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Monday, October 31, 2005

Ramadhan is slowing leaving…

Today is the final working day for me before a week off till next week, 8 November. Tomorrow is Deepavali (a Hindu celebration), while on the 3rd and 4th is Eid for the Muslims.

1st Syawal (Eid) marks the end of Ramadhan month (which is still running today until the 2nd November). No more Tarawikh prayers to look forward to every night or the beauty of Lailatul Qadr that we Muslims long for (and sometimes miss) or the moment of breaking the fast every day or (list goes on)….....

As I grow older (and older), I realise the beauty of Ramadhan and I strive to improve the quality of my Ibadah each year (Insha’ Allah). I really wait for it every year and miss it every time it has departed. I hope Allah will let me see Ramadhan again next year and many more years to come with my closed and loved ones! Aaaamiin….

To all Muslim readers – SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDIL FITRI AND MAAF ZAHIR BATIN!

Sunday, October 30, 2005

A bowl of mixed ‘salad’

Sometime this month, I received a notification letter from the house developer saying that the condo unit that I bought at Bandar Tun Razak (coincidentally it is located close to my current rental place) has been completed. Keys to the house were now waiting to be collected and the house was ready to be examined by me (in case there were any defects). The keys could only be collected upon payment of some outstanding fees + a few other charges.

This month also, I already made a booking for my first car. The car will arrive by end of next November.

Three major important things are happening in my life at once. First, the house, then followed by the car. After that, it’s just a matter of weeks for my (first…heh!) wedding. The time is coming, the tide is approaching. It is a new kind of tide. The tide is more challenging, sometimes rough, sometimes milder for sure. But most importantly, I won’t be facing the tide alone (Insha’ Allah).


I am soon becoming a family man…. There are times when I shudder at the thought; mainly due to thinking of what responsibilities await. While at other times, I do feel excited, not wanting to wait any longer in crossing the big threshold (big sigh!).

Are you LOST? (updated)

I remember reading the (US) Entertainment Weekly, where the mag covered the story about the LOST series, before it premiered over the US tv. Initially it was titled as Lost In Paradise. But then they changed it. I guess the producers might think that the original title was just too long. Also, for those who were not aware what the series was about, might think of it as equivalent to Gilligan's Island :))

After finding out that J.J. Abrams is the producer, topped with stellar cast and interesting plots (it was rather supernatural + sci-fi), I knew that LOST was going to be great and that I'd be a huge fan.

And I was right, indeed. When it was aired over the pay TV, I watched about 5 of its series whenever I was back hometown at my folks' place. The series just began its transmission over a free tv about a month ago. Since the DVD is already out and not wanting to wait any longer week by week, I decided to buy its DVD instead.

Warning for those who haven't watched the complete first season! Before you continue reading, please note that there are spoilers ahead...

It is no paradise about the island where a group of plane crash survivors are stranded on. When a jetliner traveling from Australia to Los Angeles crashes, it leaves 48 survivors on an unidentified island with no sign of civilization (yeah, right..) or hope of imminent rescue. The story focusses on 14 of the castaways, stories about their lives on the island and the lives they lead before they board the plane.

Meet Jack, a doctor with daddy issues cum an optician cum a blood donor cum the unofficial hero among the group. Then there is Kate, a hot girl with a rather troubling secret cum a fugitive cum a toy plane collector cum a girlfriend to our hero.

Sayid is an Iraqi who has seen the worse during the Gulf War. And yet, nothing prepares him for an encounter with a Polar Bear, the French woman with some shocking hospitality, a mysterious creature that hates trees so much and a lousy French-speaking chic whom he falls for.

Charlie is an ex-rock star (even before he is stranded on the island) who tries hard to be a responsible man and to prove himself (most of the time), that he is a worthy person. Claire is a pregnant lady that Charlie vows to protect, whose baby is a main interest to almost everyone on the island.

Boone, a successful young businessman who is fatally attracted to his beautiful step sister and fatally get too close with a weird old man. Shannon is the very beautiful step sister, who likes to strip once in a while for everybody to see and sometimes manipulate people for attention and is easily attracted towards older men (as Boone puts it).

