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I cannot stress enough just how thankful, grateful, & appreciative I am to have Jian in my life…to even know such a generous, kind, caring, thoughtful, wonderful person such as he. Honestly I am so grateful beyond words. Actually, words cannot even properly express the level of gratitude I am feeling right now. Aaaaahhhh! I have to stop gushing over Jian for a minute so I can properly explain what is going on, & why I’m feeling all of these warm & fuzzy feels towards him.
You know what? I really abhor discussing my birthday. It makes me somewhat uncomfortable talking about it because I dread that the person I’m talking to will bring up my age, as in, ask about my age, & although I’m not very old, I’m no spring chicken either. I will only go so far as to say I’m approaching middle-age at an almost breakneck speed. In my heart & soul, I still feel like I’m in my somewhat-twenties, but in truth, I’ve already surpassed that decade. Ok, moving on!
So, my birthday is coming up in a few weeks, & in anticipation of that, as well as knowing the fact that I’m not a big celebrator of birthdays, Jian decided to pick out my birthday gift in advance. He had a really thoughtful idea in mind for my birthday present. He had thought about surprising me with a vintage typewriter. Then last weekend, we were in the big city, just having a quiet day to ourselves window shopping & going out for a few drinks. Towards the evening we were casually browsing around a smart-tech shop, & I happened to spot a really cool USB computer keyboard. It’s a wireless USB keyboard that looks like a vintage typewriter, complete with typewriter-esque keycaps & a real, working carriage return bar just like the ones on a traditional typewriter.
Jian caught me playing around with the display model, & suggested that we get one for our home computer. I kind of brushed off his comment, thinking he was joking around & didn’t really take him seriously until he started asking me which color I’d choose if I could buy one of these bougie keyboards. The shop had the classic black model, & the limited edition white & mint green models on display, & I casually mentioned that I liked the white color. That was when Jian got very serious, & told me he was getting this for me as an early birthday present. My jaw nearly dropped to the floor in surprise.
Of course I told him that it was totally unnecessary for him to buy me anything for my birthday, let alone an expensive piece of technology such as this. That was when Jian revealed that he had been looking into getting me a vintage typewriter for quite some time. He said that a hi-tech keyboard like this one would be the perfect compromise, & that he’d be willing to shell out a few extra Benjamins on my birthday present to show his appreciation for all that I do for him. (Now do you see how much I appreciate Jian & his extreme generosity???)
I had always fantasized to one day get a vintage typewriter for myself, but I’ve come to realize that this fantasy is not very practical. Every once in a while I will casually browse the internet to see if there are any shops selling old typewriters, but all of the listings I’ve found are all so damn expensive (Some I’ve found cost $700+ USD)! I have seen other USB typewriter keyboards on the internet (a.k.a. Etsy) that are basically real vintage typewriters modified so you can USB hook-up this working typewriter to your PC & type like you’re using a traditional typewriter, & although they’re aesthetically gorgeous, they’re bulky & not portable. That’s where this innovative USB keyboard comes into play.
I’ve been using my USB typewriter-keyboard hybrid for over one week now, & I love it so much. The name of this fun keyboard is aptly called: Qwerkywriter, & it’s by a company called Qwerky Toys. It’s such a fun keyboard to use, yet it is also super practical. I feel like it’s a perfect combination of a typewriter feel, with a PC keyboard’s sensibility. My Qwerkywriter keyboard has all of the traditional functions & keys of a PC keyboard, but when you’re typing, you still get the feeling like you’re click-clacking away on an old fashioned typewriter, like you’re a secretary for a big-time boss in the 1950s.
The model Jian let me pick out for my birthday present was the limited edition ‘S’ model in the color white. Ever since I started using this new keyboard, I have noticed that my typing accuracy has improved. I really enjoy the feel of the rounded & indented keycaps that are more spaced apart then a traditional computer keyboard. The keycaps on this new keyboard are spread out enough that I can stretch my fingers more when I’m typing which improves my spelling & typing accuracy.
I also get the aesthetic feeling as though I’m typing on a traditional typewriter, even though the keys still sound like a regular computer keyboard & doesn’t have the click-clack sound of an old fashioned typewriter. The carriage return bar, which is like the ‘enter’ key on a PC keyboard, really adds an authentic typewriter feel to this keyboard. Plus, as an added bonus, it’s oddly satisfying to hit that carriage return.
Here’s where I finally get to show you all of the cool functions & features of my nifty new USB keyboard… Huzzah!
