Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Another Cycle.

New year, and so... new cycle of birthdays!

Went out to celebrate Isaac's birthday today. We tried the Fried Wanton Noodles at Sunshine Plaza, and it was just ok... nothing particularly outstanding about it :\ 3/5 :)

link here: Parklane Zha Yun Tun Mee House (Bencoolen St)


Chat and caught up. Talked a lot about games (Skyrim, some shop rpg thing), anime (gundams and type moon universe) and other random shit. Nostalgic... There really isn't much time for friends when the semester is ongoing. Bumped into Wai Kit, who was passing by. Feels like CHS again, when the biggest problem was finishing homework and doing well for exams...

After that we went to the National Museum of Singapore to view this exhibition titled "Dreams and Reality: Masterpieces of Painting, Drawing and Photography from the Musée d’Orsay, Paris", which featured paintings from Millet, Courbet etc. There were a huge mixture of pieces: made with crayon/oil/charcoal/water colors, different styles: impressionist (heard about Pointism from isaac, which is when u poke the painting with different colors like pixels to make it look good), different finishes etc...


Some nice pieces:
Spring. by Jean Francois Millet.
This doesn't do it justice. Have to see it live to really experience the piece's magnificence.
The objects leap out at you, though it wasn't done particularly in 3D.
The rainbow's colors shift and blends as your distance from the painting changes.
Truly magnificent piece.
Vincent van Gogh's Starry Night Over the Rhone Painting
Starry Night over the Rhone. by Van Gogh
Looks crude when u see it up close, but as with all impressionist art pieces, you have to see it from afar.
And when you do, it is simply amazing :)
There was one with a girl sitting on a rock, enjoying the wind. Impressionist painting, and you don't see how amazing it is till you stand from some distance away.
There was this one other impressionist piece with a depiction of the sea and a lighthouse using pointism. When you see it from a distance you actually get the impression that the sea sparkles! It's breathtakingly beautiful. Was like I was staring out into the sea itself. Really loved that piece to bits =P

All in all, though I didn't think I would enjoy it so much it being specially for Isaac and all, it was a spectacular experience :) so glad for it.

After that we camped at Plaza Singapura and had some dessert at this shop in the basement next to Sakae Sushi. 4 dishes - Mango Pastry, Mango with Pomelo, Sesame&Almond Paste, and Shuang Pi Nai. Again... just ok -.- not much luck in terms of food today. The Sesame&Almond Paste smelled really good though :)

Discussed Code Geass, Death Note, Gundam Seed and many others with relation to something called "plot armour". Still don't really get it, but the concept has something to do with having a certain plot device do something, specifically in the shonen genre, simply to prolong said story, as with the random activation of Lelouch's Geass while he was talking to Princess Euphemia... still don't really see how Seed Mode is Plot Armour though.

I was gonna leave it at "meh something for another time" but curiosity got the better of me and I did a google search. According to TV Tropes.org, Plot Armour is basically the invisible armour that characters wear that enable them to not have something happen to them, against all logic or probability, simply because the plot requires them to be so. Ie. Untrained noob rushes headlong into an enemy troupe, survives unscathed and takes down said troupe, simply bcuz his task is not yet done. aka. the plot demands it be so. 

Aaaanyway... walked to arcade for some fun, with jason dancing the new ddr3. Comment: Freaking imba. if i were an octopus my arms'd be tangled. This kinda speed button pressing game is juz not my thing perhaps. 

After dat isaac left, and jason and i went to have dinner. Had a loooooong chat at this chill place juz above Dhoby Ghaut mrt where there's free flow drinks and ice cream at $8 a set meal. Talked abt lotsa stuff, like school, and ns lol. Guys always end up talking abt dat kinda thing. I like long chats like this. Communication gets done properly. :) Hope Jason goes to a uni soon! Went home after dat.

End of day. I won't be posting like this again. Feels silly to just reiterate events. And needs more pics. 

Anyway, tml gotta move into PGP again. Packing now... 
After getting used to company at home again, I wonder if PGP would be horrible and lonely again?

Blah. I used to hope I'd die b4 NS so I wouldn't have to face adulthood. Since that didn't happen, I'd better take this as training for the times to come. Until She decides to appear, my future looks to be solitary. Loneliness would be a companion for long times ahead. Better get used to it now. 

Funny how this post progressed from optimistic to slightly emo...

