here's a rundown of what i netflixed this month. this review is a bit earlier than usual because i'll be spending the last few days of the month out of town for the thanksgiving holiday and won't be watching any netflix at all.

mafalda la pelicula - i only heard of mafalda within the last year. it's one of those things that it seems all who grew up in latin america know and in order to understand latin america better from a pop culture perspective, i just had to watch this. um, yeah.. no, it's not for me.

mishima: a life in four chapters - my impression of mishima is this: japanese think he's a freak, a taboo subject due to his suicide; westerns on the other hand adore him. in high school i was a TA for japanese class one year and the teacher showed a few films in class. i didn't like any of the films but i remember he showed a mishima documentary. this however was not it. mishima is for me, well, i don't know. i have only read one of his books and i wasn't that into it. i read this film is not allowed to be exported into japan. makes me just want to talk to japanese more about this guy.

wall-e - damn this was a long movie that kinda goes nowhere for a long time then suddenly moves really fast so that threw me off. it's not 5 stars but it's got pixar quality so i can't give it 3 stars. yet i feel uncomfortable giving it 4 stars. i can't picture myself watching this again anytime soon. all i know is, after i watched this, i started talking like wall-e.

the quiet - i believe this was one of the movies netflix recommended to me based on how i've rated other movies. um, well, it was just ok. the father has sex with his daughter and she kinda likes it. 1. that is disgusting, repulsive, sickening. 2. i cannot stand such things AT ALL. 3. i don't believe when the other parent says they didn't know what was going on. maybe sometimes they don't know but when it goes on for years and years, they've just got to know! the other parent in this one, the mother, she knows, but she'd rather just ignore it by self-medicating. ai yai yai!

head-on - there was a trailer for this film on one of the other movies we borrowed so we decided to add it to the queue. but now i'm not sure why we did other than perhaps for the 80s music used in the trailer and that the main character has a siouxsie poster in his room. given the basic plot, there's a lot of damn blood in this movie. it might start off a bit slow but it's good to watch if you have 2 hours with no other distractions.

testosterone - this would be the other trailer on the film that i can't remember but where the trailer was intriguing so it got added to the queue. largely filmed in buenos aires which offered a couple moments "oh yeah i've been there" moments but other than that, a huge disappointment. the only thing good about the movie was that it introduced me to the lovely celina font who is cute like laura harring. it was hard to find information about her but i did some googling and found some photos, her resume, and learned that she was born in rosario (might be my next vacation spot). the worst part is that i cannot feed this new crush because it seems that she's more of a novela actress and so there's slim chance of me getting hold of anything else she's been in. *sigh*

kung fu panda - talk about disappointment. i know someone who gushed like it was a 5 star movie. i give it 3 stars. some of the animation was cool but it just didn't have enough wow factor. jack black is annoying, even when it's only his voice. the only time he's not been annoying is "shark tale" and that's a terrible movie but it's worth it to watch his character. and that coming from me, given how much i dislike jack black, is saying a lot. but back to this panda thang. it's not just his voicing. i could look over that if the plot and characters were solid enough to hold your attention for the entire film but they just aren't. the furious five are supposed to be 5 aspiring masters in the film. they are young but awesome or are supposed to be awesome. unfortunately they are not. a couple ok moments with them but overall disappointing. the one character i liked was james hong as the father of the panda. he's a duck. they never explain why a duck has a panda for a son and that's part of the joke. i really like hong's voice in this, his character's idealism and dreams, etc. it just fits so well. hong's character runs a noodle shop and hopes for his son to take over one day. all that footage of cooking noodles and eating noodles, despite it being animated, made me damn hungry for noodles so i got up and made me some soba soup. that was the tastiest part of the whole film.

