devious androgyny

Movie Lookout!: Bodyguards & Assassins

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:01:07 GMT

So, asides from the soon-to-be blockbusters, Avatar and Sherlock Holmes, what other movies has been overshadowed but is truly a gem? I give you Bodyguards and Assassins.

Because there's Donnie Yen. Any movies with Donnie Yen is bound to have an 80% possibility of being a good movie.

And then it's also set in the beginning of modern China... Okay, my China history is shady at best but there's Sun Yat-Sen in it so it couldn't have been that far back, could it?

Title: Bodyguards and Assassins
Genre: Kungfu / Historical
Starring: Tony Leung, Leon Lai, Nicholas Tse, Fan Bing Bing and of course, Donnie Yen and other well known actors.
Director: Teddy Chen?
Anticipation: I want to watch it... like right now.
Release date: Out

So okay, the trailer is not the best I've seen but the scale of the production is probably bigger than Ip Man and probably going to be similar like it. I still think Ip Man is better though, but for those who are suckers for tear-jerking patriotism type of movies, this is just the thing for you.

I really think Hong Kong should make more of these sort of films, those set in post-colonial-slash-modern China era rather those braudy period (guzhuang) movies like Red Cliff (which remains to date one of the worst adaptation of The Three Kingdoms ever made). I mean look at the success of Huang Fei Hung and Ip Man. Period movies should be catered to the horror, wuxia novels crowd like Qian Nu You Hun and Dong Fang Bu Bai...

Self-Defence Tips

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:21:48 GMT

I was watching 女人我最大 and think that all girls (and guys) should watch it, just in case. Never know when it might come in handy.

女子当自强神奇简易防身术

Loofahs

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:08:29 GMT

I'm into removing my upper epithelial cells these days. Especially since I've noticed an alarming amount of in-grown hairs after multiple epilates. With my depleted stock of body scrub, I decided to try out the manual method of applying loofahs.

Oh. Loofahs and goat's milk soap from Crabtree and Evelyn. I wasn't quite used to the abrasiveness of using loofahs and the goat's milk soap don't seem very moisturizing. My sister also commented that the expensive goat's milk soap smelled like cheap soap from a mama shop. Wtf. However, I did feel squeaky clean after the intensive exfoliating.

But I like my loofahs and... I is very tempted to buy a pretty soap dish for my bar of goat's milk soap. >.<

Glow Fish

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:38:16 GMT

I find that my dad surprises me at the oddest times...

I remember the last time he bought me something (as in nicely volunteer and not by request) that was really queer was during my secondary school days. I was really into basketball then. He got me a basketball that was made really good use of in my two to three years of basketball past time. Get this. He got me a 蓝球 (篮球). You get it yet? The ball was literally blue. It was cute and I adored it. Everyone had a good laugh at it in fact.

Ten years later he got me, a retractable mouse (i.e. I paid for it), that can't exactly be classified as a mouse because it looked suspiciously like some weird mutated fish from the ocean depths.

The eyes can even glow when it's plugged in. LOL

Spot the Brands! in Lady Gaga's Newest PV

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:29:24 GMT

I think Lady Gaga's newest song is pretty good despite it sounding like all her other hit songs. Or should I say that I like her Bad Romance's official video? Which subsequently made me like the song more.

And if she wasn't actually famous, I would've called her a fashionista. As it is, a famous fashionista is also more widely known as a celebrity. Hurrah.

Not Meant To Be

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:42:10 GMT

I was listening to my iPod one morning (this morning being the day after I spent several horrible days at work) and I realized that this song really reflected how I feel about the job right now.

It's really quite sad that I can relate this to work and not to love. -___-"

It's never enough to say I'm sorry
It's never enough to say I care
But I'm caught between what you
Wanted from me, and knowing
If I give that to ya
I might just disappear.

