Friday! Early lunch at Army Navy and Frutti Froyo c/o Jaykie and family. Burned calories in badminton (where I thought I would win against J, and then didn’t). Off to the mall to buy stuff for the boyfriend, puttanesca and pizza at Sbarro, then home. Got drunk on House (Season 5 and some of S6) and Pretty Little Liars. Slept. A lot.
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Was finally able to watch Tangled with my mother and sister. I watched it in 2D, so I don’t know if it’s more exciting to watch in its intended format. I do agree with Roger Ebert’s contention though that colors appear dimmer in 3D. Not to mention that the 3D glasses are cumbersome and the illusion, albeit nifty, give me slight headaches. I’d like to avoid 3D now.
To be perfectly honest, I didn’t think much of Tangled when I first saw the trailer. Ack, another Disney re-imagining of a fairy tale highlighting love and cuteness – and it’s not even Pixar-made! I wasn’t excited about it. What else can you change about Rapunzel’s story to make it fresh and interesting?
I was so glad to be proven wrong. Thank you for the songs and the lanterns, Disney. If ever you felt the urge to translate this film onto the stage as a musical (and what a lovely musical it would make! Imagine the set pieces!), I’d see it in a heartbeat.
(And this should have won Best Song over Toy Story 3. Yes, I’m dissing Pixar for you, Disney. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME. I’m a horrible person.)
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Commercial break: My story, “Voyage to Bathala”, will appear in the March 19 issue of the Philippines Free Press, available in bookstands by March 16. :) Do buy and read?
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So I received payment for a story sale via PayPal instead of via a paper check, and I realized, instead of sending back the money and demanding the check, might as well use the funds to – what else? – buy books online. (The first PayPal payment I received was for a poem, and I used that to donate to Duotrope. It’s a very helpful site.)
I’m so 21st century. (I don’t buy things online. I don’t have a credit card. And I don’t even have an ebook reader. And I hate iTunes with all of my being. I’m still not so 21st century, it turns out.)
Books, old and new, are offered at reasonable prices at the The Book Depository, an online bookseller based in the UK, and they offer free shipping to the Philippines! (Exclamation points!!!) So I got Tana French’s Faithful Place, a book that’s already available here but only in (expensive) hardcover, and Lauren Beukes’s acclaimed novels Zoo City and Moxyland, books I can’t find here anywhere. All for around 26 dollars, or around a thousand pesos.
One story = three books. Not a bad trade. Hope the books get here safely, and soon.
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I’ve been feeling rather sad these past few days for whatever reason, but the weekend was able to exorcise all the bad vibes. There’s no place like home.
Eliza Victoria 
The Book Depository is good, hope the books reach you safely. Well at least with paypal you can always start a dispute if you’re not happy with the services.
You don’t buy things online? Now I feel strange because these days it seems we buy everything online – even our meat, bread, milk, etc. Just to avoid queues, people, yeuk.
Have a good week!
YOU CAN BUY MEAT ONLINE???
I think I’m just horribly backward, haha. (See immediate reaction above.) And sometimes – sometimes – I do enjoy shopping irl.
Anyway The Book Dep site says the books should be here in a week. :D I’m excited!
Have a good week too, Ms Catherine!
Yes you can buy anything – ask my husband, he has two plots on the moon which he bought online a decade ago. The deeds are actually with me. Seriously.
I still quite enjoy going to our local shop just to get vegetables, bottled milk, things like that… We were just joking about shopping online at first but once we tried it (especially since we started to buy boxes of nappies and such), we found it more convenient. I was hesitant to do my shopping for food with short shelf life online, thinking maybe they would give you the ones that’ll expire the soonest since you’re not there to choose. But they shouldn’t do that and we’re fine with deliveries so far.
Since Phil. Free Press updates its website now, maybe your story will be available online soon as well won’t it, for us who won’t be able to get copies of the magazine?
Cheers!
That is seriously amazing. High-five your husband for me. *high-five*
And oh yes! I’ll link once the story’s up! Congrats to your MBrane pub as well. :)
Thanks, he’ll be happy that you think it’s amazing because I always rolled my eyes when I remembered the plots and he’d always say, “Yeah yeah people were laughing when men wanted to walk on the moon.” And his first word was “moon” not mummy or daddy so I think he’s forgiven :)
Haha!