divine discontent: June 2008

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Bye Bill, you'll be missed

Courtesy of microsoft.

Blame the over sentimental bug in me but when I read (and heard) about the farewell speech Bill Gates gave to his employees at Microsoft, I started to shed tears.

I considered writing an in-depth post about the man himself and his achievements but due to the fact that I've got far more important things to do today, I'm gonna save that for another time and keep this short.

Forget the fact that he was the world's richest man for 12 consecutive years. Forget the anti-trust lawsuits and the supposed manipulative monopoly of the company. Forget the recent failings of Vista. Forget the disgrunted customers and jealous competitors. Seriously, there are people who love Microsoft and Bill Gates and I'm one of them.

The legacy he has left behind is amazing. When I think about Bill Gates, I think about the computers and the operating systems and the software that made the information technology revolution possible today. Of course, there are other unmentioned companies and luminaries that have contributed to this computer revolution but Bill is certainly a legend in the field in his own right.

“When Paul Allen and I started Microsoft over 30 years ago, we had big dreams about software. We had dreams about the impact it could have. We talked about a computer on every desk and in every home. It’s been amazing to see so much of that dream become a reality and touch so many lives. I never imagined what an incredible and important company would spring from those original ideas.”

This was the guy whose vision was to put a computer in every home and his perpetual passion for technology and research development will continue to be felt at Microsoft, even as he officially steps down as chairman of Microsoft (remaining in an non-executive role) on 27 June 2008 to focus on the Bill and Melinda foundation.

Seattle Times has an article about his departure and farewell day and an audio clip of his very poignant farewell speech can be found at Todd Bishop's Microsoft Blog.

I guess I felt sad because I cannot possibly imagine how it feels to leave a company that he had build from scratch into one of the world's most reknown and powerful multinational companies. To reflect on the bad days when detractors brayed for the company's blood and everything went wrong. To reflect on the good days when he was hailed as the king of the world and everything seemed possible. To realize that his own college dream had materialized and that in a significant way, he has changed people's lives forever.

regurgitated by darkmuze at 4:14 PM | |

Friday, June 27, 2008

Wanted: Above 21, Irish/English, Piercing Eyes

Dapper in suits.

when did scruffy look so good?

effortless bed-mangled crop

Talented, earnest...did I mention the accents?

Source: Photos of James McAvoy from jamesmcavoy.com. Photos of Jim Sturgess from jimsturgess.org and yahoo movies.

I must be mad. Can't remember when was the last time I actually spend so much time looking at guys and acknowledging the fact that hey he's really good looking. Well, these two guys aren't any ordinary guys. They happen to be two talented young actors (voted hottest actors below 30 by Entertainment Weekly) starring in movies showing in the theatres now.

James McAvoy, who won critical acclaim in his sidekick role next to Forest Whitaker (who won an Academy Award for Best Actor) in 2006's the Last King of Scotland, is acting in the assassins actioner Wanted and rom-com Penelope while Jim Sturgess, who rose to fame in 2007's Beatles musical Across The Universe, is in the semi-fiction movie 21. Now you get the idea for this post's title and its double meaning. Aside from their charm, they are also holding their own court against esteemed actors such as Morgan Freeman and Kevin Spacey and getting to snog the IT girls of Hollywood. James has been paired with Kiera Knightley, Anna Hathaway, Christina Ricci and now Angelina Jolie, while Jim acted with Evan Rachel Wood and Kate Bosworth.

I've always had a thing for certain Scottish and English blokes (read Ewan McGregor). They somehow look handsome scruffy and unshaven. They clean up pretty nice, especially in tailored suits and its as if the gentlemantly instinct of bowing and offering their hand might just burst out of them. Their articulate but sometimes indistinguishable accents. Their messy mop of hair and that mischievious glint in their eyes. Or that piercing stare, the electrifying shade of blue, filled to the brim with emotions. Maybe its the image they seem to give out. That they are goofy enough to do silly things. Casual enough to hang out over beer and soccer matches. But serious enough to be serious enough.

