Psychic octopus? LOL

So someone came up with the idea of letting an octopus pick which team will win whenever Germany plays, since the octopus is a German one (or owned by a German)... It even has a name, Paul, LOL. Just google the combination of words octopus, world cup, Germany, and you'll get the clips. Quite funny really. I wonder if some scientists will now conduct a research on cognitive/psychic abilities of octopuses LOL. Then people probably will turn from eating takoyaki to worshipping octopuses (if they can predict accurately LOL). *sigh* I miss eating takoyaki...

Anyway, I'm happy that two of my favourites made it this far into the tournament. My favourite outcome will of course be a Holland vs Spain final. It doesn't really matter which of the two lift the cup. Germany will be a tough opponent and Spain does need to buck up. I haven't seen how Uruguay plays, but I hope Holland makes it through. Nothing is certain and upsets have been aplenty (but I think that's what people say every World Cup LOL), so hopefully there's no upset for that match eh?

Panjang umur? LOL

Baru sebut-sebut pasal HP, dah keluar pun trailer movie untuk DH :DD

Really can't wait to watch this. Good thing the gap between the first part and the second part is not that long.... though I might change my mind about that if the first part ends in a cliffhanger ^^;;

My Misadventures with Gadgets

For the past couple of days, I've had my hands on a couple of gadgets, namely a Wii and a bebook. And what misadventures I've had with them!

First, the bebook won't switch on. After several attempts at pressing the power button, I decided to just reset the whole thing and voila~! Switched on perfectly. Have already finished one novella on it, and I've got to say I like it. I don't have to lug around bulky and heavy books anymore :D Holding it took a bit of time to get used to, and "flipping" the pages also took a while as I was expecting it to be faster... It's kind of like waiting for a page to load on your browser. Nonetheless, I'm happy with my purchase and now have to find a cover for the reader. Hmm I wonder if there are shops selling soft covers like the ones for laptops... Or maybe I have to make do with any type of cover?
-__-;;

My second acquisition is the Wii! My main purpose of getting one was supposedly to play Wii Fit, unfortunately, that's the game that has been giving me a headache! Seems like the console doesn't like my balance board and would not recognise its presence D: Have to bring it back to the shop this weekend. Which means now I'm left with the Harry Potter game D: That's the only game that I've faithfully played since the series came out LOLL. I realise it's much more interesting playing with wii than ps2 because my movements have to mimic the wand and potion making movements LOL. One thing I dislike is that there's no way to fast forward past all the dialogues in the game. I have to watch the clunky graphics interact with each other *sigh* Oh well, I can always laugh at their cardboard hair.

The Angel's Game

This is a prequel to The Shadow of the Wind (and you thought only movies have all these prequel/sequel stuff eh? :P). Prequel in the sense that for those who have read TSTW, we met with several familiar characters earlier in their life and the Cemetery of Forgotten Books made an appearance again. I have to admit though I can only remember bits and pieces from TSTW and can't remember whether the characters in here made an appearance in TSTW.

The story is about David Martin, a talented young novelist who had suffered a setback in his work and love life. When his life seemed so bleak and about to end, he was offered a deal by a publisher - 100,000 franc to write a novel as per the publisher's specification.

The Angel's Game started off slow and only picked up pace during the second half of the book as Martin started to question whether his boss had a sinister motive and what happened to the previous occupier of his house. Martin believed the mysterious death of the previous occupier might be related to his current publisher and the task he was requested to do.

As far as characters go, I hold no love for Martin as I think he's a bit pathetic. I like Isabella, the witty and fiery aspiring novelist who worked as Martin's assistant/maid. In fact, I would've preferred to read more about Isabella than Cristina, Martin's love interest who seemed so insipid and weak.

While TSTW was more grounded in reality, TAG has a more mystical element. Kind of like 'oops... I think I made a deal with the devil', complete with debates on religion between Martin and his publisher. I don't particularly like reading the debates as it's quite long-winded.

*

I was in Langkawi for a five-day course on Islamic Finance. Definitely an informative course and very useful for those of us with no background in IF as the essential contracts underlying all transactions in IF were explained.

What I want to comment on was not the course itself, but the Oriental Village in Langkawi. I think it was supposed to be modelled after the outlet villages in Europe, like Cheshire Oaks in the UK or the one near Disneyland Paris. The quaint blocks of shops with metal signs were really similar. I remember there wasn't that much choice of brands while I was there during its early years. Now, the outlet shops have been replaced by tacky souvenir shops competing with each other for customers. I think 90% of the shops were selling the same things. I guess the shopping outlet model failed and was replaced with the much more popular tourists' favourites.

But really, who's to blame? Because I don't think people go to Langkawi to shop (except for chocolates and dining wares haha). Won't it be better to build a shopping outlet somewhere near a big city, where the urban population can easily reach it? I mean, Cheshire Oaks was within easy reach of Manchester and Liverpool, while Langkawi only has what? Alor Setar? Kangar? Both cities/towns with populations much smaller than the Klang Valley. How I wish one was built near Klang Valley. I guess we have to be content with the myriad of warehouse sales poppping up like mushrooms nowadays eh?

*

Of course, obligatory mentions of World Cup is a must since it started a couple of days ago. My favourites? Spain and Holland. Hahah I remember watching Spain play in Euro '08 during the exam period. Watched the matches on my laptop with notes strewn all over my bed/desk. Such was the life of a busy student :p

Cuak!

