a little about a lot

this is about a week's worth of blogging condensed into a third-rate post that really won't make for a particularly fulfilling read. don't say i didn't warn you.


i finished reading Arthur Golden's Memoirs of A Geisha on sunday. there was this huge hype about what an epic tale it is, and how brilliant it is and everything. but i've got mixed feelings about it. i have to say, the novel kept me riveted not because it had a particularly fantastical storyline, but because of the detail with which Golden describes the culture and traditions of the geisha of Japan. he describes details of people, places, and events in a way so explicit that you feel as if you are there, with everything going on around you.

of course, not everything he writes about has been described accurately. it is still, above all, a work of fiction and the author obviously twisted and exaggerated some little details to make it a more entertaining read. but towards the end i only read it cause i'd read most of it, might as well finish.

bleh. sayuri, the main character, isn't very likable to me. i didn't like the way the novel ended at all. all that uncertainty and painful build up for a half-arsed fairytale-ish ending.


monday night: a team of IMC-ers trouped up to Wooroloo(??) prison farm somewhere up north to share the love with the prisoners there. the people are actually just a few really decent guys who made a mistake in their life, and just happened to be caught for it. a lot of them are nicer than some people i know -____-

it was nice to see some of them really enjoying themselves, and even asking after we'd done the first song "are youse guys gonna do that again?" all in all, i think everyone got something good out of it. props to rick for running it, and to everyone else for doing a great job.

the car rides there and back were pretty alright too. on the way back, i put on the mask i used for the sketch, and told sean to turn around. i was in black, so all he saw was this white ghostly face floating in the dark, and he got so scared. then we all started playing with the masks and scaring the crap out of him. josh did this thing with his jacket that was so creepy... i got a bit freaked out even tho i knew it was just him. fun fun fun XD. and the jokes were really lame too.


JoRach's Java is the most lovable golden retriever i have ever met. she's a little on the playful side, but amazingly endearing. she's got these long, limp eyebrows over melt-worthy eyes that rick said he could fix with a pair of giant gardening scissors XD. rachel was not amused.


Matthew Vaughn's screen adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Stardust came out yesterday. i absolutely loved the book, and i want to see this movie. Neil Gaiman himself seems pretty happy with it, but Mr. Gaiman is such a nice person, i'm sure he wouldn't say anything bad about the movie even if it was hell crap.the previews don't look like the movie follows the book very much, but previews are always misleading. i'm quite happy with the casting tho, except i've never seen charlie cox in anything so i can't really say. still, he's playing tristan, the male lead, so i guess he should be alright for the role. i really hope it's not a disappointment.


i watched Pan's Labyrinth today, which i've been wanting to see for a while, but have not gotten the chance to till this afternoon. it is... fantastic. brilliantly violent, breathtakingly surreal, and hauntingly beautiful.it is a fairytale, but not one for children; i repeat, not for children (rated MA15+ man... don't play play). the characters are well portrayed, the setting is magical, the camera work is nicely done (i especially liked the transitions between scenes), and the storyline is absolutely fantastic.

guillermo del toro manages to turn what is essentially a simple story about a child's imagination into something richly dark, dangerously revealing, and utterly enchanting. if you're not squeamish, and have a slightly unhealthy interest in the morbid, then it's a good watch. leaves you something to think about.


i'm so tired -_________-