Catcher In the Rye Author passed away

I don't care if it's sad good- by or a bad good good-by, but when I leave place I'd like to know I'm leaving it. If you don't, you feel even worse~ Holden Caufield, Catcher In the Rye

J.D Salinger died yesterday, age 91 in N.H. He's the man who articulated so much in an intimate way the voice of the angst driven youth.

Weird. Two days ago, I just felt like reading his famous book, Catcher in the Rye for the gazillion times already . So I read it past 12 midnight, then last night, I saw a news ticker that the author passed away. Well, the man who started the angst driven alienated teen, died a recluse and has never allowed his famous book to become a movie. Now that he's dead, I wonder if see we'll one.

If you haven't read Catcher in the Rye... you probably don't like to read or you weren't forced to read it or you've never had an English paper to submit. I guess. It's still my favorite book...along with so many others but.. Catcher n the Rye is the one I always read and read and read just re read it. Kinda like To Kill a Mocking Bird which I always read a lot too (but somebody borrowed it before from school some years ago and never returned it).

Back to J.D Salinger. I don't know anything about him. He is a literary icon. A recluse who guarded his privacy to the very end. He gave something to think about and ponder with the books he wrote. The characters in which we immersed ourselves. His books will always remind us what a great author he was.

Bill Gates 2.0. and our 'Windows' to his.. life

Hello World... Hello Bill Gates. Microsoft founder just joined the Twitterati Twitterverse (@billgates). Woah and when tweeps found out immediately.. in just a several hours the number followng has grown to is 281,651 and counting. He returned to Facebook(.com/billgates) too.

Well.. I guess he's worth.. blogging. He created the OS that majority of people still use.

And speaking of joining, on this day five years ago January 01, 2005.. I signed up with web 2.0. pioneer Flickr.

Friendster was the one who (correct me if I'm wrong) pioneered and elevate what is social networking now. I remember everybody was crazy about that site so much so that in our school some years ago, it was banned and we couldn't go to the internet lab and browse through the site.

I remember Napster too. Who doesn't? and the fall from grace. And going back further.. back in the late 90's.. ICQ and YM msnger was the way to keep up and chat with friends.

Reminiscing..he he...yeah, I'm ancient already =)

Kraft and Cadbury in a deal.....

All you confectioners and cheese lovers... Kraft's taking over Cadbury for £11.5bn.

Of course the British chocolate maker.. workers are not happy. They're hurt that an American company took over their National Pride. Can't fault them.. it's a bloody English chocolate It's a national brand.

So can we expect more cheese in our chocolates? Cheese and choco fondue perhaps? How about chocolate cheesecake? Ha ha. All I can say, I love cheese and chocolates.

It's So New Year Already... almost

Several more hours..like eight hours more. And I hear firecrackers now. =)

Same as with my blog a day before Christmas, I'm multi tasking laziness on this day. At this hour. He he. Lemme see... I'm watching t.v. Some kinda anime show. I'm downloading songs, not reading a book this time. I'm browsing the web for quirky sites. I'm eating. .. and will eat some mor later.... I've been eating since when I woke up haha. Heck, it's the holidays. Food Fest. Food Feast. After the tradional noche buena last week, it's media noche this time along with the noise and New Years Eve celebration.

Laters.. I'm craving for the Raspberry Oats Cheseecake! Yum.

It's almost Christmas...

I'm doing... nothing. I'm watching Batman on HBO. Eating.. munching goodies. Listening to music. Flipping a book.. yeah multitasking laziness. he he.

Love Will Triumph over Hate - PM Berlusconi

Via BBC: The brief message from Silvio Berlusconi was posted on the website of his People of Freedom party. Prime Minister is set to leave the hospital after being struck in the face by a model replica of Milan's cathedral after a rally in the city on Sunday. Read more

Th other day I watched the news and saw the whole thing. Yikes. Pity the PM. One can't help but sympathize; Bloody face, broken nose and broken teeth. The guy who threw that statue must have some mental disorder. Hm.. shoes would've been tolerable? (think Bush incident.. hehe).

Glee, Mad Men and a Holiday blah

I'm so Glee.. ful. =) Both Glee and Mad men got nominated for Golden Globe and nominated for WGA (Writers Guild Awards) too. Mad Men also made it to the AFI (American Film Institute).

