A year in photos, part 2

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A salute to photography enthusiasts and Flickrites with point-and-shoot cameras.

Looking at them made me feel like putting captions, which would be helpful. Then again, you can just review my previews posts...

Happy New Year!

A year in photos, part 1

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Recycling now, starting over in 2007. Not so much the representative photos of the year but my favorite ones.

Just a little bit

Just felt like posting this because I miss Maria Mena's music. This MV feels like a student's life in a university town, insecurities included. I must also thank Maria for showing that big hair is ok (or at least in the morning). Hahaha!

A tough Bond to break

Casino Royale is probably the most realistic James Bond movie ever. It's understated, never too flashy. I'm guessing it's the total opposite of the 1967 spoof movie.

Daniel Craig as 007 could be a little more human, but I wouldn't mind seeing him again. Craig and Eva Green (Vesper Lynd) don't make a perfect couple, but there are moments when you just want them to live happily ever after. I like the train dinner scene in contrast to the shower scene. Totally defensive turned totally vulnerable.

And by the way...
Salon posted their sexiest man living list. No hunks here. I agree with two of the thirteen picks. See if you can guess who they are.

BBC International Radio Playwriting Competition 2007

BBC INTERNATIONAL RADIO PLAYWRITING COMPETITION

The British Council and BBC World Service have launched the International Radio Playwriting Competition for 2007.

About the Competition

Applicants are invited to write a radio play of about 60 minutes on any subject of their choice. The play must be the original, unpublished work of the person or persons submitting it. The contest is open to any writer who is not normally a resident of the United Kingdom. The play must be written in English but can be translated by a third party, although there is no financial assistance available to help with any translation costs. Translated work must be identified as such, and the translator’s name given.

Prizes

There are two main prizes given: to the best play written in English as a first language, and to the best play written in English as a second language. The two prize winners will each receive £2500 sterling and a trip to London to see their plays being recorded and to attend a prize-giving evening. There are also additional prizes of digital or short wave radios being given for the best radio play to be written from each of the following geographical areas: The Americas; Europe; Africa and the Middle East; South Asia; Russia and the Caucasus; Asia and Pacific. All writers whose plays reach the judges' final shortlist will receive BBC goodie bags as well as getting feedback on their plays from the BBC’s team of professional readers.

How to apply

Application forms are available for download here. Closing date for applications is 30 April 2007.

For further enquiries, please call Susan Arcega at the British Council, telephone numbers 914-1011 to 14 extension 130.

Everything old is new again

These upcoming movie releases should sound familiar to the kids in all of us.




Charlotte's Web
Never read this, but it's a classic. Cute site.




Miss Potter
Not Harry's sister, but author Beatrix Potter. Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor looks charming in the trailer.




TMNT (March)
The turtles have to prove that they are still profitable. Cowabunga!





The Simpsons Movie (July)
My parents hated it. My brother loved it.





Transformers (July)
Autobots and Decepticons fight. Reminds me of my brother's Optimus Prime toy.

What I did before the clock struck midnight

I was out on Bellarmine Field with my brother. We had an on-the-spot photo contest. I lost. On a positive note, I was able to get a new header image.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Dear (insert name here),

This is my version of the generic greeting card. I tried to personalize it somewhat, but I guess some you might not want to see your face on YouTube, so it turned out this way.

Hope you enjoy it!

E

curing writer's block

(lowercase letters=too lazy to re-type from wordpad, sorry)
i'm a slow writer when it comes to coursework, so i really devote time to writing and end up passing work early.

i plan to submit drafts for essays weeks before the deadline because i'm going to a new country and i don't think i can do essays while adjusting to a new environment and learning another language.

it's christmas break, but i need to write 15000 words (3 essays x 5000 words) over the next three weeks. it took me three days to write 150 words(!). there must be a sign over my head saying "vacation mode".

yesterday i tried to rid myself of distractions.i stayed away from the internet for most of the day and closed the door so that i won't hear the hammering, sawing and drilling from the construction sites nearby. i looked for the most positive (cheesy?) songs on my showtunes playlist and came up with these:

the 25th annual putnam county spelling bee - why we like spelling
a new brain - i feel so much spring
avenue q - i wish i could go back to college
the baker's wife - meadowlark
billy elliot - electricity
brooklyn - once upon a time
fame - bring on tomorrow
hairspray - you can't stop the beat
the last five years - the next ten minutes
the light in the piazza - say it somehow
little shop of horrors - suddenly seymour
pippin - morning glow
wicked - defying gravity
you're good man, charlie brown - happiness

output: 800 words in 7.5 hours
verdict: singing is not a cure-all, but it helps.

about the image
i'm doing a paper on ES, TLP and LL. i brought home a week's worth of all of the papers.

Geeky stuff

Some people probably think I'm a geek, but my brother knows better (I ask him about tech). I have no Friendster, Facebook or MySpace account, but I think that there's a lot to be learned from new media. It amazes me how wired the world is when some people still don't have electricity and running water.

