Graduated meself

 Let me update to the uninterested how my violin playing coming along. 

I try to record myself playing. It sounds bad. LOL. But I think its normal..  amateur with a cheap violin sounds like. Sometimes its good. Sometimes I wonder if I buy a violin worth thousands will it actually improve the sounds? I also do not want to find it out because I don't have loads of money to waste on a hobby. 

So I had finish relearning Book 1 of my Strictly Strings book and going to Book 2. Its quite ok la jugak learning using youtube ni. There's tonnes of stuffs out there people who taught the book using youtube, people giving simple tips and tricks in how to play the violin correctly. We don't have a lot of that 10 years ago. The downside is that there's no feedback how correctly I am playing it and I have to go by memory on what the teacher taught me how I should improve. There's also a few teachers offering online classes nowadays in these time and I am tempted, but I don't have much to spare. So youtube I guess is the way forward! 

Okla. Later.

Relearning old interest

Not sure who here from 10 years back still are reading my blog, but those who do maybe did read I used to take violin lessons. I took it for like 3 or 4 years? I was never good because I was lazy. I simply have no time to practice ( ini adalah alasan). During the PKP when I was going out of my mind I feel like I need to play music again. My organ had long kaput and now lying in dust. We enquired about fixing it ( which no one can confirm it can be fixed) but it was a 20 years old one and I am like it will probably cost as much as buying a new one. 

What I do have is my old violin, which need to be restring. That is a whole other thing where I was trying to buy it online but the shop sent a guitar stand instead which when they asked me to return and I asked for a confirmation of their shop address and fucking postage fees to be at least sent to me because that thing is huge (and i still havent got my violin strings!) they just went silent!!! I am banning that shop forever and it sucks more for them since that guitar stand is more expensive that my violin strings , but I have no use for a guitar stand. 

Then I thought it is easier to go to a physical store and buying it in Yamaha music shop instead (which is fooking expensive) and it broke and I gave up and went back online and ordering it from overseas since no one locals can be trusted! 

Thats the whole saga. 

Anywayyyy ... I am back learning the violin once again based on my memory and Youtube, and I am not sure if I got better, but I can shakily manage 2 notes of vibrato which I can't before so that's nice. Not sure how long does this self learning thing can keep up since playing the violin is HARD, so we'll see. 

Feeling crappy

But its Friday. I should be jubilant aight! 

Fuck it. So there. I swore. I felt slightly better. Never underestimate the power of swearing. So lets just let words flow.

Books

I think I am giving up reading Inkheart trilogy for the moment. I ain't feeling it. I just do not emphathize nor like the characters. Maybe when I go to my vacation or had read a few books first then I can get into it again. Like when I went to Cambodia. I took a boring book that I'd found hard to finish. Because that is the only book I had, ( I also bought another frothy fun book as a backup book, but as usual, I would finish that book first in like 2 days ) I would be forced to read it. So there. Maybe in my next vacation eh. 

In the meantime since I am not feeling very up to it, I am reading Marian Keyes, series of 'shorts' "Under the Duvet". I love stuffs like that. Its a compilation of her columns and articles that she wrote for various newspapers or magazines over the year. I bought "Further Under the Duvet" (a sequel to the Under the Duvet) first at Penguin Warehouse Sale, then I bought the first book from a blogshop recently. And I think the next book I'll be reading after those 2 is the Lovely Bones. To balance out all those humour and good fun thingies. 

Plan for the weekend.

Nothing. I can't think of anything, but I am sure I will be busy nonetheless. Macam biasa. And shoot. I need to buy something for my violin. My violin is being crappy and is now in the possession of my music teacher so he can sand the bridge since he said it is too high( google Violin bridge if you wanna know what part it is. I can't be arsed to explain).. I hope after this my violin would not be so 'pitchy' because I did think the notes I played seems a bit high. He gave me another violin to practice upon and I am feeling guilty because I rarely ever do practice. Because...

1. I feel like I am a crappy wannabe violinist. See, I can't even admit to myself I am a violinist. I had not reach that stage yet. I will call myself that when I can hear myself play without wincing.

2. The music I played offend the cats and Fasha especially like to nip me on the feet when I start to play while Kurap will try to sit on my shoulder (even with all her fat arse), and mewed loudly asking me to stop. There was one time, Fasha was so offended she knocked down my music sheet and sat on the sheet, refusing to budge so I can't play. Now that just show you how smart and petty cat can be.

3. So I must be REALLY crappy or my cats just hate music. Yeah, I think the first choice is the one that make more sense.

