a year into the inner workings of my frivoulous mind

For the past coupla days, I've been having really insightful convos with a colleague on life, love and everything in between. It's really made me look at myself and see the core of the person that I am. But that's a discussion for another post. What I realized from all the talks is that each and every time we ended our conversations, what I wanted to do was recount our discussions in words. I wanted to be able to remember the thoughts, opinions, theories and whatnot by committing them as a visual reminder. I wanted to be able to capture the spirit of those conversations, to eloquate the catalyst that brought it about. I wanted to record the details down so it would always have its place in my memory. And that's when it clicked. Writing is something that I have always been passionate about.

I have always had a love of the written word. My most absolutely favourite activity is not shopping, as it might suggest based on the posts I've done, but reading. I am a vociferous reader. It's an addiction. I go through about 5-6 books a month on average but during some manic times, I can go through 3-4 books a week. In that respect, reading has opened my mind and imagination to write. My first recollection of writing (for fun) was when I was 10. Inspired by all the books I've read, I decided to try my hand at short stories. From that point on, I began to build a collection of short fiction, some inspired by books I've read, some by my own personal experiences. By the time I was graduating high school, I had managed to have 30 complete short stories. Out of the 30, I shared only 6. Some were sent in as my assignments, some were submitted (and published) for my school newspaper and one was even entered for a short story competition (I didn't place, just received honourable mention, but the experience was worth it). During my pre-u studies, I was approached by the yearbook committee for essay contributions and ended up with 2 of my articles published.

After getting into university, I took a sabbatical (of sorts) from writing. Well, it just got waylaid. At that point in my life, I was going through the whole college experience. Feeling the excitement of independance, I wasn't about to slave away in front of my computer to write about life when I could go out and do life. My passion for reading didn't abate but my love of writing did wane. I was more into experiencing rather than writing about the experience. It's something that I look back upon and regret slightly for never having taken the time to record my thoughts during those years.

Once I got my degree, I found that I had some spare time during my job hunts. I started writing again. Mainly an electronic diary of sorts. This time, it wasn't so much fiction writing. I focused my writings on myself, my surroundings and the world at large. If I felt an issue affected me, I would express it. It became an outlet for me to articulate my thoughts. I didn't necessarily need an audience for my jottings, merely me, myself and I sufficed. And it's at that end that we are here today. I don't need an audience to be able to write. I don't need people other than myself to read the things that I feel need expressing. I'm ok with nothing I've ever written from this point on to be acknowledged by anybody but myself. Because, although writing is a way of sharing a part of yourself to other people, I am more than alright if the only person my writings is shared with is me. I write for myself, first and foremost. It's mainly a way to sort through the rubble that is my thoughts. It's my therapy. I'm inundated by soooo many thoughts throughout the day that I need a way to express them or they'll do my head in. That's why writing has become my passion. It isn't as a means to earn a living nor to gain fame but merely an outlet of expression.

And on that note, I want to celebrate 'The Inner Working of A Frivolous Mind'. Happy One Year Anniversary! You made it through your first year and it's been wonderful. I can only hope that you and I will still be here for many more to come!

i owe you sis :)

Literally. I'm in debt to her. She's been in charge of financially arranging the Paris-UK trip and just came back to me on the amount spent per person so far. At present, minus spending money and plane tix, the trip is costing me USD1,679.73 for 10 days.

I don't know if this is cheap or not. We do have some relatively great stuff planned. We purchased the 4-day Paris Pass for about EUR130 and that allows us entry to A LOT of museums as well as free access to the Metro. We're catching a show at the Lido in Paris and two shows at West End (Les Miserables and The Lion King). We have a tour of Anfield on our last day in England. I used to follow Liverpool religiously. Before F1 took over my life that is. But I'm still a Liverpool supporter and so is my dad. Then there's the trip to Bicester Village for some primo shopping. Also the memory lane jaunt to Lancaster. The entertainment portion in itself probably brings the total to between 700-800 dollars. Which I guess is quite cheap, right?

We're doing our own bit of driving in UK so we rented a car for that. And we're taking the Eurostar to Paris and back for about EUR60 if I remember correctly. In Paris we rented an apartment which costs about EUR140 per person for four nights and on the overnight in London we're shacking up at Hilton London Euston. We have a stay in a small farm cottage when we head to Lancaster.

My money is starting to feel inadequate :) My sis and I have been combing the net for great shopping deals and we're both kinda interested in getting in on the vintage train. There's like a whole boulevard of vintage stores in Paris and I've had a look at some of the stuff available and it's amazing. Pricey but gorgeous. This one place has some of the best Chanel 2.55 collection ever. Unfortunately, out of my budget but my sis can totally swing herself one. She's planning on getting a jumbo from the boutique on Rue La Cambon anyways. All I'm wondering is if we would be allowed into Coco Chanel's apartment above the store. I'm guessing it's a negative. I don't believe any Tom, Dick or Harry are allowed up to her quarters :) It'd be super if we did manage to go though.

