8.31.2005
Sole Searching
真是皇天不負有心人!! After going to 5 different The Shoe Company stores (that's right, my mall-hopping skills aren't only useful to others =P), I finally got the shoes I wanted. And to top it off, I got them on sale AND without tax!! Somehow, the last store I visited (the one at Scotia Plaza) was the only one that had them on sale...& after chatting with the cashier for a bit (ya I have a habit of doing that...don't know why), she told me that by signing up for some mailing list I could get them tax-free. Well duh, of course I signed up. I was in such an euphoric state I couldn't even remember whether I handed her my credit card or not, lol. You gotta understand, I haven't bought any new shoes for at least 3 years. And I've never wanted a pair as bad as I wanted these ones. Just when I was about to give up on looking for them (damn me & my average-sized feet), & just when I was happily sipping my $2 frozen hot chocolate from Second Cup, there they were. My lucky day, indeed. =D
真是皇天不負有心人!! After going to 5 different The Shoe Company stores (that's right, my mall-hopping skills aren't only useful to others =P), I finally got the shoes I wanted. And to top it off, I got them on sale AND without tax!! Somehow, the last store I visited (the one at Scotia Plaza) was the only one that had them on sale...& after chatting with the cashier for a bit (ya I have a habit of doing that...don't know why), she told me that by signing up for some mailing list I could get them tax-free. Well duh, of course I signed up. I was in such an euphoric state I couldn't even remember whether I handed her my credit card or not, lol. You gotta understand, I haven't bought any new shoes for at least 3 years. And I've never wanted a pair as bad as I wanted these ones. Just when I was about to give up on looking for them (damn me & my average-sized feet), & just when I was happily sipping my $2 frozen hot chocolate from Second Cup, there they were. My lucky day, indeed. =D
8.30.2005
Floating In Air
IT'S FINALLY OUT!!!!! <squeals>
(What a beautiful single cover, btw...totally lovin' it)
Come to think of it, it's only been a month since I first heard the song from the trailer...but somehow it feels longer. MUCH longer. I guess it's because of the anticipation. I yearned to hear this song more than anything for the past few weeks. I watched the trailer repetitively everyday just to hear the short preview over & over again. Crazy it might sound, but it always drove me to live the rest of the day with great excitement. =D
The story of how I got the full preview is kinda cool. I woke up briefly around 7:30 just to, you know, do my business =P, & when I was done, a sudden thought urged me to go to the computer to check & see if a preview has been up yet. And what do you know...it was, & it was posted just a minute ago. That immediately caught my attention & I said to myself, "Okay you need to wake up now!!" I didn't want my first listen to happen when I couldn't even conceive of what was going on...
Quite frankly, I was a bit thrown off when I first heard the song. It doesn't follow the regular "verse, chorus, verse, chorus" format; instead the choruses (x3) are at the end. For the avid Ayu fans, this probably sounds familiar - it's the same formula as "SURREAL", an old hit of hers. Incidentally, the two songs have the same composer (Kikuchi Kazuhito). They are of completely different styles though...
My favourite part of "HEAVEN" is actually not the chorus, but the part that comes right after the second verse. The sudden explosion of Japanese traditional instruments is simply hawt (& that goes for the rest of the song as well...excellent instrumentation). =P From then on, Ayu's voice just grows more & more powerful until the final bowout. Speaking of voice, I'm very impressed with Ayu's vocals in this song. The gentleness in the beginning is not only soothing, but also preps you well for the climactic finale. And her singing during the choruses is just so moving & engaging. Granted, some of the notes at the end of phrases were still a bit coarse, but they are minor & in a way further strengthen the power of her voice. The ending of the song is also different; instead of fading out or stopping after the last chorus, Ayu rounds the song up beautifully with yet some more gentle vocals. Ahhhhh so good!!
As for the lyrics, while not necessarily her best, they're definitely great. I'll bet that she either saw the movie or was given the plot before writing them. The resemblance is uncanny (even though the love story in the movie IS pretty generic =P)...
All in all, one of the best ballads she's released in a while, & I'm so looking forward to seeing the PV!! I'm praying that it won't contain any scenes from SHINOBI (or they can have two versions...like Amuro's "Wishing On The Same Star", one with clips, one without)...
