Farewell, My Old Friend 2009

Currently Listening To: Michael Jackson - This Is It

This is it.
The last day of 2009.
Tomorrow, when we wake up 2010 will be greeting us instead.

It has been quite an eventful year.
Not so much for me, but more for the world in general.
A year of ups and downs.

Far too many celebrities passed away this year, most of them from unfortunate incidents.
We lost the King of Pop, Michael Jackson back in June.
Also, Charlie's favourite angel, Farah Fawcett, who died on the same day as MJ.
Just a week ago or so we lost actress Brittany Murphy.
Not to forget Patrick Swayze, our very own dearest Yasmin Ahmad, actress Natasha Richardson...
May they rest in peace, hopefully 2010 will be a better year for the entertainment world.

To be honest with you, I don't recall any...positive events that happened in 2009.
There wasn't any particularly memorable or impressive achievements or milestones, unless Malaysia finally winning some football counts as impressive. Okay, maybe it is impressive but it is extremely insignificant in the grand scheme of all things.

Anyway, 2009 for me wasn't so bad.
Nothing special or exciting, but it certainly wasn't a terrible year.
I can still remember typing last year's 'speech', can't believe that was 365 days ago. It feels like just yesterday.

2009 also marks the year of my Adam Lambert obsession. I think I dedicated about a dozen (or more) blog posts to American Idol and that particular alien from Planet Fierce. I wonder if the new season of AI will inspire me as much as Season 8...January 13th 2010, Starworld Channel 711. Watch people, watch it!

And don't forget Glee, the most awesomest series of 2009! January 20th 2010, again Starworld Channel 711. Watch Glee, non-Gleeks, and Gleeks - watch Glee for the third/fourth/tenth time!

Last year's 'resolutions';

1. Uh......spend less on books lol.
   
2. Right. Get a job, and save up for the NDS! PSP! PS3! Wii! *more wishful thinking*
   
3. Lalalala...*mind goes blank*

Yay at least I did achieve the first resolution.
I did spend less on books.
Almost 20 books less than last year, I believe.
Mission accomplished!
Sadly I did not get a job, so I can't save up for the NDS, PSP, PS3 and Wii...
Nevermind, there's always next year.

2010 will also be my last year at college if all goes well.
Then again that means I'll have to grow up and be an adult and get a job...full-time...earn money...no time for slacking, procrastinating...*shudders*
Not exactly fun.

I think I'll skip making resolutions this time around - it doesn't really help much now, does it? Resolutions are for the enthusiastic and ambitious. And I'm neither enthusiastic nor ambitious bahaha.

So are you ready for 2010?
I sure am...not.

Oh whatever, Happy 2010 people!

Random Random Random

Currently Listening To: Grizzly Bear - While You Wait For The Others

Helloooooooooo everyone!
I know it's a little too late, but Merry Christmas to all good souls in the world.
I don't have a reason to blog today, so everything in this post is totally random.

Um um.
Went to Taiping earlier today to visit my uncle.
Gosh. Taiping's one tiny town.
Leave me there one day and I'll go nuts I think.
Where are the malls? Cars? People? =O
I know I'm usually inside more than out, but still. Taiping. Tiny. Scary.

Hmmm. What else.
It's almost the end of 2009! Just. Like. Six days left.
Need to prepare another end-of-the-year speech!

-is hoping for a livelier year ahead-

2010, I have high hopes for you!

Ooooooooh tried some new card game today.
Monopoly cards or something.
Seriously strange game.
Maybe we didn't really understand the rules?
But it's still weird.
Monopoly in card form.
Reminds me of those Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories' card thingies.

Bahahahaha.

-more random laughter-

...

I'm bored =(

*googles monopoly cards*

PS: I'm laaaaaaaaazy right now but I'll post pics of my purple room sometime soon k. Be patient! Sheesh =_= haha.

Not The Avatar I Was Thinking Of

Currently Listening To: Grizzly Bear - Ready Able

Today I watched a movie about blue people.

And other than the blue people, I actually found the movie super cheesy.

I don't know why. Everything's so cliche-ish. Blue people rox.

For the entire duration of the movie, all I could think of was...Final Fantasy.

'Omg lookie there, that looks like Macalania forest.

BLUE PPL! Ronsos and Guados anyone?

OOOOOOH those floating islands are so Final Fantasy XII-ish.

HEY they have machina!

Big giant tree that got destroyed? Whoopee where's Zidane and Garnet...'

So now we need Squall's scowls and Cloud's Buster Sword and then the fantasy will be complete.

To sum it up...GFX FTW!

Remind me to listen to the OST. Sounds very FF-ish too.

December Blues

Currently Listening To: Glee - Proud Mary

It's that time of the year again, ya know?
Holidays, supposed family time, time for relaxation...
I was suppose to get a job for the hols but guess what?
I'm still unemployed.
Mostly because I have zero motivation to do anything at all.
Motivation where are you?
So I've been sitting at home, moping around, occasionally touching my PS2, and not really onlining either.
Oh. My room's done and all, but it's still a little cluttered.
Will take some pics of it soon.
Sigh.
Life's depressingly boring.

Idol Alumni Review

Currently Listening To: Adam Lambert - Strut

Okay forget the whole Adam Lambert fiasco, I was just listening to his new album (released yesterday) and also Kris Allen's (released last week), and here are my reviews for both albums.

Kris Allen


Track Listing:
1. Live Like We're Dying
2. Before We Come Undone
3. Can't Stay Away
4. The Truth
5. Written All Over My Face
6. Bring It Back
7. Red Guitar
8. Is It Over
9. Let It Rain
10. Alright With Me
11. Lifetime
12. I Need To Know
13. Heartless


Well I'm sure you know I'm not exactly a Kris Allen fan but I decided to check out his album anyway. What can I say, it's not so bad after all. It's not my kinda thing, and it's too The Fray-ish (I don't like The Fray) and my general impression of it is um, kinda boring. Out of the whole album I only like...three songs? Everything else sounds similar. And none of the other songs in the album are suitable singles so...I'm not sure what he should release next.

Fortunately the end result is a lot better than I had expected. Kris Allen fans, just go for it - you'll definitely like his debut.

Recommended: Live Like We're Dying, Before We Come Undone, Is It Over, Let It Rain. (6.5/10)

For Your Entertainment

Can I say...tacky album cover? I don't care about the gay thing though most people would, personally I'm more concerned about how amateurish it looks...take the background for example. I think I'd do better with photoshop!

Track Listing:
1. Music Again
2. For Your Entertainment
3. Whataya Want from Me
4. Strut
5. Soaked
6. Sure Fire Winners
7. A Loaded Smile
8. If I Had You
9. Fever
10. Sleepwalker
11. Aftermath
12. Broken Open
13. Time for Miracles (Bonus)


When I first heard this in Facebook, I wasn't impressed. However, after finally sitting down and listening closely, For Your Entertainment is not bad either. Except the title track, now that song is just...too Britney-ish. Some songs are a bit same-y (For Your Entertainment, Strut, If I Had You) but it's quite varied honestly. In fact, I actually quite enjoyed listening to the album =P

Overall, the main problem with the album is that it doesn't sound very Adam Lambert-ish. It's more like a combination of the songs rejected by those artists who wrote them in the first place (Gaga's Fever sounds like Gaga, the only difference is that Gaga's not the one singing the song. The Matt Bellamy composed Soaked? It's a typical Muse track. Sleepwalker? Very One Republic-ish.)

P.S: On second thoughts, I think Adam should release Aftermath as his next single after Whataya Want From Me. Sounds very mainstream rock-ish, and should do relatively well in the charts.

Recommended: Whataya Want From Me, Soaked, Sleepwalker, Aftermath (sounds Daughtry-ish) Broken Open, Time For Miracles. (7/10)

I think it's sad that neither of them are doing well in the charts after all that hype...Kris Allen, as an American Idol winner? He's not doing too well. The Davids were so much better.

Not Entertained

I just have to blog about this...Adam Lambert's performance at the American Music Awards? It was terrible!

I know the whole fuss is about the um visual performance, but honestly I'm more concerned about the vocals. A mess, through and through. Out of tune, screechy - I don't know what to say. I mean, it's Adam Lambert, he can sing like hell and yet he does this for his breakout performance???

As for the 'performing' part...it was so Britney and Madonna. Tacky best describes it!

A few hours later...

Omg. I'm still in disbelief. I just can't believe that Adam Lambert just more or less committed career suicide, something that I had hoped both him and Kris would not do.

Sure, he got the attention all right. Just the wrong sort of attention. What the hell were you thinking Lambert? Shock the audience and that's it? Whatever happened to the music? Shock factor aside, the performance - choreography, singing, 'dancing', stage presence - fell flat.

Now parents/conservatives and the horrified audience are gonna be pissed off at him and from what I can see, his fans are abandoning him in droves and that will so kill his career. And For Your Entertainment just debuted today!

Don't get me wrong, I still am a fan but I'm very disappointed with this performance at the AMAs. Bad move Adam, bad move. How are you going to get yourself out of this mess now??

Nothing Entertaining

Currently Listening To: Adam Lambert - For Your Entertainment

As I'm typing this, they are upstairs in my room with my new furniture. Arranging it. Or maybe not. I think hear some sawing being done.

My room will be ready by tonight! Unfortunately I do not have a mattress yet so I'm still stuck sleeping downstairs for at least two more nights.


