A fun and productive weekend with my lady. In addition to completely reading one book for my Japanese Fiction class (Ukigumo by Futabatei Shimei, which was quite good) and half of another for my 18th C. BritLit class (see below), I got an oil and transmission fluid change in 15 minutes on my car, did my yearly taxes (and found I'd be getting a nice refund), applied for financial aid for the next school year (though I'm hoping it'll be unneccessary, that I'll get a TA position), and worked on customizing the ceremony and vows for the wedding. Janet and I got out for a little bit to do some shopping; we found four dark red cushions for our dining chairs, went to the Asia Market on the corner and got all sorts of goodies, and rented a couple movies at Blockbuster.

The first film was Once Upon a Time in China III, which stars a young Jet Li, and has lots of great martial arts action. The thing that impressed me the most was the fight sequences when they were carrying the traditional Chinese lions (which typically need two or three people to work), and they would have to keep doing the movements for the mask and flapping the mouth open and closed or blinking the eyelids, all while punching and kicking another lion operator which blew fire or used spears. Very fun.

The other film was Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine, which Janet had seen already twice before, but which I hadn't yet seen. Man. Even if I sometimes find Moore's attitude and approach very abrasive and off-putting, this film is amazing. I never realized we had such a gun epidemic in this country. And it brings up a very good point about how we are barraged by fear-inducing media from all sides. Whether it's Tom Ridge saying that chemical attacks are imminent and all you have to do to protect yourself is seal yourself up in a room with duct tape and plastic sheeting; or local newscasts which report murder and fire and the dangers of household products; or advertisements which convince you that if you don't buy this brand of skin cream that you'll have zits forever and never get laid, or if you don't buy this type of car that you'll never advance in the world and always be looked upon as a loser. Moore also treats the Columbine shootings with honesty and respect, even if it makes it difficult or painful to watch. The documentary was a real eye-opener.

There were times during the weekend when I was on the couch reading, and I would stop and look at Janet on the floor working on a new painting, something not commissioned, something just for herself, and I just couldn't imagine what I did in a past life to deserve such luck. There's a scene in one of Jonathan Carroll's books (I forget which, it might be The Marriage of Sticks), where the main character has just started a love affair with the man she'll later marry, and one of his favorite things about the relationship is just walking into a store and shopping with his new lover. It's the little stuff like that -- whether it's looking at chocolate-covered Pocky sticks in the Asia Market, or sharing the same space in the living room for a little while, or waking up and knowing that she'll still be next to you -- that just blow my mind. The relationships I had prior to Janet never made it nearly this far (I think the longest was only two and a half months) and they now seem like practice, a warm-up for the real thing. I'm trying real hard to get this one right.

Now Reading:
An Essay on the Art of Ingeniously Tormenting by Jane Collier

Stories Out to Publishers:
4

Books Read This Year:
10

Zines/Chapbooks/Fiction Mags Read This Year:
4