placebo: once more with feeling - since i like various english bands, placebo is a name i've come across often but am not familiar with their songs. i was going to wait for this dvd to arrive to get myself acquainted with their music but i couldn't help myself and listened to the album version of the dvd (it's a singles collection) as well as another album. while i didn't get that into the regular album, i really dug the singles collection. some of the sound reminds me of ned's atomic dustbin, especially the song "teeange angst". when i heard a couple songs they sounded familiar to me and they've been used in movies but i've never seen those movies so i'm not sure where i've heard them! now that i'm really digging some of their tracks, i couldn't wait for the videos to arrive. i didn't cheat and watch them online either. now that i've seen the videos, it's like, "uh...." as the videos are not so great. i also know a lot of ladies like the singer and i'm watching the clips wondering how that could be. he looks like a dyke, a kinda ugly dyke. perhaps his fans are closet lesbians.

the golden compass - when this came out, the trailer looked good but i wondered if it wasn't copying "the chronicles of narnia" or "the lord of the rings" somehow. maybe those films just opened the door for more fantasy fiction to be turned into films for children. well, the film was very boring. i'm really not sure what the fuck was going on either because i just couldn't care enough to pay attention. the only thing i learned is that nicole kidman is starting to change my mind about blondes and blue eyes. i detest it but it becomes her. especially with glasses on.

scary movie 4 - i've added a bunch of spoof films to my queue after watching so much serious stuff because i just need to wind down and relax with things that require no thought, just laughs. this film didn't have many laughs though.

Posted on November 26, 2008 @ 11:04 PM | Email This Entry | Comments (0)

it's official, my mom is a fob. the second submission of mine got published on mymomisafob.com. (tips from a karaoke pro) of course, if i explained this to my mom and showed her that part of her email got published, 1. she wouldn't get the purpose of the site, 2. she would think it's such good advice that it got published, 3. why the hell am i sharing her emails?!

now i gotta send in the good stories.

Posted on November 25, 2008 @ 7:15 AM | Email This Entry | Comments (0)

shojin desserts

my mom wanted to take me to a new japanese vegetarian restaurant in little tokyo so we went there yesterday as a birthday makeup lunch. it's called shojin and once i saw them name i was excited because i know that's short for shojin ryori, which is japanese buddhist temple food. essentially it's a vegan organic restaurant run by japanese with western influences, obviously. i would expect pretty much the same food (and portions) served if this restaurant was in japan instead of los angeles. i was really excited over the bento "boxes". it's served with miso vegetable soup, a salad, side veggies, and two entree items of your choice. they had a list of about 10-12 entree items and almost every one of them called to me. once the food was served, it looked so good and in my excitement i forgot to take pictures of it. there was no dessert on the menu but if you asked for it, they have a separate dessert menu. they had 3 items and since there were 3 of us, we ordered all 3 and decided to share. the food portions were small and as we were waiting for dessert to be served, i realized the small portions were deceiving. they were slowly expanding in my stomach and i was getting full. once we finished dessert, i was stuffed. in the restroom they had mouthwash with little plastic cups. i had to try the mouthwash. the only thing not cool about the place was perhaps the plastic cups because they probably don't get recycled. i can't wait to go back to this place.

buck-tick karaoke song list

next to it is a karaoke place and my mom insisted we go over. i said i will but only to look at the song list. i was curious to see which buck-tick songs they had. once i saw the long list of buck-tick songs, i agreed to get a room for 1 hour. we ended up staying for 2 and probably could have stayed for a lot longer. it's pretty cheap during daytime hours, even on the weekend. they must make all their money at night. they have an excellent selection of songs in japanese, english, spanish, and other languages but we only sang those 3. for a buck-tick fan, there were almost 100 songs for you to sing, no fooling. roughly 95 buck-tick songs (2 may be considered duplicates), 1 best medley, and 3 atsushi solo songs. the buck-tick songs were as current as 2005. plus i noticed they had at least one band's cover version of a buck-tick song so if you prefer their version you could do that. then of course they had tons more of other artists. they had so many songs by artists we like that i became sad over the songs and artists they didn't have. the next time i go to japan, i have to prepare for my trip by spending at least one month at this karaoke so that if i go out to do karaoke with anyone, i won't suck.

