Brain Dead

Janeiro 21– 27

Brain Dead

Soundtrack of the Week

1. Save Room [LEGEND]
2. Someday [NINA]
3. The Blower's Daughter [RICE]
4. Qué Pasa? [JUANES]
5. Do You Only Wanna Dance [BIG BAND]

Movie of the Week: Click

• Sandler is given a free "universal" remote controller that could control everything. As usual it goes out of control and...
• Film marketed as comedy but there is more to it than that. This film is worth every minute. Masaya, may lesson, for the whole family!
• Ang galing ng make up artist ng movie na ito, ngayon alam ko na ang itsura nila Kate Beckinsale and Adam Sandler pagtanda nila at naniniwala ako na ganun nga ang magiging itsura nila.
• Ang ganda ni Kate Beckinsale dito. Bagay sa kanya yung mga ganitong roles kesa sa mga roles na namamaril siya ng werewolf o kaya nakikipaghagaran kay Hartnett habang binobomba sila ng mga Hapon.
• Nakaka relate ako kasi gusto ko na rin i fast forward ang buhay ko, lol. Minsan kasi we forget the important things in life, lol, impokrito, hahaha.
• Ok yung kantahan sa huli. Siguro talagang naaliw lang ako sa Big Band. The Best Things in Life Are Free tiyaka maganda yung Call Me Irresponsible, pinariringgan ako, lol.
• Another one of those second chance films. Past films with same premise: If Only and Femme Fatale.

TOP TEN: Soundtrack of the Malaysia Era [FEB 2005 – OCT 2005]

It’s funny how a song could bring back memories from the past. Wala lang I’ve just realized that when I hear a certain song I often associate it with a certain “era” as I would like to call it, clusters of relevant events in the past that remind us of memories worth remembering and haunt us with those that are not so pleasant but still undeniably part of the past and had a contribution in molding us as the individuals that we are today. How does a song make it to the list of “Period Markers” = Constant repetition. Catchy melody. Relevant lyrics. Etcetera.

10. Mr. Brightside (The Killers)

09. Trouble (Pink)

08. Masaya (Bamboo)

07. Breathe (Michelle Branch)

06. La Descarada (Reyli Barba)

05. These Boots Are Made for Walking (Jessica Simpson)

04. Breeze on By (Donny Osmond)

03. Can We Still Be Friends (Mandy Moore)

02. True (Ryan Cabrera)

01. Boulevard of Broken Dreams (Green Day)

Politics: Nagsagutan sila AP Cayetano at Mike Arroyo, dinamay pa ang ADMU. Nagkalat na ang mga TV commercials ng mga nangangampanyang politiko, utang na loob Enero pa lang! Tatakbo daw si Hilary Clinton for president? E si Condoleeza? Are they really ready for a woman to lead their country? Nagpa party hopping pa rin ang mga ambisyosong gustong maging Senador.

Oscar Nominations: Surprise! No Volver in Foreign Language Film Category, Pan’s Labyrinth na winner dito malamang. No Dreamgirls in Best Picture category. Best Supporting Actress Category: same with Golden Globes except that Emily Blunt was replaced by Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine) Same Actress Nominees. For Actor, nadagdag lang si Ryan Gosling (Half Nelson). 03/25/07’

Languages: Dropped every single language self-learn module on the everyday to-do list. I need a break. Will attend free Korean classes sponsored by UP Arirang starting January 31, 2007. Maybe will go back to daily Korean mini lessons after Midterms end but for European Languages, break muna. Practical application of Portuguese via weekend job at office. Yun na muna for languages.

Work: I made a drastic change by shifting to Portuguese support. It's just that though my shift is a dream come true (Friday-Sunday only) there are barely any calls for Spanish support during those hours. I don't want to get sacked yet for underperforming nor do I want to lose the shift. I've realized that there are more avenues for learning Spanish outside the office than there is Portuguese.