Nobody wins when everyone's losing

Oh, it's like

One step forward and two steps back
No matter what I do you're always mad
And I can't change your mind,

Oh, it's like

Trying to turn around on a one way street
I can't give you what you want
And it's killing me and I, I'm starting to see
Maybe we're not meant to be

It's never enough to say I love you
No, it's never enough to say I try
It's hard to believe that's there's
No way out for you and me
And it seems to be,
The story of our life

Nobody wins when everyone's losing

It's like one step forward and two steps back
No matter what I do you're always mad
And I can't change your mind, oh

It's like trying to turn around on a
One way street. I can't give
You what you want and it's killing me
And I, I'm starting to see
That maybe we're not meant to be

There's still time to turn this around
Should we be building this up
Instead of tearing it down
But I keep thinking
Maybe it's too late.

It's like one step forward
And two steps back,
No matter what I do
You're always mad
And I, can't change your mind, oh

It's like tryin to turn around
On a one way street
I can't give you what you want
And it's killing me and I,
I finally see,
Baby that we're not meant to be

It's like one step forward,
And two steps back,
No matter what I do
You're always mad,
And I, Baby I'm sorry to see,
Maybe that we're not meant to be.

Movie Look Out!: The Hurt Locker

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:10:12 GMT

There's been a bit of a buzz about a certain movie lately - The Hurt Locker.

With the gaining trend of low budget movies with unknown cast gaining the box office hits in the industry (remember District 9, anyone?), I'm pretty sure The Hurt Locker is going to be yet another hit. It's been quite a while since I've seen the next big deal coming along.

Frankly speaking, I'm getting blockbuster fatigue. Blockbuster as in movies that were expected to do well, with big shot director, big ass actors and big budgets. Somehow, these movies seem a little lackluster next to the more interesting low key films. I remember Terminator Salvation, Wolverine Origins and G.I. Joe being really hyped up, an overkill really and then it just... did not meet my expectations. Nor, the fans really. The only ones who actually appreciated these sub-standard movies have been mainly the people who are, not fans of the franchise.

Like District 9, The Hurt Locker did not depend on mainstream marketing, rather, the critics are the ones who really brought it out for the masses. There were interviews, reviews in multiple magazines and the movie blogs are just blazing about this new film about an elite bomb squad in Iraq. For someone who does not watch movies of the war genre, The Hurt Locker is looking to be real promising.

Title: The Hurt Locker
Genre: War/ Action
Starring: Unknowns! Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie and Brian Geraghty.
Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Anticipation: I'm watching it this week, what do you say?
Release date: Tomorrow!

I really glad that relatively unknown actors are cast in this movie. It's about time we see more new blood. And if you think Kathryn Bigelow sounds familiar, well, she's the director of Point Break, one of the all time favourites.

How my Saturday went

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:07:50 GMT

I finally did it.

When my phone died on me today, I was damn "du lan" and on a rash impulse, decided to head over to IMM after my distributor warehouse sale to get that Nokia 6700 classic that I had been eyeing. I was expecting to pay at least $200 as my contract ends on May 2010. Instead, when I requested the sales trainee to see if the renewal fee could be waived, my wish came true. Whoots! In all I only paid $98 after trading in the damnable LG Viewty.

So far, I am liking it. I have to hop over to IMM again though because I hadn't brought the phone accessories along, but no matter, I am still feeling the joy.

On another note, I went to a distributor warehouse sale today at some Jurong East industrial area... Man, I've never seen so many books at one place, not the same title in multiples at least. And it was 50% off! XD

In the end, despite there being so many potential books that I liked, I only listed four books. One for my niece, one for my sister and two for myself. Turns out that one of the two was already out of stock so I only had one book for myself... Sigh. Perhaps in the future, it will be prudent to list down the books I want before the sale? At least then I won't have to wander for five hours in a dusty warehouse.

I thought I would be bored today, but I got busy instead. Muahahaha.

Complacency

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:25:12 GMT

Sometimes I wish I was just a little more assertive.

A little smarter.

A little more show off.

Then perhaps, I wouldn't be in a situation where someone can call me complacent.

Guys just DON'T get it.

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:37:41 GMT

Dude. Seriously. How many time do I have to ignore your smses and calls, give excuses not to go out for a movie with you in order for you to realize that I am simply NOT INTERESTED?!

I wonder if it's a guy's ego that makes them chase an unattainable lady to provide them that extra boost of self-confidence or if a guy is really that slow or insensitive not to get the message that I think I am being very obvious about.

