Hi November

A new month has come, I fill myself with spiritual enlightenment, trying to re-straighten my life, and helping as many people as I can is a great progress to my life.

"If u get lemon in ur life, try to make it into lemonade" -
This is the saying that fills my heart and I try to acquire this mental attitude towards my life. Be positive!

David Copperfield book is the book that I wanna read and analyze this month apart from such magazines like awake! and watchtower, which I surely focus to read. Time to read more often.

Another business to come. I plan to open a bookshop for encyclopedia, so anyone interested with imported books of knowledge, u can always contact me here. ^^

Anyhow, see you again next month. Hope is an anchor so we are not drifted away. Have hope in better future!

P.S: Instead of the usual chinese tea, I kinda consume more lemon tea nowadays. Hihihi


Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Wednesday's movies

1. Nim's Island


It's good drama, nice adventurous movie...:)

2. Finding Neverland


Good, fascinating! Wow...watch this! That is how Peter Pan was made!

3. Seven Pounds


Sad, touching and good movie. It's a bit ridiculous way of showing redemption and also noblest one.

Monday, June 29, 2009

Tuesday's movies... :)

1. College Road Trip


Very entertaining, two thumbs up family movie! Must watch!

2. Sex and the City movie


This movie is great in fact. Watch it, I'm sure u'll like it. I find it entertaining.

3. Kit Kittredge an American Girl


Superb, one of the best drama... Gosh!!!! Two thumbs up!!

Movie I watch today...^_^ (Holiday, yippie!)

Dhoom 2 (Hindi movie)


Fantastic! Very cool action movie!

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Movies I am watching in this weekend, Saturday and Sunday...:)

Well, these Saturday and Sunday I watched these movies, lemme give an abrupt opinion :)

1. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Disney's classical animation)


Awesome!

2. Om Shanti Om (Hindi Movie)


so funny, sad and touching, and nice

3. Tarzan ke Kota (Indonesian movie)


shitty movie...It's really not my type, tho some of the scenes are funny as in this comedy movie. But overall, bad and boring...

4. Out of time


The first hour of this movie is boring, Another not-that-nice movie for me, but it gets better at least in the next hour.

5. Dhoom 1 (Hindi Movie)


Wow, this is another blockbusting bollywood movie. Very cool, highly recommended! Action-packed, well a bit too flashy, but never mind...It's cool


Friday, June 26, 2009

The Hunchback of Notre Dame, must-watch Disney animation :)


Beauty is not skin deep. Sometimes this world is just so cruel to judge people from outward appearance. As the classical Disney movie "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" suggests, I am reminded that beauty is not something you can see. It's what you can't see. Beauty is the fabulous-looking cover that attracts you attention to a book. But it's the writing inside that holds your attention.

So, here the movie (adapted from novel of Victor Hugo) goes: The action starts with Frollo (the bad guy in the movie) chasing a family through the streets of Paris. Intent on a bit of ethnic cleansing, he wants to rid the city of Gypsies and is obsessed with finding the Court of Miracles, their secret hiding place. After dashing the mother's head against the steps of Notre Dame, Frollo grabs what he thinks is some stolen loot she's been carrying, discovers it's a malformed baby and moves to throw it down a well, eager to send the "unholy demon back to hell."

A watching priest saves the baby and absolves Frollo -- provided he agrees to be the boy's guardian. Dubbed Quasimodo ("half formed"), the hunchback is locked in the cathedral, destined to become its bell ringer.

During the 1482 Festival of Fools in Paris, Quasimodo, the hunchback of Notre Dame, is elected the Pope of Fools for being the ugliest person in Paris finds himself falling instantly in love with the Gypsy dancer Esmeralda. Joy turns quickly to sorrow as the crowd cruelly mocks and rejects him for his misshapen appearance, failing to see the charm which lies below his odd looks.

Back in the safety of the Cathedral, Quasimodo is at first heartbroken to find that Esmeralda is in love with another, yet he ultimately risks everything to bring the two lovers together. Yeah, love is not only about possession, it's also about letting go...:) In the end, the entire city of Paris owes Quasimodo a great debt as he teaches the people the important lesson of acceptance and love. Paris learns to appreciate the unique values of the outcast Gypsies and the disfigured hunchback.

