Anyway, I recently discovered I have a certain preference for what I call the Rehabilitated Genius. For the past couple of years, my favourite TV pairing comes from Bones, namely the characters of Temperance Brennan and Seeley Booth. Temperance is a highly intelligent and rational forensic anthropologist, the best in her field. She is, as most geniuses seem to be on TV, awkward with people, mildly autistic. Seeley Booth is the hunky FBI agent who is all about gut feeling and emotions. It took more that 5 TV seasons for Temperance to be slowly rehabilitated into a loving creature capable of falling in love. Seeing them together just makes me feel so happy.

Then recently there’s Sherlock and Irene Adler. Boy. I fell so deep in this. Actually, I can’t decide if I like Sherlock/Adler or Sherlock/John more. Yes, slash is always fun, don’t judge me. In both cases they unsettle Sherlock and joust him from his comfort zone up in his genius tower. Irene, The Woman he can’t read (well, not really but you get what I mean). The Woman who pushes his buttons and makes him feel, for once. John, the ever loyal companion who is Sherlock’s only friend. Things like that. I dig things like that.

And just to mindfuck around – perhaps I like the Rehabilitated Geniuses because they remind me of myself. And by the last sentence I mean I think am the genius. But that also must mean I am looking to be rehabilitated, which is not true. But by dismissing that sort of possibility, any standards I set up must be intentionally high to avoid a situation of rehabilitation. This avoidance must then relate to a certain emotional flaw of some kind and fear of some degree. But emotional flaws are evident is many (TV) geniuses. And thus I am a genius.

:) Do you feel like shooting me yet?

It’s not like I like to be undecided about things. As much as I want to profess and label myself, I always halt in face of expectations. I don’t like to be expected to have expertise. Today I was asked to fill in my hobbies on a form. I paused – what do I write? If I wrote I like music, will people expect me to play an instrument? If I wrote I like to run, will people expect me to do a 7-minute mile?

This is why I hate labels, apart from the usual discrimination categorizing pigeon-holing yadda. I simply hate not having expert knowledge because our society seems to favour that more, rather than the idea of a Renaissance individual with a finger in every pie. Or at least I perceive our society as favouring that more.

There are labels I will put on myself and wholeheartedly endorse. I know I am pro-choice. I know I am a reader (I believe sheer volumes make up for lack of depth). I know I am …

Dang. That’s all I can muster.

Based on my Nike+GPS running app, I have ran 19.12 km so far in 2012.

Let me start off, as usual, by reviewing my New Year’s Resolutions:

1. Complete my MA thesis.
2. Get a job.
3. Photoshoot more – shoot something once a week.

No. 1 is technically fulfilled – I just need to get my thesis signed off and get over the administrative boo boos. No.2, fulfilled. As for No.3, my adult ADD has once again thwarted my efforts. When I started my project it was more along the lines of using my dSLR for photoshoots. But as they say, the best camera is the one you’re holding all the time. So I do indulge in some iPhone photography and wizardry with apps like Instagram. I won’t consider No. 3 fulfilled, but I haven’t been that all stagnant I suppose.

I gather it’s not too bad to complete 2 out of 3 of 2011′s NYR. Now, let me set some for 2012:

1. Read 100 books.
2. For every kilometer I run, I get to set aside $5 to buy whatever I want.
3. Be amazed.

For (1), it is an achievable aim. Even though I read 152 books this year, I think it’s still better to be conservative and keep it at an average of 2 per week. For (2), it’s more of an encouragement to for me exercise more; a reward system ought to work I guess! (3) is a plain ripping off the movie New Year’s Eve, from the NYR list of the character played by Michelle Pfeiffer. I aim to be truly amazed – by something, someone, someplace, some moment. I seem to think it’s not an entirely passive resolution; it demands I keep an open mind and be receptive to things lest I miss the moment. This, I assume, is good for my mental wellbeing. Perhaps it’s something everyone should practise (if they are not already).

So with that note, Happy New Year everyone and may 2012 bring you more joy than you can handle (in a good way).

Part of the tour led us to a market – we fondled spices and vegetables and tried to guess what they are. For the first time in my life, I smelled star anise and white pepper so intensely. Also the texture of corn, contours of an apple, the roughness of an orange. It is true that when one sense goes away, the other senses heighten to compensate. Through the tour we are exposed to different environments such as the street, a garden, a boat ride (yes!) and even a cafe.

I really enjoyed my tour; I wouldn’t say it was an illuminating experience for me personally. To me the novelty and fun factor in it overwhelmed the learning values. Let’s just say I need a little more fun in my life. Through the tour we also learnt about how technology can enable the blind; touchscreen technology is not as unfriendly as I previously thought. Well, at least if it’s an iPhone the accessibility options are great; every icon and word will be read out to them. Also, there are apps to enable their lives, such as color apps that can tell them the color of an item through the camera sensor, an app that takes picture of a merchandise and matches through its information repository, an app that takes picture of a building and situate it on a map.

If you are interested, the tour is at $20 each for adults, and $12 for children.
For more information, you can visit http://www.dialogue-in-the-dark.com/venues-worldwide/singapore/  and http://www.dialogueinthedark.com.sg/DiD/booking/Pages/default.aspx.

Mine:

Apparently I am geeky (magazine about smartphones), a traveler/ sketchbooker (sketchbook), cheeky (monkey), unbreakable friendships (safety pin), an organized person (organizer), active (sweatband), knowledgeable (flashlight), wise (fortune cookie slip) and a Healer (plaster).

To see my results in details, go to http://mzl.la/ohEuGG. To take the test, go to https://webifyme.org/. Let me know what your dashboard looks like!