Academics: I am having problems. I think I have mental problems, lol. Basta kasi before kapag nagbabasa ako ng libro may it be paperback fiction or textbook, I don't have to read twice tatatak yan sa utak ko. Ngayon hindi na, parang hirap na mag absorb yung utak ko. Para bang tinatamad na siya. Ok din naman yung depression na dala ng sitwasyon na ito. Siguro nababaliw na nga ako. After every depression is the elevator up kaya feeling good afterwards. The problem now is how to survive one more year in the university. Sipagin pa kaya ulit ag utak ko? Unfortunately quitting is not an option. Tsk tsk tsk the problems that psycho people like me have... As I said my brain is under state of rebellion. The body managed to survive two Midterm examinations despite this. Because of this language studies have been canceled temporarily.

Surroundings: Ang lamig lamig ng hangin ngayon. Pag uwi ko ng madaling araw grabe kulang na lang mag snow sa lamig o kaya liparin ako sa lakas, lol. Ok din naman kasi sa gabi parang libreng aircon. Ngayon ko lang na realize na hindi na 7.50 ang singil ng jeepney driver, 7.00 na lang, not that I care kasi 6.00 lang binabayaran ko, lol. Basta ok na yung malamig na hangin na walang ulan.

Future: Maybe it’s not bad to obsess about it. Toned down planning a little bit to use as survival tool to face the academic crisis I am having right now. Current plan is to grab as many language grants that could be grabbed as an excuse to not spend money to be saved for an MA at NUS which would entail another year of academically focused life right after graduation. Hell no, I’m definitely resting!

Reflections on Ice

Janeiro 14– 20

Reflections on Ice

Soundtrack of the Week

1. Dámelo [JUANES]
2. Do You Only Wanna Dance [BIG BAND]
3. Es por Tí [JUANES]
4. Girlfriend [N*Sync]
5. Irreplaceable [BEYONCé]

Movie of the Week: Volver

• Story about a mother’s “ghost” coming back to fix her daughters’ lives, hence the title VOLVER = “to come back”
• I see an Oscar nomination for Penélope but definitely not a win.
• Penélope Cruz shines in a role that would have made her look like an idiot had it been done in English; yes the language barrier does affect one’s acting prowess! Hehehe...
• Great supporting cast specially Carmen Maura, and of course also Lola Dueñas and the kid.
• Interesting twists, Almodovar does know how to enthrall his audience.
• More or less this film is already a lock for the Best Foreign Language Film in the Oscar’s but is slowly losing steam to Mexico’s Pan’s Labyrinth.
• According to one review, this is a story of women in contrast to Almodovar’s earlier work Mala Educación (Bad Education) which in turn was all about men.
• Baka hindi ito ipalabas dito sa Pilipinas, I mean commercial release. Kung gusto niyo panoorin there’s always Divisoria and Quiapo but you can also ask Instituto Cervantes if they will be showing it here. I think ipapalabas nila ito lalo na kapag na nominate sa Oscars kaya wait na lang kayo.
• Magaling rin pala kumanta si Penélope Cruz, hehehe.

Event of the Week: Golden Globe Awards

Meryl Streep wins a Golden Globe for her performance in The Devil Wears Prada. I think that assures her of an Oscar nod this year.

Rinko Kikuchi was blonde. She didn’t win in the Supporting Actress category for her work in Babel. She lost to Jennifer Hudson who won for Dreamgirls. Eddie Murphy also won Supporting Actor for the same film while the film itself won in the Best Picture Comedy/Musical.

Clint Eastwood was a double nominee but lost to Martin Scorsese for Best Director. Leonardo Di Caprio was also a double nominee for Best Actor but lost to Forest Whitaker. Sacha Baron Cohen won Best Actor comedy/Musical for Borat at riot ang speech niya. Helen Mirren was a double nominee for Best Actress TV, she won. She also won Best Actress Drama for The Queen.

Ugly Betty wins Best TV Comedy while Grey’s Anatomy wins Best Drama though IMHO I think it should have been 24. Jack Bauer lost to Dr House in the Best TV Actor Drama category. America Ferrera wins Best TV Actress Comedy for Ugly betty, defeating two desperate housewives along the way.