My room, minus the furniture. Purple walls!

Okay other than that, I haven't been doing much for the past whole week. Just packed stuff, watching people paint my house, catching up on Gossip Girls, rotting online, occasionally reading a book or two, playing TOTA again...and that's about it. I'd look for a job, but I have to deal with the whole room thing first. I'll also have to think about what sort of job to apply for...more standing at malls? Training at factories? Random office work?

P.S: I'll be reviewing Adam Lambert and Kris Allen's albums next.

Renovation

Currently Listening To: Arctic Monkeys - Cornerstone

Woohoo my room's gonna be renovated next week!
I think the painters are coming on Wednesday.

Anyway, I'm getting new furniture (not the Umineko kind, though that would be useful...) and my room will finally be painted in different shades of purple-ish gray-ish tones.

As much as I'm looking forward to that, I can't help wondering where I'll be sleeping for the next two weeks or so. I mean, the whole house is gonna re-painted too so it'll stink of paint! I'm sure even the 'odour-less paints' have some sort of scent. Maybe I should start spraying perfume all over haha.

Will take pictures of my room once it's done. I should probably take more pictures of the old design for memories sake...once I'm done packing. My room looks terrible at the moment!

All my books are already in boxes, so I guess I should pack up my clothes next. Not to forget the little bits and pieces of random stuff. And of course, the process of untangling the computer wires. Can all of that be done before Wednesday? I'm starting to have my doubts...

Zombified

Currently Listening To: Keane - Sovereign Light Cafe

I still don't have anything to blog about, so a few minor updates.

Just finished the Human Resource Management paper a few hours ago.
Yep, another evening paper.
I don't suppose it was that bad, the exam I mean. Answerable at least.

One more paper left - Managing Change next Monday, and then I'll be free for the next few months. Need to get a job, or I'll rot into a pile of ashes by the end of November.

I guess that's all for now, for some odd reason I'm really sleepy tonight so...good night?

Hmmm

I promised that I'd blog today, but I have nothing =(

Most pointless post ever!

It's Been A While...

Currently Listening To: Blue - All Rise

...since I listened to music from the 90's and the early 2000s!

I was inspired to check out the videos for all those 90s bands last night.
Sigh, the good old cheesy days.

I remember being a huge fan of Steps (anyone remember them?) and S Club 7 about like, more than ten years ago (omg can you believe it has been ten years and more??) It wasn't just them though, I think I was into every British group that came out at that time - Westlife (apparently they've covered Daughtry's What About Now and will be released sometime in November), Atomic Kitten, 5ive, M2M, Blue and a -forgotten- band called Point Break.

Ahh, the good old days.



Used to be obsessed with this video! They were pretty good dancers...
(wanted to post Steps' Say You'll Be Mine too but embedding not allowed)

I joined a S Club 7 contest once, where we had to design a logo for them and I actually won a CD! Still have it now, and I think I can remember most of the lyrics for all S Club 7 songs =D

They even had their own tv series, I remember watching it on TV back then. It was soooo cheesy, but I kept watching anyway. Anyone else watched that??

Found my first 'lyrics book' while hunting for my old CDs. Can't believe I wrote all those lyrics down! (Oh who am I kidding, I still do that. Think I have about a dozen books dedicated to lyrics...haha) I remember buying those Smash Hits magazines, and they weren't cheap. Should have kept them instead of throwing them away...


Girl Thing - Last One Standing

For some odd reason, I really loved this song. Even after all these years, I still like this song lol. The official video was fun! (Ripping off the Spice Girls though) Too bad they only had one hit...


Gosh I really miss those songs.
Cheesy or not, those songs were fun to listen to!
*goes off to listen to my old CDs*
=D

Fall '09 Watchlist

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Fairytale

So it's like the new season for everything.
I have like, a ton of shows to watch seriously.
I know I can choose not to watch them, but then where's the fun?

Downloaded a few episodes of Glee so far, but have yet to even glance at it.
Eastwick looks interesting, but I doubt I'll be watching that anytime soon.
So I guess my main focus is on the existing shows, and even that I'm relying on Astro to show it soon! (Knowing them it's not gonna be soon)

Then there's the fall anime lineup.
Downloaded the first episodes of everything on my watchlist. *pokes list* ->
Have watched most of it too.
First impressions:
Kimi ni Todoke - It's quite interesting, so I guess I'll continue watching this. Shoujo stuff.
The Sacred Blacksmith - Oh god. Not impressed. Probably dropping it unless it gets more interesting.
Fairytail - Well, I like the manga so I'm definitely watching this. First episode is just...normal. Not good nor bad. Can't wait to hear Sayaka Ohara in this (Yuuko and Beatrice rocks so yeah!).
Kampfer - Surprisingly, the one with the cheesiest storyline is better than the rest. Just my opinion anyway. Watch only if you're interested in silly, gender-swapping stuff.
Armed Librarians - The Book of Bantorra - The title seems a little stuffy, but it's actually not bad. When I first went read through the titles, my thought was Sacred Blacksmith > Armed Librarians. I suppose looks are not the only things that are deceiving!
11 Eyes - Uh...kinda weird. And Daisuke Ono again. I swear, that dude is everywhere this year! Cute school uniforms, annoying female lead. Could be interesting I suppose, will keep an eye on this one. Get it? Eye? Haha.

Sigh, it sure looks like my 'currently watching' list is going to expand considerably.

Some Updates

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Natsu no Ringo

• This semester's ending in less than 2 weeks.
  
• I have one more assignment left - a presentation actually. It's next week.
  
• My fingernails are too long and it's starting to get in the way of my typing. Not that my typing's any good to begin with.
  
• Exams in about a month. Boohoo =(
  
• I only have two papers to sit for this time. Woohoo!
  
• I think I lost weight...
  
• Not impressed with Alison Iraheta's (AI8 third runner up) new single.
  
• Last black screen of death - one week ago. Hope it's gone for good.
  
• Can't wait for tomorrow's episode of Umineko =)
  
• Will be having sushi for dinner.

Ill-fated

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Oblivious

I seem to have really bad luck with electronic devices.

Take my laptop for example.

It's only about six months old? But I'm already encountering problems with it.

I can't pinpoint the exact problem, but it should have something to do with the Vista updates. It was working fine until the last update was downloaded. Not installed yet, just downloaded.

And then my laptop just froze. Nothing worked. At that time I only had Firefox and Windows Media Player on, so it must have been either one of them causing the problem. Or the update I mentioned earlier. That's what I thought anyway.

Since I couldn't shut it down the usual way, I had to force it to shut down.

Then I tried to restart it. Unfortunately what greeted me was a blank screen with only the taskbar visible. So I started to freak out. Once again, nothing worked so I had to force it shut, and the next restart in Safe Mode resulted in a totally blank screen with only a white cursor.

I can't begin to tell you how horrified I was then. I mean, my laptop's still relatively new and my mum would so totally kill me if I were to tell her that it died for no reason.

It was already quite late then, so I just did a little research on Vista's black screens of death with my surprisingly well-behaved computer (usually it's as slow as hell, and constantly freezes - not in the freaky Vista way though).

Found out that it's ridiculously common, so I calmed down a bit and told myself to attempt fixing it the next day.

The next morning I was prompted to start windows in safe mode so I did that. Thankfully it worked! After fiddling in safe mode a bit, I restarted the system in normal mode and woohoo no more blank screens.

Was really happy about it until...the stupid thing froze again. And again. And again.

Thought it was a problem with Mozilla Firefox, so I used Internet Explorer instead. And it froze for no reason. Again. Moved on to Google Chrome, and it seemed to be working fine...

...until a few moments ago. Well, Chrome wasn't the thing that made it froze - Ares seems to be the cause this time.

Yes, Vista crashed while I was typing this!
I thought maybe Facebook's the culprit, but I guess not.

Anyone know what's wrong with it?
Something must be causing it to freeze.
Everything was working fine until that update.

Okay maybe not everything? Last Saturday the wireless network was faulty. It couldn't detect any networks, and the wireless switch was on, but the Windows diagnosis kept saying that it wasn't. It only worked again after I left the laptop for 8 hours.

I don't think it's my fault? Or at least I hope it isn't.
Okay probably not. Since Vista's notorious for being lousy.

Gosh this is irritating. My computer's as slow as hell (I think something's wrong with one of the hardwares) and my laptop keeps crashing? Not good.

If anyone has a solution to this please let me know.

I really do have bad luck with this kind of stuff =(

The Resistance

Currently Listening To: Muse - The Resistance

It's been a while since I've reviewed any music, so here's a review of Muse's fifth and latest album, The Resistance.

This is also the first time I've downloaded a Muse album in full, usually I only go for a few selected songs per album.



Hmmmm interesting cover, can't say I like it though.

I'm actually listening to the album as I'm typing this, so this review would my very first impression of it - so far every single song is super duper dramatic. It's like a very long symphony, and has a classical yet operatic feel to the whole thing.

One thing's for sure - it's very varied. No one can ever fault The Resistance for sounding too samey.

I can safely conclude that lead single Uprising is the one and only more commercial sounding track, cos everything else is just over-the-top, and you can tell that Matt Bellamy, the lead singer, was seriously influence by Queen. Like seriously.

