Twu Wuv

I was actually searching for youtube vids for So You Think You Can Dance (Digression. It seemed a lot of vids from SYTYCD were taken down because I can't find some videos I never had trouble finding before. I have the same problem with AI-related vids. End of digression.) when I found this video:

Pacey is so much LOVE. If I have to describe my ideal guy, I would say season 3 Pacey fit the bill. And yes, I love the story arc for that season. I love how they build up Joey and Pacey's relationship, I love the foreshadowing and I love that it didn't feel rushed or contrived. There are some scenes between the two that I like which were not included, but overall, this fanvid managed to capture their love story.

Okay, mush moment over. Time to go back to my youtube, uh, researching.

I wish you look at me that way

Oh man, last night's videoke with Mark, Jen and Bom was full of awesome! We got to camwhore to our hearts' content, and this time we're complete! We also got to sing again (not that I'm any good at it, but still), and the songs we chose... all fun.

We ended up singing a lot of 98 Degrees songs and I didn't know until then how much I missed their songs! Yeah, I did have a boyband phase just like everybody else, but I was more into latter artists like 98 Degrees and 5ive than into Backstreet Boys and N'Sync. We sang The Invisible Man, Because of You, The Hardest Thing, I Do (I used to like this for a wedding song!), Was It Something I Didn't Say and Still.

I would probably look for their album later *coughtorrentscough*, but right now I'm browsing through youtube for the vids of their songs. I didn't expect to find a vid of Still (I luff this song!)since it wasn't released as a single, but somehow I couldn't find the other songs. This is what I found:



Don't you just love them? Classic boyband stuff, the arm stretching, the finger pointing, yes, the camwhoring! But I think Nick Lachey has a pretty great voice. Too bad the whole Jessica Simpson thing happened. He could have been a good solo artist.

Now I need to find videos of 5ive and LFO, too!

"I Remember Everything."

Hubba hubba rawr.

I love that this is the first thing I saw tonight when I checked in at ohnotheydidnt! Why so hot, Joshua?

(pic courtesy of popsugar.com)

Fivesome, Again

Five things, this time from Mak:

1. Eraserheads

Right now is not a good time to be an Eheads fan. They'll be having their Final Set this Saturday and I'm not going. Boo hoo.

Eraserheads' music was part of some of the bestest years of my life. I can write the soundtrack of my life using Eheads' songs. I looked at their discography for inspiration when I started blogging - from Tindahan ni Aling Dyela to Buttercup and Butterscotch to mylemonlime.

So, no, I'm not a big Eheads fan. *is bitter*

2. The name JR. Don't ask me why.

WHAT. THE. HELL.

Fine, I'll ride along. JR is the name of one of my former crushes. You could say that he was my almost-bf, but nothing came out of it because I was only 14 years old when I met him and he was so torpe. He moved away when I was 16, never communicated until I was 18 and (supposedly) allowed to have a bf. Problem was, I already have a bf then (if only I could turn back time, hahaha...). He literally hanged up on me when I told him my news and I felt slightly guilty over it. A few months after that he called again and asked me to speak with someone who he said was his gf. I was genuinely happy for him (not to mention, relieved) but it was NOT the reaction he was looking for. So on that same phone conversation, he admitted that he's a big fat liar and that girl was not really his gf and he was just trying to get a reaction from me. Jerk.

We met again after a few years and had one of our best conversations and time together. We met again during that time when my relationship was on the verge of hitting rock-bottom. We met again and I was happy and for a moment was willing to give up what I already have (and maybe I should have, and all those stupid dramas might have been prevented. Ah, the could-have-beens). I rejected him for the second time and it's harder than the last time.

And then, he learned that I was single again and we communicated again. And then he was gone again. Sigh.

So, Mak, what part of this answer you don't like? *sticks tongue*

3. Starbucks Greenbelt 1

Place to unwind after office hours and place to meet up with friends. The place underwent a renovation last year, which was a good move since it's always full, although the additional tables and chairs in the open area make it look too cluttered.

Also, a place where most pretentious social climbers hang out to be seen. Which means "mock them" time for me.

4. MCS

The quick fix. I go there with friends to search for "want-now" dibidis, although more often than not, I fail to find what I was looking for. So I end up buying dibidis not on my list. I still prefer Quiapo.

5. Korean guys

Wait, what? Do you mean Japanese guys? Well, if you must ask, I like the lead actor in the kdrama My Girl, but other than him and Rain sometimes, I don't lust crush on Korean guys.

