2011 has been a serious roller coaster for me professionally and personally. It seems like it was just yesterday when I was updating the 2010 end of the year list!

Golly.

2011 in Pictures

Jan – March: Welcome to the family, Robin Hood the Hyundai Sonata! / Custom made truffles from Drago Centro / Got laid off

April – June: New Zealand vacation / Cochon 555 / The Nerd Machine Slave Leia PSA

July – September: 4th of July at the Los Alamitos Base / Camping on Catalina / USC football season

October – December: Awesome Halloween / Thorough destruction of the bRuins / Annual candy cane martini at Patty’s house

Drinking Buddy of the Year: Brandon…again

When you’re unemployed for most of the year, who else would be your drinking buddy but your husband!  Brandon has returned to claim the title since he got it in 2009.  This year, the mister also started to try wine, so we’ve had a little more fun with that.  Speaking of wine…

Bar of the Year: District Wine, Long Beach

I was introduced to District Wine by USC Alumni Club of Long Beach.  The club has many mixers hosted here and the board congregates here for the board meeting for bottlomless mimosas on a Sunday.  Elegant but cozy place with friendliest of staff can be really mellow some nights and lively on others.

With a variety of wine by the glass and very reasonably priced by the bottle and delicious nosh, if this place was around the corner from my house, I would certainly haunt it.  I like District Wine so much when I was contacted by Ghirardelli to host the Intense Dark chocolate and wine pairing event, I didn’t even try calling anywhere else but here.

I’m looking forward to many, many more good times!

Restaurant of the Year: Vino e Cucina, Long Beach

My friend Brenda introduced me to Vino e Cucina a few years back. It was REAL Italian food, owned and operated by Italian family.  I totally loved the food there since the very first bite, but I couldn’t get Brandon through the door for the longest time.  You see, the first time we popped in was a Friday night when they were still in the one store. With no reservation, they couldn’t seat anyone. B didn’t like that too much.

Since then they had expanded into the neighboring storefronts, and I finally convinced Brandon to come order a to-go dinner on a weeknight. The food proved itself worthy.  And now we eat there about once every other month.

Newcomer Award: Saatchi LA Peeps

“But Oakley, you only worked there for 4 months! How could you be so attached to these people?”

When you find a work environment you like, meet the people you adore, and get a sense of a company culture that fits you like a glove, you can’t help yourself feeling like you’ve always worked there. I feel like I belong there more than any other place I’ve worked at before (maybe except HSX.com).  I’ve met great people and created some awesome memories in my short time here.  This will not be soon forgotten.

Oh, and again, thanks, Matt.

High point of the Year: New Zealand Trip

Fresh off the layoff, the trip was the perfect springboard into the new adventure.  It was a carefree trip. We ate a lot. We walked a lot. Then we drove a LOT but we also saw a lot along the way.  We nerded out with Lord of the Rings sites. We drank plenty of wine and guzzled enough local beer. We took a million pictures (and I haven’t uploaded them all yet).

It was great seeing my dad and getting him out traveling even on a very limited schedule. My mom had always wanted to visit New Zealand. In a way, we were taking this trip for her as well.

The best, though, is that my dad and I reunited with my cousins Nancy and Nat who we haven’t seen in 10+ years.  I also finally get to meet my nephew Brandon for the first time.

What an adventure.

Low point of the year: Unemployment

Yes, I was all gung-ho about my new adventures. Then I was defeated by the reality of it.  I had some days when all the rejection emails and resumes that disappear into the black hole that is the Orange County job market really got me.  There were days when I felt useless and stupid. And there were days when I thought I should just grab a cup and go panhandle.

I’ve gotten used to a set schedule and a steady paycheck for these past 4 months. Going back to not working is going to be interesting all over again.

Holiday of the Year: Halloween…again

That’s it. I’m retiring this category since a) Halloween is my favorite holiday, and b) it’s ALWAYS awesome.

This year I didn’t have quite the same number of costume change as last year.  But I still had quite a bit.  A 1980s prom princess at work pre-Halloween. A Trojan Cat in the Hat for Halloween weekend tailgate.  Myself aka the Devil for work on Halloween day and then the TARDIS in a tutu for Halloween party that evening.

That TARDIS outfit though, I’m quite proud of. Now you just have to find more occasions to rock out my blue tutu. Hee.

Song of the Year: Pumped Up Kicks, Foster the People

I know, I know. This song is now overplayed.  However, you have to give it credit of the catchiness.  I mean, I caught it a bit before it blew up and I still caught myself humming it out of the blue.

