Foxymoron

City Rain

My sunglasses are gathering dust. It's rained for days, but it's seems like weeks. While the gloomy weather has encouraged me to stay inside (and "work"), it's left me unmotivated to get out of bed. Self-discipline is the key to a successful stay-at-home career and while I've had a couple of weeks to feel out my new found freedom, it's hard to get a routine down.

Earlier this month, I interviewed travel writer Polly Evans for The Standard. We spoke about her daily writing routine and I was impressed by her strict daily schedule. By no later than 8:15 she is down the hall in her study writing. After a few hours of solid writing, she'll go for a jog, come back, have lunch and do administrative things like respond to e-mails, send mailouts, make phonecalls, etc. I've been thinking a lot about what she's said, not as a model of how I should work, but as a reminder of the need for structure. Afterall, she's currently writing a book about dogsledding in the Arctic and I am a freelance journalist who writes feature articles. We still have to research and write, but the process is different.

I will have a routine down soon and things are slowly falling into place. Thanks for your support.

If you find yourself under grey skies, here's some more summer music that might help:

Manic Street Preachers - Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head

Ryan Adams - City Rain, City Streets

Photo: I took this photograph from a balcony in the building I lived in when I first arrived in Hong Kong. It had just rained and the clouds were clearing just in time for us to see the sun going down. I couldn't see it though, I only had a view of the east.

College!

An e-mail all the way from London, Ontario arrived in my inbox tonight. It reminded me that my student newspaper, The Gazette is celebrating its 100th anniversary in September. It took me back to the hilly campus of the University of Western Ontario, where I, like many others, majored not in our chosen degrees, but the student paper. I have positive memories of that rag. It was ridiculously tiring at times but man, it was so much fun. Where else could we get the editorial board drunk
and forced to pick up bar/club patrons for the sake of journalism?

The anniversary party takes place at the end of September on Homecoming weekend. I don't know if I'll be able to make it but it would be nice to see familiar faces. The problem with homecomings is they're hard to leave happy. If you liked the place enough to return, there will always be the feeling of emptiness because no matter how great the reunion is, it's never quite the same as it was before and you leave knowing that it will never be ever be like that again. Regardless of how content you are with your current life, it's always a bittersweet experience.

Photo: My balcony at The Senate, where I lived for my last two years in London. Those cases of empties were there when we moved in and I think they were there when we moved out...

More Summer Music

It was a rainy May Sunday here in Hong Kong. We dodged a typhoon earlier in the week and I'm grateful for my designer umbrella. But I saw this picutre of April taken in July 2004 and I thought of a lazy day in the sun. There would be beer, potato chips and barbequed food. And as the sun went down, with our bellies full, we'd listen to Hayden...

Hayden - This Summer

Happy long weekend, Canada.

Hong Kong the Weird

Last month, the MTR announced it was no longer going to be nice about eating and drinking on its trains or in its paid areas. It's "costumer care team" was going to enforce fines for those who broke the rules, it said. Unlike the TTC in Toronto, Hong Kong's public transport prohibits food consumption on its property. There is also an agressive campaign to stop people from rushing the doors of trains and carrying large baggage on to trains and buses. The difference is noticable and so these are fair rules I think. Even though I enjoy a coffee on my morning commute, I understand hygiene and cleanliness are important. But if this is the case, I hope the MTR will consider the other odd unhygienic acts that happen on its trains.

On Monday, while on my way to Central, I witnessed a skillful demonstration of how to change a diaper the MTR. It was rushhour and a grandmother in her sixties sat in the middle seat in a row of a crowded train. Her grandson who was no more than 2-years-old stood in front of her, between her knees. She took a moment to settle into her seat and then, out of nowhere, popped out a fresh diaper. Oh no, I thought, this is not going to happen. But it did. With one hand she held up the clueless boy, while the other stripped his bottoms: first his shoes, then his pants and then his dirty diaper. He must have hung in the air with his pride hanging out for a full minutre while Grandma struggled to replace the diaper. Thankfully for the child's emotional well-being, he didn't seem to notice. Still, it could nothave been good for hygiene. MTR, please add "no diaper changing" to your list of no nos.

For All the Doubters, Non-Believers, The Cynical That Once Were Dreamers

This is my view from my new office. Friday was my last day at The Standard. I decided to leave for many reasons, the main one being I want more time to freelance.

