I didn't say that: May 2021

May is over, 11 days too late

I'm writing this on the 11th day of June, so yeah I was running behind on the writing. Sue me. Nooo, don't...don't sue me. But like if you thought I'd gone AWOL and not very interested in maintaining this blog or providing quality content --hahahahahahahha quality....content hahahahahaha i'm kidding i'm kidding -- you were wrong. Because this is a battle I intend to win. I'll keep on going and going and going. Like the energizer bunny. Not stopping until something pops or breaks. That's how you know you're doing it right. It generalizes to many other aspects of one's life as well if you think about it.

Now I'm running very much low on June, so much 'catching up' to do, but I'm writing faster than the days are running, and finally the apartment situation has stabilized that I can focus on writing. If I don't maintain a good writing discipline now, it's never going to work out. Which is why it's important for me to focus on getting as much as possible done in these precious months.

That's all I have for right now.

People ask me, how's Seattle, and there's no real answer. I'm figuring things out. I don't know if I'm in love with it, or I hate it. The friend-and-family situation is great obviously, but that says nothing about how the city is generally. Still need to get my bearings straight, explore interesting lives with people I don't already know.

As always, the exploration of the City is a work in progress, and there's a lot more to come. Stay tuned.

The almost-discovery of a magical world

Who knew there was a secret door in the girl's bathroom near the science tower is our boarding school that took one to a whole new world, a little bit of Narnia for the modern person. And we were all aware of it vaguely, in that somebody had told somebody had told somebody but there were a lot of women's rooms and many doors for anybody to explore, Secret doors aren't disguised as regular doors, they're secret, so you'd have to be able to talk to snakes or be thinking about one specific thing while walking about a room so your desires magically instantiate. You can't go about hissing at every tap, every toilet, every piece of art. Magic is hidden to fool the unknowing, to keep them in the dark, but we didn't mind. We were confident there was nothing worth discovering. It was our school, exciting things never happened. The most interesting thing to have occurred was almost a decade ago when a bunch of rowdy boys destroyed some tables and benches, and sold a bunch of chairs to the vendors outside the school. They were all summarily dismissed, and made to pay for the losses. That was a long time ago.

So when Thapa found a weird knob poking his thighs as his girlfriend pushed him to the ground, groping his chest and neck and arms, a magical world was the large thing he was expecting, or even looking for. The most magical and exciting thing for a teenager is sex, the mere possibility of getting close to it is insanely tantalizing. He gave it no second thought, tried to shift his ass around, and positioned himself to be able to hold her without his arms hitting the walls of the stall.

The knob seemed to have shifted with him. He did not have the mental capacity to process the situation, so he was getting frustrated. Babe, he said, lets go somewhere else, there's pokey things here and they're brushing against my legs. The floor is so cold and it's hard, why can't we go to your room again, I thought your roommates weren't around, he said.

Yeah, they're not around, but this is so much sexier yaar, and we don't want to be too loud in my room, otherwise neighbors will find out. Nobody will ever find us here, she said.

Just then they heard footsteps approaching the toilet.

Some thoughts on Seattle shopping that I'm pre-empting

I'm going to write a lot more about the grocery shopping situation in Seattle in the coming days and weeks. I'm writing this post on the 11th of June, have run out of other ideas to write right now, so pre-empting here.

Grocery shopping here is new, in a not good way. I miss Wegmans so so much. I miss Aldi. I miss Hannaford's, Market Basket, even Big Y. They're all grocery chains from the East Coast.

The reason I bring it up is that 'grocery stores' here don't have too many options -- not as many as I would like -- with fruits and veggies. And owhh man Wegman's had really spoiled me. QFC is six minutes of walk away, but it feels strange, unclear who even shops there, the choices there don't seem to cater to everyday shoppers but folks who're looking for 'exotic' fruits and veggies. And are priced accordingly. What is priced at two dollars a pound at Hau Hau Market is eight in QFC.

I was never a particular fan of TJ's -- Trader Joe's -- now it appears it's going to be my default grocery store. My preference is going to be Hau Hau Mart in Chinatown, and other Asian stores, but TJ's will have to do when I'm starving at strange hours and there's not much to do.

And owh, unless you go to a specialty place the groceries are priced absurdly compared to the East Coast. It's confusing, I'd have thought things wouldn't be that different between Boston and Seattle, I leaned on Seattle being a bit cheaper even, but you live and you learn.

I'll be writing a lot more on this, so keep an eye out for this.

Don't just agree, maaan

Just.
Don't.
Agree with.
The things.
I propose.
When.
You aren't.
Fully on-board.
With them.

It.
Is.
Misleading.
Confusing.
Frustrating.
Annoying.
For.
Me.

Love.

Doctor doctor, plan plan

Overheard.

And then she's like, yes we fight so much yaar, all the time, but we're going to get married soon we've kinda' slept together you know, not had fullon proper sex sex yet but something we've talked about is who will take care of the chores in the house because with my weird hours and schedules I'm mostly going to be trying to catch up on the sleep, residency is tough three years and he's said he'll look after the house matters. After it I'll be able to afford a nanny with my doctor salary and nobody will have to do any work. Depending on where i can find a job we're thinking of either doing short weeks or long weeks and taking two weeks off at a time and visiting other places for fun throughout the year. No no, not at all worried about children, because we'll definitely get somebody to look after the children, all these white people, they've got their french and dutch nannies, they're actually quite cheap if you look at the considerations, plus other doctor friends I know who've made it do the same thing. And the cost of traveling around them is nothing in the big picture. We'll make enough money all things considered, maybe retire in our mid fourties hopefully, and take care of the children after they're all grown up. Or if they don't want to spend time with us we're thinking of inviting their grandparents over, and going on long luxurious vacations, while bringing one set of parents with us as the other looks after the children. It's a winwin for everybody.

I just have to pass these exams yaaar, this is the last time I'll get the chance, if I screw it up this time also I'll either have to apply to Canada or the UK and the not so cool part about working in those countries as a doctor is that you make nowhere as much money, it's actually not that different from living like a normal person. Like yeah good amount of money certainly, but not that much so to live a chill luxurious life. And you can often be posted in remote rural parts. In america, since the cities are under-resourced still, it's quite possible you can go to one of the east coast or west coast cities and still find jobs easily in well paid institutions.

Ten random insults I'm writing down because dear god, I need to finish for this month

If stupidity could cut, you would be the sharpest knife in town.

Don't spend too much time thinking on it, you gotta preserve energy for base survival.

It's great for you I have a bad eyesight actually, otherwise I'd probably have had the sense to avoid you.

When was the last time you went to a bike shop, because that brain of yours needs inflatin'.

Yeah I mean the gravy was pretty thick, but still not the thickest entity present in the dinner fo-sure.

It must be so great to be short, you could get in through the catlap if you ever lose your keys.

Did it hurt, when you fell from heaven? Because seriously, they should be deporting people on trains already, not kicking them out on their backs, it's inhumane.

Your eyes, they're quite...something...they remind me of the eyes of this incredible animal I saw in the Serengeti, as she lay on the ground, bleeding out of life. So dead and lifeless...

If I'm being honest, you're gods' gift to the world....would it really have hurt them that much to leave the receipt around too?

Hi, do I know you? Wait, we went to the same school? Same year you say? Same class for seven courses?
Sat in the same bench? Hmmmm, having trouble recollecting, which is a surprise, because we are in the world memory championship competing against each other...

Why The office got so popular again

How is the office so popular after so many years of going off the air, that's the question all the cast members, writers and members of the production team are often asked. There's many theories, but all of them have to explain the fact that its not the older adults, who've had experience working in the office, amongst whom the show has found a new popularity, but young kids, even pre-teens, who seem to absolutely adore the awkward comedy for some reason. It's about life and our foibles as human beings, some have suggested, while others add the documentary style it was shot in surely contributes to the sense of reality. While they are both valid points, they do nothing to distinguish the show's popularity from similar sitcoms released around the similar time period, such as Modern Family and The Big Bang theory.

What we must admit is that this phenomenon is wholly unexpected and nobody can fully comprehend the implications of it. The show was never as big as Friends, or Seinfeld or other juggernauts of network television in its prime, rather it was the unloved child who somehow ended up becoming a successful and rich person, and was looked upon a little suspiciously by everybody. In its original run it was a decent success, a critical darling for sure, but the infamy -- dare I use the word because that's how bonkers this has all been -- the show has won in recent years is harder to explain.

There is certainly a lot of credit to be given to Netflix. For many years after Friends and Seinfeld went off of the platform, The Office was the standard show to put on the background. It wasn't too offensive, nor was it too loud. There was no audience background to disrupt your conversations. The mostly serene, inoffensive, quiet vibe of the show was a great compromise between friends and family who would rather put on 'nothing' than something they'd rather not watch.

Perhaps the children who grew up in these households got the first taste of what the show was about, without really understanding it, and in their teens explored it further. It's possible it's those teens who introduced it to their younger siblings, and thus the increasingly younger audience of the show. Or perhaps the show reflects the existential ennui of our times....because everybody is in the office getup, the show doesn't seem dated at all. Some technology -- the cellphones and computers look a little out of place, but for youngsters who've never been to an office, that could be the reality, for all they know.