Well, well, well, this is two thumbs up movie. So, you'd better watch this. One of the best Disney's classical animation. *****



Monday, June 22, 2009

Ghajini, this movie is touching! T T

I just finished watching Ghajini, Husain and Nayla said the movie rocks, and my friend, Rahul has sent me the soundtracks of the movie. It's cool... Ok, what is this movie about? Everybody, I recommend watching this Hindi movie. It's another awesome Bollywood film.

So, here we go.


Sanjay is a big affluent businessman who falls in love with a model Kalpana. Like Sanjay, Kalpana is a kind-hearted woman who always helps the poor people. No wonder, she runs into trouble with a gang that supplies girls to Mumbai as she exposes them. A retaliatory attack by the gang led by Ghajini who in the end kills Kalpana.

Sanjay, who tries to save her is hit on the head, which causes a memory loss. He can remember things only for 15 minutes. He is hunting for a person named Ghajini , and to remember his target, he has inscribed his initials and related clues on his body, has pasted post-it notes all across his apartment and carries a Polaroid camera to click pictures of people important to him.

Sanjay is helped by medical student Chitra. Though she wants to study Sanjay’s case in detail, her professor tells her not to do so as there is a police case against him. How she manages to get even with the gang forms the climax.

An investigating officer gets hold of Sanjay’s daily diary when he investigated his apartment gives a background account of Sanjay’s character. I am personally surprised of how good the act of Amir Khaan is as Sanjay, cos when the flashback begins, we can see that Sanjay the murderer and Sanjay the businessman are like two different people. One is so disorganized and full of hatred, and the later is so handsome and cool, but those two characters are one person. The diary changes hands from the inspector to a medical student, Chitra, but the flashback account continues to stretch from the first half to the second with a long-drawn-out love story between the Sanjay and Kalpana.

At its core, Ghajini is essentially a romance track culminating into a revenge drama. But this movie is full of suspense and very romantic. Two thumbs up. It's action-packed for those who love actions, and romantic, enigmatic and also touching. Prepare to cry also. :) ****



Sunday, June 21, 2009

A sense of nature


What a serene view, isn’t it? A certain Thai guy I met in Bali took it. He’s such a good photographer. Sometimes, I’m so occupied with my work that I barely take a stroll and enjoy the beauty of nature. It may be in clump of flowers, a colourful bird, a magnificent tree, or a striking vista. I really hope I can enjoy this kind of view again soon!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Laaga Chunari Mein Daag - Journey of a Woman (2007)


A fascinating blend of musical, melodrama and feminist fairy tale, "Laaga Chunari Mein Daag" shows Bollywood’s moral universe in transition.

The film follows the fortunes of Badki (Rani Mukherjee) and Chutki (Konkona Sen Sharma), sisters from a Benares family with money problems and predatory relatives.

Father is an honest employee who refuses to sign false documents and thus is deprived of his pension – the sole source of income for the family. Family consists of one wife and two daughters. Mother takes over and makes both ends meet by sewing petticoats. Father, in the mean time, buys lottery tickets ..and wastes money basically – this kind of gambling is I guess alright for the otherwise honest man – this means he is a loser as a man and as a husband – for he is of no help to his wife.

When Badki leaves to find work in Bombay (as everyone in the film still calls the sin city currently known as Mumbai), “Laaga” really takes off.

Badki decides to go to Bombay to fetch some financial support for her family. She tries her luck in Beauty parlors – leaves it for maybe she finds it below her dignity to sweep floors and do pedicure for customers, joins a departmental store but is ousted for she could not understand or speak English !Tries to become a movie assistant but one has to move ones butt real fast – so she is kicked out from there as well.

At last she reaches a Call Center and happens to met a debauch married male who promises to give her the job if she agrees to sleep with him ! She rings up her mother – who is very busy running helter-skelter collecting money to attend to her hubby’s sudden heart attack. His heart is attacked upon hearing that they will have to vacate the house by the way. Badki tells her mother that she wants to come back for the people here in Bombay are very cheap – but her mother denies and says that she had better not come back and ask her for money instead.

