I Blog, Therefore I Am.

It's another case of David versus Goliath when war movie The Hurt Locker won over Avatar for the Best Picture honors at the 82nd Oscar’s. The biggest winner of the night was director Kathryn Bigelow for being the first woman to win the top directorial award also for the The Hurt Locker, beating ex-husband, King of the World - James Cameron, for Avatar.

As usual, here is my yearly blog post on the good, the bad and the ugly at the Oscar's Red Carpet. There were several good ones but I must say that I like last year's ensemble better. The most popular, common and recurring themes last night were...

GOLD & METALLIC



LAYERS



Here are my favorites and not-so favorites at Hollywood's biggest night:

THE GOOD


Kirsten Stewart in Monique Lhuillier
Yahoo! Movies gave this an A+ Grade and I so agree with them.
Bella looks super on this outfit.



My all-time favorite Penelope Cruz in Donna Karan



Cameron Diaz in Oscar Dela Renta
She finally got it right!



Hannah Montana in Jenny Packham
Definitely an improvement from last year's scales



Mariska Hargitay in Vera Wang



Rachel McAdams in Ellie Saab
Non traditional and fresh design for Regina George



Sandra Bullock in Marchesa
Old glam Hollywood for the Best Actress



Mrs. Kutcher in Atelier Versace

Are you twins?


I like J.Lo's but I'm not feeling Amanda's. Both gowns designed by Armani Prive.

THE BAD
Bad but definitely not ugly. Bad in the sense that they defied fashion rules!


Charlize Theron in Christian Dior
There's something weird about those circles' placement.



SJP in Chanel
If you're Carrie, you cannot wear gowns 'just' like this. I expected more.



Nicole Richie in Reem Acra



Best Supporting Actress Nominee Vera Farmiga in Marchesa
Loved her at Up In The Air so I can't bear put her in the "ugly" list

THE UGLY


Zoe Saldana in Givenchy, Carey Mulligan in Prada, Mariah Carey in Valentino & Anna Kendrick in Ellie Saab (wrong shoes!)

More photos of the 82nd Oscar's Red Carpet on my Flickr. Until next year!

American Idol's Judges' Save was finally used this week...and I am NOT thrilled about it!

The favorite person to go home this week was Lil Rounds. I've never been fond of Lil and I've been waiting for her boot since last week. But there's a long-lived tradition in the American Idol World about "The Diva That Lives Forever" (case in point: Syesha Mercado) so it's not really a surprise that she is still there. Her vocals are great but she's been sucking with wrong song choices week after week thus the whole world is asking WHAT is she still doing at Idol. Her elimination became more evident last night when she persistently talked back to Simon after he gave her another bad critique for her Bette Midler cover.

And THAT, Ladies and Gentlemen, was one of the reasons why Matt Giraud was SAVED tonight from elimination!

Confused? It's actually very simple.

They said that the "save" was reserved and created for the "Three Anointed Ones" - Adam, Danny and Lil. Since the judges can only use the save once before the Top Five - and there's no doubt that Adam and Danny will be on the Top 5 - then the save looks like it will be put into use for Lil. Unfortunately, Lil proved last night that she's not worthy of the Top Five (more so the Finale).

With two weeks to go before the expiration of the "Judges' Save" they have no choice but give it to Matt who's probably the "next better" after Lil Rounds. They surely don't want to give it to Anoop - who will most likely get the cut next week together with Lil (or even Matt - depends if America is mad about the save tonight).

Kris and Allison are also shoo-ins for the Top Five EXCEPT if they will under-perform next week so the save is not really an option for them.

P.S.
I am not really pissed because Matt was saved (even if I don't like him) but I am pissed about the whole new ruling of the Judges' Save!

If you haven’t been watching American Idol in the past two months then it’s now time to tune in. The finals of American Idol begins on Tuesday with a Michael Jackson theme which will hopefully give great performances from the 13 people that were voted and selected. With some new twist in the semi-finals we ended with thirteen finalists instead of the usual twelve. The new format with the wild card round also gave us a gender imbalance that sent 8 boys and 5 girls in the finals.



A lot of my early favorites like Stevie, Ann Marie and Felicia did make it even on the Wild Card round. But a handful of my other favorites made it straight to the Top 13 like Danny, Michael, Adam and Jorge. The hard part of assessing and choosing bets with the new format was we only heard and seen most of them with one song and performance. But, anyway, here's my attempt in giving light to these new entertainers who will grace Primetime TV starting next week until May.

