all, but: "when you smile? i die a little."
sometimes, i wonder what the real world is there for. but it is there. and i'm part of it. at least, that's the general idea. so for the real world then, well, my favorite reality shows are back, so, yay! kidding aside, i managed to do some 'real' work, i suppose. i updated my bibliography, added a few more essays to my photocopy collection, wrote some kind of academic life plan for this year, read at least half of an essay every day, read a novel, cleaned my room, and fixed my desk. i did some shopping for the chinese new year celebrations and learned to cook two new dishes. i also went out, met up with some friends, and had a couple or so drinks.
over all, i think i’m doing things okay. i just get this nagging feeling all the time that i'm not doing enough reading. it’s also killing me that this organizing thing is lifelong work. it has to be done forever. you have to understand that structure does not come naturally to me. it has to be imposed all the time. more accurately, i have to impose it on myself all the time. oh, well, let’s see how it all plays out in the coming months. in the meantime, there’s much to do online.
-----
this blog looks so sad. from the tone of my previous post, you would perhaps think that the reason i haven't checked in is that i've been busy with school stuff. i'd really like to say that, yes, i've been really busy reading, uhm, the theory of structuration or the sociolinguistics of globalization or the structure vs agency debate or the glocalization of English or some other big-sounding category of knowledge, but, uhm, no, not really. i haven't really done any of that. i've been trying though. i've been trying really hard. (and don't you think props should be given to me for that, and the fact that i've got my big jargon words down pat? hee.)
so what have i been doing all this time? well, christmas came, and it was sheer craziness. with all the parties, the shopping and gift-giving, the constant moving around, and my general state of lethargy, there wasn't any time to think, much less write. the early part of january was hectic, too, because, well, it was time to clean up the mess of the holiday season--and eat all the leftovers. then, it was my birthday. you know how birthdays are, right? they usually last more than one day. so mine, it took a while, too. it was all good though, because it's always nice to be reminded that you're loved, and that you've been blessed, and that you have so much to be thankful for.
what's hard to account for is the time after that. i did meet up with my supervisor, and we talked about organizing my life. so i did that for about a month. in the best way i could. i made about a hundred more folders on my iBook, colorcoded them, shuffled my files, and assigned more specific labels to each one. i tried at first to come up with witty titles for my folders, e.g., The Rather Tentative but Definitely Important Topic of Meta-Talk in a Globalizing World, but i soon realized i couldn't possibly do that for each of the hundred folders that i just created (and really, i was doing it to avoid categorizing my files), so i ended up with rather boring, basic kinds of titles, e.g., Globalization&Theories of Communication. (oh, alright, it's not exactly a hundred folders, but it's close. i'm telling you it's close. please believe me.)
why it took a month, when i haven't even touched my gazillion photocopies (yes, photocopies. i tell you, when i return back home, i'll have a library full of photocopies. and mind you, i myself was the one who photocopied them all. i often tell my friends that if i didn't finish this freakin degree, i could always apply at the SC for a photocopying job. hee!), i'm not really sure. perhaps, because on the side, i was also organizing my photo and music library and spending more time doing that. i mean, in this case, i really had to come up with inventive labels for my photos. i just couldn't say 'vacation' or 'christmas' like it was just that, right? the labels had to be funny, quirky, witty. as for my music, i had to redo my playlists, because the previous ones didn't apply anymore, and then come up with, you guessed it right, new labels. you could imagine the time it took.
or maybe, it was because i was on youtube practically all the time, getting the latest episodes of 'maging sino ka man' and scenes from previous episodes i didn't get to see (celine's 'i'm the best slut in town' scene totally rocked, i thought) or tegan and sara videos or american idol auditions i missed or harry potter&the order of the phoenix previews or MADtv spoofs or full-length movies of this and that or something this and that. there was just always something for me to view on youtube. youtube, as you probably know by now, is my happy place, so i stay there as much as i can.
or perhaps, it was because on top of everything else, i was also trying to catch up with all the recaps and forum discussions and blog posts (definitely not mine!) i missed over the break. just as i was getting on the latest pages of my regular online destinations and beginning to think i could finally start with organizing my gazillion photocopies, a friend texted me to say that the final harry potter book was due to come out on 21 feb, er, july (love you, kla!). right after that, i was googling all HP7-related news, which then led me to two HP sites that got me into reading essays upon essays on who R.A.B. really was, whether or not snape was really dumbledore's man, and which characters would die. and finally, a little after the HP7 excitement/anticipation had subsided, THIS, which took a really huge chunk of that one month.
