Another day

Well, today was a little better, I definitely wasn't as tired as I was on my first day on the job. Still getting a handle on the phone thing (and the sometimes not so pleasant customers). But not doing too badly after only 2 days of work and 3 years of being out of a school/work environment.

The afternoon hours are a little weird (from 1pm to 8pm) and I think will take some getting used to. I'm actually finding it much harder to get up at 10 or 11am rather then 7 or 8am. It's hard to get yourself going.

And it's hard to get yourself motivated and stay motivated on slow days like today, but I suppose I should really count that as a blessing. Since I'm sure that when March break rolls around people are going to be coming into the the Travel Agency left and right to book a trip.

So, I guess I really should enjoy the quiet while it lasts.

Well, I'm off to bed and another loong day of work. Is it the weekend yet? lol.

A little update on moi :)

For some of my friends (and my readers in general) who are wondering how things are going in my personal or should I say professional life. I'm happy to report I finally have a job in a Travel Agency.

Right now it's on a volunteer/try out basis (because I have a lot of things to learn and re-learn regarding Travel and Tourism). But if things go well after a month, I might actually start making some income. Yay!!. *crosses fingers*

I am absolutely exhausted today, spent half the day answering phones and the other half calling people. Good thing I don't have to go in till the afternoon tomorrow, but I have to stay longer so I'm in for another exhausting day I'm sure.

Anyhoo, that's my bit of news. I'll write a little more later in the week once I've gotten used to the pace and the grind and I don't feel so tired.

It's Oscar night....again

Well, the Oscars have just started, have to say I'm really enjoying them so far. It's probably because of the host:) speaking of, Ellen DeGeneres is doing a great job!. I know that some people may not like her or her brand of comedy.

Personally I just love her, she's absolutely hilarious and I think her humor is just so refreshing. Life humor is always the best kind and she's the best at it.

Comedy seems to once again be the thing this year, we even had John C. Riley (whom I love that guy can belt out a song!), Jack Black and Will Ferrel do a number. Never thought I would see that lol, but it was well done. I think unlike last year the comedy is a lot less corny, another credit to Ellen.

Loved the elements and sound choir and the dance troupe, very cool. I'm disappointed neither Eddie Murphy nor Mark Wahlberg won the Oscar for supporting actor. I really thought one of them would. But I wouldn't be surprised if Mark Wahlberg gets nominated again.

And hey is it me? or has Ellen saying "no one wants to listen to long boring speeches" actually helped make them more interesting? lol. Oh, and can I just say I love Ellen interacting with the nominees. Giving Martin Scorsese a script and taking a photo with Clint Eastwood for myspace lol. Great!. Even YouTube got a mention, Hollywood is getting with the times.

Jennifer Hudson just won an Oscar for best supporting actress! (take that Simon Cowell !!). I guess Jennifer really didn't think she was gonna win, she didn't even have a speech prepared. She really didn't need one, more people should just say things from the heart like her.

Celine Dion took time from her busy schedule at Caesar's Palace to appear at the Oscars this year and sing a song. Sounded wonderful as always. And gotta say I loved the dress she wore during the performance more then the green one she wore on the red carpet.

The brown colour suited her better. There, that's the only fashion comment I'll make. Ok I lied I also have to say that Jodie Foster looked amazing, the woman knows how to dress.

Wow, Melissa Etheridge just picked up an Oscar for best original song!. Lots of surprises this year. Good surprises. Like Forrest Whittaker and Marty Scorsese finally wining Oscars (about time!:).

And hey the show only ran about 13 minutes longer then last year. I've thoroughfully enjoyed it this year. I haven't really seen any of the movies, but I was definitely entertained (unlike some years where it's been a snooze-fest). I hope Ellen gets invited back to do it again next year.

Great Martina Hingis article

Check out this lengthy Martina Hingis article from the Telegraph it's quite informative. I got it through my Google Alerts I love this feature:).

