when in a rut.. look forward to TOMORROW

Life's a real wheel. This is primarily the reason why I worry whenever I feel so happy over something. So I've never had absolute happiness, you know, being happy without a dark thought of "it" being gone tomorrow.Whenever I feel light and happy and carefree that I laugh over the most mundane of things, behind it all, I'm thinking " hey, maybe I shouldn't laugh too hard, I don't wanna be crying tomorrow.Believe me,call it superstitious but this happened a lot of times in the past.So it shouldn't come as a surprise then that while I blogged about being happy yesterday, I am feeling low and gloomy and disappointed today. I can't believe how things can turn around so quickly. It's nothing major but I guess I'm letting my emotions get the best of me. I just feel like I had to write about this, vent it out, get it out of my system. Cos this feeling is ugly and anything that's ugly and you let it simmer inside you will eventually nibble at whatever goodness you have in you. I hope this is making sense.

Anyway, what's gotten me feeling so down today has something to do with a person. You know when there's a person that you look up to, that you have so much respect for (even if you've only been with the person for a week or two, say in a convention), unfair as it may be to that person, we develop a set of expectations for them. So when they do something that we thought is so totally out of character(from our perception), we get DISAPPOINTED. And it's the worst feeling in the world ever. Well, next to regret maybe. I met this person in a group setting and I thought he's great, kind and considerate. patient. I can't go into the details but the thing is he did do something no one expected him to do. I don't know how the others felt about it but me, I felt let down. Gosh! When will I ever learn not to expect too much from anybody?I feel a little better now. Well, just look at the brighter side. From where I am now emotionally, there's nowhere to go but up.As always, when in a rut, there's one phrase that never fails to perk me up:

"This too shall pass."

- from the movie My Best Friend's Wedding

Viva la Vida!

Whew! I'm so happy today. First, coz we're finally done with this training that had been running for 2 weeks. Before that, I've been through week-long trainings too for 2 different projects. It's true what they say about this company that I'm working for, training never ends. And its fine, but sometimes it just feels like I've enrolled myself in a graduate school and all the jittery feelings associated with student life rushes back in. But all that's done, at least for now.

Secondly, I've finally watched Violet Hill's official video! Wow! Welcome back, guys! Not that they've been away but I've been waiting for this like forever. 3 years seemed like an eternity. I've read somewhere that Coldplay felt like their first 3 albums was a trilogy and they wanted something different for their 4th album. After I heard Violet Hill, yeah, it's a bit different but every bit as good as their past songs that I've grown to love over the years. Just how different this album would be from their past ones is still early to say as I haven't heard the other songs yet. All I can say is that I've never been disappointed with the band, I've loved them from Shiver days to Swallowed In The Sea.And I love Yellow, which incidentally,is my favorite karaoke song, lol!

It is pleasant to note too that there'd been quite a few nice other comebacking artists as well.I'm loving Jason Mraz's I'm Yours ( liked him the first time ) and Ryan Cabrera's Say ( didn't like him the first time ).

So, great music + laid-back atmosphere( for now, anyway) = a nice sunny life

Viva La Vida!

PS. lotsa thanks to emorix (http://www.flickr.com/photos/em0rix/2510019469), feishien (http://www.flickr.com/photos/feishien/2394698695) and tonythisismusic (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonythisismusic/2467331673) for the album pics.

IRON MAN: Downeyland

I went into the cinema not expecting much. After all, it’s ANOTHER Marvel comics adaptation. And yet, long before its play date, I have decided i'll be joining the long queues. I'm not a fan of Iron Man either. I have a vague recollection of it as a kid, but it isn't something that figured much in my early life. Sure, I love both Gwyneth and Terrence, and I'd watch any movie of theirs. But the sole all important decision-making factor this time is Robert Downey Jr. God! How I missed the man. Back from the brink, and how! I have loved Robert Downey Jr. ever since I saw him in the movie Only You, with Marissa Tomei. And he's up there in my list of not-so-Hollywood-handsome but charming and amazingly talented actors, along with Joaquin Phoenix.

So since I have a very flimsy familiarity with the character, I’d much rather talk about the movie’s star, Robert Downey Jr. He was just perfect for the character. Despite being a genius, he doesn't look geeky at all. For a playboy billionaire, he definitely walks with a confident swagger but not too much that he'd seem to walk with the hips jutted out at a 90 degree angle. He just seemed every bit the gifted, filthy rich individual who thinks who deserves all of it and more .He was convincing at this, and just as convincing when his character developed a heart, a conscience, and a sense of responsibility, in no particular order, during the latter part of the movie. It was very real I’d say, the display of emotion, how an utter genius can create such amazing technology. Although we have to overlook the fact though that it may seem a bit impossible to finish the metallic armor suit overnight, when they were given an ultimatum. Ah well, sitting back and believing wasn’t a big problem for me. Robert just made all of it easy for us, even to those strangers to the Marvel character. And as always, Gwyneth was marvelous. Can’t wait for the sequel, I’m pretty sure there will be one. Ain’t there always? It’s the decade of trilogies after all.

Note: Thanks to FLG8R for the pic. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ebuen/2462816829/.

DISHING ON GOSSIP GIRL...

XoXo! GG, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

1. Gossips! It certainly brings out the gossipmongers in all of us. Who doesn't love gossips and catfights? Girls who don't have the balls to bitch in real life gets their dose of daily bitching, thanks largely to Blaire and her posse.

2. The designer clothes! Blair and Serena never cease to dazzle in clothes that would turn Hollywood starlets to shame. And Chuck Bass! He single-handedly redefined the meaning of a seemingly mundane scarf.

3. Nate Archibald. Ahhh... you can wipe the drool off the desk now, it's gross.

4. Reformed bad girl meets good boy and lives happily ever after. Well, maybe that's too early to say. Let's see how things turn out for Serena and Dan in Season 2.

5. The parents! Now how weird is that? Gossip girl is perhaps the only teen series with the parents not only very visible but with their own juicy stories to tell. And such stories! I'm totally rooting for Lily and Rufus.

... All these, and more. I was actually skeptical the first time I saw Gossip Girl. They look too old, too sophisticated to pass off as high school students. And I've never seen a single classroom during the entire run of the first season, ever. But what do I know. Also, it isn't a reality show but oddly, I felt like a voyeur during the first few episodes. These Upper East Siders are totally different creatures and I felt like if I'm not careful, I'd be found out. But these weird feelings soon passed and before I know it, Gossip Girls blogging about me and my totally scandalous life... yeah, like, in my dreams.

* Thanks to sxy_shandy for the pic. http://www.flickr.com/photos/sxy_shandy/2083994332/