Temptations & Ambitions

*Notice: Do not read this if you plan to watch it and suffer in agony.

If you are a fanatic of Transformers' action packed films, this is the one for you. All action, lousy storyline, lousy scripts and dialogues. Basically, this is about 2 rich boy directors playing with their toys, and we're all watching it dumbfounded.


In layman's term, it's akin to having penetration-only sex for 2 and a half hours. No flirting, no foreplay, no nice dinner, no moans or groans. Just pure sex. That's how Transformers 3 is.  

Boring.


First and foremost, this is a pure American pride brought to the silver screen. The first half an hour (or so it seems) focused on the US' pride of the conquering moon. The flashback between historic reel and realtime acting seems too overpowering, with the sole reason to imply that the US was a great nation. Now I say that's a loser for you, to relive on past history. All the melodramatic act prolonged way further than any introduction scene would have been brought.


And then you have a Victorian model for some sex appeal which wasn't really appealing. Storyline for Megan Fox? She ditched him, just like that. Shia LaBeouf's overacting killed it as he leads the cast to doom. A lot of side casts are thrown in for nothing, all because the scriptwriter can't think of anything.

All the non-stop action and nonsensical linear plot goes on with too many plotholes, as the US army brought in to save the day, as usual, only on the silver screen. But what beats the climax was, the fight of the little Decpticons and Autobots took too long and had many twist and turns in effort to prolong it to 2 and a half hours long movie. 

And in the end, the ending was rather too simplistic and illogical. Megatron suddenly act out of the blue to help Optimus defeat another enemy (Sentinel Prime) from a few seconds worth of goading by the miss little Rosie. Optimus then defeat Megatron and Sentinel. All in a minute's worth of action time. wow. Disbelieving eh? Such abrupt end of all sorts.


I cant stop myself from yawning too often. Steven Spielberg's "lovely" massive destruction is too much to bear, even for me. Time for him to tune it down. Even Super 8 is too filled too much of Steven Spielberg. Time for him to learn how to do something less nasty.


*The author opined that Transformers 3 is a male version of Twilight. And he dislikes both.

Yes, PayPal now accepts topup via Malaysia's online banking (FPX). This means there is alternative apart from credit card.


Maybank2u. CIMC Clicks. Hong Leong Bank. PBe.


However, you'll be charged RM2 per top up transaction. Fair enough.

But if you're using RHB online banking, there's no charges! Because they are the ones who liaise with PayPal.


So, if you need Facebook credits, PayPal is the answer, because other methods cost u a bomb.

If you're buying from e-Bay (international), use PayPal, because they are the best middleman who refunds you if there is a fraud.


Just so as long you're paying any money out of Malaysia, use PayPal. Even if you have a credit card.


Just make sure you don't fall for any phishing scam for your PayPal account.


If you do, I'll say, "Don't use PayPal."


*Note: This "advertising" is unpaid for and is the author's personal opinion. :P
And btw, this is really old news, since this service is available since October 2010. 

It was a piece of literature. Perhaps, I can say the hottest piece currently in Malaysia due to politicization of the issue. I had tried to obtained a copy from MPH, but I was told that they were all sold out and MPH authorities had issued a directive to stop getting new stock. Thanks to Caryn, I got myself a copy from the online bookstore, Ujana Ilmu. (Click on the link) It takes only 2 days for the book to arrive at my doorstep. If you'd noticed, it's also currently the bestselling piece on that site.


So, what's the hoo-haa all about this literature book meant for Form 5 students for Malay literature? It all came from a word " Pariah", which usually refers to the lowest caste in the olden times in India. As you can see, unless you're an expert in the sociology of the caste system in India, I think it's for me to leave it as it is. It was not much of use nowadays, although you might see the remnants of the system in love-marriage in India. But that's not the Malaysia we're talking about.

So, before we dwell much on the issue and get on the fiery anger like our fellow politicians, let's just pick up the book and read up on that piece of fine literature. I'll just give a short synopsis/ review of the book.


