I've been ultra-busy the last couple of days and will continue to be over the next five weeks. Updates are likely to be less frequent, but owing to the amount of stress that I'll be under for the next few weeks, that may not necessarily be the case.
So... what has happened over the last three days? In chronological order, the events of significance are:
Monday - April 26
I encouraged a dear friend of mine to follow her heart. Kind of ironic given that I'm too scared to follow mine. She keeps telling me that I should learn from her mistake, but I maintain that our situations are different. The circumstances leading up to her situation have been in motion for the past few years, whereas in my case, it's only been the last few months. Other than that, our situations are similar, but still, she knows her friend who causing her heartache far better than I know the one that's causing mine... and in my heart (or is it my mind?), I believe that my guy really does treat all ladies the same way he treats me, so there's a high probability that he doesn't like me. But then again... I treat all guys the same way... and I still like him. Oh, heck it. I'm just going to do my best to get over him. I'm going to treat him as if he were gay.
Tuesday - April 27
I went to watch Zatoichi, a really brilliant film directed by and starring Takeshi Kitano as the titular character, a blind masseur who makes a living by travelling and giving massages and gambling. The blind man is in reality a samurai, and one of the best at that. He arrives in a town that's ruled by the Yakuza, meets a pair of geishas who are not what they seem and... Well, you'll have to watch the movie to find out!
This is the first samurai movie I've watched, but the friend - a samurai film afficionado - says this is one of the best ones that he's watched. While there was a lot of violence and bloodshed present, it was stylised and sporadic rather than random and gratuitous. Also, Kitano did a brilliant job of integrating the normal, everyday sounds such as digging, stomping around in the mud and building a house into beats and rhythms of Keiichi Suzuki?s accompanying musical score.
The acting... I'm not sure how to interpret the acting as all the characters are Japanese after all. However, based on my limited experience, I'm going to say that Kitano does a really good job as the quirky blind masseur. At times, he seems eccentric and harmless, but at others, he appears as his true self: dangerous and deadly.
Asano Tadanobu who plays Hattori, a ronin who hires himself out as a bodyguard to the chief of the gangsters in order to pay his wife's medical expenses, is convincing as well. Granted, he doesn't change his expression at all, but somehow, he manages to convey how he feels, from concern for his wife's health, to the shame he feels when he was defeated during his training, to the cool professional attitude he takes towards his 'dishonourable' line of work. In the words of The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw, Tadanobu is 'icily charismatic'.
There were some delightfully amusing parts to the movie as well. Funny little moments like a ruffian drawing his sword in fury and managing to cut his friend's arm in the process, or to a sword-fighting lesson conducted by a ne'er-do-well which degenerates into well... a very amusing slapstick scene helped to lighten the show's mood at precisely the right times.
The ending of the show was pretty good... and yet strange as well. The Stomp-esque tap dancing in which most of the cast participates (apparently for a festival) seemed out of place with the sheer Western-ness of the dance style. But yet, the sheer exhilaration of the dancing seemed to be in adherence with the rest of the light moments. I don't know. The movie would have been fine without the dance piece, but as a dance-lover, it was breathtaking to see how The Stripes, a Japanese tap-dance troupe, danced on clogs.
Wednesday - April 28
I participated in the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge today... and survived! And not only did I manage that incredible feat, I was among the top seven fastest females from my company, which sent in 130 people.
While my time was registered as 41 minutes, the actual time (as there were tonnes of people in front of me and it took me 4 minutes 13 seconds to reach the starting line) that it took for me to run the 5.6 km was 36 minutes 47 seconds. That's around 9.13 km/h. Not that fast a speed, but considering that I'm not that active (especially compared to the females who finished ahead of me), it's nothing to be scoffed at.
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Sunday, April 25, 2004
I've got an Iomega Mini drive which has been pretty useful ever since I purchased it a couple of weeks back. However, had I known that storage devices like this were around, I just might have opted for this instead.
I'm sure that would have done wonders for my professional image.
I'm sure that would have done wonders for my professional image.
Saturday, April 24, 2004
I went for a GEPAA Mixer yesterday and ended up having an unexpectedly good time. Granted, I was really tired when I went to it, given that I had just come from my company's annual sporting event in which my team lost in the netball finals 11-10, but still, I had fun. I met up with an ex-classmate and made some new friends, talking with them until well... four hours later, when the Man Utd - Liverpool game ended. Strange indeed, given that I think I'm not that interesting a person to talk to. Yet, I find it really easy to make friends with others. I wonder why the seeming contradiction?
Thursday, April 22, 2004
Awwwwwww (and tear)-inducing moments from the most recent episode of The O.C., The Gamble:
At this moment, a dazed-looking Ryan steps out into the sunlight. The camera rests on him for about ten full seconds, while his face registers about fifteen different emotions. Aw. Dawn stares at him, and gives a small wave. He stares back, then slowly raises one arm, uncertain if it's a wave or not.
Ryan shuffles after Seth, turning back to Kirsten and Sandy with the smallest, most earnest smile to say, "I'll unpack later." And he giggles!
