[23] star*days ~ your summer doesn't end here

SAT. 31/07/2004 - 7.30 PM * LONG TIME NO BLOG

Phew! Can't believe it's already the end of the month again! I don't think I've blogged enough this month. LOL. :P

Anyway, as you know I've been ranting about how shitty I feel lately... well, that shittiness is now being cured by taking a two-day leave from work. My boss signed the letter that permits me not to go to work on Friday and Monday! ^o^ Plus the weekend, I have FOUR DAYS OF NO WORK!!! YAYNESS! ... and trust me, I'm feeling so much better already. It's so refreshing to be able to stay at home, bum around and do nothing significant all day long for a couple of days. Heh, heh.

Yesterday I went to watch [KING ARTHUR]. Everyone says it's a bad film. Frankly, I don't see why it could be that bad. Or I'm just biased. Because of Lorenzo de Angelis. LOL! (Oh, he's the guy who plays Alecto, son of Marius.) He looks so Junno-ish, that I find myself unable to resist the temptations of his milky skin and chiseled face.
Then again, putting the eyecandies aside, I still prefer this film to the last epic I saw, which was [TROY]. At least [KA] has good music scores, and it's not like the characters are made to battle just for the sake of fighting. And even though Keira Knightley's lips are such a sore sight for my eyes (and although I have no idea what the *real* Guinever is supposed to be like), I like the portrayal of Guinevere as the warrior princess - in fact, I thought she was beautiful when she was looking nearly dead in that pale complexion of hers.
True, the ending was bad and could've been better if they didn't show Arthur and Guinevere's wedding. And I would prefer Arthur's speech upon Lancelot's death less dramatic... but all in all, it was an entertaining film. Of course, if I should give an award for Jerry Bruckheimer's summer blockbuster movies of last year and this year, I would definitely give it to last year's film without a second's hesitation.

Enough movies. Today I went to PI and PS (yeah, hehe... the place doesn't look so bad when you go there NOT to work :P) and met some of my colleagues. Frans was there and I was like teasing him mercilessly!!! XD Poor guy. I'm so mean to him. I tease him so often that it's now up to the point where when the others see me, they go like, "Frans!!! Amy's here especially to see you!" LOL! Ironically, Frans is good friends with E.K., a.k.a. my biggest crush at the moment. It's not denial whatsoever... it's just that... Frans is easier to get along with than E.K. Uhhhh, I dunno. I just like hanging out with Frans over at the main cashier counter. :P
Anyway, one of the magazines I bought today, ANAN, has a tiny picture of DAIGO STARDUST and that became the reason for me for buying it. Other than that, I got TV Weekly (Arashi on cover) and Newsmaker (Gackt on cover). :3 --> yes, I'm still spending money over these things. How pathetic can my life get?! XD
After PS, I went to buy shoes with my sister. I got a pair of sandals that I can wear to go to work. It's got some fancy beads on top and looks kind of ethnic-y... really cute, though. It's not so expensive so I had no qualms in purchasing it.
Speaking of shopping, I also got myself some Body Shop stuff... eye/blush shimmer and new lipstick/lipgloss. Ergh... now I've got no money now. =_____=

And right now, Fi is here working on her transcript thingie on my video player... LOL. I'm leaving her in peace and decide to fool around around the house on my own. I think I'm going to scan Daigo and Junno for my webbies... and then I'm going to have a Big Mac and McNuggets for dinner, and then I'm going to start watching all those DVDs I haven't got the chance to watch. Maybe I'll watch something cheesily romantic... or something 'dark' like [VELVET GOLDMINE], or even my all-time favorite [LORD OF THE RINGS] just because I am in need for a no-brainer right now. And I'm *NOT* going to read any of Dan Brown, or Michael Moore, or Roald Dahl, or Tolkien's books... 'cause here too I need a no-brainer. Thus, COMICS. XD (Yes, Kyoko Hikawa, I'm reading you tonight! XD)

Ahhhh, life is beautiful when you're on leave... ^o^

WED. 26/07/2004 - 9.45 PM * SNEAKY

*snigger, snigger* This is so sneaky. I'm updating my blog from... the office! Bwahahahaha... XD (like, I don't freaking care anymore if I get caught. I'm fed up with being Ms. Little Nice Girl around here. Heh.) So, the hell with rules... I'll have my own way in this office. :D

Sorry for not updating. I really wanted to but the thing is that, yesterday night I went out with Fi to have a girls' night out and eat -as usual, okonomiyaki- in Sakana. The cook there was particularly nice. He gave us a special dish for free (seriously, the restaurant didn't charge us one bit for that dish!) and it was really delicious. Yummy. Can't wait to return there. ^o^ By the time I got home yesterday, I was already so dead tired so I went to bed early.

