I have yet to read a BAD review of [b][url=http://www.lordoftherings.net...]Lord of the Rings: Return on the King[/url] [/b]...but from the looks of it, i don't think i would ever get to read one...oh well, perhaps there will be one or two...but those would be the thoughts of the NON-critics (read: those whose opinions don't really matter...:) )
I am - at this moment still - UTTERLY PISSED at the Metro Manila Film Festival. Because of them, the Philippine mainstream release of ROTK is moved to January. DUH!!! The rest of the world has seen it and I HVE TO FREAKIN' WAIT! There are those who offer I watch it on PIRATED discs...but NO SIRREE....the best way to enjoy the grandiose spectacle provided by Peter Jackson is on the big screen!
[b]FICS, FICS and...MORE FICS...[/b]
Writing has always been a passion. My messy room filled with papers of all sorts is proof of that.
And the best thing a 'writer' could ever get is avid 'participation' and comments from readers, be it good or bad...better if you get Constructive Criticism coz it would lead to improvement...
...and I got exactly that from my readers. I'm done with my first 'romance' fic [b][url=http://www.winglin.net/fanfic...]My Beloved [/url][/b] and I was overwhelmed with the response. Thanks for reading, you guys...and I promised to make a sequel of that...and also another fic on the character of DREW...and I will...working on that right now, actually. Meanwhile, [b]Homecomings[/b] will still go on....:) it's at http://www.winglin.net/fanfic...
[b]The F4 CHRISTMAS CONCERT[/b]
Yep. There's a concert on the 26th in Manila, the first time in more than two years that the four would again share the same stage for a concert.
I wanted to go the first time i heard it was no fluke. But the more I thought about it, i was thinking...Whoa. Hold up. Am I wiling to spend THAT much? (Coz, of course, if i do go, i wanna get the best seats in the house!)
and i am the type to only spend a huge sum on something i have set my eyes on for a long time. sort of 'priority'. And the Dec. 26 concert was not something i planned on before. It's a spur-of-the-moment event. And I do not like spur-of-the-moment stuff...
I planned on the slated Jan or Feb concert of F4. if that still pushes through, I would attend that, TICKET PRICE NOTWITHSTANDING. 'Nuff said.
some of my peeps are going. I guess I'll have to make do with their accounts of the said event. And pix won't be too bad, either...lolz
[b]A YEAR OLDER!!!! GAWD![/b]
Today is the 22nd of December; the year is 2003.
This morning...er, dawn...around 3 a.m., I was ruthlessly pulled out of my deep slumber (after staying up late watching a video) by my Mom who insisted we attend the Misa de Gallo.
It's about 4 degrees Celsius outside. The wind bit against me, lashing against my skin, and I could have sworn it would come right off if I pinch it. I have my thermal jacket on, but it ain't much help.
During the mass, I could have dropped off to sleep, if not for my silent chanting of 'mind over matter, mind over matter...i am fully awake...' Miraculously, that worked.
Whoever said REALITY IS SANITY is clearly out of his goddamn mind.
The line between "fantasy" and "reality" is so thin people find it easy to cross over to the other side whenever they feel the need to do so.
The so-called 'people in touch with reality' raise their brows at the concept of one taking refuge in their castles in the sky. They say it is pointless...futile...crazy. They say Reality "the real world" is the only place that matters.
Well, they are crazy.
Don't get me wrong. I am a realist. I see things as they are...for what they are and what they could be; rather than for what they could HAVE BEEN. But I am not that much of a realist to let the harshness of reality turn me into a stone-cold, sorry excuse for a human being.
The world goes crazy around me, and I seek solace from that place far removed from everything that's real. I run and hide to that place inside my head where no one, not even the biggest truth, could touch me.
That's how I keep myself sane. That's how I keep my sanity intact.
Is it pointless? Is it futile? Is it crazy?
Petty? Perhaps.
But crazy? No.
For all it's worth, it serves a purpose. I have my reason. If only to maintain a shred of sanity, there's nothing wrong with hiding behind the unreal...even for a while.