- Both moments as described by Television Without Pity
At this moment, a dazed-looking Ryan steps out into the sunlight. The camera rests on him for about ten full seconds, while his face registers about fifteen different emotions. Aw. Dawn stares at him, and gives a small wave. He stares back, then slowly raises one arm, uncertain if it's a wave or not.
Ryan shuffles after Seth, turning back to Kirsten and Sandy with the smallest, most earnest smile to say, "I'll unpack later." And he giggles!
- Both moments as described by Television Without Pity
Wednesday, April 21, 2004
I know this is going to lower your opinion of me immensely but The O.C. is a really gripping show with incredibly gorgeous people. Benjamin McKenzie's puppy dog look gets to me every time and Mischa Barton is astoundingly pretty. She kind of reminds me of Calista Flockhart (in her not-so-thin days). Adam Brody ain't too bad either... Be still, my hormones!
And the script... cliched but nevertheless, still nice. It's the kind of thing that you're longing to hear in your own angsty tortured existence.
Marissa: I was. I don't know why I'm here. I just wanted to see you. I mean...you're leaving tomorrow and...what if I never...we never...Maybe I could spend the night. Just to hang out.
Ryan: You can't stay. If you stay, if you spend the night, I...I don't know that I could leave.
Marissa: Well, then don't.
- The Model Home, Episode 1.02, The O.C.
And the script... cliched but nevertheless, still nice. It's the kind of thing that you're longing to hear in your own angsty tortured existence.
Marissa: I was. I don't know why I'm here. I just wanted to see you. I mean...you're leaving tomorrow and...what if I never...we never...Maybe I could spend the night. Just to hang out.
Ryan: You can't stay. If you stay, if you spend the night, I...I don't know that I could leave.
Marissa: Well, then don't.
- The Model Home, Episode 1.02, The O.C.
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
TalkingCock.com is hilarious... just take a look at these suggestions for potential Singapore movie remakes.
Among my favourites are:
Lord of the Bengs
One Beng to rule them all.
The Ringtone
Dial wrongly and some long haired woman will crawl out of your cellphone screen.
Spore Wars: Attack of the Clone
Will the young son give in to the Dark Side and become exactly like his evil father?
Pirates of the Coffee Bean: the Curse of the Black Pearl
A young entrepreneur copies the business concept of a popular coffee shop chain, but adds bubble tea to his menu.
Among my favourites are:
Lord of the Bengs
One Beng to rule them all.
The Ringtone
Dial wrongly and some long haired woman will crawl out of your cellphone screen.
Spore Wars: Attack of the Clone
Will the young son give in to the Dark Side and become exactly like his evil father?
Pirates of the Coffee Bean: the Curse of the Black Pearl
A young entrepreneur copies the business concept of a popular coffee shop chain, but adds bubble tea to his menu.
So far, in my safe little island home, this has got to be the most exciting thing that has happened so far in recent memory.
I saw the collapse (or rather a huge cloud of dust from a far away construction site) from my office window. In fact, my office building was one of those affected by the power blackout arising from the highway collapse. I didn't put two and two together. I told a friend who thought the cloud of dust was the cause that "it's so far away, how can it possibly have affected our power supply?"
Oh well. I hope everything turns out all right.
I saw the collapse (or rather a huge cloud of dust from a far away construction site) from my office window. In fact, my office building was one of those affected by the power blackout arising from the highway collapse. I didn't put two and two together. I told a friend who thought the cloud of dust was the cause that "it's so far away, how can it possibly have affected our power supply?"
Oh well. I hope everything turns out all right.
Sunday, April 18, 2004
I watched the second of my two Singapore International Film Festival films today - The Barbarian Invasions. It's a brilliant film about life, death, love and friendship which centres around a son's (Sebastien, played by Stephane Rousseau) relationship with his dying father, Remy (Remy Girard).
Stephane is wonderful as Sebastien, able to convey both love and resentment towards his father, who cheated on his mother six months after they got married and continued to cheat on her with various women throughout their entire marriage. Sebastien is a handsome London-based financier and sounds absolutely gorgeous when he speaks English with a Canadian French accent. He looks like a cross between David Duchovny and Brad Pitt... a good-looking lad indeed! But what gets us is that in spite of his wanting to return to London after having quarrelled with his father early on in the film, he stays on - and not only does he stay on, he gets his father a much better room than the one he was originally given (a commentary on Canada's failing health system) and contacts all of his father's old friends and gets them to come down and keep his father company during his last few days. He even goes to the extent of getting one of Remy's ex-mistress's junkie daughter, Nathalie (Marie-Josée Croze), to obtain heroin for his father since Remy, despite being given morphine, is quite obviously in pain.
When Remy's old friends turn up on the same day one by one, the show - already funny - becomes so much better. We find out more about Remy's younger days as he speaks with his friends and the tender love between all the old friends is fantastic, displayed by the ease of the banter that passes between all of them.
Apparently, Croze won the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival last year, something I was unaware of, else I would have paid more attention to her performance. I was a little too engrossed between the possible relationship between Sebastien and Nathalie to concentrate on her acting, but on the whole, it wasn't too bad. She does a good job of portraying someone who's been down-and-out for so long that she's accepted her lot in life and doesn't quite know what to do when the opportunity to get out of that rut comes, but manages, once she has let Sebastien down, to gather the strength to kick her habit. The relationship between Remy and her is touching too, as she becomes closer to him through their mutual sharing of dreams and regrets while they're high.