So maybe the office is popular among the younger crowd because it is so strange, so out there. It is a relic from an era when people went to offices, had 9-5 day jobs, the security of knowing everything was going to be alright, and a group of people they could trust and socialize with. With the internetification of the world, and the islandification of social structures, these old institutions are being missed, that's a possibility.

SOME love story

I am in love with you,
And I care for you,
Spend all my living moments with you,
he said,
But not thaat much,
that it overwhelms my every other
desire interest and relation.
I am a lover,
Not an insane person.

Eight places everybody tells you to search for your keys again in, but of course you searched it already, how stupid...oops, nevermind

The corners of the couch
Underneath the pillow
Your own pockets
"Do you remember if you brought it in, even though you need your keys to have opened the door"
Your wallet or bag
Toilet/toilet seat
"Where was the last place you remember seeing it or feeling it"
The dress/clothes you were wearing when you had it last

Pod Review: Office Ladies

I've possibly reviewed the show before, but now that we're in the middle of the run of the show if we are to go by the number of shows published, it's time for a redo maybe, about how the show has evolved.

I love how the show has evolved in the past months and years. Jenna has gotten more confident and outspoken, not afraid to go on tangents or bring on research perhaps unrelated to the core material of the show but nevertheless quite interesting to the show. Angela's become a more...I hate using this word...authentic...version of herself, allowing her cheery happy excited personality to make it through the corporate veil. They've understood that while their listeners want to learn more about the office, obviously, it's also the presentation that matters, they're not being expected to produce a documentary but an entertainment program, and how they interact with the content matters a lot. So they're pretty much working towards The Office fictional universe, in the context of everything.

Some may not like it, some may thing it goes against the core competency of he show. It won't matter for the office ladies and their fans though, because we're there every Thursday to listen to two of our favourite entertainers, talk about the industry, how to make in it, and the tradeoffs you have to make to get on the top. It's riveting, and then on the side you get to chat about the office.

What's not to like?

Pod review: Off Menu with James Acaster and Ed Gamble

The pod's been mentioned previously on the blog but perhaps a proper introduction and review hasn't been done. So here it is.

The pod's good. At the start I couldn't stand Gamble's interruptions during Jame's rants, but i've come to realize he's a good ying to his partner's yang. They balance each other's energies perfectly, James the strange food-related genie cum server who'll bring you anything you desire you your dream restaurant, and Ed as the narrator slash host of the restaurant.

I've been binge-listening to past episodes, and it's been really great, get to know new comedians, find out more about the comedians you already know, and what they like to eat and what they're friends with. The interview with Louis Theroux was particularly good, and so was the recent one with the Jim from the British Office, who's also played Hobbit in the past. They've invited a bunch of American comedians in the past too, including Kumail Nanjiani and Emily Gordon, and it's great that everybody seems to get a good sense of the spirit of the show and plays along.

Except folks like Ronnie Chieng, but that's what adds the spice to the otherwise pretty decent show: the conflicts and disagreements and discussions.

You should give it a listen, preferably with a show interviewing somebody you already know.

People evaluating their lives and options

When was the last time you sat down to evaluate your life, ask yourself really, where am I going, was it a terrible terrible idea to have done the thing that I did last month, and is this what I want out of my life, I mean, whatever I'm doing right now? Probably a long time ago -- I'm answering the question I began asking at the art of the previous sentence before getting distracted by my own personal issues -- if you even ever did that. It's important to evaluate your station in life, identify if this is where you want to be compared to where you aspire to get, and adjust your trajectory accordingly. Studying rocket science and working for NASA isn't going to get you into Julliard's so one needs to get their priorities straight.

It sounds simple but has given much grief to even the greatest most successful of people. Because going in the default mode, going with the flow is easy, you can use your brain and body power for doing other tasks that don't give you existential insecurity about life, force you to evaluate all the decisions you have made in the past, or others have made for you, and consider how life might have been different if one of the things had been different. Not for the purpose of feeling bad, but to identify what your future should look like.

It's annoying that sometimes people will actively reject evaluating their options or future prospects, because the default option seems too much fun, too set to be thought about. I'll think about those things when I absolutely have to they say, forgetting that not deciding on something doesn't mean you can escape the game, but that you chose to take the default option. Quite often, the default option is not optimal for anybody involved, but people go along with it anyway because thinking about options is scary, and you actually have to peer deep inside your heart to identify what it is that you really want.

Miley Cyrus is doing rock now, it's rockin'

Plastic hearts and a bunch of other songs that she's been pumping out for the past two years are really good. If there's somebody who can bring rock back, it's her. Her raspy voice, her carefree attitude, and the devil-may-care approach to life, while not having been exposed as a careless adult unable to take care of herself yet show that she may have the necessary gravitas, the voice ability, and the charisma to do it. She's done four other major genres already, so why not this one too.

The self-awareness of her lyrics is refreshing too.

Lover

Who's he?

Lover.

What's in that jank-ass trashbag that smells like dogfart?

Gift from somebody from a long time ago, he's alright.

Yeah okay bruh, normally I wouldn't ask for it, but I'm feeling generous and I wanna maybe try some new dank shit, so Imma try some okay, just hand it over, give it, give it to me.

Nah fam, I'm good, Imma keep it all for myself, you said it was dank, and besides it's from sbody you don't even know.

Yeah buddy, here, I have it now, and I'm not gunna give it back, I'm gonna eat it all, even if I fart and shit my brains out and die because of it, it's going to be totally worth it, yer a loser, ya lost it, go away now, it's inside my tumms.

12 people you're unlikely to find in Heaven

Hitler
Toby
Whoever invented popup ads, or clickbait headlines
Bin Laden
That US president who did most of the Vietnam war
People involved in the Armenian gen*cide.
People involved in the American gen*cide.
The person who won't put tabs on cans and forces you to use can openers even though everybody else puts tabs on cans now.
That bird who shit on you and your bag the other day.
Asshole bartender from thirteen years ago who told you your passport was not a valid form of ID.
Devil
Covid. You know it!

Seven questions that Kelley Kapoor might ask you

How dare you?
What do you think the name of our Baby should be?
Why oh why did my boss go on a shooting rampaaaage, and didn't allow me to go on an audition for American Idol?
Would you like me to set you up with my friends' parents?
Is this a legit worm that's going to eat all of the food inside my tummy and help me lose my weight, or is this one of the fake ones they're making now?
What are those uggos, those little babies born before they're supposed to be born again, because omigod I saw one and like totally freaked out?
Ummm, I wonder if I'd be asked the same question if I were white?

Nine other things to not go gentle into

Good morning
Good evening
The soccer ball right when the goal's empty but you're too far away.
The last bit of toilet paper, awh shit you forgot to shop for them again.
Pandemic-end celebrations
Your complaint about how they reduced the size of all the perishables but didn't decrease the prices.
How they used to build things better back in the day.
Your review of the new twilight movie, the one that retells the entire saga but from the guy vampire's point of view
Your diatribe against those assholes who don't clean up after their dogs.

Plans, replanned

Because of covid, the situation in the world, and my visa status, it appears I won't be leaving the country towards the later part of this year. Which means no more Japan, no attending of the incredibly fancy wedding, no going to friends' wedding, no hanging out with PK, none of that. Just a long long break here, with who knows who, this is getting boring, please the world needs to find a better way to come to storyline closures.

Things I'm looking forward to, need to take a whole goddamn month worth of holidays this year, which should be pretty great, don't know what I'd do with it.

A bunch of random question for young children to ask their parents

What's a condom?
What's viagra?
What's the balloon guy who dances in the song do? What's it an ad for?
Where do animal babies come from? Do animals have doctors that take babies out of mommy tummies?
Do girls poop out of their butt too?
How do doggies get married, do they recognize their husbands and wives?
Why does nobody like donald trump?
Why is being pregnant so bad? Can young children get pregnant?
Will your tummy get clean if you eat a lot of soap?
Who was the lady you were wrestling with? Where is your regular wrestling coach lady?

Ten things that I want to eat right now

Vegetable momo that tastes really good, and juicy.
The vegetarian/vegan food from the vietnamese place I'll be writing a review for very soon, which was indistinguishable from meat.
Some sort of white cloud, that relieves you of all the stress, and makes you feel like a god.
Hopium.
Wouldn't mind a nice bar of single-origin dark chocolate, 85% or above.
Don't want to lower the standards, but TJ's vegetarian biryani is really good.
The potatoes they used to make at home during dashain, the sour and spicy ones, so oily and so good, I only ate those, not even the chiura.
Gaajar ko haluwaa
Wouldn't mind me some authentic well-made kellewelle.
Some kenkey/banku with one of the really sour and spicy sauces or stew.

Four checked luggage muhahahah

So I got four checked luggage in my flight to Seattle, which is happening right now, I think? Three regular bags because it was everything in my life every and there was no way I could do without those three bags, and my tightly packed rucksack. Which was such a relief because it was going to be a hassle, taking it out and walking with it etcetera. The hassle of walking my heavy luggage all the way from parking to the terminal, and then to the gate was ameliorated by the things made simple. That's all there is to it.

It's going to be a bit of a pain to get everything in order, but we'll figure things out. Onwards!