Politics: Nangsususpinde ng governors ang ombudsman. Siyempre kanya kanyang strategy para di mapatalsik sa pwesto. May mga nagbabarikada ng kapitolyo with trucks and traktoras while meron namang mala people power. Yung iba TRO. Bakit niyo nga ba naman papaalisin si governor e marami siyang fans --! I mean “supporters” pala. Election na naman! Hay politika sa Pilipinas.

Sana Maulit Muli: Na addict naman na ako sa show na ito! We are trying to prove kasi na If Only ripoff siya kaya lang nalilito na ako kasi based sa trailers bumalik nga ang time pero di magkakilala yung dalawang bida! Hahaha, nakakaintriga. Ang hirap din manghula ng mangyayari. Buti na lang weekends na lang ang schedule ko sa office! Harharhar. Kimerald <-- workshop pa, pilit acting.

Ice Skating: Na sampolan ko na rin yung Olympic size Ice Skating rink sa Mall of Asia. Ilang taon na rin akong di nakapag ice skating. Masaya mag ice skating kasi malamig, parang nawawalan ka ng pakiramdam kasi malamig. Paikot ikot ka lang kaya para kang zombie dahil di mo naman kaya magtata talon dun gaya nung mga pasikat. In a way therapeutic. Random thoughts flash in your head as you glide around the ice, cold atmosphere to boot. Kung gusto niyo mag isip isip tungkol sa mga bagay bagay, mag ice skating kayo kasi nakaka relax ng utak, yun nga lang nakakapaltos ng paa tiyaka medyo may kamahalan. Minsan nga lang nakakainis kapag ang iyong lebel ay gitna lang. Hindi ka anoying figure skater na maya’t maya sumisirko pero di ka rin tatanga tangang newbie. Ang hirap mag ice skating pag kasama sila, hahaha, angas. Skate na!

Work: Nag i improve na ang company at mas competitive na ngayon, meron pang mga incentives for different stuff. Siyempre for motivation, pero unfair sa aming mga part-timers, how can we compete with the full-timers? In short parang di rin kami kasali sa mga incentives na yan at least in the performance categories. Dapat man lang may sarili sana kaming division para fair. As for Portuguese clients hindi na rin kami nakakatanggap ng tawag nila at di na kami makatanggap ng e-mail nila. Spanish agents daw kasi kami kaya we should just do Spanish cases. Ok na rin naman. May mga chatmates pa naman ako na officemates from Brazil. Ok na rin kasi masasabi ko na I’ve learned Portuguese here almost from scratch, ngayon nakakakausap na ako ng mga Brazilians. Achievement yun di ba? Kaya ayun, at least gumaan ang trabaho. =)

Academics: Pinalabas kami sa Southeast Asia class nung Wednesday, late kasi kami dumating. Akala naman kasi namin talaga tapos na yung report namin. May utang kaming conclusion pero nagbigay na kami ng outlines and submitted an electronic copy through the net. Binigyan pa rin naman kami ng chance next week. Nakakainis lang kasi dapat tapos na ang paghihirap two weeks ago e!

Future: Naiinis na ako actually kaya I have decided na magpapadala na lang ako sa agos. Kung ano mangyari after graduation e di yun na. Sa sobrang preoccupation ko kasi dito parang wala na akong nagagawang matino e. Although nakakaaliw siyang past time, masyadong toxic. Para akong lumangoy ng ilang kilometro pagtapos. Stressed out na po, awat na! Awat na! Hehehe.

Back to the Philippines, Back to Reality

Janeiro 7– 13

Back to the Philippines, Back to Reality

Soundtrack of the Week

1. Dámelo [JUANES]
2. No Siento Penas [JUANES]
3. Es por Tí [JUANES]
4. Lo Que Me Gusta a Mí [JUANES]
5. Para tu Amor [JUANES]

