Yanny vs Laurel, royal wedding, and Deadpool 2.

I originally planned to go out and explore more of the city today since I’m free this weekend. However, the non-stopping rain today halted my plan. I have no choice but to stay in the house for most of today. It’s still a nice opportunity for me to chill comfortably in my room, play some games, watch some YouTube videos or movies, and update my blog here. Anyway, I did went out yesterday to Marina Bay Sands, visiting the mall and the casino (lost some money there) in the afternoon and watch a movie in the evening at Tampines Mall with a friend.

The movie is ‘Deadpool 2’. In this movie, Wade Wilson (Deadpool) brings together a team of mutant rogues to protect a young boy of supernatural abilities from the brutal, time-travelling mutant called Cable. The real plot isn’t the exact same as mentioned there (opps, a bit of spoiler here). If you are planning to watch it, do remember to stay after the movie ends for a mid-credit scene (typical for Marvel movies) and you will get a final laugh before leaving the cinema. The movie starred Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, Josh Brolin as Cable (he also portrayed as Thanos in the recently released Avengers: Infinity War), and other supporting cast including a cameo by X-Men mutants.

It is purely entertaining with a lot of humor, ranging from hilarious scenes, plenty of adult jokes (as expected from this raunchy superhero unlike any other), unusually gory and violent scenes with comedic effect (this is why Deadpool has its fanbase and distinguishes itself from typical save-the-world superhero films), and multiple comical references to many other movies (Frozen, DC universe films, and even its own Marvel films). The action scenes are superb and you will be amazed by how ‘luck’ is really considered a superpower/ability for a female character named ‘Domino’ in this movie. ‘Deadpool 2’ is a huge fun to watch (great movie to take away stress) and I will rate it 8.0 out of 10 (the same point that I gave to ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ few weeks ago). Marvel is really performing really well this year, both in box office and to critics.

Recently (or is it just started yesterday), there is a viral test (especially in the US) questioning people whether they heard ‘yanny’ or ‘laurel’ from an audio clip. I listened to it for multiple times and I heard ‘laurel’. However, when I listen to the same clip presented from other platforms, I do sometime hear ‘yanny’. Perhaps it is all about the alteration to the pitch of the sound and that both words share very similar sound frequency or some sort. This is somewhat similar to the illusion test quite some time ago about a dress with gold and white colour and yet some people take it as gold and blue. That one was an visual/optical trick while this one is a acoustic trick/illusion. Neither is wrong in both cases.

People are also talking about the royal wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle that happened yesterday. A UK royal wedding usually caught the attention from the whole world for a reason that I still do not know. Perhaps, UK royal family is really a big deal internationally. Harry’s older brother, Prince William’s marriage to Kate Middleton back in 2011 (wow, that’s 7 years ago already…and now this couple is blessed with three children) was a huge hit and now Harry followed suit. I did watch parts of the beautiful wedding ceremony and I noticed there are quite a number of celebrities in the attendance such as George Clooney, Oprah Winfrey, David Beckham, Elton John, etc.

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

 

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Status update before the weekend and a drama review.

Yes, weekend is here! After days of stressful work, it’s time for a good rest before welcoming another new week full of workload. I have started working for over two weeks by now and there are still quite a number of stuff that I’m unfamiliar with. This is certainly taking time especially when I’m new to the working culture here in Singapore, to the living environment here, and to the architectural standards here that may differs to what I have learnt from my previous working experience in Malaysia. I’m still adapting now and hopefully I can cope with all of them very well soon. Efficiency is the key.

I returned back to KL last weekend to see the ‘new’ Malaysia after the general election. This weekend, I’m not going back. It is tiring to go back every weekend. So for now, I’m planning to return home once or at most twice a month. So, what am I going to do tomorrow and on Sunday? Perhaps walking around in the city (well, Singapore is so small till I have no idea which place I should go to take a break or enjoy the scenery besides the city centre area), catching a movie (looking to watch ‘Deadpool 2’ this weekend) or having lunch with new friends. I will see how it goes.

I have just finished a TVB series called ‘Daddy Cool’ (逆緣). It is a TVB drama about a guerrilla fighter who was frozen by the Japanese during the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1940s and has been awaken in the present time after seventy years from a storm. Coping with the present modern time, the man looks for his wife, children and other possible family members. The drama starred Carlos Chan (as Chung Ting Kwok, the ‘frozen’ man), Wayne Lai, David Chiang, Rosina Lam, Joel Chan, Patricia Ha, Chris Lai, Mary Hon, etc.

