Guardian

Guardian

Just a little about "my life" update, I'm sick.

I'm not usually sick but I'm sick today. I caught a flu and now my nose is like an overflowing mucus tap. Okay, not that serious. But seriously, the weather today really fucked me up. Using Katy Perry's song, it's a Hot and Cold day. Yeah, I should blame myself for sleeping way too late last night...

I love listening to people talk about their everyday lives. Okay, that was a bad start. What I meant was, honestly, I care about my friends a lot. Even juniors, my peers, my seniors. Like what goes on in their lives, which girls they screw or what their parents want from them. I'm like a museum curator. Whenever an "art work" has been posted to my museum, I take great, great care of them. Some are allowed to display, some aren't because they haven't been released for public viewing. Yet. The timing of it all is of utmost importance.

These art works allow me to observe life from different perspectives. Some ugly, some happy and some tragic. Mostly tragic..But the best thing of being a curator is you don't get to judge and say anything to anybody. You keep all the details in your heart and you feel the happiness and the anguish that one experiences. You may tell me you like that girl but it's against the rules like "Romeo and Juliet" but I laugh it off because I'm a quiet little boy who doesn't know shit.

People think I don't know anything about them. That's why I became the silent boy who doesn't know anything. But the fact is I know. I know some people very well to a certain extent. I know how they present themselves in front of me and in front of others. I know who is lying and who is bragging. I know who is sincere and truthful. And, of course, I know who treats me like a family.

I'm not saying I know everything. But it's through the little snippets of your lives I saw and felt that makes me safely say I know at least a little or more about you people. Of course, this curator is biased at times because you know he is spending more time observing some particular paintings instead of the others. Don't fret, because his heart will never change course unless you do something real hurtful to him then he'll gradually forget you...

I don't guard because I'm supposed to. I guard because I truly care..

Ridiculous Rants

Ridiculous Rants

Went out with Su Juen at Tampines Mall today right after when I got back from my elder sister's house in Punggol. The weight of my bag was unbearable, with items ranging from a X-Box console to a pair of drumsticks and to 2 sets of clothes.

Well, whenever I hit the streets of Punggol, my mindset changes to holiday mood like within a snap. I had been craving for chicken rice since the last Punggol trip so I had a plate of chicken rice for lunch and the same for dinner. You're probably yelling "WHAT?! You're crazy! That's unhealthy!". Yeah, yeah I know. I got my just desserts. My throat ain't feeling well because of heaty food.

Well, anyway, I'm positively sure Farhan and his buddies saw us walking at Tampines Mall. While Su Juen was picking out a bag at Zinc, Faiz called. I was super puzzled by this phone call. So the conversation went like this

Faiz: Eh Xing You! Where are you now?

Me: I'm at TM..Why??

Faiz: Who's that girl beside you?

Me: Huh? She's my senior..

Faiz: Don't lie...she your stead ah?

Me: No laa..She really my senior..Don't believe can ask Farhan..

Then we hung up and I was feeling guilty for talking on the phone with someone when Su Juen was picking out her bag. It seemed very rude of me and I wasn't really paying my 100% concentration on her too.

Seconds later when I was about to say something to Su Juen, the phone vibrated. It was a message from Faiz. He said "SENIOR YOUR HEAD AH!". Then came the many exchanges of SMS-es. It turns out that Farhan told him the wrong information to him purposely. Or maybe Faiz already knew she is my senior but was just screwing around with me. Haha..well, the joke's on me either ways..Great prank, guys! Hahaha...

Another great prank was pulled by our old friend, Mr. Robinsons. Yeah, I'm talking about Robinsons, the leading retail store. Just to refresh your memories, Robinsons is having an Expo Sale soon during the mid-March so they held an interview at Suntect City Shopping Centre. Yeah, so I went for the interview, hoping by some sheer luck, I will be working along side with many others at the Expo.

