Category Archives: Random Musings

Silly Things I Do: Unmatched

15 Friday Jul 2011

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I have a pair of extra black pumps, which I keep under my desk for rainy days. I was kind of playing around the other day with my shoes, when I got up to go do something at my colleague’s Bloomberg terminal. As I was walking back to my desk, I noticed that I was actually wearing one black and one beige (the one I was actually wearing that day) pumps!! I didn’t feel a thing. I didn’t even notice until 15 mintues later!!! I’m shocked and thankful I didn’t walk into a client meeting (or in public!) looking like that! Now I can’t help but keep checking out my feet whenever I go anywhere, to make sure I have on the same pair of shoes.

Funny Little Things: All packed

12 Tuesday Jul 2011

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This morning, my mom accidentally put her iphone into my bag, as she was helping me pack a box of cherries for work (yes, the ritual is  almost school like). She swears that I’d put it in there myself, but that’s impossible as I had my iphone in my hand busy monitoring my bitizens in Tiny Towers all morning. I didn’t realize until I texted her on my way to work (to tell her that taking the umbrella out of my bag to lighten up the load was a terrible mistake. It wasn’t only just drizzling, it was actually DROPPING), and my lap vibrated instead!

A Real Fashionista

24 Friday Jun 2011

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Today I was having an email conversation with some old girlfriends from the States (and I say conversation due to the rapid speed of reply. Usually it is like emailing into a black hole with echoes once in a blue moon), when we came to the age old topic of what we would do if we had no concept of risk and were to start our own business. Thinking of a certain talented photographer mutual friend of ours who is now a sought after wedding photographer fully booked till 2013, I rationed that the first step was to have a talent, and commented that my friend could teach dancing since she’s so good at it. She replied that I could be a fashion consultant, because of my background in fashion blogging. And once again, I felt misunderstood and unworthy of such a comment.

While I may have been an excellent fashion blogger back in the days, the truth is I am not really a real fashionista. I just really like online window shopping (and real shopping when budget allows), making odd observations and offering sensible advice. Most of the time I dress and feel rather drab and boring. You wouldn’t be able to spot me on the streets of Central. It’s not that I don’t have any nice clothes. Just that somehow they just don’t go together very well. Even my mom thinks I don’t dress well and constantly nags me about it (most moms nag about you not eating healthy enough or not working hard enough, but mine nags about why I don’t look celeb fashionable and is my toughest fashion critic). So I end up just wearing the same combo that I know works over and over again. I really get my bang for the buck!

A real fashionista however knows how to mix and match her wardrobe to create refreshing looks everyday (ok maybe not everyday, but at least whenever the mood strikes), mixing colors, prints and layers together that somehow works as if it had been designed for each other. It’s takes talent! She can take a piece that you and I would find awful and dated and make it look retro and modern. It doesn’t even have to be designer. She can put pieces from the vintage store and H&M together, and still look like she’s walking out of a fashion magazine, looking effortlessly cool. Me on the other hand, can have an unlimited budget and walk into Barneys and still come out looking generic or trying too hard. Heads turn on the streets (i.e. my head), when they walk past, trying to get an extra look at  their outfit, and people think  “Now that is one fashionable lady”.

Miuccia

07 Tuesday Jun 2011

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I know I am not a teenager anymore and should not be so easily star struck anymore, but I couldn’t help but feel a little awe by the fact that I was in the same room as Miuccia Prada today. Granted it was a huge room and I barely saw her as someone in the background drone on and on about ebitda with an Italian blur. But still. She was there! The genius who brought back the house of Prada and created Miu Miu (one of the many loves of my life! I even felt a tiny hint of pride when I found out that Miu Miu was the fastest growing brand they had outstripping even Prada itself. I have good taste!)

You have to admit, Miuccia is pretty cool (Hey, at least I am not raving about Justin Beaver here!). I tried explaining how cool this was to the guys around me, but they did not appear to appreciate the situation much. Hello? It’s the female equivalent of seeing Rafael Nadal in real life!

Oh and I was super happy with the gift bag too. We were expecting either nothing or a small keychain, but instead we all got a Prada leather folder/sleeve! My colleague pointed out the fact that they are giving one to everyone must mean that their leather goods seriously don’t cost much to make in the first place. I don’t think I will dwell too much on that though. Personally I don’t even associate Prada with leather goods (mostly nylon goods).Besides, there must be a reason why leather good is their major return driver after all.