Overall, I am very much impressed with this USB keyboard. It really inspires me to type write more, & so far, for the past week I’ve been getting so much good use out of this keyboard. I’m super excited to continue using this typewriter-keyboard hybrid on many more posts to come. I also want to give one last big, fat, giant, huge shoutout to Jian for hooking me up with this insanely cute piece of technology. I am forever grateful for his generosity. Until next time, cheers!
Today’s song of the day:
For the past couple of weeks, the weather in my area has been so beautiful during the daytime, but super chilly in the evenings. I am really, really, really enjoying this kind of weather (warm in the day, cold at night). One of my favorite aspects of this weather is when I get to step into a relaxing, hot shower while it’s icy cold outside. Then, while I’m in the shower, I take that alone time to let all of my innermost thoughts flow out of my mind. It feels like a therapeutic release, letting all of my bottled up thoughts of that day just flow out.
Sometimes I get really deep into my thoughts, talking to myself internally about family drama or about personal doubts. Other times I’ll just talk out loud to myself, ranting about unimportant things, like some moronic thing I heard a vapid, air head say on a dumb reality TV show. Last night, while taking a late night shower, I had some really random thoughts swirling around in my mind.
There are times when I’ll share the bathroom with Jian, & we’ll both catch each other humming or singing a song one of us will recognize. One of us will just jump right in & sing right along with the other person. Usually I’m the one who catches him singing or humming a song in the shower, & I’ll often times recognize the song, sneak into the bathroom as quietly as I possibly can, & then surprise him by loudly singing along with him. There are other times when Jian will catch me off guard & try to sing along with me, which causes us to break in to a fit of laughter.
Let me just include a tiny little disclaimer here by saying: neither Jian nor I have great singing capabilities. We are not the best singers. We’re not going to audition for American Idol at any time in our lives. Not gonna happen, ever. However, we do enjoy singing with our friends at karaoke bars, & I’d say we’re pretty decent at it. I mean, at least we can carry a tune, & neither of us are tone deaf…so I think either one of us singing in the shower is not a crime.
I, myself, love singing along to my favorite songs. I’ve always got my Spotify playlists playing when I’m working at my computer station at home, & I’m always singing along to all of the songs on my playlists. I also sing along to the radio whenever I’m driving in my car. Although I won’t really sing along to the car radio if I’ve got other passengers in my car other than Jian. I’ve also sung open mic karaoke at multiple dive bars…sober. However, usually my friends & I like to sing at private room karaoke lounges (’cause we get the mic all to ourselves & get to pick our own songs). Perhaps all that singing in the shower has prepared me for karaoke. LOL!
I sometimes complain to Jian about this, but I really don’t enjoy the “perks” of being a woman, especially a woman who takes care in keeping up a presentable, decent appearance. I will lament to Jian that I sometimes wish I could be more like a man. Then I wouldn’t have to spend a frivolous amount of time in the shower shaving body parts, using fancy smelling soaps & shampoos, & doing all of this frou-frou stuff to make my hair soft, shiny & pretty. On top of that, once I step out of the shower, I have to rub special lotion all over my body, apply all kinds of creams & anti-wrinkle & anti-blemish, blah, blah, blah on my face.
For guys, all they have to do is use a generic soap & shampoo, scrub up, rinse off, & towel themselves dry. That’s basically all there is to it for a no-frills kind of guy like Jian. Well, I will admit that I got Jian to use a facial moisturizer to hydrate his super dry, flaky skin, but that’s pretty much the only extra step he has in his nightly shower routine. I on the other hand, have 20 more steps to take before I can throw on my pj’s & climb into bed. Ugh! Why can’t I just have a three-step nightly routine, like Jian…a dude? It’s annoying sometimes.
My final thought blurb is about that time right when you finish washing & you turn off your shower. Yes, that does sound weirdly specific…but I swear this is going somewhere. As I had mentioned earlier on in this meaningless blog post, it’s been super cold at night where I live, & there’s nothing better on a cold night than taking a hot shower…or bath. (I’m an equal opportunity bather.) However, the one part I absolutely loath the most about showering is those five to ten seconds right after you turn off that glorious, hot water & reach out to grab your towel.
No matter what you do, you will feel that initial gust of cold wind hit your body, & it’s just “bad news bears” all around. It feels like you’ve just jumped in to the deepest waters of Antarctica, naked. Sometimes I’ll try to just poke my hand around a small sliver opening in my shower curtain, & try to stealthily pull my towel in to avoid letting the hot steam escape, but I always end up letting in a frosty gust of wind into my hot, steamy cocoon. It annoys the hell out of me. I was actually thinking this yesterday as I was just about to finish my shower. I kept saying to myself that I wish I could just stand under the hot water for ten more minutes before I have to MacGuyver my towel into my steamy shower cocoon behind my shower curtain. I nearly froze my nips off trying to pull my fluffy towel behind the curtain, but I managed to not freeze my body too much.
