mood: warm music: 'olv 26' by stereolab

so yeah. independence. woo.

honestly, it just feels like any other day. i've never been patriotic or excessively proud. i don't know why. whatever. i'm not saying that you shouldn't, it's just not my thing. so you go ahead and do the whole bbq/fireworks thing. i'll be fine over here watching you.

which brings me to a puzzling topic. especially after mulling over it a bit. fireworks. they just don't make a lot of sense to me. i'm pretty sure it was apu from the simpsons that once clarified my sentiments. he was making a sales pitch for quickie-mart brand fireworks. it went, 'show your love for your country by blowing up a small portion of it!' apu, i cherish your innocence and applaud your blatant honesty. when i recited the quote to one of my friends, she replied with an equally valid argument: 'but it's pretty...'

so today's my last day here in the US. i leave for indonesia (which is where my parents were born) at the stroke of midnite. i'm sure i can make some sort of cinderella-esque joke, but i shan't. i'm not very fond of going to indonesia. on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being hate and 10 being love, i'd say i'm at about 2 2/5.

let's see...

pros:
- labor laws (or lack thereof) make for intensely low prices on everything
- piracy has yet to be totally outlawed
- the food is terrific

cons:
- it's always hot and humid
- the mosquitos are big enough to pick a fight with a dog and win
- my family members, though loving, are annoying as hell
- i apparently look like a popular taiwanese pop star so the comments are endless
- the food is way too terrific to agree with my diet

i could stretch both lists on for longer. i think that's enough whining for now, though. anyways, the last and ultimately most important pro has got to be that i get to see my aunt again. she was deported 6 months ago for reasons i've yet to understand. at some points in my life, this aunt was the only thing i had going for me. i expect any and all of the english skills she acquired in the years she lived in the US to be majorly deteriorated. talking to her ought to be extremely interesting.

i'll be back on the 13th weighed down by gifts and 10 extra pounds of body fat. so i'll try my best to keep updating from whatever computers i'll end up at way off in the rainforests of indonesia.

---Goei---