Things To Do in 2008

I stopped making up a list of new year resolutions quite some time back as I never seem to be able to stick to them before. So instead of resolutions, I have goals that I want to achieve instead. I guess if I wanted to be technical, they can mean the same thing but somehow goals implies that there is an end to look forward to instead of just wanting to achieve that end as implied by making resolutions. Goals are more concrete for me to strive for so that has been what I’ve done these past years. I guess that I jinxed myself anytime I use resolutions instead.

So here’s my list of goals that I want to accomplish in 2008 which by the way is in no particular order. One of the things that I’ve learned in goal setting is that goals have to be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time related). Hopefully my goals for 2008 will be as such.

Travel to at least 2 different destinations

I want to repeat the excitement that I felt when I travel to another place that I have never been before. For this year, I’m targeting to travel to at least 1 overseas locale and 1 local destination. After enjoying myself immensely at Fort Santiago, Manila last year, I definitely am looking forward to go to somewhere with a lot of history and character. Indonesia looks like a likely candidate for me this year since it’s close, probably affordable for me and I wouldn’t really run into too much of a problem when it comes to finding something halal to eat. Bali, Lombok, Padang, Yogyakarta and Riau are on my list of possible destinations to go to.

After the successful trip to Perhentian Island, I would definitely want to go back and experience island life. It might not be to the Perhentians again though as there are other islands that I have not been to yet. Tioman and Pangkor would probably be in my consideration but I have to say that on top of my list to go to currently would be to Sipadan in Sabah. The thought of backpacking and roughing it for a while there does have some appeal for me since it’s not something that I would be used to being a city boy born and bred. Since I don’t swim (without a life vest) or dive, I wonder if there would be something else to do there?

Update my wardrobe

I am somewhat of a minor clothes horse with a fatally lack of any sort of fashion sense. That combination added to the amount of weight that I have lost the past 2 years has resulted in a whole boatload of clothes that do not fit me anymore and/or clothes that were not meant to be seen by human eyes in broad daylight. I would definitely have to sort out my closet for things that still usable and give the rest up for charity regardless how sentimentally attached I am to them. At least that would help me reduce the amount of closet space that I need.

Once I have the space, I would definitely be out for a new wardrobe. I’m looking forward to trade my store bought work clothes for ones that I get tailored by my usual tailor. I always loved wearing tailored clothes but have not done it for some time due to weight fluctuations. That would change this year as well as all the baggy T-shirts that I have been buying these past years. Not that I have bulging muscles to show off not but at least I want to get better fitting T-Shirts that I can be comfortable in instead of wearing those that look like sails on a yacht on a breezy day.

Be more physically active

On top of the gymming that I’m currently doing, I would also like to try other types of physical activities to see if I would like them. I’ve turned down an friend’s invitation to go hiking with a group of friends twice last year because I was not sure if I could do it. That and the fact that I had to wake up very freaking early in the morning to do it which for someone like me is something that I have to factor in. I’ve promised myself that the next time he invites me, I would actually go through it. How would I know if I would not like it if I did not at least try it once? The worse that can happen is that I get a good sweat while huffing and puffing half to death in the secondary growth jungle swearing at myself for doing it at an ungodly early hour.

I just hope that the person who invited me before (yes you … *waves*) has not swore off inviting me again by now.

I’m also planning to pick up a sport on top of my gym time. I am absolutely rubbish at any sport involving balls so it would be something that is outside my comfort zone. In line with my continued goal of breaking away from my comfort zone and try new things, I am thinking of picking up futsal this year. My ex-secondary school friends already have a monthly futsal thing happening so I might check that out since they play quite close to where I live. They are always asking for more players from our batch for the yearly inter batch competition so I guess even someone who is “kaki bangku” (roughly translated – sucks royally at football) like me would be welcomed.

Enhance my gym experience

To date I have been more focusing on doing solitary exercises while I’m at the gym. Other than the sessions with my PT, I would normally be going through my routines alone for both my cardio and weight stack training. Since a lot of the class that I see organized at my gym are already included in the monthly fees that I am currently paying, I’ve decided to try to attend at least one this year. After talking to the gym staff and my PT, I considering between attending the spinning classes or the bodypump classes. While the spinning classes seemed to be an easier transition for me considering I’m already doing all of my cardio on a stationary bike, I have to admit that the bodypump class looked more interesting for me.

