The Final Cut

Ok, this will be my last post i ever do at my old house in Jalan Asas. I'm moving my last stuff there in a while (that includes my PC only actually) and Internet won't be up till at least Monday after 5pm (if Singnet doesn't screw things up again).

I was actually planning to move to the new place only after the Internet line came up, but a nap this afternoon on my new Queen-sized bed won me over. Besides, my X360 is already there and waiting to be played on my new Full-HD TV (but i just found out this afternoon i have no 1080p games to try..).

And speaking of X360, yesterday (Friday 13th) was the final round of XBGZ Forza 2 season 1 challenge. Coming into yesterday, i was 6 points clear in 1st place (technically 2nd, but the 1st place guy is the organiser and not eligible for prizes) but i somehow lost my consistency-streak and DNF the final race. In the end i was 2nd overall (lost by 2 points to the guy who overtook me in the standings). Not a good evening.. Thank goodness the prizes (Subaru goodies bag) is for the 1st and 2nd overall. Didn't waste 3 weeks of racing for nothing.
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Exciting time for longtime Guitar Hero fans! First up, SLASH is one of Activision's spokesman for Guitar Hero 3!

You know who it is by the curly hair + top hat..

Slash (left) in-game as one of the boss characters

Besides featuring as a boss character in the game ("one of the more surreal moments of (my) career"), Slash is contributing the theme song for GH3 ('Welcome to the Jungle' original guitar track!)! Other new features are new multiplayer VS modes! And the new wireless guitar model is a Les Paul for the X360! Does ending every sentence with a '!' make me sound trippy?

That's it. Final Asas post. See you after Monday!

Love to be Loved

Came across this really hilarious blog, An Englishman in Osaka. Some of the funny(ier, they're all quite funny) posts i came across:

• Squeezing it in
• Gate gap phenomenon
• The Door of Death
• Love poetry on a T-shirt

Yeah, if you're really bored like me (i've been put on permanent daytime standby to accompany/assist anyone who needs to do anything related to house-moving) go and read some of this.

I hope to move over to the new place by this Friday (the 13th, to house no. 13 Verde Crescent). I'll have a room-warming once i settle down. That's where you stick your head into my new room and comment how nice/tacky it is before leaving. Shouldn't take more than 5 minutes of everyone's time, tops. And don't forget the room-warming gift.
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Movies: Love & Honor

The final movie in Yamada Yoji's samurai trilogy (all 3 movie plots are unrelated) and in my opinion, the best of them all. And i'm not being biased just because Kimura Takuya is in this, though he did put in a fantastic performance as the blind samurai. My gripes is that the show is much too slow, and if you're one of those who live for the twists-in-plot, you'll be sorely disappointed. To be avoided if you fall asleep easily (ahem..Alex..) or if you don't give a shit whatsoever about Samurais and their code of honor. Rating: 7/10

Love Letter

Finally found the DVD again at MJ dor $12.90 (and the collector's edition at that). Nakayama Miho plays a dual role as Watanabe Hiroko and Fujii Itsuki, 2 woman who share a strange pen-pal relationship; Hiroko, whose husband died 2 years ago in a mountain climbing incident, finds his old address in his junior high school yearbook and out of loneliness, pens a simple "How are you?" letter to the address.

Unexpectedly, she receives a reply from a woman having the same name as her husband (Fujii Itsuki) and discovers that both Fujii Itsuki(s) were classmates in junior high. Wanting to find out more about her husband's past, Hiroko asks Itsuki to share her school memories with her through her letters (a younger Itsuki played by Sakai Miki, very cute at that time (1995)).

The story unfolds with numerous flashbacks, sort of like Be With You but not as sad. It's a really heartwarming romance story, not at all mushy or sappy. The ending is also kind of unexpected (but IMO, a great way to end the film). If you've seen Hana and Alice (also by the same director, which i also just purchased for $12.90) then you will know what to expect but if not, don't be suprised at how it ends. Rating: 7.5/10
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I should make a conscious effort to try and type/ say Japanese surnames before their given name (eg Toda Erika instead of Erika Toda). Will be handy (and more 'correct') when i go to Japan as well. After all, i wouldn't like someone to call me Wei Ming Chin.