Other than that, I'm hooked to Dan Brown's books so I gave up on everything else. All I had been doing since Sunday night was religiously reading THE DA VINCI CODE and ANGELS & DEMONS. Hella good books! It's like HARRY POTTER ... for adult. Hahaha. Silly comparison, I know. But anyway... I like "THE DA VINCI CODE" more than "ANGELS & DEMONS" but I enjoyed reading both of them. Whereas "THE DA VINCI CODE" seems so convincing in the way Brown writes almost academically of the myths, legends and, even, facts that the book appears almost non-fictional to me, "ANGELS & DEMONS" is the ultimate fiction with its hi-tech and religious miracles' talks. In terms of theme, "THE DA VINCI CODE" wins me over; I can relate to both teams that he wrote about there, art and religion. But in terms of thrill, "ANGELS & DEMONS" leaves a bigger impact; the book is so full of adrenaline that I felt like I was watching a film instead of reading a book.
Apart from all that, I am now worshipping Dan Brown for another reason altogether: I appreciate the research he must have done for his books. It's the same reason I appreciate Michael Moore as a writer. I would recommend Brown's books to just about anyone just so they could see the power of research! (And trust me, I'm not saying this just because my mother works in the Research Department in her company.)
Lastly, from someone like me, i.e. a self-professed language lover, I adore Brown for the fact that he inserted other 'cultures' in the books. I'm talking about the use of French and Italian respectively in "ANGELS & DEMONS" and "THE DA VINCI CODE". Furthermore, Brown sets these two stories in Paris and Rome. I don't know about Paris, but reading "ANGELS & DEMONS" almost made me cry because I was remembering my visit in Rome. So I guess this is why I'm attached to the book. As for my next visit in Europe, when I go to Paris, I will bring "THE DA VINCI CODE" just to match his description of places with the actual thing. I have the feeling I'll feel more attached to the book if I do that for real. :P

Of course, Dan Brown isn't the only one I'm hooked to these days. On the other side of the globe, there's this guy named DAIGO STARDUST who's doing his best to make me palpitate and nosebleed at the sound of his voice.

SUMMER ROSE RULES!!!

I've listened to it like a hundred times already and it just rocks. It's not just about the music, but his voice is... powerful. I really, really, really, really, really, really, really want to see a PV of this song! Hell, no need to throw a full-fledged PV with plot or dancing or whatever... I just want to see him stand in front of a microphone and sing this song the way I think he does!!! >_<
Yesterday morning I started my day listening to SUMMER ROSE. Even at work. I was being naughty again and the hell with the rule that says I can't listen to music with a Discman at work. HAH. I put it on play in my Discman with high volume and practically the whole office could hear the song blaring from my headphones. *evil smirk* YOU SHOW 'EM, DAIGO!!!

EEEEE!!! People are invading my room! I have to shoo them away! Grrrrrrh... why did they just dump all their works to me!!! Blah. Who cares? I'm going to continue blogging and journal-ing. Meeow. And then... since I don't feel like writing any letters to anyone right now, I'll just grab my Discman and "THE DA VINCI CODE" again. I love being a bad girl.

MON. 26/07/2004 - 8.30 PM * DAIGO STARDUST - [DAISY/SUMMER ROSE]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
It came!!! It came!!! It came!!! It finally came!!!
My mom called me at work today to confirm the arrival. She said that there was a rather large cardboard box with some Japanese written on top. I asked her to open it and she said, "It's your Daigo Stardust CD!"
Thank God my boss was out of the office today... because I squealed as loud as I could and I was like, "Really, really, really?! How does he look like on the cover? Is he handsome? Did I get the video?!" And she spent about 10 minutes describing the contents of the package, right down to the bubble plastic wrapper. XD Mwahahahahahahaha...
Considering that today I had yet another shitty day, the arrival of this new DS single cheered me up about 200%. :P Hee hee. I decide to write a review as soon as possible.

