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J u l y 0 6 , 2
0 0 8
 elcome
to our web site! Many of you have asked us time
after time to create a MySpace page. In lieu of
that, or a Facebook page, Nick has created a web
site for us to share our thoughts and pictures
with everyone. We wanted something clean, clear,
and easy to navigate and hope we have achieved
that in creating this web site. In return, we
hope that you all will share your thoughts with
us by posting to our blog.
This web site will evolve with us as we add pictures,
links, blogs, and update calendar events. Any
suggestion is greatly appreciated.
Join us often, both far and near, and keep those
thoughts coming! We'll talk to you soon!
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Please visit blog.nickandjoua.com
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| Off With His Head! |
| Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:31:00 +0000 |
In the same vein as my previous posts about Heroes and Heroines, it would dismissive of me should I not mention the great villains. After all, your hero is only as great as your villain. And should you not have a nemesis (even Nate the Great has a nemesis at the tender age of eight), who who would you be battling and overcoming? While all these villains are brought to life with only pencils, color, and human voices, they are, rooted in our subconscious. They have made quite an impression and though you may not like to admit it, there is some part of at least one that you'd like to embody. Ooooohhhh...
Clayton wants money and power with an intensity that comes off extremely harsh. He doesn't mince words and doesn't pretend to be what he isn't. He just is.
Hopper is the ultimate intimidator. He is cunning and comes across as ruthlessly merciless. He is confident in everything he does and hell-bent on oppression.
Shan-Yu has to be one of the most frightening villains. He is ruthless and quiet in his violence. He's quite effective in getting his point across. I mean, really, "How many men does it take to deliver a message"?
Gaston, while not quiet scary, is a class A jerk. He just wants it to be all about him.
Judge Claude Frollo...hmmm...now this villain is truly unsettling. While most Disney villains are way too flamboyant and extreme to be taken seriously, he gave me chills. He is so self-righteous and convinced that he is doing to right thing that he became so utterly corrupt. How many times have we seen this is in our real history? His performance in the song "Heaven's Light/Hell's Fire" was so disturbing, I feared for the young audience. If you have a chance, watch that scene again. It'll make you shudder. I promise.
Lady Tremaine (Cinderella's evil step-mother) is a cool villain. She is shrewd but graceful. She exudes a frigid elegance and causes Cinderella harm without ever laying a hand on her. She is the one calling the shots and don't you forget!
Ursula is just plain fun. I loved her evil chuckle. She did it so well. In many ways, she personifies a spoilt child. She presents herself as wholesome and misunderstood. She is devious and sadistic. She has power (wants more) and makes people miserable for the fun of it. She's all about revenge (who isn't at some point - but watch out for Karma) and will do anything to get it. Everything has a price in Ursula's world and nothing is by the book.
The Queen (Snow White) wanted the heart of her competitor. I think that's all I'm gonna say about that.
Scar...family betrayal says it all. Hmm...sound familiar anyone?
Maleficent is terribly beautiful despite the horns. She's all about the drama and the big gestures. She makes wonderful entrances and follows through with her threats. And talk about revenge! Shoot, she wants to kill Aurora just because she wasn't invited to the party. Ha! The way she lured Aurora was chilling to say the least and when she turned into the awesome dragon at the end...well, I wasn't sure who to cheer for. She's waaayyyy cool!
(By the way, I'm gonna be Cruella De Vil this year for Halloween. I hear she's shouldn't be around dogs. Watch out, Darla!)
