the simpsons
watching yellow-coloured characters on the big screen is a first for me. and although i have not watched the television version of the cartoon ON TELEVISION for a really long time, i thought going to catch the 90-minute version would wet my appetite for it. again.
but alas, not all movies do justice to the series (as we are all too familiar with this failing concoction). i expected myself to be thrilled and suffer from stomach cramps while laughing till i fall off my plush cinema seat. unfortunately, the reception on my side was rather lukewarm. maybe it's the rainy weather which dampened my funny side. haha.
people on my left and right were laughing as if it was the bloodiest, funniest things they've ever seen. and the only thought in my mind was, "obviously these people are damn deprived of happiness."
for a comedy, and well-loved fictional family, the simpsons took quite a while for me to warm up to. the comedy was slapstick - yes, i know it's kind of like their forte, but this was rather... how shall we say?... (loosely used) brainless till the point of annoying? cheap gimmicks used to lure blind fanatics were peppered throughout the movie, while real attention-grabbing humour was sadly sparse. i laughed about, let's say, less than the number of fingers i have on one hand.
i guess an adult cartoon that has a history of almost 2 decades spoils its novelty by hurling out a movie. i've seen funnier shit on it's holiday episodes (e.g. halloween) on the tube, and that's what makes it so hilarious and entertaining. overall, it's over-hyped and if you MUST watch it, go do so on a weekday. at least you can save those extra dollars stuffing your face with glorious food, or catching the last few bargains of the GSS.
2.75 out of 5. Saturday, July 28, 2007
fastard anyone?
today was a wet, wet, wet day.
so wet that i think that's the reason why my menstruation came today (not like any of you need or WANT to know, just a coincidence that's all). lame, lame, okay, i get it. no need to roll eyes at me. :D
nope, actually i just witnessed something quite amusing on the train today.
when the train stopped at tiong bahru, there was a particular middle-aged woman who wanted to board the cabin before mine (one cabin up), but failed to, and instead, entered into mine.
i thought it was due to preference or it just being too crowded, with the weather and all.
but then, once she stepped into the train, she pointed at someone (i'm assuming) and started calling out vulgarities.
well, i wouldn't call them vulgarities, mainly because she kept calling out, "stupid fastard". and to me, that was almost hilarious. then she mumbled strings of disjointed words attempting to construct a sentence that would explain her swearing in public. but no one understood a thing.
in the end, everyone ignored her, and she kept on calling out, "stupid fastard".
i tried to refrain from giggling, as she was standing right in front of me.
i was so tempted to tap on her shoulder and say, "excuse me, but if you want to curse at someone in public, maybe you should know your vocabulary better?"
but, of course, i didn't.
i was afraid she'd turn to me, all shell-shocked, and scream, "you bucker! how dare you collect me!"
*snigger*
how's this for a horrible pick-up line:
"you know what? i've got the entire dictionary tattoed on my penis. so, why don't you come over here and let me put some words in your mouth?"
oh wells. Friday, July 27, 2007
of late
well, i can safely say, today wentworth miller made my day. like he always does, every thursday night. :) who doesn't want a piece of him? yummmmm.i've been getting little notes here and there from concerned people, and just to officially state: i'm fine. thanks to everyone who's asked, or expressed a bit of worry. i truly appreciate it. i guess it's all about adapting to changes that we truly hate, and having to accept that happiness, just like life itself, is never constant. it bites, stings and sucks to know that, but that's the truth.
as for the latest harry potter movie, i have mixed feelings about it. the immediate effects were one of a sour aftertaste. several hours later, i started to reflect on it and felt that overall, it felt so sad. it was like the dementors (which appeared in the first 10 minutes), not only sucked out the happiness of harry and his cousin, but of the audience too. and for the rest of the show, there was little hope for joy. :( effects were sparse and not as impactful, and the focus was very much on harry this time around, with ron and hermione playing barely convincing 'foreground best friends'. overall, this installment left me nostalgic and not entirely satiated with my dose of hogwarts.