Megan Joy Corkrey
Megan will probably be my Carly Smithson of this batch. Megan has always been one of Simon's favorites ever since her first audition in Utah. I like her and her unique vocals. It’s very different from the usual diva voices of the competition. I don't know if America is ready for out-of-the-box voices like Megan's but I hope that she will go a long way in the competition. I even love her weird quirky “Corkrey” dance!


Allison Iraheta
Allison, 17 years old (as Randy kept on repeating), is someone we should all watch out for. Her vocals are unbelievable! So many past Idols sang Heart’s Alone and hers was one of the best I’ve heard. The judges were right when they said that she’s not even putting effort to her singing (altogether now: “raw natural talent”). I just hope that she will not turn into another Amanda Overmayer who became predictable and boring in the long run. Allison’s advantage? Celebrity support like Miley’s.


Alexis Grace
Alexis is a cute little thing who “dirtied” and styled herself just for the competition (Thanks to DioGuardi’s suggestion). Her voice is refreshing just like Allison’s. She got spunk and I am sure that a lot of people will love her and her great personality. I am just worried that she and Allison will use the same styles and sing the same stuff. Unfortunately for Alexis - Allison is the better singer by at least two notches.


Lil Rounds
Lil’s one of the most pimped contestants this year since the early auditions. She seemed nice but I am not buying her whole big voice stuff. It’s very usual, mainstream and it’s dime a dozen. She will surely go a long way (as high as Top 3 maybe) but I am truly not a fan. Her sob story rivals the one of Gokey's so it's fun to see who will get more emo air time between the two pimped finalists.


Jasmine Murray
Jasmine is definitely my Kristy Lee "what are you still doing here?" Cook for this year. I still can’t forgive her for bombing Sarah Barailles' "Love Song" and for wearing wrong eye make-up week after week that makes her look alien-y. Hope she gets the first boot! Her spot should have been Ricky Braddy's or Jesse Langseth's (or even Ju'not's. Felicia's or Mishavonna's). Case in point: there are way better singers than her in the Top 36.


Anoop Desai
Anoop’s journey to the Top 13 was special, suspense-laden and dramatic that made everyone asked "Gokey, who?". It was such a sweet victory for this "Dogg" and I cannot help but be happy for him. He may not be the best singer of the group but he's definitely one of the most likable. He may not give us the best performance each week but he will surely give us entertainment. I can't wait to see more of Anoop! Remember: American Idol is not just a talent show...it's foremost a TV show!


Adam Lambert
I heart Adam and his gayness! His YouTube vids are certified VoteForTheWorst material; but I'm hoping against hope that he will be careful and just stick to what he got now. He’s also capable of pulling a Tatiana so let's watch out for lapses like that. Adam’s vocals are just to die for. He’s really talented and I will not be surprised if he is the next American Idol. He got the chops! He’s also fierce and doesn’t give a crap on what people think. Proof? He’s still googling himself! He doesn't give an F on those leaked kissing pictures.


Danny Gokey
I have this thing for unique voices this year so one of my obvious picks is Danny (and not because of his sob story). This Robert Downey, Jr. Jr. dude can really go places with his ala David Cook last-big-note voice. Definitely one of the people to watch out for – dead wife or not, over-pimped or not, front-runner or not. Another thing to look forward to? Danny's American Idol glam-up make-over! Can't wait!


Jorge Nunez
Jorge is the male Latino version of Brooke White. I noticed him as early as his audition in Puerto Rico. I really love this guy and his voice (accent or no accent). The cry-fest at the end of his semi-final song made a lot of moms swoon (but I think he’s gay). Puerto Rico is so proud and leading the pack of supporters are J Lo and Marc Anthony who even SMSd Jorge their encouragement through Ryan. He’s definitely their saving face for all the drama that Tatiana created.


Kris Allen
Kris is the underdog of the Top 13. He himself was surprised that he was able to sneak in from favored contenders like Matt & Megan in Round 2. He have to really wow America to keep him from being voted early on. But he's cute and is dubbed as this year's heartthrob so he might go places. Do we see another Castro in the making? Seriously, his version of "Man In The Mirror" is way better than Giraud's "Viva La Vida". I wonder why people were so surprised he is in the Top 13.


Michael Sarver
Oil rigger Michael actually has a great voice but it was overshadowed by his genuinely nice personality. He suffered an Internet backlash just recently from Anoop’s 20,000 vote difference in round 2. I will not be surprised if he will not be included in the 10-man Idol Tour this summer (read: Top 11/12 at the most). There are definitely better performers in the Top 13 than Michael. With Anoop now holding the "best personality" card, I wonder where that will leave Mr. Sarver.