I DON'T LIKE YOU. AND I WILL NEVER LIKE YOU, THAT WAY.

Period.

Downgrade

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:46:08 GMT

I know I've been harping about getting a new phone since forever but I never did cause the ones I liked were either too expensive or too high tech. So, I never thought I'll say this but I'm going to downgrade to a lower phone model, not necessarily old but something with the bare minimal features.

Essential features:

Standard i.e. sms, call, alarms, notes/ memos etc.
Camera
Bluetooth
3G
Nice, sleek looks (I'm finally falling back to my roots!)

And I never thought I'll say this either, but I think I am finally switching to... NOKIA! Because the mobile and service providers in Singapore is too small. Let me state the reasons why I'm not buying other brands.

Sony Ericsson. Really short life span. You're lucky if you can get your phone to work for more than a year.

Samsung and LG. Lumping these two because they're both Korean brands. First, not user friendly, second, time lag between commands and screen are really huge. Lastly, value depreciates too fast. If you're like me, who sells your used hand phones, the value for your phone will not beat Sony or Nokia, despite it being "more advanced".

iPhone. Only Singtel users wtf. And I don't think I will use the applications that often either.

HTC/ Other PDA phones. I firmly believe that pda and blackberry phones are meant for uber businessmen or salesmen who really need to check their emails on the MRT or bus.

Siemens. Has disappear off the face of the Earth.

I've only used one Nokia model since the whole mobile phone industry perked up and though it didn't give me problems despite it being a super old model, I loathed Nokias because of its commonality. I also think stubborn people who stuck by Nokias have an inability to adapt. Really. Ask any Nokia user to use a Sony or LG that they become irrefutably frustrated on how hard it is to navigate.

Nevertheless, I've short listed two models.

Nokia 6600i Slide

Nokia 6700 Classic

The features and functions are rather similar so it boils down to the price. Hopefully, I will be able to hunt it down this Friday.

Now that I've decided to finally rejoined the Nokia gang, I really wish the Japanese will start exporting their phones here. They have so many interesting, high tech and cheap phones available that I'm half tempted to purchase one in Japan to use in Singapore.

Australia! & Marriage? Wtf has the two got to do with each other? Nothing!

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 07:33:28 GMT

I've finally applied my VISA to Australia! I almost didn't cause I didn't know we had to apply for a VISA. My blur partner in crime had always gone through travel agents before and never bothered with VISAs. This is his first time going via... booking online.

It was very fortunate that a fellow colleague of mine is going to Perth this weekend and she suddenly (out of the blue) told me that she hadn't applied for VISA. In a panic, we both quickly googled "visa australia". Wahahaha.

I really can't wait for a break. I suspect that I'm going to be uber stressed before the holiday though, due to work. Talking about work, I watched The September Issue yesterday and the Vogue crew took five months to publish Vogue's September issue. I guess we are really inefficient? Cause I counted and we are taking... more than three months for a twenty-eight pages catalogue. Of course, if I hadn't other duties to tend to it would have been a whole lot easier. The documentary is delightful. Definitely worth a watch.

On a different issue, I've been extremely disillusioned by "marriage". Sure, I've considered the fact that I may never get to that stage of my life but I've heard... stuff about it that makes me even more reluctant to go there.

I was talking to Friend X regarding Friend R's (good thing about having mutually exclusive friends is that you can talk about one to another safely...) relationship. Friend X mentioned something to me that stuck, "many people don't marry who they want to in life, I was one of the lucky few who did." And then he went on to tell me of this guy who married his current wife because she was... the next best option. His previous girlfriend had dumped him.

Out of curiosity, I went around asking people (or asking people who knew other people) if they married who they wanted to marry and the answers were alarming. Friend X was the only guy I knew who married the person he wanted to marry. The others were married for other reasons like, "next best option" or "she/ he was really good to me" or "he's husband material" or yada yada, you get what I mean. Which makes me come to a point where I thought wtf is the point of getting married if the other person isn't who you really want to spend the rest of your life with?!

