Banana Tree House

This is a blog on my incoherent thoughts and painstaking details of my life. Welcome and please consider this the disclaimer...

Sunday, November 28, 2004

Indispensable?

So I was talking to my new coworker (now former coworker, the beauty of temp jobs) T. She told me about this horrible woman that she used to work with whom believed that she could treat people in a nasty manner (?) because she was "indispensable." Ugh. What a concept. Here's a crude awakening for you, and all other mean and nasty people at any work place (unless, of course, if you are with an union and your employer practically can't fire you), there is no such thing as an indispensable employee. Here's a very simple test to find out if you are indispensable: imagine if you get hit by a bus and died tomorrow. If the company you are working for is not going to come to a grinding halt and ultimate die a horrible death, you are fairly dispensable.

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Countdown: - 3 Days 1 Hour 49 Minutes

Writing and I

I've been writing a lot lately; not blogging (obviously :), but real fiction -- stories with characters. I enjoy writing because writing makes me feel like I am living a double life between two planes of existence. When I am not sure what to write, I'd ask myself: if I can be a different person and anything can happen, what would I like to see happen, and thus creating my persona. I am myself in this universe, but I also have a different identity elsewhere (in a galaxy far, far away :).

Especially when I do menial tasks all day long, I'd spend hours on ends trying to develop the storyline in my head. And to avoid forgetting it before I get a chance to write it down, I'd go over the scenario repeatedly. And by the end of the day, it is as if whatever I had in mind had truly took place, to my alternative self, and it was a wonderful feeling. :)

What I hate most is when I start overanalyzing my own stories (told you I can't help it). "Does this make sense?" "Can it happen this way?" Many a times I have to tell myself this these stories are MY fantasies. These characters are fictious. I can make whatever happen because as far as the story goes, I am the one and only GOD.

I think my personal favorite is still science fiction. I have been in love with science fiction most of my life and I shall try to do more sci fi in the future. :D That is, of course, IF I continue to write. :D

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Mike Resnick left a feedback on my blog!! That made my day. :D Thank you, Mike! ^_^

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Countdown (count up?): -3 Days 1 Hour 34 Minutes

Sunday, November 21, 2004

Landmark Ruling Made in Civil Union Custody Battle

Cross Burning in Yard of Interracial Couples Home???

Countdown: 4 Days, 86 Hours

My Life is, Once Again, Complete

I went to safeway today and discovered these:



Basil, parsley, coriander, oregano, hot chilli, even lemon grass (and much, much more) all in a TUBE!!

The quality of my life has just been taken up to a whole different level. :D

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Countdown: 4 Days, 95 Hours (if only this is accurate :~(

Saturday, November 20, 2004

Japanese Heater -- Kotatsu

So the weather is starting to turn cold in good ol' Sacramento. Needless to say, the gas bill is starting to rise. And sometimes I just do not want to get out from underneath the warm and fuzzy blanket. And this is the time when I really, REALLY want a kotatsu.

What is a kotatsu?



First you have a table.



Then you put a quilt over it.



Then you put another solid table top over it.



See, there's an infrared heating unit UNDERNEATH the original table to keep you nice and toasty.



Even kitties like that!! :)

Photo credit: Sushicam

Oh look, you can buy just the heating unit (from J-Life International at the low, low price of US$199.95) and slap it on your very own coffee table. :D



I can't WAIT to tell my white hubby about this absolutely BRILLIANT idea so he can say to me, "You want to put a WHAT WHERE??!!" Followed by, "And WHY?!" Then upon explanation, roll his eyes, shake his head, turn and walk away. XD Oh, the joy of cross-cultural marriage. ^_^

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Countdown: 5 Days, 97 Hours (grossly inaccurate)

Friday, November 12, 2004

Americans Eating Themselves to Death?

Very obese people are as unhealthy, and probably as likely to die, as patients with heart failure, U.S. researchers reported on Sunday.- "Reuters"

Ugh, we need a STUDY to figure that out?

Ever heard the story of the coyotes and the bunnies? It's really simple, on a pasture, when there's an overabundance of bunnies, they get eaten by coyotes (easy to catch when there are lots of them); when the bunnies population decreases, some coyotes will starve to death. And that's how the two populations balance each other on the pasture.

Americans, being the species AND the race that has no natural preditors, are now determined to eat themselves to death. I bet you Darwin never saw this one coming.

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Countdown: 13 Days, 310 Hours (extremely inaccurate, but better than nothing)

Thursday, November 11, 2004

A Princess of Earth

Just finished reading Mike Resnick's A Princess of Earth published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction December 2004 issue and LOVED the story. Here's my favorite quote:

Reality is greatly overrated. A realist sees silicon; a madman sees a machine that can think. A realist sees bread mold; a madman sees a drug that miraculously cures infection. A realist looks at the stars and asks, why bother? A madman looks at those same stars and asks, why not bother?

Highly recommended! :)

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Countdown: 14 Days, 320 Hours

Wednesday, November 10, 2004

Movies to Come

If you have not yet noticed (of course not, this is most likely the first AND last time you'd ever visit this blog ^_^), I am a big movie fan. Here's a list of movies to come (only those I intend to buy or watch):

Nov 23 - The Terminal
Nov 30 - Hero
Dec 7 - Anacondas 2
Dec 14 - Collateral, I Robot, Princess Diary 2
Dec 21 - Manchurian Candidate
Dec 28 - Open Water

The bummer thing about not going to theater means I am not exposed to very many trailers. A lot of movies would never have appealed to me had it not been the trailers. :~( Damn those cell phone users and chatters in the movie theaters. May they rot in hell.

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Countdown: 15 Days, 338 Hours (no longer accurate, but I'll stick with it anyway)

Saturday, November 06, 2004

On Shrek 2

Note: I spelled Shrek correctly this time.

