oh! there is one more movie you should see.

it's "kinky boots":
http://www.movies.co.jp/kinkyboots/

kinky means "変態", & boots mean ,yes, "ブーツ". the story is about a grad queen helps a traditional but almost dead shoe factory in Northampton, UK. & surprisingly, it's based on a true story :O

what i like is ,i think, it's not just about gay / drag queen / transvestite things, it's about how people live, & how people survive or succeed their business, as professionals.

anyway, the movie gives me guts to fight :D

two year-end movies you should see

(you may know what happens in the ends of the movies.)
somehow, this december brought me crazy busy days.

i should wrap up my tasks for the year end, i had job interviews every week twice, i got a cold, i had a couple of year-end parties, etc... that was why i couldn't attend even one single boxing class.

however, somehow i saw a could of movies. yes, that's what a movie fan does :D

***
one was "reign over me" (japanese working title is "再会の街で")staring Adam Sandler & Don Cheadle:
http://www.sonypictures.jp/movies/reignoverme/

i'm totally not a big fan of Sandler. i've only seen: "50 First Dates", "Anger Management" & "Punch-Drunk Love", but in those movies he played a guy who was unusual or was in unusual situations. anyway, i've got very strange feelings (in a good way) from his movies.

in this movie, Sandler played a guy who lost his family (wife & three daughters) by 911, Charlie. it was totally non-fuction, but it might be there is someone like him in U.S.

Charlie was regretting last phone conversations with his family (before their plane was crushed into WTC), & the consequence made the guy difficult to communicate people around him. however, his college roommate (Cheadle as Alan) tried to help him.

japanese catch copy says, "there is a pain can be healed by talking with someone", something like that. that's very true, talking with someone can help people more than talking.

i like to see the movie again.

***
the other one was "my date with drew". in this case, drew was Drew Barrymor, & it was the funniest DOCUMENTARY i've ever seen!!

http://www.mydatewithdrew.com/index.html
(see the trailer, & see how the trailer was made in this documentary.)

it's basically a documentary, but what was doing is to meet Drew Barrymor within 30 days by only 1100 dollers!!

i can't explain more about the documentary, but the documentary tell us that whatever a dream is, the dream will come true if we don't give it up.

that's so true, again.

spaghetti all'arrabbiata christmas version

arrabbiata doesn't mean "arabian", it means "getting angry" in italian, i think, = spicy or hot :)

***
now, i'm having spaghetti all'arrabbiata christmas version, as my today's lunch.

why christmas version is is today i get leeks (green) & parmesan cheese (white). & originally, red chillies are in there, so the dish has three christmas colours: red, green & white.

it's quite spicy today, but spicy foods are good for winter, too :D &merry christmas!!

***
the photo isn't mine, unfortunately...

mini: my mom said, "japan should have a president!"

that was what my mom said to a TV (& me?).

***
last night, i visited my mom's place. i had supper & watched some TV programs, then suddenly my mom said,

"japan should have a president. don't you think so?"

the TV program was, i believe, 『世界ふしぎ発見！』, about Abraham Lincoln. lol. i was so impressed that i have a very political concerned mother!

actually she got a point. she explained a reason why she thought. that was... in the current japanese system, we can't choose the prime minister by ourselves, then even he (or she) is not doing well, we can't say anything for that.

also, the position of the prime minister could be resigned and be assumed someone else very very quickly. we have no idea how long he operates the government. she said that was why japan doesn't have a stable political situation...

muu, it's very true, & hope Mr. Fukuda won't be long in there.

***
anyway, have a merry christmas :) a little bit earlier though...

moo with me!

last night, i saw the musical "rent", live, with my co-worker aquiko-san, & i love that show. yes, it's musical, but show, live, whatever we call. it was so cool.

the musical is originally a play (i mean musical), then turned to the movie (i believe with original casts in ny), then came to japan for only 5 days or something, then it was great.

i tried to watch the movie on dvd, but at that time, i didn't recognized the movie, or i can sat the story of "rent", would be interesting for me. but now i know why; because the two main characters, roger & mark, were not my types, not at all. lol!

but, but the last "rent", both of them were pretty good; i mean "pretty good", especially mark to me. actually, our sheets were in the 3rd floor, means 6th floor of the building. so they were not seen very closely (of course!), buta i knew the guys were looking good, again especially mark. you know, he was waring classes with dark hair, something that kinds of guy.

anyway, live music is great, right? & if the singers can do well performance, or are very talented, the show would be more than great. last night was like that.

