Bumming around~
11:35 PM
August 27, 2008
Since my acconting exam is over (and as always, a great storm is followed by a certain lull of peace), I've been overindulging myself in some of my most favorite pastimes: reading and watching some of my downloads. Hence, as a result, I was able to finish the ebook I've been reading for a couple of weeks now, as well as an anime series that I watched out of the blue simply because its CD was partly ruined. ^^;
First, the book. It was The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory, and it focused on the life of Queen Katherine of Aragon, first wife of King Henry VIII. Sounds boring? Well, I'll explain how I came to read such a novel pretty shortly. It's a historical novel, so most of the events in the book actually occurred in real life. What the author did was to simply take these events and think up reasons and motives for why such things happened, etc. It actually added to the depth and to the fun of the book, in my opinion. Like the time when I was reading Tracy Chevalier's Girl with the Pearl Earring, I would constantly look up things, people and places in Wikipedia and experience a profound delight in finding evidence to support the novel's story. XD Plus, it makes the tragedies and triumphs much more touching since you know that they really occurred (like the various miscarriages of Katherine. Sad... T_T)
Anyway, so why in the world am I even reading a historical novel? And enjoying it too, at that? It all started about a year ago(?) or maybe more, when I found an interesting mystery novel, WychWood, in a secondhand bookstore. The novel was really good. (In fact I let France read it because I wanted desperately to discuss it with someone - but I had already told Bianca everything about the book hence making it useless for her to still read the book - and my little cousin liked it. Bianca thought was interesting as well.) The novel's heroine was a Tudor scholar, and the novel itself slightly circled around a love triangle between Catherine Parr, the 6th wife of Henry VIII, Thomas Seymour the brother of the third wife i think, and Elizabeth, Henry's daughter. This led to a self-imposed crash course on the Tudor (that's what this family and their reign was called) History c/o Wikipedia, which also led me to download and watch one of the Elizabeth movies of Cate Blanchett. Later on, I was very amused to find out that a new movie was coming out, the Other Boleyn Girl, and that it was about the 2nd wife of Henry, Anne Boleyn. So I ended up reading about Anne Boleyn in Wikipedia, and then watching the movie, and then reading the book. Consequently, it had a sequel/prequel (i really don't know), the Constant Princess. ^^
I never thought I would end up a slight history buff, and if you had asked me before all this, I'd have probably said that I Vigile had a greater tendency for it. I mean, she actually wanted to read our History textbook over summer. ^^; But really, the Tudor history is quite fascinating, and it touches on other things that I remember feeling curious about in high school. I remember one of the few things in High school history that I found interesting was the stories about Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castille, about how they married and united two warring kingdoms of Spain. And here is their daughter Katherine, with a very good story of her own. ^^
I was actually very very very surprised when I got to the end of the book, cause it came a little abruptly, and besides, it's sometimes hard to gauge your progress when reading an ebook. So anyway, being that the novel I'm reading is either the sequel/prequel of another book, the story somehow jumps forward in time at the end, and if I wasn't observant enough to notice the sudden 14 year advance in the date stated in the chapter, I probably would have been confused out of my wits. :p It was a historical novel, and if you remember me ranting about the last book I read, the one where 2 of my favorite characters died while the third lived a totally wretched life somewhere, this is its prequel/sequel, and Katherine was one of my favorites. Hmm... I think I'll declare it the prequel. Though chronologically this story happens first, the other one is the more famous aspect of the story, so the author may have written the other one earlier. @_@ Plus the jump in the end might not make sense if you don't read the other one first. But then again, the way she didn't mention who was who at the end.... Erg. Fine. I won't confuse you any further with this internal debate. @_@
I have to say though, I have a feeling that the author is a bit too promiscuous. -___- She made most of her characters waaay too sensual than I think was proper for that period of time. It's understandable in Henry VIII, cause he really turned out to be a disgusting old man, but not for the others. :p Trust me on this. I'm not being delicate. --___-- I explained it to Vigile, and I think she agreed. ^^ That's my biggest complaint, but other than that, the story was pretty good. ^^
Moving on...
