Merry Christmas!! :)

I've just read through the comments section of the last entry and I think it's about time i write another entry to update you.

Again I apologize for disappearing for a while. I think the title of this entry explains it all. My father just got back from hongkong. (I've heard chris is in there too.) Anyway, it's been a very busy but INTERESTING December for me going to so many cool places, like Manila and Makati, Pampanga is great too! and others! Whew! Truly a learning experience for me! I wish I can share the many inspiring and touching stories of the people I've met in these places.

Don't forget the true essence of Christmas - to love and to share (your self, your time, your resources, etc)! But above all, it is to be united with HIM by creating a new and clean relationship with the Father through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. (Chris description of a real Christmas.^^,)

Merry Christmas and Happy New year to all of you!


Love,

Ran

Introducing Jay Chou To the Non-Asia World

In America, I often overlook what's hot in the rest of the world and are sometimes under the belief that all stars come out of Hollywood.


So many forget that a large portion of our superstars and best actors are actually from the UK (Sean Connery, Keira Knightley, Jude Law, Hugh Grant, Anthony Hopkins), Down Under (Mel Gibson, Cate Blanchett, Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman), Ireland (Colin Farrell, Daniel Day Lewis), or even S. Africa (Charlize Theron).

Yes, it's true, mention Tom Cruise, Madonna, Brad Pitt or Julia Roberts anywhere on the globe and the locals are sure to know who you're talking about - But try mentioning Zac Efron, Jay Leno, Martha Stewart or Sarah Jessica Parker (the list could go on forever) and you'd draw blank stares.

Well, I deliver to you the 29-year-old superstar... Jay Chou. He is probably more famous in China, Singapore, Malaysia, his native Taiwan, and the rest of eastern Asia than all of the above stars combined. The basketball giant Yao Ming is probably the only one who exceeds Jay's popularity in China. [More...]

Jay Chou is a huge pop, hip hop, and movie star. I remembered seeing his pic on the cover of a magazine and inquiring who he was. My friend, who had previously lived in Taipei, told me he was "the biggest thing to hit Asia since instant ramen." I didn't think much about it until my mother went to Shanghai and saw his face plastered in every magazine and across countless billboards on buildings, in the subway, and along most streets. He represents everything from the aforementioned ramen, to clothing, to fine jewelry - You name it, his face is hawking it.

With a sold out show at the Shrine Auditorium in L.A. a couple years ago, the importance of the Chinese market in the new global economy, and his recent success with China's no.1 foreign film this year (Kung Fu Dunk, from Taiwan), it will be interesting to see what Hollywood has in store for him.

You might remember him best as the heroic son of Gong Li and Chow Yun Fat in the beautiful Chinese film Curse of the Golden Flower. From that movie came his international pop mega-hit that is played in every karaoke house in Asia . I had to listen to my friends belt it out countless times as part of their master seduction of women. That's one of the secret tricks of expats in Japan and China - phonetically learn a romantic song in the country's native tongue and girls are sure to swoon. *Attention Male Readers* - Start practicing his song and you're sure to be as popular with the ladies in China as Tommy Lee is with the bimbos stateside. =)

Ran

Detective Conan Fanatic

First of all, i really REALLY love this anime! Especially it's main character Edogawa Conan and Kudou Shinichi! I love them both so much!

I've been watching this for about 3 years and i don't care even if i watch this again and again! This anime really completes my day.

I’m trying my best to start this review without fangirling. However, as I type the sentences, I can’t help but squee over which I should tackle first and how I should tackle this mammoth of yet another cultural icon in the world of not only manga, but of Japan, Detective Conan. In the end, I have resolved to solving this in the same manner that Aoyama Gosho starts a case with Conan: surprise.

I have been aware of Detective Conan for some while. Like most of you, I approached Detective Conan with much skepticism. For one, it was LONG and a shounen story at that (so you know that it won’t be one of those ‘in-depth’ mangas). Back then, I knew I had to struggle reading through 30 volumes and infinity to read this manga. It would require my dedication follow this manga if it reaches zeta. Nonetheless, I gave it a shot a few years back and borrowed a friend’s tankoubon to get started. And in an instant, I found myself suddenly involved in a baffling mystery that I’m just itching to solve.

Searching for evidence
Yes, I did say that I met Conan with great skepticism. For one, back then with my stupid clampified eyes, I used to think that the drawing for Conan was too simple. Too stale. Unmanga-ish. Too kiddy. It is definitely a hurdle for many who are used with popular manga styles to get over the fact that Conan is closer to a cartoon than he is to the more popular manga. His art is far too simple and too childish to even get involved in it. But you will understand later that the art will work hand in hand with the story that Conan is trying to present. Despite the art, the story can be mature and challenging, without compromising the audience that this story was intended for: young boys. It does run in a shounen manga after all.