In fact I think the main flaw of this album is that it takes itself too seriously. Or rather, Matt Bellamy takes it too seriously I guess. Didn't really pay any attention to the lyrics yet, but from what I've read it's all very anti-government. Not that I'm complaining, but that is one very heavy subject.

It's nearly the end of the album now, and my head's feeling reeeeeally heavy.
Looking through other reviews for it.
Rolling Stones - not really liking the album, I see.
The reviewer from The Star wasn't very into it either. Both gave it a 3 out of 5 stars.
Pitchfork Media and NME gave it an average rating of about 5.95 out of 10. Which translates to 3 out of 5 lol.
Q magazine and Allmusic loved it - then again Q gives almost everyone 4 out 5 anyway so yeah.

Tracklist:
1. Uprising
2. Resistance
3. Undisclosed Desires
4. United States of Eurasia/Collateral Damage
5. Guiding Light
6. Unnatural Selection
7. MK Ultra
8. I Belong to You/Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix
9. Exogenesis: Symphony Part 1 (Overture)
10. Exogenesis: Symphony Part 2 (Cross-Pollination)
11. Exogenesis: Symphony Part 3 (Redemption)

My final verdict? Well, it's too much. I mean, I do like some of the songs but overall it is way too fancy, way too dramatic, Adam Lambert would be absolutely excited about this album but not me!

The Exogenesis Symphony is like, listening to a rock version of Maksim. Individually, each song is only about 4 minutes long but as a whole it feels like a 30-minute overture.

Would I listen to this album from start to finish again? Yes I would, but only once in a while. It's better than say, Keane's Perfect Symmetry or Coldplay's Viva La Vida in terms of variation, but seriously the other two are a lot more accesible.

Final Rating: 6.8/10
Recommended:
Resistance, Undisclosed Desires, United States of Eurasia, Unnatural Selection.

(Come to think of it, even the song titles are super fancy O.o)

BTW I'm really liking Keane's new song Sovereign Light Cafe. It has an old-school feel to it and I like that. No fancy, trying-too-hard stuff. In other words, no Perfect Symmetry, Viva La Vida or the The Resistance (the whole freaking album, not just the song)!

Kris Allen

Currently Listening To: Taylor Swift - You Belong To Me

Kris Allen must be the first American Idol to release a cover for his first single outside of the whole American Idol thing.

I mean seriously. Do you know what this means? It means that he's still being thrown under the bus even after WINNING the freaking title.

How sad can it get??

Oh yeah. Kris fans not realizing the significance of that. And insisting that it's all right.

No it is not all right. He's the American Idol for heaven's sake! He deserves his own song, not some stupid cover. Whether the song was released by the original artist or not, it's still a freaking cover. Argument null and void!

All I can say is...poor Kris.

If anyone's wondering about the song, it's a cover of The Script's 'Live Like We're Dying'.

You know what, I think No Boundaries as the winning song is already bad enough. Now this? Just sad. Real sad.

On the bright side, the song's not too bad. The not so bright side - he sounds exactly like the lead singer of The Script. That, is not a good start for his career. You're suppose to sound like yourself, singing your own songs. Not like someone else!

Hopefully the rest of the album won't be covers, or else you are the next Westlife my dear Mr. Allen!

So Kris, once you're done with this album? Leave this record label and find someone else more willing to invest in you.

(If Adam Lambert releases a cover as his first single too I'm so gonna scream!)

Le Sighs

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Storia

It's semi-official.
The blogdom is semi-dead.
Meaning nobody's really updating anything anymore.
And that includes me.
In fact, I'm only blogging now because there isn't anything else for me to do.

Aargh I'm damn bored.
It's the holiday season again.
The Raya break's only two days, but looks like all the lecturers are on MC...
So I'm officially free tomorrow until...God knows when.
To sum it up I'm free for two weeks.

I love holidays and all, but I don't really know what to do for the next two weeks.
It's gonna be boring like hell!
On the bright side I just got wireless today.
No longer confined to my messy desk.

Also, for once I'll be attending the Inti prom.
Just got a dress for it today. Might be a little fancy I think, but who cares.
It's a prom! For some odd reason Taylor Swift's dress in the Love Story vid comes to mind. Love that dress.
The next thing to do is to shop for new heels.
A lovely way to waste mummy's money.

Anyway, zoning off for now.
Till next time.

(It's a dry spell for bloggers now I guess)

A Boring Weekend

Currently Listening To: Akiko Shikata - Katayoku no Tori

Alright, it has been more than ten days since I last updated my blog.

Whatever happened to updating my blog at least once a week eh?

Well at least it's not once a month haha.

Not that anyone's updating their blog often lately anyway.

Now rushing to finish off the case study for HR Management.

Thought it's suppose to be due on the 18th, but it's due on Monday instead.

Just started working on it yesterday afternoon.

Thank God this time I made amazing progress! Only 200+ words to go and I'll be free!

Guess I really do work better under pressure.

Unfortunately when I'm done with this I'll have to start working on a 10 page long case study for Managing Change.

What can I say? Screw assignments!

6

Currently Listening To:Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling

Oh my g--!
It's week six already.
That's like...halfway through the semester.
I really hate it when time flies.
It just leaves you feeling...displeased and discouraged.
Well it makes me feel displeased and discouraged anyway.

I finally found the softcover version of The Last Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko in Borders!



I've been waiting for that book for...almost a year already. Unbelievable. Feels like I've just read The Night Watch yesterday.

I have other books in mind too...waiting for my MPH voucher so I can get the softcover version of Inkdeath. Saw this book called Ink Exchange. Looks interesting but it's a series...again.

(Ok this is gonna sound crazy but I intend to do this...stock check on the books I own, and see how much I've spent on them. Thanks Becky for this wonderful idea @_@)

What else?
Handed in three assignments today.
Yep, three in one day. Lovely.
One more due next week.

I guess there's nothing else...

Oh yeah one more thing...

CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S SEPTEMBER ALREADY!

Also, I've finished downloading the first season of The Tudors.
Will watch it during my next main break I suppose.

...Un-freaking-believable!

...

The left CTRL button on my laptop came off!



SEE SEE???

HOW DID THAT HAPPEN??

One Week of Nightmares

Currently Listening To: Razorlight - Burberry Blue Eyes

Well, I have a study break this week. Call it a holiday if you want, but it isn't. Too swamped with ridiculously stuffy assignments.

Three due on the same day - 1st September, and I'm only about halfway through the first assignment! Darn it.

Maybe I should have started doing it earlier, but I don't think it'll make much difference cos I'm sort of a last minute kinda person.

I swear to you I can just stare at a blank screen or a blank sheet of paper for weeks, and not do anything until the very last moment.

So right now, I'm staring at my laptop and attempting to finish off the assignment for Managing Change 300, with an online thesaurus on standby haha.

When in doubt, write in tongues - that's my motto.

In A Daze

Currently Listening To: Kylie Minogue - I Believe In You

Sigh, I can't believe it's already the fourth week of the second semester of my second year.

Last night, I had trouble sleeping because I just couldn't stop thinking about assignments.

Three due in about 2 - 3 weeks, and I don't really know what to do about it yet.

Some crazy dude in my class had already completed his first draft a few days ago, while the rest of us are still half asleep O.o

Well, I'm half asleep anyway lol.

I need motivation!

The only thing that motivates me right now is Umineko no Naku Koro ni, and that's not applicable in real life =P

Unless...there are freaky murder mysteries for me to solve...

Dreary Weekend

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Storia

Wanted to blog about Umineko no Naku Koro ni earlier, but got lazy.

Will attempt to compose an intelligent and analytical 'essay' for it when I finally gather my scattered thoughts together.

God it has been raining -almost- non-stop here in Penang ever since mid-afternoon.

Dreary.

Endurance is a Virtue

Currently Listening To: Utada Hikaru - Beautiful World

I can't believe I managed to endure a 3 hour Consumer Behaviour lecture today, with only the newbies and no one else I know.

Man them newbies are quiet.

And they seem to be a bunch of smart-asses too.

By smart-asses I mean studious people. No goofing off, no sleeping in class, returned SUPER DUPER early from breaks (I think some of them didn't even leave the room O.o) - heck they didn't talk much either.

I mean, they even answered and came up with their own questions!

Studious indeed.

And get this - all of them actually speak decent (almost too perfect) English.

I don't know if I should be impressed or annoyed...

Anyway, that's all for the story of my life today.

(Making an attempt to blog more often. Need to find more interesting topics to talk about...)

Oh boy

Currently Listening To: Gossip - Heavy Cross

Omigosh I survived two days without the Internet and I nearly died of boredom =( As usual, Streamyx screwed up and I had to call them to get the line fixed.
Annnnnnd the stupid technician just had to call me at 8.30 a.m. when I was STILL ASLEEP! Screw them for making me wake up at such an ungodly hour too.

Anyway, I spent the past two days doing nothing.
Watched some Monochrome Factor (I abandoned that show about 4 months ago btw), an episode of Gossip Girls (bahaha still first season), caught up with Valkyria Chronicles up to episode 10, watched all episodes of the Endless Eight nonsense from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya...rewatched Umineko no Naku Koro ni (omg yes I'm obsessed with that anime! Nothing beats a supernatural-cum-psychological murder mystery). Watch Umineko people, watch it!

