on a thursday that felt distinctively like a friday, i sauntered down to the community garden. i was dressed all in black, not because i was in mourning, but because i didn't want to get any falling mulberry stains. i was the only person there, everyone having left already for the long weekend or perhaps hedging their bet that maybe we'd get another garden-watering rainstorm.

it was finally time to transplant some seedlings into the ground. i picked three of the healthiest cypress vines and planted them next to the chicken wire trellis i set up a few days ago. they'll be competing with some wild morning glory vines that have already been growing along the edge of the wooden fence. hopefully the two different flowers can coexist. if i add some moonflowers, i will have a distinctively patriotic natural patchwork of red, white, and blue flowers. unfortunately all three flowers bloom at different times of the day.

i also noticed some nasturtium seedlings have sprouted, but given their small sizes, i think they might easily be crowded out by some of the faster growing weeds.

the cosmos are slowly maturing. i've seen some cosmo plants in the community garden that are already a few feet high, while mine are still just inches.

i also transplanted the cucumbers and one chinese melon. i only had enough tomato cages for one cucumber, while the other plants just got wooden stakes.

watched a great film, a korean thriller called the chaser (추격자) (2008). the protagonist is a disgraced police officer turned pimp, searching for his girls that have gone missing one by one. at first he thinks maybe they just ran away or worst case scenario sold to somebody else, but gradually he realizes they might've been the victims of a serial killer. the movie is a refreshing take on the "search for a killer" genre. it's also a commentary on the ineptitude of police bureaucracy by botching investigations and releasing known criminals. the anti-hero main character is truly a hard man to love. although he doesn't mistreat his prostitutes (other than the occasional verbal threat), he definitely sees them as objects to be traded, with no regard to whether they get beat up by clients or if they're sick, so long as he gets his money. even in the end, when he finally catches up to the killer (no surprise), you're never quite sure if his anger is due to his ruined livelihood or moral outrage. i did some review searches and came across the news that this film has been optioned by some hollywood studio and will be remade with american actors. i don't know how they can improve on it, but in the meantime, i highly recommend this movie to any thriller fans (and i don't mean MJ).

i also saw an episode of the BBC's wild china series. i only came across it online; why this series isn't on american cable is beyond me. it's the kind of nature documentary that makes people go out and buy HDTV. every frame is like a picture postcard. the episode i saw was focused on the flora and fauna of yunnan province. everything from snub-nosed monkeys, to lesser pandas, to wild jungle elephants. the next episode i'll watch is about tibet.

my parents stopped by in the evening, on their way to some pre-4th of july grocery shopping. they brought some burger king takeout.