I’m also looking forward to start working with more free weights in 2008. I’ve always shied away from them since I get easily intimidated by folks how usually congregate in the free weights area at my gym. Towards the end of my last PT sessions, my PT has be slowly moving me away from the weight stack machines to routines that I have to use free weights. I’ve discovered quickly then that most of the people there are either focused on their own workout or just there to pose around and look intimidating. As long as I don’t get into their way, I’m would be just fine doing my own thing. I’ve also made some friends at the gym how would be able to help spot me which I didn't have before and was another reason why I don’t use the free weight area as much as I should have. I hope that by doing more free weights this year, I would be able to achieve the fitness goals that I have set for myself.

Get my drivers license

It’s about freaking time that I did! I’ve already paid the lessons in full ages ago and they did guarantee that I will be able to get a license by the end of their program no matter how many times I have to repeat it. I wonder if I would be one of the stories that they would use when they talk about the number of time someone had to take their lessons before he passed his driving license.

Why is it taking ages for me to get one? Simply put I worse than an old half blind old person when put behind the wheel of a car. I get panic attacks when I see a car coming up too close to my learner car and I start forgetting all that the instructors tell me. I hate being in a situation when I don’t have full control and having to trust the other person on the road to take care of themselves by driving carefully.

Nevertheless this is something that I need to get done with this year.

Year In Review : Memorable Moments in 2007

2007 has been a really exceptional year for me. To be honest, I am hard-pressed to remember any past years when so many changes that has happened to my life both on a personal and professional level. Having this blog helped me to document them as they happened and for that I am thankful. If for nothing else, I get a chance to take some time out to review previous entries and be amazed at how much my life has changed in the past 365 days.

2007 started with a bang, so to speak, for me. After 12 years of being celibate, I started 2007 by breaking that dry spell (and no it was not a New Year hookup). Technically it was not the full course but it was enough for me to officially declare an end to the long streak. While it was a big deal for me, it turned out to be less significant for the other party. While I was already imagining building a future together, it turned out that I was just an one off thing to be casts aside once dispensed with. A few exchanges later led me to the impression that what seemed so significant for me meant as much as a business transaction for the other party.

To top things off, I was also told then that I might be more appealing to other people if I just lose some weight. Talk about stepping on someone’s balls when they’re already down for the count. I was extremely embarrassed, heartbroken, hurt and bitter at the time but after mulling it over for a bit, I decided to do something that I have never really did before. I decided to stop feeling sorry for myself and instead divert all the negative things about myself that I was feeling into something more constructive. I wanted to prove to that person and more importantly to myself that I am worth much more than just a one night fling. What started as a driven obsession for vindication gradually evolved into my journey of self discovery and acceptance. It’s funny when I look back and think that if it was not for that incident, my 2007 might have turned out very differently indeed.

I also got the opportuinity to do a little bit of traveling in 2007. The first was to Manila which was the first time I was out of the country since my last business trip to Hong Kong way back in 2001. The opportunity to go along with a group of significantly older friends I knew from my secondary school alumni came up and for once I decide to take the risk of trying something outside of my comfort zone. The trip was a success for me as not only did it allow me to see a place that I have only seen in pictures before but it allowed me to reflect on how home was compared to other places. The trip also stoked a travel itch that I have long suppressed by what I thought was practical reasons.

The second trip that I took in 2007 was to the Perhentian Island with my family. I have wanted to go to these island after hearing about it for the longest time. When I got there, it more beautiful than I could ever imagined it. It was a place that I could definitely picture losing myself in for months if it was possible. Being able to share the discover with my family was also an added bonus. The last that that we had a family vacation was a few years back when we went up to Langkawi so the trip to Perhentian was something that was long overdue for us. It allowed us some really good family bonding time away for the distractions of our daily lives.

This year also saw me embarking on a fitness journey/experiment to improve myself and my self confidence. After years of struggling with issues with self image, I decided (with a little push from being painfully reminded that I was still fat) get off my fat arse and do something about it. I joined a gym and rededicated myself to eat healthier from the beginning of the year. I remembered how hard it was for me to overcome the feeling of being self conscious about working out in public at the gym. I can still recall the anxiety that I had about changing in the locker room around strangers. Over time, I was able to get it in my head that not everyone who was at the gym looked like they stepped out of a fitness magazine and that I’m not as terrible at it as I thought that I would be. Locker room anxiety also pretty much faded away once I got more comfortable with my own body. Of course that doesn’t me that I’m walking around without clothes in the locker room now (is anyone crazy enough to do that?) but at least I don’t feel the need to wait for people to leave my locker area before I changed like I did when I first started.

