The End of The World??

Finally went to watch the most hyped up blockbuster of the season, 2012. In fact the movie had so much hype surrounding it to the point that tickets all over Malaysia were being snapped up the very moment the counters open. Even in Ipoh itself, tickets for the whole day were all SOLD OUT when the gf and I reached the counters at approximately 5 p.m., but fortunately there were still tickets to watch "A Christmas Carol" (which was pretty nice).

After the movie, it was 11 p.m. and somehow there were some people who gave up their bookings for 2012 last-minute, so we very conveniently managed to catch the midnight show. Even though we were a little tired, this was still the movie with the hype. In fact I had not heard a single bad review about the movie.

After coming out, I would say that my verdict: Disappointment of the year.

I guess maybe I had my hopes a little too high. Or maybe it really was bad. First of all,

What I would expect from a typical end-of-the-world movie:

1. Total Annihilation

• Basically the idea is that everyone dies, leaving no room for survival. Otherwise, the survivors are desolate, living in a world that is neither dead nor alive.

2. Overwhelmingly scary-looking tsunamis that can make you pee your pants

• This picture is basically seconds before a tsunami strikes... I guess you get the picture.

3. Extreme tension (and scares!) and unpredictable twists

• Nail-biting from beginning to end, makes you go "Oh crap..." for the whole show. A brilliant twist in the movie always does good. Makes you go like, "Whoa, I never thought of it that way... Ingenious..."

4. Crazy volcanic eruptions that make nuclear bombs look like jokes

5. Lastly, an emotional underlying theme that makes you think of what you would do if it comes

to this

• The hallmark of a good, if not brilliant movie lies in its ability to make you ponder about your own life. It helps you to relate it to yourself. Would you be able to keep your marbles together if you are faced with the same situation?

Why I thought the movie was disappointing:

1. The people survived by getting onto arks, mirroring Noah's Ark. There ain't nothing wrong with that. However the thought of the Ark actually surviving water intrusion and multiple impact at full force actually isn't logical.

2. Although the trailer looked scary, the tsunamis in the movie were highly disappointing. the waves and the waters flooded the lands, but honestly, I didn't feel anything when I saw it.

3. Predictable story. There were no surprises throughout the movie. Yes, the tension was there,

• But somehow you just knew that a really really long limousine would be able to drive past the falling buildings and make it on time before the building came down.
• And you would be able to predict that the jet planes would be able to take off in the last moment despite having a limited runway.
• Oh yes, and not to forget. The Indian man who provided them with the information that saved them all was betrayed.
• There are 5 minutes left. You are the only person who can save everyone on the ship. But you still have the time to share a long passionate kiss with your wife and argue with your son about whether he should follow you or not. Good job, now you've got 2 more minutes!

4. Potong stim.

• Seconds before a tsunami is going to hit you. You are with your whole family, whom you will never see again. The first thought, "I'm gonna call my best friend to remind him that he betrayed me!!" =.=
• You actually have cell phone reception at a time of a tsunami attack. =.='
• Before dying, the man looks to his son... calls his name, looks like he's about to say something touching... they all die. =.=''
• Scientist tries to woo president's daughter. They are in an ark, and you can't get OUT to even the decks. President's daughter asks, "Are you asking me OUT?". =.='''
• The inspirational President's last words before death were "Oh s**t!"

5. The volcanic eruption scene was made to look like a joke by the antics of this weird radio DJ character. I was laughing during that scene.

6. The show wasn't very thought-provoking or emotional. Even when the man who saved their lives (he happens to be the new boyfriend of the heroine after her divorce with the main protagonist) died a tragic death, they only said "No!!!!" and shed a few tears before totally forgetting him by the end of the movie.

It's Gonna Be Over!

Internship is gonna be over. If my calculations are not wrong, it is already week 26 now and we only have a couple more weeks here on internship. I'm ABSOLUTELY going to miss internship and all the luxuries that come with it.

Here's why being on internship is better than being stuck in UTP:

1. Internship offers you tonnes of FREE TIME after work; UTP forces you to take tonnes of OVERTIME to complete your work.

2. Chances are, your office has lightning fast internet connection with mild restrictions; UTP has ITMS.

3. Internship gives you the chance to learn new things at your own pace; UTP crams your brain with an average of 18-20 credit hours per semester, half of which you do not understand, even after final exam.

4. During internship, the only reports you need to be writing are the weekly reports, of which normally you are allowed to pile up; in UTP, you get reports and assignments to do, practically every week. And that is just for one subject.

5. Over at the office, when you make mistakes, you learn from them and gain more experience; in UTP, your every mistake in the quizzes, tests and assignments leave a long-lasting mark on your CGPA, which overflows to your CV.

