Blog block

I have blog block.

I also don't have that much material. There hasn't been much going on apart from work (a lot of it), the occasional amazing meal, the couple of visits to the Chinese doctor (for a pulled muscle that wouldn't go away) and watching the French actress Juliette Binoche dance for an hour (she's not amazing, but she's very competent).

But March should be more interesting and hopefully that translates to more blog posts. Coldplay and Taipei. Yehey!

Viva La Vida

One of the cool things about living in HK is that I can watch these really amazing concerts. Since moving here I've seen The Cure, The Police, Alicia Keys and Diana Krall. In a couple of weeks I'm seeing Coldplay. (Dad, this is the band whose lead singer is Gwyneth Paltrow's husband) SQ. is flying in to see the concert as well. That should be a fun a evening.

Tai O, Tai O, am off to see Tai O

So over the weekend I schlepped over to Tai O with (the other) C.C.

Tai O is a fishing town in Lantau island. C. wanted to take some pictures and since it has been months since I took my camera out its bag, I decided to tag along.

Tai O has been referred to as "the Venice of Hong Kong" and the HK Tourism Board says "enchanting [Tai O] is an amateur photographer's paradise". So of course we had to go. For HK's Venice we endured a 30 minute train ride and then a 45 minute bus ride.

And it was a dump. Sad, really.

See for yourself.





The good news is I still managed to take a couple of pretty pictures.

Random nerdy thought

The word "cleave" means both to stick and to split.

Wala lang.

My nephew is better looking than yours

4 weekends of February

1 -- work (Who knew the pace of work would pick up again? No complaints from me)

2 -- V-day in Manila with the parentals

3 -- Oscar movie marathon

4 -- the first of many ping pong Sundays. Yipeee!

3 books in 2 months

I'm trying to read at this pace this year and so far, am on track. This will lead to a final count of 18 books this year.

I'll be happy with 15.

My bets for this year's Oscars

Best Actor

Who should win:

Sean Penn in “Milk”. Penn *was* Harvey Milk. You forgot you were watching the same man who played the brooding (macho) cop in Mystic River.

Who will win:

Sean Penn. But if the homophobes in Hollywood (let's not forget Brokeback Mountain) give the Oscar to porn star Mickey Rourke for his work in in “The Wrestler” I wouldn't be surprised.

Best Actress

Here are the nominees:

Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)

So far I've only seen Doubt and The Reader. And whatever happens, Kate Winslet should not win. She was competent for sure, but apart from baring her breasts in 6 separate scenes, there was nothing memorable about her performance. Meryl Streep makes acting look easy. She is a god.

I plan to see Rachel Getting Married and Changeling before the awards, and if I do I will update this post.

Best Supporting Actor

Who should win:

Robert Downey, Jr. in "Tropic Thunder". Downey plays an Australian actor who for a role in a war movie dyes his skin black and plays a black soldier.

Who will win:

Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight". He's dead. You can't beat the dead guy.

Best Supporting Actress

Who should win:

Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” Penelope brought "psycho bitch" to a new level in Barcelona.

Who will win:

Penelope Cruz. But if the Academy gives it to Viola Davis for her work in "Doubt", that'd be great too. Davis held her own in a 12 minute sequence with Meryl Streep. Anyone who can go mano a mano with Meryl Streep for 12 minutes deserves an Oscar.

Best Animated Feature

Who should win:

"Bolt". This is Disney's comeback in full length animated features. It is smart, well written, well drawn, well directed. It is an excellent movie.

Who will win:

"Wall-E". This is a dumb movie. If you have not seen it, please stay away and re-arrange your sock drawer instead. If you have seen it and feel anything else but loathing towards this movie, you must like Chocnut. If Wall-E wins the award for best screenplay, I will shoot myself.

Best Director

Who should win:

Ron Howard for "Forst/Nixon". This movie is about a television interview. *Yawn* But Ron Howard makes it engaging. Almost exciting. Direction was masterful.

Who will win:

Danny Boyle for "Slumdog Millionaire". This movie is very good. And the direction is excellent. But it's a fairy tale set in Mumbai that uses flashbacks to tell a story. A story well told in a book called Q&A. With material that good, you don't really need to do much more. Now a story about a television interview, now *that's* boring stuff.

Best Motion Picture

What should win: "Milk". Go see it.

What will win: "Slumdog Millionaire". Because everyone loves a happy ending.

Mere Drivel

Woody Allen's Mere Anarchy is hands down, the worst book I have ever read. The book is a collection of short fiction that is meant to be funny but in reality is hardly intelligible. Here's the opening line to one of the stories:

"While perusing the Times movie ads in desperate search of the some bearable celluloid high jinks with which to palliate a summer of heat and barometric readings one associates with August in Yoknapatawaoha County, I had the interesting fortune to find a little oddment called, The Kid Stays in the Picture."

Don't think I'm stupid -- I know what he's trying to do. He's trying to be silly, but as you can see for yourself, it's not working. For writing to be funny it needs to flow effortlessly. Like Bob Hope delivering a joke. Allen's Anarchy sounded like a guy telling a knock knock joke during open mike night at a comedy club in Des Moines.

All my glasses look alike