Half of the time I'm confused about where to focus my money at. Do I bring more Euros or do I bring more pounds? I've been going back and forth on what I want to buy. At this eleventh hour before the trip, I still have no clear idea of my own personal expenses. Which worries me because I seriously do not want to be paying for this trip for the next five months. Two months max but after that I really want to start saving money again. I feel bad about my savings account. The only consolation is I didn't touch one cent from it this year. The dividends should be somewhat plesant because of that.

Anyways, besides worrying about potential fashion faux pas and money for shopping, I'm getting very excited for the trip. I've been brushing up on the 20 most useful French phrases, courtesy of "The Complete Idiot's Guide To Learning French On Your Own", and hope I have no use for it because frankly, even though I think my French sounds good, I'm guessing I'm going to get laughed at a lot if I actually speak :D Comprenez-vous? To which I'd probably get a lot of je ne comprends pas :) But one of my friends who went to Paris in February did say that the French appreciate the effort so maybe I'll throw out the odd easier sentences. The one I know by heart is "Ou sont les toilettes?" cos I don't want to be hopping from one foot to another in the cobbled streets of Paris while trying to hold it in just because no one understands I need to use the ladies stat :D

Whatever the trip brings, it'll be an adventure. Bring on the 28th, I'm so excited!

completely bananas!

I dieeee! A statement oft uttered by fashion stylist to the stars, Rachel Zoe. And i die for Rachel Zoe! Four months ago I knew next to nothing about her except for the odd bits and bobs. I mean I've heard of Rachel Zoe, seen pics of Rachel Zoe, seen Rachel Zoe's picks on Piperlime, know she wrote a book, seen the stars styled by Rachel Zoe but I had never given her a second thought. But now that she's in my stream of consciousness, it's as if a whole new avenue of fashion opened up.

As per usual, the tv series hiatus creates the oppurtunity for shows that I would never normally watch to flit into my realm of consciousness. I AM IN LOVE WITH "The Rachel Zoe Project". I have often seen her on the celebrity gossip sites and thought her sense of style was too much for me but seeing the work she does and the results from said work, I have a whole new level of respect for what she does. ANd a completely different view of how she dresses herself. Basically I LOVE IT, I was a fashion ignoramus before, I've learnt the folly of my ways.

Granted, it's not any type of work that would merit the nobel peace award but her work does touch millions of people the world over. The world is filled with negative news all the time so there's no harm in a bit of frivolousness once in a while. Of course, to the fashion crowd, fashion is serious business.

Ok, getting that out of the way, I just have so much love for the show. I live vicariously through it. The clothes, the shoes, the bags, the jewelry, I just want practically EVERYTHING. I'm completely loving Van Cleef & Arpel. I love Marchesa, they just appeal to the inner fairytale princess in me and I'm not particularly drawn in that direction. And Rachel's personal style has definitely wowed me. I love that she' the vintage queen. I can see how Nicole Richie was influenced by her. And Taylor's casual, rock-chic look always appeals to me as well. I love her Chanel leopard print jacket that she's always wearing on the show. I l and depth.ove Tay's Balenciaga shoulder bag, I love Tay's YSL Muse II, I love her Ray Bans and even her whole personality appeals top me.

I did think she was quite the bitch during the first season but towards the end when she finally made nice with Brad, I just found that despite my dislike for how she behaved, I stil liked her as a person. Perhaps the anti-social part of her is what resonated with me. I'm anti-social as well but not to the extreme that is Taylor. And Brad. I do love Brad as well. I believe he has grown in this job. To see the maturity of Brad Season 2 and compare that with Brad of Season 1, you just can see the complete confidence he's gotten over the past year. I always rooted for him and I'm happy he is doing well in his work with Rachel Zoe.

Comments on Rodger. I think he's one of the sweetest men on reality TV. Rodger is adorable especially when trying to take a firm hand with Rachel over her spending habits. I honestly don't know why he even bothers, Rachel seldom feels guilt about shopping. Marisa, Racchel's personal assistant is nice enough but since she doesn't quite feature heavily on the show it's hard to get any kind of connection with her. I like her well enough. Ooh, I love Joey. I love him to bits. I think Brad and Joey make the perfect gay team. The two of them together are hysterical.

