Astronauts who have seen the Earth from space have often described the ‘overview effect’ as an experience that has transformed their perspective of the planet and mankind’s place upon it, and enabled them to perceive it as our shared home, without boundaries between nations or species.
OVERVIEW is a short film that will explore this perspective through interviews with astronauts who have experienced the overview effect. The film also features insights from commentators and thinkers on the wider implications and importance of this understanding for humanity as a whole, and especially its relevance to how we meet the tremendous challenges facing our planet at this time.
Astronauts are one of those people I truly envy. It seems to me that you have to be a genius and perfectly fit physically to be one, but more importantly, to be up there and see our dearly beloved planet in its entirety. I sometimes watch ISS earth observatory videos and I can only imagine how humbling and mesmerizing it can be while in the Cupola for hours. It's one of my dream romantic date destinations. Here's what I know though, I don't have to fly to outer space to experience this thing they called the "overview effect".
The overview effect is a cognitive shift in awareness reported by some astronauts and cosmonauts during spaceflight, often while viewing the Earth from orbit or from the lunar surface. It refers to the experience of seeing firsthand the reality of the Earth in space, which is immediately understood to be a tiny, fragile ball of life, "hanging in the void", shielded and nourished by a paper-thin atmosphere. From space, the astronauts tell us,[5] national boundaries vanish, the conflicts that divide people become less important, and the need to create a planetary society with the united will to protect this "pale blue dot" becomes both obvious and imperative.
I don't know exactly when it started for me, this environmental concern. It certainly took me long to act. But when I look at pictures of the earth, the Earthrise, the Blue Marble, I'm just in pure awe. It's like a parent looking at a newborn child, there's love and feeling of oneness, understanding its vulnerability and a rush of overwhelming desire to protect it. I see nothing but beauty even though in reality, there are more chaos than what we see and hear in the news everyday. As what Bette Midler had sung, "from a distance, there is harmony... from a distance you look like my friend, even though we are at war". I wonder, how did the people feel when they first saw the pictures of our home planet?
I am walking away from this room beaming with inspiration and at the same time, a heavy heart. Why, it all started with Twitter. I was looking at Jim Paredes' tweets, it brought me to his tumbler, then to an over a month old post about Dolores Hart's attendance to the Oscars last year. She looked familiar I thought. When I read on, I learned that she started in Elvis Presley's first Technicolor film, Loving You. So I remembered, I bought a DVD copy of the film for my parents (it was a clearance sale). I watched it, didn't really leave an impression, nothing remarkable, I thought. Anyway, the interesting part was, after making a few films, Hart left Hollywood and became a nun. I found it interesting because she seemed to have a promising career, she was VERY beautiful (and still is), and she was engaged too. Yet she chose a secluded life exposed to hard labor and renounced comfort and luxury. Boy, that calling must have been crystal clear and very powerful too!
Anyway, I am always drawn to inspiring stories like this, I wish to meet her and more inspiring people whose lives are fueled by something greater than power and money, something we will definitely take in the afterlife.
So here is the documentary film, God is the Bigger Elvis, about this amazing woman. It was nominated for Best Documentary Short at the 84th Academy Awards, where Dolores attended the ceremony, her first Oscar attendance since 1959.
The heavy part of the documentary has something to do with her former fiance' - Don Robinson. Although he dated other women after the engagement broke off, he never got married. He admitted that he never got over Dolores, that he still love her at the time of the interview like he loved her more than four decades ago. He died in November 29, 2011. Throughout his life, he visited her during Christmas and Easter in the Benedictine Abbey of Regina Laudis (Bethlehem, CT) and they remained close friends. He said that "every love doesn't have to wind up at the altar".
When I get to witness something so pure and profound, I could not help but shed tears of indescribable feeling. Perhaps it was because the theme of unrequited love is just too close to home. I've known it too many times that it's impossible not to get pricked.
When I contemplate on Don's side of the story, the song Eternally plays on my mind. So I shall end this post with this song and a promise, that one of these days, I will lightt a candle for him and pray for the repose of his soul.
Hey this is not a ploy to lure you into my music box appreciation endeavor. It really has something to do with the Oscars. You see, this music box I'm featuring comes from an Academy Award winning film. Spirited Away won the Best Animated Feature award at the 75th Academy Awards. It remains the highest grossing film in Japan and one of my most favorite films of all time. Naturally, the music box above is one of my favorites too, it plays the song "Itsumo Nandodemo"
Enough of the music box, in a couple of hours, the 84th Academy Awards ceremony will start. But not without my predictions (LOL). I've already placed a bet with my sister and I'm really excited. I'm just rooting for Hugo this year, but I thought it would be good to post my other predictions based on the films I've seen. Too bad, I have not seen all the films with nomination, it would be a fun exercise of my judgement on people's creativity. Anyway, I'll just place my predictions in some major categories.
The films with nominations I've seen so far:
Hugo
The Artist
Bridesmaids
The Help
The Descendants
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Albert Nobbs
Margin Call
Best Supporting Actress - This is the only category where I've seen all the performance of the nominees, and my bet goes to Octavia Spencer. Because she's the one that moved me the most.
Best Supporting Actor - the complete opposite of the previous category, none of the nominees made it to my eyes, I should have removed this from my list, but I'll make an exception. I think it'llbe Christopher Plummers, because Ellen said so.
Best Actress - I'm torn between Glenn Close and Viola Davis, both characters welled me into tears, but I'll probably go for Close, I mean she's been nominated many times but never bagged the award, it's high time for her to get it, I thought her performance in Albert Nobbs was really amazing.
Best Actor - Gary Oldman. To be honest, I had a tough time understanding Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but if I would compare his performance with George Clooney and Jean Duajrdin, he's the best.
Best Director - Martin Scorsese, there's no explanation needed for this director, but then again, with all the nods The Artist are getting, it'll probably go to Michel Hazanavicius.
Bes Picture - Hands down to Hugo! I'm thinking that there's a 90% chance that The Artist will take the award because every prediction I've read points to that direction, but Hugo remains my favorite, so... Don't get me wrong okay, I loved The Artist, I think it's great that a silent film is getting this much attention, it can lead to production of more silent films in the future, surely not as much as it used to, but a few would do. But still, I feel very strong for Hugo.
You might think I have a pretty silly reasoning with my bets. The thing is, I've not seen all the films with nomination. Besides, to each his own and these predictions are mine. So what's your bet?
Hey y'all what's up? I've been busy this month, but not too busy not to blog about interesting stuff I've done. So far life has been very good. Last week I visited the art capital of the Philippines, Angono Rizal and showed some of my friends my hometown, Tanay. They loved it. I'd like to talk my travel adventures in a separate post so I won't go into that yet. Instead, I'll talk about the things I did in the city.