What else?
I guess nothing else.
Just that. TV, computer and me.
Oh and classes too.
Something's due in 2 weeks but I'm not sure what.

zZzZz

Currently Listening To: Sean Kingston - Fire Burning

Right, a little update about college life so far.

I'm kinda sleepy now so forgive me if this post isn't really coherent.

Now where was I? Oh yeah, college.

So far so good I guess. Boring subs.

There are only 6 students for the Human Resource Management class. Amazing huh.

Need to start preparing for assignments...the first one's due in...4 weeks or so?

I'm so unprepared for the new sem...still feeling somewhat disorientated.

The schedule's all over the place too, especially Tuesday.

Class from 11am to 2pm, then a 3 hour break, and back to Inti from 5 - 6pm. Fun.

*yawns*

I should sleep soon.

Deja vu?

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Storia

What joy, the new semester starts tomorrow. Sigh. I'm getting this feeling of deja vu.

As you all know I've been rotting for the past 5 weeks or so, and yet I'm reluctant to get back to INTI.

The idea of studying doesn't appeal to me anymore (just last week I was kinda excited about it O_o).

Let's see, I'm taking 4 subjects again this semester.

There's this subject called Managing Change, and I'm wondering what sort of change are we suppose to be managing. Since Yeoh Khar Kheng's the lecturer, I'm gonna assume that it'll have something to do with the environment. Ideas, anyone?

The other subjects are not so weird sounding I guess, Consumer Behaviour, Sales Management and Human Resource Management.

Decent subjects this sem? We'll see.

Can't Think Of A Proper Title So You're Stuck With This

Currently Listening To: Michael Jackson - Don't Stop Till You Get Enough

I promised myself to update my blog at least once every week so...here I am, wondering what I should blog about.

Honestly, nothing much happened in the past week either. Just the same old boring existence.

Since there isn't much for me to do (well, actually there's a lot of things I COULD be doing but I give up - I'm just too lazy *cough*), I've been sitting around re-reading stuff.

Mostly murder mysteries. Ugh I'm addicted to Agatha Christie, there's a huge stack of Agatha Christie books lying on my table. I've also been re-reading Sherlock Holmes...I think I'm beginning to see conspiracies and mysteries everywhere. Seriously, Malaysia's beginning to look like a breeding ground for murders and crappy politics.

Mysteries aside, I'm also reading stuff from Phillipa Gregory. Somehow I find the historical setting fascinating xD

So far I've only read The Other Queen, and I found it quite interesting. It's suppose to be her weakest, but I don't really have any complaints about it. Just bought The Boleyn Inheritance yesterday, looks promising.

If anyone's looking for something lighthearted to read, the Private series might appeal to you (if you're a girl anyway). More murder mysteries hehe. Google for more information if you're interested - thanks Mandy for recommending this series to me XD

As for guys, I have no idea. Try some sci-fi stuff?

Man I'm back to being obsessed with books. Just finished re-reading The Neverending Story by Michael Ende too. Great book, check it out if you're into fantasy.

Sigh at the rate I'm going, I think I'll probably end up spending nearly RM1000 on books this year. Woohoo for the bibliophile in me!

You Know You're Obsessed when...

Currently Listening To: Kings of Leon - Manhattan

...you repeatedly check something again and again, even though you can't do anything about it yet.

You know you're obsessed when you sit around thinking about that particular 'thing'.

You know you're obsessed when you actually DREAM about that said 'thing'.

That's right people, I am officially obsessed with Facebook games!

And no, I'm not kidding when I claim to have dreamt of Restaurant City (a game in Facebook, obviously).

No I wasn't in the game, I dreamt that I was PLAYING the game. Stupid, but true.

Restaurant City is not the only game I'm playing.

The incredibly long list includes Blackjack, Solitaire, a weak attempt to try out Poker, some lame ass game called Sorority Life, the incredibly silly Pet Society, the pointless Farmville...

Wait, there's more - there's also Mousehunt, Ghost Trappers, Mafia Wars and even Vampire Wars (I think most people gave up on this one).

Because of this unhealthy obsession, I think it'd be better if holidays end faster.

Otherwise I'd be glued to my laptop all day long. Except when I'm watching something. And that's not healthy either!

Remind me to tear myself away from the laptop long enough to enrol for my next semester...

I is no good =[

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Kimi ga Hikari ni Kaete yuku

I've always prided (is that the right word?) myself for having a decent command of English, but lately I've been feeling a little less...certain about it.

There are times when I'm typing a sentence, and I'm thinking "Omg this IS or this ARE?" and that's like what, basic grammar? Gosh. And here I am going all 'AHHA someone needs grammar lessons!' and all that. (Talk about having a big ego huh?)

Gone are the days where my essays are returned to me without a single grammar mistake.

*whines*

(There goes that ego again urgh!)

Then again I don't get my essays back anymore so I don't really know, but I'm 99% sure I've made some major 'This are my chicken!!' moments.

Okay I'm not trying to boast here! I'm feeling really lousy and insecure about my grammar =( Please don't laugh at me, or think that I have this gigantic swollen head for being totally egoistical about my English.

(On second thoughts I think you should haha.)

I've triple-checked this post for my grammar, and I don't think I've made any major omg-your-grammar-stinks mistakes. But I'm not sure!!! =(

*sobs*

Farewell to a Legend

Currently Listening To: Yui - Again

I’m sure everyone knows this by now – Michael Jackson died last Thursday, cause of death still apparently undetermined though.

Most probably drug overdose, it’s the only thing that makes sense.

May you rest in peace MJ, you’re finally free from all that crap.

I feel sorry for him you know...as weird as he may seem be to most of us, he was one troubled, misunderstood guy and he really didn’t deserve a lot of the things he had to deal with. A victim of circumstances, I suppose. That and the fact that he was (is?) famous, and he couldn’t handle the fame.

It’s so sad when people judge him without actually knowing him personally. It’s sad and disrespectful. I mean c’mon, dude’s already dead, give him a break!

Sigh.

R.I.P Michael Joseph Jackson (1958 - 2009), your fans will always miss you.

-x-

I promised the NZN manager/boss/whatever that I’ll help her out tomorrow (30th, 30% off on all packed ice creams) so yeah...I’m working.

I’ve been trying to finish off Gundam 00 but I can’t seem to concentrate on it. There’s way too much conversation and way too many Saji/Louise moments. Every time I see them I feel like screaming.

G00’s version of ‘SEED Mode’ aka Innovator ‘power’ kinda stinks too. There’s nothing lamer than random characters possessing random, strange abilities. On the bright side I’ve never felt so delighted to see certain characters die. Talk about good riddance to bad rubbish.

To think that G00 season 2 started off so promisingly...I’m seriously disappointed. Enough of the gundam series, I’m so skipping the next one.

Hopefully I can finish this off by tomorrow!

Another Word For Unreliable?

Currently Listening To: May'n - Infinity

Omggggggggg my line's finally back!
Can't believe I've survived one whole week without the Internet.
...
Then again I did go online using my phone so uh...I cheated a little :P

Anyway I'm just glad that it's back!
The whole process (long story, don't feel like explaining) was only suppose to last for 3 to 5 days but instead it dragged on to 6 days. Seriously, the Streamyx staff are a bunch of idiots. Now that my line's back, the phone ain't working. Any ideas what's wrong with it?

-x-

It's been a week since exams ended, and mostly I've been doing nothing.
Lame huh?
At least I finished off Kuroshitsuji!
But that's about it...
What am I gonna do for the next 3 weeks????
Sigh.

More About Music

Currently Listening To: Empire of the Sun - Standing On The Shore

You know what, I really should just turn this blog into a music blog, since that seems to be the only thing I talk about. Call it an obsession or whatever, but I don't think I'll be able to live without music. Yeah, music rocks!~

Anyway, I've been listening to White Lies and Empire of the Sun a lot lately.
Fairly unusual stuff, if you're not into/tired of mainstream music, do check these guys out! White Lies will be touring with Coldplay soon too (or maybe they're already touring now), so good exposure for them. And I'll have to admit this, I'd take White Lies over Coldplay anytime.


White Lies's latest single

However, White Lies seems to have an obsession with death and other morbid stuff. Seriously, that's the only thing they sing about! Especially the song Unfinished Business, if I understand the lyrics correctly the song's about the dude's girlfriend killing him and yet he's still pining for her or something. Get it? Unfinished business? =P

Rating for White Lies' debut album To Lose My Life...: 8/10 ♥ ♥

Rating for Empire of the Sun's debut album Walking On A Dream: 7.5/10

And I love Jason Mraz's Lucky too, awesome song.



Utada Hikaru has a new single, and it's an English song. I think she should stick to Japanese songs. So much better than her English stuff. Her new single, Come Back To Me (apparently written by her father) reminds me of Mariah Carey's We Belong Together. I don't hate the song, but I don't really like it either.