I just finished watching the seventh epi of "The Rachel Zoe Project" and am now totally psyched, super psyched, for my Paris sojourn. Seeing the city through the lenses of the cameras following Rachel around, the city seems so vibrant and exciting and with such soul and depth. Of course, it also gives rise to my fashion faux pas fears. I think I'm completely overthinking it but I just want to make sure that I'm at my fashion best when I'm walking into these high end designer boutiques. I'm especially afraid of the Chanel boutique. I have a fear of snooty sales assisstants. Yes, I know they're there to serve but they can be completely insufferable people when they care to. I wish I had actual designer pieces to wear while I traipse around Paree visiting all the stores but all I own are high street stuff. The only designer piece of clothing I have is my Calvin Klein leather jacket which doesn't seem very Autumn-y but will have to do. Shoes are a major concern as well. I don't think I'll end up bringing my Melissas after all as they are too large for all the walking planned and so right now I only have one pair of knee-high boots (which since they're so cheap I'm hoping will last the whole trip) in my shoes repertoire and am trying to figure out the next best fashionably comfortable pair to go with me. I'm also worried about bags. I don't know which handbags to bring along with me. I mean my Mulberry isn't exactly an Autumn piece and well, Coach isn't exactly a European designer thing either. I might just go along with the Coach seeing as I don't have any basic black handbags that would fit as well as that. Yes, yes, I'm sounding like a complete fashion snoot, so different from the girl who started this blog claiming diffusion lines are the future of retail. Like I mentioned in my last post. I still love cheap things but I have acquired a taste for the designer stuff. Hell, I wouldn't be shopping at outlet villages if I didn't still love to get things on the cheap. Even if I had tons of money to throw around I would still go to places like Bicester Village or Gilroy Outlet Malls to get my designer fixes. Doubt that'll ever change.

the september issue

When I heard about 'The September Issue', there was no doubt that I would do anything to get my hands on a copy of the documentary. I, like many other women who have even a smidgen of interest in fashion, have heard of the enigmatic Anna Wintour. The myth of Anna Wintour is huge. There are many things said about her so when I heard word that she allowed cameras to follow her around while she went about putting together the 2007 Spetember issue of American Vogue, I knew that I'd definitely be watching it.

Being outside the US, the only way I was going to be getting my hands on the film was through the torrent sites. I'm actually surprised I managed to come across an extremely great working copy of the documentary on my first try. I have to say thank you to the person who enabled me, and others outside The States interested in seeing this film, to have the opportunity to watch this.

My thoughts on the film. I have a better appreciation of what goes on behind the scenes of a fashion magazine. I got a view of the larger-than-life Anna Wintour. I was able to understand the artistry of a fashion spread via the genius that is Grace Coddington. I'm confused as to what Andre Leon Talley actually does and can't completely comprehend his fashion style but since he's Anna's right hand of sorts, it's more likely that I don't understand him. I am surprised at the candid and frank things spoken by some of those featured. This wasn't a documentary so much to coddle or to soften the image of Anna Wintour. This was a film about the Vogue September magazine and the players in its design.

It would seem by the opening of the film that Anna Wintour strikes fear in the heart of the young up and comers at Vogue. Most are fearful of displeasing her. Only the old hands who have worked with her for ages, like Grace Coddington, understand that Anna Wintour is not really about wanting it all her way. It would seem like she's a control freak who rules the Vogue offices with an iron fist but I don't see it that way. I just see someone who knows what she's doing and want what's best for her magazine. I didn't necessarily like all the decisions she made (I'm smitten with Grace Coddington, I just love her work so I agreed with her when she was displeased with some of the photos Anna cut out of her spreads. That Parisian spread for the October issue was just beautiful and genius.) but the end result was fabulous.

My favourite person is definitely Grace. I can't begin to rhapsodize how amazing I think her visual style is. I like that she doesn't feel the need to kow tow to Anna. She fights the battles she feels should be fought. She stands firm on what she believes in. I like that she can take the hard decisions but she doesn't have to like it. And she was just so amazingly beautiful in heyday as a fashion model, Grace-ing (pun intended) the same pages of the magazine she now works for.

The final word on it: definitely worth a watch if you're someone who is interested in fashion, fashion magazines and the hard work that goes into making the biggest issue of the year by one of the most famous fashion tomes in the world.

counting down to retail madness

Ok, it's obvious to me that the "Zlena's No Bag Buying 2009" campaign has long flopped so I'm just not going to try to pretend I have things under control. As the countdown to the great Paris-UK escapade nears, I have been going stark raving mad trying to figure out a workable budget that will leave me not too deeply in debt.

I have an aversion towards swiping credit cards in foreign countries so as unwise as it is to be travelling with a lot of cash, that's what I'm doing. Not too much since I don't want to end up in tears if I get mugged or something. A lil bit over 600 pounds and 600 euros each.

