The Sweetest Time

Ever since my grandmother died three years ago, I have to admit that I stopped having quality time with God. Reading the Bible became fast-paced and at time it took me less than a minute to finish the quiet time--way faster than cooking instant noodles! But after attending a leadership conference in our mother church, the following morning I had one full hour of quiet time with God! It's just so amazing how God can move in you when you are so willing to be touched by Him. It really gave me the strength, and yes, the conviction as I did a couple of not-so-good things a while ago. It's just so amazing!

Finally, a REAL contender to Death Note

Lately I've been reviving anime as one of my main hobbies by watching an anime series after so many months. I've stumbled upon Steins;Gate as I googled which 2011 anime series are worth watching. There are many good reviews about this one so I started to watch it.

I know it's a bit redundant since you can easily search Wikipedia or ANN about this one but let me tell you what the story is about from the episodes I've watched so far. A self-proclaimed mad scientist named Okabe Rintarou aka Hououin Kyouma together with Mayuri, a part-timer at a maid cafe and Daru, a perverse computer hacker are developing "future gadgets" and at the moment, they develop a microwave that turns out to be capable of sending SMS to the past. Joining the motley lab crew are Makise Kurisu, an 18-year old super genius and Moeka Kiryuu, whom Okabe refers to as "Shining Finger," a mysterious silent girl who constantly sends text messages to Okabe.

They are perfecting the microwave along with the idea of time travel itself. On the other hand, an international scientific research organization named SERN (yep, I spelled it right...:P) are already researching about time travel for quite some time and are planning to use it for world domination. With this, Okabe and his team must stop SERN from succeeding in their plans. Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention Amane Suzuha who came from the future and is a part-timer at the CRT TV repair shop of Okabe's landlord. She's constantly poking around the development of the microwave.

As I looked around the Net about this series, I learned that it is a continuation to Chaos;Head. What I'm happy about this series is that it did not make the same mistake as it predecessor. I really liked the concept of Chaos;Head on multiple dimensions and their overlapping altogether but the plot failed big time to make the audience catch up with its ideas and so, it almost literally just turned my head into chaos. Steins;Gate, on the other hand, was able to really explain what's going on without resorting to a "crash narration" which is a very big bummer for me. Although it is relatively slow-paced, the essential parts of the story are scattered in ample amounts through "tidbits."

The story is sophisticated but not complicated, and very engaging. As a matter of fact, it got me thinking whether such dark motives is indeed possible in the realm of science. Well, it turns out that science stripped away of ethics is a never-ending quest for seemingly infinite knowledge that will stop at nothing to achieve what it must achieve.

For me, this can be a real contender to Death Note. Don't get me wrong; Death Note is a real winner in terms of epicness but story-wise, Steins;Gate presents a similarly deep and engaging story that really gets you on and make you think.

Bittersweet...and I will inevitably say random stuff as well.

I wonder how a mixture of things in your day could also make a mixture of emotions. I just finished the Hunger Games trilogy (costing my precious Physics study time) and I was pretty disappointed at the ending at first. But then I realized that Suzanne Collins wanted to show what really happens to a victor who almost lost everything to win. The victory simply just not compensates for everything and the next turn of events will be a dramatically non-climactic one. It somehow leaves a slightly heavy feeling in my heart as I try to sort out whether I'm sad that the trilogy is over or I'm worried about Physics or about the lingering impact of the trilogy's end. It's easy to dismiss it being part of hormonal imbalances during menstruation but I'm not well too pleased of leaving myself to the throes of chemical signals.

Another thing was that some of my team mates in the Music Ministry will soon be leaving as they settle in a church much nearer to their homes. Well yes it's very selfish to not let them go as our church is really quite far from their homes and the church they'll be settling in (which is one of our sister churches) just transferred a couple of months ago and they really need a helping hand to put things in order. I remember the same situation in our church almost two years ago and it's such a great blessing that God used them to be a great help to the ministry and to the church as a whole. Surely I will miss them. I really can't say much on a blog even as secluded as it is the details. I'm not a person who cries easily but I really hope that they will feel that I will miss them so dearly.