The show is both hilarious and touching. There're parts which moved me (close to) tears, and surprisingly the one moment which actually made me shed tears was the scene in which Remy's seafaring daughter, Sylvaine, calls back home via satellite link and tells him that somehow, despite his never having been around, she's inherited his lust for life and that she'll always be there for him, breaking down as she says this. Sylvaine doesn't make that many appearances in the movie, only appearing in two scenes so it came as a surprise that the most minor of characters in the movie was the one that caused me to cry.
All in all, it was a great show. I hope it comes out on general release here, as I would love to re-watch it.
Stephane is wonderful as Sebastien, able to convey both love and resentment towards his father, who cheated on his mother six months after they got married and continued to cheat on her with various women throughout their entire marriage. Sebastien is a handsome London-based financier and sounds absolutely gorgeous when he speaks English with a Canadian French accent. He looks like a cross between David Duchovny and Brad Pitt... a good-looking lad indeed! But what gets us is that in spite of his wanting to return to London after having quarrelled with his father early on in the film, he stays on - and not only does he stay on, he gets his father a much better room than the one he was originally given (a commentary on Canada's failing health system) and contacts all of his father's old friends and gets them to come down and keep his father company during his last few days. He even goes to the extent of getting one of Remy's ex-mistress's junkie daughter, Nathalie (Marie-Josée Croze), to obtain heroin for his father since Remy, despite being given morphine, is quite obviously in pain.
When Remy's old friends turn up on the same day one by one, the show - already funny - becomes so much better. We find out more about Remy's younger days as he speaks with his friends and the tender love between all the old friends is fantastic, displayed by the ease of the banter that passes between all of them.
Apparently, Croze won the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival last year, something I was unaware of, else I would have paid more attention to her performance. I was a little too engrossed between the possible relationship between Sebastien and Nathalie to concentrate on her acting, but on the whole, it wasn't too bad. She does a good job of portraying someone who's been down-and-out for so long that she's accepted her lot in life and doesn't quite know what to do when the opportunity to get out of that rut comes, but manages, once she has let Sebastien down, to gather the strength to kick her habit. The relationship between Remy and her is touching too, as she becomes closer to him through their mutual sharing of dreams and regrets while they're high.
The show is both hilarious and touching. There're parts which moved me (close to) tears, and surprisingly the one moment which actually made me shed tears was the scene in which Remy's seafaring daughter, Sylvaine, calls back home via satellite link and tells him that somehow, despite his never having been around, she's inherited his lust for life and that she'll always be there for him, breaking down as she says this. Sylvaine doesn't make that many appearances in the movie, only appearing in two scenes so it came as a surprise that the most minor of characters in the movie was the one that caused me to cry.
All in all, it was a great show. I hope it comes out on general release here, as I would love to re-watch it.
Saturday, April 17, 2004
I'm interested in all sorts of personality tests... even those rooted in Chinese Astrology (which I maintain can't be true since that means 500 million people throughout the word share exactly the same characteristics). So here's an introduction to the Monkey and characteristics of the Monkey.
I have been very hyper the last few days. I've been acting kind of crazy and quirky, and yesterday, I was 'victimising' some of my favourite guy friends. I haven't been in this mood for a while in that everything I say is loaded with innuendo. To put it quite simply, I flirt mercilessly.
To a friend via SMS - thus proving that even far away from me, you're not safe:
"I'm feeling playful tonight. You sure you don't want to be my toyboy?"
"Let me know your answer soon since that'll make the difference between sexy and super sexy!"
"If you don't tell me, I'll just find someone more willing."
"Awwww. All right. You're missing out. I'll send you pictures." And I did. Can you say craaaaaazy?
To the friend I was with:
"Are you trying to look at my skirt?"
To a girlfriend:
"Cheers - to butt-shaking!"
To a friend via SMS - thus proving that even far away from me, you're not safe:
"I'm feeling playful tonight. You sure you don't want to be my toyboy?"
"Let me know your answer soon since that'll make the difference between sexy and super sexy!"
"If you don't tell me, I'll just find someone more willing."
"Awwww. All right. You're missing out. I'll send you pictures." And I did. Can you say craaaaaazy?
To the friend I was with:
"Are you trying to look at my skirt?"
To a girlfriend:
"Cheers - to butt-shaking!"
Friday, April 16, 2004
What my lips say about me...
Lip Flapping
Flirty, funny, entertaining, charming; that's how the world tends to see you. You, more than others, love sharing gossip, making new friends, and maybe even passing out a few free kisses along the way. There's a fun frivolity to your wild ways that makes people envy your spontaneous enthusiasm and boundless energy.
Whatever your passion, you love to try new things and can move easily from one fad to the next; whether that involves searching for the best party on Saturday night or finding the perfect shade of lipstick. Simply put, you don't mind looking around, and you'll probably have more fun than anyone while you do.
