Spiderman 3 - movie review

Spiderman 3 - starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst & Thomas Haden Church. Have blog about the Spiderman 3's trailer way back in July 2006. Watched this movie last Wednesday at Imax Theatre located 10th Floor, Berjaya Times Square. Extremely giant screen (a movie screen towering 5-storeys high, surrounded by 12,000 watts of digital surround sound) and it cost RM15 per person (around US$4.40). Intended to watch it on Tuesday but was fully sold out on first day of screening. Bought the ticket for the following day i.e. Wednesday.

Here goes - Peter Parker still his usual self, falliing head over heels for his girl, Mary Jane. His nemesis or his good old friend, still blames him for killing his dad. He took over his dad's Goblin equipments and hunted Peter down. During a chase, he was knocked out cold and forgotten about his anger towards Peter and old friendship began again.

Meanwhile M.J. lost her job as a theatre show's main singer and somehow lost interest in Peter as he was not around when she needed someone to care for her. As for Peter, a creepy crawling from outer space somehow got stucked with his spidey outfit and turned Peter into a power crazy superhero. His whole suit turned into black colour.

Meantime, a man running away from the law was caught in a scientific research and got contaminated. His body was able to ................... (go watch the movie to find out) and in his mindset to cure his daughter's sickness, he took advantage of his situation and grabbed monies. Spiderman has to appear to stop his notorious acts.

A newbie photographer who wanted a staff job in Peter's office was somehow thrown out of his work as his dirty scheme in capturing a spidey photo was found to be a fake. Who exposed him? It was Peter in his black suit. This guy found it to be so humiliating and a vengeance for Peter developed. Remember about that creepy crawly thingy...... Peter managed to discard it from his body and of all places, it dropped onto the newbie photographer. With the new found strength and anger against Peter, he became Spiderman's foe too.

In the end, it's almost like the Sodom & Gomorrah cities cited in the Bible. All out confrontation and you may not like the ending. An unexpected reaction from Goblin as well.

It seems that the latest Spiderman 3 has broken many records in worldwide screenings. A US$250 million production, it has recouped its initial capital outlay and has sold US$375 million worth of tickets worldwide (US$125 million - North America & US$227 million in other 107 markets).
Tags: Movie, Cinema, Review, Spiderman 3, Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Goblin, Sandman, Venom

Travel Precaution - Black Magic

Received this via an email & wondering how true is the following tale:-

Moral of the story : Don't easily trust people.

Hi friends,
It is the year-end, which is one of the peak traveling periods for many Singaporeans. This is a true account that I would like to share as a cautionary tale. I have changed the names of people involved to protect their identities. Although it takes place on an overseas vacation, the warning applies equally whether abroad or at home.

Jessie was in her early thirties and like many of us loved to travel and her last trip was to Taiwan . While visiting one of the tourist attractions in Taiwan located near a temple, she decided to get a souvenir for herself.

She walked along the shops with curious eyes. A well-dressed sales man managed to catch her attention. He asked her what year she was born. She answered politely. He further pursued to ask her the month she was born. "June," she replied. As she answered, there was a sparkle in the man's eye. He quickly pulled out an item and put it in Jessie's hand and she looked at it. It was a small-sculpted stone, but Jessie could not make out what the item was. The man, with a serious tone told her that this small ornament was a very powerful item that could grant all her wishes, but she was not to tell anybody, not even her closest friends, boyfriend or parents that she had this ornament in her possession. He informed her to bring this item wherever she went and not to allow anybody to touch it. Jessie was thrilled and thought she had stumbled upon a great deal as the item seemed very precious. She asked for the price and paid for the item.

Vacations like always were too short and she returned to Singapore. On the day that she returned, she felt very exhausted as if the life was draining out of her. She thought that it was due to the traveling and excitement and did not bother too much about it. She went to take a nap and as she rested, she started to feel an ache in her stomach that grew into a continuous sharp pain. By nightfall, the suffering was so intense that she went hysterical.

She crawled to the altar in her home and started to hit her head against the altar. Her parents were shocked with her actions. Her father held her tightly, to prevent her injuring herself while her mother called for an ambulance. Strangely enough, in the midst of all the pain and before she left with the ambulance, Jessie insisted that she had to bring along her handbag before leaving for the hospital. When she was sent to the hospital, it was already dawn and she was sent for different tests and scans to determine the cause of her pain. The sharp pain persisted and even got more intense. Her Aunt Maggie heard the news that she was hospitalized and came to visit her. While Aunt Maggie was with her, Jessie thought about letting her employers know of her condition and hoped Aunt Maggie could contact them on her behalf.

