I'M BACK!!! Man, I've been so busy and lazy these days that there was a point that I even forgot I have a blog! At last, the fall semester has ended and the winter recess has begun! I'm so excited of the many things to do and the many places to go this month. Its been a while since I last went out to watch the movies (the last films I saw were National Treasure and Finding Neverland) that I'm now looking forward to the upcoming slate of holiday offerings up for possible awards consideration: Spanglish, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Phantom of the Opera, and The Aviator. In fact, the awards season has started even way before the nominations and the selections by the critics' groups were announced (check out the campaign ads at this link). Also, they announced the Grammy noms with Kanye West leading the pack with 10 nominations followed closely by Alicia Keys, Usher, the late Ray Charles, Green Day, Norah Jones, and Prince. Brian Wilson's 37-years-in-the-making concept album Smile (originally conceived as a follow-up to the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds album and featuring classic songs like "Heroes and Villains" and "Good Vibrations' in new arrangements), which I just happen to love and own is up for 3 noms (including best pop vocal album), though I was sad it didn't make the cut for Album of the Year (along with Prince's Musicology).

Lately, I have been visiting some rather interesting websites (more interesting than Friendster), most of them message board forums related to animation and entertainment, especially on IMDb. There's also Wikipedia, a free web-based encyclopedia that carries a broader range of subjects than either Brittanica or even Encarta. It is regularly updated, and users that edit and contribute some articles. My cousin Karlo even added a definition to the Pinoy slang term "jologs" at its sister site Wiktionary (check it out here). Want to know what movies are coming soon? Then check out the trailers at apple.com (Quicktime required). Feeling bored and want to have some weird fun? Then make the Subservient Chicken obey your every command (well, not EVERY command) or for a quick fix, watch cartoon bunnies re-enact popular movies from beginning to end within 30 seconds by clicking here.

I finally earned money all by myself by selling one of my textbooks back to the college bookstore. I'm now rummaging for some old books to sell to some used bookstores as a way to earn more money to buy presents for myself and my family. Meanwhile, I'm currently in the development stages of writing a full-length script for my screenwriting class. What I can tell you is that its a satire on the animation industry under the working title of "Inkdrops", so aside from thinking up the characters & situations, I'm also asking people online on tips in writing a satire as well as doing research online on the Monomyth concept by Joseph Campbell. Wish me luck on my ambitious undertaking to date and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to one and all!