Twilight Time
I registered in the Fully Booked Web site and now I’m receiving updates from their email newsletter tool. It’s actually nice, not much “spammy,” and the updates are really interesting. I almost got to convince a few friends to attend a book signing with me once but that didn’t pan out.
Anyway, earlier this week, I received their latest e-mail newsletter and it has some good stuff about the upcoming movie Twilight. It comes with an online survey tool - for Twilight fans, there’s a contest for you. It runs until December 21. Up for grabs are Twilight: Complete Illustrated Movie Companion and Twilight Collector’s Edition. The whole package looks great so check out the official site and look for the link to “twilightraffle.”
Let’s Talk About Darkness
People have disagreements all the time. Even the kind-hearted ones meet people who get to their nerves and never quite crawl out of their skin. I’ve been listening to stories of less-than-serious bouts and general bitchiness. They go on and on. They never stop. Some cracks will mend almost as soon as other bonds break. The problem is, everyone’s messed up if it’s not yourself. But you sidestep the issues because it’s more fun to fraternize and then do some backstabbing while your at it. Sometimes I wish people will just face each other, say f- off! once and for all, and be done with it. The problem is, I can’t do that myself. No, I’m not talking in the specific.
I’m talking about misbehaving. How the mere idea of it can have a potent excitability at times. I’ve listened to normally gentle people wish another bodily harm, not really meaning the words but exulting in the power having uttered them affords. I’m not the Mary Sue of this story. God knows I’ve cursed one too many times in my head to ever be worthy of the “good girl” label. I know people who draw a very defined line between black and white; I’ve lived with them all my life. These are the very people who will recoil in horror if I tell them that every night I go home, I look at the packs of cigarettes being sold in the streets and contemplate about buying them. It will not even matter that I stop myself, every. single. time. I believe that there are genuinely saintly people around. I’ve met some of them and I hold them in the highest regard, if I can’t be the same.
It’s one thing to try to be virtuous and quite another to be faultless. As the old adage says, “to err is human.” But compassion and respect are ingrained facets of our humanity as well. So I say hate if you must: feel the rage, shout it out; just stop yourself short of clawing at your enemy’s face.
I think the operative word here is restraint. There’s always a line you cannot cross and then wish to turn back. Everybody’s searching for the light at the end of the tunnel. I know I am.
What’s the Time?
I don’t need Movado watches to tell me I should stop typing now and go to bed. It’s another night of trying to juggle updating three blogs, watching DVD, and reading a book. I really need to find some direction here. A little bit of discipline perhaps or a dash of organizational skill. Never been my best qualities.
So I guess I can’t play badminton tomorrow morning, again. I just hope I won’t be late for work this time.
It’s Always a Three-Step Process
I was investigating a little zit on the side of my face last night, when… Wait you didn’t have to know that, sorry.
I looked at my skin products and realized my supplies have been scarce for a long time now. To tell you the truth, I’m almost about to give up finding a product that would suit my oily skin (just the face). Have you ever wondered why it has to be a three-step process always? I mean, cleanse, tone, and moisturize. Then I found this site about skin resurgence, which promises to slow the effects of hormonal aging on the skin. They also promote a three-step night regimen that is supposed to give dramatic results - younger, glowing skin. The process is called murad resurgence, taken from the name of the dermatologist who developed the products. You can check the site to see their resurgence infomercial.
Street Tale
I stumbled upon a site that offers emergency alert services for old people and it reminded me of one incident while I was waiting to cross the street. Normally, I’m very nervous about crossing busy streets that’s why I really appreciate those pedestrian overpass. Sadly, there can’t be more of those. I know some find them tedious, but I’d rather be on the safe side.
Anyway, one time, I was waiting for the road to clear when somebody tapped me from the back. It was an old lady who asked me to help her cross. I was a little nervous but of course I gathered enough courage to do it. I don’t think I ever had made so many hand signals before.
So I was thinking, it will be great if we can have something like a Medical Alarm system for our old ones. The site I mentioned earlier offers GPS tracking bracelets that also work as a speaker phone so the loved ones can find their elders in case they need immediate help while out in the streets alone. They even have a fall detector that will send a signal to the emergency personnel so they can provide immediate assistance. May take some time before we see such technology here, though. It’s also potentially costly so it may not be an option for a lot of poor families, but still having the option like can can be quite helpful.