P.S. As expected, I've been listening to the song continuously since this morning. According to my Last.fm profile, that's already 50+ times...=P Oh & I'll be writing a review of the whole single when it's released. Let's see if I'll feel the same about the song then. =)
IT'S FINALLY OUT!!!!! <squeals>
(What a beautiful single cover, btw...totally lovin' it)
Come to think of it, it's only been a month since I first heard the song from the trailer...but somehow it feels longer. MUCH longer. I guess it's because of the anticipation. I yearned to hear this song more than anything for the past few weeks. I watched the trailer repetitively everyday just to hear the short preview over & over again. Crazy it might sound, but it always drove me to live the rest of the day with great excitement. =D
The story of how I got the full preview is kinda cool. I woke up briefly around 7:30 just to, you know, do my business =P, & when I was done, a sudden thought urged me to go to the computer to check & see if a preview has been up yet. And what do you know...it was, & it was posted just a minute ago. That immediately caught my attention & I said to myself, "Okay you need to wake up now!!" I didn't want my first listen to happen when I couldn't even conceive of what was going on...
Quite frankly, I was a bit thrown off when I first heard the song. It doesn't follow the regular "verse, chorus, verse, chorus" format; instead the choruses (x3) are at the end. For the avid Ayu fans, this probably sounds familiar - it's the same formula as "SURREAL", an old hit of hers. Incidentally, the two songs have the same composer (Kikuchi Kazuhito). They are of completely different styles though...
My favourite part of "HEAVEN" is actually not the chorus, but the part that comes right after the second verse. The sudden explosion of Japanese traditional instruments is simply hawt (& that goes for the rest of the song as well...excellent instrumentation). =P From then on, Ayu's voice just grows more & more powerful until the final bowout. Speaking of voice, I'm very impressed with Ayu's vocals in this song. The gentleness in the beginning is not only soothing, but also preps you well for the climactic finale. And her singing during the choruses is just so moving & engaging. Granted, some of the notes at the end of phrases were still a bit coarse, but they are minor & in a way further strengthen the power of her voice. The ending of the song is also different; instead of fading out or stopping after the last chorus, Ayu rounds the song up beautifully with yet some more gentle vocals. Ahhhhh so good!!
As for the lyrics, while not necessarily her best, they're definitely great. I'll bet that she either saw the movie or was given the plot before writing them. The resemblance is uncanny (even though the love story in the movie IS pretty generic =P)...
All in all, one of the best ballads she's released in a while, & I'm so looking forward to seeing the PV!! I'm praying that it won't contain any scenes from SHINOBI (or they can have two versions...like Amuro's "Wishing On The Same Star", one with clips, one without)...
P.S. As expected, I've been listening to the song continuously since this morning. According to my Last.fm profile, that's already 50+ times...=P Oh & I'll be writing a review of the whole single when it's released. Let's see if I'll feel the same about the song then. =)
8.26.2005
The house is all of a sudden so quiet...can't believe that my mom would have to leave an hour right after I get back from my trip. Well I sure do hope that my grandpa would be okay...it kinda took me by surprise when I found out that he was in the hospital & things were critical enough to urge my mom & aunts to fly back to HK immediately. To be honest, I'm very worried...my grandpa is almost 90, & while he's always been in great physical shape, he's also had a few surgeries done here & there. And he's my last grandparent left...<sigh>
Anyway, on a brighter note, the trip. It was the most fun I've had in years, if not ever (happiness level was very close to that of the days I spent in Japan, hehe). In a short period of 3 days I've powered through more limits than I did in calculus (lol). Originally I was planning to write a super long post detailing all the events that happened...but now I've realized that no words can fully express how great it was. I also think that it'd be better if I told you guys in person...some things are just hard to describe on a flat surface (things such as getting trapped by the rapids while on a raft & having to jump the boat to save your ass...woohoo). So next time I see you, make sure you ask. I'd probably start rambling on about it before you do anyway. =P
And hell yeah I jumped a cliff!! =D
EDIT: I'm lazy...so read Mick's post if you wanna know exactly what we did.
