Mom's on her way to Toronto! =) She'll be here from August 31 (AC 272, 16:40) to September 14 (AC 364, 16:35). Yay! Yay! Yay!

E-Mail from Harvey Chua

There is something inexpressibly elegant about fine cream cards and gold-lined envelopes, and it was with great delight that I found my favorite monogrammed cards at Sears. One of my ninangs introduced me to Crane and Company's elegant gold-embossed cards by way of a gift for my 21st birthday, and I have been in love with them ever since.

I sifted through racks of stationery at bookstores and convenience stores to pick several more for my collection. Four blue-and-green-tinged sheets shaped like leaves are perfect for writing about fall. Cream stationery with classic gold-embossed angels are just right for writing to the people who have done extremely wonderful things. A card with a quotation about eloquence captures my sentiment after the Toastmasters convention, and a birthday card featuring an annoyed cat reminded me so much of Neko that I can hardly wait to send it to my mom for her birthday.

With the awesome collection of gel pens my mom gave me, I can match each card to just the right color of ink. I want to buy a colored-ink set for glass or fountain pens, having discovered the joy of glass pens through fellow enthusiast Charo Nuguid. With the right pens and cards, writing thank-you notes becomes such a pleasure.

After flipping through all of my digital pictures, I've realized that I don't have a good head shot. My nicest pictures are the ones my dad took of me and my wearable computer. I can use that for tech, I guess, but I need more pictures.

Hmmm.

After having successfully become an early riser, J Wynia has set a new challenge for the next 30 days: read 100 pages a day.

I don't have much of a print backlog because I read quickly and regularly, so I'll set myself a different challenge: to touch three people. I will initiate three messages a day.

It's too easy for me to fall into the habit of just reacting to whatever mail I get, writing only when I receive a note (and sometimes not even then). I want to change that. I want to proactively reach out.

I'm learning that I don't have to rush through my schoolwork or my research, and that the time I take to enjoy people's company will be worth far more in the end.

Figuring out voicemail for the first time. It's so nice hearing people's voices... I'm really glad my phone is a great speakerphone!