If you saw the above title and immediately decided that you would rather jump off the Sydney Harbour Bridge than read this post, then I will not stop you. I totally understand. After all, I've got friends who, at the slightest mention of the word "Japanese" or "Korean", would take off and sprint in the opposite directon in case you infected them with your asian-ness. I absolutely would not begrudge you this. Personally, I watch anything and everything, be it Doctor Who, Bollywood films, Hollywood films, American dramas, anime, British soaps or the odd Australian indie film. I'm aware that not everyone else does this so I won't attempt to force feed you something you don't want. Anyway, enough explaining, ONWARDS WE GO!

*******

I've wanted to do this for such a long time now. Sometimes I feel like its a waste that after spending 16-20 odd hours watching a fantastic series, I just file it away in the dusty old corners of my mind, never to revisit it or gush about it to a friend. I've always had an innate fear or forgetting the stuff I watch. What if in 10 years time, I decide that I want to relive those moments where I've been transported to a different world but find that I've totally forgotten the names of my most loved dramas? That would be horrible. So I'll file them here and perhaps in a few years time, I'll dig them out again and see what I thought.

(Play for background music - I haven't figured out how to embed music properly yet)

Warning: Figuring out what order I should rank these dramas in was so hard. I've been watching them over a span of about 4-5 years now and dramas are so diverse in genre that trying to rank them by enjoyment value is actually really difficult. I guess I'll just have to make do trying to relive the level of excitement/anticipation that accompied each series.

9. DEVIL BESIDE YOU

Ah yes, the good ol' Taiwanese dramas. Before I discovered the blindingly superior quality of that thing called the "Korean drama", I watched Taiwanese dramas. This one dates back to..... 2007? 2008? I'm not really quite sure but man, it was such a long time ago. I reckon if I tried to watch a Taiwanese drama today, I wouldn't even get through the first 5 minutes. Once you go Korean, there's not going back. Plus, being Chinese, I just hate hearing the language. Anyway, basically, the plot is something along the lines of "gangster bad boy meets hardworking good girl". Cliched, I know but this drama featured one of the best pairings/on-screen chemistry that I have ever seen in an Asian drama, ever.

Plus, Mike He was hot.

8. PERSONAL TASTE

Lee Min Ho. Pretending to be gay. In order to live in the same house with some woman. What's not to like? Okay, I know this drama flew under just about everybody's radar when it aired but I really, really enjoyed it. I loved all those little comedic moments, the chainsaw humour and the whole "I thought you were gay but you're actually not and dammit why didn't you tell me, I've been walking around the whole house with only my towel wrapped around myself" moments. Maybe I enjoyed it so much because it aired about a year after that whole Boys Over Flowers fad and I was STILL suffering from Lee Min Ho withdrawal. I might've subconsciously dug my claws into it because of this. Who knows. *SPOILER ALERT*SPOILER ALERT*SPOILERALERT* - Oh and it was one of the few Korean dramas I've ever seen that actually had da sex in it, lol. Not that that adds to its value or anything, it was just great to see Koreans not being so... conservative.

7. MY GIRLFRIEND IS A GUMIHO

Have you ever heard of a Gumiho? No? It's basically a creature from Korean/Japanese folklore - a fox with nine tails that appears mostly in the form of a woman. Oh and she feeds on men's organs. So after reading the title of this drama again, you see how having a gumiho as a girlfriend can be problematic? As a Hong sisters drama, this carries their trademark comedic flair and beautiful writing. I absolutely absolutely absolutely loved the main actress in this drama. If I was lesbian, I'm pretty sure I would've dated her, ha. The drama made great use of an old Korean legend and all those funny moments with the gumiho trying to fit into a 21st century world were priceless. *cough*the toilet bowl scene*cough*

6. DREAM HIGH

~DE-NUH DREAM HIGHHHHH DE NA NA NA NA.....oh right, intelligent input. This was basically the Korean version of Glee, but oh, so much better and much more satisfying. It follows a bunch of misfits as they get accepted into a prestigious Performing Arts School and struggle to find success in the fields the love. Obviously, all those issues necessary for a high school drama such as love, rivalry and betrayal are present but the overarching theme is one of competitiveness and of trying to establish yourself as a successful dancer/singer despite some significant problems (e.g. deafness in Sam Dong's case). I think one of its strongest points was casting real idols in the roles of the characters - there were so many great songs that came out of this drama. The best singer was obviously IU but the characters of Hye Mi and Sam Dong also deserve some honourable mentions.