songs we picked included:
buck-tick: best medley (snippet of the singles up to 1995), "rokugatsu no okinawa" (my mom surprisingly liked that song and wants a copy)
the blue hearts: "linda linda" (i didn't think i'd be able to read the lyrics but it was simple and super fun to sing)
barbee boys: "me wo tojite oide yo", "chibi", "norma jean" (my mom picked the first one but i picked the rest)
luna sea: "true blue", "mother"
l'arc~en~ciel: "wind of gold"
café tacuba: "ingrata" (fast but surprisingly i was able to keep up for the most part)
maldita vecindad: "pachuco" (too fast for me and i couldn't hold it together so i had to quit)
héroes del silencio: "entre dos tierras"
fobia: "veneno vil" (i didn't even try)
jane's addiction: "been caught stealing" (my mom didn't see the title but by reading the lyrics she declared, "this is a thief song!")
dave navarro: "hungry"
siouxsie and the banshees: cover version of "dear prudence"
the smiths: "there is a light and it never goes out"
system of a down: "chop suey!", "hypnotize" (i'm afraid our loud screaming was too much for my mom, plus the lyrics were not to her taste so she asked if we can do more happy songs. i tried to find nice soft japanese songs but as i sang them, i realized they were also about death, etc.)
she wants revenge: "tear you apart"
the white stripes: "seven nation army"
the raconteurs: "broken boy soldier"
okinawan folk song: "asadoya yunta" (i was thrown off by the mainland japanese lyrics! i'm used to this in okinawan dialect only)
plus a bunch of others we had to delete because our time was up

Posted on November 24, 2008 @ 10:49 PM | Email This Entry | Comments (0)

last night we went to go see dave navarro and j-mello perform "acoustic" at the shark club in costa mesa. there were many things about this that were bizarre. first of all, it was billed as acoustic but only dave was acoustic. the drummer was playing regular drums and everyone was mic-ed. true that's how an acoustic show is made loud enough for everyone to hear. however, they had a laptop running electronic beats and samples of other instruments so that's why i disagree with it being an "acoustic" show. (also, i never understand why if it's not all acoustic, why someone in the group plays an acoustic guitar because you never hear it.) second, it was at a straight hip-hop type nightclub. i guess that is to be expected based on that it's dave playing with j-mello, who appears to be another hip-hop guy that dave has hooked up with musically. however, appearances can be deceiving. third, the club is in orange county. dave never goes to orange county unless he's paid for it but this place was very close to one of my favorite vegan restaurants, native foods, so that made it really bizarre. fourth, after their performance, we were talking to them outside as they had a little smoke break and if standing outside in costa mesa talking to dave navarro very close to your favorite vegan restaurant is not bizarre then i don't know what is.

the shark club. well it has that name because they have a tank with a shark. totally disappointing. i felt sorry for the shark having to live with all the disco lights and madness. valet parking was free unless you wanted to pay $10 for special parking. the free parking is not that far away (if you can't walk 20 feet then you have issues) and they bring the car to you so why pay? we had to wait in the cold (it's cold now, finally) outside as the staff were trying to figure out how to let people in. i don't know if they even had a method. we signed up for the vip list to get in (free) and it took them forever before we finally got in. but beggars can't be choosers. i got to see this show totally free. the only thing i paid for was some drinks and tips. (please tip bathroom attendants people. how'd you like to work in a bathroom smelling other people's shits and you have to hand them towels?) one more comment on the club. i felt like i was doing a sociology project on straight mating rituals. end comment.

