Sunday, January 27, 2008

Two words --

Watch "Weeds"

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Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes made of ticky-tacky,
Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes, all the same.

There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky-tacky
And they all look just the same.

And the people in the houses
All went to the university,
Where they were put in boxes,
And they came out all the same.

And there's doctors and there's lawyers
And business executives, A
nd they're all made out of ticky-tacky
And they all look just the same.

And they all play on the golf-course,
And drink their Martinis dry,
And they all have pretty children,
And the children go to school.
And the children go to summer camp
And then to the university,
Where they are put in boxes
And they come out all the same.

And the boys go into business,
And marry, and raise a family,
In boxes made of ticky-tacky,
And they all look just the same.

There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky-tacky
And they all look just the same.

- theme song from "Weeds"

More music from Weeds here. Check out the many, many fun versions of "Little Boxes" (including one by Billy Bob Thornton O_o and Regina Spektor)

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Crazy about Kimchi --

I used to hate the smell of Kimchi -- and it annoyed me that Johann would insist on buying a bottle every time we were doing the grocery in Manila.

The obnoxious habit followed him here to Iloilo. When my youngest brother was here, they went into this Kimchi-eating frenzy --

I didn't understand the appeal -- until a week ago when our Korean mom gave us some of her homemade Kimchi.

She took a certificate course in cooking when she was still living in Korea and she loves to experiment and create (what she calls) "original recipes."

And now I am a convert and addicted to the stuff.

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From an amazing website called Poketo --

I accidentally stumbled upon this website when I was searching for a wallet. (I am still searching.)

Poketo -- it's an amazing online store which sells really funky products.

They've gathered a group of young artists to design wallets, bags and tshirts for them and each item is a limited series.

We got Johann a Rama Hughes wallet for his birthday.

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It's an incredibly minimalist wallet. The slots are all made of clear vinyl (or is it PVC?) and it folds flat. Each wallet comes with a certificate (because they actually become collector's items) and a button.

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When I showed Johann the website, he actually had a hard time choosing a wallet because there were a lot of very nice designs. He eventually settled on this one because of the robot theme.

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Are you a Geek? --

I found another back issue of Geek Monthly at Booksale and it contained the First Annual Geek Reader's Quiz --

I thought it was really cool so I've typed it up here for everyone else's reading enjoyment. (Yes, I am geek enough to do something like this. ^_^)

Yes or No:

1. Does your ATM PIN number in any way reference Star Trek?

2. Do you think Blu-ray is better than HD DVD?

3. Do you think HD DVD is better than Blu-ray?

4. Do you spend more than 5 minutes a week contemplating if you need to upgrade your RAM?

5. Do you own an iPhone?

6. Do you refuse to own an iPhone because you're a PC guy and hell will freeze over before you buy a Mac, and although an iPhone isn't a Mac it's made by Apple and that's just too close for comfort?

7. At a car dealership do you ask about Bluetooth, Navigation and MP3 jacks, but not about horsepower, air bags or anti-lock brakes?

8. Have you ever said the names Captain Picard and Captain Kirk in the same sentence?

9. Does it bother you that George Lucas has ever altered anything?

10. Do you feel that Uwe Boll must be stopped?

11. Have you ever gone 24 hours without sleep because you just needed to reach the next level?

12. Have you ever asked someone "what server do they play on"?

13. Have you ever had an argument about "DPS"?

14. Have you ever hacked your Tivo?

15. Have you seen checks and cash but don't use them?

16. Are you not sure if a Terabyte of storage is enough?

17. Have you ever read a novelization of any movie?

18. Have you ever typed any of the following: ROFL, LOL, OMFG, STFU or PWNED?

19. Have you ever replaced all previous 4-letter expletives with "noob"?

20. Do you know who Mark Altman is?

21. Have you ever used the word "replicant" in a conversation?

22. Have you ever said "There can be only one" fully expecting that anyone hearing you would understand the reference?

23. Do you think Empire was the best of the three movies? (If you don't know what this means, you are 100% Geek free. No need to continue.)

24. Do you know what a Zentradi Warship is?

25. Has a video game review ever made you mad?

26. When asked who is hotter: Lara Croft or Jessica Biel, do you need a moment to think?

27. Have you ever looked down on fans of V with derision?

28. Have you ever opened your computer without a tech support technician on the phone?

29. Have you ever spent more than $50 on a toy ... for yourself?

30. Do you purchase all beverages based upon their caffeine content?

31. Have you ever camped out overnight for movie tickets?

32. Do you own dice with more than 6 sides?

33. Do you think it's important for all personal electronics to have a holster?

34. Have you ever actually contructed anything designed by Alton Brown on Food TV's Good Eats?

35. Have you ever upgraded the firmware on your cell phone?

36. Have you ever modified the registry on your computer?

37. Is your computer liquid cooled?

38. Are your political views influenced by South Park?

39. Are you certain that "The Truth is Out There", but you're long past caring?

40. Have you ever used a Magic Eight Ball as a decision-making tool?

41. Do you own more than one version of Army of Darkness on DVD?

42. Have you ever owned a watch with a calculator built in to it?

43. Have you ever attempted a William Shatner impersonation?

44. Do your favorite shows almost always require a letter writing campaign to keep them alive?

45. Do you get annoyed when people suggest anything animated is automatically intended for children?

46. Do you feel the X-Men movies would have been better if Wolverine's costume just had more yellow?

47. Have you ever gone out in public in a costume on evenings other than Halloween?

48. Can you finish this sentence: "The odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field are ___ to 1."

49. Have you ever wondered why the Six Million Dollar Man had cross-hairs in his bionic eye?

50. Have you ever recommended an internet porn site to a friend?

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Scoring:

0-10: Don't worry, you're not a geek. You clearly picked up this magazine at a hair salon or doctor's office and are in the process of putting it down.

