A New Year

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Hwan and Reg
After Maui I was back in Toronto by Thursday morning before the end of the year, the dim dark morning, returning to a cat-less apartment. My memories of sunny beaches and bright skies were not enough to shield me from the horrors, the disappointment of returning to work. Is this really what I'm doing, I wondered.

Friday night I went out drinking with Reg and some of his friends, who wanted to watch some UFC. The pints led to more pints, and by the end I found myself shooting pool and singing karaoke. So I guess 2011 still had a few kicks left in it. New Year's eve I did it all over again at Olga's place, with her friends. The Sunday following I went to my parent's house, way up in the northern reaches of Richmond Hill for belated birthday stuff (my father's); food, TV, with some gift exchange.
Mimi is well

That first week of January I took in a couple documentaries, Waking the Green Tiger and Slaughter Nick for President. The former is about China's grassroots green movement, and how it has worked to prevent some hydro dams from being built. An informative documentary, it opened my eyes to how things aren't what I'd perceived them to be in China. Really interesting stuff. The second (a preview) follows a little-known Canadian actor who travels to Serbia to try to understand why one of his short-lived television shows is so popular there. A cute story, one of those peculiar cultural features that emerges from a tumultuous time.

Saturday David and I recorded our tenth episode of The Dave and Hwan Show, and I didn't suffer a debilitating brain aneurysm in this one like I did in e9. While perhaps not our funniest episode, I found myself really enjoying it. I guess it's one of those positive things that I get a kick out of, even if I'm a bit embarrassed to show it to anyone.

Robby and Billy G
Let's see now.. oh yeah, Sunday the 8th I was back at the parent's house, this time for my birthday. And another cake. And big meal. And TV. January is just a month of eating and staying in. I do mean to wake up early and work out but it just never happens that way. I have been pushing myself, and will continue to do so, to be more active in life, and consequently to play less video games. It hurts me to think how little I've accomplished.

Oh hey, I saw William Gibson give an interview (with Robert J. Sawyer) over at the Toronto Reference Library! That was cool. I mean, I went in slightly concerned that I wouldn't be able to follow what was going on, since I wasn't that familiar with his recent work (in particular, the non-fiction he was promoting), but the discussion was easy to follow. He even talked about Neuromancer, joy.

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