fall trends to avoid (#1)

fall is by no means one of my favorite seasons of all time

that being said, this season has lots of REALLY cool fashion trends

and so, being the usual big spender i already am, fall did nothing helpful to me economically all it did was to make my fall- shopping list even longer

however, not everyone can rock all the looks, as much as their fashionista self craves to

having been in the situation where i myself would buy whatever that catches my eye and then just leave it hanging on the hangers to die a long, slow death, i’d learned for the better and decided to not let anyone out there repeat the mistakes i’ ve done in past seasons

for each fall trends to avoid, there’d be trends to wear instead as i hope to be able to make  you people to not feel really depressed (can’t be TOTALLY not depressed) for not being to be able to don what models had on the runways

#1: harem pants

pardon me if you must, but the reason for havin SO many harem pants pics is that I JUST CAN”T GET ENOUGH OF THESE!!!

harem pants, or as i like to call it: Princess Jasmine pants are all the rage this season

made famous by MC Hammer, this baggy, parachute- style pants are seemingly ONLY wearable by the tall  and skinny females, undoubtedly this is true and and so to say that for most real women this AIN’T easy to pull off

MC HAMMER

the alternative ( for those who really wanna try, HOLD ON):pair a basic trouser with a colorful bag and coat

a word of caution: NOT to be tried by the FAINT- HEARTED or those who are STYLISTICALLY CHALLENGED

“People who are not fashion savvy should stay away from harem pants because they can go terribly, terribly wrong,”

“If you pair them with something too casual or too baggy, you’re going to make yourself look like a big balloon, and that’s unattractive.”

Suze Yalof Schwartz, executive fashion editor at large for Glamour magazine

here goes some of Schwartz’s tips for how to pull off the look:

• you don’t have to be model thin to wear harem pants. You just need to pair them with the right top and accessories
• women should dress up harem pants with high heels and a tailored top. Stay away from anything bulky on top
• men should dress down harem pants with sneakers and a T-shirt
• don’t over-accessorize! Think of the pants themselves as a statement piece
• the long version of harem pants looks best on most people. Stay away from the Capri or short versions
• choose solid fabrics over prints, which can look a little too retro

Vogue.co.uk , their tips:

• perfect for any woman with a slim top half – the voluminous silhouette of the trousers will level the playing field below the waist
• define a waist by always tucking in tops
• make the most of the season’s elaborate, waisted belts and use your midriff as a staging ground for adornment
• for the most flattering shape, keep it tight on top; a camisole top or tailored jacket is perfect
• if opting for volume on top as well as on the legs, be sure to always keep the waist cinched
• heels should be one thing: high

but, about really rockin harem pants, let’s just ask the man himself

“You can make a fashion statement, ” Hammer said. “You can move in ‘em. You can dance in ‘em. … It accentuates the movement, and it gives you freedom of movement. It’s a slight delay. You move, and then the pants move, so it brings a nice little flair.”

What about us??? The not- dancing ones???

“From your heart, you wear them, how you feel today,” Hammer said. “If it’s a sunshiny day and you have a certain pair that goes with the sunshine, and you want to put some bright colors with them, then you do that.”

with still quite some length to go on what to wear and not to wear, i guess it’d be best to make separate posts for each of the trends

crowning glory

if anything, i’d say that women most important assets is having nice hair of course, being well- endowed just makes it a plus

in my opinion, hair defines someone more than clothes can in ways that hair kinda like shows people a constant side of oneself as no matter how you style your hair on a particular day, the basic elements remain the same

unless, you go doing your hair as if its clothes that you can change everyday

i,  myself take great care of my hair but there are also those rather rare occasions at which i’d just not give a damn bout how its looking when i step out of the house

and yeah, that being said, it actually took me quite some time to decide on having blond streaks in my hair

at that time , i was somewhat torn between having a hair like Rihanna’s or keeping my hair in its original rebonded state

obviously, i went with the plan… but the final results ain’t what i was expecting coz i didn’t bleach my hair like what i should’ve done

and since i was ALSO only highlighting half of my hair, the streaks did not really show in my dark hair

anyways, i went to the hairdresser today to get new bangs as i always keep ‘em a-  changing and this is how it looks like

perusing few mags for new bangs, i came across these REALLY nice hairstyles oh, how i wish for ‘em

i love GREEN hair !!!