5. SUNGKYUNKWAN SCANDAL

My first reaction to this drama was "Ewwwwwwwwwwwww, historical looking stuff, yuck!" I have never ever watched an Asian historical drama before in my life (those cheesy Chinese ones my mum watches don't count). I really didn't think I would end up trying this but after hearing javabeans rave about it over at http://www.dramabeans.com/, I gave it a try. And it was one of the best decisions of my life. I have to clarify first, this isn't a hardcore historical one, it's actually what you'd call a "fusion sageuk", aka the rules get bent a bit and it becomes rather trendy. It takes place at a famous Korean university called Sungkyunkwan traditionally for males. Our heroine, due to some complicated circumstances ends up attending the school disguised as a male and hence, the fun and games begin. The plot then becomes convoluted with all these king assassination plottings, age old secrets, etc etc but it was enjoyable nonetheless. Oh and Sungkyunkwan also features like, the best bromance ever. Definitely my crack drama of 2010.

4. CITY HUNTER

I FUCKING LOVE THIS DRAMA SO MUCH AAARRRGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

No seriously, if you haven't read any of my fangasms this year about City Hunter, then you were either taking a very very long vacation from blogspot or too busy trying to dig your way to China or something.

3. HANA KIMI (JAPANESE VERSION)

Ngaww, if I had a heart, this drama would be occupying that soft spot right there. Again, this is another of my early ones, right when I was drifting obliviously through The Golden Age of Dramas back in either 2007 or 2008. Originally a manga, this one tells of a girl who disguises herself as a guy in order to attend a boy's school for some reason that I can't really recall right now. Yes, if you can't tell, I really love my crossdressing dramas. But out of all those, this one made the most out of the comedic potential of the scenario. There was the memorable, "Homo jenai" moment, the disastrous school festival, the tight-knit friendships and so much more. Oh, and Ikuta Toma as Nakatsu. And the gorgeous soundtrack. Gahhhh, so much love for this drama. I have so many feelings but I'm having trouble expressing them....

2. YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL

So good, I watched it twice. Definitely the best Hong Sisters one out there (in my opinion). The plot tells on a girl who disguises herself as a boy (yes, me and my crossdressing) in order to pose as her twin brother in the idol band, A.N.Jell. *SPOILER ALERT* Eventually the three other band members find out her real identity but all three do their best to protect her identity. It's just so sweet and beautiful and I grew so attached to the characters, to the extent that it was probably really unhealthy for me.

1. BOYS OVER FLOWERS (Korean Version)

Oh god this drama... where do I start? If you'd taken all my favourite things in the world, mixed them together in a large mixing bowl, added 10 litres of chocolate and a generous amount of magic and rainbows, it would be nowhere as near as addicting as Boys Over Flowers. It literally created a ginormous Korean wave throughout the whole world, airing in countries such as the United States, Japan, Puerto Rico, Canada, Romania and many more. It was also the drama that shot Lee Min Ho to super stardom literally overnight. He was virtually unknown before that.

The drama basically tells of poor girl Geum Jan Di who gets transferred to the richest school in Korea. A series of events causes her to become known to the school's 4 richest guys (known collectively as the F4) and then shit happens and ITS SO FUCKING ADDICTIVE. Looking back at this drama, there were quite a few issues (aka "Almost Paaaaaaaradiseeee"), but these were effectively overshadowed by the how mind-numbingly satisfying the whole thing was. If heroin was turned into a drama, I'm pretty sure it would be this one. I just.... I don't even know how to describe how it affected me. I lived my life in a daze, waiting for episodes to come out every week. If you haven't seen it yet, then I suggest you watch it right now during these holidays.

