new year's resolution...sort of

i think this will be my first time that im going to make a new year's resolution. Well, sort of new year's resolution. According to Answers.com/Wikipedia a New Year's Resolution is "a commitment that an individual makes to a project or a habit, often a lifestyle change that is generally interpreted as advantageous".

So how do i start? Well, there are three new year's text greetings that i decided to guide me in making my new year's resolution.

Ive received this one more than twice, maybe thrice. This is the original version from Neil Gaiman' online journal (because there's a little variation with the text messages i received):
May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't to forget make some art -- write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself. - Neil Gaiman

These are the other two text messages:
If you cannot be grateful for what you have received, then be thankful for what you have been spared. Life is short, live it. Love is rare, grab it. Anger is bad, dump it. Fear is awful, face it. Keep and cherish all memories that are sweet. Let us forget all hurt and grievances and start anew

Life is short, break the rules, forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, and never regret anything that made you smile.

So what now? Well, now with the list.

1. A year filled with magic, dreams and good madness. Well, the magic part is a little tricky. Hmm. Is this an equivalent of being wished good luck? There is something magical with being extraordinarily lucky. ok, i dont think i would have control over that. As for dreams, well, i guess it can only be done by sleeping well. So does this mean, have good nights of sleep? That's manageable. ive never been a person that deprives myself of sleep. Now the last one, good madness, what does this mean? According to Professor Roy Porter, it might be a "sort of divine experience, a holy innocence" or an "indifference to worldly things like money" and through "the power of imagination, seeing things that others couldn't". Is this what Gaiman meant? Or is it simply having a healthy sense of insanity. Sanity, for me, is overrated anyway. So, after a long discussion, the first one on the list is simply, having a healthy dose of craziness from time to time.

2. Read some fine books. This is a little difficult. Even if i wanted to read books, i dont really have that much time. But its not impossible. ive done it last year, i think i was able to read 3-4 books. thats not much. but im in law school and sometimes, all the reading i have to do gets to be so tiring that i cant even enjoy a non-law book. But this year, im going to find time to read books other than those required in school. maybe read some encyclopedias. thats what i liked to read when i was a kid. and dictionaries. the first sci-fi novel i read was Madeleine L'Engle's "A Swiftly Tilting Planet" (i was a first year high school student and i insisted on reviewing a sci-fi novel instead of classic literature).

3. Kiss someone who thinks youre wonderful/Kiss slowly. Ok, im going to pass on this one. Maybe in next year's New Year's Resolution. So, instead of kiss, maybe show some form of affection? maybe not. how about, show some emotion. positive emotion. thats a bit acceptable, and realistic and less of a "giant leap" from being "emotionally dead"

4. Make some art. Draw, build or sing. Well, i stopped drawing when i was in highschool. I stopped singing (in public) the moment i got tired of nursery rhymes. So maybe i should buy a sketchpad and sign pen and just draw stuff. and maybe sing when im bored. ok, is this a new year's resolution? well, it said it involves a lifestyle change and lifestyle involves one's activities, so i guess this can be part of a new year's resolution. its not really just becoming more responsible. it could be shaping a more enjoyable life

5. Write. Well, this is what the blog is for. but the blog entries ive done since i started more than a year ago isnt really the kind of stuff i want to write. i wanted a thought-provoking blog (like philosophical or political blogs. or my observations on human behavior and society). but well, laziness and procrastination always gets in the way (and a sudden lack of confidence). i wanted to have a blog where i can use the stuff i learned in college and the stuff im learning right now. maybe i should try writing a radio drama or short stories.

7. Live as only you can. this is probably the hardest to do in the list. the thing is, i always exhibit self-restraint. and i cant just loosen up because im like a freak on a leash (do i dare let my mood swings take control?). but im going to try to find a way to at least do this one.

8. Surprise yourself. this one would be easy. ive already done it. when i started fixing my hair, im as surprised as everyone else. all i remember is that last december 30, i went out to buy shaving cream. i wasnt able to buy one. but bought some hair wax. why? i have no idea. since then, ive been using it to fix my hair. and people think its a new hairstyle when it really isnt. the way i comb my hair is the same and its been like that since highschool (brush up). it just so happens that it looks different when my hair dries up. when i put the hair wax, my hair just dries up a lot slower, so people get to see the "combed" version of my hair. and with hair wax, my hair is less messy. so its not really a new hairstyle. thats how i look after taking a shower. well, after combing my hair, fresh from the shower. and surprising myself is a bit easy since sometimes, i do things without thinking. like for example, the next thing i know, im in cubao! why i went there, i have no idea.

9. Be thankful. This is just a continuation of what i started more than a year ago. every night, im thankful for every single day that i receive, no matter how miserable i might feel about it. why? well, because misery is just what i feel but it wont change the fact that another day is still a blessing, a continuation to enjoy the gift of life. but of course, i try not to waste every day im given, regardless of what i feel. i try to live it and make it meaningful

10. Love is rare, grab it and love truly. According to Thomas Jay Oord (philosopher and theologian), to love is to "act intentionally, in sympathetic response to others (including God), to promote overall well-being". Love can be interpersonal (like friendship and kinship) or impersonal (love for animals, activities, country, material objects, etc). So, i think this love thing is manageable enough. its just liking something on a deeper and more meaningful level but not to the point that it would be considered as an addiction

11. Face one's fears. well, i try to do this every day whenever my law classes start. i started law school not fearing anything. my professor's cant hurt me. i make my grades, not them. well, thats not entirely true. and life in law school isnt that simple. the moment you start to realize where you are exactly as a law student and where you are heading and where you will be the moment youre done with the bar, holy crap, fear no longer seems to be just in one's head, it becomes as real as it possibly can. sort of. point is, back in college, fear wasnt a problem. maybe its part of growing old too. when youre a kid, you dont have as much fears or as concrete as the fears adults have. usually a kid's fear is just rooted from imagination. as for adults, it takes a rational form.

12. Cherish sweet memories. well, i always do. thats why i think 50 First Dates is a little tragic since Lucy cant form new memories. its like a part of her is already dead. "sweet" memories and memorable moments are one the things some people value so much and they try to hold on to it as long as they possibly can. its one the things that is hard to take away from a person.

13. Never regret anything...that made you smile. ok, what makes me smile? as for the regret part, i always try not to regret things i do.

14. Be nice to doctors. Well, i mentioned earlier that im going to add this in case i make a new year's resolution

15. Exercise. i sort of started last year, by walking home. but i did that in anticipation of the baguio trip so im in a better physical condition (and december is the most expensive month, so i was under the "tag-tipid" season, so more reason to walk home instead of commuting). ever since the classes started again, the only walking ive done so far is walking inside the mall. well, i always go to the mall. everyday actually, right after my last class. maybe i should commit to walking home.

16. Study harder. Ok, last semester's efforts wasnt good enough to take me out of the "hot seat". im one step closer to the edge and im about to break (linkin park). this might be my last chance to stay in law school so i better pull myself together. problem is, i have the tendency to "zone out". i might be in the library but sometimes, im not really reading, im just staring at the page. my mind is somewhere else. and sometimes, i read for about 10-15 minutes and then, i feel extremely sleepy and im the type who easily gives in to sleep. so, i better exert a lot more effort

17. have a sense of discipline. wake up early and not give in to sleep easily. try to finish stuff that ought to be finished or can be finished. dont procrastinate and being lazy is not an option. i think this is a year's worth of new year's resolution already in one item.

18. focus. simple enough. i easily get distracted or sometimes, i dont even try to focus. i let my mind stay cluttered while im talking with someone. thats rude. sure i pay attention but im not that mindful of my surroundings and sometimes stuff dont sink in. i really have a very short attention span.

19. be friendly or be nice. well, try to expressive of it anyway.