Help The Breast Cancer site

I got this from the Xena Online Community. I don't usually do this but, breast cancer is such an important issue I felt the need to share here on my blog. I've clicked on the link, and I encourage my blog readers to do the same. Go do it, it will only take a second.

Please tell ten friends to tell ten today! The Breast Cancer site is having trouble getting enough people to click on their site daily to meet their quota of donating at least one free mammogram a day to an underprivileged woman. It takes less than a minute to go to their site and click on "donating a mammogram" for free (pink window in the middle).

This doesn't cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate mammograms in exchange for advertising.

Here's the web site! Pass it along to people you know.

www.thebreastcancersite.com/

AGAIN , PLEASE TELL 10 FRIENDS TO TELL 10 TODAY

Wimbledon caves in on tradition and gives women equal pay

All I have to say is it's about time!. Took them long enough. And thank you Billie Jean King, the woman is a pioneer when it comes to equality in all areas of tennis for women.

Read the full story here

Hingis bows out of Dubai

Well, I had a feeling Hingis may not be able to win this one. Jankovic beat Hingis in straight sets 7-6 (3), 6-2 (guess she got her revenge for Tokyo).

The previous match just went on too long and Martina didn't get a sufficient amount of rest. I don't blame her at all for continuing to rag on the tournament officials some changes definitely need to be made, so that players like Martina Hingis have an equal chance at winning.

Too bad she didn't make it she had another favourable draw, I guess now she'll be moving on the Qatar Open. Hope she has more luck there.

Read the related article

Hingis hangs tough in Dubai

The black outfit is back perhaps a bad omen?

Well, looks like Martina had a surprisingly tough battle in her second round of the Dubai Championships. She had to play a 2 hour 40 minute 3 set marathon to defeat Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues 5-7 6-3 6-4 and get into the quarter finals. Ouch!.

It was a match that went on until 1:30am local time due to previous matches going longer then expected. Hingis apparently wanted to stop the play and continue the next day because it was dark but tournament officials did not allow it.

Which made Hingis a little peeved and perhaps made her loose her focus a little. Not that I blame her I would be royally pissed too. Especially if I knew I would have to go out and play Jelena Jankovic the next day. I knew those 2 were gonna clash again, just didn't think it would be so soon. Hope she has enough energy to pull off a win.

This is one match I would really love to see damn TSN for not broadcasting smaller tournaments!.

Read a related article

Martina Hingis the polo player??

Well the Dubai tournament has started today Martina is playing on Wednesday, can't wait:) (suffering a little tennis withdrawal lol). The draw has once again gotten interesting because both Sharapova and Serena Williams are out. Serena with the flu and Sharapova still with the hamstring injury.

So that's 2 big opponents Martina won't have to face. But she still faces some competition with Mauresmo and of course Justine-Henin. I'm also not counting out Kuznetsova.

Should be an interesting tournament.

And while we're waiting, enjoy some pics of Martina playing polo in Dubai which is something I thought I would never see lol, or maybe it's just because I'm too used to Martina wearing stylish tennis outfits lol.

The hat just kills me lol

hingis.org

The Amazing Race-All Stars

Well, my favourite reality t.v. show is back and back in a big way!. With 4 of my all time favourite teams from different seasons. There's the married couple Uchena and Joyce, another married couple David and Mary aka "Kentucky", Dustin and Kandice aka "the blondes" and of course Charla and Mirna.

So good to see all of them together, racing for a million bucks. I loved how David and Mary were a little awe struck at meeting Charla and Mirna and Rob and Amber.

Speaking of Romber (aka Rob and Amber) that has to be the only thing I absolutely hated about tonight's ep, and for people reading this get used to it I'm going to bitch about them a lot lol. Basically till Phil utters the words "Rob and Amber I'm sorry to tell you you've been eliminated from the race". You all will just have to put up with my ranting.

This is only the first leg of the race and Romber are already annoying me so much I can't stand it! and of course they had to come in first that didn't make it any better. It was disappointing really, I'm hoping as we go on the other teams work togather and kick Rob and Amber's butts. I'm specifically thinking of Uchena and Joyce 'cause I know they can do it. Hell, they've already won the million once so they know what it takes.