About these two actors, though I've watched none of their previous movies (only snippets of Becoming Jane), there seems to be something reclusive about them beneath their approachable, nice-looking veneer and I hope they maintain their independent spirit, especially with regards to their choice in movies. The plots of both 21 and Wanted seems eclectic and exciting enough so yeah, you bet I'll be watching them.

regurgitated by darkmuze at 7:24 PM | |

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Excerpts: JK Rowling @ Harvard

The Sunday Times published the speech author JK Rowling gave at Harvard University's 357th Commencement. She chose to speak on the twin themes of failure and imagination, two of the qualities which I feel is intrinsic to living as opposed to merely surviving. I've never read any of the Harry Potter books before simply due to a lack of interest but I feel anyone who has the ability to write fiction that has captured the minds of millions all over the world is pretty amazing. Below are some of the highlights of her speech. The complete transcript can be found at Harvard Magazine.

On The Benefits of Failure...

"Ultimately, we all have to decide for ourselves what constitutes failure, but the world is quite eager to give you a set of criteria if you let it. So I think it fair to say that by any conventional measure, a mere seven years after my graduation day, I had failed on an epic scale. An exceptionally short-lived marriage had imploded, and I was jobless, a lone parent, and as poor as it is possible to be in modern Britain, without being homeless. The fears my parents had had for me, and that I had had for myself, had both come to pass, and by every usual standard, I was the biggest failure I knew.

Now, I am not going to stand here and tell you that failure is fun. That period of my life was a dark one, and I had no idea that there was going to be what the press has since represented as a kind of fairy tale resolution. I had no idea how far the tunnel extended, and for a long time, any light at the end of it was a hope rather than a reality.

So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had already been realised, and I was still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.

You might never fail on the scale I did, but some failure in life is inevitable. It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all - in which case, you fail by default.

Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way. I discovered that I had a strong will, and more discipline than I had suspected; I also found out that I had friends whose value was truly above rubies.

The knowledge that you have emerged wiser and stronger from setbacks means that you are, ever after, secure in your ability to survive. You will never truly know yourself, or the strength of your relationships, until both have been tested by adversity. Such knowledge is a true gift, for all that it is painfully won, and it has been worth more to me than any qualification I ever earned.

Given a time machine or a Time Turner, I would tell my 21-year-old self that personal happiness lies in knowing that life is not a check-list of acquisition or achievement. Your qualifications, your CV, are not your life, though you will meet many people of my age and older who confuse the two. Life is difficult, and complicated, and beyond anyone’s total control, and the humility to know that will enable you to survive its vicissitudes."

On The Power of Imagination...

"Unlike any other creature on this planet, humans can learn and understand, without having experienced. They can think themselves into other people’s minds, imagine themselves into other people’s places.

Of course, this is a power, like my brand of fictional magic, that is morally neutral. One might use such an ability to manipulate, or control, just as much as to understand or sympathise.

And many prefer not to exercise their imaginations at all. They choose to remain comfortably within the bounds of their own experience, never troubling to wonder how it would feel to have been born other than they are. They can refuse to hear screams or to peer inside cages; they can close their minds and hearts to any suffering that does not touch them personally; they can refuse to know.

I might be tempted to envy people who can live that way, except that I do not think they have any fewer nightmares than I do. Choosing to live in narrow spaces can lead to a form of mental agoraphobia, and that brings its own terrors. I think the wilfully unimaginative see more monsters. They are often more afraid.

What is more, those who choose not to empathise may enable real monsters. For without ever committing an act of outright evil ourselves, we collude with it, through our own apathy.

One of the many things I learned at the end of that Classics corridor down which I ventured at the age of 18, in search of something I could not then define, was this, written by the Greek author Plutarch: What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.