i don't really think these online activities would do me good in the real world, but still: i know all about the latest american idol gossip, britney's bald head and in-and-out of rehab dance, the latest scientology recruits, and the possibility that george clooney had his eyes done. more, i think i have a better insight now on snape's character, the pendant lying around at number 12 grimmauld place, and the significance of harry having his mother's eyes. i also realized that no matter how upset i've been about dumbledore's death, even shedding a few tears, there are at least ten people more upset about it than me, so i should just pull myself together and get on with my life. and, best of all, and this may not make sense at all, but: "when you smile? i die a little."
sometimes, i wonder what the real world is there for. but it is there. and i'm part of it. at least, that's the general idea. so for the real world then, well, my favorite reality shows are back, so, yay! kidding aside, i managed to do some 'real' work, i suppose. i updated my bibliography, added a few more essays to my photocopy collection, wrote some kind of academic life plan for this year, read at least half of an essay every day, read a novel, cleaned my room, and fixed my desk. i did some shopping for the chinese new year celebrations and learned to cook two new dishes. i also went out, met up with some friends, and had a couple or so drinks.
over all, i think i’m doing things okay. i just get this nagging feeling all the time that i'm not doing enough reading. it’s also killing me that this organizing thing is lifelong work. it has to be done forever. you have to understand that structure does not come naturally to me. it has to be imposed all the time. more accurately, i have to impose it on myself all the time. oh, well, let’s see how it all plays out in the coming months. in the meantime, there’s much to do online.
Time for A Cool, Cool Change
Originally posted on my Friendster blog 16 November 2006 in lieu of my blog revamp. I don't have the old blog, but
here's what replaced it. :-)
indeed. so here's a new style and layout to my blog and a new title, too. the first time i posted here, it was really just on a whim and i didn't really think i'd be able to post again, so what i did was i skimmed through the blog-building process, chose the design with the color that was closest to purple (my default color, because, i think, of lavenders, which i love), and used the first title that came to mind. when i found myself posting again, and then again, i had thought of revamping the whole thing. i realized the purple color wasn't exactly the kind of purple i wanted, and the title was just, well, like the title of so many other blogs and articles and whathaveyous circulating online. (don't get me wrong; i still like the whole 'aimless wanderings' idea, because, really, that's what i do, but i also thought maybe i should try a little harder in coming up with a title.) never got a chance to do any revamping though, because i'd been totally swamped with work and school stuff.
now that i'm done with my comprehensive exams (yay!) and the writing of my thesis proposal (double yay!), i told myself i better start changing a few things here and there, before i start drowning again. i mean, it's a bit quiet now, but i still have an oral defense to prepare for--and dread and agonize over--and final papers to check. i also have exam duties and some paperwork to do before i can take off, and, of course, christmas shopping, which can take a huge amount of time and energy. (i like pretending i don't like christmas shopping--you know, i try to make it seem like it's a chore or a duty, or when i say 'christmas shopping,' i sort of roll my eyes--but it's hard, because i really do--in the i-smile-and-get-really-excited-when-i-think-about-it kind of way.) so, anyway, now that i still have some time to spare: this blog is gonna get totally made over! :)
my choice of this new layout and design is based primarily on the name of this style: sunburned. no, not because i'm in a very hot country where i get sunburned every time i leave the house (over the last few weeks, about five people commented that my skin was getting darker, to which i didn't really know how to reply, so i just said, yeah, i guess so). it's also not because i like getting all tanned up, because, yikes, no (for some reason, this reminds me of people with really bad fake tan they look orange). i guess it's really just because i thought the name was cute, and it matched very well with the dashes of red and the various shades of (coffee with milk) brown on the page. also, and i think this is important, my horoscope today said i should add more reds and browns to my wardrobe. yes, seriously. i immediately thought, why not to my blog as well?! hehe.
