So I was listening to this internet jazz radio station a while ago.  Then a commercial was played...

A lady was speaking:  "What is HSDD?.... HSDD is blah-blah-blah-blah "  And she goes on for a few seconds.  Then she continues... "Do you have the same symptoms?  If you think you have HSDD, then call us at 1-800-xxxx"...

Man, for me that was a scandalous commercial.  Well, you can hear that only in America.

So next time, instead of a headache, you can now say, "Oh no, I can't, I think I have HSDD."

A very funny and cute video. 
***

Happy Chinese Lunar New Year!!!
The Dragon Dance in the malls.  Ang-pao.  Eng Bee Tin Hopia.  Tikoy.  The fireworks.  It's that season again.  And what would Chinese New Year be without the horoscope forecasts.  So here they are, beginning with my year of course.  Oh, but before that, the year overview first:

YEAR OVERVIEW  

The year of the Metal Tiger brings the energy to begin activity and the determination to follow projects through to the end. Business ventures and endeavors that have started slow, especially those started last year, may pick up speed this year. There may be a lot of opposition and negative vibes from rivals, however. This year will be filled with confrontations, adventure, and many wild parties, with frequent positive and negative highs and lows. It’s definitely not going to be a peaceful year. Your best bet is to always have faith and believe in miracles, as making the impossible possible can happen.

HORSE  

An extremely cheerful and optimistic creature, Horse can be a refreshing breeze in times of trouble. She’s rather slapdash and happy-go-lucky, however, so don’t expect her to stick around for long periods. She seeks adventure, the thrill of the journey, the breathtaking spotlight, the sound of laughter at wild parties. To tie her down could make her very sad. Love to her is a gamble, with many moods, many changes and a lot of fiery passion.

What’s in store for you in 2010

Overall Luck
Aside from Dog, you may have more luck this year than the other zodiac animals. There may be many positive opportunities in store this year, and to add to all the goodness, you’ll enjoy your endeavors. You’ll have a wonderful year with practically no unfavorable months. Go ahead and pursue your dreams, your goals, your ambitions! It’s the perfect time to get off the side bench, warm up and get on centerfield. Adventure will call every so often, so always take caution with you, as you tend to get that reckless streak in all the excitement.

Love Luck
This is a lucky year for you in all of life’s aspects, including love! You are a cheerful and optimistic creature, and that’s a great attitude to have, especially if love was unkind to you last year. The good thing about you is you don’t lose hope so easily. This year promises many social events and adventurous escapades, which are perfect for meeting other bachelors or bachelorettes. On the outside, you’re brimming with exuberance, which could also be a façade for a few insecurities. Don’t be afraid to show a lover your vulnerable side. Single Horses may have more luck this year than married ones, as singles have more freedom to roam and play. Still, married Horses may have their share of luck, but their popularity may leave little time for private life, which may be the number one cause for conflict in their married life.

Foodie - noun.  an informal term for a particular class of aficionado of food and drink. The word was coined in 1981 by Paul Levy and Ann Barr, who used it in the title of their 1984 book The Official Foodie Handbook.  (taken from Wikipedia)

So I have this long weekends happening every week.  From Friday to Sunday, I get to be at home except when I go shopping, do the groceries or buy DVDs.  Since I'm starting to get bored by these long weekends, I set my mind to do little experiments that involve the kitchen.

This is half of the salmon fillets I bought last week from the wet market.  At first I was hesitant to buy it because I was afraid that the fish is not fresh.. or clean.  But I saw several customers buying so I went ahead.  The owners of this fish stall is a Japanese and his Filipina wife.  The jap hubby is the one personally taking care of preparing the salmon sashimi and he even gave me free wasabi. 

Verdict?  Salmon was fresh and delicious!  Even tastier than those from the restaurants!  And no bum stomach after.

I was so clueless as to what's in my kitchen, that I discovered only recently that I have a blender.  I immediately thought of making pesto because I really love pesto in my pasta.  Forgot to take a picture of the spaghetti I prepared last week, but I'm planning to cook again this weekend.  Good thing I still have leftover pesto.  Yummy!