A Book Survey

28 Thursday Apr 2011

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Below, you will answer questions on celebrity romance and on romance novels in general. Your responses are much appreciated.

Section I
What comes to mind when you think of the word “romance?” What about the word “love”? Do you believe that the two are synonymous?

Romance is the little things that makes your heart tingly. It can be something as simple as a home cooked meal or a walk in the museum, or something as sappy as a serenade or a grand romantic gesture.

Love is part of the three little words that allows a couple to counter all adversaries and reach a happy ending. Coming from an Asian background where we are not big on words however, love is the unconditional bond that ties people together no matter what.

No I don’t think the two are synonymous. You can be in romance but not in love, and in love but not in romance. Typically it is quicker to be in romance than in love. The holy grail is to have both of course, but  not everyone is that lucky. 

What comes to mind when you think of the words “celebrity romance?”

Just another couple- except maybe a more high profile, better looking pair.

Are you the type to keep track of the lives of celebrities? Why or why not? Do you believe that you can separate the product (movie/music/art) from the actual person?

Not really interested in the personal lives of celebrities, because reality is really not that interesting. The whole reason why people read books, watch movies, read blogs or even try to keep track of other people’s lives is because they want to live vicariously through these characters. So why opt for reality when you can live vicariously through fictional characters who lead the perfect life, designed by a team of specialists?

There is no way one can really get to know the “actual person” of a celebrity by tracking their lives through tabloid news. Unless you actually know this person on a personal level, whatever you see is a product.

A better question is to ask whether the celebrities themselves are able to tell the difference between a role and who they really are. Celebrities are usually very young. I am twenty something and I still don’t quite know who I am without the distraction of pretending to be someone else. So I am not sure how they would fair…

In your opinion, if you were a movie star, what would be more important to you? Having your ideal love life or winning several academy awards? Why?

Like any other job, it depends if one is career oriented or not. Although if I went to all that trouble of becoming a movie star and giving up my personal life, I’d probably want to get several academy awards in the process.

In your mind, what does celebrity culture represent to you? What celebrities are you most interested in?

Mostly the public’s desire to live vicariously through them in pursuit of the “glam” lifestyle, the modern version of “happily ever after” for teenagers. The celebrities I am interested in are the ones with the same fashion sense as me, or with a fashion sense that I admire. Since it is their job to be stylish and up to date with the latest styles and making it work, observing them saves me a lot of trouble.

What types of magazines do you read? Which ones do you read at least a couple times a year?

Vanity Fair (monthly), Psychologies (couple of times).

Would you be interested in reading a romance novel based on a celebrity romance?

Not really. Celebrities are not perfect people, so they tend not to meet the picture painted in a novel, which is disappointing. 

Here are some ideas for celebrity romance lines. Rank them on how appealing they are to you. Give reasons for your ratings (1 being most interested).

Angelina Jolie on her views on why she doesn’t need to marry Brad, how she’s come to where she is

1. Could be of interest, just to understand what she’s thinking and what makes her think so different from everyone else.

J.K. Rowling on how she became super successful and how she met her surgeon husband.

2. Could be of interest, in a down to earth, modern Cinderella kind of way.

Jennifer Lopez on what happened between her and Ben Affleck

3. Huh? they were dating? What happened? Isn’t she married to a guy called Marc Anthony or something? Clearly they’re not characters I’m interested in following.

Will Smith talking about how he maintains his successful marriage with his wife

4. Boring. I’ve not reached this stage in my life yet.

Section II
Do you read romance novels? If yes, specify type (chicklit, paranormal, historical, Christian, etc.) and specify how many you read per year.

Chick lit. I used to read over 20 every year, but that has probably dwindled down to maybe 1 or 2 a year now (if I’m lucky).

What’s your opinion about males who read romance novels?

I didn’t know males read romance novels! They’re either gay, or their girlfriends made them read it (that or he’s not the kind of male you want to be associated with). Having said that, I suppose guys can learn a LOT from romance novels.