Locke is a mysterious old man, who is initially paralysed from the waist down but able to walk, climb, run, hunt and predict the weather after the crash. He is also too obsessed with a hatch (that has no handle or a latch) and doesn't mind (that much) when he causes someone's death and when he's about to be taken by a monstrous security system.

Sun and Jin are the Korean couple, who most of the time mind their own businesses but still manage to attract others to have conversation with them (although the others speak a different language of course). The husband likes to fish while the wife grows a garden (and secretly speaks English behind the husband).

Michael is the father of Walt. They become a family prior to boarding the plane after Walt's mother's sudden death and Walt's step father refuses to continue taking care of him. Walt has a dog, Vincent whom he gives to Shannon to ease her grief.

A story isn't complete without a 'bad' guy, at least a regular bad guy in the group. Sawyer hides his real name but likes to give nicknames to other people (like "freckles" for Kate, "Mohamed" for Sayid, ‘Kata’ for Jinn and ‘mamacita’ for Claire). He also lies just to get a kiss and loves getting involved in fist fights.

Hurley has occasional stomach upsets, helps the doctor when the weigh is too burdenful, sets up a golf course for all to unwind, takes the census, friendly and worths over $156 million. He believes some numbers are just bad and they bring bad luck to him and the people around him.

Lost is by far, one of the most interesting TV series ever hit the small screen. It makes you glued to your chair, not wanting to miss any scenes for even a second, let alone missing an episode. It will make you keep guessing and wanting for more action, mystery and mayhem.

It has the best ensembled all-talented cast. Episode by episode, the script and the acting never fails to impress, with interesting storyline and continuity that grabs your attention. It is amazing how the creators cleverly interweave the past stories of the survivors with what’s currently happening on the island and then tie them all together to become one amazing story. WHAT A SUPERB SHOW INDEED!!!!!!

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Thursday, October 27, 2005

'Doom'ed 'Transporter', 'Sky' ain't 'High' enough... (no spoilers)

Doom is another one of those movies adapted from video/PC games. Speaking of movies in this genre, two movies come to my mind. First, Resident Evil - the movie lived up to its expectation (to a certain extent). However, Resident Evil Apocalypse fell into the trap of 'sequels usually not as good as the first movie'. Then, came House of the Dead (HOTD), which was so horrible, you wanted to shoot yourself to death just to end the misery of watching it. With laughable performances, horrible sets, and not-scary-at-all-play-the-video-game-is-more-fun moments, HOTD was one of the worst movies ever existed on planet earth.

Be it adapted from a video game or a book or it's an original screenplay, we have seen many movies about zombies, the undead and the like being released for many years. Some sucked big time, while others are pretty good. Here are some examples that I can recall:
Good - Dawn/Day/Night/Land of the Dead, Resident Evil, 28 Days Later (UK), Shaun of the Dead (UK)
Suck! - House of the Dead, Resident Evil Apocalypse, Undead

Now, back to Doom. See the lead characters; The Rock, Karl Urban (of LOTR) and Rosamund Pike (of James Bond), fight for their lives against a plague that has infected some staff in a research facility located in Mars. At times, the movie really have the Alien's edge-of-the-seat feel. Surprisingly, the plot is good, fast paced and each characters is given enough screen time (even the minor ones) so that we care a little bit about them. Also, fans of the game would be satisfied as there are a few minutes of RPG moments.

2nd review - The Transporter 2. I didn't watch The Transporter but I heard it was good, which prompted the makers to come out with part 2 obviously. The Transporter 2 was released with rave reviews from the critics and the public alike. The fact that the storyline is not a continuation of the first installment, prompted me to catch it. All I can say is that Mr. Transporter is not another clone of 'James Bond' or 'Jackie Chan'. He stands on its own and Jason Statham is suitable as Frank Martin; an ex-Special Forces operative cum driver cum investigator cum Mr. Transporter.

Anyway, the movie has outstanding car chase sequences, top notch fighting scenes and a great plot. It also has some funny and witty lines to entertain us along the way. But one thing makes me wonder though. In an earlier scene, we see the mob leader practising some kind of ninja-sort of martial arts and he defeats about 5 'opponents' with a breeze. If only the mob could give such a good fight and a hard time to Frank Martin at the end of the movie...