initially, the color i wanted to highlight my hair in was green

simply fell in love with this hair. OMG

but unfortunately, for that to be realized i’ve got to bleach my hair

and so… yeah, it’ll never happen anytime soon

but i’ll make sure that before i die, i’ll get this done, OR i’ll be kickin and scratchin my coffin for all eternity before some good- lookin vamp comes  around and let me get this done

GREEN ROCKS =K

gotta thank this for the bangs i'm havin now

s' pose Adam Lambert is behind this?

reminds me of a siren

simple and chic

with all that being said, i still love the hair i’m born with

second poem

WANNA LET YOU GO

 

 

Holding on

Seems the only right thing

With you, not letting go

Turns out to be a sick joke

One that should make me laugh

Smack myself for being a fool that I’m not

But, no

Doing just that, is nothing but wishful thinking

Only hoping I can, someday

Grasping at the bare strands of a wish

Is the best I can do

Pray upon a wishing star that my eyes cannot see

To wake up to a day I can finally free me of you

That the warmth of your hand on my bare skin

Is something that I do not want more of

Indulging upon the pleasure that is only you

Does not make me feel loved, instead its just the tequila working

Pining for something I’m not entitled to

Is too much to bear

For a soul whom her heart is fragile

Too fragile to be shattered time and time again

No matter how much of you to forget

I’ll do anything

For the incessant beating of my heart to keep on its pace

I’m not a volunteer of this love

As it is what we call it; unrequited

Enough is enough

With time running out

Can someone save me from this slow death?

Though I know it would hurt like hell to get out alive

This is my destiny

To not be able to love you

Someone else has to do it

Remember me with my last goodbye

For I am doing you a favor

This is what you have been wanting all this while

To be rid of me

Good riddance to her, I can already hear you say

You jumping and cheering with a bottle of beer in hand

Not for the victory of your favorite football team, but for me

The one girl whom you know you ain’t gonna love

Remember me as that girl is all I ask

 

kinda first poem

before i start with my first poetry post, i gotta say this: i’m a sucker for all things poetry

for some reason that i don’t know what it is, i’m just not cut out for this particular form of literature

my heart yearns to write poems, but yet all i can do is just envy my sis writing poems

but now, anything goes because i just had to get my thoughts and feelings down on a piece of paper

too much had happened lately in college and if i don’t get on with this, i’m SO gonna break

LOVE IS DEEPER THAN LUST

Was a willing victim of lust

That soon became my love for you

Thought that getting myself in the game

Would not hurt

Always thought I could handle

Hiding what little hurt I had felt at times

Behind a shield of skin and bones

A pinch of hurt grew to a handful

Now I realized, no longer can I take it

My logic wants a break from you

But my heart would never agree

Letting you go

Like taking out a big chunk of my very self

I’ d say, is near impossible

It’s Love… by ~nanami-yuki

green malaysia

if there’s ever gonna be a good reason for malaysians to recycle, it’ll definitely be for the money

okay, maybe this view of mine is rather stereotypical, but i’m gonna prove that i’m right on this

i’d like to state though that the group of people i’m referring to are those of our parents age

tonight, i went shopping at KLCC and bought this really nice pair of shoes from nose (a homegrown shoe retail outlet)

when i was at the cashier, this one salesperson told that if i were to bring the shopping bag the next time i came to buy shoes, then  i’d be entitled to have a rebate of 10%

a good idea, i’d say it’s definitely a good marketing strategy and one smart move to help mother nature

back to the main idea of this post, i  reckon that if there’s no financial benefit  involved, this whole  save- the environment thing will just go down the drain

take, old newspapers, for example

we all know how common it had once been to hear the blaring of loudspeakers coming from a van/ lorry cruising through each and every street in a neighbourhood

repeatedly, one would hear the same words comin out from the speakers and growing up with all these i’m sure many of you would’ve known the words by heart, even if you don’t understand the meaning of it

this is what the recorded voice would say, “Collect old newspapers, collect old magazines, collect (whatever used reading materials the mind can thing of) and collect old batteries (not papers only… yeah)

for those of you who don’t know, the drivers are actually newspaper collectors who’s gonna pay you for the papers that they are soon to get from any of the people of the houses

for quite some time, collecting newspapers from house to house was a big thing and, even then, recycling wasn’t a common practice

we, malaysians at that time were all about using and throwing things; being wasteful

