Darkschunt Thursday, May 22, 2008
Them Boots Will Walk All Over You (Or At Least, As Far as the Train Station)
Well, so much for promises to blog frequently. It was just before Christmas when I started this 'new refreshed revamped' blog and now it's May and I've posted a glorious total of five posts (actually now four as I've just deleted the last post). Might also make changes to my very first post. But, honestly, what do you write in a first post? It's kind of like trying to write the headers, you know, those few lines between a headline and an article in a paper or magazine. It looks so easy but honestly it's not. Or even headlines. When I was working in newspapers, it took forever to come up with catchy headlines that weren't too corny, too dull, too over-used, etc, etc ...
Anyway, the herald of winter is definitely tooting her horn because it's getting cold these days. "Winter?" some of you may be thinking, "in May? Has she been having one too many gin and tonics again? Take that bottle of Brown Brothers away from her." But no, now that I've left the gloriously humid and warm rainforest temperatures of the equator and have moved a little further towards the southern hemisphere, I get to experience, oh joy, winter in the middle of the year and a truly baking summer at Christmas (when it's so hot you don't want minced pies because you feel like a minced pie).
Well, it's not that bad actually. Coming from temperate rainforest weather, it's actually loads of fun because we never used to even have seasons. Unless you count the monsoon season which isn't really felt in the city at all). Technically, it's still autumn right now but because we're getting all these light showers, it puts me more in the frame of spring. "Smell the spring! I feel spring fever coming on! No, wait, I mean fall. But, definitely, feels more like spring." This is what comes from reading too much Enid Blyton as a kid. And L.M. Montgomery books. And Sweet Valley. Wait, never mind. Sweet Valley was set in all-year-round sunny California.
But, as I drift ever closer to the point I mean to make in this post, the fact is that in these wintry cold rainy grey days, I. Love. My. Boots. I do. Now that the rains are breaking out, so are the boots! My trusty black boots that reach up to that point above ankle and stop just at early-calf-not-quite-mid-calf with a low heel and slightly pointy rectangularish toes have kept my feet warm and toasty these past few weeks and they're a darn sight more comfortable than some of my high heels too. Plus, I've wrecked way too many high heels stomping around in the rain during the past few winters, learning the hard way that slender pretty high heels never last long when you tramp around in them in the cold wet rain, especially over wet grass and clumpy wet earth, wet concrete pavements and wet rough gravely roads, and, erm, wet sticky nightclub floors coated with one too many spilt alcoholic drinks. The thing is, high heels were never made to be worn the way I wear them all year round, constantly and roughly, as if they were sneakers or Timberland boots (I can proudly say I can run and play basketball in high heels). The boots, on the other hand, were made to withstand the kind of abuse I constantly inflict on my footwear.
They were also a complete bargain. Now that I think back on it, both pairs of boots I own were bargain buys! The aforementioned black boots were bought on a holiday in Hong Kong (or Thailand, I can't remember which now) at one of those little shops crammed full of cheap well-made shoes that my sister, my mother and I just about died and went to heaven in. The second pair was bought at the Myers department store during one of their mega early winter sales last year - those were brown, almost knee-length and made to be worn with skinny jeans or tights tucked in or with cute skirts. They're both awesome for winter (though the brown ones have very high heels and, while they're great for alleviating my measly height of five feet three, are just a little tougher to walk a far way in. No taking long walks on short piers or any kind of pier in these boots. These babies are just for walking from the car to the restaurant. Or from my desk in the office to the office kitchen and back).
But they're fantastic. I know girls with millions of pairs of boots - gorgeous, sexy thigh-high boots that I'm still drooling after, adorable ankle ones reminiscent of the early nineties, leather ones, patterned ones, fluffy ugg ones, stomping cool army-type boots, etc - but I'm honestly quite happy with these two because between the two pairs, they go with every single kind of outfit, they keep me warm and cosy while running around in the rain, and my high heels can breath a sigh of relief during this winter - or at least until I get my car and the seasons won't matter so much and they can pop out again. But that's a whole 'nother story to be tellin' later.
