(Un-)Lucky Seven

There are much that I foresee for the month of July 07, especially in the 3rd week where everything would fall into place and the world would become a much more beautiful place. Instead...
1) The admin girl forgot to process my commission
2) My best friend's heart's broken
3) My heart's broken
4) My grandma passed away
There should be more but I can't seems to remember so I guess I can add 'failing memory' to the list. Sigh...

On the bright side, I made many new friends in person and one very interesting one online. OK, need to get into my positive thinking mode and start believing everything is possible.

Just a phrase on friendship I like to use even though most of my friends think it's corny.
"Without friend, noone would choose to lives, though he has all other goods" - Aristotle

BLOODY FUCKING HELL

People who know me would probably described me among other, as patient and forgiving, some may even said I am too patient and forgiving to a fault.

BUT HELL, PATIENT AND FORGIVING IS NOT FUCKING HOW I FEEL RIGHT NOW. I AM SO MAD I COULD NOT SLEEP THE WHOLE NIGHT. WHY ELSE WOULD I BE UP AT 5.40 AM TYPING THIS? I CAN'T BLOODY CATCH A WINK. GOD DAMMIT! I NEVER WANT SO MUCH TO REALLY PUNCH SOMEONE IN THE FACE. ASK SOME OF MY OLDER FRIENDS AND THEY WILL TELL YOU I CAN PUNCH. REAL FUCKING HARD.

DAMNED SABOTEUR. BLOODY FUCK HAS NO SENSE OF INTEGRITY WHATSOEVER. THE END JUSTIFY THE MEAN? NOT ALWAYS. AND NEVER, IF THE THE INTEREST IS SOLELY AND SELFISHLY YOUR OWN INSTEAD OF THE ONE THAT REALLY IMPORTANT. WOULD YOU BE PROUD TO WIN A WAR WON THROUGH UNDERHANDED TECHNIQUE?

IF YOUR NAME IS (name withheld) AND YOU WORK IN THE I.T. DEPARTMENT FOR (name withheld), YOU BLOODY FUCK BETTER FIND OUT WHAT MY FACE LOOK LIKE AND STAY OUT OF MY SIGHT CAUSE I FUCKING KNOW YOUR FACE AND IF I EVER SEE YOU, THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY!

NO... I AM NOT FEELING BETTER YET.

UPDATES 23/7/07 : See, I am still forgiving. I removed the name of my enemy. Admittedly, the above post was a knee-jerk reaction and hardly justified. Anyone I have spoke to, I begun by admitting that I was being a baby about it. I acknowledged that I am probably as much a villain in my enemy's eyes as he was in mine. Still, in the exact same situation, I doubt I would do the things he does. In fact, I knew I won't because I been there.
Whatever... I just hope he is a better person that the (slightly tainted) impression I have of him right now, and not just because of 'this incident' especially since the battle was lost, just before the end of 17/7/07.

Best "Underrated Movie" of the Year.

Here's a movie most people would miss, so if you are reading this, please don't miss it.

Hot Fuzz begins with a top London cop being promoted to sergeant and reassigned to the countryside for no reason other than he made the rest of the department looked bad. The village Sandford is a model village with extremely low crime rate and this is bad news for Nicholas Angel as he is totally commited to enforcing the law. So what do a hardcore top cop to do when everybody seems to be obeying the law and the worst crime in the village is the occasional grafitti?

It doesn't make thing easier that he has a partner whose impression of law enforcement in the city comes form the many action movies he seen. On top of that, there is the very active Neighbourhood Watch Association who keeps a close eyes on everything that goes on in the village. The police officers there have practically nothing to do. While Angel tried to adapt, and his partner continued to remained unprofessional and unserious about his job, it soon became clear that there is more going on in the village than meets the eyes (I know, Transformer fever. Forgive me). Though the village is low in crime rate, it does has an incredibly high rate of accidents.

Angel began to suspect that there is a murderer at loose and this murderer is cleverly disguising the murder as accident. With scantly any support from the local police force, he set out to investigate but the murderer always seems to be one step ahead of him.

