Let me know how you found me, where you're from, why you're here, a little about yourself, recommend a book, recommend a movie, tell me a secret, tell me something, ask me a question, etc. =)

Ad Astra,

The Bride of the First House.
bride (at) livejournal (dot) com

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		7.2°C
mood	:		content

Sell thy kingdom for a dream.

I thought that was a really cool quote. Before I saw the context, it resonated with me in a few ways.

I read it as talking about leaving your comfort zone and taking a risk to move forward. To be protected, like within a walled fortress city with turrets, patrolling guards in chainmail, the occasional knight wearing polished plate armour on horseback, is to be safe. But it's also very prescribed and sometimes going outside that is a good thing.

I thought it could also be about leaving behind baggage to freely persue an interest or passion. A kingdom is a huge responsibility. Sometimes, it's an unwanted responsibility of an heir apparent or an actual reigning monarch. There are countless stories of unwilling royals escaping from it, even if only for a moment.

A kingdom could just be a metaphor for material possessions. Wealthy and affluent people (royalty or not) usually have a lot of stuff. They usually have more than they really need which can be considered wasteful.

Contrasted with "kingdom" is "dream". A dream is intangible, much like thoughts, ideas, attitude, knowledge, experience, intellect, wisdom, compassion, understanding which are much more important.

The quote is actually from The Sleep Of Sigismund, Verse 23 in Volume II of Jean Ingelow's poetry collection. In context, I'm not sure that line is such a positive thing. But often, these things mean what they will to the audience.

I found her quite at random. I was googling for poetry quotes. I didn't find what I was looking for, but this came up instead.

Jean Ingelow is very interesting and her work sounds very interesting. She is the daughter of a banker and was a highly accomplished writer and poet of the Victorian era. She was very well known in Britain and the United States. There was a petition to name her the successor to her friend Lord Tennyson as Poet Laureate at one point.

She's not very well known in our day. Something about her being too conformist at a time when individualist ideals were The In Thing™, which is rather unfortunate.

weather	:		partly cloudy
outside	:		11.8°C
mood	:		...

@}}>----,----`---

Fear no more the heat of the sun,
Nor the furious winter's rages,
Though thy worldy task hast done,
Home art gone and ta'en thy wages.

                    -- Cymbeline, Act 4, Scene 2

I have a deep and meaningful farewell coming up in the next year or so. Not only is it a dripping melodramatic eulogy, it's very very appropriate in so many ways.

This is just so perfect that it's making my skin tingle.

weather	:		partly cloudy
outside	:		19.6°C
mood	:		nerdy

Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,
And spills the upper boulders in the sun;
And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.
The work of hunters is another thing:
I have come after them and made repair
Where they have left not one stone on stone,
But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,
To please the yelping dogs. The gaps I mean,
No one has seen them made or heard them made,
But at spring mending-time we find them there.
I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;
And on a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
We keep the wall between us as we go.
To each the boulders that have fallen to each.
And some are loaves and some so nearly balls
We have to use a spell to make them balance:
"Stay where you are until our backs are turned!"
We wear our fingers rough with handling them.
Oh, just another kind of outdoor game,
One on a side. It comes to little more:
He is all pine and I am apple-orchard.
My apple trees will never get across
And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
He only says, "Good fences make good neighbors."
Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder
If I could put a notion in his head:
"Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it
Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.
Before I built a wall I'd ask to know
What I was walling in or walling out,
And to whom I was like to give offence.
Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That wants it down!" I could say "Elves" to him,
But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather
He said it for himself. I see him there,
Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top
In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.
He moves in darkness as it seems to me,
Not of woods only and the shade of trees.
He will not go behind his father's saying,
And he likes having thought of it so well
He says again, "Good fences make good neighbors."



— Robert Frost

marnanel says:

What is it that doesn't love a wall and sends the frozen ground swell under it? Frost, of course.

Indeed. =)