Movie of the Year: Captain America

As a Harry Potter fan, the final Potter movie should be on this list. However, it just wasn’t. Since I haven’t seen The Muppets just yet, Captain America will be crowned as my favorite this year.

Super hero movies has gone gray. You know, all the heroes have some kind of flaws or darkness they have to deal with.  It’s so refreshing to see a TRUE super her with no baggage.

Surprise Movie of the Year: The Warrior’s Way

Brandon got this on rental. Horrendously cheesy with the story, the comic book CGI, and gratuitous violence. Everyone is over the top and stereotypical. The plot is predictable as hell too. But you know almost immediately that you can’t take any of it seriously. Even the actors don’t seem to be taking it seriously. Once you look at this as a live action comic book rooted in no reality of any kind, some kind of a fantastic voyage where everyone is in on the joke, you’ll totally enjoy it.

Book of the Year: Hunger Game trilogy

Oh, Entertainment Weekly Magazine. You influence me so. After having read so much about it, I decided to pick up the Hunger Game paperback for my New Zealand trip. I just couldn’t put it down. I ordered the box set the moment I came back and plowed through the rest in a record speed.

I mean, what’s not to like? Post apocalyptic, totalitarian world. A teenage girl fights for her family. Two boys who love her yet she doesn’t really know what she’s feeling.

If you can skip through the narratives about the food, the fashion, and how she was confused about her relationships–pretty much the parts Brandon couldn’t stand and therefore didn’t read past the first book–you have yourself one kick-ass sci-fi trilogy.

And next summer, the movie. Squee!

TV Show of the Year: American Horror Story

I actually didn’t want to continue watching after I watched the pilot. My skin was left crawling. Too intense of an hour of television.  But curiosity–and free on demand–brought me back.

And boy am I back and so totally obsessed with this show now. (Glee? What’s that?)

That’s about it for 2011.

But as I’m sitting here watching this promo of the movie, as a fan of Joss Whedon’s Firefly series, I’m insulted and outraged by all of these people cooing about how a mash up of sci-fi and Western has NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE.

Bitch, please.

I understand you need to sell your movie but why do you have to go and insult the intelligence of your core audience: the fanboys and fangirls?

Just because Firefly didn’t go “mainstream”, it doesn’t mean y’all can come through and claim that you’re the first who’s mashed up the genre.

I’m not saying that Firefly is first to mash up. Wikipedia documents quite a bit of history of “Space Western”. I’m just pointing out that Firefly definitely mash it up before Cowboys & Aliens.

I admire your work, Favreau, but you ain’t first.

So, be excited, fellow geeks and nerds, that Cowboys & Aliens are coming to theaters. And go out to see it as I definitely will.

But be prepared to defend the honor of Firefly universe (or even Cowboy Bebop if that’s your thing).

This is a my call to arms to all Browncoats (and even Alliance) to unite and defend our place in the geekdom.

We were first. Don’t let them tell you otherwise.

Okay, fine. If you Cowboys & Aliens camp wants to say that you mean you’re first to put aliens in the Western and THAT hasn’t been done before, maybe you could claim that. I would fact check on that though.

But please, I beg of you, to stop it with being the first mash up of western and sci-fi, okay? Not only you are embarrassing yourselves among your fanboys and fangirls, you’re beginning to damage our calm.

Speaking of having my calm damaged, someone said this to me about Cowboys & Aliens.

“This is such a ridiculous concept for a movie,” she said.

“EVERYBODY knows there were no aliens back in those days. There wasn’t even electricity!”

I’m serious.

P.S. According to sources, that Chinese phrase in the image is “Chur ni-duh”, uttered by Wash in “Out of Gas”, which is slang for screw you, get lost, or go to hell.

I mean, look at how neglected this blog is!!!

Let’s take a look back this year, see what all I did, and give out some 2010 awards, shall we?

2010 in Pictures:

Drinking Buddy of the Year: Bus Buddy Amanda

We’ve been riding the bus together for a few years and carpooled together numerous times.  But it was this year that Amanda and I started hanging out outside of the bus.  We grabbed a few drinks either in Downtown LA or right here back in Los Alamitos.  We occasionally dragged our husbands with us too, like when we went to the Night Dive at the Aquarium of the Pacific. Next up on our agenda is shopping.  Our wallets should be afraid. Very afraid.

Bar of the Year: Chaya Downtown

I actually have visited less and less Downtown LA hot spots since last year.  Work dynamic continues to shift and happy hour gathering has become more and more difficult to manage.  Yet, I kept finding myself moseying over to Chaya Downtown whenever I have an excuse to do so.