Just cant get e-nough
Blog streaking. Egosurfing. Infornography. You Tube narcissism. Google-stalking. MySpace impersonation. Powerpointlessness. Photolurking. Wikipediholism. If you have one of New Scientist's modern maladies, you're turning into a geek (if you aren't one yet).

Google Reader Notifier
Checking blogs that never seem to update (hint, hint) is not fun. On Google Reader, you can subscribe to friends's blogs and feeds of other sites like Lifehacker, Salon and a number of photoblogs. If you want to take it a step further, get a notifier to check your unread items on Google Reader.

GSpace
Another reason to (1) have a Gmail account and (2) use Firefox as your browser. Gmail Space, a Firefox add-on "allows you to use your Gmail Space (2.5 GB and growing) for file storage". Neat.

Image from stock.xchange via everystockphoto.com

The whisky priest and other familiar characters

Three weeks ago, I wanted to read something different. I looked at the books in the Ashwell library and narrowed down my choices to two: Ian McEwan's Atonement and Graham Greene's The Power and the Glory. I chose the latter because the former was a thick book and a movie adaptation of it starring Kiera Knightley and James McAvoy will be out next year.

The Power and the Glory is in TIME's list of 100 Best Novels from 1923 to the present. What can I say? It's Graham Greene. Written from the point of view of a foreigner in Mexico, a converted Catholic at that, the book hits close to home. It was banned by the Church 14 years after its publication, but Pope Paul VI told Greene "to pay no attention to the condemnation by the Holy Office", according to this article.

Public transport in 2016

If TFL had its way, this is what the London Underground will look like in 10 years's time. Wow.

Regardless of how much Londoners complain about delays, closures, and the state of the trains, it's still light years ahead of us. I hope we can find a solution to our transport woes in the near future.

Inflight movies

Flew into Manila via Hong Kong yesterday. In between naps, I caught In The Mood For Love, which was not as heartwrenching as Mari-An warned me it would be (Maggie Cheung, lend me your cheongsams). I also saw a couple of movies I didn't like, Scoop and Miami Vice (I honestly watched it for Gong Li and the part just wasn't an acting vehicle for her). Channel surfing, I watched Top Gear, Jamie's Great Italian Escape, countdowns on E! and Da Ali G Show. Sacha Baron Cohen is one crazy guy.

So long and farewell, London

I knew this would all be over quickly, so goodbye, London. I will see you again in the summer, when the sun will make everything glow again.

Meet-ups

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A fully booked last week in London. I wish I had more time to say goodbye! The last two days...

Christmas dinner

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Beautiful. After aperitif in the Hall, we had a wonderful Christmas dinner , with a hotel-life starter, turkey with cranberry and of course, Christmas pudding that was months in the making.

I got pulled to be one of Santa's reindeer. Before getting our secret santa (kris kringle) presents, we each had to do a forfeit, a kind of task. Coffee and chocolates folowed. Then a bit of dancing. A very memorable evening.

Marylebone

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The forecast said no rain. Translation: cold. We meant to go to Hampstead Heath, but I said it would save time to go to Regent's Park. Being winter, there were fewer leaves, fewer flowers and fewer visitors--just the regular pensioner or jogger.

Indi's London guidebook said Portland Place had exceptional architecture, so we went there. Finding nothing particularly amazing, we landed in Adam's Eatery, where the servers' "dress code" was kalbo o nakakalbo(the only exception being the South Asian guy). Now that I think about it, maybe the four other guys were related, hence the commonality.

Then it was back to the usual hideout: the institute library.

December birthdays

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Ashanti, Valeria and Myriam's turn. Lee Meng played the piano, Helene sang on video, I did a Wouldn't It be Loverly parody (care of Ceci and Sara), Laura accompanied herself on the guitar and then played a Venezuelan birthday song with Melanie, Esther and Yiya. I didn't get to read, but I only have a few days left here and I may never get to celebrate with the same people again, so I have to adjust things a bit.

Hello, Web 2.0

What's in a term? If you're familiar with the websites littered on that graphic, then you know Web 2.0. It's certainly a very interesting field. I've been thinking about my dissertation for next autumn and I'm quite drawn to new media. Since it's a very broad topic, I've narrowed down my three possible subjects to one. I'm nervous about it. It's thesis time all over again!

Mulled wine, mince pies and music

We had a full house for the Ashwell carol concert last Sunday afternoon. We sang ancient advent and Christmas carols (including Adam Lay Ybounden in this video slideshow); the audience joined us for a few songs. The appearance of Santa Claus made the kids happy.

Thanks to Eka, Masako and Irene for coming to see me. I hope you had a great experience, like I did.

"Dippin dots from the sky" and other tales

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I usually go to uni by bus, but last week, I wanted to walk. It takes 50 minutes to get to school at a semi-brisk pace along City Road/Pentonville Road/Euston Road (it's like a long road cut up in parts). Last Thursday, I took a different route, via Old Street/Clerkenwell Road/Theobald's Road. Either way, it's roughly a 3km distance.