Honourable mentions:

Hana Kimi (Taiwanese Version) - aka my first asian drama ever
Hana Yori Dango, Season 1 and 2 (Japanese Version of Boys Over Flowers)
Coffee Prince
49 Days
Playful Kiss

I feel so antsy right now because I don't have any video games to play LOL. What happened to Skyrim, you ask? Well my laptop happened. (Warning, nerdy computer jargon ahead). Basically , my puny little laptop doesn't meet the system requirements. This SUCKS because I've got the required 2GB (and more) of RAM, the dual core processor, Windows 7 and plenty of excess memory data. Unfortunately the only thing I'm missing is the video card with 512 MB of RAM. My one only goes up to 216 or something pathetic like that and that just has to be the most important component of the game's graphic quality. Pooface >:( I feel like time's running out for me. After these holidays, I'm never gonna be able to lose myself in a game like I've been doing when I was younger. Who hears about Year 12s gaming during their holidays? No one. They're too busy studying their ass off.

Computer issues aside, I had quite a nice day yesterday. I went to a city with a whole group of old friends from primary school and we basically just walked around shopping, eating Thai, getting smashed by bumper cars at Galaxy World and getting ripped off by dodgy, japanese claw games. (Seriously people, don't ever play those claw games at the caps place near Capitol Theatre - they are so rigged).

Oh and I shopped.
And spent lots of money.
Mostly on clothes and macarons.
And now I am even more broke.
And I feel so guilty.
And someone has to punch me in the face next time I'm about to spend lots of money.

What else did I do? Oh right, I looked through 4 asian drama stores trying to find City Hunter. This failed miserably.... it was sold out in every single shop I went to. No kidding. I knew it was popular but certainly not to that extent. Seriously Sydney, you'd think you'd have at least one shop which hadn't sold out of City Hunter. What is this? Are you telling me that a bijillion old ahjummas and noonas have managed to clean out every single drama store in the city in search of THE BEST drama of 2011 and that there is nothing left for little ol' me? Oh wait, don't answer that.

Despite that, it was still a great day. I had a great time with some old friends, catching up and reflecting on those blissfully ignorant days of primary school. The next time I see them will probably be after the HSC.... I feel sad just thinking about it.

Today, I went shopping at Macarthur shopping centre. I came back with new clothes, new shoes and new..... Skyrim.

Yeah, I'm not even going to say don't judge me because I know that you're doing that right now. That's basically all my Christmas money down the drain. Seriously, that game is not cheap but well, I'm living these holidays like they're the last holidays I'm ever going to have in my entire life. If that means blowing all my money on one game that will keep me occupied for the whole holidays than so be it.

But I digress. Let me just describe my experience of buying Skyrim.

I did my research as soon as I got to the shopping centre. I literally walked into every single game shop at that place- JBhifi, EB games, Gametrader, even good ol' Target. Bloody hell you should've seen me. I was like a freaking homing pigeon. Anyway, the cheapest store was actually EB Games so I backtracked there with my sister and then spent 15 minutes dawdling there deciding whether to buy it or not. Did I mention that that game is so bloody expensive? :( I eventually picked up the game and paid for it. I felt a tiny bit guilty but I guess that's always normal when you've just spent an insane amount of money on something. As I walked out of the shop, the security guard checked my bag and then he smiled and said, "Great choice." I have never felt so nerdy in my life :)

In conclusion, I think I need more money in my life. Except for today, I rarely ever spend money on things I want. I don't usually go out buying games/movies/bags/clothes/whatnot for myself.... The money gets spent regardless of all this - usually its for friend's birthdays or something small like food during an outing or a train ticket. But it all adds up eventually and by the end of the year, I find that I'm as poor as Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happiness (most depressing movie of all time btw - don't watch it). I think I need a job.... except I'm the world's most laziest person and couldn't be bothered looking for one. Sigh. And tomorrow I'm blowing more cash as well since I'm going to the city with a few of my primary school friends and I have to, HAVE TO get City Hunter for my mum. LEE MIN HO, MY LOVE, WE SHALL BE REUNITED SOON!!

Title speaks for itself.

DOCTOR WHO CHRISTMAS SPECIAL 2011 AIRS TONIGHT ON ONE OF THE ABC CHANNELS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Annie, I want to watch Skip Beat too! But I'll have to wait until nearly the whole series is out, otherwise I will die of impatience waiting for a few episodes every week.

I want to play Skyrim. All the reviews say its a good game and plus, it comes from the Elder Scrolls series. I actually have the one before Skyrim, called Oblivion. God knows how many times I started that game. Every single time I get up to a certain point and then I either lose interest or suck so much that it's impossible to continue playing. BUT IF I PLAY SKYRIM, THAT WOULD BE REDEEMING MYSELF... in a way. And also, I should use these holidays to play as many games as possible because after this, I would have to put a whole year of gaming on hold :( Oh and somebody mentioned that it had dragons. I like dragons. Haha, I sound so geeky - somebody stop me falling any further into the void of nerd-dom.

