George's blog

Seigi no Mikata

Seigi no Mikata

Once again I'm procrastinating. Classes for the semester are over now and all that's left are finals. Let's put this in perspective: I have 17 journals, 3 papers and two finals to submit for two of my classes. If we generously give each paper about six pages each (they probably should be/will be more), then that means I have approximately 35 pages to write plus the finals, which will probably be at least four pages each, bumping the rough total to 43. Let's split this up. For Linguistics 472, the final day is Tuesday. So before 12:00pm (noon), I will need to have 9 journals, one paper and the final which will be 19 pages. For Linguistics 363I I will need 8 journals, 2 papers and the final (both finals are take-home) which totals 24 pages by Wednesday. Also on Wednesday evening is my final for Linguistics 423, which I hafta study for. I procrastinate a lot, but this really takes the cake. I have about two days worth of time to do all this. I've done some crazy stuff before, but this may require a miracle.

So what am I doing instead? Watching more dramas! I finished Majo Saiban, which admittedly was fun to watch. It's been a while since there was a drama that made me want to see the next episode so much. The ending was satisfying to me, and honestly the whole thing was enjoyable. I've watched the first episode of Yankee Bokou ni Kaeru, which was good but kinda stresses out my heart, if that makes sense. So I'm watching Seigi no Mikata (pictured above) that is a light comedy about a younger sister and, from her perspective, her evil sister and how she deals with her. I don't think it will end up being too memorable of a show. I'm on episode six and while I've laughed at several parts, it's pretty much just another drama to watch. It's fun, but nothing special. Which is good, because I just want something to casually watch. You know, instead of doing work. =P

The Witch Trial

Majo Saiban

Instead of doing my schoolwork like I should be, especially since finals are less than a week away, I've been watching Japanese dramas. I'm in the midst of Ohitorisama, a quirky comedy about a teacher in her 30s who is single and proud of it. Everything in her life is good, albeit a bit lonely (to her satisfaction), until a substitute teacher 10 years younger than her arrives and she is assigned to him as a mentor. Predictable so far, but funny and satisfying. I'm waiting for the subtitles for episode 6.

Since I can't watch more of that one, I'm currently watching one that was on in the Spring season of this year, Majo Saiban, a.k.a. The Witch Trial. It's about a "jury" of sorts -- in Japan, or at least in this show, there are three main judges and several "lay judges" and a majority vote between them all determines whether or not a defendant is guilty or not. Once the lay judges were selected for the trial, things begin to happen to them all. If I were to compare it to anything, it almost feels like Phoenix Wright, the popular game for the Gameboy Advance / Nintendo DS, only from the perspective of the lay judges and not the attorney. There's court sessions and things that happen outside of court. I'm on episode 8 of 10, and after this I will finish it up before I hafta go to school. It's not predictable for me, but the editing hardly gives you a chance. Still, it's a fun series and I'm enjoying it immensely... I really can't wait to watch each episode.

Senioritis?

Modern Warfare 2

I guess it's obvious that it's been a while since I've updated. But it's a casual blog, so I guess it's okay. I changed the theme for the holidays, as I tend to do with anything customizable. I usually alter my wallpaper on my computer to have a holiday theme and/or colors of some sort. I haven't done so yet on my laptop, but I'm sure with the forthcoming boredom I will be doing so.

I finished Defying Gravity. It's an excellent series, so it was sad to find out that, as far as the ABC network is concerned, the show is in limbo. Considering it's produced by several different countries, there is still hope for the series as long as it does well overseas. Or a miracle can happen and ABC could find a time slot that works. The shows production values are high, and it shows, so finding funding may be difficult if it can't do better in the ratings. There is definitely room for a lot of story.

The semester end is fast approaching, and I've disabled Facebook and sent my Xbox 360 to stay with Brandi until my finals are over. It's only been one day and it feels like those attempts at focusing my attention toward school are moot. This week I have nothing due, and I am bored as hell. Ideally, I can use the time to write one of 15 one-page journals, work on one of the three different essays I need to have done by next week, or at least read for some of the journal entries. My laziness continues as I'm spending time updating my iPhone to current specs and organizing video and music to put on there. I think regardless of my lack of Facebook and Xbox 360, the true demon inherent in procrastination does not lie in material objects, but in a lack of motivation fueled by the fact that even when I write essays the day they are due, I still get a passing grade. The 10 page essay I did for my Semantics class I wrote in the hours before class, and although I arrived late, I still turned it in a received a B. Not only did I not learn nearly as much as I could, but as stated before it only fuels my belief that it doesn't matter what I write, as long as I think it will be passable in the eyes of the professor.

Two of the three finals will be take home. However, in those two classes, the day of the final will be spent presenting the essay I hope I will have written by then. It's completely possible for me to do all this within these two weeks, but considering the time allotted, combined with my lack of motivation, I will not be churning out papers I will be proud of. I am certain, however, that I will get a passing grade on the papers. The grade for the two courses, however, I am uncertain of because of my horrible attendance record. My saving grace is that when I am in class, I participate the most out of all the students. The reason is simple -- I did not attend class when I didn't have the book to read. Since the classes are primarily composed of discussions, my presence when I haven't read the material would be pointless. Not to mention the teacher, Dr. Sharifi, knows me from the previous semester when i took another of his classes and in that familiarity calls upon me whenever discussion falls flat and silence runs pervasive.

Thanksgiving started out slow this year. Because my aunt was recovering from an injury, our household was the host for the Velez family. Few people came early, as expected from stereotypical Filipinos; however at 5:20pm or so, everybody seemed to come at once. The film Up, given to me by Brandi for my birthday this year, was already playing. All the kids joined in to watch along with my mom. After the movie, there were requests for Rock Band, so I brought out the Xbox 360 to the living room and hooked it up to the big screen TV. Everybody seemed to have fun. It makes me happy to be able to make others happy by providing the entertainment. I feel useful and responsible for the smiles on their faces. =)

Christmas is around the corner. I will be poor and unable to buy gifts yet again this year. I have payments for my phone and Disneyland to make still, but I should be on track for those. Still, I have my girlfriend and all my friends, and to be honest I feel very lucky to be where I am at. I'm scared to be graduating in Spring of next year, as I don't want this era I consider myself in to end, but that discussion will be left for another blog. Until then...