For the benefit of those who depend on this blog for Rain news: Rain departed Korea today for the USA to attend some activities related to the anniversary of Korea-USA relations or whatever it’s called. I’m sorry for not knowing the exact name of the event; I’m in the middle of rehearsals for our office program and I’m just sneaking a post using my phone while the others are practicing.
Headline: [Photo] Rain’s ‘army uniform fashion that even goddess Kim Tae Hee fell for’
Top K-netizen comment: 1. [+780, -164] Oh look, it’s a soldier cosplay
I’m so sorry, Rain, the other comments about your article are just plain nasty, but the top one just made me especially when paired with the headline. At the same time, I want to someone for coming up with that kind of media play. I mean, COME. ON. “Army uniform airport fashion”??? Mr. Jung is an actual uniformed personnel; it’s not like he wore army greens because he felt that it would look great for airport photos.
I swear, somebody somewhere hates Rain so bad for him to receive this kind of publicity. Either that, or whoever is handling his PR messed up on the job again.
Cho Yong Pil has been in the news lately for being the artist that beat Psy at Korea’s Billboard charts (and all other charts in Korea, basically). Naturally, I got curious and checked out his song, Hello.
This was my face when I first few strums of the song started playing:
To be honest, I don’t know anything about Cho Yong Pil prior to this. I had to do a quick consultation with Mr. Google, who told me that Cho Yong Pil is a legend in Korean pop music since the 70′s and saying that his music has transcended various genres is an understatement. In fact, his Wikipedia page can’t seem to decide exactly what genre applies to him because his music is classified as “K-rock, K-pop, trot, new wave”. Never in my wildest dreams did I even imagine seeing the words ‘rock’, ‘new wave’, ‘pop’ and ‘trot’ in one sentence that describes a single artist.
When I searched for the Hello MV on YouTube, I was expecting a ballad, at the very least, because I have no idea about Cho Yong Pil’s music (I saw the MV before I consulted Mr. Google, who referred me to Manong Wiki). I never expected to hear a very current-sounding song with a very current-looking MV from a singer who is 60+ years old and has been in the music business for over 40 years.
I’ve been hearing/reading comments about artists whom they say are too old to compete with the current batch of idols because of their age (eg.: Rain, Lee Hyori, Shinhwa). Cho Yong Pil is the living proof that age is not a deterrent for an artist to evolve and be always ‘current’ in the music industry. They just have to learn how to reinvent themselves. A formula that worked in the past will not always work the same way in the future. Adaptation is the key to survive in this ever-changing business.
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Random thoughts while watching the Korean movie, The Thieves (yes, I’m late in watching this movie):
1. I’ve always viewed Jeon Ji Hyun more as ‘sexy’ rather than pretty/beautiful. For me, her goddess status is more about how she carries herself rather than her actual looks. However, while watching this movie, I realized that she’s just ordinary when standing next to the really smokin’ hot Kim Hye Soo.
2. I have seen three Jeon Ji Hyun movies prior to The Thieves: My Sassy Girl, Windstruck and Il Mare. Notice that they were all old movies. That’s because I never got interested in watching her other movies after Windstruck because I found her acting skills ‘juvenile’. I have to admit that I was surprised at her acting in The Thieves. Even if this movie isn’t really an acting piece, I think she has improved a lot over time. I’ve been seeing some good feedback about her acting in the movie The Berlin File. I’ll have to see that movie to make an informed judgment.
It’s great to see the famed Korean Goddesses proving that they are much more than just pretty faces. Well, except for one, but I wouldn’t count on her catching up because it turns out, she’s adopting the ‘haters gonna hate’ attitude towards criticisms on her acting… Anyway, that’s and that’s just about the amount of blog space I’m giving that woman. Back to The Thieves…
3. My personal definition of ‘depression’: seeing the 57-year-old Kim Hae Sook (some of you might know her as Song Hye Kyo’s real mother in Autumn In My Heart) looking so much younger, with toned arms to boot.
Again, another proof that age is not a deterrent for a person to evolve and look ‘current’.