-Joua |
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| Once Upon A Time... |
| Thu, 23 Oct 2008 15:41:00 +0000 |
All right guys, this one's for you. My list of Disney heroes reflect nearly eighty years of perfecting the best character that embodies that which we have sought so much for. I have to say that I like the more modern characters because they exemplify a more thought out character as opposed to the one-dimensional male heroes who seemed too prefect to be true. The recent characters have represented more flawed and imperfect personalities who's struggle we can sympathize with. So...here goes with the guys: Captain Shang not only epitomizes the mold of a physically fit specimen (he is half naked most of the time - and working out to boot!) but he also illustrates how his good qualities extend to his ability to respect Mulan. Captain John Smith is adventurous, caring, and extremely charismatic. He exemplifies acceptance of others. Always willing to discover things he has learned yet. Prince Eric, Prince Charming, and Prince Phillip are a call-back to the heroes of old. These stories were more about the girls' struggle anyway, right? But, these guys were able-bodied, fine looking, charming gentlemen who could all sing pretty well. While they remained mostly one dimensional, when circumstances demanded for them to be brave and step up, they did. Heck, Prince Phillip rushed to his ladies rescue (literally) and slayed the evil dragon while Prince Eric speared a gigantic octopus (umm...sushi). Peter Pan, while not my favorite, probably shares a a kindred spirit with all guys. After all, he refuses to ever grow up! He has endless amounts of bravery (never truly taking any situation seriously) and is simultaneously good and bad. While he remains endearing to many, I have found him to be more annoying than heroic. Ahhh, Tarzan...what more do I have to say? He's probably every girl's secret dream guy. He's strong, agile (woo-hoo!), sensitive, and extremely charismatic (if only you spoke monkey). He'd kill tigers for you and take you to places full of wonder (probably mosquitoes too, I bet). Talk about goin' wild! Mr. Incredible (a.k.a Bob Par...Ha! Par...get it?) is probably how every girl sees her dad. He is strong, amazing, and extremely capable. He understands that his strength comes from his family and that they define and make him who he his. Hercules rises above his juvenile passion for fame and fortune to discover true heroism, valuing the life of others - at the cost of his own. He strove for acceptance from others and learns that his own worth lies in valuing himself. He is one of the few Disney characters who grow from boy to man. Beast...hmm...does he have a name? He couldn't have been going by 'Beast' when he was a man, was he? That would just be odd. But, getting back to what I was saying, the Beast (while not a man) has to be one of the most beautifully drawn beasts there ever was. Furthermore, he is dramatic, sympathetic, and can kick butt! His bottom lip is in a constant pout while his eyes draw you into his current brood. Umm...that's all I'm gonna say about that... Simba is one of the bravest characters among Disney's heroes. He's an annoying child, growing up quickly to learn the lessons of life, accepting his responsibilities, fights for his family, and proves that he can become the wise leader he once claimed he was. He's quite handsome to boot! He overcomes his youth (not too easy for some of us humans) and deals with his past in a very face-to-face way. I mean, seriously, who doesn't have that conniving, manipulative, back-stabbing relative just waiting for you to fall? Aladdin. He's got to be my favorite of all. He rises above what he's been dealt, challenges the norm and accepted, fights for and defends the Love of his life, figures out who he his, and has the heart to give up what he wants to most to free another. He makes it very clear from the beginning that it's not material things that define who he is. He gets caught up in the pomp but comes to realize his mistake and overcomes. He has wits, charm, and simple honesty. So...did I miss anybody? Probably. And because I probably skipped over a few, write me and let me know who was your favorite (who you'd like to be wooed by) and why. Oh, and of course, your quiz: http://www.brainfall.com/quizzes/which-disney-hero-are-you/
-Joua |
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| In a Land Far Far Away |
| Tue, 21 Oct 2008 23:51:00 +0000 |
 So I was singing along to Disney's 'True Love's Kiss' (Enchanted) and I thought back to a discussion