Images:

++ WARNING: NO HOTLINKING AND ASK PERMISSION IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. ++

Track listing:
1. DAISY
2. SUMMER ROSE
3. SAKURA NO KI NO SHITA DE

Bonus:
Daigo Card + VHS containing PV of [DAISY]

The songs in this single are pretty much mellow, a change from Daigo's previous sounds, esp. if you compare them to [EIEN NO SPACE COWBOY] and [ROCK THE PLANET], which are his last two singles before this one. It also sounds less "glam" then the other two, but fortunately there are still obvious traces of the sounds of Daigo, not only from his significant vocals but also from the beats, especially on the chorus parts.

[DAISY] sounds pretty romantic to my ears. The melody is sweet, Daigo's voice is sweet, and it's orecchiabile (catchy). (Honestly, I haven't been able to stop humming). Unlike most Japanese songs, this song contains a bridge part that doesn't only have a nice beat, but also a great sound of Daigo "oooh" and "aaah"-ing. XD There's even a sweet "la la la" from Daigo that makes me very much fangirl-ish the first time I heard it. I was going, like, "Awwwww!"
I first listened to the song from the video but it was much more satisfying listening to the song on the CD (I think there were slight differences). Now, about the video... in terms of looks, I do prefer Daigo in his previous two singles. I like flashy Daigo a lot, but this video just shows a calmer, more handsome side of Daigo (which I so don't have any objections to!). He is toned down, looking very normal, and almost like a boy-next-door (it's the clothes @_@). Of the camera work, there's nothing ultra special but there's one part I absolutely love. That is, the last part where Daigo in the white shirt hails a car to hitchhike in and the car's driver turns out to be a second Daigo wearing the floral pink sequined shirt (see jacket pictures). The 1st Daigo (in white shirt) contemplates for the longest time before getting into the car. When he gets in, he drops a picture of a daisy and the car drives a way. But a moment later in the distance the car stops and drives backwards to the place where the picture was dropped. Then the door opens the the 1st Daigo reaches down to lift the piece of photograph and the last thing that is shown was a close-up of him looking at the picture of a daisy and smiling... OH WHAT A SMILE!!! Daigo is sooooooooooooo gorgeous when he smiles. I couldn't get enough of that shot, so I ended up rewinding the scene over and over again. *hearts*

[SUMMER ROSE] is my absolute favorite in this single. It's a full-fledged rock song, Daigo-style, although not in his usual 'glam' style (hmmm, I'm reminded of Jzeil now as I am listening to it). Amazing, though, the harder Daigo sounds, the more I love him and the song. I just love every aspect of this song; guitar, drums, vocals. It sounds... GRAND.
I actually would have preferred if they made a video out of this song instead. At least, I have to see performance of this song. If I were in a Daigo concert, I'd totally go wild on this song. Heh heh. :D It's utterly wicked. I can't hum it or anything like that, but this song is definitely on repeat more than [DAISY] is. :D Haha.
(This song is on the fifth repeat on my CD player as I am writing this.)
Daigo, give me a video of [SUMMER ROSE]!!!
Oh, and, call me crazy but at one point in the song, I was thinking, "Hey, there's a bit of Mr. Children tune over here." Hahaha... really have no idea where that thought came from but I just felt some Mr. Children-ness in it. LOL. (Which I don't mind, because I like Mr. Children too.)

Surprise, surprise... [SAKURA NO KI NO SHITA DE] is a ballad!!! OK, I don't think I've ever heard Daigo singing a pure ballad. But this one... heh, total ballad. Of course there was also a ballad in [MARIA] single entitled [FEATHER]. That one also took me by surprise. It amazes me that Daigo is also capable of writing a ballad as well. In [THE SPACE TOY], the only song that was closest to having the possibility of being called a ballad was [DOLLY] and that song didn't impress me at all. I never consider him a ballad songwriter; well, he's not. But this one is not bad... not bad at all. Only one thing, though, this song currently sounds way too melancholic for my depressed soul. I don't know if it's supposed to be romantic (obviously, I haven't got time to pay attention to the lyrics) but the melody doesn't suggest romance. In fact, [DAISY] sounds a lot more romantic than this. Nonetheless, I'm appreciating this song. Perhaps if I were feeling a little less morbid and distressed right now, I would be able to enjoy this song totally. But in fact, I don't mind if he wants to sing more songs in the accompaniment of a piano instead of a guitar! The piano is definitely a fresh sound in the world of Daigo's spacey music!

