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if there's anything that LJ needs to say to me, it's done immediately after she enters the house (after painfully fumbling with the door key, it's been almost 2 months, she still hasn't quite figured out how to use the lock). no easing into a conversation, no picking the right moment. such was the case last night when LJ blurted something out. she said a chinese astrophysicist colleague was coming in august and needed a place to stay for 3 months.

the thought of another chinese astrophysicist staying at my place let alone a friend of LJ made me reflexively say no; for once i didn't have to lie though, since i do already have another roommate lined up for september-december. nevertheless, being the altruistic kind person that i am, i told her i could ask my parents and see if they have any room at my great uncle's place. apparently that was her first choice, because she already knew the answer to that question: one of her department heads is staying in the only available room for a month in september.

that got me thinking though: if her friend knew he was coming here for 3 months beginning in august, why is he only now looking for a place to stay with less than a week left before the start of next month? does he not plan ahead? or maybe he think cheap apartments within easy commuting distance to work are readily available? good luck with that. rent around here is crazy, you'll have to live with non-chinese roommates (who will hate your exotic asian ways more than i do), the room will most likely come unfurnished, and it won't be within walking distance.

i just know it's not my problem anymore. after LJ leaves, i don't plan on having anymore dealings with her or her associates.

latest morning gripe: LJ seems incapable of changing out a roll of toilet paper. when it's down to the cardboard tube, she'll start using the box of kleenex instead. it's not like i hide my toilet paper rolls - they're stacked on top of my medicine cabinet shelf. i don't know if it's a kind of inconsideration on her part, or maybe a life skill she just simply never learned. it's these cumulation of little annoying habits that make her a terrible roommate. of course i could let her know of my displeasures, but i've talked to her so many times at this point, i don't want her to think of me as the guy who's always complaining (which i am, but only on this blog). besides, even my talks don't always get results. i talked to her about not soaking the bathroom floor and she still does that. i talked to her about hairs in the bathroom and still find strands everywhere. the only remedy is her leaving in less than 2 weeks.

for some reason i went to bed late last night (working on the blog), didn't go to sleep until 3:00. the result was i woke up late this morning, around 10:00. i had some yogurt and granola for lunch, a combination i experienced for the first time over the weekend, and now part of my healthy breakfast repertoire. i just got the generic store brand yogurt, which was a bit runny. i'll upgrade to some better (greek) yogurt next time.

i went over to bruce's place in the early afternoon to check out his monarch farm. he's raising 3 monarch caterpillars this season, in various stages of development. there's already one in a chrysalis, a 4th instar (white dots on prolegs), and a 1st/2nd instar.

bruce's package of HDMI cables arrived. i helped him connect his HDTV to the DVD player and took back my AV cable. he gave me an HDMI cable as a present, for the day when i decide to upgrade my TV setup.

my father stopped by to return my air conditioner. since there's supposed to be heavy rain later today and tomorrow, i decided not to install the AC just yet (the patter of torrential rain beating on an AC shell is a horrible sound). i gave him an empty cardboard box (there's always uses for large pieces of cardboard, like spray painting or oil change), a broken bike lock i found on the street, and yesterday's cocozelle squash.

the only other time i went out today was to move my bikes into the basement, pump the tires on the schwinn super sport, and relocate my motorcycle to a safer spot. i also pruned one of the lower branches of the locust tree in front of my house, standing on top of a barstool, using a pair of beat-up pruners. now i have a much better view of the street out my living room window.

in the late afternoon i had a chinese custard pastry and a red plum. for dinner i reheated some of yesterday's leftover thai red curry. i've been rewatching keen eddie, that 13-episode fox series from 2003-2004 about an american detective (mark valley) working in scotland yard. it's one of my top 10 favorite shows, just unfortunate it was cancelled so soon (although looking back i could see why: high production value and expensive london will do that to a show). it features a radiant sienna miller as the combative flatmate.