Of course he solved the mystery in the end, this is a movie after all. While this movie poked fun on other movie for laugh, it does so brilliantly, unlike most of the slapstick movie we find nowaday. And though one would enjoy this movie most if one is familiar with cop-buddy films and the typical style of such film, there is enough effort in parts of the makers that others unfamiliar with this genre would still get the jokes. I saw neither Bad Boys II nor Point break, the two most satired films in this movie but I still laugh at its every reference, thanks to the film successful attempt to fill us in on the scenes.

When I watched this, Duncan and Suet were watching it for the second time. The first time around, both of them, together with another friend were the only ones laughing as the rest of the patrons do not appeared to get the joke. Brilliant as it is, this is one of those film that will only bring in mediocre blockbuster success along with a small but strong fanbase. Sadly, people nowaday prefer more in your face and obvious brand of comedy the likes of slapstick Scary Movie and its other incarnation. I admitted the first was quite good because it was unexpected and fun but the following sequel were just in bad taste in my humble opinion.

And hell, think I posted this review a little late since the movie is no longer showing in the theater. Go get the (original) DVD.

Drop Dead!

I just read an interesting tips on mosquitoes control. Apparently, you can dilute a few drops of lemon flavoured dish wash liquid in a white dinner plate of water and mosquitoes will be drawn to the solution, drink it and died. A simple and far less toxic method to control mosquitoes if you planning to have a garden picnic than the regular insecticide.

Don't ask me if it really work, or if the solution must be strictly in a white dinner plate or if the mosquitoes will eventually develop resistance to dish washer solution. I haven't try it and I haven't a clue. All I remember was an even more powerful technique I once employed.

I was driving when I noticed a mosquito flying around inside the car. I don't know how it got in but I do know it's blardy irritating and my hands are quite occupied at the moment. I just wished for it to drop dead and sure enough... it did. Right in front of me and in mid flight, it just dropped dead on the dashboard (of old age maybe?).

If you can name any technique greater than having the mosquito drop dead at your mental command, please feel free to share but do not underestimate the power of the Force.

You do NOT want to cross me.

I don't want to watch Alone alone

While I am admittedly not a big fan of the horror genre, I been itching to watch something that will scare the living daylight out of me. So far I have been disappointed. Amityville does nothing for me despite watching it in a darkened theater. Dark Water was more scary when Silas told me the story than when I actually watched it. Having not watch The Ring, its prequel Ring 0 is more confusing than frightening. Haunted Spirit is so amateurish I don't even want to talk about it. A friend once told me there are only two movies that scared the piss out of him so much he shat. And anyone who knows Pang can attest that it takes a lot to scare this daredevil. That 2 movies are the original Ring and a Thai film Shutter. While I have watch neither, the makers of the latter has recently released a new movie - Alone.

Pim is a Thai woman living in Korea with her husband Wee. News from home of her mother's succumb to stroke forced her to return home and once again face the past she was trying to put behind. The movie then revealed that she was the surviving sister of a pair of Siamese twins, with her other half supposingly perished in the operation that separated them. Flashback revealed her sister Ploy to be vengeful and possessive, especially of her twin sister. When a handsome young patient they met in a hospital fell for only Pim, Ploy became insanely jealous and even refused to budge from the bed for Pim to say her farewell on the day he left. This incident leaded Pim to insisted on living a separate live from the sister she is attached to. Hence, the burden of her guilt as she is convinced that her sister would still be alive if she hasn't make that decision.

What really happened? Here comes the spoiler. They are in red, so just avoid them if you are planning to watch it soon.


The sister who survived is not Pim but Ploy. Jealous of and upset with her sister, she strangled Pim to death. The manner in which it was revealed is brilliant, almost as good as Shyamalan's 6th Sense. In the beginning of the film, the sisters are easily identified with a simple pair of glass, with Ploy being the one who wore them. Pim has always been the sweet one while Ploy is constantly portrayed as the ... well, maybe not evil but definitely twisted sister. In the scene of the operation, Pim appeared unconscious while Ploy has a sad longing expression on her face. What we didn't know is that it wasn't anesthetic, Pim was already dead. Which is why the operation need to be carried out to save the surviving twin. Ploy then lived her live as Pim, corresponding with Wee and eventually moving to Korea to stay with him.