Based on my library record, I’ve been a library member since I was 4. I remember as a child, I didn’t own many books. Apart from birthday gifts, and hand-me-downs, my family wasn’t really into buying books for children. That perhaps explains how I never read Enid Blyton, despite it being all the rage and must-read during my time (early 90s). I recall owning one Noddy book, and some Puffin books. From my early library membership I reckon I must have visited the library a fair bit. According to my mother, when I was at the library, I liked to shelf the books. Not really taking books from bins and shelving them, but ensuring each shelf is neat and tidy. I don’t think I knew that much about call numbers and cataloging at that young age. And there was the rolling around in the ball pit in the children’s section at my neighbourhood library, and attending storytelling sessions.

My own earliest memory of reading in the library really started when I was about 10. I still fondly recall the shelves Young Adult fiction tucked away near the thick glass windows. Those were the days I devoured tons of American preteen and teenager books by authors like Paula Danzinger. At about 11, I thought Long Island New York was a wild forest filled with summer cabins and that the island is pretty small. I never really went into a Sweet Valley phase; I read its predecessor from the 80s, the Sweet Dreams series. Back then, each trip to the library was a chance to get out of the house, and go sit in an air-conditioned place and read. Then I could bring home 4 books; it was almost like shopping. Perhaps because I associate books with pleasant experiences, I like reading.

I spent many of my early teenage years reading chick-lit. I was an avid follower of the Shopaholic series (that started in 2000), and I read books by the likes of Marian Keyes and Wendy Holden. Any book with a girly cover, I’d pick it up in the library. Reading during my schoolyears was a treat after completing my homework. Stolen time to immerse myself in a world so far from my existence. After a while I wore off the chicklit phase, and started pursuing various other genres – mystery, horror (I recall buying Stephen King out of my own volition and scaring the shit out of myself), general fiction. Fantasy and science fiction came much later, in my late teens. My first fantasy author was Tom Holt, which I actually read without realizing it’s fantasy. All that alternate reality thing didn’t really register as fantastical. Of course, there were years when I stopped reading voraciously; schoolwork took up too much time.

Someone once asked me why I don’t do Literature since I like fiction so much. I couldn’t really answer it; perhaps it’s my bad experience with Literature as a school subject. I read as a form of escape, and not in appreciate of beauty of the written language. (That makes me a genre fiction reader, some might say.) I derive immense joy from the imaginary flights reading fiction can provide, and to me, that’s enough. Fiction always wins me. This year I have read 84 books (and counting), mostly fiction. I’ve read from various genres, time period, and for me, starting a new book is like starting a new journey. I don’t know where I’ll end up, I don’t know if I will like it, but it’s a safe and cheap thrill. If it sucks, I close it and pick another. Real life doesn’t offer chances like that. That said, I’m an escapist of some form, and every book is an escape to me.

And being a librarian and getting to surround myself with books, to review books, to recommend books (among other duties)? I’ll reiterate what I said previously- it’s nothing short of awesome.

Received an EMS package from Japan, no need to guess whom it’s from. This birthday present is nearly two mores in the making; my BFF told me she bought me my birthday present, but refused to tell me what it is. I kept asking for clues, and only knew it’s utilitarian, and bigger than a fist but smaller than a chair (I am horrible at siphoning clues). So to a certain extent, this is indeed a surprise birthday present (that came late but nonetheless came)!

The Japanese store is great at wrapping gifts.

With my present is the cutest birthday card ever. It’s small but so funny. It basically is about a cat going to spa and relaxing.

So I unwrapped my present, the shape momentarily confusing me…

It’s a folded bag! For those not familiar with this, this is the Longchamp Le Pliage foldable nylon tote. It’s a staple in many Singaporean girls’ wardrobe (methinks). I know a few people with one, I have, on many occasion, expressed my desire to buy one but never really got around to doing it … you get the idea.

Unfolded. It’s pretty big and roomy, great for stashing all the stuff I love to carry with me when I go out. Like a water bottle, umbrella, iPad, little pouches of random items, shawl… The bag is very light and portable, perfect for stashing into luggages when I go travelling, I suppose.

In any case I am very delighted with my present! So to my BFF of 14 years – thank you so so much! :D

P.S.: Believe it or not, this is the first real non-angbao birthday present I got this year, almost a week after my birthday. Not complaining, just stating a fact.

As they say, people get mellow with age. Birthdays come and go, but everyday can be a special day if you make it so. So, happy birthday to me.

P.S.: And I hope my birthday brings good luck to all 48 of my students doing their exam today!

I got THE job!

Some of you may have heard me mention a couple of times over the past few years that I want to join the library board. Today I finally concretized that plan. I am going to be starting work come mid-May as an Associate Librarian. (Associate because I don’t possess a professional degree in library science or the likes). I will be posted to a Regional Library in the East, and truly, elation cannot encapsulate what I feel about this. Like I said previously, I’ve been walking into walls mucking about in my job hunt prior to this position opening. I went for interviews and writing tests big and small. A writing test with a Ministry, a writing test with a private company whose office is above a pub, interview with teaching organizations… let’s just say I never felt as much as sell-out, and I think the interviewers could tell I don’t have an ounce of nurturing spirit in me. So very gratefully, the position for an Associate Librarian opened in the end of March and I seized the chance. The rest is history.

For those who think I’m just accepting the first job I land – I rejected another private firm who was willing to pay me good money. But it was quite a dead-end job with no prospects. I don’t want to wake up five years from now and see that I’m doing the exact same thing as Day 1. Not boasting, but I think I have to justify my decision.

Now that’s one New Year Resolution down. But the end of this month I aim to complete one more.