What? December already?

November 30, 2008 at 10:49 pm (Random, Writing)

Wow. Tomorrow is December 1st. Two weeks after that, is exam week. A week after that, Christmas. Another week after, New Year’s.

Time is going by so fast that I feel as though I’m in the eye of the tornado and my life is literally blowing all around me in speeds so fast that the human eye cannot follow.

I owe you all a big apology. I am not finished with V. Fia…partially because my parents randomly decided to go to NM (as mentioned in my previous post) and they let me use my laptop for a limited amount of time because apparently typing on a laptop in a moving car can make my eyesight worse. I don’t know whether that’s true or not, but I do know I’ll be very much annoyed if I find out it isn’t.
(I FREAKIN’ WASTED 20 HOURS OF MY LIFE DOING NOTHING BUT STARING OUT THE WINDOW/SLEEPING/WATCHING RANDOM DVDS!)
Roadtrips are not my ideal form of transportation.

And not only that, but to tell you the truth, I haven’t been that great of a writer lately. I haven’t been able to get through a lot of the scenes (call it writer’s block, if you will) and found myself reading my WIP over and over again…This probably has to do with the fact that I write with only a very loose plan of what to write, which is subject to change any time my brain comes up with a better idea to replace it. The action has been a lot slower than I’d planned it out to be, and I haven’t been able to move past scenes as quickly as I’d like to.

This loose planning strategy (which is also used by Meg Cabot, because apparently for her, planning takes out all the fun in writing) has worked for me in the past, but I am now considering doing the structured spreadsheet plan like Scott Westerfeld and Justine Larbalestier.

I’ve also found myself on chat programs like Gtalk and Facebook constantly, sometimes being on them for approx. 2 hours when I could be writing 20 pages in my novel.

SO, I will propose a self-inflicted punishment on myself for violating my promise. From now on until I finish V.Fia, I vow to not get on Gtalk and Facebook. I will only get on my computer with internet when I need to do research for school/check my grades/check my email.

So, sorry again, and feel free to visit both of the Writing and V.Fia pages for more updates.

9 Comments

New Mexico

November 25, 2008 at 5:57 pm (Random, Writing)

Hey guys, in case you haven’t heard/I forgot to tell you, I’m going to New Mexico for Thanksgiving. My family and I are going to set off at 3-4 AM tomorrow, and will probably return Friday night…

I’m going to be alternating between V.Fia and “Whose Latin Line Is It Anyway?” on my laptop during the ten hour drive, so I still might be able to make the deadline that I proposed earlier in this month.

Hope you guys have an awesome Thanksgiving, and see you guys (well, the ones I normally see at school) on Monday. Oh, and Stephanie, this is random, but are you done with Paper Towns?

3 Comments

Twilight on Saturday with My Parents

November 22, 2008 at 4:45 pm (Books, Random)

OMG OMG OMG OHMIGOD AHHHHHHH -undecipherable fan-girl babbling-

Okay. -takes big breath- I’m okay now. I trust myself to speak sensibly after that little outburst. -cough-

The. Movie. Was. PHENOMENAL.

Everything was perfect. I know a lot of people are like:” OMG, like, I liked the book way better” and I’m not going to argue with them, but I’m not going to agree with them either. The movie was like 10% short of the awesomeness of the book. (This is my opinion, so please don’t try to convert me into one of those critics who hate all movies that are based off of books.)

IT JUST WAS SO AWESOME. I can see why a lot of people were disappointed though. One of the key things that I noticed about the movie that might cause some people to frown and declare that the movie stinks:

1.) The Cullens did look stark-white. Like. They looked like ghosts. (But dudes, if you remember the book at all, they were SUPPOSE to look freaky. That’s one of the reasons why people avoided them.)

2.) They skipped a few scenes, like the one where Carisle talks about the Volturi and his past. (But, they didn’t skip enough to make the plot totally different, the movie scenes that WERE there were…word for word, line for line…so exact that I was having an Alice moment where I knew what everything was going to happen and who was going to say what at the exact time. Also, they didn’t mention Jasper’s special power and just briefly grazed on Alice’s. They also skipped Bella’s nightmare where she prophesies Jacob being a werewolf.

