I was thinking of buying a decent brand of loose face powder after work today, in an effort to cover up somehow the havoc that sleep deprivation has wrought on my poor face. I got sidetracked, though, thanks to the gloomy Helen-induced weather.

It’s been pretty cold and overcast outside these past few days — sort of like pre-Christmas, only a lot gloomier. There’s something about the current weather that reminds me of the characters in Murakami’s Sputnik Sweetheart, their loneliness and isolation apparent even in the midst of the maddening crowd.

Like empty shells hurtling through space, the only thing that matters is the brief connection between satellites; the moment when individuals collide. Brief and fleeting, we find ourselves floating away again. Nothing is permanent. At the end of the day, we all go home and find solace in our cold, hard selves.

So I sat there, thinking of Sumire, Miu and “K”.

I forgot all about the face powder and started salivating over books.

I’d read Sputnik Sweetheart once, lent by my cousin who still has my Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman. I didn’t have my own copy, though, and it sort of saddened me. I resolved, therefore, to go straight to a bookstore after work so I can buy my own.

I checked out Glorietta’s Fully Booked and immediately found Sputnik Sweetheart.

Right beside it, unfortunately, were a host of other books by Murakami, not to mention tons of other interesting tomes.

There’s something about bookstores that never fails to turn me on.

I swear, you can me leave in a book store for an entire day and I won’t complain. I’ll probably come out grinning and unbelievably happy. Broke, yes, but happy.

In nearly every city I’ve visited, I never fail to find a bookstore I can visit. Bookstores in Beijing, in particular, made me want to kiss the ground and weep. Imagine the biggest bookstore in the Philippines possible, then multiply it by three. It’s that big.

So there I was, standing like an idiot in that aisle. I couldn’t let go of Sputnik Sweetheart, but I yearned for other books, too, like The Elephant Vanishes and After Dark. I also saw a copy of Norwegian Wood, which I’ve read but currently don’t own. You know the drill.

There were tons of other books that caught my eye, too. I saw a rather interesting title: History for the Pessimist. Sounds like me. I also saw 1434, the sequel to Gavin Menzies’ controversial 1421: this one spoke of China’s influence in the European Renaissance. A set of books on my beloved moptops sent me to near tears, though. More than 2000 bucks for a set of four books, but that’s totally worth it right? After all, you get four books that focus solely on The Beatles. It’s like my One Ring, darling.

I did see a number of “best-sellers”, too — Fully Booked’s recommendations for the uninitiated. Among the so-called “choice picks” were the Shoppaholic books, Dan Brown and *gasp* Jostein Gaardner’s Sophie’s World. Seriously now, people are still reading that piece of pretentious crap?

There are two kinds of people who bother to tote that book around: hard core philosophy geeks who have nothing better to do (and need light reading after dealing with tons of Nietzsche and Derrida); and people who want to appear intelligent. It’s not an interesting read. Masquerading as some sort of fantasy/child’s tale-ish tome, Sophie’s World is an unimaginative run-through of every philosophical school known to man.

To be blunt about it, it’s boring.

Back in college, I had this less-than-sterling classmate who lugged her copy of this book around but barely read it. One of my friends (who majored in Philosophy) cattily remarked, “naiintindihan naman kaya nya yan?” Erm, honestly, I doubt it.

Enough with pretentious twits and their cheap gimmicks then.

So I stood their like some sort of transfixed moron for a good ten minutes, agonizing over my purchase. It would’ve been easier if I could buy what I really wanted, which was pretty much everything. Unfortunately, I’m no freaking billionaire and books are starting to cost a fortune. I had to make a choice.

Grudgingly (and with a consoling promise to purchase my next book after I finish this one), I decided to buy just one book for now: Murakami’s The Elephant Vanishes.

I already have a long list of books to read at home. I have The Golden Compass (which bores me), and my friend Joel lent me the beautiful Unbearable Lightness of Being, which I really should have read years ago except I spent all my time reading Mario Puzo novels. I’ve got wuxia novels to deal with, too.