NOW JAPANESE GUYS are a different story. If I create a guide meter on my celebrity crushes, Japanese guys will be on one extreme of the spectrum. To use that analogy, the other end of the spectrum will be populated by guys like:

whose every ripple of muscle screams sexMAN.

Now, the extreme end of the spectrum where my Japanese guys fall will have someone like:

my Arashi boytoy, Sakurai Sho, who looks prettier as a man dressing up as woman than I am, even on my best day.

That's not to say he can't bring the sexy:

(still a long way to go compared to Hugh Jackman's Biceps Of Swoon-inducing Masculinity)

(a-also, I have a picture of Arashi's latest calendar where he is posing like a stripper, but I might be disowned by my friends if I post it here)

Fivesome

Honestly? I had a hard time elaborating on these because I’m pretty sure I’ve talked to death about these things a lot of times already and I don’t know how to make this post a little bit more interesting without me just repeating myself. Either Jen knows me too well or I’m way too predictable! Either way, let’s give this a shot!

(Comment to this post to get your own 5 things from me!)

5 Things From Jen:

1) Post-it
I started collecting post-its when I was reviewing for the board. The review school was near the Corona store in Recto and they have local post-its and flags that were cheaper than the trademarked Post-It by 3M. I used the post-its and flags to organize my review materials and notes, and I want to believe that those helped me pass the board! I haven’t bought any kind of post-it or notepad in more than a year (Woo hoo! Be amazed at my self-restraint!), although I can’t help but make sad little noises whenever I see new post-its at National Bookstore.

2) Apple
I don’t hate apples, I just don’t… like it!

3) Dangling Earrings
My preference in earrings used to be simple and uncomplicated. I wear small silver hoop earrings pretty much all the time before. Along the way, I discovered that dangling earrings are the easiest way to look lady-like! I prefer cheap earrings with playful designs, different enough but not too loud or clunky to draw too much attention.

4) Harry Potter
Do I even need to elaborate on this? :D I LOVE Harry Potter ridiculous amounts! I lost track of the number of times I’ve reread ALL 7 books (Book 3 being my favorite, is the most tattered and battered). Aside from the 7, I also have Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch Through The Ages, and Tales of Beedle the Bard. I plan to collect the UK adult edition books. I have DVDs (original) of movies 3 to 5. I joined an HP-related contest!

But by fandom standards, I’m just an average fan – I haven’t created an HP fansite, I haven’t written an HP fanfic, I never supported a ship and have not engaged in shipping wars with wankers fans. And yet, I spent way too much time creating my own theories about the series, overanalyzing characters and scenes, memorizing lines and spells, and inserting HP references in normal conversations.

5) JDrama
My current crack of choice! There are days when I can sensibly explain why I like jdramas and prefer it over pinoy telenovelas: jdramas are shorter (usually 9 to 11 one-hour episodes) and have fixed storylines that even if the drama became popular or highly-rated, the series will not be extended or the plot suddenly veer away from its original intentions just to satisfy fans’ clamor.

Also, I’m yet to see a jdrama that features clichés I hate, to wit:
- baby-switching
- “we are siblings we can’t be together” angst angst angst “oops, no son, I was an adulterer, he’s not your dad so she's not really your sister”
- I will SUBTLY oppress you by slapping you and pulling at your hair every scene we’re together, dialogue-ing “wala kang utang na loob!” when you so much as fight back a little, throw food at you, finally throw you and your clothes out of the house (which I should have done A LONG TIME AGO if I really hate you that much)
- you can tell I’m poor because I lack table manners
- you can tell I’m the kontrabida because I dress better than the bida (even if she suddenly becomes rich, her fashion sense is still godawful) and I CACKLE when I’m evil-ing

That’s not to say that jdrama don’t have their own clichés; it’s just that so far, I can take those clichés better.
- rain scenes of doom (leads break up in the rain, male lead angst beautifully in the rain, etc etc)
- squee-inducing embrace from the back (bonus if done in the rain a la Hana Yori Dango)
- batshit crazy antagonists (so you don’t feel bad for laughing at them because you’re not supposed to take them seriously)
- gratuitous parade of androgynously pretty guys, with bonus gratuitous nudity (how can anyone NOT like that???)

