Random thought for the day…
Body specificity means you favor the direction of your dominant hand (i.e. if you are choosing between two wines, seemingly equal in value and flavor, you’re more likely to choose the one on the side of your dominant hand). Say that 70-95% of the population is right handed*… I wonder if that’s the reason text and messenger is set up the way it is: the left side is the person with whom you are speaking, and the right side is identified as yourself.
There is some intense psychology in interface design, I could analyze it forever.**
*Side note: I have found, in relatively busy parking lots, that if you turn to the left from the entrance, you will find more open spots, than if you turn to the right or go straight. Most people tend to avoid going left.
** I suppose it’s all just speculation. Correlation ≠ Causation
(Source: scientificamerican.com)
2:51 am • 4 January 2012 • #joyce su loves you thoughts
I wrote the following email to my boyfriend just now only to realize that it basically sums up my feelings on everything that is happening in the world right now. I believe it is nice to revisit these thoughts every once in awhile to see if my ideals have changed… and since my birthday is fast approaching, I’ve felt more introspective (nihilistic, really) lately…
—-
…Since the other day you said things right now in the US are particularly fucked, here is evidence that injustices happen all over the world… And it is a norm.
The positive thing though, is that as human culture continues to evolve, all evidence proves that we are much less violent and much more sensitive to violence than in any other time in history. So, although things may look unyielding and in a state of deterioration right now, you have to realize that we are still developing… The process is a lot of trial and error, a lot of growing pains to create some balance. I think that is the larger picture- to not be overly frustrated, making rash judgments and decisions… but also to not be complicit.
2:08 am • 19 December 2011 • 2 notes • #joyce su loves you thoughts
Los Angeles
Having a house, but not a home, in my native city is really discombobulating. There is this feeling of aching nostalgia for an apparition. It is as if I am yearning for this other ghost life still here in this city. The places and paces are all so familiar and not… the greetings friendly, but with goodbyes closely attached. I have been here my whole life but… still stranger, I am stranger still.
6:46 am • 22 September 2011 • 1 note • #joyce su loves you thoughts #los angeles
Metrics, Salads, & Leather
You can tell good leather by its hardware, much in the same way you can tell a good restaurant by its salads… and I say that not because I eat a lot of salads (though I do)… but because I think it’s the purest way to tell how fresh a restaurant’s produce is, thus indicating how fresh the food is. If the head chef gives that much attention to something usually so easily overlooked, then the rest of the food will be top notch.
…Similarly, if a designer gets extremely picky about the hardware going onto a leather piece, you know the hide, the stitching, the attention that should go into a product, will also be present.
Everything is in the details.
I also realize this makes me a complete snob.
3:14 pm • 29 August 2011 • #joyce su loves you thoughts
First off, I was craving miso soup tonight… the kind that comes in a paste… in particular, Cold Mountain’s Mellow White (it is far less salty, but still maintains a beautifully rich flavor… my favorite for years). Second, I have never made clams in my life and for whatever reason while I was on the treadmill today, I had this idea to steam clams and use the water for miso broth.
So I headed over to Whole Foods and grabbed half a pound of Manila clams and looked up what I was essentially supposed to do to not poison myself. I did get to use the clam’s bathwater as a broth base for my soup. I threw in some odds and ends inside my fridge first: arame (seaweed), broccoli, mushrooms, a rogue tomato, and then stirred in the miso once everything started simmering down. Remembering that I have a brand new jar of red caviar from Lucca, I plopped a small spoonful on top, drizzled the whole dish with toasted sesame oil (for depth), and sprinkled some sesame seeds around (for texture).
I have to say, I’m on a pretty good roll with my culinary explorations. I managed to not overcook my clams and the balance of all the flavors of the soup were pretty excellent. I think Sunday brunch is expecting cinnamon rolls… but that seems like a load of bother. I mean, my soup was all made in one pot!
2:25 am • 16 July 2011 • #photo #joyce su loves you #food #joyce su loves you thoughts
Grilled (or Broiled) Oysters with a Sriracha Lime Butter
So I finally fell in love with oysters last week… and it only took a little wasabi and yuzu! Funny fact I learned last night at dinner: oysters may be vegan. Some vegans consider them a vegan food, and some do not. An oyster’s lack of central nervous system leads some to consider them closer to plant life than animal life. Ok, so I think that’s kind of bullshit because they’re still filed in the mollusk family, so… animal right? But I’m not going to argue with any vegan that wants to gobble down some oysters with me. Anyhow, I’m all for more oysters not only from a culinary standpoint, but also an ecological standpoint as well; they’re excellent water filters!
1:52 pm • 14 July 2011 • 1 note • #food #photo #joyce su loves you thoughts
Rumi’s Book of Love, translated by Coleman Barks
To be perfectly honest, I thought Rumi’s Book of Love was a little overrated. Perhaps it was just my translation, but I thought a lot of the poems alluded to obscure cultural (and obviously religious) themes, which makes it extremely curious to me why he is so popularly quoted in modern America.
Anyway, there were a few shreds of lightness that I did capture and like, which made up for the parables that were not absorbed… and of course, those are the most quotable. Somehow this bothers me; it makes me think, perhaps something is begin misread or misinterpreted when we quote Rumi. We are taking what we think we understand, without actually understanding all of the teachings of Sufism. So my conclusion is: further study of Sufism is required for me to change my mind about Rumi because my comprehension level just isn’t there.