4. Which defeats the point, (what point exactly?) which is in order to be good you need to practice daily. And time is the essence that I don't have. Also I maybe a tad bit lazy. And Farah might point this out. Yes, I am full of excuses!

Kesah Kurap Pulak

Its now Kurap turn to be neutered. Its seems time because she had begun to be interested in exploring the back alley which is filled with hormonal tomcats. 

First day balik adalah agak mandom, then esok tu dah mula la 'menginja' sana sini main kejar-kejar dengan Fasha tak sedar diri perut tu masih lagi freshly berjahit.

And makin manja pulak, sibuk nak tidur sebelah manusia. Tak penah jumpa lagi kucing semanja die. Wherever there is anyone in the house, she will follow them and stay with them and sometimes forced us to scratch her ears or pet her head by mewing loudly and persistently. Very the mengada.

She does not make much of a fuss with the big cone on her head as I had thought she would be. Mungkin sebab die ni jenis tak kesah nak jilat bulu sangat. Fasha is the one yang obsessed with cleaning herself, which is why I am not at all surprised to find some clump of cat vomit or hairball which is solely courtesy of Fasha. Dulu geli, sekarang sudah immune. Hahaha.

We have to wait lagi sepuluh hari (make that 8 days now which to me seems like a long time too), to bring her back to the vet untuk buka jahitan and to make sure everything is A-OK.

Yeah. she seems really wrapped up in watching Heroes. Fasha pon used to like laying down and watch Heroes dulu-dulu when I was watching it. What is it with Heroes and cats?

p/s: Its been a while since I had heard Edith Piaf, beginning to play back her songs over and over again. Her songs and voice is just amazing.

Jennifer's Body

I went into the cinema not expecting much. After all its a horror movie. About a possessed cheerleader. And got Megan Fox in it.


But then it was surprisingly good. Good is kinda lukewarm description, yes? Then cross that. It was kinda great and almost awesome.

• The dialogue was smart, not cliche and the lines are good.

• Good script. It turned a usual horror movie to a quirky movie that have its scare moments.

• Some of the scenes are heartbreaking and almost, almost bring tears to my eyes. You know how death scene in a horror movie always make you roll your eyes. But this not it.

• Good choice of actors and actresses especially Amanda Seyfried. I have always like her since Veronica Mars.

• Clever witty jokes. Doesn't try too hard nor is it too silly.
  

• Adam Brody is deliciously evil and hilarious as an indie band member trying to make it. God, I missed Adam Brody and Rachel Bilson.

• Oh and Megan Fox is also pretty good, you know, aside from the 'sexy' obvious. She clearly enjoyed doing this movie and it shows.
  

• Love the ending credits roll.

• And I especially love the scene where Needy make a run through the woods in her 80s prom dress. It was beautifully shot. The shots of pink satin and legs in between trees is really lovely and reminiscing of a late 80s/early 90s music video. Really awesome.
  

• And yeah, I would like to see it again.
  

• Oh and the soundtrack are pretty good. I am gonna find it. Especially the main song of the movie Through the Trees.

That's about it. Oh and the bad? Well, I really like this movie. So I do not want to think of the bad just yet. And its kinda hard to think of the bad, because it just feel so good.

Few things before

... that I used to think was ultimate kewlness. (The term kewlness I took from Taqi, who likes to use that term)

Disclaimer: Hey, Maybe these things still rock your boats or not, but this is my personal opinion on these and I don't judge people if they want them (Ok. Maybe a little). Fine?

Heels

Dahulu, aku terpengaruh tengok cite hape tah where someone said ".. but heels make my butt looked slimmer". And I am sold! Anything to minimize this mega-butt of mine. I also used to think that, as long as you are young and not pregnant and spinal tulang masih belom bengkok, you need to rock that heels. So dulu stupidly I will buy a cheap pair of heels (tho quite attractive) and when it pinches and blistered I will just grit my teeth and tahan. All in the name of looking 0.0001 percent prettier. WTF right?

Now... Not so much. I could count with 1 hand how many times I had wore heels this year. And wearing heels while lugging your laptop around? Menyakitkan. Nak berjalan laju-laju ke sana sini? Orang yang super klutz like me slalunye mestiiii ade peristiwa yang akan memalukan diri sendri. Pakai selipar pon I fall quite regularly, apatah lagi heels.

But! This does not mean I abhor heels. I just don't think it is the kewlest thing ever or a thing I need to wear constantly. As there are some clothes looked nicer with heels and jika ke function a little heels would be darn nice, I'll wear it once in a while. But nowadays I will make sure my pretty clothes goes with a comfortable, sensible, pair of heels.