Nargies and protecting our physical reality

Nargies, they want to invade all the planets, always, that's what they're designed for you understand, but we don't let them, you know why? Because they don't have an aim or goal behind their expansion. They're not cruel, they're not evil. They're not smart, nor stupid. They just are. And their only desire is to expand. They don't care how powerful their enemies are, or how pathetic they might be. Expansion. That's the only consideration they have. They have eaten up solar systems and planets, unknown gazillions of sentient life has been fed to their hunger for more matter and higher entropy. Nothing can stop them once they have a leverage and start reproducing in good numbers. They cannot be allowed to flourish.

Now you might wander, why do we tolerate those devil--- no, they cannot be described as devilish, for doing that would grant them some agency, a logic, desire and wants. They're unthinking cold killing monsters, completely separated from thought or logic or emotions. Only the completion of the goal, which is expansion, is what matters to them. Why we've never gotten rid of them is another story. You see, there are creatures in this universe that are, believe it or not, more powerful and scarier than them, if given an opportunity to flourish. You see, we've learned about vacuum energy, so you'll understand that within the transition of nothingness to somethingness, there can be couplings, and those couplings can get increasingly more complicated in the vast nothingness of the universe. With an eternity to work through, in the infinity that is our universe, the chance of some entity arising from nowhere and nothing is quite high. And because the laws of physics are as they are, often these entities are made of matter quite different to ours. Yes, anti-matter, as we've chosen to describe this particular form of exotic matter is one flavor, but there are several other that we've identified and categorized. And there could be many more we haven't discovered yet.

These beings and entities can destroy our physical reality by the mere act of being. Nargies are intolerable, but they're physical being, they need our shared physical reality and electrons and protons, quarks and all, to be able to survive. Not those extra-matter entities.

So we use Nargies as our vacuum cleaners. Over the course of the eons, they've developed the ability to harness the energy in those extra-material entities to keep themselves alive, which is why you're bound to find them in the least likely of places, the darkest corners of the universe. They don't need a sustainable energy source, heck they don't need an energy source. They sustain themselves on the energy of the entities created from vacuum energy, and thus keep our reality safe.

They're a necessary evil we must tolerate.

Seven days in heaven

Seven days in heaven,
On the first day they asked me,
How's your time here,
Is it everything you thought
It would be?

And I looked at the shining orb of light
Transfixed, unable to breathe
And said,
Yes lord,
And evermore
Until all eternity.

Seven days in heaven,
On the second day they asked me,
Did you find here
everything you wanted?

I gazed upon the ethereal being
In incredible awe of my reality,
And whispered,
Everything I ever wanted,
Or imagined,
Or could have ever imagined,
Or would have imagined in all universes
In all eternities, in all of creation.
I gasped out my words.

Seven days in heaven,
On the third day they asked me,
Is there any more
You wish
From your time here?

My eyes shut,
I could see
The fantastic entity
Questioning me.
My heart jumped, my brain froze,
And my mouth spoke,
Nothing more, nothing more,
My lord, things are as satisfying
As they could be!

Seven days in heaven,
On the fourth day they asked me
What now,
Where do you want to be?

And I said,
Dazed, confused, and scared
Nowhere, I have all my wishes fulfilled
There is no want inside of me.

Seven days in heaven,
On the fifth day they asked me
What now,
Who do you want to be with?

And I said,
Fearfully, cautiously, afraid,
My heart is full, my desires fulfilled,
There is no more anybody
I'd rather be with.

Seven days in heaven,
On the sixth they asked
Anything you want to see?

I said, without uttering a word,
No more, my lord, there is nothing
I want to see.

Seven days in heaven,
On the seventh they asked
Anything you want to be?

And I said,
With no thought or consideration,
No my Lord,
I don't wish to Be.

And just like that.

Poof!

CapHill grocery explorations, walk about town, Chipotle dinner, HMart shopping [Mon 31]

I write this exactly a week after the fact, a lot of details are bound to be fuzzy and uncertain. I'm using the photos I took of the day and any vague recollection I might have had to fill in the detail. At this point, I'm just writing for the sake of doing this, and totally fine with it. Just get on bruh.

This was a holiday, on the occasion of memorial day, when American remember...older people.

For breakfast we had the classic roti-and-egg. In the afternoon, I walked to CapitolHill to check out the groceries there. First I went to Trader Joe's, the second one in two days. It was exactly like the one in Queen Anne, and the ones in Boston. I was satisfied. Then I went to this expensive 'co-op' where you need to carry custom containers for everything, including hand and dish soap. It was cool but hella expensive, oyster mushrooms were thirteen bucks a pound. Maybe I'll show up here now and then. I did like the vibe, and it's closer to my place than TJ's. I also went to QFC and saw three different homeless people steal a bunch of drinks, mostly alcoholic beverages. Besides that jarring experience, it's a pretty decent store, a place I wouldn't be opposed to shopping at in a regular basis. And goshdarned convenient too, seeing it's only 5 minutes of walk.

Walked around Capitol Hill checked out the restaurants, the people, the vibe. I liked it!

On my way back, I had dinner at the downtown Chipotle. Perhaps it was the hunger, or maybe the fact that I hadn't been to a Chipotle in a really long time, but it felt really good. It didn't matter at all that I didn't order any meat. And so very affordable.

Back at A's place, we chilled for a bit, and went to HMart to do groceries later in the evening. It was a pretty chill trip, a chill end to a chill but also transitioning weekend.

Discovery walk failure, Tacobell disappointment, TJ's exploration, Queen Anne hike, an unused coupon [Sun 30]

I write this a week after the fact, a lot of details are bound to be fuzzy and uncertain. I'm using the photos I took of the day and any vague recollection I might have had to fill in the detail. At this point, I'm just writing for the sake of doing this, and totally fine with it. Just get on bruh.

Had the roti-anda breakfast, the A classic in the morning. Got my things in order, and went out on a walk. Tried going to Discovery park without going through the weird yard yet again, but some private company's blocked the path and Google doesn't know that so my attempts were thwarted, yet again. Instead crossed the highway and walked through a super sketchy area, on to Queen Anne.

I hadn't realized Queen Anne was on such a steep hill. And when I say steep hill, I mean realllly steep hill, so much so that you have a hard time climbing it on a regular walk without stopping often. There's stairs, but they're barely any help, they go on for thousands of steps. That was quite an experience.

The one good thing to come off of that exploration was I came across the local Trader Joe's and got to explore it. Apparently not too different from the ones we have in the East Coast, a massive relief, because it's the only grocery store I can identify with from back home (in Boston, I mean).

Got a seltzer there, went to a nearby taco bell and ordered by regular cheap order. Except this time it was seven bucks. I was shocked confused, but also satisfied. Never gonna order again before looking at the menu. Filled in their response form, and asked for the reward of a free KFC spicy chicken sandwich which I could take to A, but apparently it's buy-1-get-1-free, which wasn't too great of a deal for somebody who wanted to buy zero of the burgers. So that coupon went unused.

Went back to A's place, chilled out for a bit. His coworker S was over, talked a bunch with her. She seems like such an intensely cool person, the prototypical west-coaster Seattleite, the stereotype of what you'd consider somebody from here to be. With the hairbuns and the sunburn and everything. Goood stuff.

Slept pretty early on, still on the East Coast time.

Trip home, dunkin meal, final date, cleanup, SS hangs, breweries gift, flight to Seattle, another day another land, barhop [Sat 29]

Took bus, train bus (66, OL, 95) to home. Stopped by dunkin nearby and got myself an egg sandwich, with the potato hashbrowns put in it. It was pretty great. Potatoes always rock.

Spent the next two hours cleaning the room, doing last-hour chores. Met up with SS (Phd) for the last time. Since I was running late on the hang with SK, made him run a little bit in the rain. Ran in the rain with a large painting in my hand, almost missed the bus but didn't because I shouted and the driver let me in. Such is my life, always missing great things, or almost.

Waited forever for SK outside the crepe place because it was raining and oooof. I'm not allowed to write about what I think about people here, because there's a hundred percent chance they're going to read it one day, but some people are...something. And they are that thing. Thump. Thump. Thump. We spent two hours chillin' and eating. Even though my flight was to leave in the next two hours. It was the final amazing time. My heart ached when we left each other. I wrote the poem, the latest poem posted here on my walk back home, when it was still drizzling. mann. ohh. mannn.

Rushed back home because PD and BD were coming over to get my brewing supplies. Handed them over everything, threw out every last drop of every brew I'd been working on for the last year. It hurt a lot, but I was glad it was getting a good home.

ND came from MN and we hung out a bunch. I gave all the last-moment goodies there were. We hugged and took photos.

Cleaned up the room, and took a Lyft to the airport 2.5 hours before the flight. It was a hassle to get all my luggage to the checkin place, but once there things were perfect because I got to checkin 4 luggages, including my backpack.

Flight was pretty boring. Landed and waited for 30 minutes for luggage to get to me. The canvas bags I'd ordered were tattered despite doubling them up, and had clearly just barely made it. Thank gods they made it though. We took everything to A's place. I changed and put in a whole lot of body spray, and we went out and about town, to cha cha to hang and chill. I don't remember much beyond that, likely because nothing exciting happened. We went to SK's place after, hung out for a bunch more, played with his doggo, and then called it a night. Must have been pretty late.

Last full day in Boston, old memories, friends come to help, everything packed up and ready to go, Brookline night [Fri 28]

I write this two weeks after the fact, a lot of details are bound to be fuzzy and uncertain. I'm using the photos I took of the day and any vague recollection I might have had to fill in the detail. At this point, I'm just writing for the sake of doing this, and totally fine with it. Just get on bruh.