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Well, so much for promises to blog frequently. It was just before Christmas when I started this 'new refreshed revamped' blog and now it's May and I've posted a glorious total of five posts (actually now four as I've just deleted the last post). Might also make changes to my very first post. But, honestly, what do you write in a first post? It's kind of like trying to write the headers, you know, those few lines between a headline and an article in a paper or magazine. It looks so easy but honestly it's not. Or even headlines. When I was working in newspapers, it took forever to come up with catchy headlines that weren't too corny, too dull, too over-used, etc, etc ...
Anyway, the herald of winter is definitely tooting her horn because it's getting cold these days. "Winter?" some of you may be thinking, "in May? Has she been having one too many gin and tonics again? Take that bottle of Brown Brothers away from her." But no, now that I've left the gloriously humid and warm rainforest temperatures of the equator and have moved a little further towards the southern hemisphere, I get to experience, oh joy, winter in the middle of the year and a truly baking summer at Christmas (when it's so hot you don't want minced pies because you feel like a minced pie).
Well, it's not that bad actually. Coming from temperate rainforest weather, it's actually loads of fun because we never used to even have seasons. Unless you count the monsoon season which isn't really felt in the city at all). Technically, it's still autumn right now but because we're getting all these light showers, it puts me more in the frame of spring. "Smell the spring! I feel spring fever coming on! No, wait, I mean fall. But, definitely, feels more like spring." This is what comes from reading too much Enid Blyton as a kid. And L.M. Montgomery books. And Sweet Valley. Wait, never mind. Sweet Valley was set in all-year-round sunny California.
But, as I drift ever closer to the point I mean to make in this post, the fact is that in these wintry cold rainy grey days, I. Love. My. Boots. I do. Now that the rains are breaking out, so are the boots! My trusty black boots that reach up to that point above ankle and stop just at early-calf-not-quite-mid-calf with a low heel and slightly pointy rectangularish toes have kept my feet warm and toasty these past few weeks and they're a darn sight more comfortable than some of my high heels too. Plus, I've wrecked way too many high heels stomping around in the rain during the past few winters, learning the hard way that slender pretty high heels never last long when you tramp around in them in the cold wet rain, especially over wet grass and clumpy wet earth, wet concrete pavements and wet rough gravely roads, and, erm, wet sticky nightclub floors coated with one too many spilt alcoholic drinks. The thing is, high heels were never made to be worn the way I wear them all year round, constantly and roughly, as if they were sneakers or Timberland boots (I can proudly say I can run and play basketball in high heels). The boots, on the other hand, were made to withstand the kind of abuse I constantly inflict on my footwear.
They were also a complete bargain. Now that I think back on it, both pairs of boots I own were bargain buys! The aforementioned black boots were bought on a holiday in Hong Kong (or Thailand, I can't remember which now) at one of those little shops crammed full of cheap well-made shoes that my sister, my mother and I just about died and went to heaven in. The second pair was bought at the Myers department store during one of their mega early winter sales last year - those were brown, almost knee-length and made to be worn with skinny jeans or tights tucked in or with cute skirts. They're both awesome for winter (though the brown ones have very high heels and, while they're great for alleviating my measly height of five feet three, are just a little tougher to walk a far way in. No taking long walks on short piers or any kind of pier in these boots. These babies are just for walking from the car to the restaurant. Or from my desk in the office to the office kitchen and back).
But they're fantastic. I know girls with millions of pairs of boots - gorgeous, sexy thigh-high boots that I'm still drooling after, adorable ankle ones reminiscent of the early nineties, leather ones, patterned ones, fluffy ugg ones, stomping cool army-type boots, etc - but I'm honestly quite happy with these two because between the two pairs, they go with every single kind of outfit, they keep me warm and cosy while running around in the rain, and my high heels can breath a sigh of relief during this winter - or at least until I get my car and the seasons won't matter so much and they can pop out again. But that's a whole 'nother story to be tellin' later.
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Monday, November 26, 2007
What would you do?
One movie which I really liked was 16 Blocks, featuring Mos Def and Bruce Willis. I particularly liked Mos Def's character in the movie, he was so sweet! And there's a question in the movie which I really, really, really liked. I'll try to repeat it as accurately as I can.