Last Monday I attended the Unit Asia Jazz concert in SM North EDSA Skydome. I was with Chris, Nagi and Che. The event was organized by JFMO as part of the Nihongo Fiesta 2012 so it was free. Unit Asia by the way are, Hiroyuki Noritake (drums/Japan), Shigeki Ippon (bass/Japan), Tay Chier Siang (piano/ Malaysia), Isao Miyoshi (guitar/Japan), and Koh Mr. Saxman (saxophone/Thailand). This is their second time in the Philippines. I've seen them perform the first time they were here, so I knew that it's a must to see this concert. Let me just say that I'm not exactly a fan of jazz. I mean I like it, but it's the kind of music (for me) that has a time, place and mood requirement for listening. I like it when I'm in coffee shops (which rarely happens now) and reading Murakami books. But the thing about JFMO events is, they never disappoint, at the end of the show, I'm always impressed. I was impressed the first time Unit Asia was here, and I was impressed again this time.
I'm glad that I was with my friends this time, to share the appreciation. My favoritemembers of the group, then and now, were Mr. Saxman (saxophone) and Mr. Miyoshi (guitar). For me, their sound were the most powerful. Mr Saxman, was really playful with his sax and it was really fun to watch. There were tracks they perform with vocals and for that, they always collaborate with Filipino singers. They had Sitti before, this time they had Cooky Chua. They were great choices, but I liked Cooky more, I especially loved the Jazz rendition of "Paglisan". I'd say they performed better this time though I prefer the venue last time (Music Museum).
I'm very sorry for the poor video quality
At the end of the show, Mr. Siang and Mr. Saxman were really nice to come out of the stage to shake hands with the audience. I was able to shake hands with them and I even asked for an autograph, yay!
This Saturday, I booked my day for one thing. Hugo. It's a shame that I've only learned about this film recently. When the Oscars nominees for Best Picture were announced, I immediately checked them. Hugo particularly got me hooked because of the references to automata. I was ecstatic when, one day at the mall, I saw that Hugo will be shown in cinemas. I hoped for an IMAX showing, but sadly, it's only available on Digital 3D. I scheduled my day for the film anyway.
I asked my friend Jam, who works at SM Cinema, for the best Digital 3D cinema to see Hugo and she recommended MOA, so I decided to see it there. Che came along for a totally different agenda, Travel Expo, and I thought, it would be good to check it too since I have upcoming trips. We decided to check the MV Logos Hope floating book fair too so we could maximize the day. Since the book fair venue is the one we're not familiar with, and it opens the earliest, we decided to head there first.
The world's largest floating book fair is currently docked at Pier 15 in South Harbor Manila. It offers 5,000 books at affordable prices. The ship houses 400 volunteers from different countries. Its predecessor, MV Doulos had visited the Philippines many times, but this is my first time to come aboard. When we entered inside, we were ushered to a welcome area to watch a video clip about Logos Hope.
Then we were given instructions how to go around, how to pay. It's a one way navigation, there's no way to get lost, even for people with low sense of direction like me. From the welcome area, you go to the book fair itself, then pay at the cashier or exit. The price is in "units". One unit is equal to one peso.
Most of the books I saw are stuff I never heard of or see at the local bookstores. I didn't see anything from my wishlist. Instead I bought my niece an anatomy book for children and I got me an inflatable globe and Disney Cars and Finding Nemo greeting cards. The next stop is another selection of books, mostly academic text books, then you walk along an interactive exhibit of Hope's Life Experience, it's basically the story of The Prodigal Son, in a modern day perspective.
After the exhibit, there's another watching area, this time video clips showed missions and accomplishment of Logos Hope. Then there's the International Cafe where shoppers can relax and snack. We were pressed on time and we were gonna eat lunch anyway so we skip trying the delicacies. I've read that the ice cream at the cafe were really good, next time, I'll make sure to try that. At the exit, the crews are handing out books for free, but I was trying to limit the things to carry so I declined getting the free books.
Outside Pier 15, we opted to get a cab going to MOA. And what do you know, it's not an easy thing in this part of Manila. There are men who act like disptachers, and force themselves in getting a cab for you. I was like, no thank you I can do this. But man, this guy I encountered was so persistent, I was trying to hail a cab, my friend was trying to hail a cab from a different spot, and he was competing with us just for the sake of doing us a favor for a price. Irksome fellow I tell you. When a cab stopped by, he was so persistent in getting paid. I'd like to point out that it's nowhere close to the hospitality that we pride ourselves. I mean if you're desperate for a job, then find a decent one. I gave him a five peso coin just to make him shut up.
So we went to MOA, we decided to eat at Pizza Hut. We came in lunch time so we had to wait for a table. While waiting, I went to National Bookstore to look for The Invention of Hugo Cabret. I initially scoured the Children's Book area but when I couldn't find it, I tried the customer service, which proved to be a wrong decision. NBS has one of the worst, if not the worst, customer service in the Philippines! I asked the CSR lady for the book, and she looked it up on her computer. She then wrote it on a piece of paper and called for her colleague. She told me that "the system" shows zero stock, but she'll have someone verify it. So after a good 5 minutes, the supposedly verifier came with a look that says, "I was having the perfect dream, why did you wake me up?". Anyway, she took the piece of paper and stared at it for a second, and immediately dismissed that the book out of stock. When an employee of NBS says a book is out of stock, that means you have to look for it yourself. I have lost count how many times it happened to me, but I never learn. Darn! So anyway, I went back to the Children's book section and looked for Hugo once more. And I was right. Man they still have 2 copies in stock. Now that tells me two things about NBS that are not right:
1) They have inefficient customer service; and
2) their inventory records is outdated.
The National Book Store is the largest bookstore chain in the Philippines. Seriously NBS? I wanted to go back to the Customer Service counter to point out that both the computer and the live person were wrong. But I was in a hurry to go back to Pizza Hut, besides, I'm too happy to complain. But one day, those ladies are gonna get it I swear, I'm gonna look for their manager. It's just disappointing, I came from a book fair ran by foreigners. The crew were very nice and friendly, they answered my questions with a warm smile, and they are not getting paid for what they are doing. They are volunteers. And then I go to a local bookstore, the largest chain in the country that prides itself for polite and helpful people, but I get inefficiency and attitude. Never mind the attitude, just do your job right lady.
Okay, going back to the good news, at least I got me a copy of The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Yay!
And the day wasn't about to end anytime soon, the moment I've been waiting for is about to come!
So we had lunch at Pizza Hut (I'll never get enough of stuffed crust pizza) and I vented all my frustration to my friend (over NBS). We decided to get tickets for the 5:00 PM showing then go to Travel Expo, but when we're almost at the movie house, a long queue of movie goers loomed before us! Apparently, SM Cinema is undergoing an upgrade, so there's only one ticket counter to accommodate all customers. So I told Che that she can go ahead to the Travel Expo and I'll stay on the queue and catch up as soon I get the tickets. It was a good thing that I have the book with me while waiting for my turn. I browsed through Selznick's illustrations. I was just drooling with awe I didn't notice how long I waited. Before I knew it, I have my tickets on my hand already. SM Cinema by the way, is switching the paper tickets into reusable swipe cards, not sure though if that's the upgrade they're talking.