Had beans and rice for brunch because there was nothing else to eat, all the groceries were done, the dishes packed up, I was all set to leave.

This was my last day in Boston.

In the morning I started testing the canvas laundry bags I was going to use as my third luggage. It's structural integrity seemed...questionable.

After lunch, I started packing clothes, while working in parallel. J and AD showed up around 1, which was wonderful because I was afraid I'd have to do it all by myself. J is really really good at packing and organizing, and after 4 hours of the two of us working, we got all the weights right, almost to half a pound.

Encountered so many touching fun old memories, all the way from 2005 and possibly even before. My notes from college, letters from friends, all of that. It was a whole rush of emotions, so difficult to deal with. It felt really heavy in my heart, and for the first time it hit me, the impact of the fact that I was actually truly moving moving to live all by myself for the first time in my life.

Anyway, we finished at around 6, everything was done and measured, the only remaining thing to give some supplies to BD and PD, and the painting to SK the next morning. The room would need some cleaning, but that was the pre-departure task.

We left for Brookline, I'd be spending my last night in Brookline since we had packed all my bedding and related material. Took the 101 to Sullivan, almost went crazy because of the delayed schedule, caught the commuter bus to Kenmore area, waited for the other bus for 20 minutes as we talked about J's new apartment and schedule, and finally got home. Waited for an hour for the food from Indian place to arrive, it was very decent.

Some movie watching may have happened, I don't remember because I slept so soundly and early.

I take the day off work, crisscrossing the town, classmate hangs, the other SK comes to town [Thu 27]

This was a very, very busy day, and I'm putting that lightly. I took the day off of work to figure out the logistics of it.

Got up in Brookline, had breakfast. Took the bus-train-train-bus trip back home with J. She had emotions flowing in, from her days of staying around town and in our place.

In my place we gathered all the things she wanted from me, and then the bike, and began our trip back. Except the freakin' bus took forever to come, we waited for an extra 45 minutes to possibly an hour because bus schedule was fucked up. It annoyed us to no end. We took the bike and the other goodies to Sullivan in 101, to Roxbury Crossing, and then to the intersection in 66. Then we waited for like 20 minutes for the other bus before getting right in front of their place. Because the hill was too big to carry everything. So if you will remember, I've already made a hectic roundtrip, and I'm sweaty tired and smelly at this point.

Since SK (from the South) was around, we decided to meet in Brookline. I showered and changed into AD's clothes, and went to the station to meet SK, who got hella delayed because she took the train in the wrong direction. After she finally made it through, we went to a bar for pub food and minor drinks. Spent a few hours there, and then in an Asian place, I think I reviewed it before, soup and dumpling place. We were there only for the drinks, but the food was fantastic as well. Since I was running late for yet another hangout (I know), we kinda' rushed it, and took the bottle with us. We were already two blocks out when we found the poor elderly japanese owner of the place come chasing after us, apparently they weren't licensed to sell takeout liquor. That's the story of America. Hardworking immigrants go to such extreme lengths to follow the exact letter of the law, while 'native' cough cough people will flagrantly disregard and piss on existing system and attempt to murder and destroy it to no consequence.

Took the bus to Harvard square, afraid I was very very late. Except nobody else had showed up. Used the restroom waited for 10 minutes for the group to gather. It was BD, SC, and BD's hub. Plus SK. We got caught up on our plans, history, the summer, and friends, weddings etcetera. Always the visa situation, always. Food was extremely mediocre, yeeugh. The group disbanded early.

SK and I went to Froyo place in bow and arrow street, had some of it, hung out around the river and square for a few hours, she left for her friend's place, and I went back home, late in the night.

I start packin', Trip to AB's homestead, play with doggo and chickens, rain walk, in Brookline [Wed 26]

I spent a large portion of the day packing my clothes. I was waiting for a last piece of luggage to arrive from Amazon before I finalized everything. Most of my clothes were out of the closest and neatly fit into the suitcases.

In the evening after work, I took the 101 and then the Orange Line to the Southern part of the City, where friend AB lives with her partner, their cat and dog, and like 10 chickens. I'm not making any of this up. They also have several dozen tomato plants, many many kale plants, and a pretty large kitchen patch in general. They were making plans to get bee hive too, but AB was not too comfortable with that. Going to their place in JP is always so much fun!

We grilled veggies and fake meat, talked about college, where all our friends were, where we wanted to move to buy houses, our jobs, my plans ahead, and their homesteading plans. I didn't think I'd be full, but I was bursting in the seams, it was a lot of food we cooked this evening. Also told AB about by idea for jobs for dogs.

Their doggo got impatient, we decided to go on a walk, the sky was getting dark so I packed up and got ready to leave. They were gonna walk with me all the way to Brookline folks' place. Half-way it got dark and thunderous, so they had to scramble back. I shouted at AB I'd see her in Seattle, she seemed noncommittal but surely something good will happen.

And then it rained. Very heavily. Quite scarily. Thunder lightning, the whole show. I enjoyed it for the first fifteen minutes and it got boring. As it subsided, I used my backpack with it's rainjacket as a shield from rain, much like a turtle uses its shell, and walked to Brookline place. Dried myself out, talked a bunch with folks, and watched some movie about a young girl who becomes a rock critic. I slept halfway through cos' I was so tired.

Stew and rice, incredibly fun hang with NR, drink inventions [Tue 25]

Had kimchi stew with rice. Hopefully I was done eating it by this day because I'm certainly tired of writing about it.

After work took the 101 and then the other bus from the Malden stop to get to NR's apartment, the last week of hangs. Listened to the Dwight Scrute podcast on the way.

Had tea, which we put into the fridge to 'ice' it, and v8 juice, which we also put in the fridge to 'ice' it. Discovered that NR and I were the only two people we knew who liked the tomato juice. I suggested she put chilli peppers, salt and something sour, plus a bit of mint we picked from her little plant in living room, and she loved the combo. We talked about where we'd gotten to the place from, our future plans, how dogs should get jobs, lots of gossip, the situation in Nepal, buying houses, and how things are sucky or everybody. And how two people who liked each other, one of them who was nepali, might have killed or caused the death of one's wife, and caused great stress to the other's wife, while they eloped after destroying their own relationships.

We walked to Jay's Pizza o get momos, their vegan fake meat momos are fantastic. We had the momos on the patio of the place. Two young east asian girls were holding hands and making out, we discussed how malden was really changing.

Left NR's place at 10.30, bus back home, stuck on the stupid traffic to Sullivan, it took forever but fortunately the 101 waited, and I got home in a decent time.

Tired at home, I fell asleep pretty quick. Which is why I didn't write.

Stew and egg, cancelled plans, walk-in-park [Mon 24]

Walked in the park, had kimchi stew with quinoa and eggs. Planned to meet RLD in the evening, but they forgot about it, so just chilled about. That's all the memories I have of this day. Grumbled with SK, the recently-met-nearby-one, about the plan cancels.

Journey back home, kimchi stew meal, park walk, child talk [Sun 23]

Had oats for breakfast at Brookline, egg and cheese sandwich for lunch. Took the bus-train-train-bus combo that I usually do to get home. Packed a bunch at home. For dinner at Quinoa and the kimchi stew from earlier. Did some serious walking late in the evening, This was the day a five-year young dude mistook me for his counterpart because my face was covered in mask and I am so short. I'm going to be as tall as you when I'm seven he said, thinking I was seven too. He was confused when I showed him my facial hair. Funtimes.

The most amazing day that made me question things, Timeout market dinner with friends [Sat 22]

Met SK. Originally for lunch. Which went on and on and on, until 8, when she had other matters to attend, ones that couldn't be avoided. It was an incredible time. There was a confusion in the morning about the definition of Union Square. I went to her square, she was about to leave or mine, we finally figured out to pause, met at her part of the town, took the bus together to mine. And learned so much about each other on the way, such as how we both absolutely abhor planning, but just for the little stuff, and would most definitely like to have a lot of things in control. Etcetera.

It was really hot, she got really cranky on our way to this restaurant, so overpriced and not that great in the Bow Market. I've written about it before. From there we went to the brewery underneath and just chatted on and on. Walked to Davis where we got ice-cream, and parted our ways.

Took the bus to Timeout market where I met the whole of Brookline gang besides PD. People had a bunch to eat, but I was full...of food, and also emotions, so I didn't eat much. We got caught up, talked about how this was my last weekend in town yadda yadda yada. Went to Brookline, did a 4-camera chat with AD and SS (Phd) at night. Fun! The rest of the gang watched movies, I fell soundly asleep.

The question that the day raised will be discussed later, but it was basically, if I'm having so much fun spending time with people, how come the hangs don't go anywhere and just amble about? Something to think through.

Forever cooking the kimchi stew [Fri 21]

I write this three weeks after the fact, a lot of details are bound to be fuzzy and uncertain. I'm using the photos I took of the day and any vague recollection I might have had to fill in the detail. At this point, I'm just writing for the sake of doing this, and totally fine with it. Just get on bruh.

