Random Thoughts: The Next Mutation

[flowersofnight]

This thread will be rebooted every time it reaches 100 pages. Generally, anything is OK - y'all know the rules by now!

Current reboot count: 43

Last poster last time: Berserk

 

[PureElegance]

If anyone feels like giving up on their dreams, DON'T! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!

I don't know if anyone remembers me talking about an alpaca at the arcade a couple of months ago, but after a delicious dinner I went with my friends there. I spent 18 tokens at the machine, but I didn't get it. I saw a couple of teens trying for it, even a man with a VIP card and a bag of tokens didn't get it. My friends and I left for another area of the arcade.

We found this money->token machine, so decided to give it another go even though we thought we were wasting money, haha. I went back for the alpaca and tried three more times, but nothing. However, the fourth time, something AMAZING happened.

The claw actually held on~!!! It held on! We couldn't believe it and it happened in slow motion for me, seriously. When it started raising it up and moving it to the hole, WE WERE SCREAMING. Screaming! We were expecting it to drop any second! Everyone turned around and looked at us and smiled XD But my alpaca was stuck in the hole! We banged on the machine multiple times, but to no avail. So I guarded the machine with my life--I mean body-- to make sure no one came near and I sent one of my friends to get a worker.

It was finally opened and here is me and my new adorable alpaca, our first ever picture together!
here we are
I'm all excited, nerdy, basking in the glory. I had a grin on the entire night and the next day as I recounted my heroics to the rest of my friends. We compared it to the sword in the stone. I only spent less than $4!

I made her formal introduction to the family. My dad likes her and called her cute even though he usually thinks stuffed animals are balls of dust to be eliminated. Maybe because she's a llama and it's a Peruvian thing My mom said it reminded her of the llama dolls that decorated her old house and she loves it!

IF YOU DON'T SUCCEED, TRY TRY AGAIN! DON'T STOP BELIEVING!

 

[MissUMana]

HURRAH!

And congratulations too!

*such a live report, ahahahah!*

 

[faith]

Out of stupid I decided to translate the only Japanese book I own of suitable literary level - Takemoto Novala's Twins - A Variety Store Named "The End of the World".

Anyone remember that dude? XD

If I ever finish I figure why not. I'll contact him and see if he wants to work on getting it published in English. I think he's out of jail now...

this sounds funny

Here's the prologue and the first paragraphish if you're interested. I can only do a few pages at a time without getting superbored

Prologue

How many seasons have ebbed by since your body vanished from this world? Even the strongest of sorrows fades with time, the pain turning to beautiful memories that lie within the depths of the heart, or so they say. Even so, unable to put you and our time together into the past, I still live through those short days I spent with you. I have managed to regain my footing a little from amidst the confusion. However my repentance has certainly not eased. To save you - in the end I was not able to do something so splendid. I do not possess a trace of the power needed to save someone. But there was something I had to do. I didn't mind if those actions were mistakenly viewed. I had to hold on to you, who searched for me, with my entire body and soul and not let go even for a moment.

I had realized somewhere along the line that the kind of love from a fantasy tale, childish you may even call it, is not forever. I shrewdly anticipated that the end would come before long. The two of us recklessly aimed for the kingdom at the far end of the ocean and began to swim. We continued swimming for how many days until our strength was finally drained. The kingdom we had aimed for never emerged. Despite all this you made as if to advance onward still. I had to chase after you. But before setting out I secretly fastened a long, long safety rope that had been tied to the beach around my body. The safety rope reached its limits and my body could not advance. I had to unwind it and keep pace with you as you struggled to continue swimming even though your body had reached its limits. Despite all this I did not let go of my safety rope. Finally you drowned before my eyes. I have to save you...but your body was already far away from mine. My hand that was holding the safety rope did not reach you. No one blamed me for not rescuing you as you drowned. There was no one to even curse me out for being the only one to attach a safety rope to myself. You probably knew though. That I was swimming in the ocean with my rope.

Now I think back on it. You must have known all too well. And you must have known that I would only swim out as far as the rope would stretch. Still you aimed for that kingdom and set out with me. You had said that you were very cowardly, hadn’t you. Certainly you may have been. But you faced off against your own cowardice and severed that chain. Perhaps you thought to fasten a safety rope too before you set out. But you did not. It’s not possible to reach that far off kingdom with one attached after all. You believed in its existence and summoned all your courage. Even while searching for that kingdom however, I did not believe in its existence. Perhaps it did exist. If I had only had the courage perhaps I could have found it. I lost you to my cowardice of adulthood.

