Pissed

Don’t compliment me just so you can compliment her. I swear I won’t be offended. I know I’m not pretty. You know I’m not pretty so we don’t have to pretend like I am. Frankly, it’s insulting.

(12) Days After

First, please tell me if I got it right. “You Make My Dreams” played when Tom was having his “Enchanted” moment and “Sweet Disposition” played when Tom and Summer were in the train. Now, what the song when Tom was dribbling a tennis ball and started sketching again? Other than that, I’ve heard better soundtracks.

I liked that Tom worked for a Greeting Card company. It looks like boring job, but it’s not a common boring job.

I liked that it’s so much better than the last Zooey movie that I saw. I did not like that the lead guy wasn’t Paul Dano. Pero alam ko, hindi bagay kaya sige na. Hayaan na.

I got thrilled when I saw Matthew Grey Gubler and Minka Kelly. I love my TV connections kahit na hindi ko naman talaga gusto si Lyla Garrity at hindi na ako updated sa “Criminal Minds”. When I saw Minka Kelly’s name on the opening credits, I knew that Joseph’s not gonna end with Zooey. She’s the other pretty girl. She’s the next pretty girl after Zooey. Ano man sabihin nila sa kinaiba ng movie na ito sa ibang stories about love, mapupunta pa rin ang bida sa magandang babae.

I love movie references. Nasabi ko naman na I secretly love “The Graduate”, ‘di ba?

I love the time jumps. Eh, technically, hindi naman siya time jumps. I think they got everything right with “The Graduate”, Ringo Starr, and the pancakes.

Damn you, pretty vests and cardigans! The vests and the cardigans are to die for! No. Not really. They just made me wanna move to someplace I can appropriately wear those clothes.

I can’t say I loved the movie. It’s definitely good, I’ll say that. I did like Summer. Mainly because of this:

Summer: I woke up one morning and I just knew.
Tom: Knew what?
Summer: What I was never sure of with you.

---

I finished a book.

We submitted the draft our Action Research last Friday so I knew that reading is an option for this long weekend. Plus, walang kuryente noong Saturdaybecause of the typhoon so there weren’t anything left to do but read.

I picked up Alex Sanchez’s “The Rainbow Road”.

I read the last 100 pages using a flashlight.

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About a year ago, I’m in bed.

Chickenpox.

Good times.

Fall TV 2009

I like to watch my comedies continuously so I always wait for them to finish their seasons with the exception of Jim and Pam’s wedding on “The Office”, of course. Have you seen it? I can’t stop watching it!

ABC came out with three new sitcoms this Fall. “Modern Family” is hilarious. Phil is hilarious. “The Middle” is great, and “Cougar Town” is just okay. I haven’t seen “Hank” Should I?

“Castle” got better this season. “Eastwick” is more like... “Desperate Housewives”, not “Charmed”. Like “Cashmere Mafia”, only in a neighbourhood and they have magic powers. Definitely not like “Charmed”. “The Forgotten” is gonna die soon. I’m sure of it. ABC is not gonna order any more episodes of this show.

I’m gonna stop watching “FlashForward” and wait for it to finish na lang din. “V” is coming out on November and I think ABC is afraid to gamble on this show. 4 episodes will be aired next month and will continue on March 2010 after the Winter Olympics. Hmmm.

“Southland” was cancelled. An outrage. I love “Southland”. And they’re still airing “Trauma”? Really, NBC?

I haven’t seen “Community”. Is it good?

I tried watching “Accidentally on Purpose” and for a show to come right after “How I Met Your Mother” and before “Two and a Half Men”, it is just not funny. Not at all.

“The Good Wife” is not just good. It is scandalous! I love it.

Wala ng magandang sitcom sa FOX since “Arrested Development”. Technically, “Family Guy” is not a sitcom.

They have “Glee”, but seriously, it doesn’t appeal to all. Joss Whedon is gonna direct an episode. Whedon, the mastermind behind “Dr. Horrible Sing-Along Blog” and that “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” musical. That’s something to get excited about kasi kay Kristin Chenoweth lang ako naging excited, eh.

Balita ko, guest ng “Bones” si Stephen Fry this season. Bakita kaya sa “Bones”? Wouldn’t it be fun to see Fry with Hugh Laurie on “House”?

“The Vampire Diaries”. Hay. Pasalamat ang show na ito ang may Kevin Williamson at Julie Plec sila sa crew nila kasi matagalan ko na sanang tinigil ang panunuod nito. Yes, I watch it. Bits and parts of an episode. It consistently trends on Twitter, too. Not like that New York-based show on The CW.

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“Dexter” 404 was better than “Dexter” 401. “Dexter” kills Dexter’s nemesis each season. It’s just how it is, but I really don’t want them to kill The Trinity Killer. He’s just full of... he’s... crazy? Demented? I love him. More than Dexter, I think.