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Somehow, even if my days are quite mundane with me going about my acads, org work, church ministry, household chores and the likes, I really feel that a change is in order. What's weird is that I feel a entropy in order. It's a very weird feeling that as of this moment I can't think of someone who will actually listen to me as I confide this. No, I'm not worried about the supposed change because I have faith that it's not a turn for the worse. I wish that this is not a mischievous ploy of my hormones again and that I'm really thinking through this one (even though it looks like I'm stoned or something as I'm writing this post).

Beyond the 3D and HD

A while ago I just finished watching The Iron Lady, a biographical movie starring Meryll Streep as former Britain's Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. I really admired her acting as it really moved me with a lead-like weight that's lingering long after the movie was over.


Nowadays, the hype is all about splashing pixels "in your face" as 3D and HD flatscreens are the "in" thing. Moreover, 3D renderings of movies including the Titanic promises a better experience and spectacle than their 2D counterparts. I have to admit that 3D movies are a whole different experience altogether- though 3D glasses are a bother when you're wearing eyeglasses already. However, the ultimate satisfaction from a movie in my opinion is its ability to leave a striking impact- a lingering emotion, a memorable image, or even the mood created from the sound, long after you finish the movie.


Being entirely immersed into the world the movie is creating takes the spectator on a higher level. Now, she is not only merely watching but also she feels the very emotions the film portrays on its every aspect. I find it quite uncomfortable that after the movie ends, I'm like Richard Collier in Somewhere in Time who was forcefully pulled out after fishing out 1980 coins in 1918. There's that awkward feeling you get being suddenly returned to the real world and its incessant dripping of time. For me, it takes time to adjust as the film still swirls in my mind as it bids its last goodbyes. Not many movies achieve this kind of impact on me, and as a result, I tend to forget most movies I watch.

After all, a good film is not limited to the vibrant display of 3D or HD; nor is it undermined by the handicaps of its own time like the lack of sound for the early silent films. It is through the lasting impact in me that somehow works like the LSS I have on certain songs on a regular basis.

Wanted: Something to Say

I don't think people usually experience being invited by a party of her friend whom she never saw for five years already. Time really flies so fast and it's been five long years since we ate lunch and laughed together at one of the school's corridors. I remember listening to her stories about a guy whom she suspects of liking her. I remember her love for poems and books. We could sit all day and share anything because somehow we connect to each other. I remember her calling me by a very long name that ends with "baby kamatis." The weird feeling I get right now is quite funny. I've been thinking of the right words to say to her when we finally meet. But somehow, the five years seem to taunt me on coming up with the right string of words. A lot of things can happen in a year...so how much more five years? I know that it's impossible that she never changed in that span of time. What if the changes that happened to both of us will hinder the connection we had before? What if I'm already uncomfortable in telling stories and random stuff to her? I'm quite nervous but I know that when I finally see her face, I know I would finally come up with the right words to say.

Back to Reality

I face the New Year with the same problem. I still can't maintain my blog regularly. It is indeed ironic when I have so many thoughts running on my head and I just let them go by without a trace. I somehow feel sorry for I feel I've wasted those little sparks of creativity and inspiration. Tomorrow I'll be going back to school. I will face the lessons, the exams, the familiar faces. I will be back to reality. I will face the incessant early morning traffic. The short tempers and deception. I will be back to reality. May I not forget to post on my blog once a week.

I need fresh air

I have a very outgoing personality, and I admit I'm gregarious. I've just realized that this disposition, although it really helps that I'm in a happy and good mood all the time regardless of circumstances, is not good all the time. Sometimes, there are times when I wonder if I have really lost myself in the laughter. You see, when you're loud, your ears are shut off to the beauty of silence. It takes silence to spark an inspiration, to get things in a new perspective, and to hear clearly God's voice. When you keep still, so many things come rushing to you and you just feel them until you can really connect with them.

I know I need to stay quiet at times, and find a secluded spot where I can think about anything. I realized I missed my pondering times, but I know that slowly but surely I'm getting back slightly lost pieces of me. I'm writing stories again but I have not written poems for quite some time. Considerable time had also passed since I've just stopped and stare at Mother Nature's beauty.

Maybe I should have a "creative" retreat? Oh well, now with my loaded class schedule, it would be quite hard to do so. But I believe God will guide me through setting the right time for everything.

Off-topic: I would post in this blog at least once a week...hopefully...:D