The Order of the Phoenix

I can't bring myself to speak ill of the movie, no matter how many cuts, changes, ommissions, additions and modifications they put in to make the whole thing understandabable to non-readers or for the whole production (870 pages worth) to fit into a two hour movie.

To me, Order of the Phoenix is a lot more fulfilling if you've read the book. The most common rant I hear about it is "nothing much happened", people seemed to expect so much more from this movie...but for those who know the book, we know that nothing much did happen...and since it was constrained to fit into a two-hour or so movie, the things that did happen (or of a particular significance) had to be rewritten or not shown altogether (Quidditch, Kreacher, Sirius' mum, Snape vs. Sirius, Occlumency (in detail), Draco and the Inquisitorial squad, the mirror, Rita Skeeter, Percy Weasley etc. etc.)

I do have some complaints... Occlumency for one, should have been given more emphasis. Draco and Snape's characters could have been more developed, as they do play bigger parts in Half Blood Prince. Lupin could have shown up more, and I think they should have explained the prophecy and the Order of the Phoenix more.



But the fight at the Ministry of Magic was just...magic. :)

I loved the way the Death Eaters and the members of the Order were shown as swirling masses of black and white, occassionally transforming into themselves, waving their wands and casting spells and jinxes at each other.

And the duel between Dumbledore and Voldemort? Awesome.


All in all, anything that brings Harry Potter to life is an achievement in its own right. David Yates did a pretty good job bringing to the big screen Harry's fifth year in Hogwarts. I wish they would hurry up with the 6th and 7th movies though... as the gang is really getting older... (and hotter) over the years *grin*.


Six days to go before Book 7. And then it will all be over... :( I can't help but feel sad about the whole thing, but I can't wait to find out what happens next. I just hope that Snape (my favorite character) redeems himself in the end...although that would almost certainly bring about his death. Is he 1 of the deaths JKR was talking about? I hope not... but I just don't know how else he could be redeemed for what he did in Half Blood Prince if not to die in the act of saving Harry (provided that he is in fact good, which we don't know yet). I really wish JKR would do him, and everyone else, justice in the final book.

Lakbayan

I saw this link on both the blogs of Louie and Jong, thought I'd also check my Lakbayan grade :) Hopefully by next year, I can add Palawan to the map.

My Lakbayan grade is C!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!

Created by Eugene Villar.

...the rebellion begins...

I can't concentrate...

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is showing in theaters starting today, and my tickets aren't for until Sunday!

The past two days I've been pretty idle at work, so I re-read Book 5 of the HP series just to have something to do. And now, I'm fidgeting about because all I can think of is Dumbledore's army and how I have to wait for 4 more days before I can see them.

Problem is, now I have something to do...

*Sigh*

This is going to be a short post...

Transformers, one word, WOW!. :)

What I don't have...

I don't own a digital camera. And for someone whose gadget lust is as developed as mine, it's hard to imagine, since nowadays, everyone I know seems to have a digital camera.

But I think holding out on buying a digital camera has been one of my wisest gadget-related decisions to date (maybe even ever). You know why? Because just a couple of months ago, a 7 megapixel digital camera was revolutionary, now, it's practically a standard! With cellphone manufacturers coming out with 5-megapixel cameraphones (SE K850i), there's no telling how technologically advanced digital cameras will be when I finally get around to buying one.

When talking about digital cameras, it used to be all about megapixels. The higher the better, now there's so much more to consider in a typical point and shoot digicam. Price, LCD screen size, optical zoom capability, bundled accessories, memory card format, built in applications that allow you to edit the images right on the camera, connectivity options like bluetooth and wifi, form factor, durability, water-resistance, image stabilization, face recognition, anti-blur technologies, scene selections, ISO, shooting modes...and that's just the list of factors I'm concerned about! I'm pretty sure other more knowledgeable photographers consider a lot more technical features that I probably did not consider since I have no idea what it's for. (Note, I am not a professional photographer, nor do I have any intention of being one anytime soon.)

Anyway, the point is, with so much to choose from and so many things to consider, how can I buy a digital camera without experiencing buyers' remorse later on? With new cameras sprouting up practically every month, it's only a matter of time before this months extraordinary features become standard, and I would then again want the newer, better, more fully-featured camera.

If I keep thinking this way, I may never buy a digital camera. *sigh*

I guess my 2.0 megapixel SE Z610i will have to do for now. =D

Blogthings...