But I will be back, and those books will be mine. I’ll get horrible eyesight, end up with even less sleep and drive myself broke, but its fine.

I love this book-induced high.

Pardon the use of unsavory words this early in the morning, but when exactly did Jollibee and his friends become stereotypical La Salle students?

Even as a child, I was never taken in by the orange mascot and his equally damaged friends. In fact, I was never a big fan of these establishments marketed specifically towards children. As an eight-year-old, I could easily see through their gimmicks — I won’t be bought by stupid toys in happy/kiddie meals, thank you very much.

Anyway, as much as I hate Ronald McDonald (because he’s a clown, and I watched “It” as a child, thereby rendering me a puddle of fear in the presence of clowns), I’d rather eat at McDonald’s than Jollibee, simply because the former has swift, efficient service, while Jollibee reeks of last night’s palabok. I swear. The McDonald’s outlet near our office is almost always immaculate and the service is super fast. The Jollibee? It smells of an unwashed Bumbay’s gym socks crossed with tons of onion. I’m not racist, I just need to describe the smell as honestly as I can.

Anyway, so what was I saying again?

Yes, Jollitown. There’s this television show that runs on GMA 7 on Sunday mornings, and it’s all about Jollibee, his weird rubbery friends and a bunch of kids who don’t have anything better to do. Now I always thought of Jollibee as the more “local” one when compared to other fastfood chains, because it’s Philippine-owned.

Weirdly enough, in Jollitown, everyone speaks English and what passes for convoluted, accented Tagalog. What exactly is going on in the heads of their scriptwriters and producers? Jollibee, in fact, speaks like some sort of demented DJ whose tongue needs a bit more pulling. Sort of like KC Montero, only a lot more coño than necessary. At least KC has an excuse.

There’s nothing specifically interesting about Jollitown; it’s the same old hackneyed plot and kids trying to make it into showbiz. Poor kids.

I probably won’t watch it again.

I know I’m into these weird television shows that make no sense (like INC and Dating Daan), but well, even I’ve got standards.

And why am I dissing Jollitown again?

Hmmm.

Because I can.

Deciding to go “pro” on this blogging thing has sort of brought me a different dilemma. When I started out, I didn’t realize that the job required social skills — skills I lack terribly. As a professional blogger, you have to get the word out about your blog, as otherwise it would languish in the eternal inferno of the unsuccessful. You have to drop, comment, visit sites, link, chat — in short, deal with people you otherwise wouldn’t find interesting or worthy of your time at all.

I find it a bit phony, really.

A lot of bloggers drop by without actually reading your posts. They just sort of make their presence known without really understanding what your blog is about. I’m sure that a lot of those people who drop cards here and hit me up for link exchanges won’t even know that I’m writing about them, because they don’t read. At all.

Anyway, back to the problem I was talking about earlier. Sometime this week, one girl commented on my website on gadgets. Cool site, she said, and would I like to exchange links? I wasn’t too keen on doing so, because it would be best to include in the blogroll only links that were somehow related to the topic of the blog. Unlike this blog, my other sites are “professional”. This is my bum writer blog.

So okay, it’s not something I’d like to do, but it’s not just because I have strict blogger guidelines. It’s because I’m a nerd, and I have zero social skills combined with obsessive-compulsive disregard for social norms. I don’t want this particular blogger’s link on my blog because, wait for it:

She calls herself “Ms. Body Beautiful”.

Only Vivian Velez has the right to claim that title, and even then it’s still cheesy. Apart from aversion to people who describe themselves in such terms, I also dislike the way this blogger adores Imelda Marcos. I hate Imelda Marcos and the people who adore her “fashion”, “flair”, etc. The woman stole millions from this country, escaped, then waltzed back in like nothing happened.