—-Addendum—-
Upon a little investigation, I came upon this tidbit about Coleman Barks on Wikipedia: Coleman Barks (born 1937) is an American poet. Although he neither speaks nor reads Persian, he is nonetheless renowned as an interpreter of Rumi and other mystic poets of Persia.
… What?
(Source: goodreads.com)
12:51 pm • 1 July 2011 • 2 notes • #books #joyce su loves you thoughts
…when one is older and in love, it is the double vision of sharing with your beloved which gives experience texture, shape, significance. To travel alone is to journey through a wasteland. But if you love enough, sometimes you can see for yourself, and for another too.
Truman Capote
Just (re)started Capote’s Portraits, upon being inspired by Anni raaavving about Capote (and our many puns of Truman Compote for Breakfast at Tiffany’s…). I am absolutely in love (again)! Why did I ever put this book down?
5:38 pm • 21 June 2011 • 4 notes • #black and white #books #capote #instagram #instagram #joyce su loves you thoughts #photo #quote #travel
I don’t want to devour you…
I want to chase your scent into the darkest corners of your soul.
I want to relish the taste of your thoughts slowly…
Lapping them up with the gentle ease of my eloquent tongue.
I want you to ache with anticipation…
To lose yourself completely so that…
You don’t know where my body ends, and your skin begins.
2:03 am • 17 June 2011 • 2 notes • #black and white #instagram #joyce su loves you #joyce su loves you thoughts #photo #poem #self portrait #poem
I had an exquisite time on my partial vacation (yes, I did find myself working a little here and there while out).
Some Highlights:
• Barrett playing Burial’s NYC almost every morning. There really is no better thing, I think, than to have someone play you beautiful music upon waking.
• Percussion Lab Mondays for Kastle on the radio. I got to chat a little with Praveen (a.k.a. Braille), an artist I so highly respect. I was a little disheartened to learn that Travis (a.k.a. Machinedrum) moved to Berlin a few days prior! I have a serious tympanic crush on him. Also, Space Dimension Controller completely blew my mind. His set went from old school R&B to deep techno and into 80’s classics… Absolutely amazing! The night was so spectacular and I highly recommend a visit if you are in the area.
• Meeting the Trouble & Bass crew, who are all really great folks. Really fell in love with Vivian.
• Chelsea Market with Laura and B. Really fell in love with Laura.
• Kastle record release party at Public Assembly, and seeing Todd Edwards live, which was beauuutiful. He did a live remix of a Kastle tune. I really hope that gets done up; it would be something quite special! Also The Captain’s closing set was FANTASTIC! 90’s R&B and hip hop? Hell yes!
• The look on B’s face when I kicked him out to go spend proper time with his bass fam and drink pickle backs. Boys are so damn easy to please sometimes, honestly.
• Annabelle… everything with Annabelle… discussions both inane and deep. Watching her in wonder as she happily jumped from subject to subject while playing with her hair. She really does run the gamut and can extract from me that deep belly laugh, only a real friend could.
• My folks. They came to visit the last couple of days I was there, and seeing them is always a joy. They had been staying in DC and popped over to say “hello, let’s get cheesecake!”
• Brooklyn Diner for breakfast dates.
• Kellogg Diner for midnight dates.
• Actual dinner dates. I was really starting to believe that no one does this anymore and I was the lone pitiful soul for hoping for such archaic chivalry.
• Sweets in bed and Doctor Who until 4am.
• Strand and being able to share my bibliophilia with someone. Unfortunately this resulted in a fat stack of about 20 books in the corner of the hotel room. Fortunately, B took pity and packed out most of the books so I didn’t have to lug them through the airports… so grateful for that!
• SOHO, The Evolution Store, and planning future meals from Dean & Deluca.
• Hiking through Central Park with books in tote.
• Iced coffee, extra cream, extra sugar
• Many train rides in cool carts with entangled fingers
• Franks with Mimi and Annabelle- lots of loud talk and deep laughs. The squid ink linguini with grilled calamari absolutely floored me. I need to figure out how to make it because I cannot wait to have this again!
• Loads of smiles, good company and conversation, laughter, love, and sunshine.
I could not have asked for a better stay in New York! I had a b-l-a-s-t!
3:08 am • 14 June 2011 • 5 notes • #new york #travel #joyce su loves you thoughts #adventures with barrett #photo
Checked out Richard Learoyd’s work at the Fraenkel Gallery over my lunch break today. Learoyd’s photos are absolutely arresting. The large prints are created through a camera obscura, generating the most astoundingly detailed positives.
They will make you ache for even just the scent of touch. I highly recommend checking it out if you’re in the area.
4:59 pm • 31 May 2011 • #photo #gallery #joyce su loves you thoughts
I dreamt that I was typing you a letter. But all the keys were galaxies and I was sending you the universe.
(Source image courtesy of Kastle on Instagram)
12:41 pm • 31 May 2011 • 5 notes • #romance #kastle #photo #instagram #joyce su loves you #space #joyce su loves you thoughts
Conversation from earlier:
Him: I suspect all things you bring your focus to are beautiful.
Me: O it’s not just me. I hope that is the case for everybody. There’s beauty everywhere. Even in the abject where you least expect it. Beauty is in the transient, and everything is transitory.
1:48 am • 29 May 2011 • #photo #instagram #joyce su loves you #joyce su loves you thoughts