6. If you rest while you are on internship, it's your God-given right; if you rest while in the middle of a semester in UTP, for even one second... you sleep with one eye open.

7. During internship, you adhere to the rules and norms of the society and the company; in UTP, you have people trying to force their way of life onto your daily life, even if there's nothing wrong with your life.

8. (this only applies to some) During internship, you are in the city or at least in civilization! Your options for lepak and food are limitless; in UTP, no food and you need to wish those with cars will invite you along for trips outside to find food. =(

9. During internship, if you take leave or fall sick you can get a good rest and recuperate; in UTP, miss a day of classes and you will be stuck with a backlog of new assignments and missed exam tips!

10. During internship, you get double your allowance of when you were in UTP, plus Petronas allowance, without being burdened with tax. =D

All-in-all, I'm gonna be missing internship when it's over. So I'm trying to enjoy it while I can. To those having intern next semester, you will have 32 weeks to taste that kinda life, while I'm about to go back to the life full of tests, quizzes, reports and assignments... Hope I can adapt back to the hectic lifestyle though.

Some Updates

A lil' update: Just back off a great weekend with the gf. Went for the All-American Rejects concert in Carpark A, Stadium Bukit Jalil. It was awesome. The pushing and shoving was horrible, but heck, at least God protected us. The mini fight was right beside us but we were alright. Btw, did I mention that we had a front-row view? =D

Some of you may know that my car was involved in an accident which has kept my car out of action for like 2 weeks or so. I haven't been able to take a picture of the extent of the damage there and then, but roughly explaining I can say that the whole driver's side was crushed and scratched and part of the headlights were crashed too.

After much pushing and telephone call frenzy, I managed to get to the workshop to take a look at the car yesterday. I do hope I receive a call later telling me that my car is ready for pickup.

The circled: headlights, The wavy lines: hancur (last time)

Red wavy line: scratches that looked like wolverine's claw marks, red circle: dent, black circle: door jammed

10 Hazards At A Construction Site: Part 2

The first post was about rusty nails and wooden planks. So what would be the best thing that can be coupled together with that to make it more dangerous?

Introducing Hazard #2 - Deceptively level grounds that disguise deep holes.

Think of it as an evil version of one of those Kinder Surprise (you know, those chocolates with surprise toys in them) chocolates we used to get as kids. When you set foot into one of those holes, I couldn't have said it better than Forest Gump's mama, "You never know whatcha' gonna get!"

Liverpool 2 - 0 Manchester United

This is probably old news, but hey... This is a crucial victory for Liverpool fans out there. More importantly, it just shows how unpredictable football can be (considering how everybody thought that Liverpool could not have had any worse opposition after a 4-match losing streak).

Several highlights here from the match. The most notable being the performance of Yossi Benayoun. Outstanding work rate and skill. Throughout the whole match he did not give up, and we don't even need to mention the sublime pass to Torres that supplied the all-important goal.

Scorer and assister

Equally important was the comeback of Jamie Carragher to top form. He has received a lot of criticism in the previous games, critics even suggesting that he was way past his best. But as Paul Tomkins said in his column on Liverpoolfc.tv, not even with 1000 beach balls on the pitch would United have scored against the defence of Carragher and Agger. =P

Still at his best

On the other hand, another saga continues as Nemanja Vidic has completed his hattrick by getting his 3rd red card in as many matches against Liverpool.

This was from the previous match

For Lucas critics, this was arguably his best performance in a red shirt. I was impressed with his play. He has improved but yet has much to prove.

But to be fair. This is only but ONE game (albeit a very important one!) and the season is far from over. I can only say "we shall see" and we shall not assume we will beat United again at Old Trafford later in the season, as they cannot assume that they will win the season this time round again (Even though both did happen last season).

10 Hazards At A Construction Site: Part 1

As part of an earlier series I have been planning to blog about since the beginning of the internship, Mojoe presents: 10 things you need to watch out for at a construction site. *fanfare* (Well, at least those 10 things are from my personal perspective!)

A little update: I still have no internet connection, so this is from my office. I shall be calling up DiGi soon to fix the problem...

Hazard #1 - Wooden Planks Lying Around

If you really look around a construction site, you will notice a lot of discarded wooden planks around you. Whether in heaps or just stray pieces of wood. In fact it is so common to see them around that eventually you get kinda numb towards seeing them and you might feel that there's nothing wrong with a bunch of planks lying around. But think again...

I wouldn't fancy stepping on one of those, not even with my boots!

I Miss...

My parents, the Gf, my car, church, my internet connection, my mobility, doing crazy stuff, pranking people, Kelana Jaya station at 7 p.m., Murni's, Pringles from US, nice food trips with gf, futsal, watching football matches, our old CG, COP Tronoh, Crash n Burn, Civil gang...