you might want to marry my husband - yap swi neo (2021)

shamelessly nostalgic enlightening and tender. the writing is not perfect but it'll do in a pinch. a few of the stories are really rather superb - deceptively straightforward lovingly detailed and satisfyingly twisted. 

damn good read.

to have and to hold

through the seasons, with joy upon joy

and through sorrows unimagined unthought

from swirling storm to almond blossom

we rejoice, and rejoice yet again

and so we are thirty-one

quickie trippie

we do an in-and-out as the quarantine-free travel lanes open, HOM and i. it is smooth and unexpectedly pleasant if you discount the disproportionate number of tests we are subject to. for posterity, and for what it is worth, we have:

• a pre-travel PCR
• an on-arrival PCR at destination which we forget to pre-book and hence scramble to pay for
• an on-arrival PCR at home the next day (because quickie, remember?)
• and we have ARTs due on tuesday and saturday
• plus i have my work-mandated ARTs monday and thursday

the quickie will never be the same again.

but it is good, and a precious thing, to see the folks again, if only for a day.

the thursday murder club - richard osman (2020)

smashing good read, is what i say.

in a sly eccentric understated and always politely witty way that has me the moment i meet Elizabeth. with a plot that is convoluted enough to meander gently to several satisfying conclusions. and chapters that are nicely short-ish and sharp-ish. 

this is what i've been waiting for, i think. there is children's fiction and young adult and all the rest of it. it's high time the retirees had their own believable relatable superpowers.

omicron

just as we gingerly inch our way past the delta peak

right as we are cheering our high vaccination rate

time to rediscover an outraged morality and share more freely 

and high time to dust off the old greek alphabet

staycating

time for HOM and me to do the tourist-at-home thing and spend some hotel points. and hey, hotels have heard us since our last frivolous stay:

• no more bland subliminally icky wall-to-wall carpet
• no more bath tub. about time, yesss!
• simpler electrical controls. as in, on. off.
• simpler bathroom tap controls. as in, left. right. hot. cold.
• in-room nespresso machine ♥
• wall sockets everywhere, especially USB ones
• and room wifi that doesn't kick us out every 2 hours

with thanksgiving and in awe

for a strangely disjointed frankly dysfunctional year

for work to do that must be done yet

for friends and colleagues who become friends

for fellowship and laughter and opportune tables

for new family that God adds

for old family that God keeps

for the new path that God opens

for the familiar path that God preserves

for all these and much more

thank you

the great influenza - john m. barry (2004)

fascinating and broad. it deserves its elevated position on the booksellers' lists:

• it covers the development of medical education in the US 
• plus the story of the peaking and waning of a pandemic
• as well as the human failures of politicians managing it
• and the fatal bureaucracy of the army the navy and more
• it shows glimpses of the scientists in unrelenting hunt in the dark
• plus bits of their personal lives that make them human

in summary, i have read several books on a bunch of interesting topics! my only gripe is, written english is not the same as spoken english and i wish he had respected that. it is entirely possible to write dynamically and compellingly without resorting to colloquial forms, sir. 

arab street

we spend a time moseying about the rug shop, HOM and i. the old magic comes back, of smells and touch and colors and whimsy, of places and weavers and back alleys and bargains. we almost commit to a gabbeh. we promise to return.

 

the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy - douglas adams (1979)

sneaky snarky and satisfying in the sense that sufficient incomprehensible and impossibly frayed threads are tied together at the premature end. 

i love:

• his sly style
• the line drawings
• and irreverent craziness

one can hardly believe one avoided this book earlier thinking it was an over-aspirational tourism brochure.

3 unfinishable reads

• the stuff of thought - steven pinker (2005). as mentioned, too pedantic to finish
• good economics for tough times - banerjee & duflo (2019). fascinating and rambling. the rambling won out in the end
• what's wrong with china - paul midler (2017). not being a sinophile but nevertheless having some rudimentary cultural awareness, i find this really tough going. the facts are okay but his interpretation is just a little off. it sounds like an angry white man rant

my recent abortive list is giving me a new perspective to the adage about kissing frogs.

the stuff of thought - steven pinker (2005)

how we think, as evidenced by how we communicate. he covers how we acquire language how we use words what's in a name the psychology of 4-letter-words and even the psychology of courtesy. 

i read then i speed-read then i skip and finally i abort. i'm shallow that way.

the good:

• fascinating premise
• smooth snarky style 
• real stuff here, not just your two-chapter wonder

the bad:

• he tends to ramblin'
• wasted potential, on account of it being almost exclusively english

relocation

J2 is relocating.