You wouldn’t want me to repent though. Nor do I think it necessary to confess to you. Repentance is a means of coming to terms with the past. For me the days with you have not met their end, your death is not something that I have experienced. Even now the days with you are an extension of my day-to-day life. Your death does not fade. From now on I will forever embrace you and live on. You know, dear. More than those trepid days that I lived with you, now, I feel that you are close to me. I love you. I will not repent. But I cannot avoid feeling regret. Why did I let you die? If you were but alive, even for a fleeting moment split asunder, I would have been able to make things right. The width of the flowing river that lies between the living and the dead is certainly not wide. I can see your silhouette clearly standing on the opposite shore. Yet I cannot ford the river. Why is it that I did not notice a little sooner what it was that I should have held closest to me, what was the most irreplaceable, what I had to protect at all costs?

Twins – A Variety Store Named “The End of the World”

It was winter when you ended your life. Your mother was the one to tell me of your suicide during your stay at the hospital in the Oubaku district of Tokyo, under your terrible mental illness. I received the letter you had addressed to me from her as well. I didn’t go to see your remains, nor did I participate in your funeral. For I didn’t see the meaning in that kind of ritualistic behavior. Instead I read your letter over and over.

 

[eMiNaTiC]

one hit wonder of the gothic lolita world?


in a series of fails, a local dentist in my area attempted to make themselves appear hip and cool by making a music video I'm not sure if they meant for the rapping dentist to look like Psy or if that's just how all asian rappers look ::kisaki:: (the funniest part is that they never mention that they are in Las Vegas - which you'd never guess from their name )

http://youtu.be/GVC6vyDlhPU

 

[PureElegance]

HURRAH!

And congratulations too!

*such a live report, ahahahah!*

Thank you! I'm so happy with my alpaca! I can't believe it though, usually you think those things are such money wasters and look what I ended up getting XD

I'm currently planning my Beijing and Chengdu trips... My mom's visiting and we'll be going there together, I'm excited! She wants to go all out (she said she'd never visit China if I wasn't here XD) so we're getting ~1st class~ bullet train tickets and we're going to holding baby pandas in Chengdu. We think it's worth it though, where else are you going to hold baby pandas? I'll finally see Zhuge Liang's temple too I still need to figure out the things to do other than the Great Wall (I already booked the tour for the Mutianyu section), like the Forbidden City.

I hope I get this internship, eep. I applied for it even though it's only for law students (I just really wanted it), but they replied immediately and asked me more questions about what I've done, other things I can do at the place, and for more info, so I'm slightly hopeful.

@Eminatic: The worst fail commercial I've seen is this 1-800-VICTIM2 one
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ti7cfnaRTdQ
Don't these lawyers have any dignity? Seriously, a singing, dancing squirrel??? And that ending XD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3Numn5GWu0 oh god, in another commercial they gave the squirrel some Mexican voice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8j9GHiKFF0
This has to be the best lawyer commercial though. If I had to do a commercial for my law firm, it would totally have me walking in slow motion, ready to take on the world XD

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6pMgPfvbjw
or this one... It's a fake, but it's awesome XD
"Do I have a case?"
"Do I have a pen? Yes I do."

OK I'm having too much fun looking at lawyer commericals

 

[flowersofnight]

I think he's out of jail now...

I heard he shot the sheriff, but he did not shoot the deputy.
So did you find out who the "twins" are yet, even?

 

[eMiNaTiC]

If anyone feels like giving up on their dreams, DON'T! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!

my boyfriend and i wasted a retarded amount of money in this machine (at two separate locations then one day i passed by while i was giving my brother a tour of the town (he flew in from germany) and decided to try it again

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 0719_n.jpg

 

[Wandering_Fox]

If anyone feels like giving up on their dreams, DON'T! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!

*Knock knock* What's that sound in your room? What are you doing in there? You're not "believing in yourself" again are you? Singing songs??