but, when it comes to old newspapers, people are just too glad to be involved

it’s pretty obvious that these people  don’t give a damn bout the environment or whatsoever, all they care for about is the money that they are going to be able to make

there’s still one last (but not least, i suppose) instance of this malaysian attitude that i wanna show you guys here

if you are a frequent visitor to roadside stalls and coffee shops in malaysia, you’ve probably seen or experienced enough to know that people just LOVE to make money with the name of charity

i’m not really sure if all of us always decide to ignore these people because we know these people are liars, or simply for the reason that these people are FUCKIN ANNOYING to disturb when we are busy working our taste buds to satiate our hunger, or thirst

hmmm… maybe we just DON”T CARE  of people that do really NEED our HELP somewhere out there???

from how charity is used in the earning of money, once again i’m back to recycling (add money to the equation)

there’s this one famous welfare society that i’m sure most malaysians would’ve heard of before: Xim Phou Moon (XPM), who is always having all those kinds of drive for people to ‘recycle for charity’… yeah, right

so, do you think that these people would do something charitable without gaining anything in return??? And, recycling too at that.

man, there’s  no way in hell. Not now, not EVER.

this is what they do.

they’d have some kind of large collection bins at random places, especially around housing estates and by putting these bins everywhere one could dump whatever old things that they wanna recycle into it… the items would then be so- called be given to the needy for use

in actual fact, these people would make profit here, not recycle… well, even if they do, it’d be only a small part of the collected items

saying this, i do have pretty good evidence to support my words

my family and I used to quite often give away old and used reading materials to this society

however, after quite some time, we stopped being kind enough to not throw all these stuff away. Why, you ask?

that’s because  somehow, we found out that while we people are giving away stuff for charity (having been made to believe that) , the people  of this society, instead,  take the stuffs for themselves and sell it once again at a price that is of much profit

AND, to show you how profitable this act is, the signs are everywhere;

this society do have many lorries to help those who want to donate bulky items by helping to transport the items to their centres, plus they have many of the shops in which they resell the items that are donated by the public

so now you know why i think as i do, and with that,  i don’t think that the day for me to be proven wrong would come if  the majority of malaysians still think that money is everything

a shoutout from me to my fellow malaysians

Don’t recycle, or try to save our planet if  all you want to see at the other end is ONLY money, money and more money.

Everyone’s gotta do their part in saving and caring for the environment

Start trying your best to go green from today onwards

I’ve been doing all I can and wish there’d be even more for me to do *sigh*

At least i can blog about it =K

We, malaysians should make being environment- conscious a part of us and let the world know that

Ay, Caramba! Marge Simpson Strips for Playboy

Ay, Caramba!

on my craziest days, i would’ve never thought of Marge Simpson gracing the covers of Playboy

man, she’s never appeared to me as someone who’s got sexual appeal, if any at all

but, seems that i’m so totally wrong… and, i admit it

sources has confirmed that the tv mama has done something that Homer might not like (obviously) but is gonna make Bart the proudest kid in school

for the first time EVER, Playboy has given a cartoon character to appear on its cover

it’s a honor really, for to accompany that there’s  the star treatment; a data sheet, an interview and a two- page centerfold

on how much of Marge that’ll be shown in the november edition hitting newsstands on the 16th of october, no one knows yet

however, the mag’s editorial director, James Jellinek had said that ” It’s very, very racy.”

with this also, the mag’s hoping to attract readers younger than the median age of 35 while also not alienating older readers

” We knew that this would really appeal to the 20- something crowd,” said Playboy spokesman Theresa Hennessey

at the same time, Playboy also wants to turn this issue into a collectors edition by featuring this mother of three on the cover of only the mags sold in stands for the subscribers though, you’ve got kinda bad news, having  a more traditional model on the cover

for one thing, all the yellow commemorates The Simpsons’ 20th anniversary

haters

if you are living and breathing somewhere out there, you should know that the world doesn’t revolve around us

there will be, of course, for all of us, something that we don’t like hanging around us in our lives

that, in this case, i’ll make it to be someone that you don’t like

i’m all about hate, haters and hypocrisy here, for these are among the things that i hate, and even more reason to do so now

this post is not directed to the haters of mine, rather it’s for someone’s else haters

i sound like a busybody, i know. But in truth this lies in the fact that i just can stand in the sidelines doin nothin bout something i also hate

people simply love lookin down their noses at people who they THINK are lower than them god, this is so freakin common that we see it everyday

okay, so if you say you’re smarter and everythin else (a whole lot of crap there), you look down at others. Then what?