There, Badki — with no diploma and no skills — becomes Natasha: a high-priced prostitute. The movie isn’t coy about this. “I’ve fallen from grace,” she says. “I can never come back.” But she manages to make a lot of money, paying for her family's expenses, sister's education, furnishing their house in Benares, and all of a sudden they became so rich.

Thus she makes a whole lot of money and starts sending it to her parents – only her mother knows what she is doing, her father and sister are blissfully unaware of her business. Only an absolute dumb idiot will not realize this – which her father probably was - for its not possible for a non-english speaking, unsmart woman to earn such exorbitantly high amount of money in a matter of a couple of months!

Chutki’s story is lighter. M.B.A. in hand, she joins her sister in the city, where she gets a job in advertising. Her first task is to sell Lux soap to the modern Indian woman. And who is that creature? As her boss (and future husband) discovers, Chutki herself — bright, spunky, self-assured — fits the bill.

Badki, on the other hand, meets a guy – another rich Industrialist – who falls for her. In the last scene , that guy proposes Badki but she tells him that she is a Prostitute. He says that he knows it from day one but it does not really matter to him. Wow!!

One day, Chutki finds out what her sister is doing, she is so furious with herself and sad for not being able to save her sister. She asks for Badki's apology. It is a very emotional moment when two of them cry for forgiveness. Chutki won’t allow her sister to be shunned. Instead of keeping the stain a dark secret, Chutki insists on honesty and that the family reintegrate Badki.

Ms. Sharma hits all the right notes as Chutki, the film’s conscience and clown. Through her, “Laaga” rejects tragedy and embraces its musical comedy heart. The Hindi title — literally “a stain on my veil” — means “fallen woman.” But here Badki gets back up, becoming, with her sister, that special thing: the modern Indian woman.

I think that this movie is a portrayal of a reality. It shows to us why most women become prostitutes, and they are only human. But what is mostly shown is the power of forgiveness, how fallen women actually can come back if they want to come back.

This movie is a good Hindi movie, not two thumbs up but good. ***

Is it a crime to be single?


Recently I read from the Jakarta Post, a really intriguing article which I would like to share with you.

A person commented on two local movies that enraged him. No, it’s not because they’re badly written, poorly executed or starred a model trying hard to be an actress. It’s the message that annoyed him, the "Go get married or you’ll be doomed" message. Oh, please.

This is exactly like our society. Mothers always ask their children, to get married, especially if their sons or daughters reach the age of 25s. Over and over and over to the point that it just gets too much. Okay, I understand every mother’s wish to see their children married. It’s only human. Who wouldn’t like a joyous wedding followed by more babies to fill this overcrowded world? But, hey, this doesn’t mean that the single ones are sick, right.

A lot of lines in the film will make singletons feel they did something bad, that they won’t reach ‘good son’ status until they are married. And that life won’t be complete without your other half.

Sure. Now watch those infotainment shows and you’ll see how many married couples are filing divorce paper and crying over splitting the TV.

We should know that it doesn’t take marriage papers to be happy. But this doesn’t mean you have to be single to be happy, either. The thing is, there shouldn always be choice for everyone to decide what they want to be - single or not.

When a girl over 20 comes to a wedding, you can bet she’ll be asked by a whole troupe,"Where’s your boyfriend?" When she brings the boyfriend, unfortunately, the question changes,"When are you getting married?" When she’s married, it’s ,"Any plans on having a baby soon?" The vicious circle just won’t end.

The thing is, everyone thinks being with someone will make them happier. I’m not saying it can’t, but in the 21st century, it’s sad to judge someone’s life based on their love life.

Against all else, we should know the more important question to ask someone you care is,"Are you happy?"

People look and long for love, naturally. Some through marriage, some from their friends, some from family. Millions of people want to get married, but maybe millions of others don’t. There’s nothing wrong with either, so don’t judge one side from another. Honestly, is it a crime to be single?