Some tend to overdo it. They disappear behind their fantasies too long theylose touch with reality, and when they are harshly wrenched away from that other world and faced with the glaring truth, they crash and burn.
That's where the 'ultimate self' comes in. That's where sanity is put to the ultimate test.
I guess the lesson here is: DON'T DO IT IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE IT.
In that other world 'in my other world' I can be anyone and anything I want to be. I can be anyone and anything I am not.
It's the exact opposite of this one I am thriving in.
It is peaceful...there is harmony. Dreams are real. Stars can be reached.
the holidays are coming...so is my twenty-second birthday. a lot of changes are bound to happen again, and i could not help but wonder what they will be this time.
change is something that is constant, as real as the air that we breathe. somehow that is already a widely-accepted fact, although in some ways we do not accept it for the main reason that we do not welcome it, and the implications the goes along with it.
me? hell, i'd like a change. a big one. my year had been pretty lull and, having a short attention span like the one i have, i long for something to stir things up...sorta like rocking the boat or something.
but...as they always say, 'be careful what you wish for.'
good thing i am not huge into wishes and stuff like that. i see them as they are, good or bad, downright ugly or passably cool, that's the way they are.
and i don't wanna be shittin' around 'wishing' i were this or i had that.
the holidays are coming.
I AM STILL BROKE!
(see where all these is coming from? an empty pocket! )
...believe me, it'll really make me feel a little better to know there's someone out there who's feeling the same way i do right now... let me know?
ALRIGHT! a little calmer now...
i have this friend Lorelei - i call her Loray (she is so going to kill me if she finds out i talked about her right here! neway, it's not like you'd care, right? lol)
so anyway, she's your quintessential 'critique'. she absolutely abhors local films (like i do, given the 'smutty' contents and themes they have) and only watches foreign films (like i do...)...she shuns away from local channels, thinking they're too cheesy or corny (yeah, me, too...DUDE! she really is my friend! har har!)
so! the Meteor Garden - F4 phenomenon swept through the Philippines, and i was swept along with it. While everyone was talking about Meteor Garden, Dao Ming Si, Shancai, Hua Ze Lei, Xi Men, MEi Zuo, Jerry, Vic, Ken, Vanness, chinovela....etc...she would be wide-eyed with ignorance...because, conveniently, their TV cannot access the local channels so she is completely clueless!
i would go on and on about Jerry especially...and she'd go 'duh!". she'd see posters of the MG-F4 and say, 'man, they don't look that good!"
last week, she ahd nothing else to do. their TV, finally, decided to break down for good. all she's got is her PC...so she borrowed Discs 1-3 of Meteor Garden Season 1. i let her borrow it...
needless to say, in less than a week, she'd seen the entire MG1, all 19 episodes of it...and now i am trying to bear the sound of her gushing about it...
HAH! a classic case of eating one's words! lol
MORAL LESSON: trust jhing's judgment!
hmmmm....feeling hyper today, sorry...but for those who have nothing else to do, try to check out my lame attempt at writing love story fiction...works-in-progress, really, but tell me whattya think:
Last Saturday was the 8-hour-long visit by George W Bush to the Philippines - his first state visit to an Asian country since his term, and the Philippines' second visit from an American President visit since Dwight Eisenhower.
Naturally it was a huge event; no matter from what perspective you look at it from. A lot were questioning the huge amount of spending of the government just for a measly 8-hour-long visit. Others went more personal, questioning Bush's character (mainly for his take on the War against Iraq and the fight against terrorism) and motives, and the United States' character as a whole.
Some leaders (definitive, I don't think they ARE really 'leaders'.) are very vocal about their dislike, enumerating all sorts of reasons to berate George W and the USA. But, IN MY HONEST and HUMBLE OPINION, they are just hiding behind these reasons.
Why, you ask? Envy, for one. They hate the USA because it represents everything they want to be, but could never be. It has everything they want to have, but could not even touch. In short, the Americans are who they want to be, but, try as they might, could never be.