Obviously, today I’m coherent about my affair with jdramas. Often, I’m too caught up with either its soul-crushing angst or massive suspension of disbelief or pure crack-iness to explain properly why jdramas tick. Jdramas taught me that “WTF?” and “W-wait. What?” are completely acceptable reactions that convey the awesomeness of the drama.

(for someone having a hard time elaborating, I sure have some long answers!)

Hana Kimi Stole My Heart And Social Life

A year ago today, an obsession was born.

For lack of something to do, I decided to watch the DVD of this TV drama that a friend lent me. He first told me about this two weeks prior on our friend’s house blessing.

Friend: Do you like Japanese shows?
Me: Well, I watch anime.
Friend: Are you familiar with the human tetris?
Me: On youtube? Yeah! I’ve seen those!
Friend: Hilarious, isn’t it?! How about jdramas?
Me: Uh, no…
Friend: Good! I’ll show you something! Tell me if you don’t like it, but really, it’s awesome!

And then he made me watch on a portable player the first few minutes of the drama. It featured this cute girl dressed in a boy’s uniform trying to sneak in at a popular all-boys’ school.

Me: She’s a she, right? What is she doing there???
Friend: *smiles mysteriously*
Me: Right. I’m supposed to watch to figure it out.

I got until the part when the girl met the tall, somewhat arrogant athlete ("she disguised herself as a boy for this guy?!?!") when we were cut off by our friends. He promised to lend me the DVD so I can watch the full season. I was curious enough to find out what happens next so I said yes.

So – a year ago today, I watched. And watched. And watched. And finished all eleven episodes in one day. Didn’t I say that it was the start of an obsession?


By the way, that little drama that changed my life? It was called Hanazakari no Kimitachi e, or Hana Kimi for short.

I have to admit that it wasn’t obsession love at first sight. The show was weird! Why was it called a “drama” when it’s so anime-ish? How can the students of this exclusive school for handsome boys - them of the raging hormones - be so blind and stupid they don’t realize there’s a girl in their midst? And why is that girl so attracted to that jerk when the awesome Nakatsu is so willing to go gay for himher? It was crazy. It was full of crack. And OMG I love it.

The biggest reason for this mad love was Ikuta Toma. I didn’t know a thing about him before Hana Kimi. I didn’t even like him the first time I saw him on screen. But Toma’s turn as Nakatsu was so memorable and so lovable he ended up stealing the drama from the two leads. I couldn’t care less whether Mizuki and Sano hook up, I just want to see Nakatsu do his crazy monologues or walk around half naked looking for the damn shampoo. His homo janai dance was epic. I was flailing so hard when he decided to pursue Mizuki and damn if it makes him gay! I was flailing equally as hard when he discovered that Mizuki was actually a she and damn whatever her reason was for hiding her identity! And then he got rejected, and I love him for taking it like a true gentleman.

I ended up re-watching the jdrama for almost two months. I figured I could limit my jdrama intake in this lifetime to just Hana Kimi. And then other dramas and other Japanese boys happened.

Hana Kimi and Toma led to Hana Yori Dango and Matsujun. Hana Yori Dango and Matsujun led to various Matsujun dramas and Arashi. Arashi led to irreversible addiction on my part and bewilderment on the part of my friends and families. So far, my JE-fandom is limited to just Toma and Arashi, but I’m getting to know the other JE boys bit by bit. The sheer amount of media available (on Arashi’s part, especially) was scary at first, but I’m trying my best to catch up. It’s a long way to go for me, but I learned to just enjoy each TV show/drama/concert that I could watch, and not worry about the others I haven’t seen yet.

I love that this obsession of mine led me to this LJ-fandom where fans are friendly and helpful, where fans don’t have strange or crazy expectations from their idols, where the obsessives mock and poke fun at their idols at regular intervals (and not be accused of loving them any less). I may not be able to convince my RL friends to get into either Toma or Arashi, but I’m glad I get to meet others who are bigger fans than I am.


Happy anniversary to me and Toma and Hana Kimi! :D

Can't Wait For These Movies!

This is really late, but I saw a poster of X-Men Origins: Wolverine and decided I still want to do my list of my most anticipated movies for 2009!

2009, for me, is going to be The Year of Movies Featuring Hot, Gorgeous Men. I’m not saying I’m watching just for that, I just noticed it while compiling my list. :D

So, here we go!