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

The International Youth Camp 2009, day 5

TRIP TO LAKE TOBA!!! Wow!!

I had to wake up at 5 am that day, I was still so sleepy, lousy girl I am, and that time, Welly and Adi woke me up and forced me to come by calling and calling me. Thanks, dudes.

Lake Toba is located 4 hour journey by bus and it was the best natural view we had in North Sumatra. Lake Toba was also the nomination of the 7th wonder, and it's the largest volcanic lake in the world. As a Medan citizen, I went there one or two times in a year.

In this International Youth Camp, we all got the chance to go there again with the delegates, and Lake Toba that time was so hot...


with Kim Jung Hwan, the Korean guy.


Then we cruised on a ferry, the boat that crosses from Parapat to Samosir island. You can see the pictures below on the ferry...










At Tomok, we did shopping and negotiating prices for the delegates so they wouldn't be cheated...


These are the traditional houses of Batak tribe.










Lake Toba, it has breathtaking views. I suggest everybody to come to Lake Toba when visiting North Sumatra. It's wonderful! And we departed right at sunset time, and I reached my home at almost midnight. What a fun day!

As for my health, well, it's not as worst as the previous days. :)

The International Youth Camp 2009, day 4

Ok the schedule for day 4 on 14th of June was like this:

09.00-12.00 Attending Fashion Show (national dress)





Above: From Malaysia


Above: From Philippines


Above: From Singapore (though I believe the national dress that they were wearing belong to India, hehe, salwar/ punjabi suit)


Above: From Thailand

So, during this, the delegates will show their national dress, like the Koreans would wear their hanbok, their national dress, and Indonesians would wear kebaya. I didn't join this one, hiks, I know, too bad, but I was so badly having my fever. I was glad to still come in the afternoon, cos no matter what I have pledged myself not to let my university down.

03.00--03.30 Leaving for SMAN1 Medan (high school) and "Taman Beringin" (Beringin Park)
03.30- 05.30 Informal meeting at SMAN1 Medan and Planting friendship trees at Beringin Park (collaboration with green teachers Indonesia, Local government and University of Sumatera Utara)

So, for this one I joined. We were given the same sweatshirts, BUT my sweattshirt was too large for me, hiks, but It's ok and we had to plant friendship trees called Gaharu trees, but prior to that we still had to join a meeting at SMAN1 Medan, it's one of the top high schools in Medan. There were some dances and speeches again. Here was a glimpse.


Then, we went to Beringin Park for planting frienship trees.


All of the delegates were classified in their own countries, Thailand had its own special area, as well as China, Korea, Singapore, and so on. Even my university, USU (University of Sumatera Utara) had its own space. Even I am from Medan, but I am a Chinese, cos of my Chinese blood and a little bit Japanese from grandpa, so I call myself Chinese Indonesian. That's why the Chinese delegates asked me and Yose to join them in planting tree in the China space, and I did that. ^_^


Above: The Chinese delegate


Above: Yose and I were with the Chinese delegates planting Gaharu tree.




And I also had my university space...




Then, from the park, we went home and we had a closing ceremony to attend in the evening around 7.30 pm. And I was told abruptly that I would be the valedictorian, you know, a speaker who gave speech about impression and stuffs, and so that night I gave my sudden, nearly impromptu speech, and thank God, it went successfully.


I got my certificate that night, and oh well, what a farewell party it turned.


Indeed, I have learnt some things from this event:
1. The entrepreneurship itself
What is entrepreneurship? What is the government's role in the youth empowerment, entreprenurship in particular? And what are the drawbacks of youth entrepreneurship in Asian countries?

2. Culture
- Indonesian culture is rich, Bataknese dances are cool
- The cross culture between the delegates and Indonesians

3. Friendship
Making friends is something that I will always treasure in my life. Thank God I met a lot of nice friends from different countries.

Go for Youth International Youth Camp!

P.S: We still had one trip to go the next day, but that was out of the program, only a tour as a bonus from the program, we went to Lake Toba, I would share about this one in the next post.