She took out her handbag and pulled out a pen to write the number on a piece of paper. As she pulled out the pen, the small ornament, which Jessie had bought from Taiwan , dropped on the floor. Aunt Maggie wanted to pick it up but Jessie stopped her. She said if Aunt Maggie were to touch it, she would have to have it cleansed. While Jessie was not looking, Aunt Maggie quickly picked the ornament up and kept it. When Aunt Maggie was out in the hallway, she scrutinized it. The ornament sent shivers down her spine and she was very uncomfortable with the item so she decided to talk to Jessie's mother.

On the third day, the doctors informed Jessie's parents that they had confirmed that Jessie suffered from stomach cancer that had reached the terminal stage and they had to prepare for the worst. Jessie's parents were not able to understand this sudden diagnosis, as Jessie had not had any symptoms of stomach cancer. When Aunt Maggie went to the hospital and met with Jessie's mother, Jessie's mother broke the news to Aunt Maggie. Aunt Maggie was shocked and also shared her discovery of the ornament with Jessie 's mother. Jessie's mother also had an uneasy feeling when she saw the ornament. She felt very lost and desperate about her daughter's situation.

Jessie's mother and Aunt Maggie both knew of a medium; Master Lim and it struck both of them that he might shed some light as to the events. Aunt Maggie quickly called to arrange to meet Master Lim. When they visited Master Lim, they showed the ornament to Master Lim. At one glance, he told them that Jessie's life had been swapped with that of another girl who was probably suffering from stomach cancer and was dying. The ornament was an object to hold black magic, which would suck the life out of Jessie.

Both Jessie's mother and Aunt Maggie queried whether there was anything that could be done. He replied that it was too late as the black magic cast was very powerful and the ornament had been discovered too late. The black magic was targeted with certain criteria: The victim had to be a girl who was born in a specific year and month. The black magic would lose its power if other people apart from Jessie touched it. However, in Jessie's case the black magic had already taken full effect and had become uncontrollable.

Thus, only direct family members were to be allowed to visit her and even to send her off at her wake. The strange ornament was left at the temple to be handled and disposed of appropriately.
Silently, and with great pain, Jessie left by the seventh day on her return from her vacation.

Things to look out:-
1. Usually you would not be instructed to keep it a secret about buying anything, unless magic is involved.

2. It is untrue that other people apart from the owner cannot touch blessed items. People that you are comfortable with can handle the blessed items. Of course, it is not a good idea to let strangers or anybody who you are not comfortable with to touch any of your closely held items.

3. It is quite common for people to ask what year you are born in when you are selecting items to suit your animal sign. If it is only to deal with Chinese animal signs, they do not need to ask for your birth month. If your birth month is requested for, you can always ask which theories they are following. For example, when selecting crystals and minerals according to astrology, we will need to know what is the birth month and day.

4. Do not buy closely held items or jewelry from non-creditable people, shops or organizations.

5. Many people may have the misconception that black magic can only be cast on them if their eight characters (birth year, month, day and time) are known. Eight characters are not necessary to cast black magic on a specific person. (I have heard of this tale before in not revealing your birth year, month, day and time as it will allow black magic to be cast on you)

I have shared this true account as a caution to all that it is important to exercise care when buying items, especially closely held items. It is important to know whom you are buying from, where you are buying from and what you are buying. Do not take things too lightly; else there may be much to loose.

After reading the above, I had some doubt about it. The writer didn't say that Jessie has revealed how she got the ornament. If this story is just a tale, it's a good story/tale then. Eerie!
Tags: Black Magic, Singaporean, Taiwan, Ornament, Eerie

The Seed

A successful Christian business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his directors or his children, he decided to do something different.

He called all the young executives in his company together. "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO," he said. "I have decided to choose one of you."

The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a seed today - a very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed.

Every day, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew.

Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.

Six months went by - still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however. He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - he so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick at his stomach. It was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right.

He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful--in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed. A few felt sorry for him!

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown," said the CEO.
"Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the financial director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!"

When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed. Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Here is your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!"

Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. How could he be the new CEO the others said? Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed.

I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers.

"When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive!"

If you plant honesty, you will reap trust
If you plant goodness, you will reap friends.
If you plant humility, you will reap greatness.
If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment
If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective.
If you plant hard work, you will reap success.
If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation.
If you plant faith in Christ, you will reap a harvest.

So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later. Two thousand years ago Paul wrote to the church at Galatia the same story but with fewer words, "What you sow, so shall you reap" (Gal. 6:7).

We are grass that will wither and die but the incorruptible seed of God's Word will live forever - sow it daily into the life of your family! --Author Unknown
Tags: Seed, Executive, CEO, Incorruptible, Christianity

Maybank's New Ruling

Malaysia's largest bank in terms of revenue and assets, Malayan Banking Berhad (MBB & aka Maybank), has issued a memo on the following:-
"requiring all law firms dealing with it to have at least 50% bumiputra partnership" - The Star

Why such ruling at this stage? What trigger such a new ruling? What's the benefit?