WARNING: Spoilers Ahead - It may disturb your pleasure in reading the novel or cause biased opinion, so stop here if you're holding a copy of the book now or planning to buy one.


Synopsis aka spoiler:
This is a fine plot I would say given that it was written long ago. (Imagine that the author is now 91 years old!) It consists of 4 "books" within the novel. "Book 1" was about the Seman family, "Book 2" on Cing Huat's family, "Book 3" on Maniam's family, and the last "Book 4" on Interlok (Interlocked).


Book 1 is all about Seman who had to undergo the ordeal of facing the recent death of his father, Musa. Left with his mother, he had realized that all his father's properties weren't his. They belonged to the Chinese trader, Cina Panjang who lent money to his father in a "business dealing" which allows the Chinese to own the "Malay land" while making Seman's father, Musa to work for him. The plot deals with the struggles of the Malays, on how Musa was deemed a "Lotus Eater", how some among the community resist education as it was deemed useless for agriculture. There are many other issues worth pondering upon. Each character seems to metaphorically represents a subgroup of people with different opinions on various issues that when dealt with, brings even more questions of uncertainties.


Book 2 is about how Cing Huat came from China with his father due to poverty, in hope of looking for money to support the family. The struggle came about the hardship they had to endure, cheated by friends-alike even though they may came from the same village. They learned their lessons well, and understood that the only way to repay their loans (to pay for the fare to Tanah Melayu) is to work harder than ever, and to earn money to send back home. Back then, AirAsia wasn't here yet, so the fare would be very expensive and time-consuming, so they never had a chance to go back China or bring their family members here. And this plot spoke of the issues and challenges faced by the Chinese, including how Cing Huat's father ended up with Opium addiction, how Cing Huat vowed to work hard to earn ore money, for money is the only kind security in a foreign land. Soon, Cing Huat had been a rather successful trader, and soon had the nickname of Cina Panjang. He had his own family as well, with 4 children. Interesting enough, he had 4 children with differing views, metaphorically representing again few of the subgroup of the society and their perceptions of other races, from the Whites (Lelaki Syaitan Putih) to Malays (Ma lai guai, Huan Na-no idea what it meant). For example, his eldest son, Yew Hock, cares all about hardwork and money, resembling the traits of his father, while his second son, Yew Seng mixed with the Malay community, which was resented by the father. As Seman (in Book 1) was chased out of their house, Yew Seng defended Seman and criticized his father of his heartless action who cares all about money. This eventually lead to the exile of Yew Seng from the house. Even Cing Huat was portrayed as a typical Chinese guy who would prefer sons over daughters. There are many other issues as well, but I'll keep it short till here.


Book 3 was the center of attraction of the recent hot news. The story of Maniam who was mentioned to happen to be from the Pariah caste, the same as most of those on board of the vessel that he took from India to Tanah Melayu. Maniam was seen portraying the difference in the caste system which was (supposedly) still strongly practiced in India and in Tanah Melayu. He was seen thinking in monologue of how in India, he could not touch the people from upper caste, how he had to put the coins on a side to pay the shopkeeper, where the shopkeeper would later shower the coins with water had clean it before taking the money. In Tanah Melayu, the caste was also insignificant, whereas he does not need to worry even if he accidentally bumped into anyone from the upper caste. This description was only on the first few pages, with the Pariah word mentioned only once. The story proceeds on Maniam's struggle from one place to another, mostly in plantations, and how he was helped by Musa (Seman's father). Later they became good friends and Maniam helped Musa to get a job in the plantation which was predominantly worked by Indians. The separation of work by race was so prominent that it was almost so hard to accept social mobility from another race. However, soon, Musa left to marry the girl of his life. Musa's leave felt like a lost of a brother for Maniam, as he continued his work and struggle with the politics in the plantation. The ending of this chapter (Book 3) was of despair and sadness, but the story does not end there.