At the beginning, I didn’t really give Chaya much of a chance.  Compared to the cozy vibe at the Library Bar, I felt Chaya was a bit more snooty.  I was proven wrong on that.  Also with Library Bar having become so popular it was too crowded for my liking, Chaya has plenty of space to spread out either right up to the bar or out in their Japanese beer garden.  It’s one of the better places in the financial district for happy hour these days with great menu and strong drink specials.  I mean, that $5 cocktail specials they have would knock a lightweight on her ass, I tell ya!

Chaya bar is not just for drinks, but for lunch too.  Bartender Greg always take a good care of me whether I was just picking up a very reasonably priced to-go bento box or sitting down to pig out alone.  The food was surprising fast out there at the bar versus sitting down at the proper restaurant section.

Newcomer Award: USC Trojan Nation

Fight on!

It only took me 11 years since graduation to get around to buy USC football season ticket.  Bless her heart, at the time of purchase, Gridiron Goddess Amy shouldn’t be spending her money on the ticket, but she did. And we roamed and ruled USC campus as tailgate nomads, lugging our own food and beverages, looking for a place to crash.

During the sesason, I reconnected with old friend Roy aka USC Psycho and crashed at my rarely-seen Trojan brother Joel and his wife Zoe’s tailgate.  I never quite made it to Hawaiian Jen’s group at the engineering quad though, my one regret.  I also made new Trojan tweeps as I tweeted my away games from my couch or at the bar with USC Long Beach Alumni Club.

Yes, the Long Beach Alumni Club is back and very alive!  As destiny would have it, it got resurrected this year.  And naturally, I joined and soon became their director of technology, handling their twitter account and soon to design their website.

More Trojan Nation shenanigan will ensue through the spring, I am sure.  Thank god I’m not a basketball fan too or else my husband will never see me again…

High point of the Year: NaNoWriMo

I have great friends who always supported me through everything I do whether it’s AIDS Walk Long Beach with Team Lesser Weevils or joining GuerilLA in a spectacular improv musical unleashed upon the unsuspecting crowd at Universal City Walk.

This year I took a swing at National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and raised money for the foundation set up in my grandfather’s name in memory of both him and my mom.  Friends were super supportive with donations and encouragement.

I was writing on the bus on the way to work. I was writing it at lunch at work. I was writing some of it at home too.  50,000 words in 30 days proved to be too much for me as my inner editor and procrastinator kept chipping away at my words and my time.  However, I did have half of that for a draft of a memoir about our family’s ties to mom’s two big folders full of fortune teller notes.

Low point of the year (other than a disappointing USC football season): Sickness and death among friends

This year has sucked for so many friends healthwise thus make it a low point of the year.  Friends have been afflicted with fibromyalgia, MS, and cancer. I hate you, diseases, for making my friends’ lives unnecessarily harder. My fist. Your direction. Grrr….

Also,  a former colleague who had been dealing with kidney issues unexpectedly passed away.  He was okay one day and died in his sleep over the weekend. It was quite a jolt.

Holiday of the Year: Halloween for a completely different reason!

The past two years, weeks leading up to Halloween had involved running around with Thrill the World.  This year, I passed on the torch so I get to have my favorite holiday back!  Then again, the costume change this year was the most I’ve ever done.  5 costumes leading up to Halloween, if you can imagine.

1. Halloween Friday: Nerd Herder for work
2. Halloween Friday Party: Slave Leia for a Star Wars party at Amy’s house.
3. Halloween’s Eve: Crazy USC fan gear.  Well, I just topped off with what became my signature Dr. Seuss hat for the game.
4. Halloween afternoon: a Jedi costume was thrown on to visit Gregg at the hospital. I did tell him I was going to bring out Slave Leia but I didn’t think it was appropriate for a hospital.  David said if anyone was to have a heart attack, that would be a good place for it. LOL.
5. Halloween: Resident Evil’s Alice accompanying Brandon’s Tallahassee from Zombieland to our usual trick or treat evening at Paul’s house.

Song of the Year: Teenage Dreams, Glee version

Can’t. Stop. Listening.

Movie of the Year: Toy Story 3.

No, I haven’t seen the Social Network, Inception, The Kids Are Alright, or anything critically acclaimed.  Naturally, Woody and the gang won this round.