An increased level of self confidence in myself also led me to take more chances in 2007 especially when it comes to matters of the heart. I guess I can blame if to the endorphins released by working out but I found myself to be more opened to possibilities that I would normally shy away in past years. Instead of just keeping things clinically sterile, I allowed myself the chance to explore what would happened if I took the next step. What started as just comments left in blog entries changed in to txt messages and then to lunches or coffee meetings. After awhile an familiarity began to set it allowing me to be comfortable to move on in small steps. I’m not the best person to be in a relationship with since I carry with me so much emotional baggage and insecurities but in a way I have been learning to change that. It is still a journey that we are on and there are no guarantees that we would end up at the same destinations in the end so for now I prefer to appreciate the adventure instead.

Last but not least, 2007 was the year when I found a whole new circle of friends that I would not imagine that I would be a part of a year before. Thanks for my own increasing self awareness and acceptance, I was able to come out of the shell that I built around myself and reach out even with the risk of being rejected. These new friends quickly became persons of inspirations and sources of new stories of the human condition for me. Many faced the same challenges, had the same dreams and want the same things in life that I thought that I was the only one yearning for all these years. Some became people that I confided in, shared my fears and embarrassingly revealed my fantasies with without fear of being judged. My life would definitely be less enriched without their presence in my life this year. I think I’ve said it before in earlier blog entries that I made more new friends this year than I did in the past years combined. I can honestly say that the last time I made these many new friends that meant so much to me was back when I was at boarding school. I’ve cherished my friendship with my boarding school buddies for 17 years and no doubt that I would be able to do the same to the friendships that I made this year.

2007 was memorable for me not because of the changes that happened around me but more importantly the changes that happened within me. I will remember it as the year that I stopped just reacting to things but to take charge instead. It was a year that I lessen the reins on my pathological risk avoidance and stretched out to consider possibilities that I would summarily dismiss before. I can honestly say that I’ve grown considerably as a person these past 12 months and my life is the better for it. Looking ahead, I hope that this is just the beginning for better things to come. Realizing that I actually can do things that I set my mind to would hopefully give me the confidence to do more things that I would never considered doing before.

My journey is only starting from this point onwards and I still have far to go.

Year In Review : Gym Journal/Workout Progress 2007

Very early in 2007, I had an embarrassing incident which affected my self image and how I perceived my physical self. Having had worked hard to lose almost 10kgs the year before through controlling my dietary intake, that incident was a wakeup call that told me that I was not doing enough. I took that incident to heart and instead of letting it chip away at my already low self esteem, I resolved to put the embarrassment and anger I felt to better use. I took stock at my own level of fitness at the time and determined that it was time to change things. The feelings of embarrassment, anger, bitterness and self inadequacy left by that incident fueled my determination to overcome years of inertia when it comes to physical fitness.

I signed up for a gym membership at Sunway Pyramid a few weeks after doing some shopping around for the best gym rates. At the time, the gym was only scheduled to open in the 3rd quarter of 2007 so I got cheaper rates by virtue of getting pre-opening rates. Given the proximity of the gym to my apartment, I would be able to spare myself the inconvenience of going far for gym as I would have had I chosen a different gym. I also took advantage of their free InBody checks to determine my current levels of weight, body fat % and BMR. I took those measurements as my baseline and at the beginning of the year I was 80.5kg, 31% body fat with BMR of 1583 kcal.

BMR was basically the amount of calories that a person can burn with just the normal body functions without any exercise. Breathing, walking, cell repair and other internal functions contribute to the BMR levels. I took that BMR level as the minimum level of calories that I would take in for a day. I kept in mind that anything that I ate that went beyond my minimum would have to be burned off someway or it would contribute to weight gain over time. I also had to increase my metabolic rate to increase my BMR levels and I changed the frequency of my meals to do that. Instead of just eating 2 large meals a day like I often do at that time, I broke it down to 5 small meals a day. I tried to estimate the amount of calories that I was taking in per meal and try to limit it to about 300 kcal per meal. I still kept the calorie intake flexible so that I would not miss out on good meals but I try to adjust my portions in those situations.

Since my gym didn’t opened till August of 2007, I spent the preceding months working out using a DP Body Tone II exercise body rowing machine that I bought years earlier but did not use much till this year. At the time, I focused more on upper body conditioning by doing bicep curls, body lifts and some assisted push ups. I also had my daily walks of about 30 minutes each way that I had to do to get to my office as my cardio workout. Once my gym opened, I obviously had more equipments to play with and in the beginning stayed with the stationary bikes for cardio and the weight stack machines for muscle conditioning.

