ting_yuko's Xanga

internet & instant messaging

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:58:56 GMT

the communicative device of today sends partial truths. the recipient does not see facial expression, or eye movement to fully grasp what is being typed. hidden meaning (aka sarcasm), circumstance (aka busy with laundry, not intentional avoidance), and word choice is either misconstrued or not even apparent. dissimilar to telephone calls, which impersonal communication first began, intonation cannot be sent through text messages. we begin to rely on emoticons and quotation marks to receive and convey emotion. the recipient is left to rely on what is being typed, or what is not being typed, and have no choice but to accept them as reality. from a psychological approach of observing this phenomenon, sending text messages can provide a veil of detachment for the sender and may result in expressing either his/ her innermost thoughts, or the complete opposite. in the cyber world, we are stripped of our identity. no one sees our physial appearance, unless we want them to, which makes it convenient for us to reinvent ourselves online.

could it be that the reason why the internet is so addictive to the young generation, men around 40-50s, is because these groups are full of people who are still trying to find themselves, still changing? the housewives who do go online are the ones unsatisfied with the current state of affairs either with their role or with their family, and the ones who don't have their lives evolving around their family? that is a big generalization. it's a theory. don't flame me for a theory.

Thursday, December 28, 2006

Thu, 28 Dec 2006 13:41:03 GMT

merry christmas and happy new year everyone. hope you had/ have a good one.

i've been thinking about inspirations. where do they come from? i don't know about you, but i get inspired the most in certain environments: that is to say, not people neccessarily, but the atmosphere in which they create. for example, mike with his guitar, glowing under the soft spotlight in that darkened cafe at 9pm on a weekday, singing "Black Bird" by the Beatles, a million thoughts ran through my head as i tried to capture them on the napkins with a felt pen. another, meeting andrew, listening to his ideas of screenplays, dry humour, distorted background, and all the little details of our conversation so different from any i had with other people, much like the clothes he wears. the effect of his influence only came into realization when i was biking home from preschool one day, listening to my ipod, when i saw the sky in a hazy blaze of autumnal sunset and i felt like i was breathing in the beauty, exhaling white smoke. i learned to appreciate the moments, the quiet moments when i'm alone in this country where i can disappear into the background and just become pedestrian A if i wanted. and then there is the music singing from my laptop right now... a continuuam of peaceful solitude in my apartment. makes me want to close my eyes...

such a backwards country

Thu, 07 Dec 2006 23:23:14 GMT

i feel like every step i have taken to get used to this place has only lead me to take 2 steps back, whether it is getting my students to come up to me and say something other than: you are cute, or my Japanese conversation, or getting along with my JTEs/ other JETs. there is so much to experience and learn here that i don't think one year is enough.

on a less gloomy note, the other male JET backed out of being Santa Clause for the kindergarten in our town, so take a wild guess at who had to take his place, or just answer, what do you think I'm wearing as I'm writing this in the kindergarten?? Wait, that's also pretty depressing. Um. The kids are adorable here. I will post some pictures of them soon. my parents are coming next week

i wish i was a kid again...(-_-)

i'm so ready to start making an imaginary friend to talk to. it will be a male, i think. the male counterpart of myself. i think i might start getting really attached to myself. "so chris, what are you up to tonight?" "oh, i'm going to enjoy a quiet night in with Me, just exchanging thoughts over wine." (O.O")

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 12:24:38 GMT

when someone leaves the country, does it necessarily mean he/ she is trying to escape from something?

maybe i wanted to escape from the mundane, stoic life i had in Vancouver.

kimono festival

Fri, 10 Nov 2006 06:07:58 GMT

bitch

Sun, 05 Nov 2006 23:38:50 GMT

ok. i am seriously pissed. the japanese system is fucked up. u can't get anything to work around here and everyone is so damn polite and follow these rigid rules so precisly and treats people like mindless idiots who can't make 2 out of 1 and 1.

click on photo to see album

Thu, 02 Nov 2006 04:21:07 GMT

farewell before Japan

Thu, 26 Oct 2006 02:15:01 GMT

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Tue, 17 Oct 2006 04:56:54 GMT

after my 10 hrs flight, 1 hour shinkansen ride, i am in downtown Tokyo. this is my hotel: Fujiya

respect your juniors

Fri, 15 Sep 2006 02:25:00 GMT

"wisdom come with age", and our predecessors have given us a great deal; while they wilt, the next generation enjoys the fruit of their labour in this comfortable environment we now live in. these are reasons enough to respect our elders. however, it annoys the hell out of me when elders expect others to give them the "special treatment" all the time without gratefulness, as if that's what's been expected of us. sure, i guess that makes sense, but don't push it. don't feel like you own the street by driving 40 km/hr and flip us the bird when we honk you. don't cut in lines at the grocery store and give the people in line a glare as if to say: i dare you to kick me out of the line. and don't, ask for my help at Shoppers to look for liners (which i'm positive you're getting for someone else) and then suspect that i don't know what they are. don't ask me then! i don't even work here!

on another, less aggressive note, i am going to Japan. i don't know the exact location yet, but maybe i'll post some videos like other cool xangans of my life in foreign land. and i'm going there for a year to teach English. i'm excited and scared, mostly for the language barrier. although Japanese was my major, i've never tried buying ... detergent, or shampoo in Japanese. how will i know which brand is the best at leaving my hair silky smooth, without leaving it volume-less? what if my supervisor doesn't listen to my opinions because he's a sexist ass? who will make me hot soup when i get sick and can't talk so can't call anyone for help?? sniff. aw. i'm going to miss everyone.

well, i had to quit my awesome SAT job that i just got in August as well. Saturday is my last day. here are some photos of my students in the summer program.

cute, eh?