Right now, I'm facing a shopping dilemma. A major fashion conundrum. I am torn between handbags. Between LV, Anya, Mulberry, Dior and Burberry, I have managed to spot bags that I just must have! I can't go bag crazy too much since I still haven't completely used the Coach's I got in the States. So at first I planned conservatively. I'd thought I'd just get myself the LV epi leather Speedy 30 in noir and be done with it. A classic piece in leather for around about 650-ish euros. But even as I made my decision, I was hesitant. Looking at the pictures, the epi leather speedy looks like it's meant for women of a more mature age. I don't want to drop that much cash on a bag that won't make me look age-appropriate. Nor will I drop that much money on a non-leather piece. So I revised my thought, I'll go and have a look at the real thing in stores and if I feel like it's something I want to invest in, then, AND ONLY THEN, will I spend on it. I mean, Paris can be where LV is Target-like cheap compared to the rest of the world but it's still a lot of money. If it's not meant to be, I'll just get a scarf.

I've also been googling Bicester Village and been trawling other people's blogs for their experiences. All I can say is that if I get the opportunity to snag a GBP40 Burberry leather wallet, I'll sure as hell get it. I know the product turnover in outlet villages such as these are high and am not too hopeful that'll I'll be able to get my hands on this lovely, generously sized Burberry black leather hobo I saw on thebaglady.tv which would be absolutely great for everyday use. It was at the Bicester Burberry store in June going for GBP199.99. Yup, that's right, less than GBP200 for a good-sized leather handbag from Burberry. Bananas!

Then there's also the Mulberry store. Now I'm not going to make a collection of Bayswaters' because I would like some diversity in my designer handbag collection so I'm looking at some other pieces from Mulberry. I have my eye on the crossbody small Antony bag. It would be great for casual outings when you don't need to be lugging around a lot of things and even more suitable for travelling. It would be a superb replacement for my now dead-as-a-doornail convertible Esprit bag that well died an ugly peeling death after 4 years of service. I can't seem to get a price estimation on the Antony at the outlet store but if the Bayswater prices are anything to go by (spmething around the region of GBP275), I'm hoping it's either between GBP100 to GBP150. If it's less than that, I dieeee! The retail price of the Antony on Bluefly.com is USD350.

I'm also looking at Anya Hindmarch. I doubt the mirrored Cooper (which I adored on Angelina Jolie) will be in stores but I would love to own the mirrored clutch. I have been lusting over it for quite some time and if there was an Anya piece I would love to own, it'll be this one. I mean, I do have the Anya Hindmarch For Target bag but that's not really boutique is it? Don't get me wrong, I still love the fab collaborations with the retail giants but if I were to get the opportunity to own the boutique products for a considerably marked down price, you can bet that I'll bite.

And last but not least, Dior. Ah, Dior. I saw that they have the Saddle bags in Bicester. Unfortunately, the girl at thebaglady.tv didn't put the price up for it but she did say that although heavily discounted, it was still waaay over her budget. I guess a Dior handbag is completely out for me but I think I could just have a teensy look at a purse.

These are just the stores where I've seen the actual products they carry. There's also a Gucci store in Bicester and I haven't even made an effort to track down any fab Gucci finds. I'm thinking if I don't buy the LV, I can actually get the black hobo Burberry, the crossbody Antony and a lil something something from Anya. On top of that, I want to own something from Agent Provocateur and La Perla so really, I can see that the cash flow from my lilac Coach purse into the hands of some cashier girl/boy is going to be fluid. There's most likely a loan or five involved as well ;P

a new champ is crowned

Jenson Button has clinched the WDC at the penultimate race of the 2009 F1 season in Interlagos. I take back my words, he drove a proactive race, he did his job well enough to win the championship in a decidedly assertive fashion. No, he didn't finish on the top step of the podium, he crossed the line in fifth but he gained enough points to put everyone else in the drivers' champion battle mathematically out of contention thus taking over the mantle best driver in Formula 1. For 2009.

This is the third year running that the drivers' championship has been decided at the Brazilian race track. Kimi's championship, in which he won the race, was clinched here. So was Lewis's where he finished fifth after the whole 'Hand of Glock' incident but he was the deserved driver of 2008. And here we are a year later with another new WDC. At the rate the past years of F1 has been going, I believe this will be the decade where we'll most likely have the most number of WDC racing each other on the track.