Before the gym opened, I set aside about 1 hour daily for my home workouts. When I started going to the gym, I set myself a goal of making use of the gym facilities at least 4 times a week. I have since upgraded that to 5 times a week with Tuesdays and Saturdays designated as my gym off days. I was able to stick to my 8:30 – 10:30 workout schedule per visit with the exception of Sundays when I would go to the gym earlier in the afternoon to spend about 4 hours there. My workout plan would normally be divided into a 40 minutes cardio warm up, 1 hour of weight or circuit training and a 20 minute cardio cool down. I happy to say that I have been able to more or less stick to that schedule for this year.

From the start of the journey, I also decided to engage the services of a personal trainer to guide me with my workouts. It was quite an expensive item to splurge on since, unlike my gym membership which was on a monthly term, I had to pay all of my PT fees upfront. Looking back, I have to say that it was an great investment despite my initial misgivings about taking a PT. Not only was my PT a source of knowledge on how to use the gym equipments properly, he also helped me to track my progress throughout my fitness journey and motivate me to reach higher levels once he felt that I needed to be challenged. We bonded almost immediately given that we came from almost the same type of background and upbringing which made for an enjoyable partnership. I guess that I may have lucked out in this case, having heard of less than ideal experiences people had with their PT, but I would still recommend gym newbies to consider working with a PT when they start to gain the confidence to properly make use what the gym had to offer.

In terms of work out intensity, I have seen measurable gains in the things that I could do now compared to what I was able to accomplish when I first joined the gym. I remember being unable to completes a series of squats and push ups that I now can breeze through for my circuit training (still have problems with maintaining a 1 minute plank position though). The amount of weights that I load up on the weight stack machines has also gradually increased thanks to the motivation from my PT who always challenge me to move on to the next level when he felt that I was ready even when I thought that he was crazy for suggesting it. I remember how excited I was when I lifted my first 3 digit load (in lbs .. still have a ways to go before I can lift any 3 digits kg load) ever having thought that it was impossible for me to do so. That as definitely one of my red letter days of the year for me.

Without a doubt, getting interested into fitness and really sticking to my gym workout schedule really helped my this year. I got a chance to further lose weight which is now hovering between the 75 – 77 kg range depending on my calorie intake that week. My blood pressure readings also dropped from a high of 196/125 to about 148/98 which is definitely good news for me. I’ve also dropped 2 inches off my waist this year to 34 which was something that I have never been since 12 years ago. I still have not yet reached the optimum weight target for my height but if I stayed my course, it is within the realm of possibility to be achieved in 2008.

Thanks to that embarrassing incident earlier in the year, I was able to use all the feelings it left me to motivate me to go on this fitness journey. I have long since forgiven for the incident but I still call on that memory to spur me onwards to reach for even higher heights to this day. I guess it’s just my way to turn a negative into a great positive for me to work with. As I always told myself, this fitness experiment/journey that I am on is just starting and would be one that I would be happy to continue to share in my future blog entries.

Year In Review : Most Memorable Music in 2007

If there is nothing else to watch on Astro, the two channel most likely to be on my TV would either be the MTV or V Channel. Far from being music savvy, the music videos from these two channels are the only way I could keep abreast of what is popular at the moment. I grew up during the time of the music video explosion with the start of the MTV channel so I rarely listen to the radio for my music. Of course this meant that I’m only somewhat exposed to the more commercial mainstream artists as far as musical exposure goes.

Unlike DVDs, I always insist buying original CDs when it comes to my music. From my experience, buying originals are the only way to get the sound quality that your money is paying for. For me, this is especially essential when buying CDs since the consumer is limited to only their aural senses to appreciate the CD. Original CD prices are still affordable especially for local releases which have been slashed quite a lot relative to the prices a few years ago.

My music tastes generally fall into the international pop category although I have know to venture to other genres for a bit. As far as buying CDs are concerned, I didn’t really get to buy many this year. The few I did buy either stayed in my CD player for months until I tire of them or get copied to my laptop to be added to my office playlist. I guess that eventually I would get one of those MP3 players so I can bring my playlist to the gym as well.

Listed below are some of the more memorable music selections for me in 2007. The accompanying clip was sourced from YouTube.com (obviously) and I guess that the copyrights are squared away somehow so we can embed it in our blogs.

