kitchen by banana yoshimoto

Just finished this book, and I always enjoy it, especially the dream sequence, but it really does read like it's translated: a little klunky. I can't decide if it's an especially quirky or austere writing style or an imprecise translator. At any rate, I think it--and Midnight Shadow, which is often published together with Kitchen--is a interesting examination of grief and an honest portrayal of one person's interior life.

But oh, how it makes me crave katsudon and Japanese curry, which, incidentally, is much more flavorful than Chinese curry, but not quite as wonderful as Indian curry.

rosie thomas

Oh dear, first it was Natalie Merchant, then Beth Orton, now it's Rosie Thomas...brilliant female vocalists with the occasional sad song and a cool clothing aesthetic just TAKE OVER my life when I find them. Anyway, she has a lovely voice and I really recommend her. (click on the title of this post to visit her site and listen to a few mp3 files)

My Eyeball Just Fell Out of Its Socket...What Should I Do?

To find out, click here.

garbageland

If you've every been curious about where your 4.5 lbs/day of garbage goes, or the stuff in your recycling bin for that matter, Garbageland is definitely worth reading. It's actually kind of shocking to realize that we haven't really figured out a way to obliterate our garbage. I mean, we are basically doing what we've been doing for centuries: burying or burning garbage. Some is processed for reuse through recycling or composting, but most of it is still "tipped" into a landfill, where it will inevitably leach into the ground and pollute the water and soil. After reading this, I am reminded of how important it is to stem the flow of garbage at the beginning: the point of purchase. Instead of buying individual-sized packages of things, we can buy in bulk. I guess that's my goal for now: buy things with minimal packaging and bring my own packaging (grocery bags, for example) whenever I can. And stop buying things that I just don't need in the first place.

bo bo yeh yeh

Super Q, my three year old, is becoming a very inventive wordsmith. today he started calling me "bo bo yeh yeh" and I have yet to find a source or even a context for this. in Chinese, bo means throat and yeh-yeh means old grandpa. Super Q also invented an imaginary friend, Woe-Woe, who actually is chinese. Q is totally obsessed with Chinese people; this was, i think, brought on by about 2500 viewings of Mulan.

Flash, my 6 year old, is very much into African Americans. Some of his good friends at school are African American, and he tries so hard to speak like them. It's kinda funny, this very skinny, very white lil tyke trying to sound so cool.