Now, we move to the 3rd review - Sky High. You might think that quite a childish of me for watching the movie (altho to some extent, that is actually true haha). The reason that I watched it was because I thought it was another rendition of The Incredibles, except that this time the family is humans, not cartoons.

Sky High will most likely appeal to children and early teenagers. But for late teens, young adults and adults (whether young at hearts or not), they would find the predictabilities and similarities (with other movies made before) appalling. In fact, one can say that Sky High is an Americanised version of Harry Potter. Here are some of the similarities between Sky High and Harry Potter/other movies:

Sky High: Cannot use special powers outside school.
Harry Potter: Cannot use magical powers outside school.

Sky High: Students are allocated to different classes/status at the beginning of their junior year.
Harry Potter: Students are allocated to different classes/status at the beginning of their junior year.


Sky High: Subjects being taught at the school are very much related to leading a life as super heroes.
Harry Potter: Subjects being taught at the school are very much related to leading a life as wizards and witches.


Sky High: Some parents are both super heroes, while for some, only a parent is.
Harry Potter: Some parents are both wizards, while for some, only a parent is.

Sky High: The school is located at some 'secluded and hidden' place, and can only be reached by special buses.
Harry Potter: The school is located at some 'secluded and hidden' place, and can only be reached by a special train.


Sky High and other movies: The climax of the movie is during a prom.

Sky High and other movies: The bullies turn out to be real baddies.

Sky High and other movies: A character is secretly in love with another character.

Sky High and other movies: A trap is set. Someone is not as nice as they seem to be. Also, a lead character will screw up real bad by breaking some rules, humiliates a friend, puts friendships at jeopardy etc etc.

Friday, October 21, 2005

Anybody into writing? Here are some contests...

Hi, any of you into writing? I know that some of you are...Would love to meet up with you writers out there, regardless of what topics you usually cover. Anyway, here are some contests on creative writing currently running, which are open to anybody in the world:

1. https://www.writersdigest.com/contests/shortshort/
Short Story Competition; 1 500 words or fewer; deadline is Thursday, December 01, 2005.
2. http://www.writersdigest.com/contests/PopFiction/
Enter any of the following categories: Romance, Mystery/Crime Fiction, Sci-fi/Fantasy, Thriller/Suspense and Horror; 4 000 words or fewer; deadline is November 01, 2005.
3. http://www.nanowrimo.org/
Novel writing competition; 175-page (50 000-word); deadline is midnight, November 30, 2005.

Contests 1 and 2 sound appealing and should be 'fun' to enter, altho' the deadline for contest 2 is a bit tight . But in my opinion, the task to complete in contest 3 is a bit too overwhelming, don't you think?? Good luck to those who wish to participate...

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

Google Laugh

My sister Ainul Raihan sent an email the other day, to do the following:

1. Go to www.google.com
2. Type in failure in the search column.
3. Press the I'm feeling lucky button (instead of the Google search one)
4. See what result unfolds...it's the official website of.....(why don't YOU find out!)
5. Then you can laugh out loud.

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

Ring, ring, kerrcchhiinggg.....Catching Up!

Last Saturday (08 October), I went for the ring hunting...the one ring that dark Lord Sauron had lusted for, the one ring that had threatened the peace of Middle Earth, the one ring that had put the lives of Hobbits and other creatures in jeopardy, the one ring that had caused the dual-personality Gollum to become crazier than ever and the one ring that had launched armies of different 'races' and 'entities'.

Ok, why am I babbling about Lord of the Rings eh? Actually, I went to look for my wedding ring at KLCC, with the help of my cousin (and her family). This will be the one ring that I will put on my future wife's finger after taking my wedding vow, the one ring that will unite two families together, the one ring that will 'launch' many families and friends to come over to my wedding ceremony and the one ring that will mark the threshold of me having (and raising) a family of my own.

Ooopppsss....sorry, still babbling again, although it is the truth right? :))

The ring costs me almost RM 100 000.............................................................................

Hahaha just kidding (on the price though). But I'm sure the store owner is feeling more than happy when he goes to the bank, since his 'renovation sale' did generate cash for him.

Now that the ring and the makeup set are bought (also on that day), my wedding preparation (with regard to 'barang hantaran') is almost complete. Before this, my parents, my sis (and her family) had already helped me find stuffs like handbag, clothes and other jewellery items.