Kimi's race was excellent given his circumstances. He was P5 on the grid but at the start maneuvered his Ferrari into third ahead of Jarno Trulli and Adrian Sutil. Then as he was making a move on Webber for second, the Aussie moved across the track, giving him no room to run so Kimi had to take avoiding action but since the nose of the Ferrari was already past the back of the Red Bull, he clipped his front wing on the back of Webber's car and it came off. His position was compounded even further by a fast deflating left rear wheel that was punctured by Adrian Sutil when Sutil tried to get back at Kimi a couple of corners behind. Luckily for Kimi, the safety car came out because as the Webber-Raikkonen tussle was going on, Jarno Trulli and Adrian Sutil banged wheels and effectively took each other out as well as Fernando Alonso. Poor Nando, the dude was minding his own business and ended up as collatarel damage. There were some entertaining moments as I watched Jarno Trulli who was absolutely incensed, livid, furious beyond belief at Adrian Sutil for the incident and the tiny Italian marched up to the tall German and a heated tirade ensued. All the while Adrian is trying to square things by offering his hand to shake as a concillatory gesture but Trulli was having none of it. Fernando can be seen in the background just resignedly getting out of his car and heading towards the track transport truck to hitch a ride back to the pits.

At this point, safety car leads from Rubens. This gave Kimi an opportunity to race back to the pits to get his front wing replaced and change his race strategy. Things were going well, the wing replaced, tires changed and refueling going smoothly and he was released from his pit box. As he was coming up past the McLaren pit box, and I'm unsure whose fault this is - whether it's the lollipop man or Heikki himself, Kovy's car was released before the fuel nozzle was taken out and he drove out in front of Kimi with the nozzle attached and fuel still in the hose. He gave Kimi a fuel shower, completely dousing him in the cockpit not to mention the car. And this is when I thought I was going to faint.


Kimi's whole car came alight, on fire for at most 3 seconds before burning out! Watching the in cockpit camera, the interior and Kimi himself was set ablaze. Watching him as his steering wheel ignited, the fire moving over his hands, I saw him release the wheel and for a moment as the fire burned he just kept still. The point at which the car came under control, he got back in racing mode and started making his way out back onto the track. Even managing to past Heikki who had stopped near the Brawn garage and the Brawn mechanics were frantically trying to yank out the nozzle. Kimi lost a lot of time and track position because of this. I understand Heikki was racing for track position but I hope he feels awful for this. Kimi mentioned post-race the fuel got into his eyes and it was burning the entire time but he kept on driving the full 71 laps and finished a remarkable sixth. That's about 68 laps worth of complete discomfort. Superb and completely brilliant to cross the line in sixth with burning eyes, completely drenched in fuel.



This is what Kimi said post-race:

"What happened on the first lap ruined my race. First I was hit at the first corner, then when trying to pass Webber, I was hit and lost the front wing. At the pit stop, I ended up with some drops of petrol in my eye, from the fuel line stuck on Kovalainen’s car and then I was engulfed in flames and blinded: I was going to stop, but luckily the flames soon went out. Even now, my eyes are still burning, but I’m alright. After the restart, I could only try and use the strategy to move up the order and at least I brought home a few points. I am disappointed because today I’m sure we could have made it to the podium. There is one race to go: let’s see what we can do in Abu Dhabi to get back that third place."

And after his antics where did Heikki finish? Out of the top 10. I mean, for all that, I hoped he would have made Kimi's suffering somewhat worthwhile to finish at least in the points. Heikki's race was full of incidents at the start. He had an "event" with Fisi and then set Kimi on fire in the pits. His teammate however drove spectacularly. Lewis started 16th on the grid and finished third with a decisive overtaking maneuver on Rubinho in the last few laps of the race. This meant the biggest loser was Rubens Barrichello who started on pole, was in the lead for over 20 laps, lost the first and second position to Mark Webber and Robert Kubica respectively, due to his ineffective race strategy. Then he was in third for much of the race but after losing that position to Lewis which was helped by his tires losing pressure, he had to pit and change tires and came back out on the track in eigth position. And that's where he finished. Rubens, I tried to give you a chance but let's face it, after all these years, you have now just cemented yourself as a non-finisher. He just can't make the final push for the win. Some drivers have it, some just don't.

And Fisi. Oh, Fisi. I DO want you to do your best. C'mon, Kimi has been Atlas holding up the Ferrari for far too long, he needs you to get some points so Ferrari can finish third ahead of McLaren in the constructors. Don't make all Kimi's superlative effort go to frickin waste. The guy has been driving like hell on wheels (have no idea if this is the right context but I think it is) and despite Ferrari not deserving to be third, Kimi has worked super hard to make sure they held on to that position for as long as he could. The only consolation is that Heikki is also non-performing so McLaren haven't really been able to capitilize. Now Ferrari are a point behind McLaren in the constructors, there's one more race. Kimi will surely do everything in his power to get a great result for the team and I will hold out hope you'll do the same ok? I know you're just as frustrated and disappointed but let's transform all that into something positive for the last race.