Movie of the Week: Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo

• Pumayat na nga talaga si Judy Ann, lumipat kay Ryan lahat ng taba e.
• Hindi ako masyadong natawa sa movie pero enjoy naman kahit paano.
• Basically the story is about a couple who got married and... Basta all about marriage and having a family. This kind of film has been done many times before so parang version lang ito ni Jose Javier Reyes.
• The best yung scene sa Nippon Restaurant ba yun? Yung pinagbabatukan ni Juday si Julianna Palermo tapos paglabas nag bow ng pagkababa baba e buntis siya, hehehe. Wala lang.
• Ryan Agoncillo is not an actor.
• Well deserved naman ni Juday ang Best Actress Award, wala naman siyang kalaban na bigatin e tapos maganda naman ang atake niya sa role. Ayoko lang yung brand of comedy na hiniram niya kay Maricel characterized by being a motor mouth, hindi eefective for her.
• Hindi ko nagustuhan ang acting ni Gloria Diaz and also the way she drops her lines, parang pilit na OA na di maintindihan or maybe I just don’t like her as an actress? Gina Pareño on the other hand was superb.
• Ok ang mga lines sa film na ito. Ang daming quotable quotes lalo na yung mga linya ni Juday.
• Na overtake na raw nito ang Enteng Kabisote 3 in terms of box office returns. Balik trophy? Hehehe.

Event of the Week: World Pyro Olympics

Ngayon lang ako nakakita ng sobrang dami ng tao na naglalakad sa kalye. Mula sa MRT station pa lang ng Taft ang dami nang naglalakad kaya naglakad na lang din kami. Masaya naman pala maglakad lalo na pag malamig ang hangin tapos marami kang kasabay. Nasa 500,000 daw ang tao sabi sa news.

Ok naman yung fireworks, nakakaaliw manood. Iba yung atmosphere e, hindi gaya pag New Year’s Eve na may paputok din naman at pailaw sa langit, parang iba ito. Para sa akin mas maganda yung pangalawang display na natapos around 11 PM, lalo na yung finale na may maliliit na ilaw ng yellow and orange na natira sa ere at unti unting bumababa. Ang galing nun, tapos pati yung clouds na nakapaligid napailaw ng yellow kaya hanep talaga.

Ang reklamo ko lang, ano ang karapatan ninyong bakuran ang Baywalk? Kung yun ba walang entrance fee e di sana marami pang naka abante at di nagmukhang may rally sa loob mismo ng Mall of Asia. Pero kita pa rin naman kasi sa langit naman yun so whatever! UK nga pala ang nanalo. Next year ulit!

Showbiz: GMA’s new shows: Asian Treasures (Angel/Robin); Lupin (Richard Gutierrez) <-- wala ba kayong ibang artista? Yes, this is “inspired” by the anime; Super Twins (Nadine/Jennylyn) <-- think live action Sailormoon. ABS-CBN’s new shows: Sana Maulit Muli (Kimerald) <-- If Only?; Rounin <-- last year pa ito ha, di pa rin palabas?; Walang Kapalit (Claudine/Piolo), Ysabela (Juday), etc.

Languages: Fina familiarize ko pa ang sarili ko sa Korean script. Ang galing galing ng script nila, nakakaaliw. Medyo nagkaroon nga lang ng delays with the everyday self study sessions dahil sa killer report sa isang subject pero so far ok naman, smooth sailing. Per part ang atake ko dito para madali, hindi per chapter. Iniisip ko nga na sana Japanese na lang pero nasimulan ko na ito, panindigan. Kasi kung iisipin talagang mas maraming benefits kung Japanese e kaso ang akin naman yung madali lang matutunan. Personally, I think Korean is the easiest to learn among the three East Asian Languages. Mahirap kasi ang ideographics at tones ng Mandarin, and Japanese naman masyadong maraming characters. At least ang Korean kunti lang ang characters tapos madali dali pa i memorize. Pwede pa mag practice through Koreanovelas, hehehe, hello Divisoria!

Work: Bumalik na rin ako sa trabaho. Matagal nga ako napahinga. There are a couple of new managers and new agents as well. Medyo nag under perform lang naman ako for the first few days. Aba naman three weeks ako nawala so kailangan ko rin mag adjust ng panibago. Natanggap ko na ang gifts ko from last year tapos may mga bagong incentives ang company to improve performance.