Juliana, your sister and I should cook together sometime. We seem to have the same cooking style.

My mum's nearly finished watching You're Beautiful. This means that we can start City Hunter soon. YAYYAYYAYAYAYAYAYAY!! LEE MIN HO, I'M COMING FOR YOU! This will be like the third time I've watched it because I remember spending a significant number of hours at Nancy's house marathoning a few episodes.

I baked a cake with Tian, Nancy and my sister yesterday. It was a green and red velvet cake and it tasted yummy, despite that fact that it looked like Frankenstein's rejected half-brother in cake form. I guess it just shows - you shouldn't judge a cake by its cover.

P.S. Could someone please answer this question for me:

What do SNSD mean when they sing that line, "Bring the boys out". I don't get it. Bring the boys out from where? *mind wanders into the gutter*

That was totally stolen off Google Images by the way.

Have you ever dreamt about being best friends to someone you know? In your dream you feel so close and so connected. You know that you can tell them everything and in turn, they will lean on you when they need you most. It's a friendship that everyone else envies and one that makes you feel like the luckiest person in the world. Have you ever woken up from that dream feeling blissfully happy.... and then realised that it was just that, a dream. You then realize that in real life, there is no reason for you to be talking to that person and similarly they wouldn't bother sparing you a second glance because you have absolutely nothing in common with them. Yeah, I just had that dream and now I feel like a big chunk has been ripped out of my life. DREAM, Y U NO LYK ME?!?!

When I first heard this news I was like, what the freak - Taylor Swift? The Hunger Games? Those things are specifically engineered to repel one another. But then I thought about it and it started to make more sense because Taylor Swift has a distinctly country style and that could obviously represent the rural-ness of Katniss and Peeta's former life. Okay, I'll shut up now. Just listen to the song :)

I like it..... *clicks replay button*

Oh and just a few hours after the news was announced at www.mockingjay.net, the song got to number 1 on the iTunes charts. Hooray for the obsessive fandom!

Man, watching other people blog about studying/homework makes me feel so unproductive. Cause while you guys are doing maths or physics homework of whatnot, I'm just sitting here rewatching old dramas, reading my trashy novels, playing Zelda on Wii and having disco parties in the middle of the townhouse. I should study but I really cannot be bothered.... and I don't even know what to study. My subjects aren't studyable lol. Aisssh, okay I should find something productive to do today.

I have a choice:

• Buffy the Vampire Slayer


• True Blood


• Downton Abbey Season 2


• Or trying to pick up where I left off with Vampire Diaries

Which one should I lose myself in over the holidays?

So as I said before, I finished the Millenium trilogy. No wait. Technically that isn't correct because I cheated during the last book.



I don't feel qualified to write a review about this book because I actually didn't read it properly. So I won't (write a review that is). Instead I'll just talk about my stuffed up approach to reading it.

I read The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo ages ago. Aaaaaaages ago. I don't remember much besides the fact that it started off quite slow and I literally had to force myself to continue reading it. Fortunately it got better and by the end of the book I'd really enjoyed the story. I then read the second one shortly after and spent nearly the whole book feeling frustrated that Blomkvist and Lisbeth never really met face to face (until the last part). It was still a good book though.

And then I think about a year passed and I picked up The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. So basically I'd left too big a gap between the books to pick up where I left off. I tried reading the first few chapters but seriously, all that legal mumbo jumbo and media confusion just turned me off. I wanted to scream at the book and go "SHE'S BLOODY INNOCENT YOU FREAKIN' LOSERS" but that wouldn't have achieved anything... So instead, I skim read the whole thing in two hours, picking out the bits that seemed most interesting. Actually, I just wanted to read the parts from Lisbeth's point of view because to me, she is the character that makes the series. Without such an interesting protagonist, the books wouldn't be as popular. That, I am pretty sure about.