While it was great to watch a horror film with a strong storyline, here is where being too intelligent spoilt the mood of the movie. Suddenly, the victim became the victimizer and instead of rooting for her, we started wondering if the haunting spirit is being far too lenient. We no longer care if she survive and in fact hope she receive her just punishment. Afterall, the film been leading viewer to hate Ploy and to have her as the evil spirit definitely up the scare factor while Pim as the spirit leave us wondering if she has the heart to hurt anyone.


When Ploy scheme was revealed, Wee became the victim of torture as she was enraged that he could not accept her even though he has been living with her as Pim all these year. Earlier in the film, she accidentally ran over Wee's pet beagle and was upset that he couldn't care for the new beagle she bought him. They are identical in look, why does it matter so much that they are not the same, she questioned. An intense scene more suitable for a more grounded genre like psychological crime than supernatural horror, in my humble opinion.

Having said that, did the film did it for me? I wanted scare, so was I?

Hell, yeah. There is the complaint that there was too little of the scary parts and each of them was rather short as the director is more interested in developing the characters, which I should mention that they did well in, but it scared me good. The importance of a good director is evident here especially in cliche scene like seeing the spirit hanging on a slow moving ceiling fan because damn, I closed my eyes during that scene. I mean, I saw it coming but it didn't make it less scary. There is some unexpected scene though, one that I remember vividly is when Pim walked along a beach and turned to find that there were two set of footprint behind her. Too bad, it turned out to be merely a nightmare.

This has been an effective horror film for me but if you read the spoiler above, you would understand that I felt the story is more suited for other genre. Now I understand why most horror film has such a simple storyline because at the core or it, it is the scary part that matter the most. If the director has only added a few more scene, and prolong each of the scene to increase the suspense, then I will definitely be scared so bad I shat.

The scare factor is decent. But don't just take my word for it. I dare you to go watch it.

Alone.

Trip, Rip, Drip.

This post is likely to invoke two type of emotion among friends who read my blog (Hi Alia, Hey Cheryl). The first is probably an immediate concern for my well-being because just a month ago, I had a minor accident. I tripped while moving up an escalator and fell face first onto the edge of its steps. Ouch! Believe me, that hurts.
That incident took place in Ikano and that fall left some cuts on both my shins and three on my lower lips, with the worst one on the left. My first instint was to clean my wound in the nearest washroom but when it would not stop bleeding, I take a look in the mirror and was horrified to find a gash so deep, it practically split my lower lips to two. I was overcame with an immediate concern that the bleeding will not stop and I need medical attention. I rushed out immediately and approached the first guard I can find. Not only was he unwilling unable to help me but he also glared at me with disgust and contempt. I am not sure if he is truly disgusted or merely horrified, which would explain why he refused to budge from his position. So frightened was he by the blood flowing out of my wound that his knee got all wobbly and standing still itself was a challenge. I left him and found another equally (in-)competent guard but at least the second guard did not glare. The woman in the information counter could do nothing but informed me that there is a clinic in Ikano but it was already closed and suggested that I try the one opposite the road in the Curve.
I don't know what made me decided to use the tunnel at the other end of Ikano but I was glad I did as when I was near there, I suddenly thought that the people in Ikea may be able to help me. The first man I approached in a help desk immediately picked up the phone and called their first-aid personnel. Ah.. the Swedish company is well prepared to handle small emergency.
The personnel who came however, told me frankly upon seeing my wound that it was too deep for her to do anything about it. Though she was not able to help, she stayed with me and was sympathetic about the accident. Maybe it was her professional training to relax me so I do not go into a shock but I think she was just a sweet girl trying to help.
I eventually went for a treatment in a 24-hours clinic in Uptown as all other clinics were closed by that hour. The doctor there advised that I needed a stitch for that cut. I asked for alternative and he ended up using glue to held my broken lips together as they healed. Yes... I wasn't aware of it either but there is such a thing as skin glue, used to hold soft tissues together. But as the cut was quite deep, his only concern was that the glue will not works. It took him several attempt before he managed to hold them together. The good news is my lips is almost all healed up now as I type this.
Looking back, the only pain was the pain I felt "on impact", after which it was gone. Considering the depth of the cut, the bleeding stopped very quickly with hardly any effort and there was no itchiness or irritation on the wound throughout my healing. Well, there was the uneasiness that comes with feeling the dry and ugly scab as the wound healed, which for once, I am disciplined enough not to peel as it seems to be the only thing holding my lips together. It kinda reminded me of some cases we see in Ripley's Believe it or Not!, where some people got into a serious accident, like a guy who had a steel rod impaled through his chest but miraculously missed all vital organs and major blood vessel, thus making the injury minimal. My case is much less severe compared to that but I still feel fortunate that it missed whatever veins or nerve in my lips that can make this much more complicated. Unbelievable? Believe it!
As for how I can tripped on a moving escalator.. well, here comes the second "emotional part" for those who are reading this. An unbelievable sense of incredulousness of the dumb things men do coupled with an exclamation of "Of all the stupid stunts he can pulled...".
I tripped because I was running up the escalator. I wasn't even in a hurry, I just do that all the times. I just never tripped before that day.
Yes, I know that was really stupid. And just one week after the accident, I found myself running up another flight to rush to a seminar. Halfway up and I suddenly remembered the accident and stopped. See... lesson well learnt.
I noticed something though. I was used to running up 2 steps at a time but at the time of the accident, I was only running up one. Must be a muscle memory kind of thing that caused that trip then as the momentum then does not feel naturel?
And no, that wasn't my ego speaking. And yes, despite this discovery, I am determined not to run up another flight of escalator.
Oh... if you ever need any help while you are in Ikano, don't bother asking the guard. They are just positioned there to give patrons a false sense of securities but are in fact, not allowed to move away from their designated spot and their walki talkie was not for communicaton for the handling of a emergency but for light chatting on a slow day when the guards are feeling a little bored.
Tsk.