One has got to read Conan before you can even judge whether if this is merely just a manga that people are reading out of a forced habit or really a serious manga that knows its stuff. The first few pages will already put down your biases aside and show you that Conan is much larger than that small boy with a coat and a red bowtie. The moment you start reading you are immediately hooked into Conan’s mystery. You have, to begin with, Shinichi Kudou, a famous high school detective who accidentally crossed a bunch of criminals wearing black. Caught by the suspects, they poisoned him with a drug that shrunk his size to a little boy. Nowhere to run for help, he asks his neighbor to create a cover for him, at the same time seeking refuge in the arms of his ‘girlfriend’ of sorts, Ran. Under the guise of Conan Edogawa, Shinichi searches for these ‘men in black’ at the same time protecting, as much as he can, the people dear to him.

Why are Twilight and Harry Potter compared?

Because of immense buzz for this first film adaptation of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series of novels, some have compared this tween and teen phenom to Harry Potter. Like the last two Potter movies, this vampire romance film made Fandango.com's top ten list of all-time advance ticket sales—thanks to a rabid fan base whose hearts were set on swoon ever since they first saw images of the vampire and werewolf dreamboats they've fallen for in the books.

Well, I think most Twilight fans will eat this up like vampires at a blood bank. The movie, directed by Catherine Hardwicke (The Nativity Story, Thirteen), is very true to the book in telling Meyer's soap opera of forbidden love and angst with passion. I saw the film at a public screening with many young girls sporting Twilight shirts and even vampire regalia. I overheard them saying things like, "That was amazing," "I wish it would have gone on forever," and "It was everything I hoped for."

But on the flip side, the adults nearby were saying things like "That was horrible" and "I thought it wouldn't end." I'm somewhere in the middle. While I think the adaptation has some great touches, I don't think the film does much for the uninitiated or adults. Boys will really only like the big fight at the end—if they're still awake.

In the book, this is an interesting look at dealing with temptation and boundaries, but the movie's love story is pretty much all about sexual attraction. I'm also not sure why the movie's Bella is fascinated by Edward. He's hot, he's a bad boy, and he wants her. Well, he wants her for dinner. But for this lonely girl, being wanted at all is enough. And of course that idea of being wanted, being known, and being passionately loved has really tapped into the desires of the books' teen audience—and the movie does that too. After all, the film seems tailor-made to showcase how good-looking and tempting Edward is. His over-the-top, slow-motion, and dramatic entrance could be accompanied with subtitles reading, "Swoon now

While I think most fans will be happy with the film, I think the movie proves that books can sometimes get away with sappiness and clichés that movies don't; onscreen, they are pretty groan-worthy. Also, while the book captures girls' hearts, the movie's love story without Meyer's description is kinda mundane. Another issue with the change in medium is that a movie doesn't let one's imagination work as a book does.Meyer's fantastical narratives are very detailed and create great mental pictures.On screen, they sometimes can't compete with what's in your head.In one popular portion of the book, for example, Edward dramatically shows why vampires don't go in the sunlight.On the printed page, the description is thrilling. In the movie, flawed special effects make it look like he's just really sweaty.

Almost all the special effects (save for that great ending fight) are almost laughable—like the vampires' super speed, which looks more like what I call "Muppet Running." You know how when Kermit would walk, you could tell he was hung by wires and his legs didn't really hit the ground with each step? That's what happens here, defying the laws of physics. In addition, the make-up of the pale Cullen family can seem very caked on and fakey at times. Plus, the vampires are asked to say silly things like, "Hold on tight, spider monkey!"


But as good as Stewart is, I think Pattinson (who was solid as Cedric in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) as Edward was a casting mistake. Or maybe it was how he was directed. He's wooden and emotes with unchanging facial expression of brooding eyebrows, deep breathing, and body language that communicates that he really has to go to the bathroom. These scenes lead to unintentional laughter in even the most serious moments.

What Pattinson does do well, though, are the tender, loving moments with Stewart. This is maybe what the movie does best: quiet moments of intimacy—not sex, but more innocent intimacy like when the infatuated Bella and Edward lie in the grass with their hands barely touching, or when they share their first kiss. These are electric moments, but the rest of the film pales in comparison.

