In preparation for those times without Internet. I fear thee. Like many people of my generation, I have used a computer every day (unless I am on a trip) for anything. If there was a natural disaster, the first thing I will bring is my computer. My powerbook or just my desktop hard drive. If they can last the journey.

But if not, my whole life is already on the Internet, requiring no backup on my side.

By the way, what is wrong with the Governator?!?! Do what is right, don\’t do what seems right.

For the first assignment in my design class, we were to make a bio about ourselves based on a template. With such headings such as \”claim to fame\” and \”wish had more time for…\” Of course, profiles like these I never answer so seriously. So I ended up filling it up with useless trivia about myself.

Then in class, the professor told each person to randomly get a copy of another person\’s bio, then make a slogan based on what was written.

Mine turned out to be \”a computer nerd who is actually cool\” which was totally awesome.

But then, later after he asked me 3 questions, it becamse \”passionately naive writing + computer nut\”. Um, not naive here! Maybe some things I do suggest naivete, but the word naive to describe me? No!!! But I am a nut. With a computer.

From wikipedia, faux pas…

Introducing political arguments in casual conversation. It is common in many countries to discuss politics as chit-chat or smalltalk. In the US, it is rude to bring up the subject in an informal setting. The weather or sports is a more suitable subject.

I never really thought that. Bringing some politics into a conversation is fine, but to ask someone about their political affiliation is just rude. But is this why a lot of my meeting-new-people conversations end up so dull? Somehow I always end up talking about the weather, normally comparing the Bay Area to Pittsburgh. No sports though, although I can feign an interest in a few spectator sports.

Another popular topic in small talk nowadays is how-we-don\’t-want-to-live-in-Pittsburgh.

By the way, I have been wondering why have I gotten so serious and unfunny in my latest posts. Always so dramatic, too thought-provoking. What happened to the days when I would post how I ate a week-old pizza or how I would pretentiously post about how someone called me mean. Uh oh, I hope this doesn\’t mean I am….growing up. I need some of that silly immature action going on. YO.

Being brought up in the states, I never really thought about living anywhere else. Even when I have urges to travel, I could never see myself staying abroad for more than 5 months. It is here, the biggest \”superpower\”, a country where so many neglect to vote, a government that muddles itself in hypocrisy…this is where I live.

So really, it wasn\’t a surprise to hear what people in other countries said about the Hurricane Katrina relief and its response. Yet, why so cruel? What the government has done reflects poorly on its people. As Americans, now we are representatives abroad of choices we didn\’t agree upon. This quote from Argentina says it all for me:

Katrina had more than the power of the wind and water, because, now, when they have subsided, it can still reveal the emptiness of an era, one that is represented by President George W Bush more than anyone.

Pittsburgh is like an island with hidden little treasures. It\’s most like an island because you\’re surrounded by people who never intended to be here, but wound up here by circumstance and can\’t wait to leave. But unlike any other metro, you make close bonds with people you would have not met otherwise.

Continuing from my last entry, I have posted more craigslist ads for a free bed and free hangers. No takers for the bed yet, but one taker for the hangers.

I like my hangers posting the best:

Free hangers. All shapes, colors and sizes. We don\’t discriminate against any hangers. We just want to get rid of our large collection left by former housemates. Take all or some. E-mail above if interested.

There are stuff left to be sold or given away. Ddr pads. A bag of japanese food. An old nokia phone. Several textbooks. A corded phone. Three bags of women\’s clothing. Photo frames. I should just have a yard sale…

I never knew that people liked free tupperware. She also left a bunch of tupperware. So I made a posting on craigslist, advertisting \”Two bags of tupperware. All different sizes. Clean. Left behind by a former housemate. Free. First come, first served.\” Got 4 responses. Who would have known!

It has been more than one year since I started living with her. And almost 9 months since I realized that something was wrong. And 4 months since she finally moved out the day before my birthday (one of the best birthday presents ever).

Last week, Ray and I were sorting through all the assorted junk that people were storing in our house. To my chagrin, I discovered a bag of unfinished shampoo/conditioner. I have a mentality of neverwasteanything. But I couldn\’t bring myself to use it. So I was caught in a paradox of i might use it someday until I discovered a woman\’s cry for help. Normally, I ignore such pleas (Berkeley has made me very heartless), but I so impatient to get rid of things that I automatically e-mailed her asking whether she wanted half-finished laundry detergent, shampoo, conditioner, and a large winter jacket. And why not?

Red cross says not to donate anything, because having material goods will take too much effort to sort. So here we go.

EDIT: i got a response from her and it wasn\’t along the lines of thank you thank you. It was just a line of beggars can\’t be picky. I am not sure if I am overanalyzing things, but I don\’t want to give her any contact information beyond my e-mail address. I asked her whether we can meet in a mutual place, like say on Forbes/Murray. She tells me that she needs my address so that she can mapquest it. Then she asks for my phone number. EH? What is YOUR phone number? What is YOUR address?

Right now my fingertips are dyed blue because we were writing on overheads in Human Factors. That doesn\’t complement well with my fitted green tee and white spring skirt. And reef flip flops (which almost caused me to trip today on the way to the bus). And my graduate student persona. I mean, I am older than I was last year, right?

When people move out of places, it\’s almost like a hyena feast that occurs shortly afterwards. There are things that people can\’t take with them on an airplane. Things that they need to throw out. Things that they want to give away.

So now, I have two coffee tables, a usb mouse, two whole bags of random food, pillows, a fan, a full-length mirror…

Anywhere I move, I should just live off of hand-me-downs and will-be-trash-if-not-given-aways.