Guilty Pleasures... Mmmmm

Mamma Mia is an absolute girly delight. It's set on a Greek Island that looks too gorgeous to be true. Pierce Brosnan and Colin Firth sing ABBA songs, choreography with snorkeling gear. Adorable clothes, a touching and cute mother and daughter bond. I bought a few of my favorite songs from the movie, and listening to them brings me back to the sugar-like high I had leaving the theater.

The Twilight Series is hailed by many to be "the next Harry Potter". This is a pretty misleading assessment. It will probably be as controversial (being about "nice" vampires who drink animal blood instead of human). But it fits very much into the female young adult to adult niche, whereas Harry Potter appeals to children, adults, guys, and girls. Harry Potter had characters you grow attached to, and rang with a Roald Dahl-esque sense of charm and humor. I wasn't particularly fond of the Twilight characters, and the reason for most of the humor I found in the books was the way it laid on the teen romance thick and heavy *snickering*.

That said, I read all 4 in the course of a week. They're suspenseful, and increase in interestingness and quality of writing with each thick volume. The first 2 were sort of a shoujo manga substitute for me (brainless sappy mind candy). The fourth was a disturbing and wonderful book, that makes me finally like the main female character, and makes the rest of the books look like marshmallows. I'm looking forward to the movie, where the lead male vampire will be played by... um... that actor who played Cedric.

2 things i love

I found an absolutely wonderful pad thai recipe at chez pim's blog (food chronicles of a cute epicure who has judged for Iron Chef America). The secret ingredient is tamarind paste (I made by squeezing preserved tamarinds by hand; painful but worth it.) I have tried many pad thai recipes before, but I can stop now. This is the real thing, this is as good as pad thai from Boston's Nud Pob or Pad Thai Cafe. I love that my mom's kitchen has every possible kitchen implement I've dreamed of, and I could grind my own peanuts for the garnish (mmmm, the smell of freshly ground peanuts).

Here are the results:






I'm not ashamed to say I had a crush on Batman when I was 5. Needless to say I have been super excited about The Dark Knight. I finally watched it on IMAX with Kenton a few days ago. I love what both new Batman movies have done to the Batman universe. The Joker is treated as an incredibly complex villain, the best treatment I've ever seen for a villain before. And he's totally creepy, the kind that gets under your skin. It was a huge cinematic and artistic achievement.

a sunny day in boston

Last Thursday, Lindy happened to be in Boston on a job interview. We met up to try Berryline in Harvard Square, a new frozen yogurt place. I really love these frozen yogurt places that are cropping up now, which I think must take a cue from Korean patbingsu cafes, with the unflavored, sour yogurt, and fruit and cereal toppings. Lindy had blueberry yogurt with kiwi, and I had plain yogurt with strawberry, kiwi, and coconut (mmmmm!) By the way, Berryline was founded by Harvard and MIT post-docs! I think nothing is more refreshing than cold, sour yogurt, heaped with fruit. (If frozen yogurt is not your thing, then in this hot weather I'd recommend going to your nearest J.P. Licks and trying their new Fresh Banana Oreo flavor. Lip-smackingly delicious.)

Then we strolled for a bit around Harvard Square, stopping by at Tokyo Kid and Black Ink. It reminded us of the long trek we made to Harvard and Porter Square freshman year. It was nice catching up with my old roomie.

And since my friend Tracey works with Lindy's best friend from high school, Lindy got to have another surprise reunion. Yay for sunny weather, walks outside, and catching up =)

"is it dangerous to be too beautiful?"

i look forward to watching ugly betty on fridays, with my lunch. i was reminded today of how entertainingly self-centered amanda is. she's such a refreshing foil to betty's sweetness. and she always has the most stunning outfits.

i want to get in the habit of drawing more, and work on capturing the essence of a personality-- so i'm going to be drawing mini-portraits of my favorite t.v. characters, and amanda is first!

Midnight Witching Hour

I watched the midnight showing of Harry Potter. What was my number one thought as I was exiting the theater? That Harry should totally get together with Luna Lovegood. I thought that Luna was really the star of the movie. So charmingly loopy and off in her own world. So dainty and surprised when she successfully hexed Death Eaters.