Next is the anime, Lunar Legend Tsukihime. It was ok, overall. I kind of liked it, but not enough to send me gushing about it. ^^ Old-ish anime, art is ok - sometimes not good sometimes good, I wasn't too crazy about the character designs although I got used to them eventually, and it had a so-so ending. I think it ended too abruptly as well. ^^ It's a vampire anime, but i think the producers couldn't properly fit the story in just 12 episodes, so the ending was so rushed. @_@ And some things weren't fully explained. I guess that leaves room for thought, but I'm not in the mood to think much right now. :P All I can say is that it's always so much more painful to be the one left behind than to be the one leaving, even if the one leaving has always been the one waiting. u_u
That's it, I'm tired. @_@
Lot's and lot's of updates.
9:41 AM
August 25, 2008
First things first. I know I'm probably weird, but I've been enjoying the different Google page pictures dedicated to the Beijing Olympics. And now they've ended. Awww....
I'm currently very addicted to this new online game, and it's taking quite a bit of my time. ^^ It's called Ikariam. You get to build up a town, and then when you're a bit strong enough, you can start colonizing other islands or pillaging your neighbors. It's fun, but each task takes really long, like a building upgrade can take 8 hours, and a research finding can take days! I think it's mostly a waiting game though, so it shouldn't take much of your time. ^^ But addicted is addicted, so I check it every few hours, I sometimes even leave word for others to check up on my account while I'm away. -__- I think Sig is even starting to regret that she introduced me to the game. ^^; (Actually, she really did say something to that effect. u_u)
Anyway, and that last paragraph there is utterly detrimental to my academic life because I had another accounting exam this weekend. Urgh... Every accounting exam is a drainer, but this one more so than most, for some reason. @_@ I was so tired, I couldn't even pretend to be emo while texting Vigile after the exam (you know, the usual cry of the accounting student after an accounting exam about dying somewhere along the way or after it). I'm just thankful that I have the nicest accounting teacher in the world who actually insisted on more short problems and on removing as much complications as is fair, and considering his co-teacher for this subject is Mam Dani, I think he's faced quite a formidable task. ^^ And he's funny too. He kept making these side comments and jokes, so the aura of the room wasn't of the dark evil of panic and confusion. XD We were even provided an amortization table. :D Unfortunately, the exam was still difficult and I didn't finish it, as usual. Which is a shame cause for the first time, there was a bonus question at the end, and it was worth 5 points. And believe me, every single point is necessary if you want to pass.
Anyway, as I was saying, I was so mentally drained that I drove home with a little difficulty (the shock of almost hitting a jeep shook me to a temporary alertness), but when I got home, I was too tired to even check on Ikariam. Vigile actually thought I was under Ikariam-withdrawal. ^^
I was actually very impressed that Vigile brought up the term withdrawal, cause I
have been subjecting myself to its very pain recently, just for the accounting exam. Not Ikariam though, as I've been telling Vigile, but from reading a certain tragedy filled book. *heartbreak!* But before that, I'd like to explain my reading life a bit.
My reading life is divided into two, the tangible and the intangible. At any moment in time since the end of last year, I've always been reading at least two books, one the real, physical, page-turning, paper-paged type of book, the other the electronic ebook I store in my phone's memory card. I've only recently discovered the convenience of reading ebooks on my phone, and though it takes some getting used to, I've finished quite a number of books through the program I installed in my k800i, hence making it one of the most valuable pieces of electronic equipment (along with my computer) in my life. XD After all, though I love reading actual books, I usually find myself in spots without my books, and hence my cellphone provides a very convenient alternative. This also means, however, that I get to finish more ebooks than real books. Anyway, since I have two modes of reading, I also have two book queues, and I usually don't start a new book without finishing the book (of the same type - electronic or not) that I'm currently reading, and though at times I read books simultaneously, I usually stop one before I go very far and then simply continue it after finishing the other. (Makes sense since most books can really hook you somewhere along the way as the story picks up. ;P) So Sig, don't crucify me about not reading the Book Thief just yet, I'm still wading through the last hundred pages of Mansfield Park. It's a classic after all, not the fastest paced and easiest to go through book in the world. ^^; (I'll rant about Mansfield in a while.)