Surprise Movie of the Year: Hachi: A Dog’s Tale

It’s a straight-to-video gem.  I’ve grown up knowing the story of the original Hachikp in Japan so I was curious to see this movie Entertainment Weekly and my friend were raving about.  I knew it was going to be a 3 hanky type mush so I expected a little tears in my eyes.  But oh, no. No no no no. THAT was the middle of the movie.  At the end, I was sobbing so hard Brandon asked if I was okay.  I never cried like that for a movie. Ever.

Book of the Year: Delivering Happiness

Amy G. knows me more than I know myself sometimes.  She definitely knows something I don’t when she saved me a pre-release copy of Zappo’s CEO Tony Hsieh’s Delivering Happiness she had received at an event.  It only took me months to get to read it.  And once I did, I was inspired and depressed all at the same time.  You know, excited about the future and the fact that there’s a company out there that has the same perspective about “work should be a happy, inspiring place” as I do. (Damn you, Zappos for being in Las Vegas!)  And of course, it’s a little disheartening to look at my current situation which is not quite what it could be.  Then again, there’s not much fun you can really wring out of the line of work I do. *sigh*

TV Show of the Year: Doctor Who

I might have just become a late fan of the show (helloooo Martha Jones!), but my attachment to David Tennant is pretty strong.  So I was very skeptic of Matt Smith’s taking over.  But the show managed to change my mind and kept me glued.  So, hats off to you, Doctor!

Runner Up: Hawaii Five-O.  Alex O’Loughlin’s taking his shirt off every other week?  If this is not the best show on television I don’t know what is. But to tell you the truth, it’s Scott Caan’s performance that is keeping me hooked.  His big softy, smart alecky Danno is the only real character on the show. Everyone else is kind of two dimensional.

Oh, and you’re welcome for the following clip. (Good luck, Aquaman!)  Alex’ chest deserves his own FB page…oh wait a minute…

Restaurant of the Year: Koi Sushi, Seal Beach

We have always known of Koi Sushi.  As a matter of fact, my memory of it was that Brandon’s parents wanted to take us there once but the line was out the door.  We rediscovered it one day as a part of my quest to find a true Japanese restaurant, not just a place that serves sushi and teriyaki.  Koi was exactly what I was looking for.

They hooked us at our first visit with a huge hunk of braised pork belly “appetizer”.  I mean, we could’ve split that for dinner, it was that big.  And it was delicious.  The teriyaki beef got Brandon addicted.  Tender beef cooked perfectly and the teriyaki sauce that’ not cloying.  What I like most is that they a special menu that changes every week I believe.  Food was fresh and portion is generous.  Service was great.  As long as we get there off peak hours, there wasn’t any line.

When it’s a restaurant that Brandon actually craves, that gets on my favorite restaurant list!

*

Well, that’s my 2010. How did you year go?

Two girls fighting over one guy, it’s always some trashy cat fight.  But when two boys fight over one girl, it’s romantic.

Interesting, right?

Well, obviously the whole Twilight thing with vampire Edward and werewolf Jacob fighting over Bella. Girls and their mothers swoon.  (As you know I’m Team Jacob for a few reasons and more reasons). But a wealth of triangles in the show I’ve watched recently has brought the whole thing to my attention.

Over on the other vampire spectrum, I’ve just finished True Blood Season 2 on DVD.  Sookie and Bill are obviously committed to each other, but that doesn’t stop Eric from making his moves on her…including moves to get rid of Bill altogether. (Note: I’m watching True Blood on DVD so I’ve just finished Season 2 now and switched to Team Eric. Don’t tell me anything!)

Over in the land of Castle, Kate Beckett and Richard Castle obviously have the hots for each other but nobody made the move. At some point she started seeing the other guy. So, yep. 2 boys fighting over her there for a few episodes.  Frankly, I’d have Nathan Fillion and Michael Trucco fight over me any day.

I’ve started watching SyFy’s Haven. FBI Agent Audrey came to town and immediately got two hottest boys in town wrapped around her fingers. Her partner Nathan and the bad boy Duke already had some bad blood going but now they fight over her too.  While Nathan quietly goes about admiring Audrey, Duke makes his intentions very clear.  In this fight, Eric Balfour’s Duke wins by a landslide.

Then, of course, Jane Austen’s novels.  Well, not really a triangle but there’s always a girl and a flashy handsome boy who have seemingly fallen in love but there’s always another guy in the wing waiting to come in to be with her after the flashy bastard breaks her heart.  A guy who would lay his life on the line for her even if she doesn’t love him…yet.