I really can't read books or watch TV series after I've taken a break from them. Otherwise I lose the flow of the story and just can't throw myself back in. That's why I consume stuff in huge doses... like marathoning Doctor Who episodes, compulsively watching my k-dramas and reading whole series of books at a time. Ah well, I still got the gist of the story though. Basically Lisbeth Salander gets mistaken as a murderer for almost the whole book, gets sent to a mental asylum and with the help of Blomkvist and his sister, is acquitted of all the offences. Oh and Niedermann is her half brother or something. And then at the end, Lisbeth and Blomkvist finally get to see each other again.... after like, 700 pages. Thank god I didn't read it properly, I would've been so frustrated, thinking that I get to see those two reunite after everything they've been through only having that happen at the end.

It's still a good series though. Maybe I'll try reading it properly another time.

I was going to blog about finishing the Millenium trilogy but I figured I had better stuff to do.... like rewatch You're Beautiful. So I'm going to go do that now. Huh, isn't this a very pointless post.

P.S. Jessica, I feel your pain.

Another poster:



And apparently, Lionsgate and China Glaze are releasing official nail polish products modeled after the flamboyant fashions of the Capitol. Um yeah....

After this post, I will try not to blog about school or homework for the rest of the holidays. Because seriously, why would you want to hear about those things during your 6 week break?

*****

I don't have much homework these holidays.... and it's quite a strange feeling. Last year, I remember stressing over all my modern and history extension stuff whilst everyone else was out in the world enjoying life and now the role has been reversed. Let's see, what do I have to do? I've got to do that 800 word thing for english extension, I have to read that booklet on As You Like It, read Wuthering Heights (ew) and find related texts for both extension and advanced. It's not that bad. The big hurdle will probably be getting a move on with the Extension 2 project but that's okay, I've got time.

I have to keep myself occupied though, otherwise I'll fall into another pit of anxiety. I've got my Sims, my books and... well that's about it. Doctor Who is starting again but that's hardly going to be a significant time filler. I should exercise but I don't know what type of exercise to do. Bike riding? Meh, maybe when Nancy gets her bike.

But I should stop griping. I would choose being bored over going to school any day. HOLIDAYS, COME AT ME BRO.

Just spent 5 hours straight rewatching You're Beautiful with my sister and mum (they've never seen it before). It brings back so many great memories. I kept fidgeting around on the couch waiting for them to get up to a particular point and then laughing twice as much as the first time I watched it. I'm never usually one for rewatching dramas - once you've seen it, there's no point in seeing it again right? But You're Beautiful is an exception I guess. It's so hilarious and well written and just ungggh - the only way to describe it is to say its like a huge ball of happiness and radiance wrapped up in layers of cotton candy and sparkles and then drizzled with warm, melty chocolate. They don't make 'em like this anymore. No really they don't. The only stand out drama for me this year was City Hunter. I remember when I went through my crazy drama phase.... Boys Before Flowers, You're Beautiful, Sungkwankan Scandal.... I really miss those days. Anyway, just some pics to bring back the memories:

I'm so excited for today. At around 2:30pm, all six of us plus my two older cousins are going to be visiting our primary school teacher who's finally retiring after like, decades of teaching. We're going to bring her flowers and chocolates and cards and everything is going to be all rainbows and happiness and unicorns. And also it's the start of the holidays and that makes me happy. I'M SO HAPPY GUYS.

I have decided that I don't spend enough time being happy. I am a very anxious person. If I don't have something to stress about, I will eventually find something. It's like I purposely seek out stress and anxiety. E.g. after I finished the Year 12 hsc exams, I started stressing about the other upcoming tests despite telling myself that I should just enjoy the lull. (That reminds me, I got my name in the paper in the HSC merit list....along with a bijillion other people) And I tell myself that I'm going to enjoy the holidays but I betcha after about a week, I'm going to start feeling fidgety and restless over not having started any of my holiday homework. Aissh I need a life :(

Anyways I dont' know why I'm wasting time blogging when I could be playing Sims or doing something equally unproductive. Cyaz!

I am contemplating uploading the violin videos from Presentation Day on this blog. Contemplating. I doubt that will happen though because everytime I look at them, I cringe. Especially Bilge Rat Blues. That one was so craptastic. Oh and the Viva La Vida one makes me laugh because you can clearly see the Year 7s fidgeting at the back. And in every single performance, my face is screwed up in concentration like this: ><'

Well they could've been worse. Plus I doubt anyone really cares or pays attention to us anyway. 90% of the whole assembly is spent going, "Geeeeeez, are we done yet??" and talking to the person next to you. And plus, I had a good workout, running from one end of the hall to the other. You should've seen me man, I was so ninja.

