view from your desk chair

Andrew Sullivan of The Daily Dish often posts photos from readers in a series called "View from Your Window." It became so popular, in fact, that he put together a little book compilation of the photos for sale. My version? View from your desk chair. I was so thrilled by Susan's photo of the view from her office that I took another photo of my desk. I got a photo from Christopher's desk too (so messy! hehe). How about you? Care to share?

My desk: coffee, of course :)

Christopher's desk at Dow Jones: Do I spy Dunkin' Donuts?

**added: Annie's desk at Ignited Minds

***added: Susan's desk at Y&R

office space

In college, I always feared getting a 9 to 5 job. Ron Livingston's superb portrayal of middle-management angst in Office Space scared the begeezus out of me. And is it just me or do the folks right out of college hate their jobs the most? It was always those seniors who graduated and then came back to school to bitch and complain about their jobs that made me certain I was about to jump the plank into a sad sea of timesheets, overlooked promotions, incompetent managers, and stale birthday cake. Little did I know that the key to workplace happiness is to follow your bliss. I'm grateful for my job. The afternoon light coming in through the windows was so lovely today that I had to take some photos of my office.

(isn't my officemate's plant insane? She's been growing it for about 5 years)

cooking without julia

This weekend we ventured to the Museum of American History. It's a beautiful space that's recently been rennovated, courtesy of Ralph Lauren. It was kind of weird to see the big Ralph Lauren, Polo logo at a museum, but I guess companies have been funding national museums for a long time. We found Julia Child's kitchen :) We also made a delicious dinner of lemon basil pepper tilapia, Chris' award-winning mashed potatoes, green beans, and a simple salad. YUM!

(remember Julie Powell placing butter at the museum in Julie and Julia?)

**Also, some big news! I will be going to Alabama the first weekend of March to be part of a Civil Rights Pilgrimage. You can read about it here. I am so excited and grateful for the opportunity. I am thinking of doing some blogging for Sojourners about what it's like for a second-generation Korean American to be learning about the Civil Rights movement--a part of U.S. history that I think many like me think is irrelevant to them. I'll be attending with a delegation of members of Congress and House representatives. I hope to get some good interviews, if possible. Your prayers are appreciated.

monochrome

When I first saw the latest Vanity Fair cover, I was intrigued by the collection of young, beautiful actresses dressed in Easter pastels. How could you not be drawn to such an image? And yet something didn't feel quite right.

It wasn't until I read a snippet of an interview with Precious star, Gabourey Sidibe, that I realized the "whites only" problem. As an editor, I'm surprised by the short-sightedness of this cover strategy. Besides Sidibe, there are plenty of other "young hollywood" actresses of color that deserve mention, such as Zoe Saldana, who stars in some some of the biggest movies this past year and to come (Avatar, Star Trek, Death at a Funeral).

Plenty of folks have written about this, but I just thought I'd put it out there. In my opinion, there is no excuse for an "all white" anything in this day and age (unless it's a turkey platter). The year is 2010, for God's sake. But it could also be an industry-wide problem. A quick gander at this year's Oscar nominees reveals a rather monochrome line up. But that doesn't justify anything for me, just helps me realize this is a bigger problem than just one magazine cover.

Thoughts?

(Photo credit: Krista Smith for Vanity Fair)

the games we play

**Compliments of Aaron. Genius.

Ash Wednesday

“Remember that you are dust

and to dust you shall return.”

(photo: hazevi)

customized

I went to a thrift store the other day and found a vest with my initials on it. WIN!


People at work asked me if I got my vest monogrammed. Nope. Thrift store find. 7 bucks.
My poor office mate has no idea that I am surreptitiously taking photos of the back of her head. :)

I promise actual writing in future posts. I realize this blog has degenerated into the Jeannie show, but it's mostly because I got the Droid and taking photos of myself and emailing them to my family has made my parents ridiculously happy.

my 'hood

Who says I live in the ghetto?
Here's a video from my neighborhood, Columbia Heights, shot last week during the snowstorm. I must find out what kind of equipment these people are using. The images are totally gorge!

Washington, DC Snow Storm from Es Video! on Vimeo.

Blood.

My family is the best.

some fond memories

This past weekend was our pseudo-Valentine's day because Chris and I won't be able to be together this coming weekend. We had a lovely time! We ate amazing food (dumplings twice in one day) and saw the Tony-award winning musical, Next to Normal. It was heavy content but very inspiring. Thanks to 'topher for a memorable and fun-filled weekend! Prepare to drool as you look at the photos.

And now I am snowed in for the third day in a row-- this blizzard in D.C. has been incredible!

(I think it's funny that Chris and I share one beer

between the two of us. We're such lightweights!)

Also, note how much better my photos (1-4)

look compared with Christopher's (5, 6).

Droid v. iPhone ... Droid +1.

me today: editing audio

Sometimes, my job is just plain fun.

what are you reading?

I went to my monthly book club meeting last night and had such a great time sipping herbal tea, eating home made cookies, and discussing our book club book. This month we read an excellent collection of short stories by Edward P. Jones entitled, All Aunt Hagar's Children. All of the stories are set in Washington, D.C., so it was particularly relevant to our group and conversation.

I am simultaneously reading a memoir written by my former professor Jane Bernstein. Her sister was murdered when Jane was just 17, and the book, Bereft, chronicles her investigation into the circumstances of her sister's death. It's a fascinating read and I feel lucky that I had the chance to work so closely with such a superb writer.

Finally, Chris and I are reading through a C.S. Lewis reader. Even though I grew up reading Christian books and even studied them in graduate school, I have never sat down and read an entire C.S. Lewis book, other than The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. This has been a great study for me. Lewis is a delightful writer--surprisingly funny (I often chuckle at his "stodgy britishisms"), crystal clear with his arguments, and yet you never feel lectured at (even though he is very pedantic). Instead, you feel like you're both in armchairs, smoking pipes together, while he talks at length about the moral argument for faith and the unending stupidity of Masters students.

Don't know what I'll pick up next, but I'm happy to take suggestions!

me and ezra

If you remember a while back, Chris and I went to the National Geographic Museum to see the Terra Cotta Warriors. Afterwards, Chris bought me one. Meet Ezra :)

Isn't he so noble and strong?