I love Virginia Woolf. I'm currently reading "To the Lighthouse" and it is an amazing reading experience. I imagine listening to a professional reading of it a-la "Selected Shorts" would be even better. I won't go into spoilers, but on the second part of the book Woolf goes through a string of events fans of "Game of Thrones" might find painfully familiar. Or just painful.
In other, possibly less distressing news, I have sent a sample of saliva to be genetically analyzed. I am interested in genealogy and history, and it could be interesting to find out more about my ancestry. I can choose whatever cultural heritage and philosophy to follow or create, but I cannot repudiate my genes (at least not with the current technology). It will take a couple of months to find out the answers. In the meantime, I'm hoping for significant neanderthal traces or remains. I've never felt fully human anyway.
The sky on my way to the post office. Must be an omen, right?
Lastly, it looks like I'll be going East again, probably in early August. Can't wait for those flights.
Last weekend I binged my way through House of Cards all the way to the third season. This was my first Netflix binge, and I can understand why it's termed "binge" along with the associated medical disorders. I did get a tad of an overdose. Or more than a tad, if the ear-worm of the show's opening sequence is any indication. But it is a great opening, isn't it? The music and the images are amazingly synced and reflect the show's spirit very well.
And what is the spirit of the show? I think that it has shifted as the seasons progressed. In the first and second seasons, especially the first, there was a very tangible dark presence around the Underwoods. One would almost expect to see them wearing a cape or a black robe while performing dark rites. And yet, the viewers empathizes with the corrupt, murdering, power hungry couple over the freedom fighting journalists. Perhaps it is them, the journalists, who are the foreign element in D. C.
Things change in the third season as, spoilers, Frank becomes president. Somehow the ultimate power does not corrupt him ultimately, but both Underwoods seem to develop some kind of "morality", or certain feelings. It feels like an unnatural development, and this season seems weaker somehow. Perhaps the hunt is more exciting than the dissection of the prey. And the inevitable fall is still to come.
Parting is such sweet sorrow, they say, and leaving Taiwan was no exception. The hot and humid weather, creative cuisine and language barrier have in the end become part of the experience instead of being obstacles in its path and the truly remarkable people of the place have more than made up for the long and sleepless flights*.
Plus they have amazing bakeries
I landed on Saturday night and after almost two hours of waiting in line for the passport checkup finally got re-admitted to the country. I got home** after 1AM and went to sleep. Two hours later I was already up. Sunday itself was very busy with multiple laundry cycles, grocery shopping, cleaning and whatnot, till I finally collapsed around 19:30. This time I managed to wake up around 3AM, leading to a hazy day at work which ended a little earlier than usual because I couldn't take it anymore. I slept through most of last night, though there's a thick layer of headache separating me and the rest of the world. I'm tired.
* Saw three films on the flight back. Julianne Moore and Jeff Bridges, what the hell were you thinking when you agreed to be in Seventh Son? Such a bad movie.
** I had all kinds of philosophical and other thoughts about what home is for me on the way back through the traffic jams of New York. Do I have a home or just an apartment? What does it mean to be at home? There are some place I'd rather not call home and others that look more inviting, but as I experience more and see things from different points of view, I begin to wonder. Will I ever feel at home anywhere? Stay tuned.
I'm finally adjusting to the time and food difference, or at least making some progress on the latter item, which means it's time to go back "home" soon. I was taken today for lunch to a place specializing in Xiaolongbao (a kind of dim sum; they have a michelin star) and it was quite the experience. I haven't really enjoyed food in a long time, but this came close. I tried chicken, pork & truffle and shrimp & squash. Obviously, I took some of it for supper later.
This is the "doggy bag" containing some of the food