J2 is driving cross-country to relocate.

my baby.

me pore pore 'eart.

recent books

• peter wimsey - dorothy sayers
• hamish macbeth - m.c. beaton
• noise - kahneman, sibony, sunstein (2021)
• league of denial - fainaru-wada & fainaru (2013)
• the undoing project - michael lewis (2016)
• young wives' tales - adele parks (2012)
• the premonition - michael lewis (2021, fresh!)
• the bilingual brain - albert costa (2020)

it's been a pretty decent list of enjoyable stuff. peter wimsey and hamish macbeth pop up like whack-a-mole's in between the rest. i am in constant tension between reading another one and getting closer to the end of the series. and, as you see, i tend to like michael lewis' action. 

also, the bilingual brain is brilliant. i only wish i remembered to give it its own review. 

here are some that i could not finish, owing to pretentious writing irritating premise or unfulfilled promise:

• c. northcote parkinson's parkinson's law - leo gough (2011). gah gah gah. the original is miles better 
• to sell is human - daniel pink (2012). we just don't get along. i've tried drive and i could not finish that either
• stuffocation - james wallman (2013). long-winded pedantry. as a new word i learnt puts it, it's prolix
• surrounded by idiots - thomas erikson (2014). same vibes as the above. pity, because it has such a catchy title 
• real food/fake food - larry olmsted (2016). i am unable to manage beyond a few chapters and i stop in the interest of self-preservation. because one needs to carry on eating, you know

and i am working my way through mental acrobatics for this one, because i catch glimpses of a glorious blue sky amidst the (admittedly witty) verbiage:

• the stuff of thought - steven pinker (2005)

quantitative easing

we go from 2-a-group-no dining-in to the liberty of 500-per-gathering next week.  i feel a sense of loss.

i like silence.

i like my own company.

i like not getting a cold.

i've got some cool looking masks by now.

i like the space between you and me.

i like having an excuse not to visit.

i like attending meetings on zoom.

and i like going to church in front of the TV.

i dislike RRT intensely.

bicycles

4 groups that one meets:

1. the MAMIL* on their aristocratic rides hustling for asphalt rights

2. MAMIL-wannabe (same clothes, with paunch) on mountain bikes with monster tires jostling for space on the park connectors

3. new generation middle-aged avuncular types on foldable bikes who think they are also pedestrians

4. those who cycle on errands

*middle aged men in lycra

retired

HOM's retired.

the loo seat is fixed.

the junk basket is half full. (it was full)

the spare batteries are organized.

the NAS has a back-up.

E is bemused.

it's been two weeks.

we are grateful.

tech support

today i break free of the tyranny of calibri and finally learn how to make arial the default on my word documents. it's only taken all of several decades. that and google.

kindness

i wait at the traffic junction for the light to change. i hope it changes before the drizzle gets heavier. suddenly the drizzle stops. a stranger stands nearby with her umbrella sheltering me. we wait for the light cross the road together and part at the start of the covered pathway.

thank you!

my song and yours

this is my song, o God of all the nations/ a song of peace for lands afar and mine/ this is my home, the country where my heart is/ here are my hopes, my dreams, my holy shrine/ but other hearts in other lands are beating/ with hopes and dreams as true and high as mine/ my country's skies are bluer than the ocean/ and sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine/ but other lands have sunlight too and clover/ and skies are everywhere as blue as mine/ oh, hear my song, o God of all the nations/ a song of peace for their land and for mine. - lloyd stone

thinking of current affairs and feeling bleah. :(

for an amputated survey, consider china - usa - russia - uk - malaysia - israel - vaccine idiocy - conspiracy theories - myanmar - india - huawei - you name it. so many good intentions gone astray. it's enough to make a girl give up on reading the news.

retirement gift

HOM retires. 32.5 years. by God's grace mercy and providence.

isaiah 46:4

sidecar

 historic day today. got the sidecar working again. it only took:

• figuring out which model the ipad is
• figuring out which model the macbook pro is
• enabling firewall on the laptop
• enabling handover on both devices
• signing out and in on everything
• and restarting everything a few times

it was a day to learn all sorts of new proper nouns attached to tech. BUT, as i tell HOM, all the above under me own steam! not to mention plenty of googled help. attagirl!

brick 'n' mortar shopping

let's go to the mall, HOM says. we've been cooped up.

it turns out to be a speedy tour. out the door top up the gasoline find parking await mall opening walk the aisles and back in under an hour.

