Like what I did last October, this time a little link love to those who greeted (and forward greet) me last Christmas. My girlfriend, Jo-anne, already greeted me in advance and also the rest of her family, John and Karen.

First those who spent at least one peso to text me a Christmas message (in chronological order).

Jackielyn, Lovely/Abi, my cousin JC, Paulo/Jamir, Ian/Azurile, Rika Angela, Reah, Sarah Marie, Mhillete, Alan/ChaoticGood, Arleah/Kelly, Mary Luisa, Marvin, Sabrina, Jerrue.

Next are those who are kind enough to include me in their free mass message through instant messengers and social networking sites (in chronological order).

Via messenger: Mira, Benjie, Karen, Gracie, Christine Anne, Valerie/Shashie, Kennon, Shermy/midnytblu, Jam Michelle.

Via SN sites: Arbee Mae, Rhiza, Lorie Vi, Ashi.

Again if I forgot someone, please post a comment here so I can include you.

Oh and thanks for the greets… till next year.

It’s almost the eve of Christmas.

I can hear the sound of fireworks outside. Heck they still do this even if it’s not yet New Year.

There are those who are busy wrapping presents. And there are some, still outside, buying for Christmas presents. An extremely late Christmas shopping and one hell of a long line towards the cashier.

Others are busy preparing food for this year’s Noche Buena (Christmas Eve feast) which usually includes; lechón, pancit, fried chicken, lumpia, rice, adobo, among others for the main course; desserts include halo-halo, rice cakes, puto bumbong, ice cream, pastries and cakes; drinks include soda, wine, beer, juice.

Carolers can still be heard singing outside the gates of our neighbors. I just hope and pray that they don’t hurt by those who are throwing firecrackers on the sidewalk.

Text messages, instant messages, and emails that came from friends and acquaintances are flooding the air with messages. Networks are usually clogged by the stroke of midnight tonight, so they are sending their messages early before it’s caught up in air traffic.

Websites, specially blogs, are storming the web with various “Merry Christmas” greetings in over a hundred languages, this blog is no exception. But in my case, I’m going to post that later.

Catholic devotees attended this night’s final Simbang Gabi (es. Misa de Gallo, en. Rooster’s Mass). Well, they say, completing all the nine masses will grant one’s wish. I will never know the truth behind that since I don’t go to the church anymore.

As for me…

I’m here at home.

We (my mom and I), didn’t bother to decorate the house. So in short, we don’t have those fancy Christmas lights and no Christmas trees. It’s not that we can’t afford to have one, its just that there are only two of us here in our house and it really doesn’t matter if we have decorations or not. And to say, I never did like to celebrate holidays, whether if it is Christmas, New Year, or Halloween. Heck, I also never did like to celebrate my birthday. But we will still have our own Noche Buena later tonight.

Filipinos, yes us and our countrymen, even if in the face of poverty, we still have time to celebrate special occasions like this. You see even if we know that there are more less fortunate people here in our country, we still hold on to age old tradition that keeps the family together. And Christmas is the time when you should be with your family, whether you’re outside or at home.

And what the hell I’m doing watching horror movies at this time of the year.

It’s time to start sending Christmas spams… wehehe…

I don’t know where to begin with this blog post. I don’t know what to write, but I have a lot of things in my mind I like to share. So instead of thinking what to post, I’ll just write what pops up as I go along…