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		14.4°C
mood	:		chipper

嘉陵美山水，亦復富文彥。楊君產其邦，材拔性高狷。
布衣走名都，早入藝林選。客屈稷下談，王邀鄴中宴。
出門得名聲，不假親舊援。匣劍未久埋，囊錐已先見。
吐詞實瑰奇，讀者心欲顫。刀鳴斗夫勇，花妥笑女倩。
如觀廣場中，百戲張曼衍。平生眼無人，遇我獨相善。
陌頭每并出，兩騎無后先。喜從兔園游，慚受狗監荐。
君歌我固服，我賦君亦羡。墮筵吟帽烏，踏席舞裙茜。
醉中共笑語，往往雜諧諺。有時出城西，山水恣攀踐。
岩眠曙猿惊，澗飲夏鶯囀。吳宮妓去榭，蕭寺僧開殿。
龍門剝陰苔，高什記題遍。歡游正相酣，世事忽惊變。
朋儔半生死，一世如激電。我棹返江潯，君車赴淮甸。
旋聞逐流人，居濠又移汴。一身去何齎，空橐唯破硯。
危途晚行疲，欲進足如罥。狼來樹杪避，蝎走燈下見。
渡河自撐篙，水急船斷纖。及至秋已深，舊褐風裂片。
難尋高陽飲，空吊鄢陵戰。圣恩忽加怜，收拔佐山縣。
卑曹敢云辭，執版謁府掾。官庖盡炊藜，民賦半輸絹。
低飛蓬蒿間，不异雉帶箭。有親寓京師，年老闕供饌。
欲奉朝夕歡，去職胡敢擅。晨上宰相書，得歸遂微愿。
上堂具珍鮭，呼婦賣釵釧。我時別君久，問訊愧無便。
空題憶君詩，細字書滿卷。今春被詔起，前史預編撰。
始來長干門，楊柳正飛燕。逢君風塵余，不改舊顏面。
握手話苦辛，悲喜雜慶唁。客中雖無錢，自寫賒酒券。
邀來臥東閣，月出初鎖院。君言涉艱難，壯志今已倦。
回頭悟前非，更名慕蘧瑗。我聞棠谿金，不畏經百煉。
胡為暫失路，遽欲老貧賤。吾皇奮神武，四海始安奠。
棧通諭夷文，驛走征士傳。時巡抗霓旌，肆覲冠星弁。
功成万瑞集，禮欲議封禪。君才适時需，正若當暑扇。
手持照國珠，胸出補袞線。便應上金鑾，立對被天眷。
嗟余忝載筆，鼠璞難自衒。幸茲際昌辰，魏闕宁不戀。
但憂誤蒙恩，不稱終冒譴。秋風楚潮滿，歸舸帆欲轉。
君若念故交，殷勤一相餞。

Thanks, boonleong, for finding this for me =)

weather	:		light rainshower
outside	:		5.7°C
mood	:		lonely

You ask me when I am returning and I say I do not know.
I dream of your mountains and autumn pools brimming all night with the rain.
When shall we be trimming wicks again, together in your western window?
When shall I be hearing your voice again, all night in the rain?

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		9.3°C
mood	:		...

— 朱熹

As youth ages, so learning decels.
An inch of precious time is not to be ignored.
In an unawakened pond, Spring grass dreams,
Before the front steps, the parasol tree leaves already signal Autumn.

— Zhu Xi

階 is a terrace or a flight of steps, in the physical sense, but this character is also used for "rank" and "class". The Chinese have always associated education with social stratum.

The parasol tree. If you've ever seen one, a firmiana simplex, they're usually very dense with leaves and they really block sunlight.

And of course, life is but one cycle of the seasons.

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		4.9°C
mood	:		...

Su DongPo

Rippling water shimmering on sunny day,
Misty mountains shrouded the rain.
Plain or gaily decked out like Xi-zi,
West Lake is always alluring.

weather	:		mostly cloudy
outside	:		18.0°C
mood	:		tired

𐌱𐍂𐌿𐌽𐌰𐌹𐌼 𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌹𐌸 𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌺𐌰 𐌱𐍉𐌲𐌿𐌼
𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌰𐌽𐍃 𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌱𐌰𐌽𐍃 𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹,
𐌲𐌹𐌻𐍅𐌰𐌲𐍂𐍉𐌽𐌹, 𐌲𐌻𐌹𐍄𐌼𐌿𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹,
𐌱𐌰𐌲𐌼𐌴 𐌱𐌻𐍉𐌼𐌰, 𐌱𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹,
𐍆𐌰𐌲𐍂𐌰𐍆𐌰𐌷𐍃𐌰, 𐌻𐌹𐌸𐌿𐌻𐌹𐌽𐌸𐌹,
𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌾𐌹𐌽𐍉𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌲𐌿𐌽𐌹.

𐍅𐍉𐍀𐌾𐌰𐌽𐌳 𐍅𐌹𐌽𐌳𐍉𐍃, 𐍅𐌰𐌲𐌾𐌰𐌽𐌳 𐌻𐌹𐌽𐌳𐍉𐍃,
𐌻𐌿𐍄𐌹𐌸 𐌻𐌹𐌼𐌰𐌼 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹;
𐍃𐌻𐌰𐌹𐌷𐍄𐌰, 𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌷𐍄𐌰, 𐌷𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍄𐌰𐍂𐌹𐌽𐌳𐌰,
𐍂𐌰𐌶𐌳𐌰 𐍂𐍉𐌳𐌴𐌹𐌸 𐍂𐌴𐌹𐍂𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹,
𐌱𐌰𐌽𐌳𐍅𐌰 𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌷𐍄𐌰, 𐍂𐌿𐌽𐌰 𐌲𐍉𐌳𐌰,
𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰 𐌼𐌴𐌹𐌽𐌰 𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌸𐌾𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹.

𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌰𐌽𐌰𐌷𐍄𐌹 𐌼𐌹𐌻𐌷𐌼𐌰𐌼 𐌽𐌴𐌹𐍀𐌹𐌸,
𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌴𐌹𐌸 𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌷𐌼𐌰𐌼 𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌷𐌼𐌿𐌽𐌹;
𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌱𐍉𐍃 𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌱𐌰𐌹 𐍆𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌲𐌰𐌽𐌳 𐌻𐌰𐌿𐍃𐌰𐌹,
𐍄𐌿𐌻𐌲𐌿𐍃, 𐍄𐍂𐌹𐌲𐌲𐍅𐌰, 𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹.
𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌺𐌰 𐌱𐌰𐌶𐌰 𐌱𐌴𐌹𐌳𐌹𐌸 𐌱𐌻𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌰
𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌿𐌾𐌹𐌽𐍉𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌲𐌿𐌽𐌹.

( English Translation: Flower of the Trees )

Note: both Windows and Mac users must download and install a Gothic language Unicode font to see this poem. I highly recommend James Kass' Code2001 for Windows users.

Thanks, marnanel, for showing this to me! =)

weather	:		small showers
outside	:		18.7°C
mood	:		...

Temple Tree Path
Wang Wei

Narrow, sunless path to the temple tree,
Deep, dark, and moss laden.
Attend the gate while sweeping the yard,
Should a monk come down from the hill.

weather	:		partially sunny
outside	:		19.7°C
mood	:		calm

The audio file contained herein is in Ogg Vorbis format which will play in Winamp.

PhonePost 479K 2:39

唧唧復唧唧，木蘭當戶織， 不聞機杼聲，惟聞女歎息。 問女何所思，問女何所憶。 女亦無所思，女亦無所憶。 昨夜見軍帖，可汗大點兵； 軍書十二卷，卷卷有爺名。 阿爺無大兒，木蘭無長兄， 願為市鞍馬，從此替爺征。 東市買駿馬，西市買鞍韉， 南市買轡頭，北市買長鞭。 旦辭爺孃去，暮宿黃河邊， 不聞爺孃喚女聲，但聞黃河流水聲濺濺。 旦辭黃河去，暮宿黑山頭， 不聞爺孃喚女聲，但聞燕山胡騎聲啾啾。 萬里赴戎機，關山度若飛， 朔氣傳金柝，寒光照鐵衣。 將軍百戰死，壯士十年歸。 歸來見天子，天子坐明堂， 策勳十二轉，賞賜百千強。 可汗問所欲，木蘭不用尚書郎， 願借明駝千里足，送兒還故鄉。 爺孃聞女來，出郭相扶將； 阿姊聞妹來，當戶理紅妝； 小弟聞姊來，磨刀霍霍向豬羊。 開我東閣門，坐我西閣床； 脫我戰時袍，著我舊時裳； 當窗理雲鬢，對鏡貼花黃。 出門看伙伴，伙伴皆驚惶： 同行十二年，不知木蘭是女郎。 雄兔腳撲朔，雌兔眼迷離， 兩兔傍地走，安能辨我是雄雌？ Transcribed by: bride

( English Translation )

I'm participating in the Monday Poetry Reading. It's not Monday yet, but I don't know if I'll have time to do this tomorrow.

I picked this poem because... well, I love the poem, for one. I always have. But, I also wanted to see if I could still remember all of it, by heart. And I did. =) It was like a reflex. Once I got going, I just rambled it all into the phone.

The Ballad of Mulan is a required study, recital and dictation piece in any Chinese Literature curriculum in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong for about third or fourth grade and most reputable Chinese schools overseas. It's very long and just barely do-able for a third/fourth grader. It's also a pretty tough read, as classical literature is apt to be. In Cantonese, it also has odd pronunciation exceptions.

It's not only a beautiful poem that captures so well the concepts of family, honour, excellence, humility, feminine charm and intrigue, but it represents something of a rite of passage to me. I was in my mid-teens when I got to it... later than most, but I think I appreciate it more than my friends who learned it at a younger age.

The phone post is in Cantonese because that's the way I learned it and that's the way it sounds most natural to me. =) Any takers for a Mandarin recital? Don't make me pick someone! =D

And I am purposely not acknowledging Disney. We're not talking about that.