That is an astonishing statement and yet proven a thousand times every day of our lives. It expresses, in part, our inescapable connection with the outside world, the fact that we touch other people’s lives simply by existing. "

regurgitated by darkmuze at 2:36 PM | |

Reel Gem: Away From Her

The other type of surprise I'm talking about, other than self-exploration or discovery, is what other people may bring into your life when they commit endearing acts such as sending you a surprise parcel. In a convenience and pace driven era such as now, whereby sending an sms or an email is the norm as opposed to a proper conversation over the phone or a painstakingly hand-written letter, I really feel the loss of the times of indulging in a long phone chat or the enthusiasm of exchanging snail mail. Needless to say, cards (and I don't mean e-cards) recieved have been increasingly scant.

Imagine my surprise when I recieved a parcel just a week ago sent by a friend who thinks I ought to see Away From Her (without anymore procrasination). J is an old world type, someone whom I think also believes in the value of written communication and one managed by postal services.

I had wanted to catch Away From Her when it was still showing @ The Picturehouse but for some reason, didn't. This indie film, which is a screenplay adaptation of author Alice Munro's short story The Bear Came Over The Mountain is directed by canadian Sarah Polley (who acted in Go! and Dawn of The Dead). And there are reasons why this film was included in many top movie critics' top 10 films of 2007.

The film begins by introducing us to the protaganists Grant (Gordon Pinsent) and Fiona (the Oscar-nominated Julie Christie) who have been married for 50 years and are currently basking in their golden years, or so it seems. The affection, comfort and understanding they have for each other is acute and tangible, such that one look says it all. Even silence speaks in their presence. Such is the powerful performances that both actors have portrayed...they make old age seems so loving and tender and something to look forward to. However, Fiona is suffering from Alzheimer's disease and as the days progress, her memory deteriorates fast and the couple is confronted with the fact that she would have to seek treatment and care.

Though she can't bear to leave him as much as he can't bear to lose her, Fiona makes a decision, while she is still conscious, to enter Meadowlake a retirement home for Alzheimer's sufferers so as to take the burden off from Grant and lessen his pain of watching her fade away. Grant is devastated at the thought of losing Fiona both physically and mentally but he accepts her decision, hoping for the best. Conversations between the two also hints at an unresolved tension that is the result of Grant previous infidelity but also at the gratitude on Fiona's part that he did not walk away.

After 30 days of not seeing each other due to a hospital's rule, Grant excitedly visits Fiona only to find that she does not seem to recall who he is and has even develop affections for another resident of the home. He is shattered at first but subsequently, it is his devotion and love towards Fiona that helps him to cope. We learn that self-sacrifice is sometimes necessary in order to secure the happiness of someone you love. I will not disclose too much of the plot and I highly recommend you go see it for yourself.

A powerful, inspiring story that shines a spotlight on Alzheimer's Disease, Away From Her is an honest but heart-wrenching take on the plight of sufferers and their loved ones. But the heart of this beautiful movie is how it showcases the essential foundations of marriage and how aging can be beautiful and graceful. Watch out for the brillant cinematography too! 9/10

regurgitated by darkmuze at 12:12 AM | |

Monday, June 23, 2008

Night Explorations

All photos property of www.urbandecayz.blogspot.com

I'm a sucker for good surprises and spontaneity..and how events precipitated by these two can have a significant impact on the way I view things. As I ponder over my recent revival of interest in history, heritage and nostalgia, I remember the night when the few of us went on an exploration drive.

It was a night of reliving the nights of the spontaneous era.

The clock was ticking closer to 12 midnight and I was waiting for my brother to come back from his friend's party...and then I heard voices outside..one of which was my brother's. When he came in and said "There's a mob flash outside...and they're here for you!!" I almost didn't believe him but it turned out that one of my friends had brought a little entourage with him.

So began our night of excitement. We were deciding between interesting places to go...when the driver suggested Mathilda House @ Punggol, which according to rumours is a old haunted house that the authorities couldn't tear down. Maybe it was the night and the cold, but standing at the edge of a large abandoned field overtaken by wilderness and trying to catch a glimpse of the fabled house nestled in the midst of the overgrown grass and darkness, the feeling was kinda creepy. J spotted a snake and the poor thing got tormented by the others. A family of wild dogs started a series of miserable howling that echoed from the equally deserted field opposite.

