When direcow got 82%, I felt worried for myself. Thank goodness I managed to do better. Who says Catholics don’t know their Bible? Heh.

… where no MAN has gone before.

I’ve been watching the first season of Star Trek (the 60’s series) in my free time at the NTU Media Resource Library. Last year, what I did was to request one episode at a time. I don’t know why it never occurred to me earlier to just borrow the whole DVD set, which I did this time around. Thanks to this brainwave, I’ve managed to watch several classic episodes that have impressed, inspired and illuminated science-fiction fans for the past four decades.

For example, “Charlie X” talks about the identity crisis and romantic crushes of male adolescents that are perennial and timeless. “The Enemy Within” talks about balancing compassion and courage within oneself. “Balance of Terror” is simply an example of great storytelling – a World War II story about a US destroyer and a German U-Boat updated for the 23rd century.

I may have adopted The Next Generation as the Star Trek of my youth, but it was Kirk, Spock and McCoy who were my first Star Trek heroes in my childhood days, and it’s like a homecoming to be able to watch these episodes for the first time.

… and in many ways, it feels like nothing much has changed.

I’ve stopped working at the law firm for various reasons, and I don’t see myself going back to it for some time. The feeling is strange, especially since I spent the better half of 2006 there, and I’ve become very attached to it, yet it was so easy to leave so I’m not exactly sure what my reaction ought to be.

So in a way, it feels like I’ve simply lost 6 months of my life, and am only now returning to life after stepping down from my position as President of CSA. Not that I’m complaining… this new lease on life is a welcome respite from all the pressures and expectations I previously experienced. Yet, because of the lack of responsibility, I’ve since taken up more in the parish… setting myself up for lots of challenges that I only hope I can live up to.

It’s all too easy to allow myself to make the same mistakes, talk the talk but not walk the walk. In many ways I need a true prayer community that can hold me accountable and keep me in the straight and narrow path. Too often, though, it’s these same prayer communities that I avoid, or that I’m called to support, rather than find support.

My resolution this year is to trust. I fear I’m not trustworthy enough to be able to trust others.

… rocks because of Erika Toda.

This 19 year old actress is undoubtedly the key reason why Death Note 2 is even worth the $7.50 I paid for the ticket.

As Misa Amane, the goth lolita popstar who discovers the second Death Note, Toda is forced to portray a gamut of emotions: angst at her family’s brutal killing, devotion to main character Light Yagami, cold-hearted brutality while acting as the second Kira and charming innocence in the presence of her fans. These she does with such panache that it almost becomes dificult to believe that it is the same character throughout the movie. Without a doubt, though, Death Note 2 is truly about the fanservice, as both Erika Toda and singer/actress Nana Katase provide more eye candy and tease the audience more than any film ought to.

Then again, I’m the one who liked Katie Leung as Cho Chang. Haha.