Sunday, April 29, 2007
party started, then there was this highschool guy i've seen in previous filipino parties who seemed to be lonely, so i chatted with him for a bit (a filipino custom, just entertain the guests).
gaack. bad move. i ended up being sooooo annoyed.
we went to where the kids were to watch them play mario bros party 7 (and also to veer away from the adults who might break into karaoke mode any moment). first, he rats off about video game consoles. while i am inclined to agree at one point (how they always get upgraded, so we end up buying more), it just irked me how he keeps downplaying the games. like he's too cool for them or something. and all i could see in front of me was 3 kids immensely enjoying the gamecube mario brothers game. i asked the kids what the heck they were doing (as a joke and really out of curiosity), he mistakes it for me looking at it as silly as he thinks he it all is.
honey, i am NEVER gonna be old or too cool for video games (besides, if you really want ugly silly, go play sponge bob squarepants the movie game).
then he moans he wants the old nintendo games back (platform games where you just needed to go to the right side of the screen and kill the enemies). i tell him, well, the games right now are more 3d. and he says, well, do you see them pop out of the screen? i'm like, whaaaat? (apparently, his version of 3d needs work). he did say he likes shooting games, such as those in arcades. and i say, well, they're first person perspective games, they're kinda real, so that makes them '3D'. hah, take that!
next, he mentions anime. he mentions he used to like pokemon (which is ok, coz i was into it during the first few seasons) and digimon (at this i just HAD to laugh! this show was pathetic!!!). so i recommend him naruto and bleach. he says he can't get past the big eyed thing. i tell him, well, it started out with astroboy, i think, the bigger the eyes meant the more innocent the character; so if the eyes are small, you get the sense that the character is mature, or lost his innocence. you could tell his eyes went blank. ye, he wasn't into it, but i was still ok with it. what he says NEXT really irritates me.
then he says, what's so special about anime anyway? (he said it in an obnonxious note) and inside i'm all, OH NO HE DIDN'T. of all things he just had to say, he said just about prolly the worst thing ever . i tell him, CALMLY, it's the plot, mostly. and he sarcastically says, plot? he wants all action. so i tell him, watch bleach. he says, no thanks, he'd rather watch LIVE action. so i say, watch 'zatouchi' or 'crying freeman' (which i heard rave reviews about). he says, no japanese.
who bloody brought up anime in the first place?! who just said he liked pokemon?!?!
FINE. so what movies have i watched, he asked? i told him the last i watched was The Departed. and i still wanted to watch 300 (he says, that was really good). then, there's spiderman3 and pirates of the carribean3.
he says, PIRATES? (again in that annoying tone). and i say, ye, it's a fun movie, it's a trilogy, i watched the first two, so i just want to finish with the third, SO? (i'm clearly exasperated at this point)
i then look at the kids playing games while eating my food.
he breaks the silence by asking if i've watched any "extreme" japanese cartoon, and adds "you know.." (japanese 'cartoon' i shudder at that word cartoon. it's anime, idiot!!!! baka baka*! *japanese for idiot idiot!* and "YOU KNOW?!?!"). of course i KNEW what that meant already, so i say, yeah, i have, so? he chuckles.
my gulay!!!! whats with that chuckle? graaaaaaaaa! bad enough he was annoying me by saying something about anime, something he knew NOTHING ABOUT in the first place (thankfully, my sister has now come to the "light" about anime, hehe. share in my obsession, te!), then he has to go make this 'chuckle'.
me imagining whipping out a HUGE MALLET out of nowhere and pounding his head with it, ranma-style.
i tell him to go eat some of the food upstairs (partly because i want him to shut up already), and he said he ate at a buffet earlier. i told him, you knew about the party and you ate at a buffet? he said, he really didn't know about the party til the previous night when his mom asked him to buy some ingredients. i told him, you're still a day ahead of me coz i just knew about the party TODAY when they started making the food. you must be on a diet. hahaha!
THEN, he changes topic (kinda). speaking of dinner, he was kinda hinting that he needs a partner for his senior ball, and while i'm prolly game enough to go (and see what american proms look like, and i still pass as a teenager anyway), his attitude just annoyed the heck outta me. i don't mind the age gap, but i KNEW i was soooo not gonna enjoy the night with him.
i tell him, sorry, i still have classes at your night. (hah, you don't get to act cool by having an older lady with you).
AND THEN (it's long, i tell you), he goes off by saying he missed canada so much, he hasn't been back there since 2006. dude, not only is canada like a 9 hour drive away, you not going there was what, just A YEAR AGO. oh you POOR BOY *SARCASTIC*. i've only been here since, what, 2004!!!!!.
instead, i say, that wasn't too long ago, you'll manage. with that, i leave. my filipino hospitality does have its limits, you know. that, and my cynicism WAS threatening to reach the surface. remember the kids; be a good model!