we buy:

• 4 egg tarts
• 2 coffees

the online people make loads more off us.

online shopping

latest purchases:

• dinky sticker for my laptop. because HOM bought himself a staid case for his
• masks. masks. and masks. KN94. 3-ply surgical. pretty patterned paper (HOM won't lemme wear these; he says they are sub-optimal)
• undies
• work wear

contrast HOM's latest online purchases:

• laptop
• laptop accessories (staid-looking protective thingies)
• external hard drive
• network storage set

we may have opposing interests in life.

hard at work - life in singapore (2019)

fascinating eye-opening humbling.

this should be required reading for everyone in this country. those of us who think we are mature and wise should especially read this. because we often do not know what we do not know.

because it shows us how inaccurate we can be of the other person we meet. even when we think we share the same social milieu.

because it shows us how strong people can be. even when we think they look so defeated.

and because it shows us that dreams and hopes can soar above nuts and bolts and the daily grind. 

this is a beautiful piece of work. 

cock-a-doodle-doo-dah-day!

unexpectedly awakened at 5:10 AM by a crowing cockerel. because urban built-up high-rise apartment buildings after all. not that i've anything to complain about, what with talk of treasuring nature and sharing our space.

but it was kinda early for a weekend day.

extras 2

only so much a girl can drink. there's 3 more phalanxes too. it's not their fault i tend towards diuresis.

extras

only so many bananas a girl can eat.

body aches

day 20 of 21 today, and day 19 of static cardios with thebodyproject courtesy of HOM's unrelenting expectation. 

i ache in places i didn't know i had muscle. owwwww.

survival tips

in addition to all the tips swimming in the 'net that we didn't know about, here, make sure you get these:

• an on-the-spot exercise program. you get to eat better
• something to heat up the food. it expands the repertoire somewhat
• easy-wash-easy-dry clothes for when the upper body is presented on zoom. pants optional
• chargers. them sockets and cables too. personal painful tip this
• lysol wipes. wasteful and easy

victuals 2

again, thank you!

victuals

we've been feeding excellently. thank you.

dinner for two

we may have over-done it.

life lessons

when choosing music to exercise to, forget mozart's sonatas. even if claudio abbado is playing. the heart it just is not going to go boop boop boop.

the trout, on the other hand, does rather well to push you along.

sign of the time

HOM makes this. i suspect HOM may be bored.

final stretch

we've been eating rather well, thanks to an assortment of unexpected pleasures from various friends. indeed we may have been eating better than we usually do.

certainly i have been putting in more muscular investment than in any other period to date. since forever. one almost feels sorry to be planning to backslide as soon as this is over. 

day-14 swab today. most unpleasant of the three we've had yet. the swab went in and in and in and i thought it would pierce my cribriform plate. most unnerving.

with a side disruption from a keyboard warrior casting aspersions on GPs for being only generalists, much like failed specialists. if he wasn't so offensive he would have been comic. 

the guest list - lucy foley (2020)

they call it an atmospheric murder story. 

i call it a jolly good romp with enough loose threads to make a woven piece and all coming together in a thoroughly satisfactory way towards the end.

if ever anyone deserved to be the victim this one did.

it's the kind of book you can't stop reading and you don't want to finish. smashing good read, is what i say. i only wish the ending was more protracted.

it arrived!

we're back in action, me and my trusty laptop.

note to self: must remember to pack in the cable when packing socket.

a day in the life

we are almost at the halfway mark!

every morning HOM drags me to do a beginner-level low-impact cardio workout according to that profusely talkative thebodyproject trainer guy that i am coming to heartily dislike. 

after i huff and puff and want to vomit and die we retreat to our individual work stations and pound the keyboards for a good part of the day. because a girl has to earn her keep.

we spend much time anticipating the bento box deliveries and discussing our joint disappointment and shattered hopes when the boxes arrive. that's three times a day. 

occasionally the excitement of an unscheduled delivery shatters the monotony. grabfood! redmart! fresh towels! i also need my newly purchased laptop charging cable to arrive soon. three laptops feeding off HOM's current cable is a bit of a tight squeeze.

we haven't had to don a mask for over a week. i'm almost starting to miss them face accessories.

room with a view

the most impressive  expansive view i have captured of the city-state ever. all it takes, i tell HOM, is an enforced sojourn in a honeymoon-worthy hotel room in the heart of the tourist district. that's the pandemic for you.

we miss E the dog.

survival supplies

we are proud owners a dinky (used) toaster over, an atavistic purchase following two days of standard issue grub. there is a charm to butter on toast that cold bento just cannot compete with. 

it's useful for heating up them chicken wings too. also, we have cup noodles.

quarantine

we are back from new york city, bleary-eyed and grateful.

now we just need to survive 3 weeks of lock-up.

i quite like the isolation. fortunately, i tell HOM, we like each other.

but i miss fresh air and better food.