The people take to the streets, backed by people in power, supporting them in heir so-called 'fight-for-a-cause'. They ebcome aggressive; naturally the police would have no choice but to contain them. The protesters draw first blood, it gets violent, adn in the end, it's the police that gets the flak. Plus I hate it when the protesters use children to face the media and speak to the cameras, obviously every word coming out of their mouths dictated by their elders. WHy use kids? Are they that desperate?
They even go to extents where they set fire to American flags and the effigy of George W or this and that American. That is too much. Think about this: When their own national flags or emblems or ANYTHING remotely connected to their own culture is in any way 'desecrated' in a foreign land, they cry foul. They immediately jump to the offensive. Now WHAT IN HELL ARE THEY THINKING? Or are they even thinking at all?
During George W's speech at the Joint Session of the Philippine Congress, a few of these so-called leaders stood up and made a walk-out. Pity. And they call themselves 'dignitaries'. Let me ask them: if it were your own president who garnered such treatment in a foreign land, what would they feel?
They declare they don't need the Americans and whatever aid they can give us. But when the Americans turn their heads away they are the first to cry out, abandoned. This is hypocrisy of the highest order, if you ask me.
Why hate the Americans? Why blame them for he shortcomings of your own country? For your own shortcomings? Why do you have to look beyond your own turf for something - someone - else to pin the blame on?
I love my country; but I am not what you'd call patriotic. Looking back at its colorful history, it's sad to note that most of the lowest parts were caused - not by foreigners, but by Filipinos themselves. I am not generalizing. I would still like to think we are a smart, intelligent and SANE people. But, as in a basket of tomatoes, there're bound to be some rotten ones, and most of them are underneath the pack, cloaked by the term 'leader'.
A prominent Filipino figure once said, "I'd rather see the Philippines run like hell by Filipinos, than like heaven by Americans." Many times I've been tempted to say "Welcome to Hell."
There is hope for us yet. But first, let us stop looking elsewhere for reasons. Let's just move. The Americans extend a hand, let us accept it. It would be insane not to, considering the state our country is in right now. Who cares about their motives? I do not think we are in any position to do so. We need help, period. Besides, this is a world where the dog eats the dog. If, indeed, the Americans have some ulterior motives in helping us out, fine. Then let's take advantage of it while we could.
This isn't a democracy. When one is dying from hunger, misplaced pride could be the death blow.
Jizen and I go way back. We were classmates when we were in the third grade and somehow hit it off with each other. At one point she even became my closest pal; after class we get together at her place to watch some TV or just fool around.
Even when we got to High School and found ourselves in different schools, we still found the time to get together during the weekends and catch up on the latest goings-on in, or simply having a laugh.
College came, and we rarely, if ever, saw each other anymore. We hear occasional news, sometimes we run across each other, but we weren't able to talk as much as we used to. Now and again she would send forwarded messages via SMS, most of which, I'm afraid, I don't reciprocate (I ain't really into those forwarded messages so... )
So I finished my degree. She was still in her junior year (she went to college a year later than I did) when I graduated. I've been invited many times by her family...when they moved to a new house, when her sisters graduated from high school, when her older sister got married and her niece and nephews christened... All those times I was never able to go, for reasons I do not remember even now.
Then last night Jizen rang. After the usual Hi's and Hello's and How are you's, she suddenly said, "Will you be my Maid-of-Honor?"
My jaws dropped, and all I could say was a resounding "What?!". I can hardly believe it. Apparently she is pregnant, hence the marriage. The wedding's slated for Nov. 29, and she asked me 'coz 'I am her bestfriend.'
Call me selfish; call me cruel...but I don't want to do it. I WON'T do it. Why?
I'm all for timing. I'm all for that 'perfect moment'. Many times before I've been asked to be a godmother to a friend's kid and I would turn them down because 'I am not ready for such a responsibility.' The same thing is true in this instance. As much as I'd love to help her out, I can't. My heart's not in it, I guess.
