It's so hot that I just have to have a popsicle, which is probably fit for retirement in the realm of frozen treats. I can't remember when I bought it--probably three months ago or even longer. However eating expired food or taking expired pills has never been a problem for me. How wasteful it is … Continue reading What A Joke
Month: July 2020
Past and Present
I cannot understand the debate of using present tense vs. using past tense in writing a story. It doesn't make any difference to me, but since I am not a native speaker of English, I thought I could learn something from the debate and how other people feel about this issue. So far I haven't … Continue reading Past and Present
So Hot
So hot, no trip to stores, groans about daily chores. Prays for rains, even if it pours. No stove top cooking for days. Any fire is painful to gaze. Microwaved dishes amaze. The cool artificial air, modern men's welfare, as indispensable as dental care. But I dream of the old bamboo mat, patterned and flat, … Continue reading So Hot
Help Desk
My fire tablet has been behaving strangely. One morning, the time was wrong and couldn't be reset manually. I checked online and somebody said that it's because of the synchronization error between the tablet and the wifi router. I didn't even know there's any communication between the tablet and the wifi beyond the internet connection. … Continue reading Help Desk
Turtle Or Sloth
Sloth or turtle? I ask myself. Probably turtle, since sloths only exist in South America, not Asia. Turtles are a different story--they are everywhere. I will call myself a turtle then, though I still need to become more patient to be worthy of the name. Turtle is my grandma's favorite animal. Not that she kept … Continue reading Turtle Or Sloth
Only Five Minutes
It takes five minutes to get the soup to boil in the microwave--no stove for me until the weather cools. Five minutes. I have to stand there, staring blankly at nothing, counting each second while the machine whirred, the lighted interior fogging up, the bowl making familiar turnaround. It feels a long time, like those … Continue reading Only Five Minutes
Coagulation
I didn't know the word "coagulation" before my plan of making tofu myself. I could have encountered it in a description of a blood clot, but no, I haven't. I am not very interested in books with gory details and probably that's why I've missed a whole pile of words concerning the behavior of blood. … Continue reading Coagulation
A Girl In Aldi Grocery Store
I saw her again yesterday, the Asian girl in her dark Aldi shirt, her pretty round face with a perpetual frown, her aversion thinly veiled behind tepid greetings, her young limbs tired of the grocery routine. Her colleagues are more resigned and even good humored, but she is bitter. Her bitterness is conspicuous, but it's … Continue reading A Girl In Aldi Grocery Store
Forgotten Idea
A lot of cars on the road, and I was driving to the store, one idea rushing in, following another. It's annoying. Whenever I am out of the door, they tend to show up. Such inopportune moment, why bother? I drove home after visiting the store. Everything is forgotten. I try hard to recall. Where … Continue reading Forgotten Idea
Altitude vs. Elevation
I don't know the difference between the word altitude and elevation when Edison Township's relation to the sea level is concerned. Probably altitude is too big a word for Edison, which poses only 39 feet above, about the height of a three story building, not enough to defend itself against an angry sea, but probably … Continue reading Altitude vs. Elevation
Impasses
“The Winslow Case” is the best of the three, better than “The Browning Version” or “The Deep Blue Sea”, not only due to its optimistic ending, but also owing to the fact that it has more twists in the plot, more hope in its characters no matter how vague, and more cheerful furniture in the … Continue reading Impasses
The Rainstorm
The darkened sky, the roaring thunder. The rainstorm follows and raindrops fly. When can I come up with something, I wonder? My fingers are tired of waiting without typing, my eyes weary of staring without seeing a line. Blame my life, too sheltered too cozy without yearning. Blame the weather, too hot too humid for … Continue reading The Rainstorm
Great Trials Or Bad Trials
I only finished five of the lectures of "The Great Trials Of World History", but already I feel that most of these trials are bad trials, not great trials. I think the author did this deliberately and "great" means "famous" rather than "good". The trials of Socrates, Giordano Bruno, Thomas Moor are so bad that … Continue reading Great Trials Or Bad Trials
Ice Cream Truck
In such a hot day, business must be up for the ice cream truck. That's what I thought when the ice cream truck came circling our neighborhood. Then again, I thought in such a hot day, this person, who could have relaxed at home with a cold beer in hand, has to come out to … Continue reading Ice Cream Truck
Don’t Know How In WordPress
Tips show up in my WordPress home every day, but I'm so used to it that it becomes a familiar landscape I don't see, a background noise I don't hear, a recurrence I don't notice. Am I obtuse and stubborn? I wouldn't say yes before but now I am not so sure. Now I know … Continue reading Don’t Know How In WordPress
A Hot Sunday Morning
73F early morning-- sign of a hot Sunday. no rainstorm is forthcoming until the distant Wednesday. No plan to go out-- breathless under face cover, heatstroke when walk about. What has become of me? On a crowded ramshackle bus I used to travel 37C without air conditioning. Under the blazing subtropical sun I used to … Continue reading A Hot Sunday Morning
Following The Trend
Just to follow the trend, I got one book by Mary Trump and two by Ta-Nahisi Coates. Which one to read first? Coates' books are obviously better written and I am itchy to know more about him ever since his very public dispute with Cornel West--why can't they continue to debate, like Sartre and Camus, … Continue reading Following The Trend
Awkward Awakening
My awkwardness at swimming awakened me to something I had not realized before, something blatantly obvious yet hiding in plain sight. I really can't swim, my limbs not coordinating, my movement either too much or not enough, my eyes not opening in water, my body more prone to sinking. I'm just too awkward to swim. … Continue reading Awkward Awakening
Pool Party
They were there before the opening, big shining truck or cute sedan lining the road. Each sitting in their car, waiting, staring, frowning. Suddenly the rusty door creaked open, sky blue water glowed. They were not wearing masks, not swimming, but standing about, talking, laughing on things interesting or boring. The way they hang out, … Continue reading Pool Party
Morning Rhyme
Wake up at six, but dawn is gone, changing lights no more, and twittering birds done. The bright summer sun, clothed in morning gown, mocks me, "too late, no twilight for you; and 'gone', 'done', 'gown' don't rhyme; you have no ear for vowels."
