i'm all over it

LQ in the time of 3G.

Hands down, one of the cleverest, cheekiest and most charming adverts on TV today.

fireworks

The commencement.

Rays of light.

Explosion of colors.

Fire in the sky.

The Finale.

All photos were taken from my bedroom window. Maidstone's night sky was painted with myriad colors in celebration of the town's River Festival last night. It was a 15 minute spectacle of fireworks which left me awestruck.

Friends invited me to meet downtown and join the townspeople in the revelry but I just couldn't miss the CSI trilogy.

24: the final hour

Like all good things in this world, 24 has come to an end.

Was the finale what I expected? Yes. It was fast-paced, thrilling and poignant. A friend told me once that he thought that the show, although cutting-edge, is a bit too formulaic thus making it's unpredictable twists "predictable". I concur. The show is far from perfect. There were a lot of stories that didn’t make sense and situations that defied physics and logic. But that was all part of its charm.

And by the way, I too felt that the ending was a wee bit rushed. I guess it's okay because at the end of 24 hours the day, I’m comforted by the thought that Jack Bauer lives to fight another day.

chile

When I was smaller, I wanted to go to America. It was a childhood dream that I realised almost a decade ago when I qualified for an international training program by Marriott hotels. For a year, I was based in Austin, the capital of Texas.

I loved the time I spent there. I met some wonderful people and earned some amazing experiences. There were beautiful places that I was fortunate enough to visit too. Travelling is so convenient. It was really good that one can just hop on a domestic flight and before you know it, you're in a completely different place. Such a diversity of culture and wide array of sights.

Another dream destination is Chile. I just fell in love when I saw pictures of it on The Amazing Race. The architecture looks awesome and the land just intrigued me. It stretches 4300km – over half the continent of South America– and encompasses a remarkable variety of landscapes. From the driest desert in the world (near San Pedro de Atacama) in the north to massive glacial fields in the south. Filling up the in-between are volcanoes, geysers, beaches, lakes, rivers, steppe, fjords, countless islands, and the Andes mountain range. Because of its amazing landscape and topography, the country has a varied climate. It's like the four seasons in one nation anytime of the year! I promise to visit Chile someday.

Unless you live under a rock, you know that it was hit by a devastating earthquake today- 8.8 on a richter scale which went on for at almost 90 seconds- that to me is unimaginable. For the last couple of hours, I've been glued to the telly as I watch the news unfold. Experts are saying that the magnitude of the quake is so massive that practically every country in the Pacific Rim is affected because of the tsunami triggered by this great seismic acticvity. I hope majority will be spared.

To the two Chilean visitors of my blog, I'll be thinking of you and your beautiful country. I pray that you all are safe and that your nation will rise from this adversity.

killer voice

If there is reincarnation, I want to come back with Jack Bauer's voice. There's something about the tone that's menacing and sexy at the same time. It's silky smooth and yet grimly brutal. It's the sort of voice that can make your enemies drop dead in fear and the ladies drop their knickers. LOL. I'll be the ultimate action hero. Do you think drinking copious amount of whiskey and smoking large cigars will do the trick? I doubt the missus will approve.

Watch the hilarious video below as Jack Bauer terrorises Father Christmas.

The new season of 24 is on at Sky1 every Sunday at 9PM.

why do I love glee?

Let me count the ways. (Apologies to Elizabeth Barrett Browning)

1. A diverse cast of relatively unknowns but with,



2. as Randy Jackson would put it, mad talent. Pipes, check. Moves, check. Acrobatic skills, check, check, check.



3. Cool tunes. And an even more amazing musical score.



3. Brilliant dance sequences.



4. Inspired performances and production numbers. This is my favorite thus far!



5. Wicked sense of humour.



6. Great quotes and clever story.

7. The New York Times called it "blissfully unoriginal in a witty, imaginative way". Whilst the Entertainment Weekly gave the show an A, posing the question: "Has there ever been a TV show more aptly named than Glee? It both embodies and inspires exactly that quality."

8. It's freaks and geeks meets a Cameron Crowe movie set in High School Musical on crack. For the record, I've never seen the latter. And not planning to either. Seriously.

9. And even if it may be implausible at times, the show has enough reality to make it believable. Moments on the show that make one ask oneself, why don't I do that in real life? Inspire, I think, is the word.

Some people believe that the easiest way to change people's behaviour for the better is to find something mundane, like a really boring task, and make it fun to do. Everyone in glee seems to have fun. And as a viewer, the fun part kinda rubs on you.

10. "With my lost saints, --- I love glee with shallow breath,
dog smiles and crocodile tears, of all my life! --- and, if Fox choose,
I shall but love glee better after it is axed."

----------------------------------------------------------

If you can't follow it on tv, watch the episodes here.

don't stop believing

I am sucker for Cinderella stories. And the fact that this one's about someone from my of town makes it even more special.

Arnel Pineda and Journey, I am a fan.

9/11: Phone Calls from the Towers

"Still are thy pleasant voices, thy nightingales, awake.
For death he taketh all away but them he cannot take."

Last night, I caught 9/11: Phone Calls from the Towers on Channel 4. The exceptionally powerful and incredibly poignant and affecting documentary features previously unheard voice recordings of those trapped in the Twin Towers after they were hit.

