Movie 2011.02.26 - No Strings Attached

Friends with benefits? Fcuk buddies? That's nothing new. The only novelty in this movie is Ms. Natalie Portman taking on such a daring role.

So two old friends bump into each other and decide to be friends with benefits - no strings attached. Problem is, they start to fall for each other, but the scriptwriter won't allow it. Need to extend the movie to the max, you know. A few arguments and fights later, they eventually have s3x and make up.

I just love movies with happy endings.

Movie 2011.02.25 - Mean Girls 2

I can't believe I'm saying this. I like the original Mean Girls compared to the sequel. Relatively speaking, of course. Say what you want about Lindsay Lohan. She's still a better actress compared to Meaghan Martin, who's too thin for my liking.

Jo is a new incoming student at North Shore High School. Seeing her potential, the resident mean girl clique called "The Plastics" tried to recruit her. She turned them down, and instead became best friends with Outcast Abby, whose father paid her $4000 for the role. The Plastics made life hell for the two of them, until Jo decided to fight back. She then became the resident hot shot. That is, until her deal with Abby's dad was exposed. What happened after that, I can't remember. Yeah, the movie is that boring.

iPod Hoarding

I was in the market for an iPod. My external hard disk is getting full of MP3s and OGGs, but I rarely have time to listen to them on my PC. I do have a portable MP3 player, but my iRiver x20 can only hold 4GB worth of music. I need a huge MP3 player, and that would be the iPod classic.

I did a quick search on Amazon for the 5th generation iPod Classic (a.k.a. iPod Video). Typical price for second-hand units is $130 and above. Checked the auctions on eBay next. I saw this entry for two iPods plus some extras, and the auction is finishing soon. I started putting in my bids. As the seconds count down, the higher I bid. I reckon if I won the auction at $200, it would still be a bargain. (Or so I thought.) I won the auction for $182.50 plus $10 postage. Lot includes:

• one 40GB 4th gen iPod Classic (iPod Photo)
• one 60GB 4th gen iPod Classic (iPod Photo)
• one 8GB 4th gen iPod nano (with cracked screen)
• one 512MB 2nd gen iPod shuffle
• one Belkin TuneCase FM transmitter
• one Belkin voice memo recorder
• two docking units
• one Belkin leather case

Bargain?

Book 2011.02.14 - The Prophecy

So I was down at the local library a few days ago, and this book by Chris Kuzneski caught my eye. Nice cover design with embossed characters and gilded patterns and the title in a fancy font. Cover is dark blue with a hooded figure facing some sort of an altar.

"The new bestseller from the author of The Lost Throne & Sign of the Cross". If this is his third book, then he must have some writing skills. There were all sorts of praises on the back cover of the book:

"Think Indiana Jones and The Davinci Code and you're in Kuzneski-land" - Sunday Sport

Hmm, Indiana Jones and Davinci Code? This doesn't bode well.

"A fast and furious thrill ride with the perfect amount of history and humour blended in..." - Raymond Khoury, bestselling author of The Last Templar

Mix of history and humour? Getting worse. And if you have to introduce an author by mentioning his work...

"Makes you wish it would never end" - Clive Cussler

Funny enough, Kuzneski's characters in the book also mentioned some characters in Cussler's books. Hmm... By the way, there were also references to Harry Potter and Twilight. And you know how I feel about those two.

Anyway, I didn't like the book. Full stop. Putting in a super-detailed description and history of the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh and the Beau-Rivage in Geneva and Brughes only makes the book look trying hard to shore up its credibility. And the endless juvenile bantering and wisecrack between the protagonists during stressful times of life and death didn't help. Finding it hard to crack a centuries-old code? No worries. Simply dial a friend. Need to track down some classified government information? No problems. Just dial a friend. Need to slip into a country quietly with your own cache of high-powered firearms? Hakuna matata. Dial a friend.

A suave criminal mastermind. An ancient puzzle box handed down from generation to generation. A sacred text from Nostradamus. Two brash, irritating Americans. In the end, when I try to remember what the book is about, I can't remember anything.

Movie 2011.02.12 - El baño del Papa (The Pope's Toilet)

It was the year 1988, when Pope John Paul II came to visit Melo, a small town near the Uruguay-Brazil border. Expecting a huge crowd, the poor townsfolk sold off most of their possessions to set up stalls selling chorizo, burgers, paper flags, drinks, etc. Beto, a small-time smuggler, tries something different. Using his daughter's college fund, he constructs a proper outdoor toilet.

Unfortunately, it's just media hype. Instead of the hundreds of thousands of Brazilian pilgrims promised by the media, only around 400 came. It was a sad day for Melo. Well, at least, Beto and his family has a brand new toilet to use.

Movie 2011.02.07 - Life as We Know It

Lately I've been watching movies the way I listen to music. I let them play in the background. Maybe it's because of the quality of the movies I've been watching lately?

I dislike Katherine Heigl for the same reason I dislike Sandra Bullock and Julia Roberts. They overact, they try to be quirky, they talk too much, etc. etc. Movie has an interesting premise, but it's trying to be too cute for its own good. The baby's cute, but she cries most of the time. If I were to have parents like these two fools, I'd be crying, too. They spend most of the screen time flirting with each other, breaking up, running off to other states, coming back, and making up. Two years on, when the movie budget is almost gone, they decided that they are actually in love with each other and stayed on as parents for Sophie.

Swim School

Aidan's first day at swim school. Got to the Aquatic Centre a few minutes late. No big deal. Then my wife tells me that the class lasts for only 20 minutes. What?! Mad dash to the kiddie pool without even taking a shower. I hope the others will understand.

Today's lesson involves the instructor taking the baby and gently swaying him in the water left and right. Then she pushes the baby towards the parent. After a few rounds, a rubber mat was brought out. The babies were left sitting on the mat. We turn the mat round and round (while singing Ring-a-Round a Rosie). At one point, we lift our babies and let them splash into the water. Then back on the mat for more. None of the babies liked it, as most were bawling at the end of class. They're probably confused as to what going on.