I looked like a girl.

Angelie just pointed me to an interesting site. It has a face recognition software and upon uploading of your own photo, will match you up with celebrity who look like you. Interesting...
So who do I looked like? According to the site, the celebrity who bears the greatest resemblance to me is a very beautiful Song Hye Kyo.
But.. I... am... a... guy...
Song Hye Kyo is a girl I would love to go out with, NOT someone I want to look like. C'mon... which part of me exactly that looked like a girl???

The list of who I look like is outrageous. I even looked like Naomi Watts and the late Anita Mui. Let's see who else is there- John Woo, Alan Tham, Vince Vaughn, Salvador Dali(??), and Andy Lau. For those who do not know Salvador Dali, he was a great artist who was the father of surrealism, an art movement on things that are well... surreal. I would love his imagination but I don't want his moustache. Well, at least the last person was a saving grace for me. But no Wang Lee Hom in the list? I am dissapointed...
The second picture I uploaded revealed even more unbelievable result.

Sammi Cheng, Lauryn Hill, Sheryn Regis, Jericho Rosales, Katherine Hepburn, Jolin Tsai, Siti Nurhaliza and Tyra bank. Only one guy in the list? This is not helping with my self esteem here. What is really scary though is that I thought the resemblance to Katherine Hepburn is uncanny.
The third picture I tried is a little more encouraging.

There are still three hot babes there in Jang Nara, Sofia Vergara and Ayumi Hamasaki but at least there is also the hunky Takashi Sorimachi, Takashi Keneshiro and Won Bin. Hmm... and acclaimed director Chen Kaige.
I am certain this is not the same face recognition software used by the FBI. I HOPE this is NOT the same software used by the FBI. Definitely not to be taken seriously but it was fun while it lasted.

Scolding not enuff ler...

A very well known advertisement we see in theater recently is the Digi advertisement, in which a cocky fat boy spoke freely and loudly in the theater without regards to the other patrons. He even bragged that noone will dare to scold him because he is "tai kor what".
That advertisement just has an updated version. He still received call in the cinema but his phone is in vibrate mode now. And he didn't even answer the call, just quickly rejected it. He can call back later, he probably thought. Oh... one of his arm is also in cast and his eyes is swollen.
He didn't get any scolding the last time he answered his call all right. He simply received a good beating from another patron. I think it was Vishul.

There's a rat in my soup.

When every other studios seems to be releasing their own 3-D CG animated movie recently, having one more title seems so... unexciting. I was admittedly skeptical about this film until I know it was directed by Brad Bird. Yes, the same man who gave us the incredible The Incredibles. The man who beat Antonio Banderas (Shrek's Puss in Boots) for best voice acting award with his portrayal of the eccentric Edna Mode. That Brad Bird.
I felt something was missing when I watched The Incredibles. After watching Ratatouile, I think I know what that is. Despite the medium, Bird has the ability to make an animation feels somewhat like a full feature movie. Compared to an actual good feature movie however, an animation still somehow falls short, which explained for the nagging feeling that something is missing. Erm... am I making any sense here?
Anyway... Ratatouille is a story about a rat, not just any rat. Remy has a sense of smell far superior than any other rats but more important than that is what he choose to do with it. He smells out the good food and stays away from the rest, unlike his brethrens, who eat anything. He hung out a lot in the human's house, going through their spices and watching their TV. His favourite programme is a cook show by Gusteau, who advocated that anyone can cook. He also read Gusteau's cookbook which is conveniently left in the kitchen (Sesame Street was on before the cookshow, that's where Remy picked up his ABC).
Remy soon ended up separated from his colony and alone in Paris. In extreme hunger, he saw the spirit of Gusteau himself, who insisted he is a figment of Remy's imagination. Gusteau led Remy to his restaurant where he was soon discovered by the new barbage boy, Linguini (wait... isn't that an Italian pasta?). Linguini found Remy mixing spices and flavours to improved a soup Linguini himself accidentally ruined, thereby revealing Remy's genius in the art of culinary. The two became friends and eventually work out a system for Linguini to cook on Remy's behalf, who made the choice of what ingredient to use and how to cook it. The story presented is very unlikely but that is what animation is for isn't it?
Remy is not a sweet, cute and adorable character but he is likable in his own way. The other characters are nice although nothing really outstanding. Bird's characters do tend to become a wee too real for animation.
However, Bird managed to pulled the story together very well. As usual, he never hurry through the story, picking up the pace only when it's necessary and prefering to let the story unfold slowly. This slow pacing seems to have an extra magical effect when set in Paris.
The animation is superb. I noticed that Bird seems to like a painted effect in the colour of his animation, similar to what he done in The Incredibles. It is a effect I like quite a bit.
What is most important though, is that the movie is darn entertaining. And at almost 2 hours long, we hardly felt the time goes by. It is simple enough for the children to enjoy and yet still has plenty more to offer the adults. What was the title that made Brad Bird a household name in animation? The Iron Giant I think. I really got to get my hand on a copy of that.

MERDEKA!

