It's official. I have a McPheever. And the only prescription is more *cowbell. For those of you who don't know already (where have you been?!?!), Katharine McPhee is one of the finalists on American Idol season 5. As of this week, she made it to the top 9, and hopefully all the way to becoming the next American Idol.
I didn't watch American Idol until about last week, where I've been putting all my downloads to good use rather than just keeping them on the drive. Rather than my usual "Pfeh, same crap, different people" perspective, this hot (and talented) young lady immediately caught my attention. Sure, it was figuratively love at first sight, but she's also talented, though I have to say that some of her performances were mediocre. Is it just me? Have I set my bar up that high? Or is it my disappoitment at the lack of REAL talent here in Malaysia (yes, especially Mawi) that prompts me to do so? I believe so. Irregardless, Katharine is a sight for sore eyes and brings joy to my already-injured ears.
Since we are in the topic of pop idols, I had an interesting discussion with my cousin last week. I told him that any one of the top 12 finalists from American Idol can EASILY beat the metaphorical crap out of any instant celebrities we have here from Akademi Fantasia and Malaysian Idol. He replied by saying that Malaysians' taste for music is different than that of the people overseas, in this case, America (American Idol, duh. :p ). Then I replied by asking, "So, Malaysians prefer singers who can't sing to those that can?" In which he replied by restating his previous comment. So is it true? Is quality not important in this part of the world anymore? Or are we Malaysians simply stick to our "bolehlah" attitude?
For Americans reading this, please vote for Katharine. Text them, call them, whatever, just get her to be your next American Idol. However I have to be realistic. There are some pretty good talents this season. Plus, did I mention she's HOT? :)
* cowbell: A quote from a Saturday Night Live skit featuring Blue Oyster Cult members recording "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" with a producer (Christopher Walken) telling them to add "more cowbell".
Well, not literally. I've been somewhat busy the past week, hence the lack of entries here. Apart from midnite lily offering me a job, I have 2 other pending applications in the "Promised Land", one of which is what I've been waiting for for the last couple of months. Then, mid last week, I received a call from a friend of mine, who happens to be the personal assistant to one of our local artist, who I know personally. He offered me a job to do location sound for his production company. This is quite a surprise for me, but I did tell him that I'll think about it.
You see, when I first started work with Astro in 1997, I did both studio and location sound recording, but I excel in the latter. After my contract ended in late 2000, I did some other freelance jobs. Having said that, I don't know if I wanted to take the step "back" to doing location sound, as I am at a crossroad in my life, so to speak. Part of me is dying to venture into video, another part of me telling me I still have audio to fall back to, and then there's this other part of me telling me to start up a business. I'm all up for running a business, but what business do I run? What experience do I have? The only experience I've had was with computer games! lol
Anyway... I still have time to think all this through before my cash reserves run dry, which is roughly about 3-4 months from now, depending on how many trips I make to the nearest hypermarket. {grin} I'm hoping that one of my pending applications come through, though. In the mean time, there's Sims 2, Battle For Middle Earth 2, Empire At War and Tycoon City to keep me occupied. :P
BTW, my room's all patched up, I don't know when is daylight unless I look at the clock, dust is very MINIMAL (yay!) and with the air conditioning unit on, it's way cooler than before. Less dust, lower temperature, perhaps?
On the PC side, I've sold off my Inspiron 6000 to my not-at-home-with-me cousin. Didn't think I'd need a lappy for now, and by the time I need one, there are probably newer, better, cheaper models to choose from. I've also buffed up my current system to play all the games I mentioned above at medium-high level, so as not to hog my at-home-with-me cousin's machine.
I'm sinking deeper into the addictive force of The Sims 2: Open For Business. If I'm not doing things around the house, I'm in front of my cousin's computer playing the game. His computer is currently the most powerful computer in the house, surpassing my own. Plus, I've got a great sim-me going on there. :P
While I was browsing my hard drives, I noticed I have about 90+ Late Night With Conan O'Brien episodes I downloaded that I have yet to watch. If only I could clear that up, that'll be a good 20+ GB of space cleared up. I don't know when I'm gonna get around to watching all of it, especially when I'm super busy with Sims 2. :P
btw, the title is Simlish for "I just recalled!" In this case, recalled/remember that I have other things to do than play Sims 2.. Or not..
My room is currently in the process of renovation to make it dust-free, or at least close to being one. Now that I'm back on my feet, I needed something to do that doesn't involve me sitting in front of my computer. :D My first step, was to block up the windows with plywood, to make sure dust doesn't come in from outside. FYI, there's a frickin highway behind my house. Anyhoo, the second step is to seal up all holes and cracks in the ceiling, and I managed to finish up about half of it today. Another half tomorrow, and then the smoothing bits the following day. I used up 2.5 canisters' worth of putty filler, and I only bought 3, which means I need to get at least another 2 or 3 more to finish up the ceiling. I didn't realize I needed so much until I actually start filling up the cracks. :p
I also blocked the vent-fan on the ceiling, thinking that it might contribute to the whole dust thingy.