This drama is quite interesting (I find this idea of ‘frozen’ man being brought to life is exciting although this kind of plot is considered not new) and its first few episodes gave me some serious good laughs. The story also develops well with great performance by all the cast. However, as the series is getting into around 20th episode, I find things to be moving a bit too slow with many subplots derailing the whole course. This series would have been better if it is reduced from its current 35 episodes to 30 episodes. There are also some story developments that are not making sense in very obvious manner. For example, Carlos’ character is only revealed to be seriously deteriorating in health suddenly in the last two to three episodes of the drama although he has already awaken for so long is not logical. Just a point.

Nevertheless, I still have good time watching this whole series. The chemistry between the cast is very good. Carlos Chan is a fresh new face in TVB and I see a lot of potential for him to go further in this industry. It’s refreshing to see new people with good talent taking the lead in this drama while being supported by other senior and more experienced actors like Wayne Lai and David Chiang. David Chiang’s comedic role as the bad father in this drama is fun to watch by the way. Due to the lack of strong actresses in TVB now, I find that Rosina Lam is acceptable for this female lead role although I must say there is still huge room of improvement for her acting. Out of 10 points, I rate ‘Daddy Cool’ a total of 7.4.

Have a good weekend! I can’t wait to get my first salary end of this month…!

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

 

A dramatic week after the historic election. Good things started to pour in for Malaysia.

The dramas that unfolded in this past one week after the Malaysia 14th General Election are as exciting as the election day itself. The opposition pact, Pakatan Harapan which won the election with a simple majority to people’s surprise yet delight is now the federal government of the country. It’s a very welcoming change. The former Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak resigned as the chairman of Barisan Nasional which is now on the opposition side to take the responsibility for leading the party into its first ever defeat in election at federal level.

He didn’t actually immediately resigned. In fact, in a press conference a day after the election, he didn’t even announce formally that he accept the loss and did not congratulate Pakatan at all. He then immediately planned a vacation oversea (in Indonesia). After being barred from leaving the country by the current Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, he had no choice but to quickly inform the public that he will resign. All hail to the present Pakatan government for some quick actions including barring Najib from leaving. He certainly can’t leave with all the misconduct and crime that he has potentially done in the past during his tenure as the Prime Minister. The previous high-ranking officials who are believed to be aiding Najib in his misconduct are removed and investigated too. This is ‘not seeking revenge, but to act based on the rule of law’. This is what Tun Dr Mahathir said. That’s my Prime Minister.

After having a delayed sworn in ceremony as the 7th Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir had attended a lot of press conferences, had received Sultan of Brunei who becomes the first foreign leader to come to Malaysia to congratulate him (next to meet is Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong this coming Saturday), and had made some drastic changes as promised earlier in the Pakatan manifesto. The burdening Goods and Services Tax (GST) will be abolished effective next month. This is a very happy news to all Malaysians as it means that things will be getting cheaper from next month onward.

And one major event that has happened today is the release of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim from prison following a royal pardon by Yang Di-Pertuan Agong as requested by Tun Dr Mahathir and his Pakatan government. He is finally a free man now and I’m looking forward to him entering into the politic once again. He needed some time to rest and recover for now and this will allow for a one year or two year period for Tun Dr Mahathir’s leadership to bring about important changes before Anwar take over. It’s the happiest day for people fighting for justice for Anwar and also for Anwar’s family including his wife, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah (current Deputy Prime Minister) and his other family members. It’s at the right timing as the family is reunited to celebrate the beginning of fasting month.

So many good news and all of that happened only within one week after the election that gave Pakatan the power to do so. All these are not possible if Barisan Nasional continues to win. I appreciate Tun Dr Mahathir’s effort and quick actions in these 7 days. He certainly doesn’t look like a 93-year old man and is still capable of leading the country into greater height with all those energy and determination. As for the ‘frog’ incidents (people from Barisan Nasional wanted to jump over to Pakatan Harapan), I certainly believe that these people should be rejected because they do not have principles and they will do no good to serve the people. Accepting them (and more of them) will turn Pakatan into BN 2.0 and that is bad. Fortunately, Tun Dr Mahathir heard people’s voices and decided not to accept these people. There were also the issue of two Sabah Chief Ministers previously and is now resolved in favour of Pakatan.

All Malaysians have been actively following the political news these few weeks. I am one of them. And for now, I’m looking forward to more great news coming from the government (I have to get used to label Pakatan as the ruling government now rather than the awful BN).

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

History is made: The opposition won Malaysia’s GE14!