8.18.2005
Moths
It was like talking to myself on the phone...I was being told my wishes, my fears, my struggles, my beliefs, my mistakes, & my story. How can two people be so alike, to the point of even sharing the same life experiences?? Could this be proof that our personalities, & consequently our actions, shape our life??
And I'm once again reminded of what I've been running away from all this time. Thankfully though, seeing it happen to someone else (someone I really care about too, mind you) makes it awfully clear how ridiculous the situation really is. Now I'm only more certain than ever that I've chosen the right path. At least my rational side tells me so.
It was like talking to myself on the phone...I was being told my wishes, my fears, my struggles, my beliefs, my mistakes, & my story. How can two people be so alike, to the point of even sharing the same life experiences?? Could this be proof that our personalities, & consequently our actions, shape our life??
And I'm once again reminded of what I've been running away from all this time. Thankfully though, seeing it happen to someone else (someone I really care about too, mind you) makes it awfully clear how ridiculous the situation really is. Now I'm only more certain than ever that I've chosen the right path. At least my rational side tells me so.
8.16.2005
You Got Served!
What an extraordinary day!! Man it's so good I'm gonna cry...xD
So this afternoon, to avoid all the distractions at home, I decided to go to Angus Glen to study. I've always wanted to go there, was supposed to during my last exam period, but never got to. This time though I thought it might be a nice change to go some place pleasant & quiet so I could really concentrate. Turns out it only takes 5 min to get there...I was parking even before I could finish listening to Shiina's "Gips". =P Anyway, the library turned out to be smaller than I expected, but it was definitely very well-decorated. Lots of glass going on & the sofas were leather...=O I was lucky enough to grab a window seat, so I settled down & began reading & making notes. And what do you know...going to a library does work!! I was so into studying I could barely think about anything else. Well, that was until I realized that I was sitting right beside the law books. =P Kinda drifted off then & spent about 10 min reading the Criminal Code & the Youth Criminal Justice Act (ya I know, only law freaks read those). Surprisingly I was diligent enough to put them down & went back to studying science (ugh). Few hours later, I decided I've had enough & drove my way home. Even that ride was enjoyable...driving with the sunroof down while singing along to Ayu's "fairyland"...wow, I thought, could this get any better??
Apparently, it could. As soon as I got home, I went online briefly to talk to a few people. Immediately Eleanor messaged me & asked me if I wanted to go to tonight's Rogers Cup match (!!) with her, for free (!!!!). Without a thought I said "HELL YEAH!!", knowing that Serena Williams is playing. While not necessarily a fan of hers, I sure do enjoy watching her play tennis. Plus, I've been dying to watch a live tennis match after following the French Open & Wimbledon on TV. All excited, I got on the next GO bus & arrived at York around 6:15. Much earlier than expected, I walked around the campus for a bit. It's been 3 years since my last visit...it was the Science Olympics (ya I'm a geek =P), which was loads of fun despite the fact that we didn't win anything. The place hasn't changed much, I must say, aside from the new road & building signs. Following the instructions, I made my way to Rexall Centre, where the game was held. By then I was hyped as hell. This will be my first time watching a professional match live, I told myself. AND IT'S GOT SERENA WILLIAMS!!
Half an hour later El & her cousin arrived, & we went in. Found my seat, & man, NOT BAD AT ALL!! I could actually seat ppl's faces on the court. And tonight's weather was just perfect...nice & breezy, but not too cold. After 5 min or so both players came in. Serena was playing against Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (ya I know, Stephanie who?? =P) from France. Everyone started cheering, I did too, & immediately I was in love with the atmosphere. And then, the game began. At first I was expecting Serena to whoop ass & breeze through the first 2 sets. But at the same time I thought, "Hmmm, she loves playing catch up, whether intentional or not...would she this time too??"
