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featured My San Francisco Chronicles NaNoWriMo television

Featured on Bay Area Local Television–

In high spirits this evening; earlier today, I got the chance to participate in a television audience for the first time. The “View from the Bay” show is a local talk-show, featuring food and local cultural outlooks for mid-day viewers to watch. I initially wanted to be in the audience because of Jaden Hair being a guest on the show; however, I also got the opportunity to submit a question to the consumer reporter on the show and ask the question on-air. Exciting!

In NaNoWriMo news, looks like the Muse is picking up a little speed, at least for now. Still behind on that daily word-count, but I’ll just keep chugging along. Thanks to my friends on Twitter, I have momentum to keep me going. Looking forward to the rest of the month!

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NaNoWriMo photography

Falling into NaNoWriMo

I was pretty hyped up for NaNoWriMo, earlier than in the past two years…but events from over the weekend made me lose momentum and motivation. My word count has been lagging behind, and really, my plot hasn’t been as inspired as the previous two years.

I’ve considered dropping out already (despite it being only Day 3), but I feel like, for my own sake, I should keep doing this and see the project through the end of the month.

I find that it’s easier to focus on projects like NaNoWriMo when I know I’m doing it to avoid unpleasant things. I hate the feeling of waiting around with nothing to pass the time.

The picture above was one of my favorite shots from my Halloween walk on the weekend. It made me think about Romeo & Juliet, naturally, but that dummy mummy up there makes the picture evermore mysterious/ominous.

I suppose I should go and add more to my word count now. Just checking in briefly on the blog. Best of luck to those who are participating in NaNoWriMo.

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NaNoWriMo quotation

Tea Bag Wisdom

Every week, when I visit my friend, I look forward to drinking a cup of Good Earth Tea, which always has a quotation attached to the tea bag. It’s almost like opening up a fortune cookie, the anticipation of looking inside to see what words have come to me by chance.

I had written an entry during the middle of summer how one of these particular quotations struck me in a way that really opened my eyes up. To this day, I still have that quotation tucked away in my wallet to remind me that I really do not need to feel like I must do everything all at once. One thing at a time will do.

In other news, it’s less than a week until NaNoWriMo, and I honestly don’t have anything really brewing in my head in terms of a plot/storyline. I have been brainstorming, sure, but nothing seems to be accumulating into something captivating. I suppose that’s the point though: I just need to be writing something, period. Despite not being surrounded by other participants physically, I feel like the energy I feel from the forums really feeds my motivation. It’s too bad I can’t go to the Write-A-Thon this year, but I suppose I can have my own private Write-A-Thon sometime this next month.

Well, onward!

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inspiration My San Francisco Chronicles reflection

Captivating Cards

Yesterday after work, I was over in Japantown looking at some advertisements, which then led me to the Kinokuniya Card Store, which then led me to these cards here: when I first saw the card on the right, I felt spellbound by it. The picture doesn’t do it much justice; the colors make the scene seem so much more surreal. I stood there in the store, staring at the card for a good 2-3 minutes until I snapped out of the trance.

I wasn’t going to buy the card, but then I found myself admiring the card on the left, designed by local San Franciscan artist Tomoko Maruyama. I first stumbled upon her work via Facebook and had since been trying to hunt down her cute, light designs in the city. Lo and behold, most of her work is featured in Japantown, so now I know. I picked up the Tomoko Maruyama card and then, thinking a bit, I went back and picked up the other card.

I’ve used the Tomoko Maruyama card already for a friend, but the other card, I think I shall keep. Strangely, it has a power over me; after buying the card, I felt a real sudden urge to just write. I decided to write a letter to an old friend after that, scribbling furiously into another card I had bought at the shop. After finishing the letter, I still wanted to write a lot more–how did such a simple card give me so much inspiration? Unfortunately, I had to suppress my urges to write more since I had to attend my Korean language class; after class, I didn’t feel that spark anymore.

I had the card displayed on my desk right now; perhaps I have found my muse for this next month.

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featured My San Francisco Chronicles photography

Featured on the "i live here: SF" Project

Photo part of i live here: SF set by Julie.

It’s amazing what opportunities I have stumbled upon in San Francisco since moving here over two years ago. I met the wonderful Julie last Friday at the Municipal Pier to take part in her ongoing photography/story project, “i live here:SF”. She started the project earlier this year and has captured some amazing photos and stories of many city transplants and locals, having them all converge through Julie’s website.

Julie herself is such a kind soul; we walked along the Municipal Pier, which was one of my old haunts when I used to live by Fisherman’s Wharf. The morning was foggy, which at first I was a little disappointed with, but Julie was so easy to work with, staying positive about how the fog gives a certain glow to the photos. She greeted people who walked by with a nod and a grin, and in many ways, I felt honored to be in her presence with her warm spirit.

The photo shoot was my first, but I felt comfortable enough throughout the hour-or-so session. As the hour progressed, the fog lifted quietly from the Bay and soon we were greeted with the muggy sunshine of the day. We ended the shoot by celebrating the spirit of the Wharf: eating crab/shrimp sandwiches from the street vendors there. It was a pleasant way to end the session, and I was glad to be able to work with Julie. I hope to work with her more in the future.

View the full entry and photo shoot.