If I Leave Here Tomorrow..

Amended my flight plan and collected my tickets today! I'm flying off to Fukuoka Airport at 8pm, August 16th and arriving in Japan on the 17th (Erika Toda's birthday..). My return flight is on November 14th from Tokyo, arriving back on 14th evening at 8pm.

I also visited the Japan National Tourist Organisation (Office at #15-09, Hong Leong Building, Raffles Quay) this afternoon. The staff was very friendly and helped me print out alot of things, including weather charts, rainfall charts, (cheap) hotel contacts and camping sites around Japan. Really grateful to her for the help!

Brochure stockpiling...

The JNTO office had a lot of brochures on each major city or prefecture in Japan. Some people were there and they took 1 or 2 brochures only. In comparison, i took 40 + of them (or almost 1 of everything they had). I was afraid that the staff was going to think that i was exhibiting typical Singapore Kiasu-ism (well maybe a little) but to be fair, i AM going to visit all the places anyway so i had to take one of each.

As for the weather during this period, i don't know whether i can consider myself lucky or not, but August-November is the period with one of the lowest rainfall on the calendar. The tradeoff is, the weather in Fukuoka for August-September averages between 23-27 degress C, which is not exactly my idea of a cool temperature to ride in.

So anybody want to come see me off on the 16th? Anybody..?
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As usual i'm obliged to bring you the latest* J-entertainment news: (*questionable)

- Suzumiya Haruhi's 2nd season has been confirmed! One of my top 3 favourite animes last year and probably one of the most popular anime/book series in Japan (if you've never heard of it, get out from under that rock you've been hiding under and just take my word for it) - Source: Tokyograph

- After her last release 'Taiyou no Uta' and 'Stay With Me' under the name of Kaoru Amane, Erika Sawajiri has released another Single with 3 new songs (under the name "ERIKA", official site here). She is also in the CM for Subaru (CM here). Looks like she gained a few pounds though (chubbier cheeks...). Her songs are still catchy but her vocals hasn't improved much.

Dog in sheep's clothings..

- Erika Toda kisses another dog! Or is it vice-versa? Actually i can't really confirm it's a dog. Might be a doggish-looking sheep since it's from the set of Love & Farm.

Mahou Sensei Negima (or MSN)

- Mahou Sensei Negima (by Ken Akamatsu, author of Love Hina, the first manga and anime i've ever read/watched) is becoming a live-action drama this fall! You can take a look at the full cast of the 31 class girls here (most of them are young gravure idols/models i believe). My first impression is that most of the actress are quite unremarkable. It's a pity they didn't cosplay them (hair color, accessories) to look like the manga characters. Anyway the manga's story (what story actually?) is just an excuse to draw panty shots and the likes, so if the drama is anything like that i'm guessing i might (ashamedly) enjoy it.

Well the only character i like is Asuna Kagurazaka (main heroine) and Nodoka Miyazaki anyway (#8 and #27 if you're looking at the class list) and Sara Wakatsuki looks good for the role of Asuna. Can't say the same for the actress playing Nodoka though. - More coverage and pics here

Nakai Masahiro's All Star Bowling

Found this 'All Star Bowling' special on Veoh.com (part 1, part 2, part 3 38mins plus each) hosted by Nakai Masahiro of SMAP. The guest stars (teams of 6) are cast members from 5 of the dramas currently airing this season, in no particular order:

• LIFE (Kitano Kii)
• Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (Horikita Maki, Oguri Syun)
• Yama Onna Kabe Onna (Itou Misaki, Kyoko Fukada)
• First Kiss (Inoue Mao, Ito Hideaki)
• Ushi ni Negai wo ~ Love & Farm (Toda Erika!)

If you just want to see Erika bowl, then click on the 'part 2' link above (from 32:40 - 34:49) but if you have 2 hrs to spare then watch the whole thing cause it's pretty entertaining and funny.

Unfortunately i couldn't get better screencaps because they don't show replays for the bowler unless they Strike or throw a Gutter ball. Erika hit 3 pins, unlike some of the pathetic guys on her team who threw gutter balls.