And lets not forget about the blondes those two are smarter then a lot of people give them credit for in fact if there is a team that is just as good as Romber at manipulation it's them.

Oh, I also have to say it was so refreshing not to have the teams bicker all the way through and basically being their own destruction. I think that's definitely something that will not happen in this race, all these people have been through it before so I'm expecting nothing but some good 'ole fashioned competition. With some trickery thrown in:D.

The detour tonight wasn't that challenging (compared to others) but of course we're just getting started so things will no doubt become more difficult as we go along. I'm absolutely looking forward to next week.

I already have so many questions like, which country will they travel to next? will they still be in Quito Ecuador or move on to another one? are any of the teams going to strike up alliances with others as so many have done in previous races? who will come out ahead of the remaining 10 teams?.

And most important what rule changes have the producers implemented this time around?, and last but not least what have they cooked up for the fast forwards? (hopefully nothing involving the shaving of hair 'cause poor Joyce has already done that).

If you have never watched "The Amazing Race" before, I recommend you do so, unlike all the other reality shows this one is worth watching especially since you can actually learn something.

You can find out more about this great show by clicking on The Amazing Race link in the link section of the blog.

Happy Birthday RoC!!

http://xenite.net/ROC/agency.htm

Happy Birthday to one of my favourite Xena stars Renee O'Connor who turns 36 today.

Great upcoming movie with Evan Rachel Wood

Here is a trailer for Evan Rachel Wood's newest movie "Across the Universe" which comes out later this year.

I'm really excited about this one, it show cases Evan's singing talent (for those who don't know she's a got a great voice). The trailer is quite interesting I wouldn't be surprised if this movie becomes next year's Oscar contender.



You can read more about it on imdb.

Chilly day

Today is freakin' cold! so glad I didn't have to go anywhere. We're expecting snow later today and tomorrow so what else is new right? lol.

This winter is dragging on, I knew it would when we didn't get any snow in December but man am I wishing for spring!.

I haven't updated much lately because it's been kinda boring entertainment wise and life wise, so it didn't leave me with much to talk about.

Next week should be a little more exciting with the Dubai tennis tournament coming up Monday and The Oscars the following Sunday.

2007 the year of brunettes?

I don't usually do this but so many actresses have gone brunette lately that I felt like commenting on it. I guess this is the Hollywood trend this year.

Let's see there is:

Alyson Hannigan

Who actually looks great but it's sort of weird seeing her with the dark hair. Although she has had many different hair colour changes in the past so that's not really shocking just different. I still prefer her natural red.

Than there is:

Lindsay Lohan

and

Cameron Diaz (who actually really doesn't look good at all with dark hair)

Anyway just a little observation. And there are many more but those are off the top of my head:).

Pics from:

http://www.whedon.info/article.php3?id_article=20737

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/entertainment/2007-01/18/content_786317.htm

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=422871&in_page_id=1773

It's Grammy night

I haven't watched the Grammy's in a long time but I decided to check it out this year. Nice way to start the show with the reunited Sting (who still is a total hottie) and the Police and the classic "Roxanne".

I think the one thing that watching the Grammy's made me realize is that I really don't listen to a lot of main stream music anymore. I don't really care about Mary J. Blige, Christina Agulera Shakira, Black Eyed Peas, Red Hot Chili Peppers or Justin Timberlake, but that goes without saying lol.

I've really become a fan of indie artists, artists that are unknown and not overplayed on the radio. That's where all the undiscovered talent is in my opinion.

I did enjoy the James Blunt, John Legend, John Mayer, and Gnarls Barkley performances .

And I was very happy that John Mayer won the best pop vocal album although I have to say I was kinda hoping James Blunt would take it.

The best moment of the night goes to the Dixie Chicks for once again sticking it to the critics with a Simpson's quote no less! lol. Priceless!.