Take the What Do Your Lips Say About You? test at Tickle.
Lip Flapping
Flirty, funny, entertaining, charming; that's how the world tends to see you. You, more than others, love sharing gossip, making new friends, and maybe even passing out a few free kisses along the way. There's a fun frivolity to your wild ways that makes people envy your spontaneous enthusiasm and boundless energy.
Whatever your passion, you love to try new things and can move easily from one fad to the next; whether that involves searching for the best party on Saturday night or finding the perfect shade of lipstick. Simply put, you don't mind looking around, and you'll probably have more fun than anyone while you do.
Take the What Do Your Lips Say About You? test at Tickle.
Thursday, April 15, 2004
Recent chat with current crush:
Me: Yeah. Being a new age, sensitive guy probably wouldn't sit well with you either. Especially not the sensitive part.
Me: Hee.
Me: Although you look so vewy cute when you're a wittle baby seal.
Him: so you dun like it when this 'baby seal' grows bigger and asserts some authority over your warm lithe body?
Help!
Can I just say... mixed signals??
Me: Yeah. Being a new age, sensitive guy probably wouldn't sit well with you either. Especially not the sensitive part.
Me: Hee.
Me: Although you look so vewy cute when you're a wittle baby seal.
Him: so you dun like it when this 'baby seal' grows bigger and asserts some authority over your warm lithe body?
Help!
Can I just say... mixed signals??
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
Seven of us ended up drinking cheap gourmet coffee at a small little shop at Suntec today, discussing coffee and other various things that we like. Yes, we're members of the Cheap Coffee Connoisseurs Club (CCCC) and we're proud of it.
So, in the spirit of the whole affair, I went out and researched (what else?) coffee.
Check out Can A Cup Of Coffee Improve My Workout? and The Fit Or Fat Coffee Report: How Does Your Coffee Measure Up?.
And just for fun... What Kind Of Coffee Are You?
Your New Romance - What Kind of Coffee Are You?
"
So, in the spirit of the whole affair, I went out and researched (what else?) coffee.
Check out Can A Cup Of Coffee Improve My Workout? and The Fit Or Fat Coffee Report: How Does Your Coffee Measure Up?.
And just for fun... What Kind Of Coffee Are You?
Your New Romance - What Kind of Coffee Are You?
|
You Are a Peppermint CappuccinoYou're fun, outgoing, and you love to try anything new. However, you tend to have strong opinions on what you like. You are a total girly girly at heart - and prefer your coffee with good conversation. You're the type that seems complex to outsiders, but in reality, you are easy to please. What Kind Of Coffee Are You? Take This Quiz :-) Find the Love of Your Life (and More Love Quizzes) at Your New Romance. |
Monday, April 12, 2004
Sunday, April 11, 2004
I went to see Saturday Night Fever yesterday night. Luck continued to smile on me as I managed to make it through the theatre doors a second just before they closed it to all latecomers.
Did I enjoy the show? Of course I did! The dancing was very entertaining although there was parts at which I was just laughing my head off for no apparent reason other than the fact that I was quite tickled by the idea of people doing such moves (including the one I always parody at discos in which I stretch out one arm, point it in front of me and sweep it from the left to the right). The singing wasn't that great though. Only one member of the cast had a voice that was noteworthy and that was the actress who played Stephanie, Tony's dance competition partner.
Please do not ask me about the plot. Anyone who has watched the movie (like I) will know that the plot is paper-thin at best. What else can I say? The story's about a 19-year-old who's throwing his life away partying and participating in potential gang activities. He doesn't get along well with his family, he treats friends and women like crap and the only thing in his life he really truly cares about is dancing. So what if in the end, after his friend's apparent accident/suicide, he comes round and decides to better himself by going to Manhattan and getting a job? He doesn't have any college education and he can't type. We all know that this Brooklynite is not going to get anywhere.
But like I said, this is a show in which you cannot think about the plot for even a second because then you'd get distracted by the sheer awfulness of the plot and not concentrate on what makes the musical such a spectacle.
In spite of the fact that I don't generally enjoy the Bee Gees' music, I'll admit that last night was an exception to the rule. I was happily mouthing the words to Words, bobbing my head to Tragedy and singing along to Immortality and How Deep Is Your Love. In between, I was trying to learn the dance steps to Stayin' Alive, Disco Inferno and Saturday Night Fever. Yes, for one night, I was a Bee Gees groupie.
The one surprising thing about this musical is that a member of the cast, Monty, exhorted the audience to get up off their seats at the end of the show and dance... and there were actually people who did! Not I though. I was way too embarrassed to do so, sitting in the front row of Circle 1 (which incidentally, was a fantastic seat, so thank you, Yahoo! Auctions!)
After the show ended, my friend and I adjourned to the Outdoor at the Esplanade feature, which turned out to be a band called The Example, who was playing songs from The Eagles and Air Supply. I must have been in a really soppy mood last night because instead of dismissing Air Supply as the spineless singers they are (just listen to the content of their songs!), I was laying my head on my friend's shoulder, saying, "Awww... it's so romantic!" after which I told her I felt like going to all of my guy friends and slapping them for being the thoroughly unromantic bastards that they are. Heh.