Congrats to the SRC, captains and vice captains today. You guys did a great job. Oh and William, my mum said that you were her favourite presenter LOL. Just wanted to let you know.

My favourite athlete:

I keep forgetting how satisfying it is to youtube past performances of Kim Yuna.

And on a side note:

DARN IT, why didn't my parent's send me to ice-skating lessons instead of swimming lessons. WHY?????

1. Wake up early (at about 6:30)




2. Check phone for HSC results***




3. Allow about half an hour for a) celebration or b) moment of sadness




4. Try to get into the shower before sister hogs the bathroom and a) sing in shower or b) sob relentlessly in shower over another potential year of modern history/history extension.




5. Eat breakfast and get into car. (NTS: DO NOT FORGET VIOLIN!!)




6. Meet up at school and a) act hyper and happy around friends or b) mope in the corner while they act hyper and happy around me.




7. Go rollcall




8. Go to hall and sit in a hard, uncomfortable seat for 2 hours. Perhaps read a little bit more of "The Bronze Horseman".




9. Have violin rehearsal with Ms M and Year 7s. Force the closest Year 7 to sing by threatening to play violin close to their ear... very close to their ear.




10. Have lunch with friends and a) act hyper and happy around them or b) go mope in my sad little corner and mourn the loss of 2 years of wasted effort or c) spend the whole 40 minutes fending off mosquitos with my trusty Aeroguard.




11. Go back to hall and sit in a hard, uncomfortable plastic chair for another 2 and a half hours. Stand up occasionally to "make music".




12. Go home and a) kick back and relax or b) spend the whole night in my room crying.

***This step may actually be modified depending on my mood. I may decide that it would be better to check the results AFTER school. It may save me a lot of doom and gloom during the day.

But then again, even though people say curiosity killed the cat, I am still a very determined, impatient cat.

Last night I dreamt that I was pregnant.... and it was the most horrifying moment of my life. I haven't gotten a nightmare in ages - AGES. Like I literally think it's been years since I've had a nightmare. But this one totally made up for it, because for a second there, I really believed it. I believed that for some strange reason I'd gotten pregnant LOL. I had to tell my parents and then I had to tell the school. And then it sunk in that I would have to put school on hold even though I was so close to doing my HSC. My future was ruined. I would have to take care of a baby for the rest of my life - a baby that I absolutely did not want and did not care for at all. My five and a half years of school would be flushed down the drain, I had no money and it was very likely that without any qualifications, I would have no job either. It was so messed up. And when I woke up and realised that it was just a dream, it was just the most extreme feeling of relief ever. Words cannot describe how grateful I was. STUPID DREAM BABY, Y U RUIN MY LIFE FOR?!?!?!

Well there you go. Just a spot of extreme randomness that I had to get off my chest. I would take being Princess Speck over being pregnant any day.

Twenty minutes till tutor and I've kind of lost all motivation to do anything. I don't feel like Simming, I don't have any more drama to watch, there's nothing on TV, books have temporarily lost all their appeal to me and Othilia's at tutor so I can't ring her to have my nervous breakdown.

It's the end of Week 9/Term 4. I should be happy right now. But I'm not. Why is this? I was happy a few weeks ago, when there was still a month to go before the holidays but now that there's less then 4 days left, why do I feel so depressed? Bummer. If I'm like this at the end of the year, I would hate to see myself at the beginning of 2012 when I know there's a whole year of non-stop hard work in front of me. Cynthia! Get your act together!

So... my modern and history extension results are coming out in 3 days. I told myself that there's nothing to be scared of. What's done is done, right? But I think it's finally sinking in that if the results aren't that good, I would have to do the course again. That's a really really depressing thought to me. And after the sad sad results of the 3u maths test this week, I don't think I can take any more bad news. I think that's always been my deepest fear - doing so bad at something that the chance of digging yourself back out is slim to none. It makes me feel hopeless. And then that hopelessness translates into me not seeing the point in working hard anymore. Because what's the point if all your hard work doesn't manage to pay off anyway?

Ughh, this is so depressing. A test has never affected me in such a bad way before. This is such a horrible feeling.