After the film, I wondered if I would have had the strength to have not made that call if I was in that situation. Would I have been at peace to say goodbye and assure everyone everything would be alright, or would I let my voice betray the fear and desperation that would be engulfing me and let them live with the memory that I could not be saved?

Goodbyes are always heartbreaking. But if you make your every living moment an opportunity to make all those who are dear to you how much they are loved, they would have known you left with love in your heart for them without having to share the pain of your passing.

That's easier said than done. I couldn't have not made that call.

Watch the film here.

bolt

How is that even possible?!? I can come up with a thousand and one things a man can do under 10 seconds but I wouldn't even think of this.

Living up to his name, Usain Bolt shatters the world record with a new personal best time of a mind blowing 9.58 seconds!

i bet it tastes just like chicken

The pinoys on CSI: Vegas.

* check out the action from the 4:00 mark.

susan's humble pie: recommended for everyone

Didn't expect that, did you? What a way to tell the skeptics (in all of us), up yours!

I guess, in the end, life really hasn't killed the dream she dreamed. Gobsmacked, I am. Watch it here.

24: Day 7

Monday nights at 9 on Sky1.

ken lee

Not related to Bruce Lee, Tommy Lee or Lady Lee.

epidemic

And yet more covers of Renaldo Lapuz's We're Brothers Forever. Ang lupet, sikat na sikat na talaga. Visit his "official" website here. Namputek.

Punk.



Elvis.



Dance.



At may sister din!

may brader poreber

To Renaldo Lapuz, good on you. The singing is definitely off key but nevertheless, I was hugely entertained by your performance. Your audition for a spot on American Idol is one for the books. It's an instant classic. Worst than the common cold, your original composition of a song (if that's what it is) is very infectious. In fact, the painful lyrics have been ringing in my head for more than an hour now. In a weird way, I'm actually very proud that we share a common birth place.

William Hung, move over. Here comes the fcuking messiah! Dayum, pimp it, man.



Look, within hours, the song's already spawned different covers.

The karaoke piece.



The kiddie version.



The oldies remix.



The girl power edition.



Acoustic.



Operatic.



Brilliant, man. Absolutely brilliant. Mabuhay ang Lahing Kayumanggi!

mga patalastas

These are three of my favorite adverts being shown on British tv at the moment. Incidentally, they're all about cars.

Top spot goes to Honda for coming up with a very original and uber cool presentation.



The Lexus advert, however, is intelligent, slick and classy.



Whilst Skoda's is clever and nice.



What are your favorite adverts?

charice pempengco

Not all third placers end up empty handed. Sometimes, the loser gets something better than the million peso top prize. In this case, she gets Hollywood. Watch the video of Charice Pempengco, the Filipino teenage singing sensation as she wows Ellen Degeneres with her outstanding rendition of a Jennifer Holliday classic. She even gets a standing ovation from the audience. Twice.

One more reason to be proud of.

Mabuhay ang Lahing Kayumanggi!

mabilis lang 'to. parang si-me-co.

* I have yet to hear a Christmas carol this year. If I were in the Philippines, this wouldn't have been a problem since some radio stations play the first Christmas carol on the 1st of September.

* Have you tried eating beer-battered chips? It's the bomb!

* Go for glory. To the Filipino athletes competing in the 24th Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, goodluck.

* GMA gets Medalla de Oro for defending human rights. They must be having a laugh?!?!

* Teatro Tomasino - the university-wide theatre guild of UST- will be staging "Twosome" at the Albertus Magnus auditorium on December 11 and 12. This twinbill production features Chris Martinez' "Welcome to Intelstar" and Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero's "Wanted: Chaperon" both directed by John Lapus.

* The Manila Ocean Park is already open. Have any of you been there yet? Any good?

* Finally saw Les Miz in West End. Ketty and I queued up three times (the last one at least for 30 minutes in bitter weather) to get tickets. Apparently, that weekend was very busy. The guy at the box office even told us how lucky we were to get tickets as the show was sold out. Unfortunately, the seats weren't together and with restricted view. It was a good show though. The performances were remarkable. Joanna Ampil's portrayal of Fantine was spot on. Her "I dreamed a dream" number was stirring.

* Did you know that we have to pay for a TV license here in the UK? A colour TV Licence costs £135.50 and a black and white licence costs £45.50. And you'd think they'll produce quality shows after that. Not!

* "Jack Bauer" begins his 48-day prison sentence. 48 divided by 2 is 24. Wala lang.

* Don't forget to switch off the lights when not in use.

bobby/fox

"Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total; all of those acts will be written in the history of this generation."

--- Robert F. Kennedy

Saw Bobby yesterday. Or a movie of which title should've been: Half of the Screen Actors Guild.

-------------

Former Mexican President, Vicente Fox, was on Larry King Live the other day where he talked about his book and his life after the presidency. He also discussed various issues affecting Mexico particularly immigration. When asked which US presidential candidate he supports, he practically endorsed Hillary Clinton saying that a lady would be his choice. Adding that women candidates show their vision, their capacities, their emotions, their passion, their compassion.

And did you know that before becoming Mexico's president, he started as a truck delivery driver for Coca-Cola working his way up to become the company's chief executive in only ten years! Truly remarkable.

i don't think a title is necessary