exercising my literacy

Piecemeal post before parting.

(hahaha I talk in alliteration so much I'm starting to sound like a gimmick)

This is probably the last post I'll get to write for a while, since I'll be away for the next 5 weeks or so, aside from coming back during the weekends -- so if you wanna meet up you know when to call =)

But yeah, a few miscellaneous things I just wanna mention -- probably accurately reflecting the chaotic splatter of tangles that are "my thoughts". So here they are, in no particular order...

1) "Auld Lang Syne..."
Hope everyone had a good New Year's! I had an amazing NYE -- the best one in recent memory. We went to this carnival by the beach, doing silly stuff like dodgem cars and the ferris wheel. Good old childish fun. Then we went down to the beach for the countdown, catching a glimpse of the city fireworks. I'm sure they would have been much prettier if I were actually in the city, but not for a moment did I wish I were anywhere except exactly where I was, sand between my toes, seabreeze against my cheek. Afterwards we hung out at a 24hr Maccas (new record for resolution breaking: 45 minutes... oh but the chocolate sundae was totally worth it). The whole night was so daggy, and I loved every bit of it.

I can only hope the rest of the year will be as wonderful.

2) "He's Just Not That Into You -- the No-Excuses Truth to Understanding Guys"
Suddenly everyone's talking about this book -- it's the new 'dating bible'. I find the underlying insinuation made about women in this book kinda scary -- it makes women sound really obsessive-compulsive, thinking up a million reasons why they didn't call, fretting and worrying, panicking and going paranoid. So really this isn't a book about understanding guys, it's a book about understanding girls -- this book speaks volumes about girls' insecurity and their actions consequential to that than anything else.

Hey boys: what do you reckon? I'd love to know your thoughts on this.

3) "Class -- or lack thereof"
"Class" was the song that they cut out of Chicago the movie. What a good song. There just ain't no class anymore. There was this article in the SMH about lateness. Tardiness is so rude! I completely agree with the article that it conveys a lack of respect for who you're supposed to meet with. If you had a meeting with Brad Pitt you wouldn't be late. They raised an interesting point, about what lateness says about your own personality -- it's well known that people are "fashionably" late because they feel an overstated sense of self-importance, that they can get away with it. But on the flip side, people who are never late feel that they can't be late because people won't wait for them -- a reflection of their low self-esteem and insecurity. Well that's what the article says. Makes me think, hey is that me? Cos I hate making people wait, even if it's only for 5 minutes. Haha the minefield that is introspection.

And today there was an article about people breaking up on SMS. There really is no class in the world.

4) "I wish I were that smart..."
As you probably know, I'm really drawn to intelligent people. Not just people who do well at uni or know a lot of trivia -- I mean people whose ability to reason and tease out a concept in such a way as to blow my mind. I felt that way reading Borges in year 12, turning every page and being amazed at his exceptional intelligence. And lately I feel this same vibe again, reading C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity. It's a book which makes the case for Christianity -- to quote the back of the book: "C.S. Lewis is the ideal persuader for the half-convinced, for the good man who would like to be a Christian but finds his intellect getting in the way". Oh I wish everyone would read that book, or at least the first 32 pages of it. He has an awesome ability to explain something frustratingly complex via simple straightforward analogies... damn I wish I were that smart. But yes! Go get the book! Or at least lounge around Borders to read the beginning and see if it takes your fancy.

There's more in my head but this post is starting to get long so I'll just leave you with that. If something is really pressing I'm sure I'll make my way to a computer. Apologies for the mediocrity of this post. Now go out and enjoy the sun! Summer's nearly over!

posted by me. @ 2:25 PM