4. Save for the pretty face, Lee Jung Jae and Jo In Sung really do have a lot of similarities. Therefore, it is no surprise that Kim Min Hee ended up dating Jo In Sung. For those who are not aware, Kim Min Hee used to date Lee Jung Jae.
5. Kim Soo Hyun may not have a lot of onscreen time here (the movie was filmed before he became a big star via Moon-Sun and it was said that after he became popular, they had to add a few more scenes to make his role a bit bigger) but the boy really does have electrifying screen presence. Surprise, he can be sexy! He actually had great chemistry with Jeon Ji Hyun. I only hope that the rumors that he has developed an attitude problem due to his enormous popularity are just rumors because it’ll be such a pity for him. He’s both good-looking and talented; it’s going to be such a waste if turns out to be an ass.
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Addendum to the Jeon Ji Hyun part of this entry: Can anyone please tell me what this write up is all about?
Just like how I’ve already lost count of the number of Consolatory Train performances that Rain has done since he became an entertainment soldier, I’ve also lost count of how many times he performed Hip Song throughout this period. I bet we’ll see the same performance until he’s released from prison the army.
Makes me wonder if Rain ever felt so sick and tired performing this same song over and over for almost two years? I know some of us are already sick and tired of watching him perform that same song over and over for almost two years. (To be honest, I can’t even tell each performance apart by now.) Don’t get me wrong, I love Hip Song; I just got tired of it after about the 12th repetition of the same performance. If I were Rain, I’d retire it or at least re-arrange it to a fresher version if once he makes his comeback.
Then again, this is the same guy who kept on doing that same Nan shower number for five consecutive concert tours, so what makes me think that he’d even think of retiring Hip Song…
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Today is the first day of ticket selling for CN Blue’s Bluestorm in Manila concert. According to Boice Philippines’ Facebook page, there were long lines in ticket outlets to get first dibs at the best seats.
Since I’ve decided to forego the prime seats due to budget constraints, me and some of my other friends decided to just buy our (cheaper) tickets later. But if this long line keeps up and tickets sell out, we might just end up leeching off stories from our friends who bought prime seats.
This is where I fully realized where exactly CN Blue is in my hierarchy of Kpop biases. I didn’t bother scrambling for good seats on the first day of selling, unlike with Big Bang where I parked my buns in front of the computer the entire day trying to grab the best seats possible. I also didn’t risk becoming dead broke as long as I have VIP tickets for their concert, the way I did many times for Rain. I used to like CN Blue, in fact I almost became a full-time fan. I just lost interest in them after their second Korean mini-album and I can’t relate to them anymore.
Truthfully, I became more excited when I learned that former UKISS member Alexander is coming to Manila in July for a fanmeeting.
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This one’s a bit late, but I still want to post this because I really love these photos of Song Hye Kyo:
That’s Hye Kyo volunteering her services for KARA (Korea Animal Rights Advocates), an organization that promotes animal protection in Korea. There are a lot of celebrities doing volunteer work for various causes, but I seldom see anyone actually doing the dirty work the way Song Hye Kyo does. What’s more impressive is that Hye Kyo has been doing this for 10 years but it’s only now that it got revealed to the public, and it’s KARA themselves who publicized it instead of coursing it through the press for media mileage. Song Hye Kyo is truly a beautiful person with an even more beautiful heart.
I got literally fried under the sun the whole day today and it’s friggin’ hot in my room so certain parts of this post are going to be ugly. You’ve been warned.
1. I’m having this huge dilemma right now that can be summarized by this: Rain or CN Blue?
CN Blue is having a concert in Manila on June 15, 2013. Ticket selling will officially start on Sunday. I like CN Blue, in fact I *almost* became their fan. I just lost interest after they released their Bluelove mini-album because the songs didn’t appeal to me anymore. But I’ve already made a pact with my other CN Blue-loving friends that if ever the band comes over to Manila for a show, we will definitely get VIP seats. Therefore, even if I’ve seen the setlist and found out that I only know four songs out of 18 and save for Oetoriya they won’t even play the songs that I really like, I have to keep my word to my friends.