Say you watched a movie based on a romance novel (e.g. Devil Wears Prada or Bridget Jones’ Diary). If you enjoyed it, would you buy the book afterwards?

Hmm…. usually it is the other way around. In cases where I see the movie first, I’m usually not that motivated to read the book afterwards. I supposed it is because if you start with the book, then the story is painted in your mind first with your imagination. Then if you see the movie, you’ll see how other people envisioned it, and you can make comparisons and enrich the story in your mind. Whereas if you start with the movie first, then the images instilled in your mind by the movie will play out in your head as you read instead, which takes away part of the fun of imagination.   

Are you the type to suggest books you like to friends?

Definitely.

When you read stories, do you prefer happy or sad endings? What are your reasons for your preference?

Happy endings, because they leave you feeling giddy and content afterwards, which for me is the whole point of reading a romance novel in the first place. I can go back and reread a happy romance novel many times. Sad endings are more memorable, but they leave you thinking too much and doesn’t motivate one to ever reread it again, unless one wants a sob fest for no reason. Clearly I’m a big fan of escapism.

A Good Book

12 Tuesday Apr 2011

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I received an email the other day from a friend asking me to participate in a survey she was doing for class to find out more about reading behavior. She sent another email two minutes later with the caveat that this survey was only for people who have read a book outside of work/class in the last year. A few years ago, I would not have even hesitated, but to my surprise, I actually had to stop and think about it before I proceeded to do the survey. Was it the Historian, about the two scholars looking for the legend of Dracula? Or was it Tipping Point, about the social phenomena of how little things make a difference?

The truth is that I haven’t  read a book in such a long time that I don’t even remember. It is sad since I loved to read  growing up. I spent many hours lost in the perfectly plotted world of books. Eager to recapture those times, I decided to find a good book to read for my upcoming vacation to Turkey. None of the “new” books I bought a while ago sitting on my bookshelf seemed to fit my current mood. So I asked my friends who usually have the same taste in books as me if they have any good books to recommend. Something adventurous and engaging. Doesn’t even have to be overly romantic or chick lit like. Something like the Historian, where once engrossed, you cannot put it down.

Turns out, none of my book-loving friends have been reading much lately either. CFA books? Yes. The Economist? Yes. A good book? Huh? Clearly leisure reading is not a feature of Hong Kong work  life.

A Good Writer

09 Saturday Apr 2011

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My favourite college professor Dan Raeburn once said that if you want to be a good writer you must practice everyday. In fact, part of the course requirement was that we write at least 200 words everyday. That was easy for me because you were allowed to write about  anything and in any style, and so I’d just post my blog posts or parts of  long emails to HG for class (he found out a lot more about America’s Next Top Model and my private life than he’d signed up for) . After college, I resolved to keep up this “habit” and allow my writing (and “voice”)  to evolve and mature over time. Everyday wasn’t exactly realistic though, so I shot for 3 times per week. It worked out for a while, wavering between thoughtful reflections and my I am Fashion style picture and annotations.

Recently however, I haven’t been writing at all. Nothing creative anyway. Mostly just brief one liners and business formal. From time to time I’d encounter something that I’d want to write/blog about, but each time I somehow get sidetracked. By work, sleep, social life, Modern Family and just plain old procrastination. Over time, these brilliant ideas somehow become less brilliant and urgent. The amazing Taylor Swift concert for example. She was awesome, except for the strange somewhat fake way she addressed the audience. Then there was Lanvin Bleu, the second line of Lanvin that is  sold exclusively in Japan. They sell some amazing Lanvin style graphic t shirts for only 1/5 the price of the original Lanvin. It has been an extremely versatile addition to my wardrobe, and I wish I’d bought more. Next came my trip to Sandro in Paris. Everything looks great at first, but upon closer examination, it is really overpriced for the quality they give. “Bumps” and “knots” is already showing up on the adorable khaki dress I bought there a month ago! Not to mention how my woolen poncho sheds everywhere like new carpet. Comptoir des Cotonniers on the other hand has good quality at decent prices! And I haven’t even gotten around to how I got mugged/conned in London (a great story which adds to all my many  reasons for not liking London), and my Ferragamo shoes.

