Ready for a New Beginning

 

It's time for a new beginning!  I am ready!

A new life in Vancouver with BB will be happening.  Please please please let everything go smoothly for his move to Canada.  I need a new direction and a new focus on the future.  Must have hope and faith in 2021.  Mother is gone and her spirit lives in me...

MOMA FILM FESTIVAL 1: The Human Voice (Pedro Almodovar)

I feel very fortunate this year that I was able to obtain a free membership at my beloved MOMA..  I can now watch "The Contenders" series free of charge!

Firstly, I have never seen a 30 minute feature film from Almodovar before.1  I was intrigued since it has one of my favorite stars TIlda Swinton. in it.  I found out later that it was based on a play by Jean Couteau.  It's not bad as a short film but why did Almodovar want to shoot a short feature with Tilda Swinton in the first place?  Did he like Jean Couteau's play or was he simply interested in working with Swinton?

It's a one woman performance that obviously was unimaginable without Swinton.

I look forward to seeing many more films in this series.

Best Gift to Myself for 2020./2021!

 

A Note About Grieving

In the before-times, when I was on a subway stopped between stations, I’d try to sense the millisecond it began to lurch back into motion, until I could no longer tell the difference between standing still and moving. Grief is like that, but with fury and fear and sadness and a terrifying blankness that nothing can soothe. You can’t tell when the subway will start moving again; you can’t magic it into motion. You can only wait and see what happens, and make sure you’re holding on when it starts moving again.

- Jenni Miller:  My Mother's Death isn't Something I Survived.  It's Something I'm Still Living Through

 

A Marriage's Never Ending Story

 

I love love love Adam Driver.  So I admit I am a little biased.  Scarlett is well cast in this film as well.  The movie is too long (Hence, it's a never ending story).  I confess I'll watch any show with Adam Driver in it.  He's not even good looking (unlike TC and Louis Garrel in "Little Women".  He has such nerdy charisma and it's hard not to like him.  

The movie itself, like "Little Women", is not great.  It's better than "Little Women" and I don't think I can ever be a fan of Noah Baumbach.

☝☝1/2 out of ☝☝☝☝

Little Women's Leading Men

Again I am not impressed with Greta Gerwig's direction of this movie.  I don't understand why Hollywood loves GG so much.  The only truly watchable cast members consists of TC and Louis Garrel.  I liked the older versions of this film so much better.  Sure glad it didn't win any Oscars last year.

☝☝out of ☝☝☝☝☝

 

Escape to LaLaLand

I will be officially reviewing Chinese travel books now on my blog.  I have a great number of Chinese ones sitting on my bed at the moment and I will start with this one.  This is a great travel book on LA.  It's the best one I've come across focusing just on LA alone.  I will definitely check it out again if I have a trip coming up to California.

Looking forward to reading/dreaming about faraway places in Europe and Asia..  

My Charlie Brown Christmas

This is such a cool mask!  I love Charlie Brown during Christmas time  It's only one week away from the big day!

Two weeks from 2021!  Can't wait for the 2020 year to be over.  Such a bad year.  

 

My Feelings for 2020 Captured

 

Snow in NYC Tomorrow

 

I miss the snow in NYC!  I miss staying home and watching the snow!  I miss trekking to Starbucks to get drinks in the snow!

BB will probably get a snow day on Thursday.  If only I can be with him and we can watch TV together.  It's nothing like drinking a hot cocoa and reading a good book on a cold and snowy night!

When will we get snow here?  Most likely in January.  It won't happen this month.  

I have my eye on some cozy sweatshirts from H&M.  Hope they will have a sale after Christmas. No expensive gifts this year.  No mood to go Christmas shopping now that I don't have a job. 😞😞😞

Photographer, I Ain't

 

I wish I can take good pictures.  I wish I have steady hands.  The pictures I take with my camera are always shaky.  I can't seem to be able to do anything right.  I am the female version of Charlie Brown.  I am envious that Charlie Brown has so many friends.  He may be a Blockhead but he's so lovable!