So I went next to the Travel Expo in SMX. There's a P50 entrance fee. I don't know anything about travel deals and booking, I always leave it up to my friend or my sister. My usual role in booking is entering my credit card information. But going to the Travel Expo is another brand new experience. At first, I thought that it'll just be a long line of Travel Agency booths, and it was by the way, but exhibitors are very creative. Too bad that I didn't get to take some pictures because my phone batt was about to drain. But I really liked the presentation of different countries. Each one has a gimmick. Most of the booths' facades are replica of popular architectural structures of the country they represent. Japan has a photo booth and free Japanese food taste and free cups of Pocari Sweat(I got me a cup of that!). Malaysia and China have dance presentations. They give freebies if you like their page on Facebook. While looking around, I couldn't help but wish that anime conventions could be that creative. While our very own country claims that "It's more fun in the Philippines", sadly, the (DOT?) booth didn't justify the slogan. I'm not saying this to criticize DOT, but if you would just compare the tourism campaign of each country based on the booths, it's very obvious why we are not faring in the competition. It's a sad thing. I look at the brochure of Malaysia and I can tell that we can do better. I don't have to be there to say that we have more beautiful beaches here. There's so much room for improvements. But hey, the hype it gave to travel enthusiasts was a good start. I'd like to believe our tourism industry is on the right track. Cynics like me just have to be patient. And because I like keeping souvenirs of events, I hoarded brochures and flyers of different countries hehehe.
By 4:30, Che and I decided to leave the Expo and go to the cinema. It was the moment I've been waiting for. Hugo!!! So, I don't wanna give away too much. All I'm saying is, it's about a boy who has a talent for fixing clockworks and he tries to solve a mystery by fixing the broken automata of a mechanical doll left by his father. I'm not be the best person to give an objective review of the film because of my fascination with automata, but the name Martin Scorsese should be enough to make you watch it. I LOVE the film! In my opinion, it should win the Oscars Best Picture. I mean, I've seen The Artist and I think it's great, but Hugo? Come on, I don't want to use a cliche here, but really, Hugo is a film that literally reminds me why I watch films. I swear you HAVE TO SEE IT. The only thing that made me sad here was the fact that it's not on IMAX.
So anyway, after the seeing the film. My energy started to drop really low. Che and I decided to eat the pizza left overs. We needed to fuel our body. We headed towards the back of the mall (facing the bay) to look for a bench to eat. But luck was on our side again when we realized that all walkway towards the bay side were gated. There's a Pyromusical event and you have to pay before you can get in. On normal days, the place is open to public. We just wanted to sit on a bench and eat pizza, but we have to pay for it too. We got interested in the fireworks anyway so we took the cheapest ticket, which is P100. The countries competing for the night were UK and Spain. I've seen Pyrolympics competition before, but it didn't have the musical component. This time pyropeople or pyromaniacs or whatever you call those who performs the pyros (?) incorporated music while doing the fireworks. I love music but I don't see the use of doing them together. The constant bang of the fireworks doesn't really mesh with the music. Maybe that's how they're being judged because Spain synched the fireworks and music better that UK. I did enjoy at first, but after a while, I just wanted it to end. Maybe it's just my low energy, or the guilt of patronizing an activity that's extremely harmful to the environment. But I swear I'll never watch another pyrolympics or musical or whatever in the future.
Traffic was horrible on our way home. I got home past 12 midnight, I was, once again, awake for more than 30 hours. I feel a tinge of guilt when I do that. I feel like I'm abusing my body. But it happens once in a while, so... zzzz....
I slept for 13 hours! <3 When I woke up, I saw my arms with 3 different stamps. So when my family asked me where I went, I just raised my arm in the air to show them, here --
It turns out that I got lazier than I expected hahaha. I wanted to get on with the updates and here I am, slacking myself off. I don't always get a 3-days off, 2 weeks in a row, so I have to make sure I have something to share. But first...
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
We spent the New Year's eve like we used to, though I can't help but notice some changes. This year Pipay was not here but Richard and his family celebrated with us at home -he was with his in-laws last year. This season is generally all about family, it's the time of the year where everyone take it as an opportunity to spend time with their family or loved ones. So I can't help wishing we were complete.
I think that this is the most subtle new year's eve we ever had. It's a lot more quiet than the ones we had in the past. Relatives stopped coming and some neighbors have gone somewhere else-some went abroad to work, while some passed away (the old ones). There was huge noise for the last 5 minutes of 2010 and the first 10 minutes of 2011, the bangs and the booms, the bright flares of fireworks and the smoke, but it was unusually low compared to past celebrations in the neighborhood. Not that it's a bad thing, I'm not a fan of the explosives anyway and I despise the smell of smoke. But I like making noise (using other means, like horn) and watching fireworks.
My mom didn't even cook food, she was tired and ever since she got hospitalized, we were careful not to exhaust her. It's a shame that nobody in the family can cook. Pipay knows how, but then she's far away. I decided that this year, one of the things I should learn is to cook! We ended up buying a Chowking family platter. My Aunt Carmen also shared macaroni soup with us and I bought a chocolate cake from Goldilocks. I made sure that there is something sweet or it wouldn't be a celebration for me.
Things to do in 2011:
#1 Get a "health" cook book.
In addition to that, during the Holidays, I watched a documentary film called "Food Inc." It's about how the food we ate are made. Mostly the truth about farm factories -the living conditions of the animals, what "farmers" feed and inject to make 'em grow in a short period of time. How crops are genetically modified to produce more than natural method can produce and accommodate the demand and needs of the mass. No wonder all kinds of diseases pops out. But to make the story short, I was appaled with how big corporations manipulate the trust of consumers. But we have our options, we can be aware and we can decide what to buy and what not to buy, and though it's gonna be real hard for me the things I need to start on are:
#2 allot a meatless day in a week
#3 look for organic foods (where to buy?)
#4 less visit to the fastfood chains
#5 read labels and ingredients
So much about food, going back to new year's eve, after the traditional firworks and noise making, we ate, my brothers and my dad had a little drink, we chat, took pictures and then dozed off.
Despite the changes i noticed, I am happy. I am incredibly grateful that we still get to celebrate like this. So many things had happened in the past year, good and bad, that taught me to back off from my stubborness. How lucky I am to realize that I was sticking to my gun that had no bullet in the first place. Together with the year 2010, I am saying goodbye to all the bad things that consumed me. I am still working on some of my issues but I know, with the baby steps I'm taking, I will get there. I will get to live with my highest potential and be a person who can contribute to the society. I am positive that 2011 is gonna be great year.
#6 be physically active without going to the gym
#7 to travel and appreciate the Philippines more
#8 to save, save, save more money
#9 to give to charity
#10 to go to the dentist (I've been having intermittent tooth ache)
Last Sunday I went to see “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” together with Sherry, Mike, and Lester. We were at the mall as early as 12:30 PM but we didn’t get the tickets for the 2:00 PM screening so we had to wait until 6:00 PM, the release of the tickets of its 2nd screening. Then after we got the tickets, we had to wait for another 2 hours because it was scheduled to play at 8:00. During the time we waited, I realized that sometimes it’s not very healthy to have all the time in the world when you ran out of things to do. Thank God I was not alone!