Alright, tomorrow's gonna be a good day :) shall engage it with gusto :) 

Cya soon.

Luv,
Ray

Kaiji & C+侦探

Movie Review: Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler (2009). 



IMBb:
Ratings: 6.4/10 from 365 users   



Story:
Story follows Kaiji, a poor, unmotivated guy who has no dreams and simply works mechanically at a convenience stall everyday. One day after venting his frustrations (at being looked down on and being poor in general) on, and thus damaging, a BMW, he got dragged to Teiai Company to process he repayment, and in the process was notified by the same company that the friend he signed as guarantor for a loan has fled, leaving a debt totaling 2.02 mil to him. Thereafter he was tricked into participating in a game that could relieve him of his debt...


My Rating: 5.0/10
I wasted my time watching this show. Don't watch it. Just don't. 


If you simply like the actor, he has better movies.




First of all, I didn't like the characters. Kaiji's a wimp, and an idiot. I actually like idiots, especially in Japanese anime/film, cuz generally in Japanese films the idiots are lovable people, but Kaiji is just an idiot. Idiotically naive, and not lovable in the least. The movie poster and title is terribly misleading... even in his "show off" moments in the film, Kaiji was in no way "The Ultimate Gambler", nor as cool as he looks in the poster. Neither was there any saving grace in the supporting characters, nor in the antagonist camp. The creeps in Teiai are all too extreme, too absolutely evil, for one to even believe in their existence, much less relate to them.


Tatsuya Fujiwara's performance was... mediocre. I wasn't really surprised though. Given the script, it's hard to do anything with it. In fact, in a sense, he succeeded, since the participants were all supposed to be trash. If that was in fact his aim, yes, thanks for showing me that Kaiji's a goon. In any case though, it didn't help in raising my liking for the film.


The subtitling was sloppy. Games were lame. Dramatised moments were actually eye-rolling and facepalm moments. List goes on.


There were only 2 redeeming qualities. Soundtrack, which was rich, and fit to the emotional moments, inappropriate though those moments were. Another is it's interesting reflection of real life in the compressed world of Kaiji - criticism of the current world system in which people are put in an endless cycle of work and debt, and only made to be temporarily happy via an over emphasis on materialism. The novelty of it fades though in the overwhelming retardedness that is lawless Teiai though.


In the end, perhaps I should have gone with the manga/anime instead of trusting an adaptation, even by the Japanese themselves. The anime and manga were supposed to be good. And I expect them to be, since it's a series by the mangaka who did Akagi. Must have simply raised my expectations too much after watching the live action of Liar Game. If you read this review first... don't watch it k.


There's a sequel... Kaiji 2: Jinsei dakkai gêmu (2011) Might watch it since it's rated 8... hopefully its better.


In contrast is...

Movie Review: C+侦探 (aka The Detective)(2007) 

IMDb:
Ratings: 6.5/10 from 627 users

Story:
Story follows Tam (Aaron Kwok), a poor private detective who decides to help find a woman his friend Fei Long claims is trying to kill him. But each piece of information he unveils also uncovers another death, each apparently by suicide. Is suicide really the cause though?




My rating: 8.0


Watch this :) It'll give an experience to remember :)




We have Aaron Kwok, Fui-on Shing. What more needs to be said? The movie is a brew of heavy suspense with a pinch of comedy - an unlikely and generally fatal mixture if mishandled. But in the hands of these masters, the film was excellent! While not a masterpiece, the pacing of the film was superb. One is always kept on one's toes, always guessing, but appropriate moments are given to relieve said toes with a light dose of nervous laughter. 


The music was especially good. It was practically transparent, melding seamlessly with the film to create fluctuations in suspense so crucial to the film. Simply spectacular :)


Watch it!! You won't regret it :)


There's a sequel... B+侦探. Said to be not as good as this one, but will watch it anyway. Wait for the review! :)




Such a huge difference in quality, even though the ratings were practically the same. This is quite possibly cuz of the type of audience, which is generally western on IMDb.

Well till next time :) And really go watch C+. It was so good my sister totally freaked out =P

Cya!

Luv,
Ray

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself

Taken from http://www.marcandangel.com/...