 

[PureElegance]

then one day i passed by while i was giving my brother a tour of the town (he flew in from germany) and decided to try it again

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 0719_n.jpg

YAY! I hope you love your melon as I love my alpaca! I love the expression on its face. That's awesome though, usually it's when you go for another round while you're not really trying for it as much is when you get it, haha. I was expecting to just lose everything but I kept going.
I still don't know what to name my alpaca though. She's cute... adorable... cute... white... adorable... hmm.

*Knock knock* What's that sound in your room? What are you doing in there? You're not "believing in yourself" again are you? Singing songs??

I can believe in myself as much as I want to! Hmph.

and OMG that place I want to intern at just said this after I gave them my references and other stuff:

"In any event, we are suitably impressed by your background and interest in working at [EMPLOYER NAME WITHHELD] this summer. Towards that end, we would like to speak with you."

YAY I'm so glad I'm even getting an interview because I wasn't sure if they'd even consider someone not in law school :B I've always wanted to get into something like this, Latin American and law related!

I'm nervous now about the interview, I need to practice my interview skills! ::kisaki::
"So do you have any weaknesses?"
"Weaknesses? I HAVE NONE."

 

[MissUMana]

@PE : you're obviously going through a lucky phase, so GO ALL OUT!!!

Perhaps you could find a Chinese name that combined white, cute, adorable?

 

[faith]

I think he's out of jail now...

I heard he shot the sheriff, but he did not shoot the deputy.
So did you find out who the "twins" are yet, even?

Nope, but give the guy a break XD
I'm only 10 pages into it. So far the protagonist has been doping himself up on sleeping pills and writing a book/letter. No real developments, no...lol

 

[Priss]

in a series of fails, a local dentist in my area attempted to make themselves appear hip and cool by making a music video I'm not sure if they meant for the rapping dentist to look like Psy or if that's just how all asian rappers look ::kisaki:: (the funniest part is that they never mention that they are in Las Vegas - which you'd never guess from their name )

http://youtu.be/GVC6vyDlhPU

There's an uncomfortable amount of eye contact going on in that video. If I were to mute it, I'd swear I was watching some David Lynch movie. That being said, it's going to be my voicemail message. Yes, the entire song.

 

[PureElegance]

@PE : you're obviously going through a lucky phase, so GO ALL OUT!!!

Perhaps you could find a Chinese name that combined white, cute, adorable?

YOLO!!!!
Yeah, we're definitely going to do a lot of really nice things. We want to go to a bunch of restaurants on the Bund, the French Concession (I still haven't been!), and I want to go to the revolving restaurant on top of the Pearl Tower. Of course we'll also do the whole "cute and cheap stuff" shopping, that's a MUST. I've already scouted some great locations to take her to and purposely put her in a hotel very close to Yuyuan Gardens so that we have easy access to the Bund, Yuyuan Gardens, People's Square, etc.

If I can survive this weekend then I'll be set I have a quiz, a test, a paper, a scholarship, to do XD

I had the most awkward lecture yesterday. Everything started out as usual until someone mentioned to the professor that they couldn't find the reading online. Usually this wouldn't be a big deal. Other people chimed in saying they also couldn't find it, and apparently only 3 people found it (I couldn't find it either). It's not online. It's not in our coursepack.

Our professor got SO weird. I left to take a phone call (wasn't sure about the number) and I came back 2 minutes later and found everyone sitting in silence and listening to him. He was peeved that we hadn't done the reading, and I mean really peeved. Not upset as in yelling at us, but basically guilting us and making us feel embarrassed for not doing it. Saying things like how we're ambassadors of NYU and we can't even do a reading, only 3 people did it. How he REALLY wanted us to do these readings. What are we supposed to do now. How he should just dismiss the class. He talked about his Yale days about how that was handled, the professors just dismissed the class.

He went on to ask us what we've read up to now, if we had any interesting readings. A few of us raised our hands and said what we read in different classes, he would ask the specific names of the authors, which some of them didn't remember. He was getting snooty about it. He said that we didn't read anything about China, even though some of the students were talking about it. How we're elite students and we can't even do a reading. How his Chinese students at the other universities do every single reading. He kept asking what he should do with us and said how annoyed he was. We didn't really know what to answer him except for Michael who gave nice/friendly responses and would be killed each time.