So, I think the movies are only so-so, as far as movies go. They obviously no where nearly match the books, they are also sort of choppy and often leave out my favorite parts. But I am still always there on opening night, donning a scarf and sweater with a house patch. It's because I love seeing the settings come alive. I enjoy the director's and actors' interpretations. I like seeing the characters fleshed out. I love hearing how they laugh. I love hearing my favorite quotes said with just the right intonation. I like seeing the strange creatures.



Strangely, this week, the Knight Bus was outside the building where I live, touring as a promotion for the 7th book (it needs promotion?). I met the driver in the lobby, when I had locked myself out, and he had lost a cell phone. We talked. It turns out he does not like Harry Potter at all, he' s just the driver.



You know where I'll be next Friday night!

Happy Nana Day

07/07/07: Nana means Seven in Japanese, and also a girl's name, and also the title of a very popular Japanese Manga/Anime/Movie. Fans of NANA all over the world declared today NANA day.

Because it is NANA day, I have to take the time to write a little bit about this story that is so dear to me. Nana is a Japanese Manga/Anime/Movie about the friendship of 2 girls, both named Nana, who are very different, but come to be roommates, and the struggles they share in life, and love. (By the way, there are plenty of male fans of this series too. Some are in love with one or the other Nana. Some just think it's a good story.)

One Nana is cool, driven, passionate, the lead singer for a punk-rock band trying to make a break. The other Nana is sweet, genuinely caring, charming, a little spoiled, and still searching for her place in the world. (From hereon referred to as punk Nana and girly Nana).

There are so many reasons to love NANA. It's believable and realistic. Besides the Nana's, there are a whole slew of colorful characters, and they are all complex, with interesting and detailed histories. They have weaknesses that they are ashamed of, that you can identify with. But there are also admirable things about each of them. I have come to love each Nana so much, that if they go through a painful breakup, I myself cry and feel heartbroken, as if I were just dumped. Seriously. It's that well written. It even hurts to see the guy a few pages later. Basically, when they cry, I cry.

The relationships in the story demonstrate how many different kinds of relationships exist, and work. Relationships where 2 people are passionately and madly in love with each other. Relationships where each person cherishes and takes care of the other. Relationships that start off for the wrong reasons, but develop into something lasting.

But the most beautiful relationship in the story is the friendship between the two girls. Punk Nana makes fun of the girly Nana often, but won't stand for other people hurting her. And even though punk Nana is often cold and does not display her affection much, she admits, "Being around you (girly Nana) makes me feel comfortable, and at ease." Girly Nana supports and believes in punk Nana, and always gives her encouragement. Both Nana's learn a lot from each other. Singer Nana's ambition and goals inspires girly Nana to also work hard to find her dreams. Singer Nana finds a family in the other Nana, and becomes a little softer.

In the end, the story is a celebration of friendship, of differences, of life. Happy Nana Day.

in california!

now i am officially in the bay area (just got here saturday) and will be here for 7 months!

since they're ending their tour in this area i got to meet the awesome guys of Wong Fu Productions at a local highschool. I introduced myself to them, since I'm friends with the brother of one of them. They were very pleasant and fun to talk to. Then I sat in an auditorium full of high school students and watched their first feature length film, which was absolutely wonderful! It had a very different feel from their shorts but still absolutely amazing, and sweet, and touching and funny! It is especially easy to relate to as an Asian, but not exclusively. The audience was mostly Asian, haha, and they were a lot of fun to watch the movie with-- laughing, cheering, going "awwww!" at the right moments.

Then since I had no way to get back and my careless self printed out directions to get to the train station wrong, Wesley drove me back to my place. I felt so bad about it >_<. But oooh, i'm sure some of the highschool girls would have killed to be in my shoes... Except maybe they wouldn't want to give up their shoes, since many of them got them autographed, haha.

The guys were so cool, and very nice, and I was so touched by the film. They are going to go so far! I really believe in them and admire their work. Do go watch their short movies if you haven't before! And check out the DVD whenever it comes out!