20. last but not the least, commit! and one way of doing this is trying to accomplish all of these.

Green Team!

will this be the future of television and newspapers?

From Inquirer.com:

"The Japanese giant behind the Panasonic brand said Tuesday that it will introduce Internet-ready plasma TVs in North America in the spring that allow users to browse videos on YouTube and photos from Google-based web albums.
Rival Sony Corp. also announced that from this spring it will launch televisions offering access to free Internet video content from providers including AOL, Yahoo, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony BMG Music.
The TVs will be able to receive streaming broadband video, including high-definition content, Sony said. Both announcements were made at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas."

will this be a threat to cable companies? there isnt much to watch on cable channels anyway (especially when SkyCable dropped the Solar channels and replaced them with crappy ones. sorry but i really dont like any of the new channels). i watch my late shows, tv series, and sitcoms in my PC. and in YouTube, you can sometimes watch a lot more interesting stuff than whatever's available in cable (or whatever you missed in cable). So these announcements of an internet-ready TV is really an interesting development. but then again, cable companies are also providing cable internet services. so, i guess they would also be covered by whatever benefit would arise from internet-ready TVs.

im still more interested with the development of an electronic paper where you can download e-books or online newspapers on a device that looks like a broadsheet thats a little thicker than bond paper. its like a large version of a paperlike foldable LCD screen which has a USB slot so you can just dowload from the PC stuff you want to read. its like a reusable paper and would make it possible for a newspaper to be like the Daily Prophet with moving pictures. not sure if there is such a development. there's only a foldable LCD screen which i think Sony has produced (or planning to produce) for cellphones. i think with this technology, a reusable electronic paper would be possible. no need to wait for your newspaper every morning. Newspaper companies would just have to produce a format for an electronic paper and there would be no need to use paper or read the news from the PC. its like a high-tech old school newspaper. and also waterproof (no worries with spilling the coffee). but of course, the question would be, how much would it take to produce and develop this technology. and online newspapers might start charging the downloads since newspaper companies cant operate for free (assuming people start switching to this method of reading newspapers). am i the only one who wants to have newspapers that's similar to the Daily Prophet? or have a reusable electronic paper?

Dog saves boy from fire by biting foot

Read this in Yahoo news yesterday. its basically about a dog that saved the boy's life by biting his foot to wake him up when their house caught fire. Really nice of the dog to save his master right? but then again, if the dog loved his master, isnt it just natural for it to save him? but some would probably say, "its a dog! its amazing that it thought of saving his master or that they are in danger" Well, the dog has always been credited with loyalty, so would it still be surprising that it saved his master? A dog can think, so im not surprised that it did that. And its possible that a dog can decide whether it should save its master or not (depending on how it feels abouts its master).

Anyway, what im trying to say is, are animals really as stupid as we think (or as i think people think)? They could probably be much smarter and secretly laughing at how stupid humans are. Douglas Adams in his book said, humans are third in rank when in comes to being the smartest in the planet. the second placer in terms of intelligence are the dolphins. the mice are the most intelligent beings in the planet. why? well, read the book :). its fiction so its not really offensive to humans who consider themselves as the pinnacle of evolution.

point is, when i watch national geographic channel, scientists and researchers say they are surprised and amazed whenever animals beat humans in some tests regarding intelligence and brain use. it depends on how we define intelligence in the first place. of course, with the way we craft the definition, its based on how we understand intelligence and the standards we set. i mean, fine, a dog is illiterate. its not capable of being literate but what use is literacy for a dog? and our form of literacy is for humans. so why would a dog aspire to adopt that? its possible for dogs having their own set of rules for literacy. they can communicate with each other dont they? literacy is for reading and writing, and reading and writing is for communicating with others and expressing oneself. dogs are fully capable of the latter. we developed this literacy thing because its convenient and complicated at the same time. i noticed that humans like to complicate things to make thing convenient. example is technology, the more complicated it gets, the more convenient things are. point is, maybe animals dont have a thing for that. they like to keep things simple. being attuned with their environment and the planet is enough. having the bare necessities is sufficient to make their lives worthwhile. that doesnt make them "stupid" as we think. it just so happens we have a different way of measuring intelligence.

my heart hurts. cant i make it numb?

is there something wrong with my heart? ive been having these chest pains somewhere in my heart area since after lunch today.

i think i prefer a heart attack over a brain stroke. its like a mind over heart thing. like, i would rather have my heart malfunction than my brain.

why isnt there a change of heart status? like for example, there's such a thing as brain dead after some kind of accident. why isnt there like a cold heart syndrome or something? well because emotions do not really originate from the heart, the literal heart. emotions are still part of one's brain functions. but still it would be an interesting thing. like after recovering from the accident that damaged the heart area, the doctor would say, "im sorry but he's just a stone cold person devoid of any positive or negative emotion. he's a purely rational and mechanical being now. he's not human anymore. im sorry"

how this blogging thing started...for me

This is a question i ask myself until now. Why do i blog? When i first heard of this (i think this was sometime in 2003), i didnt even find the idea of blogging interesting. i felt it was like a self-centered website with the purpose of self-promotion (but of course, i was wrong. but didnt blogs started out this way? and isnt it something for a self-absorbed person like me?).

Well, i started blogging more than a year ago. The reason? i felt i needed to write. Just write stuff. since i became a law student, it was more of just reading. and when it comes to writing, it isnt really the kind of writing college students do. The point is, i felt my writing skills would deteriorate. im not really much of a writer but since high school, ive really tried to improve my writing skills. and i wouldnt want all of that effort wasted just because im not required to write. so i thought, maybe i could do some blogging and just write. and hopefully, i could also improve the way i write. im not aiming to be a very good writer (although i dont mind, hehe). i just want to write effectively and communicate well in written form (since im so moody, its hard to catch me in the mood to communicate well in non-written form).

but then came the problem of what will i write about? ive got lots of ideas i would have wanted to write but i ended up with a blog that serves as an online diary. why? first, whenever im in the mood to write, im not in front of the PC. the moment im logged in, im not as enthusiastic or excited to write about the idea. there's really no motivation for me to write. im used to writing stuff when the deadline's near (but the best papers ive written in college are the ones i didnt cram). so just for the sake of writing something, i write entries that arent really for public consumption. i write it with the intended reader to be me. so, its like an online record of ideas or pieces of thoughts i want to remind myself someday, aside from the usual, "what happened to me today?". So my blog entries sometimes (or most times) are just like an online back-up of stuff in my head. so thats why i continued blogging. it serves that purpose. but of course, im still trying to change that, or add to it, the purpose of writing well-made blog articles that are meaningful, significant and makes a lot of sense. in short, blog entries that are really worth reading. im not saying that blog entries that are "self-centered" are worthless. they're fun to read and could provide bits and pieces of interesting information. it just so happens that im not contented with that and i want to write thought-provoking stuff. i want a blog that serves the purpose of improving my writing skills, keeping my mind sharp and updated with current events. i need to have this kind of blog badly because i think im suffering from some sort of mental retardation

infected by the "bobonic" plague and spreading it

thanks to mr. samonte, im hooked to this radio show (which i listen to everytime i have a chance). the name of the radio show is The Brewrats, 9pm-12midnight, on 99.5 Hit FM (formerly 99.5 RT). it airs from monday to thursday (Educational Monday, Bring-a-Guest Tuesday, Cultural Wednesday, and Sando Party Thursday).

my cousin told me about this radio show months earlier (september 29 to be exact) but i wasnt really that interested in checking it out because it was a radio show. that simple. i dont listen to FM. DJs annoy me. if i wanted to listen to music, im going to play some CDs or mp3s. what i didnt realize back then (or didnt sink in) was that she was talking about a radio show hosted by Angel Rivero, Ramon Bautista and Tado. these are the people from the extremely entertaining and groundbreaking show of UNTV, Strangebrew! if these are the DJs of the radio show, most likely, it will be a very unique radio program, like something youve never heard before and that it would be very funny. and true enough, it is. if not for mr samonte's text message telling me to check it out (he said strangebrew on radio, which for some reason made me interested, as opposed to just telling me that Angel, Ramon and Tado are DJs. why didnt i see the connection before!) i wouldnt have found out that the show was like a radio version of strangebrew (which a lot of people miss very much, including me). its so different and funny. ive never heard a radio show like it (or DJs that speak like Ramon and Tado. but then again, i dont listen to FM). and i listen to the show not for the music but just listen to DJs talk about nothing and everything at the same time (plus adult humor). and if they do play some music, the songs they play are usually nice (DJ Angel plays an anime soundtrack from Ranma 1/2 and they have a background music from IL Postino (The Postman), "Loved By Women" if i remember the title correctly).