Q: You're in a car, getting away from a hurricane. You pass by a bus stop where there are three people. There is an old lady who needs to go to the hospital, your best friend who saved your life once and the girl of your dreams. Your car can only fit you and one other passenger. What do you do?
*** Think about the answer real hard! ***
A: You give the car keys to your best friend and you let him take the old lady to the hospital while you stay at the bus stop with the girl of your dreams.
I thought that was just really, really, really sweet.
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Q: You're in a car, getting away from a hurricane. You pass by a bus stop where there are three people. There is an old lady who needs to go to the hospital, your best friend who saved your life once and the girl of your dreams. Your car can only fit you and one other passenger. What do you do?
*** Think about the answer real hard! ***
A: You give the car keys to your best friend and you let him take the old lady to the hospital while you stay at the bus stop with the girl of your dreams.
I thought that was just really, really, really sweet.
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Alexander McCall Smith and Elizabeth Blackadder
A new author that I discovered this year is Alexander McCall Smith. I particularly enjoy those books of his that are set in the rainy, genteel city of Edinburgh, Scotland and feature Isabel Dalhousie, philosopher and amaetur sleuth - the Sunday Philosopher's Club, Friends, Lovers, Chocolate and The Right Attitude to Rain. There's something gentle about how his stories unfold, slowly and subtly, patiently letting each detail unfold in its own time until you see the whole rich painting in its entirety. Smith has been compared to Agatha Christie - or at least, his famous heroine Precious Ramotswe has been called the Miss Marple of Botswana. Now, I'm a huge Agatha Christie fan and I just feel no one can compare to Christie and her calibre. Her characters, her plot, her mysteries are just in a whole other league from almost any writer I know. Smith's books, though, are quite enjoyable in their own right - hey, they had me picking up book after book of his in the library - they have to be good!
The interesting thing about Smith's Edinburgh books is that, upon my first reading of The Sunday Philosopher's Club, I wondered "when was this book written?" It feels as if Smith could have written his books around the later years of Christie's time. It makes me wonder about what Edinburgh is like now and if it is really as delightfully old-fashion and a throwback to the past as it seems in Smith's books.
Another thing I like about Smith's Dalhousie books is that he tends to feature a lot of Scottish art and poetry in the books. Dalhousie is a huge Scottish art fan and collects paintings and visits galleries. It's so interesting reading about the art in his books. The Scottish artist Elizabeth Blackadder features quite a bit in his books. I just had to go online and look up the artists in his books after reading them. And I feel that the way he describes the paintings in his books could equally be suited to describing the way his books are like - you look at the painting/read the book and the longer or more frequently you do so, you would notice the subtle details that make themselves known, one by one, slowly coming all together to form the big picture. There are subplots that you can read between the lines. It's all very gentle - that's the word I keep coming up with for his Edinburgh books.
Dream, Flowers and Cats by Elizabeth Blackadder.
Two Cats On a Kelim by Elizabeth Blackadder.
Tulips by Elizabeth Blackadder.
Smith is actually more well-known for his books set in Botswana that feature the aforementioned Precious Ramotswe, practical and no-nonsense female detective extraordinaire. They're pretty popular because I've only been able to get my hands on one of the books so far in the library, they're always out on loan. Probably, I'll talk more about Precious later on when I've actually read more of the books.
To find out more about Elizabeth Blackadder, visit the Wikipedia page on her.
To find out more about Alexander McCall Smith, visit his Random House website.
(0) comments
The interesting thing about Smith's Edinburgh books is that, upon my first reading of The Sunday Philosopher's Club, I wondered "when was this book written?" It feels as if Smith could have written his books around the later years of Christie's time. It makes me wonder about what Edinburgh is like now and if it is really as delightfully old-fashion and a throwback to the past as it seems in Smith's books.
