居然一看不可收拾，非常有意思。

 

比如这篇双城地铁

 

我其实对北京地铁并不熟悉，但大抵也能想象出那个样子来。人说gay是女孩子最好的朋友，如果还是单身，估计一定要搬到city去住，怎样也要扒心扒肝的找个gay朋友。

 

 

年轻的时候能够遭遇recession，也算一种经历。不幸的是资产缩水很多，几乎一个人今年算白干了。所以干脆破罐子破摔，继续跑到short hills mall采购。恰逢jcrew的（容我一哭再哭jcrew的股票吧，半年前50多块钱没有扔掉，现在跌到20块钱都不到了）饰品打折，于是买下适季的不适季的若干。然后又去了许久没去过的costco，忽悠我的两名同事买下时空胶囊，可怜两个人只在那里嘟囔说连说明书都没有，还有truffle。最后买下大小两锅子，败经济危机之赐，linen & things在新泽西的店也要关掉，所有东西打九折，虽然折扣很小，但本来就是要买的东西。周五晚上回家一个人两个手都几乎不够用，某人还偏偏不在。

 

近日秋色愈发浓了，红叶黄叶映着闪闪的阳光，正是hiking的好时候。美东这点也好也不好，雨水不算多，总算保住一点明媚的亮色。

 

最近的presidential debate看到不要看为止，再一次感慨这是一个promote public speech和communication 能力的国家。只是坏消息听到两耳流油，连我这样热爱经济新闻的人都宁可闭目塞听不想知道股市货币经济数据如何。I guess some times enough is enough is enough，索性我继续看我的文艺小说加drama，只当一切和我无关，真是不积极不像我的态度。不过个人是再可控能力太弱，就罢了就罢了。（尤其我还是那个投资错误决策错了的人，自知理亏更加不能细究心态。）

 

 

 

地震一次，我对自己的认识也深了一层。我一直以为自己很多事情是不在乎的，但是我从一个对地震援助漠不关心的人变成一个非常投入的人也不过3天时间。原来骨子里，我还是非常希望能够善意做事，相信人性，愿意帮助别人，愿意对世界有所影响。

 

这几天是memorial weekend，非常例外的是没有出去玩，天气很美，但是我一想，我们这样花费，灾区的人还是在水深火热中，就觉着有些不忍，仿佛消费阿或者搞无关的事情都是一种奢侈甚至一种耻辱。当然自然大部分人是马照跑舞照跳，该干吗还是在干吗我。影响不了别人，独善其身还是做得到的。

 

这两天除了上网做一些和灾区有关的小事，看一些书，剩下的就是自力更生丰衣足食。第一次做馒头，面包，豆浆，在没有现代的厨房用具比如面包机和豆浆机的情况下，居然一举成功，自拍肩膀一下。如果不是我一直很没有做这些事情的天分，我大约会厚颜无耻的到处炫耀。当然我知道自己不过这样那样罢了，不过能够自己煮东西成功还是很有成就感的，可以继续勤俭持家（好像我一直这样一样）下去。

Usually I still visit wxsj all the time, but the quality and content got so bad that I (finally!) found it was a waste of the time to go there.  Anyway, it has been the bbs that I visited in the last 8 yrs, I have no incentive to quit it, and I still have friends there whom I would like to get along with them and at the same time entertain myself.  Fabvalley is better than wxsj, but now it also becomes "to a certain degree".

 

I started reading people's blog.  Asides from those I knew online, the most interesting one is http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/,  I have to say the blog's quality is good and the update is so frequent, which makes the blog itself as readable as the book.  One recent blog was about the presidential candidates, and it was the most commentable post in this blog - I could imagine most readers really wanted to comment until that right moment, as the other posts were just too evidence-supported (with numbers!) to be refuted/supported.   My personal guess is that the blog was owned more than the authors of freaknomics, creating a competitive environment (among the contributors) and all wanted to look as good as the others - aha, another example of how market economy is better than monopoly!

 

Craiglist also provides interesting readings, bizzar wanted/sales ads sometimes is more entertaining than what was published in normal newspaper (e.g. NY times, which today got another article to attract the eyeball, this time was McCain - and they claimed it was the right "moment" for them to publish the paparazzi-type of verbal accusation - btw, without evidence!  I guess it is just typical of NY Times).  Nevertheless, I do enjoy the travel channel of NY times. http://travel.nytimes.com/pages/travel/index.html, to the extent that I even subscribed a version of it. 

 

As for travel websites, I really have seen a few good ones.  The chinese favoriate I have had so far is still go2eu.com.  The people in that website are really sincere, unpretentious (unlike some of the other website), and I am not surprised that it grows so fast in the past few years and it has got great ratings from everywhere.

