timxu

Blog postcrastination (n.) – The counterproductive deferment of writing a blog post to a later time due to laziness. Compounds particularly harshly with passing time, as each significant event in the life of the blog post writer adds to the impending task of writing the blog post, thus increasing the likelihood of blog postcrastination.

I have suffered greatly from this psychological anxiety for the last month, hence the emptiness of this space for that time. But I will attempt to recap the highlights from the past month (mostly in pictures because of blog postcrastination).

The Peak

Hong Kong island is essentially a mountain island with a bunch of buildings built at the shore, so the peak of that mountain offers a beautiful view of those buildings and the surrounding areas. It’s not terribly high up, only about 500 meters, but the view of central, the harbor, and Kowloon is spectacular. It’s obviously geared for tourists, with a legitimate mall built up there, but it was quite classy and didn’t distract from the beauty.

I went with David, David’s friend Paulina, and a few of her co-workers, and we walked around a trail that led us all the way around the mountain peak and offered views of every side of Hong Kong island.

The view of Hong Kong from the peak during the day and at night

The Movie

I meant to talk about Toy Story 3 here, but I really don’t know how without saying what’s been said before. It was a fantastic movie: funny, sad, heart-wartming, silly, exhilarating…very Pixar. It was an intimate reminder of the nostalgia all of us harbor for childhood and a wonderfully silly story of a group of toys all at once. Far from just a kids’ movie, I think it’s poignant for anyone who’s ever grown up.

Pixar is known for the quality of their films, but Toy Story 3 really upped the ante in that regard. The fine detail in their presentation, the quality of the voice acting, the narrative, the high unique and compelling characters, the score – all top notch. Some highlights: Spanish Buzz and his scenes with Jessie (especially the credits!), the Return of the Jedi homage with Lotso and the Baby, the A New Hope homage in the trash compactor, Night & Day, the Return of the King homage in the fire and the claw saving the day, Ken and Barbie, and the ending with Betty and Andy.

The Boat

The Yale Club of Hong Kong was kind enough to plan a junk boat trip for the interns and some alumni. We sailed around Hong Kong island in rough waters – or at least what seemed like rough waters due to the small boat and heavy rocking – to a beautiful bay in the south. It was a great day in the sun (well, before the sunburn…) and highly relaxing. After spending 10 hours in a office 5.5 days a week, it was a nice change to be out in the sun with no stress or worries for an entire day.

Views from (and on) the boat