All in all, Daigo ... doesn't disappoint me. He never does. :) Though, I must say I'm more pleased with this single than with [ROCK THE PLANET]. Probably because there are more songs in this one (that's me: I love variety). Hahaha. Seriously, this one's worth listening. It's like, if a new Daigo fan is unsure whether to spend money on [ROCK THE PLANET] or [DAISY/SUMMER ROSE], and simply can't afford to buy both, I'd recommend this one.
Of course, the catch is that we're missing a whole lot of Daigo glamness here. I don't know if this is the record company's strategy of attracting more people to listen to Daigo (by providing a more 'universal' sound) or Daigo's just feeling like writing songs that sound like this, but rather than think of the endless possibilities, I'll look at it from the bright side: there's more variety and this makes Daigo an all-round songwriter! (Yes, I go with the philosophy of "variety rules!") --> at least I won't get bored with his sounds thanks to the 'variety' of his sounds (as if I could ever get bored XD).
Besides, if the record company wants more people to listen to Daigo, there's no better way than presenting these music delicacies on the plate. Right now, it's also important that Daigo gets more attention. Because he just deserves it.

Daigo, keep up the good work! You're getting there. Yep, I'd say, you're getting closer to the top! GANBATTE! I love you~ ♥

SAT. 24/07/2004 - 10.30 PM * BAILA!

I'm still pissed. My weekend is not much of an improvement. I wanted to kill everyone @ work today, including the kids and their teachers who came to visit our store. Ahhh, I guess I was just not in the mood.
Btw, thanks Kar-kun, Pinkyy and Myri for tagging me... appreciate your concerns.

Forget my book list. I've given up any resistance towards the "trend" and picked up THE DA VINCI CODE by Dan Brown. I wanted to see what it was all about. Bloody interesting. I like Brown's writing style and the fact that the book is making me learn about a lot of new things, and that's what a book is to me: making me discover new things. There's also there's the whole French language insertions, which makes it all the more interesting for a language-buff like me. I'm actually looking forward to finishing this book this weekend!
And I do believe a film is going to be made about this book. Nyahahaha... :D

Speaking of films, I recently watched [YOU GOT SERVED].
OK, let's cut to the chase and let me say that the film itself is not good. The plot is so typical. Acting was so-so. Music was to be expected. Not highly original. But the dancing is amazing!!!
The moment I found out that David and Elgin's rival crew would be called Wade's Crew and that the leader of the crew, named Wade, has similar hair to Wade Robson (the dancing god *hearts*), I knew that the real Wade Robson was going to be making an appearance. LOL!!!

When I watched that film, I couldn't help but thinking about Tsubasa. I mean, he really should be appearing in a movie like that. LOL. Just because he's such a fabulous dancer. :P Maybe Japan should make its own version of [YOU GOT SERVED] featuring Tsubasa, Takki, KAT-TUN and Musical Academy. I swear I can just envision all of them making a film like [YOU GOT SERVED]. ... and [GO ON] should be on the soundtrack of the film!!!!! For Tsubasa's theme song. Daaaaamn, I wish they had really made the film!!!!! >.<

And it wouldn't hurt if Wade Robson really choreographed Tsubasa's dance for the solo con! XD Hahaha... Heyyyy, TSUBAHOLIC, you like Britney right? If Robson choreographs Tsu, Tsu will dance like Britney... doing even sexier moves... now there's a thought. ;) Heh, heh. Man, I'd love to see Wade Robson and Tsubasa collaborate... and then probably Wade can also work on KAT-TUN... *start daydreaming*

*snap back to reality*
Today was the last day I met Cecil before she goes back to Melbourne.
SHIRU-CHAN, KIOTSUKETE ITTERASSHAI!!!
Hiks. Won't be seeing her 'til December. *bawl*
She really saved the day for me. I was feeling so bad this morning but then she came and we hung out together and I felt instantly better. LOL. :D Thanks, Shiru. Of course then things went back to being ugly again after we said goodbye but at least we'd met. :P

Urgh, my stomach is hurting again. I guess I better leave before I start ranting again. Will continue talking about the stuff I wanted to talk about tomorrow. After work. I work on weekends. Can you believe that? Shit.

FRI. 23/07/2004 - 9.40 PM * NOT MY WEEK

This week is definitely not my week. There are so many tragedies, depressing moments and bad days that I don't even want to wake up tomorrow because I'm so afraid it's going to be much worse than the days before. Hiks. T______T I am so hating life right now.

But before I go on ranting, I'd just like to say that the Tsubanamae Blog Crew has 17 members now, the latest being Tsuballrite (there might actually be a hentai implication in this Tsubanamae XD). Welcome to the BC, Tsuballrite!