***
by the way, today's title is from one scene of the musical. one of main characters maureen is a performance artist. i'm not 100& sure that her performance is good if it's real, but her performance on the musical was something about productivities? nayway, let's check it out.

Over The Moon:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML99I1c-iwA&feature=related

***
they are other songs i like, from the movie. i should try to see the movie, again :D

The Tango Maureen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LcGnP3HY_A&feature=related

La Vie Boheme:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SPxtv3KW9A&feature=related

Seasons of Love:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hj7LRuusFqo

that was challenging

sometime, people can do whatever we want, even if we have difficulties or challenging. today, i realized that.

this evening, i went to my mother's place, & had supper. i was watching NHK TV news, then i was just surprised one of stories.

***
it was about "International Day of Disabled Persons 2007". December 3rd was the International Day of Disabled Persons. in NY, some of people with difficulties from the world played the piano in front of audience.

it was just amazing for me. they were really playing the piano beautifully even they have, like only one left hand or blind. it was just they are who they are.

i got impression that maybe they can have feeling that others don't or never feel. that's why they could play so beautifully. something like this.

my mom watched the news with me. then my mom said to me, like "Look! we should appreciate our health. we should do our bests & work more hard!! "

YES, i agree with my mom. we should.

***
by the way, one of my korean friends said before. she liked to call those disabled people "people with challenging." she explained to me that they were not "disabled" because they could do if they would want to do.

YES, i agree with her. they can.

***
to learn more:
http://www.un.org/disabilities/index.asp

new agenda; new me

since i have some schedules in the beginning of next year, i was looking for a agenda/schedule note.

for a good agenda for me, i have some points to want to have; such as:
- the size should be A5 (or B6?)
- should have two parts: monthly & weekly calendars
- monthly calendar should be "sunday - saturday" vs. "the 1st - 4th week" type, with memo space
- weekly parts should be one page one week, & each day has same space (some of schedules have small spaces for sat & sun. that's so sad!)
- weekly parts can be either vertical or horizontal
- days start from Nov or Dec/2007
- extra information could be very bonus

then, today i found one for next year (from today)

what i like about the agenda i found today is:
- basically, it has all of above points
- extra info includes mini-mini dictionary in 5 languages
- also, it has subway maps in major cities, like NY, Paris, etc.

and the most interesting point is actually what i need to know somehow @work, which is:
- there are the "day" for each day

... it's kind of hard to explain, but @work sometimes i need to know "the serial number of a day from January 1st". for example, December 2nd (today) is the 336th day. then the agenda has that numbers!!

anyway, my 2008 has started from today with the agenda :)

a scarecrow who doesn't have a brain

i went to the musical "WICKED - the untold story of the witches of OZ", with my friend Y-san, & i liked the musical.

***
the story is, as the subtitle says, a behind story of "the wonderful wizard of OZ": how a girl in green became to the Wicked Witch of the West, & a girl in blond became to the Good Witch of the North.

also, there are small hits what we don' t know "OZ". my favorite is how a guy became the scarecrow who doesn't have a brain.

according to a program & wiki, entire OZ stories referred to situations in the states, like early 1900's WEST farmers faces to brow money from EAST banks. then those banks just got gains without doing nothing.

also, Kansas city is located literally in the center of the united states, so girl Dorothy from there to find her own way to happiness, something like that.

***
from youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0m6sclZkH0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWhLLiwTnpg
& "for good":
http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=IwpKB-sj7GI


also, a review of "Wicked" here:
http://www.broadway.com/gen/Show.aspx?si=30434

i'm so getting to go to the musical in NY!! (not sure to be able to see it, though...)

(to be continue to update?)