The only photos from this day I have is of the Kimchi stew, which could have turned out to be amazing, and almost did, but just because of minor errors it didn't. My goal was to basically finish all the bokchoy, large amount of the kimchi, and tofu I had left in the fridge. And the gochujang and gochugaru. So I looked up the recipe, except replaced the silken tofu with fried extra firm tofu, which was an awful, terrible, bad bad idea, it's unclear why I thought it would work. Also a decent amount of tahini would have rounded it out so well but I had to go all in and dump several spoonfuls which uh gave it too much of a slippery texture. Adding a tone of spices and sourness helped though, but it became a bowl of firewater.

Still good though, and I ended up finishing all of it. Over the course of the next many days...

Quinoa and Mushrooms, walk in the park, new team intro [Thu 20]

Had quinoa, with the mushroom sauce I'd made with the flour for lunch. Must have been good because I finished all of it, but had to use sambal olek and chinese chilly paste liberally. Chinese chilly paste saves the day, always.

At work I had several meetings with folks in the new team they're sending me to, day was full of them, not much got done.

In the evening I went to walk in the park because nothing else was up and I needed to get the steps in.

At least I have an excuse at this point

The excuse here is that I've been busy meeting people, one, two maybe even three different groups of people everyday, catching up before a decently sized work vacation. And with the packing, socializing, hobnobbing, buying furniture, getting an apartment, getting insurance, playing with random people's dogs, cooking, eating rice and beans and ghiu because you don't want to invest in groceries, and spending hours and packing and repacking so you get the weight distribution right, the volume right, and are comfortable enough with yourself and your life to actually get to the airport and fly. Flyyy, you fools!

So yeah, that's what's up, don't create a big stink about that alright, this is the scariest, wildest, craziest thing I've done in a while, and yeah the standard's really low, really very disappointingly low, but something there still, give me some credit ya nubs.

As always, more incoming. Lots more. I'll average things out to a decent number.

Sweet memorEyes

In the deep, dark Unending Depths of your eyes I find myself lost, Dazed, confused, unfocused, Drowning, Gasping for air.

(And for a moment
Just that moment
Unshackled from
The chains
That bound me
To reality.
The whole misery of it!)

Glugg glugg glugg
Glurg glurg
Glur---.

Twenty things I'm looking forward to when living by myself

No more morning madrush for the toilet, or having to change getting up time to time the toilet right.
My own kitchen, can get all sorts of equipment etcetera, work on cooking and cleaning at my pace.
Can finally get bidet in the toilet
Don't need furniture in the apartment, not of the conventional sort anyway.
Can decorate according to my own eclectic tastes.
More time space and energy for personal projects.
Free use of the fridge space.
Can host any number of guests, for extended number of time, according to the apartment rules.
Have people over all the time!
More cooking, more chill.
Less people to hang out with on daily basis, greater motivation to be out and about!
Parents can stay with me for reaally long times.
Okay to have coworkers over.
No more tv, need to work replacement interests for that.
Plants, plants, plants everywhere.
Random stinky ideas
DIY TIME

Decoration plans in the new place

This is a sneaky way to avoid spending any serious amount of money on furniture or decorations while still having a decent and livable place, but I'm worried I'm going to get carried away a bit by the 'ooh I saved such monies' stratagem and try to create designs to make the place better, that I'll end up spending way more money in the long term. But at least that way I'm spending money on cool new hobbies, improving myself learning new skills and having homemade DIY items to show friends and family, so it won't be as bad as everything else.

My idea is to decorate the apartment the japanese way. Minimalism. So a floor sleeping mattress, a low table with four cushions, a low coffee table which will also act as dinner table as well as working space. Plus a bunch of plants so I don't look like a cheapskate. Also thinking of buying a few wall decorations so you get the 'japanese' vibe, not a 'cheapster' one.

In addition, and I realize the more I write this, the less it sounds like a 'minimalist' vibe, but I am hoping/planning to put in some west-african design patterns in there as well, laser cut a bunch of adinkra symbols using A's cutter, hand stain them and hang them, plus buy cook japanese art and hanging and put them strategically around in the apartment.

Finally, water feature. Of course every self-respecting japanese-inspired designed apartment needs a water feature. Depending on what resources I can scrounge, I'm thinking of either creating a 'tea pot pouring into a teacup' design with 'tea' flowing continuously, some ultrasonic transducers strategically hidden to give it a look of 'steam' as well. Or possibly, just trees, waterfall, etcetera, general scenery inspired from youtube. Probably take artistic worth though, that's hard to come by.

I want to keep this updated. These are my plans for Seattle decoration.

The glx is coming, the glx is coming!

After fifteen year of delays, major cost overruns and changing of what, three, maybe four different contractors, the Boston Green Line Extension is coming to a completion, and it's looking like by the end of this year, or at least the beginning of the next, we'll get most of the routes in the Green Line in Medford and Somerville to open. So exciting! It was supposed to open in 2007, and then in 2015, then in 2019, and now in late 2021, but the construction is coming to an end, significant progress is visible, even they can't fuck it up now it looks like.

Under normal circumstances I'd be very worried about jinxing it, and how this sounds too good to be true. But since I'm not going to be in Boston for the next several months, of course it'll happen the month and year I decide to take leave of temporary absence from the city, obviously. I reverse-jinxed it and by leaving the city I've been in for ten years, I'm finally getting the extension to complete. Hurray, thank me later ya hosers.

There's caveats, decent sized ones. Apparently the service that comes all the way to Tufts won't run full-service due to some track stuff not being able to hold other thingamajig I don't know what don't ask me, so those buses are going to be packed like sardines in the rush hour. Which is like whatever, fine, it'll still be better than what we have right now, which is nothing.

If things work out, it will be the most exciting thing to have happened in general to the city in my stay over the last many years...besides the development of the Seaport district.

Up, up and up!

Gotta cook more often

I cooked a pretty complex meal the other day, it was yum, and then I realized I should cook a lot more often. But then I'd have to eat it for the rest of the week...it'd get boring real fast, so I often don't. The other thing I remembered is maybe I should focus on 'everyday' cooking so I get in the habit of cooking day after day after day, and special occasion cookings become just another thing I do instead of this grand occasion in which I need to cook enough to last a small army.

With my own kitchen, a personal apartment and a complete control over appliances and the direction of the house, things are looking up-and-up. More cooking will commence, of that I'm confident.

Test your curries and stews with your carbs as well

I cooked this massive complex stew the other day, so may spices etcetera, and thought it was wayy to salty and sour, that I'd gone overboard with the mixtures. It seemed a little too sharp, so I ate it with a lot of rice and guess what? Not enough salt or sour!

Which is why when cooking your curries and stews, taste them with the carb you're eating them with, so..rice or bread or potato or quinoa (in my case) or whatever. Because the ratios are going to be different, and you'll be thrown off.

It's also a lesson about life and art in general. When creating something, remember how it'll look in the context of its surroundings where it will be presented with. If you don't, your experience with it with be remarkably different from the end consumers, and you might never end up noticing what went wrong. The salt was all fine, you say, I have no clue what they're talking about, and they'll think you just like too much salt. You are both objectively correct, even accounting for taste and measurement, but the fact that the means of consumption was so different fucks up all the calculations. Nothing can change that, alas.

A chill NYC weekend

Friend N and I went to NYC last weekend. It was a last goodbye to my NYC friends before I left for the PNW, and N needed a way out of his hectic schedule, so we got a hella nice hotel room in midtown right next to the Central Park and chilled through and through.

Often weekends in NYC will be hectic and tiring to the point that you begin hoping for a vacation to recover from the effects of it. Latenight hangs, dancing until wee hours of the morning, figuring out logistics of the sleeping situation because oops the person you were supposed to crash with is far too drunk so now they're crashing at your friend's place instead as well so now you'll have to sleep on the dining table as every other inch of the apartment is already covered by somebody's sleeping body, etcetera. Complicated situations.

This was not the case. We spent a peaceful afternoon cleaning up and getting ready. Went downtown, got some tea and cookies and chilled with two of N's friends in a park for a few hours. Then came back uptown and spent the next hours in the central park helping a friend busk. Went to a lowkey diner with food that was not particularly good or remarkable, a place we didn't even bother looking up reviews for online, and that was it for the day. The next day I got caught up with college-friend NK who I meet about twice or thrice a year in the city, we got some momos, walked a bunch in the highline park listening into conversations about coming into America and the hacks and tricks people do to stay around, went to a large mall and its two japanese mega-stores (I'm talking about Uniqlo and Muji of course), and that was the end of the trip. No drinking, no unnecessary partying, no logistical nightmare, none of that running groups after groups nonsense.

The last weekend was so chill that it was pleasantly surprising. Staying over at a hotel room instead of some crazy airbnb or somebody's apartment that's wayy off the route makes things so much simpler, like you wouldn't believe. You're not actually spending your time figuring out how to get somewhere and back -- you're already there! You don't have to keep what the last reasonable train out of the town is, you'll just walk a few blocks over!

Bars and clubs have surely been opening in Downtown as well, we didn't explore, and maybe we don't need to anymore. Perhaps we are at a state in our lives where that raucous is behind us, it's possible these sort of chill weekends will pave the way for the future.

Walk in the park

For the last...several days, I've been trying to a minimum-step thing on my health app, because of this challenge at work where if you get to a certain point you're eligible to gifts and rewards. Which means that now instead of going on walks for the sake of walking, now I'm working towards optimizing my step count versus time and effort, because whenever there's any numbers, there's a desire to game them into a favorable direction.