dave acoustic

the performance. it was too short. they went on the stage and off in under 30 minutes. about 5 minutes of that was a break after the first song because the laptop wasn't being pumped through the system so it couldn't be heard. then after 2 or 3 songs, dave left the stage and the drummer and j-mello continued by themselves. that was it people. so glad i didn't pay but this was a short and good show. i got there quickly and got home at a decent time. i got to hear a new artist and it was actually good. j-mello looks hip-hop but he's a combination of things. once you see him up close, you realize the jewelry and tattoos are not typical hip-hop accessories. he's wearing coffins and skulls. one tattoo by his eye is not a tear drop but the g-clef. this is a guy into music. the songs he did were a blend of various elements and his lyrics weren't completely demeaning to women like the songs that were being played before they took the stage. in fact, i'm looking forward to hearing this guy's album! after i got home, i looked j-mello up and he's the son of the guitarist from kool and the gang. his songs are about growing up rich in the suburbs isn't what it's cracked up to be, being the only black family in a white neighborhood, etc.

dave and j-mello

as always, we were right in front and when you're right in front, the artists tend to look at you. j-mello loves to sing directly to the people right in front. several times he went around to the various ladies and at the end shook our hands. however, many times i couldn't understand what he was saying, except that one time he was right in front of me. perhaps it was a speaker clarity issue? or a mic too close to mouth issue? not sure. once dave left the stage, i really was sad about the no camera rule because j-mello struck some great poses that i know would have been classic photos. however i probably would've needed a lens with a wider angle than what i have. when we entered the club, they made me take my camera back to the car but that's because i didn't try to hide it. inside, i saw several people with cameras but during the show i don't know if they took pictures. the only cameras i saw going off during the show, mine included, were camera phones.

Posted on November 23, 2008 @ 9:16 AM | Email This Entry | Comments (0)

i went to lunch with my dad's sister and my dad's mother, AKA my aunt and grandmother. i haven't seen them in awhile so i thought i'd just go over and catch up a little. plus, last time i saw them i told them about my south america trip but forgot to give them a present. i brought it this time. then they said they'd like to go to lunch. i had completely forgotten about my birthday and that this might be some birthday lunch ploy until the very end of the meal when a slice of cake was brought to me and the waitress sang happy birthday in italian. why italian? we were at the macaroni grill, i know i know, totally not vegan. it was my first time there. but if you make your own pasta, i believe it's vegan. i didn't ask to see the ingredients for the noodles but i think it was safe because i had whole wheat noodles with a tomato basil sauce, some veggies on it and pine nuts, and most importantly, there's no cheese unless you ask for it. my creation was pretty good. the macaroni grill is a funny place because you can learn italian in the restroom! i swear it's true. instead of music, they have a recording where they say phrases in english and italian. before i go on a trip to italy, i know where i'll be hanging out: the bathroom at the macaroni grill! that or just watch a lot of classic italian movies starring isa miranda if i visit milan or anna magnani if i visit rome.

my grandmother is going to see the world next year. she booked herself on a round the world cruise. very nice. i'm glad she finally gets to see some places she has always wanted to see like australia and new zealand. due to her age, i think a cruise really is the best option because it's like a travelling hotel and you can pick day excursions in the cities where they stop at. it's like getting a sampler platter at a restaurant. she had told me recently that she was going on this cruise so that was my other reason for stopping by because i wanted to know more about it. she's going to so many amazing places, it's wonderful! but most of all, i just can't picture my white grandmother in japan. my japanese grandmother has been to america and now it will be vice versa. what's more, my grandmother is going to a city in japan that i've never been to. awesome!

Posted on November 22, 2008 @ 7:12 PM | Email This Entry | Comments (0)

my mom finally remembered my birthday but she has the date wrong! plus then she had to bitch at me.

Sorry Kalavinka. I forgot your birthday yesterday. I was so busy yesterday.
My friend hospitarized too.
I did not get any call from you for my birthday either.
Mom

oh snap! did you see how she laid on the guilt? for the record, i was out of the country on her birthday and she doesn't like it when i call from abroad so i don't know why she's complaining. especially since in years past i have wished her happy birthday here on the blog. doesn't she read my blog? doesn't the whole world? just kidding. hahahhaaa

Posted on November 20, 2008 @ 8:02 PM | Email This Entry | Comments (0)