I was just watching Glee last night... and up to now I keep humming the songs. I'm such a 'gleek' he he.

Glee Glee Glee! I drool for Draper! Oh yeah.

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Nine more days to go and it's Christmas. Love it!

Today is the start of the traditional Simbang Gabi. It's going to Dawn Mass for nine days. It symbolisez the days leading to the birth of Jesus. It's also in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Joyful, Joyful

Tis the season to be jolly. Festive atmosphere, the twinkling of the lights, the cold weather. The lanterns. Hues of green and red dominating the malls. Christmas shows and activities and midnight sale. It's the holiday season alright. I even bought a book. =)

If Shame Had a Face I Think It Would Kind of Look Like Tigter Woods

Gone is the squeaky clean image and replaced by shameful acts of passion on the back nine while being high on front nine. A hole in one too many..couldn't keep the birdies sinking into the cup of tryst whilst taking out his nine iron stick making sure balls don't land in the wet part but to no avail. He hit the fairways and landed in the bunker. Could not get out of the trouble. Scorecard is a mess and so is his personal life.

Just a play of words.. he he.

Tiger Woods is only Human

Hmm...wife got mad, found about the women he's seeing, chased him around with wedge, he got distracted, hit a fire hydrant and crashed into a tree. Yep.. he's only human.

For the last two days Tiger Woods has been silent of what really happened to him the day after thanksgiving no less. Rumor mills abound with plenty of innuendo and gossip about mistress and alleged affairs. It's crazy. The least person you'd think who would be in this situation would be Tiger Woods.

Via NY Times: Each hour that passes without word from Tiger Woods about the details of his car crash early Friday morning may prove damaging to his image by filling an online rumor mill with conjecture, opinion and rumor, according to experts who advise high-profile athletes and celebrities on managing how they are viewed by others. Full report

I'm blogging about this because I like Golf. Well, I like S Garcia, A Scott and C Villegas. Yeah pretty boys of the club..so to speak. With pun. He he.

Massacre; Journalists Killed

It's gruesome. Politics kills. It's dangerous to be on front lines. Bulk of those who were massacred were journalist. And to think this is not even in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Via Inquirer.net: Police on Mindanao island pulled bullet-ridden bodies from shallow graves in this remote farming area after gunmen allegedly employed by a local political chief abducted then shot dead a group of rival politicians and journalists. Read more

On a lighter and more upbeat and good news... Efren Penaflorida won CNN here of the year. Congrats. Nice speech too.

I get it, I don't think so, I don't really care....

In reference to the craze that is New Moon.. Twilight Saga. I've never read the book nor do I have any interest doing so. I like vampires movies. Hello? Lost boys! I like that movie. But Twilight? Nah. It just doesn't interest me. I guess I'm not in the league of the the majority.


What I'm excited about is watching Shining Through. ETC (I think) will show that old film this weekend. My sister and I really like that movie. Brings back memories of.. ages ago..like 80's. I know me is oldie. Another movie that we like is called Stealing Home...weep not for memories. He he.

Yawning here.. blogging off.

Hail, Hail the Pacman!

And Manny 'Pacman' Paquiao makes history as he beat Miguel Cotto via TKO. Congrats Pacman!

Manny does not need to fight arrogant Mayweather. He does not need to prove anything anymore. We know he's the best. Pacman that is. On the other hand, it's Maywether who needs a fight.. because.. and probably is the fact... Mayweather's eyes are seeing dollar signs! Hah! He needs Manny and Money.

He's just all talk. It's not Manny who needs him.. it's him who needs Manny.

Floyd Mayweather Jr.... go milk a cow or something!

So Sunday morning local time, we were all tuned in, glued to our t.v. sets and big screens anywhere and everywhere here just to watch Manny beat Cotto. Poor Cott, beaten to a bloody pulp! Ah, demolished!

The country was in a state of euphoria. As usual whenever Pacman fight..the whole nation is at a stand still.

They should've stopped the fight after the fifth round. He he. Cotto was just too proud.. he didn't want to go down via KO. Well he lost via TKO anyhow, he was not even fighting anymore. He was dancing away from Manny and couldn't take anymore of the beating. Thank God for referees.