They said they would call back a week later on a Friday if I got the job. I was waiting for a call but it didn't happen so I gave up hoping. Then the following week Tuesday, they called. I was guessing somebody backed out. He or she probably found a better job than this. Who wouldn't be happy you got a job? I mean, seriously, it's my first interview and I got it when somebody didn't...want..it.

Anyway, it was great news!

Yeah, great news...They called back 3 days ago, apologising to me that they don't need me anymore because they have enough people. Honestly...WHAT THE FUCK?!

I'm not pissed entirely because I got kicked out of Robinsons Expo Sale. I'm pissed because they can't make up their fucking mind! What the hell is wrong you people?! How could you do this?! So what it's not wrong to do this? Can't you just assign me somewhere else and just give me a lower pay than everybody? I don't mind. I just don't like the way you treat people.

I'm sorry Su Juen. After this rant, I'll really stop being a drama-queen about it. Yeah, thanks for the harsh truth, though this is not much of a major setback.

Don't fuck with me, Robinsons. Don't fuck with me...

81st Oscar's Academy Awards

81st Oscar's Academy Awards

"Int. Kodak Theatre. Night.

Kodak Theatre is decorated with blue lace curtains of Swarovski-crystals while the musicians on stage provided the grand music in the background to honour this year's celebration of movies. It is a daunting experience for any person who walks along the aisle leading to the stage, for one is walking among many famous directors, producers and actors.

HUGH JACKMAN walks across the stage and greeted warmly:

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the 81st Oscars Academy Awards!"

Actually I don't know exactly how you write a script. I was just following the examples that the show had featured some of the scripts when Tina Fey and Steve Martin were handing out the Screenplay awards.

First of all, congratulations to all the nominees and winners. The only shocked I have was Sean Penn winning over Mickey Rourke for Best Actor award. And I thought Mickey Rourke was going to win because I've seen him in the trailer. He was very convincing in his role.

Secondly, mad props to the show. This has been one of the enjoyous Academy Awards I have ever watched. Hugh Jackman, who isn't a comedian, is a very charming and intimate host to the nominees. His opening scene was entertaining and full of wit. He does bring something different to the Oscar's. Previous hosts were boring the hell out of me and this year's host had proven he has the chops to stir up the crowds without any jokes or slapstick humour.

Slumdog Millionaire sweeps the Oscar's with 8 wins, including Best Picture and Best Director for Danny Boyle. Unfortunately, the most-nominated The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with 13 nominations walks away with only 3 wins in hand. Technical awards to be exact...Yeah, I know..How sad is that?..

Int. Kodak Theatre. Very late at night.

Producer CHRISTIAN COLSON makes his way nervously to the stage. DANNY BOYLE signals to the entire cast of Slumdog Millionaire present at the Oscar's to join him on stage to celebrate their labour of love winning the most prestigious award at the ceremony: Best Picture Award.

CHRISTIAN COLSON
"Thank you so much to the Academy. As you can see, our film was a collaboration between hundreds of people. I'm so happy that so many of them could be with us here tonight to share this moment. Together, we've been on an extraordinary, an extraordinary journey. When we started out, we had no stars, we had no power or muscle. We didn't have enough money, really, to do what we wanted to do. But what we had was a script that inspired mad love in everyone who read it. We had a genius for a director. We had a cast and a crew who were unwavering in their commitment and whose talents are up on the screen for all of you to see. We had partners in Film4, in Celador, in Pathé and Fox Searchlight, who had the courage to support us. And we had a shared love for the extraordinary city of Mumbai, where we made the movie. Most of all, we had passion and we had belief, and our film shows that if you have those two things, truly anything is possible. I want to thank, on a personal note, my mum and my dad for all their love and support over the years. I want to thank my girl, Saskia Mulder, who is my partner in crime and the light in my life. And I want to thank all of you very much indeed. Thank you."

HUGH JACKMAN comes on stage, congratulating winners and nominees and bidding the audience goodbye.

The speech is very real, ok? I didn't made that up.

My sisters are probably not going to watch Slumdog Millionaire..Go figure..Haha!

