x men, old friends and artistic license

being the x men fan that i am, i made it a point to watch the last stand as soon as it opened and suffice to say, i was not disappointed by the way it turned out. hugh jackman was in fine form as wolverine and kelsey grammer shined as beast. but the mutant who totally took center stage, regardless of his small role, was angel. i dunno if it was the wings or his countenance, but man, he rocked!

i was disappointed that they killed cyclops off so early in the movie but i guess they needed to do that in order to establish storm's eventual leadership over the team. i hated juggernaut's helmet (who's the asshat responsible for that?) , but he made up for it by being entertaining: "don't you know who i am? i'm the juggernaut, bitch!"

next movies i'm looking forward to are: casino royale (eventhough i don't like the look of the new bond), pirates of the caribbean 2 and nacho libre.

* * *

dex picked me and car up last saturday to chill at rockwell. we walked around for an hour or so, eventually forgoing the movies and eating there. torn between going to greenbelt and going back to timog, we finally decided to eat at alfredo's (tomas morato) because i was craving for steak and they sort of got infected by it. as absurd as it may seem, the violent downpour was the perfect accompaniment to the tenderloin steak i was happily masticating.

after that fabulous dinner, dex started craving for wasabi's crème brûlée, so we went back to makati (at this point, it becomes obvious we didn't need to worry about guzzling the gas). while dex and car started tossing back alcoholic beverages and crème brûlée, i was having a deeply personal and religious experience with wasabi's green tea cheesecake (heaven wrapped in dark chocolate). after a vodka ice, a sayonara and a couple of desserts, we decided to go back to dex's to play pool. after several wins and a loss (courtesy of dex- turd!), we decided to call it a night at 0315 in the morning.

* * *

dex is one of my oldest guy friends. although he's often obnoxious and a turd, he's one of the few i can really talk to about anything. he's one of those who go out of their way to help out a friend, and he wouldn't hesitate to tell you the ugly truth if that's what you really need to hear (except if it goes against his primary purpose in life: landing as many chicas as he can). but the main reason i put up with him is because he understands my love for pool- plus, he has his own pool table and one of the most bitchin' sticks i've ever handled. heh. ;p

we haven't seen each other since the fag decided to go to canada, so it's a good thing he came back eventhough it's just for a month. if my dad really decides to go to vancouver next month, then i can look forward to dex chauffering me around and the endless food trips he was enticing me with.

cool.

* * *

i always had great respect and love for artistic license. in a white-canvassed world painted with blacks and grays, you need a rainbow of colors to make it a little bit more interesting- but not so much that you enter an alternate psychedelic universe.

as janey briggs's dad so aptly put it: quit dicking around, honey.

the da vinci code et al

i finally watched the da vinci code last saturday night with kai kai and anj. while i maintain my adamant opinion about tom hanks (boo!), i have to admit that i really liked the movie. i miss france so much and this afforded me with a chance to see paris again, and to practice my fast-dwindling french listening skills. while i do not necessarily approve of the changes they made in the movie with respect to the book, i felt that, perhaps, they were needed in order to inject spontaneity in such a notorious plot, and, mayhap, make the story more palatable for the wider range of audiences.

so my evaluation would be:
1. loved paul bettany as silas. i loved him as the wickedly witty chaucer in a knight's tale, and i still love him as the tortured-yet-sinister silas in da vinci.
2. pretty audrey tautou is a passable sophie. it's a good thing she outgrew her amelie character.
3. i never imagined ian mckellen as leigh teabing; but now that he did it, i cannot imagine anyone else doing it.
4. jean reno is the ultimate staple french dude. i loved him in godzilla (chew gum to look american) and he's great in portraying bezu fache.
5. i hate tom hanks (still!)
6. my favorite part of the movie was the last part- when hanks went back to the louvre to pay homage to mary magdalene's supposed resting place. everything was perfect: the setting, the music, (fine!) the awe on hanks' (ugly mug) face as he knelt down.

soo yeah, i'd say it was worth watching.

* * *

i hate myself for splurging on books this week, but what can i do?

i bought a couple of mjds: undead and unappreciated (eventhough i already have the e-book), and undead and unreturnable.

i want:
1. mjd's dead and loving it
2. mjd's undead and unpopular
3. christine feehan's dark demon
4. john perkins' confessions of an economic hitman

my birthday's coming up (sort of) *hint* *hint*

* * *

i can't wait for x-men: the last stand!!!

undead and unreturnable!

i got the latest maryjanice davidson!!! as a faithful betsy follower- this made my day. promenade was chockfull of da vinci moviegoers and i wasn't able to grab a coveted ticket. who the bloody hell cares?

a. i hate tom hanks (i still say that bill pullman is the ideal robert langdon)
b. i have a great copy of undead and unreturnable *swoon*
c. i hate tom hanks

really. i sneered at forrest gump.

looks like the next betsy book is undead and unpopular. can't wait!

idle minds...