Xai and I had a while back about Disney Princess movies. It started to sound a lot like a debate between five year-olds. She stated that her favorite movie was Beauty and the Beast. Mine happened to be Little Mermaid. Our discussion became a little heated...but why? And even though I don't plan on having children, I am collecting my favorite Prince/Princess Disney movies. So my question is this: why do we submerge so easily into these movies? What is it about these characters that we identify with? Think about it: Cinderella is oppressed and marginalized. She is meek but cultivates kindness, gentleness, and graciousness. And when the chance for her to make one dream come true, she takes it without waiting to be rescued. Snow White tries to navigate her way around a nasty world. Her gentle ways, trust in others, and innocent nature wins her friendship and protection from others - especially when she isn't able to protect herself. Jasmine questions social expectation and social status. She is strong and independent and quite capable of taking matters into her own hands. Taking the risk to find out what waits outside her comfort zone. Mulan is courageous, brave, strong, and wily...while remaining feminine. She bucks social expectation to save someone she loves at the risk of dishonoring herself and her family. Arial takes risks to follow her dreams...even when they seem hardly attainable (hey, she used to live and breath under water!). Like many teenagers, she does not feel understood, and is forever trying to make other people see things her way. She is feisty, romantic, and a little bit naive. Pochontas is courageous and principled. Her free-spirit, curiosity, and independence makes up her strong character. She questions the norm and stands up (literally) against her own people to see that things are thought through. Belle is intelligent, kind, and patient. Her beauty is more than skin-deep while her inner strength helps her move forward regardless of the situation she is thrown into. Sleeping Beauty grew up under the watchful and protective gaze of three other people. She is gentle, loving, and thoughtful. She is forced to give up her dreams to fulfil expectations. Giselle is innocent, trusting, and romantic. She is thrusted into a world full of chaos and disenchantment. Her loving nature, trusting heart, and passionate belief in Love spills over to others and helps save the day. So then, which Princess are you? Who is your favorite Disney character? What movie would you appear in and who would you be in that movie? For fun, click here to find out which princess you would be: http://www.daydreamings.com/disney/
-Joua |
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| Politics is funny sometimes... |
| Fri, 03 Oct 2008 02:03:00 +0000 |
I usually hate discussing politics (opens up a whole 'nother can of worms) but if you've recently been a hermit and not paying attention, Sarah Palin has been very popular of late. She's been doin' really, really bad in her interviews. And of course, this gives Saturday Night Live lots of material to make fun of. It's hilarious just how spot on Tina Fey nails Palin. It's attatched the SNL interview (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r36Xc0GG4iQ). If you get the chance, check out the 'real' interview with katie Couric just to compare. You'll laugh your butt off - even if you're not in politics at all (like me).
-Joua |
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| Blog Troubles |
| Sun, 14 Sep 2008 20:04:00 +0000 |
So the blog service I was previously using stopped working with my website a couple of days ago. I've since decided to switch services. This means that those of you who were subscribed to our blog may no longer receive emails when we make a new post. I've gone through and copied some of your email addresses over to our new service. Our new service doesn't allow you to subscribe and unsubscribe on your own anymore...at least I haven't been able to find a feature like that.
If you would like to subscribe or unsubscribe your email address from our blog for any reason, just let me know and I will add or remove you manually. Thanks.
-Nick |
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| Children...or the lack thereof... |
| Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:24:00 +0000 |
I LOVE taking pictures of kids. Young kids. Their expressions are so honest and truthful. When you catch their expressions in just the right light, it's like looking right into their soul at that very moment. All their joy, frustrations, excitement, confusion...all there for you to see. There's no hiding. And from an adults's point of view (mine, at least), it's so very refreshing. If you ever thumb through my photo library, you'll find that I have tons of pictures of children. Most of whom I've baby-sat at one time or another. And of these phtotos, I print the ones I like most and hang them on the wall or keep in my wallet. Which then raises a lot of questions from people who don't really know me. They ask if these babies are mine.
Hmmm...funny story. So, since my plan to pro-create one of my very own is small to none, everyone out there, continue to have babies and feel free to bring them over for "photo sessions". In the meantime, enjoy my current pictures of LeiKhang. He's just cute as a button. A little hard to understand sometimes (since he speaks Hmong only), but jeez, the things that come out of their mouths...