Notable list of gutter ball throwers: Kyoko Fukada, who came dressed in a hotel maid costume and babbled on much too long before guttering, and Horikita Maki, HanaKimi's team Captain, who looked really guttered (<-pun) after guttering.

Babbled a whole load of rubbish...

Visibly guttered..your team loses all it's points when someone gutters (G).

Really felt like going to bowl after watching this. Alex, quickly organise something again!

There Goes My Hero

Drama: My Boss, My Hero (1-10 Complete)

This is a super hilarious series i just finished watching in one sitting. Nagase Tomoya (lead singer/guitarist of TOKIO) simply steals the show as Sakaki Makio (27), known in the region as 'Tornado Makio', the strongest (but incredibly dumb) Yakuza and next in line to be Boss of his father's clan.

"I'm gonna kill ya, bastard!"

After ruining a 30 billion yen deal (because he couldn't figure out if 25+5 is bigger than 27), his father, the head of the Yakuza clan issues him an ultimatum: graduate from high school with a diploma or he will name his (smarter) younger brother Mikio as the next Boss of the clan. To fulfill his dream of becoming Boss, Makio reluctantly heads to St Agnes High School.

Won the match, lost his shorts.

From being extorted by the class bully, volunteering to be the class representative (the "Boss" of the class), to playing basketball (and losing his shorts), everything Makio does is made extra funny by his super versatile vocal and facial expressions. Tomoya really puts alot of energy and enthusiasm into his performance. His stupidity and wild Yakuza imagination (and instincts) are just priceless.

Man of a thousand expressions.

In between, he falls in (and out) of love for the first time with classmate Umemura Hikari (17), played by Aragaki Yui, who was actually the main reason i caught this series in the first place, but she got easily outshone by Tomoya. Quite a sweet performance from her though.

Buying a ring for his first love @ 27 years old.

A quick sideward glance while she's preoccupied with her phone.

I highly recommend this series. Very good, quick pacing (didn't want it to end though..) plenty of laughs and very likeable characters. If i wasn't a fan of Nagase Tomoya before this, i sure am now. And Aragaki Yui gets + points in my book just for co-starring with him.

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Something i need for the next Guitar Hero guitar that i buy; firmer springs for the strumming thingie! The whole thing went soggy after mine and Brandon's 'jamming' the past few nights.

And i finally bothered to find out what the chorus lyrics are for 'Hangar 18', it's "Possibly I've seen too much/Hangar 18 I know too much". Couldn't make out what he was singing before. And Herbert, i was wrong, this song's riff IS very catchy.

Today is also Independence Day! Happy 4th of July to my cousins the Wilsons, in Mississippi!

Wake Up and Smell the Roses

Cycling down the Orchard stretch at night was not as fun as i thought it would be. The main problem for a cyclist is the endless line of buses jostling with me on the left lane, forcing me to weave in and out between them the entire way, and the neverending traffic lights every few hundred metres. It seemed that i was unlucky enough to get stopped at every single traffic light from Raffles City to Wheelock Place.

Fortunately, the rest of my cycling on Sunday night was pretty enjoyable. Went down to Pasir Panjang to Shenton Way, to Kallang Stadium; stopped for Tau Hui at Selegie, cycled through Orchard Road (worst part) and down Holland Ave back to my place. I'm practicing the 'art' of riding leisurely so i didn't feel tired at all when i finished my round trip. Got to keep in mind not to gulp down too much water at once or it will leave my stomach feeling all bloated.

Cycled back to Sembawang Camp this afternoon to catch up with my ex-colleagues. The place is SO much more peaceful (and stress-free) compared to my home, so much so that i stayed the entire afternoon doing nothing but talk cock and exchange gossip, mostly with Ee Wei. Feels damn long since i ORD'ed, even though in reality it has just been 3 1/2 weeks since i've been gone.

Probably will drop by camp again next Thursday(12th) to take my IPPT with Ming Wei (failed 1st attempt). Everyone's been laughing at him cause he failed sit-ups and running, so i hope i don't end up the same. Think i have to work on my pull-ups. The only upper body exercise i've been doing the past month involve only my fingers...
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Drama NEWS

- Finally some screenshots of HanaKimi (official site here)! I was eagerly waiting to see how Horikita Maki would look like dressed as a guy, and my first impression from the pictures is... she's not very convincing. Still can't wait to catch this series though.

