Photo info: SONY NEX-6, 16mm, f/4, 1/60 sec, ISO400 “Sunset” Cedar Park, 2018
こんばんは。How’s it going?
This morning Bay and I went to the movies to see Pixar’s Coco. It was excellent! I loved the story and the animation… and Dante the dog was so funny. However, I was really expecting to be teary-eyed at the end since I’ve heard from multiple people that they cried, but although it did tug on my heartstrings my eyes didn’t get watery. Not even close to Your Name (君の名は) for me. But it was still fun and I enjoyed it a lot more than Inside Out, which I thought was over-rated.
Later in the afternoon, I watched 5 Centimeters Per Second by Makoto Shinkai (Your Name) and enjoyed it a lot. There’s a lot of things left unsaid in the three short vignettes, and I liked that. The animation was of course beautiful like all his movies, and I think I enjoyed the second vignette, Cosmonaut, the best. I guess because it has surfing, supercubs, and rockets. 😀
Speaking of movies, I’ve added my 2018 Movies & Books page, in which I list out what I’ve watched and read for the year. So far, just these two movies.
Today’s photo is of the sunset we enjoyed. The sky had a cool, wintry color.
Back to the 90s is a movie about a teenager who accidentally travels back in time and tries to repair his mom and dad’s rocky relationship. It’s a fun story, with some touching moments and a couple good plot twists thrown in. Add some nostalgic ’90s references (Tamagotchi!) and you have a nice, entertaining movie. Nothing amazing, but the acting is strong, and the ending is both satisfying yet leaves you wanting more. (sequel please?)
I really enjoyed Som and Tam’s characters, and learning about their motivations brings a welcome level of complexity and interest to the story. It’s also the first time I’ve seen a Thai movie, so that made it fascinating to watch. Cool to get a glimpse into an unfamiliar culture, even if it is off by two decades and covered with a Hollywood-like polish. 😁
BTW, I came across Back to the 90s by reading Age’s blog, Write Them All. Lots of good things to read about there. Check it out if you have a chance!
I definitely recommend Back to the 90s if you like romcoms or are a fan of Baifern (the actress who plays Som), which I have now become. Enjoy!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5, 1/55 sec, ISO3200 “Lamy Safari” Cedar Park, 2017
こんばんは。How’s it going?
At long last, I have a fountain pen that I love! It’s the LAMY Safari, with a broad nib. First of all, the broad nib is wonderful and suits my writing style. I mentioned in a previous post that I used to have a pen with a broad nib and that I wanted to find something similar. The LAMY fits the bill perfectly. And the design of the grip, which has two flat facets, is so comfortable to me and positions the nib at the perfect angle. Plus, I love the bright yellow color. It’s really a great pen.
I bought a converter with it so that I could fill it with my Sailor Souten ink, and it looks really nice. The ink’s color really shows with the broad line. However, I want to eventually get a brighter turquoise/aqua ink, which is the color I used to have with my calligraphy pen back in high school. But that can wait. I’ll enjoy the Souten for a while. 😀
The second pen that I newly bought is the Uni-Ball AIR. It’s also fantastic. It too has a very broad line, so of course, I think it is great (my other favorite pen is a 1 mm Zebra Sarasa). I am using the AIR for sketching and it works well for that. It glides over the paper nicely, probably the smoothest pen I own… the design is so sleek and it just gently comes to a point, and since the tip is black like the body, it looks really sharp. I did a sketch tonight using the AIR, and I think the pen worked nicely. The sketch itself is not so great, but I had fun drawing. I’ll probably draw the same scene again (from a reference photo) and try to improve it. By the way, I read that the AIR’s ink is waterproof, so it is good for putting watercolor over it. That’s the primary reason I bought the AIR, actually!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5, 1/40 sec, ISO3200 “Sketch” Cedar Park, 2017
So, back to the Lamy Safari. It’s very different from my Pilot Metropolitan, and I can now form a better opinion about the Metro. I think it’s competent pen, and writes well, but to me, it lacks personality and charm. Simply put, it’s boring. I don’t really have a desire to pick it up. I guess my taste in pens is for something more fun, quirky, and eye-catching. Which is why…
I ordered another “fun” pen: the Pilot Kakuno. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be similar in writing quality as the Metropolitan (although with an even finer nib) but it just looks so fun. The nib even has a winky smiley face on it! How cool is that? I just want to pick it up and write with it.