Then there’s that Korea trip that I luckily was able to book from a seat sale last year, in time for Rain’s release from prison, er, the army. I had been having an internal see-saw battle about this trip, particularly after 01 January 2013. But I still want to go for three non-Rain-related reasons: (1) to see Sookyoung 이모 again; (2) to experience going to Korea without a fixed itinerary; and (3) it’ll be like a gift to myself for my 40th birthday.
But with my finances becoming a bit unsure lately (I blame FitFlops and S&R for it), I suddenly found myself having to choose between the two: proceeding with the CN Blue VIP ticket but not having enough money for the Korea trip to the point that I may have to cancel it, or getting a cheaper ticket for CN Blue in order to save the money for Korea, but leaving my friends hanging in the air.
I know it’s just a silly problem and it’s nothing compared to people who have REAL problems so please, no judgment. (I actually hate it that I sound like a snotty, feeling-rich spoiled brat right now.) I just needed a place to vent and what better place to vent but here in the comforts of my own virtual home?
PS: More money problems! Alexander Eusebio is having a fanmeet in Manila on July 27, 2013. The good news is, this will be after the Korea trip so my financial worries have eased up by that time.
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2. I sometimes wonder, are some people on the internet just ignorant, or just plain and simple trolls?
I mean, when you go to a website or forum, do you ‘look around’ first before posting? Do you check if the people posting in that place have the same views and beliefs as you? If it doesn’t, do you post to air your opinion, or to piss people off? And what for?
Take this whole JIS-KMH-SHK-O2 Couple Shippers Meltdown Extravaganza. I dropped by a That Winter, The Wind Blows forum – yes, the drama forum, not the couple shipping forum – and what do I see? Several HUUUUGE photos of… KANG DONG WON, because he has just signed up with the agency that handles Song Hye Kyo and because of that, they’re probably dating in real life. I was like, what in the freakin’ hell????? on the entire post. It’s so out-of-place, yet someone posted it. Why? What for?
Truthfully, I get a lot of “what the hell” reactions every time I open my blog’s Comments moderation panel. I’m not sure how many of my current readers know what exactly is the theme of this blog even if there’s a big, pink logo posted at the left-hand corner of this page. Do I still have to spell it out?
I’m not saying that people are not allowed to post their own views if it doesn’t agree with mine or what the majority of the regulars here think. I want to be democratic, and I think I’ve given everyone more than enough freedom to post whatever they want in here. But is it too much for the blog owner to ask her guests to at least honk first before proceeding? Look around! I’m not shipping that ship! Get a clue, please!
Shipper’s logic: Same agency? They must be dating!
My logic: If we use the logic that Song Hye Kyo and Kang Dong Won sharing the same agency means they’re probably dating, then Hyun Bin and Shin Minah are probably dating, too.
(Yes, I do acknowledge that they might be dating, but only because anything in the world is possible. However, I won’t jump into conclusions yet just because they have the same manager.)
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Updated, April 24, 2013
BREAKING (news, and hearts): The couple that Dispatch announced last night is… Jo In Sung and Kim Min Hee (AllKpop; Netizen Buzz)
A moment of silence for the O2 shippers. Now we’re all ‘casualties’ of Dispatch.
I’m sorry for not knowing the exact name of the event; I’m in the middle of rehearsals for our office program and I’m just sneaking a post using my phone while the others are practicing. 
especially when paired with the headline. 
At the same time, I want to 
someone for coming up with that kind of media play. I mean, COME. ON. “Army uniform airport fashion”??? Mr. Jung is an actual uniformed personnel; it’s not like he wore army greens because he felt that it would look great for airport photos. 
Anyway, that’s 
and that’s just about the amount of blog space I’m giving that woman. Back to The Thieves…
(To be honest, I can’t even tell each performance apart by now.) Don’t get me wrong, I love Hip Song; I just got tired of it after about the 12th repetition of the same performance. If I were Rain, I’d retire it or at least re-arrange it to a fresher version 
What’s more impressive is that Hye Kyo has been doing this for 10 years but it’s only now that it got revealed to the public, and it’s KARA themselves who publicized it instead of coursing it through the press for media mileage. Song Hye Kyo is truly a beautiful person with an even more beautiful heart.