Yes! Yes! Yes! I woke up today early in the morning before work with a big smile on my face. History is made. The opposition pact (Pakatan Harapan) has won the Malaysia’s 14th General Election. It’s a historic and unprecedented win! I knew the opposition this time is going to give a good fight with Barisan Nasional but I still predict that Barisan Nasional will win in the end due to their strong base in several states like Sabah, Sarawak and Johor. I’m actually in a bit of disbelief (but seriously very happy) that Barisan Nasional is defeated. It shows that we simply just can’t stand with BN anymore.

Pakatan Harapan (opposition pact comprising of several parties – PKR, DAP, Pribumi and Amanah) won a total of 113 out of 222 parliamentary seats in the country. A simple 112-majority is achieved to form the next government. That figure rises up to 122 after including 8 seats won by Parti Warisan Sabah and 1 seat from an independent candidate who are also in support of Pakatan. Barisan Nasional on the other hand won only 79 parliamentary seats, heavily down from 133 seats they won previously in 13th General Election back in 2013.

Pakatan won 6 states (Selangor, Penang, Kedah, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Johor), PAS (an Islamic party who depart from opposition pact previously and becomes an individual opposition party) won 2 states (Kelantan, Terrengganu) while Barisan won only 3 states (Perlis, Pahang and Sarawak which state election was held earlier). Sabah and Perak will observe a hung assembly respectively.

Barisan’s fortress in Johor, Sabah and Sarawak collapses while Pakatan gains more seats and even retains previous seats with much bigger majority. ‘Chinese tsunami’ back in GE13 causes BN to lose two-third majority and the popular votes. This time, add that with ‘Malay tsunami’ (many Malays are now also seeing how bad BN-led government is) and BN lost big. They deserved it. History is made. This is the first time in 61 years of history of Malaysia since gaining independence in 1957 that the opposition pact is finally winning the election at federal level. The country erupted with joy and cheer with news coming in from late last night that Pakatan has won. I’m in a very joyful mood today! And I’m getting jealous of the Malaysians getting to enjoy two more public holidays (today and tomorrow) to celebrate Pakatan’s victory.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who was once the fourth Prime Minister is coming back to become the seventh Prime Minister of Malaysia. A very beloved figure, he played a huge role on persuading voters to vote against UMNO and BN, the coalition which he once led. At age of 93 this year, he is the oldest elected leader in the world. Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah will be his Deputy, and this marks the first time ever that Malaysia is having a female Deputy Prime Minister. Well, this is also the first time ever for Barisan Nasional to be sitting on the opposition side. Haha…

Thank you to all the voters! You make a great choice. It’s a new Malaysia now and I’m hoping that this Pakatan-led government will bring huge contribution to the country and all Malaysians. Abolish GST, review certain China-linked contracts, giving royal pardon to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and paving the way for him to become the 8th Prime Minister, bring Najib and his gang involved in previous scandals or wrongdoings to courts for investigations, eliminate corruption, further develop the country, and make Malaysians proud again. Bye Bye BN and all the best for Pakatan to lead Malaysia into a brighter future ahead!

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

The day to vote for a better Malaysia.

That’s it. Tomorrow is the big day! Tomorrow is the date for the 14th General Election of Malaysia. This would be my first time to vote but unfortunately, I couldn’t do so. That is because I have just started working in Singapore and I couldn’t take any leave yet. I felt bad because I do really want to exercise my right and responsibility as a Malaysian citizen to vote in the election. I saw from news and Facebook posts that a lot of Malaysians are trying very hard to cast their vote either by returning home from oversea or doing the postal voting. I admire their determination.

Although the opposition would not have much problem winning in my area, but I do still wish to show to them that there are actually a lot more people in support of them but couldn’t get back to vote. It’s also about telling the world on how bad Najib-led government is. I will not be there but my family will be to cast their votes. I will be paying a lot of attention to the updates of the election day tomorrow and wait anxiously for the result that will come in tomorrow evening.

I am extending my wish and prayer for Pakatan Harapan, the opposition pact that comprises of PKR, DAP, Amanah and Pribumi to win big in the election tomorrow and successfully gained the majority in the Parliament to form the next government. Although I have to agree that there are bad things on both sides (BN and Pakatan), but I do believe that it’s the time for a change. BN already has over 60 years in power. They are being too comfortable with their position and wealth until they forget about the country and its people. It’s time for handover to Pakatan to govern the nation for a much better Malaysia in the coming years.

For Malaysians who are already in Malaysia, please do vote. Even if you are voting for Barisan Nasional, please do so as it is your right and your choice (then you will end up suffering for the next 5 years and continue observing downfall of the country). I love my country, but not the present government that runs it. I’m sick of it (all the corruption, all the scandal, all the nonsense decisions, all the racism remarks, all the race-based policies, etc). Pakatan may not be perfect (has their issues too) but as I said earlier, this is the time that all of us should give them a chance. Let’s all get out and make history for the nation!

