I'm in dire need of sleep (ironically my skin looks much better than it's been for a while! It's nice to feel good about my face ONCE in a while), so I'm going to write dot points and elaborate (read: edit) later.
Friday
- End of exams
- Pre-dinner dessert @ Passionflower
- Dinner @ SeoulRia for a Trainee reunion, followed by karaoke at Redbox
- Caught up with my bf at another friend's birthday dinner, which was then followed by karaoke at Redbox
Saturday
- Woke up @ 11am; out of the house by 12 for golf practice
- Rush back home and get ready to go out
- Hot & Spicy KFC for dinner
- Ladysmith Black Mambazo concert: Got to dance on stage with the singers & shake Joseph Shabalala's hand :)
- Sleepover at May's place: Tried to watch The Aristocats and make jewellery but only partly succeeded on both accounts
- NOT ENOUGH SLEEP
Sunday
- Damn dryer invaded my sleep and dreams!
- Brisk morning walk to Maccas to buy breakfast for everybody
- Attended a singing workshop with The Idea Of North: Learnt more about the vocal chords and colours in music. Short workshop but REALLY worth it.
- Sydney Trapeze School: Learned how to do some cool moves on the trapeze!
- Golf practice and got lots of socks
- Attempted for early night sleep but it's already 10.30, sigh!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
artful and amazing
I don't know about you, but when I read others' blogs I generally can't be bothered to click on links that take me to other websites unless I already know who/what the link is about and am therefore interested, or I've seen a picture or screenshot that makes me interested in the content. So it's a bit ironic that I'm about to just post a link and recommend that you check it out.
http://drawn.ca/2009/06/16/todd-schorr-american-surreal/
Drawn.ca is another of the blogs that I've very recently started following (Google Reader has changed my life and increased my subscriptions/random site-visiting dramatically), and the link above contains a string of YouTube videos (5, to be precise) about an American artist named Todd Schorr.
I've never heard of him until now, but I have to say that watching these short 2-min videos and seeing his artworks was eye-opening. I'm fairly picky when it comes to types of artworks I do or don't like, and although I don't think Schorr's artworks are 'pretty', they are definitely mind-bogglingly skilled and detailed and educational (to a degree).
Based on the videos I watched, he mixes American pop history references and his own personal childhood favourites/experiences to come up with ideas for his artworks.
This is a piece from his website (www.toddschorr.com):
"A Date With Mr. Big Bad"
http://drawn.ca/2009/06/16/todd-schorr-american-surreal/
Drawn.ca is another of the blogs that I've very recently started following (Google Reader has changed my life and increased my subscriptions/random site-visiting dramatically), and the link above contains a string of YouTube videos (5, to be precise) about an American artist named Todd Schorr.
I've never heard of him until now, but I have to say that watching these short 2-min videos and seeing his artworks was eye-opening. I'm fairly picky when it comes to types of artworks I do or don't like, and although I don't think Schorr's artworks are 'pretty', they are definitely mind-bogglingly skilled and detailed and educational (to a degree).
Based on the videos I watched, he mixes American pop history references and his own personal childhood favourites/experiences to come up with ideas for his artworks.
This is a piece from his website (www.toddschorr.com):
"A Date With Mr. Big Bad"
"otter" this world...
Amongst other animals,
I love OTTERS.
I saw this video on a blog that I follow (http://cuteotters.com). I think it's super cute - the random otter zipping by in the background is funny too!
Awww :)
I love OTTERS.
I saw this video on a blog that I follow (http://cuteotters.com). I think it's super cute - the random otter zipping by in the background is funny too!
Awww :)
Sunday, June 14, 2009
yearning for freedom
So I randomly decided to search for Donny Hathaway on Facebook so I could become a fan, and then I decided to try YouTube for live footage of the man in performance, but I came across a musician who performs a cover of Hathaway's "Someday We'll All Be Free".
Post-blog edit: YouTube video has since been deleted :(
A bit more research on the fellow indicates that Raul Midon was born blind. There is a Stevie Wonder-esque feel to him in the video, and Midon certainly has a great soul sound in his voice, so I'm definitely going to have a listen to his original material when I get a chance.
And from that, I found this. The first big wail in this video literally gave me chills. What a beautiful voice. (Oddly enough it was earlier today that I was thinking about A.Keys in the shower and how I hadn't listened to her music in a while because I'd 'grown tired' of her).
You definitely need to get your hands on a copy of the recording by Donny Hathaway, so you can appreciate the original in all its retro glory.
Post-blog edit: YouTube video has since been deleted :(
A bit more research on the fellow indicates that Raul Midon was born blind. There is a Stevie Wonder-esque feel to him in the video, and Midon certainly has a great soul sound in his voice, so I'm definitely going to have a listen to his original material when I get a chance.
And from that, I found this. The first big wail in this video literally gave me chills. What a beautiful voice. (Oddly enough it was earlier today that I was thinking about A.Keys in the shower and how I hadn't listened to her music in a while because I'd 'grown tired' of her).
You definitely need to get your hands on a copy of the recording by Donny Hathaway, so you can appreciate the original in all its retro glory.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
girl power!