So I don’t want her blog link on my blog, but it would be terrible to reject her outright. I’m still agonizing over this problem, really, because I don’t want to be branded the antisocial blogger — it would be horrible for my burgeoning career. Just now, though, I realized I wanted nothing to do with this phony. I just got rid of her link.

Yay me!

Now I just have to find a way to balance my desire for money and my desire to be left alone in peace.

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On a less serious and tortuous note, I just discovered “The Big Bang Theory” — an extremely funny sitcom on four geeks and their hot neighbor. I have to say it’s quite a deviation from the usual “Road Trip” type of geek-goes-wild story. Penny, the hot girl, isn’t a genius, but she isn’t a Paris clone, either.

I can totally relate to the nerdiness. I’m so wrapped up in my own world that I often fail to function properly in the social setting. Plus I measure everyone by my twisted standards, hence my insistence on everyone living by my principles.

That said, I’m totally in love with Sheldon, the genius who cannot comprehend the dictates of the social world. If we met in real life, he’d totally diss me, though, because I’m a humanities geek and I suck at math. I still want him, though, because he’s totally antisocial and incredibly deadpan.

I <3 Sheldon.

Yes, I am.

I love Blair, particularly, because of her pretty clothes and her headbands. I love how she’s bitchy and sort of clueless at the same time.

I love Serena, too, because her fashion style I can sort of relate to. I have those grungy tunic shirts and skinny jeans and boots. I love her.

I’ll go worship them now.

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Last week, I posted something about wanting to work abroad. I’m not looking for a job Nino, just in case you decide to come reading around again. I just feel like there’s nothing left here for me. I’m dejected, depressed and just sickened by all the corruption in this country. I need change.

That said, I won’t be leaving any time soon. I still have a year and a half to go to complete my masters, and I actually have a decent job here. I like this country. I just need a little time to recuperate.

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Anyone willing to buy me a Wii? I’ll love you forever, I swear.

If you’ve never watched anything on UNTV (channel 99 on Destiny Cable), you might want to now.

Or not.

It all depends on your ability to stomach the worst of things.

My mom often tunes in to this channel for its morning news and the Tulfo show that follows right after. Part of the morning show, though, is a brief yet unbelievably filthy gossip segment hosted by three gay guys. None of them are attractive in the very least, I can assure you that. Plus they have mouths so dirty you’ll probably need to scrub your insides for a year to get the images they describe out of your head.

You’ll have to particularly watch out for the mustached one; I think his name is Pete. They are shrill, they speak too fast and if you do catch their message, you’ll probably wish you didn’t.

Here’s a sample. Be prepared.

Gay Dude with Mustache: O kilala niyo ba itong si Lola M? Eto yung talak ng talak tungkol sa dati niyang alagang artista.

Fat Gay Dude: Ay true galit na galit nga si Lola M. [Take note, every other word is punctuated with shrill, gay laughter]

Gay Dude I Can’t Remember Clearly: O ano ngang meron kay Lola M?

Gay Dude with Mustache: Ayan nga galit na galit sya sa dati niyang alaga, kasi naman nag-ober da bakod ang binata. Ayan nagalit tuloy si Lola.

[Fat Gay Dude and Gay Dude I Can't Remember Clearly continue giggling and tittering in the background]

Gay Dude with Mustache: Eh sa totoo lang, hindi naman dapat magalit si Lola M. Kasi naman si bagets ginawa naman lahat ng gusto niya noon, nung nagkarelasyon sila dati. Lahat ng gusto niyang sex acts eh nagawa nila ano, payag si bagets.

Fat Gay Dude: Ano namang sex acts yang sinasabi mo ha? [Tittering continues incessantly]

Gay Dude with Mustache: [acting coy] Ano, eh di, an*l sex, at or*l sex, at marami pang iba!

[Giggling and tittering escalates]

Gay Dude with Mustache: At eto pa, binigay pa ni bagets ang virginity niya kay Lola M! Yun na!