as for the new title, 'uptakes' is taken from one of the books i was required to read for my second comprehensive exam. i know i complained a lot about a lot of stuff on my reading list, but not about this one. i guess it's one of those books i'm just happy i got to read whatever the circumstances may be of why i came to read it. i suppose i've to thank the members of my panel for that. anyway, the term just really points to how language is all a matter of uptake--that is, person a puts forth something, and person b takes it up. the logical conclusion is that, after this exchange, person a and person b arrive at an understanding. but it's not really all that simple. first off, there is no guarantee that person b will take up whatever person a said; it's also not guaranteed that person b will take up what person a said in the manner that person a intended. or it's possible that person b, even if s/he understood what person a said in the intended manner, would refuse to take it up, simply because s/he could.
underlying all these then is the fact that the discursive field in which people engage and interact is often already stratified. when people enter discourse, they don't enter a blank space; rather, they enter a place already filled with all kinds of inscriptions and attributions that privilege some participants and limit others. moreover, people themselves are rarely in equal or symmetrical relations; they know this, and they act accordingly. so person b, for instance, refuses to accept what person a is saying, because s/he deems it unacceptable, and s/he can make that judgment, because s/he has the authority to decide on what's acceptable or not. put this way then, 'uptake' becomes a site of contention, of power struggle.
i know these aren't exactly new ideas. i think most everybody knows that the world we live in is unfair, and there are rich people and poor ones, and all sorts of classifications that put people in place. but my joy in all these, my excitement, lies in how a certain term, something actually quite common, becomes something else entirely, because someone chose it and used it to make sense of a phenomenon that is so obvious and yet so difficult to grasp. what i love about all these is how something is explained to me in such a way that it becomes more illuminating of what i already know--such that the knowledge i have actually becomes (and feels) brand new.
so 'uptakes' it is. i have to make it clear though: i didn't choose the term to turn this blog into a site of power struggle and/or whatever else i said above. i decided to use it, because i just really like the term, and it sort of applies, i think, in the sense that, 'here's my uptake, will you take it up?' bwahahaha. the author of the book would probably kill me if he found out i ever used his term/concept this way. it's a good thing he never would. :)
in closing, i was just thinking if i really needed to think so much about this whole revamp thing, and if i really had to subject you to the process. then, i realized, for some time now, all i've been doing is trying to explain and justify every piece of data, every theoretical framework, every methodology, every little thing that i intend to include in my research project. so maybe it's carried itself over to other aspects of my life as well. you may just want to indulge me a little bit then.
p.s. okay, i just had to do it. the old title of this blog would just have to have its place somewhere in here. i guess i'm lucky there's such a thing as subtitles. hehe. then i had to add some synonymous phrases for balance, because having just one phrase up there kind of looked sad.
here's what replaced it. :-)
indeed. so here's a new style and layout to my blog and a new title, too. the first time i posted here, it was really just on a whim and i didn't really think i'd be able to post again, so what i did was i skimmed through the blog-building process, chose the design with the color that was closest to purple (my default color, because, i think, of lavenders, which i love), and used the first title that came to mind. when i found myself posting again, and then again, i had thought of revamping the whole thing. i realized the purple color wasn't exactly the kind of purple i wanted, and the title was just, well, like the title of so many other blogs and articles and whathaveyous circulating online. (don't get me wrong; i still like the whole 'aimless wanderings' idea, because, really, that's what i do, but i also thought maybe i should try a little harder in coming up with a title.) never got a chance to do any revamping though, because i'd been totally swamped with work and school stuff.
now that i'm done with my comprehensive exams (yay!) and the writing of my thesis proposal (double yay!), i told myself i better start changing a few things here and there, before i start drowning again. i mean, it's a bit quiet now, but i still have an oral defense to prepare for--and dread and agonize over--and final papers to check. i also have exam duties and some paperwork to do before i can take off, and, of course, christmas shopping, which can take a huge amount of time and energy. (i like pretending i don't like christmas shopping--you know, i try to make it seem like it's a chore or a duty, or when i say 'christmas shopping,' i sort of roll my eyes--but it's hard, because i really do--in the i-smile-and-get-really-excited-when-i-think-about-it kind of way.) so, anyway, now that i still have some time to spare: this blog is gonna get totally made over! :)
my choice of this new layout and design is based primarily on the name of this style: sunburned. no, not because i'm in a very hot country where i get sunburned every time i leave the house (over the last few weeks, about five people commented that my skin was getting darker, to which i didn't really know how to reply, so i just said, yeah, i guess so). it's also not because i like getting all tanned up, because, yikes, no (for some reason, this reminds me of people with really bad fake tan they look orange). i guess it's really just because i thought the name was cute, and it matched very well with the dashes of red and the various shades of (coffee with milk) brown on the page. also, and i think this is important, my horoscope today said i should add more reds and browns to my wardrobe. yes, seriously. i immediately thought, why not to my blog as well?! hehe.
