2010年3月18日 星期四

Groudhog Day

I just watched this fantastic movie called "Goundhog Day". It's by no means a new film, but I enjoyed it very much. While it's frenetic to live the same day over and over again, the movie didn't bore me at all. It was super hilarious how Phil tried to do crazy things because nothing mattered as he woke up the next morning. It was inspiring how he finally learned to be amiable and helpful and started to make a difference in people's lives, otherwise he was a conceited and egocentric person.

As I finished the movie, I thought about what I'd do if I were Phil. I would do the same as he did in the later part of the movie. I especially love the idea that I could learn to play the piano by paying just once to the teacher! It's wonderful in the way that you have lots and lots of time to make yourself a better person and lots of chances to help others. The bizarre arrangement of time also alludes that until we start to live differently, every day is just a copy of its yesterday.

2010年3月3日 星期三

Quite a tremor

This morning I woke up to an earthquake which lasted about 20 seconds. At first it was a slight tremor, after five seconds, everything started shaking violently. "It must be at least 6 on the scale." I thought. My conjecture was based on a series of devastating earthquakes in Taiwan 10 years ago.

I didn't jump out of bed and duck under a table or anything, because I could still abide it. After it stopped, I overheard my dad said,"It's 6.3 on the scale." I knew he was watching TV news downstairs. So that was it. A 6.3 earthquake.

Though it wasn't serious, it became the subject of conversation whereever I go this morning. I went to the post office, a bank, a fabric shop, and a coffee supply store after breakfast. In the post office, a lady next to me said she never got up early, she was awoke by the earthquake. In the fabric shop, the shopkeeper was discussing the tremor with her old customers. One of them said it seemed God is going to deracinate human beings, thinking of the calamities in Haiti and Chile.

I went to the coffee supply store to buy some dried flowers, for making liquid soaps. (By the way, it's my first attempt at liquid soaps, I'll post about it as I proceed.) As I entered the store, it appeared awkward to me that the shopkeepers were still arranging things at almost 11 o'clock a.m. As I was at the cash register paying for the dried lavender, it became clear to me that they were actually cleaning up bottles and liquids that fell during the earthquake! I talked to the clerk behind the counter and she admitted they were cleaning things up, and that it was pretty much work.

I am glad my house and neighborhood were fine. I hope earthquakes will never come visit us, or any other part of the world again.