(Can't find the official video on youtube)

~~~

*start rant*

Sigh, every time I hear Kris Allen's No Boundaries on the radio I change the station immediately.

Why, you wonder?

Well, I blame Hitz.fm for that!
Thanks to that stupid poll in their website, I now hold a grudge against Kris's version of that song. I'm sorry Kris, I really don't have anything against you.

Truth is, I can't stand No Boundaries. But Adam made that song tolerable for me (the official single I mean, not the god awful finale performances).

So to take off Adam's No Boundaries from the playlist, that just...pisses me off.
I may have voted for Adam in that poll but I really don't want them to remove Kris's either so don't get mad at me Kris fans.

Damn you Hitz! I'm so over you, it's all Fly.fm for me from now on.

*end rant*

Phew, glad to get that off my chest...lol.

Fly Time, Flyyyyy!

Currently Listening To: White Lies - Unfinished Business

You know how time crawls when you want it to fly?
Well time sure is creeping by slowly for me.
To quote Shakespeare (out of context but whatever),

"Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day..."

Seriously, I just can't wait for Monday to be over!
Just one more paper and I'm done.
And after that, one month for me to rot away in a teeny tiny dark corner or something. That's better than exams anyway!

The three papers I've already sat for did not um, go that well. To sum it up, I'm screwed.

Like totally screwed.

I don't wanna do the same boring old subjects again! =(

Please just let me pass everything so I can move on to even more horrible subjects.

Please please please!~

Countdown

Currently Listening To: Empire of the Sun - We Are The People

4 days

That's all the time I have left for studying.

On the bright side, after the finals I have two weeks off.

Haven't been sleeping well for the past 3 to 4 days...terrible case of imsomnia.

Can't wait for it end!

-x-

If you've been watching Channel V, I'm sure you would have noticed a very um, unusual video by this band called Empire of the Sun. For some odd reason I'm addicted to that song now!

The song has this 80's feel to it, and well, the video's weird so check this out:




I guess the song's not for everyone, unless if you're into electro-pop stuff =P

Love, Save the Empty

Currently Listening To: Erin McCarley - Sleepwalking

Taking a break from Adam Lambert's usual screeches, I decided to randomly download songs from TV series (90210, Grey's Anatomy and stuff) and I kinda sorta discovered Erin McCarley (well actually I discovered her a few months ago, it's just that I'm blogging about her NOW).



More of those indie singer-songwriter stuff usually featured in TV shows. I'm normally just so-so about this type of music, but Erin McCarley is one the better ones (just my humble opinion, I like Sara Bareilles too, the rest not so much).




1. Pony (It's OK)
2. Blue Suitcase
3. Sticky-Sweet
4. Lovesick Mistake
5. Love, Save the Empty
6. It's Not That Easy
7. Hello/Goodbye
8. Pitter-Pat
9. Sleep Walking
10. Bobble Head
11. Gotta Figure This Out

Personal Favourites: Pony (It's Ok), Lovesick Mistake, Pitter-Pat, Sleepwalking, Gotta Figure This Out.
Verdict: Loooooove this album! 9/10 ♥♥♥


Take a listen if you're into this kind of stuff. Very relaxing music, hopefully Kris Allen follows in her footsteps. No more No Boundaries! Oh and do check out Meiko and Lenka as well, if you like Erin's music. I think Lenka's getting some promotion now, thanks to The Show (I don't like this song though, and btw Lenka's teeth is so distracting...) Erin has better songs and a less annoying voice, and Meiko is a bit similar to Erin...but Meiko has been around longer.



Meiko's Boys With Girlfriends



Unbelievable...just a few months ago she was still unknown! But then again, the same applies to Adam Lambert and Kris Allen...

Anyway, enjoy.

Wake-Up Call

Currently Listening To: Miley Cyrus - The Climb

Well, it has been a week since American Idol ended but I guess you can say that I'm still recovering from uh...the lack of American Idol this week =/

There's nothing fun for me to look forward to anymore.
No more entertainment on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
No more weird/quirky/awesome people for me to make fun off/praise.

Back to my boring, uneventful life.

Sigh, can't do anything about it until next year.

...

Not that I should be doing anything other than studying for the finals anyway!

2 weeks.

That's all the time I have left for studying.
4 subjects...
2 of them not so bad...
The other 2 just bleh.
Seriously hope I won't fail the freaking thing or I'll have to go through it all over again!
Wish me luck? =(

It's A Mad World

Currently Listening To: Adam Lambert - Cryin' (sorry Aerosmith)

Adam.

Adam, Adam, Adam.

Lambert that is, not any other Adams.

Well there is one other Adam that I should mention...
RIP to Adam Cook, David Cook's brother.
I'm really truly sorry for your loss Cookie =(

But this post is all about Adam Lambert, the runner-up of American Idol Season 8.

Yes, I am that obsessed with Adam Lambert!

I really don't mind Kris winning, but to me Adam Lambert is the rightful winner.

...

All right I'm lying, this post is actually about the results show lol.
A very good finale, minus some awkward performances. And the somewhat awkward coronation.

So I woke up at 7.45am this morning.

Turned on the TV at exactly 8am.

And watched the results finale for the full 2 hours.

Now I can't remember all the performances, so I'll just talk about those that I do remember.

First up was David Cook and he sang a song from his album, 'Permanent', dedicated to his brother Adam, who passed away a few weeks ago due to brain cancer. That was a really emotional moment for Cookie...I could see that he was trying really hard not to cry and well, he made me wanna cry too actually.

*sniff*

Moving on...
Lil Rounds performed with Queen Latifah...and um, they were both terrible. Nothing else to say about that.

The Allison Iraheta and Cyndi Lauper duet was a snoozefest...

Kris Allen sang with Keith Urban, decent performance but mostly boring.

Megan Joy and Michael Sarver sang Steve Martin's (yes, that white haired actor from Cheaper By The Dozen) new song or something. It was really weird O.o

Danny Gokey sang Lionel Ritchie's Hello, and I couldn't help but compare it to Cook's version of that song...David Cook >>>>> Danny Gokey duh.

I can't remember any other performances, seriously.

Kara outsang bikini girl, if that counts!!

And then we have the best performances of the night/morning...

Adam Lambert + KISS and Adam Lambert + Kris Allen + QUEEN

Naturally Adam Lambert stole the show, no offense to Kiss nor Queen. Or Kris.
Adam was just freaking amazing, and noone can ever deny that!

I guess that's the reason why the whole atmosphere was kinda muted when Kris was announced as the winner.

Cos Adam Lambert stole the show, and then for him to end up in second place?
It just didn't seem right, even to Kris.
Poor Kris was like, "Oh Adam deserves it more..." and for a moment there I thought he was gonna give up the title!

But anyway, I think Kris should be grateful and happy about his win cos I know Adam will be happy for him =)

An average season overall, but the most fascinating Top 2 ever.
With the most fascinating contestant in eight seasons - Adam Lambert.

EDIT: I just listened to the studio versions of No Boundaries, by both Kris and Adam. Sounds a lot better recorded than live.
You know I really thought that I would prefer Kris' version but I actually like Adam's better O.o
Don't get me wrong, it's still a pretty crappy song.
Can't say I'll ever buy Kris Allen's albums...

And the Winner of American Idol 2009 is....

Currently Listening To: Adam Lambert & Allison Iraheta - Slow Ride








Do not read this if you're planning to watch the repeat, and if you don't want any spoilers.







The winner of American Idol Season 8 is...







KRIS ALLEN

I say, congratulations Kris!
Way to prove that underdogs rule!

With that being said...
Although I predicted Kris winning and actually got that right...
(I thought Archie was gonna win last year but he didn't!)
Somehow I still think that Adam deserves to win more.
Simply because he's the better singer, better performer, had better performances, and also he was consistent throughout the whole show.

Another person who deserves the title more than Kris would be Allison. Most underrated contestant this season, in my opinion. Sad fact but what the heck.

Adam and Allison will find success out of idol, I think.
Kris...well, I fear he might end up like Taylor Hicks =/
I was right again, it is a repeat of Season 5!

Anyway, forget all that.
Congrats again, Kris and all the best to you Adam!
However Kris, I'm horrified that you'll have to release that ghastly No Boundaries as your first single.
Like seriously.
First time I heard it, I hated it - and Adam was singing!
The second time...while most would say that Kris sang it better than Adam, I beg to differ. I thought it was just a terrible as Adam's. It only sounded more pleasant because Kris wasn't screaming. To claim that Kris sang it better would be an insult to him!
And the third time around...let me put it this way. The results show was awesome, until Kris was crowned and he had to sing No Boundaries AGAIN.

I guess this should be my - last - official post on American Idol.
Till next year then!
Edit: Scratch that, I'll probably dedicate my next post to Adam and the results show.

It's a Wonderful World

Currently Listening To: Rihanna ft The Dream - Hatin' On The Club

Wow.

What a finale.

If you ask me...I think that was one of the more insipid final performances ever from the final 2.

Heck, even Jordin Sparks vs Blake Lewis was more exciting (and trust me, I can’t remember anything from that finale)

Yes of course I’m talking about American Idol!

It’s down to Adam Lambert and Kris Allen and what can I say...I have no idea who’s gonna win.

They’re both equally good in their own way, and well. They look really comfortable with each other too. I don’t think either of them would mind if the other person wins tomorrow.

(FYI yes I’ll be watching the results finale at 8am in the morning.)

About the performances today...well let’s have a look at what they sang.

First Round – Contestant’s Choice