Not much to do again... :)

You Are the Ego

You take a balanced approach to your life. You definitely aren't afraid to act out on your desires - even crazy ones. But you usually think first. Morals drive you as much as hedonism does. You've been able to live a life of pleasure... without living a life of excess.

Are You Id, Ego, or Superego?

Your Intrapersonal Intelligence Score: 74%

Your Intrapersonal Intelligence is High You have a great understanding of who you are, and your place in the world. You know what path you're on. And you are excited about your future. You're always deepening your inner knowledge and introspection. And enjoying it every step of the way.

How Does Your Intrapersonal Intelligence Rate?

Your Interpersonal Intelligence Score: 75%

Your Interpersonal Intelligence is High You are definitely a "people person." You enjoy spending time with others. You instinctively understand people, and you are both a good counsellor and mediator. However, there are definitely times when you've had enough. And that's when you cherish being alone.

How Does Your Interpersonal Intelligence Rate?

VILLMA...a history.

Yes, I'm still on full reminiscing mood. :) I think I'll be a lot busier at work next week, so I'm taking advantage of my free time now by updating my blog. Anyway, I wrote this entry because I had lunch with Apple, Leslie and Louie yesterday. It was our first get-together in over a month, so I couldn't help but feel sentimental.

VILLMA is a mnemonic for six gorgeous, driven and talented females whose paths crossed in Sun Life Financial. It started with just Van, Les and Mich, who all worked in Sun Life as programmers in 2004. They were known as the Scrabbled Eggs back then, because of a team name used in a scrabble match. Or sometimes, as Charlie's Angels. Even then, they were inseparable. And even though they were assigned to different teams, the three proved their worth by all being promoted a year and 3 months into their employment. This incident only brought them closer.

Apple, was added to the mix when she joined the GL team and Van became her "Sun Life buddy". Incidentally, her first impression of Van was that she was "plastik" for being too cheerful... Tama ba naman yun? Anyway, Apple's quirky ways, entertaining stories, and borderline green comedy quickly endeared her to the trio.

Mich, Apple, Leslie and Van at SLF Funtasy Xmas Party 2005

Louie first came into the picture when she and Van became teammates in a badminton tourney. The Orange team finished second and the two got to know each other through the team's constant practices. Louie, as a Regional Accounting (RAC) manager was also an end user for the GL group, so Apple and Van got to know her more because of production support. But they were merely friends at this point and will only truly bond later in this story. :)

Irene was the last to arrive, joining the GL team in late 2005. Her strong spirit and independent demeanor earned it's place in the group. They really bonded during their lunch breaks and especially during the CMG Scheme Transfer project for reasons I can't put into this blog. Irene also took over the "ate" role of the group, which Apple was not fit to provide, in spite of her "age advantage" over the others. :)

Van, Leslie, Irene, Mich and Apple at SLF Funtasy Xmas Party 2005

In the meantime, discontent, pressure and god-knows-what-else, drove Apple to apply for an opening at RAC. She was accepted and she left Central Systems, going back to her Accounting roots. This became the catalyst for Louie's crossover from friend to really close friend.

But if there's something that all of us had in common (aside from our key traits mentioned above), it was the genuine care we had for each other and the trustworthiness of each one to keep personal things private. You see, what really bonded us was our chikahan moments, either during lunch, during CR breaks, at Starbucks, at DQ, in Red Box, at our favorite lunch spots, Teriyaki Boy and Pancake House and even at the spa. We talked about everything under the sun, and provided each either support, advise, encouragement or even reprimands when it was called for. This type of friendship/candidness doesn't come by every day, and I was just fortunate enough to be part of this group.

Sadly, as the song goes, all good things come to an end. Leslie was the first to leave, she joined Navitaire late 2006. Irene soon followed and was the first to leave the Philippines, having been accepted for a job in the US. Two weeks later, Mich left for Malaysia. And a month later, I left Sun Life.

And unfortunately, VILLMA only came about when Irene filed her resignation to go to the US, because it was the only time that we realized that we were really going to be apart from each other. That's the reason why we never got a picture with all 6 of us in it at the same time. Since Leslie was already working somewhere else and couldn't join us for lunch often.

Irene, Mich, Apple, Louie and Van at Red Box - March, 2007

Although it's not really the end, as we still keep in touch thru e-mail/YM. It just can't replace the face-to-face contact we usually shared every day. But we all know that VILLMA will always be there for each other, and that sooner or later our paths will cross again. :)