---
i guess you reach a point in your life where you are content at where you are at now, and there's no need to prove yourself to anybody anymore. i don't know if i've reached that point, but talking to that boy made me think i was near it.
of course, he was STILL a highschool kid. must be tolerated.
and me being uber defensive about anime DOES make me act like a kid in a way. i guess i should be more understanding.
or should i?
i don't remember having that much of an 'i'm too cool' attitude. i don't mind clueless guys who just want to hear your opinion. i don't even mind obnoxious guys who just say things like that JUST BECAUSE they know it's a touchy topic with you and just want to see you riled up, so both of you STILL end up sharing a good laugh afterwards. but then there are other obnoxious guys, those "TRYING HARD" people, who need a good slap to get their senses back in place and shout, WHO THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, IDIOT?!
---
i also realized that i was really being a bitch that night. but he was SUCH A LOSER! (anne curtis-style of Maging Sino Ka Man)
i have my moments :) aaaaaand, i was already stressed to begin with :)
---
my next story will be about the WORST student i had EVER. stay tuned.
then prolly, a short story about how a day starts wrong, EVERYTHING GOES WRONG. again, stay tuned.
0 comments // 11:06 AM
Thursday, April 19, 2007i don't want to jump on the wagon, but some things must be said. you've all heard about the virgina tech shootings? if you're like me, you've read and debated on the various articles and videos that were written about it. here are a few tidbits on the many sides of the story:
(1) my friend showed me a book that theorizes communities or social environment might be to blame for ostracizing these shooters from society. said rebels were indeed loners.
(2) another article mentions the relationship with these kids to antidepressant medication. the author of said article is challenging the impact of "the potentially deadly side effects of our pill-for-every-ill culture".
(3) NYTimes writes on this article the probability on how privacy laws are making it increasingly difficult for concerned individuals/groups to take pro-active measures or the initiative to help these kids.
(4) the shocking ease of how the VTshooter bought his guns would likely spark another gun control debate. the guards in our campus are already carrying firearms, which has the campus clearly divided -- there are those frightened, and others who feel it's only right and safe that they wield them so. meanwhile, this man might be forever haunted by the fact that he was the one who sold the guns.
(5) the drive to self-sufficiency can alienate people who are incapable to assimilate themselves into a fast-paced society. so says one blogger (go here and check out the bottom box from the message board).
(6) others (you might have read them already, so i didn't post the links anymore):
- people are blaming VT officials did not respond fast enough.
- VTshooter was bullied, so he snaps
- if not blaming a sector of society, everyone is now called upon to act with benevolence to everyone to avoid incidences like this.
- he was mentally-ill
- it's a copy-cat syndrome of school shootings. unfortunately, this might not be the last.
- NBC has aired videos, then apologized for airing the videos.
the thing is, the filipino in me is a little cynical. i look at the video, and i roll my eyes and say "ooohkay". i say that not out of disrespect to people directly affected by the VT incident but on disgust at that shooter. simply said, he was a person who wanted attention. look, he even has a video. AND photoshoots (the hammer pose was actually cheesy for me). did anyone see his "script"?! he was aiming for immortality, that crazy bastard. he has his own little world in his head that he's acting out. heck, he even had 3 separate places where he shot his video.
what irritates me the most is that there were people that reached out to him. many attempted conversations, but he ultimately rejected them. boy has an attitude. now all the media are on him, when there could've been more emphasis on the men and women whose lives made differences in themselves and in other people's -- sadly, their lives were cut off shortly. not that THEIR lives were more worthy (even i can't judge that), but please do not glorify this psycho.
while we, as society, are entitled to act benevolently towards individuals, even reaching out to guys like him, i don't think he deserves special treatment beyond necessary. the REAL danger is not society isn't doing enough, but that people like virginia tech shooter (i REFUSE to name him and give him the 'recognition' he craves) and the media generated by his cruelty and insanity are empowering other individuals to act just as impulsively.
CASE IN POINT.
MY class has somebody who's like that. inviting women (even myself) to his car/place. YES, it's uncomfortable. even more so that he has threatened some of our faculty. add the VTstory, and you got some paranoid students. while he doesn't look to have the capacity to do henious crimes (though you never know), the VTstory has given him an unlikely power, strong enough even for one man. what if he decides to act FURTHER, out of spite? it may be a harmless joke for him, but unfortunately for the rest of my class (AND school), we have to take ANYTHING seriously. i mean, we even have had POLICE interview each one of us.
FEAR, my friends, is scary.
and bloody bastard has ALL our phone numbers, too.
i'm really angry.
---
on another side, i've resorted to carrying a paper that says "Mom, Dad, Mengs, Teng, Anne, Julia, Donkee, I love you". you never know.