as for the new title, 'uptakes' is taken from one of the books i was required to read for my second comprehensive exam. i know i complained a lot about a lot of stuff on my reading list, but not about this one. i guess it's one of those books i'm just happy i got to read whatever the circumstances may be of why i came to read it. i suppose i've to thank the members of my panel for that. anyway, the term just really points to how language is all a matter of uptake--that is, person a puts forth something, and person b takes it up. the logical conclusion is that, after this exchange, person a and person b arrive at an understanding. but it's not really all that simple. first off, there is no guarantee that person b will take up whatever person a said; it's also not guaranteed that person b will take up what person a said in the manner that person a intended. or it's possible that person b, even if s/he understood what person a said in the intended manner, would refuse to take it up, simply because s/he could.
underlying all these then is the fact that the discursive field in which people engage and interact is often already stratified. when people enter discourse, they don't enter a blank space; rather, they enter a place already filled with all kinds of inscriptions and attributions that privilege some participants and limit others. moreover, people themselves are rarely in equal or symmetrical relations; they know this, and they act accordingly. so person b, for instance, refuses to accept what person a is saying, because s/he deems it unacceptable, and s/he can make that judgment, because s/he has the authority to decide on what's acceptable or not. put this way then, 'uptake' becomes a site of contention, of power struggle.
i know these aren't exactly new ideas. i think most everybody knows that the world we live in is unfair, and there are rich people and poor ones, and all sorts of classifications that put people in place. but my joy in all these, my excitement, lies in how a certain term, something actually quite common, becomes something else entirely, because someone chose it and used it to make sense of a phenomenon that is so obvious and yet so difficult to grasp. what i love about all these is how something is explained to me in such a way that it becomes more illuminating of what i already know--such that the knowledge i have actually becomes (and feels) brand new.
so 'uptakes' it is. i have to make it clear though: i didn't choose the term to turn this blog into a site of power struggle and/or whatever else i said above. i decided to use it, because i just really like the term, and it sort of applies, i think, in the sense that, 'here's my uptake, will you take it up?' bwahahaha. the author of the book would probably kill me if he found out i ever used his term/concept this way. it's a good thing he never would. :)
in closing, i was just thinking if i really needed to think so much about this whole revamp thing, and if i really had to subject you to the process. then, i realized, for some time now, all i've been doing is trying to explain and justify every piece of data, every theoretical framework, every methodology, every little thing that i intend to include in my research project. so maybe it's carried itself over to other aspects of my life as well. you may just want to indulge me a little bit then.
p.s. okay, i just had to do it. the old title of this blog would just have to have its place somewhere in here. i guess i'm lucky there's such a thing as subtitles. hehe. then i had to add some synonymous phrases for balance, because having just one phrase up there kind of looked sad.
Back
Originally posted on my Friendster blog on 09 October 2006.
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just got back from some much-needed r&r, and also, a bit of research. i'm not exactly glad to be back to the daily grind, but i guess, i can't really complain, as i've had my break--and i've to say it was just perfect. here's why:
1. i got to visit some new places, one a garden, the other a cafe, and tried, well, flowers for food. i don't think i'll make a habit of it, but, i realized flowers aren't so bad--when they're mixed in with other kinds of things, that is. hehe. whatever. the flowers were good.
2. i got treated to a kundiman serenade over dinner, and simply loved it. the man singing was old and didn't look like a professional singer, which, to me, made his singing somehow more real and heartfelt. he was singing as if he really knew how it was to love and lose and love again.
3. i got to sleep in starched linen that felt and smelled so good i never wanted to get out of bed. i don't know if it was the linen, or maybe it was just the fact that my 1st comprehensive exam was over, or a combination of both perhaps, but i was finally able to sleep without waking up every 15 minutes or so. for the first time in a long time, i woke up refreshed and cheerful--and ready for more flowers. hehe.
