*too sleepy to think of a title*

Brother and sister duo Dylan and Lauren

To call the past two weeks "harrowing" is an understatement.

Two big book events happened a couple of weeks ago, which resulted in me having to wake up at 6 in the morning all of last week. And if you know me, you know that those are UNGODLY hours. And I had to take cabs to the venues because I couldn't trust myself enough to stay awake on a jeepney.

I didn't mess up at the events -- I am nothing if not a trooper -- but it did wreak havoc on my sleep. And it bled into last week, where I would often find myself groggily looking at my laptop's monitor trying to will stories out of it. It wasn't until yesterday that I finally got a lengthy amount of rest.

I'm yawning even as type this out now. Used to be, I could pull all-nighters and still function perfectly the next day. Now I have to get my eight hours in. I hate being old.

On the bright side, my leave has been approved! I just need to get my funds and it's off to Singapore for me!

* * * * *
I haven't heard of Maureen Johnson or read any of her books, but I do like what she has to say in her blog post Sell the Girls.

And I have to thank her for providing the link to the interview that proves without a doubt that Nicholas Sparks is a grade A douchenozzle.

To quote:

"Sparks' favorite tale of youth? 'I think A Walk to Remember,' he says, citing his own novel. 'That's my version of a coming-of-age.'"

You should read the part where he compares his novels to Greek tragedies.

* * * * *
I used to be a wrestling fan in the faraway days of my youth. Maybe that's why this is intriguing to me.

A weekend of screaming, part 1

Not as prominently displayed at the concert as I hoped.

I went to the Rain concert yesterday night at the SM Mall of Asia, expecting more of the craziness I encountered when I went to the Super Junior concert at the Araneta Coliseum. And I guess I did get what I wished for.

Just as with the Super Junior concert, the lines were already long hours before the concert even began. But despite that, everyone was pretty well-behaved. When they started herding everyone into the venue, everyone was still on their best behavior. I thought that it would actually be a pretty sedate crowd compared to the Super Junior kids.

How wrong I was.

When I finally managed to get in, the people in the VIP area were already four rows deep, which I didn't mind at first because I'm not really a big K-Pop fan. However, as more and more people kept coming in, I became more and more concerned.

You see, most of the people I was sharing the VIP area with were either Koreans or teenage girls. I will most definitely sound racist and ageist after I type this down, but it has to be said -- these two groups can go really batshit crazy at events like these when push comes to shove. But I tried not to think about it, even if one the fans (a Korean teenager OMG) kept pressing her boobs against my back.

I got an inkling of trouble when Christian Bautista -- one of the two front acts -- took the stage. Because from behind me, I felt what could be best described as a Korean rush. You could feel them pushing forward en masse and if it were not for the other Filipinos I was with they would have broken through the ranks.

But that was just the first attempt. U-KISS was up next.

This is U-KISS.

Perhaps my countrymen were distracted by the Korean teenagers onstage -- one of the members of U-KISS is only 16-years-old -- because when the Koreans pushed again, the barricade gave way like a battalion of Orcs being trampled by the Rohirrim. Since I was the only one standing firm, I ended up being carried by the current all the way up to the second row.

While all of that was happening, the Korean girl behind me kept pressing her boobs against my back, distressing me enough to tweet this:

And yet, I still wasn't prepared for what happened when Rain finally came out. Because when he finally did, it was crazy.

I guess you can't blame them.

When Rain came out, the girl behind me practically heaved me and everyone else forward, and pretty soon I found myself against the railings. The Korean teenager was right behind another girl, and she had both her hands and a leg grabbing onto the railings for dear life. By this time the other concert goers were furious and were yelling at her to stop pushing. Korean girl replies in an indignant voice that she is not pushing, even as she looks the way she does.

All throughout Rain's performance, Korean teenager was screaming her head off. "Oppa! Oppa! Opppppaaaaaaa!!!!" followed by really heavy breathing. She may have been convulsing too but I didn't care to look. I was, however, curious as to what "Oppa" meant.

The craziest and most hilarious thing about the concert, though, was the fact that it ran so short. I barely had enough time to get my metaphorical panties in a bunch before Rain was bowing to the audience and departing the stage. I wasn't too bummed out, but the guys all around me had this shattered look in their eyes.

Afterwards, I went out with a bunch of friends to a karaoke place and screamed my lungs out, as I did precious little of it during the concert itself. A fun time was had by all, especially since one of us got hilariously drunk.

Epic self-love

The past week has been pretty hectic for me, what with interviews coming one after the other. It wouldn't be so bad if they were set in the comfortable hours of the late afternoon, when I am no longer groggy, but most of them were set WAY TOO EARLY in the morning. It's a miracle that I didn't make a fool of myself at any one of them.

Next week isn't looking any better either, as the Manila International Book Fair rolls into town. I'll probably be holed up in there for most of next week, and while it's an event I really enjoy covering, it still takes a lot out of you physically.

A big part of what keeps me going is the vacation I've got planned for myself. Thanks to a rather fortunate event, it looks that I will indeed be able to take a short vacation outside of the country. As long as nothing unexpected happens, I may be joining in Singapore for a few days!

* * * * *

I'd be sleeping soundly too if I had the time to wank four to five times a day.

So, James Franco just said that he masturbates four to five times a day. That's a lot of times for someone who isn't in the 16 to 18 year old age range.

At least now I have a ready answer when somebody asks me what James Franco is probably doing right now.

Sort of related, here's a compilation of ten horrible masturbation stories.

* * * * *

I was totally a Tommy/Kimberly shipper.

Growing up, I followed the Power Rangers religiously up until the movie came out, after which I lost interest. I didn't really think anyone of them would be gay. I would wish that Tommy was, but that's about it.

Now, it turns out that the Blue Ranger is one of teh gays. Imagine that.

Logan Lerman as D'Artagnan in 3 Musketeers.

Yes, Percy Jackson's wig really is that horrible. Funnily enough, it reminds me of the epic Hans Jensen interview.