DJs:
Angel Rivero (astig and pretty Erning of strangebrew, and sounds pretty and astig as a DJ)
Ramon Bautista (of the Ramon Bautista show from MTV (duh!), taong grasa: ang pinakamatalinong tao sa UP who likes Malaysian Holland Tulips, tubero, diwata, Dan Michael master magician)
Tado Jimenez (amo of Erning in strangebrew who became a "bigtime" personality after Strangebrew)

Guests (among others, hehe.the show started august last year. i listened just a few weeks ago):
Inday (she's as hot as her voice. kawaii)
Russian guy (Sergei Sukmeyov...not sure with the spelling)
Miki Hahn

famous brewsters:
Sto Nino guy (with a creepy laugh)
Illiterate guy (which made DJ Tado and Ramon call on the Senate to improve the state of education in our country)
Lamokpunk (born in stagnant water)
Dahlia (ang sabon ng mga artista)
erwin the emo
katuga guy
kikong matsing

Famous terms from the show:
pa-next (ex. how old is your sister? is she pa-next?)
stages of making out: MOMOL, MOMON, MOMOP, MOMOX (ex: inday, momol tayo)
value meal
110 volts, 220 volts, autovolt (ex. is he 110 volts or 220 volts? - is he a foreigner or a local? autovolt is mixed race)
people of the phils
papaya and marang
laslas convention
early-bird callers (ex. lets bang some early bird callers)
bang the phone (ex. you want me to bang you?)

Catchphrases/catchwords:
Wasak! (DJ Angel)
Tama! (DJ Angel)
Astig! (DJ Angel)
ne, kaluguran daka (DJ Tado)
yayayayaya (DJ Tado)
hands in their pockets/hands in your pocket (DJ Ramon)
are you an emo? (usually DJ Ramon)
you want me to bang you? (usually DJ Ramon)
once again once more (all of them/show tagline?)
ur radio is not defective, its just us (all of them/tagline?)

Radio Drama:
"Iputok Mo sa Labas!"
Carding - pinakamainit na starlet ng taon, ang maginoo ng Cainta...DJ Ramon
Neknek, ang babaeng patapon - binalot sa tabloid, binalot sa tsismis, ang maalindog...DJ Angel
Efren Reynes the Third, ang tanging tagapagmana ng Hacienda Santa Filomena at tatlong talyer sa QC - kandidato para sa bise consehal sa 2010...DJ Tado

Setting: bodega ng basura sa Maynila pero flashback sa province

Lines from the Radio Drama (not verbatim):

"mas mabuting mamatay na lang ako sa impeksyon kaysa sa mga putok ni Efren Reynes the third, tanging tagapagmana ng Hacienda Santa Filomena at tatlong talyer sa Quezon City"

"ang problema ko na lang ay ang sugat ko! naimpeksyon na yata dahil sa kaning baboy"

"wow, kay sarap po ng almusal natin! tatlong itlog, isang hotdog at maraming maraming yema! kayo po ba nagluto nito inay? (inay: hindi, nabili ko lang sa 7-11)"

"inay, matagal ko na po itong pinag-isipan. nais ko pong magsakripisyo para maabot ang aking mga pangarap. na abutin ang mga bituin at anihin ang bunga ng aking pagod. handa na po akong lumipad na parang lawin at ibuka ang aking mga pakpak. ipagaspas at salubungin ang daluyong tungo sa bagong liwanag. may harang mang sibat, kahit ano pong iharang sa akin. tapakan ko man ang mga bubog na darating. hindi po ako matitinag. handa po akong magsakripisyo inay. pangarap ko pong maging....ISKWATER"

"mahihirapan ka anak, grade 4 lang ang natapos mo at gusto mo maging squatter?"

"ngunit inay, hindi nyo naiintindihan! iba na po ang henerasyon namin ngayon. at naghanda po ako sa araw na to. matagal ko na po pinaghandaan. simula po mga apat na araw ang nakakalipas, pinag-isipan ko na po ito"

"di ko inuutusan ang aking paboritong si Carding. nagkakakalyo lang ang kamay nun sa paglalaro ng DotA. pero hindi ko yun inuutusan magpakain ng aming isang libo walongraan tatlongput-pitong pabo!"

"Magkano tiket? Pupunta po akong Maynila, para maging isang squatter. Wala po bang discount? Grade 4 po ako."

"ilalabas ko ang aking bagong-bagong Ipod Classic. 160 gigabytes. kulay gray. at punung-puno ng apat na kanta"

"pahawak naman nyan oh. sige na, hawak lang eh. di pa ko nakakahawak nyan eh. oh ayan oh, hahawakan ko na ah. neknek, nasa puno ng mangga naman tayo eh."

"bakit ganito tong pantalon ko, basang basa?"

"tatlong araw na kitang minamanmanan! tatlong araw ka ring naging hunghang!"

"hunghang carding! kung bus ticket ang iyong binili, ako, binili ko ang bus na ito!"

"salbahe ka efren reynes the third, salbahe ka!"

"dugo at pawis ang aking pinupunuhan sa pagnanakaw ng tarpauline sa edsa. nakakawalo ako bawat gabi"

"pinakain na kami, nagkapera pa ko! di ko lang alam kung bakit paggising ko, masakit na ang puwitan ko. marahil sa sobrang kalangisan, ay nakatulog akong nakahubad."

"isipin mo, kung talagang mahal ka ni Carding, sana sinama ka nya sa manila para dalawa kayong squatter dun. tapos doon, aanakan ka nya ng marami, para manlimos kayo sa EDSA"

"para malimutan mo problema mo, uminom tayo ng alak. para tayong dalawa magwasakan. doon tayo ilalim ng puno ng mangga. tatagay tayo dun. wawasakin kita, wawaskin mo ako"

"Efren, ano ang ginagawa mo! tama na! ayoko, ano ba?! Aaaah! bakit may parang malamig akong nararamdaman sa tuhod ko!? kamay mo na yata yan eh! Aaaah! alisin mo na! rapist! hinawakan mo ang tuhod ko! nawalan na akong puri! ginahasa ako ni Efren, hinawakan nya ang tuhod ko! mga kapitbahay tulungan nyo ako! hinipuan ako sa tuhod ni Efren Reynes the 3rd. wala na ako mukhang ihaharap sa barrio. nawalan na ako ng puri. isa na akong patapon! sasama na lang ako sa mga patapon na tulad ko, manila! here i come!"

"Carding: pano mo nalaman hanapin tong bahay ko? (Efren: ano ko ba? syempre, gi-noogle earth kita)"

"Carding, i found you! i looked all over squatterland to look for you but now youre here."

"Bakit Carding, you dont like it? its all casualties in my search for you but now i found you and thats all that matters"

"who you calling patapon?"