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		11°C
mood	:		okay

	萬
	里
	可
	橫
	行

It's entitled Maestro, by Talantbek Chekirov. I'd never heard of this artist before, but I like his paintings. There's also a white female horse (Penelope), but the Maestro looks more alive to me.

It reminds me of this Du Fu poem:

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		8°C
mood	:		tired

Looking at the Moon and Thinking of One Far Away

Zhang Jiuling

The moon, grown full now over the sea,
Brightening the whole of heaven,
Brings to separated hearts
The long thoughtfulness of night.
It is no darker though I blow out my candle.
It is no warmer though I put on my coat.
So I leave my message with the moon
And turn to my bed, hoping for dreams.

weather	:		sunny
outside	:		16°C
mood	:		lazy/lounging
music	:	Placido Domingo - Die Fledermaus, Klange der Heimat (Strauss II)

Turgay Fişekçi (TOOR-guy fee-SHEK-chee) is an award-winning Turkish poet. He graduated from the School of Law at the Istanbul University and is now in the printing/publishing business.

Of his three poems that I've seen the translations for, they're very much like the Li Shang-yin poems that I like. Fairly angsty, with a sprinkle of piney and goes well with tears.

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		15°C
mood	:		tired

紅 掌 撥 青 波

白 毛 浮 綠 水

曲 吭 向 天 歌

鵝 ﹑ 鵝

I love Lena Liu's art. About 15-20 years ago, when she was just starting out, the bookstores in the malls carried bookmarks with her art on them. I bought every single one I could find. My favorite was the very first one that I bought of the swan (it's not this one I've posted here). It went so well with that swan verse.

The swan, the swan;
Beautiful arched* neck sings to the heavens,
White feathers float on the green water,
Red feet gently tread the clear waves.

* The character for "arched" is the same character for "a song". The word play makes it so amazingly and untranslatably expressive. It's both "arched neck" and "song voice" — "sings to the heavens".

Back then, Lena Liu's paintings were primarily influenced by the Chinese oil painting style. I find that her more recent work has moved away from that, which I think is unfortunate. But her stuff is still very beautiful nonetheless.

"Violin Concerto" is a current favorite as well. =)

weather	:		sunny
outside	:		22°C
mood	:		affected

( 送楊氏女 - Chinese and inline English Translation )

To My Daughter,
On Her Marriage Into The Yang Family

Wei Yingwu

My heart has been heavy all day long
Because you have so far to go.
The marriage of a girl, away from her parents,
Is the launching of a little boat on a great river.
You were very young when your mother died,
Which made me the more tender of you.
Your elder sister has looked out for you,
And now you are both crying and cannot part.
This makes my grief the harder to bear;
Yet it is right that you should go.
Having had from childhood no mother to guide you,
How will you honour your mother-in-law?
It's an excellent family; they will be kind to you,
They will forgive you your mistakes —
Although ours has been so pure and poor
That you can bring them no great dowry.
Be gentle and respectful, as a woman should be,
Mindful of word and look, observant of good example.
After this morning we separate,
There's no knowing for how long...
I always try to hide my feelings —
They are suddenly too much for me,
When I turn and see my younger daughter
With the tears running down her cheek.

孝恭遵婦道   Be gentle and respectful, as a woman should be,
容止順其猷   Mindful of word and look, observant of good example.

weather	:		mostly cloudy
outside	:		18°C
mood	:		distracted

'Twas long before I met her, but longer since we parted,
The east wind has arisen and a hundred flowers are gone.
The silk worms of spring will weave until they die,
And every night the candles will weep their wicks away.

In the mirror, each sorrowful dawn, she sees her tresses grey,
Yet she dares the chill of moonlight with her evening song.
It is not so very far to her Enchanted Mountain
O blue-birds, be listening. Bring me what she says.

                                                                  — Li Shangyin

I must've been 11 years old when I first heard this. It wasn't for Chinese school, so I picked it up like THAT. =) I've since found that Li Shangyin is one of my favorite T'ang poets. Li Bai has the most beautiful, symbolic, imagery- and connotation-rich verses. But Li Shangyin really captures sorrow and loneliness well. This particular poem is the third of several untitled verses.

A lot of these poems, like this one and The Ballad of Mulan, I only know in Cantonese because that's what I grew up with =) What makes Li Shangyin's Untitled III intriguing to me is that it was the first time I learned of the poetic pronunciation of 死, the verb "to die". In speech, it's pronounced "say" with a rising tone. But in recital, it's always pronounced "see" with a rising tone. You'd most likely be corrected if you said "say" in 《春蠶到死絲方盡》 (the fourth character of line 3 in the first stanza). I was. And I was always corrected in The Ballad of Mulan — 《將軍百戰死》.