Matt Giraud
The gazillion fans and DioGuardi are the two main reasons why Matt was given another chance even after tanking the Grammy award winning song of Coldplay. I am not too solved on him and I prefer Ricky Braddy who got an almost identical style (but a lousier persona) over him. He will definitely give us soul, blues and pianos week after week but he also threatened mentioned that he might try pop. He’s also a bit smug (but so is David Cook so I rest my case).


Scott MacIntyre
He’s out of tune most of the time but Scott deserves the spot to compensate for all the shitty things that happened to him. I also understand the power of the sympathy vote. Need I say more? Mr. Inspiration is definitely the hardest person to boot out from this competition. Let's see how this will be played out.



My Favorites: Adam, Anoop, Jorge, Danny, Megan, Allison
My "I Don't Want To See You": Jasmine
My "should have been" in the Top 13: Ricky, Jesse, Ju'not, Felicia
Who will go home this week: Jasmine / Michael
Who MIGHT be the next American Idol: Adam

Credits to American Idol for the photos.

Just a quick post while I take a break in between pow-wows. American Idol announced the judges' picks for the Wild Card Round tomorrow! Each of the judges were allowed to choose two semi-finalists to advance for the last three spots in the Top 12.

Most of the Wild Cards came from the first and second groups. It was only Von Smith who was from the third group. The top three vote getters for this round were Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre and Jorge Nunez. No surprises here! They automatically got the 7th, 8th and 9th spot in the Top 12.

Here are the Wild Cards:

Von Smith (Randy's Pick)
Jasmine Murray (Kara's Pick)
Ricky Braddy (Paula's Pick)
Megan Corkrey (Simon's Pick)
Tatiana Del Torro (Randy's Pick)
Matt Giraud (Kara's Pick)
Jesse Langseth (Paula's Pick)
Anoop Desai (Simon's Pick)

Slumdog Millionaire may be the slammin' winner of this year's 81st Oscar's; and Kate Winslet may be the most deserving winner of the night (it's about time after her numerous nominations beginning with Sense & Sensibility and Titanic), but it was the wedding-inspired gowns of several celebrities that almost stole the spotlight.

Whether it's ballgown, vintage or minimalist, these celebrities channeled their inner brides with fabulous made-for-altar outfits. Two were stunning stand-outs but there were also a couple of disastrous ones. This year's favorite Oscar's fashion proved that you don't have to be a bride to wear white (or off-white or beige or ecru). Bring it on!

Who's your favorite bridezilla?


Best Supporting Actress Penelope Cruz in vintage Pierre Balmain



Sarah Jessica Parker in Dior
(Carrie Bradshaw will be proud of this gown! Except for the overly
exposed bosom of SJP that's not so obvious on this photo. Try this one.)



Marisa Tomei in Versace



Jennifer Aniston in Valentino
(This is a late addition to my entry. Can't find a photo of her earlier.
Love her simple outfit! Love her! Jolie-Pitts, who?)




Melissa George in Dolce & Gabbana
(Hello, Sadie! You are missed at Grey's Anatomy!)



Taraji P. Henson in Roberto Cavalli



Anne Hathaway in Armani Prive




Miley Cyrus in Zuhair Murad


Here are some more favorites in different colors and styles:


Angelina Jolie and Evan Rachel Wood both in Ellie Saab



Alicia Keys in Armani and Best Actress Kate Winslet in Yves Saint Laurent by Stefano Pilati

I have mixed feelings about Kate's gown with all that black lace in the lower portion. But the mix of blue and black colors made the outfit dramatic and it compensated for the weird laces.

Photo Credit: Yahoo! Movies

It's American Idol season once again!

One of my favorite shows on TV will have a Top 36 and a wild card round this year instead of the usual Top 24 semis. Joe's Place Blog and MJ's Big Blog, a couple of Idol authorities, already posted a spoiler of a presumably leaked list of those who got in through Vote For The Worst. We will be seeing if they are right at the live performances and semi-finals on the 3rd week of February after a week or two of Hollywood Week broadcast.

I already have a bet if the list is correct. I am very fascinated by the great voice and bubbly personality of 16 year old Stevie Wright. She auditioned in Glendale, Arizona and sang "At Last" by Etta James. All judges were impressed and Kara and Paula even said that she's exceptional.