"unti-unti kitang sisirain Carding. pagagamitan kita ng droga! ipapakilala ko sya sa sugal, alak at babae. isasali ko sya sa fraternity! bwahahaha!"

"kung di ka magpapakita sa iyong pinagtataguan na bodegang 10 meters, papaslangin ko ang babaeng ito!"

"sinasabi ko na nga ba, iniibig mo ang babaeng patapon na si neknek"

"ito ang ulo ko! tingnan mong mabuti!"

"neknek takbo! ilag! tumbling neknek! tumumbling ka! ilag neknek!"

"Efren: itong sayo, uppercut! susuwagin kita! duduraan kta sa mukha! (Carding: sandali, walang ganyayan!)"

"Carding, parang may nakita akong bazooka sa basurahan!"

"iputok mo na! pero sa labas, wag sa loob! iputok mo na! game na please!"

"neknek, kahit patapon ka, haliparot, halipandas, syota ng bayan. kahit sabihin nilang kaladkarin ka, panext ng sambayanan, iniibig pa din kita. pakakaslaan kita. at aanakan kita ng marami para makapanlimos tayo sa EDSA. ngunit, pa-rehab muna tayo"

2008 movies

Movies im interested to see this year (not in any particular order. movie info from joblo.com and imdb.com):

1. The Incredible Hulk
(Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt)

Bruce Banner desperately hunts for a cure to the gamma radiation that poisoned his cells and unleashes the unbridled force of rage within him: The Hulk.

Living in the shadows—cut off from a life he knew and the woman he loves, Betty Ross —Banner struggles to avoid the obsessive pursuit of his nemesis, General Thunderbolt Ross, and the military machinery that seeks to capture him and brutally exploit his power.

2. Iron Man
(Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow)

When Tony Stark is forced to create a life support suit to keep him alive after an accident he decides to use the technology in his suit to fight crime.

3. You Don't Mess with the Zohan
(Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Lainie Kazan)

A Mossad agent fakes his death so he can re-emerge in New York City as a hair stylist.

4. The Love Guru
(Mike Myers, Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake, Romany Malco, Meagan Good, Verne Troyer, Ben Kingsley)

Pitka is an American who was left at the gates of an ashram in India as a child and raised by gurus. He moves back to the U.S. to seek fame and fortune in the world of self-help and spirituality. His unorthodox methods are put to the test when he must settle a rift between Toronto Maple Leafs star hockey player Darren Roanoke and his estranged wife. After the split, Roanoke's wife starts dating L.A. Kings star Jacques Grande out of revenge, sending her husband into a major professional skid - to the horror of the teams' owner Jane Bullard and Coach Cherkov. Pitka must return the couple to marital nirvana and get Roanoke back on his game so the team can break the 40-year-old "Bullard Curse" and win the Stanley Cup.

5. Meet the Spartans
(Sean Maguire, Carmen Electra, Ken Davitian, Kevin Sorbo, Diedrich Bader)

The heroic Leonidas, armed with nothing by leather underwear and a cape, leads a ragtag group of 13 - count'em, 13! -- Spartans to defend their homeland against the invading Persians (whose ranks include Ghost Rider, Rocky Balboa, the Transformers and a hunchbacked Paris Hilton).

6. Penelope
(Christina Ricci, Reese Witherspoon, Catherine O'Hara, Peter Dinklage, Nick Frost)

Penelope is a modern day offbeat fable about a young woman who, having spent her life trapped by a family curse sets out to find love and discover her true self.

7. The Dark Knight
(Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman)

Batman and James Gordon join forces with Gotham's new District Attorney, Harvey Dent, to take on a psychotic bank robber known as The Joker, whilst other forces plot against them, and Joker's crimes grow more and more deadly.

8. Jumper
(Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Bell, Teresa Palmer)

Once David Rice (Christensen) discovers he has the power to teleport from one place to another, he uses his ability to search for the man he believes is responsible for the death of his mother. Complicating his mission is the existence of a secret organization who want to exterminate people like David, which causes the young man to enter into a shaky alliance with a fellow "jumper" (Bell).

9. Semi-pro
(Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Andre Benjamin, Will Arnett, Rob Corddry, Jackie Earle Haley)

an outrageous comedy set in 1976 , Jackie Moon, the owner-coach-player of the American Basketball Association's Flint Michigan Tropics, rallies his teammates to make their NBA dreams come true

10. Be Kind Rewind
( Jack Black, Mos Def, Danny Glover)

Unaware that he has a magnetized brain, a man (Jack Black) accidentally erases every tape at the video store where his friend (Mos Def) works. In order to satisfy the store's most loyal renter, an aging woman with signs of dementia, the two men set out to remake the lost films.

11. Horton Hears a Who!
((voices) Jim Carrey, Steve Carell)

An imaginative elephant named Horton (Carrey) hears a faint cry for help coming from a tiny speck of dust floating through the air. Although Horton doesn't know it yet, that speck houses an entire city named Who-ville, inhabited by the microscopic Whos, led by the Mayor (Carell). Despite being ridiculed and threatened by his neighbors who think he has lost his mind, Horton is determined to save the particle...because "a person's a person no matter how small."

12. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
(Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen, Alan Rickman)

Based on the hit Broadway musical which tells the infamous story of Benjamin Barker, a.k.a Sweeney Todd, who sets up a barber shop down in London which is the basis for a sinister partnership with his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovett.

13. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
(Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Helena Bonham Carter, David Bradley, Jim Broadbent, Jessie Cave, Robbie Coltrane, Warwick Davis, Frank Dillane, Tom Felton, Michael Gambon, Matthew Lewis, Evanna Lynch, Helen McCrory, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Natalia Tena, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Julie Walters, David Thewlis, Bonnie Wright)

14. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
(Jason Segal, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd)

Devastated Peter (Segel) takes a Hawaii vacation in order to deal with recent break-up with his TV star girlfriend, Sarah (Bell). Little does he know Sarah's traveling to the same resort as her ex ... and she's bringing along her new boyfriend.

15. Mamma Mia
(Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Julie Walters, Dominic Cooper, Amanda Seyfried, Christine Baranski)

The story of a bride-to-be trying to find her real father told using hit songs by the popular '70s group ABBA.

16. Wall-E
((voices) Fred Willard, Jeff Garlin, Ben Burtt)

The year is 2700. WALL*E, a robot, spends every day doing what he was made for. But soon, he will discover what he was meant for.

17. Step Brothers
(Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Mary Steenburgen, Richard Jenkins)

Two spoiled guys (Ferrell and Reilly) become competitive stepbrothers after their single parents get hitched.

18. Starship Dave
(Eddie Murphy, Gabrielle Union, Ed Helms, Elizabeth Banks)

A crew of miniature aliens operate a spaceship that has a human form. While trying to save their planet, the aliens encounter a new problem, as their ship becomes smitten with an Earth woman

19. Baby Mama
(Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Greg Kinnear, Dax Shepard, Romany Malco, Maura Tierney, Holland Taylor, Sigourney Weaver)

A successful, single businesswoman who dreams of having a baby discovers she is infertile and hires a working class woman to be her unlikely surrogate.

20. Speedracer
(Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, John Goodman, Susan Sarandon, Matthew Fox, Hiroyuki Sanada, Richard Roundtree, Ji Hoon Jung (aka “Rain”))

Based on the classic 1960's Japanese animated series chronicling the aspirations of a young race car driver as he attempts to obtain glory, with the help of his family and the Mach 5, the advanced car created by his father.

21. Hellboy II: The Golden Army
(Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Luke Goss, Doug Jones, Jeffrey Tambor)

The mythical world starts a rebellion against humanity in order to rule the Earth, so Hellboy and his team must save the world from the rebellious creatures.

22. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
(Harrison Ford, Shia LaBeouf, Cate Blanchett, John Hurt, Ray Winstone)

Plot unknown

23. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
(Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, John Hannah, Michelle Yeoh, Anthony Wong, Luke Ford, Isabella Leong)

In the Far East, trouble-seeking father-and-son duo Rick (Fraser) and Alex O'Connell (Ford) unearth the mummy of the first Emperor of Qin (Li) -- a shape-shifting entity who was cursed by a wizard (Yeoh) centuries ago.

24. Hancock
(Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman)

A hard-living superhero (Smith) who has fallen out of favor with the public enters into a questionable relationship with the wife (Theron) of the public relations professional (Bateman) who's trying to repair his image.


25. Teeth (limited release...so it might not be shown here)
(Jess Weixler)

High school student Dawn, still a stranger to her own body, discovers she has a physical advantage when she becomes the object of male violence.


26. My Blueberry Nights (limited)
( Norah Jones, Jude Law, Natalie Portman)

Elizabeth (Jones) takes a soul-searching journey across America to resolve her questions about love while encountering a series of offbeat characters on her route.

is it a good thing or a bad thing?

just went to baguio last week. now i know which doctor is telling the truth or at least had a correct diagnosis. after consulting three doctors in a span of more or less four years, 2 of them were to a certain extent correct and one them could be sued for medical malpractice (i think) if i had decided to follow her instructions (tell me to take some chemotherapy capsules huh? theres such a thing as the internet where i can research for side effects and the necessity of such medication. the fact she failed to inform me of it just made her less credible. well, no actual damage was incurred and it was probably because i refused to follow her instructions. if im not convinced, i wont do it).

anyway, i didnt get any of em headaches like the last time i went to baguio (december 05 if i remember correctly). thats good news. or bad news. it depends on whose perspective were using. the fact i didnt experience any headache during my recent stay could mean my blood condition has improved. my blood's viscosity is more normal than before (i used the phrase "more normal" because last semester, my more correct doctor said that its very likely i have no polycythemia after all, it just so happens its natural for me to have an abnormal blood viscosity, more viscous than the normal level...or something to that effect). so, its good news because i dont have a blood illness of some sort. but it also means that my blood is normally abnormal when it comes to blood viscosity/density. a single stick of cigarette made me feel my blood pumping in my nape and various parts of my head (or thats just normal? i dont hear other people complaining about it. and no, its not the rush you feel. i know how that feels). its bad news if im some suicidal guy. the blood illness could have been a one-way ticket out of this miserable world. its a good blood illness too because it provides some sort of loophole on suicide (suicide is defined as intentionally killing oneself). this illness can be easily manipulated to induce death, thereby in effect, intentionally killing one's self. just clog your arteries or blood vessels and let the blood become more dense and the next thing you know youre having a heart attack or a stroke, then just drop dead on the ground. its not really suicide because the cause of death is the blood illness. and death by such illness isnt suicide. also, i dont think cigarette smoking has been categorized as suicide. so a God-fearing suicidal person would like to have an illness where death could be induced. and this blood illness is one of them. its intentionally killing oneself in a slow manner or over a period of time. i dont think God will buy that argument. the fact remains one did not take care or appreciate the gift of life. thats what makes suicide sinful right?

anyway, point is, i think my blood condition is better. my doctor still wants me to have occassional blood tests to monitor my blood viscosity just to make sure her diagnosis is correct. im tempted not to follow that instruction after the baguio trip since i think im doing ok. i dont even experience drowsiness as often as before. so, i might add it to my new year's resolution: be nice to doctors. im like the worst patient a doctor can have. i dont show up for check-ups and i dont listen. i disregard instructions. so i might post my new year's resolution to make it binding (or maybe for purposes of accountability)

worst christmas ever

i think people dont understand why im so bothered with the loss of a phone. when my nokia 3660 broke down, i got very disoriented. it was as if the natural order of things was disturbed. its because im so attached to my cellphone. its always the first thing i look for in the morning and the last thing i see before i sleep (most days). its always within arms reach (again, most days). i even take it with me when i take a shower (sometimes)

thats why i was very pissed when my new phone (a nokia 3110 classic. same features as my nokia 3660 and then some. yes, and then some. i was supposed to write a review but i decided to wait a little. its a good thing i did because i would have written a review that would make the phone almost perfect where its only flaw was its camera) crashed 2 hours before christmas. i can hear the comic book guy from the simpsons saying "worst timing ever". and its exactly one full month old when it decided to crash. how nice. i abused it during the first few days to test it and have it replaced in case it breaks down and it passed the test (only in terms of usage. so i didnt drop it or hit it with a hammer). now that its a month old, when i least expected it, it decided to break down. exactly one month. and i was listening to the BrewRats when it broke (the BrewRats: DJ Angel, Tado and Ramon Bautista, on 99.5 Hit FM (formerly 99.5 RT). monday to thursday, 9pm to 12 midnight. its a really nice and funny radio show. i dont listen to FM because i find the DJs annoying, but this show is an exception and i dont listen to this FM show to listen to music, i just want to listen to the DJs)

anyway, its been my habit to greet people a little past midnight every christmas. this is how i greet people every year since 2000. and i was expecting to do the same this year. thats why i didnt reply yet to those who greeted and texted. and i was also a bit busy because i did my christmas shopping on the 24th (second time i did this. its shopping with a time limit. and i have to remind myself to wear comfortable shoes next time i do some last minute xmas shopping because what i used made me want to buy a wheelchair). thats why its convenient for me to text everyone im going to greet a few minutes after midnight. aside from just group sending some messages, im also just sitting somewhere in the room eating (we dont use the dining table because we celebrate christmas as a clan. so every year, i have to look for a nice corner or place to eat. im not the type who likes to chat while eating. im a serious "eater"). its really a convenient time to text people. its less confusing. so when my phone crashed around 10 pm, again, i got disoriented. i was so bothered that i was no longer in the mood for christmas. so i just slept instead of getting pissed until midnight. i could have borrowed a phone but my contacts are stored in the phone memory (and this time i have a backup in my pc but i cant back it up until the phone's repaired). midnight came and im still bothered with my broken phone. i got more annoyed whenever someone talks about text messages and cellphones. so i decided to sleep after i ate and get my gifts. i was so pissed and bothered that i didnt even open a single present/gift i got. i just collected them and placed it on my chair (im very possessive).

when i woke up in the morning, my first concern was still my phone (my mother had to remind me i havent opened my gifts). we were supposed to go to my uncle's house but im still not in the mood for christmas. not with a broken phone. so i went to the mall to have it repaired first. well, the nokia care center was so nice. so nice that it decided not to hold any office so its employees can enjoy christmas. cant blame nokia for that huh? thats a very good labor practice and it didnt work in favor of the customer. its christmas and they do deserve the break. im the unreasonable one. and its only the nokia care center that did that. the nokia store in trinoma was open but unfortunately, the nokia store is different from the nokia care center (i mean, all nokia care centers can be nokia stores but not all nokia stores are nokia care centers). because of that, instead of going to my relative's house, i decided to head home instead and sleep some more. i cant go and spend christmas and stay upset all day long. anyway, i woke up around night time and was still bothered that christmas day is about to end and my phone still isnt fixed.

after 24 hours with my non-functioning phone, im feeling a bit better. but if tomorrow the nokia care person tells me that the problem isnt covered by the warranty, im going to be so pissed im going to make a scene. maybe use my new knife i got from baguio and randomly point it at anyone. then wait for the security guard to tell me to put the knife down while pointing at me his never been used pistol. why make a scene? because it would mean i waited for nothing. it could have been repaired by some cellphone repair guy. but the cellphone repair guy told me that the problem is covered by the nokia care warranty (it was really nice of the cellphone repair guy to recommend availing of the nokia care warranty). thats why i decided to wait another day.

