Check out the Feb. 24 post for info about accessing photos I've put up on www.ofoto.com.
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Bleary Eyes and -- Ooo, the Desk Looks Like A Nice Pillow

Q: Why did the student stay up until 4 am on a weeknight?

A: Because she is stooo-pid.

Periodically, I do this (stay up until 2 or 3 or 4 am) -- and for no particular reason, either. It's always on a school/work night, and it's usually because I'm reading a book (or preparing for a trip, but that doesn't count). The last couple times I stayed up were to read the second, third and fourth Harry Potter books, and to read a Nora Roberts romance novel. (I didn't feel so bad about H.P., but I am rather embarrassed about the romance.)

Last night it was the internet -- in particular a funny site at www.cockeyed.com. The author wastes what appears to be oodles and oodles of time creating elaborate parties or jokes or experiments. I loved 'em, especially the random milk providing night and the trophy distribution night. The paparazzi costume is also definitely worth a look.

The dude reminds me of the girl in high school who celebrated whatever holiday it happened to be with great enthusiasm; you know, the one who wore the green tights and shamrock pins on St. Patrick's Day, gave out heart-shaped candy for Valentine's Day, wore a costume to school for Halloween. I thought it was silly then, but now I find it sort of endearing, that kid-like innocent enthusiasm for dressing up and getting excited about special days. I treat most holidays like regular days, partly because I object to the commercialization of all of them, but mostly 'cause I'm just freakin' lazy and don't feel like going to the trouble of preparing valentines or thinking up a great costume.

The dude at cockeyed.com is not like me. Check the site out when you have the chance.

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Hair

So yesterday I was riding home with two colleagues and I had to ask them, in light of the missile launched on Monday, if they were worried about North Korea.

"No, not really," said one with a smile and blush, as if she felt that she perhaps should.

The other agreed.

I pressed further: "So do you think there will be a war?"

No, both of them said again. One explained, "If they started a war, everyone would die. They don't want to die either."

"But what about the missile?"

A bluff, my friend surmised, which was Colin Powell's take on things too, apparently.

And with that we turned to more important things, namely where and how to cut our hair.

See, I am THIS close to taking the scissors at home and chopping off my hair myself, it's that long. It's been a year and half since I cut off 10 inches to donate to Locks of Love, the organization that accepts hair of at least that length to make wigs for children who have lost their own hair. I think I may have enough to donate again, which is a testament to how truly and deeply lazy I am.

I asked my well-groomed and elegantly dressed colleague where she got her hair cut, and she recommended her hairdresser. "She's a little expensive, though," she warned. "She charges 30,000 won for a haircut and 70,000 won for a perm."

Less than US$30 for a cut! How can this be considered expensive? But it is -- you can find decent hairdressers here who charge 10,000 won (less than US$10) for a cut and 30,000 won for a perm (less than US$30).

Armed with this news, I feel I can embrace a wider range of options. Maybe I'll try a straight perm again! The last time I did it was in junior high, when I had hair about as long as it is now, and perming it straight involved pasting chunks of my hair onto pieces of red plastic and leaving it there for hours, so that I looked like ... well, there is no equivalent. Perms have evolved since then. I hope.

My colleague bought a magazine at the subway station which contained a promising-looking "Designer Hair Booklet," but we didn't like any of the hair styles; many of them looked quite nice from the front, but the backs often looked like prime real estate for birds.

Despite the lack of inspiring hair styles in the magazine, my colleague and I decided to get our hair cut near Ewha Womans College, where there are many trendy clothes stores and cheap hair salons. (The area is also noted for dressmaker shops, which get particularly busy around graduation. Why? I think it is no longer the case now, but until recently, Ewha students could not be married while attending the school. Yeah.)

A note about fashion magazines here -- they cost a little more than those in the states (about $6 or $7), but in return, they're usually paired with the gift of the month. Gifts for various magazines this month include: a canvas handbag, a box of make-up, a pashmina scarf, a tube of Stila lip gloss, and Calli (another make-up brand) whitening cream. (Yup, the whitening cream is of the ilk that inhabits Michael Jackson's vanity.)

Another magazine note: I tried buying Cine 21, a film industry rag, but was told it was sold out. I have no doubt that the reason is the cover: a sleek photo of Keanu Reeves and Carrie Ann Moss, decked out in the dom leather outfits and famed sunglasses of the first Matrix and looking beautiful in an utterly unearthly way (both of them). Cannot WAIT til May.