Unpredictable Future

Unpredictable Future

Sunlight filters through the small pores of my cheap fibre curtains. It was palpable even with my eyes shut and my head dreaming of somewhere beautiful. It was like the darkness enveloping my sight was slowly being disintegrated by some powerful source of light. Before I knew it, I woke up with a sign of displease on the look of my irritated face. My day has started and to be honest, I have no idea of what I'm going to do for the rest of my day.

That usually happens to me nowadays since my school term is going to start on April 20th. Thank God, I have a job now. I'm gonna be working at a Robinsons Expo Sale around this mid-March and I'm having some kind of briefing with Robinsons at Suntec City Shopping Centre/Mall next Friday. It will surely keep me busy for quite awhile while I wait out til school starts.

Then I had the most interesting thought today. I was wondering why Singapore doesn't have a film that had an iconic killer. We don't have Jigsaw from the Saw series, or the masked killer from Scream or even Freddy VS Jason, which featured two recognisable serial killers from America's pop culture at "loggerheads".

It's because there's no such thing as meaningless slasher flicks in Singapore and I doubt that many Singaporeans will flock to see a Singapore's version of Saw. Simply put, this kind of killer films does not mix in well with our complex Singapore culture. Then I had one of my greatest movie idea ever.

It is like any ordinary crime drama. Our killer here despises everything about Singaporeans. You see, we're leading a good life here. Though our government is like squeezing the cents out of us with those raised taxes and stuff, we complain but don't protest. We are protected from harm's way and we never experienced the suffering of wars or riots for a very long time. Our children here own an Iphone when they're just like thirteen-years-old. And to our killer, it is sickening that we're so blessed yet we complained about the small issues that happen in our everyday life. So he decides to kill innocent, random people just to let citizens fear about the safety of their lives and be grateful of what they have now.

Of course, there will be a detective who tries to solve the murder cases and bring the killer to justice. But it won't be an easy task for him, because this killer likes to toy with him. You can say it's like the story of The Dark Knight but it's more political and more blood than usual. It's like Hannibal mixed with Dark Knight and with Saw.

Told Farhan about my movie idea. He said along the lines that he'd be delighted to write a draft of the script and advised me to cast Azri in the movie. Now now, the future is not written yet so I'm kinda hoping me and Farhan can work together on several movies and earn us an Oscar statuette. So what we have thought of was the culmination of our lives but...what about the worst of our lives? He could be writing scripts for shitty TV productions while I had to continue marketing sappy movies made by Jack Neo.

What I'm trying to say here is that the future has a lot in store for us, depending on the paths we take on our epic journey to stardom. We could be at the peak of our lives or worth nothing at all in the eyes of the public. But what's important is that we stay true to the nature of ourselves. Stick to the principles we believe in and don't succumb to the peer pressure. Sometimes the places we work is just in for the money and they simply don't bother whatever moral values you have. It is the insatiable greed for money and fame that will lead us to our downfall in morality.

Whatever the future holds for us, be strong and don't let your beliefs waver.

Spiralling In Rainbows

Spiralling In Rainbows

Just caught a screening of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with Wee Chiat. It was a last minute arrangment with him so it had me grabbing a short bath and dashing out of the house as soon as I'm ready. I never knew I could reached Tampines Mall in like 20 minutes if I took a fast walk, so I'm kinda impressed when I made in time for the movie. Of course, Wee Chiat bought the tickets first because he live nearer to TM than I do.

The length of the movie was interminable, clocking in at 2.5 hours. My ass started aching since 30 minutes into the film. I kept changing my sitting position, worrying if I sit straight throughout the film, the chitty chatty girls behind me wouldn't see Brad Pitt's flawless face when he was younger. Thank God, I didn't drink much Coke. Wee Chiat had more sips than I did..Maybe more when he was at home, so he was holding his bladder the whole time. Maybe it was the freezing temperature in the cinema had my bladder shrivelled up so I didn't had the need to use the washroom.