On the other hand, I may not have covered all bases and my statistics are screwed up but being the pessimistic person that I am, I really do think that marriage isn't all that's cracked up to be, unless you're talking about legalities and protection.

I am surrounded by three sorts of people (pardon me if I offend):
(1) People who are attached and considering marriage ;
(2) People who are actively searching for a mate (and eventually marriage I suppose) ;
(3) People who either don't think much of marriage/ haven't considered anything like marriage/ just don't want to get married.

Which begs the question of why we girls want to get married... Is it because of family and societal pressure? Afraid of being the only one left on the shelf? A want of kids (pukes)? Good factors for consideration but I really believe that that isn't the way to go. I haven't found the perfect answer and probably will never find it, but perhaps when I do find the person whom I want to settle down with, I'll let you in on the secret that has baffled me my entire life.

The Last Dance

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:19:04 GMT

I'm mourning Patrick Swayze's death.

Got a shock this morning when my big boss came up to me and said, "Your Patrick Swayze has died.".

o.O My first reaction was, "Oh no! My books are not in yet!" followed by some disappointment. I mean, sure pancreatic cancer is one of the worst types of cancer and I expected him to off it soon, but not THAT soon, if you get my drift.

In any case, we have lost one of the sexist men alive. He was my epitome of male sexual masculinity.

He had sang and danced alongside John Travolta in Grease and later on brought into the limelight through Dirty Dancing. It was a B grade movie, had a really cheap budget and was expected to show only two weekends in the cinema before going straight to video. It became an overnight sleeper hit and had the highest international sales for its video. Not bad for a movie with a super cheap budget.

And after Dirty Dancing, he shot to stardom starring alongside Whoopi Goldberg and Demi Moore in Ghost. Whoopi won an award for her role in the movie and the poignant clay scene was the most copied romance scene in history (before the stupid Titanic one). Ironically, it is also perhaps the only chick romance flick I will ever love.

Lets not forget Point Break. The other movie that Keanu Reeves is famous for, asides from Speed, and it was the movie that catapulted Swayze as the Sexist Men in 1991. Wow wee. The surfing scenes are the best! And the classic scene when Reeves' character realize he can't shoot at Swayze is probably the first slash potential scene I ever saw... I think...

I am now thinking of catching The Beast. The last TV series that Swayze did before he was too ill to act anymore. I really wonder though how they are going to continue the series. Perhaps, it will just end there?

New Hair Cut!

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 19:42:58 GMT

I had a new hair cut today. Went to this salon in Liang Court that houseki recommended. Wanted to get a hair style like Kate Beckinsale in Underworld and Whiteout, but in the end I just told her to trim and colour.

Turns out that it looks a little like the hair style I wanted but I don't think I will be able to maintain it for long, considering it needs copious hair drying and blowing efforts... And the hairdresser gave me a dark hair colour because apparently I am fair and look nicer in dark colours. Hn...

Sigh, I wish I had a professional to do my hair every morning!

And oh, I love Kate Beckinsale.

TGCC 2009

Sun, 30 Aug 2009 14:20:29 GMT

The Singapore Toys Games and Comic Convention 2009 was interesting and yet a cause of some pain (in terms of work). I was fortunate to be able to go on the opening night via invitation, however, the follow up is quite a pain in the ass. There were more toys related stalls this year, and less comics and games.

Nevertheless, for those who didn't go to the TGCC, here are some photos for you to see. Not that there's much of anything... Unless you're a merchandise junkie, the convention was rather dull.

My favourite drawing out of the lot!

Some of the really old school blockish Transformers toys. I suppose they are really high in value now.

All hail Megatron!

Autobots, transform!

I chose this photo specifically cause you can see Brian Bolland in the background. He's the guy in green and grey striped shirt. Brian Bolland is the illustrator for The Killing Joke. I wasn't able to get a proper photo of him, nor his signature because he was having an interview with a reporter. Dammit!

The dude in blue green shirt is Tan Eng Huat, another well known illustrator. I've only liked his Silver Surfer illustrations so far, not sure about the rest but I guess you can see the covers on the display for a better picture?