Meantime, a few A Level friends wanted to meet up and break our fast together. After much calling and planning, only two turned up on Sunday (09 October). The two are already married for a few years and each has a kid of about the same age.

Coincidentally, another friend turned up at the Mid Valley food court, just before the muezzin summoned the Maghrib prayer (to indicate the time to break fast). He, who has been married since after graduation, has three boys, and the eldest is 4 years old.

I was the only one who was still 'single' that day. Sounds like I have a lot to catch up. Ok, maybe not on the number of marriage years or the age of my eldest kid. But I still MAY be able to catch up on the number of kids I'll be having. Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha........

P/S: Ija, don't panic ok? Hehe...

Ramadhan Lessons

It has been a week since the beginning of Ramadhan...the month where the Muslims fast from dusk till dawn. I am posting this entry to share with my Muslim families and friends about the blessings of Ramadhan, although all are welcomed to read on, of course.

Ramadhan is the month in which the Qur'an was sent by Allah to Nabi Muhammad s.a.w. It is also the month to improve and increase our Taqwa (fear of Allah), improve our moral characters and maintain it for the next eleven months. During this month, the reward for all good deeds, whether they are Fard (compulsory) or Nafl (voluntary), are increased.

Fasting...is a shield against sinning, is an entirely private form of worship between Allah and His servant, teaches us discipline and self-control and helps the body to detoxify itself. Also, there is a night in Ramadhan called 'Laylatul Qard', i.e. the Night of Power, which is better than a thousand months. Whoever stands in worship on this night with sincerity, and repents, for the sake of Allah, all his sins will be forgiven.

In the verse Al Baqarah:183, Allah says; "O you who believe! Fasting is ordained for you, Even as it was ordained for those before you, That you might attain God-consciousness". Fasting is the oldest form of ibadat since Nabi Adam a.s. This ibadat is continued from one generation to the next, through other prophets and anbiya, until it reaches its form of perfection during the time of Nabi Muhammad s.a.w.

This is the month that the Muslims are waiting for....to gain its blessings and benefits.....let us not let the opportunities slip us by....

Friday, October 07, 2005

Simultaneous release eh? (as published in CinemaOnline mag)

Cinema Online is a magazine dedicated to all things movies in Malaysia. Mainly, it covers stories behind Hollywood movies that are being screened here. Apart from that, due to the fact that Malaysia has diverse races and cultures which leads to different interests and tastes in movies; the magazine also covers Malay movies and movies from Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea etc. etc.

In the September issue of the magazine, the editor revealed that Hollywood was planning to release new movies simultaneously over the cinemas, in DVD's and via paid TV's. The last two options would cost a lot more than paying for your cinema tickets. However, the price for DVD's would drop down after some time (just as what happens currently). One of the stated reasons for resorting to this method, was to combat piracy (or perhaps it would only encourage it?).

The editor asked for readers' opinion on whether or not, should this plan goes ahead, the cinema industry would be jeopardised by the move. As a regular contributor to their reader's page, I was more than deligted to share my views. In the letter, I, pretending to be an alien, gave my facts as to why earthlings need not worry about the future of their cinemas.

Here's the letter as published in the October issue of the magazine (go check it out! or better still, buy a copy of the mag over the newsstands):

Greetings earthlings,

in my opinion, simultaneous release of new movies will not kill off the cinema industry. This is because people would still go to the cinemas for that awesome cinema experience. I mean, lets face it! How many of you earthlings, can actually afford buying a 60-inch screen with super surround speakers and when I say 'afford', I mean without owing to the bank.

Even if you can afford such a home cinema system, there is the question of space. Not many of you live in a huge mansion on top of a hill, where you don't have to worry about disturbing your neighbours whenever you blast that volume (but you might disturb the hill's earth structure. Come on earthlings, no more environmental destruction, will ya?).

On a personal note, I enjoy watching every other movies at the cinema with you earthlings. But when it comes to DVD collections, I am more selective. So if I find the movie is not that great and viewing once is enough, I won't go for the DVD when it's released. I don't want to own so many, where most of them will only collect dusts.

After all, my space ship may not have enough space for me to bring back my DVD's to my home planet, or else I will have to make many return trips.

Peace to fellow earthlings! :))

Abdun Alien - KL