Movie 2008.08.31 - Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Quotable Quotes:
I'm not a baby, I'm a tumor.

Talk about irony. Hellboy has an epic battle with xx and didn't even suffer a scratch. Someone pelted him with something, and he got a nasty cut on his face.

I liked the part where Aquaman and Hellboy started singing along to Barry Manilow's Can't Smile Without You.

Lyrics here:

Swatch Black Balance

Another Swatch to add to my collection. I really have to stop this eBay thing. It's Swatch Black Balance (YLS150G) from the 2007 Irony Medium Fall Winter collection. Can't really remember how much I paid for this, but definitely cheaper than the EUR 83.93 quoted by Squiggly.

Additional info:
Polished steel surfaces shimmer under a moonlit sky. The bracelet of this striking Irony Medium features a central column of convex glossy black steel links framed by rows of links in polished steel. The polished steel case has one transparent white crystal on either side beneath the unmarked glossy black bezel. Silver applique Arabic numerals at all hours grace an otherwise unmarked sun-brushed silver dial. Slim reflective metal and black hour and minute hands and a needle-thin metal seconds hand mark the time.

The First Emperor

Managed to score some free tickets to the screening of the world premiere of Tan Dun's The First Emperor at Hayden Orpheum. The Orpheum is set to screen the Metropolitan Opera's 2008/2009 season productions in HD.

GF dropped by to pick me up from the office, then we went to Cremorne. The sandwiches she brought along didn't do the trick, so we had a quick dinner at the Chinese restaurant beside the theatre.

This is the first time I've been to Orpheum. The Art Deco interior of the theatre is quite nice. The First Emperor is not. Even the famous Placido Domingo can't save it. The costumes and sets are lavish, but that does not a good opera make. The storyline is pretty dull, the music is awfully boring, and the lines are just plain silly. What do you expect - the libretto is written (in English) by Tan Dun himself. The same Tan Dun who composed the music for this opera (and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). The equally famous Zhang Yimou directs.

It was so bad, I spotted a few people leaving in a matter of minutes. GF and I were a bit more discreet. We left after Act 1. Back in Burwood, we had another dinner at the Canton Noodle House.

Movie 2008.08.24 - Taken

Movie Taken at Broadway Shopping Centre, dinner at Tomodachi, then coffee/choco at Delafrance.

Agnes' Winter Wedding

Took a leave from work just to attend Michael and Agnes' wedding. Turns out it's still for 1pm at Leichardt. GF forgot to tell me that fact. Had a little tuna pasta at GF's house for lunch. Had been cold and raining all day. The wedding ceremony was short and simple. After the wedding, everyone lined up in a queue to wish the new couple well.

Passed the time at GF's house, then went to Villa Rosa around 6pm for the wedding reception. Some cocktails, then a four-course dinner. The host for the night was hilarious and kept everyone entertained. Later, everyone formed a huge circle, while the bride and groom walked around to say thanks. That took a bit of time because the couple was talking to each and every person. The band tried to liven things up with songs, but had to stop eventually because you can only repeat a song so many time. Got home after midnight already.

Movie 2008.08.17 - The Kite Runner

A touching tale of a young man who redeems himself by going back to his hometown in Afghanistan to rescue his nephew from the clutches of the Taliban.

Young Amir (Zekeria Ebrahimi) sees Young Hassan (Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada) as his best friend, but little does he know that he is also his father's son, after an affair with a local woman. Young Amir is perceived as the weak one, and Young Hassan has to defend him from bullies more than once. One time, Young Hassan was cornered and was sodomized by Young Assef (Elham Ehsas). Young Amir witnessed the event, but was too cowardly to do anything about it. Guilty for not standing up to his friend, he starts alienating Young Hassan until his family left.

Many years later, Amir is now a successful writer in the US. He receives news from his father's former associate that Hassan and his wife has been killed by the Talibans, and his nephew Sohrab taken as hostage. Determined to do right by his slain brother, Amir goes back to Kabul, and with the aid of a local driver, rescues the mentally- and physically-abused Sohrab back to the US. How an injured, unshaven man rescues a boy from a heavily-guarded Taliban stronghold and brings him in to the US, I will never understand.

City2Surf 2008

This is my 5th City2Surf in a row, and possibly my last. For one, I'm not getting any younger, and that 14 kilometers seem to take longer and harder to complete. Two, I don't think GF is joining me in any of these runs. I might just take a leisurely stroll next year.

The innovation in this year's City2Surf is the introduction of a personal timing chip, which I reckon should be there long time ago. With this timing chip, which you attach to your running shoes, you can get your personal time accurate down to the second. As you cross the (magnetic?) starting line, the chip ID and time is recorded, and the same thing happens again as you finish.

This year, I was 36867th over the line with a time of 99:51 minutes. Not bad at all.

GF didn't join the race, but she drove down to Bondi Beach to pick me up. Unfortunately, there was nowhere to park. And given that she had no idea what time I'll finish, she had been circling the area for about an hour. In the end, she had to park at a driveway along Sandridge Street, and I had to limp all the way from Bondi Beach to meet her.

Back at Westfield Bondi Junction, we had a nice quiet lunch at Barnoodle.

Belated Birthday Dinner for GF's Mom

GF's Mom had her belated birthday party at the Regal Restaurant in the city (corner of Liverpool-Sussex).

Gave her a Beijing Olympics pen/stylus/LED light/laser pointer as gift, which BHP Biliton sent me.