"Energy" Relationship Question of the Week

"Would you be okay with your significant other having a close friend of the opposite sex?"

Ah...a version of the classic When Harry Met Sally question. Can men and women truly be friends? What made this particular episode interesting was that there was a celebrity couple (Park Cheol and Oak So Ri) as part of the guest panel and one was for the "Yes" side, and one was for the "No" side. The wife was on the "Yes" side and when she revealed that she indeed had not one, but a few male friends, the husband seemed genuinely surprised. Awkward....

Another celeb guest said that he wouldn't have a problem with his GF being friends with a normal or bad looking buy, but would be against her being friends with a good looking guy. One celeb who was on the "No" team said that if he had a female friend, he would go to the movies, have a meal together, hang out together, etc. in the daytime, but would not do so at night. Of course, everyone else questioned why the time of day made a difference.

As for me, I am definitely on the "Yes" side. One reason is because of trust. I'd trust my GF/wife enough that I wouldn't be worried about them meeting male friends. If she already had these friends before she met me, who am I to say she can't meet them from now on? Another reason why I'd say "yes" is because I wouldn't want her to stop me from seeing my female friends as well.

In fact, I am so far on the "yes" team that I've actually encouraged my GFs in the past to hang out with their guy friends. It got them out of my hair for a while and let me do my own thing. I'd rather they have others to hang out with than wait around for me to do stuff with all the time.

So...what do y'all think?

More Korean Love.....

This is an old video, but this Korean teen has become a sensation in Korea for his guitar version of Pachelbel's Canon in D. Koreans are very familiar with this song from its famous inclusion in the mega popular film My Sassy Girl. Check it out, this guy rocks!

Dinner at Pearl

First of all, sorry but I didn't have my dica with me so no pics.... =(

Had dinner at Pearl last night which is located in the Ala Moana Shopping Center. Was originally gonna go to Macaroni Grill cuz I scored a gift card from there and had never been there before but when we got there, they said it was a 45-60 minute wait so we said forget it. But on the way to Macaroni Grill, we had passed by Pearl and I had remembered reading an article about its food in the paper a few weeks ago so we decided to check it out.

Pearl is a restaurant/lounge/nightclub. I think it's a restaurant till 10pm, which is when they dim the lights and crank the music. We had a seat at one of the elevated tables with stools near the main bar at the entrance. The interior design was pretty stylish and eye pleasing.

The food is served tapas style, which is pretty much pupu style. Small portions so you can sample a whole bunch of different things. We started off with 3 things...the Pearl salad, the mini Kobe burgers, and the crab cakes.

The Pearl salad was uninspiring. I forget what kind of lettuce it was but the leaves were too "stemmy" and not leafy enough. I really enjoy goat cheese too but the cheese that came with this salad didn't have enough bite to me. And the dressing was lacking as well. I won't be ordering this salad again.

The other two dishes, however.....wow! Muy ono! The mini Kobe burgers were delicious. The tender Kobe patties are served with a sliver of avocado and a slice of tomato on a roll bun. It comes with fries as well, but only 6 of them, hand cut and nicely stacked log cabin style with a spicy dipping sauce in the middle. This dish was definitely winnahs.

The crab cakes were really good too. Tons of dungeness crab meat packed nicely into a little bun about 2" in diameter. Flaky, crisp, juicy, and drizzled with a tangy sauce. Ono!

At this point, we were getting a little full but was so impressed by the two dishes we liked we decided to order one more. We decided on the Wok Fried BBQ Prawns (small portion). This dish came with 4 prawns surrounding a mound of Chinese style rice, all marinated in a spicy Chinese style BBQ sauce. The sauce was very good, but a bit too spicy, even for my Korean palette. But the prawns were tender and tasty.

For dessert, we got the Glazed Apple Bananas which came with macadamia nut brittle and a small scoop of vanilla sherbert. Not too sweet, not too rancid, but just right!