then, you’ll start to hate them for being what you aren’t

but, as with all things… there is a limit, exceeding this limit is when i think it needs to be addressed

this is especially for you people. You guys know who you are and that’s all that matters

i’m not giving out names. What’s the point in it?? Going so low is NOT me, however i am here to tell the story

there’s this friend of mine who’s sorta loud, brash and the happy- go- lucky kind… at that note too, she is also the kind of girl who wouldn’t take things too seriously

being who she is, in the class she’d always be the one who’s garnering attention whether it’s gettin all laughs or just pure distaste showing on faces

saying what i gonna say, i’d sound mean but can’t blame me… coz at least i try to not laugh at her

well, i don’t think what she does in class is silly, though i do laugh and even then… i don’t do things that ridicule her, unlike some people

if i were to tell all their names, the list’ll probably be long… still, i can assure you that it would end

so, being who they thought they were; that they were, like,  somehow above her on some kind of standing… they did something that really made me still want to LMFAO whenever i think of it

being under the curse of stupidity and lameness, one of them made a graph… this is PURE SHIT, i repeat, PURE SHIT that i don’t wanna mention if not for this post

SMH.

the graph is rather plotted to rank people by their appearance and as you’d be now SMH- ing like i do, it’s obvious that they made this friend of mine to have the lowest rating… yeah, – 10 points. WTF?!!!

No.  Don’t ask me, ask them

who give dem people the right to do such things when all the said person did was to so happen be on your hate list at first sight???

for all that’s worth, this upsets me because it’s as if no matter how bad these people are, others still think its COOL to be part of their group

not over yet, degrading someone just doesn’ t seem enough… for this is exactly what they did

i’ve always kinda respected her for knowing bout the latest trends and having the heart to dress up for college everyday

and yeah, on this day particular day, she wore something that happen to not look so good

once again, there goes the haters again saying that she should realize that her clothing SUCKS and it makes them to want to puke and that it hurt their eyes

come on people, everyone has had their share of wardrobe dysfunction days. what’s the big deal this time around, plus now especially for her???

don’t give me the shit that you people never had such experiences and that even so, her dressing is SO bad that it cannot be forgiven

if you wanna criticize, go fill your blogs with posts on celeb fashion disasters (there are LOADS of it!!!)

i’d very much like to point out that this ever hating population are young and stupid, possibly a combination of both also

having such mentality that you can fuck  everything up and still be in the right, but it is fuckin hard to forgive others, is the root of this problem

this flaw of the mind is what should be corrected, but from what i see no one wants to correct it

why waste your time in life hating people for what that don’t seem favorable to you?

for all the negative energy that one is sure to gather from having such jackass attitude, it’s not worth

it’s WAAAAAAAAAAAAYYY BETTER to let others hate you than you hating people

would hating let you settle down for something less that would satisfy you, instead of just going to the one who you hate and tell them how much you hate ‘em and do whatever that would make that hatred of yours go?

people with brains would just stop hating and mind it from getting the better of them.

fools loves to hate. And to those fools, take note of this NOW!!!

hate changes nothing in life and we live for ourselves, not for others

don’t hate. try to change it… If not, hate yourself for not having the guts to make the change happen

not that it’s gonna be any of my concern if you people think hate is the best medicine for you

for me, i hate things but i don’t let it rule me and that’s that. It just stands to be there for me to make a statement.

well, i don’t think many would understand my view on my kind of hate, but i guess whatever’s ok =)

now it’s for the hypocrisy, (not the main idea of this post, as you can see by now)

this is not something that i do really have the right to judge since hypocrisy is prevalent in many aspects of life

i do not condone hypocrisy in any form, mind you

nowadays, being a hypocrite is socially acceptable  as that is the way if you wanna live in this world without having enemies and to be able to gain advantage from others

“Nobody speaks the truth when there’s something they must have.”

Elizabeth Bowen

“People may or may not say what they mean… but they always say something designed to get what they want.”

David Mamet

besides that, being hypocritical are for COWARDS

despite that, i’ll never agree with hypocrisy… though i try to not dislike people for it

it makes me want to gag, to make my eyes go blind and for my ears to not hear anything whenever i see someone feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not

“I detest the man who hides one thing in the depths of his heart, and speaks for another.”