Along Comes a Spider...

Nope. this is not my review of the movie Spiderman III although I really should get to that. After all, with ticket to an early screening comes the responsibility to inform to the public the quality of the show.

Yeah, right!

Well, actually I just could not resist wasting spending my weekend to draw this. It was in reference to the movie Charlotte's Web, where a spider named Charlotte attempted to rescue a piglet named Wilbur from slaughter by spinning 'miraculous' web with words of compliment to the pig.

Wilbur was born a runt and because he is one of 11 to a sow with 10 teats, he would probably not be able to fight for his share. For this reason alone, the farmer decided to slaughter him on the very night he was born. However, he was rescued by the farmer's daughter, who took to caring for him.

Wilbur was a warm-hearted and friendly pig, not to mention really cute too and he brought some joy to the otherwise mundane farm. Everyone (as in, the other animals) grew to loves him but he was the only one who would befriend a spider. And what a friend Charlotte turned out to be as when Wilbur found out that he would be slaughtered by winter, she made a promise without a second thought, to save Wilbur from such fate. One night, she had an inpiration and weaved the word "some pig" on her web above Wilbur. The humans are so amazed by it they declared the incident a miracle.

However, Charlotte was not too confident that this is enough to saves Wilbur and so begin a search for a more incredible words that will both honestly describe Wilbur as well as touches the hearts of the humans in the farm. Spinning those words on web however, is a difficult job for Charlotte as she has never done it before. As the movie progress, so too does the design of the web as the tapestry became more refined. In the end of the movie, the tiny Charlotte did rescue Wilbur as the human were to amazed with the presense of such web that they put off the slaughter.

Yes...don't tell the children but from the direction of the movie, it was obvious that Wilbur will not survive the next winter. Ignore this fact however, and you will have an absolutely delightful movie to bring the kids to. Due to the cute factor, not a bad movie to bring a girl to as well.

I give the movie a three stars. I would also like to mention the visual effect is excellent. Talking animals, a CG spider and in my opinion, very realistic webs. Though it is no longer showing in the theater, I am certain that the 'resourceful' Malaysian will not have problem looking for an alternative. And here is the cartoon I just drew.

Apparently, Spiderman has an easier time 'writing on web' compared to Charlotte. And if you have seen Spiderman III, you might noticed that Venom pulled the same trick when he was trying to get Spidey's attention.