What were your top 5 TV shows of 2006?
1. Heroes
2. ... Mythbusters?
I don't watch TV. But I answered this anyway because I really did get into Heroes (thanks Na!). And the L Word, but only season 2.
Shows that I've wanted to watch but haven't gotten around to yet: Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs, Six Feet Under, Nip/Tuck, The Office.
A new band (Norwegian I think? Although I could swear the name is Indian), with totally justified hype, period. The tracks are monstrous.
And the last album I can't put a cover cause it's a Malaysian band, Ferns. You can find them at their myspace. Their album is finally finished (fans even made a blog asking Warren to hurry up and finish the album) and finally out, with a grassy green cover & a music video with an animal mask. I haven't been able to buy it yet but I've listened to it in a car at night (in a strange way it fit, but I think its more sunny music anyday). A dreamy local pop masterpiece.
Other albums I really love but was crazy enough to not list: Gnarls Barkley's St Elsewhere, Silversun Pickup's Carnavas (awesome to drive to), Ghostface Killah's Fishscale.
Hokai, over and out!
This list is slightly different than the one I submitted for Junk because trying to come up with a top 10 list for it (I didn't have one before) made me really look back at the albums released this year. I was never particular about release dates, most of this year was spent finding and listening to older albums actually. So, in no order at all:
Proof that you can release an album in November and still top everyone's charts in time for their annual recaps.
My personal favourite find this year, bar none. If you don't crinkle your nose at the fact that she records under the name 'My Brightest Diamond' then you'll be graciously rewarded.
I don't have enough time right now so I'll finish off the remaining five later! Watch out for an edit
THIS IS PART TWO.
Congrats - TIME Magazine voted you "Person of the Year"! What's your acceptance speech?
Very flattering, I'm sure. But how tragic, did you run out of ideas? I would thank my mother, if I didn't already know she would smack me on the head for it.
You could have rewarded someone who actually sweat blood and tears, sacrificed time, love/family and maybe even a slice of morality this year to accomplish something. A discovery, a milestone. You know, someone who actually tried.But instead, you choose to graciously award us, people who don't do much else but go "OMG" and tie ourselves to our computer expressing a bulk of our free time in mouse clicks; photo uploads, reciprocating comments, flooding threads, dancing around on webcams, all for the sake of forming the oh-so-amazing 'web 2.0' (like we didn't see this coming?). Are you serious when you said you're moved by people on Facebook, Youtube, Myspace, Amazon reviewers, ranting bloggers?
We do these things when we are bored. Or don't go out. Since when was that Person Of The Year material? Why reward the maddening spike in self-absorption levels when the title should really go to someone the complete opposite, or at least someone who made better use of their time?Maybe there really was no one this year that made a difference. Due to the lack of heroes and heroines, we will all lazily accept the award in their extinction. Well that says a lot for our humanity.
Changing my top 8 wasn't exactly the decision that rocked my world, but the fact that you don't have even have one, Time, that says a lot.
Whose smart idea was this and are they fired yet?
Ah well. Here's to 2006, the year of those who bravely suffered screen glare to construct our cyberspace playground, where we are all mini-celebrities,
right down to our .jpegs and urls.
Do you have a nervous habit?
Submitted by Herding Cats.
I talk my ass off. I dread that impending moment of awkward silence, I swear I can always hear it approaching, and will do anything to make sure it doesn't happen even if I come off as a bimbo comedian. When it becomes familiar, then I tune down to being only semi-talkative. It's when I'm silent with you, that's when you know I'm fully comfortable.
here I go again.
I know I never say this because I don't believe in the pot calling itself black,
but I must be crazy.
I thought I was delusional and imagining things, because a few hours after I was all excited over seeing my name in the list, it wasn't there anymore. And then: well, read this and the post after, if you like.
I have been shortlisted for an essay competition!and now the winner is to be determined by people's choice. So please give all the essays a read and if you like mine, consider sending an email at write4thecicak@gmail.com giving them my name, Liyana Yusof. The prize is some money, Borders vouchers (!!!) and having the essay published in a local newspaper.I read the entries and there is one I particularly like (not telling!). I wouldn't mind it if they won, even though I've yet to win an essay competition asides from Kinokuniya Bookstores' World Book Day. I've only been shortlisted previously for MPH's Young Writer Search (and published in their anthology) and shortlisted again for IMPAC Dublin Literary Award For Young Malaysians. There aren't that many chances for older people to join essay contests so I'm trying to make the most of it while I'm still in my very last -teen. Sigh. Here's hoping.
they pulled a big fat Ctrl+Z on me baby.
What books did you love as a child?
Submitted by hearts.When I was younger I wore out a mythology book ragged. It was one of the first few things I read when I was young, my book of bedtime stories. I was hooked on Greek mythology, the book now is broken at the bindings and taped back together repeatedly by me.
I remembered hoping that Orpheus would look back, because no one should be selfish enough to not let his lover die in peace, especially when she seems to be in a good place (Rilke also wrote something about this). I remember the story of the Minotaur but it wasn't one of my favourites, although it spawned the story of Icarus which I ended up liking a lot more. I loved reading about Arachne and the weaving contest, especially the part where each tapestry was described in detail. Then there was the judgement of Paris (poor boy), Narcissus & Echo ("Hands off! I would rather die than you should have me!" "Have me," said she.) Glaucus & Scylla, Pandora's box (my book's version has a list a page long about everything that was released from the box, and it was really amusing, I even remember 'tourism' being one of the insects to fly out). I also loved the idea of Medusa, and the Gorgons. I dreamt of them for nights and failed at drawing them. Then there was Hades & Persephone, and how her stay in the underworld tied to the creation of the four seasons.
There was also a story about two lovers meeting through a crack in the wall and deciding to rendezvous at a mausoleum, it was tragic, and I forgot the characters in the story altogether. Maybe it wasn't Greek, maybe it was from another country. Argh. Can't remember. Isis & Osiris was pretty good, I think that was Egyptian, and the illustration of Isis cutting her hair is one of the few images that really stuck with me long after I put the book back on the shelf.
Admittedly, the mischief and mayhem of the 'gods' might not exactly be the best fodder for anyone's formative years but despite the rampant promiscuity, incest and occasional bestiality, there was a quality of beauty in those stories that I don't remember seeing anywhere else (it's differently beautiful from the fiction I ended up reading). And I still think everyone in that book didn't know anything of love.
I also read Ladybird, RL Stine, Sweet Valley, & Enid Blyton (the faraway tree!).
When it comes to functioning online, I have been rendered completely out of order.
There are words of course (aren't there always) but it isn't for you or anyone else. And now I feel bad because I haven't even been making the most out of the domain my friend gave me (and it's not like I don't have anything to put there, there has been fiction, even goddamned poetry, but I don't know).
Despite the silence I am pretty content.
But it still feels like waiting for something to happen, something to punctuate the endless end-of-study-sem rush, something that can make me sit up and listen amidst all the noise in my playlist and in my head.