Only a few days till the exam, and of course I haven't finished revising my stuff. Definitely a queen of procrastination eh? Really hope I can pass this so that I won't have to resit in December. Passing means I can focus on other stuff as well :D

Oh right after the exam I have to rush to the airport. Hopefully the traffic will not be so bad D: It'd be a nightmare to miss the last flight.

*

I'm not sure when I developed a penchant for the colour orange. Influenced by my "deskmate" in school I guess haha. I don't own that many orange stuff though. The obvious one would be my car :P

Since my purse has been with me for ages (this one I think was from my school days as well), a fortunate event i.e. stumbling upon an orange purse on sale at Nek Rock's Boutique meant splurging on a new purse that arrived today :DD A tad bigger than my current one, but I can live with that.

Order/Payment Process: Ordered via email and paid via m2u. Simple and fast.
Customer Service: Friendly and kept me up-to-date on the progress of the order, especially when customs decided to hold the parcel for clearance. FYI, Nek ships to her helpers in Malaysia who will then post using POSlaju to the customers. Oh, there's even a token of appreciation as well. Excellent customer service ;D
Time Taken to Delivery: Around two weeks, but then Nek explained it's due to customs' interference.
Packaging: Apparently item had to be re-wrapped because of the nosy officers taking a peek at everything. Received it safe and sound with double layer of plastic, I guess to protect from any unfortunate contact with water.
Would buy again? Yes, if anything catches my fancy and I have the moolah. However, items on her blog usually sells like hot cakes so if you see something you want, you have to grab it!

*

So Maxis finally launched HTC Desire, the only provider with it for a month. I was interested in this phone since I read a top 20 list of best mobiles and this one beat iPhone. But I've taken a look at Maxis data packages and they seem expensive. Of course, cheapest one for now is Digi. But then, I'm not sure how wide their coverage is. I know the area around my office (Golden Triangle) has crappy coverage. I guess I'll wait for Digi to see if they have any offer, especially since their HTC Legend's offer is actually quite attractive.

KudoKan :D

TOKIO's Tomoya Nagase (31) is once again teaming up with screenwriter Kankuro Kudo (39) for a new drama series this summer. This will be their third one together, after "Ikebukuro West Gate Park" (2000) and "Tiger & Dragon" (2005).

Titled "Unubore Deka" ("Conceited Detective"), the show is an original comedy about an unusual detective (Nagase) who has a habit of falling in love with every female suspect, and his conceit leads him to believe that they are also in love with him. When he finds evidence of their crimes, he confronts them with an arrest warrant and a marriage proposal at the same time, giving them a choice between the two. Although his actual name will apparently not be mentioned during the show, he is known to everyone as "Unubore" for his conceit.
- Tokyograph

THIS! Definitely made my day :D I've been a fan of Kudo Kankuro since watching Tiger & Dragon (this is actually one of my favourites, along with another KudoKan drama, Kisarazu Cats Eye). His work is just... wacky. His brand of humour might not be for everyone, but it's definitely funny to me. T&D is especially good because it brings rakugo (traditional Japanese art of telling comedic stories while sitting - sit-down comedy I guess? :P) to the public. I mean, I wouldn't have heard of rakugo if not for T&D. This does prove that the right medium can ensure our tradition is kept alive, no?

Anddd I'm flailing because it's Nagase! LOL I love his acting in T&D, and he's done well in comedy so far. Who can forget the bumbling yakuza heir turned high school student in My Boss My Hero? And the cool singer who's actually a dork in real life in Mukodono/Mukodono2 - this was such a hit while in college if I remember correctly haha.

Hmm the story seems similar to Kimi Hannin Janai Yo Ne, starring Kaname Jun. What's even more weird is Kaname is going to be in this drama as well LOL. Toma's fans must be dancing with joy as well since he's part of the cast, together with Nakashima Mika(that weird lady in Ryusei no Kizuna). Oh well, I guess I have to just wait and see this coming season then. At least, something new to look forward to after the exams :DD

500 Days of Summer

The following is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Especially you Jenny Beckman. Bitch.

Best disclaimer ever LOL. Admit it, this would surely grab your attention as the movie starts, right? :P



Remember the cute guy from 3rd Rock From The Sun? Well, he's all grown up now. Still cute though. He fits the main character so well. We're so used to watching rom-com from the POV of a woman right? Well, this movie presents something different - rom-com from a guy's POV.

The movie's a non-linear view of Tom Hansen's relationship with Summer Finn. An architect turned greeting cards writer, Tom has an idealistic view of love - the whole fate/destiny/soulmate/miracles thing. He is convinced that Summer, a new co-worker, is his true love. Summer is actually the opposite of Tom and doesn't believe in all these fate/destiny/soulmate/miracles thing. And so the story starts, bringing two people with opposing view of love and how their relationship changes their view. But keep in mind, as the narrator sums it up nicely in the opening,

This is a story of boy meets girl. But you should know up front, this is not a love story.

As it is non-linear, I think it starts somewhere in the middle. But don't worry, at least the movie watchers are informed of which day the story is currently showing - not like some Japanese movies, Ju-On in particular :P

I like the lines. Some are totally memorable, like the opening line. It kind of reminds me of Juno at times. Especially with the sage little sister advising her much older and very idealistic brother in matters of love. Such patience LOL.

Oh there are other familiar faces from TV shows in the movie apart from the main actor. Reed from Criminal Minds appear as one of Tom's best friends and the female prosecutor from Bones is one of Tom's co-worker. Reed (or... actually I have no idea his character's name in this movie), is still so "Reed"-like in his earnest-nerdy kind of speaking LOL.

Definitely enjoyed this movie during lunch today. Plus, the soundtrack is kind of nice.