Did my night end there? Nope. We then went to join another friend of mine (who must be thoroughly sick of my constant presence by now, for which I apologise) at the Lobby Lounge at the Ritz and listened to the soft jazz trio. Among the songs they played were Dream A Little Dream Of Me and L-O-V-E.
Now yesterday night was a very satisfactory night - both musically and dance-wise - and it rounded off one of the best weeks of 2004 so far.
Did I enjoy the show? Of course I did! The dancing was very entertaining although there was parts at which I was just laughing my head off for no apparent reason other than the fact that I was quite tickled by the idea of people doing such moves (including the one I always parody at discos in which I stretch out one arm, point it in front of me and sweep it from the left to the right). The singing wasn't that great though. Only one member of the cast had a voice that was noteworthy and that was the actress who played Stephanie, Tony's dance competition partner.
Please do not ask me about the plot. Anyone who has watched the movie (like I) will know that the plot is paper-thin at best. What else can I say? The story's about a 19-year-old who's throwing his life away partying and participating in potential gang activities. He doesn't get along well with his family, he treats friends and women like crap and the only thing in his life he really truly cares about is dancing. So what if in the end, after his friend's apparent accident/suicide, he comes round and decides to better himself by going to Manhattan and getting a job? He doesn't have any college education and he can't type. We all know that this Brooklynite is not going to get anywhere.
But like I said, this is a show in which you cannot think about the plot for even a second because then you'd get distracted by the sheer awfulness of the plot and not concentrate on what makes the musical such a spectacle.
In spite of the fact that I don't generally enjoy the Bee Gees' music, I'll admit that last night was an exception to the rule. I was happily mouthing the words to Words, bobbing my head to Tragedy and singing along to Immortality and How Deep Is Your Love. In between, I was trying to learn the dance steps to Stayin' Alive, Disco Inferno and Saturday Night Fever. Yes, for one night, I was a Bee Gees groupie.
The one surprising thing about this musical is that a member of the cast, Monty, exhorted the audience to get up off their seats at the end of the show and dance... and there were actually people who did! Not I though. I was way too embarrassed to do so, sitting in the front row of Circle 1 (which incidentally, was a fantastic seat, so thank you, Yahoo! Auctions!)
After the show ended, my friend and I adjourned to the Outdoor at the Esplanade feature, which turned out to be a band called The Example, who was playing songs from The Eagles and Air Supply. I must have been in a really soppy mood last night because instead of dismissing Air Supply as the spineless singers they are (just listen to the content of their songs!), I was laying my head on my friend's shoulder, saying, "Awww... it's so romantic!" after which I told her I felt like going to all of my guy friends and slapping them for being the thoroughly unromantic bastards that they are. Heh.
Did my night end there? Nope. We then went to join another friend of mine (who must be thoroughly sick of my constant presence by now, for which I apologise) at the Lobby Lounge at the Ritz and listened to the soft jazz trio. Among the songs they played were Dream A Little Dream Of Me and L-O-V-E.
Now yesterday night was a very satisfactory night - both musically and dance-wise - and it rounded off one of the best weeks of 2004 so far.
Friday, April 09, 2004
I just watched The Passion of the Christ.
It's the most intense movie that I've ever experienced. It's certainly the most violent film I've watched.
Being Catholic, my reaction to the show was different from those of my non-Catholic friends. Once the movie had ended and we had walked out of the cinema, it took me some time to come out of my shell-shocked state and talk as per normal to my non-Catholic friends, who were more than a little amused at how sombre we all looked and behaved.
(And as a result, my comments will be even more disjointed and discontinuous than usual.)
But... it's hard for us believers not to react like that. We all know that Jesus is the Son of God, made man and died for our sins in order to save all of us. What this film does is to graphically depict all the suffering and torture that Jesus goes through (hence the title, since the word 'passion' was once used to indicate suffering and pain, not intensity of emotion as it does now).
The show begins when Jesus is praying at the Garden of Gethsemane, just before Judas 'betray[s] [him] with a kiss'. That scene always affects me during the Holy Week as this is when Jesus implores God to take this task which he has been entrusted away from him, but nevertheless, as he says, "not my will, but Yours be done." I've always found it difficult to comprehend the mindset and strength of a person who, with the full knowledge of the pain and suffering he will have to endure if he goes down a certain path, chooses to go down it nonetheless. And in Jesus's case, what he is doing he's doing for us. Not for anyone else, not even for himself, but for all of mankind. How is it that someone can love all of us so much that he's willing to go through all of that?
The movie doesn't just focus on Jesus's suffering though. It also shows the suffering that Mary, His mother, goes through. And to see how much she loves her son and how much pain and anguish that she's experiencing is heartwrenching. She follows her son from the courts of Pilate all the way to the hill where He's crucified, never once leaving His side, always being there for Him. I didn't cry as much as I thought I would but the first time I cried was when Jesus fell for the first time. Mary runs to his side, and this scene is juxtaposed with a flashback to when Jesus was a young boy and fell, and Mary, much like what she's doing now, runs to His side, telling Him that she's here. In the flashback, Jesus as young boy smiles up at her. In the present, He staggers up, shouldering the cross and tells His mother that "I always make things new again." That simple yet incredibly effective device just shows the relationship between the two and how much Mary loves her son. I don't think there was a single dry eye in the house during this scene.