RIP my nokia 3660 (february 2004-november 2007)

i still cant get over the loss of my nokia 3660. it was really unexpected. or maybe not. its been malfunctioning for months. but that was because of its memory card and not really the phone. but then again, the reason (i think) why it finally broke down was memory-related. i switched to its phone memory and it probably reached its limit. and so it finally decided that it cant take any more messages and it decided to shut down for good. so it really was the phone. anyway, i really feel bad about it.

it may not be the best phone but its been with me for quite some time. i have lots of memories with it (graduation, baguio, albay, puerto galera, law school entrance exams, etc). i had it since late february 2004 as a replacement for my first phone, my nokia 3210, which broke a few weeks prior (recurrent battery problem). i didnt feel as bad then (regarding the loss of my 1st phone) because although i loved my nokia 3210, i felt it's no longer as good as most of the phones during that time. so when my nokia 3210 broke, i felt it was time for it to go. it served me well (if i remember correctly, it was functional from december 1999 to january 2004).

anyway, let me just narrate the last day of my nokia 3660, november 20, 2007:

the day was as ordinary as any other day. it was a tuesday and i had a specpro class and an agency class. the agency class ended and my blockmate (guess who) just talked with our new seatmate. she was some kind of an exchange student required to take a class in our college. and since she's not familiar with how things are done in our college, my blockmate decided to help her a little. so i tagged along and helped her too.

not having the readings for our agency class, i lent her my copy so she could have it photocopied. unfortunately, it was taking quite some time to have the readings photocopied so we decided to come back for it later (actually, the photocopier broke down when it was her turn). she asked for my number so she could text me when she's about to return the readings to me. after that, we went our separate ways to mind our own businesses and my blockmate and i went to lunch (beach haus). there i remembered that my phone's battery is running low, with one bar left. so if she was going to text me, she better do it soon or she might as well return it on thursday, the next class meeting. i didnt ask for her number because i was expecting her to return it to me soon so i thought, if she's going to text me, im going to get her number anyway. i wont have to bother asking for it

i was supposed to have another class that day (medjur) by 6pm. so i stayed in the library and read some locgov readings while waiting for that 6pm class. while reading locgov, i received a text message from luningning. just a couple of forwarded messages. i found it a little surprising because she hasnt texted me for quite some time and the timing is a little bad because im trying to conserve my phone battery. an hour later or maybe more, i received another text message, announcing that we will not have the 6pm class. ok, thats a relief. aside from no class, at least my phone battery has not gone empty. there i realized how stupid i was. if i asked our new seatmate her phone number, i could have told her that she could return it to me some other day and that my phone battery is running low. anyway, i waited til 6pm since ive told her i have a 6pm class (and besides, im just going to the mall, so im not really in a hurry). i waited and 6pm came. no text message. 6:09 came, i decided to ride the jeepney to go to the mall and have my dinner (but i already have a hunch she's going to text me the moment i ride a jeepney). a few minutes later, she texted, asking me where i was. it was 6:15. nice timing. i asked her where she was and thats when my phone finally had enough. it shut itself off. i thought it was just another empty battery. but when i got home an hour or more later, it wasnt charging. tried borrowing my brother's battery, it wasnt switching on. by that time, i knew it was broken but i was still hoping i could have it repaired. only the day after, when i went to the mall to have it repaired, that i finally knew that it was gone. the repairman said it would cost about P2.5K to have it repaired. might as well get a new phone if that would be the damage, right? so there. that was the last remaining moments of my nokia 3660. there might still be a possibility to have it repaired but it might not even last that long anyway. and its almost outdated. not yet obsolete. just outdated

so my nokia 3660, thanks for all the memories.

another one of em bad days!

i just had a really bad day. i dont know why. its an unfortunate day similar to the august ones. the day started well. i had an 8am class and even if i left the house a little past 730am, i wasnt late and made it to class before the professor got there. so it was a good start. then i was able to read a little for my 1030am class and things went well there too. and from there, things just became, well, ugly. after that class, we accompanied a classmate to photocopy some assigned readings. since it was taking some time to have the readings photocopied in the 3rd floor library, we decided to go have it photocopied in another photocopying booth. but instead of getting it done quicker, the photocopier for some reason appeared to have broken down when it was our turn. so, that unfortunate event number one. then when i was about to have lunch, the viand i ordered spilt. why? i was just careless i guess. and i almost spilt it again when i was paying for the food i just ordered. was that still carelessness? i dont think so. its a sign of inevitable bad things to come! so that's unfortunate event number two. and then i went back to malcolm hall since i have a 6pm class. i decided to use the free time to study. so i went to my locker to get some readings. while taking out the readings, i scraped my finger on the side of my locker. unfortunate event number three. then, i studied in the library while waiting for 6pm but the 6pm class was cancelled a few hours before the class was supposed to start. unfortunate event number four since i waited in the library for nothing. ok, at least i studied. and then i was waiting for a text message from a classmate because she borrowed my readings. and i only have one bar of battery left. when she texted me i just got on a jeepney and since i wasnt far from malcolm hall, i decided to get off. as i got off, i texted her asking where she is and thats when my cellphone's battery went empty. ok, just got off the jeep, not knowing how to contact her, i decided to go back to malcolm hall, thinking she might be there. she's not. and i have no idea what she replied to my text message. i just wasted my jeepney ride. unfortunate event number five. and then i went to burger king to eat my dinner. i decided to order a burger i havent tried before. i didnt like it. nice way to end the day. thats unfortunate event number six. and when i got home, i charged my cellphone only to find out its broken! crap! its not charging and i cant switch it on. ultimate unfortunate event! and thats unfortunate event number seven. and then, i placed my sim card in my mother's cellphone and learned that i have a class tomorrow which was cancelled yesterday. the unfortunate events have not ended (and thats number eight) and now, im writing this. so far, no unfortunate event number nine. im hoping that tomorrow will be a good day. please, let it be a good day.

actually, what made the day as bad as the august ones was the fact that my cellphone's broken and the timing it broke down. i really need my cellphone right now. not a cellphone, my cellphone. all my contacts are there, plus scheds and reminders.

is it too much to ask?

im just tired. probably. or not in the mood. most likely, im sick of it. it just so happens that i dont want to play that game anymore.

i guess this is how some actors/actresses feel if they are recognized only in one sucessful film, or probably the same frustrating feeling for some authors being known only for one particular book they authored (duh!). i think tobey maguire's sick of being known only as spider-man or jason biggs as that guy who fucked the pie. they have other movies, but i think people pester them with that particular movie that launched their careers and they hope that it wont last a lifetime because if they take acting seriously, they would like to be recognized in other roles they've played. the fact that they only remind people of one role probably makes them feel that they are seen as having limited acting capabilities or some no-talent one hit wonder. maybe they get that same frustrating feeling ive just had a few days ago.

its really tiring to put up with something that you dont enjoy anymore. sure it was fun at first but how the hell should i know it would last this long (i think there's something grammatically wrong here, but what the hell). its like a very stale "knock-knock" joke that you hear every single day. i cant force myself to laugh forever now can i? unfortunately for me, people arent tired of it yet. thats easy for them because theyre just mere spectators to an act i dont want to do anymore. i mean, what the crap do i have to do to make things clear that im not interested to do the stupid act or whatever it should be called. ive been waiting for people to drop it but some just dont want to and some just dont get it. or maybe they just dont care.

behind blue eyes

No one knows what it's like
To be the bad man
To be the sad man
Behind blue eyes

And no one knows
What it's like to be hated
To be fated to telling only lies

But my dreams they aren't as empty
As my conscience seems to be
I have hours, only lonely
My love is vengeance
That's never free

No one knows what its like
To feel these feelings
Like i do, and i blame you!
No one bites back as hard
On their anger
None of my pain and woe
Can show through

No one knows what its like
To be mistreated, to be defeated
Behind blue eyes
No one knows how to say
That they're sorry and don't worry
I'm not telling lies

When my fist clenches, crack it open
Before I use it and lose my cool
When I smile, tell me some bad news
Before I laugh and act like a fool
If I swallow anything evil
Put your finger down my throat
If I shiver, please give me a blanket
Keep me warm, let me wear your coat
No one knows what its like
To be the bad man, to be the sad man
Behind blue eyes.