I am a nervous wreck right now. If Jimmy asks how I went in the test, I am going to have nervous breakdown number 2.

Just a music sample from James Newton Howard - the guy who'll be doing The Hunger Games soundtrack. This one is from the real live movie version of Peter Pan, starring the adorable Jeremy Sumpter

Today's math test results made me feel like shit. Shit that had been left on the side of the road to fester and attract flies. Big ol' smelly, craptastic shit. It is by far the worst I've done in a maths test ever. And the worst part is, every single one of those marks I lost (except for the long surd question in the last section) came from a silly mistake or temporary brain fart. Yeah I feel shit. And I feel even more shit because of how shit I feel over this test.

Hooray for me, I have now joined the "People Who Have Cried Because Of A Stupid Maths Test" club.

• Danny Elfman has pulled out of scoring the soundtrack to The Hunger Games due to scheduling conflicts. Instead, James Newton Howard is (composer to films like Peter Pan, Batman Begins and Dinosaur) is taking over. I'm not too crushed actually. I loved loved LOVED the Peter Pan score. Read more here: http://mockingjay.net/2011/12/05/hunger-games-movie-score-danny-elfman-replaced-by-james-newton-howard/#more-7999




• I have an irrational fear of running out of good romance books. I've been looking at lists on goodreads.com and it seems like I've read a lot of the books that they recommend. Does this mean that once I finish all of those, I'm going to have to go read the crappier ones??




• I feel another K-drama addiction coming on. This time its Flower Boy Ramyun Shop. Lame title I know. I've watched a few episodes and already I feel that buzz kicking in - that feeling of the drama slowly sinking its claws into my brain and refusing to let go. (This has totally nothing to do with the fact that the drama is chock full of eye-candy.... nothing at all.)
Rawr! Looks like somebody just got back from army duty... Excuse me while I try to retrieve my mind from the gutter.



• I'M SO EXCITED FOR PRESENTATION DAY GUYS. I usually hate playing the violin at those things (mainly because we don't get a choice) but this time, we're "collaborating" with the lil' year 7s on their big performance. Ngaw, this will be so fun. Hopefully they will sing. If not, we can still enjoy that little moment where Ms M waves her arm and all 200 of them stand up in sync. Gets me every time, that moment.




• Dream High 2 has finalized its cast. I'm still cut up over how they didn't use any of the original actors/actresses but I guess there was no other choice. Anyway, the current round up includes idols from SISTAR, 2AM and T-ara. Don't ask me who they are - I suck with my idols. To this day, the only kpop band in which I know all the names of their members is SHINee.

What to do when you find yourself spiralling into another session of self-pity wallowing after performing disastrously in your first Year 12 Extension Maths Assessment? Why, you blog about Pixar's Pizza Planet Truck of course!

Hi everyone, meet the Pizza Planet Truck:

Does he sound familiar? He should because we've seen him in Toy Story 1, 2 and 3! You know that scene in the third movie where Lotso, the clown and Big Baby get left behind at the park? Well apparently, they hitched a ride on the bumper of the Pizza Planet Truck to get back to that little girl's house. Oh and in Toy Story 1, Woody tried to convince Buzz that the truck was a spaceship because it had a rocket on top.

He's a bit shy guys, so try not to stare too much.

In fact, he's so shy that everytime you try to point a camera at him, he'll try to hide... by appearing in cameos in Pixar films.

For example, in Finding Nemo just because we don't get a clear view of him doesn't mean that he isn't there. Remember the part where Gil related his escape attempt to Nemo? The PPT appears briefly in that scene but if you're not paying attention, you won't notice.

Similarly, if you've paid attention in WALL.E, you might notice that when EVE scans for life among the ruins, she briefly x-rays the PPT:

Or in Cars 2 (which I've never watched because apparently, my sister says it's a "shit movie"), he has a cameo as "Todd". LOL what kind of name is that for a car? "Todd"

I could go on and on and on and on. Rataouille, Up, A Bug's Life, Monstors Inc - the list is endless. This truck is so ninja that he's appeared in EVERY SINGLE Pixar movie to date, except for just one and that is the Incredibles. I don't know why that is LOL. You'd think that The Incredibles would be a pretty easy film to subtly slide in a yellow truck.