2.5 out of 5.
for my baby (who i know, no longer reads my blog out of sheer laziness, but that's not the point):
i know it's been terribly stressful on our relationship this past 2 weeks, and i think we both have caused each other plenty of extra grey hair. pfft. but i'm glad we calmed down and talked it through. i have a lot more to say in the 'letter' i wrote you, so you'll get to read that soon. and thank you sooo much for the VS stuff. i'm sure the smile on my face made it all worthwhile. :D
i know i'm such a bitch sometimes, but you get your just-desserts. ;-)
Monday, July 23, 2007a proposal
i dreamt last night, in my hand, was a white piece of paper.
but this wasn't any ordinary piece of paper.
this paper had words typed on it.
these words weren't ordinary words.
they read (as i can barely remember):
"i promise that in the year 2012, i will ask for the hand in marriage of siti zawani abdul ghani, and will vow to be a loving, faithful, committed and passionate husband, lover, best friend and father to her children. on my life, i solemnly swear."
it's only a dream - and that's the sorrow.
because reality can only get as good.
and as for me, the good part of my life has come as quickly as it is, now, gone.
and shall, and will, never return.
i can't feel a thing. not a thing. because i refuse to let myself. Saturday, July 21, 2007
okay, so what?
it's not like school grades actually prove this, you know. hmph.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007barely, merely
it's only been 3 pathetic days, and i can't stand it.
i think i must've done something so horrible to deserve this.
"everything happens for a reason", they say.
and what reason may this be?
i try and try to forget the whole situation, but it bugs me soooo much. :( Monday, July 16, 2007
the dark clouds linger... a little too close
why'd all this shit just fall into my lap?
and all i asked for was a little piece of happiness, of relief.
it hurts to know that you are just too far away...
Thursday, July 12, 2007the calm before the storm
last night was refreshing. the company was great, the talk was sweet, and the time spent was priceless.
thanks Nasser, for a wonderful bitching session, and you don't have to worry - your secrets are safe with me! :) it's amazing how alike we are!
i'm just worried sick about my results, which are supposed to come out tomorrow, but i'm still unsure.
give me a pass, and i'll be ever-so-thankful. no FAILURES PLEASE!
inspiration is hard to come by in such a stifling environment. if i don't churn out any useful material, that's it; i'm not joining. though, of course, i sooo want to. it'll be another 2 years!
i've been fairly stress-free this past few weeks, but i never really felt content. so much seems to be missing.
and then ultimately, i'm alone again. Sunday, July 08, 2007
live
well, i'm up because i'm just waiting for my hair to dry. yes, at this time of the morning, i washed my hair. hah. i know it's really bad for you, but oh well. been a LONG day.
so now, i'm just wasting electricity by blogging, and actually watching live earth 2007. i must say, for the acts that i recognise, they're quite good to watch 'live'.
but the best part of live earth, is not the performances themselves (because God only knows it's just to get people to watch the stupid event!), but the short films and mini advertorials featuring celebrities. they really make you sit up and realise the horror of what we do to destroy our common home, Earth.
it's during these rare moments, that you realise how destructive we are, and how we abuse our power to exploit every possible resource available to us. watching live earth actually makes me feel sad. and worst of all, regret.
i've made my pledge on live earth's website. have you? :)
Thursday, July 05, 2007
hypocrisy of 'live earth' 2007
i'm sure by now the hype of advertorials and trailers for 'live earth' this weekend has drilled a cosy hole into your brain saying that we should support the cause by wearing green and watching tens of bands and performing artistes preach about "being green", through their music.
BUT...
the hypocrisy lies in the very event of it all. what does several rock concerts do for conserving the planet we live on? yes, raise awareness. and then....???
the electricity for lights and sound for performances, the plastic water bottles drunk by fans and artistes, the fuel consumed for shipping equipment and travelling, the materials used for advertorials in public spaces, the gas emission by private (and public) jets, tour buses, cars, MPVs, SUVs, and the list can only go on and on and on...
are these recording artistes and bands even the right 'advocates' to encourage a "greener approach", when they themselves consume the most, waste the most, and practically spit on the soil we reap our livelihood from?
personally, maybe i will wear green. but only because i believe the earth really needs our love, for the love it has given to us. but nothing else.
ask yourself:
'live earth' - is it really about saving the planet, or giving ourselves another excuse to party our heads silly? Wednesday, July 04, 2007
irony of library patrons
i just came home from a relaxing "me time" at jurong regional library, where i got to partially successfully indulge in a good book, which i haven't, in eons.
why partial?
because it irks me to see basic social responsibility and etiquette not being carried out by supposed civilised homo sapiens (i hope that's how you spell it!).
let's brush aside irresponsible parents, and noisy brats or even secondary school kids who have learnt nothing about public conduct during their primary school years.