 

Youtube is another good one, which almost goes without saying.   I did find the good catoons from Hayao Miyazaki that I could not find from anywhere else, even amazon.

 

Of course, admittedly, I am still constant using google to search for the info of those people that I have lot contact over time, although, most are so quiet and anonymous that most time I have failed.  I have to rely on my dear friends to find out where they are, what they do, who they are married to...although (again!), most time with a plain result...that is not worth the efforts.  Thank you my friends, sorry for my curiosity.

 

 

 

我最近又长胖了：（导致的结果就是去买衣服只能看4号的了。一气之下，我干脆拿0号的来试，居然也勉勉强强让自己给挤进去了。然后我就得意洋洋的从club monoco和banana republic拿了两套衣服回家，全然不管接下来的后果是要减肥。

 

但是美国的号码真是骗人阿，我最后看中的一件欧版的4号jacket，无论如何都套不进去，虽然我知道如果能够穿上的话会很好看——还是算了，不要再自欺欺人了。就像我现在的0号衣服，估计比真正的6号都要大。

 

某人不明白我为啥辛辛苦苦试穿后的衣服还要送回去退——尽管我很少这样做，尤其某人提醒我目前gas价格一直居高不下。NPR做的一个新闻说道男人在有生之年要花32个星期等女生换衣服出门，还有20个星期在车里或者商场等女生试衣服——女主持人说，I do not know why they will come shopping in the first place。不过，话又说回来，某人还是我目前一起逛街比较好的对象。

 

能不能减肥成功呢？我几乎要变成bridget jones了，虽然我的diary里连男人都省略了。某人对我的新生的这个念头很不看好，但我认为这个是他破罐破摔的结果。我可不想一个多月后回国the only topic变成减肥话题。it makes me even less excited of going back to China for the vacation...

 

 

Weekend is always good.  It is finally spring time in new jersey, everything turns green, soft grass, pink cherry and peach flowers, tulip of different colors.  (although my dear hubby got his miserable allergy again and he has the red eyes for a while)

 

Saturday:

- go to local animal shelter to walk the dogs, checking out the new puppy from KN, one is called Peach, another is, of course, Apricot.:)

- go to the local library to borrow DVDs and books, including the two Harry Potter that I have not read, 5 & 6

- enjoy the beautiful late spring sunshine until I fell asleep, and then get 馄饨 for our dinner

- guess I ate too much and I felt almost sick in the night:(

 

Sunday

- continue to read my Harry Potter, I do not like 5 very much and 6 turned to be more interesting, but once the adult politics is involved, nothing is very fun.  I guess I liked Harry Potter caz it reminded me of my sweet/nice childhood and youth life, but when it comes to the adult life, it is not interesting

- went hiking with the new friends known from mitbbs.  They are all very good people - I am so pleasantly surprised.

- went shopping for food.  Surprisingly enough, I no longer shopped for cloths (almost not) since I came back to the US, and I guess that part of the reason that April Retail Sales in the US was so low, and Wal-mart had its lowest level in the past 27 years!  We bought the expensive but excellent australian lamb, it is juicy and tasty (a little too salty and we only finished half). 

 

I knew that I needed to start working, but it took me two days to get back to my company computer....

 

这段日子过的不是特别有意思。well, the weather overall sucks.  据所有在欧洲的同事都说天气很美，恨不得回去度度假。而我显然是慢下来了。我觉得这个效应真不好。再说下去，就变成“你们美国，我们欧洲”了。一听就是欠扁的话。

 

然后我就想起蓝莲花。去年在布鲁日看丁丁的商店，好似梦里面一样。我假装有些惆怅的对自己说“看，也不是不快乐的＂．

 

Since I came back, I started reviewing the movies that I was not able to watching earlier (really taking the advantages of watching movies in the US).  Just similar to my style earlier, I was watching the so-called British movies, although quite a few are US dirctors: the painted vail (and found out where the title came from, and who was the famous author), children of men, notes on a scandal, price and prejustice, Jane Eyre...the latter two, after reading Xiaotan's blog, I felt I did not echo with her. I like the ladies in the movies better off.  

 

Jane Eyre was my favoriate novel when I was young, but now when I watched the movie (the BBC version is excellent), it appears overall Jane Eyre was just looking for a "companionship" and "freedom"- well, love can be part of it, but not necessary.  I guess what I am trying to say is, nothing can stop, if what I desire really is the freedom.  I can still go out if I want, it does not matter whether I am poor or rich, with a job or jobless... 