Westlife - Home

Those who know me know how much of a big fan I am of “Westlife” so no list of mine will be complete if I don’t include the single they released in 2007. The song “Home” is of course a cover version they made of the one originally released by Michael Bublé. It’s fairly serviceable but cover versions seems to be all that Westlife has been doing of late. I really miss being able to hear their original material and I do hope that would change soon.

Anuar Zain - Lelaki Ini

This album broadsided me with this song that I long avoided listening to since every member of his legion of fans were raving about every chance they got. Lyrically poetic and wonderfully melodious, it fast became one of my favorite local songs of the year after I listen to it for the first time. I’m not so much of a big fan of the video clip so instead I selected to use a video clip of his live performance at the Anugerah Era ’07 show courtesy of Klubkidd (*waves*)

Melinda Doolittle - My Funny Valentine

Melinda’s performance of “My Funny Valentine” was my favorite of all her performances in American Idol not just because it’s one of my all time favorite songs but also her interpretation of the song was so exciting for me to experience. I really hope that she would release a solo CD even though she didn’t get to the AI finals. I would definitely be buying her CDs just to listen to her wonderful voice and relive the experience again.

Michael Bublé – Everything

I love his music from the first moment that I heard it. A fan of the big band sound and 50’s Americana, it was a refreshing breath of fresh air to hear this crooner reinterpret a lot of the familiar standards for a whole new generation. While is well known for his cover version, his original work on his CDs were no less impressive.

“Everything” has to be in this list. I would not hear the end of it if it wasn’t.

Daughtry-Over You

Another ex contestant from the American Idol who found success without actually winning the show. His vocals were one of the memorable ones during the season that he was on however with his preference for commercial rock, his range on the show was slightly limited. Nevertheless, the show really exposed him to the listening public which guaranteed an almost sure fan base for him when he release his own CD. The choice of remaining with his original band instead of going solo after his AI experience was actually the best for him. I have not actually listened to his full CD yet but I have to say that this song is my favorite.

(Update: 28/12 - Seems that the clip has be removed from YouTube. You can view the clip posted by the band themselves at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C_oHwLcivY)

Samsons-Bukan Diriku

I’m actually quite late in terms of discovering the numerous bands from Indonesia that have been popular on this side of the Straits. It was only during this year, thanks to my youngest brother playlist, that I became aware of some acts like Ungu, Padi and Samsons. I have not quite gotten into them but some of the songs that I heard by them were really good and different from the tired fare released by our own local artists. If more local songs were as fresh as this one, which grew on me as I listened to it, I would definitely be more excited about buying local CD releases.

Shayne Ward - If That's OK With You

Winner of the UK’s “X-Factor” talent search, this tune is one that sneaked up on me and left me utterly devoted to it. It’s hard not to be impressed by the melody and music video itself. I have to admit that I can’t help smiling each time I heard this song.

OK … catchy tune and eye candy. Need I say more?

Year In Review : Most Memorable DVDs in 2007

Apart from my comic book collection, another way of me wasting my hard earned cash is by buying DVDs of TV series and movies that I like. In 2007, I actually bought 64 separate titles from Amazon.com which is quite an accomplishment given that I have only watched a small portion of them. And yes, these are original DVDs that I bought from Amazon.com. I found that buying them from Amazon.com still gives me the best deal on the net in terms of pricing and assurance that they would arrive safely to my mailbox. I’m particularly impressed by their willingness to replace without cost items that might go missing during transit without a lot of hassle.

Most of my DVD purchases this year have been TV series sets that I am a fan off. Being a completist, I just have to get the next box season set once I start collecting them or else I would be fretting about the incomplete set. As for movies, my rule of thumb of buying their DVDs is to wait for a special edition of the DVD to be released before buying them. I would usually have seen the movies that I buy the DVDs for so I buy them more for the additional features they include in the special edition package. Director commentary tracks, making of featurettes and behind the scene documentaries are the things that I look for when deciding which DVD to buy.

As such, I prefer to buy original Region 1 DVDs instead of the local Region 3 DVDs or even the more cheaper pirated copies. Region 1 DVDs would have both the quality and content that I’m looking for when buying DVDs. I still buy some pirated copies but more for titles that I’m fairly sure that I just want to watch once and not add to my DVD collection. For some movies/series, original DVDs are the only way that I will get to watch them since for obvious reasons they will not get shown in the cinema or the TV locally. Of course it I really wanted to watch them, I could wait a few months and get pirated copies from Plaza Damas but I feel that they are better served by getting my cash so they would continue to put out DVDs of the genre.