30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself
When you stop chasing the wrong things you give
the right things a chance to catch you.
As Maria Robinson once said, “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”  Nothing could be closer to the truth.  But before you can begin this process of transformation you have to stop doing the things that have been holding you back.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
  1. Stop spending time with the wrong people. – Life is too short to spend time with people who suck the happiness out of you.  If someone wants you in their life, they’ll make room for you.  You shouldn’t have to fight for a spot.  Never, ever insist yourself to someone who continuously overlooks your worth.  And remember, it’s not the people that stand by your side when you’re at your best, but the ones who stand beside you when you’re at your worst that are your true friends.
  2. Stop running from your problems. – Face them head on.  No, it won’t be easy.  There is no person in the world capable of flawlessly handling every punch thrown at them.  We aren’t supposed to be able to instantly solve problems.  That’s not how we’re made.  In fact, we’re made to get upset, sad, hurt, stumble and fall.  Because that’s the whole purpose of living – to face problems, learn, adapt, and solve them over the course of time.  This is what ultimately molds us into the person we become.
  3. Stop lying to yourself. – You can lie to anyone else in the world, but you can’t lie to yourself.  Our lives improve only when we take chances, and the first and most difficult chance we can take is to be honest with ourselves.  Read The Road Less Traveled.
  4. Stop putting your own needs on the back burner. – The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too.  Yes, help others; but help yourself too.  If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is now.
  5. Stop trying to be someone you’re not. – One of the greatest challenges in life is being yourself in a world that’s trying to make you likeeveryone else.  Someone will always be prettier, someone will always be smarter, someone will always be younger, but they will never be you.  Don’t change so people will like you.  Be yourself and the right people will love the real you.
  6. Stop trying to hold onto the past. – You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading your last one.
  7. Stop being scared to make a mistake. – Doing something and getting it wrong is at least ten times more productive than doing nothing.  Every success has a trail of failures behind it, and every failure is leading towards success.  You end up regretting the things you did NOT do far more than the things you did.
  8. Stop berating yourself for old mistakes. – We may love the wrong person and cry about the wrong things, but no matter how things go wrong, one thing is for sure, mistakes help us find the person and things that are right for us.  We all make mistakes, have struggles, and even regret things in our past.  But you are not your mistakes, you are not your struggles, and you are here NOW with the power to shape your day and your future.  Every single thing that has ever happened in your life is preparing you for a moment that is yet to come.
  9. Stop trying to buy happiness. – Many of the things we desire are expensive.  But the truth is, the things that really satisfy us are totally free – love, laughter and working on our passions.
  10. Stop exclusively looking to others for happiness. – If you’re not happy with who you are on the inside, you won’t be happy in a long-term relationship with anyone else either.  You have to create stability in your own life first before you can share it with someone else.  Read Stumbling on Happiness.
  11. Stop being idle. – Don’t think too much or you’ll create a problem that wasn’t even there in the first place.  Evaluate situations and take decisive action.  You cannot change what you refuse to confront.  Making progress involves risk.  Period!  You can’t make it to second base with your foot on first.
  12. Stop thinking you’re not ready. – Nobody ever feels 100% ready when an opportunity arises.  Because most great opportunities in life force us to grow beyond our comfort zones, which means we won’t feel totally comfortable at first.
  13. Stop getting involved in relationships for the wrong reasons. – Relationships must be chosen wisely.  It’s better to be alone than to be in bad company.  There’s no need to rush.  If something is meant to be, it will happen – in the right time, with the right person, and for the best reason. Fall in love when you’re ready, not when you’re lonely.
  14. Stop rejecting new relationships just because old ones didn’t work. – In life you’ll realize that there is a purpose for everyone you meet.  Some will test you, some will use you and some will teach you.  But most importantly, some will bring out the best in you.
  15. Stop trying to compete against everyone else. – Don’t worry about what others doing better than you.  Concentrate on beating your own records every day.  Success is a battle between YOU and YOURSELF only.
  16. Stop being jealous of others. – Jealousy is the art of counting someone else’s blessings instead of your own.  Ask yourself this:  “What’s something I have that everyone wants?”
  17. Stop complaining and feeling sorry for yourself. – Life’s curveballs are thrown for a reason – to shift your path in a direction that is meant for you.  You may not see or understand everything the moment it happens, and it may be tough.  But reflect back on those negative curveballs thrown at you in the past.  You’ll often see that eventually they led you to a better place, person, state of mind, or situation.  So smile!  Let everyone know that today you are a lot stronger than you were yesterday, and you will be.
  18. Stop holding grudges. – Don’t live your life with hate in your heart.  You will end up hurting yourself more than the people you hate.  Forgiveness is not saying, “What you did to me is okay.”  It is saying, “I’m not going to let what you did to me ruin my happiness forever.”  Forgiveness is the answer… let go, find peace, liberate yourself!  And remember, forgiveness is not just for other people, it’s for you too.  If you must, forgive yourself, move on and try to do better next time.
  19. Stop letting others bring you down to their level. – Refuse to lower your standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs.
  20. Stop wasting time explaining yourself to others. – Your friends don’t need it and your enemies won’t believe it anyway.  Just do what you know in your heart is right.
  21. Stop doing the same things over and over without taking a break. – The time to take a deep breath is when you don’t have time for it.  If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting.  Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly.
  22. Stop overlooking the beauty of small moments. – Enjoy the little things, because one day you may look back and discover they were the big things.  The best portion of your life will be the small, nameless moments you spend smiling with someone who matters to you.
  23. Stop trying to make things perfect. – The real world doesn’t reward perfectionists, it rewards people who get things done.  Read Getting Things Done.
  24. Stop following the path of least resistance. – Life is not easy, especially when you plan on achieving something worthwhile.  Don’t take the easy way out.  Do something extraordinary.
  25. Stop acting like everything is fine if it isn’t. – It’s okay to fall apart for a little while.  You don’t always have to pretend to be strong, and there is no need to constantly prove that everything is going well.  You shouldn’t be concerned with what other people are thinking either – cry if you need to – it’s healthy to shed your tears.  The sooner you do, the sooner you will be able to smile again.
  26. Stop blaming others for your troubles. – The extent to which you can achieve your dreams depends on the extent to which you take responsibility for your life.  When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility – you give others power over that part of your life.
  27. Stop trying to be everything to everyone. – Doing so is impossible, and trying will only burn you out.  But making one person smile CAN change the world.  Maybe not the whole world, but their world.  So narrow your focus.
  28. Stop worrying so much. – Worry will not strip tomorrow of its burdens, it will strip today of its joy.  One way to check if something is worth mulling over is to ask yourself this question: “Will this matter in one year’s time?  Three years?  Five years?”  If not, then it’s not worth worrying about.
  29. Stop focusing on what you don’t want to happen. – Focus on what you do want to happen.  Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story.  If you awake every morning with the thought that something wonderful will happen in your life today, and you pay close attention, you’ll often find that you’re right.
  30. Stop being ungrateful. – No matter how good or bad you have it, wake up each day thankful for your life.  Someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs.  Instead of thinking about what you’re missing, try thinking about what you have that everyone else is missing.