I don't have an Instagram account since I don't take pictures.  I enjoy social media because I love looking at pictures people take of themselves and the things they are obsessed about,

The pictures in this book are fabulous and have me wondering if I will ever travel again. I love to travel with BB since he's my sole companion for any trips now.  I can't count on traveling with any of my friends anymore.  

It's BB and I against the world!

A Therapeutic Day

 

Tom Hanks was pitch perfect in playing Fred Rogers in "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood".  I have always found Mr. Rogers to be a little creepy at times but I enjoyed this film a lot.  It's full of hope and light.  

I can't help thinking about A at times when I was watching this movie.  I wonder if he has fully grown up now that he's a father of two boys.  It's hard for me to think that he has settled down with a woman and he's no longer (Is that even possible) the self absorbed person he once was.

The film is very therapeutic for me.  I am sure Mother would have liked Tom Hanks playing Mr. Rogers if she is alive. 

A good 3 and a half out of four stars 👍👍👍 1/2

Defining My Life

"I like to think that every time a door closes, my unwavering faith leads me to discover a new one to open.." 

No job means no Canadian income for me.  I was hoping to spend some of my new income during the Christmas holidays, and I guess it wasn't meant to be.  It's hard to justify spending money on clothes when I own so many already, 😒😒

I miss shopping with BB on the weekends during the Christmas holidays.  Christmas windows, drinking Starbucks and taking pictures all around Manhattan have always been our favorite things to do.  Hudson Yards looks so stunning this Christmas and I am missing all of it...

Merry Christmas to Moi! 

Back to the Drawing Board

 

I am truly disappointed about not getting the job.  How could she say that I don't have experience running a special library?  I've been a solo librarian for so many years!  There must be a reason why the email from that organization always ends up in my spam folder.  It's really not worth my time!

So many employers have told me that they are impressed with my skills set.  Ha!  If they are so impressed with me, then why don't they hire me?  Biggest lie of all time.  They just never had me as an employee and they don't know what they are missing.  They are so undeserving...

This is one of the worst years of my life.  I must hold out hope for 2021.  I know I am loved by many even though I lose out on this job.  I MUST NOT GIVE UP!

😿😿😿😿😿

Never Tired of London

 

This book is a gem of all gems!  How can anyone ever be tired of London?  The book is full of interesting anecdotes of famous authors and places.  I wish there are more books like these that I discover in the library.

Keeping the faith that books belong in the Library and not in my home.  I will never have enough bookshelves for the books that I love.  It's no use collecting them.  Let the library be the sheltering place for the tomes that I love!

The Waiting Game

 

I admit I am not good at waiting.  I may be a patient person but I am poor at waiting for a response from Anyone.  Please let me know and l won't suffer anymore.  It has been a hard year.  I have many emotional scars and this year has been especially difficult for me.  

My mother is now gone and I have no one to talk to.  

Foodies Around the World

 

I am a foodie.  I want to be a foodie.  Please let this pandemic mess be over soon so I can dine out and enjoy a good meal or two.  Foodies around the world are suffering!  We can only imagine with our eyes what delicious food is out there waiting for us.

Let's hope I get at least one good Christmas meal this season.  

Dear God,

Please let me enjoy some of the foods here in this book.  If I get to live beyond 2021, I sure hope I can travel and eat at some of these places around the world...

My Way of Life

 Should I consider myself lucky to find someone who shares my views on parenthood?  I see there are many childless couples out there who are like us.  They choose not to have kids, and not because they couldn't have kids.  I consider myself an earthling, and not an alien.  I just don't want to conform to society's rules to become a mother.  I don't feel sad whatsoever.  I am just happy to be on my own and not to take care of family.

There are parts of :"Earthlings" that I like but I don't understand why the story has to be so violent.  The cover of the book is very misleading.  It certainly is not a cute and cuddly story.

French Like Moi

 

This book is disappointing.  I would say it's mildly entertaining.  I've certainly read better books on American expats in Paris.

The title sounded promising but the individual chapters didn't make me want to continue exploring Paris.  

Time for another trip to BPL!  Looking forward to Murata's "Earthlings"...