But anyways… “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” is about Makoto, a normal (as always) high school girl who accidentally gained a power to travel or as the title suggests, leap through time. On a not so lucky day, the day she was destined to die, she bumped to a “time” device from the future, which gave her the power to time leap, thus she prevented her untimely death. Having this kind of power, she went back and forth on days she experienced mishaps and changed them in accordance to her satisfaction. But later she realized that the misfortunes she avoided diverted into somebody else and her intention to help other people made things worse.
I know that one should never play with destiny but given the chance that I will be given of such power, I will do the same thing. It’s a very selfish act, but c’mon, everyone has his own share of regrets over the past. The good news is, no matter how great the technology will advance, a time machine is an impossible creation. No such thing can ever manipulate the events from the past. I will bet my life on this one.
I just had a Coffee Prince marathon. It’s not anime but a Korean drama series. This is the first time I got interested and watched Korean stuff. I learned about it when my sisters are watching it. Sometimes I watched with them but it’s not like I always had the time to do so, besides I prefer the original version. Korean names are so hard to remember though (at least for me).
Honestly I was drawn to this series because of the androgynous Eun Chan. This girl “pretending to be guy” is nothing new to me. It has been used in anime and manga many times – Hanakimi, Rose of Versailles, Mint na Bokura, Pretty Face , etc. But this is the live action video that made me believe that this girl can really pass as a boy. I’ve seen the Ashiya of Hanakimi (Japan and Taiwan version), Jill of Jack ‘n Jill (played by Sharon Cuneta), and there’s this Hollywood film I’ve seen, I forgot the title and story already, but the main character pretending to be a guy looks like Ralph Machio (Karate Kid). They are good actresses but they didn’t really look like CUTE BOYS. And of course, I find Coffee Prince funny too. I’m just not so satisfied with the ending. I dunno, everyone ended up happy but I still feel something’s missing. My emotions were really pouring throughout the series, but when I saw the ending, all I said was, “oh that was it?” Maybe it’s because it ended the way I expected or maybe it was Eun Chan’s hair, LOL! I was hoping for something that would come out of the blue. But a never ending series is much more boring so I guess it was better that way. In general, it’s really a good series.
And just to share, these are things I’ve learned about Korea from watching Coffee Prince: - there are both right had drive and left hand drive cars in Korea (but I still need to verify this) - Asuji is uncle - Oscar of Rose of Versailles is popular among Korean teens - they also celebrate Valentines day the way Japanese do - they also celebrate White Day
And speaking of Oscar, when I hear of him, I mean her, the image of Genma Saotome in panda mode in Oscar get up pops in my mind. Oh Panda-chan I want to see you!
I was surprised when I received a call from Sherry last week informing she already got back from Singapore. Apparently she quit her job due to a conflict with her superior. I was surprised because all along I thought she was having a great time with her job, plus she never informed me beforehand that she’s coming home (duh like I’d prepare something hahaha). Anyway, the first thing I did when I got in touch with her was invite her to Eiga Sai and she agreed in an instant which I find unusual, usually she’d say "I’d think about it" which more often than not means "NO". Yay I smell reunion! I smell chocolates and omiyage!
I anticipated July 13 – Saturday with excitement that I went off very early without realizing traffic is less likely during weekend mornings. I arrived at Megamall as early as 10:30 AM, our call time was 12:00 NN. Damn! I hate being early in mall rendezvous. When I start to get bored, I start to look around and I start to see things I like and I start to spend. Just to share, my favorite quotes for the last 3 months: NEVER BE A LOSER and STOP SPENDING. I immediately informed Sherry to hurry. While waiting for her, I did my best to stay away from toys and comics.
I went to St. Francis Square. I rarely go there, but this place reminds me of Greenhills’ Shoppesville cheap clothes, Cellphones, bootleg toys, Pirated DVDs. These stuffs don’t give me potential to spend. Hold it right there! Did I just say Pirated DVDs??? Oh my, it’s been a long time since I went for DVD shopping and I really missed Quiapo. I looked around to check and reminded myself, "JUST 2-3 TITLES OKAY". The good thing with Anime DVDs nowadays is that you’ll get the whole series in one disc, depending how long the series is. But nothing caught my interest. There are tons of anime titles to chose from, but I guess I’ve really grown up when choosing a title to buy. Before, anime in pirated DVD was RARE so I ended up buying every anime title I saw. And that explains why I bought titles with no subtitles and loose episodes (Houshin Engi Vol. 3, Tokimeki Memorial Vol. 2, etc). So I support pirated DVDs? So what? It’s cheap, that’s why! One thing that caught my attention is that the new DVDs are in blue and red packaging with labels "Blue Ray" and "HD DVD" and I stupidly thought to myself – WTF! So now there are pirated Blue Rays and HD DVDs??? When I asked one of the vendors he told me that they are just "blue ray" copy but the discs are still in regular DVD format. Whew! But it would be good if Blue Ray would be pirated too don’t you think hehehe.
Sherry arrived with no chocolates or omiyage, but I don’t really mind. The first thing I asked was to eat Takoyaki at the food court. There’s this Takoyaki stand in Megamall that I really love – Chito’s Takuyaki. Their takoyaki is the only food that made me eat veggies because they don’t taste like one when they’re inside the takoyaki balls, and Sherry loved it too. She was surprised to see me eat the whole takoyaki without separating the vegetables, really, it’s that damn good. Plus I get to drink my favorite buko shake. It was the best meal I had that week (mom I really miss you) –tears-
At 1:00 PM we started to move to the venue, the Shang Cineplex. We were lucky that we didn’t experience queuing for the tickets. The ticket lady informed us that the screening would start at 2:00 PM. So that gave us time to talk. She told me what happened at work. She now has friends in Singapore and she told me how much she wanted to go back. She started looking for job again through the internet. Then she showed me pictures of her stay there and the conversation went on something like this:
Kid: (looking at the pics on the phone) is this a penguin? Sherry: Yep! Kid: How did that happen? They don’t snow in Singapore Sherry: It’s synthetic of course. Oh yeah, they (Ocean World) housed Polar Bears too. Look! Kid: No way!!! (looks at the video of a swimming polar bear)… but they’re not cute when they swim, I like them when they’re dry so they’ll have this fluffy look. Sherry: Oh really… Kid: Yeah! (raise an eyebrow) BTW, did you see a Panda too??? Sherry: Uhm, no. Unfortunately… I wanted to see one too.. Kid: Hah! As long as you haven’t seen one, I won’t feel envious bwahahahaha! Look I’ve seen one (brags my phone)
Sherry: LOL! Panda your ass! This is not a real one Kid: Of course it is! LOL!
-sigh- I want to see a real Panda…
The other things we did while waiting for the show to start – drop at Kid’s Station, answer some Kokology, CAMWHORE (this has been a regular activity whoever I'm with hehehe)… Then I saw Neitaro, she never changed. She always have this upbeat energy during events that would make you want to shout "hey" "woi"… Finally, when the show was about to start, I saw Chris but he doesn’t have the ticket yet. He went to get some and we followed him to check - and surprise - Aish and Duston were also there. Wow! Unfortunately, they were not able to get the tickets for the first film. So Sherry and I went ahead to watch the first film – Linda, Linda, Linda!