3.) They did add some random things like Eric being one of those stereotypical, nerdy Asians that don’t really know how to be cool and kept saying weird things like, “La Push, baby?”(He said that like 3 times, and everyone laughs, giving him weird looks)…Also there was a lot more foreshadowing in the “Laurent/James/Victoria is out hunting and killing random people” category. But I think all those extra stuff contributed to the plot, making the side characters a little bit more rounder so it wasn’t just all about Bella (as it as in the book).

4.) OMG JASPER LOOKED AS IF HE WAS HAVING A TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE EVERY SINGLE SCENE IN THE MOVIE. It was quite funny, actually, and judging by the way the other people in the audience were laughing at his unblinking expression, they thought so too.Seriously, Jasper’s expression was literally: O.O THE ENTIRE MOVIE. IT NEVER CHANGED. HAHAHHAHA

Here are a few things that I especially LOVED about the movie.
1.) I think the casting was just great. The Cullens were really in-sync and ‘family-like’. I don’t remember if this was in the book, but there was this one scene where Esme (looking just as momly as the book described) was cooking Italian food for Bella with the help of the entire family sin Edward, because (and I quote Emmett when I say this: “Well, her name is Bella. That’s Italian, isn’t it?

I loved it how in one scene where the Cullens pulled in the parking lot, Emmett was literally standing in the Jeep, his head sticking through the convertible type roof. I love how Rosalie was all sassy and glaring at Bell a ALL THE TIME. I also love how Alice looked a little quirky and out of sorts, but also very ballerina-like and loving. Carisle was awesome too. At first, when I saw his picture, I thought he looked too old, but in the movie, his great, warm smile made him look ‘too young to be a father’ like the book pointed out. Jasper…hahahaha…he was my personal favorite because he looked so pained all the time, as if he was going to lose control right at that moment. (Which was essentially what he was like in Twilight. It’s in Eclipse that he starts to be a little more relaxed. Haha.)

Also, I never caught the actors blink. Especially Jasper and Edward, who both had unblinking, ‘piercing’ stares that made you feel VERY VERY uncomfortable. (I felt almost sorry for the camera-man. Haha)

Rob…(Pattinson). He…was so great. I think he did Edward’s voice very well. It wasn’t too low but wasn’t too high either. He also was very velvety and did a lot of model-like poses that made my inner fan girl sigh all the time. He also has a GREAT smile. :D I don’t think anyone else could have done better. Edward was just too much of a complex and difficult character. (I mean, Rob did an excellent job of being gloomy and depressed in one moment and smirking and laughing at the next…which was essentially what Edward did during the course of the novel.)

Kristen Stewart…she was BELLA. She was exactly as I imagined her. Maybe a little more skinnier and prettier, but that’s okay….(Although, I have to admit, she made my self-esteem drop a few points) Her voice was perfect too. I don’t know if it’s because I myself have a pretty low voice or something, but I imagined Bella’s voice to be kind of in the low side, and Kristen was PERFECT. I also love her almost-sarcastic expressions like the ones that you’d expect Bella to make. She also deserves the honorary nerd award. I mean, I don’t think she’s that antisocial in real life…but you never know…hm…

Victoria and James were FANTASTIC. Victoria looked like a little witch that secretly plots your demise behind your back while James was the perfect ‘hunter’. (He reminded me of that Russian dude in “The Most Dangerous Game”)…I loved it how he was all like: -sniffs- -rolls eyes in pleasure- Mmmm, you brought a snack! (I was mouthing the words with him, by the way)

Jacob… The movie didn’t make me like him any more than I did when I read the book. (And for those of you who know how much I like Jacob, you’d know that my love for him equals 0.) He was annoying, probing, boyish, all those things that I hate about Jacob. The actor himself was great though. He was perfect at being my favorite, annoying little werewolf. The way he and Edward glared at each other made me laugh, though…which made me desperately hope for a third movie…