Check out her audition video:

Stevie at last
Uploaded by mjsbigblogvideos

Can't wait to see her again! Hope she will reach the Top 12!

Here's the full list of the Top 36:

Adam Lambert, Alexander Wagner-Trugman, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, Ann Marie Boskovich, Anoop Desai, Arianna Ayesha Afsar, Brent Keith, Casey Carlson, Danny Gokey, Jackie Tohn, Jasmine Murray, Jeanie Vailes, Jessica Langseth, Joanna Pacitti, Jorge Nunez, Junoy Joyner, Kai Kalama, Kendall Beard, Kristen McNamara, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Breitzke, Matt Giraud, Megan Courkrey, Michael Sarver, Mishavonna Henson, Nate McGee, Nick Western Mitchell (aka Normound Gentle), Ricky Braddy, Scott MacIntyre, Stephen Fowler, Stevie Wright, Taylor Vaifanua, Tatiana Del Toro, Von Smith

Notable ones from the list are Casey Carlson, dubbed as one of the prettiest AI contestant ever with a bikini calendar to boot; washed-out recording artist Joanna Pacitti; and Steve MacIntyre, the almost-blind singer from Arizona.

I also like Adam Lambert of California. He's a a theatrical singer from Hollywood and he is kinda cute. I just don't know what is his preference. Click this link for his audition video and tell me what you think.

I was really fascinated by Time Magazine's Top 10 of Everything for 2008 and I think that it would be cool to do one for myself as a year-ender. "Ten of everything" would be too much for me so I am just limiting my list to my ultimate "tops" and favorite things.

TOP PEOPLE

Family
In sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, until death do us part. Enough said.





Forces Girlfriends + Jako
We've been through a lot this year - travels, dinners, quarrels, success, misunderstandings, profound e-mails, unions, engagements, singleness, happiness and broken hearts. Despite everything we've gone through we realized that we all love each other at the end of the day! :)



My CLRD Angels
The year will not be as sweet if not for my dear Marj and Kathy. We worked very hard and delivered a lot of projects that helped build subscribers' loyalty. I'll miss you, girls! Thanks for all that has been and for all that will be!

Gabsters
Our fondness and support for GDM was the one that introduced us to each other; but we discovered along the way that we have loads in common other than our PBB obsessions. Our BBQ Boy dinners were always riot events!

Ros + John + Eric
A common tragic event early this year made us closer to each other. It was not a "good year" for us but we all believe that it's already time to move on (Binchy would want it that way).

TOP TRAVELS

Boracay Birthday
This is my most traveled year! I'm out each month except in January. The one that stood out is my 30th birthday celebration in Boracay. My friends Tin, Aileen, Charo and Jako went with me last 888 (August 8, 2008) and had the time of our lives. The highlight of the trip? The Paraw Sunset Sailing!

Viva Vigan
My friends and I had a memorable roadtrip to Vigan last May. Aside from the cobblestones, the picturesque Spanish houses, and the yummy delicacies (I'm still craving for Martha's Bibingka until now), the trip was one for the books because we were were stranded in La Union for hours because of Typhoon Cosme. Our trip back home was 17 hours long. Whew!



Beautiful Bohol
Our Team Celebration Program in Bohol last September was great because there were only four (4) of us on the trip and it was my first time in Bohol! I can't wait to go back for more! Bohol is truly a relaxation haven!



Travel To Meet Subs
A huge chunk of my work-related travel this year was because of one of our loyalty programs. I was able to meet various subscribers all over the nation through this activity. They were all fun and enriching events and it gave me also the opportunity to visit Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija and Balanga, Bataan for the first time. I also visited Cebu (twice), Davao (thrice), Baguio and Cagayan de Oro this year.

TOP EVENTS
(These are my non-travel events this year that are memorable. "Memorable" can either be happy or sad and a couple of entries here were unfortunately sad ones.)

My Pond's Beauty Blog
One of my non-work achievements of the year is winning the Pond's 7-day Beauty Blog. The "essay" (as my dad puts it) won me a new iPhone 3G and gift certificates.

Binchy's Passing
My good friend's unexpected death usually trumps the happy events of the year. We are still grieving but we know in our hearts that he's now in a happier place.

NatCon 2008
Customer Care's National Conference 2008 became a memorable one for me because of some unexpected twist of events. It still haunt me at times but I already learned from the experience. Things that doesn't kill you truly makes you stronger! :)

Vince & Eliza's Wedding
Ate finally tied the knot last November! The event was a joyous one and it gave me the opportunity to be reunited with my Real relatives whom some I haven't seen in years.