Academics: Pamatay talaga yung report. Nakaka pressure yung prof. Nakapag report naman kami pero di siya happy. Marami daw kulang at maraming tanong niya ang siya rin ang sumagot. Basta sa akin ok na at least tapos na. Tatlong araw din ako di nakatulog ng mahimbing dahil sa preparation sa report na yan. I hate reports. Grr! As for other classes, normal lang. Back to reality na talaga... Medyo masama rin pero nararamdaman ko na talaga na tinatamad na ako mag aral. Hindi kagaya before na it was just a phase tapos go na ako ulit. Recently I have needed constant pushing and nagging just to continue studying. The problem now is how to continue! One year pa ang natitira and if I stop now delay na naman di na natapos tapos. Quitting is not an option. The only problem is how to endure one more year with this mentality. <-- Change the mentality, idiot.

Future: Iniisip ko kasi mas maganda kung may ipon kaso para saan? Parang medyo hopeless naman na umasa sa mga embassy jobs lalo na at yung mga maliliit na consulates and embassies hindi naman tumatanggap ng Filipino employees. Sa mga malalaki like US Embassy usually visa clerks lang. So scholarship na lag siguro. Bahala na, sasabay na lang sa agos. Bwiset.

Surroundings: Wala pa ring pinagbago ang tirahan, ganun pa rin. Mala Payatas lang naman ang sumalubong sa akin pero inayos ko na nung weekend. Hindi na sa sala ang kwarto ko ngayon, lumipat na ako sa kwarto talaga, which I regret kasi mas magandang kwarto yung sala, mas malaki kahit walang privacy. Sa dami ng problema ko di ko na dapat problemahin pa ito. Hahaha.

Going Home

Janeiro 31– 6

Going Home

Soundtrack of the Week

1. Nakapagtataka [SPONGE COLA]
2. Dubidu [KAMIKAZE]
3. Bawat Bata [APO]
4. Awit ng Barkada [ITCHYWORMS]
5. Do You Only Wanna Dance [MYA]

Movie of the Week: Babel

• Cate Blanchett obviously won’t be nominated for supporting for this movie in the Oscars. More or less sa Notes on a Scandal siya manonominate. Wala pa yatang 10 minutes ang total exposure nila ni Brad Pitt dito.
• Rinko Kikuchi and Adriana Barazza got nominated for supporting in the Golden Globes. I think one of them will secure a nomination sa Oscars.
• Gaya ng sabi ng blurb sa cover ng pirated DVD na pinanood ko, hindi na integrate ng mabuti yung mga subplots. Basta parang ambitous masyado.
• Rinko Kikuchi’s character was totally irrelevant to the story. Actually the director could have scrapped all the Japan scenes and the story as a whole won’t be affected, I think.
• Languages galore ang movie na ito so praktisin na ang inyong Arabic, Spanish at Japanese bago manood, hehehe. Of course Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett spoke English and there was a French dialogue or two in one of the tour bus scenes. Talagang pinanindigan ng direktor ang title.
• Nakakabwiset yung batang Arabo na namaril kay Cate at dun sa mga pulis. Gusto ko siyang batukan. Wala lang naiinis lang ako sa kanya, bata pa lang barumbado na tapos sharp shooter pa... deadly combination!
• Naaawa na natatawa ako sa character ni Rinko Kikuchi. Nagvo volunteer na magpa rape tinanggihan pa. Pero di naman considered rape yun di ba kasi siya ang may gusto e? A ewan. Basta nakakaawang nakakatawa siya.

Exciting Pero Kulang: Amazing Race Asia

Wala kasi kaming cable sa Pinas at bigla namang nag Amazing Race Asia marathon dito! Christmas gift daw ng AXN, hehehe. Ok naman yung show pero gaya ng sabi ko, kulang! Wala compared to the original.

Yung host parang napipikon na naeLBM na hindi mo maintindihan. Tapos pag sasabihin na niya kung anong place ka parang kakabahan ka kasi parang bigla na lang siyang mananapak. Bakit ba kasi siya ang kinuha? Ang dami daming matitino diyan na pwedeng host! At tiyaka ano yung mag asawang galing ng Thailand? Hindi ba Amazing Race Asia ito? Ok fine permanent resident kayo ng Bangkok or whatever pero hindi kayo Asians. Yun na yun. Dapat exclusive ito for Asians ano, ano ginagawa ng mga Caucasians na yan dito? Unfair! Unfair!