The visual effects and music were pretty nice, too. The music fit the scenery of Oregon/Washington/wherever they shot the film, they moved around too much– very well.
When I first heard the soundtrack, I was like: WTF Why do THEY HAVE SUCH CRAPPY MUSIC?!! But now that I think about it, the music blended harmoniously with the scenery and the action going on in the scene, being almost barely noticeable in some places, and awesomely loud in others. (Luckily, the loud ones were the ones that I LOVED, like “Super-massive Black Hole” by Muse…which happens to be one of my favorite songs. (OMG OMG THEY PLAYED THAT DURING THE BASEBALL SCENE! THAT WAS LIKE MY MOST FAVORITE SCENE! I FEEL SO HONORED TO HAVE THAT SONG IN THAT SCENE)

The scenery was BREATHTAKING. It made me want to pack up my bags and go to Oregon/Washington/whatever right at that instant. (FYI, I’m planning on moving somewhere around there and getting a house worthy of the Cullens’ when I become the next Stephenie Meyer :D ) The trees…the mist…the leaves…the rivers and waterfalls…the mountains. Absolutely marvelous.

OMG THE CULLEN HOUSE WAS BEAUTIFUL. It was, as my mom (who used to be an art teacher in Korea) aptly put it, ”AN ARTIST’S PARADISE!” I had half the mind to march up there and kick the Cullens out of their own home. :P

I’m proud to say that I only squealed like a fangirl three times in the movie:
1.) When Stephenie Meyer was sitting in the diner where Bella and Charlie eat their meals every day (another change in the movie), and said her only line, “Thank you,” as the camera briefly focused on her being served by the waitress.

However, I was more squealing because I was sort of jealous of Stephenie Meyer/wanted that to happen to me someday than because I liked her. I mean, okay, she is one of my favorite authors, but she also happens to be one of the people I hope to surpass someday.

Then again, where would I be in a movie version of my novel? Among the coven of Demons wearing a black cloak? Um…no thank you, because 1.) I don’t mean to be racist against my own kind or anything like that but THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN ASIAN DEMON and 2.) Hoods make my head look even more bigger than it really is. D:

2.) OMG THE CULLEN HOUSE…AHHH I WANT IT!

3.) When Bella and Edward were up in the branches of this tall pine tree (it was in of those pictures I posted a while back, FYI) and the camera did this “panorama” where it circled the entire scenery and showed the crystal clear rivers, the evergreen forests….and how ridiculously high up they were.

So, yeah, I TOTALLY RECOMMEND SEEING THE MOVIE AND AM DEFINITELY GOING TO BUY IT WHEN IT COMES OUT ON DVD. I’d suggest you watch it in the movie theatre for an awesome surround-sound experience.

Oh,and on a side note, I went with my parents…which wasn’t all that bad than I expected it to be. My dad was surprisingly quiet throughout the movie (he had a fun time making fun of how unrealistic HP and LOTR was, so I was expecting him to be that oh-so-familiar cynic.) And my mom was…I think, more excited about how pretty Washington/Oregon was, (she kept saying: “I’m going to move there when we retire whether you like it or not” to my dad) than the move itself, but that’s okay. I guess.

My dad was a little freaked out when he first saw the Cullens though. In the scene where Bella first sees the Cullens in the cafeteria, they are all wearing some form of white, which makes a blinding/heavenly effect that makes them look even more angelic/pale. That was great and all, but I liked the most was my dad’s question: Why are they so…WHITE?! o.o (Because they are, dad. That’s their ethnicity. :P )

A little cool/freaky about my dad was that I think he and Edward had like a telepathic, male-bonding experience or something. Because he was like, “Well, it’s natural that he’s so protective of Bella. I can relate.” (No wonder he’s so afraid to let me out at night. And is absolutely hating the idea of me going to a college in the East coast/away from home. Quote my dad: BUT CAN’T YOU GO TO COLLEGE HERE AND LIVE AT HOME?! D’:) He also had one with Charlie. As I think I mentioned before, the relationship between Charlie and Bella is nearly identical to the one between my dad and me. (That is, before she starts all getting into Edward and gets pregnant) We’re both not that social and eat our meals/ride in the car in silence. (Both scenes that were so awkward and familiar in the movie with Bella and Charlie that I had to LOL)

I plan on having a “Let’s Watch Twilight on DVD” movie day at my house when the DVD comes out later in the year/next year. Anyone interested?