Adam re-sang: Mad World from Top 8 - Year They Were Born
Kris re-sang: Ain’t No Sunshine from Top 9 - Popular iTunes Downloads

I’m a fan of Adam’s, but I’ll have to say that this round goes to Kris Allen.
Both re-sang their best and most memorable performances to date, and they didn’t do anything different to the songs. Both songs sounded exactly the same as their first time, Ain't No Sunshine even more so than Mad World. BUT Kris was more solid somehow, while Adam was a bit wishy-washy. Don’t get me wrong, I love both performances of Mad World but Ain’t No Sunshine sounded better to me. So yeah, Kris Allen for Round 1.

Second Round – Simon Fuller’s Choice

Adam: A Change Is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke
Kris: What's Going On by Marvin Gaye

I have no idea if Simon Fuller was trying to screw Kris up but the song he chose for the poor guy was just terribly boring. Kris did what he could with the song but it wasn’t good. Very lacklustre. It’s a great song and yet Kris wasn’t great. Now Adam on the other hand – he rocked that song choice, no doubt about it! Wasn’t really his style either but he at least conquered the song, unlike Kris. Round 2 for Adam Lambert

Third Round – Winner’s Song

Song:No Boundaries

...
I only have one thing to say about this song...
I can’t stand it!
IMHO, both Adam and Kris did terribly, with Adam screaming his way through it and Kris being horribly off-key. I mean, Adam sounded like Danny Gokey on one of his bad days!
I can't even decide who sang it better, because the song's just too awful.

Written by the amazingly obnoxious Kara DioGuardi, the song was so terrible Cowell couldn’t even comment on it. He couldn’t, and neither can I now. In fact, I'm getting a headache just thinking about it.

I can’t remember Jordin’s song, but at least I didn’t hate it. I do remember Blake being terrible, but then again it was totally out of his league.

This song?

If Adam’s wonderful voice can’t save it and Kris’ pleasant vocals can’t do it any justice...then it’s doomed. I don’t want either one of them to release it as a single. It’s like a death sentence. I don’t know about anyone else, but I really hate No Boundaries. Thanks a lot Kara!

Question: Magic Rainbows or Mountains and Hurricanes? I say, the freaking rainbow, as whimsical as that may sound.

EDIT: Bwahahaha them fans at idolforums.com agress with me!!! Kara, you stink, period.

At times like this, I miss Katharine McPhee and Elliot Yamin...both brilliant vocalists, and yet they lost to Taylor Hicks. And also Melinda Doolittle from Jordin’s season.

Carrie Underwood was the best tonight and she won like what, four seasons ago? And I don't even like Carrie!

Final Verdict?

Either of them can take the crown.

Like I’ve said before, they’re both good in their own way and honestly speaking? I want Adam to win, really I do, but Kris winning won’t be a bad thing either. If anything, he’ll be the next Jason Mraz (and I’m still waiting for Jason Castro from season 7 to release something).

~.~

Extra stuff for other AI/Adam fans!

Click Here!

Have a look at this video. You know, if I had watched that video without any sound...I would have never guessed that chubby blonde was Adam Lambert way back in 2000. He looks totally different! The only thing similar is that incredible voice of his. Amazing what nine years can do to a person...

Moving on from American Idol...

Check out this video!


More about her.

She's from Malaysia! She got discovered on Youtube, and now she’s signed on to Jack Johnson’s record label or something.

A Malaysian! For once...I’ll have to say MALAYSIA BOLEH - minus sarcasm -!

*beams like a proud parent*

She sounds like a cross between Norah Jones and Meiko.
Whaddya guys think?

♥ Kradam Finale ♥

Currently Listening To: Kate Ryan - Ella Elle L'a

FINALLY the moment I've been waiting for...

Danny Gokey's gone!

That means, Adam and Kris will be belting it out for the title next week.

Results - 8am, next Thursday.

I'm so waking up at 8am for American Idol next week. And my mum's joining me!

(Becky dear, I guess we're both happy! Your mum too!)

Once again, I have nothing against Danny. He's just not as good as Adam (vocally) and Kris (creativity). Still, all the best to Danny post-idol.

Now, a question for Idol fans - Adam or Kris for the win?
My money's on Adam, but I have funny feeling that Kris might just steal the show next week.

I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Definitely my favourite final two out of 8 seasons.
...yep, over Cookie and Archie.

And it looks like Kris and Adam are now best friends for life or something.
They're THAT close! (I can't help but wonder if Adam harbours any romantic feelings for Krissy =P)


What the hell are they doing? Comparing nailpolish??
Poor Danny looks completely left out.

Btw, Kara's expression when Ryan announced that Adam's in the final two over Danny?
Absolute bullshit.
I mean, the other judges were surprised too (and I was shaking so hard, my mum thought I'd gone crazy) but at least they had the decency to look, well, pleased. Seriously. I want Kara off the TV screen even more than Danny.

~.~

Moving on from AI, some random pics.
I was suppose to post pics of my laptop some weeks ago, but somehow I forgot.
Here they are now though:


And also something else...



Woohoo my mum bought us a new flat-screen LCD TV!
(Note my MUM, not DAD. I believe my dad threw a fit when my mum bought that. He hates the idea of spending money lol.)

Nearing the End...

Currently Listening To: Ayumi Hamasaki - Secret

Another American Idol update.
So we're down to the final three...
If I'm not wrong this is the first all male showdown in American Idol history.

Let's have a look at the Top 3 contestants again (Yes, I'm doing this cos I'm bored lol).

Adam Lambert



To be perfectly honest with you, I wasn't that impressed with Adam at the beginning of the whole competition. Like seriously. Thought he was overhyped. But you know what, Adam (unlike another contestant) actually lived up to that hype! Now I'm a huge, raving fan of dear Adam Lambert and I really hope he makes the Top 2 (amidst growing fears of an undeserving/shocking elimination and Kris Allen's amazing rendition of Kanye West's Heartless).

So how well did Adam performed on this crucial night?
Well...I don't know. I thought it was okay, but not great.
David Cook was a lot more impressive when he was at this stage.
And you know what this year they only get to sing two songs, one chosen by the judges and the other one by themselves (another stupid 'improvement' from the American Idol idiots).

Kris Allen



Initially, I wrote him off as a pretty boy with a mediocre voice.
Well, that remains the same I guess - he's still a pretty boy with a mediocre voice but boy is he a genius in re-arranging songs or what? I suppose the term 'Dark Horse' really describes him (Allison, too) and I really won't mind if he wins Idol, even though Adam deserves it a lot more.

I do like Kris a lot, but throughout the competition he was rather inconsistent. Unlike Adam, who pretty much rocked every single week (or maybe I'm just biased =P).
I loved his renditions of Ain't No Sunshine and She Works Hard For The Money, but other than that? Not that impressive.

Lastly, we have...

Danny Gokey



I can't believe I used to like this guy! I'm a little disgusted...no offense to Danny, but he's just not good enough to be in the Top 3. This feels like Season 5 all over again. He IS the Taylor Hicks of this season, and that's not a good sign.
Allison = Chris Daughtry, Kris = Elliot Yamin, Adam = Katharine McPhee?? I HOPE NOT!

Danny's performances were always mediocre, and for the past two weeks he just sucks ass. Why is he in the Top 3?? I really don't get his appeal anymore. In fact, I think he's even less appealing than Taylor, performance-wise! At least Taylor sounded great in the last few weeks of Season 5. Danny? Just urgh. It really is time to put the GO in GOkey. As in go home Gokey!

A quick recap of this week's performances:

Round 1 - Judges Choice
Adam (U2's One, chosen by Simon Cowell)
Kris (Apologize, Kara and Randy's choice)
Danny (I have no idea what he sang, but Paula chose it)

Round 1 to Adam Lambert. Loved the song, loved the way he sang it. Good job Cowell! Great choice.
Poor Kris got thrown under the bus again. First they picked that song for him, and then they criticized him to no end. What the hell?
And Danny...well, like I said before - he sucks ass, end of story.

Round 2 - Their Own Personal Selection
Adam (Aerosmith's Cryin)
Kris (Kanye West's Heartless)
Danny (I can't remember what he sang! Something by Joe Cocker lol)

Kris Allen ♥♥ wins this round, hands down! The best performance I've heard in weeks, I think. His acoustic version of Heartless kicks ass! And thanks to that, the judges couldn't give him a single criticism at all. HAH. In your face, stupid judges.
I didn't like Cryin that much, and that overly ambitious background singer who tried to outsing Adam (O_______O) didn't help either. I can only say this...David Cook >>>>> Adam Lambert =(

To end this extremely long blog post - Danny Gokey's the cat with nine lives, not Matt Giraud. He survived every single week thanks to his consistent mediocre-ness (is there another word for mediocre? I'm so tired of typing that word again and again). And the best part of it all? The judges praise him every week, no matter how much he stinks, no matter how much he screeches, and no matter how much Adam and Kris shines.
Go figure.

Some Updates

Ah I was suppose to update my blog days ago but I got really lazy so...
...here's a slightly outdated update for American Idol:












Allison Iraheta was eliminated from AI on Thursday =(
It's really sad actually, cos she definitely deserves to be in the competition more than Danny Gokey.
Come on America, it's time for him to go home.
Adam and Kris for the Top 2!

Other than that, I watched X-Men Origins: Wolverine on Thursday.


Pretty good movie I'd say.
Wolverine's one of my favourite characters, so obviously I don't mind a whole movie about him lol.
Also love the fact that Gambit was in this movie, cos he's my favourite character among the guys and had zero screen time in the first three movies =(
Apparently they're working on a Gambit movie too, so I'm looking forward to that!