Bakit sa Asia lang ang lugar na pupuntahan, kasi Amazing Race Asia? Kung ganun dapat bawal na talaga sumali ang Caucasians next season! Hehehe. Nakakapanghinayang naman ang sunurang pagkakatanggal nila Aubrey at Jeernee pero ganun talaga. Oh well, next season. Change the host, please.

Showbiz: Nakita ko sa Yutube ang trailer ng bagong soap ng ABS-CBN na ang title ay Sana Maulit Muli. Parang If Only? Pati kasi yung tugtog sa trailer galing sa If Only tapos yung character ni Michael de Mesa inspired din nung taxi driver sa If Only. If only mapapanood ko lang itong soap na ito but no I won’t be able to because of work so bakit ko pa poproblemahin kung ripoff o hindi di ba? =)

Languages: I am postponing French studies once again due to lack of funds. Natapos ko na kasi halos lahat ng books ko dito and since nag LOA ako sa office, wala pa akong pambili ng next book in line to be bought and studied. Ok na rin naman, nakakagamit na ako ng subjunctive kahit medyo barok pa tiyaka nahihirapan pa rin ako sa pronunciation. Substitute muna ang Korean. Nakatulong din ang ang Portuguese sa pag aaral ko ng French kasi nasanay na ako sa mga nasal sounds. As for vocabulary, nakakaaliw talaga kasi kapag meron akong term na hindi alam sa French, kinokunsulta ko ang Spanish, Italian at Portuguese word bank sa aking utak at kadalasan nakukuha ko ang word, siyempre dadagdagan mo ng French twist. The problem now is with Korean. No cognates, start from scratch. Challenge ito! Hahaha!!!

Christmas: Christmas was just another ordinary day. We stayed at home, didn’t even go to the mall. Buti na nga lang mas marami na ang nagbebenta ng baboy sa city kaya may ham kami. Basically yun na. Nagbasa basa lang ako ng mga dapat basahin. Yung kapatid at mga magulang ko nanood ng 24 for the nth time. Tapos nanood kami ng DVD ng Sukob nung gabi na (Gift ko kay Mama, hehe)

New Year: Wala lang din yung New Year. Actually mas masasabing eventful yung New Year kasi nag mall kami. Wala lang, na amaze lang ako sa Suria KLCC, ito yung mall sa ilalim ng Petronas Twin Towers. Nandito rin yung Kinokuniya. Kumain lang kami at naglibot tapos binili ko yung Korean book (advanced forecast yung last week, hehehe). If you got to KL, don’t miss this mall.

Academics: Masyadong pressure yung report namin sa Southeast Asia subject. Kahit favorite subject ko siya aaminin ko na naiinis rin ako dahil nga masyadong demanding yung paggawa ng sentence outline and to think sentence outline pa lang yun. Ewan ko ba. Normal lang naman ang pagre report pero parang di kami makatapos ng groupmates ko. Siguro talagang tinatamad na ako mag aral. Ang nakakainis pa nakabakasyon nga ako pero pinag uusapan pa rin to. Tapos pagdating dating ko pa lang kailangan magplano na agad at magkita the day after. Iniisip ko na lang na since unang reporters kami at least tapos na after, makikinig na lang kami buong sem after that Wednesday, hehe. Yahoo-huhuhu. As for the other subjects naman e nagbasa na ako in advance at nakapaghabol na, which is good news naman. Hay nako balik Pinas, balik pressure, lol.

Future: Wala na. Riot na talaga ang future as of now. Linggo linggo na lang bago ang plano, wala nang mapagkasunduan although meron pa akong more than a year to make up my mind. Kahit naman siguro anong landas ang piliin ko e may paroroonan pa rin. Bahala na siguro kung ano mangyari. I want to build a career. Gusto ko rin mag lamyerda abroad. Both are feasible. What to choose? Shet.