And she did. =P Stephanie turned out to be quite the threat...she was so good, she ended up taking the 1st set. That's when all the Serena fans started to panic & began to scream her name like crazy. Others joined in to cheer for Stephanie in return. Frankly, Serena made a lot of errors, ones that she shouldn't have made. She got frustrated for a bit there & threw her racquet, heh heh. I knew better than to count her out though, after all, she's a pro, she's got more experience in her pinky than most people out there. She managed to win the 2nd set, but not easily. Stephanie was still very strong & gave Serena a really tough time with some superb shots. By the 3rd set though I knew Serena was gonna win. She finally got it together & was playing very aggressively. At the same time, Stephanie appeared to be drained...those 180km/h shots of Serena must've put some serious strain on her. In the end, as I've expected, Serena won the match. It was a great game though, with a lot more drama than I had originally anticipated.
Final score: Serena Williams wins 3-6, 6-4, 6-2
After the game, we walked around for a bit to check out what's happening around the stadium (that is, after we spent about 5 min looking for each other, lol). We got free samples of Zest shower gel & apple grape juice. Then it was time for me to go home. Ahhh what a fantastic night it was. I've decided to go again next year, & possibly every year if conditions permit. I need to see my beloved Sharapova in person!!
EDIT: Added pictures!! For the last two I had to max out the digital zoom, so quality might not be that great. Boo.
What an extraordinary day!! Man it's so good I'm gonna cry...xD
So this afternoon, to avoid all the distractions at home, I decided to go to Angus Glen to study. I've always wanted to go there, was supposed to during my last exam period, but never got to. This time though I thought it might be a nice change to go some place pleasant & quiet so I could really concentrate. Turns out it only takes 5 min to get there...I was parking even before I could finish listening to Shiina's "Gips". =P Anyway, the library turned out to be smaller than I expected, but it was definitely very well-decorated. Lots of glass going on & the sofas were leather...=O I was lucky enough to grab a window seat, so I settled down & began reading & making notes. And what do you know...going to a library does work!! I was so into studying I could barely think about anything else. Well, that was until I realized that I was sitting right beside the law books. =P Kinda drifted off then & spent about 10 min reading the Criminal Code & the Youth Criminal Justice Act (ya I know, only law freaks read those). Surprisingly I was diligent enough to put them down & went back to studying science (ugh). Few hours later, I decided I've had enough & drove my way home. Even that ride was enjoyable...driving with the sunroof down while singing along to Ayu's "fairyland"...wow, I thought, could this get any better??
Apparently, it could. As soon as I got home, I went online briefly to talk to a few people. Immediately Eleanor messaged me & asked me if I wanted to go to tonight's Rogers Cup match (!!) with her, for free (!!!!). Without a thought I said "HELL YEAH!!", knowing that Serena Williams is playing. While not necessarily a fan of hers, I sure do enjoy watching her play tennis. Plus, I've been dying to watch a live tennis match after following the French Open & Wimbledon on TV. All excited, I got on the next GO bus & arrived at York around 6:15. Much earlier than expected, I walked around the campus for a bit. It's been 3 years since my last visit...it was the Science Olympics (ya I'm a geek =P), which was loads of fun despite the fact that we didn't win anything. The place hasn't changed much, I must say, aside from the new road & building signs. Following the instructions, I made my way to Rexall Centre, where the game was held. By then I was hyped as hell. This will be my first time watching a professional match live, I told myself. AND IT'S GOT SERENA WILLIAMS!!
Half an hour later El & her cousin arrived, & we went in. Found my seat, & man, NOT BAD AT ALL!! I could actually seat ppl's faces on the court. And tonight's weather was just perfect...nice & breezy, but not too cold. After 5 min or so both players came in. Serena was playing against Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (ya I know, Stephanie who?? =P) from France. Everyone started cheering, I did too, & immediately I was in love with the atmosphere. And then, the game began. At first I was expecting Serena to whoop ass & breeze through the first 2 sets. But at the same time I thought, "Hmmm, she loves playing catch up, whether intentional or not...would she this time too??"
And she did. =P Stephanie turned out to be quite the threat...she was so good, she ended up taking the 1st set. That's when all the Serena fans started to panic & began to scream her name like crazy. Others joined in to cheer for Stephanie in return. Frankly, Serena made a lot of errors, ones that she shouldn't have made. She got frustrated for a bit there & threw her racquet, heh heh. I knew better than to count her out though, after all, she's a pro, she's got more experience in her pinky than most people out there. She managed to win the 2nd set, but not easily. Stephanie was still very strong & gave Serena a really tough time with some superb shots. By the 3rd set though I knew Serena was gonna win. She finally got it together & was playing very aggressively. At the same time, Stephanie appeared to be drained...those 180km/h shots of Serena must've put some serious strain on her. In the end, as I've expected, Serena won the match. It was a great game though, with a lot more drama than I had originally anticipated.