So instead of walking to random places, crossing the traffic and avoiding heavy vehicles, I have been walking in the park next two our places, taking ten to fifteen rounds of it every day. I've measured the time it takes for me to take a lap, and then the number of steps to the lap, so I know exactly how much longer I need to be lapping to reach my step-count goals.

When they say something easy as being a 'walk in the park', it really makes sense, I've discovered now. I don't need to pay attention to the people around me, or the traffic or anything else. It's just about the act of walking, not really paying attention to the surroundings, and listening to the podcast or whateveryou might have playing in your ears.

You get to see some interesting stuff too, so it's not like I'm trying to make fun of this situation. I've seen folks practice seriously or League softball until late in the night, I've seen doggieparents spend hours and hours with their cats and dogs trying to leash-train them, I've seen groups of attractive presumably single women setup picnic baskets and wine and just chill and have fun with their friends. It's a pretty sight, been a long time since I saw other human beings, goodlooking ones, in these numbers, and it's a treat for the eyes and the heart to just be able to look at them.

Man IS a social animal, it turns out.

Yeah, I'm the sort of person who goes to walk in the park now, and instead of spending hours exploring the nooks and crannies of the neighborhood would rather enjoy a much more peaceful physical activity. What to do, this is what has let me optimize all the variables.

Taiwan Pork Chop House Restaurant: A review

This is a review of the Taiwan Pork Chop House restaurant, located in the Chinatown district of NYC in Manhattan.

It's going to be a short and simple restaurant.

Friend NK and I got two large entrees and two appetizers, and we paid a total of twenty dollars, paid in cash as it's a cash-only restaurant. Their seaweed salad was fantastic, and the cucumber-in-garlic-sauce was as got as it gets. I got rice with mushroom sauce, and oof, so good, for the price it was incredible, I could have easily paid twice as much for the large amount of flavorful, well-textured food.

And that's it. Apparently their popcorn chicken is really good, but really I imagine anything in the somewhat short menu would be amazing. It's cash only, and so incredibly affordable I could see myself eating out of this place several days every week over years and years. And why not, healthy nourishing food at prices barely above what would cost you to make it, is that not why most people in NYC don't cook at just eat out?

This is what NYC is to me, this is what New York Chinatown should be about. Affordable authentic fantastic tasting Chinese food that'll make you not want to cook anymore, and appreciate what an amazing world-class city you're living in.

Yes I love this place a bit, yes you should most definitely go here if you're looking for no-frills but great-tasting Chinese food in Chinatown. Just make sure to carry cash in your person, though there are a couple of ATM's nearby.

Dough Zone: review

This is a review of the Dough Zone restaurant in Seattle's CapHill neighborhood.

I went to this place a month ago with friends SK and AS.

Ordered a bunch of small plates, seven or eight of them between the three of us, and the total bill including a small bottle of rice wine was solidly in the mid-twenties, after the tip. Which is an amazing deal.

It can probably be described as a corporatized but not fully Americanized introduction to Chinese dumplings, and chinese appetizers and snacks. Think of this as being to Chinese food in America what TGIF is to American food in China. It's not exactly wrong or inauthentic, and the food items are great, but with the overly corporate vibe of the place, and a menu that seems to talk down to the patron a little bit -- specially in a city like Seattle, with it's Asian history -- the place feels a bit too quaint, cute even, in how hard it's trying to fit in.

The dumplings were all good, as always it's not too hard to get simple veggie dumplings produced in large quantities wrong, the sauces were decent. Appetizers were pretty good -- smashed cucumber in garlic sauce was particularly memorable, but that's about it. We were seated on the outside patio, and it was getting dark and cold quick, there was a point when we almost regretted being seated outside. But it wasn't their fault, we requested to be put outside.

If I had to be really ungenerous to it, I'd say it's the Chinese/Asian restaurant for the sort of people who're unsure or afraid about going to Chinese/Asian restaurants, but really want to try something beyond the typical Chinese-American fare found in boring old takeout places. It's a decent place, I have nothing against it, just a tad boring and uninspired.

Noah's kitchen review

This is a review of Noah's Kitchen restaurant in Brookline Village.

When I went to this place on a Saturday morning -- with two of my Chinese friends -- every other patron in the restaurant besides me appeared to be of Chinese origin. At 11.30 in the morning. Which says a lot about the quality and authenticity of the place than I could ever describe. This place is real, mostly Sichuan cuisine, but they've got a smattering of Hainanese options as well.

So much rice, so much food, so much passion in there food. You can tell that they opened the place, and this is a recently-opened restaurant which hasn't seen much non-Covid times, with the intention to serve a limited menu of well-worked foods, no bullshit. Mapo tofu, number one. Fried potatoes, freakin' fantastic. Sichuan stews, quite good. As Chinese restaurants in the area go, it's a solid 9.

I'm not sure if this is the best Chinese/Sichuan restaurant I've been to, that award still goes to the former Hot Eastern which has been rebranded with a different name. But this newcomer would definitely fall into the top four in the Boston area, which is a far bigger compliment than it might otherwise seem. That's some high respect for the place.

My complaints: they were far too busy, even on what one hoped would be easy hours, their choices of drinks wasn't too broad, and the dessert options are almost non-existent.

But allow me to suggest that those are not the reasons you would go to this place anyway. Solid food, at decent prices, we want this, a solid recommendation from me.

Cha Cha Lounge: A review

The Cha Cha Lounge is a chill/hip bar in the Pike/Pine corridor in Seattle's CapHill district. It sells itself itself as a mexican cantina, but it's really a low-key dive bar.

There's two floors: a chill but small sitting space on the ground space, and a much larger space accommodating to larger groups as well, with a huge dance floor and a very stylized bar downstairs. Often, customers will sit on the top floor as they wait for spaces to open on the lower, funner space. I have it on good authority that on certain nights they have softcore pornography playing there, but the two times I was there with friends, they had random old chinese movies, and really strange artsy sci-fi movies playing there.

The bathroom there is awful, terrible really, not somewhere anybody should ever have to go, even in the worst of situations. The door's broken, the toilets aren't in great shape, and you would be better off using the alley two blocks over and risking getting caught by the police and thrown into jail to be tortured instead of using the loo in here. Just avoid this region if you've got a bladder that's unable to last as long s would be preferable.

The drinks are pretty basic, this is after all a dive-ish bar. Beers are 7 bucks a pop -- five for cheaper crappier ones -- and 9 for mixed drinks. I bought a few for my compadres, and I'd rather have paid more for better ones.

To be quite honest, it's not a problem, the quality and price of the drinks here, because it's almost besides the point. The real question is that of the quality of the clientele: who are the people who show up here, and are they the sort of people you would want to spend any amount of time with, or be comfortable around when you're sober?

Exploratory research conducted in-situ on several occasion suggests that the clientele is actually quite nice and well-educated, which is to be expected considering the population of the city and the neighborhood around. Lots of tourists and new movers to the city as well, and everybody's so loud and friendly here. Complaints of the Seattle freeze are brought out often, but in the faces and eyes of these drunken patrons, that seems like mythology much like the Sasquatch.

This is a pretty decent place, all things considered.

Top ten sounds you definitely didn't think your new puppy would be making

Mew mew mew
Moo moo moo
Myaaa myaa myaahh
Beep Bop Beep
Ding dong
Bow chikaa wow wow
Neyyyhhhh neyyyhhhh
Brrrrrrrrrrr
Brap brap pow poww
Nyaanna naa naa naah naah naah, niinnii ninnni naah nuh nuh

Moralizing on sexual behavior does nobody any good

I write this as a representative of 'judgmental people'.

Moralizing on sexual behavior does nobody any good. By 'moralizing' I mean...judging if somebody is good or bad, competent or not, or making any other judgments about one's personality based on one's sexual appetite or behavior.

It does slutty people no good, to begin with. How much sex they'd rather have says very little about if they're nice or mean, if they're kind and loving or mean and awful. It doesn't say if they're good employees or not, honest people or liars, generous or ungrateful.

It does the nice/mean people no good either. If you're a nice loving caring kind competent likeable desirable person, why should society have expectations about what your sexual behavior is like. Why would there ever be expectation to act in a certain way with another adult inside closed doors that's nobody's business. It does mean/awful people no good either. The fact that they're terrible doesn't shouldn't have to mean they should have to be having sex a lot, why should they be held to unreasonable standards of performance and desire. Do they not have enough things to worry about?

It also does the judgmental people no good. For sexual behavior is a terrible proxy of what a person is like, generally speaking. It's like guessing somebody's personality based on their handwriting, or their chances of making it to heaven or hell based on their favourite brand of apple. As a judgmental person, I want my judgments to be accurate, my perception of reality to be based on accurate descriptions and generalizations, not some bullshit concept some fucking loser of a man came some time ago, which has no rooting in reality, is really a nonsensical generalization that misleads people into reading others terribly. This is so fucked up. I want more accurate methods, ways that give me greater precision and understanding of human behavior. And sexual behavior will not get me there.

So this is all bullshit.

Who's even winning, one would think maybe judgmental people are, but they're suffering too people, it's somebody else out there, who wants to sow chaos in the world by creating misunderstanding between different groups of people.

That's all I got.