Book 4 - The fate of all 3 characters and their family were intertwined. This chapter moves at a much faster pace, from the pre-war English colonization period, to Japanese occupation, communism and Independence day at the end of the chapter. It spoke of the hardship and dilemma of all the races through that period of time. There were heart-touching moments of the pre-Independence day, giving optimism that all hope is not lost, in today's era where self-preservation plays a bigger role in our lives. The final unity and Malaya's independence was the end point of the happy ending of the story. 




As a piece of literature, I really like the plot line which was rather refreshing. The last time I had such storyplot would be a game in Heroes V where the heroes in the 1st 5 campaigns meet up in the last campaign. The honest opinion (opinions, not facts) of the authors along with his consideration of multiple perspectives in our community is something truly commendable. A good effort, although it may be far from perfect. Given the current publicity, I guess it would be the bestselling book of the year.

I went to TARC to collect my alumni card, the second reissuance due to the fact that I'd lost the first one a month after that. It happened 3-4 years ago, so I tried getting a new one during the last break. It was during the festive holiday, so there wasn't anyone there to begin with. I took quite the leisure strolling around the School of Pre-U Studies (SPUS). I'd always like to have a walk there, partially because of the scenery which also attracted me to do my Form 6 there. The air there was fresher, with a campus feel, and the sound of the birds chirping busily but merrily on the trees. TARC had undergone some beautification as I can see, to attract potential students here. Below are some photos I'd taken. :P








7. Another view of former mosquito park. The beautification of the area may attract new students there, but old timer like me flinched once in a while while walking past the park. The feeling of the "invisible" mosquitoes lurking around still gives me the chill down my spine.

8. The labs. TARC features a building for its labarotaries. This building houses 4 chemistry labs, 2 physics labs and 2 biology labs as I know of. I'm sure there are more, just that I did not explore much as there are other sorts of labs as well. Currently, it is used more by SPUS and also SAS (School of Arts & Science)

9. One of the Physics lab. During my time, the tables were 18 years older than me. It seems the labs were refurbished as well. It may not beat labs like Marie Curie lab in HELP or other private colleges, but it's a decent one with adequate facilities.



10. The Chemistry lab. There is a nice touch to the colors and the tables. I remembered the old tables had some nails on the sides, which had torn some of my khaki. And the white boards had replaced all the old black board with chalks. (Yeah, TARC was everything old previously) And currently, it is a requirement to wear goggles and lab coats in these Chemistry labs. Gosh, no more casual wear while doing some Chemistry experiments! :P


I guess the new students must be lucky. With all the investment TARC has put in for the facilities, it's quite comfortable to be in there. But I'd set my footsteps away, and my footprints are far from here as I had embark on yet another new journey soon. To where, I'd no idea as well. Life is after all, full of surprises.

It's been a while since I've last updated here. I'm blaming it partially on the slow connection speed in my hostel, and the other on my rather stressed out schedule, trying to attend the ward rounds where we've to cover the beds just for nothing. Because most doctors won't bother to listen to our presentation, or to explain anything. They talk softly among themselves, and anything medical, don't believe the Orthopedics doctors. We've seen "misdiagnosed" Parkinson, poor medical management, grumpy doctors and lots of ego. And this is where our attendance are to be taken to avoid being barred from exams. Doing my own rounds among medical students would benefit more than this. But then, it's the 5th week tomorrow and I've yet to practice the physical examination. *Sigh*

But that's another story. Today's post is that... I'm done with slow surfing! After days of agony and research, I've found the best plan for me. Yes, it's just me, because different people have different needs, and I've tailored it to mine. It's Digi Broadband amidst the initial reluctance.

Why would I choose Digi? The reason's simple. Streamyx is not available for my hostel, and my hostel's wifi (jaring) could afford torrent downloads when the need arises, despite their slow surfing speed (Too many loading PPStream and Torrent clients). P1 WiMax is out of the picture because I've nobody to share it with. P1 WiMax is seriously, worth it now with their "Potong" promotion if you have 2 or more people sharing it. That is, if you don't mind their volume capping compared to streamyx with unlimited download.