0 comments // 6:35 PM
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
here's something to ponder about: planned obscelence. (article/interview with author of "made to break: technology & obscelence in america)
i'm no slave to technology, but i still plead guilty to the whole notion of better-is-newer. not too long ago, i was among hundreds of thousands of filipinos of whom were always updated with the latest cellphones, complete with new software/feature installed with them. i also like fashion, with we all know is always changing.
but the term 'planned obsolescence' (and this pic of discarded blocky pc monitors) come to sight, and they all have me wondering: are we becoming the type of people that are NOT contented with the old and reliable, and in constant need of updates all the time?
it would be unfair to just simply say we are becoming victims of mass marketing strategies that simply keep us spending for new and improved stuff. granted, marketing industries may be purposely promoting products that are easily replaceable within a few years, but as human beings, we are in constant need to reinvent ourselves; we like to be INDIVIDUALS. and, times are also changing very fast, and we don't want to be "left behind" (word perfect? puh-leezz...).
but isn't it ok to just be contented with the materials you already have? i look at my cousin, and he has playstation2, nintendo gamecube, nintendo ds, AND nintendo gameboy (please give me the ps2 before you leave for CA.. please?). his parents buy him new games at least once a month. at one point, he got 3 in a week! and they were all just 'improved' versions of his previous games! i mean, when is enough ENOUGH?
another thought also comes to mind, that of relationships between people. as briefly mentioned by the interviewee, this "get-new-stuff" mentality can affect people treat commitments ---
I think you're less likely to have lasting commitments to people, to family, to a country, even. There's a well-known book called Bowling Alone, and I think this is where it comes from. We've become so accustomed to things only lasting for a few years we don't invest in them anymore. We don't see beautiful things like paintings and rugs as lasting.
sad...
of course, this way of thinking is too cynical, even for me. besides, we DON'T replace stuff all the time. after all, there are always cherished artifacts/moments/people in our lives that we hold onto.
at least that's what i'm HOPING, esp with the relationship part. despite my optimism on the human race, it DOES freak me out when i wonder if my boyfriend (whenever that will be) is always looking for someone better than me.
Labels: musings
0 comments // 5:13 PM
Thursday, April 05, 2007wow. it's snowing again (flurries, technically, but it's STILL snow).
somehow my mind is trying to comprehend it. SNOW. APRIL. and we're expected to have COLDER weather this weekend...
did i miss a memo or something? aren't we supposed to be in spring already?
pictures to follow.
0 comments // 1:45 PM
Monday, April 02, 2007aaaaaaaarrrgghh!!! uber cutenessssssssssssss!!!!!!!!
i remember i had a grey bunny once, she had a most magnificent excess white fur bulging between her neck and tummy (like she was wearing a fur collar).
of course, my siblings would remember i named her POPS. she had a hubby bunny called MARTIN. i have a bad habit of naming my partner-pets with real life partner names (pops and martin were a celebrity couple in philippines). i plead guilty to making unoriginal pet names such as PRINCE (dog - doberman pinscher) and PRINCESS (dog - japanese spitz). *hope i spelled those right* perhaps the only exemption was TISOY (mixed-breed dog), but he didn't have a partner (i prolly would have called her TISAY).
IN MY DEFENSE, my sis did call our other dog pets SIMBA and NALA (simba was very appropriately named, though. and my sis was a BIG lion king fan. REALLY BIG). my brother named our other puppy KOBE (obviously a basketball fan, but then again, kobe was ALSO very appropriately named. remember how high he jumped at the gate, teng? lol)
then we have DONKEE... :) as in the shrek one.
Labels: cuteness
0 comments // 5:25 PM
Sunday, April 01, 2007as much as i would like to fool everyone (it IS april fool's day), i won't...
btw, check my earlier post. YOU HAVE TO SEE THE VIDEO, I PROMISE YOU WON'T REGRET IT.
anyway, my search for a good asian style website might have finally come to an end. i found this amazing website.
(click image to direct you to the site)
some sample images:
don't worry, i'm not gonna turn my blog to a fashion one (there's more than enough out there). these past few weeks had just made me want to get some diversions now and then, what with nursing and the inevitable moving out. i happen to come down to clothes-rummaging online lately after i had done junking out stuff that i didn't use already.
funny thing is, i saw my clothes in a whole new perspective. one, i didn't have any 'statement pieces' save for a few jackets/blazers. two, they're so... college-looking (read: mostly shirts, jeans). i guess that's because i AM in college, but nevertheless, i'm really decided on getting age-appropriate stuff when i finally get the dough to buy them. what's NOT funny is that the clothes and some shoes that i've set aside for what i thought would be a spring garage sale did NOT materialize. instead, they were just given to salvation army. YES, you read that right again.
i was a little alarmed when i came home to see boxes gone (i was also planning to rummage some of my relatives stuff, with their permission of course, for some toys and other reusable items. i saw a wool coat, i think). then they were gone... with my stuff. without informing me at all.
i'm a little pissed.
aaaargh.
AAAAAARRGHHH.
*looks at images again to divert annoyance*
Labels: eyecandy
0 comments // 3:37 PM
