Sunday, March 30, 2008
The Best I've Seen Since Patch Adams
I don't usually do reviews unlike my dear bro Roy, but this movie deserves every ounce and more of the literary creative juice that ebbs and flows through this body of mine. =) Truly one of the best movies I've seen since Patch Adams, it was a pleasant surprise given the fact that it was on impulse that Kyohei and me decided to catch a movie.A Synopsis
To keep it short and sweet, a rich man (Edward Cole, played by Jack Nicholson) who owns hospitals contracts cancer and is admitted to his own hospital, where he is warded in the same ward as Carter Chambers (played by Morgan Freeman), who suffers the same fate as him. When they both realize they have barely a year left to live, they decided to embark on a mission to fulfill their wishlist before they kick the bucket. To quote the movie, the bucket list left them with their 'eyes closed but their hearts open'.
My two cents' worth
Funny, comical, wisecracking in all its geriatric humor, inspirational and clever all at the same time, The Bucket List, with its all-star cast of two of Hollywood's most influential actors of all time, is a must watch approved for all audiences.
The Cast
First up, Morgan Freeman. Acting as God in the last two sequels of the Almighty series, Bruce and Evan Almighty, seem to have prepared him for this part as a wise and loving Christian Grandpa. Cast as a mechanic by occupation, he is portrayed as a humble family man who gave up his ambition for the sake of his family. He never gave up his pursuit for knowledge though, and the richness and depth of his wisdom was cleverly woven in through his witty replies and love for a trivia game show, in which he always got the answers correct. Some of his lines are in fact quote-worthy, like this one: "Stars are like little holes on the floor of heaven". Ok, at this point I can't be sure if it was said to him or by him, but it's cool all the same. =) And he has many other cool quotes. So there.
Up next, Jack Nicholson. It seems a Hollywood formula to have contradicting roles that would end up complimenting each other so well. Or maybe that's the way life goes. Like Morgan Freeman, he is also not much different from the him that was cast in 'Something's gotta give' and 'As good as it gets'. In fact, I'm starting to think the epitome of acting is to get so comfortable with being yourself that your personality becomes the stuff movies are made of. Like Sean Connery and Harrison Ford and maybe even Jackie Chan. =) In his own words, Jack Nicholson is cast as one who 'likes getting married but also likes being single and has a hard time doing both at the same time'. He plays the one with the bravado of a teenager and suggests things like skydiving and getting a tattoo, or even kissing the most beautiful girl in the world (which has a lovely twist at the end!). Contributing largely to the hilarious in the movie, one can't help but laugh even when it's supposed to be a pitiful part of the movie like him feeling lonely even with all the girls he could hire.
The Art of the Movie
With such colorful characters, it takes meticulous effort to weave in lovely touches such as those portrayed in the movie. The ending was swift and surging, with the beauty and magnificence of a butterfly taking flight when it is fully grown. The filmakers, being artists in their own right, brings the audience through a myriad of emotions, sometimes even contrasting ones in the same scene. Watch for yourself and define those moments for yourself. It would do injustice to the movie to reveal them to those who potentially have yet to watch it. On the overall, as New York Times would put it, "Two Thumbs Up!"
Mantou at 11:15 PM
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Sunday, March 23, 2008
This is what JC jokes are all about.. Hmm..
'The lightbulb joke'Q: How many RJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: 4 whole faculties. One to design the new bulb, one to manufacture and test it out, one to write a proposal on it and one to market it.
Q: How many HCJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: The whole school. To compete with RJC.
Q: How many VJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: The whole school. One student to screw it in and the rest to cheer and wave flags and banners to give him/her support.
Q: How many NJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They can study without light.
Q: How many AJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: They're too busy trying to be one of the top 5 JCs.
Q: How many ACJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They'll rather use all their money to employ YJC to do it for them.
Q: How many YJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. Only one teacher to tell them what a light bulb is in the first place and to demonstrate how to change the light bulb. (So how do you think they're able to change it for ACJC?)
Q: How many CJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: They'll prefer it to be darker. (Hmmmm?*raises eye-brows* )
Q: How many JJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. Their physics is so bad that they made their macho male physics teacher cry.
Q: How many TPJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. Would they even bother?
Q: How many SAJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They believe in praying for it.
Q: How many NYJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They are still using oil lamps.
Q: How many SRJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Huh, what litebarb?
Q: How many PJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Heck the light bulb lah, the principal would do something about the rightbarbs. Let's do 300 jumping jacks for not wearing the proper school attire.
Q: How many MJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They are too busy trying to get promoted.
Q: How many IJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They are Innovians. They'll find ways out of the dark.
Q: How many TJC students does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. They think they are already very bright.
Mantou at 9:24 PM
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Thursday, March 20, 2008
Via Dolorosa - Way of suffering
Down the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem that day
The soldiers tried to clear the narrow street
But the crowd pressed in to see
The Man condemned to die on Calvary
He was bleeding from a beating, there were stripes upon His back
And He wore a crown of thorns upon His head
And He bore with every step
The scorn of those who cried out for His death
Down the Via Dolorosa called the way of suffering
Like a lamb came the Messiah, Christ the King,
But He chose to walk that road out of
His love for you and me.