I guess eventually I get tired of them and willing to trade them with other collectors for new DVD’s but for the moment they happy sitting where there are. The only problem I have with them is that I am fast running out of shelve space to stack them properly.

Without further delay, here’s my list.

Blade Runner – 4 Disc Collector’s Edition

A must have DVD in any sci-fi fan or DVD collector (or in my case, both), the “Blade Runner – 4 Disc Collector’s Edition” collects a new final cut of the sci-fi classic as well as 3 previously released version of the film. Boasting 3 different commentary tracks including one by Ridley Scott himself and 2 full discs of special features, the set would definitely remain the definitive version of the DVD to purchase for this movie.

There is an even better set, the “Blade Runner – 5 Disc Ultimate Collector’s Edition”, with a 5th disc containing a rare workprint version of the film among others, but the price difference was to large for me to justify the additional items added to an already great set.

Grey’s Anatomy: Seasons 1 - 3

I’m not really a big fan of hospital series, having being utterly confused after watching seasons of ER and Chicago Hope, but I was instantly hooked after watching a few episodes of this series. The amount of drama, angst and particularly fetching actors made it one of my must see series whenever I get a chance to see it. The DVD sets has quite a number of extras that make adding them to my collection seemed worth it but truth be told, I just love the show.

Dante’s Cove: Season 2

If I had to describe this series to someone else, I would definitely say that it was what you would get if “Queer As Folk – US series” mated with “Charmed” and sprinkle a whole boatload of camp on top of that union. I bought Season 1 of this series earlier to watch and had a great laugh over the over the top storylines about immortal witches and warlocks who inhabit the titular seaside resort. It was silly, campy and made less sense than square tire on a car. To top it all off, the show has Tracy Scoggins in it channeling her most over the top performance yet which is always fun to watch.

Honestly though, storyline is not the main reason for owning this series. Anyone who says otherwise really does need to get his head (both of them) examined.

Melrose Place: Seasons 1 – 3

This series and “Beverly Hills: 90210” was part of my must see TV watching schedule way back when the aired. Not as stodgy as watching “Dynasty” or “Dallas” (which I did growing up), the young cast made up my perception of what life after college would be like. Watching each episode, I can’t help but snicker at all the stuff that I thought was so cool back then which seems so archaic now. Don’t even get me started on the clothing styles which I ashamedly admit that I copied religiously while I was in college. The show was a trendsetter back then but I can’t help but cringe when I remember half of the things that I wore which was inspired by the show.

Of course the show had a pre “Desperate Housewives” Marcia Cross playing Dr. Kimberly who has to be one of the most memorable characters of the show. The scene revealing how she came back from the dead is still one that fans of the show remember fondly.

More list to follow (hopefully).

Year In Review : Most Memorable Movies in 2007

Last time I did an end of the year review list, it was back in Dec 2005. I skipped doing one last year as I let almost all of the second half of 2006 pass without blogging. I don’t know if I would get to do one entry per day for the next 6 days before the end of the year but I would like to try that.

2007 has been a wonderful year for me. For one, it is officially the first year when I got to write blog entries fairly regularly throughout the year. Quite a few of those entries are related to movies and my attempt at reviewing them. Those how have been reading this blog as well as those who know me outside of the blogworld know how passionate I can be when it comes to movies. I may not be the most technical of reviewers but when I like something, I would try my level best to put to words what I like about it and share it through a blog entry.

So it is appropriate that I start my year end review blog entries with the list of memorable movies that I have watched in 2007. The list is by no means what I consider the best movies to watch in 2007 but they are the ones that still make me excited thinking about them. I have reviewed them before so I would be including links to the reviews that I wrote for the movie for easy reference but it’s not necessary for you to read them again.

Again, this is the list of movies released in 2007 that were the most memorable for me. It doesn’t necessarily mean that they are much superior than the rest of the movies you might have seen. You may have your own list and I would like to hear them from you as well either from you leaving them in the comments section or a link back to your blog for the same write-up on your list.

Without further delay, here’s my list.