no, let's focus on the elderly. when we say "elderly", we think about slow, quiet and fairly behaved individuals who would prefer peace and quiet in such a place like a library. they engross themselves in books and magazines and on ocassion, doze off in the comfortable, cooling air-conditioned atmosphere.
today, that was SOOOO not the case. pardon my use of local terms from here on, but it'll make this description far more... how should i say... accurate of my pent up frustrations.
so i found a comfortable chair in the "quiet reading room" (which i find, already quite ironic, since a library is supposed to be generally quiet in the first place!) and settled down into my book. the first 2 hours were good. i whizzed past several chapters with ease, and then all of a sudden...
this AH PEK strutted into the room and shouted to his friend on the other side, in chinese (sorry for the ignorance of what dialect he was speaking in, so i'll generalise it). as if that wasn't annoying enough, he sat down beside his (also) AH PEK friend, and started making small talk. although there was nothing SMALL about the volume of the voice he was speaking in! and not one person in that room looked bothered by it at all!
this went on for about 10 minutes, then things went quiet once more. i was pleased, and carried on with my book. time passed and i ended up closing my eyes, only to be awaken by security(!!!). 10 minutes after that stoopid PAKCIK annoyed me to bits, the two AH PEKS shifted to more comfortable seats in the room (there are benches, and then there are also individual sofa chairs. so they moved to 2 available sofa chairs). once again, the AH PEK that strutted into the room, raised his voice to talk to his AH PEK companion, and then they started laughing and sharing (what's meant to be) amusing photographs in magazines.
i tried squinting my eyes to check out what magazine they were reading, that was so funny... and it was some magazine meant for pregnant mothers/mothers who just had their newborns! that got me curious, so i sneaked a peek at what exactly their pile of magazines consisted of. they were women's magazines, and the most ridiculous one i spotted was "pengantin" (meaning bride in malay). -_-
what one of them did next was utterly gross and pervertic to me (at least). the AH PEK who was so boisterous when he came through the door, started taking photos of sexily-clad women in the magazines! and how do i know?
because he was rude enough not to put his handphone in silent mode, and every push of a button gave off a loud beeping sound! plus, that camera "click" sound went off several times too. i found myself utterly disgusted and didn't stay around much longer after that. the noise and 'visual distraction' made me lose interest completely.
what i'm trying to say is, some people should be stripped of the title "civilian" because they are farrrr away from being civil. i know it's a small issue to get hyped up about, but if you have to set up QUIET READING ROOMS in LIBRARIES, doesn't that spell I-R-O-N-Y to you?
and yet, people are so effing oblivious to how libraries are meant to function.
tsk tsk tsk. it seems Mother Nature is not the only one who needs saving; so does humanity.
on a happier note, congratulations on being promoted, Sergeant Yasin. :)
my baby's made me proud. Monday, July 02, 2007
transformers
but before i go excitedly into my review, i shall just divulge now that my $100 GST package has officially been cleansed from me. PLUS 62 bucks more.
whatever for?
a pair of PORSCHE DESIGN ADIDAS SNEAKERS for my baby. worth it, of course, considering the look on his face when i swiped my poor DBS card. but still, OUCH!
anyways, the rewards will come in soon... hopefully by the end of the month... yayy!
okay, now on to the movie.
for those of us (both girls and guys alike) who have never played with transformers, heard of them, or seen any animated movie/TV series or comic book featuring them, and you plan on watching this movie, go with an open mind. because this one blows you away. quite literally.
yes, it's got action. hard core, mind-blowing, riveting action.
yes, it's got romance (side plot). between sam (Shia LeBeouf) and mikaela (Megan Fox).
yes, it's got humour. watch out for "it must be japanese. definitely japanese." hah.
yes, it's got emotional human qualities. for robots (autobots) to protect humans, and work alongside a boy, causes a tear or two to well up in your eyes.
in short, it has fast paced action that hardly ceases, and emotional connection to the audience, in spite of all the technological sequences and heavily CGI-laden characters. Megan Fox is effing HOTT. and lebeouf charms us with his boyish antics and innocent expressions. you're bound to feel so fired up and charged up when the autobots gear up to battle the decepticons, that you wish they were real. of course, there are definitely a few weak plots here and there, but with all that's going on, on-screen, you hardly have time to notice them. or rather, you refuse to.
this movie is awesome - testosterone-filled, macho-soaked, and you'll lap it up like a starving dog.
4 out of 5. :)
if you ask me, bumblebee would've been much more adorable if he stuck to his original Betle form (in the cartoon series). but no matter, he's bound to make you love him!