11-20: You're not a geek, but you may have relatives or spouses who have imposed their interests on you enough that you've picked up a few basics.

21-30: You're getting into geekdom, but you may be too old to trust computers or too young to recommend internet porn sites yet.

31-40: You're getting there, but you may have enough residual shame about being a Trekkie (Ok fine ... Trekker) that you lied about a few of the questions.

41-49: You call yourself a geek? How could you have gotten this far and not gotten every one of these questions right? Go to your room!

50: Welcome, friend.

Monday, January 21, 2008

A proper post --

We were able to find a copy of Atonement -- it's a beautiful, beautiful film and deserves all the buzz that it is getting.

It's based on the novel by Ian McEwan and is Joe Wright's "follow-up" movie to "Pride and Prejudice." I think this is the movie that will establish Keira Knightley as a "serious" actress. James McAvoy is amazing as Robbie Turner -- a man who is always caught between two worlds and the actress playing Briony is intense with her freaky blue eyes. O_O

Now I want to find a copy of the book. ^_^

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No trips to the cinema for Johann and Tin --

We were really looking forward to watching National Treasure: Book of Secrets but we still haven't seen it. ~sigh~

It's been a series of sickness in our house -- first, Seth and then, Johann ... (and now I have a tickle in my throat) ~sigh~

We did get to see Bee Movie last week. I enjoyed it but I thought Matthew Broderick's character was underused.

I just hope they don't pull out the movies on Wednesday.

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The most FUN birthday present --

This is what we got in the mail --

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It came with a note from my youngest brother, explaining that he had planned to send us 30 bags of chips (to mark our 30th birthday) -- different flavors but he could only fit 20 in the box.

It's INSANE! He even labeled them -- we were really bouncing as we inspected each bag.

Here are some of the unique flavors --

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Steak!

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Bacon and Eggs!

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Tonkatsu!

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Snow Cheese!

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Bonito and Plum!

This is one of the reasons why he couldn't fit all 30 bags.

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This is the collector's edition of Ged's War Chronicles -- the first project of Hayao Miyazaki's son.

Joy and Jubilation! ^_^

Saturday, January 19, 2008

Friday, January 18, 2008

I am doing a somersault and a backflip in my head --

One of our Korean friends, Phoebe, recently returned from her 6-month stay in Australia. She gave us a copy of Australia Home Beautiful (an amazing interior design magazine) and 3 packs of this:

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Snack packs of Nutella with its own spoon!!!

Yes, I have opened one and ate it straight from the pack.

Glorious!~

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Internet gone wonky --

We are subscribed with Globe Broadband and, apparently, there was a Visayas- and Mindanao-wide problem that started last Monday. One of the lines in Roxas got disconnected and it affected our internet connection.

What I love about Globe is that they are honest. When I called their 171, the guy I spoke to had a carefully-prepared speech explaining the problem (admitting it was their fault) and their estimated repair time.

He told me within 4 days and he was right.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Book your tickets, pack your bags --

Here is a calendar of events and holidays in the Philippines (Thank you to Our Awesome Planet ^_^)

I would love to go and watch the World Pyro Olympics, which starts on February 16 -- but I can't seem to fit it in my travel schedule (and budget). T_T

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Interesting gadgets --

Stumbled upon this website and discovered this really nifty gadget --

It's a puncher for seaweed! You could use the cut-up seaweed to decorate onigiri! Cute~

And this one is perfect for Manga lovers!

So cute!!! --

I didn't know Tokidoki had its own website --

The t-shirts are especially cute!

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

The birthday post --

We kicked off the birthday weekend with dinner at Rai Rai Ken. We had Seth along and he got his first taste of chasyu ramen. We'd been craving Japanese food for quite a while now and it was made worse by Anthony Bourdain's little tour of Japan. (I want Okonomiyaki! >_<)

On Saturday, Johann and I took Seth swimming at the clubhouse of Puerto Real (a subdivision near Jaro) -- Seth really enjoyed swimming and didn't mind that it was very cold. The driver said he could hear Seth laughing.

Sunday was the big day -- Johann and I got the morning off and went to Robinson's to visit Booksale. We splurged on books and magazines and went away with a bagful of really good finds. I found a copy of Frances Mayes' Bella Tuscany for PhP77 and Johann discovered a new magazine (that came with a CD of really cool songs) for PhP110.

I found an interesting book on Japanese culture for my brother for PhP15 --

We spent a total of PhP500 at Booksale and went away very happy. ^_^

On our way home, we stopped by Bo's Coffee in SM Delgado and treated ourselves to a cup each. ^_^ While waiting, I went to SM Supermarket and bought some grapes for Seth.

As 30th birthdays go, this one was a no-frills/no-fuss celebration. We got a birthday cake --



We got the strangest birthday greetings -- one was from the staff of Mercury Drug. We were there picking up my mom's prescription and, apparently, your birthday is recorded on the Suki Card, so they greeted us. We also got a birthday greeting from Globe on our cellphones. ^_^

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New bag! --

I've been looking for a good-sized bag for work -- something that I could carry a book and the rest of my things in.

I found this in SM.



It's the perfect size plus I like how bright and lively it is. ^_^

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I still want --

A new wallet.

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Currently reading --

The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory

In a recent article, Jessice Zafra listed 31 books that she wants to read before 2008 ends. Here's my list (so far):
The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley
The Penguin Book of Food and Drink by Paul Levy
Citizen Girl by by Emma Mclaughlin and Nicola Krauss
Bella Tuscany by Frances Mayes

... I should have a list of 30 books, in keeping with my age. Will update this when I get the rest of my books. ^_^