This film about youth is set in modern-day high school just outside of Tokyo. In the days just before the school’s culture festival, a girl’s music group is facing a dilemma. They planned on playing an original piece of music but, three days before the festival, the guitarist appears to have broken her finger (actually she doesn’t want to break her nails) and an argument breaks out between the vocalist and Kyoko. They need to find a new guitarist and a new vocalist. While the remaining three girls are pondering who to ask to be the new vocalist, they hear the song, “Linda Linda Linda” by the famous Japanese rock band Blue Hearts and decide they want to sing it instead of an original song. A Korean exchange student, Song, is sitting in the next room and they take the chance to ask her to be their vocalist. Her Japanese is not perfect, and she’s never sung in front of an audience, but she just happens to be listening to the Blue Hearts song. They practice and practice but they don’t seem to be improving. They spend a lot of time at Kei’s ex-boyfriend’s studio and at the school practicing late into the night. They are really tired, but a deep friendship develops among the four girls. The night before the festival, they practice late into the night and exhaust themselves. They suddenly wake up the next morning and realize that they are late for the festival. They arrive at the school just as the festival is finishing and perform as the last act. The audience loves them and the four girls play their hearts out.
-taken from Japan Foundation Manila Office (JFMO) Eiga Sai 2008 flyer
At the end of the film, we were both singing Rinda, rinda, rinda! I loved the film. Funny and endearing, this film made me remember my college days again. My favorite scene was when a certain Maki confessed to Son, the way he tried to speak in Korean and Son barely understand what he was saying, then she’d reply in Nihongo. A Japanese speaking Korean and a Korean speaking Japanese. A major BWAHAHAHA! I always find it funny to hear Japanese try to speak other languages particularly Filipino. Here’s a classic line I’ll never forget – tutugutogu kami – the Nitta Oyako saying "tutugtog kami" during their self introduction at the Tsugari Shamisen Play last October 2004, and they said that many times! This film made me want to check Blue Heart’s music, I liked the soundtrack!
When we got out of the movie house, there’s already a line for the next film and the tickets available are for the 3rd film already. I was planning on watching all the four films but it was impossible because by the time you finish the film, tickets for the next film were already "sold out" (admission is free, but for my lack of term hehehe). We queued for the tickets of the 3rd film that lasted an hour because they won’t release them for some reason.
After we got the tickets we decided to eat. I never told Sherry that I was feeling sick due to lack of sleep but at that time, I wanted to have some soup so badly (this is an indication that I’m sick hehehe). I was tight with my budget so I asked her if we could eat at Jollibee because I want their macaroni soup and she agreed. Now that reminds me, 8 years ago we’d go anywhere just to avoid eating at Jollibee hahaha. When we got there, the first thing that caught my attention was the happy meal toys. They featured Inuyasha! I got excited but sherry told me that Mcdo featured Conan Meitantei. I got more excited that I forgot I’m feeling sick. I inspected the Inuyasha toys and I found the details unsatisfactory so I told Sherry, "let’s eat at Mcdo instead hehehe". We both ordered happy meals and Sherry was kind enough to give me her toy. They are not action figures like the Inuyasha toy but a variety of puzzle games. Not bad, I love Conan more than Inuyasha anyway hehehe. I completely felt refreshed after eating and we were ready for the next film –We Shall Overcome Someday.
This film takes place in 1968 in Kyoto, Japan. The background of the film is the turmoil of the 1960s and the relationship between Japanese and Koreans in Japan. The story begins when members of the karate group of a Kyoto high school insult two girls from a Korean high school. A war breaks out when the Korean girls get the boys from their school, led by a boy named Lee Ang-son, to seek revenge. The Japanese boys are reprimanded by their teacher, and two boys, Kosuke and Norio, are told to go to the Korean high school and make a peace offering: to have the two schools play a friendly match of soccer. While they are at the school, Kosuke hears the sound of a beautiful song of Ang-son’s little sister, Kyung-ja, a non-violent, peaceful, 2nd year high-school student who is part of a band. He finds himself drawn to the young girl and the sound of the Korean folk song, “Imjing River.” He steps over the ethnic divide and becomes friendly with Ang-son and his rough-neck gang. Ang-son has plans to go back to Korea and has unknowingly gotten his girlfriend pregnant. Kosuke then find’s himself part of the group until an accident kills one of the Korean boys and Kosuke bears the brunt of the family’s anger. Kosuke begins to understand the anger felt by the Korean community toward the Japanese community through the music and words of the folk song. Ang-son finds out he is going to be a father and realizes he has to grow up.
-taken from JFMO Eiga Sai 2008 flyer
There were also funny and heart warming moments in this film but my general feelings were really heavy. After I watched this film I noticed something. The two films featured Japan-Korea friendship theme. So are these films part of Japan’s attempt to atone for its past mistakes with its neighboring Asian countries. "We Shall Overcome Someday" reminded me that Japan really started it all – all those hatred. I can’t blame those Korean kids for assaulting the Japanese’ high school bus since some Japanese highschool boys started picking on some Korean high school girls. If only the sense of revenge doesn’t exist… But as the title suggests, it also showed how the new generation can make up for the sins of the past. I find Kosuke and Kung-jya’s relationship as a perfect example of hope for a grudgeless truce among warring nations. World peace is still a far fetched dream, but I truly believe that we shall overcome someday. After all, the film concluded with a happy ending.
When we got out (again), I finally saw Chris, Aish and Duston queuing for the next film. We approached them and stayed for a little while. Chris said that film they saw is not really good, it was long and boring (no wonder the 3rd film started late). I informed them about the Anime Matsuri on July 26, JFMO will be showing classic anime Films like Doraemon, Chibi Maruko-chan and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, but just as I thought, they are well aware of the event. According to Aish, the Doraemon film was heartbreaking but I can’t imagine myself crying at a Doraemon movie hehe. But that’s something to look forward at the end of the month. When the line started to move, we bid goodbye. Sherry and I eventually parted our ways.
It was a long Saturday and it was really tiring but it was fun. As soon as I got home, I slumped in my bed with a happy sigh.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Yesterday I went to PAG-IBIG Fund to apply for a loan. It’ll definitely get approved because I’m a first-time loaner and a good payer (of course). But my dilemma is that when claiming for the check, I have to present 2 valid ID to claim it. Damn, if it’s just ANY valid ID, I don’t have any problem. But they require that it must be any of the following: Company ID, SSS, BIR, Driver’s License, PRC License, Voter’s ID, or Passport ID. I don’t have any problem with the first one, but the succeeding types of ID, I don’t have any –sigh- now I was forced to contact a friend who got connections to SSS. Perhaps I could acquire an SSS ID in no time. Damn, it’s really hard. Now here’s my another problem, my enrollment at school is on June 8, classes will start on June 13 –shrugs- I was actually saving that PAG-IBIG Loan for my tuition fee. But since my cousin asked for my assistance, because my nephews haven’t got their schools supplies yet. Of course, I have to give way… their education is much more important than mine. So now, where do I get money for my schooling? Oh good heavens… the general dilemma of an average people trying to reach their dreams… I don’t want to ditch this semester, I plan to enroll Nihongo subject, I saw that it was slated for Monday this semester. Maybe I could also enroll computer 2. oh here’s another problem, if I’d be enrolling Computer 2, I would definitely need to install Adobe Photoshop on my laptop… and that means I need to upgrade my RAM… and that means I’d be needing cash again… oh man… well, I still have a lot of time, right now, I have to prioritize my dear nephews.