Fifth of November

Remember, remember the Fifth of November,

The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,

I know of no reason

Why Gunpowder Treason

Should ever be forgot.

Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t'was his intent

To blow up King and Parliament.

Three-score barrels of powder below

To prove old England's overthrow;

By God's providence he was catch'd

With a dark lantern and burning match.

Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring.

Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!

self-centered

my blog entry titles lack creativity. better work on that...someday

am i self-centered? yes i am. very self-centered. but not because im self-centered means im selfish. i care about other people's welfare and i can be selfless from time to time. i think being selfish is more of an external act while being self-centered is more of an internal thing. not mutually exclusive though. the external act could be a reflection of one's state of mind and the internal...ummm...whatchamacallit may manifest in the external world. point is, just writing this blog entry just shows im self-centered. i could be writing about the presidential pardon given to Estrada. i have a degree in political science and im a law student, i should be affected by it and should be giving some thought on this news item. well, since i brought this topic up, might as well talk a little about it (just a little because i am writing about how self-centered i am. actually not really. it just so happens i cant sleep and i felt like writing about my being self-centered). where was i? oh yeah, the presidential pardon. i have nothing against giving Estrada the presidential pardon as long as Arroyo has a good reason for it. and for me, reconciliation and unity really isnt enough to qualify as a good and jutifiiable reason to give a presidential pardon at this moment. but then again, who am i to say that isnt enough, im not the one sitting in Malacanang feeling the pressure (or fully knowledgeable of the consequences. its not like everything we see on TV is really "everything" or really true). Arroyo cites similar situations regarding pardon in other countries but not because other countries did it means we should follow it. but then again, Estrada's been in detention for six years. so what? well, that is a long time isnt it? but it seems its too soon to give the presidential pardon. it makes the Estrada trial look like a big joke. after six long years of trial, he's free after conviction (so Estrada's lawyer should have opted to finish the trial as soon as possible and not let it extend for six years. but then again (again), maybe thats why the pardon was given, its been six years of detention before conviction). Was there even confiscation of the money plundered? maybe i should read the papers before reacting, the answers might be there. i mean, im not really updated on every detail.

why did i write about my being self-centered? i forgot. the Estrada topic distracted me. long enough to make me forget what i intended to write about. which just shows that i have a short attention span. i think. wait, i got it. im self-centered because im too absorbed and wrapped up in myself. thats it? not really. i lost my train of thought with regard to this topic. isnt this res ipsa loquitur? shouldnt be citing latin terms. im not good with using latin maxims. anyway, to support my self-centeredness, i think the next two blog entries would help. why would i want to be self-centered? because i am and i dont think there's anything bad about it. as long as it doesnt go beyond pissing people off...from time to time. besides, its not like i uncontrollably manifest my self-centeredness. i dont go around saying im such a great person. not the greatest but great nonetheless. nor do i tell people im better off not having good looks because if i was goddamn handsome, i wont notice the other people around me. wait, im not describing a self-centered person, im describing a jackass. im not yet willing to admit im a jackass.

tristan thorn

Tristan is a shy and somewhat awkward young man who can't help but feel that he doesn't belong in the Village of Wall. He dreams of traveling the world and reinventing himself, but most of all he dreams of Victoria Forester: the prettiest girl in the village. (from an article on tristan thorn in wikipedia)

holy fucking crap. after reading the sentence above, i just felt uneasy and a bit dizzy. i dont exactly know why but thats what i felt. did i feel its me? or the description fits me? i dont know. im not really shy, and i dont really use awkward to describe myself but somehow, i would say its close enough. maybe a first impression perhaps. about the feeling of not belonging, of traveling and reinventing one's self sort of hits the target. and of all the names, it had to be Victoria. if only people knew how much the name Victoria means to me. ive fallen in love with the name for 10 years now (maybe more, i know its late 90s. and thats probably why i started to like names that begins with the letter V). and i have a thing for liking the prettiest. just pretty isnt enough. tsk. i dont know if i can change that.

i just watched Stardust a few hours ago and i wont even think im like Tristan Thorn, but well, for some reason, i ended up reading a Wikipedia entry on him (ended up, so i didnt really purposely searched for it on wikipedia, i just saw a clickable link on Tristan Thorn and clicked on it) and well, the part i copied above sort of, well, caught my attention. now im interested in buying Neil Gaiman's novel. or maybe look for someone who has a copy and just borrow it. or maybe look for it in a book sale shop (i saw some of The Sandman comics in a book sale of some sort).

the movie Stardust didnt really catch my attention until i learned there's a character named Tristan (either im just self-centered or im just self-centered. i didnt even know he was the main character until i watched the movie). i dont think ive seen the movie's trailer either. and not knowing it was an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's novel, the movie name Stardust isnt that appealing to me. the word Stardust sounds like a dance show. or an alternative title to Will Ferell's Blades of Glory. anyway, i liked the movie. maybe it ranks fourth, next to 50 First Dates (just saw 50 First Dates last monday in Burger King) Stranger Than Fiction and Transformers. but then again, all of these movies belong to different genres so when it comes to fantasy films, it might rank first. or in live-action fantasy film category because the usual fantasy films i like are anime films. not really much of a "fantasy" type of guy. although i enjoy it i still prefer sci-fi. i would have loved the movie Stardust, even if it was purely a fantasy film, if Yvaine was Rachael Leigh Cook (or maybe Keira Knightley or Winona Ryder). Claire Danes isnt bad but im not much into Claire Danes. she has a nice name though.

rain

thank God for the rain! i love it when it rains. not that im only happy when it rains because its not impossible for me to be happy on a non-rainy day but a rainy day (or a rainy night more especially) most likely cheers me up or at least puts me in a good mood. of course that doesnt mean i wont be in a bad mood when its raining but somehow, the rain does help in improving my mood (most of the time). maybe its because of the cold weather it brings. also, im not talking about heavy rains. obviously. that would be heartless of me to want heavy rains because of the destructive nature of such rains. but then again i am heartless but not to the point of being inconsiderate with other people's welfare. people lose not only property but also lives with extremely heavy rain. and there is a difference between the two, being heartless and being considerate. they are not mutually exclusive. i mean, i could be heartless because i dont have pity nor feelings of sympathy or compassion but that doesnt mean i cant be considerate. for me, being considerate is more of a rational act. i see it as a knowledge of the needs and feelings of other people and taking that into consideration in one's actions or in making decisions.

going back to the topic, im talking about light to moderate rain or a simple drizzle. lately, it rains whenever i step out of a building, whether it be at home or in school. of course, there are times its a bit annoying because the rain is too heavy to walk under. i prefer rains thats not strong enough to get a person too wet.