Spot the male-wannabe. (click for bigger pic)

- The drama taking over Liar Game's Saturday 11pm slot this season, LIFE, looks interesting as well:

First episodes' ratings (11.0%) look decent for such a late slot. Will definitely give this series a shot. Theme song (also titled 'LIFE') is by Mika Nakashima as well.

- Aragaki Yui's (one of the Pocky girls) first leading role-drama aired on Sunday, Papa to Musume no Nanokakan.

Not too crazy about her (but she was voted the no.1 most popular celebrity 18 yrs and under, as a reference, Erika toda was 3rd) and not too memorable in 2 of the dramas i've seen with her so far (Galcir and Dragon Zakura). This drama's slated to be only 7-episodes long. Gonna catch it to see what all the fuss about her is about.

I Should go to Taiwan..

Some exciting Erika Toda news:

Fire Prevention Poster Girl 2007, nothing to do with the following news though..

Rising teen star Erika Toda is set to take her first step as an international actress. She has been cast in the movie "Tea Fight," a collaborative work between Taiwan and Japan. The story follows a young Japanese girl who travels to Taiwan in search of a legendary tea that may help her father (Teruyuki Kagawa).

The idea for the tea-themed film began two years ago. The Taiwanese director approached a Japanese production company to discuss the project, and he was introduced to Toda, who at the time was acting in the Fuji TV drama series "Engine." He was impressed by her acting skills, and has been following her progress since then.

Toda has also been gaining popularity overseas due to her appearance in the "Death Note" movies. "Tea Fight" is scheduled to open next year throughout Asia. Distribution will be handled by Movie-Eye Entertainment. Filming is planned to take place from late October to early December, with about 80% of the filming located in Taiwan. Casting for the major Taiwanese roles is currently in progress.

Of course i'm excited to see Erika in a mandarin film, but the filming schedule (in bold) kind of conflicts with my plans to find her in Japan. Hopefully i will get to see her at some event before late October. Or maybe i should go to Taiwan instead. There's probably a higher chance of meeting her there. Anyway i will have to lower my expectations of meeting her on my Japan trip.

For those of you who don't know yet, i'm flying off on August 17th, which is also Erika Toda's birthday!
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Another interesting news; just found out that my no.2 favourite actress Miyazaki Aoi is getting married! To this guy, Takaoka Sousuke, and although i've seen some of the shows he has acted in before, i don't have the faintest impression of him at all. Hope she still continues to do movies after this though.

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

For all the hype about today being the last match day at the National Stadium before it is demolished, surprisingly i didn't feel a single bit sentimental about the entire event at all. At the end of the day all i really cared about was watching a good soccer match. Overall i'm much sadder to see us lose than to know this is our last game at Kallang.

One last pic for old time's sake. You can tell the true fans by the shirt.

And we played well** against Australia. To lose 3-0 despite having so many chances to score just reflects how badly we lack the killer instincts in front of goal. Even big-game scorer Indra Sahdan couldn't break our duck, and was guilty of missing a fantastic 1-on-1 chance in the first half.

(**To quote from this Soccernet article: "The result might have been different had Singapore capitalised on goalscoring chances they created in a scoreless first half after opening up Australia's defence." and Australia's Coach: "Our attacking play was fantastic but we've got some work to do in defence. I was not happy with that side of things,' Arnold told reporters.
'Singapore tested us and were very unlucky. We have a lot of work to do.")

Viduka getting the better of Noh Rahman.

Australia's striker, Mark Viduka on the other hand, was a class act. The ease at which he found space to score his 2 goals was just fantastic.

Kewell going by Aide and Precious

Harry Kewell came on for the last 30 minutes and scored Australia's 2nd goal, as well as assisting Viduka for the 3rd.

They must have had like only 10 firework to shoot off.

Good thing we didn't stay for the fireworks display and the closing ceremony, cause the fireworks were just pitiful. It's as if they were on a shoestring budget. Managed to catch the display just before we boarded the bus.

Anyway, farewell to the Grand Old Lady of Kallang. Thanks for all the good memories (not last night though). Really a shame we couldn't win our final match.