Homer

however, as much as i hate to say this out loud, for God’s sake… i do sorta respect the people who could tell a lie without blinking an eye and be able to say something that they do not mean at all

in other words, these people could pull off a  pretense very well

“It takes a wise man to handle a lie. A fool had better remain honest.”

Norman Douglas

“The great masses of the people… will more easily fall victims to a great lie than a small one.”

Adolf Hitler

so yeah, i do hate hate, haters and hypocrisy… did i get my point across??

here, i just ask that you look at yourselves before judging others. No one is perfect, not you not me.

we are created by God to have imperfections, even Mariah Carey agrees with Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel; angels are not all- perfect either. don’t get offended

it is now time to wake up and make a change for the world to be a better place

don’t be mistaken that i do not have my share of haters, it just happens that the time for that haven’t come yet

i do sometimes (maybe most of the time) rub off as conceited, aloof, you name it

it takes time for people to actually see me for who i am, and for that i don’t blame my haters… I LOVE ‘EM

with them, i know that i’m always in existence somewhere and make me want to keep doing my own thing things that only i alone can do =K

coming- soon animations

if i may say so myself, i’m a BIG fan of animation… whatever it may be

as you all might have gathered, in the very least i’m crazy of animes

well, that’s right and now,  include hollywood animations too

animations had been one of the constants in my life since i was little i grew up watching cartoon network especially and lil of disney channel. even now i still do

but, i didn’t make it a point to actually watch all the animations released in cinemas, and from today onwards I WILL

all thanks to watching G- Force a fortnight ago and i suppose it’s also partly because i watched in it 3D and, yeah… it’s my first time watching in that dimension LOVE IT!!!

okay, so for the remaining of this post i gonna be ranting on the animations that are set to hit our Malaysian cinemas in the near future

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS

it was only after throwing the title around in my brain cavity for few hours that i realize it sounds almost similar to what one would hear coming from the weatherman on tv i guess that’s the point

only from the title and watching the trailer so far, i’m already sure that this gonna be one of my fav animation movies the food, the food, the food !!! *says it in a sing- song voice*

director: Phil Lord, Chris Miller shoutout to you guys, thanks for this film- o- licious movie =D

released by Sony Pictures and distributed by Columbia Pictures this animated film’ s also available in 3D

is inspired by a 1978 children’s book of the same name by Judi and Ron Barrett

tells the tale of a young inventor, Flint Lockwood who invents a machine that converts water into food (having rain come down from above as food), only to have those that they eat becoming bigger and BIGGER…. then it becomes the usual save- the -world thing

i suppose the end then can be easily guessed *seals lips* i ain’t spoilin anythin for you

the cast:

Bill Hader as Flint Lockwood, a young inventor and the main protagonist

Anna Faris as Samantha “Sam” Sparks, a weather intern from NYC and Flint’s love interest ♥

Neil Patrick Harris as Steve the Monkey, Flint’s pet monkey who can communicate through a speak and spell thought-translating device

James Caan as  Tim Lockwood, Flint’s widower technophobic father

Bruce Campbell as Mayor Shelbourne, the mayor of Swallow Falls and the primary antagonist. He hates being the mayor of such a small town and does whatever he can to attract tourists

Andy Samberg as “Baby” Brent, a celebrity mascot of Baby Brent’s Sardines and Flint’s school bully. His fame then slows down, due to the raining food and the town renamed to “Chewandswallow”

Mr. T as Officer Earl Devereaux, the town’s athletic cop who can’t stand wearing actual police pants

Bobb’ e J. Thompson as Cal Devereaux, Earl’s son, the “cool” kid

Lauren Graham as Fran Lockwood, Flint’s deceased mother

to be released on the 15th of october nationwide

if such a place exist, i’d consider livin there… whaddya say?