Top 8 Most Anticipated Movies of 2009

1. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Is anyone surprised at all with my choice? This has been my most anticipated film of 2008 – I already made my plans around its supposed November release date – and what did the producers do? Delayed it until July 2009! My rage, let me show you it. The penultimate book in the HP series wasn’t the best, but who wouldn't want to see Snape kill Dumbledore on-screen? And just because my fave scene in the book (POTTY LURVES LOONY!) won’t be in the film, doesn’t mean I don’t look forward to hearing “WON! WON!”

2. X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Hugh Jackman! Hugh Jackman and his biceps! GAMBIT! Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool! Daniel Henney! Liev Sch-however you spell his last name! Hugh Jackman!

3. Public Enemies

This movie stars Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. They could have the two wash laundry for the duration of the film and I'd still watch it. But this film has a good plot and I'm watching it for it. Really. Really. Depp plays John Dillinger, public enemy #1 during the Great Depression and Bale is the FBI agent tasked to capture him.

4. Watchmen

The production of this movie was mired with legal battles between Fox and WB. I sure hope that the issues have been settled already because everyone's looking forward to this! Everything I've seen so far points to this movie being awesome. The League of Extra-Ordinary Gentlemen, this certainly is NOT.

5. Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

Optimus Prime is back! Giant robots! I can't wait for the sequel to Michael Bay's best film yet.

6. Terminator Salvation

Another Christian Bale starrer. It's hard to imagine a Terminator without an Arnold Schwarzenegger, but Bale has proven that he can take on an iconic movie franchise and turn it into a blockbuster. Not even the fact that McG directed this film can dampen my anticipation.

7. 2012

Two words: John Cusack. Didn't I say I'm watching movies this year for the eye-candy? Okay, something else to convince you why this is worth watching: the movie is a post-apocalyptic thriller set around a Mayan calendar prophecy predicting that the world will end on December 21, 2012. Now THAT should draw your attention.

8. Sherlock Holmes

Based on the classic fictional character, this movie stars Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law, the sexiest crime-solving pair. I don't think this will be your typical action film and like everyone else, I'm curious as to what RDJ will do after his success as Iron Man.


Honorable Mentions:
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs; Arrested Development; A Christmas Carol (Gary Oldman!); This Side of Truth; Inglorious Basterds; Dragonball Evolution; Crank 2: High Voltage; Friday the 13th; Shutter Island; Ninja Assassin; Star Trek, Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

The Loss Of My Sanity

I contemplated for about 5 seconds whether this is the way I want to introduce Arashi in my blog but the decision is quite too easy. This youtube video is just too dorky and hilarious and beautiful to pass up!

One day I'm going to write a really nice and beautiful post about Arashi, but for now this video will suffice:

Domyouji Tsukasa: The Once And Future Dork

I've been delaying this entry for quite a long time. This is supposed to be the first entry in my brand spankin' new blog that's still not taking off because I just want it to be this perfectly organized blog (unlike this blog that is full of random). So now I decided the hell with it. I'm posting this imperfect rambling post now as a gift to myself because I had a fun time planning and writing this, even if no one will actually read it!

I can now with finality say that I love Hana Yori Dango better than Meteor Garden - and Domyouji Tsukasa is the biggest reason why. Sure, there are other guys who bring out the INCREDIBLY SHALLOW in me (including the oh so hot Dao Ming Si), but damnit Tsukasa sure tests the limits of my shallowness!

Domyouji isn't your typical leading man. He isn't even your typical anti-hero. But I love him, both the Meteor Garden reincarnation and ESPECIALLY the Hana Yori Dango character. Yes, he is arrogant, crazy and violent. But he's incredibly clueless, and he is this biggest dork that ever dorked wuss with a child-like heart. His combination of nastiness and naivete are made of AWESOME.

So I present to you proof of Domyouji's evilness and dorkiness, and why it has sank me deeper into the pits of fangirliness.


Read more...

Opa! Them Greek Guys Are Hot!

I am TOTALLY not watching the very delayed telecast of USA vs. Greece basketball game just for the eye candy. Surely any self-respecting basketball fan will tune in to this game knowing that Team USA is raring to get back at the last team who defeated them in an international competition?

No, I would never sacrifice sleep time over such shallow reason as pretty boys.

B-b-but... but... one can't help but notice, right? So the Greeks are not flashy players like their USA counterparts and I'm never ever going to get one name right, but still.

(Damn, I took a peek at MSN. USA won 92-69.)

I'm The Queen Of Wishful Thinking

I just realized that my birthday is only three weeks away! This is my obligatory pre-birthday/pre-Christmas na din wish list! :)






All I want for my birthday is him:




So cute!