I felt SLIGHTLY humbled, but only to a point because I wasn't going to feel guilty for this. I was annoyed at being given this long speech because it's not like I slack off, I just didn't do this reading, and I hated the idea of me being grouped with other people (with various levels of laziness) as if we all never did any reading ever, which isn't true because my friends are good students, but that's what he kept saying. He made it sound like we never did any of the readings. I felt like I was back in elementary school, when the entire class got in trouble because two people were talking. This speech was 30 minutes long!

Throughout the next 2 and a half hours we went on with the class, but he'd remind us about our grave sin every few minutes. I was like, "What the hell!" My friend noticed it was the one time I was completely alert during an entire class though. During our discussion, if someone would say something, he kept asking for specific details, as if we're supposed to know the specific numbers of things when 99% of the students don't have much law knowledge (I was the only one who knew what substantive due process was! And Marbury v. Madison.) He kept talking about those three students, how he likes them so much and will give them extra credit, even joking about them not having to take the quiz and will just get an A. WTF.

PS: I don't understand my friend's love for Israeli guys. She says they're all gentleman, she loves their culture and religion, and they would make great husbands because they're family-oriented. I only asked her about it because I noticed that she was mainly with Jewish/Israeili guys and she just mentioned her cousin thinking of getting engaged to an Israeili guy. She asked me what my type was and I said, "Nice, funny, someone I can really talk to, who I can be myself with" XD I donno!
I also have a friend who will ONLY date Sikh guys.

 

[flowersofnight]

(the funniest part is that they never mention that they are in Las Vegas - which you'd never guess from their name )

Wait, they're not in Boston, MA? I was totally going to tell my sister to start going there.
... I'm going to tell her to start going there anyway, actually.

That being said, it's going to be my voicemail message. Yes, the entire song.

I once had an uncomfortably long portion of the "It Takes Two" intro as mine XD

I was annoyed at being given this long speech because it's not like I slack off

My friend noticed it was the one time I was completely alert during an entire class though

 

[Wandering_Fox]

in a series of fails, a local dentist in my area attempted to make themselves appear hip and cool by making a music video I'm not sure if they meant for the rapping dentist to look like Psy or if that's just how all asian rappers look ::kisaki:: (the funniest part is that they never mention that they are in Las Vegas - which you'd never guess from their name )

http://youtu.be/GVC6vyDlhPU

I think there's something in the water in Nevada... They also managed to produce the most convincing roller skating commercial evah~

I wanna be addicted to roller skating, not crack!

 

[PureElegance]

I just cracked up at that. I was surprised she noticed that though. She said that I was staring directly at him the entire time.

I really do have my moments when I start fluttering. In my US-China relations class a couple of weeks ago, I was sitting in the front row with no one next to me, so I had two empty ones. Halfway through the class I was starting to get sleepy, so I put my legs on the chair next to me, my arm on the top of the chair, and my head on my hand. My eyes fluttered away until they finally closed for a minute... My friends were sending me FB messages saying, "You look really comfortable!" One sent a text, "WAKE UP!" Afterwards they said they thought I looked really comfortable, like I was lounging around, and wanted to be me XD

Please, our professor went overboard. At first I felt bad, I felt guilty, but when he kept going on and on about how we're ambassadors and we can't do even one reading I got annoyed. I didn't get any motivational message out of it. In a class last year my professor called on someone and he told him he didn't do the reading. He made a really compelling two sentence speech and we felt really bad, as if we were disappointing him.

Speaking of that prof, we were talking last night on FB for a few hours and he said that the airport in Lima had a million Paddington Bears. I didn't understand why there would be so many of them there, I didn't ask...Now I find out that Paddington Bear IS FROM PERU! I feel like I just had a huuuuuge revelation XD I thought he was British, but he's actually a Peruvian immigrant! His parents were killed during an earthquake XD

Paddington arrives as a stowaway coming from "Darkest Peru", sent by his Aunt Lucy (one of his only known relatives aside from an Uncle Pastuzo who gave Paddington his hat) who has gone to live in the Home for Retired Bears in Lima. He claims, "I came all the way in a lifeboat, and ate marmalade. Bears like marmalade." He tells them that no one can understand his Peruvian name, so the Browns decide to call him Paddington after the railway station in which he was found. Paddington's Peruvian name is ultimately revealed to be "Pastuso" (not to be confused with his "Uncle Pastuzo").