Destination 2. Punggol Beach Point which I discovered is a World War Two site where about 400 Chinese civilians lost their lives during the Sook Ching Massacre. It is now marked as a heritage site along with the beaches of Changi and Sentosa where similar exterminations took place during the Japanese occupation of Singapore. There was a tiny police post followed by a small jetty leading out into the sea. Some opportunistic anglers were fishing and some guy caught a squid. I think its my first time seeing a live squid! One of the reasons for going there was that S wanted to show me the refineries across the strait and try to explain the flaming phenomenon in the sky that I witnessed earlier.

Before heading to Jalan Kayu for late supper/early breakie, we passed by the Seletar area and I chanced upon the very familiar and cute sounding Piccadilly Circus! which I recalled to be a place in the UK. Further fact-checking revealed that Piccadilly Circus is actually a famous road junction and public space of London's West End, in the city of Westminster. There is also a Piccadilly Circus Tube station. Apparently, Seletar camp used to be a former British army camp, hence the all the British-sounding street names. I read somewhere there's also an Oxford street, a Baker street, a Brompton road, a Haymarket, an Edgeware, a Regent and even a Hyde Park! (reserved for future explorations). Speaking of Seletar, another friend of mine has been telling me about this cafe @ Seletar base that sells really good buffalo wings which we have yet to check out.

For more information on the area, do visit http://postcardsfromseletar.com/ , which is a research project to record the history, happenings and memories of the place.

regurgitated by darkmuze at 11:07 PM | |

Monday, June 16, 2008

We Need A New Pan

June is flying by faster than I can recall "what just happened?"

I don't know if its a good thing since I've been feeling better and keeping myself busy...but its like a race against time to do so many things..and I'm worried about time and energy running out. Been venturing out more often, meeting friends and exploring new places since my bdae but I realized that has got to cease temporarily considering my other pirorities and limited energy reserve. Sadly, I've been unable to catch up with some people whom I really miss and care about and its tough to keep rejecting people but as one good friend tells me, "they will understand if they are true friends."

One of my recent revived obsession has been cooking for the family and it coincides with my mom's decision to cancel the tingkat delivery. Apparently, the food selection isn't really to the liking of my siblings and it also means we can't choose what we have for dinner. Although cooking gets tiring after consecutive days (especially if you are doing 2 meals in one day), the feeling of serving up simple and decent food which the family appreciates is fantastic. But as it is with my other 101 interests, this cooking thing just remains at the level below passionate, which means I won't be striving to be potential chef in the future or to try out mouth-watering recipes I come across. Besides! I've yet to make a personal trip to the wet market (read not supermarkets) which for people who really like to cook? is a sad case. One of the reasons I've figured why my family enjoy my cooking (not all the time) is because I'm happy when I cook and some of those good vibes must have infected the food as well. (Hao lian!)

Although I've self-proclaimed this period as hermitical to focus on my reading and writing amongst other things, one thing I really hope to do before June ends is to bring my cousins out for a movie or for a field trip to the Science Centre, where the climate change exhibition is currently being held. I haven't really spent quality time with them due to my lack of presence at extended family gatherings and I really miss them. And the thing is they'll all be grown up before I know it and there's some nostalgic element in trying to bring them out while they are still young!

I foresee I'm going to be more active with The Conscious Beat since there are reviews waiting in line and due to lack of time...so well, here's cheers to the best of June! Joie De Vivre!

regurgitated by darkmuze at 12:06 AM | |

divine discontent

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Bye Bill, you'll be missed

Friday, June 27, 2008

Wanted: Above 21, Irish/English, Piercing Eyes

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Excerpts: JK Rowling @ Harvard

Reel Gem: Away From Her

Monday, June 23, 2008

Night Explorations

Monday, June 16, 2008

We Need A New Pan

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