In all, I thought the convention can bigger and better. Lets hope that it will be for next year!

The Real Devil Wears Prada

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:07:48 GMT

Oh, this is going to be one of a kind you know. The REAL DEAL.

If you like the movie, The Devil Wears Prada, you'll definitely like this documentary. After all, Meryl Streep's character in the film is based on Anna Wintour, editor of American Vogue. I wonder when this will premiere in Singapore?!

And just for kicks, Anna Wintour's appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Late Updates

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:17:51 GMT

I meant this to be updated a really long time ago.

Anyways, here's a picture of Cookie caught red handed while she was masturbating on my sister's bolster. Wahahahahaha~!

Now that we've gotten this away. For those who haven't seen the photos uploaded on my facebook, click on the link for the photos I took during the Singapore versus Liverpool team play offs.

Liverpool team heading for their warm ups.

Huge ass Liverpool banner carried by fans.

The crowd! It's been a pretty long time since Kallang Stadium was this full.

Preparing for penalty kick.

And that's a really crap penalty shot...

First goal.

Torres! Many fans clamoring to get a shot!

And this is... DUNNO! Shitz, I totally forgot but he's a big player obviously because all the fans were crying out for him. >.>

2nd goal

3rd goal

4th goal

5th goal and Liverpool obviously wins. 4 goals in less than an hour. Hurrah.
Seriously, I don't think I would go to another soccer match. I tried... Maybe if it's Liverpool versus MU or something. But definitely not against home team. I do believe that the Singapore national team has vastly improved from the last time I saw them on TV but the competition is just too good.

Movie Lookout!: District 9

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:03:23 GMT

What's the next big thing I'm anticipating? Asides from Pixar's Up and G.I. Joe The Rise of Cobra that opens this week, next week seems promising with the opening of District 9. I won't be introducing Up and G.I. Joe to you guys because I believe there has been sufficient marketing... And District 9 is proving to be really interesting.

Movie: District 9
Genre: Science Fiction
Anticipation: Definite must watch
Release date: 14th August 2009

Bottom line of the movie is that aliens arrived at our planet 28 years ago after having been forced to leave their own planet. District 9 is basically a slum that has been set aside for the aliens to reside in. Despite that, intolerance and er... neilasparophobia (phobia of aliens) are at an all time high.

Although alien biotechnology has been researched, no humans have been able to utilize their weapons as it require their special DNA make up. One man was exposed to their biotechnology and some how has gotten a bit of the alien DNA inside him, thus making him one of the most sought after humans by the government. Refusing to be a guinea pig, he eludes capture and heads his way over to the only place that is safe for him now - District 9.

Judging from the trailer, it seems rather similar to Cloverfield, where a handheld camera is used to shoot the scenes. More than that though, was the feel of the movie actually being a documentary due to the social commentary. Somehow, I don't think that will feature heavily in the movie, perhaps at the start when the audience are introduced to the idea of extraterrestrials living in South Africa... I see a great potential of blood-pumping action and explosions.

In all, I really do think this movie is one-of-a-kind. There are many alien movies out there, but the aliens are either too friendly (E.T.), want to take over the world (Mars Attack), destroy humanity (War of the Worlds), procreate (Species) or just plain hungry for human meat (Aliens). LOL This is the first time that there is a movie about aliens seeking refuge on Earth and actually suffering in a residential area that looks like somehting out of Slumdog Millionaire.

The marketing tactics are pretty awesome too. I heard of how road signs and posters with slogans like "For Humans Only" were put up everywhere in the States. Certainly it gained much attention from the public. It also reminds me of a time when signs like "For White People Only" were common.

Oh, I wonder if the movie will do well locally. It sure doesn't seem like the type of movie that appeals to the mass, does iit?

JUST FOR LAUGHS PARODIES

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:07:33 GMT

My sister found these gems. LOL

Lost and Pirates of the Caribbean Parody

Lost and Harry Potter Parody

Lost and Lord of The Rings Parody

Lost and Twilight Parody

Movie Lookout!: Public Enemies

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:49:21 GMT

Omg, it's been ages since I last posted on movies look out...

