Between the Covers: Stories from My Bookcase

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Ace Water Spa is in Pasig too

So I already finished the BookSneeze ebook I have overdue for review the other day, I even announced it and cried Yay! I finished a book!

But no, no book post just yet. Smile

Guess where I was when I finished reading? I was at a cafĂ© – Figaro. It was just outside Ace Water Spa, Pasig branch. I was on girlfriend/driver duty and was waiting for the boyfriend to finish his photo shoot. I had waited in the car, parked somewhere for 40 minutes, when he told me to find somewhere else to hangout because he’d need more time. The nearest point of interest I could find on the GPS was nowhere to be found in real life. So I went to the first familiar place I passed by.

The QC branch is near here, and I took my old team to Ace Water Spa once. Earlier this year, in my coupon crazy days, I bought a deal to get in for only 299 instead of 500 pesos. The boyfriend and I used 2 vouchers, while my parents and 2 nephews used the other four. This time, it’s MetroDeal offering the same deal:

image

And there’s only 12 hours left!

I just read an article in Calorie Count entitle Swim Your Butt Off, so that’s an extra push to take advantage of this deal again. If I could burn calories and lose even a little weight, I’d take that opportunity. It’s fun and it’s easy to do. I prefer that even if there are proven to be diet pills that work. Also, I looked around the new Pasig branch (nothing else is open yet in the building except for the Spa, their buffet, Figaro, and the parking level) and it looks really nice and clean and NEW!

We’ll have to get coupons. I just have to ask the boyfriend which branch he wants to use it for…

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Movie Review: The Little Giants

Thanks to cable TV, I saw The Little Giants today. 

Little_giants_movie

Yep, it’s an old movie. It featured sibling rivalry, kids, tomboys, bullies, and the trauma of being the kid who doesn’t get picked. It’s also about looking forward to each little victory we can claim for our own. The hope that each “one time” brings.

The Little Giants team is a mixed bag of kids who just want to play football. They’re not the best in the game, but they have learned to bring all their best, and that they can achieve anything if they work as a team.

It was very predictable, there was nothing new. I won’t say it’s one of those classic movies you’d want to watch again and again because this was the first time I even heard of it. But guess what? It says on the Little Giants Wikipedia page that the movie was the inspiration behind Michigan State University’s winning play last year.

Real life inspiration

On September 18, 2010, in an overtime victory, Michigan State University defeated Notre Dame in football 34-31 by using a trick play that was inspired by the movie, Little Giants. Instead of attempting a 46-yard field goal to send the game into a second overtime, Michigan State scored a touchdown on a fake field goal pass from holder Aaron Bates to tight end Charlie Gantt, and the Spartans stunned Notre Dame before a sellout crowd of 78,411 fans at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.

During the on the field post game interview on national television with the ABC/ESPN network, Michigan State Coach, Mark Dantonio said “By the way, that play is called ‘Little Giants’.” Aaron Bates who threw the winning pass said, "We knew Notre Dame wasn’t expecting it. That was the last thing anyone was expecting. Coach D likes 'Little Giants.' I think that’s the only movie he has ever watched."

Source

The ending was good – no bitterness, no bad blood between the coaches and the team. And no kissing scene between two kids.

Here’s a trailer you can check out:

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Morning Glories

While driving home alone this afternoon, I had the radio cranked up to avoid sleeping on the wheel. The DJs were talking about this new comic book series: Morning Glories.  I didn’t hear the full review, but I liked what I heard; not so much the Lost meets Gossip Girl description though. Not a fan of either TV series.

allteaseFINAL

Here’s an excerpt from the review from Comic Book Resources:

“Morning Glories” #1 is an engaging and fun read that introduces the eponymous Morning Glory Academy and its newest students by letting the reader in on some of the mysteries, an act that only raises more questions, most of which the students haven’t come close to asking yet.

The issue kicks off with a bang by showing an escape attempt from the school. No explanation for what’s so wrong is given, but something clearly is if a group of students plot an escape by blowing up part of the school. Instead of teasing the point, Spencer gets it right out there: Morning Glory Academy isn’t what it seems. Though it appears to be a premier prep school that caters to only the best and the brightest, the reality is far different. How the image and reality both manage to exist is, perhaps, the most interesting question, since the school is successful in graduating top students that go on to Ivy League schools. That tension hangs over the issue as we’re introduced to six new students who have no idea what they’re getting themselves into (though we don’t entirely either).

I’ll check it out in bookstore, although I’m considering getting the digital edition instead. At $1.99 per issue, it doesn’t seem too much of an expense. We’ll see.

Have you read Morning Glories? What’s your favorite Comic Book series?

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Sticker Happy

The other day I posted the Polaroid Pogo Printer deal on the Newbie Photographer. Yesterday, the boyfriend gave me the go signal to purchase it. It’s his belated happy birthday gift for me Smile  I will have to wait until September to get my hands on it, but that just means the happiness over a new gadget will be prolonged, and this month is about to end anyway.

I really can’t wait to have it! My friends and I belong to the Neoprint generation. How many prints did we get off those sticker printing machines? At the time, it cost about 80 pesos for a spread containing several stickers. We’ll pitch in to split the cost and split the photo stickers as well. Too bad I lost the phone book I adhered those stickers to Sad smile 

When I first started working, and even while I was still hanging out at the NGO I used to volunteer at, stickers were also a big part of our work. Not for photos though. Smile We’d print campaign logos on sticker paper and put them on folders, envelopes, and other materials. I could go crazy on the prints and stickers if I allowed myself to, haha! I think that affordable home/office printer setups and sticker paper is God’s gift to mankind, hihi. Of course, professionally printed ones are still preferred – they seem to have more lasting power than the ones you print yourself.