As for the service, our waitress (Crystal) was very friendly but a bit ditzy at times. After we made our initial order, she came back about 5 minutes later and asked us, "what did you order again?" Uh....okay.....But she was very cute and the kind of look that I'm positive Wayne's World will appreciate. We also ordered a drink each. I had a glass of Reisling which they called "Asian Persuasion" and my friend had a virgin cocktail. Surprsingly, the bartender walked over to our table and gave my friend a 2nd drink of her order at about halfway through our meal, free of charge! Cool!

The total damage for the evening was about $53. With tip, it came to about $62. And $13 of that was our 2 drinks. So we're talking about a very affordable dinner out for some pretty good food. All of the tapas selections are under $10 and the entree selections are a little more but you can order small portions of those.

After this initial visit, I'd recommend Pearl for a nice dinner outing. Good ambience, passable service, and good food for a reasonable price. I'd much rather go here than somewhere like a Ruby Tuesday's where the damage would be similar. I think it's ideal for a date situation as well cuz it's a little dark, but not too dark where your girl might get a little anxious about wondering what the level of your relationship is. The restaurant gives off that casual vibe, while teasing you with a hint of possible hooking up. Perfect! Check it out!

And once again, sorry no pics. I know that they would've really helped...

Another Bad Ass Trailer!

Here's the teaser trailer for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. Wow!

Fantastic Four 2 Trailer

The Pursuit of Happyness - Review

It's been a Christmas tradition in my family that we go to watch a movie every Christmas Day. Since we don't have a large family (just my parents and I) and don't have much else to do, it's an excuse to get out of the house for a few hours and spend some time together. There's usually a bunch of good movies released at Christmas time as well, just in time for Oscar season.

So this year we decided to go watch The Pursuit of Happyness. After having a dim sum lunch at our favorite dim sum place (Good Luck Restaurant in the Chinese Cultural Plaza - tell them Myong sent you. They won't know what the hell you're talking about but the expression on their face when you tell them that will probably be worth a laugh), we went to Ward Theaters to watch the film. We usually go to Dole but the showtime there didn't quite work out. Man, Ward was crowded! I was surprised at how many people go to the movies on Christmas Day. I mean, we've been doing it for a while, but never seen a crowd this big. Anyways....

Onto the film, right? The Pursuit of Happyness is "inspired" by the true story of Chris Gardner, played by Will Smith. The story is set in 1981 in San Francisco. Chris Gardner is a bone scanner salesman but he's having a hard time making sales and supporting his wife and young son. His wife is forced to work double shifts to make ends meet while her husband continuously comes home without making a sale. Fed up with her life, she leaves Chris and their son. Chris is looking for a new direction in life and happens to come across a successful stockbroker. This gives him an idea and he applies for a 6 month internship at Dean Witter. The only problem is, the internship is a non-paying job and he has no money to survive in the meantime, not to mention that the odds of landing a full time job after the internship are 1:20. Chris and his son are forced to move out of their house and sleep in homeless shelters because of their lack of money.

Will Smith does an excellent job here and although I've always liked him as an actor, I've got even more respect for his game after watching this film. His son in the film is played by his real life son Jayden Smith and he's wonderful as well. The chemistry between the two is amazing as it should be. Their close bond and the conversations they share are really touching.

I thought that this was a great film and recommend everyone watch it. Yeah, it gets a little sappy at times but are we so jaded now that we can't handle a bit of overly dramatic gooeyness? Especially when it's so sweet?

I give Pursuit of Happyness a 9/10.

Korean Care Home Christmas Party

The Korea Care Home had its annual Christmas Party this past Saturday at 12 noon and KAC-Hawaii (Korean American Coaltion - Hawaii) presented gifts to the 30 residents of the home as we do each year. Last year, we gave sweaters as gifts and this year we gave them some nice bath towels. This year's party wasn't as big as last year's for whatever reason but the residents and their families all expressed their gratitude and seemed to have a good time.

For those who have never been there, I took some pics to show what it's like...

Here's the dining area in the main buildingHere are a couple of the living facilities...The inside...The party area. The guy with the Santa hat was a really good singerThey even had a couple of peacocks!Anyways...the other officers and I didn't stay too long at the party but had a good time while we were there.

Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and everyone be safe!