And who knew that Will.i.am from Black Eyed Peas could act? He was actually good in the movie, and so was Ryan Reynolds (as Wade Wilson aka Deadpool).

If I'm not wrong there'll be a movie for Deadpool too, so I was thinking...why not a whole TV series about the origins of the X-Men? Instead of a bunch of X-Men movies...I mean, Halle Berry's talking about a movie for Storm. Sooner or later, all the other cast members will be demanding for a movie...now we can't have too many X-Men movies, can we?

Friday the 13th LOL - The Top 4 Performs

American Idol is now down to the Top 4.
And what do we have this week?
ROCK.
Oh yeah, the best theme ever!

So anyway, this week -
One person more or less stole the show.
And I won't even bother ranking them this week.
Cos it's unnecessary.

Needless to say, my dear ADAM totally stole the show tonight!
His solo performance was awesome; he sang Led Zeppelin and he rocked it!

Allison's solo performance was pretty good too, not her best in my opinion but still good.
Didn't like the judges' comments...they were being cold and cruel to her, and she deserves a lot more than that!

After Allison's performance, Danny and Kris sang a duet...together. And honestly speaking...that was one strange duet. Both of them lacked chemistry.

And I didn't really notice this during the actual performance, but I was reading the forums and people were saying Danny was sabotaging Kris on purpose by...well. Upstaging him. Sort of like, tried to stand out by making Kris feel small? Yeah, that.

That's not very nice, Danny. I used to be all for Danny, but ever since the past few weeks...I just don't fancy him much anymore. He's too boring, and he comes off as rather cocky; case in point, the duet.

Danny's solo was awful, to say the least. He sang Aerosmith's Dream On and he tried to SCREECH at the end of the song. There are only two words for that...massive FAIL. Well actually the rest of the song wasn't that bad but that screech ruined it all!

...and yet, the judges gave him somewhat positive comments. Simon was the only one with a negative comment for the SCREECH (he's so trying to imitate Adam, stupid Danny) - he compared it to a scream from a horror show LOLOL.

Kris didn't sing that well either...not a bad performance, but rock isn't his thing at all. It looks like either him or Danny will be going home tomorrow night...sigh, I feel bad for Kris. I hope he makes it to the Top 3 (so you won't kill me Becky dear =P)

The show ended with Adam and Allison's duet and...THEY ROCKED!
Like seriously, totally rocked. And they were like all over each other when their performance ended. (I kept thinking "WTF she's ten years younger than you Adam!" LOL.)


Results tomorrow, people. I can't help but wonder who's going home...

Shock, Horror, What Else?

I can't take it anymore - I need a break from the EIB essay *screams*
I know it's my fault for leaving this till the very last minute (first submission due tomorrow).
The actual submission date is Monday, but I don't think I can take the risk of not submitting it for uh, trial testing on turnitin first so...frankly speaking I'm screwed.

Anyway, enough of that for now.
American Idol Update first:

This week, a shocking bottom three.
Seriuosly. If you've been watching the show (like me), you'd be shocked too.

The contestants in the bottom three this week are....

...Matt...


...Kris...






....and ADAM.

Kinda unbelievable huh.

Allison and Danny looked absolutely shocked to see Adam in the bottom three.

Ryan (or would that be the American Idol production team...) did the whole "split four of them into two groups and make the remaining contestant choose which group he or she belongs to" trick again.

Remember Melinda Doolittle and David Archuleta? Both of them refused to choose (David A. sat in the middle and everyone thought that it was so sweeeeeeet of him), and I remember thinking "THIS IS STUPID!"

Well this year the victim is Adam, and he actually CHOSE a group. I got distracted by Australia's Next Top Model so I missed that part (hahaha crap I'm really addicted to that too). Okay so he chose Allison and Danny - I have no idea what Ryan asked him but I think he asked Adam "So who do you think the Top 2 contestants are this week?" Naturally, Ryan had to drag Adam over to Kris and Matt, and boy the expression on his face was just...upsetting and scary at the same time.

The crazy fans in idolforums.com are speculating all sorts of nonsense, but you know what? It's just stupid. Just accept that fact and vote more next week! Sheesh.

The person eliminated this week is Matt and Adam was apparently in the Bottom 2 with him so...too bad for Adam? He didn't deserve to be there, but he was, conspiracy or not.

If you ask me, I actually think that the whole Adam in the bottom 2 thing is some sort of a publicity stunt for Idol. The elimination process was too predictable, and they wanted to spice things up so they threw Adam to the dogs for the sake of more votes next week. I mean come on it's Adam. His fans are gonna vote like MAD next week, no doubt about that!

Right, that's all for this week.
I'm gonna continue with my essay now...

That Was One Big Bow, Paula!

Okay, I realize that blogging about American Idol at 1.30am is a bit crazy but what the heck. I missed the earlier show and I've just finished watching the 12.30am repeat (wasn't watching it alone either :P)

Was planning to blog about it later today, but since I'm not sleepy, I'm just gonna blog about it right now. So here we are, American Idol Season 8's Top 5 contestants!

This week they're singing songs from the Rat Pack (google that if you're interested), and Jamie Foxx is their mentor. He's not bad, actually gives good advice. Minus the whole Miley Cyrus rant thing.

Now before I continue on with the rankings, just keep in mind I'm ranking them in terms of vocals and not the whole performance (more on that later!). Here goes nothing:

5. Matt Giraud
I thought his whole performance was actually okay, but I can no longer stand the tone of his voice. It's a bit too squeaky for my liking. And he just kept squeaking from the beginning till the end. That and the fact that he's the weakest contestant left on the show, VOCALLY. Simon was right about the emotional connection thing. Matt had that, but lacked the vocal ability. Sorry dude, I think your time is really up this week.

4. Kris Allen
I feel a little disappointed ranking Kris so low. Then again, his performance was a bit on the boring side. And it showed his limited vocal range. Not a good thing, in my opinion. He lacked OOMPH tonight. While Matt's vocals (Mickey Mouse voice!) was worse than his, at least Matt somehow connected with his song choice. For Kris...it just sorta lacked emotional depth and his voice was just desperately mediocre tonight so...I don't know.

3. Danny Gokey
In the middle again. I think tonight was Danny's best performance in the Top 13, and yet to me it was still rather mediocre. Can't understand the hype about Danny's performance this week. Sure it was good, sure he wasn't exactly screaming the song...but it just wasn't great. I totally agree with the Taylor Hicks thing now, I can so see it!

2. Allison Iraheta
Love her voice this week! Just fantastic. It wasn't pitchy, she wasn't screaming and she looked awesome too. Definitely one of her best performances. I guess I - can - understand Simon's comment about the lack of connection with the song, but in general I think he got it wrong tonight. Why the sudden u-turn Simon? Some sort of stupid reverse psychology? Praise her when she's just ok, trash her when she's fantastic?

1. Adam Lambert
Okay, so technically - Adam's the best this week in terms of vocal ability. Hands down. No arguments. That single note he held?? Freaking fantastic! No one else can sing like him! (Well, unless you're Luciano Pavarotti but that's a totally different story) But was his performance enjoyable? Honestly speaking...I didn't really enjoy it. I think it lacked...theatrics...showmanship...and somehow I think he's holding back. Adam can do so much more with that voice, just youtube his stage performances if you don't believe me.


With that out of the way, I actually prefered Allison and Danny more than Adam tonight. It's the performance, really. Thought Adam was a little too stiff. Allison and Danny seemed a lot more comfortable. And no special lighting to help them either. That's right, Adam received some help from the special (code word for strange) beam-ish, blue lighting again. Not to mention...the STAIRS. So dramatic and overdone.

It's just crazy, how Adam's being pimped. And obviously everyone noticed (and are not pleased). Hope he'll get enough votes to last till the end cos it's the Top 5 already and the competition's a little tensed right now. Nobody had a bad performance tonight, and that's not a good thing.

Something Other Than AI

Currently Listening To: Taylor Swift - White Horse

Okay, so I shall blog about myself.
Although there isn't much to blog about unless you wanna hear me complain about assignments.
But since I'm already typing anyway...might as well complain about it!
(Twisted logic hahahahaha)

So where were we?
Oh right, assignments.
Curtin University of Technology loves complicated assignments.

Organizational Behaviour Assignment. (DUE TOMORROW - 28th April 2009)
Critical Essay, 2000 +/- 100 words.
Needs 10 references in the essay (not the conventional Harvard referencing system, but the apparently-very-special Chicago referencing system).
At least 5 of them must be jounals. The other 5 can be anything else, as long as it's "scholarly".
The unit coordinator is this dude named Dr. Tadayuki Miyamoto (normally I'll be all "YAY JAPANESE!", but in this case...it's a nightmare! Btw is Tadayuki a he or a she????? He or she is bloody fussy I tell you.)
It's due tomorrow, and I can assure you - at least 50% of my classmates are still...not done with that. Good luck to them.

Environmental Issues in Business Assignment. (DUE NEXT MONDAY)
I don't know what to say about this one.
0% progress so far. I'm just so awesome huh.

Communication in Business: 1 presentation due in two weeks, 1 full report due in three weeks.
Whee JOY.
I hate this subject.
The unit coordinator is boring, fussy and long-winded. The unit lecturer is boring, fussy and long-winded. And it's making me boring, fussy and long-winded!
What more can I say?

One more thing.