Mailboxes
It just occurred to me, we don’t really use mailboxes here, no?! I mean that thing that sits in front of your house where the mailman (do we still have those? because I don’t see many of them anymore) will drop your letters. Maybe in progressive, sprawling residential areas? I dunno, I think mail boxes provide a nice touch to the whole facade.
I only noticed this because I’ve been watching several TV series and they almost always prominently feature a mailbox in front of a house. I wrote in my previous post that I used a site, in 2006, that allowed me to send a letter to myself that arrived yesterday. That’s actually from the official site of the movie The Lake House (Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock). If you’ll think about it, how many people still use snail mail today? E-mail is usually the way to go. It’s fast and instant. Well, unless your Sandra and Keanu and you exchange letters through the same mail box due to some time warp or reality bending phenomenon. Anyway, if I see one of those boxes anytime soon, I’ll snap a picture and post it here.
And So I’m Here
… and older.
I never thought I’ll ever be 30. I was brought up in such a way that I believed I’ll never have to worry about getting old. Maybe I got that one wrong - doctrines get lost in translation every so often. So today, when I finally did reach that milestone, as I call it, I didn’t want to do anything. I didn’t leave the house. I wanted to skip it, this day that shouldn’t have mattered to me if not for the fact that it gave me the number I’ve been dreading for all superficial reasons.
What difference does it make, really? Am I fundamentally different yesterday than I’ll be tomorrow? Of course not. I don’t know why I can say that “It’s a good thing some things never change,” but I did write that to myself. Two years ago, I used a site that allowed me to write a letter to myself that will arrive today. Amazingly, it did; among other things, here’s what I wrote:
How’s your life now? …
Do you have someone to put a smile on your face on days when you’re thinking every place is a crappy place to be in? …
I could quite see the look on your face while reading this…
You can’t say I’m not that insightful. I just know that the look I had when I opened that forgotten letter is the one I’ve been expecting myself to project. Oh, it wasn’t that special. It’s not as if I expected that much nor did I particularly write a heart-wrenching prose to self. On the contrary, I knew then that two years wouldn’t make that much of a difference. It makes me sad just a little. I think now I should’ve expected more or maybe felt that I deserved a little more.
It doesn’t matter now. If ever I can start over, clean slate and all, I’ll start tomorrow. I may be fooling myself but, hey, nothing gives me more satisfaction than that (I am such a liar).
Getting Back to Reading
I officially have four books that I really, really want to finish before November ends - Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Susanna Clarke), Possession (A.S. Byatt), The Hours (Michael Cunningham), and Kafka on the Shore (Haruki Murakami).
That’s just my most wanted list, but I still have a few more books in the shelf that I haven’t finished or even scanned. I got a little crazy over buying used books from Ebay, hence the pile. It’s just that there’s been too many distractions, not the least of which is keeping at least three blogs alive. But I’m getting back to reading. I need to remember how to focus my energy on doing something else away from my personal computer. Now if only I can find a discount furniture store to look for something like a comfortable sofa or anything that I can call my reading “space.”
I Heart Paypal
Ever since I learned about Paypal, I thought right away how cool it must be to use a service like that - just have an e-mail account to use for online purchases and viola! Checkout products without having to expose or reveal your credit crd numbers. It sounds a lot safer than having to use credit cards directly, even for secured Web sites. When I first registered, I can only use the service to send money but not to receive funds. I bought a lot of tennis DVDs that way. I only had to register my e-mail first and then my CITI credit cards. Eventually, accepting funds was allowed for my account and that’s when the real fun began.
The real great use of Paypal for me is its use for international transactions. It’s so easy and convinient to send and receive money from anywhere in the world. Withdrawing funds to your local bank account make take time, though (about 5 days), but the charges are quite reasonable, compared with other payment and money sending options. I’m only hoping that our local online industry will soon pick up and fully utilize this amazing service.
The AGK Collection
When not having Disney vacations with their children, the tennis power couple of Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf are busy designing for their Kreiss furniture line.
(coffee table)
(dining table)
(bed)
The majority of the new collection was in black and white because these are Graf’s favorite color combinations. She said, “They are not only visually different but also of distinctly different materials.” Exactly what can be said of the contrast in the iconic couple’s personalities. So distinctly different, yet perfect together.