And looking back even more: Sleepless in Seattle has an engaged Annie falling for Sam, Love Actually has Mark quietly in love with just married Juliet, Battlestar Galatica has everyone nice and tangled but most importantly Kara/Sam/Lee, and, of course, Pretty in Pink Ducky watches Andy goes off with Blane in the end.

What is it that make these girls so special that boys would move the earth for them?

Well, I guess being pretty to start with doesn’t hurt anybody.  I’m sure hot chicks have that dilemma all the time.  A pretty girl walks in the room and at least 5 guys are already interested. How many after that would really go the distance?  I don’t know, but I’m sure it’s a good start.

Many of us don’t have to worry about that.  Heck, many of us already have trouble landing A man. LOL.

But what is it with the love triangle that intrigued us girls so much?  Is it because we all wanted to be desired?  If you can make one guy falls in love with you, then more power to you if you can have two?  One must be an incredible person and more than likely gorgeous to be worthy of the love of two men, so we all want to be like that?

Hell. I don’t know.  I for one don’t understand the logic, but that doesn’t stop me from swooning over these stories.

Hey, I’m a girl too, the last time I checked.

Is there a point to this post? I don’t know. I guess I’m just fascinated with this whole girl-based love triangle deal and didn’t quite realized we’re surrounded by it in fiction.

Does this happen in real life? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of such story.

But I guess that’s what make it even more fascinating to us all.

Timothy Olyphant (Justified) : Michael Weatherly (NCIS) : Chris Pine (Star Trek…okay not TV, but movie based on TV show). They could play brothers. Hot, HOT band of brothers with awesome hair.

But the Globes gave Avatar Best Picture?  What were they smoking?  I mean, it’s a fantastic technological leap forward in movie re-making for Pocahontas/Fern Gully/Dances with Wolves.  That doesn’t deserve Best Picture.  That kind of voting usually we leave for the Academy of the Easily Persuaded.

Well, this time, the Academy is also easily persuaded but not by the biggest movie of the year but by the most critically-hyped film which the Globes ignored.

Topsy turvy, my little world of Pop Culture has become.  I blame it on the global warming.  Or dying bees. Or something.

But anyway. Hooray for The Hurt Locker!

Not sure if it “deserves” the award yet, but having the first female director winning as Oscar totally kicks ass.

It is odd to go into the Oscars and not having seen the Best Pictures films because I didn’t do the AMC marathon this year.  2 Saturdays of 5 movies? I just couldn’t do it.  I managed to have seen 4 out of 10–Avatar, Inglorious Basterds, Up, and District 9–which will be 5 out of 10 as soon as I pop The Hurt Locker in to the DVD player.  It’s been sitting here by TV  for the past 2 weeks. (Sorry, Netflix!)

So I go back to my method of buzz judging.  And boy, my buzz meter still works beautifully.  As a matter of fact, it works so well that I’m starting to think that my personal judgment is obviously flawed.  If you look at my recent years of prediction when I actually saw all Best Picture nominees and a few other, I’ve been horribly wrong.

This year, going in half blind, I only missed 5 out of 24.  Back to the 79.17% accuracy of 2007, baby!  (2008 was the most disastrous at 50% and 2009 was 58%)

I was on the spot guessing The Cove over Food Inc. for Best Doc–despite my strong feelings for Food Inc.–and Young Victoria over Nine for Costume Design.  It usually doesn’t fail to bet on a lavish period pieces for Costume Design.  And, of course, the luckiest guess of Music by Prudence for Short Doc.

Foreign-language film, as of recent years, has always been a wild guess.  I went with A Prophet. I blame Entertainment Weekly for that one.  The sound awards, usually go to the big bang/boom movies so naturally I picked Star Trek (editing) and Transformers (mixing) and missed on both account.  I guess there are more bombs in The Hurt Locker than I thought.  And of course, a big fan of Wallace & Gromit, I cheered for them and was wrong.  The surprise miss was Best Actress.  I thought for sure Gabourey would go home with the Oscars.

Oh, and I don’t know who else was offended by the Orchestra’s choice to play “I am woman” when Kathryn Bigelow exited the stage for Best Director.  I mean, it is definitely a “You go, girl!” moment, but “I am woman”?!?  Really???

However, watching the reaction shot of Jim Cameron after losing both Best Director and Best Picture to his ex-wife is priceless. Heehee…

Final note:

Dear Sam Worthington,

You know I love you. I’m absolutely, hopelessly charmed by your toothy smile which you seem to have forgotten to do when a non-movie camera is pointed at you.  You know I adore your accent and your gentle eyes.  Did I mention your pretty, pretty mouth…yeah…

However, sweetie, you were up in the stage presenting the Academy Awards chewing gum.