The author just came out with a new book too:

In Bond's wonderful new book, Paddington shows more South American pride than ever: he attempts to pay his bus fare with a Peruvian centavo, and gets into the Olympic spirit by running (under) hurdles for a "Hometown bear makes good!" documentary for his family and friends in Lima. So charming is Bond's take on Paddington's background that on finishing the book families might themselves be hungry for more than a marmalade sandwich. To wit: did Paddington really eat llama pâté when he lived in Peru? Just how good can the alfajor cookies that he remembers be? And – the most pressing question of all – do bears really come from Peru?

LOVE IT. XD

EDIT:

@PE : you're obviously going through a lucky phase, so GO ALL OUT!!!

I'm feeling so lucky! Thanks for noticing that, haha.

And I still can't think of name for my alpaca XD Bai is white, ke ai is cute... Hm. That's it, I'm using Inca names. Totally naming her Yupanqui.

 

[Cerceaux]

^ But did anyone try to email or contact the professor when they were unable to find the reading materials? He definitely overreacted (maybe he was just having a bad day for other reasons and took it out on you guys) but if he knew it was a problem beforehand he might not have been as mad as just showing up to find out that nobody had done the assignment.

Also, taking phone calls and texting during class is bound to piss anyone off. Kids these days...

 

[PureElegance]

^ But did anyone try to email or contact the professor when they were unable to find the reading materials? He definitely overreacted (maybe he was just having a bad day for other reasons and took it out on you guys) but if he knew it was a problem beforehand he might not have been as mad as just showing up to find out that nobody had done the assignment.

Some people told me they were embarrassed to email him about it (thinking it was just them and not the rest of the class) or thought it was their internet's fault and would've asked a friend the next day to just send it to them. But it turns out NONE of us had it when we asked each other XD

At the same time though, he knew it wasn't online or in our coursepack and he never told us that. When we brought it up he said, "It's nowhere online!" "I'm the only one who has it!" "I got it at the event with Hu Jintao!" He didn't tell us we had to go to our program's office and have someone email it to us, which the two chosen ones figured out like an hour before class started. One of the two is a girl who half an hour before class started still couldn't find it. We should've emailed, but I don't understand how he didn't tell us it wasn't online at all, as if we were supposed to know that because every reading up to now has been online or in our coursepack. As for me, I thought it was my failing and something wrong with how I was looking for it, I was going to ask someone to email it to me, but when I came to school the next day I found out that the rest of the class couldn't find it either.

Who takes phone calls and texts in my class? I always have my phone on silent, but I saw the number and didn't recognize it so I thought it might've been important and left, but I could've gone to the bathroom for all anyone knew, haha. Our class is so small (<20) that if anyone texts it's immediately noticeable XD

We don't text, the classes are awesome. We're overwhelmed with the information, it's so deep. We had two amazing guest speakers already, one was a woman who trains people at the police academy (she was a cop for 100 years) and is a criminal law professor at one of the best universities in China. We learned so much about Chinese criminal law and the legal system through her!

Our professor is such a cool guy. He's done SO much in US politics, has served our presidents in a bunch of positions, has taught at great universities, won huge cases against companies (he started out as a labor lawyer), he knows so many important people here in China, he's working on a lot of things here too--he's always doing something interesting! His stories about the past and what he's doing now are fascinating, I feel as if I'm in the presence of someone really special! It's cool to stay after class with him and talk about law.

Something must've happened earlier that day because he was BIZARRE, especially since he rarely goes over the readings in class and I wonder why I do them XD

On our quiz, he asked us for the names of two colleges in China that were started by Americans. He went over that for FIVE SECONDS in one class akjfsjflksjklfdsjf.

I wrote "Beard College" because it sounded distinguished and I could've sworn it started with a B.
My friend: John Hopkins

Answer: St. Johns College

I told another friend how I forgot the meaning of the word "politburo" and she started shaking me saying, "YOU'RE IN POLITICS!!" XD Whaaaat. ::kisaki::


EDIT:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Y3fmsULu_U
this baby alpaca is adorable. *next life goal: open an alpaca farm*

 

[faith]

she was a police officer for 100 years?
So she's 115 now?
Gosh.

Happy Birthday Cerceaux

We went out for a movie and drinks today and saw Oz - it was pretty bad. Also Mila Kunis was terrible.