You know, with cameras, they say the make and model doesn’t make a huge difference in picture quality. But if you find a camera attractive, you’ll want to pick it up and use it more. And if it can get you out shooting more, that’s a good thing! I guess it is the same things with pens. The Metropolitan doesn’t inspire me to take the cap off and write/sketch, but the LAMY does, and I am pretty sure the Kakuno will as well.
Ok, enough pen talk! I’ll let you go. As always, thanks for reading!
Photo info: SONY SLT-A77V, 35mm, f/2.4, 1/1500 sec, ISO640 “Traveler’s Notebook (Passport)” Cedar Park, 2017
こんばんは。How’s it going?
Today my brand new Traveler’s Notebook (passport size) arrived on my doorstep. I’ve been looking at these notebooks (formerly named Midori) for a while now, and after watching numerous YouTube videos and reading reviews, I finally pulled the trigger and ordered mine.
I went with the “camel” color leather, which not only looks great but smells nice too. If you aren’t familiar with a Traveler’s Notebook, it’s basically a plain leather cover, with inserts that are held in place with elastic bands. There are two sizes: the regular size and the smaller passport-sized version, which is the one I went with.
The most common inserts are notepads (lined, graph, or blank), monthly planner, weekly planner, and daily planner. In addition, there are craft folder sleeves, plastic zipper pocket, and plastic sticker pockets.
My starter set came with a blank notebook and two extra elastic bands. I ordered a craft sleeve and zipper pocket separately, and these three inserts are a nice start. It’s not too bulky, so I think I can add one more notebook (probably a lined version) and it will be perfect. I also attached a couple of small binder clips to the craft sleeve which acts as a little loop for me to attach my pen.
What’s great about the Traveler’s Notebook system (and there are many cheaper clones available) is that when you fill up one insert, you can just pop in another one. It’s super versatile!
If you do a YouTube search for Traveler’s Notebooks or Midori Notebooks, you’ll see that many people love to use them for artistic journaling. Some of the examples are pretty amazing, especially the sketchbook notebooks. Just check out this Flickr group to see some awesome sketches.
I’m using mine to do some little sketches, practice writing hiragana/katakana, and take notes. I’m also using it to replace my wallet – to hold a couple credit cards, blank checks, and some cash. And of course a couple Instax prints of the family.
I’m really happy with my Traveler’s Notebook and can see myself using it for a long, long time. 😄
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/100 sec, ISO2000 “Traveler’s Notebook (Passport)” Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2, 1/250 sec, ISO1000 “Stickers” Cedar Park, 2017
こんばんは。
Today’s photo is of my Liberty Water Bottle, which I got a couple years ago. I like it because it isn’t too big and is great quality. I bought a 16 oz. black one which has a ninja/motorcycle helmet kind of design (with a poor attempt at the kanji for “mizu”), but it looks kind of suspicious since it is all-black. I guess I am just a bit paranoid about it, so I slapped some stickers on it to make it a little more conspicuous.
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/80 sec, ISO6400 “Kanji?” Cedar Park, 2017
Even though my Liberty bottle is relatively small, it’s still just a tad too wide to fit comfortably in the water bottle holder on my Patagonia Minimass bag. It’s a really tight fit, and since I keep my Anker battery in the interior pocket on the other side of the holder, it has even less room and doesn’t slide in easily. So, I left the Liberty at home while I was traveling in Morocco, and I just re-used a small plastic water bottle that I picked up at the store. It made me a bit sad to use the environmentally unfriendly bottle, so I think I’d like to find a slim eco-bottle soon.
The Patagonia bag is pretty great, but the only downside is the single small water bottle pouch. If only it were a little wider! Perhaps a little DIY project is in order to remedy it. Or if there is an add-on holder that I could latch on somehow, that might work. Must look into this!
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Update: After fiddling around a bit, I moved the large battery back to the other side of the interior to make room for the water bottle. I think it will work!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO6400 “Bottle and Bag” Cedar Park, 2017
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My camera & photos
I use a Fujifilm X-series camera for most of the photos on this site and my Instagram. Why not pick one up for yourself?