Overall, it's a classic good film about love and aging mixed. I like it better than Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire. Wee Chiat commented that Ben Button had a good plot and story, and I'd like to second that. It does not rely much on coincidences to make the story flow, though there was a case theory of Collision Course. But I think it was neatly done without raising the brows of the audience for it's a standard movie cliche.

Ben Button had a line: Our lives are determined by opportunities, even the ones we missed. Slumdog Millionaire had this similar concept but sadly, it is overused. However, I have to praise the scriptwriter and director for coming up with a gut-wrenching past about Jamal Malik's life as a slumdog. I think what the director is trying to achieve here is to have an underDOG, who had lived in the SLUMs for quite a long time to get to the last question on an indian episode of Who Wants to be a MILLIONAIRE. Therefore, the title Slumdog Millionaire is created. It's too sappy for me but it's a good film from Danny Boyle.

In other news...

During the recent Grammy Awards on television, what I saw was probably the best performance of the night. Radiohead dazzled the crowds with their most up tempo song 15 Step which was featured in their newest album In Rainbows. Only 2 members of Radiohead appeared: Thom Yorke (Lead Vocals) and Jonny Greenwood (lead guitaris) and they were backed up by a USC (University of South Carolina) Marching Band.

It was an awesome performance with Thom dancing around like he was tripping on drugs. Jonny was fabulous, producing a melody as sweet as dark chocolate. And the band? They provided the drums and the tubas and trombones covered the electronic sound that was recorded in the studio album version.

Then I decided to buy 2 Radiohead albums: In Rainbows and Best of Radiohead. I see it as my Valentine's Day gifts to myself. Well, Jason Mraz did said to treat myself something good on his journal. Along with 15 Step, the opening song for In Rainbows, my head was suddenly split open with a chopping knife and Radiohead's amazing melodies started flowing into my head. The experience was like spiralling down towards a hole with a myriad assortments of colourful music. And you are enjoying every second of it.

Radiohead might be the most awesome band of their generation. Their music are constantly evolving since the first album Pablo Honey. From drums and guitars to slowly mixing electronics with their music then Jonny Greenwood's strings arrangement add a different dimension to their songs. Formally introduced by Gweneth Paltrow at the Grammys, She said Radiohead is one of the most adventurous, artistic and influential bands of all time. Hmm...Well said, Ms Paltrow..

Sucks for you, Chris Martin. Haha!

Identity Crisis?

Identity Crisis?

Once in a while, people start questioning about who they really are under their penetrable exterior of skin cells. Are we happy? Sad? Or just confused? We don't even know what the hell we're doing. Sometimes, when people are pushed to their limits in their work, they lost sight of themselves. So they soon realised the changes in their family, friends and colleagues. But the truth is just right below their noses.

What's changed is not the people around them, but themselves. They have become a product of their environment.

I don't call this an Identity Crisis. It's more like an Identity Evolution.

All these years living in an ever-changing enviroment, we accumulate the experience we have and it culminates into what we are today. Yes, I mean literally today.

Now here's a perfect example.

Months ago, I found Jason Mraz. He's a dude that taught me to love and how to derive that happiness out from one's heart. And the other day at my Sister's Punggol House, I was all alone in the living room, starring outside the window at the beautiful night sky. I sat down at the platform near the window and I broke down for no reason. And today, after hours of plugging Radiohead into my ears, I couldn't get back to my cheerful self. Radiohead has screwed up my emotions with their psychedelic, depressing music.

So here's a tip.

Identity Evolution is a beautiful process of allowing you to express yourself in whatever way you want. But don't go overboard with the concept because sometimes you might end up killing yourself and I'm sure that's not beautiful at all. Manage your emotions well. Balance it with a pinch of sadness, one spoonful of happiness and half a teaspoon of anger and excitement each.

And voila, you get to savour the fusion of emotions.

11 Days Later..

11 Days Later..

Oscars fever is back. No, I'm not talking about my junior, Oscar. I'm referring to the 81st Academy Awards.