Designer Bags
Few years back when I looked outside Marc Jacobs or Tods stores, mulalah salivating and promise to myself "I will buy this!" "I will!", all rapt and shining eyes.

Sekarang. Yes, masih jua teruja tengok designer bags yang mahal-mahal ini. But I am feeling blah about it. Every Minah, Ah Siew and Kamala seems to have LV or Couch or ape2 lak yang riban riban. Macam affordable pulak tengok sume orang pakai.

Kenkonon I am too kewl for words, so buying designer bags when everyone is doing so is sooo not my thing k (bimbo mode sekejab) . Also *looked at dompet*, which 7-11 nak aku rompak for me to afford an LV. Angan-angan bimbo squashed. Then kalo dah beli beg ribu ribu itu, kalo aku tapaw nasi lemak + sambal ikan bilis petai (tidak, aku tak masak, beli semata-mata) and masuk ke dalam beg for my breakfast consumption...

Dengan itu, I am comfortable to buy my usual cheap bags ala-ala Sg Wang mali or the one I bought in Vietnam. Ada Coach keluarkan beg yang ade bling-bling, embroidered butterflies and flowers bagai ? Nope, I don't think so. If there are indeed, I can also easily retract my statement as I don't fancy wasting my surfing time to browse over their site.

So the thing is buying designer handbags is getting less tempting day by day, as I am just as satisfied with a cheap and pretty one. Or just cheap, as honestly unless I have a few Ks to spare every months, I just couldn't afford it. And with all things I can't afford, I don't really care about it. Yups, this goes also for expensive clothes.


Expensive Skin Care Products
I used to envy people who wear things such as SKII, Dermalogica, Biotherm and the likes.

Then I though why should I? My skin while nothing to shout about I think it is ok enough using RM20 and RM10 products. And sometimes when I bought this moisturizer la, cream and all that, I rarely used it pon. Hmmm.

So in the mean time, I will wear my pharmacy bought inexpensive products and bile rase dah kurang jelita I will fork out more. Unless husband mahu support untuk kasik wife lebey jelita? Hehe.


Keeping up with the Kardashians Latest Music and Bands
When I was young I thought that it is imperative that my music is up to date or at the very least be active in finding out which songs or bands you might like. *Also I remembered when I was teenager that I listened regularly to the top 40s and top 20s. Then I will be REALLY excited when my favorite song get to be No. 1. Really excited as in jumping up and down clapping hand excited. Yes, it was .... I don't know how to explain that. Weird, idiotic, embarassing?*

Now... meh. I am content to hear lagu-lagu yang I had heard 10 times every week from 10 years ago. I wondered if I am even musically backwards. The thing that I like usually comes from soundtracks. So I will google it up, if I remembered it. Local bands jangan cakap la. I have no idea who MUH is, not until this year.

So, if I like it enough I will look for it. If not, I will just listen to my Radiohead mp3 for the umpteenth time.


p/s: The * sentence I had just added a few hours after this post been published, because I had just remembered I totally did this. Heh.

La Vie En Rose

 

                                  

 

Had just finished watching the incredibly talented Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose or La Môme. And I have to say, that she surpasses Cate Blanchett in portraying a famous icon.

The film gives us the story of Edith Piaf turbulent life and highlighting the high and low points of her life. Raised in a brothel and a circus. Performing in streets and discovered by a club manager, this story tells of her life; childhood, her fame, her loves, her tragedies and the most incredible of all her singing.

The film is c'est magnifique and Marion Cotillard deserves her award. I viewed some of Edith Piaf performance in YouTube and found that Cotillard movement and posture in the movie is spot on. The film itself, it got a bit confusing at first as the film goes back and forth from when she was old and she was young. However after 30 minutes of viewing I believed the director made the right choice in doing this as this brings the viewer different sorts of feelings, tumultuous, happy, sad, pity, all going up and down, up and down throughout the 2 hours.

One of the best biographical ( I don't really know what these kinda movie called) movie I ever watched. And also what amazed me is the make up. Marion Cotillard a beautiful 32 year old, played a 40++ year old woman who looked like she is 70 so convincingly, that I have to look at IMDB.com to see if there is another actress playing the older Piaf. Before this when I watched a movie and an actress who have to age herself 20 or 30 years, it always failed. Either they look the same except for some really unconvincing white hair (Love in the Time of Cholera ... I am looking at you). Or the actresses and actors, just look like they had just apply an unnatural layer of foundation on their face and etched some line into that mountains of foundation.