This is the papaya salad I made just a while ago.  I haven't eaten my lunch yet and since I am in the mood to write this post, I'm already having the salad while typing away.  I had the complete ingredients - papaya (of course), lemon, fish sauce, nuts, brown sugar and coriander (wansuy).  It tastes just how I remembered during my Thailand days!  Well, except it's kinda on the sweet side because the papaya is almost ripe.  And there's no chilis.

The power forehand.  The topspin backhand.  The high I get when we make a point.  The rally.  The hit.  The miss.  And the awful serve.  Gaad, I miss tennis.

How I wish I can watch the Fed in action...especially when he hits this kind of shot.  Yeah, that's the only wish I can go for.  I know it's impossible to wish to play like him.  Coz I don't think this great tennis player is human. 

A one-hour video I can refer to should I go back to playing tennis again.
Fun, fun, fun!!!
***

*
*
The above video takes a long while to load... but I'm really interested foremost in the serving .  Pronation?  This is the word I just learned now, and apparently, it is very important in tennis serves.  Watch below.

***
More videos after the break...

The Hurt Locker is one of the contenders for Oscar's Best Picture category.  I haven't seen it yet, but just this morning I was able to find the movie online.  I'll show the trailer first, as a teaser, then click on "Read More" below to watch the entire movie.  I will watch it during lunch.  Or maybe, if I can't help it anymore, about an hour before lunch.

Click on "Read More" to watch the entire film.

Toyota is currently recalling some of their car models (not in the Philippines) due to problems in the gas pedal.  When I learned about this, I got a little worried because we own 2 Toyotas.  But we haven't encountered such problems with any of the pedals (and our newer Toyota is 3 years old) so I don't think we should worry.  On the other hand, I was just thinking, if they recall the cars, do they exchange it with a brand new one?  Ok, let me check again, there might be something wrong with my pedals.

So I bought these 6 DVDs from my ever trusted Sadikh.  I was able to watch only 5 though.  Tch..  I wasn't able to watch Julia and Julia because I didn't have time anymore since the 2 girls and I went shopping yesterday for Alexa's prom shoes and blings.  Besides, the kids enjoyed "The Blind Side" so much that they watched it 3 times!!!  Anyway, I will definitely watch Julia and Julia this week and I'll see if Meryl Streep is better than Sandra.

Of all the 5 DVDs I've seen, I like "The Blind Side" the most.  I'm such a sucker for feel good movies with less complications and this one really hits the mark.  

Invictus is a feel good movie as well, and like "The Blind Side" it's also based on a true story.  It deals with how Nelson Mandela united the South Africans and somewhat ended apartheid thru the game of rugby.  What I don't like in the movie is that I had a hard time understanding the dialogues because of their South African accent. 

Speaking of South Africa, the movie "District 9" is set in South Africa (hey, i've found connections in those 3 films!)  The movie has subtitles, even if they're speaking in english, and it's a good idea because it IS really difficult to understand them.  Funny thing, when the characters curse, they say "fook!" I tried to say it myself and I felt like not saying a bad word at all!  The movie has really gory scenes but it has a better plot than Avatar.  Oh, I compared it to Avatar because the movie theme is also about extra-terrestrials. 

Now for the movie "Up in the Air".  George Clooney is really a sweetheart.  His character's job here is to sack people in different companies all over the US so he's required to travel and be "up in the air" most of the time.  I don't like it much because it didn't end happily.  No, the plane didn't crash, don't worry.  Oops, sorry about the spoiler there. 

I bought the "It's Complicated" DVD even if it's not in the Oscar's List but because Meryl Streep is there, with Alec Baldwin... and it seemed like a funny movie.  Well, the movie has its funny moments, especially with Alec Baldwin in the scenes.  Steve Martin is not at his best here, probably because he didn't have his funny scenes which is what he's good at.  His character here is like a wimp, sorry.  So in short, I didn't enjoy this much.

By the way, I'm not watching "The Legion" anymore.  I heard it's really bad.

For trailers of  Invictus, District 9, Up in the Air and It's Complicated, click on "Read More".

Sexy star Ara Mina being interviewed by Mo Twister.  Ara will be running for Councilor in Quezon City in the coming 2010 elections.  This serves as a warning to all QC voters out there.

Note:  I got this video on YouTube (from AndiandJessica's videos).  I uploaded it to Vimeo coz unlike YouTube, Vimeo is not blocked in the office. Cheers! =)