If I can’t have him, I’d settle for a Polaroid Instant Camera:



But I think they’re phasing out Polaroids. Sad.

Anyway, more wishful thinking:

1. UST Commemorative Plate
2. Portable hard drive
3. Rurouni Kenshin (manga)
4. Live Aid Concert DVD
5. Einstein’s Dreams (Alan Lightman)
6. First Among Sequels (Jasper (Fforde)
7. Kafka On The Shore (Haruki Murakami)
8. New pair of eyeglasses!

Also, I need suggestions on how to organize DVDs.

Weekend Bumming

And here I thought my weekend bumming would be incomplete without my internet fix. The good news is that, obviously, our PC is now working. The bad news is that some of my files got deleted - and these files include ALL the screen caps I've been slaving on for quite some time! My new project has hit another major snag and I'm trying my best to convince myself that I can restart all over again! Aargh!

More bumming news, either bad or good depending on how you view my addictions - I've finally finished watching Gokusen. Matsujun, of course, is in it, and asppfohdhdffffld. I can't believe there's a way for him to be more hotter in my eyes than he already is but ohmygod. I had to stuff a pillow on my face to muffle my squeeing each time he appears on the screen. What is wrong with me?

All in all, I still prefer Matsujun as Domyouji Tsukasa over Matsujun as Sawada Shin just because I love him when he's dweeby and clueless.

Gotta start on my screencaps...

The Once And Future Adik

Damn. I couldn’t help myself any longer. I’m now a jdorama addict.

This is all Toma Ikuta’s fault! I thought I could limit my jdorama intake in this lifetime to Hana Kimi, the one that started it all. But when the novelty of repeatedly watching Hana Kimi wore off, I begged my friend John to give me a copy of Honey and Clover when he finish downloading it, only because Toma was on it.

But I couldn’t continue watching Honey and Clover! The story was beautiful, the cinematography was breathtaking and Toma was so so fine, but damn it! The story was beautifully, painfully sad. I want to finish it, I really do, but I still can’t convince myself that I can watch it without breaking into river of tears.

My solution? Watch another “lighter” Toma jdorama (See? I was only limiting myself to jdoramas of Toma, nothing alarming about it.). Enter Hana Yori Dango. Toma’s role here was short but very noteworthy. I think he is a good actor; he was great as the slightly cocky, funny, “oh-no-I-might-be-gay-but-I-don’t-care-anymore” Nakatsu Shuichi in Hana Kimi; he was convincing as the gentle, funny, “my-love-may-be-unrequited-but-I’m-still-here-for-her” Takemoto Yuta in Honey and Clover; and he was such a bad ass as the two-faced, vengeful “I-know-I’m-hot-see-how-I-strut” Oribe Junpei in Hana Yori Dango. I can’t wait for Toma’s new jdorama to air! I’m just as excited over the airing of the Hana Kimi special!

Okay, I’m blabbing. That’s because I got a confession to make. This is awful. Here goes: because of Hana Kimi, because of Toma, because of Hana Yori Dango, I have another crush. Ding, ding, ding.

His name is Jun Matsumoto, the actor who played Domyouji Tsukasa in Hana Yori Dango.

Heaven knows I don’t need another crush. I know I don’t need another crush! I know I don’t need a new addiction! But with the help of Wikipedia and a few bucks in my pocket, I went to MCS and bought three DVDs of jdoramas which starred Matsujun, along with three other jdorama DVDs. Just like that, a new obsession was born.

Oh, and I also asked my newfound dibidi suki to reserve me a copy of concerts of Arashi, Matsujun’s boyband. But you don’t need to know that. You also don’t need to know how I’ve been spending precious internet moments watching Matsujun-related videos in Youtube and lurking in Matsujun-centric forums. And you definitely don’t need to know how I downloaded Arashi songs, sung in Japanese of course, on my iPod.

Help, I need help.

Who's The Man?