Honestly, they are completely different. I'm a huge fan of both, though I'm more a Harry Potter fan. I think Harry Potter is bigger, anyway. Ask nearly anyone in the world who Harry Potter is and they'll know, but not the same for Twilight. I'm not trying to compare them here, but Potter is more complex and they're is really no getting around that. Though they are both Fantasy sort of, but Harry Potter is more fantasy and Twilight is romance. Harry Potter is more for all ages and genders, Twilight is forcused towards teenage girls. Can you truely and fairly compare them at all?

The Twilight Fever

I’D like to think the students in my school were among the first teens who got hooked on the first “Twilight” book by Stephenie Meyer.

I was first intrigued by the book when the Philippine Daily Inquirer published a short piece on it. Then one of my classmates told me that his girlfriend had the book and offered to lend it to me and my sister. The cover was not the black background with the apple on the cover yet -- it was a picture of a girl with short black hair, standing in front of a drab grey background.

Hooked

My friend read the book first. The next day, she passed it to me. The book was passed around and soon, other batchmates and younger students in our school got hooked on it too.

I was so obsessed with “Twilight” that we had to buy two sets of the then three books to add to our collection. One was for letting other people borrow, and one was for our personal reading pleasure. You could only imagine the wear and tear these books will get after being read so many times by so many people.

Coupled with my obsession was the need to know more information about it. I visited Stephenie Meyer’s website, eager to know which celebrities will play which character in the movie, to read the scenes not included in the book and to view pictures of parties celebrating each book’s release.

Finally the movie started...

I was ready to take a nap because finally no one would notice... then I heard giggling and shrieking from girls (even ladies) around the cinema. What was so special about a group of white, pale-skinned people walking into a cafeteria?? Then, the last guy walks in and his name is Edward. More shrieking occurred! Including my sister. I didn't think he looked hot, unlike a Brad Pitt for example. He looked lanky and had weird hair. My seat mates thought he was okay though, but not as god-like as the book had described. As the story progressed, i thought it was getting interesting and I was not sleepy anymore. A lot of kilig scenes, more giggling. Finally, they kiss! It wasn't really interesting for me (apparently,it was only me). The scene that i remembered vividly was when Belle was rescued from the other vampire that wants to taste her blood so badly, the fight scene of Edward and the vampire was really awesome!

Overall, the movie was pretty fun all throughout! There was also boring scene,but all in all it was great and I was kept awake the whole time (coffee can't even keep me awake). It made me want to anticipate the next sequel. Now, i'm also looking forward to reading the book to have a more detailed understanding of what was really going through the minds of the characters. For those who haven't seen it, it's a chick-flick movie, but surprisingly, i enjoyed it! I think if you are below 30 years old, you should make sure to watch it :) Now I know what this "Twilight Fever" is all about.

Ran

It's All About Chris Tiu

It’s funny, to say the least. Cute tiu. Oh, I mean, cute too.

MANILA, Philippines—Right now, one of the most frequently photographed spots in the Ateneo de Manila University is probably in Gate 1, right by the Blue Eagle Gym. There, larger-than-life standees of the entire Ateneo seniors basketball team hover over pedestrians and motorists, orange basketballs perched on their fingers.

However, more often than not, people stop to pose with only one standee: Chris Tiu’s, to be specific. The 23-year-old cager single-handedly raised female basketball fandom to strange heights, and advertisers know it. After all, it’s his chinito mug that’s selling thousands of Adidas jerseys (plus shampoo and skincare, among others) across the country. And don’t forget the TV shows.

While basketball has always been a popular sport in the Philippines, even the most prolific players in the past couple of decades will be hard-pressed to match Tiu’s popularity. It’s partly because Tiu has become the epitome of the so-called “perfect guy.” Ask any bubbly teenager what she likes about Chris Tiu, and chances are she’ll gush, “He’s good-looking! And smart! And nice! And wealthy!”

The more cynical will remark, “He’s too perfect, so there’s probably a catch somewhere.” However, aside him from already being in a relationship (much to the dismay of thousands of girls), it’s hard for fans and detractors alike to pinpoint any visible faults. He isn’t gay, he doesn’t have a secret violent streak, and he doesn’t spend his off-court hours dealing with shady characters. So, what’s the flaw?

From the way I see it, he was born with a flaw that was magnified the moment he stepped on the court and achieved superstar status. It’s his name. Every single shrieking female Chris Tiu fan has, at one time or another, used his name as a pun. It’s an epidemic that no one case escape—a religion, almost. Some call it the “Iglesia Ni Chris Tiu.” Others choose to call themselves Christiuans, followers of “Christiuanity.”