Nyah. Now I'll start ranting again.
First of all, MY DAIGO SINGLE ISN'T HERE YET!!! NANDE?! CD Japan is getting even slower than before! Frig!!! I might consider to STOP ordering from there. Blah. They were late in sending the last TxT single, and the latest TxT album, and the previous Daigo single... I AM NOT PLEASED WITH THEIR SERVICE!!! I want to write a letter of complaint! Fakk. GIVE ME MY CD, DAMMIT!!!

Secondly, work sucks big time. OK, I know I've ranted about it enough in my LJ but I just can't get over the fac that work is sucky. It's like, there's no purpose of me working there!!! Even with my crush for E.K.-kun, I'm still not happy. Argh. Right now I want to quit, like, permanently. >_<
Oh, speaking about sucky work... today, there was yet another case in the Customer Service department. There's this lady -who says she's Indonesian who's lived a long time in Hong Kong- who came to the store and bought Lonely Planet: KOREA. So after she bought it, she left. About two hours later, she came back and said, "I want a refund on this book. I found this book in [insert the name of a rival bookstore] and it's 14.000 rupiah cheaper. Why are you selling it at a higher price? Give me back my money!" What the fakk?! And then my collague -who happened to work in that rival bookstore- said, "Sorry, ma'am. It's not possible. [rival bookstore] and us have different pricing policies. We don't allow any refunds here, not even for damaged books (i.e. instead we have an exchange policy). So we can't accept your claim." Surprise, surprise -haha @_@- the lady insisted. She said at least we give her back the 14.000 rupiah that she thought was her right just because the book's price in the other store was 14.000 cheaper. When my colleagues rejected, she demanded to see the manager.
My colleague went to me and asked me to help him. But after hearing the case, and feeling as bad as I was, I didn't want to go out and meet her (because I could actually commit a crime out there if I went out to face her - I'd probably strangle her or something). I reported the case to two assistant managers (no managers around, unfortunately), who finally went to deal with the problematic lady. After a while they both came back and said, "We rejected her offer. I told her that my decision was 'no can do', but she replied, 'how could it be? why wouldn't you give me my money back?'" (HELLO?!) Apparently, then she said she ordered (rather impolitely I might add) the two asst. mgrs. to tell the GM -that is, *my* boss- to call her so she could give the claim to him. When my boss came, I told him about the case and he was astonished to hear such a ridiculous claim.
OK, I don't know what the fakk is wrong with these people... if you're seriously thinking of buying a book, why didn't you do a price survey first? Unless you're someone like me, who knows that the price in my favorite bookstore is more expensive than in any other bookstore but doesn't give a damn about it as long as I get the book I want. But this lady... sheesh. My colleagues and the cashier staff said that she had jeweleries all over her body, and she wore designer clothes and carried a designer bag, and that her looks reeked of money, but she fights over 14.000 rupiah!!! It's only US$1.40, HELLO!!!!!!! It's not going to make you a millionaire!!! Hell, even we who work in the bookstore and are really underpaid and have no friggin' money whatsoever would be ashamed to do so! Like, if I buy milk at one supermarket for 3 dollars, and then go to another store and discover that the milk costs $1.40 cheaper, would I demand a refund of $1.40 from the first store just because I think the 2nd one offers a better price?! Sorry, I am not going to stoop that low.
Sometimes, people just have no brains. And they don't do anything about it. They don't even cover it. They flaunt it. @_@ FREAK.

Thirdly, I'm not feeling physically well. I throw up every day, even if I ate right, I often get a rash that makes me itch and I can't sleep. My parents think I'm having a lot of stress right now and they want to drag me to a psychiatrist for consultation, again. Reading doesn't help, watching films doesn't help, listening to music doesn't help... NOTHING HELPS!!! A few days ago, I was even thinking, "Would it be better if I just die?" I know, know, it's a bad thought, but it couldn't be helped. I was feeling so down and I really don't want to do anything else but disappear. (OK, so I guess my parents had a point in wanting to drag me to seek professional help.) But anyway... even if I don't want to disappear from the face of the earth, the throwing up, the insomia and the rash are enough to make me scream until I shatter the glasses in my surrounding. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME?!

A vacation to Italy?
My bunny Junno?
Loads of Baci Perugina?
WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR ME TO LIVE MY LIFE NORMALLY AGAIN?!

Argh. I don't know. I think I'm tired now. =____= Let's just end this stupid entry.