Guess what - I have two papers to sit for...from 6.45PM to 8.45PM.
Seriously!
This is the first time I've heard of sitting for exams during dinner time.
Maybe it's something normal in Australia?
Whatever it is...screw it.

And Then There Were Five

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Lacrimosa

American Idol Update:

Only five contestants left.


Who went home tonight?







Lil Rounds
(FINALLY! I did feel kinda sorry for her when Ryan told her she'll be going home. Even Simon was being reasonable tonight.)

Ya know, I really thought that Matt would be the second person going home tonight but....






Anoop Desai,
was voted off instead. Poor thing.
I really like Anoop and although I'm sad to see him go, he sorta screwed things up for himself
But seriously...what's with him in pink this week?
And no he does not look pretty in pink Trix!

The dance sequence for tonight's show was freaking awesome in a very strange way! Paula chereographed their dance, so...it was very Paula Abdul-ish.

Next week: AI8 Top 5. I wonder what's next week's theme...

A Memorable Disco Night...

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Serenato

Woohoo, first time I'm blogging from my -shiny- new laptop.
Anyway, moving on to more American Idol Updates.
It's the Top 7 again, this time singing for Disco Week.
I couldn't really imagine any of the contestants singing disco tunes and...I was right. Disco Night was hardly disco - more like a medley of all genres in disguise.

7. Lil Rounds
It's tiring to rank her at the bottom of the pack every single week, and I hope this week will be the last. Seriously, she just needs to go. Thank god the save is over and done with! Disco Night is suppose to be "her" night, but as usual she fails. To give her some credit, I think she did better tonight compared to last week (then again she was hardly singing. More like just moving along with the music). Goodbye Lil. And remember to always keep your mouth shut *cough*

6. Anoop Desai
Good job Anoop. Fantastic timing. Way to mess things up for yourself. For some silly reason Randy, Kara and Paula decided to choose this week to praise him. Simon was probably the only honest judge this week. It wasn't good. His vocals was sloppy, the song choice was strange, the facial hair was disturbing and his clothes - I'm speechless. It's like preppy meets disastrous prom night. He's in a really dangerous position this week.

5. Matt Giraud
The judges save him, and he decides to sing 'Staying Alive'. I didn't think it was that bad, but once again strange song choice. His range is just not suitable for this song. I mean come on, Matt and Bee Gees? Just wrong. I think he's going home...again.

4. Danny Gokey
Why is Danny always mediocre?! I don't get it. He actually has quite a good voice but he never steps out of his comfort zone. He never tries anything different - it's good to stick to what you do best, but in a competition like American Idol one really needs to try something different SOMETIMES.

3. Allison Iraheta
Allison turned 'Hot Stuff' into a rock song. Pretty interesting arrangement, I don't think that's her best performance but the judges were all loving it. Still on the 'let's pimp Allison now no matter what' track. A good thing I guess...

2. Kris Allen
Definitely one of his best performances. I really liked the jazzy arrangement for 'She Works Hard For The Money', and you know what - my mum liked it too. And she thought he looked great tonight! (She is not a Kris fan so coming from her...that's amazing.) If he keeps this up, he has a really good chance at winning AI8. Good for Kris I guess, cos no matter how fantastic Adam is...I have a funny feeling he's not going to win. So if Kris wins instead, I wouldn't mind at all.

1. Adam Lambert
Hands down, the best performance of the night. In my opinion, flawless vocals. Paula actually cried after his performance! I expected him to do something really wild and crazy for disco night, but that was not the case.



A ballad! Lol.



The strangest disco night ever. I think Lil and Danny were the only ones who tried to sing their song choices in a disco-ish way. Everyone else was...not disco-ing. Allison did rock, Adam...ballad-ified 'If I Can't Have You', Kris did his usual Kris thing, Matt was almost rapping and Anoop did something strange. I don't know what to say about that one. A bit Neyo-ish I suppose? Oh and he did get the pimp spot, so no more complaints from Anoop fans!

Not to brag or anything but...

...my mum bought me a laptop yesterday!~~~

*does the happy skipping onion thingy*

Bought it at the PC Fair, the brand is Toshiba, model Satellite M300-S411.

It costs RM3099 (expensive! x_x) but this model was the only one that caught my mum's eye.

Everything else was ugly to her.

And she refuses to buy anything ugly looking LOL.

So basically...she chose the laptop and I just said OK!!! XD

...

I can hardly believe I own a laptop now O.o

Eliminated...?

Currently Listening To: U2 - Magnificent

American Idol Update:

So who was in the bottom three tonight?

Anoop, Matt and Lil

(ANOOP??? WHAT TH- WHY DOES AMERICA HATE ANOOP?!?!)

And who was eliminated?

Matt...












Wait a minute.

He wasn't eliminated.

Hahaha gotcha!

The judges used their 'Save'.

I say, good for him. And the other remaining contestants were really happy for him too. What a lovely bunch of contestants this year!

One thing I'd like to know...who the hell was voting for Lil? What the hell man. Her singing wasn't the only thing that stank - her attitude too. And guess what, people still defend her and as if that's not ridiculous enough, they vote for her as well!

So unfair.

Oh Adam was so cute tonight!
What he said to Simon in response of Ryan's random provocations - I thought it was really funny lol.
And seriously, all the contestants this year are really nice, from what I can see. Even though I don't like Lil...I guess in general she's still okay.


Awww so sweet!

A Night of Boring Soundtracks

Currently Listening To: Kalafina - Serenato

Is it just me, or was tonight's American Idol a bit too dull? Why was everyone singing heart-wrenching ballads? WHY? Bored me to tears. Yes, even Adam was meh to me. And he wasn't singing a ballad (I wish he had though).

Top 7 theme: Idol at the Movies. Meaning, songs from movies.

On with the rankings.

7. Lil
You know what, I was gonna rank her a bit higher but after that tirade at Simon Cowell...I don't know what to say. Her singing wasn't that bad, in fact I thought it was a lot better than the person in 7th place. However, if she can't take criticism at all - please, just leave American Idol immediately. I've had enough of her, and I think the judges would agree with me. Constructive criticism from them every single week and she never once took their advice. And YET, she decides to throw a temper tantrum! What the hell man.

6. Matt
It really pains me to rank him this low, but seriously? That was awful dude! Viva La Vida all over again. This is so sad cos I actually like this guy, and this week is THE week for the contestants to try their absolute best to impress the judges and the audience. And what did Matt do? He falters. Badly. Epic fail. NOT SAFE AT ALL.

5. Danny
Typical Danny stuff again. Is this dude ever going to try something different? Doubt it. A solid performance despite the lack of originality. For some unknown reason, I still have faith in Danny. He's a nice guy, as far as I can see and he has a great voice. However, his song choices are really...well...boring. Bland. Predictable.

4. Kris
...I don't get the hype about this performance, with or without the "Adam treatment" (meaning fancy lighting). Really, it was okay. Nothing special. Randy was too harsh, Kara was too...I don't know, too Kara-ish. It was alright dawg, but in no way does it compare to Adam's Mad World! Wtf. The people in idolforums.com are too Kris-obsessed, I think.

3. Allison
Allison sang Aerosmith's I Don't Want To Miss A Thing, and I thought she did a good job with it. Not an easy song to sing. But she pulled it off, although she wasn't up to her usual standards. Hah, I have no negative comments about this performance at all. I'm thinking she has a great chance of winning AI8...over Adam. I love Adam, but he's a bit too kinky for idol And it's official, the judges are finally semi-promoting Allison. About time too!

2. Adam
Yes, the almighty Adam is at number 2! Dearest Adam was seriously over the top this week. From the hair, to the outfit, to the song choice and the performance - it screamed "YEAAAAAAH! IMMA ROCKSTAR DUUUUUDES!" He sang, Born To Be Wild and wild it was indeed. Hell yeah. I was kinda hoping he'd sing Hero from the first Spiderman, it would have shown a different side of his Rock persona but oh well. Being wild works too! However, Adam needs to remember that this is American Idol, and not a rock concert. I mean, dude was literally on his knees tonight, screaming at the audience. I would have fainted from sheer joy, but some unsuspecting anti-rocker might just faint from shock.

1. Anoop
Woohoo! Anoop dogg's back in business I loved his performance tonight, it was absolutely fantastic! Flawless vocals, awesome song choice (Everything I Do) - still needs to work on stage presence though. Adam could teach him a thing or two about that. And um, about what to wear during performances too. Adam looked every inch a rock star tonight, while Anoop looked like...Anoop. Lol.



Overall, I'm glad my top four favourite contestants performed the best tonight. A very boring night, mind you. Ballads are fine and all, but when 6 out of 7 contestants are singing slow-tempo songs...zzzzz.

I dread the elimination tomorrow.
Lil should be the one going home, but both Matt and Kris are not safe, especially Matt. And I doubt the judges will use the safe on Matt...

PS: I thought Adam looked super hot tonight!! ♥♥ *dreamy eyes* I've never seen a more versatile contestant on American Idol. Just check out his performances in Wicked! He can act, dances really well and very obviously he can sing! (He can sing anything too - rock, pop, musical-Broadway stuff, ballads, R & B, etc.)

EDIT: There's just one thing that I don't get - why defend Lil and Megan when they talk back (rudely) to the judges - and criticize Anoop when he does the same thing (not rudely, just honest)? Seriously wtf?!