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A love affair with books

Posted: - Modified: | love

(2008)

W- and I got to know each other over lots of carpool conversations. One time, he gave me a lift downtown. I asked him to drop me off at the Lillian Smith library, which was just a few blocks from my dorm. I had just discovered that I could order books online and have them delivered to a branch close to me, and I was looking forward to a quiet evening with a pile of books.

I hadn’t expected forty-two books to arrive all at once.

I called W- on his cellphone and explained the situation. He drove back, loaded the books into his car, and helped me take the books to my place.

I wonder what he must thought when he saw me with those two large piles of books and big puppy-dog eyes.

-*-

2009

After we cleared the dinner settings, W- sat down with Neal Stephenson’s Diamond Age. He was nearly done with it, and had been amused by Stephenson’s occasional geek references (pirates and ninjas! Lisp!). I started reading You’ve Got to Be Believed to Be Heard. When I finished before he did, he said, “Sometimes, you scare me.” I made slurping sounds, and he laughed. We joke about this–I practically inhale books. Most nonfiction books are easy to skim. On the other hand, fiction and really well-written non-fiction are meant to be savoured.

-*-

2009

“I have some more books for you,” W- said as he walked in the door. He had dropped by the library at his workplace and picked up a few books: one book on women and success, and another book on design.

He often brings home books he knows I’ll like. Two weeks ago, he brought home books about leadership, management, and workplace engagement. Before that, he brought home books on productivity, life, and comics.

He reads them as well. He likes how I bring a constant stream of books into his life, and often enjoys reading my finds.

-*-

2009

We went to the library today. W- and I were browsing through the section for graphic novels. Flight Vol. 4 (Kazu Kibuishi) caught my eye. I picked it up and browsed through it, then tucked it into my to-read pile. When I looked up, I noticed that W- already had the next volume in his. That made me smile.

-*-

2009

“There seem to be about fifty new books in my account,” W- said over lunch.

I’d borrowed a great idea from a friend and had someone go through my long list of things to read, requesting them from the library if available. My assistant must have put the requests on W-‘s library card instead of mine.

He laughed and corrected himself. “Okay, seventeen outstanding holds.” He read a few titles and smiled. He knows who I am, what I read, and why I read what I read.

-*-

I often tell people that my two main reasons for putting up with Toronto’s winters are W- and the Toronto Public Library. In some countries like my homeland, books are hard to get. I want to change that. Someday.

Pot. Kettle. Onyx.

| love

Obsidian. ;)

Random Emacs symbol: scribe-mode – Command: Major mode for editing files of Scribe (a text formatter) source.

Developing a taste for opera

| love

This weekend was a whirlwind romance with opera. Two operas in two
days, and now I’ve fallen in love with it. They were right –
everything sounds better in Italian! <laugh>

I liked both Rigoletto and La Traviata, and was thrilled to finally be
able to match familiar arias with images.

Penelope (the woman controlling the surtitles) asked us which of the
two operas we preferred. Of the two, I liked La Traviata’s story more
than Rigoletto’s, although I liked the performance of Rigoletto more.
W- favors Rigoletto. Penelope told us that she finds that men tend
to prefer Rigoletto and women tend to prefer La Traviata, and she
joked that La Traviata’s considered to be the chick flick of operas.

On further reflection, I think that Rigoletto has more complex
tragedies. Still, it’s hard to squelch a distaste for the Duke in
Rigoletto, who reminds us that pretty boys get away with far too
much… <laugh> “La donna e mobile” is a beautiful song, but so
cynical!

It’s so wonderful to be able to *see* the opera in my head as I listen
to the music. Ah, joy…

Random Emacs symbol: sacha/erc-freenode – Command: Connect to Freenode.

So I watched the opera last night…

| love

… and I was happy to see that the average audience age was well
under 60. I wouldn’t have minded having to dress up, though. ;) I have
a baro’t saya just waiting for warmer weather.

Yay surtitles! Yay cheap tickets! Yay culture!

Thanks to W- for the invitation. =)

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Permission to be sad, sir!

Posted: - Modified: | love

I went to the Gorey last Friday to visit Quinn and Jed (Leigh’s out of
town) and share what’s going on in my life. I needed company, and it
was the best place I could go and they were the best people I could go
to right then and there.

It’s incredibly cathartic, being given permission to be sad and
exploring my feelings with such insightful and accepting friends. They
shared stories from their experiences and helped draw out how I felt.
I felt sad, yes, but not for the initial reason that I supposed. At
the same time, they didn’t let me wallow in self-pity. They kept me
busy, happy, and well-fed (and full of chocolate!). Quinn wrote me a
beautiful letter, too, reminding me that while friends are good, they
are also a way for me to distract myself from what I may need to face
alone. Now that I’m back at Graduate House, I find myself more excited
about the future than I am sad or disappointed.

I moved to a new suite within Graduate House, and my Internet
connection here hasn’t gotten fully hooked up yet. I’m going to the
Gorey. Geek friends, wireless Internet, maybe even lunch and dinner
into the bargain… Sure, the lab’s just down the street, but the
Gorey’s worth the trip.

I’m so grateful to share this universe with people like them. I know
other friends would have loved to share that part of life with me as
well. There’ll be other times, other sorrows, other joys… and I’m
looking forward to all of it and sharing it with friends!

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Clarity

Posted: - Modified: | love

Simon and I are no longer in a romantic relationship. And as much as I
have the urge to go back and try to figure out how to make it work,
the best thing for me to do right now is declare a one month
moratorium on relationship-related stuff.

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Melt

| love

Simon’s parents are God’s gift to cats, really. Who else would get
outdoor heating pads to make winter a little more bearable for feral
cats? Awwww…

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