FYI, bumiputra is usually equated with the malay race.

1st scenario, if a legal firm which has no bumiputra partnerships and had been dealing with MBB for a number of years, they have to either draw in new malay partners or promote internally those malay staff to senior positions. Why only bumiputra? What about the Indian race? Left out in the cold? I'm not triggering a racial war here but what was MBB's intention in the first place?

2nd scenario, if a legal firm, which has no bumiputra partnerships and had been dealing with MBB for a number of years, can't find a suiitable bumiputra partner externally or internally, they would be forced to withdraw from MBB's panel of lawyers.

MBB is majority owned by the government and if such management ruling was not challenged by the government, means to say that the government is condoning such ruling as well. Companies around the world are working towards globalisation and some countries opened up their legal fraternity to overseas based legal firms to operate in their own countries. And in Malaysia, such ruling is just contradicting the whole globalisation idea. Unless, of course, MBB or Malaysia does not have globalisation in their mindset at all.

All in all, Malaysia Boleh again (pun intended).

Not only that, a Minister who travelled over to USA to promote the biotechnology industry was involved in a controversy as read in Lim Kit Siang's blog. It seems that the Minister blurted racist remarks towards a Malaysian student of Indian race during a meet up with Malaysian students in California.

It's really unbecoming of such people in Malaysia and also the world. I would say people are getting more selfish and only looking at their own interest while hurting others in the process. What sort of multi-racial country are we promoting for the Visit Malaysia Year 2007? On one hand, we are telling everyone that this is the only country that exist based on multi-racial democracy but on the other hand, politicians themselves are playing the dangerous racial cards.

Reading:
* Racist Remarks About Malaysian Indians by Dr. Jamaludin Jarjis
* My race is better than yours because we’re purer than you!
* Samy Vellu, if you dont trash him, who will?
* Who’s The Slime Juice Cat Now? Jamaludin Jarjis!
Tags: Malayan Banking Berhad, MBB, Maybank, Bumiputra, Biotechnology, Racist

Harley Davidson-New Arrival

Latest Harley Davidson's model?

Tags: Harley Davidson, Motorcycle

Who Decided Your Career Path?

Are you doing things because they make sense or have habits taken over conscious thinking?

There is a story about Russia in the days of the Czars. In the park of St. Petersburg Winter Palace there was a beautiful lawn, on that lawn a bench, and next to that bench, two guards. Every three hours the guards were changed. Yet no one could explain why these guards were guarding the bench. One day an ambitious young lieutenant was put in charge of the Palace Guard. He started wondering and asking questions. Finally, he found a little old man, the Palace historian.

"Yes," the old man said, "I remember. During the reign of Peter the Great, 200 years ago, the bench got a fresh coat of paint. The Czar was afraid that the ladies in waiting might get paint on their dresses. So he ordered one guard to watch the bench while the paint dried. The order was never rescinded. Then in 1908, all the guards of the Palace were doubled for fear of a revolution. So the bench has had two guards ever since."*

"If you want to know your past--look into your present conditions. If you want to know your future--look into your present actions." ~ Old Proverb

Every once in a while it's wise to ask, "Why am I doing this?" If your dad always bought Fords, is that enough reason for you to only do that today? If you're still using a typewriter, either you love that little clicking sound or you have missed the development of some easier ways to write. Perhaps you loved the challenge of your new job 20 years ago, but today you're a different person. Is it time to move on?

I recently saw a 44-yr-old client who said, "I'm tired of living my life based on decisions that were made by an 18-yr-old." Most people evaluate their lives in retrospect; they simply look back from 70 and wonder how they got there. You can put yourself in the driver's seat instantly by really taking a fresh look at the "why" of those things you are doing today.

The modern definition of "insanity" is to continue doing what you have been doing and yet expecting different results. Are you ignoring years of experience and knowledge only to continue doing what you have always done? If you want different results, you will have to do something different. If the paint dried years ago, move on!

From the Bible:
"As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his foolishness." Proverbs 26: 11 (HCSB)
Tags: Career Path, Czar, St Petersburg, St Petersburg Winter Palace, Insanity, Habit, Peter the Great

Goat 'The Wife' Died

In relation to my previous posting on 11 Sept 2006 pertaining to Sudan Man Forced To 'Marry' Goat, it has been noted that the goat, as the wife, has died. You may think of various issues that could have caused the death ...... how did it die?

The reason of the death: Rose, black and white, is believed to have died after choking on a plastic bag she swallowed as she was eating scraps on the streets of Juba. She has left behind her husband and a male kid. A KID??? WHAT KID???

Apparently, it's a not a human type of kid but a real goat's gene ......... hehe. What were you thinking about?

Reading: Sudan's famous goat 'wife' dies - BBC News/Africa
Tags: Sudan, Goat, Rose, Juba