Some girls even have an anthem, sung to the tune of “You and Me” by Lifehouse. It goes, “Chris Tiu and me, and all other people…” It probably won’t make it to the Top 10 hits, but teenage girls are singing it, anyway (and consequently driving their boyfriends nuts). In Ateneo, shirts with “Today is Tiu’s day” emblazoned across the front sell like hotcakes.

Scary

The scary thing is that it isn’t just the fans who effortlessly come up with corny puns. When I first wrote about the Chris Tiu phenomenon on my blog, dozens of people just had to put in their own bits of wordplay. My own boyfriend, for instance, said that Chris Tiu probably sinks all those great three-pointers because he wears great “rubber Tius.”

The madness isn’t limited to Ateneo, either. After watching UP experience a crushing defeat at the hands of Ateneo, some friends said, “Tiu-gi na ‘yung chances natin para makabawi sa UAAP, nadaan sa Tiu-nami.” Others pretended to be better, saying, “Tiu-mamba lang ‘yung Ateneo.” Rabid fans think that he’s a Tiu-perman of some sort, egging him to “Tiu-t that ball!”

It’s an epidemic that almost makes me want to hide under a rock until the end of the UAAP season; who knew that Filipinos could be so corny? Personally, I think it’s time to “es-Tiu” this madness.

Corniness aside, Chris Tiu has become a god of some sort not just in Ateneo, but all around the country. It’s been a while since women have had a good-looking basketball player to fawn over (half of them look like they’ve been beaten with a heavy wooden club), so the levels of adulation are getting quite crazy, especially since Ateneo looks like it’s headed for the UAAP crown. Online forum threads are dedicated to him, and whenever he posts an entry on his blog, hundreds of people leave comments in a matter of hours.

It’s quite amusing to step back and watch the hordes of women go nuts about a single basketball player. Maybe it’s because his sister is a good friend, and it would be weird to gush about her baby brother. Maybe it’s because I never really understood the UAAP hype, since I studied in UP, where our “UP Frightened Maroons” have consistently placed in the lower ranks. But in any case, it’s fun to play around, thinking of puns for Tiu’s name.

Food for thought. Tiu on that for the meantime.

In Loving Memories Of Marky Cielo

I was expecting that there is a news about Manny Pacquiao. When the site was loaded, a headline caught my attention saying… “Young actor Marky Cielo dies at 20″. It seemed like my eyes couldn’t believe what it read that’s why I read the headline again the second time around… and then the third time around…

I clicked the news and it was true… Marky Cielo has already joined our Savior…

“Why him?”… This is the question that has been my mind since last night.

I am not a huge fan of Marky Cielo but I have witnessed his career since Starstruck Days. He was actually my bet for the Ultimate & Sole Survivor. I like him when he dances. I haven’t thought of any negative things about him. I am happy for him whenever he is given projects by his mother studio because I know he is deserving.

He is also a role model for his generation. I know that Marky is a very kind and down to earth man.

That’s why is death really bothers me. He is too young to die. There could have been a lot of things ahead of him but God already decided to be with his good son.

To Marky, may you rest in peace. Thank you for living a good life that served as an inspiration for many of us.

A long Over Due First Entry

Hi Everyone,

I guess it’s pretty unusual for me to have a blog of my own, since I’m not a natural extrovert. But with a little help from my friends, I think that this blog will give me the opportunity to share another side of myself! I think it would be really interesting for me to be able to express my thoughts and also get feedback from people who might want to give their comments. I regret waiting so long to start this up because I think it’s good to document the milestones of our lives or even just our random thoughts. Plus, it’s a great thing for people to share their experiences and reveal the lessons we’ve learned, so that others can learn from them too. So here it goes!

I'm a simple person with big dreams.My first priority is God and my family,I really enjoy being w/ them especially w/ my sister.Well,I guess if I'm with her I feel like I'm much older than her!
Anyway,I'm a big fan of Chris Tiu!or(Christopher John Alandy Tiu) his real name.He studies in ADMU,(i luv that school!) he's a graduate of two courses. For now,he's actually taking a lot of Chinese classes in Ateneo because he's serious about brushing up his Chinese. In fact,he's thinking about studying in China for a while after the season(how sad). To help him improve his Mandarin, He listen to Chinese music day and night, at home and in his car.His one big influence is Jay Chou(I'm a huge fan of him too!) Oh, and even in the karaoke I love singing his songs! =)
My Biggest influence is my mom. She really is the onei looking up to. Whenever she's around, I get a feeling of hapiness and also i feel secure. Someday i want to be like her. I believe in God also.He's relly my idol. Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!AMDG!(For God's greater glory).

Well, this has been a pretty long entry already! So, that's it for now. Time to rest for another long day tomorrow!