Down the Via Dolorosa, all the way to
Por la Via Dolorosa, triste dia en Jerusalem
Los saldados le abrian paso a Jesus
Mas la gente se acercaba
Para ver al que llevaba aquella cruz
Por la Via Dolorosa, que es la via del dolor
Como oveja vino Cristo, Rey, Senor
Y fue El quien quiso ir por su amor por ti y por mi
Por la Via Dolorosa al Calvario y a morir
The blood that would cleanse the souls of all men
Made its way through the heart of Jerusalem.
Down the Via Dolorosa called the way of suffering
Like a lamb came the Messiah, Christ the King
But He chose to walk that road out of His love for you and me
Down the Via Dolorosa, all the way to
Mantou at 10:40 PM
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Friday, March 14, 2008
The World Today
Can you solve this riddle?
Here is a pretty neat little thing from Paul Harvey. See if you can guess the riddle at the end.
Paul Harvey Writes:
We tried so hard to make things better for our kids that we made them worse. For my grandchildren, I'd like better.
I'd really like for them to know about hand me down clothes and homemade ice cream and leftover meat loaf sandwiches. I really would.
I hope you learn humility by being humiliated, and that you learn honesty by being cheated.
I hope you learn to make your own bed and mow the lawn and wash the car.
And I really hope nobody gives you a brand new car when you are sixteen.
It will be good if at least one time you can see puppies born and your old dog put to sleep.
I hope you get a black eye fighting for something you believe in.
I hope you have to share a bedroom with your younger brother/sister. And it's all right if you have to draw a line down the middle of the room,but when he wants to crawl under the covers with you because he's scared, I hope you let him.
When you want to see a movie and your little brother/sister wants to tag along, I hope you'll let him/her.
I hope you have to walk uphill to school with your friends and that you live in a town where you can do it safely.
On rainy days when you have to catch a ride, I hope you don't ask your driver to drop you two blocks away so you won't be seen riding with someone as uncool as your Mom.
If you want a slingshot, I hope your Dad teaches you how to make one instead of buying one.
I hope you learn to dig in the dirt and read books.
When you learn to use computers, I hope you also learn to add and subtract in your head.
I hope you get teased by your friends when you have your first crush on a boy\girl, and when you talk back to your mother that you learn what ivory soap tastes like.
May you skin your knee climbing a mountain, burn your hand on a stove and stick your tongue on a frozen flagpole.
I don't care if you try a beer once, but I hope you don't like it.. And if a friend offers you dope or a joint, I hope you realize he is not your friend.
I sure hope you make time to sit on a porch with your Grandma/Grandpa and go fishing with your Uncle.
May you feel sorrow at a funeral and joy during the holidays.
I hope your mother punishes you when you throw a baseball through your neighbor's window and that she hugs you and kisses you at Hannukah/Christmas time when you give her a plaster mold of your hand.
These things I wish for you - tough times and disappointment, hard work and happiness. To me, it's the only way to appreciate life.
Written with a pen. Sealed with a kiss. I'm here for you. And if I die before you do, I'll go to heaven and wait for you.
Send this to all of your friends. We secure our friends, not by accepting favors, but by doing them.
Paul Harvey RIDDLE:
When asked this riddle, 80% of kindergarten kids got the answer, compared to 17% of Stanford University
What is greater than God, More evil than the devil, The poor have it, The rich need it, And if you eat it, you'll die?
Mantou at 11:31 PM
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Sunday, March 09, 2008
The Difference
Science and God'Let me explain the problem science has with Jesus Christ.' The atheist
professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his
new students to stand.
'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?'
'Yes sir,' the student says.
'So you believe in God?'
'Absolutely.'
'Is God good?'
'Sure! God's good.'
'Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?'
'Yes.'
'Are you good or evil?'
'The Bible says I'm evil.'
The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible!' He considers for a
moment.
'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you
can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?'
'Yes sir, I would.'
'So you're good...!'
'I wouldn't say that.'
'But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if
you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.'
The student does not answer, so the professor continues. 'He
doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even
though he prayed to Jesus to heal him How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can
you answer that one?'
The student remains silent.
'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of
water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax.
'Let's start again, young fella Is God good?'
'Er...yes,' the student says.
'Is Satan good?'
The student doesn't hesitate on this one. 'No.'
'Then where does Satan come from?'
The student : 'From...God...'
'That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there
evil in this world?'
'Yes, sir.'
'Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything,
correct?'
'Yes.'
'So who created evil?' The professor continued, 'If God created
everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to
the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.'
Without allowing the student to answer, the professor continues:
'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible
things, do they exist in this world?'
The student: 'Yes.'
'So who created them?'
The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his
question. 'Who created them? There is still no answer. Suddenly the
lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is
mesmerized.
'Tell me,' he continues onto another student. 'Do you believe in
Jesus Christ, son?'
The student's voice is confident: 'Yes, professor, I do.'
