Big Bang!

My wife and I enjoy watching Big Bang Theory on our lazy nights. Already finished season 4 and still wanting more. Our favorite character? Sheldon of course!

Sheldon: That's no reason to cry. One cries because one is sad. For example, I cry because others are stupid and it makes me sad. - From the episode "The Gorilla Experiment"

Playing Catch Up

Lately have been busy with work and with life, so last night I watched 3 action movies in a go..from 6pm til 2am, and even managed to sneak a conference call in between movies as I ran to my car parked in a quiet basement carpark in Orchard! Social life has to go on despite work, priorities shouldn't succumb. Anyhow the battle of IM2s, Ip Man 2 vs Iron Man 2.

Iron Man 2 was okay, nothing fantastic in terms of story line but the ending was rather a let down from the fight scenes, but I was impressed with Scarlett Johansson besides being hot, she Kicked Ass! So do watch it for her if not for just Robert Downey Jrs' usual antics.



Anyway a must watch will be Ip Man 2, and that saying not because I am learning Wing Chun, but the story line is great and makes me feel good being a Chinese! All I can say is Donnie Yen and Sammo Hung Kicked Ass too!



That saying, I decided to watch Kick Ass after those 2 highly anticipated movies, as it was starring my fav actor Nicolas Cage. The movie was a surprise, didn't know it was M18 and there was as much gore in there as there was humour. Reminded me of a cross between Superbad and Kill Bill. It was really a good movie. Here's the trailer link, since they disabled embedding. (Seriously what's with YouTube lately, noticed more videos are having embedding disabled).

Anyway a tip if you are driving in to Orchard for a movie. In order to avoid ERP and expensive parking charges without having a pile of bird shit covering your car (parking is free after 10pm at public carparks in Orchard- but it often comes free with bird poo. The trees planted in town somehow point to a rare species classified under Toilet Tree, where birds can poo freely on cars which park cheaply; and you wonder why everyone is willing to pay for expensive sheltered parking in Orchard, the car wash cost is taken into account!). So go watch at Cineleisure, and the nearest non-ERP carpark is at TripleOne Somerset. Enter from Killiney Road and head towards the Singapore Power Building which is now renamed to this fancy name after adding a supermarket and some eateries. But am glad they now allow parking till morning, previously they close up at 11pm or midnight, now its $2.68/entry after 6pm.You just need to enter the carpark from the side staircases, they still lock up the place at midnight.

The Notebook

Testament that the heart is stronger than the mind.

"The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. And that's what you've given me. That's what I'd hoped to give you forever."

New York, I Love You

Just caught the movie "New York, I Love You" with a friend. She wanted to watch another chick flick "It's complicated" alone, but I managed to convinced her to watch this instead and I'll join her. This movie about finding love in New York, was really interesting after seeing the movie trailer filled with many great actors. But I heard some segments were cut like the one by Scarlett Johansson, which would only be found on the DVD, which I still do not see selling in the stores, though the movie premiered in Sep 2008, and official release was Oct 2009.

Giving and power of masses

In light of the X'mas spirit, here is another example of giving.
Source: CNN. The power of just $10-20 by an individual goes a long way when the masses come together. The website in focus by the article is http://www.modestneeds.org/ .

Last night, I couldn't get seats to watch Avatar again, this time in 3D. So I caught my fav actor Donnie Yen's new show called Bodyguards and Assassins. This is a Sun Yat Sen historically-linked movie which showcase the fight for democracy in the face of dictatorship rule of the Qing monarchy. More importantly it took 10 years and 16 Asian stars to make this movie.Jacky Cheung had a small part from the start, and with no spoilers intended, his one phrase which was a quote from Abraham Lincoln meant for true democracy and in hope for the 400 million Chinese people, made an impact to me.

"...that government of the people, by the people, for the people..."

The movie's underlying intentions showed that the sacrifices of individuals made, their combined effort, can save millions more and for future generations. This altruism act is what's missing from our society these days. Everyone from bankers to politicians, are all about themselves and they want it now.

Want my Ellie

Finally managed to catch Pixar's latest animation film called "UP". Think its really a heart-warming film which finally triggered a need to move on and I guess I finally got a curt answer tonight to end a nine months ordeal - so onward and 'UP' to find my Ellie and begin a whole new adventure! So envy Carl's undying love and courage and that lil' scout kid Russell, reminds me of the school days in scouting.

Play the blame game

Shocking events for my February 2009:

1) Supporting Pistons is at an all time low. Detroit Pistons are now under .500 into the upcoming All-Star Break. First time in many years and especially so after trading Chauncy Billups for Allen Iverson. Winning a championship is bleak this season.

"It's not a good feeling,'' Iverson said. "The whole thing is to stay positive, stay together, not to point fingers and play the blame game.

"You don't win a championship at the All-Star break.''