For those who've never heard of the PPT before, I hope that was interesting for you. I've actually never been aware of the Pizza Planet Truck until I watched the trailer for the new Disney movie, Brave, a few months ago. Have you guys seen it? Apparently it's got something to do with Scotland, red-haired people and archery. Basically its set in some kind of medieval/mythical time period. One of the top comments was, "The real question is how are Pixar going to include the Pizza Planet Truck in this one?" and that's how I found out about it. Cool huh? :D

To learn more go here: http://pixar.wikia.com/Pizza_Planet_truck

Click it - you know you want to~

Harry Potter + Hunger Games = Awesomeness

Just something I found on mockingjay.net - apparently somebody decided to mash up The Hunger Games trailer with clips from Harry Potter. Great idea, why didn't I think of that? Oh right, because I'm technologically challenged. Haha, I love how they showed Dumbledore when using Effie's voice.

Original youtube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CUrdhfnuFo&feature=player_embedded

Reaction after maths test today:



Words cannot describe how bad that test was for me. I seriously don't know if I've ever fucked up a test to an extent like that before.

If that wasn't bad enough, J rang me up after school and asked me how the test was. And he's asked for the paper after we get it back. DAMMIT, now there's no way he's not going to ask how I went. Again, words cannot describe. I thought I'd gotten over it in free period but apparently not.

Anyway, on to other news, the Kpop Concert that I went to last month finally aired on MBC in Korea. I even found myself in one of the performances! (although you only see me for like a second). The link is here, if you're interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2eioT4tTQ4&feature=player_embedded You can skip to 1:37 to see.
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And yeah, I feel myself spiralling into another bout of regret/depression/annoyance/frustration so I will stop blogging right, now.

I never ever want to see another colourful leotard or shiny sequin EVER AGAIN. NEVER EVER AGAIN.

It's not that I hate dancing. I used to compulsively watch the American version of SYTYCD whenever it was on after all. But there's just something really ..... sickening about the whole "parents sending their children to dance lessons when they're too young to know any better." Okay, that's really bitter of me but every time I'm forced to go to this annual Jazz, Tap and Ballet recital at the _______ RSL Club, I just get extreme flashbacks of my own experiences. I didn't really like those Jazz lessons. At first they were fun but I guess in the end it was still rather traumatizing... being forced to dress up in flashy costumes and dance to songs from the '80s. Eughh *shivers*. To be fair though, they don't make the students dance to those songs anymore. They were playing pop music today. Still, I would NEVER subject my children to those kind of lessons. If they wanted to, then sure but I wouldn't force them. But just, ugh!

Haha the more I think about it, the more traumatizing it seems. My parents are evil people. They made sure to expose me to all sorts of random extracurricular activities when I was little in order to knock down my self-esteem. All that stuff about dancing and sports and how it "boosts your child's self confidence"? It's bull. What it does is make sure that in the future, you try to stay as far away as possible from activities like them. It's a crafty combination of over-exposure and manipulative childhood trauma.

It's no secret that my parents don't really care about tests (unless they're the HSC of course). Everytime I tell them that I've got a test coming up, they don't really give a rat's ass which sometimes isn't a bad thing because I don't get any added pressure from them, like a lot of people do. But sometimes it can be a bit frustrating.

Like now for example. I've got the bloody 3u maths test to study for but now my whole Sunday has been taken up 'cause of my mum's tap-dancing concert thing. Everybody with me: EWWWWWWWWWWWwwwwwwwwwWWWW. No offense mum, but I would rather gouge my eyeballs out with a blunt scalpel than watch you dance on stage. Yes I know that sounds a bit harsh but really, I've gone to every single one of those damned concerts for like 3-4 years now without fail and every time I feel a sense of regret that I didn't just stay home and watch reruns of Dr Phil because even that would be preferable to watching you dance.

Now she's all like, "I'm making you go tot he concert. It doesn't matter if you have a test on Monday - it's only maths. Everyone can do maths."

No mum, no.

LYANNA STOP READING SO MUCH LOLOLOL. I NEED TO CATCH UP ON EVERY SINGLE BOOK ON YOUR BLOG AND THAT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN IF YOU READ SO FAAAAASSSTTTT. I've only just bought the Bronze Horseman yesterday, and before I read it, I have to read "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest". And before I read that, I have to finish my first book from the Lords of the Underworld series. Sigh, so many books... so little time.