Kimi, if THIS is your swansong season, I can't say that I'm not disappointed you will leave without at least three drivers championships under your belt because you deserve to have that many by now. But, you have done no discredit to yourself. You were brilliant this season. You did lead the team, you did put the car in the most undeserved ultimate positions, you even managed to win on your most favourite race track. You are the most composed driver, the fastest natural talent and the most entertaining personality amongst all your peers. In my eyes, you will always be the best driver in Formula 1 these past 8 years that I've had the utmost pleasure to follow. From Sauber to McLaren to Ferrari. If this IS it, then I just want to say thank you. Thank you for all the great races you've allowed me to witness. I'm so, so, SO proud of you Iceman! You are the true Flying Finn, no one else compares :)

UPDATE (19/10/2009):
After going to my fave Kimi thread, well it's the lollipop dude's fault without a doubt. I agree with some of the forumers who said, based on the video of the pitstop, that he was so intent on watching the Ferrari pit crew working on Raikkonen's car that he reacted on Heikki when he saw the fuel nozzle coming off of Kimi's Ferrari thus releasing Kovy with nozzle attached into the unsuspecting and unlucky path of Kimi. I hope Kimi's better today.

i'm gleefully addicted to GLEE

After the abrupt cancellation of "The Beautiful Life" (which I was watching for the fashion) due to low ratings, I shopped around for a new show to watch and stumbled upon "Glee". And I'm completely addicted and totally caught up.


What's not to love? The singing, the dancing, the great tunes! The series is funny too and I'm completely in love with Lea Michele's voice. This 23 year old Broadway star who plays the intense Rachel Berry has such an amazing voice. I love to listen to her. I'm also totally approving the choice of Cory Monteith as the male lead as I can't help but like tall, gawky guys. I have no idea if he's really awkward-ish in real life but on the show he plays the part of the reluctant big man on campus to a lovable tee. The fact that he's big and tall and always enthusiastically performs the dance routines is just adorable. Cory either really puts in effort to embody the role or he really just is a big, awkward mess of limbs. It's just endearing, I love rewinding his dance scenes. I can't believe he's actually 27 years old! He DEFINITELY looks 17. Boy, those are some really good genes!

What else? I love Jamma Mays who is the school counselor, I'm in awe of the ensemble Vocal Adrenaline and just love when they appear in any scene, I find Mark Salling who plays Puck somewhat attractive (kinda reminds me of Boston Public's Nicky Katt who I had a major crush on back in the day) and the fact that the actor is 27 makes it all better (no icky cradle snatching feelings), love Cheerios coach Sue cos she is just one craaazy and completely entertaining lady (I seem to like most of the stuff Jane Lynch does - she was hysterical in Paul Rudd's "Role Model") and the musical choices are spot on.

Things I'm meh about are.....
1 Will Schuester, don't really care about, or even like, the character. I don't know if it's Matthew Morrison's portrayal or just that the character is often weak-willed and turns me off. To his credit, he sure can sing and dances well.
2 Jessalyn Gilsig as Terri, Will's wife. Never liked her on Boston Public, CSI: NY, Heroes so don't find that she appeals in this either. I dunno why it's so, it just is.
3 Storyline from epi to epi is a bit jumpy, stilted, kinda flat as well but the singing and dancing make up for it.

My most fave epi is definitely a toss-up between episode 4 "Preggers" and epi 6 "Vitamin D". In "Preggers" the best scenes were definitely the start when Kurt is performing Beyonce's "Single Ladies" and the football team doing the "Ring On It" play to win the game. A bunch of dudes in full football gear performing Beyonce's "Single Ladies" is just too good for words! "Vitamin D" had the two mashup scenes and I just can't commit to which is my favourite. I think the boys performance wins it by a hair. Cory and Rachel both performing remarkably and I love Kevin McHale's voice as well. Not surprising that he's a good singer cos he used to be in a band.

Anyways, the Glee love continues and I hope it'll do well enough to get a second season. I totally love me a lil song-and-dance routine :D

between two lakes in Sao Paolo.....

is a race track named Interlagos and it is the next scene of the championship showdown between Rubens Barrichello, Sebastien Vettel and Jenson Button. But I'm not interested in the drivers battle, qualis was great, rain and all but I'm up at 2:53 am not to blog about the qualifying results but to wish my most favourite of Formula 1 racing drivers, Kimi-Matias Raikkonen, a happy 30th birthday. So here goes.....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE ICEMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thirty exclamation marks for 30 years. Have a great night celebrating the rest of your birthday in Brazil. It's been a bit of a crappy day thus far what with all the rain and having to drive around in the wet but you did me proud by coming in P5.