Lundy got shot. Deb got shot. I hope Lundy lives. Kahit hanggang season finale lang. Keith Carradine, John Lithgow, and Michael C. Hall are a powerhouse cast.

“Supernatural”. Sam is The Devil’s vessel. Dean is Archangel Michael’s vessel. Gooooo, Winchester! Bobby is in a wheelchair. God is MIA. Castiel is an outlaw. Anna needs to come back.

Please, let this be the last season. It’s a fantastic storyline.

EMPIRE 500 Greatest Movies

I have watched 168 out of 500 greatest movies of all time as listed by Empire Magazine. Yes, I actually counted. But the point is, I have a lot of watching to do and I think I'll start with Donnie Darko, the Director's Cut.

Saw - I have stopped watching the franchise right after the 3rd one. The endless sequels just ruined it.

I have seen the remakes of “The Wicker Man”, “Hairspray”, and “Little Miss Sunshine”, but those were not what they listed.

“At Worlds End” was not included. Both sequels to the “Matrix” were not included.

Iñárritu, del Toro, and Cuaron movies were on the list. At ang tanging "Harry Potter" movie na nakasama ay "Prisoner of Azkaban". Dahil kay Cuaron. See? What have I told you about "Azkaban"? Mahal ko man ang "Half-Blood Prince", favorite ko pa rin ang "Azkaban".

I thought "Memento" should have ranked higher than "Batman Begins". "Memento", for me, is the ultimate Nolan movie. "The Dark Knight" is 15th. Yes, it is a good movie. I'm just outraged. WTF (Why the face. Hehe.)? It finished ahead of all three "The Lord of the Rings" movies? That is just not right. The other two "Batman" movies that made it on their list were the ones directed by Tim Burton. Burton's movies were all over the list. Glad to see "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure"!

Ang Lee have three of his movies on the list, but I’m hearing a lot of bad reviews for his latest movie. Both of Luhrmann’s musical, kasali.

"City of Gods". Oh, I was so happy "City of Gods" was there. And "The Graduate". I secretly love "The Graduate". But what I was secretly happy about was that "Casino Royale" placed ahead of "The Graduate". I know it shouldn't be like that, but, like I said, I'm secretly happy about it.

“A History of Violence” and “Layer Cake”. Nice.

I went “Awwwww” with “Cinema Paradiso”.

Oh, "Toy Story" 1 & 2! It may not be the highest grossing Pixar movie, but "Toy Story" is where it all began.

“Into the Wild”! “Tootsie”! “The English Patient”!

“Battle Royale”. That, I think, is a sign. I need to read this one.

Napangiti ako nung makita ko ang “Scream”, “Election”, “The Silence of the Lambs”, “The Nightmare Before Christmas”, “Fight Club”, at “The Crow”. 90s makes me smile. Always.

“Field of Dreams” got me laughing. No, don’t think it’s bad. I just remembered “How I Met Your Mother”.

They listed two from Danny Boyle and "28 Days Later" is one of those two. I love "Trainspotting", too, but “28 Days Later is more of my taste. Darren Aronofsky made it on the list, too! Yipee! Even Joe Wright had one of his movies on the list. It's not the one I wanted, but it's okay. I guess.

Is it me or wala talagang Julia Roberts movie?

“Sin City”. I was like, “Really?” Pati sa “Snow White”, actually. Pwedeng palitan ang “Unbreakable”? Gawin nating “Signs”.

“Transformers”? *Shudder*

I realized that “Chicago” is not here. Why is “Chicago” not here?

“School of Rock”. Hmmm. Yeah. Fine. Napanuod ko kasi “The Rocker” noong isang araw. Mas gusto ko siya. Dahil siguro mas fan ako ni Rainn Wilson. At dahil nandoon si Teddy Geiger.

Er, will edit later – or tomorrow! I got to do thesis. I gotta force myself to do some more thesis.

(MMMBop. Great. MMMBop. How am I supposed to be inspired to do my thesis with MMMBop?)

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Napanuod ko na nga pala “Ready? OK!” Oh, Carrie Preston. Why are you married to the brilliant Michael Emerson. Why?!

Deck the Halls With Boughs of Holly

*Ehem*

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
The Stand by Stephen King
Possession by A.S Byatt
Into the Wild by John Krakauer

Fa la la la la la la la la la.

Caught on Fire

I don’t even know where to begin. My brain is reeling with too much delight.

But you know what? I haven’t been this... calm in a very long time. It’s so good to just drop everything and flip pages after pages.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

I woke up this morning thinking about Peeta. It should have been Gale, but instead I was mildly concern for Peeta.

I stand by with my choice – Peeta and Katniss. I love Gale. I know who Katniss choose, but damn it, we have one more book to go. I love Gale.

Okay, so let’s track back a few hours earlier.