And...to be more honest, weddings aren't my thing. Maybe I am not prepared, maybe I am not used to it...but the thought of me assisting in a wedding, being even one of the bridesmaids...well, it just doesn't gel well in my mind, y'know? Perhaps I'm still too young...I need more maturity to do such things, and right now I am wanting in that aspect.
This Sunday I'll be meeting her after the mass, and hopefully then I'll have a reason plausible enough to get out of it.
[i]...i'm sorry, i can't be perfect...[/i]Simple Plan's [b]Perfect[/b]
No one - nothing - is perfect. That is a widely-accepted fact.
Yet why do we seek it? Why do we look for the perfect job, the perfect partner, the perfect life, a perfect world? Oh sure, some use the word IDEAL in lieu of PERFECT but, like it or not, for us lesser mortals the equation seems to be IDEAL = PERFECT.
But isn't perfection a matter of perception? Isn't perfect that which we basically dream of, hope and long for? What makes anything - anyone - perfect?
They say God is. As blasphemous as this might sound, I do not believe so. Or if I do believe, I accept that he is perfect for his flaws and faults. Yes, I say he has faults, he has flaws. And in my eyes, that's what makes him perfect. He is perfect for his flaws. With me so far?
He is all-knowing, Omipotent, the Most High, All Powerful, the Holy One. But did He not, at one point or another (forgive me for I do not read the Bible as devoutly as others) admit to being a jealous God? At one point we are even told we are not to worship two Gods at the same time. Jealous..a bit selfish, perhaps.
And isn't he a bit Machiavellian? Something goes wrong in life, we would ask: Why is God letting this happen? The answer most would give: God has a reason. He is doing this for you to learn, to be stronger...in the end, it's for your own good, and you'll thank Him.
Machiavellianism: 'the end justifies the means.'
I believe in God, don't get me wrong; and there is not a day in my life that I thank Him for everything he has given me. There is not a day in my existence that I do not tell Him I love Him. I believe; I just don't believe He is perfect in the simplest meaning of the word. Somehow the idea of God being perfect in the general sense as perceived by most gives rise to a few questions, all of which I am afraid to voice out for fear of offending others. And also because I know the answer would be the same: that same dead-end Machiavellian response.
I dare not rationalize God, or even try to understand Him. I have FAITH alright, but I'd like to think it's Faith with my eyes and ears wide open...and not Faith as blind adherence...
FINALLY! this week [i][b]Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl [/b][/i](what is it with these long film titles?!) was shown and, not one to pass up such a long-awaited chance, i went to see it - missed class nonetheless - (huge thanks to melai for keeping me company!) shameful....yeah i know...
and i know, i know, you've ALL seen it but cut me some slack, will ya? it ain't my fault the film distributors out here are - shall we say - incompetent?
i loved everything about the film! the laughs, the action, the vista...whew! let me just mention those that my mediocre eye caught:
6. STUNNING VISUALS. i particularly liked how they shot the 'skeleton' effects. (y'know, skeleton when hit by moonlight; back to flesh when shielded from it) and that scene of those creatures walking underwater towards the Commodore's ship? Just blows me away!
5. SETS. trust Jerry Bruckheimer not to spare any expense and make those millions count (still can't get over the reeling-sputtering-shot-d own black hawks in Black Hawk Down).
4. QUIRKY DIALOGUE, masterfully delivered by such greats as Geoffrey Rush, and Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom. they achieve the desired effect.
3. CHEMISTRY between - surprise! not Elizabeth and William - Captain Jack Sparrow and William Turner. Nice match-up there. and great casting...kudos to the casting director!
2. ORLANDO BLOOM!!! whether he plays Legolas Greenleaf or pirate's son William Turner, he still has that elven air and grace about him. While watching, I'd find myself blurting: "Legolas' stricken look!", "Legolas' posture!", "Legolas archer stance!", "Legolas' killer look!"....oh, man! I could go on and on. Thank God he chooses his roles well, and not one of those Happy Campers-type or those National Lampoons. Neways, that's jsut my humble opinion...