I was checking one of my (many) notepads and I discovered these two sheets tucked under the pages!
These were given to me by Jen and Mark in one of our coffee sessions last year. I meant to write about it (I think Jen already did!) but it slipped my mind. We tried to guess the qualities of a prospective partner that we thought would be a good match to us. (Jen/Mark, if the explanation was wrong, feel free to correct!) In case you can’t read what they wrote, here are the qualities:

Answered by Jen:
1. Music-lover (into music talaga)
2. Sensible
3. Responsible
4. Conversationalist
5. Patient

Answered by Mark:
1. Smart – insightful
2. Medyo “bad boy” image – rugged (?)
3. Romantic type
4. Charming/carinoso
5. Music-lover

The common answer was: the guy should be a music-lover. Take note that they didn’t write “someone who likes to listen to music”. It has to be music lover, as both Jen and Mark would stress! At first I was amused with their observation since I never considered myself as some sort of “know-all” when it comes to music, so I thought the quality was a bit too much. I just love listening to songs and I often find ways to express myself through music. I thought I would be okay if I can find someone who can understand that.

Then one day I found myself asking a male friend about a certain song and he replied that he doesn’t know it. I answered back exasperatedly, “how can you NOT know it?!” and enumerated the reasons why he SHOULD know it – i.e. it was a song from the second best-selling album of the artist, anyone who calls himself a fan of the artist must definitely know the song, etc.

Okay. So maybe that was a bit extreme and geeky. But my friends got it right – I would really like a guy who’s not just a casual listener. I would like someone who can appreciate a song, lyrically and melodically, its history, backstory and meaning. He needed not have a clear-cut choice of music genre, but I would like a guy who’s not dismissive of other genre and who can inspire me to try out other forms of music.

Another quality/ies which I think goes together was what Jen termed as sensible and Mark called smart – insightful. I guess I’m drawn to people who can teach me new things and who can make me think and re-think. I’ve said before that one quality I don’t like about someone is indifference. I mean, it’s one thing to describe someone as smart when he spouts words as if he had swallowed an encyclopedia, and another thing to describe someone as smart and refer to his well-formed opinions.

For example, let’s talk about one of my fave things – basketball. One guy can recite all the pertinent statistics related to a team, who was MVP when, who wears which jersey, who plays for which team. The other guy can tell you why he thinks the Spurs sucks, or why Steve Nash is the greatest point guard ever, or why the Finals this year is the most exciting ever. The point is, I would like a guy who has opinions, someone who takes time to understand things and would not just shrug you off with “I don’t know”. I think someone like this is also someone who would not take me at face value, someone who would take time to know me and understand me. I guess this explanation sort of touches the conversationalist and patient attributes.

Medyo “bad” boy image – rugged. This one is sort of funny. It’s very specific, but at the same time feels so vague. I’m still not sure if I understood what Mark means by that! Well, maybe if we based it on my “fictional character” crushes, I tend to be attracted to morally ambiguous guys. I don’t want to describe them as outright “bad”, but they’re not nice in the strictest sense of the word. Should I be falling in love with this type of guy? You tell me!

Mark thinks my guy needs to be the romantic type. He should also be charming and carinoso. Why not? I’m not the most romantic person in the world, so a romantic and charming guy is just what my doctor-friends would order to thaw this cynic’s heart.

So I think I mostly agree with what Jen and Mark wrote. I would really like a guy who’s all of these – and more. Does he exist? Your guess is as good as mine hahaha!

How about you - do you agree with these qualities?

Love Letter For No One

Dear you,

One day I'm going to meet you.

I think you're someone who's a bit like me - someone who loves Harry Potter to pieces, someone who dances like silly, someone who sings to himself when he thinks no one is looking. And yet you're just as different from me as the next person - you're a lot cheerful than I am, you walk with confidence, you pronounce words a bit differently. I don't even know if you like basketball. Or junk foods. I don't know how many siblings you have, or how many relationships you've gone through.

One day I'm going to meet you.

I think you're very attractive. I don't mean just physical attractiveness - you're attractive in a way that makes me want to know you more. You're interesting and funny and I'll never be bored when I'm with you.

One day I'm going to meet you.

Maybe you'll be wearing that thin black tie over white long-sleeved polos and jeans. You might be in a knit cap. You might be holding a book. Maybe you'll be in those glasses you rarely wear.

I know one day I'm going to meet you.

Thinking about that day fills me with thrill and anticipation. Maybe I should be more scared than elated, but why should I be terrified of someone, the mere thought of whom makes my heart smile?

Someday I'm going to meet you. Not when I'm ready for you; I don't think I'll ever be ready to be with someone like you. Not when I most need you; I want to be with you not because I need you, but because you are you.