Review of Variety Bar

This is the review of variety bar in Bow Market.

It'll be short. The food was mediocre. The two of us ordered a small pizza, and we weren't able to finish three of the eight slices, which my compadre threw away despite not being into wasting food. I mean...it was food, and I've had better pizzas in Nepal.

The drinks were small but pretty good. Don't mix different cocktails people. Also, the cocktails were fifteen bucks, before taxes. They add 20% gratuity by default, so they were 18 bucks a pop.

And despite the automatically added gratuity, they have the gall to place the empty space to add extra money on top of that. So annoying, really. So much. That particular part pissed me.

The ambience is great, if you're taking somebody to a nice date, and want to impress them with sweet cocktails, this is the place to be.

Otherwise, it's an overpriced place with alright drinks and meh food. The service was great, but it couldn't make up for everything else. I wouldn't recommend this place.

Review of Revnant brewing

This is a review of the Revnant Brewing at Bow Market in Somerville Union Square.

Here's a quick summary of my relationship with the place: I've been there on maybe four/five occasions, and never once, not even one single time have I not had a fantastic fucking time. Nothing short of absolutely amazing time. Take it as you will, it probably says a lot more about me than it does about the place, but here we are.

I remember three distinct occasions when we've been there: the first time when I barely knew SS (nh), when sbk introduced ss and her classmates to us and we went there, got mightily buzzed in the bar, then went upstairs to dance. No dancing happened, but sparks flew, and it was great.

The second time was a year and a half ago when ss and td and sr and I went to the place to start our New Year's eve plans. Our plan was to bar hop across seven or eight different place, but we uhhh ended up having to much fun too early on, and went to bed 8.30 that night. It was hilarious, a day to remember for the ages, but the three hours we spent there were so goddamn fun.

The third time I went with Sk (union) the other day, and it was an amazing time too. Despite her not being a fan of beers, she really enjoyed the brews they had.

Now on to review.

This place makes amazing beers, never once have I been disappointed by their magical brews. Their specialty is sour beers: my introduction, and 'expertise' -- haah, if I may -- in them is because of this place. Like really great, fruity beers, sour but tasty, not enough of the beer aftertaste, makes you want to keep drinking more because them drinks don't taste like beer at all. But enough like beer that if you're a fan of them hopps, you'll have a good time as well.

Plus, it's a bring-your-own-food place, which is pretty awesome in this day and age right? Why don't other places have this?! There should be takeout places that don't have seating that only sell food, and bars that make really top-quality drinks that don't sell food, and they should co-exist in perfect synergy. You save on the restaurant seating spaces, and we will avoid the low-margins on the food. Win win win. All the way to the bank.

So yeah, Revnant brewing is great, just go if you're around and reading this! Even if you don't like beer.

Review of multi-camera zoom meetings

Last night I was in Brookline, and the three inhabitants there, plus SS in this town (Phd) and then AD who's back in Nepal (he's coming next year, we're told!) had a group Zoom call. With the four of us in there, we got three cameras going, one from every angle. At first it took us a bit to figure out which mic and speaker to turn on and which one to turn off, but we eventually figured it out (turn video only for all devices except the main one), and things went rather well after that.

We were covered by the three cameras, enough to maybe turn us into a 3-d scene and project us into a holographic image sort of situation. You could make documentary out of us, changing camera angles as we changed topics, and looked at different cameras. It was so freakin' cool.

But with all the time and energy it took us to set it up, maybe not, maybe it wasn't really worth the effort. It was cool and all to change camera angles as you talked to the person in front of you, and they'd still be able to look at your face, sort of like 'the office effect' but it...didn't really work out as well as you'd hope. Plus with light angles and popping up all these devices, and figuring out the 'blocking' aka how to have the 'scene' in front of all the cameras all the time, it felt like we were trying to produce a multi-camera comedy show while on the call. On one hand, that made me have better appreciation of those producers. On the other hand, unless you want to go into television or movie production, maybe don't get multicamera video chats on.

That's all I got!

Podcasts I've been listening to

Some lovely new-ish podcasts I've been listening to with great interest, and recommending to others. Great stuff all around, gonna make a list of those here.

Off Menu with James Acaster and Ed Gamble
Bud Pod with Phil Wang
RHLSTP with Richard Herring
Office Ladies
Taskmaster podcast
HDTGM
Michael Scott Podcast Company
No such thing as a fish
Spilled Milk
The Office Deep Dive with Brian Baumgartner
Dark Air with Terry Carnation
A Problem Squared
Twenty Thousand Hertz
Talking Derry Girls
Cuddle Club with Lou Sanders
MDWAP

Early rise, busy workday, bready breakfast, leftover lunch, I walk a lot, fruits and yogurt dinner [Wed 19]

I write this at 12.20am of the night of the same day, I'm finally if I may say so against the dozens of promises I've made previously, 'caught up' journal-wise, and if I can dump six extra bullshit posts tomorrow and the day after, I'll rest in peace. As I wrote short few posts ago, things are up on the up.

SO as usual I got up quite early this morning, didn't want to go back to sleep because the day looked so goddamn bright and chill. Listened to the office ladies podcast, possibly something else. By the time I started job at 8.30 it felt like I'd been up for hours. Should have written, alas.

The workday was full of meetings with people in the new team. I had a review at work after a managerial meeting, and it appears things are looking good towards that as well, should be working towards a promotion at this point. A colleague who was leaving the team told me to look around for cool interesting jobs as well, and he'd be more than willing to help me should I need his guidance and assistance.

For breakfast I had nice marathon bread toasted, one slice with hummus, the other slice with peanut butter on it. And then a banana. Lunch was the quinoa-meal heated up, the leftover from yesterday.

After work I wrote a bit, to kill time as it was too hot to go out on a walk. Took a cold shower, and went out on a walk at 6.40. Walked until 8, just in the park right next to my house, took 12 rounds of the whole place, possibly a few more. It wasn't very exciting to be walking in one place, but you do get to see and know people a little bit, and don't need to cross streets, so it's a great way to get your step counts up. I was at 12000 today.

Came back, had some yogurt and fruit. And started writing. After watching a tonne of youtube etcetera. It's half past midnight now, and I'm done for the day, cleaned up an hour before. Hopefully I'll be able to write a bunch tomorrow morning, and we'll be back into the super-productive form. Is it possible the vitamin D's I've been taking religiously for the past two weeks or so might have been working?

Sichuanese Cuisine Seattle, a review

Google tells me I was in this restaurant three weeks ago. I'd forgotten to review this restaurant in the time between, so here we are. This is going to be quick and easy. If you want to get the 'on the ground' journal from the experience, go read up on whatever day I went to the restaurant, about three weeks ago. Google is your friend, yo.

Friend A had been telling me this was a great place, and I hadn't had the opportunity to actually go there, ever. So when my time in the city was coming to an end, and I was meeting brother S, we decided to go to this establishment. It's really authentic, A had told me, every time I'm there I see the owners eating rice with their hands right in the open, which was encouraging. It meant no pretensions, they knew what they were selling, their kick-ass food and made no pretensions about it.

TO cut a long story short, their spicy beef/fish soup is incredible, and so is their fried potatoes. Their mabo tofu is something to kill for as well. They give you incredibly large bowls of rice with your order, and you can always ask for more, the serving size for the entrees themselves are enough for somebody like to me to last about three meals. The two of us brothers failed to finish any more than half of the meal on the table, and that was a massive disappointment for me.

I am no slouch when it comes to Sichuanese cuisine, I have very high standards for it. And this place right about made it all the way to the top. 9 marks for flavor, 9 marks for service which was kind and prompt, 9 marks for the authentic ambience of being in a place that cared about food and making people sit down to eat and nothing else. 8 marks for price, but my standards are messed up due to NYC chinatown's food choices.

Fantastic fucking place in the middle of Seattle Chinatown, if you like Sichuanese cuisine, and are around town, you need to go to this place.

The place is called, literally Sichuanese Cuisine.

Taco bell is the best fast food restaurant

I've talked recently talked about eating quick taco bell bites in NYC, and how those dollar-fifty snacks are the tastiest, cheapest, healthiest snacks you can find around. In this post I'll argue why Taco Bell is the best cheap fast food restaurant, fullstop.

First, yes, lets clear the air, the old 'bell doesn't sell gourmet shit. It's not five guys or In 'N Out. But it doesn't pretend to be what it's not, despite the nice swanky cantinas that have been popping up. It was those nice cantinas with drinks and all that I went to in the city the other day, btw.

Second, the food is universal. It's got something for vegetarians, got something for vegans. Very very few people find tacos or burritos offensive. There's not many people with allergies to any of the ingredients. The cheese they use is not really cheese, so no upset tummies either. And finally, they have a variety of incredible sauces -- say helloo to the comparatively burning-hot Diablo sauce -- so if everything else disappoints you, this place is worth a visit just for their sauces.

Third, the food is incredibly, and let me stress that, incredibly, filling. You go to Burger King and for fifteen bucks you've barely eaten anything, with that supersizing and what not. You take fifteen bucks and a party of three grown men who have just ingested not insignificant amount of weed-related products, and you get three people who're quite full by the end of their trip. A little exaggeration there, but the food is really, truly quite filling. And why not, it's rice and beans and meat!

