Monday, November 23, 2009

Twilight Two is the same old GOO



Movie going men around the world prepare for round two of the goo. Twilight 2 hit the theaters this last weekend and offers a true dilemma in our teen dating paradise. Our young heroin who in the first movie found herself in love with the most unusual of creatures, A VAMPIRE. Of course its not that unusual because in the 90's there was a TV show called Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Buffy was a human in love with a vampire named Angel as well, so I guess its not that original. Anyway, the glowing vampire of Twilight is an effeminate and handsome creature who offers our teenage female the option to date a man who is beautiful like a girl and soft and tender like a girl. Truly his androgynous is what has enthralled Asian audiences. He is something directly out of a Japanese or Korean comic, tall, lanky, pale white, and not so threatening or ominous as a beast like man. But of course, as young girls begin to wonder what kind of man they will give their first blood to, they also consider the alpha male of the muscle head or jock. So enter Mr. Muscles in the form of a werewolf alternative. If our vampire is soft and sweet, our werewolf is hard and full of raging passion for our teenage girl. 

Oh since the first vampire tale by Stoker we see the metaphor of girls trying to decide who will turn them from child to woman by spilling their blood, metaphorically and literally. But today's teens get to see the true struggle acted out right in front of them. She loves Mr. Muscles, but chooses to stay with soft and sweet. 

Guys don't fight this, if your girlfriend, best friend, or wife asks you to go this movie, and if your living in Asia they certainly will -- then GO. The women deserve a film once in a while as 95% of all films are designed from the man's point of view. This film series is unique because it is truly exploring the feelings of a teenage girl sorting through the complex emotions of teenage love and friendship. BORING? Yes, for guys your going to be doing a lot of wondering what the hell is going on, but sit through it because your female partner deserves her chance. 

My advice to the guys. See the movie in Thailand where they serve beer in the theaters. Tip a couple back and let the film slide by. Also you may want to work out a few days before you go because basically nobody wears a shirt in this thing and you don't want to be the flabby boyfriend after she sees this. 

Friday, November 20, 2009

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Cambodia and Thailand Tension



In the end I believe neither of these nations have true intent to go to war, but the saber rattling has become a little too much for comfort. There are issues being talked about, but most people believe a lot of political advantage is being seen for both sides to show a strong face to the enemy. In truth there are no issues here that are worth fighting a boarder war over, but considering Cambodia is trying to rebuild their nation and nationalism it seems to be beneficial for them to develop a neighboring enemy to bolster this. In modern day these two nations have not had a war, but there have been a number of boarder skirmishes over the years. For us here in Thailand our political instability has become a way of life and perhaps this government would also like to show a great deal of strength abroad in order to send a message to rival factions within the Kingdom. Sadly, it would seem most of this recent tension revolves around Thaksin messing with Thailand again, but this time he is switching to the Cambodian side of the boarder. I'm not sure what his motivation is, but without a doubt he has interests in Thailand that have brought him next door. 

Monday, November 2, 2009

Loy-Krathong


Happy Loy-Krathong to everyone! The most beautiful holiday in Thailand is an ancient fertility ritual. Families or lovers who aspire to build families will take to every body of water tonight to light a candle and float it away within a banana crafted pawn. This illuminates the ponds around Bangkok with a glow of love and peace. The tradition is ancient and is believed to have begun in the far north of the country where they were making an offering to the Nagga. If you visit Thailand I think this is truly a must see event, because it is done on such a local and rural level that you can truly see the Thai people interacting with each other on a communal and loving basis. It is not commercialized or catchy the way so many of the other festivals have become. I mean its really cool, buy a little banana float, light the candle, hold it with your lover and then set your troubles afloat in this symbolic representation of a better future! Lovely. 

Nebraska Football's 2 greatest knights


Husker football is making me sleepy again here in Thailand. The games are usually on at about midnight Saturday night for me. I tune them in on the internet and scream and yell and get all fired up and then usually can't sleep when the game ends at about 3:30 or so in the morning. Over all the season has been disappointing. We are only 5-3 after controlling 7 of our 8 games almost completely, but finding a way to lose 2 more games than we should have. Our offense is the worst I can remember, but there is a reason I can't stop watching these games and that can be simply summed up with two words, CRICK and SUH! Not since the Peter brothers who played for the Huskers in the 90's glory days have we enjoyed such hard hitting and fast defense linemen. They don't just create pressure for the quarterback to worry about, they get sacks, tip passes, create fumbles, and wear down offensive linemen. The create holding penalties, disrupt the passing flow of every QB and crush running backs who dare to run inside. Suh is the most amazing player we've had in years, but when the double and triple teaming happens it opens the door for Crick to be great and last week against Baylor he was amazing with 5 sacks.  I know our offense is horrible so far, but its beautiful to watch a defense like this. I can't get enough. Bring on Oklahoma, we may not get a win, but we are sure going to have some BIG HITS!