10 Comments

United States of WHATEVA (A silly music video that I thought was funny…)

November 21, 2008 at 8:43 pm (Random)

Featuring one of my favorite animes, Vampire Knight, which strangely ressembles Twilight…
except maybe more graphic. D: Oh and no…s-e-x. Haha.

1 Comment

17×3=…uh…-gets a calculator-…51! Haha

November 17, 2008 at 6:32 pm (Random)

Well, this has been going around Facebook, but I reposted this here on my blog so my non-facebook friends could participate.

YES THIS IS MANDATORY! You can take as much time on it as you want to (as long as the answers are not, ridiculously short)…I took about 1 1/2 hours on mine. Haha.

The official directions:
Once you’ve been tagged, you have to write a note with 16 random things, shortcomings, facts, habits or goals about you. At the end choose 16 people to be tagged, listing their names and why you chose them. You have to tag the person who tagged you.

1. Hm. Well, I know this may sound weird, but I think I like Jasper better than I liked Rice. Although my grades may still be the same as last year (or around the same, one or two points lower on some subjects, and higher on others), I feel as though someone has opened a bright shiny gate in my brain. I’m actually learning in subjects like English, Bio,Spanish, and Humanities (my four fave classes so far), and feel like I’m getting a lot smarter. (Whether or not this is true, I have no idea, but please, don’t burst my bubble of optimism.)

2. Through Humanities, I have found out that I love philosophy. I just love hearing about how certain people in the world saw the world. The different Greek and Roman philosophers are just amazing…to me, anyway. It’s even made me think about my own ‘philosophy’, basically combinations of the different philosophies/religions. It’s not really that well formed yet, but let’s just say that recently, I’ve made interesting connections about seemingly unrelated events/objects/thoughts/words in my life.

3. I love eavesdropping. Well, I guess it’s technically not eavesdropping (according to dictionary.com) because it is pretty obvious that I’m listening to people. I mean, I’m right there in front of them. And sometimes, I even let the person in front of me rant on about their life and their thoughts and about their grades…just about everything. And I love that. I really do. I don’t get annoyed or anything. I love listening. I love the passive state my mind is in whenever I’m completely tuned into that person, (or people), and imagine myself from that person’s point of view.

4. I don’t hate anyone. Really. In fact, I don’t think I even hate any material thing. Sure, I hate certain ideas (meaning not actual physical/tangible things) like procrastination, cruelty, gluttony, greed, etc…but I don’t hate the people displaying that quality at a certain period of time.

5. I’m sort of an idealist when it comes to people. I truly think that we are all born good. I think evil in this world was created by some outside factor, whether it be abuse/neglect from parents or bullying from other people. So I guess you could say I think that no one is truly evil/messed up…the things that happened to them are.

For example. Hitler. Although I don’t particularly like Hitler, I don’t particularly hate him, either. Sure, he did very, very horrible things to the Jews and sometimes it was as if he was absolutely heartless…but did you know that he was abused by his father when he was a child? His mother, whom he was very close to, died of cancer when he was 18. (My source: Wikipedia. I might be horribly wrong, but so far, it hasn’t failed me yet.)

6. Speaking of Hilter, I always wondered what drove him to hate the Jews so much. And it’s not only him. Whenever I hear about murders or suicides or any horrible events caused by people, I can’t help wondering extensively: Why? Why would a person do that? What was he/she thinking? (And not in a sarcastic sort of way, but with a genuine curiousity).