And I still don't understand why we make that distinction, but we do. Certainly, in some cases, it's done for assonance, but I get the feeling it's just supposed to sound better or euphemized. But however you say it, it means "to die" and everyone knows it. =S Maybe there's another reason I don't know about. There's no equivalent difference in Mandarin though.

weather	:		sunny
outside	:		6°C
mood	:		okay

緣份

"yuán fèn" in Mandarin; "jyun4 fun6" in Cantonese (JyutPing); "yuen-fun" in more common Cantonese romanization.

緣份 is a noun that refers to an affinity between two people. It's an attraction of souls. Some say it's a predestined relationship. People who "have it" will "click". They get along better, they say the right things, do the right things, cause positive progress in each others' lives.

It's popularly used to describe the relationship between lovers in a time when this special bond is the Holy Grail of singles everywhere. It has lent itself to lyrics, legends and countless literary works, new and classic.

But, it can also describe the connection between teacher and student, mentor and protégé (say "mentee" in front of me and I'll rip your head off), parent and child, siblings, business partners or just regular friends, etc.

See my Word Collection

weather	:		mainly clear
outside	:		22°C
mood	:		calm/thoughtful

Marriage is not
a house, or even a tent

It is before that, and colder:

the edge of the forest, the edge
of the desert
the unpainted stairs
at the back, where we squat
outdoors, eating popcorn
where painfully and with wonder
at having survived
this far

we are learning to make fire.

          — Margaret Atwood

weather	:		partially clear
outside	:		19°C
mood	:		futile

朱熹 lived during the Song Dynasty (960-1279 A.D.) This was his maxim on governing his family affairs in poetic form. It outlines general principles of conduct that we've come to accept as a part of our culture.

To understand the Chu Family Aphorism is to have a solid footing in the understanding of Chinese culture. And I don't just mean understanding the translation of the text, although that's a necessary evil. I mean understanding the background and application of each tenet; being able to differentiate the timeless, universal principles and the ones specific to that period, that life, that world. Or at least debate it.

I had to recite a part of this poem in Cantonese for Chinese school when I was 11 or 12. I still remember the entire exerpt that I memorized, it was only about a quarter (maybe less) of the whole thing. I remember my parents explaining it line by line and helping me memorize it.

It was my first real significant Chinese poetry study piece. It was the first time I realized how compact and metaphorical the Chinese language is. It's concise and precise at the same time. It's amazing.

The biggest joke my family shared about it was the opening line: 黎明即起, "Rise promptly with the dawn". I have failed Mr. Chu's rules of conduct right at Line One. *smirk* And it just kept going from there. We laughed, but the thought of being a failure in the eyes of "my people" has plagued me for a long time. And it still does, to a certain extent.

Most days, I'm okay with it. I've done what I could with what I have and I'm doing a lot better than a lot of people already. I don't have the time or energy or the need to do anything other than keep up with work, home and life in general, so it doesn't bother me. But sometimes, it just feels so futile.

weather	:		clear
outside	:		21°C
mood	:		relaxed
music	:	Soluna - For All Time

Mandarin:

白     日     倚     山     進
黃     河     入     海     流
欲     窮     千     里     目
更     上     一     層     樓

Cantonese:

尺     壁     非     寶
寸     陰     是     競
上     和     下     睦
夫     唱     婦     隨

English Audblog Post

weather	:		cloudy
outside	:		11°C
mood	:		puzzled

Why is she coming 'round the mountain?

And we care, because ... ?

What's with the six white horses and red pajamas?

weather	:		rain
outside	:		14°C
mood	:		amused

Well, it's about time we got to botch up one of Disney's stories.

Although, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" was originally a Brother's Grimm fairy tale and Disney botched it first. =\

[Update - 1758h]

I was told that there is a very similar poem by the famous Russian poet, Alexander Pushkin, called "The Story of a Princess and Seven Knights" (Heros? Warriors? Dudes? Whatever "bogatyr" translates to).

1799-1837: Alexander Pushkin (he was killed in a duel in St. Petersburg by Duke Dantes, the son of the Scandinavian Ambassador, to defend the honour of his fascinating wife, Natalie Goncharova).

1785-1863: Jakob Grimm
1786-1859: Wilhelm Grimm

It's hard to tell who wrote what first...

This is one of those poems that Chinese kids learn on their own (kinda like swear words), no one admits to teaching this poem and no kid admits to learning it from anyone. =)