I'll be honest. The race for the Oscars is not exciting at all. When I first saw the nominations, I thought "Oh? So this film really got nominated for that category?" I'm not surprised at all. Okay, maybe the fact that Hugh Jackman's hosting the Oscars raised many eyebrows. But that's not the point.

The point is: Come on! Sean Penn VS Mickey Rourke for Best Actor? I know either of these two is going to win.

Heath Ledger is a hot favourite for Best Supporting Actor because besides he had proven he's got the chops to play a sardonic and psychotic villain, his recent death in 2008 would draw in lots of attention.

Best Motion Picture and Director: Danny Boyle. This guy is getting way too many honours and awards for his newest fruit of labour: Slumdog Millionaire. David Fincher, a favourite director of mine, is up against him with his fairytale fantasy The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and I can tell you that Fincher has no chance of whatsoever of winning. Danny Boyle is, too, a hot favourite of the Academy members.

But this doesn't mean I hate Boyle's guts. He's a real charming man with..an oddly-shaped head. And he concocted a movie plot and turned it into a sleeper hit. It still remains one of my favourite films of all time. Let me introduce you to: 28 Days Later.

An epidemic of a deadly virus spreads throughout of England when a group of animal activists opened a cage containing a chimpanzee infected with the Rage virus. It took 28 days later to bring down the spirit of mankind by stripping humans down to the basic survival instinct: Kill or be killed. By this time, a man lying in a hospital woke up and found himself to be alone in a chaotic and empty London.

This montage of Cillian Murphy, our main protagonist, walking through a deserted London in a hospital gown with cars on fire and numerous newspapers headlining the words "Evacuation!" in bold large letters flying around ain't humourous...Buses' windows smashed and a Priest of a church comes after Murphy, wanting to bite a big chunk out of him.

The thought of a deadly infection is chilling. Though there have never been any viruses as great as the Rage virus, but now we're close to making that fantasy into a reality. SARS, Bird Flu and Aedes Mosquitos...And everytime we watch the news on the television, we always hope that the cure to normality would be found but instead, we had those viruses multiplying in every city of the world and they're constantly evolving into something scarier than it already is.

Back to topic, I'm saying that Danny Boyle is an excellent director who knows his stuff well. He's a visionary director too. Not literally like Guillermo del Toro but Boyle knows what he wants and he gets it as close as his vision. His stories of horror, love and sci-fi amazes me. 28 Days Later, Millions, Sunshine...He knows what he's doing. So..I shall give him a chance to show me what he had done on Slumdog Millionaire and who knows?

I might like it.

Rebirth

Rebirth

Hallelujah!

This day marks the birth of a new blog. Brand new beginnings, new problemos, new girls in town. Just to skip this boring monologue, it's the birth of a new life.

Today happens to be my birthday, too. So what? I'm just an year older and I can see my moustache twitching around whenever I'm chewing and mixing my food in my mouth. It all seems like a big hoo-haa for me. I'm finding no cause for celebration and it's like any normal day to me.

If you were to consider meaningfully, Age doesn't matter at all to us in our life. We celebrate that birthday because it is to mark the occassion that we all have grown a year older and thought that we've became more wiser and more mature. But who would know? Some people may be 47 years old but they still act like they don't give a shit about the world which is on the brink of destruction.

The truth is: We don't age with numbers.

We Age with experience.

Like I used to say on my previous blog, we are constantly on the move. It's either we motivate ourselves to change or present predicaments that changes our human nature. With all these happenings, humans grew and learnt..Gained the wisdom and knowledge that will aid us in whatever we do in the future.

But to age happily with experience, the happiness must come from within your heart. I bet many of you have heard of the saying: It's better to give than to receive. So let us practise that in life. Give people the pleasure of happiness because seeing others smile will always make you smile wider than them.

I'm sorry if this isn't any fantastic debut of a new blog. Haha, this is the result of not blogging over 2 bloody boring months. Give me a few more entries and I'll be in my top form soon.

Peace out! Happy 17th birthday to me...