One day I'm going to meet you. And when I do, I'm going to make sure you'll fall in love with me, too. :)


Love, Me

Here I Go Again

You know who’s been up till 3 in the morning marathon-watching Hana Yori Dango? Me, is who. I’m super puyat since Sunday night - I wonder why I always get the urge to start watching long series at the most inopportune time – i.e. late night on the last day of the weekend – when there’s always the possibility that hindi ko na mabibitawan yung pinapanood ko. It didn’t help that I’ve been staying long hours at the office this week and I get home late. How dare my job take away from my precious couch potato time!

Topic? Hana Yori Dango. For those who don’t know it yet, HYD is the Japanese live drama equivalent of Meteor Garden. But then, Meteor Garden is the Taiwanese version of the Japanese manga Hana Yori Dango, so. I admit that I initially disliked HYD because its actors pale in comparison to the hotness that were the MG boys. I only decided to watch HYD because my Toma Ikuta (Nakatsu of Hana Kimi) have a short guest appearance. I’m happy to say that, after three nights (and going) of puyatan, I changed my mind completely about this Japanese series.

I can’t say which version is better – I love both to pieces. After all, the story is essentially the same. If you’re after the eye candy, MG definitely trumps HYD. BUT. The Japanese F4 has a certain appeal to them. They look better the longer you look at them. I used to have the biggest problem with Domyouji Tsukasa, the Japanese equivalent of Dao Ming Si, because I love Jerry Yan as Dao. But Jun Matsumoto brought a darker but more emphatic character to the F4 leader; I hate Domyouji as much as I love him. His bad side was bordeing on the psychotic, but he's so adorable when he's trying to convince everyone of his greatness. Dao was cocky because of his stature but there seemed to be a certain awareness of his own appeal in it. Domyouji was just as cocky, but it's more of the spoiled brat cockiness. And he's always at a lost on how to deal with his attraction to Makino Tsukashi, the Japanese counterpart of San Cai. I just love watching their scenes together!

I still have about 9 episodes to watch and storywise, HYD is very engaging. Japanese live dramas are usually short (1 season is about 10-12 episodes) so the story is fast-paced and cohesive. Some scenes in MG were kind of dragging; in the case of HYD, I’m yet to fast-forward to any scene (which is why it’s taking so long for me to finish the series!). The transition of Domyouji’s feelings towards Makino, from hate to attraction, was emphasized well; I always felt that Dao seemed to be suddenly head over heels in love with San Cai. The actor who played Hanazawa Rui, Lei’s counterpart, was Shun Oguri, who was also the same actor who played the lead in Hana Kimi. As you all well know, I didn’t like him in that series. He redeemed himself in HYD; in fact, he looked better here. I love the scene where the four boys were fighting among themselves.

I don’t know which version is more faithful to the manga. I don’t think it even matter. All I know is that I love MG first, but HYD made me want to read the manga and watch the anime version. Addict di ba? And considering how out of this world and outrageous most of the plotlines were (the level of bullying by the F4, how insanely rich and poweful they are), it still feel real because the basic story is something that we all recognize – the triumph of true love against all odds. And who does not love that?

That’s all for now. After all, I still have a series to finish!

Hana Kimi Adik!

I learned that Hana Kimi will be shown locally in GMA 7 (it actually started airing yesterday). And yep, you guessed it, I’m not happy about it.

I sort of feel possessive over the show, which is irrational because I only chanced upon this gem of a series through a friend and it’s not like I discovered it on my own. But I still can’t help but feel this way which is why I’m not excited that HK will be shown to a bigger audience.

The only good thing I can think of about this development is at least some would finally understand my obsession over Nakatsu Shuichi (Ikuta Toma)… I hope. I honestly think that Nakatsu stole the show from the leading man and made an already fun show more enjoyable. I was not exactly rooting for him to end up with the leading lady (since I want him for myself hahaha) but I wished that the story didn’t just end with him giving up on his love.

This wasn’t the first time that I rooted for a secondary character (I still have my petition letter to change “Dawson’s Creek” to “Pacey’s Creek. Just kidding.) over the lead. After re-watching (again) HK last weekend and hearing a comment from my mom about the lead guy, I now realize why Nakatsu was the more compelling and interesting character.

So anyway, I was watching the show with my mom and cousin, who both have seen the show sporadically (as opposed to a certain member of our household who had seen all the episodes in one sitting, and not just once) but liked it. The scene was of Nakatsu being his usual adorable self, despite being hampered by the presence of Sano, the leading man. My cousin and I both agreed that “Kainis! Ampangit naman kasi ng bida!”. My mom then commented: “Kamukha kaya niya (the lead) si Dao (Ming Si)”, eliciting a very loud and uncompromising “NOOO!” from me and my cousin.