Another thing I like about Smith's Dalhousie books is that he tends to feature a lot of Scottish art and poetry in the books. Dalhousie is a huge Scottish art fan and collects paintings and visits galleries. It's so interesting reading about the art in his books. The Scottish artist Elizabeth Blackadder features quite a bit in his books. I just had to go online and look up the artists in his books after reading them. And I feel that the way he describes the paintings in his books could equally be suited to describing the way his books are like - you look at the painting/read the book and the longer or more frequently you do so, you would notice the subtle details that make themselves known, one by one, slowly coming all together to form the big picture. There are subplots that you can read between the lines. It's all very gentle - that's the word I keep coming up with for his Edinburgh books.
Dream, Flowers and Cats by Elizabeth Blackadder.
Two Cats On a Kelim by Elizabeth Blackadder.
Tulips by Elizabeth Blackadder.
Smith is actually more well-known for his books set in Botswana that feature the aforementioned Precious Ramotswe, practical and no-nonsense female detective extraordinaire. They're pretty popular because I've only been able to get my hands on one of the books so far in the library, they're always out on loan. Probably, I'll talk more about Precious later on when I've actually read more of the books.
To find out more about Elizabeth Blackadder, visit the Wikipedia page on her.
To find out more about Alexander McCall Smith, visit his Random House website.
(0) comments
Summer and Sandals.
It's been a long and tiring weekend. We actually didn't do much but some quick shopping and a barbeque by the beach but the weather was so hot that it made everyone so tired by the end of the day. It's been ages since I've been to the beach, though, and it was nice just to enjoy the sun and sand and wind. Unfortunately, most of us didn't bring any swim wear so we just stayed on land.
The Gutter Philosopher has left to work on a port for summer break and I'm really sad about not being able to see him until next year because our schedules are such that we'll keep missing each other until about mid or late January. I'm really going to miss him so much!
We had a good time over the weekend though, just hanging out with each other. And he surprised me on Friday with a pair of gorgeous Gisele Bundchen's Ipanema Y Ukatu Xingu sandals. I had been thinking about buying a pair lately but hadn't told him so it was a really awesome surprise. I tried finding a picture of the sandals online and this is the best I could find - Gisele is holding up the sandal I have! I also like that a portion of the profits go to the Y Ikatu Xingu campaign to preserve the Xingu River headwaters in Brazil, not to mention that these sandals would help spread awareness. I think keeping rivers pristine and preserving the cultures and way of lives of people such as the 14 Indian tribes who make their homes around the Xingu River is such an important issue. So it's pretty awesome not only to own these sandals but to know they're for a cause as well.
I would give a million of these sandals to have the Gutter Philosopher back for summer though. A month is just way too long! He's worth more than a million sandals. :)
To find out more about the Xingu River check out their campaign website.
To find out more about Gisele's Ipanema sandal collection, visit here.
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The Gutter Philosopher has left to work on a port for summer break and I'm really sad about not being able to see him until next year because our schedules are such that we'll keep missing each other until about mid or late January. I'm really going to miss him so much!
We had a good time over the weekend though, just hanging out with each other. And he surprised me on Friday with a pair of gorgeous Gisele Bundchen's Ipanema Y Ukatu Xingu sandals. I had been thinking about buying a pair lately but hadn't told him so it was a really awesome surprise. I tried finding a picture of the sandals online and this is the best I could find - Gisele is holding up the sandal I have! I also like that a portion of the profits go to the Y Ikatu Xingu campaign to preserve the Xingu River headwaters in Brazil, not to mention that these sandals would help spread awareness. I think keeping rivers pristine and preserving the cultures and way of lives of people such as the 14 Indian tribes who make their homes around the Xingu River is such an important issue. So it's pretty awesome not only to own these sandals but to know they're for a cause as well.
I would give a million of these sandals to have the Gutter Philosopher back for summer though. A month is just way too long! He's worth more than a million sandals. :)
To find out more about the Xingu River check out their campaign website.
To find out more about Gisele's Ipanema sandal collection, visit here.
(0) comments
Friday, November 16, 2007
The First Post.
Welcome to Darkschunt.