~~Anyways, you guys may have heard this already but this week's absolutely to watch is Public Enemies!~~ I have to apologize. I seriously thought Public Enemies was out this week. Turns out I've to wait another 2 weeks! Braudy hell!

Movie: Public Enemies
Genre: Crime/ Thriller
Starring: Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and Marion Cotillard
Director: Michael Mann
Anticipation: Start booking your tickets!
Release date: ~~9th July 2009~~ 23rd July 2009

Of course, anything with Johnny Depp is good. Har har har. I am so glad that he's decided to go back to his pretty looking self. Christian Bale's performance seems to outshine Terminator Salvation too. I'm hearing some really good reviews about this movie.

Film is based on true events. Critics have been buzzing about how the facts in the movie are more or less accurate so I'm kinda gob smacked. Usually, movies tend to exaggerate actual historical events to give it that oomph factor. So yes, Johnny Depp's character - John Dilinger - is actually a real person.

The movie is set during The Depression era, when people were desperate and there was an overflowing sense of gloom and despair. Out of this period however, John Dilinger emerges as a notorious bank robber. His charisma and slick looks gave him much popularity with the public but the banks and cops however, hated him. It was speculated that Dilinger was largely responsible for the formation of the FBI.

I think the only thing holding me back on this is Michael Mann who directed some good but not so good movies. By that I mean these movies were good but not mass audience friendly. Like The Last of the Mohicans, Collateral, and lately, Miami Vice.

Oh Thursday, I can't wait.

Movie Look Out: Robogeisha

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:41:15 GMT

Seriously. I mean seriously.

I can't believe someone actually made a movie like this. Lol. It's just too bizarre for words.

Remind me to take the umbrella.

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:33:57 GMT

Pouring today when I met barefootlawyer for a dinner and a session of manicure and pedicure at CityVibe.

At Ramen Ten

dev_androgyny: Remind me to take my umbrella hor.
barefootlawyer: It's in quite an obvious place...

Paying the bill for the meal, a waitress walks up to us handing us our umbrella. We break up in peals of laughter.

dev_androgyny: And you said it was in an obvious place! Damn you! (LOL)

At Nail Palace

dev_androgyny inserts umbrella between the seats.

dev_androgyny: Remind me to take my umbrella hor.
barefootlawyer: It's right between our seats. I don't think we will forget it this time.

After mani and pedicure, about to take the escalator down. The girl from the Nail Palace rushed out to pass us... MY UMBRELLA.

dev_androgyny: Argh! This is the second time already!
barefootlawyer: And I said it was right between our seats~

We break up in peals of laughter. Apparently, we are not umbrella carrying people. Wahahaha.

The Strain

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 07:19:21 GMT

In case you haven't heard, The Strain is a collaboration between Chuck Hogan, known for writing thrillers and Guillermo del Toro. And if you haven't heard of GDT, you ought to shoot yourself. He is like the god of horror in the movie industry. For the benefit of those who don't know why they should know him, I shall list some of the movies that I think you should watch. My personal recommendation list, you can say:

Mimic
The Devil's Backbone
Blade II
Hellboy
Pan's Labyrinth
Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Upcoming films: The Hobbit (2011) and The Hobbit 2 (2012). GDT does more producing than directing though and The Orphanage is just one of them.

Back to the topic, The Strain was an idea that was conceived by GDT. It was actually meant to be shot into a television series and there's still a chance of that happening. GDT sent a few pages of what he had written to Chuck Hogan who immediately latched onto the project.

So why am I introducing this book? Although I admit I am somewhat bias, GDT is one of my favorite directors/ producers around, The Strain is one of the few books that has me actually gripping the edges of my seat while reading it. Metaphorically speaking, of course. I don't think I've been so entrapped since Bram Stoker's Dracula and Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire. Personally, I have given up hope for this genre, due to the faux pas that is Twilight and all the other embarrassing vampire novels that grew in popularity because of it. The Strain is nothing like that. Instead the vampire evolution seems to take a u-turn. No more lovey dovey Robert Pattinson vampires!