Oh, and it looks like aside from Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood seems to be having the most success out of all the previous idols. She won the best new artist award.

Next on the award circuit? The Oscars! only a couple of more weeks I can't wait!. It's gonna be good this year.

Wonder Woman parody

A hilarious look at why being a super hero is not such a glamorous job.




And just another reason why Xena is so much better:)

BLOG ARCHIVING 101

I was debating on whether to say anything about this but my frustrations on this issue won out. Before I get to what this is all about I just wanna say this is only a friendly reminder though it's delivery may not sound as such blame it on the type of mood I'm in.

Ok, so on with the topic, I think a lot of people from my visitors, to my friends, to my family members are under the impression that my blog is only focused on Tennis. And I admit it may seem that way at first since the main reason I started it was to share my passion for the sport with other people. But I must point out that the reason people have that impression is because a lot of them don't check the little feature on the blog called an archive.

Let me explain how it works, first off any topic that I write on any given day will be at the very top, that's because an archive sorts the posts in accordance to it's date so the most recent post will always be at the top and the days proceeding it will be at the bottom.

I also have to point out that when clicking on an archive (located right underneath previous posts on the right side of the blog) you are looking at the total posts from the entire month not just one day (for example the month of March). So that means the month may contain anywhere from 1 to 31 posts.

Oh, and I cannot stress this point enough when visiting my blog be sure to scroll down and read the entire page (keep going down till you see the page counter) because as I've mentioned above the month contains more then one topic. I know it may seem time consuming to some but that's just the way the blog is set up, one month is one long page.

Is anyone detecting frustration at this point? lol

Oh, and one more thing I did start the blog last year which means it now contains topics from 2006 and 2007 so be sure to click on them that's what they're there for.

Again please remember to scroll down, I'm sick of being accused of covering only one topic, when in fact I cover many.

Hope this helps and happy reading to all.

Martina Hingis Pan Pacific Open Champion!!

Such a lovely photo, really shows how much winning the title meant to her

Awwww

hingis.org

It's revenge week in Tokyo for Martina Hingis, she beat Ana Ivanovic in just over an hour 6-4 6-2 and took the title. Making this win her record fifth Pan Pacific Open title (she previously won it in 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2002). I guess she is right playing on carpet does suit her game.

This win makes it her first title this year (her 3rd one since her come back last year) and 43rd overall in her career. I am thrilled for her:), now I just can't wait to see her finally holding that elusive French Open trophy. I have a good feeling about it, and I think this is the year when it finally happens.

Great early start to the year I wish her luck in all of her other tournaments, hope that total title number keeps going up;). Congrats to Martina for another great win and another title!!

More on the match

Hingis storms past Dementieva in Tokyo

hingis.org

Looks like Martina got her revenge (I love writing that), she beat Elena Dementieva in straight sets 6-4 6-3 booking her place in the final with Ana Ivanovic (Sharapova retired with a hamstring injury).

This will mark their second meeting the last time these two played each other was last year in the finals of Montreal where Ivanovic was the victor. Here is hoping Hingis gets her revenge again and takes the title. Good luck Martina and congrats on the huge win! :).

More about the match here

Celebrity baby news

Sara Gilbert (Darlene on "Roseanne") has confirmed to People that she's expecting her second child with partner Allison Adler.

Source

Martina Hingis in the semis of Tokyo Pan Pacific Open

It was an easy victory for Martina today she steam rolled passed Australian Samantha Stosur 6-0 6-1 to reach the semis in Tokyo. Now she'll once again face Elena Dementiava, the two played each other last year in the finals of the same tournament.

This will mark their 7th meeting (they're 3-3 in head to head), something tells me that Martina really wants to win this one, looking for a little revenge. Though the final won't be any easier then the semis she'll either have to face Sharapova or Ivanovic (she did beat Sharapova last year in Tokyo so I'm hoping for another meeting with those two). And I'm crossing my fingers and wishing her lots of luck tomorrow in her meeting with Dementieva.