What is Darkschunt? A lot of people ask me that. I really don't know. It was a name I made up when I was in high school which I used to name a few things and places in the stories I wrote. I like the name, though. Darkschunt. So when I created my first blog, I named it Darkschunt. Now, I'm older and I've decided it's time to revamp Darkschunt. Give it a complete overhaul. A makeover! I wanted to get rid of the old posts as well, several of which I cringe when I re-read, others that make me smile. But, like a lot of things I should throw out, I can't bear to delete the old posts. So I've made a new Darkschunt. Darkschunt the Second. Darkschunt, the Second Child (which is fitting, as I too am the second child in the family). And hopefully, I'll do a better job of updating this blog because I'm one of those terrible people who keep promising to regularly update their blogs but never do. But fear not! I have a plan. I must post at least one entry per week. Whether I actually can do this remains to be seen but that's all right - I must remain positive.
Another thing is pictures. It makes me envious when photo-savvy people put their glam/pretty/funny pictures on their blogs. It is also a big part of what makes a blog attractive. Unfortunately, my photo skills are average, my camera is lousy and makes protesting noises every time I try to take pictures (make note: must make strong hints to everyone that a camera would be a great Christmas gift for me) not to mention the fact that I've lost the cable so I currently can't hook the camera up to the pc, and besides, I'm just not a very snap-happy person. I'm just not one of those people who are forever whipping out their mini cams/mobile phone cams and going snap-snap-snap at the tiniest thing. Sometimes I wish I am because then I'd have lots of fantastic photos to remember events and stuff from the past. But everytime I take my camera out with me, I forget to use it or it goes all wonky on me. Ah well. Perhaps a new camera would be a different story. (strong hints all over the place here)
Hmm ... this isn't a very promising first post to a blog. But fear not! I have all sorts of plans to go thieving on the Internet for glam/pretty/funny pictures before I receive a camera for Christmas. And I shall blog - I shall blog! And then we'll see. Something will come of it! Positivity is the key word. Darkschunt the Second shall live!
That sounds terrific, like a Russian Emperor or something. Here's to Darkschunt the Second! *Break out the blood red wine and gold chalice*
(0) comments
What is Darkschunt? A lot of people ask me that. I really don't know. It was a name I made up when I was in high school which I used to name a few things and places in the stories I wrote. I like the name, though. Darkschunt. So when I created my first blog, I named it Darkschunt. Now, I'm older and I've decided it's time to revamp Darkschunt. Give it a complete overhaul. A makeover! I wanted to get rid of the old posts as well, several of which I cringe when I re-read, others that make me smile. But, like a lot of things I should throw out, I can't bear to delete the old posts. So I've made a new Darkschunt. Darkschunt the Second. Darkschunt, the Second Child (which is fitting, as I too am the second child in the family). And hopefully, I'll do a better job of updating this blog because I'm one of those terrible people who keep promising to regularly update their blogs but never do. But fear not! I have a plan. I must post at least one entry per week. Whether I actually can do this remains to be seen but that's all right - I must remain positive.
Another thing is pictures. It makes me envious when photo-savvy people put their glam/pretty/funny pictures on their blogs. It is also a big part of what makes a blog attractive. Unfortunately, my photo skills are average, my camera is lousy and makes protesting noises every time I try to take pictures (make note: must make strong hints to everyone that a camera would be a great Christmas gift for me) not to mention the fact that I've lost the cable so I currently can't hook the camera up to the pc, and besides, I'm just not a very snap-happy person. I'm just not one of those people who are forever whipping out their mini cams/mobile phone cams and going snap-snap-snap at the tiniest thing. Sometimes I wish I am because then I'd have lots of fantastic photos to remember events and stuff from the past. But everytime I take my camera out with me, I forget to use it or it goes all wonky on me. Ah well. Perhaps a new camera would be a different story. (strong hints all over the place here)
Hmm ... this isn't a very promising first post to a blog. But fear not! I have all sorts of plans to go thieving on the Internet for glam/pretty/funny pictures before I receive a camera for Christmas. And I shall blog - I shall blog! And then we'll see. Something will come of it! Positivity is the key word. Darkschunt the Second shall live!
That sounds terrific, like a Russian Emperor or something. Here's to Darkschunt the Second! *Break out the blood red wine and gold chalice*
(0) comments