The story starts out with a plane landing at the airport, with the entire interior in darkness. Suspecting a terrorist attack, the cops came in to determine the situation. They soon realize that all the passengers in the plane were dead and believed that it was due to some virus. At first, the bodies and three survivors were quarantined but due to politics and hysteria, the survivors were allowed to go home. It was that night when the bodies start to reanimate and turn into zombie like vampires. The vampires had parasitic worms that feed on blood in their bodies and infect the others through feeding with their stingers.

Veering away from the traditional fangs, GDT's vampires had stingers. During the infection, the bodies increase their metabolism rate and start changing their anatomy to adapt to the parasitic worms. Instead of having a digestive tract, the vampires' anatomy is more like that of an insect. The stingers are formed during this period where the jaw can become unhinged much like how a snake can unhinge its jaw. In addition, the new fledglings were zombie like dumb, but after seven days should they survive, they will gain intelligence and learn and adapt, becoming thinking creatures with the ability to make decisions. Sounds interesting, no?

I thought the idea was awesome, even if the start was a little too much Resident Evil Degeneration (?), the subsequent concept of vampires actually infected by something hits a bit close to home. What with swine flu, SARS and others diseases that we face today. Looking closely, I can also see that The Strain has certain parallels to Bram Stoker's Dracula. The crossing of oceans in a coffin filled with home soil, like Dracula who travelled from Translyvania to London, the Master travelled from Germany to U.S.. There is a wise old man much like Van Helsing in the story too. But archetypes works great if you know how to go about writing it, which in this case is successful.

I suppose if you're like me and prefer your vampires to be really blood thirsty, The Strain will be a great book for your reading list. This is however, just the first book in a trilogy. The sequel will be out next June and the last book in the series will be out in June 2011.

The Unguarded Moment

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:19:08 GMT

Steve McCurry is having his first solo exhibition in Singapore! Being a photography bimbo, I'm definitely going to the exhibition. I wonder if they'll allow us to take photos of the photos? LOL

In case you don't know who Steve McCurry is, he's the guy who took this famous photo featured on the National Geographic.

The Unguarded Moment by Steve McCurry

19 June to 19 July
Shaw Foundation Foyer, Asian Civilizations Museum
Monday 1p.m. to 7p.m.
Tuesday to Sunday 9a.m. to 7p.m.
Friday 9a.m. to 9p.m.
Free admission

Are you interested yet? Right, who wants to join me?

Random Social Interactions with Random Strangers

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:21:52 GMT

I must be leaking some really friendly pheromones this evening. Perhaps, ones waving signs that says, "Oh come and have weird social interactions with me, stranger!". Because that's exactly how I feel after having two older men approach me.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mean that way.

I was on the bus minding my own business and when I flicked out my ipod to watch True Blood, this middle-aged (?) looking dude who was sitting beside me flashed his mobile at me...

'Can you let me watch your ipod?'

Or something to that effect. The result was rather bizarre because I sort of gave a surprised-snort-laugh response and tilted my ipod towards him so that he can watch it too. I was a little worried because I thought he would ask me if he can share earphones as well because there's no way in hell I'll do that, sanitary reasons and all. But fortunately, he didn't so he watched in silence...

After he saw Sookie, he flashed his mobile at me again:

'So cute'

I gave another unglam snort-laugh.

We spent the entire bus journey bonding over the silent but not silent episode of True Blood on ipod. Thank god, there weren't any nude scenes. That would have been mighty awkward.

AND then we got off at the same bus stop. I accidentally on purpose walked very slowly so I don't have to meet him at the void deck/ lift and whatever.

I still met another over-friendly ah-pei at the lifts. Ok, he's much older than the ah pei age. Maybe ah gong? Anyways, he spoke to me way before I actually noticed him talking to me because I had the Transformers soundtrack blasting in my ears. By the time I realized it, we were in the lift together and he asked me if I just got off work... You know sometimes there're just some random people talking to you as though they know you? Well, I had that vague "what the hell, do I know him" feeling. Sure, we're essentially neighbours, but in SIngapore, that doesn't count for much.

So we bonded for a minute while the lift elevated itself agonizingly slowly to the sixth floor.

Seriously, can anyone say "weirded out"? Totally.