Capsule 2602

Why did the shortest month of the year feel so long?

Flu season

One of my colleagues observed that I seem to have a very good immune system, because I complained about how three people in my family were sick, which naturally meant that it fell on me and my middle sibling to handle the housework. What was worse was that this was the second time in less than half a year that this happened; back in September, both my parents and my other sibling fell sick, leaving me and the youngest to split up the housework between us. This sounds very First World Problems of me, but I couldn’t help but half-wish my immune system would give way too so I could get a proper break on my days off from work instead of having even more things to do. It was ironic that I could get more writing done during stolen minutes at work than when I was at home.

A little motivation

I saw this screenshot on Twitter that was simple enough, but sometimes simplicity packs the best punch. If nothing else, it was just what I needed.

Listening

It’s funny how I made being a K-band fan my thing, but I gradually stopped exploring more of them after settling on about ten bands that I particularly liked. After getting into Xdinary Heroes and finding out about their music influences (mostly punk and emo music my generation grew up with), I started listening to not only more K-bands, but Western bands as well. I rediscovered my love for Muse, and I finally listened to a Green Day album in full (American Idiot).

I remembered that I once saw a fanmade video on YouTube for a movie I really loved, and while I can’t remember what movie it was for, the song stuck with me (”Never Too Late” by Three Days Grace), and I’ve been listening to their albums too. I’ve also been discovering more K-bands by following the account KBand Promoter Squad on Instagram and Twitter. Through their recommendations, I found out that the K-indie singer Gaho (who I used to listen to a lot in 2019) is now in a band called KAVE. Can I be hopeful that there’s a K-band renaissance going on?

Watched

After seeing a film wrap-up that one of my friends made from attending a film festival towards the end of last year, I was inspired to watch more films myself. I find watching shows a lot easier, because it takes less time to go through bite-sized episodes while getting through my ironing on weekends, instead of committing a two-hour block in which I finish my ironing within the first half of the movie, and simply sit there in front of my laptop for the remaining half. There is also the added barrier of actually having to get out of the house to go to the cinema, not to mention the fact that I would have to pay for it.

But after that weekend of taking care of a household of sick people, I decided I should get out for my sanity, and catching some films at the newly opened Filmhouse seemed like the perfect way to do it. I bought Filmhouse tickets to Hamnet because I’ve been hearing great things about it, and Linda Linda Linda, because I love a story about friend groups in school days—combine that with the fact that it’s a film about a band in high school, and it just seemed perfect for me. Hamnet was beautiful and heartrending, and I loved the colours in it (particularly Agnes and her red clothes), while Linda Linda Linda was funny and endearing.

I’m no longer as big a fan of The Rose as I used to be pre-COVID, but when I saw that they were releasing a docufilm Come Back to Me and that it was even screened at a couple of film festivals, I was curious enough about it to buy a ticket to catch it. I didn’t expect to find myself close to tears while watching it, particularly when the bassist opened up about his mental health struggles amidst the band’s lawsuit against their former agency. More importantly, I loved following the story of how these four young men came together through their love for music, and how they fought to stay together despite the discord that their old label tried to sow between the members. It was a little like watching a coming-of-age drama, except these are real people close to my age. The docufilm also gave me a newfound appreciation for their Heal album, which they released after they won the lawsuit. I’m still holding onto the hope that I get to see them at a concert here someday soon because as much as I’ve heard about how great their live performances are, I don’t love The Rose enough to hop onto a plane to catch them in another country.

I’ve been to the cinema more times within this month than the whole of last year, and I hope I can maintain this—even if I won’t go as crazy as I did this month.

Now that I’ve finished G_Witch, I finally started watching When Life Gives You Tangerines. I don’t often watch Korean dramas, or rather I’m picky about them, and the last one I completed was Itaewon Class in the year it was released. I did try watching Misaeng two years ago, and while I generally liked it enough, I eventually lost interest in it about halfway through the series, and I haven’t gone back to it. I don’t think I’m likely to.

I want to quit

The central office at my organisation once again dropped a bomb on all the departments, stating that it was a “mandate” from the top and that we couldn’t go back to the way things had been previously. It was about timetables for the next academic year. When I saw the absolute mess they’d made of class scheduling for my programme alone, I wanted to turn in my notice. And then my colleague, who’d been singlehandedly working the timetables in our department for several years now, came up to my desk and told me, half-humorously, “I think it’s time for us to quit.” Later on, she said that before I send in a printed copy of my notice, I should pass the paper to her so that she could sign her name on the back.

I don’t know what my organisation’s leadership is doing, but if their plan is to piss off enough people into resigning without having to do any firing themselves, they’ll get what they want very soon.

Reading Log

1. The Everlasting, Alix E. Harrow

2. The Will of the Many, James Islington

3. The Strength of the Few, James Islington

4. Against Meritocracy, Jo Littler

5. Automatic Noodles, Annalee Newitz

6. Hamnet, Maggie O’Farrell