Cool Ass Movie Trailers

Ocean's 13

Looks like another fun ride with the gang. Yeah, 12 wasn't as good as 11 but I still liked it. Looking forward to this one. Plus, it's got Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin in it! Sweet!

Transformers

I just soiled myself. This trailer is too awesome, yo!

Movie Review - Rocky Balboa

I'm a big fan of the Rocky films. I love a good underdog story and Rocky is the ultimate underdog so of course I root for the guy. And I'm also a big boxing fan too so it goes without saying that I'd enjoy the Rocky franchise. Hell, I even though Rocky V was okay, although definitely the worst of the bunch.

So I went to watch Rocky Balboa yesterday with my dad, who's also a big Rocky fan. And you know what? Me likey!!!

The latest in the series portrays Rocky as an old has been. His beloved Adrian has past away and he relives old glories by telling fight stories to patrons of his small restaurant. But when an ESPN computer matchup between the current champion Mason Dixon (real life champion Antonio Tarver) and Rocky results in a Balboa victory, the wheels are set in motion. Rocky feels like he still has something to prove to himself and Dixon needs a fight to win some popularity votes after beating up on chumps.

But all of the boxing stuff doesn't take place until late into the film. The first hour or so of the film concentrates on Balboa's life and even though it sounds boring, I found it very touching. He reunites with a woman whom he knew when she was a little girl and takes her as well as her son under his wing. He tries to connect with his son who is trying to get out of his father's large shadow. He reminisces about his wife. His life is basically about to end but he's not ready to go down that road yet. I thought that the storytelling of the Rocky character at this point was very well done and was not disinterested at all.

Then when the boxing time came, of course it was magic. People in the audience were even clapping and cheering whenever a familiar icon appeared like Paulie, the trainer Duke, or the raw egg bit. Hearing that "Gonna Fly Now" theme music and watching Rocky train in the musical montage ("Gotta have a montage! - from Team America) was awesome, although I wish we could have seen more. And the fight choreography may not have been as detailed and precise as previous films, but still crisp and effecient.

Sylvester Stallone not only starred in this film but he wrote and directed it as well and I think he did a bang up job. I've already mentioned how I liked the storyline and his direction was quite accomplished as well. Great job.

I give Rocky Balboa an 8/10. Go see it if you're a Rocky fan!

Rod Haraga - What happened???

State Department of Transportation Director was not reappointed for another 4 year term by Governor Lingle yesterday. But the circumstances under how it happened are a bit shady...

In Governor Lingle's press conference, she announced that Haraga as well as Department of Labor Director Nelson Befitel chose to pursue other avenues and that they won't be returning to serve their positions for another term. But to hear Haraga tell it, it wasn't his choice not to return. Apparently, he found about about it after returning from vacation and was stunned by the decision.

Watching all of the newscasts covering this story, they speculated that it was possibly Haraga's high visibility factor that may have led to his demise. I've met Rod several times and yeah, I can tell he's a guy who certainly likes the spotlight and isn't afraid to have an audience. Now that he's unemployed he mentioned that he may pursue politics and given his nature, it would definitely be a good fit for him as a career choice.

It's just unfortunate however that the Governor chose to lie about the situation. When she was asked by a reporter if she had offered Haraga and Befitel re-appointments, she merely said "Again, they have chosen to pursue other avenues." I have respect for Governor Lingle and think she's doing a good job but I hate to see her caught in a lie like this when there wouldn't have been anything wrong in saying the truth.

Yul - Survivor Winner!

I know this is really late but I've been slammed lately and haven't gotten around to watching my DVR of the Survivor season finale till last night. And yay! My man Yul was the big winner of the $1 million!

I gotta say though, it was a pretty bland Survivor season. The initial tribes by races was an interesting idea but they got rid of that after only 2 weeks. I liked how Yul and his gang manipulated the people to go from being the underdogs to the power players but man, they were dull as hell doing it. I kind of agreed with Adam when he said that they were boring and no fun.

Yul - He had a master plan and played all the angles directly. He was the "puppet master" and he deserved to win.

Ozzy - Man, I wish they could've split the vote cuz I think Ozzy was just as deserving. He blew everyone away at all the challenges. It's really unfortunate he had to finish 2nd. But it's more unfortunate that he looked so much like Joey Lawrence at the reunion show. Man, he really looked different!