You might not want to read on if you have not yet seen the movie and don't want me spoiling it for you (yeah, like a Disney movie can be very unpredictable.)

I got into the discussion with the girl, CJ, at work. Shrek 2 is one of her favorite movies. So my point is this: I believe that Shrek and the princess should opt to live on in human form instead of Ogre form. Why? Well, I'm a practical person. They've already established the fact that they love each other regardless their looks, so they should choose the form that give them the competitive advantage. Being humans will just save a lot of hassles. And their kids won't have to overcome that fact that they are being judged by their looks.

Let's be honest here. Let along idealism, first impression IS important AND people prefer a more attractive individual over a less attractive one. Two equally quality candidates interview for a job, one is a hot woman. Who do you think will land the job? (Unless, of course, the intervierwer is jealous of her look.) In fact, the hot one is slightly LESS quality than the other candidate. Who do you think will launch the job? All I am saying is: if I can have a competitive advantage, I am not above exercising that power.

If princess can consent to living in Ogre form, Ogre can do the same for her. Afterall, isn't that what love is all about? CJ says that she and her husband love each other the way they are, and that he/she won't want it any other way. I don't have any complaints about hubby's physical form either, but should he choose to work on looking more buff, rest be sure, I am not going to complian.

Have I mentioned that I'm a shallow person? :D

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Countdown: 19 Days, 438 Hours (subject to changes upon the mercy of the US Navy)

Iraqii Casualties

But that's okay, most Americans will not believe in this figure any way, or simply don't care.

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Countdown: 19 Days, 445 Hours

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

There is nothing that I can add to this presidential outcome that has not been talked to death already on any liberal stations countrywide so I am not going to say anything anymore. Except maybe:

Americans Flock to Canada's Immigration Web Site

and this picture:



Source: Unknown

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Countdown: 19 days, 447 Hours

Source: Unknown
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Countdown: 19 Days, 447 Hours

Friday, November 05, 2004

Five Weeks Down; Three More To Go

The Power of Technology

This is the content of an email I received:

Friends of women:
A wife was not at home for a whole night. She tells her husband the very
next morning that she stayed at her girlfriend's apartment over night. The
husband calls ten of her best girlfriends and none of them confirm that.

Friends of men:
A husband was not at home for a whole night. He tells his wife the very next
morning that he stayed at his friend's apartment over night. The wife calls
ten of his best friends and five of them confirm that he stayed at their
apartments that night and another five are claiming that he is still with
them.


This is what Gmail advertised to me basing on the content of the email:

$9.99 Spy on PC Software
Powerful monitoring software spy on email, chat, and screenshots
www.telience.com/spysoftware


I am utterly amazed.

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Countdown: 20 Days 472 Hours

Thursday, November 04, 2004

TGIF

Why tomorrow will be a happy Friday:



You too can pick up a copy at a store near you!!

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Countdown: 20 Days, 480 Hours

Cover of the London Daily Mirror



Source: Well, obviously the London Daily Mirror

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Countdown: 21 Days, 481 Hours

This is Kinda How I Feel Right Now



Source: Unknown

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Countdown: 21 Days, 482 Hours

Day After Election

George Bush is now our duely elected President. This time he has doubtless won it fair and square. He is the president that Americans have chosen for ourselves. Here's what I thought on the day after the election (outcome):

1) There are more stupid individuals residing in US than intelligent ones. Speaking of democracy huh? And the scary thought? Individuals of lower education/earning level tend to breed more. Professionals tend to have only 1-2 kids and a lot (myself included) even opted out of the reproduction option. Implication: the stupid:intellitual ratio will continue to increase in the generations to come. Embrace democracy. They'll always have a louder voice than us.

2) People who are incapable of independent thinking should not be allowed to vote. Voting should be one's own decision, not what the pastor says. At the very least, I think every voting individual should be made to watch/read a list of pros & cons (as close to the truth as possible) about each candidates/propositions composed by a party-neutral journalist/publication/news station.

3) Religion is the single most successful scam ever invented in the history of civilization. They create build in followers. Brain wash them since the young age and disable all ability to rational thinking. Had it been put there to promote good behaviors within a society, it is now there for the power of those in charge -- donate $$$ to your charge and do as your were told, or else you won't be going to heaven. If God is looking down on this I hope He'd sigh to how His religion has evolved. Oh, and don't forget to condemn those who love their same-sex partner for God only loves those who do not deviate from "the path."

4) When I occasionally came across a Bush supporter (defined by those who has decided to vote for Bush prior to the election day), I always asked their reasoning behind it. I can understand "I disagree with what we are doing, but it's not a good idea to change the Chief of Command during war time." I can even understand, "The devil you know is better than the devil you don't know." I disagree with them, but I can understand their reasoning behind it. It's the Bush is doing a better job at fighting terrorism that I don't understand. Are we fighting terrorism by bombing the hack out of Iraq and killing their civilians? People really NEED to understand that Iraq does not have anything to do with 9/11. Is voting for the president who support an amendment to ban gay marriage really more important that other social-economic issues we are facing today? By the way, putting discrimination into the constitution is just superb. How American that is!

5) Every once in a great while we heard the number of US troops killed in Iraq. One has to go above and beyond to find out the number of Iraqii killed by our troops. Is one's life worthless if they are not an American?

That's it for the rambling of the day.
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Countdown: 21 Days, 493 Hours (Under 500 Hours!!)

Tuesday, November 02, 2004

Happy Belated Halloween

My favorite costume:


One of the best purchase I've ever made. One of those stuff that I absolutely don't need but nonetheless completes my life. :D

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Countdown: 23 Days, 544 Hours