Hello Windows 7

Oh yeah, sweet. Microsoft's new OS Windows 7 has now been officially launched. If you buy new computers it comes pre loaded with the new OS. I can't wait to get a new one. I'd just as well get a new one rather than be all flustered with upgrading my current pc with XP Professional to the new Windows7. I'd keep this baby of mine though. Parting is such a sweet sorrow so I'll keep ya. But (hopefully) gonna buy new one before the year ends. I don't know when computer stores here will have the new Windows 7. I don't live in the US.

I've been been saving for a Macbook Pro with the Snow Leopard (cause I wanna try. I'm not an elitist though. Hardly one. Barely) but I figured, I only use the 'net for blogging and browsing and being a voyeur of anything and everything. A mac would be a waste.

Okay Windows 7 you win. See ya when I visit computer shops.

Guides and reviews about Windows7

A Windows to help you forget- WSJ. This is the review of Walter Mossberg. Btw... to help forget Vista. (I've never had to.. so I dunno)
10 Things you need to know before moving to windows 7- CW
Five Reasons Windows XP Has a Year to Live-PC world

I'm still puzzled why Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

What has he done? There still war in Afghanistan! Soldiers getting killed! Terrorist acts still continues. There's no peace between Israel and Palestinians. C'mon, get real. Road map to peace is nowhere to be found.

The Committee couldn't find somebody else worthy to give the Peace Prize? Honestly I don't think Obama deserve the award. Hey, my blog! my own opinion!

News links: Reuters, Washington Post

State of Calamity, State of Sadness

Yes, after 6 days I'm able to face the screen again and Oh I love you my pc! I've missed browsing and updating.

Last Saturday, September 26, Manila became water world as the metro was flooded due to the non stop rain from tropical storm Ondoy (Ketsana) who left 277 deaths (and climbing up). Everywhere you look there was water... and I mean water up to the roofs of the houses. It's like hurricane Katrina but much worse. Just go look at the you tube videos.

Our house was flooded at the height of the storm and my pc was not spared. The flood inside the house rose as high as above the knees. Many important documents like passport, sss, itr got washed away by the flood. Things like dvds, and my childhood paper diaries and so many photos destroyed.

We've been able to clean up the house already and all is okay. We're still lucky as we have a roof over our head and comfortable bed to sleep and food to eat. Others aren't so lucky though. It's sad to see all those who where left homeless by the floods and to see the many evacuees.

There is a new threat of super typhoon "Pepeng" (Parma). They say this one is classisfied. Since we don' have hurricanes here, weathermen are saying it's like it's like category 5 hurricane. I hope it swerves to a different direction and spare us the wrath. Filipinos are stilll reeling from the calamity of the flooding that storm Ondoy left the country.

Asia(ns) suffering from natures wrath again. Flooding here and in Vietnam, Earthquakes in Indonesia and Samoa and tsunamis wiping out houses and villages.

Times like these.. prayers always help.

Thinking Hamm.. Jon Hamm

Newsweek had an interesting article on why ladies love Jon Hamm/Don Draper.

So insanely Mad for Mad Men. My favorite t.v show at the moment. I never failed to watch every episode of the first season. Deja vu it seems cos back in early 2000, Six Feet Under was my favorite show and I never failed to watch an episode either... and now it's Mad Men.

Anyway, a few months back I blogged about my dreams of of Anderson Cooper (I know, I'm puzzled too) and I told myself.. why couldn't it have been "Don Draper" aka Jon Hamm in real life.

He he. I'm damn crushing every time.

9/11 Redux

In 2006, I blogged about this poem of Andrei Codrescu published in NPR. org. Today, I'm gonna reblog it again. This time with the poem in it's entirety. I like this one.

9/11, I can barely remember you, they’ve buried you in so much hype!

9/11 I wept when you were first on television! I wept for New York, for the dead, for all of us, for myself, for the world!

9/11, I was sure that the world had changed forever because bad guys wanted America dead and hated us because we listen to rock 'n' roll and wear no miniskirts on our naked faces!

9/11, I cheered when our warplanes ripped through the skies of Afghanistan scorching the caves where our enemies burrowed and I marveled at our precision-guided bombs -- trying to ignore their occasionally murderous imprecision!

9/11, I sat mesmerized in front of Fox News and CNN as the gargoyled faces of the Cold War began crawling out of the musty cellars of history and, eyes unaccustomed to light, blinking, began to spout the doctrines of Total War!