 

That is what I claim as the theme for today: Nothing can stop, if what I desire is the freedom. 没有什么能够阻挡，我对自由的向往。

 

 

I started reading Mckinsey quarterly again.  If I had some complex and the complex is what I wanted to admit, one of them should be the fact that I am NOT GOING to be one member from Mckinsey.

 

(but so what)

 

so, I am missing such an important element that can be viewed as key of being "elite" - oh, please, if you notice how many people kindly "unintentionally" mentioned one thing or another - and I am just one of them that can honestly face my heart and encounter the weakness

 

(so?)

 

so I claimed myself to be honest

 

(it is another weakness - I still struggle to know how to pretend, u know and I know)

 

To know how to massage (to handle) the people - I am still struggling

 

OK, back to Mckinsey quarterly.  I started reading it since I left college - at that time I could not understand all, though I focused my interest in finance, macroeconomics area (isn't that area that Mckinsey Global Institution claimed they are good at, if they did not, look at the views that they put in the research articles)

 

Now, a few weeks ago, just like I picked up my interest of going to the gym, I started reading Mckinsey quarterly again, partly due to the fact that my English written ability is still on the up to speed curve, partly because I need to fullfil my understanding of the market from a third party, professional perspective - yeah, Mckinsey stands up to this standard that I demand.

 

It is good - so far, although I hope just as CNN, Mckinsey puts itself into such an authoritative position (and isolated position) that it demands the powerful people to notice and read them and more importantly, act on them.  I am not sure if it is doable.

 

The perspectives are varied.  I am kind of relieved that they said China will pick up. Great!

 

(another article without focus)

I am reading Gleevec report - about brand personalization, and I cannot help thinking what brand should I be if I were an animal, a car...etc.. I remembered I answered the questions in my past interviews too.

 

If were an animal, I wanted to be same as Gleevec - a Lion, I know that I will have the responsibility to lead, but I should enjoy too.

 

The less aggressive side, I hope that I am a dog - Golden Retriever

 

If were a car, I wanted to be a Mercedez (I bought in so much) - however, given the safety profile (when data speaks), I will buy a Lexus.

 

Both choices remain the same as two years ago. So I do have the nature of being loyal, and being consistent now - which is a good sign of maturity.

Could not believe I am the one that is talking abt AE86 here.  Anyway, certainly I very much buy-in Jay Chou's performance in "Drift".

 

I am only going to do the research when I have time.

Well, by no means I wanted to stay at home today and by no means to find out my other interests is an interesting thing to me.  The issue is that someone said I have no interest.  It makes me unhappy.

 

I have not yet had another interest that I can share freely with my friends. Travel is one, but it is not as easily as I can pick up anytime.  I am not a big fan of sports either.

 

I do not feel very good about that comment, so bad to the extent that I do not want to say anything to that person, because to reveal something that I am poor at is not a fun thing.

 

Anyway, I will go to museums today, forgetting what the unimportant people said.

 

Anyway, I went to the museums - and I am getting so Yishu and "american" - you know what is my favoriate? Mummy and dinosaus.  I like the culture of Egypt (well, 3,000 yrs ago) so much and I am fansinated with the mummies - and we have so many here - in both Basel and Paris (that is nonsense, of course we have got tons in Louvre).  That was THE thing I was looking for if I happened to be in a cultural museum. 

 

While it comes to natural history museum, I like dinosaus - I still remembered the one in Chicago.  We got one skeleton in Basel too.

 

Anyway, I hope that I can have an opportunity to change the songs in my iPod soon - I have listened to Jay too many times,

 

Honestly it is not first time I want to have my own blog~I tried it last time when I signed up for gmail. Unfortunately my interest did last for only 1 day, and I gave up right away. 

 

I have to admit to write diary (or blog, the popular name) is a very emotional thing. Unless you have true interest in writing (which I am of course not), or you want to be good at writing (as if to practise does help!, which again I doubt), or like the sentimental teens to write the emotions involved the whole day long...

 

However...now it is the turn for however...I have to say that MSN makes the blog function really approachable, which may push me to write now and then.  I am ashamed to say that I lost my gmail password (and even the username) compeltely and that has the major reason that I never bother to look for that.

 

Hopefully this time I can have a lasting interest.

 

I have no passion to prepare for my incoming interview...I hate to say that, but to leave the annoying forecasting behind just for another forecasting task is not that attractive.

 

I cannot help missing my dear again...sometimes it is not a bad idea to accept a shabby agency analyst job with 30% cut of my salary but staying with my dear...the push from my current job is still not strong enough to have me make such a decision though...