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

the one thing i’ll always remember bout christmas is the christmassy  movies on tv

Home Alone (the first one), The Nightmare Before Christmas and How the Grinch Stole Christmas… among others that i can’t recall

a 2009 film adaptation of a Charles Dickens’ 1843 story of the same name

director: Robert Zemeckis and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures

so, even though i don’t feel like having a synopsis of this film here, for i feel that knowing it’s some christmas tale is more than enough… i’ll still put it up for the benefit of those who wanna know, even a lil bit, of what they are  soon to be watching

a Victorian morality tale of an old and bitter miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, who undergoes a profound experience of redemption in one night. He is a financier/money-changer who has devoted his life to the accumulation of wealth, thus holding anything other than money in contempt, including friendship, love and the Christmas season. But an encounter with the ghostly figure of Jacob Marley sets the stage for a mysterious and magical encounter with three phantasmic beings to help him realize the true magic of Christmas itself

the cast:

Jim Carrey as;

Ebenezer Scrooge, the main character of the film

The Ghost of Christmas Past

The Ghost of Christmas Present

The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come

Gary Oldman as;

Jacob Marley, a former business partner of Ebenezer Scrooge and is now a dead man

Bob Cratchit, the abused, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge

Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit’s youngest son

Cary Elwes as;

Dick Wilkins, Scrooge’s old roommate

Mad Fiddler

Colin Firth as Fred, Ebenezer Scrooge’s nephew and only living relative

to be released on the 19th of november nationwide

ASTRO BOY

i’ve got mixed feelings on this one because astro boy is SO TOTALLY NOT something that i’ll watch… it’s just not my kind, no offense

however, when i heard of this, i think i’ll give it a try kinda a big deal for me

director: David Bowers and is produced by Inagi Animation Studios

set in futuristic Metro City,  this film is about a young robot  with incredible powers created by a brilliant scientist, Dr. Tenma , in the image of the son he had lost. Unable to fulfill the grieving man’s expectations, our hero embarks on a journey in search of acceptance, becoming part of a group of rowdy kids led by a girl named Cora, experiencing betrayal, and a netherworld of robot gladiators led by the greedy ring master, Ham Egg, before he returns to save Metro City and reconcile with the father who had rejected him

the cast:

Freddie Highmore as Astro Boy, created by Dr. Tenma and was meant as a replacement for his deceased son, Tobio

Nicolas Cage as Dr. Tenma, the father/ creator of Astro Boy

Kristen Bell as Cora

Charlize Theron as   ‘Our Friends’ Narrator

Samuel L. Jackson as Zog

Bill Nighy as Dr. Elefun/ Robotski, the head of the Ministry of Science and was also the one who rescued Astro Boy from a robot circus

Donald Sutherland as President Stone

Eugene Levy as Orrin

Nathan Lane as Ham Egg, the villain

to be released on the 19th of november

THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG

seeing as this is a fairy tale animated movie, i don’t think it’ll appeal to me

fairy tales just appear to me as a bore, but i don’t think such tales as this are childish

director: Ron Clements, John Musker

released by Walt Disney Animated Classics, and me hating to disappoint; it’s available only in 2D

loosely based on E.D. Baker’s version of The Frog Prince

this film revolves around a beautiful girl named Tiana, a frog prince who desperately wants to be human again, and a fateful kiss that leads them both on a hilarious adventure through the mystical bayous of Louisiana

the cast:

Anika Noni Rose as Tiana, a 19-year-old waitress and aspiring chef who dreams of owning her own restaurant one day. The heroine of the film.  She was originally named “Maddy” and had the job of a chambermaid , but this was changed due to racial prejudice suspicion

Elizabeth Dampier voices Tiana as a child

Bruno Campos as  Prince Naveen, an early twenty-something gregarious, smooth-talking, and fun-loving prince who comes to the French Quarter for the Jazz scene and with whom Tiana and Charlotte fall in love. Was originally named “Harry.”

Jennifer Cody as Charlotte La Bouff, an 18-year-old spoiled southern debutante, diva, and Tiana’s best friend

Breanna Brooks voices Charlotte as a child

Keith David as Doctor Facilier, the main antagonist of the story. He was originally named “Doctor Duvalier” and was a voodoo magician and fortune teller

Jenifer Lewis as Mama Odie, a 200-year-old voodoo priestess who serves as the film’s fairy godmother

Terrence Howard as James, Tiana’s father

Oprah Winfrey as Eudora, Tiana’s mother

to be released worldwide YAY!! on the 11th of december

TOY STORY 3

I LOVE TOY STORY as much as i can love anything, with all my heart

i remember having a toy of Buzz Lightyear when i was a kid and i remember myself tearing while watching toy story 2

i heard of the comings of the third installment from a friend who apparently is as eager bout this as i do, and i’d like to assume they’re many like us out there

anyways, i’ll provide on as much as i can bout this film

director: Lee Unkrich

produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures

Andy, now a young adult and departing for college, has his toys, including Woodyand Buzz Lightyear sent to storage. Having a change of heart, he then decides to keep Woody.  However, before the rest of the toys can be put in the attic, they are accidentally thrown away and are picked up by the garbage men. Then, they find themselves at a local day-care center, where they must try to survive the pre-school children. Here, Woody attempts to save his friends and find themselves a new home

the cast:

Tom Hanks as Woody

Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear

John Cussack as Jessie

Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head

Wallace Shawn as Rex

John Ratzenberger as Hamm

Estelle Harris as Mrs. Potato Head

Jodi Benson as Barbie

Michael Keaton as Ken

John Morris as Andy

Timothy Dalton as Mr. Picklepants

to be released next year and the exact dates are here for the respective countries

I CAN’ T WAIT!!!!!

ah, and that wraps it up =K

mid- autumn festival

a black mooncake with wolfberry and lotus inside. from the baker's cottage

one of the best things of being a Chinese is the festivals that we people celebrate

and the mid- autumn festival, among others,  is one of those that i look forward to

okay, maybe i should start with how the idea of eating mooncakes, moon- gazing and carrying lanterns around came about

known also as the Moon Festival, it is a popular harvest festival celebrated by the Chinese, Japanese (Tsukimi  月見)  Korean (Chuseok 한가위) and Vietnamese, albeit being done differently

in our region, though, it is more commonly referred to as the Lantern Festival or Mooncake Festival

when do we celebrate this festival? well, to put it in simply, it’s usually around late september or early october

however, putting it properly would be the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the lunar (Chinese) calendar

this day being when the moon is supposedly at its fullest and roundest (also at its maximum brightness for the entire year), astronomically, this is a date that parallels the autumn and spring equinoxes of the solar calendar

*gazes to the sky* tonight, i can’t find the moon anywhere

i love legends, and here comes what lies behind this festival

as with many chinese festivals, there are always many versions of a legend that is said to lead to the particular celebration

and as you people have guessed, this festival ain’t an exception to this

the first version, with six variations of it where Houyi was an archer

but here, i’m just gonna have the two most popular variations

version#1

Once upon a time, the earth had ten suns. They burned the crops and people suffered infertility. Houyi sympathized with humans, so he decided to shoot down nine suns and leave one for the benefit of the people. After he shot down the suns, he was treated as a hero. He had a beautiful wife named Chang’e, and they lived happily together. Houyi had a many apprentices; they followed him to learn hunting. One day, on Houyi’s way back home, the emperor of the immortals gave Houyi two pills, each of which granted eternal life as a reward for shooting down the suns, one was for Houyi, and the other for his wife. He warned Houyi, “Make no haste to swallow the pill.” Houyi was to wait until New Years Day, on which he and Chang’e were supposed to eat the pills together. Chang’e put the pill in her jewelry box for safekeeping. But Peng, one of Houyi’s apprentices, discovered their secret and decided to steal the pill. One day, when Houyi and other apprentices went to the mountain, Peng pretended to be sick so that he could stay home. After everyone had gone to the mountain, Peng sneaked into Chang’e’s room and forced her to give him the pill. Chang’e knew she couldn’t fight Peng, so she ate the pill herself. However, after eating it alone, she began to float. Unable to come back to earth, she took flight and flew far, far away. She did not want to leave her husband, so she stopped at the moon, which is the body closest to Earth. After Houyi found out what happened, he was very angry and heartbroken. He looked up into the night and called Chang’e’s name. He discovered that inside the moon there was a lady’s shadow that look like Chang’e, so he ran and ran and tried to reach the moon. He failed due to the wind.

version #3 which is the first mid- autumn legend that i’ve heard as a kid

The earth once had ten suns circling over it, each taking turn to illuminate the earth. One day, however, all ten suns appeared together, scorching the earth with their heat. Houyi, a strong and tyrannical archer, saved the earth by shooting down nine of the suns. He eventually became King, but grew to become a despot.One day, Houyi stole the elixir of life from a goddess. However, his beautiful wife, Chang’e, drank it in order to save the people from her husband’s tyrannical rule. After drinking it, she found herself floating, and flew to the moon. Houyi loved his divinely beautiful wife so much, he did not shoot down the moon.

the second version The Hare aka Jade Rabbit

According to tradition, the Jade Rabbit pounds medicine, together with the lady, Chang’er, for the gods. Others say that the Jade Rabbit is a shape, assumed by Chang’e herself. You may find that the dark areas to the top of the full moon may be construed as the figure of a rabbit. The animal’s ears point to the upper right, while at the left are two large circular areas, representing its head and body.