9/11, I started to feel sorry for you when retired generals, admirals, spies, loonies and fakes brushed off their swords and rushed to your defense! So many double-chins! So many watering eyes! So many dentured grins and brush haircuts! So many double-bottom suitcases clutched in so many pimp-ringed hands! They even brought Ollie North from felonious disgrace to stand up for you with his Constitution-overthrowing boyish old looks!

9/11, I felt bad for you when the Lefties crowded you from the other side with their guilt-filled jaws of "I told you so," and their eternal excuses for the wretched exotics of the world whose suffering they experience in their marble-topped kitchens between arguments about what wine to serve with the wild rice! And I wept for you again, when soured professors who missed the collapse of commie fascism in 1989 descended on you like rabid wolverines led by Noam Chomsky, whose teeth marks are all over the zero ground of American academia!

9/11, you saved the paranoids from self-cannibalism!

9/11, you were a boon to advertisers and publicists and flag manufacturers, and they sold you with cars and pizzas and they drained you of your raw primal power even as they pretended to grieve for you! Zero down payment until Doomsday!

9/11, you were a godsend to poetasters who were out of the gate lamenting and whining before your towers even gave out!

9/11, your dead and your heroes are covered by thick layers of ash and greed and the Republic owes you an apology...

9/11, I close my eyes and recall you in all your gory glory and I still hate those who did this to us and to our greatest city.

9/11, I can barely remember you and I'm sorry.

Have People Already Forgotten What Happened Eight Years Ago?

Today is September 11 where I'm from. I'm not American, but I'll always remember what happened that day... it was night here as I live in Asia. I will never forget what I saw on my t.v screen.

On that day fateful day of September 11, 2001 America broke down. Mourning and weeping.

I cried when when I saw people jump from the windows of Twin Towers. I cried when I saw the towers collapsed. I cried when saw people looking for their loved ones. I cried and cried with the events I saw on television. Multiple terror attacks in the US; the bombing at the Pentagon, the plane crashed in Pennsylvania and most especially the terror that hit New York as the hijacked plane smashed into the Twin Towers and we saw the building on fire and collapsed.

It's just sad that people seemed to have forgotten it. I'm not sure but I know every year there is a commemoration. They read the names of those who perished and every time I watch it, I still get shivers and I tear up.

Yes, 9/11 I weep for you.

Of Life, Love and Living and Remembering

Today is the 40th Day of former President Cory Aquino- 40 days after she passed away.
I saw this article from INQ.net last month, and thought I'd blog it here. Just to remember Cory and her family and how well they have been an inspiration.

And this is why we love the Aquino Family. Because they're simple they're just like any other family (except they're not.. they're Aquinos and they have destiny to lead the country)

Read the whole article (by Fe Zamora ). Endearing.

MANILA, Philippines—Like most family that just lost a loved one, the children of the late President Corazon Aquino joked about the possibility of ghosts visiting the old home.

Inside the bus that followed their mother to her final resting place at Manila Memorial on Wednesday, there was plenty of time for catching up with family, horsing around and telling ghost stories. The Philippine Daily Inquirer was one of a handful of media organizations that joined the Aquinos in the bus.

Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, a bachelor and doting uncle to eight nephews and nieces, turned to 14-year-old Josh, his sister Kris’ son with actor Phillip Salvador.

“Josh, will you sleep with me over at Times Street?” he asked the boy. “Let’s go meet some ghosts there,” he added, with a wink. (Cory Aquino lived in an unpretentious bungalow on Times Street, West Triangle in Quezon City until the time of her death.)

Joshua nodded and replied: “Okay, I will sleep there.”

Then someone added: “But promise you won’t get married, ‘Tito ‘Noy!”

That set off a wave of laughter that rocked the bus.

A healthy dose of humor, Christian values, deep friendships, and the love of an entire nation helped the Aquino family cope in their hours of bereavement.

This was quite evident on the day of the funeral. If you didn’t know there was a funeral procession going on for a beloved President, you would think the passengers inside the bus were just on its way to a picnic or a family reunion.

For the second time in 26 years, the Aquinos were again together in a bus, following a flower-decked hearse that bore a coffin. In 1983, it was that of their father, Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr., who was shot dead shortly after arriving from the United States; on Wednesday, it was their mother’s, fondly called by many Filipinos as Tita Cory. Read the rest of it here