So anyway, back to the whole withdrawal issue (whew... that was a lengthy side trip. ^^) Since I had to study for my exam, having a really really exciting book at the very pinnacle of its climax just at the tip of my fingertips is a real danger to any progress I have to make, especially since I'm a really slow reader and the book a really long one as well. Besides, putting an accounting book and a really good fiction book side by side is too great a temptation to succumb to the latter, and not until the pressure of the exam catches up on you will the former become the weightier choice. But by then, it's way too late and you can't finish the topics outlined for the exam. See the predicament? I know it's all about self-control, yada yada, but then it's also quite easy to look for excuses to take "short breaks", and sometimes these breaks are truly necessary considering the long hours of studying involved, the problem is that this type of distraction tends to eat up more time than you can afford, sometimes without you even realizing it.
Hence, the withdrawal. Would you believe that I actually took out my phone's memory card, put it in its case, then put the case in its case, then put in a wooden box, which I put in the cardboard box container of the wooden box, and then stored it in my cabinet? Overkill, I know. I think the memory card in its case could have just as easily been put in my wallet and I would still have to face the trouble of battling my conscience before taking it out anyway. But I guess the overly dramatic gesture was a way to make it easier for me to let go and... withdraw. XD Hehe. Or I was just prolonging my procrastination. *shrugs innocently* Who knows. ^^;
Anyway, I'd love to stay and chat about the two books I'm currently reading, and the many frustrations they've been dancing about, but I'm getting tired. :P
Last story, as I've asked Vigile, have you ever tried writing a story, and then discontinuing it, only to find it a few months after, when you've forgotten the story and no matter how much you want to continue it, it's gone? I had such an experience lately, and the start was cryptic on purpose, I remember writing it to be that way, with only a tantalizing clue at the end. It was a prologue, you see, and I intended to reveal the rest of the situation in the next paragraph, unfortunately, I didn't have time to do so. -_- It's so frustrating. @_@
Forgive the typos, if any. I just woke up from the aftermath of the accounting exam. ^^;
Brangelina Twins~!
12:48 AM
August 07, 2008
Waah! The twins have debuted! Here I am waiting for a pic of Nicole Kidman's daughter, and then Knox and Viv suddenly appear! Oooh~ I hear Angelina and Brad got a rumored 14+ million, for the pics, but that they'll donate the entire amount to the Jolie-Pitt foundation for kids... or something. ^^ Hekhek.. Yay! Now that's a couple to love. I really truly believe that their being together has made the world a better place. (Sorry stacy. ^^)
Anyway, isn't it cool that so many celebs are having twins lately? There's JLo, Marcia Cross, Patrick Demsey, and I'm sure there are others. (Julia Roberts had twins several years ago. XD) Apparently, twins run in the Pitt family. ^^
Hehe... just ranting while I upload stuff for 191. Grrr...
HellWeek
9:19 AM
August 06, 2008
Hellweek is upon me and I didn't even notice. *hits self on the head*
Let's see.. thats one exam, 1 case, 1 feasib requirement, thick feasib readings, 2 mktg lists, 2 wiki evaluations *pesteng wiki yan!*, 1 acctg homework... thank God the other exam was cancelled. As it is, I wake up at 7thirty daily, which is quite early for me, to tell you the truth. @_@
Isang Butil ng Karunungan...
8:30 AM
Reindeer pala si Chopper? Wow!
Tsismis...
1:47 PM
August 04, 2008
I got this from my friend's multiply, who got it from her cousin...
"
ABS-CBN will air the pinoy version of Gossip Girl soon. FINAL CAST: Serena van der Woodsen: KC Concepcion Dan Humphrey: John Lloyd Cruz Blair Waldorf: Anne Curtis Nate Archibald: Sam Milby Chuck Bass: Luis Manzano Jenny Humphrey: Angelica PanganibanWTH. sabi nga nila: alam nyong mahal nyo ko. ekis ow ekis ow: chismosang babae~"
I'm not sure I want to believe. @____@
See it here:
Ynna's multiply
Cream Puffs~
1:26 PM
Spent the day frolicking in the kitchen, instead of studying in my room, where I should have found myself after spending most of my Saturday at DAR for Bacbacan 1. (I stayed till 10thirty cause most of my batch finished the awards ceremony, noting that only the seniors and terminals stayed behind - we were the only hopefuls, i guess?) Sig and I went over to Gremio's place to try out her brand new electric oven. She chose the recipe beforehand, the "Perfect Cream Puff" recipe, and while all three of us half expected it all to end up in a big blundering mess, it was actually pretty good. XD
See the pictures of the puffs in my multiply:
[my multiply!]Well, that's one fulfilled objective out of two. I failed the second one, leaving Sig to snicker in one corner and then shake her head at my weak-hearted self for not pressing enough towards our goal. :p
In case you're wondering, I did need to study cause I have two exams this week. Law and Tax. What a combo. *tsk tsk* How irresponsible? I know. u_u
Anti-virus-ness
12:46 PM
Well, I recently discovered that my sisters have been using my computer without permission and without care. >_< They open their USBs without scanning it with my anti-virus (Nod32), a big no-no since Bern's computer is so infected with all sorts of viruses it barely functions. @_@ And it has some viruses that can't be found by my computer's anti-virus program once it is able to enter. -_- Grr... So I spent most of my Sunday morning surfing the net, trying to find anti-virus programs to help improve my computer's state.