By 1:30 AM, I was at the closing lines of Chapter 22 and I was blown away. I was asking myself whether to continue on or not. I read on.

Chapter 23 – I was bewitched, bewildered, and a little bothered. I was at awe. Amazed. Dumbfounded. I was literally stuffing my left fist into my mouth to prevent myself from screaming and waking everybody up. Calm phase is over. I was in hysteria. I love it.

I remember texting Nicole yesterday saying that “it is ALMOST up there with Bart.” Well, now it IS up there with Bart.

I finished it around 3:00 AM (14 hours it took me) and as much as it was hard to know that I’ll have to yet for the release of the third book, it was even harder to put the questions at bay. I couldn’t sleep, but that was all there is left to do.

Now, I had some concerns right after reading “The Hunger Games”. For one, I thought, “What now?” The Hunger Games are over, what’s next for Katniss?

The answer would be The Quell – A stroke of freakin’ genius. I won’t go into any more details because I am convincing my closest friends to read this series and I will not spoil them of the fun hence, I will not post my favourite quotes from the two books.

One thing is for sure – the victors, The Quell tributes, are far more superior characters than the tributes from the last book with the exception of Rue and Thresh, of course.

Johanna Mason. Wow. Spunky.

Finnick Odair is just classic. A piece of good work, really. Unbelievably annoying and charming, that guy.

But it was probably Mags who got to me the most this time.

I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of Bonnie, Twill, and Beetee. I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of Madge, either. She’s written into the story for a reason, I’m sure of it.

As for Haymitch, I was right about not reading him well. He will knock your socks off.

The following lines were written when I was reading Chapters 17 and 18:

I think, no, I know that my biggest gasped, the one jaw dropping moment that I had was with Darius. No, hang on! The wedding dress! It’s got to be the brilliance of Cinna and the wedding dress! I remember me saying, “Oh my God!” Remember the mockingjay? It’s not just for the book to have originality. It represents what Katniss and the rest of them are fighting for. I knew I love Cinna for a reason and it’s definitely not because of his gold eyeliner!

Ho. Lee. Crap! Peeta! You know your words, my dear boy. You know your words! That is his greatest advantage towards Gale. He works the crowd; he knows the right things to say. He is a smooth talker.

And then, I was teary-eyed again. Teary-eyed for the man who made fire girl.

Fun time’s over.

You Hungry?

Right now, I am just extremely happy that I was able to read a book again. In a span of one day, by the way. Ha! I still have the fast-reading skill in me. It’s been a long time and the longing for reading was eased up a bit.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I loved how much at how much Katniss will do just about anything to keep her family from starving. You respect a character like that. I loved Katniss’ relationship with Prim, that Prim somehow became her anchor, and with her feelings toward their mother. What’s more interesting was her recollection of her memories of her father. Katniss is a well-crafted character. At first, she reminded me of Kitty of “The Bartimaues Trilogy”. Only Katniss is more likeable.

I did a bit of “research” when I got to the 5th chapter of the book. I suddenly became apprehensive when I learned about the love story angle of the whole thing. The last love triangle I read made me gag. As it turns out, it was bearable. I do think that it’ll be Katniss and Peeta in the end, unless one of them dies a horrible death. Or is it just the arena setting? Still, they’re good together. However, I like Gale more. Not for Katniss. Remember, I’m in favor of Katniss and Peeta. What I’m saying is I just like Gale. His almost non-presence made me want to know more about him. And Katniss did thought of Gale while she was in the arena. She thought of him a lot. Oh, it’s conflicting. Remember that I haven’t read “Catching Fire” yet so I don’t know how the triangle worked out by the second book.

I thought that the concept of The Hunger Games is very clever - sadistic and entertaining. Brutal and barbaric. Add the fact that it is was televised as a reality show. And then there’s this... hatred I feel for the Capitol and the Careers. (But, maybe it’s the kind of hatred I feel for the Death Eaters. Of course, you know, deep down, I love the Death Eaters so I guess it’s the same for the Capitol and the Careers.) They were forced to play a game. A game of hunger and of survival. And they were watched by people like animals in the zoo. It’s all too political. The show and the possession of power. It’s disgusting.

The humour is so... hostile. A true reflection of Katniss’ personality.

A mockingjay. It gives the story a touch of originality.

The redheaded Avox girl and Cinna hold something in their past that makes them very intriguing and appealing.

With Rue, I almost broke my heart. She was, in fact, Katniss’ Prim in the Capitol so what happened was truly devastating.

I want to say something about Haymitch, but I got none. He’s very hard to decipher for me.

I had my eyes on Madge and Thresh for a while. I would have wanted to see more of Thresh. He was brooding in the way I like and to have affection for his fellow district tribute got to me.

I think I’m in love with Cinna. Or Gale. Oh, now I’m debating.