Becky - I didn't like her at all. She may be Korean but that doesn't mean I have to like her. She was trying to sell the fact that she was making all of the decisions "with" Yul instead of riding on his coattails. Yeah, right. From what I saw, her ideas were all shut down (like trying to boot Ozzy). And she has a really stink personality from what was shown on air. Very cold and stand off ish. Blah.

Parvati - Looked way better during the season on TV rather than with makeup at the reunion show.

Adam - I liked how he tried to ruffle a few feathers on his way out. Why not, right? Got nothing to lose. And he was right. The Final 4 were terribly boring.

In any case...the final tribal council was lacking a lot and it was one of the duller ones I've seen. I haven't watched Survivor since like Season 6 and only tuned into this one because of the racial aspect. Now that I've seen how dull the show is, I'll probably won't watch again.

But props to Yul for winning!

"Energy" Question of the Week

"It's one week away from your wedding ceremony and then you meet someone who you believe who you believe is your match made in heaven. Would you cancel your wedding?"

Those who argued "Yes" said that they were willing to cancel their upcoming wedding to be the one they feel they're meant to be with and also that it wouldn't be fair to their fiancee to go through with the wedding because they would always be wondering "what if". Plus, they also said that you come across that feeling of meeting "the one" only once maybe twice in your life and you have to act on that.

Those who argued "No" said that marriage was a commitment and you have to follow through with the wedding. They also said that you're marrying that person because you felt that they were "the one" so how can you change your mind so suddenly just one week before the wedding? That just means that you'll be forever changing your mind once another boy/girl comes along.

Personally.....I am with the "Yes" team. I would cancel my upcoming wedding (well...that'd depend on how rich my fiancee was! just kidding!). Like they said, it wouldn't be fair to my spouse because I'd always be wondering what would've happened if I went after the girl I met one week before my wedding. If I had such strong feelings for the new girl, I'd have to see what could come of it. Kind of like John Cusack in Serendipity!

What do y'all think?

Congrats Hiro!

The Golden Globe nominations were announced today and Japanese American actor Masi Oka got a nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a TV role for his role as "Hiro" in thenew hit drama Heroes. Readers of this blog know that I've been a fan of this show since it first started and while I am surprised he got a nom, I'm certainly glad he did! Congratulations!

Rinko Kikuchi, a Japan native, also got a nom for Best Supporting Actress in a film for her role in Babel. I haven't seen the film myself but I hear she's amazing in it. Congrats!

Another Jump Drive Idea!

Ha! I like these better than the other ones I posted earlier!

Rosie O'Donnell - WTF?

I never liked Rosie O'Donnell at any time but her recent racist stereotyping on her TV show The View really makes me loathe her. In this clip, she's commenting about how popular of a news story Danny DeVito's drunken appearance on their show is and she then goes on to mock Chinese people by going to that old stand by "ching chong" speak for the Chinese language.

Rosie, you are a sad loser and I really feel sorry for ignorant people like you.

Oh! My Nose!

Yesterday was a pretty bumpy and bruisy day in taekwondo and hapkido. We did some heavy sparring (which I love) in taekwondo but instead of the students sparring each other, we had to each spar with the instructor. And man, this guy hits hard! Even when he blocks your attacks and vice versa, the hits are pretty forceful! I woke up this morning with bruises all over my forearms and shins as well as not being able to walk well cuz I got an elbow on my ankle sometime during the sparring.

But that's not the worst of it. We also did sparring during hapkido and I caught an elbow flush on my nose! Man, da buggah wen sting! I could tell my nose was really swollen cuz just by looking straight ahead, I could see a big bulge on my nose directly in front of my eyes. Thankfully, I don't think it's broken and the swelling's already gone down quite a bit. Man, if it really was broken, I'd end up looking like this guy! And we all know that my looks are my livelihood! J/K!

"Energy" Relationship Questions - All of Them!

Okay, I went to the show's website and tracked down all 5 questions they've discussed so far.....

1) Would you take responsibility for the mistakes you made one drunken night?