Okay, enough with financial problems… yesterday I watched Da Vinci’s Code for the second time at Greenbelt 3. since Sherry’s check-up was cancelled, she just offered me to watch movie, she was with a colleague. Damn, if I had known that it was Da Vinci’s Code’s ticket they bought, I could’ve declined. I don’t really find the controversial film that great. IMHO, the only thing that makes it controversial is the theoretical interpretations of Da Vinci’s artworks and the twists they implicate in the histo-biblical facts, and the symbology (damn, I’m not sure if I’m using appropriate terms hehe). I am not a devout Christian, but I do oblige myself to attend mass every Sunday (though I sometimes miss it). Even if I would read the book or watch the film a million times, I can confidently assure that my faith in God would not be affected. And no, I will never believe that Jesus impregnated Mary Magdalene nor He has a living descendant this age. That He died in the cross, resurrected and ascended to heaven… and that’s final. Damn, if I’m so gullible in such ideas (Da Vinci’s Code), I have lost my Christian beliefs years ago, since I’ve watched and read Angel Sanctuary, X, and other anime with biblical parodies. Just like the titles I’ve mentioned, I treat da Vinci’s Code as a mere FICTION… a good fiction that is…
okay enough with reviews... what I really wanted to say is that, after the movie, we played at Timezone HOD 2 & 4 (of course) and I got really tired that I had a headache… and I really want to take a long VL… can’t wait for June 13, the start of my VL, start of classes.. and…
oh yeah, what's with the pic? nothing... i just thought my readers might have missed me hahaha! and yeah, i just wanted to show that my hair cut sucks... damn!
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
I just want to share, it’s been a year since I had my ear pierced… I remember it so clearly… it was Easter Sunday…okay I don’t want to get sentimental now so I won’t go into details anymore…
I just finished the anime Beck… hmmm, not bad but nothing remarkable either… I liked the opening song… maybe if I’m someone who’s an AVID fan of rock bands…
Speaking of bands… I didn’t come home again this weekend… I’m cost cutting… being based in the province is quite expensive if you’re working in Metro Manila… I’m talking of transpo expenses. Anyways, last Saturday Fars invited me to go the Winston Wings Tour 2006 in Malate. They featured Bamboo, Parokya ni Edgar and Sugarfree. Its free… so I thought… why not… it’s not everyday that you’d see a free live performance of the country’s top bands. I am not a fan of local bands, as I have mentioned long before (I think) I only liked E-heads. But I do like some local band songs (random). Besides, I’ve always wanted to see a live performance of Parokya ni Edgar. I’ve always heard that they are really makulet. Well, I could tell just listening to their songs. So how was the concert? Well, one thing I’ve learned, if it says in the marketing collaterals and news plugging that the program would start at 7:00, it would actually start at 9:00 so don’t bother to come on time or earlier. Darn, Fars, Mike and I waited for more than 2 hours! Neil was lucky enough that he came around 9pm, he was still able to get some sleep. I just hope it’s not the case with major concerts, especially that of foreign performers. About the performers, I couldn’t say much about Sugarfree, I was actually bored with them… I think out of the 3, they were the band that sang the most numbers, or am I just that bored. I did like one of their song, I just don’t know the title, it says something –magpapaalam na ako sa aking kwarto…- then came Parokya ni Edgar, hahaha, I really had fun seeing them… they were really makulet. What’s really wonderful about them is that they keep on promoting fellow rock bands –kamikazee, sugarfree, bamboo, hale- etc. Chito (vocals) was even wearing a “maharot” shirt of kamikaze… I liked it! But I’m not a fan of their music, I only loved “halaga”. Their songs are good to hear for stimulation, I swear I’d always laugh hearing their songs… but nothing beyond that, it’s not something I’d want to hear for any season or mood. But I was so excited when they sang “Narda” (by Kamikazee), though they didn’t finish it, tsk, tsk… I’m really hooked to that song hehehe… Bamboo… uhmm, well their music is powerful, they have this distinctive style in music… but I couldn’t really appreciate it. But seeing Bamboo rock like that makes me want to jump and head bang… rock on yeah! Well I did like some of his songs during Rivermaya era (Awit ng Kabataan & 214). And Bamboo is really an eye candy, no wonder Fars is soooo addicted hehehe… Well, another thing I realized is that I’ll never situate near the speaker, or the front row. I love loud rock music, but I do not want to impair my hearing. Really, after the gig, my ears felt numb. I swear, I’m reserving to hear music THAT loud for L`Arc~en~ciel… hmmm, I wish when I get to Japan, they’re still active…
It’s Narda on my music player right now… I really like this phrase -awit na nanawagan, baka sakali napakikinggan, pag-ibig na palaisipan, sa kanta na lang idadaan. Nag-aabang sa langit, sa mga ulap sumisilip, sa likod ng mga tala, kahit sulyap lang Darna- haay…
Anyways, yesterday, it was a good thing I browsed my planner. I have forgotten that Eiga Sai was showing in CCP stated last Saturday. Too bad I missed it… oh well, I got to see a concert… and I was able to watch 2 movies yesterday anyway. Yay! back to J-culture! I stayed at Starbucks Vito Cruz while waiting, I know, I’m supposed to cut my expenses, but I’d die of heat stroke if I stayed at the boarding house for more than an hour. And I actually have 2 e-fans on huh, it doesn’t make any difference. Besides, my destination is CCP, it’ll be good, I’d be able to walk –exercise-…
The first film was entitled ‘A Summer Page’. It’s a story about 3 boys who set out on a mountain climbing one summer day to fulfill a promise with their sensei who died a year ago. Japanese kids are the cutest I swear hehehe… I just love the sight of young boys in super-short shorts -nosebleeds- hehehe… basically the story tackles puberty, friendship and courage… nothing new actually but I just have this soft spot on childhood friendships. I have a lot of things missed during childhood, and having friends is just one of it. I do have playmates –neighbors- but friends are different… being a loner that I am, I never really experienced hanging out with friends when I was a kid. Letters, I think is very common that time. I remember reading Sherry’s friend letters during her gradeschool and highschool days… and I really can’t help feeling envious, because I never had those kinds of letters… I laughed at every message her friends and classmates told to her… they are nothing but silliness and innocence in deed… but they are memories… and I know that I was once as silly and innocent as them. Don’t get me wrong, I had a happy childhood I swear, but it’s just that I had no social life… well I did have letters during highschool, but they came from my siblings and relatives hehehe…While waiting for the next I roamed around CCP. I just love that place. A very suitable place for drifting from reality, just seeing the artworks on display in the halls makes me feel proud of Filipinos’ talent… There wss an ongoing ballet performance at one of the theaters… I saw some child ballet dancers… cute… but I didn’t watch, there was an entrance fee so…
The next film was “Young Girls in Love”, this time girls huh. The title says it all though, a story of 4 girls in love. I want to talk more about it but I don’t have the time now, I’m on a hurry right now…
Oh well, gotta go.