Recently I saw in a pharmacy, three elderly friends taking their blood pressure test. They were apparently very close with each other and there was an easy banter among them. These three friends, best of buddies, are by the way, consisted of a Chinese, a Malay and an Indian.
A truly muhibah friendship that crosses across border. I felt like I was in the middle of a Petronas "Merdeka" advertisement :-)

Fairy Tale

I don't really listen to Chinese songs. In fact, I don't really listen to much songs at all. I guess I am more of a visual person, which is why I prefer movies. But once in a while you come across something memorable.
The mandarin song Tong Hua is one that really caught my eyes. Yes, that wasn't a typo. It caught my eyes because I didn't really care for that song until I saw the music video in a Karaoke session.
The video begins with a grand piano being pushed onstage. Michael then came up, dialled a number on his mobile phone and started playing. The scene shifted to the past when Michael was attempting to compose a song and his girl friend gave him the first few note of the chorus. We then see a few couple moment, mostly with the girl seemingly bullying the boy, affectionally of course. They then kissed and after that, the girl laughed at Michael as he has blood below his nose, not realising then that those are her blood flowing out. She has a medical checkup and then accompanied Michael for his rehearsal but she collapsed just as he started playing. Hospitalised and obviously terminal, she insisted Michael continue with his performance on stage, which bring us back to the present, with Michael playing the piano on stage and his girlfriend in the hospital, listening to the performance by phone. At the end of the song, she closed her eyes and passed away.
I am sorry to give away the ending. I am not one who usually do that but the whole video is just so touching. The director did an excellent job and the use of silent moment and slow motion really increase the emotion of the video. Viewers find their heart gripped with sorrow every time something happened to the girl. My friend from Hong Kong, Elsa jumped when the girl passed away. I am not joking. She was sitting right in front of her and that was how she reacted but who can blame her? That scene was really intense.
Watch it and see if it make you cry too.

The song itself is just a typical Chinese love song. Nice, sweet, and easy on the ear. The lyric is not as heart wrenching as the video. In fact, it is really a song of a guy wanting to convince a girl that he can give her a live with a fairy tale ending despite her disbelief in such. The words are simple and needed only average command of the Mandarin language to learn the song.
With a little help, I too learnt that song and in fact, sang it for a friend on her birthday celebration. She was plesantly surprised since everyone know I can't read Mandarin. I realised it's not one of the most played song in most location but when she does hears this song, I would like to know that she would remember me.

The Hardest Feeling of All

I can't sleep.

For there is someone in my mind.

And my heart ache at the thought of her.

I do not know where to begin. Perhaps I should at the first time I saw her. She is a pretty girl and immediately I was interested to know her better. Admittedly the initial attraction is more physical than anything else but in time I saw her heart for what she is and gradually I fell, deeper and deeper. She was already with another man and though I long to be the one for her, I could not bear the thought of breaking them up for I have come to know that this is a good man. Gentle. Kind. Honest. Faithful.

I felt unqualified to pursue her love as I am not certain the depth of my feeling matches his. But we grew very close. So close she would tell me almost everything. And though she confessed that she is not happy with her relationship as she felt he does not understand her well enough, I could only encouraged her to keep trying and advised her on how to communicate to him on what she needs. Though my heart yearned to tell her my true feeling for her, the voice of my mind could only tell her what a wonderful man he is to her because deep inside, I know that she will be well taken care of and I wanted what was best for her.

The day I left the company was the most bitter and yet the sweetest day that I can remembered. For I know I will not be able to see her everyday. But it was also on this day that she told me, she broke up with her boyfriend. It was my last day she said, and she continued with the question was there anything I would like to tell her?

Yes there is. I wanted to tell her that in the time we shared together, I have grown really fond of her, and that deep down inside me, I wanted to be with her more than anything else. But instead, I only told her that among all the colleagues there, she is the one hardest for me to say goodbye to, and the one I will miss the most. She smiled a shy smile but I have the feeling that was not what she was hoping to hear. I continued that there is much more I wanted to tell her but the time has not come. I said that because I was not sure what her feeling for me are and I do not wish to frighten her.

We continued to meet up even after I went separate way to a different company. We watched movie together, celebrated her birthday, shared a strawberry cheese cake over a dinner. I would like to believe I stood a chance but though she appeared more and more comfortable around me, I have the feeling her affection is decreasing? I also know of another guy who was aftering her, for far longer than I have. I made a decision. I decided that I wanted her to choose the one she really likes, regardless if it was he or I.

But the more I learnt of this person, the more I became afraid that she would really choose him. For he is not like the man she was previously with. I became more determined to win this war even though pressure from and commitment to work tired me greatly. I was continually robbed of chances to reveal my feeling for her and before long, I realised this person played a role in sabotaging some of my plan. My determination could only grow with this discovery but in the end I lost when she revealed that her feeling for me was never the romantic kind. Ironic that it was this moment that I realised how deep my feeling for her really are.

It was difficult to let go of the feeling after all that we have gone through. I have noone to turn to as my best friend himself has also just broken off a 4 years relationship. I chose to be his outlet to pour out his grief, instead of asking him to be mine. My dear sister knows of this but she will only worry too much if she truly knows how much this is hurting me so I hide this from even her. Everyday, I put on a brave face and tried to remained cheerful. It was the hardest feeling.

I thought of the last girl I fell for. Somehow, it has been easier to let go then. Perhaps because I know I was not yet the man she would like to share her lives with. Perhaps because I believe she found someone really compatible to her and one capable of giving her everything she needs. Perhaps it's simply because, I found someone else. But it is not so easy this time. If I have lost to a better man, perhaps it will be easier to be happy for her. I do not believe the man this girl chose deserved a person as wonderful as her. I can only console myself that despite my impression of him, I still believe that his feeling for her is true. And though he has a temper, he will not let it out on her. Or though he is far from honest, he will not hurt her.

Though I realised the futility of such thought, I admit I still harbour hope that she will one day choose me. The question is, until then, can we remain as friend? She assured me we still are but though she answered my call and we continue to chat, I could sensed her enthusiasm is no longer there. She hasn't as much to tell me as before and I have not seen her since the fateful day of my confession. Something always came up but I chose to believe her every reason for each time that she backed out. But I don't think I can continue with this. Each time she agreed to meet up is accompanied by the anxiety that she will cancel. And each time that she does cancel is the time my heart break all over again.

We were to meet up this weekend but she has cancelled again. I know I should let go.

It is hurting again. And it is always the heart that feel the pain the most.