First you stop smiling.  And now you can’t stop chewing gum.

My fantasy life with you crumbles to the floor under the weight of reality.  What a shame.

Love.

- OakMonster

*

2009 Awards

Drinking Buddy of the Year: Brandon, actually. Surprise!  The mister doesn’t usually party down, but he has taken up a beer here and there this past year, a stressful one for his work.  So we had gone out for a beer together more than the year before.  Cheers to you, honey bunny!

Bar of the Year: Hennessey’s Tavern and Beachwood BBQ in Seal Beach. These two places never fail to deliver cold pints and some great eats.  They’re our go-to places when we want to run away from the daily life for a little while.

Sorry to disappoint y’all with the lack of Downtown LA’s bar feature this time around.  I haven’t partied in town much at all.  Climate change around the office will affect your happy hour weather, I tell ya.

Newcomer Award: Twitter Gang. I have grown to love folks I met at Tweet Ups especially @dananner, @anaperiodista, @fstop23, @davidmoyle, @sendchocolate, @joncruz, @vbesack, and the disappearing @phraktyl.  We went shooting pictures.  We played Rock Band.  We got drunk.  We had overall great times on and off line.  Great year to make new friends!

High Point of the Year: Watch Thrill the World Los Angeles became the awesome success. From mere 100 last year grown into the thousands. It still blows my mind.

Low Point of the Year: The Christmas Flu and USC Football Rebuilding Year. Yep. Suckage.

Best Holiday: Halloween…again. I mean, prancing through Pine Street as Zombie Princess Leia, rocked that stage with my awesome crew of zombies?  Best. Halloween. EVER!

Song of 2009: Glee soundtracks. I mean, I can barely pin it down to just ONE song!  Almost everything from Glee I totally dig.  I’m especially partial to Somebody to Love, Don’t Rain on My Parade, Defying Gravity (the duet), No Air, Sweet Caroline (Can I get a hell-yeah from Team Puck?), and this one I can’t stop singing.  Lea Michele.  What a revelation!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu7grQH0LbE

Movie of 2009: Avatar. I’m sorry, Star Trek and District 9!  You came sooo close!

Surprise Movie of 2009: Bangkok Traffic (Love) Story – Rod Faifa Ma Ha Na Tuh – รถไฟฟ้า..มาหานะเธอ.  I’m soooo in love.

Restaurant of the Year: Bottega Louie. Great food and ambiance.  Totally a favorite place to run away from work to for a long lunch.  Okay it’s a little loud, but what an awesome place to be!  Affordable awesomeness.

Book of the Year: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Seriously. Go read that.

TV Show of the Year: Glee. Duh.

*

2009 Goals Tally:  6 out of 10…kind of.

1. FAIL – Explore Kung-fu.  HAH!  I did not.

2. FAIL – Drink more water.  Did okay for a couple of months before waking up to pee in the middle of the night got old.

3. FAIL -More guitar/piano/singing – at least twice a week.  I did try for once a month, but that didn’t happen since my office got so messy I can’t even get to the piano.

4. PARTIAL SUCCESS -Read more books – One book a month at least.  Actually did 10 out of 12.  Not too bad!

• Water for Elephants, Sarah Gruen – Love it.
• Eats, Shoots, and Leaves, Lynne Truss – Learned all sorts of new things.
• Watchmen, Alan Moore – The movie ending makes a hell of a lot more sense than the book I tell ya.
• Turn Coat: The Dresden Files Book 11, Jim Butcher – Always love Jim.  This is no exception.
• Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert – Definitely love the Eat/Pray part. I could do without the Bali experience.
• Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith – Best. Book. EVER!
• Bad Things, Michael Marshall – I’m still scratching my head at that one. Whuh…?
• The Foodie Handbook, Pim Techamuanvivit – Totally enjoyable and awesome.  She takes gorgeous pictures.
• Heat Wave, “Richard Castle” – Totally a fun read for us Castle fans.

5. FAIL – Add yoga to the routine – at least once a week.  Not so much.  However, I ended up losing 6 lbs. from September through November with the Thriller work out and stress diet.  Haven’t gotten any of it back…yet.

6. SUCCESS – Take a language class.  Buongiorno! 

7. PARTIAL SUCCESS – Cook one new recipe a month.  I went with a few new ones in a month and then go without cooking for weeks.  But we did try new recipes.