TOP GADGETS

Canon 1000D
Santa came this year and got me this! Eyeloveit! Definitely the gift of the year (or even the decade).



Nokia E71
Nokia did everything right with this phone. It's perfect (or perfect for me at least!). The slim design allows you to text using one hand, it has WiFi, cool interface, huge LCD screen and its HSDPA! Definitely one of the best Nokias in the market today.

iPhone 3G
Dubbed by most as The Gadget of the Year, it is not on top of my list because it's not the best - for me anyway. It has its greatness, ganda points, Internet anywhere and everywhere, and it's the best iPod ever...but it's far from perfect (jailbroken or otherwise). But I still love it to bits because it's "my trophy".

TOP TV SHOWS

Grey's Anatomy
The plot with Denny coming back to life is beyond absurd and George may be resigning but I still love this show! Nothing can keep me away from it despite the cheesiness of Mer and Der. My only wish? End the dead guy story and let Izzie fall in love with Alex.

Gossip Girl
One of my Twitter buddies thought I was on my early twenties because of my great love for these Upper East Siders. Season 2 made me fall in like with Blair Waldorf and Chuck Bass together with the teens and tweens of the world. I still love Serena and Lily but I just can't stand the Humphreys especially Dan, the over-analyzer.



The West Wing
It might have ended a couple of years ago but I am still on Season 3 of this great political drama. I am so fascinated with life at the White House and my week is not complete without hearing the "CJ! CJ! CJ!" of the reporters at the make-believe press room.

Brothers & Sisters
Who doesn't want to be part of the Walker family and their famous dinners? I've decided this season that Kevin is my favorite Walker (aside from Nora of course). Who's your favorite?

TOP MOVIES

Sex and The City Movie
Seeing Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte once again is beyond words! Watching it at Powerplant with great friends after Pepper Lunch was also great.



Twilight
Seeing Bela and The Cullens come to life is more than enough to land this movie on the list despite its crapiness. Sorry, Twitter movie fans.

TOP BOOKS

Twilight Series
It was the much-hyped launch of Breaking Dawn in August which prompted me to read the series. It somehow filled the void that Harry Potter left me. Stephanie's writing was so bad (grammar and punctuation errors, over-plot, under-plot) but her great storytelling skills compensated for it. My favorites are Breaking Dawn, Eclipse and Alice Cullen.

American Wife
Time Magazine agrees with me that this is one of the best reads of 2008. It's a story of a librarian turned First Lady of the United States of America (sounds familiar?).



Remember Me
Another chick-lit of Sophie Kinsella which was patterned after the humor and sweetness of tUndomestic Goddess and Can You Keep A Secret?.

TOP RESTAURANTS
(Funny that everything on this list is a destination restaurant.)

Bigby's
I fell in love with their Grilled Rodeo Chops and Iced Tea! I had it four times this year: Bigby's Davao, Bigby's LimKetKai, Bigby's SM Cebu and Bigby's Ayala Center Terraces. They will open a branch in Manila soon! Yey!

Cyma
This was my "supposed" 30th birthday dinner. The Cyma feast we had in Boracay was one of the best dinners that my friends and I had of late. Greek food is truly love! Best Moussaka I've ever had!



Breakfast at Antonio's
I came back this year to this beloved restaurant that hold so many wonderful memories of yesteryears. Their steak is still tender and I still love it! Yum!

TOP ON-LINE SITES

Twitter
I tried Plurk for a couple of months but I came back to Twitter. If I can't blog then I usually express myself via Twitter's 140 characters. According to TweetStat, my average tweet per day is 7.3 and I usually send them 8:00 pm onwards. My most replied twitter friends are taetin (Tin), rivengodwind (Rodge) and lilacstardust (Aileen), siaz (Mitzi) and charuzee (Charo). No surprises here since they are also my real-life best buds! Twitter is our cheesmux extension.

Facebook
I joined Facebook in mid-2007 but I only realized its full potential early this year. Everyone who's anyone is on Facebook; and it's the best Social Networking Site ever!

Multiply
This has always been my favorite repository site for photos, videos, blog entries and music. Add me up!

iGoogle
A customizable one-stop shop for everything Google (and some more). It's always a joy to see my e-mail, google search tabs, Remember The Milk tasks, Google Reader feeds and various news all in one place. Thanks to Marj for the tip!

Thanks to 2008 for being such a wonderful year!

Credits to Bordoy Viterbo, Charo, Aileen and Marj for the photos.