1. That oh-so-awesome JOHNNY DEPP!!!!! Jack Sparrow! oh, sorry....it's CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow...one thing you gotta love about this actor: when he plays a role, he's so "IN CHARACTER". In POTC, i think he's at one of his best. that swagger, that hip-swaying, the accent, the perfect comedic timings, the punchlines delivered so well, the slightest eye movements....he's AMAZING!
Scenes I loved? Oh, just about every scene involving Johnny, especially those shared with Orlando and Geoffrey Rush (excellent actor!). Remember the swordfight between Jack Sparrow and William when they first meet? That's so well-choreographed! geoffrey Rush had his own moment. A particular scene of him i liked was, ironically, his death scene; the look on his face when he uttered "I feel.....cold" was something to behold.
and the monkey...someone's got to mention the monkey...
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WILLIAM: We'll steal the ship?
JACK: We'll commandeer the ship.
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JACK: How far are you willing to go for the woman you love?
someone made a comment, wondering what i've gone through to make such blog entries. I admit my writing somehow borders on the 'darker' side...
Granted; the people probably best qualified to rant and rave are those who have gone through enough pain and drawbacks, those who know exactly how much of a rollercoaster ride life could be.
But I ask you: does one need to go through hell to "know" about it?
Because that's just it; I did not. I lived a pretty much sheltered life, with my loving family. My parents treasure me, being their only child and all...my grandma dotes on me. Strictly speaking I have cousins who look up to me and respect me, for which I am grateful. I have the kind of friends that, in a perfect world, would seem unlikely to exist. I have not gone through any major adversity that would forever change me.
...and for this I sometimes have this long-lingering fear that, when faced with a major setback, I would break down and altogether lose it.
So I open my eyes, try to look around and accept the world for WHAT IT IS, and not for what it seems...especially not for what the people around me make it out to be. I ahve developed a cynicism that most people find baffling, even unreasonable.
"Experience is the best teacher."
People learn from their own mistakes, but I know I am smart enough to learn about them without getting firsthand hits, without having to go through the rawness of their pain.
There's nothing wrong with being on the outside and looking at things with a seemingly detached eye. Not if you learn...
...but I'd rather learn from others' mistakes and hardships rather than having to go through them - as inhuman and selfish as that might sound.
i am a filipino, miles away from the WTC when it happened. but that does not mean i cared less...
so on this date, i offer a small prayer for the souls of those who perished; may they ave eternal peace...and justice be served.
my heartfelt congratulations to the bereaved who somehow found ways and means, the strength & the will, to go on, despite their tragic loss and loneliness...
let this be a lesson for us all. life goes on, if not the living...
I heard the wind speak of a day gone past when, on this same earthen soil we stand on, underneath this same vast sky covering us, we searched for meaning...an answer to wuestions we dared not even utter out loud.
Through the mist our eyes sought to make out what seemd to be the light. Yet again and again it eluded us, toying with us, leaving our curiosity unsatisfied.
Down that dark abyss of mystery we tried to fathom the bottom, scaling its depths with our thoughts. But all we saw was stark darkness, cold emptiness, roaring silence.
That day ended; yet the search continues. To this day, what do we know? hat did we find? What is it that our hearts truly seek? Is there ever hope of finding it? Will this quest ever end?
...and they keep telling us to stop this futile searching. We only need to believe.
In the middle of an exhausting class this evening last (and what an exhausting class that was!), I received an SMS from raine about this film on cable starring [b]Christopher Reeve[/b]...
Funny. My officemate Ronan and I were just talking about Mr. Reeve earlier in the day and we both agreed how synonymous Christopher Reeve had been with Superman. No one could think of Superman without at least giving the slightest thought to the actor who brought him to life in the big screen, and vice versa. No one could think of Christopher Reev and not conjure an image of Clark Kent's alter ego, complete with the red&blue costume and cape and that S mark.
Ironic, though, comsidering the state he's in right now. The Man of Steel, strapped to a chair, paralyzed from neck down...that body which gave life to the phrase "faster than a sleeping bullet" now no more than a vegetable.