Me - Depends how bad the mistakes were! LOL Nah, but generally...I would. "FOR"

2) Would you trust your friend to take care of your partner while you are away for a long time?

Me - Sure. The people saying "against" were saying that they didn't trust that some hanky panky wouldn't be going on while they were gone but I would trust both my partner and friend enough to believe this wouldn't happen. "FOR"

3) Will you take back an ex that had fooled around on you previously?

Me - Hell no! "AGAINST"

4) Would you get plastic surgery if your partner asked you to?

Me - No. I'm perfect as is. =) "AGAINST"

5) Would you share your secret passwords (email, cellphone, bank accts, etc.) with your lover?

Me - No. See below post. "AGAINST"

So...what would you guys say???

"Energy" Relationship Questions

There's this new talk show in Korea called "Energy" where a question about relationships is presented and celebrity guests pick a side either "for" or "against" the statement and then debate why. At the start of each show, they start off with 5 guests "for" and 5 guests "against". At the end of the show the celebs are given the option to change their mind based on the discussions they've heard.

There's been some pretty interesting topics over the first 5 eps of this show! I can't remember them all but I'll post the ones I do recall and will probably do so from now on each week as the show comes on.

The question from this week's show was "Are you willing to share your secret passwords (email, cell phone, bank accts, etc.) with your loved one?" Guests "against" said that people need their privacy and guests "for" argued that if they really loved someone, they are willing to give them every part of them, including their passwords, because they have nothing to hide. As for me...I am with the "against" crowd. I would never divulge my passwords (a man has his secrets!) nor would I ever ask my partner for theirs. How about y'all?

Other questions from the past...

"Would you get plastic surgery if your partner asked you to?" - I would say "against"

Actually, that's the only other one I can remember right now. Damn, my memory's really going bad recently! Anyways, feel free to give your input!

Naw.....Really?

"I am not a successful President"

Those are the words uttered by South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun. Truer words have never been spoken. This guy is a total putz and a frickin' joke as President. This is the full quote: "I am not a successful President and I am sorry to the people about this. I think it's due to my lack of political capacity". Geez, what a 바보.

This dumbass has made a joke out of the South Korean Presidency with his inane comments and actions since he's taken office. His approval rating is at an all time low of 5.7%! That means even the tools who voted for this fool are sick of his stupidity. President Roh said he's even considering stepping down before the end of his term in 2008.

Now, if we could only get a certain "W" to admit the same and step down....

Gift Idea! (For me) =)

Check out these cool designer jump drives! I want one! The one above is cool and I also like the Chewy one from the soon to come Star Wars series. You can order them at mimoco.com but a lot of them are sold out already.
Okay, who wants to buy me one! ^_^

Dinner at Ruby Tuesday

I won a $50 gift certificate to Ruby Tuesday at my company Christmas Party this past Friday night so I decided to take my parents out to dinner at the new Ruby Tuesday that opened up very recently in Moanalua Shopping Center. Most of the comments I'd heard about Ruby Tuesday was that it was "all right" with no one really having tremendously positive things to say about it so I wasn't expecting much going in.

The decor was interesting. A bunch of movie and other miscellaneous paraphenelia adorned the walls and there were TVs everywhere. It's scary that Americans are getting to a point where they simply can't be without a TV wherever they go. I find it kind of sad that a "family" restaurant where you're supposed to go to spend time with your family and enjoy a meal together has TVs all over to draw your attention, taking time away from actually having a conversation with your loved ones. Oh well...

Ruby Tuesday's slogan is "Simple Fresh American Dining" and that seems to be accurate. Looking at their menu, I thought it was fairly limited. A half dozen or so appetizers, a few steak selections (actually the selections were varieties of the same thing), a few chicken selections, a few seafood selections, and ribs. Simple is right. The menu selections at TGIF and Cheesecake Factory are much more diverse.