With regards to the violence and brutality in the movie... perhaps it was kind of overdone. But at the same time, despite having known the story of Jesus my whole life, I've never really conceptualised the amount of suffering He must have undergone... and this film just shoves it straight in your face. I'm aghast at just how much pain he must have experienced and the one thing that just keeps going through my mind is "How does my life compare to His? My suffering and pain is nothing compared to His. Am I worth it?"
I suspect that's the question that goes through many Christians' minds once they've watched this movie.
But still, the crucifixion scene was a little overdone. There wasn't a strong need to show the nails being slowly driven into Jesus's hands and feet, nor the centurion dislocating Jesus's shoulder. The only other time I cried was during this scene when I cried out of sheer anguish because this part is when Jesus cries out to God, asking for Him to forgive these people. What man does that? What kind of man can afford to think about others when he is being beaten, flogged, scourged and tortured?
What kind of person have I turned out to be if I'm so whiny, selfish and what not - and still consider myself to be a good human being?
This movie, while not life-changing, is, in a word, intense. Every Christian should go see the show.
It's the most intense movie that I've ever experienced. It's certainly the most violent film I've watched.
Being Catholic, my reaction to the show was different from those of my non-Catholic friends. Once the movie had ended and we had walked out of the cinema, it took me some time to come out of my shell-shocked state and talk as per normal to my non-Catholic friends, who were more than a little amused at how sombre we all looked and behaved.
(And as a result, my comments will be even more disjointed and discontinuous than usual.)
But... it's hard for us believers not to react like that. We all know that Jesus is the Son of God, made man and died for our sins in order to save all of us. What this film does is to graphically depict all the suffering and torture that Jesus goes through (hence the title, since the word 'passion' was once used to indicate suffering and pain, not intensity of emotion as it does now).
The show begins when Jesus is praying at the Garden of Gethsemane, just before Judas 'betray[s] [him] with a kiss'. That scene always affects me during the Holy Week as this is when Jesus implores God to take this task which he has been entrusted away from him, but nevertheless, as he says, "not my will, but Yours be done." I've always found it difficult to comprehend the mindset and strength of a person who, with the full knowledge of the pain and suffering he will have to endure if he goes down a certain path, chooses to go down it nonetheless. And in Jesus's case, what he is doing he's doing for us. Not for anyone else, not even for himself, but for all of mankind. How is it that someone can love all of us so much that he's willing to go through all of that?
The movie doesn't just focus on Jesus's suffering though. It also shows the suffering that Mary, His mother, goes through. And to see how much she loves her son and how much pain and anguish that she's experiencing is heartwrenching. She follows her son from the courts of Pilate all the way to the hill where He's crucified, never once leaving His side, always being there for Him. I didn't cry as much as I thought I would but the first time I cried was when Jesus fell for the first time. Mary runs to his side, and this scene is juxtaposed with a flashback to when Jesus was a young boy and fell, and Mary, much like what she's doing now, runs to His side, telling Him that she's here. In the flashback, Jesus as young boy smiles up at her. In the present, He staggers up, shouldering the cross and tells His mother that "I always make things new again." That simple yet incredibly effective device just shows the relationship between the two and how much Mary loves her son. I don't think there was a single dry eye in the house during this scene.
With regards to the violence and brutality in the movie... perhaps it was kind of overdone. But at the same time, despite having known the story of Jesus my whole life, I've never really conceptualised the amount of suffering He must have undergone... and this film just shoves it straight in your face. I'm aghast at just how much pain he must have experienced and the one thing that just keeps going through my mind is "How does my life compare to His? My suffering and pain is nothing compared to His. Am I worth it?"
I suspect that's the question that goes through many Christians' minds once they've watched this movie.
But still, the crucifixion scene was a little overdone. There wasn't a strong need to show the nails being slowly driven into Jesus's hands and feet, nor the centurion dislocating Jesus's shoulder. The only other time I cried was during this scene when I cried out of sheer anguish because this part is when Jesus cries out to God, asking for Him to forgive these people. What man does that? What kind of man can afford to think about others when he is being beaten, flogged, scourged and tortured?
What kind of person have I turned out to be if I'm so whiny, selfish and what not - and still consider myself to be a good human being?
This movie, while not life-changing, is, in a word, intense. Every Christian should go see the show.
My horoscope for the week said that this whole week would be full of pleasant surprises. And what do you know? Maybe it's true, maybe it's just me or maybe Someone Up There is looking after me this week, but so far, everything's been great.
Monday - I found out that I won a copy of the OCR for Saturday Night Fever.
Tuesday - I met my friend who set up a matchmaking agency for busy professionals and decided, what the hey, she's offering a free three-month trial so let's give it a shot. We ended up talking for 2.5 hours just catching up and going through my various criteria.
Excerpts:
Hair - "That he has it."
Teeth - "All present, all real."
Any previous marriages - "Up to four times is okay... Of course not! No previous marriages!"
