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Friday, 20 November 2009

Thursday, 05 November 2009

Wednesday, 28 October 2009

Friday, 23 October 2009

  • Scary Movies to Watch List


    With Halloween coming up, I've decided to compile a list of horror movies I need to see. What's pop culture without them?
    I have mixed feelings toward horror movies. I love getting scared and cowering behind a pillow when something spooky pops out. But at the same time, I get super-paranoid after seeing a scary movie and with my over-active imagination, that can be difficult to deal with. On a more philosophical note, one could say that horror movies are a form of catharsis and lead the viewer to appreciate life more after witnessing such fear (okay, that last bit was super cheesy).
    I only recently got interested in this genre; a year ago I saw the remake of "When A Stranger Calls" and this summer, I saw "The Sixth Sense" (which I loved!) and "Signs". I also saw "The Haunting of Molly Hartley" last year since it came out around my birthday but even though I haven't seen too many horror movies, that was pretty damn bad. Chace Crawford redeems it though.
    I haven't seen very many horror films at all, so prepare to read and OMG at how little I've seen. Anyway, on to the list:

    10. Donnie Darko - I saw a clip of this in my English class; pretty weird stuff
    9. The Invisible Man
    8. The Shining - this one looks soo scary though! I'll have to watch it with friends
    7. The Grudge
    6. The Exorcist
    5. Rocky Horror Picture Show - I know this is just a comedy >.>
    4. The Ring - yup, haven't seen it
    3. Nosferatu
    2. The Birds
    1. Psycho

    Note: all are the original, 1st edition works
    Classics top my list. There are just so many parodies out there; I need to see what they're all about!
    How about you? Any scary movies that you want to see?

Thursday, 22 October 2009

Thursday, 15 October 2009

  • AAA - Break Down

    I admit, I like the design concept a lot more than the music. Fractals = awesomeness.

    Although Nishijima Takahiro is pretty cute...^_^ (0:54)

  • Do you have an alias for your crush?

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    I've talked with a lot of girlfriends and many of them prefer to talk under the veil of secrecy when mentioning their crush in public. So, they've adopted an alias to use when speaking to me or their other friends about that special guy. While I personally don't find any guys in my high school very attractive, I understand that they want to share their feelings but don't want to be caught talking blatantly about him by others. However, I sometimes find it annoying to figure out whom everyone is referring to when they talk about J-dog or Batman. I also feel that by referring to their crush with an alias, the crush is suddenly propelled to superhuman status and it becomes more of a secret to the girl than being actually attracted to the guy. Lovelyish readers, can you explain this issue to me? Guys, how do you feel about this?

Friday, 09 October 2009

Friday, 02 October 2009

Friday, 25 September 2009

  • Learning a Foreign Language

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    Although I'm ethnic Han Chinese, the only language I've learned asides from the native dialect of Shanghai-nese is French (I don't even know Mandarin T.T). I took French I & II in middle school and finished French IV by sophomore year. I decided not to take AP French Language, because the class seemed hard and the test even harder. Recently,
    I've been glad that I chose not to take the AP, and that I remember French fondly as more of a personal hobby than a hardcore class that emphasized correct grammar and memorizing verb conjugations.
    Since taking French IV, I've learned not only to appreciate the rich culture but to understand the sentence structure more for usage in everyday life. Just for fun, I'll read the French instructions on a box instead of the English ones and see how much I can understand. I also started playing an online game Ma Bimbo - although admittedly more fun than typical language practice, it's an interactive way to test my skills.
    I've also used my French to sign up for French version of Harris Poll Online, even though I already have an English account. Through the questions and responses, I've picked up a few more modern French phrases that they don't teach in school. For example, online is literally translated into 'en ligne' in French! All the while, I was using 'sur l'internet'!
    I also enjoy looking up French music. I really love Faudel's pop music and Vitaa's R&B. I was also first introduced to Tokio Hotel a few years ago through a French interview the teacher showed us in class! Without French, I wouldn't have found the inspiring piano music of Yann Tiersen either.
    Granted, I'm not fluent enough to read 'Les Misérables' in its original form. But if there's a random Paris journal article or a word I don't know in English, I can always use my knowledge of the romance language to help me. I enjoy the process of searching for opportunities to use my knowledge, like a treasure hunt. I also feel by learning another language, I've come to appreciate the larger world beyond the English speaking population and become a more cultured person. To me, learning French has been a personally satisfying achievement that beats out learning anything straight from a book. French has opened many more opportunities and the learning experience has been really gratifying.
    Are you learning any languages? What do you enjoy about learning a new language?