7. I cried for the Virginia Tech Massacre dude. Really. I read this article about him in Newsweek one time and cried. (holy crap, my vision’s getting blurry) Why? Well I pitied him too much. He suffered from depression and selective mutism…(an anxiety disorder where you are so shy that you can’t speak for random periods of time. Like literally…can’t speak.) And the kids in his middle school teased him about it.
Copied from Wikipedia:

“During Cho’s time in middle school and high school, he was teased for his shyness and unusual speech patterns. Some classmates even offered dollar bills to Cho just to hear him talk.[15] According to Chris Davids, a high school classmate in Cho’s English class at Westfield High School, Cho looked down and refused to speak when called upon. Davids added that, after one teacher threatened to give Cho a failing grade for not participating in class, he began reading in a strange, deep voice that sounded “like he had something in his mouth. […] The whole class started laughing and pointing and saying, ‘Go back to China.’”

I think part of the reason why I could relate to him was that I know what it feels like to be told to “go back to china’ when you’re not really from china and feel oh so stupid that you’re so shy and can’t defend yourself. That was me in kindergarten and third grade. (kindergarten=when I first came to the States and third grade was when I moved to an all white community in FL)

For a long time, and maybe even now, I was the girl with the ’strange,deep voice’ with a heavy accent. I was the girl who people stretched their eyes in front of me and called me chinese and started singing the siamese song.

8. But I don’t hate the people who did that to him or me. I believe that people do stupid things like that because they are not well informed. Those kids probably never or rarely saw an Asian kid in their lives. They also might have thought they were being funny and didn’t really know how traumatizing that experience was.

On a sidenote, I’m happy to say that by fourth grade, I actually was very close friends with all of those kids. I have more happy memories with them than bad ones. Gosh, now that I think about it, I wonder
how that came to be…maybe it was because they saw the person inside me, and not the Asian girl.

Again, I’m glad and grateful those kids did that because who knows what would have happened if they kept going on like that…Some of them were even the ones that read my very first novel (that I never finished because I ran out of room in my spiral notebook.) If we hadn’t become friends, I might have been the next Seung-Hui Cho!

9. I am a very grateful person. I’m grateful that I have food on the table every day, I’m grateful of my parents and my dog, my house, my textbooks (you read that right, I love those books by the way), my non-textbooks that I read for fun, etc.

10. I’m easily amused and not that easily annoyed.

11. When I complain, in reality, I don’t really care about those things. At least, not that much. Half-hearted is the right word, I guess. I also get into arguments that I don’t really care about. Just for the fun of it.

12. My dream is to become one of these people in this youtube video:
This is my ideal day. This is my ideal life. I also love the books of many of these people, and it’d be awesome if I’d be able to join their little writing group. (That is, if they’re not too old by then. heh)

13. My pet peeve is when people ask me what I got on certain things, like tests and quizzes. What bugs me even more is when they just go on and assume that I got a 100 or a 99.

Also, I’m not very competitive. I’d rather not know your grades. I only get good grades myself because I consider myself in a race with myself. I’m constantly trying to beat myself and am upset if my average drops.

14. I don’t like to talk. I communicate the best in writing. It is only in normal, daily life where I have “writer’s block”. I also seem to attract awkward silences.

15. My greatest fear is being forgotten. I don’t really have any problems with death in any shape or form, but what I really hate is being “dust in the wind” or just lost in the sands of time. It is the concept of not existing that frightens me, not pain or death or anything like that. No, not even the deaths mentioned in Meghana’s and Natalie’s notes.

16. My favorite genre of music is gothic/symphonic metal. It basically combines classical music with heavy metal/rock and occasionally opera. If you want to check it out, I recommend youtubing Nightwish, Within Temptation, and/or Epica.

17. The people I tagged are:
1= Barney, because you are, oh-so-very-awesome, and, like, the smartest girl I know. You’re also my unofficial editor. lol. You also check my blog all the time, even though you are very busy. :D
2= Stephanie, because you check my blog all the time and are so nice. :D
3= Annie, because you’re my bestest friend in 8th grade…you also check my blog all the time and aren’t afraid to let your opinion be heard! :D

This applies to all: Because you’re my first three fans and I will most definitely mention all of you in my Acknowledgements page once I get published. Thanks for reading my novel (and novels to come).

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