Sigh. It was nice to hear all the commentators talk about how it's your brilliance that's getting the car where it is although it makes me suspicious of their motives when they talk nice about you, Kimster. Isn't it sad that when people compliment you it's taken with a bit of reserve since they've been bashing you so badly in the media for the past 2 years or so it's odd when they do the opposite :)

And to the nice bald Ferrari guy who held up the nicely handwritten birthday note for Kimi to the cameras, I love you for acknowledging him, it was very, very sweet. In a time when he surely feels a bit uncomfortable in the garage, to still have some kind of friendly support is always appreciated.


Here's to a great race for you and hopefully an incident-free start. Let's try not to cross paths with Adrian Sutil or those jinx stories will follow you guys forever :). Oh, and I hope Ruben's race goes spectacularly well cos I want to see him as WDC. Sorry Button, I just don't see you as WDC material. Anyways, one last time.....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIMI RAIKKONEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

UPDATE (18/10/2009):
Ok, so Ferrari is still acting like one nice big happy family to Kimi so I'll just say thanks for still celebrating his birthday with a big cake and the champagne. I'm glad that you showed no disparity in treatment of your drivers when it comes to the more personal aspects like birthdays. This was a nice gesture and Kimi looks mighty appreciative of the gesture. After all, he's got his hands on the champagne, ready to get some kind of buzz after the P5 he managed to pull out. Thanks Dom for the photo op.

the first step is admitting you have a problem

So here I am confessing. I am a serial procrastinator. Ok, this doesn't make me unique or terribly flawed. I'm sure more than half of the world's population is afflicted with this problem as well.

Sigh. I have been lazy on the blogging front. It's coming up to one year since I started my blog. I can't believe time has passed by so quickly. Anyways, as October 28th draws close, I decide that I'm just not in the mood to do any posting.

I say posting because I've got over 10 half-baked posts languishing on my netty. I'll write them halfway or two-thirds and then give up. I can't seem to make that final stretch. It's a conundrum to me why it's so. For my own sake, I'll try to give myself the kick in the arse I obviously need to keep myself going. The ideas are there, I just need to finish them.

So, for October's post numero uno, the noteworthy activity, the point of interest, the newsflash is.....I finally concluded two days of scrubbing solidified oil from my deep fryer and now my hands and nails are ruined. LOL, yes, the only thing of interest I can come up with right now is that. It's either this or I talk about Kimi and F1 and I'm kinda sick of me going on and on about it. Half of my unfinished jottings is about Kimi and F1 so I'll just leave it till I'm ready.

So anyways, it really did take me two days. I started on Sunday evening, spent about an hour and a half scrubbing and rubbing and dousing it with soap before soaking the whole thing in hot water and leaving it overnight and a day since I had to go to work today. I came back at 6 pm and immediately got on to it again. Now my hands are peeling and my nails are brittle and jagged from all the chemicals and the scrubbing. And no, I did not wear any marigolds so yes, serves me and my hands right. But I have a shiny, clean deep fryer to show for it and I have to say, it gave me great pleasure to scour the thing clean. And now, I'm going to hold off on using it for as long as I can :D

It's damn hard work. Much respect to restaurant workers who have to clean those industrial size fryers. It's a dirty job for sure.

random useless thoughts that plague me

It's coming up to the one year anniversary of my blogging start. Ok, restart. I've been lax of late. Been too preoccupied with life to be writing about it. That sounds snooty but that's not my intention. I've just been consumed with what I perceive is important to me that I don't have the energy to even blog about.

Not like if I did it'll be news-worthy anyways. All I've been doing for the past two weeks since returning to work is obsess over Kimi Raikkonen. Yup. I have to admit, before I regularly blogged about F1 and Kimi, I never really understood the depth of my devotion but it really does creep me out that I'm overly concerned about the man. Makes me think if there's a deeper psychological meaning to the whole thing. Like, am I fixated on him to fill some kind of void in my life? It might be, who knows. I'm still on the fence when it comes to psychology because it's all too ambiguous. Is there or isn't there a right answer or is everything up for interpretation?