Fourth, it's cheap. For less than two bucks, you can get a third of your daily caloric requirements, as a snack. And it's healthy. And it can be treated as an 'entree' if you like it that way. The food is cheap, and filling, the best of all the worlds.

Fifth, it's healthy, it's pretty much well-accepted as one of the healthiest fast foods restaurants. It's only rice, beans, veggies, and possibly meats. There's nothing scary or suspicious in there to be afraid of. They're easy and simple to assemble.

Sixth, the brand has not been associated with ill health and other associated negative connotations like Mcdonalds and other chains have. Because they make it a point to have health considerations for their customers an important part of the mission.

Seventh, they are open to experimentation, trying new items, ruthlessly culling out items that don't work too well, and bringing them back on if there's enough interest. The potatoes-in-burritos is a new innovation, relatively speaking. The doritos taco locos was an innovation in its time, now it's become conventional, thanks to the bell.

Eighth, if you really want to go all out, you can go to one of them 'cantinas', and get very full and drunk with the drinks in there. Cheap booze and food, and a great atmosphere, what's to not like!

Things seem to be working out alright

It is perhaps unwise to let too many divine entities get aware that things have been going alright actually, for fear of they might decide that it's not what the order of thins should be, and choose to smite you. Jinxing yourself right when everything seems to be falling into place is a terrible idea. Still, it's a good idea to count one's blessings, so to speak, and enumerate them once a while, as a reminder.

Things seem to be going pretty alright right now. The apartment situation has been sorted out, both here and in Seattle. The flight's been figured out. NYC trip was incredible, lots of catch-ups, and lots more final hangs upcoming before I depart in ten days. Work's getting busier and funner, and they're giving me more leadership opportunities. All the projects I was up to in Boston will be repeated in the new town, so nothing to worry there. Cooking is working out great, getting this motivation from who knows well. Going on intense walks every day, averaging 12k lately. Yeah people don't reply to texts anymore, but people who don't have their shit together should maybe get their shit together generally speaking.

Taking my vitamins as normal, and waking up on time. Going to bed not too late either. Sleep is a pleasure, food is enjoyable, suns our buns out. It's a bit too warm, not a bad problem to have generally. And oh I've been writing a bunch, I'm a day or two away from going for full workout-write-read-meditate routine.

Looking up.

Early wakes, complicated lunch, long walk, Tufts grounds, visit friend, friendly chat, mini home-hang, fruits and nuts dinner, night writes [Tue 18]

I write this the day after this happened.

Got up really early in the morning, listened to podcasts. I've given up on sleeping in because it doesn't make me fresh, and I've been getting decent amount of sleep anyway.

Work was increasingly productive, I'm beginning to figure out the situation with my new team, learning the ropes, setting the ropes rather for others to climb or avoid falling down the deep dangerous pit underneath. For lunch I roasted brussels sprouts, boiled quinoa, and sauteed mushroom. Also made a super blonde roux, for the first time ever in my life -- it was actually pretty decent, and mixed it with the shrooms to make some sort of gravy. Had the quinoa, sprouts, and the mushroom gravy with hot chilly oil for dinner. Honestly, yummm.

After work I wasted a bunch of my time, writing a little but mostly ambling about, because it's starting to get a bit too hot to head out on a walk right at 4.30-5. So I set out at 6.40, to avoid the heat, saw foth I coming to see us on my way out. Took my 'long route', the winterhill-broadway, boston-ave route, except I had to get to 10k steps today because of a competition happening at work. So I took like 10 rounds of the Tufts running tracks near powderhouse. Reached out to SS, told him I'd come over to get my docs, and he said he was around. I showed up, and we ended up talking for like three hours.

At quarter past ten, I made it back home, said hi to the roomies and I and Nd who were also there. Had two pieces of banana and a pbj sandwich for dinner, because I was still full from lunch. Wrote a good number of posts until 12.15, when I wrote the nonsensical poem because i was so sleepy. Decided to call it a night, put something on my phone, probably the office, and had a very sound sleep.

Apartment confirmation, leftover lunch and dinner, walk to the park, lotsa writing [Mon 17]

Got up way too early, couldn't go back to sleep, nature is fixing my sleep schedule, thanks nature!

For lunch I had the leftover potato dish that I'd made the day before. Work was a little bit productive, first few days in a new team.

Got the information that my apartment situation had been confirmed, and all I need to do is sign it. Haven't signed it yet, two days later but that's coming.

After work put on some Conan podcast, and went on the 'scenic riverwalk' route. It's not as long as I remember it to be. Back home, fried some momos that I'd brought from NYC the day before for dinner.

At night wrote a lot, and I mean a lot lot lot, and slept at 12.30 because my body could literally not handle the stress etcetera. It appears my sleep issues are only an early Spring thing, wonder what that's about.

Slept listening to podcasts, could have been the office. That's how well I slept.

Catching up and gorging with old friend, trip to the Queens, High Line park walk, fancy mall times, bus home, sweet dreams [Sun 16]

Got up at 8am, so well rested, went back to sleep because the room was dark, finally got up at 9.30, washed up and headed out to Chinatown to meet N at 10.45. Met her at a restaurant which I'll be reviewing in the upcoming posts. Got a whole fuckton of food for 20 bucks, barely a third of which we ended up finishing. We talked about our families, relationships, friends, future plans, jobs, labor laws, and where we might want to end up. Gave the leftovers to N, we went to the mochi donut place, and then sat down at a park with a naked statue of medusa with a man's head on one hand and a sword on the other. Walked together to the Canal St. metro station. She went to Brooklyn to meet friend JW, who I have on my sc, and I rode the train, which had apparently become express due to construction work happening, to Queens. Walked to momo crave.

Barely ate two pieces of the plate of momo, packed the rest. We talked about friends' relationships and how well they might be doing with other people. And pets, and the next time we might meet. Took the train right next to the restaurant, all the way to Chelsea, where we began our High Line park journey. Spent the next hour and half walking the park, talking future and past and our relationship with the city, and what a chill relaxing trip it was. Had to cut the walk short because N had to use the rest room but I was quite tired as well. We went to Muji the japanese store, and then to Uniqlo, where he bought a pair of shades and possibly something else he didn't need at all but decided to get anyway because it was right in front of us. The Mall was so fancy! And right by the Highline park too!

N wanted to get coffee, so I sat down on a table on the court, he came back and we got talking. In a bit, we saw his cousin from Philly who I met a few months ago. Her mind was blown because what are the chances they'd be both on a weekend trip to the city, in the same mall, on the same floor, in the same place. She said she wasn't even supposed to be there, she was just looking or the restroom when she found us. Which, honestly is how we ended up there as well, so the chances aren't to low, but what a shocker it was. We walked from there to our respective stations as it began drizzling, said our farewell, he said he'd probably see me in a month, very likely, that.

On my way to the bus station, I made a quick order of the previously-mentioned burrito. Stayed in the line for a while, barely had a seat for me. Had my burrito in the bus, and the trip home wasn't too interesting. Red line to Davis, 89 bus to the park near home, and then a 9-min walk. Don't remember doing much, maybe listened to podcast, before going to bed.

Journey to NYC, a day trip at the Central Park, busker's friend, singing competition, appetizer dinner, wholesome night [Sat 15]

Left the house a bit before six in the morning, walked to Davis, took the redline to the South Station where I took the 7am Peter Pan to NYC. The bus was full, barely a seat or two empty. Surprising, so shocking.

Got to NYC at 11.30, walked to Central Park, snacked a nice taco bell burrito I've mentioned a bit before. Chilled a bit at the park before friend N arrived. Went to the hotel, got a nice hot shower, changed, and we headed downtown to meet his friend SB and her friend Katya. We got bubble tea, sat at that park in Downtown which is basically on-campus for NYU students, apparently. We chilled, I had K's cookies, talked about the future, where we live, what we want to do, and the terrible really bad seeing-people situation others are in. I told them about how Melinda and I had been talking in recent days and that cheered up the mood a bit.

Took the train back to uptown, the top of the park, to meet PB and AS, plus their two friends who were in town for a month for Florida, just renting because they wanted to explore the place. AS was busking, and we were supporting him.

I've never ever ever seen the Central Park so full of people, it was incredible. Sun's out buns out, it is truly the motto of the modern new yorker.

We changed a couple of locations, before eventually coming back to the old place. Except now we had like 12 of A's friends. SS came over, and we got caught up as well. N's two friends were there as well. And somehow the guys (well...one of A's friends) and N's friends started playing antakshari, which nobody else was interested in. It went on for two hours. We had planned to get dinner with the small group but the girls left, apparently because of something I said, but idk, it doesn't really seem likely that I'd be not excited to go to Brooklyn, since the entire purpose of the trip was to have hung out with them. Something is up and I'm being blamed for it, I will not stand up for that sort of nonsense.

At nine ish, the four of us, N & I, P & S decided to get dinner, A and his friends went back home. We went to a nearby diner, and people had many conversations about patent laws and bill gates and vaccine etcetera, I didn't have anything to contribute to the conversation.

We separated in the evening, half hour after the midnight bell rang (inside our heads, one imagines), without getting the desserts that we'd been talking about for two hours. It was interesting. Something was up, I don't know why ad don't give a crap about it.

Back in our hotel room -- 28th floor by the way -- I watched tv for 15 minutes and feel soundly asleep. N couldn't sleep or another few hours, apparently.