2012: Grabbing On; Letting Go

It's New Year alr! Happy New Year to everyone! May your wishes come true dis year! (b4 it all ends XD)

So soon, a year has passed once again...

Looked back, and... feel I haven't felt this accomplished in a long time :) (Accomplished as in did something useful.) Goes to show how nua I was back in NS. =P
For the past sem, I've delved into 4 subjects that are completely new to me, and tho dissatisfied with the results, came home with a head full of new knowledge and insights.
I loved how the mystery of computer programs were slowly unveiled each time I attended a lesson;
Loved the new models of thought I was introduced in CS1231, tho it was difficult as hell;
Enjoyed the applications of logic and the (sometimes twisted) arguments that I was exposed to in philosophy.
The deeper meanings artistic minds place in their films...

Other than that, tho frankly I wasn't doing much, I have been Asst.Finance Sec for a sem alr.
Am also currently acting as Finance Sec for CAW committee... :)

It has been happening. :) And thank God for it.
Thank God also for the many people I've met, and for those that are still with me. At this moment at least, I feel blessed.

Oh special thanks to Syl!!! Sent me a postcard from Grenoble! Loved it a lot!! :) Come back soon!

New semester's starting in a week! CAW week is coming in 3. And I'm cantoring for CAW mass omg! >.<
Hope everything goes well :)

Currently considering joining FOC Games Comm... should I should I? >.<

It's time to push again! Let's see how far I can go this sem! And to those who'd journey with me, glad to have you! Let's go get some!! =D

Till next time!
Ray

Maturity is realising that there are bigger things than your anger, your self.
Maturity is knowing that there are certain things that you simply can't have.
And yet... 
Maturity is also knowing how to best love yourself, so you would be in the best position to love those around you.