a lovely day

Went to a lychee yard at Yuen Long with a group of hospitalized patients on Sunday. They are paralyzed both arms and legs. It means they need assistance on basic things, like having a sip of coke. The weather is just perfect. Every one is happy. I got travel sickness as usual. But I know all I need is a good night sleep. In the morning, I will be well again. I can walk to the bakery and get my favourite bagel for breakfast as usual. How amazing! What a blessing!

serenade and symphony

Went to the concert of Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra at the new AIG Tower. My knowledge of classical music is literally ZERO but I think it's the magical part about it. You can just relate to it. You can just feel the happiness and the saddness. Dvorak Serenade in D minor is a beautiful piece.

wsj

I like the new compact format of Wall Street Journal. The paper is redesigned by a design team led by Dr. Mario Garcia. It is renamed as Wall Street Journal Asia and Wall Street Journal Europe. The typeface has also been changed. Another significant change is the integration between the print and online editions of the paper. Readers can find links on the print editions which point to additional content available online. I will definitely check out their new magazine-style Weekend Journal coming out this Friday.

sock dogs

My wacom pen is broken a little bit. Fortunately it still works. I can't image how I can do illustration without it.



The new window display of Paul Smith shop is sock dogs. I like it a lot. Learn how to make one from this link.

man of reason vs man of faith

Here are the books I finished lately:

Mr Nice by Howard Marks
Digital Fortress by Dan Brown
The Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews



Mr. Nice is the autobiography of Howard Marks. After finishing his education at Oxford, he became a drug dealer and ended up serving seven years at a State Penitentiary in Indiana. I don't really enjoy it. There's nothing interesting about how a person ruined his life.

Digital Fortress is a MUST read. It is also about code breaking but better than The Da Vinci Code, especially the ending. I like the writing style of Dan Brown. He always keeps each chapter short. He allows different story lines to develop at the same pace, and his books are always well-researched.

The Traveler's Gift (the seven decisions that determine personal success) is the kind of self-help book that like Who Moved My Cheese. I don't particularly like parables teaching you how to change your life. But this one is not that bad. One of the seven decisions is about the difference between a man of reason and a man of faith.

"Faith will always be a sounder guide than reason because reason can only go so far - faith has no limits. I will expect miracles in my life because faith produces them every day. I will believe in the future that I do not see. That is faith. And the reward of this faith is to see the future that I believed."

DEEP...

owls

I like owls. It has nothing to do with Harry Potter. I think I like their heart-shaped faces. I made the one on the top right corner. It looks a bit funny. maybe there's something wrong with the shape of its head. Nevermind.



I collected all these lovely owl images over the net. Here are the sources:
www.renegadecraft.com

homey

Visited homeyGallERY. The GallERY is now exhibiting the products of "birdie & eagle". Challenging the concept of size, the big bird is called birdie while the small one is called eagle.



homey also sells interesting lifestyle items like cushions designed by clare nicolson, a scotland designer. Clare uses collages that she creats by decorative papers as the print of her fabrics.

chocolate rain is another interesting shop that sells jewelry. They organize DIY classes on bead works, home deor, flora decor and cooking.

Cafe Society

See what the postman brought me... it's my London Cafe Book. I found Book 2 at a bargin corner a year ago. I love the layout and the idea of the book, so I decided to get Book 1 as well.



This is not just a picture book. It covers everything from coffee, tea, food, decor to quotes from owners, staff and customers. It also includes recipes of signature food from each cafe.

Here's a poem from the Cafe Society at The Poetry Place (22 Bettherton Street, London WC2H 9BU)

eat in or take away
on the fo al fresco
mobile phone anxiety
no sugar piety
expresso plotted coups
table waiting queues
froth without sediment
tables without condiment
starters that don't
desserts that won't
food to die for
food to diet for
and when you
have digested
the menu
could i see it please
but firstly, two teas?