[Random] 2012 Review

A rundown of events that made my year quite interesting, along with the happenings that made me thankful for the year that passed.

*completed my 2012 Goodreads  reading challenge ~ read 150 books...and MORE.

*completed reading ALL of Agatha Christie's novels ~ I swear I feel I know Poirot better than anyone else. lol

*discovered new and exciting series to follow ~ hello Cinder, Shadow and Bone, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and Masque of the Red Death.

*finished all of Jane Austen's novels, and even her novelette ~ even watched Pride and Prejudice (the one with Kiera Knightley) twice.

*finally started watching BBC's Sherlock ~ I know I regret not being able to watch it earlier.

*met my favorite book: Graffiti Moon.

*created this BLOG. ~ was it really this year? I just know I've been totally active this year.

*met new friends, uh, correction, online friends. ~ be it on Twitter, or in Goodreads. There's nothing that makes people closer more than shared interests

*started a fic in AFF. ~ my frustrations on writing being poured out in that sorry excuse for a fanfic (which reminds me that I haven't updated for a long time)

* traveled. Uh, in my dreams?! Haha.

*big bang had a concert in the Philippines (and Dara came too) and it's a miracle that I'm still alive and not seven feet below the ground because of absolute envy.

*went crazy over Adam Levine and Jason Mraz.

*volunteered. A lot. In fact that's what I did for the whole year. ~ this translates to, I'm always broke. But, I also have new friends and a whole new experience.

*took, and passed, the Civil Service Eligibility Exam ~ with luck on my side, I managed to snag the 2nd spot on the topnotch for our region, which doesn't change the fact that I'm still penniless. All I got from it was bragging rights which I need as much as I need a raincoat while sun bathing. (don't get me wrong, I'm absolutely thankful for it too)

*learned how to bake ~ now I want a kitchen complete with all the necessary equipment and materials for baking

*another skill I've learned this year; basic computer hardware servicing ~ from technician to baker, what's next?

*managed to learn the basics of accounting ~ even the Quickbook thingy, hahaha. (all the skills I've managed to learn are all in preparation for my future, as a spinster)

*sang along to Call Me Maybe, Gangnam Style, Payphone, and what the heck, Pusong bato. Lmao.

*memorized 2ne1's I Love You and Big Bang's Bad Boy ~ yes, I can do the rap parts. Achievement.

*fell in love more with Choi Seung Hyun

*two of my most favorite people in the world joined the Twitterverse; @krungy21 and @IBGDRGN. ~ of course they were followed by another favorite entity, @ForVictori

*started joining the Dramione and Feltson ship

*diagnosed as Tweet-holic ~ tweeted more than 3,200 tweets this year.

*pinned on Pinterest ~ great site, btw

*learned how to play 'Twinkle, twinkle little star' on keyboard ~ probably my biggest achievement this year.

*AA arrived in my life and changed a lot of things. That little guy is a bundle of joy.

*grasped a bit of Photoshop

[Random] Nom de Plume

The sudden interest in pseudonyms came up because of 'The Marriage Plot'. I was reading the synopsis and George Eliot was mentioned, then I started wondering about his (i thought she was a guy at first and you couldn't blame me) works. So, I googled it and found out that George Eliot was a woman named Mary Ann Evans who used the said pseudonym to make people take her works seriously and to avoid possible discrimination. Then...I got curious as to the other pseudonyms used by different authors, good thing the ever-reliable Wikipedia has a list. Here are some 'interesting' pseudonyms used by famous and some not-so-famous people.

Anne, Charlotte, and Emily, popularly known as the Brontë sisters became the Bell sisters when they chose Acton Bell, Currer Bell, and Ellis Bell to be their respective pseudonyms.

Some authors are widely known by their pseudonyms rather than their real names, here are some of them;

Pseudonym  (Real Name)
Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel)
George Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair)
Lewis Caroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson)
Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens)
Pablo Neruda (Ricardo Eliecer Neftali Reyes Basoalto)
Voltaire (Francois Marie Arouet)

On the other hand, some famous authors known by their real names adapt pseudonyms as well for different reasons. Some of these are;

Charles Dickens - Boz
Washington Irving - Diedrich Knickerbrocker
C.S. Lewis - Clive Hamilton
Agatha Christie - Mary Westmacott
Stephen King - Richard Bachman

I've also noticed some authors who used Letters as their nom de pleums like the famous J.K. Rowling (Joanne Kathleen Rowling), H.D. (Hilda Doolittle), Q. (Arthur Quiller Couch), N.W. Clerk (C.S. Lewis), and Professor X (unknown).

Of all the pseudonyms listed in Wiki, the one who caught my attention was this guy named William Connor. He was a left-wing journalist and used 'Cassandra' as his nom de pleum. The name came from the Greek legend. Cassandra was given the gift of prophecy by Apollo but was also cursed so that no one would believe her. A very ironic pseudonym for a journalist. In fact, I find it very clever.

If I would be given a chance to write in the future and choose my very own pseudonym, I'd want something that involves Letters or an Initial. 'T. C.' maybe, short for Twinkle Choi. Or 'T. Wink', argh sounds weird to me. Humor Har. Or better yet, why not my real initials... 'H. T. A.' sounds good to me.
Watcha think? Ü

P.S. It's good to be back!