Final score: Serena Williams wins 3-6, 6-4, 6-2
After the game, we walked around for a bit to check out what's happening around the stadium (that is, after we spent about 5 min looking for each other, lol). We got free samples of Zest shower gel & apple grape juice. Then it was time for me to go home. Ahhh what a fantastic night it was. I've decided to go again next year, & possibly every year if conditions permit. I need to see my beloved Sharapova in person!!
EDIT: Added pictures!! For the last two I had to max out the digital zoom, so quality might not be that great. Boo.
8.11.2005
Chapter01
Since Audioscrobbler (now Last.fm) has gotten itself a beautiful makeover, I've decided to use its new journal function to write my music reviews. From now on, all my reviews would be there...I just thought it'd be more organized that way. My first entry is a review of Yaiko's new album, "Here today-gone tomorrow". It took me two days, so please humour me by reading a line or two. ^^; Comments are more than welcome (you can do it there if you have an account...if you don't, just "flick me" here)!!
(I know I know, I should be studying instead, but I just had to get this outta my system...I'm bad...x_x)
Since Audioscrobbler (now Last.fm) has gotten itself a beautiful makeover, I've decided to use its new journal function to write my music reviews. From now on, all my reviews would be there...I just thought it'd be more organized that way. My first entry is a review of Yaiko's new album, "Here today-gone tomorrow". It took me two days, so please humour me by reading a line or two. ^^; Comments are more than welcome (you can do it there if you have an account...if you don't, just "flick me" here)!!
(I know I know, I should be studying instead, but I just had to get this outta my system...I'm bad...x_x)
8.08.2005
Bon Voyage
I remember that back in the days, when you first told me about your dream, I said that if it were ever realized, I'd be as happy as if it were my own. Two years later, when the time came & you told me you did it, I repeated the same words. Unfortunately, I didn't mean it; not because I didn't want to support you, but because I couldn't. The gut-wrenching pain forbade me from feeling happy for you. But now that time has passed & I've let go of things, I can finally keep my word. I'm very proud of what you've done & where you're heading off to. Enjoy the sunshine. =)
I remember that back in the days, when you first told me about your dream, I said that if it were ever realized, I'd be as happy as if it were my own. Two years later, when the time came & you told me you did it, I repeated the same words. Unfortunately, I didn't mean it; not because I didn't want to support you, but because I couldn't. The gut-wrenching pain forbade me from feeling happy for you. But now that time has passed & I've let go of things, I can finally keep my word. I'm very proud of what you've done & where you're heading off to. Enjoy the sunshine. =)
8.05.2005
Leaving It All Behind
I can't do this anymore. It's just getting too hard...& it's not like I haven't tried. On the contrary, I've tried many times...but everytime I do, I only end up feeling more & more frustrated. And the longer it gets, the more troublesome it becomes. Maybe I'm just not cut out for it; maybe there are certain weaknesses that I just have to accept & live with...instead of me always fighting against them with blind force.
I'm not growing this hair anymore. I'm cutting it as soon as the MCAT's over!!
(Heh heh what did you think I was talking about??)
P.S. Ahhhhh I'm SO tempted to title this entry "Hair today-gone tomorrow", lol. xD But no, I must respect Yaiko's work...
I can't do this anymore. It's just getting too hard...& it's not like I haven't tried. On the contrary, I've tried many times...but everytime I do, I only end up feeling more & more frustrated. And the longer it gets, the more troublesome it becomes. Maybe I'm just not cut out for it; maybe there are certain weaknesses that I just have to accept & live with...instead of me always fighting against them with blind force.
I'm not growing this hair anymore. I'm cutting it as soon as the MCAT's over!!
(Heh heh what did you think I was talking about??)
P.S. Ahhhhh I'm SO tempted to title this entry "Hair today-gone tomorrow", lol. xD But no, I must respect Yaiko's work...