Our waitress was an Anna Farris doppleganger that seemed a bit valley girl-ish and cold at first. This made me apprehensive about our order being correct but she later opened up and I achieved some decent banter with her (channelling Seinfeld's Costanza who likes to banter with waitresses). ^__^



We started off with the spinach and artichoke dip appetizer.The dip was actually very good, although I was yearning for bits of crab like you get at Ryan's Grill. But still, it was good. They give you colored tortilla chips which they claim to bake fresh everyday but about half of our chips were a little on the stale side. Anna said that if we had let her know she would've replaced them but because the service was a bit slow I was afraid that we wouldn't get the new chips till after our entrees arrived and that they would be stale too.

Then the entrees came. I had a half order of Classic BBQ baby back ribs. It came with a huge baked potato with the works and a piece of garlic bread. The ribs were okay. The meat fell of the bones like how they're supposed to yet it was still a bit dry. The bbq sauce was also a bit bland but acceptable.

My mother ordered the shrimp pasta parmesan.This entree came with about a dozen small sized shrimp over penne pasta covered by a Parmesan cream sauce. The shrimp were not that juicy and the cream sauce was also dry. She did not really enjoy it and after having a taste of it, I have to say I didn't really either.

My father ordered the ribeye steak.Now this was a pleasant surprise. I usually don't order steaks at restaurants that aren't steak restaurants because the quality has always been disappointing but I'll admit...the ribeye was pretty good! The meat was very tender and flavorful. This too came accompanied by a baked potato and garlic bread. The only minor flaw was that my dad ordered it medium but it came out closer to medium rare but that's the way he and I like it anyhow. So thumbs up for the ribeye!

I also ordered a trip to the salad bar ($3.99) and it was pretty good as well. I would just get a platefull and the three of us shared.

The total bill came out to about $71 for the three of us. 3 entrees, 1 appetizer, 1 side salad bar, and 1 soft drink. I gave the standard 15% tip to Anna so the total came out to $82. Kind of pricy for a meal for 3 of that quality. It's a good thing I had my $50 gift card so I spent only $32 out of pocket.

Overall, a satisfactory visit that pretty much agreed with my preconception of the place. At those prices, I doubt I'd go back unless it was for the decently priced ribeye ($21.99).

I'd give Ruby Tuesday a 6/10.

A Little Silly Holiday Fun

Here's the movie trailer for Elf 2: Electric Boogaloo:

Elf 2 Trailer

By the way...the new star is really handsome!!! =)

I Present.....Keone'ula Elementary School!!!

My current project is about to come to an end...I've been the construction manager for the building of a brand spanking new Elementary School since July 2005 and we're at about 99% complete as of today. The school is located in the Ocean Pointe district in Ewa Beach and will officially be called Keone'ula Elementary. I thought I'd share some pics now that we're pretty much done....

This is how we started in summer 2005...digging building footings and pouring concrete:And this...is the final product! Here's the reception counter for the Admin Building:View of the Library entrance. The front of the building is supposed to look like a pencil. Can you tell?Libary main room. Check out the high ceilings! Those things on the wall are acoustical panels which are designed to absorb sound.Here's the inside of the cafeteria. The big green thing is the stage, currently in the "closed" position. To open it up, the sides slide out and open sideways. Pretty cool.This cafeteria also has a full working kitchen.Here's the front of Building F, the two story classroom building. Note the decorative panels.A view of the west face of Building F.View of the central courtyard in Building F. You can see the color schemes on the walls outside the classrooms too.View of a general classroom. The colored accent tiles match the color on the exterior wall of the classroom. The wall you see is also an operable partition that can open up to make the 2 adjacent classrooms into one big classroom.This is the "breakout" room which connects two adjacent classrooms, to be used for computers.View of the campus from Building F.Main corridor in the single story classroom building (there are two of these, Buildings E and G)Science RoomMain courtyard bridge. The gray stones in the grass are supposed to be a dry riverbed. Pretty, yeah?View from the other side.We also have an actual working sundial. Cool!Drop off / Pick up areaOne of 2 playfields. There's also an outdoor assembly lawn for big assemblies and a full basketball/volleyball court.So that's our new school! The kids who get to come here are really lucky cuz I think that this is the best elementary school that I've ever seen. I mean, Moanalua ES (where I went) wasn't shabby but this is way cooler. Scheduled to open in January 2007.