Step 3 would be to repaint the ceiling, or at least the parts where I had slapped the putty filler on. Right now, it looks kinda ugly, with my ceiling originally blue in colour with traces of white putty along the lines and cracks. Looks very "under construction"-y though. Smells like it too. At least it's better than smelling dust.
A warning to those who have yet to try this game; DON'T! I am now heavily addicted, playing it every waking moment. For those who don't know, "Open For Business" is the third expansion pack for the The Sims 2, a hugely popular life-simulator. In this expansion pack, you can run your own business, whether at home, or a comunity lot. You can sell almost anything in the game, and make money along the way. For a more in-depth description of this game, visit The Official Sims 2 Website.
What happened to Battle For Middle Earth 2? Well.. wait till I get bored of OFB. :D
I'm in the process of moving things around in my room. I was busy since yesterday evening, and even had to disconnect both my internet lines. The basic arrangement is all there, like them tables and my mattress, plus some storage cupboards. I didn't realize I have plenty of space in my room, and now, even my mom wants her room rearranged. I did some measurements on her room earlier, but it won't be much of a difference.
Thanks to all the dust flying around, I'm now bed-ridden. Well, sort of. I have allergies to dust, you see. Either I'll get a runny nose, or a constant smell of dust. Whichever it is, it sucks. Anyone know how to minimize or better still, totally eliminate dust in a room?
Game of the day: Battle For Middle Earth 2. Quite addictive, but I have 2 other games to play; Tycoon City New York and The Sims 2: Open For Business. :D
Today was quite a busy day, from shopping for plywood in the morning, to fixing a friend's PC, to a nice tasty meal at a fine dining restaurant. Nothing interesting happened when I was shopping and fixing the PC, but let me tell you a little bit about this restaurant.
Located in KLGCC in Kiara, Kuala Lumpur, it is definitely one of, if not, the best fine dining restaurant that I've been to. The atmosphere is calm, the staff is friendly and best of all, the food was excellent! They serve a wide variety of malay and western food, but I ordered a Norwegian (smoked) salmon, and I honestly have to say it is the best that I've tried. So if anyone wants to give it a go, please feel free to drive to KLGCC. The restaurant is in the main building, and if I can remember how to spell it properly, the name of the restaurant is FajarRaz and it is open to the public. You can also call up KLGCC for reservations and enquiries at 03-2093-1111.
As I expected, nothing much happened today, except for my trip to my PJ house to spray weed killer in the yard, and scrape some wall paint to prepare it for repainting. We want to get it as clean and lovely as possible, as we plan to sell it off. However, the option of renting it out is still being considered, if selling the place proves to be difficult.
Now, the story must continue. The psychological technobabble, yes? Of course. You must've heard these popular idioms; "when in Rome, do as the Romans do", or "fight fire with fire". That was how it went over the past couple of months. You can't be nice to someone who snapped at you and never apologize, no matter how hard you try. It's even worse when that person thinks he's right all the time, and saying sorry is not in his vocabulary. And guess what, he wasn't pleased. I guess one should look in the mirror more often.
If you're a passive person, like me, how would you confront someone who is aggressive, literally loud and nearing obnoxiousness? Do you just keep quiet, or do you speak up to their level, literally?
Hmm.. I didn't realize that by using the two idioms above, I've pretty much summarized what had transpired. Good thing too, otherwise I'd be cracking my mind trying to figure out how to write it. :P
Computer games, anyone?
midnite lily has been kind enough to tag me for the five things... tsk tsk.. Oh well, here goes...
5 Things You Can’t Do
* Pat my head and rub my belly at the same time in-sync
* Walk on my hands
* Write with my right hand
* Eat red meat
* Swim without clamping my nose
5 Things You Can Do
* Sleep for 15-16 hours at a time (my specialty)
* Watch a movie, play a game and chat online, all at the same time
* Tell a convincing lie, or rather, "a cover story"
* Survive without human contact for days, weeks even
* Drive a car on momentum and inertia just to conserve petrol
5 Things That Scare You
* My ex-boss
* Creepy-crawlies
* Becoming the Donald
* People who follow blind faith
* Human physical contact (terms & conditions apply)
5 Things You Love
* COKE!
* Cold weather; sub-20 degrees celcius
* Chocolate
* Observing/looking at people (though some may find it invasive)
* The smell of grass early in the morning
5 Things You Hate
* Slow morons driving on the right lane (read: ROAD HOG)
* Inconsiderate smokers
* Money (can't live with them, can't live without them)
* Slow internet speed (1mbps and below)
* My senate-like mind
5 Random Facts About You
* Very shy and quiet
* Loves broadway, but have never been to one
* Have a strange fixation to New York
* Have never travelled further than the Philippines
* Have sixth sense but don't know how it works
5 Things You Want To Do Before You Die
* Visit a cold country, say Greenland
* Attend Saturday Night Live in New York (or any live shows there)
* Produce an heir to my throne (layman: have a kid)
* Orbital skydiving
* Visit the "Promised Land"
5 people to tag
ervan - http://ervanj.blogs.friendster.com/the_world_from_ervans_eye/
niki - http://seizuka.blogs.friendster.com/pretty_petals/
contact me to apply
contact me to apply
contact me to apply
(lol i need more blog buddies)
