Movie Review: The Golden Compass

Prior to the movie’s release, I had no awareness at all of Philip Pullman's fantasy trilogy “His Dark Materials” from which the movie “The Golden Compass” was based on the first book. After the wildly successful Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter adaptations, Hollywood seemed still to be looking for the next mega-franchise fantasy series to part the devoted fans of these books from their hard earned cash. Some like “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” was half way decent to watch while others like “Eragon” made me think of the missed opportunities they could have done better. “The Golden Compass” which saw local release in the cinemas recently was the latest to be added to the list of movies to fill in the void left behind by the LOTR series.

In “The Golden Compass”, audiences enter a parallel world where humans walked around with physical representation of their souls in the form of an animal companion. The companion or “daemons” as they are known in this world could act autonomously and speak for or with it’s human owner. Part voice of conscious, part extension of the human, the daemons were so intricately tied to it’s human owner that any harm inflicted on it would cause pain to the human and vice versa. This parallel world also has talking armored polar bears that rule over the vast Artic snows capes near the north pole as well as fantastic flying machines powered buy an indeterminate power source. Last but not least, this world was also inhabited by witches who lived a much longer lifespan than normal humans.

The audiences’ guide into this fantastical world in “The Golden Compass” is Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards). Left to live and study at the world’s equivalent of our worlds Oxford university by her uncle, Lord Asriel (Daniel Craig), she grows up to be an inquisitive and headstrong young girl who unintentionally learned of more than she should know about the realities of the world that she lived it. The knowledge quickly became dangerous for her when she attracts the attention of the Magisterium, the organization who controlled everything in her world, who sent Mrs. Coulter (Nicole Kidman) to take her away from her home to eliminate the threat she and her uncle represented on the Magisterium continued grip on power.

Before going with Mrs. Coulter, Lyra received the last alethiometer, the titular golden compass with the ability to discern the truth for any question asked. A parting gift from the masters who looked over her safety before, the golden compass quickly showed Lyra that things were not as it seemed with Mr. Coulter. When she discovered that her best friend, Roger (Ben Walker), has been abducted by Gobblers under the command of Mrs. Coulter, she escapes with her daemon Pan (Freddie Highmore) to rescue him. Along the way, she finds help in the form of the seafaring Gyptians, a witch called Serafina (Eva Green), an aeronaut called Lee Scoresby (Sam Elliot) and an armored polar bear named Iorek Byrnison (voiced by Ian McKellen). This collection of character accompanied Lyra as she traveled north towards the frigid polar icescape to find the location where the Globbers took the children and free them.

Looking at the pace of the film and reading that the screenwriter (and director - Chris Weitz) had to compress 430 pages into a screenplay to fit 114 minutes, I feel that he has done a fairly good job with it. With the exception of some scenes to show audience that Daniel Craig was actually in the movie and not just a name they tacked on the posters, considering the limited screen time he had in this installment, the movie wisely focused on Lyra’s journey. Help comes rather conveniently at each point of the journey but unlike the more successful LOTR adaptation, there seemed to be a lack of urgency and desperation on those points in her journey for the character to merit outside help. More than a few times while watching the movie, I felt that Lyra was just lucky to find help before she got into trouble instead of when she actually desperate to get that help.

“The Golden Compass” was also a beautifully rendered film with a lot of visual spectacles to feast on. From iconic images of airships, multiple daemons on screen at the same time as well as vast sceneries, it was clear the amount of work put in from the CGI department. Unfortunately, audiences were distracted with so much exposition delivered in the scenes to really enjoy them before the plot moves to the next point of the story. There was also a sense of detachment especially in the final climatic scene where the decision of using more wide angle in these scenes meant that the audiences could not feel like they were in the middle of the battle. With the audience not really feeling involved in the climatic battle, we were left with little to cheer about when the movie reach it’s feel good ending (which by the way I heard more bloody and darker than the ending in the movie).

The actors assembled for this movie were all of exceptional caliber in their own right but a decidedly lack of firm direction reduced their opportuinity to shine. Ian McKellen, signing up for another trilogy, was sufficiently regal sounding for Iorek and Sam Elliot was delightfully refreshing as a Southern gentleman aeronaut with a sassy hare daemon named Hester (Kathy Bates). Daniel Craig’s Lord Asriel hardly made a presence in the movie having only a few screens in the beginning and end of the movie. However the best mention for the film has to go to Dakota Blue Richards and Nicole Kidman. Richard’s portrayal of Lyra combined equal amounts of petulant child and wiser than her age qualities that was delightful to watch. She would surely worth looking forward to in future installments of the series to see how she develops. Kidman’s portray of the icy Mrs. Coulter was the highlight of the movie for me. A perfect study on how to portray inner fury simmering behind a smiling façade, Kidman’s first turn as a villain was both equally seductive and chilling.

“The Golden Compass” could have used the kind of magic touch that Peter Jackson had in the LOTR series. Grand in scale and scope, the movie seemed to be a bit lost in terms of focus and direction. It was as if the director himself was feeling detached from the movie that he wrote. It was still serviceable as an opening/origin movie to the trilogy but with the possibility that the next installment may not be made (remember Eragon?) , the movie left audiences frustrated with the amount of loose thread left behind after the credit rolled. That in itself is a pity in my opinion as the world that Lyra and her companions inhabit sounds more interesting to see more of rather than Narnia’s world for example. If this is to be the first and the last installment of the series to see screen, then hopefully at lease it would spur more audience to pick up the original books to read where Lyra’s adventures take her next.