So that left me with mobile broadband, which I hope I could use next year should I be posted in some rural place or Teluk Intan where EDGE is present. WiMax might take ages to cover anywhere out of Klang Valley and some major cities. Nationwide coverage is a rather costly thing, so I've gave up on that.

Celcom and U-mobile are the worst wireless broadband provider, slower than your 56k modem despite being called a broadband.

Maxis would have been the fastest, and with the price which was slightly more expensive, worth every sen you're paying for. Download/Upload speed was on max of 1.8Mbps/50kbps. They don't encourage uploading, but with that download speed, I don't really care. The volume quota is lower and more expensive compared to others. But the problem was, Maxis has different dealers for different plans. I couldn't get the plan that I wanted, so I figured it was fate. Little did I realized that Maxis broadband has another famous problem which I'd overlooked. Pray it doesn't rain when you're connected, just like your Astro.

And then Digi entered into the fray when I could not search for the Maxis reseller. Yes, Digi's management is rather decent, with standardized outlets where you can ask for any plans for Digi. I registered mine in Leisure Mall, and the free modem was instantenous and the internet activation was promised on the same day. Upfront payment was only Rm100 for the student plan which included a free USB modem worth RM180.

Below are the photos of the modem:


After 1 week of trial, I must admit I'm rather satisfied. They'd promised speed of 700kbps/200kbps, and they could deliver up to max of 1Mbps download speed. So looks like I'll be stuck with Digi for some time for my online needs. :P

Nothing beats the satisfactory drool when someone drops by your blog. Well, truth to be told, I ain't a pretty gurl, and I've no boobies to reveal like Pinkpau or Suet Li (According to Jack) and I'm not round enough to be the next Kenny Sia. So do bear with my lil' flog (abbrv for food blog, not the flog that u're thinking) adventure down with food.


And this time round would be Lum Mee, Cosy Corner. Notice that the places lately are in Cheras as it is nearby UKMMC. For me, no food is worth the distance, but I don't mind if it's out of convenience. And hence this restaurant in Taman Cheras, one of the old names here.

Apart from Lum Mee, this restaurant serves Yong Tow Foo (YTF) as well. Just as Cheras people like their YTF fried, this place is no exception, to my disappointment. And well, the menu serves simple YTF, as they do offer other noodles, prawn mee, etc. But trust me, you should just have Lum Mee, the best they could offer. If you don't like the Lum Mee, chances are the other noodles are worse. But well, it's a decent place worth mentioning.




The Foo Chook was crispy and tasty though not piping hot. The brinjal was not deep fried, not much to my fancy, to say and the fish balls were just okay. Overall, the YTF was edible and above average, but well, I think Peel Road would have been better.

On the bright side, it would be easier to find parking here, and worth a try (just once ought to do) if you got bored of the usual place to eat around here. That's my verdict, but well, I might be wrong. some may love this place, and some may not. :P

Address:
Restoran Cosy Corner
No.113, Block P/F,
Jalan KasKas,
Tmn Cheras,
56000 Kuala Lumpur.

Dear Readers,

This would be the last post of the stream that filled this blog to the maximum displayed post.
And it all started with food and food and food.

Today ward ended early, so my dear and I went for lunch. With the usual where to eat, the car brought us to Pudu for Chee Cheong Fun. The famous one. Oer the years, the food got more pricey, and the quality deteriorates bit here and there. Somehow, the stream of customers are still there. Yesterday was no different, but the Yong Tow Foo was generally nice and the Chee Cheong Fun which was served with dried shrimps were still good amidst lacking the perfection years ago. So below are the pics:





But anyway, it was RM 12+ for the 2 of us, rather reasonable compared to other food. A place worth visiting if you don't mind looking hard for parking. :P

Address:
45 Jalan Brunei Barat (off Pudu), Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: (603) 2148 9220.