4. i also got to taste the best hot chocolate and peanut butter cookies ever. the hot chocolate was just the right bittersweet; it also had chocolate bits that would make you stop whatever you were saying or doing, so you could just smile silly and savor the drink (or, in one friend's case, so she could order another pot, hehe). the peanut butter cookies were actually an afterthought--or was it the chocolate muffins, which were, ahm, good, but not remarkable? anyway, the cookies were huge and moist and so peanut-y we immediately regretted not buying more than the one bag that we did and made a promise to come back if only for the cookies.
5. i was given a classic didion, an artemis fowl, and 2 books written by bob ong. this means i got some new books that are not at all school-related. yay!
but i guess, more than all these, it was the quiet and peace and slowness of the whole thing that made this break truly remarkable for me. now, as for the research bit, i finally got the stuff i needed, and nothing and nobody could stop me now. hahaha. seriously, i was able to do some work in between the sleeping and eating and lazing around. i was actually surprised i got a few things done. nothing major, but enough to keep this week, and perhaps, a bit of the next, less hectic. at least, that's what i'm hoping for.
oh, and some good news: i managed to pass my 1st comprehensive exam, despite failing to resolve structural ambiguities through a common enough exercise in syntax: tree diagramming (i know, i know, ma'am flores won't be too happy to know about this), and despite explaining the notion of minimal pairs in terms of presence and absence (whatever, it's still a binary, and i like presences and absences!). so congratulations to me! but it's not over yet; i'm on to the 2nd, which is scheduled on 1 nov. when i told my brother, he jokingly said they'd include me in their prayers back home. (my family usually says a litany of all saints' day prayers. ) i have a little over three weeks to prepare for the exam, and the reading list is more than i can possibly read in half a year, that is, if i really keep at it, so i say, whatever helps.
-----
just got back from some much-needed r&r, and also, a bit of research. i'm not exactly glad to be back to the daily grind, but i guess, i can't really complain, as i've had my break--and i've to say it was just perfect. here's why:
1. i got to visit some new places, one a garden, the other a cafe, and tried, well, flowers for food. i don't think i'll make a habit of it, but, i realized flowers aren't so bad--when they're mixed in with other kinds of things, that is. hehe. whatever. the flowers were good.
2. i got treated to a kundiman serenade over dinner, and simply loved it. the man singing was old and didn't look like a professional singer, which, to me, made his singing somehow more real and heartfelt. he was singing as if he really knew how it was to love and lose and love again.
3. i got to sleep in starched linen that felt and smelled so good i never wanted to get out of bed. i don't know if it was the linen, or maybe it was just the fact that my 1st comprehensive exam was over, or a combination of both perhaps, but i was finally able to sleep without waking up every 15 minutes or so. for the first time in a long time, i woke up refreshed and cheerful--and ready for more flowers. hehe.
4. i also got to taste the best hot chocolate and peanut butter cookies ever. the hot chocolate was just the right bittersweet; it also had chocolate bits that would make you stop whatever you were saying or doing, so you could just smile silly and savor the drink (or, in one friend's case, so she could order another pot, hehe). the peanut butter cookies were actually an afterthought--or was it the chocolate muffins, which were, ahm, good, but not remarkable? anyway, the cookies were huge and moist and so peanut-y we immediately regretted not buying more than the one bag that we did and made a promise to come back if only for the cookies.
5. i was given a classic didion, an artemis fowl, and 2 books written by bob ong. this means i got some new books that are not at all school-related. yay!
but i guess, more than all these, it was the quiet and peace and slowness of the whole thing that made this break truly remarkable for me. now, as for the research bit, i finally got the stuff i needed, and nothing and nobody could stop me now. hahaha. seriously, i was able to do some work in between the sleeping and eating and lazing around. i was actually surprised i got a few things done. nothing major, but enough to keep this week, and perhaps, a bit of the next, less hectic. at least, that's what i'm hoping for.
oh, and some good news: i managed to pass my 1st comprehensive exam, despite failing to resolve structural ambiguities through a common enough exercise in syntax: tree diagramming (i know, i know, ma'am flores won't be too happy to know about this), and despite explaining the notion of minimal pairs in terms of presence and absence (whatever, it's still a binary, and i like presences and absences!). so congratulations to me! but it's not over yet; i'm on to the 2nd, which is scheduled on 1 nov. when i told my brother, he jokingly said they'd include me in their prayers back home. (my family usually says a litany of all saints' day prayers. ) i have a little over three weeks to prepare for the exam, and the reading list is more than i can possibly read in half a year, that is, if i really keep at it, so i say, whatever helps.
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