Cries and Crises
I can't go through "Crashes and Crises: Lessons from a History of Financial Disasters" without thinking what I would do if I were involved in any of the disasters listed here. One can do nothing but cry, though tears sound so futile in face of crises like these. This may sound very naive and laughable--my … Continue reading Cries and Crises
Quick Inspection
I got there at 8:30AM. I tried to be there at 8, but my usual sloth habits are rather incompatible with a morning scramble. In my rush out of the door, I forgot to put on sunscreen, gave up the task of taking out the garbage, and refrained from checking messages on the phone. The … Continue reading Quick Inspection
I Have No Idea
What's the extenuated way of saying, "I have no idea?" I don't know what's "cancel culture", what is "cis or trans", what is this perceived infringement on justice and freedom. I just read "A Letter on Justice and Open Debate" and the much longer rebuttal "A More Specific Letter on Justice and Open Debate". All … Continue reading I Have No Idea
The Stormy Weather
I was getting ready to go to the store for some red beans, which is something one should always keep plenty of at home. I thought I have them until I realize that I have run out. The kind I want is not always in stock in the Asian stores around here--each bean bigger, more … Continue reading The Stormy Weather
Arugula And Toona
Now whenever I think of going to the grocery store, I think of Trader Joe's. Not Shoprite, not Audi, not Costco, not HMart, not 99 Ranch, not Kam Man. And not even Wegman's, which used to be my favorite. I don't look into the ingredient panel to weed out all the things with emulsifiers, sorbate, … Continue reading Arugula And Toona
In The Morning
Morning fog, misty tree tops, narrow path with a fallen tree log, --yesterday, there's a storm. More rains here in New Jersey almost every other day. Sometimes it's a whole day of little drops saturating the air. Why can't be more rain in the Steppe, where my Mongolian ancestors roam their horses? Why can't be … Continue reading In The Morning
Don’t Panic
Whenever I read something about certain symptoms of a disease, I feel that I have the disease, though with symptoms in a milder, less perceptible form. For example, stomach ailments, Alzheimer's, amnesia, anxiety, and many different kinds of phobias. I have them all. The only thing I am sure I don't have is skin cancer. … Continue reading Don’t Panic
A Phone Call
"Are you busy?" K called and that's his usual greeting. I want to tell him that as a sloth I am not busy even if I am busy-- that's the trait of a sloth, against all odds of this world. But I won't say that to him. He won't understand a sloth, let alone a … Continue reading A Phone Call
Daily Walk
Tables are cordoned away; movable chairs can't stay; long line meandering Zara-- a big "sale" sign tells all; short line outside a few stores; no line for most. I should be buying something-- a cheap bling; or a summer slip with string; I feel so guilty that I only come here for daily walk. Please … Continue reading Daily Walk
The Rainstorm
The clouds gather; the sun dims its glare, only to increase the stifling heat. Even before the sky darkens, one knows something is coming--a storm, a hail, a gust, or even a tornado--anything that kills the humidity, whatever the contingent damage. Please come, please come. I yearn for it. It has been a hot humid … Continue reading The Rainstorm
Why Haven’t I Heard Of Him
Who is Mencken and why haven't I heard of him before? One of Mencken's fans claims online. Same here. I want to make the same claim, but I know why I haven't heard of him before. I am a sloth and I usually won't go out of my way to try to know a book … Continue reading Why Haven’t I Heard Of Him
Fireworks
There are so much more fireworks this year and my friend even called me about it. How would I know? Probably more fireworks are manufactured and sold this year? People become more willing to display fireworks? A more likely scenario is--the law about fireworks has been changed. Several days ago, when driving along Route 18 … Continue reading Fireworks
Organize And Disorganize
One thing I've never learned to do is using a planner or an organizer. I tried, but using it is almost as difficult for me as counting in English. I think among all the things that an immigrant cannot learn easily, counting in one's second language claims the crown of all inabilities. Using an organizer … Continue reading Organize And Disorganize
My Voice
I tried to read aloud some poems so that I can listen to the recording later when I do chores. I was shocked to discover that my voice sounds terrible. It is a little throaty, a little whiny, a little diffident, a little apologizing, with that typical unwillingness in exertion. I love myself as a … Continue reading My Voice
Memory
I can't believe I've read "The Descent Of Man And Other Stories" before. This was the first impression I had when I read the "Quicksand" and "The Mission of Jane". I remember where I read the "Quicksand"--in an online Wharton fan site, where the short story is truncated and the last chapter is not included. … Continue reading Memory
Amazon Recommends
Amazon recommends me something at least once a day in my email; it sends me advertisements disguised as login screen on my Kindle Fire. But I've never bought anything through its recommendations. Not that I'm impervious to marketing campaigns. Also I am not devoid of common human weaknesses which are usually cleverly explored by ads. … Continue reading Amazon Recommends
Haoyan Do 