Stardust
There were quite a few movies released in 2007 that had their beginnings from comic books which makes a comic book fanatic like myself absolutely thrilled beyond belief. While we did not get another dud like “Catwoman” this year (although we did come close with “Ghost Rider”), most of the movies were slightly disappointing to me until “Stardust” came out. It was a fairy tale for adults and the film adaptation stayed fairly true of the original material in both context and content. It was a joy to see on screen what I had enjoyed on printed paper.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/11/movie-review-stardust.html

Transformer
Anyone who grew up in the 80 like me would remember the “Transformers” cartoon show that they showed on TV. We all wanted the “Transformers” toys back then since they were cool and you’ll be the envy of the neighborhood if you had one. When news about a life action feature film about the “Transformers” came out, I was wondering if they would be able to capture the essence of what made “Transformers” a fan favorite. When I finally got to see it, I knew that not only were they able to do that but they have also successfully surpassed all expectations with the updated “Transformers”. It was one of the highlights of my summer movie viewing.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/07/movie-review-transformers.html

Perfume – The Story of A Murderer
This was a surprise find in 2007. I have never read the book that the movie was based on and I had no idea what the movie was about. I was at the cinema with a friend deciding which movie to watch and decided to take a chance to see a movie that I have never heard before or read any reviews about. That in itself was a great accomplishment for me since I have never done such a thing. Turned out it was a great choice to make and the movie turned out to the most intriguing movie that I’ve watched for a while. Intriguing because majority of the movie dealt with the technical challenge of trying to capture the sense of smell in a visual medium. A technical accomplishment and a fairly interesting story combined to put this movie in my most memorable movies of the year list.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/03/movie-review-perfume-story-of-murderer.html

300
Another movie based on a comic book that was most memorable for being able to present such a wonderful visual feast. Working mostly with computer generated imagery, the story of the 300 Spartan soldiers against the might of the Persian empire came to life in full gory details. Each scene screamed to be paused so the viewer can appreciate the complexities involved to produce such a wonderful presentation. The moment that I saw the movie, I knew that I must get the DVD to fully appreciate the wondrous spread of the visual palate achieved in this movie.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/03/movie-review-300.html

Mukhsin
Last but definitely not least on the list is the simple story of young love set in our own backyard (speaking country wise of course). A fitting finale to the Orked trilogy, Yasmin’s “Mukhsin” was something that I would never thought of skipping. Watching “Mukhsin” brought back memories of the viewers own first pangs of love and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Once in a while we need to be reminded of what it felt the first time we know what love was so we know how lucky we were to have known that love. It was a lyrical and refreshing movie well received by fans of Yasmin Ahmad’s work both local and overseas.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/03/movie-review-mukhsin.html

I guess that all for this list. More lists to follow (hopefully)

Year In Review: Most Memorable DVDs in 2005

Closing off the year’s list, the following are the list of the most memorable DVDs that I purchased this year. In 2005 alone, I must have purchased about 60 DVD titles from Amazon.com which I’m afraid to total up to find out how much I’ve spent there this year. I’ve noticed that I have been buy more TV shows on DVD season sets this year and less of the movie releases like I did last year. This of course means that I spent more per DVD title this year that I did last year.

I do not include the DVDs that I bought from Low Yat Plaza for obvious reasons. The number of DVDs bought this year would surely double if they were included.

My list of the most memorable DVDs released in 2005 in no particular order is:

Farscape: Starburst Editions
I loved this TV series when it was aired on TV2 two years back but I missed quite a few episodes of the seasons that they did show. They were already selling single disk DVDs with 2 episodes each on Amazon.com for this series but I decided to wait for a full season release even though I really wanted to watch it. It was good that I did that because the re-released the series in their “Starburst Edition” that had around 7 episode in each package. Good audio and video transfers, better price point and fairly decent supplementary material made the wait to get the Starburst editions as good choice.

Twilight Zone: Definitive Editions
These sets were a dream came through for me. I have always wanted to watch all the episodes of the classic “Twilight Zone” TV shows and with these sets I finally can in the comfort of my own living room. Like the “Farscape” series, they were previously released in smaller increments in single disks DVD releases but having all of them grouped in season sets is a fanboy’s dream.

East of Eden - Limited Edition & Rebel Without a Cause - Limited Edition
I’ve always been a big fan of James Dean and for his DVDs to be released on the 50th anniversary of his first film, they were a sure bet to be included in my DVD library. I was looking forward in particular for the “East of Eden – Limited Edition” as it was the only of his films never released on DVD before. These two limited edition DVDs in particular were lovingly made and are worth additions to James Dean’s fans the world over.

Lost - The Complete First Season
Love it or hate it, “Lost” is a compelling TV series to watch. On the DVD season 1 set, “Lost” is nigh irresistible to go through. There is a wealth of supplementary material in the box set that would satisfy even the most fanatic of “Lost” fans. With this DVD set, fans of the show would get to scrutinize every detail at their own leisure to find out the clues of what is actually happening to the characters. I have to say that this is one of the best TV shows on DVD set that I’ve seen yet.

