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Quiet Musing In The Autumn

  • Good And Bad On Standing Up
    I can’t remember who told me this–a person has to stand up or walk around for at least four hours a day. If not, the bones will not be healthy and the body will be in decline. Well, if the decline is impossible to stop, at least the four hour … Continue reading Good And Bad On Standing Up
  • Haiku: Memory
    A sunny day, A simple breakfast. It’s there– the memory smiling at me from the charred toast. I stop the car, raise my eyes. It’s there– the memory appearing, hanging on to me, like my handbag. I walk past the familiar hedges of careless landscaping. It’s there– the memory recurring, … Continue reading Haiku: Memory
  • Friendly Advice
    I got a friendly advice today when N told me to sanitize the second hand book I ordered from betterworldbooks.com in case there are remnants of Covid19 clinging to the pages ready to jump on anybody who touches it and send the person to fever, ventilator, or even an early … Continue reading Friendly Advice
  • Life’s Discrepancies
    Years ago one of my acquaintances told me this. At the time, I didn’t really think about the merit or the moral of the story. I should have, but I didn’t. I am not completely impervious to learning, but I pick up hints or wisdom very slowly. Now I can’t … Continue reading Life’s Discrepancies
  • Things I Don’t Want To Do
    Things I don’t want to do, like weekly chores, suddenly don’t seem to be so bad when I am stuck, blocked, not able to proceed for one more line. At such a moment, my self doubt is everywhere, sitting on this very chair, filling up the four corners of the … Continue reading Things I Don’t Want To Do
  • Read And Misread In October
    Reading often goes hand in hand with misreading. Being an immigrant and reading English as a second language have taught me this fact. At first this made me rather uncomfortable–the sense of uncertainty and self doubt following me like a shadow in a bright sunset, which means the shadow is … Continue reading Read And Misread In October
  • Backyard Farming
    I call them backyard farmers, but they probably don’t agree with me. It’s popular among Asian immigrants in New Jersey to engage in backyard farming every year. I even know a couple who don’t live in a house and don’t have a backyard to grow their produce. What do they … Continue reading Backyard Farming
  • When You Don’t Have An Appetite
    I don’t have an appetite today and I don’t know why. Is it because of the melatonin pills I’ve taken these past two weeks for my insomnia? It could be. It is said online that melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone in our body and taking a little won’t have … Continue reading When You Don’t Have An Appetite
  • A Mini Love Story
    G is my distant cousin and he is always considered, by my parents and my relatives, to be the most intelligent and most unfortunate among all my cousins. His life started well–a cute kid, indulged by his parents, growing up to be a handsome teenager. He’s half Mongolian, just like … Continue reading A Mini Love Story
  • Poem: The Season Of Leaves
    Rain all night and all morning. The bright yellow leaves in tears,shaking on the branches,sprawling on the ground,carpeting everything–the lawn, the paths, the cars.The season of leaves,a beautiful death,a colorful eulogy,a spectacular funeral. The slice of toasted bread turns soggy quickly.Rains pouring from the broken corner of the gutter. I … Continue reading Poem: The Season Of Leaves
  • Binge Watching
    Just binge watched “Billions” for eight episodes on showtime from Amazon, starting last night. Now I am feeling exhausted, hungry, eyes hurt, whole body ache. It’s a wonderful show no doubt–the plot is quick paced, the acting quite convincing, the actors too handsome, the actresses too beautiful, the human relationships … Continue reading Binge Watching
  • Word Confusion
    Some words are created to communicate, while others just to confuse. I thought I read “ruminative” on an article about what Fran Lebowitz has to say about her current state of staying at home, but it is actually “remunerative”. I don’t know about native speakers, but as a person learning … Continue reading Word Confusion
  • Ghost Arriving Before Halloween
    I am talking with two friends in a cafe. One of them asks me to look at a picture on his laptop. I lean over and stare at the screen. Minutes later, when our attentions come back to the hot tea arriving at our table, we notice the other friend’s … Continue reading Ghost Arriving Before Halloween
  • The Thrill And Peril Of Imitation
    Living in the Asian community in New Jersey, one can’t help learning stories about engineers and scientists. One of these widely circulated stories is this: A newcomer in one of the research institutions, where people are madly nerdy and competitive, finds that everybody in the department is sharpening their pencils … Continue reading The Thrill And Peril Of Imitation
  • Haiku: Autumn
    Leaves creaking dry.The sound of autumnunder my steps. Fiery hues–red, yellow, green–sway in the wind.The color of autumnalong the road. The remnant of summer heat can’t warmthe cool touch of autumn.Bare arms shudder. Last October, same spot, same weather, but a younger me.The mood of autumnwon’t quit my mind.
  • Finished With A Sigh
    I shouldn’t read this book, “We Wanted to Be Writers: Life, Love, and Literature at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop” by Eric Olsen. I knew I shouldn’t but I still did. A lot of things I did in my life, I only did for conformity and convention and survival, which take … Continue reading Finished With A Sigh
  • Insomnia vs. Somnia
    “Somnia” is not a word; “insomnia” is. That’s just English. Non-native speakers (like me) beware. There are as many exceptions to the rules as those that follow the rules. Not only many words starting with “in” don’t have corresponding antonyms that lose the prefix “in”, but also some “in” and … Continue reading Insomnia vs. Somnia
  • Things I Want To Do But Can’t
    Such a beautiful day today that one just wants to go out and walk about, but instead one’s stuck here staring at the computer screen. Sunny, a few clouds floating decoratively, 72 degrees, humidity not too high to mess up the hair and not too low to dry up the … Continue reading Things I Want To Do But Can’t
  • Event Before Election
    “Have you registered to vote?” The lady behind the thick plate of glass asked. “No.” I answered.“Why do you answer for her? I am asking her?” The lady said, pointing to my friend W. I translated for W and W shook her head. So I said “No” across the glass … Continue reading Event Before Election
  • An Awkward Picture Of Me
    This awkward picture is an oil painting of me when I was about 11 years old. Every painting has a story behind it, and here it is. I remember this today only because that’s the first time I felt a strong sympathy towards a man–the artist painting this–who totally despised … Continue reading An Awkward Picture Of Me

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