Blog by Sumana Harihareswara, Changeset founder
In which the writer performs mundanities
Hi, reader. I wrote this in 2001 and it's now more than five years old. So it may be very out of date; the world, and I, have changed a lot since I wrote it! I'm keeping this up for historical archive purposes, but the me of today may 100% disagree with what I said then. I rarely edit posts after publishing them, but if I do, I usually leave a note in italics to mark the edit and the reason. If this post is particularly offensive or breaches someone's privacy, please contact me.
Mediocre paper, Square One TV, pens ... oh hell, I'll just call this "Quickies," since that's what it is.
I am writing a long paper about the naturalization rates of Indians (the small subsection that my parents know, really) in Silicon Valley. It is destined for mediocrity. Oh well. As though that's new.
DON'T go to "Venezia," a University Avenue Italian restaurant. It's overpriced and underwhelming in terms of food, although the service and atmosphere are friendly. Best of Berkeley (.com) rated it Best Place to Take a Date. Well, I don't know about that. Go to King Dong (Shattuck and Haste) or Venus (Shattuck and Durant) or Intermezzo or La Fiesta (Telegraph and Haste) or Blue Nile (Telegraph and Blake...?) instead.
Weekend socialization: Yet another Leonard session. A hat trick! Much fun was had, some schtick was developed, and compliments flew like Mountain Dew cans out of a Mountain Dew can shooting gun.
I have only begun to perceive the world through the mediating paradigm of "Tonight's Episode."
My class Friday was suboptimal. There's a reason to hold class indoors when it's cold. Nature tricked me! Darn you, Mother Nature!
I'm not sure what to teach next semester. Perhaps some variant of children's lit? Harry Potter?
I bought a bunch of pens at Alko Office Supply on Shattuck. It's amazing the difference a couple of new pens can make in your life. I may actually grow to like the Gelly Roll pen, despite its mainstreamness.
Is it just me, or are some movie marquees -- especially the one for the Shattuck Cinemas above Kittredge -- unnecessarily cryptic?
There's a Camille Paglia speech on campus in early May. More details shortly.
"My Secret Identity" and "Square One TV": bad and good shows I saw at a formative age. I still wish I could fly using aerosol cans and harbor an unreasoning reserve of affection for any show or film starring that Jerry O'Connell fellow. Conversely, I know why the number 9 is magic, I sometimes wear a tie, and I play "What Do [I] Know?" whenever I think to do so.
I theorize that Tom Green movies exist only as subtle agents of the Hollywood mythos that any jackass can be a movie star.
And, from Sumana's notebook, bad handwriting that reminds us:
lesson plan != lesion plan
Poll: Most mundane
- laundry
- dishes
- loneliness
Originally published by Sumana Harihareswara at http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2001/4/29/2196/19709
