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November 28, 2004

Old Faithful

David Sedaris has written yet another lovely essay, this time in this week's New Yorker. Subliminal arguments for gay marriage rights aside, it's the most eloquently written short on love and devotion that I've read recently.

Posted by Charlie at 11:02 PM

November 23, 2004

My Letter To PJ

Hiya PJ!

Hope you had a great weekend. Did you do anything exciting? It was probably more exciting than what happened to me... Well, as you know my friend's surprise birthday party was Saturday. I came to help out with the decorations at 8, but she wasn't supposed to get there until 1030PM after work. Well, knowing me I was already drunk by 9PM, and was passed out on another friend's bed by 10PM. Good times.

Life has been pretty lazy as of late... I don't see Erik as much as I would like, but he's in school so I'm not getting too melodramatic. I've been thinking about abroad for a long time. I've applied for several positions in Japan earlier this year, but I declined their offers out of several reasons, the biggest one being that I needed to concentrate on my design work. But now I just want to get out of Seattle and be immersed in another culture where I can be inspired by a whole new beauty aesthetic. Taiwan's calling my name, although being transplanted in Shanghai or Hong Kong isn't so bad either.

We have three concerts coming up next month, which we're excited about since MANPLUS was on kind of a hiatus since the summer. You should come to one of our concerts, although you probably won't want to be my friend after hearing us! :)

Charlie

Posted by Charlie at 03:39 PM | Comments (0)

November 16, 2004

Distraction Granted

Hahaha... I finally got my wish: I was laid off today! Woo hoo! I've never been so elated to be laid off from a job. So I walked into work today, and Guido* mentions me into his office. He tells me that "a lot of people have been complaining that I've been spending too much time chatting away online," and that because my work has suffered as a result, he was going to have to let me go. That's total bullshit, and everyone in the office knows it. Everyone knows that Napoleon* has never liked me, and since it's pretty much his dirty money that's financing this entire company, he pretty much gets his way with this company.

I've never been fired from a job before, so this feeling is pretty foreign. Normally one would feel regret and resentment after getting laid off from a job, no? I wouldn't know, but right now I cannot be any happier. Morale at the office is at a record low, with what those two 'eggheads' (as a coworker so fondly calls them) micro-managing everything that goes on. It has been, as another coworker likes to say, a "too many chiefs / not enough indians" situation. They got rid of Lynn and Phil, and even the new employees are starting to feel the stresses of the two eggheads. Whatever. I'm just glad to get out of there sooner, especially since I just recently found out that some rather famous recording artists are suing the shit out of the company due to the mislicensing of their songs. Hahaha. Some coworkers are encouraging me to sue them as well as they really had no legitimate case to get rid of me, but at this point I'm just sick of having to deal with those goons.

*whew* I just had to get that out of my system. So I'm now sitting at a cafe on Capital Hill with Ireneo doing a little job searching. I'm not really looking at finding a new job at this point; I'd rather spend this newly found downtime to concentrate on my portfolio and GREs. I'm currently happy just doing my freelance design work - although I might take a part-time job doing contract work or something. There's something liberating with not having a full-time job. When you're job-hunting, the "entire world is your smorgasbord," according to Ireneo. And I have to agree. Your future is now ambiguous and is ready for a path to be paved into it. Or something like that.

*names changed to protect the guilty

Posted by Charlie at 04:23 PM | Comments (0)

Distract Me Please

The crisp November air is finally starting to wear me down. As the days get shorter and the nights longer, I've been spending more time indoors. I've taken to napping for several hours in the afternoon these days, and based on past personal experience, this is a sign that I'm going through a pout of depression. Great, just what I needed! I need some distraction. I'd go to the gym, but my membership just expired and I'm too lazy to go renew it. I'd create some art, but I'm not depressed enough to be inspired to create anything. I'd read, but I don't really feel like learning anything. I'd drink, but being a depressed drunk is sooo faux pas. I need some distraction.

Posted by Charlie at 12:33 AM | Comments (0)

November 12, 2004

Feelings

Tired/Bored/Angry/Confused/Lost/Happy/Excited as FUCK.

Posted by Charlie at 04:30 PM | Comments (0)

November 11, 2004

The Stranger Cover

I really like this week's cover of The Stranger.

Posted by Charlie at 04:00 PM | Comments (0)

November 09, 2004

A Movie Binge

Five movies in five days and counting. One definite advantage in living in a city with such cold climate like Seattle is a greater appreciation for the indoors. You can admire the stillness of the cold scenery from the confines of your toasty bed or curl yourself into a nice blanket with a book. I am rather looking forward to winter this year. And more time indoors equals more time in front of the laptop screen watching a good flick.

I finally watched Wong Kar-Wai's '2046' the other day. While not as strong as its predecessor 'In The Mood For Love,' '2046' shined on its own through nonlinear narrative and elements of science fiction. I was particularly fond of the friendship between Tony Leung and Faye Wong's characters; it was a semi-bittersweet platonic tango of a friendship. I was a little disappointed in Maggie Cheung's screentime, however. I was expecting to see more of her in the movie, since the story is pretty much about Tony Leung reeling over the lost of his love.

I've watched other movies that aren't really worth mentioning, but it's nice either way to spend several hours out of a cold night distracted by a good story.

Posted by Charlie at 12:30 AM | Comments (0)

November 08, 2004

NYU

New York University has an interesting graduate program that might just be the perfect fit for me: Master of Science in Digital Imaging and Design. Taking the old Bauhaus School's motto: "art and technology - a new unity," the program encourages visual self-expression using advanced digital technology. This is just the ticket I need to get out of Seattle, although now I'm going to have to devote more of my time building and refining my portfolio. I'm considering writing and editing a little film short as part of my digital resume. Hm.

Posted by Charlie at 02:17 PM | Comments (0)

November 06, 2004

WOW

I went to UW's homecoming pep rally last night. The freezing temperatures did not seem to bother the hundreds of students and alumni who turned out for the spirited affair, although I must digress that the free slices of pizza they provided was a huge motivation for me to attend.

Last night was also the grand opening of the Henry's WOW exhibit. Art historians and socialites mingled in what it seemed a very debaucherous gathering. Selected works from artists such as Callum Innes, Gary Hill, Anne Appleby, and James Turrell provide reflection on current states of contemporary art today. Alas, I couldn't attend because I had a movie to catch and a boy to make out with. Until tomorrow...

Posted by Charlie at 04:19 PM | Comments (0)

November 03, 2004

Fuck Morals

According to CNN, roughly 78% of those who voted for George W. Bush said that they did so because they identify with his moral issues, NOT his political agenda. The photos above document our facial expressions upon hearing this. I don't get it.

Posted by Charlie at 06:54 PM

November 02, 2004

Four More Years

It is so hard to be patriotic in this era of uncertainty. With the current presidential administration fucking everything over and initial news reports saying that we might be in for another four years of hell, it's hard to keep one's morale up. But I'm proud to be an American. Having the right to express my opinions and exercise my political beliefs is something I can never take for granted. I can never understand how people can be contentedly apathetic to the entire politcal process. It's a basic right that many people around the world are yet not able to exercise. So yeah, be an American: Vote or DIE!!!

Posted by Charlie at 11:03 AM | Comments (0)