8. SUCCESS – Fix them teeth.  5 more months!!!

9. SUCCESS – Fix them eyes. Well, I *did* decide on not getting LASIK done after extensive reserach and serious discussion with my optometrist.  There’s a 50/50 chance I would come out normal or my dry eyes are going to get more severe to a level that’ll become problematic.  I’ll stick with the glasses with that kind of odds, thanks.

10. SUCCESS – Keep up with whatever is working well.  Still a latte a week here.

Dances with Wolves in space, James Cameron even admitted that in his interviews.  And Avatar was exactly that.

And I love every moment of it.

Sure. The story is predictable.  And a little sappy.  And had been told many times before.

But it was told with a completely different visual representation.  A seamless integration of digital animation and live action.  For the first time, the CG characters don’t look like they were fresh out of a botox clinic.  Their big yellow eyes say something.  Their blue faces had nuances that the entire train full of Polar Express or (from what I saw in the trailer) A Christmas Carol didn’t have.

I mean, I *love* Sam Worthington going in.  But who knew I would also fall for his big blue avatar too!  I mean, the Na’Vi were ALIVE.  It’s so totally awesome!

Some critics have issues with the movie’s mix of live action and computer animation.  They said it felt like they were watching someone else playing video game for 2 hours.

Maybe because I am also used to the game graphics, and many of us are, we didn’t have the problem with the blending of digital and live action.

Also, surely, those critics do not play video games.  I mean, seriously, gamers (and game spectators like myself) wish our video games look as good the as Avatar all the way through,  not only just during the cut scenes.

Can you imagine how great Mass Effect, Halo, or even Final Fantasy would have been with Avatar level of facial movements and overall animation?  But I digress.

Most importantly, Avatar is one of the movies in a very long time that I got lost in. I was willing to overlook all sorts of discrepancies and cheesiness so I can stay on that planet with them.  Get lost in the adventure.  Fall in love along side Jake and Neytiri.  And root for the home team.

Okay, fine.  I did crack up when Neytiri told Jake that “You have a strong heart”.  But I guess nobody else got the Terminator accidental reference.

But the rest was pure escape. I would see this over and over again, the way I do with Dances with Wolves.

For almost 3 hours, I was running around Pandora.  And I don’t care about anything else.

I did get my $10 worth.  That is a LOT to say about movies these days.

Is it Oscar Best Picture worthy?  Nah, I don’t think so. But did it steal my heart?  Yes, it did.

Will Avatar make a pop culture impact like Titanic or Star Wars?  I don’t know.  The “I see you” thing is going to make it, I’m sure of that.  But the rest, I don’t know.  Will people take up learning Na’Vi (which, by the way, according to Professor Paul Frommer, a USC professor (Go! Trojans!) is being developed further)?  I definitely see blue, scantily clad bodies showing up at Comic Con though.

Finally, don’t get me started on a waste of Leona Lewis’ voice on that theme song.  My heart cannot go on with that gimmick.  Sorry.

Oh, and final note here for Sam Worthington.

Dear Sam,

Please show some teeth when you smile at movie premieres.  You smile a plenty in the movie and light up the screen with your cute dimples and lovely teeth.

But all the pictures I managed to find from your premieres, you only grinned…and smirked.  I don’t know if you were going for the Russell Crowe tough guy look, or you were trying to keep that piece of gum you were chewing in check.  But I must say that just doesn’t work for you quite as well.  Trust me, we are not going to complain if you break our hearts a little more by flashing us your full smile.  We’d actually enjoy that.  Very much.

Yes. YES. YES!!!

No. Not so much.

Please don’t pull a Posh.  Your mouth is too pretty not smile.

Hope to see you soon on my DreamBoat(tm).

Love,

Oakley

P.S. I watched the LA Times interview of you with gum in your mouth. Sweetie, lose the gum too while you’re at it. Okay?

I was actually cheering for the Chef.  Good for you for leaving that manipulative, selfish, whiny bitch!

(Well, this is not the finale. Although to me, it’s a perfect ending right there!  Karma is a bitch, bitch!  But this is Thailand, expect a few more episodes of  the scheming to get him back.)

It then dawns on me, oh my god. There is NO MAN on the planet like that guy!  I mean, he actually tells this bitch he thinks she’s perfect to him despite all of her flaws?  He actually LOVES this narcissistic, kniving crybaby?!?!  Seriously!?!?

I love the lovey-dovey thing he’s been doing since he realizes he had fallen for her while she floats around completely oblivious to his suddenly undivided attention.  I hate the fact that we are now fed the image of a perfect man…who doesn’t exist at all.