Football - "I get along great with Liverpool and Arsenal fans. It's only during the games that we hate each other."
Wednesday - I managed to get a pair of $130 tickets for Saturday Night Fever at a $30 discount per ticket off Yahoo! Auctions. Furthermore, the really nice seller gave me a ride to town and then back home. And despite the fact that I was quite worried about getting into a car of someone who I've never met, it turned out that that was safer than my walking home alone. God really does work in mysterious ways.
Thursday - Got called "honee bunee" by the guy I'm still crushing on... I have no clue as to how he feels, but it's still a pleasant surprise nonetheless.
Friday - Met up with one of my favourite guy friends who when quizzed as to my eligibility said that I was eligible. Heh. As I told him, I'm going to blame all the funny things I said entirely on the alcohol.
Still two more days in the week to go and The Passion of the Christ tonight and Saturday Night Fever tomorrow night!
Monday - I found out that I won a copy of the OCR for Saturday Night Fever.
Tuesday - I met my friend who set up a matchmaking agency for busy professionals and decided, what the hey, she's offering a free three-month trial so let's give it a shot. We ended up talking for 2.5 hours just catching up and going through my various criteria.
Excerpts:
Hair - "That he has it."
Teeth - "All present, all real."
Any previous marriages - "Up to four times is okay... Of course not! No previous marriages!"
Football - "I get along great with Liverpool and Arsenal fans. It's only during the games that we hate each other."
Wednesday - I managed to get a pair of $130 tickets for Saturday Night Fever at a $30 discount per ticket off Yahoo! Auctions. Furthermore, the really nice seller gave me a ride to town and then back home. And despite the fact that I was quite worried about getting into a car of someone who I've never met, it turned out that that was safer than my walking home alone. God really does work in mysterious ways.
Thursday - Got called "honee bunee" by the guy I'm still crushing on... I have no clue as to how he feels, but it's still a pleasant surprise nonetheless.
Friday - Met up with one of my favourite guy friends who when quizzed as to my eligibility said that I was eligible. Heh. As I told him, I'm going to blame all the funny things I said entirely on the alcohol.
Still two more days in the week to go and The Passion of the Christ tonight and Saturday Night Fever tomorrow night!
Check out BK's latest marketing gimmick, a subservient chicken.
If you, like me, are the kind of person who likes to flip to the back of novels to find out the ending, you need to go to this site to see what you can make the chicken do.
If you, like me, are the kind of person who likes to flip to the back of novels to find out the ending, you need to go to this site to see what you can make the chicken do.
Thursday, April 08, 2004
On choices:
You Want a Social Life, with Friends
You want a social life, with friends.
A passionate love life and as well
To work hard every day. What's true
Is of these three you may have two
And two can pay you dividends
But never may have three.
There isn't time enough, my friends--
Though dawn begins, yet midnight ends--
To find the time to have love, work, and friends.
Michelangelo had feeling
For Vittoria and the Ceiling
But did he go to parties at day's end?
Homer nightly went to banquets
Wrote all day but had no lockets
Bright with pictures of his Girl.
I know one who loves and parties
And has done so since his thirties
But writes hardly anything at all.
- Straits, Kenneth Koch
Thanks to a dear friend for introducing this to me.
You Want a Social Life, with Friends
You want a social life, with friends.
A passionate love life and as well
To work hard every day. What's true
Is of these three you may have two
And two can pay you dividends
But never may have three.
There isn't time enough, my friends--
Though dawn begins, yet midnight ends--
To find the time to have love, work, and friends.
Michelangelo had feeling
For Vittoria and the Ceiling
But did he go to parties at day's end?
Homer nightly went to banquets
Wrote all day but had no lockets
Bright with pictures of his Girl.
I know one who loves and parties
And has done so since his thirties
But writes hardly anything at all.
- Straits, Kenneth Koch
Thanks to a dear friend for introducing this to me.
Monday, April 05, 2004
The Dangers of Passive Smoking
"New Zealand researchers say that adults who have never smoked but live with smokers have a 15% higher risk of death within three years than those living in a smoke-free household. The estimate is based on mortality figures using census data."
Oh dear. This makes me more than a little worried. For one thing, a member of my household is an extremely heavy smoker. For another, I love clubbing and everyone knows that clubs are filled with smoke. Just smell your clothing and hair when you get out.
Read the complete article as published in the British Medical Journal here.
"New Zealand researchers say that adults who have never smoked but live with smokers have a 15% higher risk of death within three years than those living in a smoke-free household. The estimate is based on mortality figures using census data."
Oh dear. This makes me more than a little worried. For one thing, a member of my household is an extremely heavy smoker. For another, I love clubbing and everyone knows that clubs are filled with smoke. Just smell your clothing and hair when you get out.
Read the complete article as published in the British Medical Journal here.
I miss you. I just keep wanting to pick up the phone and call. But I'm trying so hard to fight against that because in that moment of weakness, I'm so afraid that I'll reveal something which I shouldn't.