As I handed out the customary "last day" cakes and told my colleagues of my freelancing plans, some reacted with  envy. "Take me with you!" they said with a half-serious laugh. Others reacted to the word "freelancing" with raised eyebrows and an unconvincing nod. Why in the world would a young journalist leave her fulltime reporting job with benefits, steady salary, etc. for the uncertainty of freelancing? Good question.

It's quite simple really. I'm 25 and while I consider myself organized, driven and completely reliable, I don't want the security of a job I don't fully love. I want to write more features; write for other publications; and explore Hong Kong. So I decided it was time to move on.

I realize this change is risky. I know I could fail miserably. "Freelancing doesn't pay," one editor said. "It's better if you have an organization to write from," another said, making no effort to hide his doubt. They may be right, but I will be working very hard to prove them wrong in the next few months.

For the supportive majority, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Bonus love for those who can name the song quoted above (without search engines).

Apple Crush

I like the new Mac commercials featuring Justin Long from Dodgeball (Mac) and John Hodgman from The Daily Show (PC). My favourite is the "network" one above, but you can watch all of them (in better quality) on the Apple site.

Yodawg

Yesterday, I was asked what my stance on dressing dogs is. My answer was sometimes it's necessary to put a sweater on a dog during the cold Canadian winter. Other times, it's a matter of taste. Pink frills and flowers, no. Yoda costumes, yes. The  "Yodawg," as I call it is by far the funniest/coolest dogwear I've ever seen. This particular pup model sells the getup so well. He is workin' it so well, I'm temped to buy an outfit for my future pet. (See other works in his portfolio: Darth Vadar and Superman and his cross-sex work, Princess Leia.)

My discovery of dog costumes has led me to a disturbing realization. I like dressing defenceless things up in costumes. And so, not only will my dogs be dressed up in daily superhero outfits (and like it), but my children as well. It doesn't have to be Halloween or someone's party, it could be a trip to the grocery store and they would be dressed up as a box of Junior Mints, Hersey Kiss or Whoopie cushion. Ooooh so cute. But never, ever will you see my daughter (or son for that matter) dressed up as a fairy or princess. Those little girls are annoying and will only grow up to be a brat.

The End.

P.S. Go Katherine McPhee!

It's Time To Begin As The Summer Sets In...

This week has been a beautiful string of sunshiney days in Hong Kong with low smog levels so I can see cross-harbour from my office window. Hong Kong's skyline really is impressive and I've been here long enough to find it comforting. Last night, we found our way into Victoria Park with a bottle of wine (and water for me). Flip flops and moist grass resulted in seven bug bites on my feet. But the good news is summer is here. And to celebrate barbeques, natural tanning and feeling more laidback, here's some appropirate music*...

Memphis - Second Summer

Josh Rouse - Summertime

Elle Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong - Summertime

*To be enjoyed with iced tea or a perfectly chilled beer.

You Tube Killed the TV Star

You Tube is another reason God blessed the Internet. It's my way of catching up with the best in music videos. On the site, I found an alternative video for Feist's "Mushaboom." With flying toast, a carnival and Peaches's camero cameo, it's a lot more fun than the other version. It actually reminds me of two of my favourite videos: Blur's "Coffee and TV" and Bjork's "Oh So Quiet." Here they are (Feist, Blur and Bjork), thanks to You Tube.

Review Raves

This year's National Magazine Awards were announced this morning and three articles from the 2005 issues of the Ryerson Review of Journalism were nominated! How exciting!

Keren Ritchie's "Rough, Tough & Ready to Rumble" and Leigh Doyle's "So Long" were both nominated for the best student writer awards. Keren's article was also nominated for the Politics & Public Interest writing award. Our colleague, Talia Maze's "Addicted to Hype" was nominated in the Health and Medicine category and Dafna Izenberg's portrait of Jim Bell in her article, "The Conscience of Nunavut" was nominated for best portrait photography. This is very cool. Congrats to all!

I have very fond memories of my days at the RRJ. Even the moments when we though we'd never make it, I loved every second of making that magazine. And now, the Summer 2006 issue of the RRJ is out on newsstands. You can read the articles online but I strongly recommend the hard copy. Young journalists poured hours of their time, sweat and likely tears and blood into the layouts and design. It's worth the $5.95 newsstand price.