I’m sure there are at least a dozen other things I’ve missed. I’d never appreciated how difficult it is to actually sit down at the end of the day, collect your thoughts and write it down until recently. I’d done it for the better half of the last 5 years, but somehow in between work, eat, sleep on weekdays and catching up with life and zoning out on weekends, my “voice” got a little lost.

Today has been the day of finally getting around to doing things I’ve been meaning to do but never got the chance to. I woke up early on a Saturday morning to go to a 8:30am bootcamp to exercise. I am so unfit that I actually had to stop midway because I felt so lightheaded! I went to visit my hairstylist before my hair gets completely out of control. And I went to an alumni event, which is part of my efforts to become more active in the alumni society this year. It’s been a long day, but hopefully I’ve found my “voice” as well.

In Jail!

26 Friday Nov 2010

Posted by in Art, Hong Kong, Random Musings

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If the economy in Hong Kong wasn’t so vibrant, the hippest restaurants in town wouldn’t have been fully booked on a Friday night, and I wouldn’t have ended up heading to a not-so-hip restaurant in Soho on a Friday night. If I hadn’t lost my hair tie earlier this week, I wouldn’t have chosen to go up to Soho via the ladder streets to pick up some hair ties on the way. If I hadn’t gone up ladder street and had to catch my breath at the top of the stairs, I wouldn’t have looked up and noticed the floating lantern of lights in the distance, at the usually closed gates of the long  deserted Victoria Prison. If I hadn’t been a curious party crasher, I wouldn’t have come across this most amazing display of balloon lights by Jiro Hirano.

Isn’t this one of the most amazingly romantic scene one can possibly randomly come across? It was right out of a cheesy romantic comedy! I imagine that these balloons would look beautiful surrounding a dance floor at my wedding……………….

If I hadn’t been so dazzled by this display of lights, I wouldn’t have wanted to check out every part of it and I wouldn’t have noticed the people upstairs in the building. If I hadn’t gone up the rather sketchy looking set of stairs, I would’ve missed this most intriguing display of paper structures built by first year HKU architect students inspired by body parts.

And that would’ve been a shame, because even though I didn’t quite get the body part reference, I did thoroughly enjoyed interpreting it on my own. I haven’t used my imagination in a while, and this was definitely good exercise! The first one that caught my eye was the top left one. I thought it looked like a Greek helmet with the feathers caught in the wind, flowing towards the left. But alas, the artist of the piece  told me that it was actually the arm of a music composer, and it was embodying his hand movement as he conducts music. I can kind of see that…. but I still see helmet more. As for the rest, I couldn’t quite  figure out what body part/movement it is supposed to embody, but going clockwise the following things popped into mind: wind chimes, star and a chair (or headphones!). Ah.. the joys of abstract art.

The next one that I loved, was the People’s Paint display next door. I thought it was an incredibly smart piece of interactive art (after the Bean in Chicago that is- that will always be my favourite piece of interactive art!). Viewers enter a room filled with canvas walls/objects, where an outline of a design has been drawn with pencil and the color codes for each space numbered. The viewer is then provided with paint in the correlating numbered colors (they also thoughtfully provided us HK-ers with aprons), and like a kid’s coloring book is invited to fill in the blanks on the canvases. The idea is that everyone gets to contribute a little to this piece.Being the sensible soul that I am, I chose to paint with white, cause I figured that it will do less damage to my clothes than say… orange.

You know what the seriously clever thing is? Inside the room is a TV screen with a digital camera, programmed to constantly take pictures of the room and monitor the progress of the piece. If you stare at the screen long enough, you will find yourself in it. And who doesn’t like to see themselves on screen (if only to make sure that they weren’t caught on camera doing something unseemly!)? This room can engage you for hours if you let it!

Going further into the prison, I found the Design Mart. It is like a regular bazaar (like the one in Soho last weekend), but the thing that stood out to me most were the little booths everyone had made of cardboard. Very clever and environmentally friendly! I also discovered this Hong Kong based designer selling bookmarks in the shape of her dress designs there, called Chailie Ho. She specializes in cocktail dresses, but also has a line sold in Central somewhere called Law Season (I think!), which specializes in OL wear. I’m definitely interested in checking that out! And I’ll check out her cocktail dresses too if I can ever motivate myself over to Kowloon Tong.