What I love about French films, they always gives great soundtrack. I don't understand what they are wailing about, but it tugged at your heart just the same. And of course a film about one of the greatest singer, guarantee a great soundtrack. Currently am listening to some of Edith Piaf many many songs, and I have to say I love it. Absolutely love it. Some of my favorite from the movie are Milord, Non je ne regrette rien and La Foule.

Marion Cotillard performance alone warranted a must see and then you found yourself wanting to keep on hearing Edith Piaf songs.

 

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D is for Devastating

Early yesterday morning, I received the news that Death Cab most probably will not be playing at Malaysia. But at Singapore! Gah!

This cause my love for Death Cab to diminish a bit as they seems to prefer the land where no chewing gums are allowed. Due to my tight budget, it seems really unlikely that I can forked out enough for a trip at Singapore to watch them play. And of course, the cuti that need to be apply where as I don't have enough cuti for this year to go around. I mean... if its Radiohead... wedding or no wedding budget, I would go. Haha. Need I say more Radiohead fans? But unfortch, money-wise and time-wise, bad timing indeed to make any trip to Singapore.

Ugh. This sucks big time.

I think I am coming down with a cold, which might account to my snappiness to everybody around and my really hazy muddled thoughts. So bear with me as I still wish to type more.

But my mind turned up blank except the thoughts of that big Green. Nah. The incredbile Hulk meh. How I love Edward Norton and for the first time I found Liz Tyler somewhat annoying. Even though many said she did great in the movie and I myself am a tad bit in love with her before this. It must had been because I am somewhat jealous of her being all smoochy with Norton. Yups... yups. But Jason Dohring does look uncanny-like Edward Norton, which account for me to be in great despair that I will not see him again in Moonlight. But I will imdb him later on to see where he will pop up next.

But apart from the awesomeness which is Edward Norton, I quite love this "Incredible Hulk". The beginning scenes start quite nicely. And like many others comment, the CGI is still too cartoonish. There are times when it seems to reminisce to the scenes of King Kong. Now that's a great movie that people don't say much about. The battle between Hulk and Abomination is entertaining enough though end in a rather anticlimactic way. Ooohh and Abomination is not wearing any pants! Heeeee.

Anyway... people are somewhat excited by the appearance of Tony Stark. (What? Spoilers? Shutup). Not moi. But that is maybe because I haven't yet seen that "Iron Man". I may have to catch that later at a TV or computer accessible to me.

Ok. My brain is still hazy. Penning off. Typing off. Whatever. And I still have that German translation thingies to do.

Death Cab for Cutie in Malaysia?

Picture taken from their wsite. Heee.

Oh... let it comes true.

Yups yups. I told you I still haven't decided if I like Narrow Stairs. But some of the songs are delicious.

Am already brokenhearted that I can't go to Japan for Radiohead. Hahaha. Kid kid. More like why doesa lot of bands when they do a world tour, the Asian tour only include Japan meh? Got other countries what! Singapore! Thailand! And of course our very own Malaysia. Huh.

Anyway.

My fingers are crossed. And from what I can see in the blogosphere, us locals here are getting excited. Woot!

Though I haven't seen anything in their tour page. I did a once over around last week and the last time I seen is the Japan tour. Now they had included Australia tour. Would be awesome if I would look at the page next week and see Malaysia.

Source

Dils Version of E-News Update

Am still incredibly bum out on the cancellation of Moonlight. Sobs.

Just watched eps 10 of Reaper. Agreed. It is getting better.

Season Finale of Grey's looked promising. Nice to see a change of pace for that irritating Meredith is a wreck plotline.

Heard some of the songs from the new album "Narrow Stairs" by Death Cab for Cutie. Currently loving 'Bend to Squares". Still unsure on the album and the rest of the songs.

Watched a video of James McAvoy acceptance speech. I almost squeal out loud in the office like a little girl receiving pony for birthday hearing that lovely lilting Scot accent.

Which brought me to this amazing poster of Angelina Jolie for the movie Wanted. Can't wait for this movie. If anyone can convince me to have some lady love... Angelina Jolie would be it.


There is no decent poster of James McAvoy for Wanted. Gah! How can this be! So puny, one! I demand better view of him than that!


Wait... I still haven't watch The Other Boleyn Girl. Argh! (How that is relevant to James McAvoy is irrelevant)

Added: Had you seen Joss Whedon's new series Dollhouse trailer? It looks like it gonna rawks! Something like Alias + Dark Angel. Oh... but its gonna be hard to think Eliza Dushku as anyone else but Faith.