There are other ironies if we but gave them a thought, which, ironically still, are what makes life more colorful. More real, even. Like ever had that feeling that what you dread most is what will most likely to befall you? Or that which you loathe is actually the one thing that could be considered your lifeline?
Remembering Alanis Morissette's song Ironic...you listen to it and go...how true...
We ponder on these. Maybe we should; maybe we shouldn't. As for mr. Reeve...perhaps he is, INDEED, the Man of Steel. For it takes much will power, much courage and steely determination ti go through a life such as his, to face and conquer adversities as he had done...and still emerge the proud victor. The hero. Superman. [LINE] [LINE]
today's the second day i report back to work after almost a week outside. i was sent on this seminar thingie concerning new employees, where people talked about employee rights, benefits, etc etc.
needless to saw i was bored out of my wits. there were moments of internal conflict, trying to fight to keep my eyes open, if not my ears.
the fun part was getting to meet all those 35 other people - of all ages - and getting to know them in those few days. somehow the fact that i was the youngest (at 21) didn't bother them one bit. the oldest, i think, was about 40. hmm....
so, going back....
nothing much has changed after that week away from the office. i came back, and everything's back to how it was. well, except maybe for a few things.
some of my officemates are still the insufferable prigs they used to be. bossy when they don't have the right to be, know-it-alls when they don't know one whit...there's still the 3-hour evening class i have to 'wrestle' to stay awake through (i seem to be having this 'sleep apnea' thingie going on for me when in class, but when i get home, i have a sudden case of insomnia....*sigh*)...still the cheesy jokes by our professors...
what changed? hmmm...my officemate (the one i am closest to) Ronan has finally made up wioth his girlfriend Mylene. i was witness to how they broke up, and how it came about. whew!
so we had this old officemate who decided to resign and go to Manila for a better job. her name's malou...well, the three of us had grown so close together that everyone kept calling us the Power Puff Girls and Charlie's ngels (i don't know which one is worse! :shock: ). malou and ronan had this long-running joke of calling each other HONEY after ronan missent a text message meant for Mylene to Malou....(with me so far?)
so she left for manila and e-mailed ronan. it started with: HOW's MY HONEY?
now the stupidest thing happened. He accidentally forwarded the message to Mylene!
i couldn't stop laughing the moment i heard it, but when they had an argument i went...uh-oh...serious! to cut the story short, they broke up....
now i'm back and they seem to have made up.
*sigh* the hassles of being in relationships. no wonder i avoid those...
malou has to contend with her own 'demons'. she's involved with a guy who is engaged to another, a girl he's been with for 6 years!
infuriating, really. malou knows she does not stand a chance but she still hangs around. and everytime she would ask me to SCOLD her, CALL HER NAMES, TELL HER HOW STUPID SHE IS...
and i do so with pure, unadulterated pleasure....
as much as i have a distaste for the guy, he's someone from work....and i have to be the professional and deal with him civilly, cmile when i could. i don't do that often....i am not going to pretend. i don't feel like it.
tell me, what kind of a guy would get engaged to someone, go out with another and refuse to CHOOSE? and what kind of girl would actually let herself be Number 2....and carry on with it?
good thing the fiancee works someplace else, a few miles away from here...or there'll be hell, and i would not like to witness it....
simply...complicated...
if you ask me, it does not have to be. cut off all strings while you aren't still fully entangled with it. set yourself free before you cannot escape its clutches...
it's been almost a week since the server of 'my other blog' went down...i'm still waiting...
oh well, there aren't any rules regarding keeping multiple blogs, is there? if there is....shoot me.
it's a friday, the last day of my working week. but it does not mean i'll be getting any rest soon. there's still my evening classes, and weekend sessions...
i only hope i get to have time to catch [b]LXG[/b] (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) in theaters this weekend. somebody tell me, should i go see the film?
i am waiting for [b]Pirates of the Carribbean[/b], though...and you don't even have to ask me twice to go see it!
i let a few films pass me by...[b]Tomb raider II, The Hulk, Charlie's Angels[/b]...i've been told I didn't miss much.... :P
[b]THE KING RETURNED...AND RULES...![/b]