Hi. I’m Oakley. I am a romantic comedy addict. AND a romantic comedy hater. All at the same time.

I love a good romantic comedy once in a while.  Some of them I can watch over and over again. Even Brandon starts to recognize them because I would stop and watch whenever they are on TV.

Part of me still wants a tall sexy French man to tell me I don’t have to fly anywhere and take me back to the stone cottage on a vineyard.

To go to a pub after a break up and get pissed on Grolsch and meet a funny bloke who quotes Monty Python…then chop off my hair and start my own company, all the while getting over the break up and learning to enjoy life and love again with said funny bloke.

To follow all the signs that lead to that one true love I met randomly a long time ago on one spectacular evening in New York City.

To be loved by a boy for who I truly am despite the fact that I’m a major movie star.

To have a hunky roommate who actually has been trying to show me what the world is really like while I hide behind a theory of why some men are jerks, but yet he is there to catch me when I come to my senses.

To have someone who manages to fall in love with me just by talking to me on the phone and still love me despite the fact that I am not the gorgeous tall blond he thought I was but a nerdy short brunette.

To meet some guy by random chance who adores me even though I seem to be making all the mistakes like breaking his Rayban and his camera, AND still has feelings for me after 2 years of being abroad.

And to realize that what I want for Christmas is, well, you.

[ Oh yeah, name those movies, get some kudos. Leave your answers in the comments.  (Hint: One of these you may find some clues in recent posts.) ]

In other word, deep down inside I still want to dream that big crazy romantic dream of getting swept off my feet and living happily ever after.

But then again, reality is different than fiction.

I guess–no, I know–I am bitter that romantic comedy doesn’t work in real life.  And then I hate romantic comedy for putting a veil over the eyes of young girls everywhere about what love should be like, setting all of us up for disappointment later on.

Hey, I was once the citizen of Planet RomCom too.  It took many years, several heart breaks, and lord knows how many gallons of tears to realize that life and relationship is NOTHING like the movies.

I know a few people who still wait for Mr. Darcy (both Jane Austen’s and Bridget Jones’) and keep throwing away opportunies or perfectly good relationships because it didn’t fit what they have in mind.  You know, how it should be on Planet RomCom.  They’re miserable for that.

It’s back to that Team Jacob v.s. Team Edward conversation we had recently.  Do you want something real or do you want something to swoon to?  I chose the practical love I can rely on with not a lot of swoon factor.  Hence, the stack of romantic comedy I have around the house.

I guess swooning is like a drug.  Once in a while you need a fix. And since we can’t be 16 again to get the full effect of raging love hormones, we go to our “dealer” and get a romantic comedy.

So, scoot on over, darling.  Tonight, I need me a little “Pretty in Pink”.

And I’m hooked on the one, super hot Ken, Theeradej Wongpuapan.

This is Ken. He's yummy.

I only went home to Thailand for one week and I came back completely obsessed with a Thai TV novella, just like the rest of the female population in the country, Sood Sanaeha, directly translated to “Recipe for Love”.

It’s all about the leading man, Ken, who plays a chef.  He was tasked to teach a superstar to cook because she wants to win the heart of a tycoon, also played by one of my favorite Thai idol, Willy McIntosh.  Of course, the superstar and the Chef fought it out (foreplay!) at the beginning as they slowly fall in love.  Aww….

Anyway.  This obsession all started for me when my friend Pitch took me to see Rod Faifa Ma Ha Na Tuh, BTS: Bangkok Traffic (Love) Story, a blockbuster Thai romantic comedy of the summer.

Look at this trailer. The story itself is relatable and ADORABLE.  I mean, yeah, kind of predictable, but cuuuute!  I’m sitting here smiling watching the trailer.  The theme song is catchy as hell, even to non Thai speakers.  The leading lady, Cris Horwang is so frickin’ cute.  And of course, Ken is just…delicious.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW7MxACDjHI

Anyways. At first, I wasn’t going to get in on the soap action.  But everyone insisted that if I have the hots for Ken, I should watch the soap.  So I did the one night I was able to while in Bangkok.  And that was that.  No use getting all tied up in it.

But then a week later, Tong, my BFF, posted a long scream for “Kru Kook”, Teacher Cook, aka Mr. Chef, on Facebook.  I was sorely disappointed that I missed out on the fun.

Until I copied the word Sood Sanaeha in Thai into YouTube.

Now I’m a mere one day behind everyone on the scream fest over Ken…and enjoying the ability to forward past the traditional Thai drama, slow pans, long reaction shots, etc.

And obviously, pause for some close ups.