Anyhoo, enough of the babble. I need an early start for work tonight. Ciao!

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Ang Babae sa Septic Tank

We missed Cinemalaya (again) this year, but I still got to see the Best Film yesterday. The boyfriend (Badodong) was unavailable yesterday, so out I went with work friends/colleagues.  It was unplanned, and totally last minute. And totally fun!



Ang Babae sa Septic Tank is an indie film by Chris Martinez and Marlon Rivera.

But what is indie? Indie is a film production produced independent of major film studios. It is a thriving industry that is mostly characterized by low budget, but grand dreams. In general, they don’t make films with the goal of making a lot of money, so typically these are low budget, and subjects include a wide range of social issues. Apart from indie films, you also have indie music – artists who produce their own CDs, or have small production houses back them. They say working indie is for the soul. It’s where they exercise artistic freedom without being restricted by the commercial needs of the label/film executives.

This year, Star Cinema sponsored the commercial release of Ang Babae sa Septic Tank. I am thankful because they made the film accessible to more people. I hope the money goes back to them, the ones who toiled to make this brilliant film.

They say that indie films always talk about poverty, prostitution, despair, etc.etc. They deal with deep and heavy subjects. They are mostly too serious. They are not meant to entertain. In a way, this film does that and in a way MOCKS that too. So it is also very hilarious and quite entertaining.

Here’s a list of why I liked the movie:

  • I love how they showed the various treatments to the same material, and how different each one is from the other.
  • My favorite in the versions of the film within the film has to be the musical. Definitely the musical.
  • JM and Kean are both guwapo! I hated that the girls behind us were so noisy and kept commenting about how handsome the two leads were.
  • Makes you think about what goes into filmmaking. And what our goals are when we go into a project – any project.
  • Love that they mock their own, and do it tastefully. Kainis kaya how Direk, Bingbong and PA were so excited about the squalor that is the location they chose. They were celebrating! Buti nga his car was stripped naked! They wanted their film to be realistic, yet they seemed to be far removed from the reality they sought to portray.
  • It is hilarious.
So maybe there are more. I’m not one to post spoilers. If you’ve been on the fence about seeing it, stop reading this, and go watch it. Now. Smile

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Back to the Grind

It’s back to work in a few hours. In fact, I am giving myself 9 minutes to type, publish, and settle down. At bed by 8, I can still take a two-hour nap before getting ready for a full day’s work. That should be enough, I’d slept enough this weekend.

Of course, if I were to be honest, I’d rather stay home on a Sunday night. I’d rather work at home. But I can’t. Until I find an alternative way to earn the money I get from my day(night) job, I can’t give it up. Don’t get me wrong. I do love my job, and I own it. There were times when I didn’t, and times when I get so frustrated I dread going to work. But August is a new month, and I feel a certain positive vibe that I hope electrifies everyone in the office. We need it. Smile

Still, wouldn’t it be nice to have a life where you can jump from one vacation to another? You know, have a membership at a posh hotel, or just preferred treatment at Lake Buena Vista Hotels and have a Disney vacation whenever you want. I’m adding vacation packages to Disney World in my bucket of stuff to save up for. I will get you someday! Haha. Smile

Looking at Britt-ish Designs blog is an inspiration both for digital scrapbooking but also for having fun and always making room for the kid in all of us. They always go to Disney World! She and her husband share that passion. Now, I don’t think that Alfred particularly wants a trip to Disneyland, but I know he won’t turn down a chance to. He’s gotta be interested in going at least once in his life. Smile

Until then, I’ll be a working girl. And I don’t mind it.

There’s always next weekend to look forward to anyway. And after-shift food trip with friends or just the boyfriend and myself. And there’s always room for crazy ideas.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Inception

A year and a month after its international release, I finally watched Inception.  Now I finally understand the hype that came with it. 

inception

Such an interesting concept of dream worlds and alternate realities. Corporate espionage is so exciting, can I just exist in that world please, minus the guns of course? Smile

Christopher Nolan is a master storyteller. He has created a solid story and it seems as if he thought of everything. I am glad they didn’t go with the plan of developing it into a horror story. This was a lot more interesting, and the plot made it believable.

What if there really are extractors? After all, dreams are home to our subconscious. Oh what I would give to be in Psychology and Philosophy classes at the time of this movie’s release! I’m sure it factored in a lot of discussions the way this other movie released on our freshman year did (what was that movie, with a Sutherland dude in a really dark world? – Dark City!).

I love Leo in this film, and the grown up Joseph Gordon-Levitt as well. Ellen Page was amazing, as usual. She’s young, but not quite too young.

If I could do what they could, would I take advantage the way they did? They’re powerful, and inception can be used for good and for bad. Saito, I believe, had more good than bad. But if a more evil entity got Dom and his crew to do something like this – it could have meant chaos. It’s a scary thought.

The ending leaves one to wonder, or to make his/her own conclusions. Will it stop or not? Is he awake, or dreaming? It was a perfect ending.

Missing Book Shopping

I haven’t bought a book in – I don’t remember anymore! Serves me right too, I have a lot of books I haven’t read yet. So I’m missing out on new titles.

Here’s a few I saw online and would love to get my hands on some time:

choke-book-small

Plate-to-Pixelcover

There’s this one too:

 

All three have Kindle editions so I’ll think about getting them in that format. Smile

If you’ve read any one of these, do leave me a link to your review. OR just tell me your thoughts on them in the Comments box. Smile

If you’re on the lookout for homes for rent, I have a unit at San Benissa in Fairview that needs a tenant. Smile