• The music currently playing in the background is Beautiful Girls by Jojo. According to the music history provided by Winamp’s media library, I’ve been playing this song for 115 times since I loaded it in my computer. I liked this song before when I first heard it sang by Sean Kingston.
• Beowulf is on the top of my list for movies to watch, but I’ve been passing it off week after week. First it was Hitman, since I knew that Beowulf will still be in the theaters for a couple of more weeks. Then last Saturday my girlfriend and I, watched The Golden Compass, again bypassing Beowulf. I just hope by next Saturday IT is still in the movies.
• BTW The Golden Compass is a good movie, well… much like Stardust or The Seeker, since both came from a book. Just don’t be disappointed with the ending because it’s much like seeing a “to be continued” text on the theater.
• My girlfriend is planning to buy the new ASUS EEE PC, she showed it to me on sale at the mall for 18,500 php. Although she mentions another shop that sells it for only 16,000 php. I’ve been reading a lot about it in various blog sites. As far as I can say, the specs are not that great, but it’s really portable since its smaller than your average laptop. And since it’s portable one feature that needs to stand out is its Internet connectivity, which unfortunately sucks. It doesn’t have a freaking Wi-Fi so you have to buy a separate Wi-Fi “box” so you can connect to those free Wi-Fi in your area. Or as an alternative you can just subscribe to SMART 3G wireless internet, and I hear 3G is faster than Wi-Fi. It has a modem and Ethernet for connecting your broadband or modem internet line, but what’s the point, since you’re bringing this outside because it’s a portable unit. And if some of you are wondering why it is so cheap, mainly because it uses cheap hardwares and free softwares. It is powered by an Intel mobile CPU running at 900MHz, 512mb RAM, and a 8~16 GB flash drive (much faster than regular hard drive). On the software side, don’t expect and Apple of Microsoft products here since you are getting it at a cheap price. It runs on a customized Linux (free) based OS, don’t worry because it uses a graphical interface much like windows and not your stripped down command line interface like Linux. Your browser is the all powerful and all mighty (I’m exaggerating here of course) Mozilla Firefox, Skype is also included so you can use the built-in webcam. You can chat in AOL, IM, MSN via Kopete (WTF is Kopete??? I mean if you want to use a free all in one messenger use Pidgin, then you can boast to your friends that you have a zoo in your Asus Eee PC, with a fox, penguin, pigeon, and other animals) or just download Yahoo Messenger, Live Messenger, Google Talk, or AIM. It opens Word and Excel docs, it doesn’t have Microsoft so I’m guessing it’s loaded with another free software called Open Office. Every software has a free license and it cuts down the cost. But what about that damn Wi-Fi??? almost all the software included are used online, and they even call this unit a “blogging tool.” BTW, I’m “planning” to get one, why? I don’t know, and if ever I convince myself enough… and planning doesn’t mean I’m getting it… yet… probably… whatever. (I should have posted this at Tambayan.ph)
• Most of my free time is spent on watching J-doramas so I didn’t get to blog more often. The list of J-doramas I’ve already watched are:
  1. Perfect Woman (ep 1-11). This is your typical love story. It’s a good series with a hint of comedy. I rate it at 5/10.
  2. With Love (ep 1-12). A love story brought to you by email. Sounds familiar? My rate for this series is 4/10. But I love the opening song from this series titled Destiny by My Little Lover. And it is currently (as of this post) my phone’s ringtone.
  3. You’re Under Arrest (ep 1-9). This is a Manga/Anime adoptation of the same title. Two police woman from Japan’s traffic division. Action, comedy, drama, it’s all here. My rate is 7/10.
  4. Great Teacher Onizuka (ep 1-12 + movie + special). Another Manga/Anime adoptation. This is a story about an ex-biker gang member wanting to be a teacher. A little action and too much drama. My rate is 7/10.
  5. Gokusen season 1 (ep 1-12 + special). A female version of Great Teacher Onizuka and also a Manga/Anime adoptation. This time the teacher is a heir to a generation of Yakuza. Too much drama here if you ask me. Rate is 6/10. I have yet to watch season 2 of this series this week.
  6. Nodame Cantabile (ep 1-11). A Manga/Anime adoptation. This is a comedy with a touch of drama. A story about a guy who wants to lead an orchestra and go to Prague, but unfortunately can’t because of a trauma since childhood. Funny comedy and full of music. If you like music, violins, and piano, this series is for you. My rate is 6/10 because of the comedy.
  7. Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (ep 1-12). This is the first J-dorama I actually recommended my girlfriend to watch. Comedy, drama, and sports are the main genre. My rank is 8.5/10 why? because of the comedy and Horikita Maki… she’s so KAWAII (^_^)
     
  8. Liar Game (ep 1-11). Ah yes, the mind-game. My rate is 8/10. I like how this series turned up. It’s full of drama, but the twist and turns of events are what I like most.
  9. Kimi Wa Petto (ep 1-10). Hmmm. Rate is 5/10. It good, but not that good. A little bit of comedy, but heavy on the drama. The title is translated as You’re My Pet.
  10. Hana Yori Dango season 1 (ep 1-9) and seasaon 2 (ep 1-11). The original Meteor Garden (from Korea). It is based on the Manga/Anime adoptation of the same title, the story is much like Meteor Garden with some similarities. Rate is 6/10.
• Watching too many Animes and J-doramas actually helps me learn Nihongo faster. Since I’m usually studying Japanese language by books; watching and listening to Japanese speaking videos taught me faster. Although since I don’t have a formal study in Nihongo and I don’t have someone who I can practice with, I can rate my Japanese speaking skills at around 2/10. And no, I can’t read Kanji or any Japanese characters.
• I’m planning to create a website dedicated to Japanese culture specially Anime and J-Dorama’s and probably J-idols. But I will just host it below this domain. For now.

Ok that’s it for now. It’s already 12 midnight and I’m sleepy.

Oyasumi nasai minna-san

Here are some good and bad things that happened these past few days. I just feel like ranting today. Lack of sleep and pissed off makes me feel irritated.

Good
After watching the complete ten episodes of Kimi wa Petto (You’re my pet), I was encouraged to watch another J-dorama series. I’ve been watching Japanese drama (much like Koreanovelas/Asianovelas) way back, with titles like You’re Under Arrest, Great Teacher Onizuka Live Action, and Gokusen; and all three of them was based on the anime/manga series. What I like most about J-dorama’s is that they always include humor, action, and drama on a single title. Don’t get me wrong I don’t usually watch Telenovelas or Asianovelas, it’s just that I can watch J-dorama without the feeling of guilt that I’m totally watching a drama TV series, well maybe because it is almost the same as watching Anime, but with a live cast. Kimi wa Petto has good reviews from J-Dorama members just visit the link above or if you want a preview, search it on YouTube, it’s there.