See what I mean? Anyways. I have been in complete Kimi meltdown. I'm on the Kimi thread at the Planet F1 forum because they filter in news faster than google news can. Oh yea, I've abandoned google news in favour of other rabid Kimi Raikkonen fans who are just as wacky about the guy as I am. I take comfort in the fact that I'm not the only one. I'm completely grateful to them for being able to feed me Kimi news at a press of the refresh button. There's usually someone posting any hour of the day since his groupie's come from far and wide. Probably spans the whole timezone :)

As usual, when there's a lull between GP weekends, it gets slow on the F1 news front. So that means I actually had a lil time to focus on other non-Kimi activities. Like visit all my favourite online hangout sites. Read The Lost Art Of Keeping Secrets and fell in love with Harry. Watched The Ugly Truth and The Proposal. Hey Katherine Heigl, girl, you're being pigeon-holed! How many more movies are you going to make playing the uptight , prissy type who is taught how to loosen up by jack a-holey guys you end up falling in love with in the end? Knocked UP, 27 Dresses, The Ugly Truth. Seth Rogen, James Marsden, Gerard Butler. Jackasses all of them but with a bit of a sweet side

Okay then, I've run out of silly things to type up. Cheerio!

putting things into perspective

For the past 3 weeks, my life has been completely consumed by F1 and Kimi Raikkonen. 24/7. This whole Ferrari-Kimi contract break has me more obsessed than ever. I know I said that I'm actually fine with it and in most ways I am but the wait to find out his next move is what's got me in a constant bind. I can't seem to think about other things and there are more pressing matters to be thought of. Such as the eathquakes in Indonesia which have affected my live-in housekeeper. Her house was destroyed and her son is missing. More important yet I can't believe how absolutely shallow I am that I'm more in a tizzy over Kimi's future than the situation of my housekeeper's life!

the essence of girl next door

I was reading Jennifer Aniston's interview with Elle for their September issue and have come away with an even higher regard of her. And so, it's inspired me to share my thoughts on her. I've ALWAYS liked Jennifer Aniston. Ever since I was turned onto Friends and became obsessed with the whole Ross-Rachel dynamic for the ensuing 10 years. She just manages to draw you in and get behind the spoiled daddy's girl who morphed into miss independance. I still tear up when I watch the last epi in which they get back togther for the final time.

Anyways, after the series ended, she completely immersed herself into movies and has rarely looked back since. Aside from guest stints on the now defunct Courteney Cox show Dirt (which I loved) and Tina Fey's 30 Rock, she has been a box office staple. Jennifer Aniston is also one of the most photographed women in the world and her laidback sense of style is admired by millions. In part, I think that's what makes her charming. That she doesn't appear to try so hard to impress you with her sense of fashion. Most of the time, her looks are so simple yet stylish. SHE is my definition of effortless chic. I mean a simple tank and cargo pants combo looks fantastic on her.

Ok, so I'm going to touch on the "love triangle". When she first got together with Brad Pitt, I never thought that it would end up in marriage. I have never found Brad Pitt attractive. Yes, yes, I'm very much in the minority here but my first impression of him was in "Legends of The Falls" and despite the brilliant performance in the movie, the long hair was and still is a turn-off. So is his square jaw. I'm not saying I don't think he's good-looking but between him and Eli Roth, I'll pick Eli anyday.

But after they married and he appeared on the show (at which time I would say he looked his hottest), I thought, well, they do make a lovely couple and it was only then that I squarely got behind them as a couple. As much as I cared to that is which was not much at all. Let's just say I didn't think they made such an odd pairing anymore.

When the whole Angie Jolie thing happened, I did pick a side and my support clearly rested with Jennifer Aniston. Aside from the horrible worthless drivel that is "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" (seriously, what chemistry were people talking about?), I feel that Angelina Jolie is a cold public figure. And if they had not done that photoshoot so soon after the breakdown of Brad Pitt and Jen's marriage, I probably wouldn't feel such disdain towards her either. The whole "we're just good friends" routine was, I felt, quite insulting in the wake of that spread.

But, what's passed is past and I don't believe the nonsense being written about Jen A in the tabloids. Sad, lonely Jen. The rags have been banging this beat for years. Is there seriously no other gossip worthy story for them to report on? Why is it that she appears every other week on one rag or another that proclaims her bad luck in love? Get over it. Brad and her just didn't work. He's with Angelina Jolie. She has moved on. Why keep bringing it up and throwing it in her face? Are they expecting her to have a public meltdown. If she didn't do so back then what makes them think she's going to give them the satisfaction anytime soon. And really, she comes across as this pragmatic person with a list of accomplishments. She's more than a player in the demise of her marriage. Yet, all things end up referring to that one event. I guess at this point, she's just resigned. Whatever it is, the tabloids will just want to report on what they want to believe.

reading......The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets

Penelope Wallace and Harry Declancy. I fell in love with Harry much as Penelope did. The best part of it is he's not a "prince charming" type at all but rather the rebel without a cause. And who doesn't like themselves a James Dean-esques sort of fellow?