The point? I decided to compare the guys of Hana Kimi with the guys of my other favorite telenovela “Meteor Garden”, namely Dao Ming Si and Hua Zi Lei to make my, well, point.

(On second thought, I realize that there’s really no point to this whole post except to give me an excuse to gush over my crushes. So please excuse the silliness.)

In HK, Sano (the leading man) can be described as the silent, brooding, indifferent kind of guy, while Nakatsu is the self-assured, funny, friendly type. In MG, the descriptions were reversed: Dao, the lead, is the flashy one while Lei is the quiet guy. I don’t have anything against guys with understated personalities; in fact, in Lei’s case, this characteristic is what makes him attractive. Beneath his quiet exterior is a warm, smart and kind personality. But Sano is just quiet. And boring. All he did was sulk and brood and sleep. He’s too caught up in his own personal drama that one is tempted to give him a ladder which one can hope he will climb in order to get over himself. Nakatsu, despite his reputation as a mayabang trouble-maker, is kind and loyal. He actually started out as a selfish, glory-seeking athlete, but he changed and became a good friend to the leading lady. He has this crazy sense of humor and does not take himself too seriously which is why I would rather hang around with Nakatsu than with Sano. I cannot remember a single genuinely happy moment between Sano and Ashiya (Sano seemed to be always annoyed with everyone), unless Nakatsu was also there.

I also don’t like that Sano was rude to Ashiya. Dao, even if he was rude to everybody else, was caring towards Shan Cai. I hated him the time he hit her, but at least he was remorseful about it. I can’t make the same case for Sano even if he became protective of Ashiya in the end, he still has an awful way of showing it.

Plus there’s the fact that Nakatsu and Ashiya has tons of chemistry. They look that they’re always having fun together. And they have a way of showing how thankful they are for having one another without making it about them, Sano.

And then there’s the petty side of things – Nakatsu, even in his goofy moments, for me is still the better-looking guy. The (imagined) resemblance of Sano to Dao is because they have what I like to refer as “manly” face, striking jaw line and strong features. But damn, Dao is definitely hotter.

So that’s it. I don’t know why I’m discussing boys when most people are arguing which Hana Kimi version is better, the Japan or the Taiwan version. I haven’t seen the Taiwan series yet so I cannot objectively compare the two. For now, I love Nakatsu and therefore I love HKJ better!

Toma!

One of the annoying aspects, for me, about Youtube is the large number of fanvids posted there. I find most of them, well, cheesy, and even if I have the talent or time to create a fanvid, I don’t think I’ll be posting one.


However.


When I’m in the mood (read: currently pining for her object of obsession and does everything in her (and the internet’s) power to satisfy her addiction), I can appreciate a well done fanvid.

Like this:




What can I say? I really love this guy. :)

Lovesick

I saw a fooking ATM and I remembered you and one of our moments:



“Magte-test pa ko ng ATM, gusto mo ko samahan?”



It seem to have had happened in the distant past that I often wonder if I only dreamed of those times.

I hope I can see you again soon. You make me smile for days and I miss that feeling.

Nakatsu! Eh?

Thanks to John, I have a new Japanese celebrity crush. Meet Ikuta Toma:



He is Nakatsu Shuichi in the Japanese live action adaptation of the manga Hana Kimi. The series is about a girl who disguised herself as a boy and enrolled in an all-boys high school to follow her idol, a high jump athlete. Nakatsu was also a student in the school who at the start was the protagonist’s sports rival turned close friend. But here's the clincher - Nakatsu developed romantic feelings for the girl while she was disguised as a boy, not knowing that she was actually a girl! One of the really hilarious running subplot of the story was him being confused with his romantic feelings and convincing himself that he is not gay! But he couldn’t shake off his feelings… and that’s when the fun escalates!

He’s not your typical handsome leading man – he looks really funny and he always does this wacky monologue complete with hand signals! He’s somewhat arrogant, easy-going guy who likes to mess around. But he’s really sweet, caring and loyal. I like him a lot!

I highly recommend this series, especially if you like, well, reading subtitles! It’s a simple love story in an unusual setting. But more than that, it’s a story of friendship, not just among the three protagonists, but also among the students of the school. It’s your typical high school life, with students from rival dorms/ classes always bickering and competing against each other, but who rely on each other when things get tough.