The struggle is real, folks. A real steamy struggle. I am so sorry for this stupid post about taking showers. I wish I had more engaging content to write about this week, but my brain is on strike. Until next time, cheers & stay soapy friends…
Today’s song of the day:
I just had a very random thought sometime last night while I was getting ready to take a bath. I was thinking about Jian & how accepting & tolerating he is regarding my obsession with drag queens. Yes, you read that correctly. I am talking about drag queens, professional cross-dressers who do uncomfortable things to hide their male anatomy for the sake of looking more feminine than the average female.
When I first met Jian, I never told him about my intense fascination with drag queens. Then as our relationship progressed into a more “let it all hang out” comfortable stage, I let him in on my fascination with drag queens. He couldn’t understand it at first. He thought my interest in drag queens was weird & dumb, but then one night in our apartment, he caught me watching the TV show Ru Paul’s Drag Race. For the first five minutes or so of the show Jian thought it was stupid, but as I kept up with the weekly episodes, Jian got more & more invested in watching the show as well. He would ask me questions about the drag queens, like what their names were & if I have heard of any of them before the show. Then, he got really into watching the show with me to see who the winner of that season would be (it was Sharon Needles, by the way). That was the major turning point where I knew Jian was more accepting of my intense interest in the drag queen culture.
I don’t even know how I ever learned about drag queens in the first place, but since I live so close to San Francisco, I guess I was bound to stumble upon these glorious peoples in one way or another. I saw drag queen comedians on television, but I never really understood that culture or what kind of impression it would leave on my life. I remember one time in high school when I traveled to San Francisco on the weekend with my friends & we were hanging out around the Haight-Ashbury district. I walked into a gift shop selling a bunch of random knick knacks & novelty souvenirs, & I happened to be browsing their rotating postcards rack when I noticed one funny postcard with two drag queens right on the front. From that point on I was hooked. Seeing that postcard photo of two men, with scruffy facial hair & a full face of makeup, wearing over-the-top wigs & womens clothes…it really spoke to me. It grabbed my attention so hard & shook me to the core.
Ever since then, I’ve just been so drawn to the crazy, glitzy, fast-paced, foul-mouthed world of drag queens. A part of my obsession with drag queens stems from jealousy. Yes, I am jealous of drag queens. Not that I wish to be a man wearing womens clothes, but I often fill myself with self-doubt, & critique my body build/shape. I look at myself in the mirror sometimes & feel like I have a non-descript, semi-tomboy body shape. Ok, that’s a kind of an exaggeration, but I do feel like I’m neither tomboy-ish, nor am I girly/feminine. Then I look at drag queens, dudes who wear womens clothes & impossibly high-heeled uncomfortable shoes, & I think to myself: “Damn, that dude looks more feminine in a dress than I do.” Well, a lot of drag queens look more feminine than a lot of actual women on this planet, so… it’s not uncommon.
I love drag queens. I love their over-exaggerated personalities, their costumes & fashion, their ability to wear uncomfortable womens pumps, their quick-witted humor, & their potty mouths that would make a salty sailor blush. Everything about the drag queen culture is fast-paced & extreme glitter. Although, I’m not sure I’d be into wearing 15 pounds of thicc makeup. I’m not a makeup wearing person. ((I’m a skincare kind of gal, so I don’t have to wear makeup on a daily basis.)
Every time we come across a drag queen on TV or on a billboard advert, Jian will point that entertainer out to me with excitement. He will ask me whether I know that particular entertainer or not, & we have a fun time talking about it. I feel kind of bad though that I haven’t been keeping up with the newer seasons of Ru Paul’s TV competition show, but I still keep up with all of the drama on social media as I do follow one of my favorite ‘queens’ on Instagram & YouTube. I would one day love to see a drag queen performance live, but Jian isn’t at that point where he feels comfortable enough to go with me to watch a live show. He is making progress though, like now he likes to use the popular drag phrase “yaaasss kween”, & that is just about all I have to say on this so-called thought barf. I’m heading to Los Angeles this weekend to celebrate my female cousin’s birthday. I can’t believe she’s turning the big 4-0hhhhhh. I’m glad the weather is not going to be warm this weekend. Until next time, cheers!
Today’s song of the day:
Rabbits & Foxes 
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