... make for several interesting delusions (maybe).

given the fact that i'm handling 7 odd projects all at the same time, it came as a shock when i found myself at loose ends yesterday (and today and probably tomorrow, perhaps even next week). with nothing better to do than matter-load and search for obscure facts, i felt my mind beginning to wander into the nasty realms of what-ifs and the-grass-is-greener-elsewhere while reading about the clearstream issue in france and the scientific credibility issues in china and korea.

while learning about a new industry is always an exciting adventure, i'm not feeling a sense of accomplishment or satisfaction with the amount of neurons i'm flexing. i miss the harried pace i've kept during high school and college when everything is happening at the same time and i really have to step up to keep the things i'm juggling aloft. academic challenges were never enough, i had to have something extra to keep my blood pumping. sadly enough, my current adrenaline rushes are now limited to:
1. b action movies, which i so love (and which anton absolutely sneers at),
2. my paranormal novels involving vampires, navy seals and witty repartees,
3. sporadic night gimmiks reminiscent of france, and
4. playing couch commando with my sister (she who controls the remote, controls the world).

obviously, something needs to be done about this pathetic state of affairs before yesterday's awry thoughts of becoming a meteorologist or stormchaser take deeper root.

* * *

i attended juan caguicla's parispace/paristreet photo exhibit last may 16. sponsored by the french embassy, the event was well-attended and boasted of fantastic photos. i was able to meet and renew my acquaintance with embassy peeps like elinor, claire, sandrine, jerome, and raphaele. needless to say, i took shameless advantage of this event to brush up on my french, meet new people and troll for work.

because i was with my party-hearty brother and his similarly-dispositioned friend, we ended up in cuisine, beside embassy, for another party- woo woo. cher invited me to go to the launch of their new magazine- girlfriend- the next day, but i was just too tired to go. sorry cherbear.

* * *

i had no idea bull sharks could tolerate fresh water. cool!

bicol photos

photos as promised.


this is one of my favorite shots. reminds me of... gorillas in the mist. hahaha...


mount mayon: you can't see it here but there's smoke coming out of the crater

one of my favorite shots: quite difficult to take as the bus was bouncing around quite a bit

my partners in crime... as well as in bullshit: john, josh, lulu, pat, and bubu

poor lulu [a.k.a. tom (as in cruise, as in mi3)- i dunno why, ask bubu]

yeah yeah, we all know this reminds us of demi...

best effing halo-halo i've ever had

big-ass dog vs. big-ass indiana wannabe (guess who'll win)

my collection of irreverent mayon photos:

bubu plugging the hole... and trying to look cute while doing it.

ang sarap magkape pag umaga...

et finalement...

la pièce de résistance

bubu and i

lunch at donsol right before whale shark watching

famous cagsawa ruins: mayon's in the background, mostly covered by the clouds

basilica de la penafrancia

taking the bicol express

i wanted to wait until after i've uploaded my photos to write about my bicol experience, but i couldn't wait. plus, it takes me ages to upload photos (case-in-point: my davao photos are still in my digicam along with my newer bicol ones ;p )

attendance check:
*barbie*bubu*powers*parentals*ahiaden*achimel*pat*josh*john*lulu*
*unclewilliamnauntiecaroline*matthew*yoyo*unclejohnnauntiejosie*
*angel*unclewillienauntie*unclengo*ricky*titaamy*lola*kids*et al...*

itinerary:

april 28
2000- depart from mcdo retiro
0730- arrive at tabaco city (gardenia hotel)
0830- breakfast
1000- shopping for handicrafts
1200- edson's for lunch
1330- mayon resthouse
1500- philceramics
1630- halohalo house (yum!)
1730- mayon photoshoot
1830- harbor
1930- dinner
2230- cards!

april 29
0500- wake-up call
0545- breakfast
0630- depart for donsol
0900- arrive at the whale shark tourism office
1200- lunch
1330- whale shark watching (cool!)
1430- swimming around the coral reefs
1530- shower at b's hotel room (muchos gracias, b!)
1645- depart for legazpi city
1900- dinner at chinese restaurant
2100- arrive at hotel

april 30
0600- wake-up call
0630- breakfast
0730- depart for morales beach (black beach!)
0830- arrive at beach (swimming heaven)
1030- shower at hotel
1130- depart hotel
1230- lunch/cagsawa ruins/shopping
1430- depart cagsawa ruins
1530- pili nut place
1620- pancit canton place
1800- basilica de penafrancia
1900- dinner at roberto's
2030- depart for manila

may 01
0230- forced to wake up because of the shrill screams of a pig *ehrm* human being in pain, who turned out to be little matthew screeching with joy at an ungodly hour while we were parked in a 24-hour chowking restaurant in the middle of nowhere (angry? who's angry? i'm not angry...)
0530- arrive at manila
0600- shower (with eyes wide shut)
0730- (reluctantly) left for work

* * *

barbie's top 10 for bicol:

1. seeing an honest-to-goodness butanding a.k.a whale shark up close and personal
2. the local halo-halo (yum!!!)
3. black sand beach at morales
4. bicol express... was never this yummy
5. the peeps i'm with (bubu, pat, lulu, josh, and john: great busmates! plus, i've never learned how to bullshit the way that i did with you guys. haha! :D)
6. mayon volcano
7. snorkeling over the coral reefs in donsol
8. jumping out of the boat on my way to see the butanding (seriously, i've always wanted to abandon ship)
9. pili butternut (yum!)
10. steal (the movie we never finished on the bus)

* * *

photos to follow.