Bad
I heard from my cousin that Heroes episode 11 will become a season ender episode if the WGA strike doesn’t end soon. It has been said that NBC re-shoot episode 11 with another scene that will end the season so that if the strike continues, they will air that one instead of the ‘real’ episode 11. This sucks more cocks than a porn movie, I know. Heroes has been my favorite since I started watching it, and now they’ll gonna end the episode quickly. Why don’t they just give the WGA what they want. It’s just a very small (read: tiny) percentage of what they are asking for. They want 8 cents for every DVD sold and add 2.5 cents per dollar of revenue made online. Just give them what they want, DAMN IT!

Bad
Not only TV series were affected by the strike but also other major movies still in the works. The one I’m talking about is Justice League of America, which of course one of the movies I’m waiting to be finished.

Good
Last week, I finally fixed and installed BayanTel’s internet service from my girlfriend’s house. Unfortunately it wasn’t BayanTel’s DSL service as it is only a dial-up connection. It is wireless and has the speed of a regular dial-up, but sometime the connection went twice as fast. Anyway, she’s enjoying the Internet time on her home. They are located in SJDM Bulacan if you are wondering, and unfortunately Globe Broadband doesn’t reach their place.

Good
The other night, I finished watching another J-dorama. This time it’s a suspense/comedy/drama TV series titled, Liar Game. This series was just aired last April 14, 2007 so it’s fairly new. What I like about the series is the way the people manipulate others in order to win the game, basically strategy and psychology is needed to ensure victory, and a little bit of ruthlessness if you ask me. If you think like me, you could have spoiled much of the outcome of the series even before you watch what happens next because it is very possible to predict what the players are thinking or planning to do from the way they act and behave.

Nao Kanzaki, an honest college student, receives a 100 million yen one day, along with a card saying that she has been chosen to participate in the “Liar Game”. In order to win the game, she must trick other players into giving her their 100 million yen while her opponents are left in debt.

The objective of the first round is to steal the 100 million yen that is issued to her opponent, Kazuo Fujisawa, a former teacher of hers, who easily deceives her. Before the round ends, she comes across Shinichi Akiyama, a genius swindler, who helps her to succeed winning the first round. However, after the first round, a second round of Liar Game awaits them.

Erika Toda who plays Nao Kanzaki is so kawaii. Actually most young Japanese girls are kawaii… hmmm… that must be the reason why I’m watching J-dorama’s a lot lately. She also played as Misa Amane in the manga adoptation movie, Death Note. You can preview this series on Dailymotion, just search it there.

Bad
I installed Yahoo! Messenger beta 9 a couple of days ago and now I’m mostly offline at Yahoo! Why? Two reasons: (1) Even if YM is minimized in your system tray and not in your taskbar, the window you are working on will sometimes lose focus. Example is that when I’m typing a blog entry, then after a few minutes it loses focus so I have to click again the window in order to continue typing. Again after a couple of minutes it loses focus again, thus disrupting my work. So I have to shutdown YM if I’m writing something long in my web browser. I kinda fixed that by alt+tabbing and checking if there is an invisible YM app open, but it’s just a temporary fix. (2) I’m back to playing Audition Online, so I can’t afford for the program to lose focus while I’m playing.

Good
Finally, Audition Dance Battle Online here in the Philippines updated their game with new music and even a pet system. Yes I got myself a pet, and its worth 200 ep (that’s 200 php) and is active for 90 days. And what’s more is that they have a lot more music tunes to dance for. I currently like Stay In Me because of the melody, and not the beat. Haha. After 1 month of not playing, I was not confident that I can play the same way before. But after the first few days of being back in the game, I found out that I was playing better than before.

Extremely Bad
Last night my mom showed my her USB drive so I can scan it for a virus. I’ve already knew that it has a virus even before I inserted it since the computer in her workplace has a lot of virus going around. I thought it was just a simple USB virus which I usually see in other USB thumb drives, but I was mistaken. Usually when I insert a USB device in my PC, my anti-virus software automatically scans it then block the virus if found. But what happened is that my wonderfully-worthless anti-virus software called BitDefender didn’t detect the virus that automatically executed after I inserted the USB drive thus penetrating my PC. My anti-virus didn’t showed a warning message so I thought everything was fine, that is until I noticed that my hard drive and the USB drive LED light are both blinking, I therefore assumed that it is doing something I’m not responsible off. What did I do? I immediately pressed the power button in my PC. The suspicious thing is that I haven’t opened the USB drive, yet it was already reading and transferring files to my computer. The virus has many names, one of them is W32.Sohana, but you can identify it with a file called SSCVIHOST.exe and a lot of dangerous folders with a name “New Folder.exe” and it is a worm-type virus. It usually spreads via USB drives and Yahoo! Messnger, yes the spam with garbled messages. Symantec (Norton), Trend-micro (PC-cillin) and Sophos detects this, but unfortunately BitDefender does not, maybe even AVG doesn’t see this. Anyway, more of this incident in another post later (or tomorrow), and I will write a guide on how to remove this fucking virus without even using an anti-virus software. It worked for me.

Now you know why I didn’t slept last night…