Any moron can guess who they’re talking about. I don’t buy it, though, because if I remember correctly, young actor (BC) in question left the mentor (GM) and the country at a very, very young age. It just seems implausible.

Anyhoo, scrubbing starts now.

I watched CJ7 yesterday. For people who don’t know, it’s Stephen Chow’s new movie, slated for international release.

Who is Stephen Chow? Drop and give me twenty you ignorant asshole. Stephen Chow, king of comedy and god of the Hong Kong box office, is the greatest actor/director/producer who ever lived. I say that even if I love Andy Lau with all my heart. Anyway, he’s the guy behind Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer, as well as God of Cookery, Mad Monk, Fight Back to School and dozens and dozens of Hong Kong cinema gold.

I love Stephen Chow.

Okay then. CJ7 isn’t really as drop-dead funny as the rest of Chow’s movies. This time, most of the comedy comes from the little girl who played Chow’s son (yeah, you read that right). It’s sort of a feel-good movie with a cute and furry CGI alien pet instead of the usual Ng Man Tat. Digression: I love you, Ng Man Tat, please come back and show up in some HK screwball movie soon. The world needs you.

I thought the film was okay, it was funny, though lacking in the usual mo lei tau that the Chow is so known for. Maybe because it’s a film for the Western audience, and no one in the West (save for the Chinese immigrants, maybe) will be able to figure out what the hell he’s babbling about.

CJ7 isn’t hard-core comedy and it sure isn’t Stephen Chow’s best. I watched it only because I’m an affirmed Chow-head and I’ll watch nearly anything with Stephen Chow in it. Anyway, there’s hope: Kung Fu Hustle 2 is in the works.

I miss From Beijing with Love.

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I watched AI for two consecutive weeks because of the Lennon/McCartney and Beatles themes. So far, I think I’m hating that Archuleta dude (who royally screwed up when he forgot the words to “We Can Work It Out”) because he keeps giggling. He seems genuinely nice, but I hate the fact that he might win this contest because of his hordes of giddy teenage fans.

Obviously I’m rooting for someone else, and that someone else is Cook (I have no idea what his first name is). His rendition of Eleanor Rigby and Daytripper knocked me out of my senses. He must win. Must.

And oh, I like the Pinay girl. I saw her sing “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me”, which is so Pinoy karaoke (you know who you are, you Lani Misalucha wannabes), and I just instantly liked her. Hope she does better, though. Her performance has been steadily declining since.

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Horrible horrible horrible.

I won’t be able to watch They Kiss Again tonight because channel 66 has been AWOL for days. Blech. Screw you, Destiny Cable, screw you!

I don’t know if you know, but I’ve certainly thought about it.

Back when the ABS-CBN soap “Lobo” was just a trailer, I realized that it resembled a story I’ve seen before. If anyone knows about that Korean tearjerker, “Forbidden Love”, please raise your hands. Granted it was a pretty obscure show, even if it got primetime status on ABS-CBN, but I don’t think it really made much.

Anyway, my point is, I’ve never seen “Lobo”, but based on the trailer, I think it resembles “Forbidden Love” a little too much. I finished “Forbidden Love” on DVD, so I pretty much know the entire story, and this Angel-Piolo thing really seems like it’s bordering on plagiarism, unless of course ABS-CBN actually admitted to having been inspired by the Korean soap, which I think it hasn’t done.

The story of “Forbidden Love” is this: boy and girl are childhood friends. They have similar necklaces that they keep (this figures later in the story) and promise to be friends forever. They get separated in a really bloody confrontation. Fast forward. Girl and boy change their names. Fast forward. Girl has a terrible secret: she’s a fox who eats people’s livers. Boy is a top secret agent sent to murder the foxes and keep the peace. Of course they fall in love somehow.

That’s the gist of it. Now if you think I’m imagining things, set me straight.

Doppelganger?