(BTW: I thought coming from a family of 11 children was large...but dang, there's a family out there with 17 kids - the 18th on the way. They are the Duggar family. They were part of a large controversy not too long ago over the "right" to have THAT many kids. Some people argued about the many homeless kids already out there and others argued about that the indivdual welfare of each child decreases when you add more. Whatever you believe, the Duggars say that they are simply blessed and will continue to have more children...until they can't. 18 kids...wow. And I don't even want one...)
-Joua |
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| Keepin' Up With The Olympics...swimming, that is. |
| Fri, 22 Aug 2008 16:58:00 +0000 |
So anyone whos' been watching the Olympics knows that Michael Phelps came with a goal and is achieving that goal. But when it came to the 4x100m Freestyle Relay, France was the favorite. The Aussies are pretty strong themselves and the defending gold were the South Africans. If you watched the race...you know your heart was pumping because we didn't look like we would get the gold...even with Phelps swimming. Australia lead after the first turn...and then the US lead with Bernard. But then...France came up and took the lead and I thought that they would win Gold for sure. France had a really good lead...a really good lead...we were strong in second...and yet...Lezak snuck in...swam past France...and US wins the GOLD by .08. It was really, really, really amazing!!! It was so close! Even the commentators were blown away. And the French...well...they were speechless. They said they would kick our butts. Looks who's talkin' now! Yeah, USA!!! (Go to NBCOlympics.com to watch replay) Medal Count: USA 102, China 89, Russia 57, Great Britain 44, Australia 42, Germany 36, France 34, South Korea 28, Japan 25, Italy 25, Ukraine 21, Cuba 19, Canada 17, Netherlands 16, Belarus 16, Spain 12, Brazil 12, Kazakhstan 11, Jamaica 10 |
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| Bigfoot and Chupacabras exist! What's next, Leprechauns? |
| Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:14:00 +0000 |
 Oh wait, South Park already did this one! (see the opening scene of Imagination Land, part 1 where Cartman makes a bet with Kyle that he can prove leprechauns exist). I came across a news story today about how some researchers in Georgia recovered the body of what they believe is the legendary sasquach. They have some pictures of the creature and are supposedly holding a press conference in Palo Alto tomorrow to present the DNA and photographic evidence. You can read the article HERE and view their images HERE. The server was overloaded with heavy traffic today, so if the page doesn't load, just try again a little later. It's funny how crazy people get about this sort of thing. I have to say that there is a small part of me that wants this to be true even though all my good sense is telling me that this it's not. It's the possibility that's so intriguing, it just seems to capture everyone's imagination. Let's see what they have to say at the press conference tomorrow. This somehow lead to a video about how a law enforcement officer in Texas captured a chupacabra on video with the video camera in his cruiser. You can watch that video HERE. Looks like a dingo or some other creature from Australia. How crazy is it that all of a sudden we're seeing "proof" of bigfoot and chupacabras? I mean, really what's next, leprechauns? Acording to the amateur sketch above and the following news story, we've already uncovered them. See for yourself:
As if that news story wasn't enough, YouTube'ers took it to the next level:
So really, what's left? I think we've seen it all.
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| The Games Are Begun |
| Tue, 12 Aug 2008 23:19:00 +0000 |
Those darn Asians...they're so cool like that. They even came up a cute little song! The opening ceremonies were awesome. Sooooo many people! You can almost graps the 1.3 billion strong! My TiVo has been doing awesome job of recording the programs I want to watch. Only thing is: it's been cutting off the very end of the programs. So if you missed men's gymnastics (US Men's recieved bronze - China got gold and Japan got silver) or the opening ceremony, let me know and I can send you a cd with it on there. (I really was drooling while watching those hot, sexy bodies.) So, I think the bar has been raised this year. Everything China has done for the Olympics has been stunning, creative, and openly friendly. It's all about being the welcoming host/hostess. Heck, they even got together a cheerleading team to cheer for each discipline, regardless of the team. So far, the US has won 22 medals, China 20, Korea 12, Australia 10, Russia 9, France 9, Great Britain 6, and everyone else between 1-4.
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