Here's what I have:
Nod32. My current anti-virus. I allowed it to scan and it found a couple of viruses which I deleted, and a few that had to be quarantined. This is recommended by Gremio, and I trust that she knows about such things. ^^
Avast! 4.8 Home Edition. It's completely (and legitimately) free, and it does a good job too. (It found 3 viruses/worms/trojans that Nod 32 didn't find.) This is the third most popular anti-virus in CNET's download.com.
Avira AntiVir. This also has a legitimate free version available on-line. And this anti-virus seems to work fine with other programs, so I installed it too. The funny thing is that it came across the Nod32 quarantined files and quarantined them as well. As soon as they quarantined it, Nod32 sent out an alert that it found new viruses in Avira's folder (the quarantined stuff). -_- At least they're very thorough. But I decided to uninstall this anyway because it seems to find the same viruses that Nod32 does anyway. Plus my computer says it doesn't have "virtual memory" left. I have a lot of hard drive space left, but I have a pretty small RAM, so I'll just install it again when I need it. :p This is the second most popular anti-virus in CNET's download.com.
AVG Free. I downloaded the latest version, unfortunately, it can't work with Nod 32, so I didn't install it. I'm keeping in mind, however, that it's an available option, cause Sig uses this and she doesn't seem bothered by viruses. But then again, she doesn't have people who infect her computer with a bazillion viruses living with her. ^^ This is the top anti-virus in CNET's download.com.
Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2008. This program was recommended to me by Sig several years ago, and it's supposed to remove all sorts of malware. Again, this is completely free, and it works fine too. This is the top spyware remover in CNET's download.com
I need to upgrade my RAM. And while I'm at it, my hard drive as well. Grr... I've been saving up for this, but it's no longer safe to store money in the house. T_T (I was robbed right?)
Bacbacan 1!
12:18 PM
Yes! Yes! YES! The Terminals won
2nd place overall this year! Woohoo! We gave the seniors a run for their money, and considering we're about less than half their population, what with our BA batchmates gone off to the corporate world and what not, aren't we cool? XD It's usually the Juniors versus the Seniors fighting for the championship, but our intense batch spirit (and ultra competitiveness) somehow managed to help us rise up. They must have been challenged, cause we got 1st place in 5 out of 10 events (the seniors got 1st in the other 5 we didn't get). :P
Definitely a first in Bacbacan history. We came so close to becoming the overall champs. XD And considering that we're just humble *cough* accounting majors. XD But I swear, our cheerdance was so nice! I think some people thought we would win 1st, or at the very least 2nd place. We were on tenterhooks till the very end about who'd win. :P
Here are the results:
1st place - Mr and Ms Bacbacan
1st place - Futsal
1st place - Men's Basketball
1st place - Parlor games - Relay
1st place - Attendance (hello? Sino namang lalaban samin dito? less than 70 lang ata kami. We had almost perfect attendance. :P)
2nd place - Parlor Games - Tug of War (Considering our number, applaud us!)
2nd place - Cheerdance (from last place last year to second! And a lot of the participants were first time dancers too! Galing ng Accountancy Majors! XD)
3rd place - Volleyball
3rd place - Women's Basketball
5th place - Recyclables (Sorry, dinaya kami ng Council dito. *bitter*)
Now I have to step back and admit that I didn't play any game (except I helped in the tug of war XD) but I did cheer my lungs out. ^^; And our batch really is unique. Our men's basketball team, for instance, had their uniforms designed like the old school basketball uniforms, you know, with the really short shorts and high socks. Hilarious. I can only imagine how Sir M*nuel would have reacted to the sight. ^^