Then, dinner was in Santai where we'd celebrate Sze Wern's birthday. But this time, it was just the two of us, to try the other cuisine from the place.

Last Saturday, went for Dimsum in MinMax restaurant in PNB Darby. The heck with the "Halal" signage, one might think, or the fear of losing the authenticity "touch" of pork. But with the flow of swine flu recently, I guess many would prefer Halal Dimsum with the thoughts of pork for once.


Well, this is the place for you then. Despite the scarcity(basically none by the way) of pork, it retained the freshness and the savory taste of dimsum in most of the dishes. Well, the downside is that without pork, the choices are fairly limited to around 15 dishes, while a non-halal dimsum restaurant can serve up to 20-30 dishes, including the pork ribs. Nevertheless, it was enough for my tastebud. Plus, MinMax compensate with a variety of non-dimsum dishes, which ought to be enough to stimulate your salivary glands with a look at the menu.

The reason I dislike smartphones is merely because I can't single-handedly flick it around with ease. I can't SMS with one hand either, even with tremendous amount of practice put in. To me, smart phones aren't smart if they can't SMS what you are saying while you are driving. Plus with the "-lah's" , "-ma's" or "haiz's" used in our everyday conversation.

My previous phone was a SE W850. Nice phone, one of the best at its production era (which phone ain't? ) all thanks to my friend's recommendations. Since then, I'm always a loyal SE fan of the W-series. What's W to you anyway? It just means it's from the Walkman series, while the current C-series are the camera series with cybershot capabilities. Nevermind why they'd put it under K-series in the past, maybe K was for Kamera.

And here's the birthday present from my parents, along with a new Acer notebook which was half the price and twice the specs of the old one. Introducing W995, codenamed Hikaru.






No, do not associate Hikaru with Maria Ozawa, Sora Aoi, or the sorts from the AV-series.

Hikaru was the pre-release name of this phone.

With a body encased by aluminium, it felt lighter than most of its counterpart of the same size. The cosmic silver is easily mistaken for a compact digital camera. But make no mistake. It may have an 8.1 Megapixels camera, autofocus, bright lights, and most of the SE C-series cybershot functions (but still not a cybershot either), it is still a phone camera. It may be superior than most phone cameras, but definitely not to the specialized cameras.

But due to its rather small size, there's no need to carry a bigger camera on the go, or even the DSLR if you'd just wanted to watch a movie.

At least I don't copy BHT that often now, and 50 pages of information are snapped in no more than 5 minutes rather than the conventional scribbling taking up to 4 hours, broken down into few sessions to relief the boredom.

And below are the snapshots of my W995.





I'm not going to go into details of this model since GSM arena would have done a great job. I'll just highlight the goods and bads of it.

Pros:

• 8.1 megapixel camera
• Improved loud stereo speaker ( 2 speaker output, 1 from top and 1 from below)
• Kickstand for watching movies
• Wi-Fi and GPS capabilities
• 8 GB storage M2 (Anything more than 1 GB is enough for me)
• Slick buttons on the sides for camera and walkman function.
• Sense Me function allowing shaking phone to switch song tracks. (Also used in certain games such as bowling)
  
• An extra 3.5mm jack output in addition to the conventional power/earphones SE jack

Cons:

• Camera could improve more, and flashlight too bright
• Kickstand is just steady enough to stand without any force pushing on it.
• No idea how to get GPS to work with Malsing map (maybe can't do it)
• Sense Me can be a nuisance to get adjusted to, may get tennis elbow, and may imitate the inappropriate act of masturbation when viewed from behind.
• Lack of nice preset themes
  

But well, I like slider phones, and seems rather cool. Got this phone for SGD 268 (Rm600+), after my aunt's line contract and discounts, so there's nothing to complain of. Otherwise, this would cost around Rm 2000 in SE specialty stores. (Rm1400 for AP)

Anyway, seems this is all I could think of for now. Would be updating on other stuff the next time!