Here's an article worth reading. This girl sounds like she has a LOT of spunk and determination. A noteworthy role model for young students across the world.
Fatuma Omar Ismail: A scholar born into squalor
Quoted from the text:
"School is not a priority at Dadaab – girls don't have an equal chance," says Ms Wachuka. "Fatuma has triumphed in very difficult circumstances."
From the age of 12 she "had a dream" of going to a national school in her host country and wasn't going to be put off by naysayers who told her that refugee girls could not go. "It can be done," she says. "I've done it."
Her eventual aim is to study medicine and one day return to Dadaab as a doctor. "If there is peace in Somalia," she adds, she would like "to go and help people there where there are not enough qualified people."
The teenager understands that she is a role model and has a simple message for other young Somalis.
"You know education is the key to success. First go to school, work hard and choose a career. Work hard, aim higher and be nice to people."
...
She admits that her new life is not always easy. She misses her seven brothers and sisters and speaks to her mother by telephone only once a month. Her scholarship pays for boarding fees and uniforms but nothing more. There was no money to pay for the nine-hour bus ride to Dadaab during the Easter holiday, so she stayed in Nairobi.
Faced with the brightest girls in Kenya Fatuma is no longer "number one". In her first term, she lagged behind in the two national languages, English and KiSwahili.
But there is plenty of reason to think she will catch up. Remarkably, she came near the top of her class in computer education, having never seen one before; and has taught herself to swim butterfly, having never been in a pool before reaching Nairobi. But it's not enough for her.
"I don't feel good. In my school I used to be the best," she says. This is followed by a note of polite defiance that lands somewhere between a promise and a warning: "They are not brighter than me. They are just better at the moment."
Fatuma Omar Ismail: A scholar born into squalor
Quoted from the text:
"School is not a priority at Dadaab – girls don't have an equal chance," says Ms Wachuka. "Fatuma has triumphed in very difficult circumstances."
From the age of 12 she "had a dream" of going to a national school in her host country and wasn't going to be put off by naysayers who told her that refugee girls could not go. "It can be done," she says. "I've done it."
Her eventual aim is to study medicine and one day return to Dadaab as a doctor. "If there is peace in Somalia," she adds, she would like "to go and help people there where there are not enough qualified people."
The teenager understands that she is a role model and has a simple message for other young Somalis.
"You know education is the key to success. First go to school, work hard and choose a career. Work hard, aim higher and be nice to people."
...
She admits that her new life is not always easy. She misses her seven brothers and sisters and speaks to her mother by telephone only once a month. Her scholarship pays for boarding fees and uniforms but nothing more. There was no money to pay for the nine-hour bus ride to Dadaab during the Easter holiday, so she stayed in Nairobi.
Faced with the brightest girls in Kenya Fatuma is no longer "number one". In her first term, she lagged behind in the two national languages, English and KiSwahili.
But there is plenty of reason to think she will catch up. Remarkably, she came near the top of her class in computer education, having never seen one before; and has taught herself to swim butterfly, having never been in a pool before reaching Nairobi. But it's not enough for her.
"I don't feel good. In my school I used to be the best," she says. This is followed by a note of polite defiance that lands somewhere between a promise and a warning: "They are not brighter than me. They are just better at the moment."
a poem for a friend.
Brother, friend,
What’s it like there?
Maybe you can touch the horizons
And soar through the stars.
Brother, friend,
What’s it like there?
Maybe you can breathe water
And discover Atlantis for me.
Brother,
Friend.
Don’t miss us while you’re there
For in time we’ll come to visit
Perhaps together,
perhaps alone.
Brother,
Friend.
Save me a seat in your home
So when I come to join you
We can share memories of warmth and laughter,
Of friends found and sights seen,
Of lives lived and loves lost.
Friend,
Don’t miss us while you’re gone
Rest assured
That distance will not break this friendship’s bond.
Friend,
You left too soon for me.
Too soon you became a casualty
in this ongoing battle of life.
Mornings will come and go,
But I will keep you in my mind and soul.
Brother, friend,
do not forget me.
Sleep peacefully.
---
Volkan, we will all miss you so very much. Peace be with you.
What’s it like there?
Maybe you can touch the horizons
And soar through the stars.
Brother, friend,
What’s it like there?
Maybe you can breathe water
And discover Atlantis for me.
Brother,
Friend.
Don’t miss us while you’re there
For in time we’ll come to visit
Perhaps together,
perhaps alone.
Brother,
Friend.
Save me a seat in your home
So when I come to join you
We can share memories of warmth and laughter,
Of friends found and sights seen,
Of lives lived and loves lost.
Friend,
Don’t miss us while you’re gone
Rest assured
That distance will not break this friendship’s bond.
Friend,
You left too soon for me.
Too soon you became a casualty
in this ongoing battle of life.
Mornings will come and go,
But I will keep you in my mind and soul.
Brother, friend,
do not forget me.
Sleep peacefully.
---
Volkan, we will all miss you so very much. Peace be with you.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
happiness is..
- listening to the BLACKstreet album "Another Level" for the first time in a long time
- a good evening of food and drink shared with good friends and new friends
- being in love.
- a good evening of food and drink shared with good friends and new friends
- being in love.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
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