For all Malaysians who are eligible to vote, happy voting tomorrow and enjoy the rest of the day (it’s public holiday in Malaysia!…I’m jealous over here).

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

 

‘Avengers: Infinity War’ crosses US$ 1 billion in record time.

You must be joking if you told me that you haven’t watch the ‘Avengers: Infinity War’. You must be belong to the 1% of the world population if you haven’t and didn’t plan to watch it, or you are in China where the movie will only be released this coming week. It is the biggest movie of the year so far and is expected to remain so despite some upcoming major releases like ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ and ‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’. You can check out my review for ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is my previous post.

As predicted, this particular movie that saw Marvel superheroes assembled together to take on Thanos broke multiple box office records. It has the biggest worldwide opening at US$ 640.5 million, easily dethroning the previous champion in this record; ‘Fate of the Furious’ that gained US$ 541.9 million in its worldwide debut. The 640.5 million does not even includes China, the second largest market in box office as the movie will only has its premiere in that country on May 11th if I’m not mistaken.

Besides that, the movie has now accumulated over US$ 1 billion in global box office and is the 34th film in history to do so (unadjusted for inflation). ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is the fastest film to reach the milestone, as it only needs 11 days to do that. This is calculated from April 25th, where the movie had its first ever release to today (May 6th, Sunday). It is the second movie of the year to join the 1 billion dollar club, the other being the ‘Black Panther’ which is also from Marvel. What a successful year for Marvel. Marvel’s ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ and ‘Deadpool 2’ will also be released later this year.

Besides than doing well in the box office, ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is also getting positive reviews. It currently has 84% rating from critics and 92% audience score in Rotten Tomatoes, 68% in Metacritics and 8.9/10 from IMDB. Well, DC will be very jealous of these achievements. Their previous film ‘Justice League’ (released last year) that saw a similar assembly of superheroes too only raked in US$ 658 million in its final grossing. Very disappointing. DC, ‘in time, you will know what it is like to lose’ (quote from Thanos).

Let’s get back to Marvel. So what do you think ‘Infinity War’ final box office intake would be by studying its current impressive run in the entire world. I think the movie will end at around US$ 1.8 billion and will be the fourth highest grossing film in history (after Avatar, Titanic and Star Wars: The Force Awakens that have each grossed over US$ 2 billion). I don’t think ‘Infinity War’ is capable of hitting 2-billion. It may have a chance to get near to 1.9 billion. It all depends on whether people will get back to the cinema to watch it the second time or not.

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

My first day of work! And my first time working in Singapore.

May 2018 arrives with Labor Day yesterday. I have a nice rest yesterday in preparation to my life as a working adult which has begun today. I first applied for jobs in Singapore on March, and then got called for interview end of that month and succeeded, then had my employment pass worked out in April, and finally today is my first day of work. I shouldn’t be nervous because this is actually the third office that I will be working in. However, I’m still getting very nervous with my hands and feet getting cold and sweaty constantly for the whole day because it’s my first job after I finished my postgraduate study and it’s also my first job in Singapore after all.

I am now an architectural executive based in Singapore. Although I do have around 4 years of working experience in the past (I worked at Kuala Lumpur in those years before I left for my postgraduate study), but I still consider myself a newbie as I’m now in new territory with different office standards, different working environment, and different laws and regulations. Salary is not my utmost priority (although it is still very important in my goal to save as much as I can); gaining exposure and experience is my main objective.

My office is AWP Architects and it is one of the oldest architectural office in Singapore if I’m not mistaken. It is an established office with long history (founded in 1957, the same year Malaysia gained independence) and huge portfolio of local and oversea projects. My first two offices are called SDA and RDO. Now, I have to familiarize myself with AWP (typical three alphabets initial to call an architecture office). The office is located in a quite an old highrise tower but on a strategic location; it faces the iconic Marina Bay Sands (too bad, can’t view it from my work desk).

My student’s life is long gone after 2017 ended (I love being a student). My life as a free unemployed man has officially ended yesterday (who doesn’t like being absolutely free and is like having endless holiday everyday). Now, my life as a working adult resumes and I have to push myself further to excel in my career. I have to be more focused and determined this time. Becoming a successful architect is still my goal somewhere in the near future. Now, I’m so far so good…starting to get used to the new environment here in Singapore. It’s a lovely city but yup…it’s really small.