The Outsiders - The Complete Novel (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Another personal favorite of mine, I have actually bought a copy of this film on DVD before. While I made it a policy not to support “double-dip” DVD releases, it was hard to resist this one as it had restore deleted scenes reincorporated back into the film. While there were the issues of some ill-advice music changes, a well rounded supplementary material and commentary track made it worth while to get copies of both versions of DVDs.

I guess this will be the last of the list for this year at least. It has been a fun exercise to look back on a few of my favorite things and share the ones that I would recommend to others. I may plan to do this again next year if all goes well.

Year In Review: Most Memorable PS2 Games in 2005

Spending almost 2 hours every other day playing games of my PS2 console, I must have gone through about 50 game titles this year. Out of the list of games that I’ve tried out this year, I think that the following 5 are the most memorable and exciting for me. Like the movie list yesterday, this list is by no means the best out there in the market but they are the ones that I enjoyed the most.

My most memorable PS2 games list for 2005 in no particular order are:

God of War
I normally would not really go for action adventure games but GoW was hard to resists. It had a very interesting story line and the battle system was quite easy to learn even for people like myself who have the reaction speed of a drugged sloth. It was hard to stop once you get into the game.

Lego Star Wars
This game combines two of my childhood obsession so it was an easy choice to be in this list. It was a surprisingly well designed game and it was very engaging to spend time with. What was more surprising was how addictive the game was even though none of the characters in the game had any dialogue.

Ratchet: Deadlock
If there is one constant in the PS2 gaming world, it would be the release of a new Ratchet & Clank game in every year. Unlike the previous titles, games only get to play Ratchet in this year’s release but it doesn’t mean that the game was any less fun. The game did felt a bit shorter than previous installments and left me wanting for more.

X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
I have to say that the X-Men Legends series has to be the best PS2 game adapted from a comic book. I loved the first installment of this series and the second one they released this year was much better overall. Having more characters, more mutant powers and a whole boatload of skins to choose from made this game a fanboy’s favorite.

Digital Devil Saga
I have not actually completed this game but I have spent about 20 hours on it to date and it gets better the further in I got. This game has a fairly unusual premise that includes elements of Hinduism that I have never seen before in any game I played on the PS2. The monster encounter level in the came could be a bit on the high side compared to games of the same genre but most of the encounters were well balanced and rewarding to slog through.

The final list and blog entry for 2005 will follow soon.

Year In Review : Most Memorable Movies in 2005

It’s nearing the end of 2005 which means a lot of site out there are putting out their best of the year or year in review lists. Since I don’t really have much else to write about from the rest of the week, I guess that I could start off a list of my own.

For my first list, the following is my list of the most memorable movies that I’ve watched this year at the cinema. This is not exactly my best movies of the year list but more of the movies that I still get excited about when I think about them. I don’t think that I watched enough movies this year to pick the best.

So, my picks for most memorable movies of 2005, in no particular order:

King Kong
Definitely the mother of all movies for 2005. It’s big, loud and destroys everything in it’s path – I’m talking about the movie itself not the big monkey. If you can stand to sit in a cinema for 3 hours without any toilet breaks then this is definitely one of the movies to watch in 2005.

Batman Begins
This comic book film adaptation not only revitalized the franchise but it successfully erased the shame that BatFans all over the world had to carry on their shoulders after the first appearance of the BatNipple in the last 2 Batman movies. “Batman Begins” made collecting comics cool again.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Getting better with every installments, Harry Potter film adaptations seemed to almost be something that you can depend on to come on screen every 2 years or so. While the latest film at times felt like an extended trailer for the next film, it definitely whets the appetite for more.

Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
A fitting end for an era. Everyone who grew up watching the original Star Wars now know the story how Luke’s father became Darth Vader. It is still sad to think that there would never be another Star Wars movie now that George Lucas has closed the book on this franchise. Good thing that he left the fans with a wonderful closing chapter that didn’t include any scenes with Jar Jar Binks.

Sky High
It was a fun movie to watch and a bit of a throwback to the Disney live action feature films that I loved so much as a kid. Having Kurt Russell play the adult this time around is a bit of a nod to the people who remembered him for way back when he was a wee Mousketeer. A bit of the” X-Men goes to Hogwarts” but all in all was an enjoyable movie to watch.

I hope to put up other year in review lists on other subjects soon.