The old man stops pacing. 'Science says you have five senses you
use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen
Jesus?'
'No sir. I've never seen Him'
'Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?'
'No, sir, I have not.'
'Have you ever actually felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or
smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus
Christ, or God for that matter?'
'No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.'
'Yet you still believe in him?'
'Yes.'
'According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable
protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that,
son?'
'Nothing,' the student replies. 'I only have my faith.'
'Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem
science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith.'
The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a
question of his own. 'Professor, is there such thing as heat?'
'Yes,' the professor replies. 'There's heat.'
'And is there such a thing as cold?'
'Yes, son, there's cold too.'
'No sir, there isn't.'
The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested.
The room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain.
'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat,
mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we
don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit up to 458 degrees below
zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is
no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the
lowest -458 degrees. Every body or object is susceptible to study when
it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have
or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat.
You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of
heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units
because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the
absence of it.'
Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom,
sounding like a hammer.
'What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as
darkness?'
'Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation. 'What is night
if it isn't darkness?'
'You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the
absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright
light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have
Nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to
define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able
to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?'
The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him.
This will be a good semester. 'So what point are you making, young man?'
'Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is
flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.'
The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time.
'Flawed? Can you explain how?'
'You are working on the premise of duality,' the student
explains. 'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good
God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something
finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a
thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much
less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life
is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive
thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it.'
'Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they
evolved from a monkey?'
'If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young
man, yes, of course I do'
'Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?'
The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he
realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.
'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work
and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you
not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a
preacher?'
The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the
Commotion has subsided.
'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other
student, let me give you an example of what I mean.'
The student looks around the room. 'Is there anyone in the class
who has ever seen the professor's brain?' The class breaks out into
laughter.
'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain,
felt the professor's brain, touched or smelled the professor's brain? No
one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of
empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no
brain, with all due respect, sir. So if science says you have no brain,
how can we trust your lectures, sir?'
Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the
student, his face unreadable.
Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. 'I
guess you'll have to take them on faith.'
'Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists
with life,' the student continues. 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as
evil?'
Now uncertain, the professor responds, 'Of course, there is. We
see it everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man.
It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world.
These manifestations are nothing else but evil.'
To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at
least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God.
It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe
the absence of God.
God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when
man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold
that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there
is no light.'
The professor sat down.
--
I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. - C. S. Lewis
Mantou at 8:05 PM
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Tuesday, March 04, 2008
I must be daft
You know how it is with spicy stuff; how you absolutely love it (if you do) but how it just is made to spark a chemical reaction in you? That's how it is with my life sometimes. Just can't help but add some spice into my life from time to time. And this time, I'm doing so by taking part in Stardust 08! Call me crazy! This is how I felt two years ago in the Army when I auditioned to go for the Next Wave Musical Auditions. (Check my older post dated 06 April 2oo6 to find out more!) And now I dived into another performance audition! This time it's for a singing competition organized by NUS business sch. I am pretty crazy huh. Never gone solo before. It's much much tougher than auditioning for a bit part or to be part of a team. But then I thought, this competition is for those aged 16 to 25 only. If I miss it this time, I won't be able to join anymore next year. Not that it matters but it's one of those motivating factors to go crazy. I think this is really a crazy year for me. I'm taking part in a singing competition, planning to go overseas mid year, and taking part in the StanChart marathon! Once again, a year of many firsts.. And perhaps last. Youth and all its gungho-ness is fleeting past. Making up for lost time can only mean you will appear crazy to many people. =)
Mantou at 10:26 PM
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Monday, March 03, 2008
An overdue update..
Wassup readers.. As much as I would have loved to be more active in this blog it simply was not possible because I was handicapped from being online at home! Don't ask me why. I'm back anyhow, and you can expect regular updates once more. =)I can't really know where to begin, I feel like I've been gone a long while. But life has been pretty interesting and much has happened since I bailed out. Perhaps one of the timeless principles that has been reinforced lately is honesty in relationships. It's the best policy, and to whom you can be completely honest with, cherish it cos it's a real blessing. Of course, I'm not advocating that you do so based on feelings. A trust that is earned through no other way but quality time and mutual respect is the prerequisite to that kind of transparency that does not threaten the relationship but strengthens it. I'm just so thankful that God has given me such kind of friends to whom I can truly confide in. They watch your growth, support your cause, lend a listening ear, give you access to speak into their lives, reveal your vulnerabilities only to subject it to growth, in short, loving you in the way God is loving them.
I'm sorry to be indulgent in the way I speak about my faith. Not that I'm making apologies for it, but I do want to be sensitive to readers who are of a different faith or belong to no particular faith. But this is the way I feel about my life, so do bear with me. In any case, I'm learning to love God right now, as I have always been, but in a deeper way this time, and I pray I will discover how this Father child relationship is played out in reality between me and God. Watch out for updates if you're interested how that works. =)
NOTE: If you have pressed pause on the IMEEM feature on the top left corner of my blog, pls press play to hear this amazing song about being Speechless at the marvelous works of God. Enjoy.
Mantou at 11:49 PM