There was a bit of sun, so I was in no hurry. I passed by an art supplies shop and bought a nylon 0000 brush for detail work. When I reached Southampton Row I saw lightning and heard thunder. Then it started to rain. And then little white pellets fell--my first experience of hail. (The post title is how Indi describes it.) Then the wind blew like mad, making my umbrella turn inside-out twice and sending shop standees crashing as they toppled over. When I reached the institute, the sun came out. The sky was blue. Not a cloud in sight. Incidentally, there was a tornado in northwest London that same day that damaged houses and cars.

I had lunch with Jon at Fire & Stone, Covent Garden. (Maita couldn't make it because she was called in at Harrods.) We talked about the future of the Communication in Ateneo. From the looks of it, there isn't space for us at the department. We walked around the Strand campus of LSE, and from what I saw, Jon is lucky--there are lots of lads at LSE. Hahaha!

A better option for women

Women are complex creatures. But then you know that already.

There was a talk last week on women's health and infertility. It's not just an issue for women who want to have children but also something general for even young girls to know about. Roughly one in 10 women have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, which usually goes undiagnosed, leading to unexplained infertility, amongst other health problems. Find out more about NaPro Technology at the IIRRM website

Ian, Judi and cheese

A cheesy movie with Ian McKellen and Judi Dench. Impossible? See Jack and Sarah, a 90s with lots of heart and Simply Red's Stars in the background. Don't say I didn't warn you. The Knight and the Dame have small supporting roles, but they do help prop up the movie.

Isn't it a bit too early for this?

We went carolling around Islington Wednesday night for the Kenya project. There were just four of us: Ceci, Ana B, Caroline and myself. Mighty cold, even with thinsulate gloves. I learned carols on the run. A lot of doors didn't open, either because the residents didn't want to or they simply weren't at home. But those who did open up were very generous with money and with compliments on our singing. I have a tendency to shove the collection jar in front of the person who opens the door. Imagine an Asian girl with a Santa hat ringing your doorbell and expecting your cash. I wonder if I offended British sensibilities. I will try to be more polite next time!

Photo shows the ice rink at Somerset House.

Pasko sa Philippine House

Hanapin ang bandila't mga parol.

The Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom hosted an early Christmas party for Filipino students in the UK at his residence on Kensington Palace Green (lovely, lovely area). We had Filipino food: pancit malabon, sapin-sapin, empanada, tokwa't baboy. A group called UMPUK performed a balagtasan that debated whether Filipinos should stay in London. There was also a raffle where practically everybody won something.

It was interesting to meet fellow students and find connections with them. There's the LSE student who was from my high school, the IoE grad student who used to work at our telco client, the two Communication graduates who were ahead of me in Ateneo: one worked in fashion and dealt with our magazines; the other is going to meet David Buckingham of IoE and plans to teach at the Comm dept.

More proof that the world is small? Irene, a Filipina involved in The Work, who used to live in Ashwell and is the daughter of the consultant in the company my dad works for (whew) was free that evening. She had been planning to meet me eversince I arrived here. She lived very near the Embassy (and actually used to work there), so we had dinner--pasta at an Italian place at Queensway. We had a lot to talk about in the span of two hours. Forgot to take photos, but she's coming to the carol concert.

We do need the practice, but it was a blessing that we didn't have choir that afternoon. We practiced onstage last night. It's a big hall, so we will need some mics.

Dessert day

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Another cookery session with Maria. Tiramisu with real mascarpone cheese and amaretto, no graham crackers. (Had it for lunch on Sunday. Quite good.)We also made Baked Vanilla Cheesecake, which we had tonight. It came out more lemon-y than vanilla. I was hoping it'd be smoother, but it was alright, not too sweet.

A short walk

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I meant to come to the Pinoy postgrad meet-up at UCL, but checked my email late and didn't see anyone at the meeting place (benches at UCL main). I just walked down Gower Street to Bloomsbury Square before hopping on a bus to Oxford Street.

DUI (Down Under images)

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My family just came back from a trip to Sydney and Gold Coast in Australia, a much-deserved breaking for three hard workers. I think my mom showed papa and Cent the same places that the two of us went to five years ago, plus some other sights. Stole a few photos from my brother's Multiply site for this slideshow.

Sakhee's 18th

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Last night, we had another colorful celebration. Saw part of Munna Bhai, an Indian movie about a gangster pretending to be a doctor. Then everyone trooped in to watch Cecilia and Sara's silent comedy sketch and Valeria's modern dance performance before the cake was brought in. A bit of dancing before splitting up at 11 o'clock. Yep, still early for a Friday night. Sakhee is leaving tomorrow. We will miss the only vegetarian in the house.

Comeback kids

So Take That and All Saints are back to revive their careers. Who could be next?