In this legend, three fairy sages transformed themselves into pitiful old men, and begged for food from a fox, a monkey, and a hare. The fox and the monkey both had food to give to the old men, but the hare, empty-handed, jumped into a blazing fire to offer his own flesh instead. The sages were so touched by the hare’s sacrifice and act of kindness that they let him live in the Moon Palace, where he became the “Jade Rabbit”.

the last and third version Overthrow of Mongol rule

China was ruled by the Mongolian people during the Yuan dynasty (A.D. 1280-1368). Leaders from the preceding Sung dynasty (A.D. 960 – 1280) were unhappy at submitting to foreign rule, and set to coordinate a secret rebellion. As the Moon Festival was drawing near, the leaders of the rebellion ordered the making of special cakes. At the back of each was a message with the outline of the attack; but i believe the one i first heard  from some book, and now wikipedia also, makes more sense that is:

inside each cake, however, was inserted a piece of paper with the message: “Kill the Mongols on the 15th day of the 8th month” ( 八月十五杀鞑子)

WHILE there are also some being that, mooncakes – which the Mongols did not eat – were the perfect vehicle for hiding and passing along plans for the rebellion. Families were instructed not to eat the mooncakes until the day of the moon festival, which is when the rebellion took place.

(cont’ d) On the night of the Moon Festival, the rebels successfully attacked and overthrew the government. What followed was the establishment of the Ming dynasty (A.D. 1368-1644).

now to the MOONCAKES!!! yum =)

basically, mooncakes are cakes filled with lotus seed paste (including red bean paste and black bean paste)  and have a yolk in the middle to represent the full moon there are also more elaborate versions having four yolks to represent the four phases of the moon CHEERS TO MORE YOLK!!!

my favorite traditional mooncakes is the one with lotus seed paste filling and a single yolk

traditional ones

nowadays though, mooncakes have evolved with rather much delicious- NESS in them

filled with anything the mind can think of, they now have another variety of skin for the cakes, snowskin (made with cooked glutinous rice flour) mooncakes, that is

snow skin mooncakes

i’ve tasted quite a number of the snowskin mooncakes and seen loads of them… BUT i’ve NEVER SEEN BLUE- SKINNED MOONCAKES hope to, next year

Haagen-Daz has also introduced a line of ice cream mooncakes in Asian markets that i have yet to try =(

20th of september

finally, i’m eighteen. WOOOOHOOOOOOO!!! *punches fist into the air*

it’s been too long that i’ve never had a birthday cake already… since i was thirteen, i think

well, i didn’t actually see the point in having birthday cakes for my fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth birthday

first, i don’t really consider myself as a fan of cakes… i’d rather have a good, expensive dinner at a chinese restaurant or something of that sort

then, i also find it sorta hard to make up my mind on the flavor of the cakes that i wanna since i’m spoilt for choice

back to my birthday…

celebration- wise, it’s almost like all my other birthdays of course, i’m not comparing with the birthdays i had when i was still a lil kid =D

on the other hand, the delicious- ness of the cakes, if you ask me *shrugs* it’s way better than the others i’ve had coz i’m really into choosing the flavor of the cakes, albeit me not choosing some chocolate banana flavor (haven’t came across anyone who enjoys chocolate and banana together yet… wish i would someday)

now, it’s the presents man, i love this part here is where the massive- ness matters, to me if not to everyone but remember, it’s no big deal for me if i got presents that don’t worth much, after all, it’s the thought that counts… yeah

i’ve got big bucks from my parents and i had spent it all on buying clothes for autumn fashion, don’t blame me: i’m a victim of fashion, if i’d say so myself

and obviously, with me finally reaching the age of eighteen there’s a whole lot of things that i can be glad about. me gonna have a credit card that i can call as my own, among others

so here’s the pics of me and my family celebratin my birthday on 19/9/09- a day earlier than my actual day, with some of it just being there as a testimony of what happens when you’ve got itchy hands on a camera

dang, my ring looks so freakin ugly... ugh

wish that whatever i wish for would come true... but it rarely comes true...

the bday lick... haha

eatcha!

happy birthday to me =)