'nuff said.

new family

Y and her family join ours. welcome! 

long may we rejoice in growing friendship and fellowship. 

strongly and richly may you and J1 build your home.

gladly may we worship and love.

what God has brought together, may we gently tend.

new motto

our time together is short.

new wise thought to tide me through difficult encounters. how often i forget and slosh my way through the mire of discontent resentment and offense.

so, on the aspirational end, bonhoeffer reminds me that Christ comes to me in my neighbor. at the other end i remind myself of the above.

grown ups - marian keyes (2020)

i haven't enjoyed fiction as much (speed reading the bridgertons doesn't count) since the rosie project. this is a well written intricately crafted satisfyingly full if perhaps a tad-too-long book. it is a book you are dying to finish and then you feel bereft when you do. and because her style effortlessly entangles you you don't notice how many characters there are; you simply add them uncomplainingly to your mental model.

it is the story of how a picture-perfect family implodes in a totally believable way. i love the way she deals with the psyche of addiction. as well as the power balance in a relationship. as well the tribe of reasonable children. although the parents-from-hell are a bit over the top.

this is book umami.

mountains beyond mountains - tracy kidder (2003)

once in a while you read a book that makes you want to have been better to have done more to have loved more fearlessly to have given and not counted the cost.

perhaps this is a book to alter practice and life, seeing as one stands at the cusp of new phases and all.

certainly it is a book to humble and to stretch.

and here is a man who lives matthew 25 when i who live in so much fullness and comfort have almost forgotten about the hungry and thirsty and the imprisoned.

family reunion, or not

one could ask, when will we meet again?

but we have! we have weekly meetings and look and chat and laugh and pray!

one could say, it's not the same.

and so they are not. he replaces the old with the new.

is this not an inferior substitute?

must it be? i am grateful enough.

dryer repair, or, why you must read the instruction manual

the dryer is failing us, i tell HOM. heat pump technology notwithstanding.

HOM looks up the instructions. it says to clean the filter every three uses. have we been doing that?

not for four-odd years, no. because uh, is the lint filter not the filter? no? 

xxx

the dryer is working again, very much better than before too. this is a most satisfactory recovery. 

year of the ox

au courant: family photos in matching colors, and little doggies in festive togs.* 

thanksgiving: for family catch-ups, with family at different stages of expectation and stress. everyone is in a bit of an equipoise this year just for the season.

best thing ever: the enforced social distancing. i'm afraid i love it.

*not for us and not for E! our independence and E's self-respect are intact!

john kotter (2006, 2016)

he calls them fables. wise they are too, and charmingly MBA in the tradition of the moving cheese. i started the year with these before the bridgertons took me on a ten-book detour. 

two dinky books, is wot i say.

 

range - david epstein (2019)

this is a good ego-patting pick-me-up for a career generalist with incorrigible side interests unrelated to core business. epstein does a good job of exploring the various facets of the generalist perspective in business and science and makes sense pretty much to the end, unlike some other two-chapter wonders. although the conclusion chapter is a little mushy for my liking. 

i very much enjoyed this after beginning the year with a series of forgettable chick lits. (i blame the bridgertons for that foray.)

and he says i can and should freely read outside of my specialty. the cat in me is happy to be legitimized.

comment on current affairs*

ghastly and grotesque.

i wonder how one man has apparently inspired so much support for so little that is decent and admirable. i wonder how a party that is so deeply divided can survive the dysfunction. i think that surely the truly brave and the really free will stand by what they say they hold dear and not desecrate it in the name of their freedom. 

i also think about when people storm the parliament building of another country.** why not then the outpouring of outrage and grief that i see now?

*the US Capitol breach of Jan 2021
**the HK Legislative Council breach of July 2019

for the rest of the year that is to come

the actions:

• take photos. forget the DSLR; it's not going to happen
• listen to music. because i actually own headphones now
• have people for dinner. the new tablecloths!
• read some more. although the NLB does have its limitations

the perspectives:

• be interruptible
• be kind

and if you think this is suspiciously like a rehash of last year's list, remember covid happened. this is the requiem for the lost year.