Did I mention that this was a prison ? I’ve lived in Hong Kong for most of my life, and I’ve never been in here before until last night. In fact, I don’t recall the last time I’ve been inside a prison (unless the catacombs in Paris counts)! It is an experience within itself.

The conditions inside make Prison Break’s cell (season 1 anyway) look like a hotel. Especially in the dark, it is quite creepy! I cannot begin imagine what it is like to live/work here when it was actually a prison.  Though I must say, combined with art, it is actually quite a novel and exciting experience. Stimulating enough to motivate me to stay up till almost 4am on a Friday night to write this up (and I haven’t done this in a LONG time)!

On my way out, I also stopped by the recycle fashion room, where you’re supposed to hang things you don’t want onto the wire dress. At the end of this exhibition, you are invited to come back and pick up something someone else has left behind that you DO want.  Another interactive piece of art. The idea is a good one, but I’m not sure about the participation rate. I’m unlikely to wear anything I don’t want on my person to begin with……….. let alone leave it there. Across from the dress, is a wall of shopping bags, which I think  would make an excellent wallpaper for my iPhone!

I am so glad I made this mini detour, as otherwise I would not have discovered DETOUR (the annual flagship programme of Hong Kong Ambassadors of Design, aimed at showcasing Hong Kong as a regional creative hub and featuring inspiring designs from Hong Kong’s young and emerging creative talent) at Victoria Prison, which happen to have opened TONIGHT! How coincidental can this night get? Opened from now until December 12, you simply MUST go check it out. It is a breath of fresh air to Hong Kong (better than the HK Art Fair!). I can’t wait for the next DETOUR event. I may even go again to this one, just to check out the prison in day time! Did I mention that it is free?

Ironically , the new hip restaurant I’d originally wanted to try (Tango) magically had an excellent table by the window for us once we were done with DETOUR, and we were able to enjoy a very satisfying and incredibly good valued Argentinian steak for dinner.

One warning though if you’re planning to go to Tango: when you get medium rare here, they really make it rare. Check out the inside of the rib eye we got. It is almost uncooked!

I’m an anal planner, but even I must admit that sometimes unplanned spontaneity often works out better then perfectly planned days! Can one plan spontaneity?

Happy Halloween!

30 Saturday Oct 2010

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Last year I saw a girl as a peacock during Halloween and thought it was genius. She had on intense make-up (she was a make-up artist at MAC) and a tail of  colorful feathers- simple but effective. Seeing how I got a mask of peacock feathers, I thought I could give it a try this year. So I elbowed my way into the crazy street of Halloween costumes/props looking for a tail of colorful feathers (seriously, next year, I’m going to start early and not leave it to the last day!). But then I came across these and couldn’t resist!

It looks kind of wide in the picture, but it actually looks amazing on! I personally prefer to wear it under my hair, so I can keep my fringe. I paired it with a purple dress and a leather jacket. I know not very creative. But hey, I didn’t want to detract attention from the mask and the eyes! Michelle Phan very conveniently did some Masquerade eye make up tutorials for me to take inspiration from.

I even bought a leopard print one for HG, to quell her  leopard print craving this season- at least until she finds something leopard print that she can actually wear everyday. She paired it with a black dress.

In the end, I bought a bunch of colorful feather boas too, thinking to make  a tail anyway. But it didn’t quite come out as I imagined it to…….. it looked more like a showgirl from Vegas than birdlike. So now it is just sitting on my floor. Maybe I’ll find a use for them next year.

 

Happy Halloween everyone. Can’t wait to see everyone’s amazing get-ups!

Fish or Peacock?

26 Tuesday Oct 2010

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I’m lazy this year. So instead of the full get up, I decided to wear a mask.

Initially, I thought that I could finally use the mask I got from Venice. But then my cousin told me I looked like a fish wearing it….. and so I got my friend M to help me get this.

Except now I’m a bit concerned about the peacock feathers. I didn’t quite expect there to be so much of it! What will I wear it with? I DO love the silver sequins and the blue feathers though. I’m tempted to cut the feathers off…. but then the point of Halloween IS to be over the top. Unfortunately, in my hurry to leave work today, I left the mask at the office, so I can’t play around with it tonight. Thoughts?