Category Archives: Things I Love Thursday

Life was too packed last week to write, but a sprinkling of some the things that have put a smile on my face lately:

♥ Running a successful training retreat last weekend where everything actually went smoothly.

♥ Getting hugs.

♥ Picking blackberries on the way to and from class.

♥ Receiving a (real!) four-leaf clover from a friend who knew I was having a particularly bad day.

♥ Hearing once in a while from someone who says I’m missed.

♥ Thank you cards.

♥ OneRepublic’s ‘Say (A L’Infini)’ featuring Sheryfa Luna.

♥ This fabulous band I saw playing downtown a couple of weeks ago (Kutapira):

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUmErt2Q80Y&hd=1]

 
P.S. To those of you joining clubs this week, try joining the mailing list for clubs you aren’t sure about for now. Most of you are probably already doing this, but when I was young and fresh off the plane, I thought it a brilliant idea to pay the membership fees for nine clubs. I’m pretty sure I only ever really went to two or three of them.

Every Thursday, I try to write a list of things that have made me happy in the past week. This Thursday, I can’t believe it’s already a week.

♥ Two more days and all Speakeasy interviews will be done and I will have time to socialise with people outside of a work context!

♥ This is not to say that I do not love my fellow coworkers — as one of them describes it, we are like a basket of puppies. You can’t get much better than puppies!

♥ Beef congee and youtiao made for a very delicious Chinese breakfast yesterday. I’m so glad I live in a place where I can easily assuage homesick food cravings!

♥ The lava cakes I successfully baked for my brother’s early birthday party. (Whew!)

♥ The fabulous Hapa-Palooza Festival of mixed-roots arts and ideas running now through Saturday. I was at the Mixed Voices Raised writers’ panel last night and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Most events are free, so check it out!

♥ Thanks to Rabi for pointing out the great ‘93 things to do before you graduate at UBC’ video done by The Ubyssey (full transcript with links to certain points here):

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q63F_wJH91I]

First Thursday in September and I am brimming over with pleasure for all the things that have been giving me joy in the past week:

♥ Fried eggs make me happy.

♥ Getting nine hours of sleep makes me even happier. Especially after running on half that for the past two weeks.

♥ Days or afternoons off, when I do something I want, and not have to do, just for myself. I love these moments quite intensely, probably because I don’t schedule them in all that regularly.

♥ HMV is having a $5 CD sale. I got Colbie Caillat’s first one, because I’m one of those people who still likes CDs.

A T-shirt we saw in Victoria. Admit it, you like it too.

♥ There’s an 1878 Steinway piano in Craigdarroch Castle, Victoria, where I went with friends last Saturday, that invites visitors with ‘musical training and ability to play melodies that other museum visitors will enjoy’. You can guess what I did (much to the horror of some visitors who didn’t see the sign and were convinced of my criminal activity).

♥ Craig Smart’s ‘123’ that played at the lovely wedding I attended on Sunday. Oh, how I love all the bubble-blowing I am getting to do this summer!

♥ Celebrating a four-year friendship anniversary with my very first Vancouver friend. Thanks to meeting through ASSIST, we actually worked out when we became friends. I haven’t got such records with anyone else!

♥ I love the UBC Farm and its surrounding forest.

Moving back to campus this weekend. I’m so excited!

A short list this week because I’m having trouble thinking:

♥ The smell of lavender as you circle away from the UBC bus loop towards the Student Union Building.

♥ The glorious stickiness of toffee — a friend dumped a huge bag of candy in my office last week and I now want to feed all my visitors sugar.

♥ Finally spending time with the piano: I miss it all the time I’m neglecting it and never realise how much until I start playing again.

♥ Boyce Avenue was how I got through cutting 300 speech bubbles for work purposes on Monday evening. Apparently, they’re playing in Vancouver on September 11th and I really want to go.

♥ My one or two friends who actually get excited when I feed them.

♥ Pandas are the best.

I would love to live in a place with this so much. One day! One far, far off day. In the meantime:

♥ A shout-out goes to my fabulous friends who helped me move out of my last place and are safeguarding half of my belongings until I move into the next one. I couldn’t have done it so quickly without you!

♥ Thanks also go to my parents for giving me an older brother. It’s like having a personal chauffeur, handyman, odd jobs boy, moving man, tech support and grocery supplier all in one — for free!

♥ The Beaty Biodiversity Museum is this amazing, surprisingly large museum right on campus that I only just passed through last week. They have many more collections than I was expecting and I can’t wait to make the time to go again and really look through it all.

♥ Summer days, sitting next to my brother in the car, listening to music as we drive along and the skies are moving sheets of beauty.

♥ I’ve been on a stint of listening to ’90s Chinese music lately, one of which is David Tao’s 流沙 (Liú Shā).

♥ Long walks in the sunshine with no real destination in mind — and bubble-blowing! Particularly next to abandoned train tracks.

♥ Somewhat embarrassingly, I’ve only just started looking — really looking — at Portraits of UBC. (The last time I glanced at the Facebook page was several months ago when my friend said, ‘GO LOOK AT MY PHOTO!’ and I obeyed.) I’ve been a bit down this week, but looking at people’s happy, smiling faces helps to cheer me up. Thanks for doing such great work, Rabi!