-awit na nanawagan, baka sakali napakikinggan, pag-ibig na palaisipan, sa kanta na lang idadaan. Nag-aabang sa langit, sa mga ulap sumisilip, sa likod ng mga tala, kahit sulyap lang Darna-
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
-coughs- I love fruits… -sniff- I’m a fruit lover… -sneeze- I eat a lot of fruits everyday! What the?! Anyway, my point here is, I believe I have a proper intake of Vitamin C, yet I easily acquire cold and coughs nowadays. Why is that? Environment eh? Most likely… I just hate it –coughs-. But anyway, being a fruit lover, this lunch, I tried Fruit Unlimited’s Strawberry x Green Mango shake combi! I love it hehehe…
Hmmm, it’s the start of the week again and I’m feeling stumpy again. I think I’m exhausted from all the events that took place these past few days. Ah, I just learned that we do have a fashion related subject. Can’t wait to tell Chris about it hehehe. On our 3rd year, it’s under ‘Textile Design’. In fact we have a fashion show tomorrow, facilitated by 3rd year students of course, but we freshmen were required to attend as per instruction of our HOA professor, Ma’am Tengco. Also, she (my prof) asked me to lend my Momonja (once and for all, it’s the name of my laptop) for the AV presentation of the juniors. Geez, I envy his participation on various events. Lynn borrowed him also for the AV presentation during the reception of her wedding. Way to go Momonja huh.
Oh yeah, I just remember, I’m already at chapter 193 of HXH! I’m through with the Greed Island saga. Everything was similar to anime. Except that some things were explained in detail. Now everything I’d be telling would be a total spoiler, so those who have or haven’t seen the 3rd OVA, back off reading hehehe… okay remember that after completing the game, Gon and Killua chose the cards ‘Accompany’ and ‘Crusader’s Necklace’. Though it was already explained in the OVA, let me go through it. Players can only carry imposed slot cards in the ‘take home’ binder. Accompany is a free slot card. What Gon did was transformed it into an imposed slot card, that is ‘One Yard of Coastline’ using ‘Fake’. Then he also took the Crusader’s Necklace as it nullifies the effect of fake. So when they got back in the real world (well GI is in real world anyway) they took the cards they got (Biscuit took Blue Planet) after transforming the Crusader’s Necklace into its item form (gain!), the faked card transformed back into accompany. The reason Gon chose to take this card is that he had a strong (and logical) intuition that his father played the game using the name NIGG, which he saw in Golimu’s binder (the oldest player in GI). So, as Gon cried “Accompany, Nigg!” they got transported in a pond-like place and an unidentified person is seen fishing behind a tree. And that is where the 3rd OVA ended. Cliffhanger huh? Anyway, here’s the real spoiler… so who’s that person behind the tree? Gin? Nope! Why of course, it has become Gon’s primary objective, why end the thrill this early huh. Well that guy was actually *spoiler* Kaito, yes, Gin’s friend and the guy who instigated Gon to become hunter and find his father. Well it appeared that Gin actually requested Eta to bring Gon to him only if he used ‘magnetic force’, that means Gon has to be alone to meet his father. Hmm, how come Gin was very sure on his predictions about his son huh…but doesn’t he want his son to have friends… well whatever that is… only Togashi-san knows hehehe… I’m at a new saga already. This time Gon and Killua are teaming up with Kaito and hunting down creatures that devour human beings.. honestly it’s rather boring… the current plot kinda reminds me of Dragon Ball Z –GT… I remember that at the part of Cell saga, I stopped watching Dragon Ball Z… well the plot for me has become rather pointless… with Son Goku’s never-ending quest to get stronger… it has become boring. And one more thing, the artwork of HXH I must say have become so simple… I maybe just overloaded with Shojo mangas’ complexity… but come on, you have to see it yourself. Well whatever, these are just my personal opinions. I believe in Yoshihiro Togashi, I know he could pull it off. Oh well, so much for my rantings, I’m going back to reading.
By the way, Howl’s Moving Castle didn’t make it at the recent Oscars, but Memoirs of a Geisha won the Best in Costume Design award, lo we’re talking bout Japanese traditional clothes here. Hurray for my most beloved nation! Hehehe…
Okay, this is a late news already, but this is my blog so I just have to mention, I lost my phone last Feb. 16 (Thursday)… *sigh* I have been remarked stupid by my family, friends and colleagues already… yeah yeah, I admit… how stupid of me… left it at the cab… so stupid of me not to check… but anyway, it may take a long time before I get a new one. I have still so many bills to pay (credit cards)… and even if I got the cash, it’s not in my priority list… besides, I’m starting to get used to it already. Soshite… the only person I wanted to text has forgotten my existence anyway… I can still contact my friends thru landline or email anyway… so it’s not necessary to get one for now. Damn, I don’t give a shit about the unit, it’s a low-end phone anyway. What made me really feel bad is that I lost the SIM card… Huhuhu, it was the first and only SIM I had… ah I had a Sun Cellular given by a friend, it got lost too… but this Globe SIM… is really important to me… I had it since I was in 3rd year college…
Anyways, on other updates, a while ago, Gel came in the office for formal endorsement. It’s been a month since she went AWOL. Haha, you bet we missed her a lot. She had been my partner when it comes to making office more alive. Maybe one of the reasons that the work has become more boring and monotonous is because people who have contributed to the laughter in the office are leaving one by one… I should start to look somewhere to go too… this place is not worth staying.
I bought colorful band aids, Mediplast, I saw in the movie “Hatsukoi” that it’s a lucky charm if you put it in your ring finger. I bought 20 strips and I’m putting one till I ran out of stock, with a wish that… it’s just on me…
By the way, today was the start of the Document Awareness Training in MDH. We’re conducting this training every Wednesday, and we are 12 Systems Trainer to conduct the training. But my schedule is still months away, I just helped Ma’am Len, our lead trainer with the logistics.
Yesterday, our class went to UP Diliman, and watched a dance performance by the UP Filipiniana Dance Group. The name suggested already that most of the performance they did were ethnic and folk dances. However, in the later part, they did a series of interpretative dance to the tune of contemporary music. As I could remember, the songs were “No Matter What” by Boyzone, “Iris” (Googoo Dolls), “Hands To Heaven” (Breathless) and “I’ll Be” (Edwin McCain)… anyway, what made these numbers interesting is it was actually a tribute to the members of the 3rd sex. Haha, two men dancing together as partners is just freaking exciting! *yaoi mode* Anyway, after the performance, I went straight to Shangri-La, I was suppose to watch Eiga Sai but when I saw that the 8pm film is Hatsu Koi, I backed out. Why risk myself going home late over something I’ve seen already? I loved the film actually and I woudn’t mind seeing it again if only it was a little earlier. Anyway, my trip there wasn’t put to waste as there is an ongoing J-pop exhibit and Japan photography at 4th and 3rd floors respectively. Then I hanged out a little at the veranda in 6th floor. I just love hanging out there alone…
Ahoy! It’s Valentine’s Day! The heart’s day… does that apply for broken hearts as well hehehe… I’m single and I don’t have someone to celebrate this special day, but it doesn’t mean I can’t celebrate it huh… Just to pay tribute, I wore a pink shirt… HOT PINK!
