Saturday, October 25, 2008

Official LOST Season 5 Promo Released

It's about freaking time.

The first official promo for LOST's season five has been released online. And it looks like The Swan and the Nigerian drug smuggler plane are back.

Or are they?

I think the theory that the Island moved to a different time (DHARMA Initiative's heyday?) may actually be proven right (or at least partially) in the end.

Enjoy the following clip, courtesy of DarkUFO. Thanks Dark for the code and the pic below!








I want to flash-forward to 2009 NOW.

Monday, October 13, 2008

I Want A BlackBerry Storm

I love my BlackBerry Pearl. Sure, it's not as good as the Apple iPhone. It's good enough for me and my needs, though. My Pearl works well by itself, as is my iPod Nano. And then I read this review by a working mom. Now, I'm just a working girl, but her review convinced me that having an iPhone is not an absolute requirement for living.

So, when I chanced upon this Yahoo! Tech article, I was really excited. I mean, a touchscreen smartphone with the things that I love about the BlackBerry (and more) and without the need to get rid of my iPod Nano? Fantastic!

Enter the BlackBerry Storm.




Of course, it's not yet released in the US, as per Verizon Wireless's page, let alone in Canada. I checked the Rogers Wireless website - nothing.

Hopefully it'll be released anytime after 27 December; I'll be eligible for an upgrade by then.

Oohhh... I seriously want a BlackBerry Storm!!!

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Freaking Out For Tomorrow!

I am starting on a new job tomorrow, 1 October.

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

I'm excited, nervous, happy, and just plain freaking out. Can you tell?

Anyway, I'll be doing more of the same things, but the new company is in the manufacturing industry, so many things are gonna be new to me. And none of the messiest joint venture ever created to boot! (Y'all in [insert name of my former employer here] know what I'm talking about. *Wink wink*) I think I'll be more involved and busier here too.

The best parts? It's about half an hour away by bus - probably less if I get a ride from my bro-in-law since he works a block away. What's more? I'll have earlier hours, so I can get home much earlier! When I get home from work, I can focus on my writing/blogging. Yay! Also, there's a Subway, Wendy's, and Tim Hortons nearby.

The worst part? I can't be a night owl anymore. I have to get up every morning at five, and be at the bus stop by 6:40.

Why did I leave my previous employer? Well, it's laying me (and practically the entire finance department in the Burnaby regional office) off in the new calendar year, and I didn't want to wait until then. I know how much it sucks to go job-hunting in the middle of winter. That's the main reason anyway. (Harhar)

My last day was actually kinda sad. Even if I swore not to cry, I still did. I was so emotional that night. Thank God for the white wine that one of the district managers gave me last Christmas.

But in the end, I was glad. About a week after I got the news (a day later than the rest because I was sick on the day TPTB broke the news), I felt... kinda relieved. After the shock of getting laid off, I began to feel free. I had been unhappy since the beginning of this year (don't ask me why; it's too painful to remember), and I was itching to get the heck out of there. The news of the layoffs gave me a very good reason to go job-searching.

It was pretty quick too. Two weeks after I got the news - early morning of 27 August, to be exact - I sent out resumes for three postings (those posted by recruiting agencies on behalf of the companies) I saw on Monster.ca. By afternoon of 27 August, I've gotten a response from two of them: one was a more senior position that I didn't get, and the other one was a junior position that's similar to what I've been doing in the past two years. I spoke with the recruiter two days after. Ten days after, the recruiter e-mailed me to say that the controller wanted to interview me. On 11 September, I spoke with the controller. The interview went great, with a bit of bloopers (that never runs out in my life). The recruiter e-mailed me four days after the interview to tell me that the company was offering me the job. I had some reservations about the proposed start date, because I wanted to finish my major obligations to my previous employer. I accepted the job offer later that day - 15 September - and gave notice to my former boss. I got the official offer letter three days later.

It only took 22 days, from sending the resume to faxing the signed offer letter back to the recruiter. Wow.

Anyway, I hope this new job works out for me, and that I'll stay in this company until my retirement.

Pray for me, y'all!

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

When Life Starts to Overwhelm You...

... Sometimes, writing/blogging has to take a back seat.

I've had to sort out some things in my life ("career," finances, et cetera). I will start writing again soon. Hopefully over this weekend.

Ciao for now.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

2008 Emmy Awards Watch: Creative Arts Emmy Update

Out of six Creative Arts Emmy categories LOST is nominated for, it won only one:

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (One-Hour)

Lost • Meet Kevin Johnson • ABC • ABC Studios
Robert Anderson, Production Mixer
Frank Morrone, Re-Recording Mixer
Scott Weber, Re-Recording Mixer

Congratulations!!!

I'm glad that the Best TV Show Ever won one Creative Arts Emmy award this year. This is much better than last year, when it lost both the Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing - Drama award to Dexter and the Outstanding Sound Editing award to 24.

You can look at all the Creative Emmy Awards winners here. The ceremony will be aired on Saturday, 20 September at 8 PM EST on E! (in the US).

This year's Primetime Emmy Awards will be aired on Sunday, 21 September at 8/7 central on ABC. The Red Carpet presentation will be aired on E! at 6 PM PST that same night.

Let's hope and pray that either Michael Emerson (for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Drama) or LOST (for Outstanding Drama Series) wins.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

The Numbers Popped Up In Fringe!

I was semi-watching Fringe last night when I heard a few instances of The Numbers (i. e. 4-8-15-16-23-42).

  1. Flight 627: 6 + 2+ 7 = 15
  2. Four: At some point I heard a character mention the number 4
  3. One hundred and eight: The Steig guy was passenger 108 on the plane


Wow!

Anyway, the 90-minute premiere was good enough for me to tune in next week. Yay.

Just pointing out the Mysterious-Numbers instances...

I gotta get back to my job-interview preparation. (Please pray that it goes well!!!)

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Female Musicians Join Voices for Charity Song

Fifteen female singers - including Mariah Carey, Carrie Underwood, Natasha Bedingfield, Sheryl Crow, Beyonce Knowles, and Mary J. Blige - recorded "Just Stand Up," sales of which will benefit cancer research.

All sales, as in 100 per cent.

Rihanna, Fergie, Miley Cyrus, Melissa Etheridge, Ashanti, Keyshia Cole, Ciara, Leona Lewis, and LeAnn Rimes round up the 15 singers who recorded the song. It was conceived and produced by Antonio "L.A." Reid, along with Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds. "Just Stand Up" will be available on the radio and iTunes on 2 September 2008.

These 15 singers will perform the song live three days later during "Stand Up to Cancer," a TV special to be aired simultaneously on ABC, CBS, and NBC. Jennifer Aniston, Lance Armstrong, Meryl Streep, and Reese Witherspoon, among others, are expected to appear on the fund- and awareness-raising program.

Founded in 2007, Stand Up to Cancer is a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation that calls on entertainment-industry people and platforms to help fight cancer.

For more information, go to the official website of Stand Up to Cancer.

Flowers Made My Day

I've been depressed since last Friday - well, even more depressed than usual - but this nice woman made my day today.

I was walking home from the bus stop when a nice elderly woman approached me. She was pruning a plant and wanted to give me some flowers, rather than wasting them in a compost pit. She led the way to her house and cut a segment of the plant. She cut several branches filled with a few flowers. She cut the buds on top and the leaves, and handed them to me. I thanked her at least twice and went on home.

Thank God for camera phones for these snapshots:



























So, thanks to the nice woman who lives at 6985 198A Street. You brightened up my bleak life, even for a brief time.