| [ | mood | | |  peaceful | ] |
| [ | music | | | 世界はそれを愛と呼ぶんだぜ （サンボマスター） | ] |
Well, yesterday was interesting.
I went to Kinokuniya (...all by myself...) in search of another origami book and at least one other book. That's right, origami （折り紙）.
On Monday, Sam went to Kinokuniya to buy a new electronic dictionary and I tagged along, wondering if I could / should get a music CD. I was about to leave without getting anything when I sawThe Buck Book: All Sorts of Things to do with a Dollar - Besides Spend It. Maybe it was the catchy title (if I was at least a little bit wittier and knowledgeable about a topic I'd name it something like that), or the free $1 bill they give you ("Instant $1 Rebate"... gotta love it), but I remembered that I really needed a new hobby and origami was one of them, so I bought the book. It really is great; the writing is entertaining and the instructions and diagrams are very clear, making use of the marks on the dollar. The only downside to the book is that there are only seven patterns. Also, the word "origami" is nowhere in the book.
So yesterday (Friday), I got another book on origami: Sticky Note Origami: 25 Designs to Make at Your Desk. This book, like the other book, seemed like a very practical book on origami so I grabbed it. I'm unsure if this book is better or worse than the other one; this has 25 designs compared to 7, and while some of them seem very impressive (those molecules and fold-able cubes come to mind), others are just too simple. The first one was in fact an elephant made from a single fold. That didn't stop the diagrams from being several times more complicated than the ones found in The Buck Book, though that may be because sticky notes don't have the visual aids that dollar bills provide. The book did provide info on origami as a whole, so that's a plus.
It took me a long time to choose the second book. I first wanted a book to supplement my Japanese studies, but I didn't want it to be just a glossary of terms. Some were just too expensive and the rest were too elementary. Luckily I wandered into the "Martial Arts" section and found The Book of Five Rings （五輪書） by Miyamoto Musashi （宮本武蔵）. Not only does this match The Art of War by Sun Tzu, but the English translation is accompanied by the original Japanese text and a modern translation!
I was feeling pretty good until I got back to the bus station when I decided to buy something to drink. I usually don't drink soda except when wolfing down a burger since that's already unhealthy (thanks in part to the movie Supersize Me), but it was hot, I wasn't in the mood for water or an ice cream bar, and I figured that "if I spent this much money on books, what's another $1.25?" I got my Cherry Coke and it turned out to be warm. Hmm. Then when I opened it, it spilled into the bag with my new books! I was seriously pissed off (to say the least). My new books were possibly ruined and I wasn't able to wash my hands until about 40 minutes later. Maybe it was karma for killing a cricket by throwing a rug over it and walking until I heard a sickening (yet satisfying) crunch?
I got home and I was able to minimize the damage; the soda washed off the covers rather easily, and since the books were closed and the pages were thick, you could only see stains on the very top of the books, and only if you looked carefully.
My thoughts on origami:
Appreciation comes when you realize how much variety there is. Traditionally it's about making objects out of nothing more than a piece of paper without cutting or using other materials. Purists will insist that it must only be from perfectly square pieces of paper. That's just limiting, and I think part of my excitement comes from being able to make things from common items like dollar bills and sticky notes.
Fascination comes from simply admiring and attempting your own. Even after making my "dollar peacock," I'm still amazed it turned out as well as it did. Some of those folds are surprisingly complex, and I can only wonder how many objects can be made out of a plain piece of paper, with or without cutting or gluing. It's not for nothing that origami fascinates math heads, too.
Beauty comes rather easily. There's something for everyone; the "less is more" crowd enjoys simple designs and competing for the least number of folds. Others make startingly detailed models. I'm a little of both.
I think this is definitely right up my alley. It's fun, great to look at, and it's easier to show off with than handstand walking (not strong or balanced enough), juggling (not coordinated enough), or unicycling (don't even know where to begin). Card houses are still fun but they're a pain to clean up, and I'm afraid learning kanji will stop being fun once I start tackling vocabulary.
The amazingly talented can draw manga; the adorably cute can knit. That leaves me with origami. Here's what I've done so far:
No comments:
Post a Comment