I didn’t go to school and work. At morning I accompanied my mom to an Ophthalmologist to have her right eye check. Damn, how come I do not know any Ophthalmologist in MDH?! I’m such a useless kid. Ma’am Ruth referred me to Dr. Canlas, unfortunately, she cancelled clinic today. Then the next one she referred is Dr. Mike Ngu. I went to his clinic and it’s open. So I brought there my mom and my sister. Then the secretary interviewed my mom. Then she asked my mom to enter Dr. Ngu’s room. I went along. A fat guy was there. So this fat doctor checked my mom’s eye and gave prescriptions. But when I looked at the Rx sheet, his siggie told me he’s not Dr. Ngu. It read M. Reyes… So when we came out from the room, I asked the secretary where is Dr. Ngu, then she said he’s out of town and told me that he’ll be back next week. Oh curse that f*cking med. sec! How dare her not inform me that the MD who’d checked my mom was just a reliever of Dr. Ngu! Not that I don’t trust Dr. M. Reyes, but it’s not fair that my mom and I were thinking it was Dr. Ngu we were talking to huh. Anyway, I decide that I’d complain about this… maybe to MSA… I’ll use my connection to Dr. Hogar… I felt like I’ve been tricked. But anyway, I’m relieved that my mom’s fine…
Now let’s talk how I spent my valentine… like I said, I didn’t go to work. I lied to my boss. I said I had to accompany my mom, but actually I was just going to meet Sri. It’s been ages since I’ve seen her and this the only time that she can see me. It’s so hard to book an appointment with her so I took this opportunity to meet her. Haay, thank goodness she finally realized her obligation. Almost a year ago, we had a bet and I won. And the price is a treat at Teriyaki Boi (hehehe it has to be Jap. Resto.). We ate lunch at Teriyaki Boi, Timog QC branch. Gosh, I just love Teriyaki boi, Tamago Sashimi is the best hehehe… the last time I ate there was April 4… *sigh* then after our lunch, we went to a bookstore nearby. The bookstore sells both brand new and second hand books but the place is so gloomy it reminded me of Meg Ryan’s book store in the movie “You’ve Got Mail”. Then we went to Starbucks nearby. Man, it was the largest, most spacious Starbucks I’ve ever been. It has a second floor, and I was surprise to see some conference-table-like there. Very conducive for students studying (minus the noise of course). I showed her momonja.. haha, all along she thought that this is a company property… hehehe, I was proud to proclaim that it’s a PERSONAL property! And still paying it hehehe… I showed her my pictures in my flash drive. When I learned that she had a 3G mobile phone already, I took the chance to take as many pics as I could hehehe… I insisted that we took a pic together. The very first shots weren’t amenable to her. She looked fat hehehe, but it’s only because her face was nearer in the cam. When I transferred the pics in my laptop, she insisted that I erase those pics. But I won’t! Every picture, good or spoiled, is worth a space and worth keeping… pictures are hard copies of memories aren’t they. Anyway, for her relief, I deleted those pics… but the recycle bin never pop in her mind hahaha!!!! So I restored it as soon as I got back to my place hehehe… I’m posting one on my blog. She wouldn’t know anyway, she doesn’t visit my blog eh! Hehehe, I’ll be doomed if she sees it nyahahaha!!!
Anyway, after we parted, I went to Greenbelt, I just don’t feel like going home yet. Besides, Mike requested if we could meet because he wanted to give something. Anyway, as soon as we saw each other, we went home. As his letter to me stated, he notices my sorrow. But more importantly, I’m thankful that he’s always there for me. Like I’ve said to him on my birthday, I’m still sad, but everything about this year is a lot better than last year. There’s a lot more to look forward this year…
Okay, it was my 23rd birthday yesterday! In the end my wish didn’t come true. I just wanted a greeting from… Guess I’m totally forgotten huh… Anyway, as I have told Mike last night, I’m still not happy but this is a lot better than last year. He came, and brought us 2 Yellow Cab pizza… thanks to him, I had a birthday celebration. Lee and Nagi came too. We went to Starbucks after my duty. I treated them this time using my credit card *sigh* as much as I want to avoid using it… anyways, we had a chit chat till 11:30 PM I think… Mike gave me bunch of stuffs. This man really wants to make me smile (“,x). He gave me a Totoro stuff toy, 9x12 Canson Sketchpad, “Black Lotus” by Laura Joh Rowland, a sketch of me (again hehehe) inspired from the Animax marathon, and a mini CD wherein he put his dedication in Flash format. Cool huh. Sometimes I feel bad that I can never return the favor he’s doing for me... I told him a million times already. But he has become one of my FEW trusted friends… anyway, I’d like to thank also these people who greeted me yesterday (thru text): Ivy, Richard, Kara, Argiel, Colleen, Cheska, May, Aish, Nagi, Lee, Jeff, Butchoy, Mariel, Sri, Lynn, Rose, Ma’am She, Jason, Mike Fajardo, Mike Felix (sheez, too many Mike!), Sherry, Doraemon, and Glaiza.… and of course people at the office. Nagi gave me an Astroboy stationery, sweet huh (“,x)
Office news! Ma’am Glenda is leaving MDH. She’ll be here until this Friday only. So saddening huh? Everyone’s leaving. Also, Mabel’s last day was last Sunday (Feb. 5). She’s leaving for Kuwait… so that leaves 11 Docs Team members. Huhuhu… I’m gonna miss them… So much for bad news, Have I mentioned that I passed the IQA Training last week? Just before I went to the Animax 24-hr Anime Marathon challenge, passers were announced! To my surprise, I even ranked third! Way to go huh? I audited, together with our Chief Security Officer, Mr. Bong Ramos, 7F (yesterday) and 8F (today) Nurse Stations. Hohum, maybe it’s not for me, I find it boring to study their systems… but I’ve been inquisitive I believe, but some Nursing Practice issues are still vague to me. Tomorrow we’ll be auditing Wing C station *sigh*…
More good news (really?) Miyazaki’s “Howl’s Moving Castle” is again nominated at Oscars for Best Animated Feature! Yay! It’ll be competing with Tim Burton’s “Corpse Bride” and “Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of Were Rabbit”. I haven’t seen the two competitors, but I’m very confident that Howl’s has a good chance of winning. Wanna bet? Hehehe… Gosh, I’m hearing “4 Seasons of Loneliness” again. Valentines day is coming and I’m still… haay.. next topic pls. I’ve finally seen FMA movie and I was surprised and glad to know that L`Arc~en~ciel songs were used as opening and ending theme! By the way, I watched it the next day after the 24-hour marathon! Now I know that I can actually watch anime 24 hours straight and watch more the next day! That makes me a certified anime addict huh. The movie was good really, I’m not mentioning the details, I don’t want to be a spoiler, but I highly recommend it!
Anyway, check those screen caps of my birthday celebration. I forced them (officemates and friends) to sing me happy birthday hehehe. Just so I could blow a candle and make a wish hehehe... but my wish didn't come true ='(
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