I know exactly how the conversation will go. Sure, we'll talk - like the good friends we are. You'll wonder why I'm calling and I'll make up some excuse about wondering how you were, especially given that there're only a couple of weeks left in your university year. I'll ask about your recent holiday, you'll ask about my work. We'll chat and maybe we'll flirt a little. Perhaps we'll talk about the upcoming Easter weekend and what Masses we're intending to go to. Then you'll say that you're late... you need to rush to a class or to meet a friend or something... and I'll say, "No prob! Go! Good luck for everything!" and just before you hang up... a tiny, quiet "I miss you" will escape from my mouth.
If I'm lucky, you won't hear it and you'll just hang up. If I'm not... you'll say, "What did you say?" and I'll say, "Hmm? Oh, nothing. Go! You're going to be late!" "Did you just say you miss me?" you'll say incredulously. Red with embarrassment and saddened by the certainty of the knowledge of how you truly feel about me, I'll deny it, saying that you must have imagined things... and that's how things will end.
Or maybe things won't turn out so brutally awful, not the way I depicted it. Maybe you'll reciprocate. "I miss you too," you'll say tenderly.
Oh, what's the use. This is going to be one of the most significant times of your life. What kind of girl would I be to dump all this on you... when you're just a few weeks away from the most important exams you'll ever take?
I know exactly how the conversation will go. Sure, we'll talk - like the good friends we are. You'll wonder why I'm calling and I'll make up some excuse about wondering how you were, especially given that there're only a couple of weeks left in your university year. I'll ask about your recent holiday, you'll ask about my work. We'll chat and maybe we'll flirt a little. Perhaps we'll talk about the upcoming Easter weekend and what Masses we're intending to go to. Then you'll say that you're late... you need to rush to a class or to meet a friend or something... and I'll say, "No prob! Go! Good luck for everything!" and just before you hang up... a tiny, quiet "I miss you" will escape from my mouth.
If I'm lucky, you won't hear it and you'll just hang up. If I'm not... you'll say, "What did you say?" and I'll say, "Hmm? Oh, nothing. Go! You're going to be late!" "Did you just say you miss me?" you'll say incredulously. Red with embarrassment and saddened by the certainty of the knowledge of how you truly feel about me, I'll deny it, saying that you must have imagined things... and that's how things will end.
Or maybe things won't turn out so brutally awful, not the way I depicted it. Maybe you'll reciprocate. "I miss you too," you'll say tenderly.
Oh, what's the use. This is going to be one of the most significant times of your life. What kind of girl would I be to dump all this on you... when you're just a few weeks away from the most important exams you'll ever take?
Friday, April 02, 2004
I'm tired.
I'm tired of feeling stressed, I'm tired of not having enough time to do what I want to do, I'm tired of feeling down about myself and the quality of my work, I'm tired of watching great people leave my company.
But damn it, girl. Stop whining. Take a good, hard look at yourself.
You're pretty, you're talented - you can sing and dance, you're smart (which is more than you can say for a lot of other people), you're intelligent, you can speak and you can write well.
You've got all of these qualities and so much working for you. Don't let little things get you down. So what if you get stressed and embarrassed and flustered? These things happen. But don't let them prevent you from achieving what you're capable of. Don't let these things be an excuse.
So you're expected to finish a lot of work over the next few months? So what? Tackle it. You know you're capable of that.
So you don't have time to do what makes you happy? MAKE the time. You know you can, if you can be arsed to do it. Just stop whining, stop talking so damn much at work and you'll find that you have more time than you ever dreamt of. Don't let the multitude of choices you have paralyse you into indecision... Neither should you ever regret any of the choices you made.
So you're lonely and you want someone to hold you and tell you that you're a good, capable person? Forget it. You don't need anyone to validate your existence. You are an intelligent, talented, gifted individual. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.
Take control of your life. You're 23 years old, approaching 24. There's so much in life that you have experienced and yet so much more to go. Stop whining. Take risks. Go out there and take charge.
I'm tired of feeling stressed, I'm tired of not having enough time to do what I want to do, I'm tired of feeling down about myself and the quality of my work, I'm tired of watching great people leave my company.
But damn it, girl. Stop whining. Take a good, hard look at yourself.
You're pretty, you're talented - you can sing and dance, you're smart (which is more than you can say for a lot of other people), you're intelligent, you can speak and you can write well.
You've got all of these qualities and so much working for you. Don't let little things get you down. So what if you get stressed and embarrassed and flustered? These things happen. But don't let them prevent you from achieving what you're capable of. Don't let these things be an excuse.
So you're expected to finish a lot of work over the next few months? So what? Tackle it. You know you're capable of that.
So you don't have time to do what makes you happy? MAKE the time. You know you can, if you can be arsed to do it. Just stop whining, stop talking so damn much at work and you'll find that you have more time than you ever dreamt of. Don't let the multitude of choices you have paralyse you into indecision... Neither should you ever regret any of the choices you made.
So you're lonely and you want someone to hold you and tell you that you're a good, capable person? Forget it. You don't need anyone to validate your existence. You are an intelligent, talented, gifted individual. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.
Take control of your life. You're 23 years old, approaching 24. There's so much in life that you have experienced and yet so much more to go. Stop whining. Take risks. Go out there and take charge.
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