i noticed that other people are "afraid" to get wet. sometimes its a very light rain and they still have to grab their umbrellas. i rarely use my umbrella. i only bring one so that i have something to use in case of "emergencies". what are these "emergencies"? if i have paper to submit (which is already due or on the day of the deadline of course, because its really extremely rare or as far as im concerned, really unheard of, for someone to submit a paper or a requirement a day before the deadline) and all of a sudden God decides to put up an "obstacle course". it suddenly rains very hard and there's no taxi in sight for almost an hour. i have to ride a jeepney but the jeepney that takes the easiest/quickest route is also unavailable. so i have to ride several jeepneys instead. and all throughout, it was raining really really hard. an umbrella would come really handy so that my paper wont be a soggy piece of crap when i submit it. why dont i just print it in school? well, God decides to make things more difficult. there was a blackout one hour before the deadline. so i have no option but to bring the hardcopy i already have. another example of an emergency is when it starts to rain really hard and you see a pretty girl that despite the hotness she possesses, cant make the rain evaporate before it hits her beautiful skin and she has no where to run to. so the umbrella would come in handy to rescue her from getting wet. but if it was only a light rain, dont bother. it wont kill her. if she cant stand light rain, she doesnt deserve to be rescued from it. i mean, how weak can a person be not to take a drizzle? ok, fine. maybe some people are too delicate to handle even the weakest of raindrops but still a little rain shouldnt hurt. thats why i rarely use my umbrella unless its really necessary. how about getting sick? maybe ive caught the cold from time to time because of walking in the rain but most of the time, i dont. so, why not walk in the rain? if its because its wet, then thats what i dont get. so what if its wet? maybe i just worry too less.

another thing i like about the rain is its disruptive nature. it disrupts the life of the unprepared. if you are commuting and it rains and you dont have an umbrella, sometimes you find yourself in a place you didnt plan to be or you get delayed. it disrupts the ordinary course of things, for those who didnt take into consideration the possibility of rain. sometimes the rain could make a person spend more either in terms of money (take the taxi instead or eat in a fastfood and wait for the rain to stop or buy an umbrella) or in terms of time (if you are stranded, you have to use your time for something else or well, waste it if there's nothing productive that can be done). so the rain is a disruption of the daily routine or the ordinary course or daily life of the people within the society or particular area who didnt have the rain and its effects in their plan for the day. why do i like it? well, because the disruption makes people stop and think for a while. i mean, if a person is too absorbed in what he is supposed to do or is in too deep in his daily routine, the rain most of the time is effective in breaking that person's routine and makes him think for a while what to do or reconsider stuff. its like a break from the monotony of daily life. of course, if it rains very often, a day with no rain would have the same effect. but since days with no rain is more of the norm, rainy days have more of the effect of being a break from the monotony of daily life. also, the disruption could be of such magnitude that could change the course of one's life. like i said, the rain could send a person to place he didnt intend to be (or be prevented from going to a place he intends to be) or the rain could take one's time and spend it for some other thing (like one's time is re-allocated suddenly).

so aside from the nice weather it brings, the rain is really an interesting thing.

october has landed

ock as in doc ock (short for doctor octopus, one of the famous villains in marvel comics, specifically, enemy of spider-man), tow as in tow truck and bur as in burlap (a cloth of some sort). put them together and we have, ocktowbur.

whenever i hear october, i remember 50 First Dates. why? because there was a part in the movie where Lucy Whitmore was insisting it was october and the way she said it somehow got "etched" in my mind. ock-tow-bur. its like whenever i hear bruce willis, its like being asked to complete a sentence. bruce willis? is a ghost! some people complained about this one. they said the movie spoiled The Sixth Sense.

anyway, i was in the mall a few hours ago (as usual) to eat dinner and check the prices of coffee makers. and when i reached the basement, i was a bit surprised that on the first day of october, the mall was already selling christmas trees and christmas decors and playing christmas songs. this was done only in the basement so the "christmassy" (most likely this word doesnt exist but if does, i might have spelled it wrong) atmosphere wont be felt in the entire mall. i was just there last saturday and as far as i remember, those trees of western origin werent there. so i guess starting to sell stuff for the christmas season was scheduled this first day of october (unless they started it yesterday, september 30. i didnt go to the mall yesterday). why am i making a big deal out of it? its just i didnt even feel september that much. i mean, august as always was unforgettable but i couldnt remember what stuff happened last september. and now its october already and the mall is making people realize christmas is coming. its another year coming to an end! time flies even if youre not having fun. time flies also for those who need a lot of it.

thats it? yep. i just wanted to blog about seeing christmas trees as early as the first day of october. i know i shouldnt be surprised since i think the christmas season starts this early in this country (i think) but, well, i was still surprised that the malls are preparing for the christmas season.

i think im in a tragedy

just watched Stranger Than Fiction (on video) yesterday starring Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Emma Thompson and Dustin Hoffman. i thought it was a comedy because its a Will Ferrell movie. so i was a bit surprised when the guy in Video City told me it was in the drama section when i asked if they had a copy of the movie. and the reason i thought of renting it was because i saw its trailer in one of the videos i rented (i watch the trailers so i know which movies to rent next). and after watching the movie, i cant believe i didnt notice this movie when it was released in cinemas (but i watched the piece of crap of a movie Pathfinder. since then, i research on the movie before watching it). i checked IMDb and it said it was just released last January 24. where was i then? why didnt i notice this movie? obviously, i loved Stranger than Fiction after watching it on video.

although its not really a comedy, Will Ferrell's character is fun to watch and to a certain extent funny but he doesnt ruin the seriousness that the movie is supposed to have. i mean, all he has to do is be this plain guy with a plain life. but of course, his life became interesting when all of a sudden he hears the voice of a person narrating his life and realizes that he might be a character in a story. the thing is, i think the idea of this movie is very original because i havent seen anything like it. there might be similar ones or similar themes but not close enough to really think that this movie is like this movie or worse its a rip off of another movie.

the character Will Ferrell played reminded me of me, in a shallow sense of course. i dont hear a voice narrating my life but i also counted brush strokes but not the same number as his brush strokes. i wear my wrist watch on my right wrist and i also have an attachment to my wristwatch. and when i watched the movie, my wristwatch just stopped the day before. also, im pretty much a solitary type of guy (which is different from a loner. im both). thats it. its really shallow similarities.

also, the movie gave me a way of explaining my life (of course not in its entirety because im not harold crick/will ferrell's character). before i dont know how to put into words the explanation why i live my life. but somehow the movie was able to state it in a way thats a bit of an appropriate description. so here it is: my life is lived in a way that i refuse to let the plot continue because i might be in a tragedy and not a comedy. of course, the only way of finding out is by taking the next step. and thats just it, i dont want to take the next step until i get an idea where i am exactly. not that im worried of the ending. regardless of whether its a comedy or a tragedy, the ending isnt something to worry about. its how you get there, especially if its a tragedy. its what happens before the ending that worries me. so thats why i dont complain (not much) that im "stuck" in this part of my life because i intentionally refuse to let the plot unfold. or at least let the plot move slower than its supposed to be, to the point it might not be attuned to the rest of what its supposed to be connected with. the movie didnt cover this part of my life that could put into words the idea i have which is somehow related to my own understanding of karma.

Quotes from the movie:

This is a story about a man named Harold Crick and his wristwatch. Harold Crick was a man of infinite numbers, endless calculations, and remarkably few words. And his wristwatch said even less. Every weekday, for twelve years, Harold would brush each of his thirty-two teeth seventy-six times. Thirty-eight times back and forth, thirty-eight times up and down. Every weekday, for twelve years, Harold would tie his tie in a single Windsor knot instead of the double, thereby saving up to forty-three seconds. His wristwatch thought the single Windsor made his neck look fat, but said nothing. - Kay Eiffel as the Narrator

Anarchists have a group?...They assemble?...Wouldn't that completely defeat the purpose? - Ana Pascal

What is wrong with you? Hey, I don't want to eat nothing but pancakes, I want to live! I mean, who in their right mind in a choice between pancakes and living chooses pancakes? - Harold Crick

Little did he know. That means there's something he doesn't know, which means there's something you don't know, did you know that? - Dr. Hilbert