Yesterday, I was in Chinatown first for dim sum, then to stop by the Boston Opera House (I never realized how close the Theater District was to Chinatown). I spotted a hair salon in Chinatown called Hair Adventure. I'm not sure that I ever wanna try that salon... unless I'm feeling particularly adventurous with my hairdo. I also got bubble tea at a restaurant in Chinatown where they gave me a straw that wasn't big enough to fit the tapioca pearls... what?! Sigh. Then I coincidentally ran into Guoqing! Totally unexpected - it just reminds me of what a small world this is.

I've been obsessively checking out flight prices to VA for thanksgiving. This is what the flight prices were in the past 40-some days (thank you, farecast). Currently the lowest available flight is... $414?!? That is just ridiculous.

Ooh, so I am playing the cello in a Brahms piano quartet. It's a whole different experience being a cellist in a chamber group - besides just the fact that I have to lug around a larger instrument now. The biggest thing for me (which I wouldn't have expected) is the intonation issue - perhaps it's just because I'm used to being a violinist for countless number of years (and playing the uppermost line, clear and piercing), but it is so difficult to hear myself and tune funky notes that are many octaves below everyone else's. I have to actively try hard to tune my notes, especially since I am not playing a melody most of the time. Usually, this wouldn't be too problematic for me - in fact, playing countermelodies or accompaniment lines are really fun, especially if the harmonic sequences are very interesting. I might even go as far to say that as a longtime violinist, I was deprived of playing anything but the melody :) However, given the low range of the cello, its sound gets buried effortlessly when mingled with other instruments' higher notes, making it hard to not make myself seem tone-deaf. But!! this is a really fun experience :) I also love Brahms - the cello part in this quartet is quite beautiful.