2) Groundhog Day which I thought being a film starring Bill Murray back in 1993, was all pretense. But I saw on the news lately that it is actually true! And for this year Punxsutawney Phil - the only true weather forecasting groundhog has predicted another 6 weeks of winter! Mind you, this groundhog day holiday has been celebrated since 1886 and Punxsutawney Phil has been making predictions for over 120 years and has so far been 100% correct! And in the film, Bill Murray was struck like a modern day Christmas Scrooge experience of being stuck on the same day and he blamed Punxsutawney Phil for it and tried to kill it even! I loved this show, watched it at least 10 times! Gave me hope of having many chances on trying to make the day and your life a better one.

In all matters of having traditions, basketball championships, and having many chances - We had a shocking revelation of Ho Ching (Empress Ho, wife of Emperor Lee, together they make the "HoLee" heavens of Greater Mortals - haha just kidding!) stepping down from Temasek. Was it a case of losing billions of our taxpayers' money; over 31% in a short 8 months which caused her to step down?

The spread of wildfire across the internet had many speculations on her decision to step down and the breaking of traditions that we now have an Ang Moh groundhog who can accurately predict in this turmoil times. Do we need to point fingers and play the blame game? Anyway our state Strait propaganda Times did mention citing various sources that we are doing not so bad, above average given that the world has lost at least 40%. Let's move on, it's an honest mistake.

Do we blame the star player in the NBA if the team has more losses than wins? Do we in this case blame the groundhog for predicting a longer winter? And in this case will a change of groundhog be an easier way out of explaining what went terribly wrong? Well, seriously I don't get paid millions to question Temasek where did the tax dollars of my grandfathers, father, mother, sister and myself went.(notice my grandmothers are not mentioned here - I think they were housewives back then) But I expect my gahmen to question them since transparency has always been an excuse and not just pat them on their back to say game over, good try, now let 'Chip' ang moh be scapegoat with prosperous 'Good Year' name give it a try.

I for one will be f@#%ing Iverson from the sidelines; will probably not go to the games; or buy any Pistons jersey - which my direct actions has some consequences to their profits and in many times, we have seen star players like Iverson, will be f$%*ing traded away. As he has been traded from Philly to Nuggets and now to my Pistons.

So seriously Iverson, I don't blame you. And you are right, stay positive and we are only half way there, got chance one. You are but a player, I'm f$#*ing pointing my fingers at the coach, the owners and the president of Pistons' organisation who made the choice to trade Billups for you. But still a word of caution, you better shape up or move out! According to Inside Hoops, your 2008-2009 salary was US$20,840,625 and I could have bought a lot more better players for probably half that price.

So back to my gahmen, who said she was qualified? And how much did she costs us again for the past 8 years? Unlike the film in Groundhog day, we only have $185 billion,$120ish billion, very little money left to play. Ang Moh groundhog...will Singapore have a long cold winter ahead?

Serendipity~1

I remember watching this movie starring Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack and somehow it blew me over. It was a crappy romantic movie which normally being a logical analytical person I am, it was impossible and totally out of this world.
But somehow it struck me, that I wish I could have that sort of love where you meet someone totally out of the blue and fall in love within hours of meeting that person. That somehow you felt that fate brought you two together; that somehow you knew that cupid pulled that magical tiny bow driving an arrow through the heart and logic became nonsense and ridiculous all at the same time.

This blog entry was to come after I had time to write about my US trip which I put off for way too long. I came back from New York with a job and the jobscope was what I needed to fill my mind. But New York besides got me started on my career, it somehow cleared my head and I found my soul back. If I had time I will want to blog about how it came about, me finding my soul back. Because without a soul, noone can love or should fall in love. Anyway to cut a long story short, I saw this very cafe which the movie Serendipity was filmed - It was called Serendipity 3 where movie stars, celebs hang out, do check out the website. It passed me by so fast as I was on top of the NY city tour bus. But I knew it wasn't a mistake or just a movie prop, it was indeed for real. The movie was probably spurned from this cafe as it was filmed in 2001 and the cafe was founded in 1954 at 225 East 60th Street. Hope I can visit it the next time I head to NY for work again.

Do what you have to do, to get what you want!

Was watching the Great Debaters, a film directed and acted by Denzel Washington(acting as Melvin Tolson) and funded by Oprah Winfrey, over the weekend. It was based on a true story of some African Americans educators in the 1930s. With Forest Whitaker acting as James Farmer Snr, an educator at Wiley College, one of only twenty five African-Americans who held Ph.D.s at the time. It was simply a great feel good movie which came across to me with bits of Mississippi Burning and Dead Poets' Society. You simply cannot go wrong with 2 Academy Award winning actors.

Just remember this line in the movie by James Farmer Snr to Jnr:

You got to do what you have to do, in order to get what you want.

This was in reference to him having to do his homework diligently, in order to get ahead in life; which I guess led him to much greatness later in life. I wished my dad had said that to me back during school days when I was playing too much! Haha but then again, in these times, James Farmer Snr's method wouldn't have probably worked and perhaps led to a greater rebellious streak in me.


Do try to get hold or rent the movie to watch.