Why Do I Blog

Recent events that happened to some of the bloggers on my daily visit list have made me to think about the reason of why people, including myself, blog. Everyone I know from the list seemed to have their own reasons to blog. Is there a common thread that link all bloggers together which is absent in those who choose not to blog? Is there a certain type of personality that tend to produce more bloggers? What about the readers who come to our blogs, are they of a certain personality group as well? Is there a contract between the blogger and the blog reader that should remain sacrosanct without the need to be detailed?

These are the questions that crossed my mind (among other things – I had a really busy past week) when I see the events that have happened unfold. I’m definitely wouldn’t be answering them all in this one entry. I would imagine that I would hardly get through the first few by rambling away this way but I will try my best to share here some of the observations that I have noticed. This is in no way a judgmental attempt to impress my own view point to how people should blog. The blog world would be a very boring place if everyone blogged the same way especially if it’s the way that I blog. Take this entry as a starting point for your own reflection on why you blog, that is if you do. If you don’t, leave a comment behind as to why you don’t. It would definitely make for a more balanced examination of the question to have a view point of those on the non-blogger side of the fence.

Why do I blog? The short of it is that I need an outlet for my words. Thoughts that swirl around in my head sometimes just need to be noted down and documented as part of my life’s journal. The surprising thing was that I have never been one to keep a journal before and yet I’ve kept a type of journal on this blogspot section of the Net for almost 5 years (on and off considering some years I just go silent for extended periods of months). I guess the idea that my words have an audience out there makes me more keen to blog than to keep a journal. Instead of just bouncing around in my head, I can reach out and tell the people who come to my blog what I was thinking.

Does that makes me someone who seeks attention? Probably although those who know me in real life would hardly label me as an attention seeker. Being able to hide myself behind a pseudonym when I write my blog affords me the freedom to overcome my reluctance and give my entries more access into my life. Blogging for me is when I let other people in to who I am and how I live my life. Granted I don’t give as much access as some bloggers on my daily read list but that was my choice to make. The choice was partly out of necessity and my own insecurities of having people judge me based on incomplete data. Judgment from blog readers are bound to happen especially when we put in interactive components like comments and tag board on our blogs.

As content providers, so to speak, we will have to be cognizant that what we know and believe might not be the same as others who read our blog. Some things might be better off left unsaid or undocumented in a blog entry unless we would be ready to accept the reaction of the blog visitors. Far from advocating self censorship, I fully believe that a certain level of tact is definitely required when considering what to share on a public blog. That tact will come from experience so there is no tried and true method to pass on to the next person. Rule of thumb for my own blog entries has been whether I would like to answer more follow up questions resulting from what I put out in my blog entries. If I can’t honestly answer yes to myself then what I was planning to write about would be pushed back to another time when I’m more sure that I would be able to tackle the follow up questions.

The blog readers also bear the burden of responsible blog relationship as the process of blogging is not a one way street. We as blogger value your visits and comment since part of why we do it is to communication to visitors to our blogs. What we don’t need are your judgments and condemnation especially those who think they know all about the blogger by virtue of reading just a few pages from their blog. Holier than thou attitudes are neither requested or welcomed. I can say (at least based on my own blog) that what gets documented in the blog entries are just a small portion of the person the blog writer really is. To pass judgment based on circumstantial evidence only reflects on the shallowness of the person. “Judge not least ye be judged” definitely holds true in comments as they reflect the person who writes down hurtful words.

Our blog entries are also glimpses of our lives that we allow the blog readers to be privy to. For some blogs, this access is more than you would actually get than if you would have known the blogger personally in real life. There is an implicit trust between the blogger and the blog reader that what they read is for their own consumption and not to be shared with others who don’t come to the blogger’s blog. To use part of a blog or images from entries to besmirch the reputation of the blogger is a clear betrayal of that trust. To reproduce private correspondence without it actually being in it’s entirety as well as taken out of context will always be unpardonable in any circumstances or for any reason. Being able to enter the live of a blogger is a privilege that the blogger gives to readers. It’s definitely a privilege that could easily be revoked should the trust relationship between blogger and reader continue to be abused.

A friend once told me that he doesn’t blog because he feels that blogging is too intrusive. I believe that he is correct in his assertion but there are still many of us who feels comfortable with some degree of the intrusion. For me personally it comes from the need to reach out and make a connection with other people. To feel that I am not alone and isolated in my own world. My blog has been successful in that aspect for me at least. I have gained more friends from my blog this year than the past 12 years combined outside of the blog. The fact remains that I blog by choice and not by necessity. That can easily be changed should I feel that I no longer feel safe and comfortable to blog. Events of the past weeks that happened to some of my blogger friends painfully reminds me that there are other people out there who do not want you to be safe and comfortable even within their own blog space.

They will always be there just waiting to pounce hoping that by doing so would make their lives slightly less insignificant. They are not the readers that I would be writing for. I write my blog for those who would listen to what I say even when I get to rambling on and on like today. I write for those who would lend me a sympathetic ear when I need it and an assurance that I am not reaching out to empty space with outstretched hands.

That’s why I blog.

In A Dark Mood

I think it might be the weather or maybe the over-salted pasta that I made but I’m finding myself in a somewhat of a dark mood right now.

A friend once remarked that I have a dark streak simmering just underneath the surface. I have to admit that he is correct in that observation and I know that would actually surprise my other friends since they might have never seen that side of me. I’ve had a lot of practice holding the reins in tightly to make sure those darker impulses don’t go out and wreak havoc in my daily life. Somedays I just have to let them loose for a bit and those are the days that I get into my dark moods.

Last night, still awake at 2am in the morning, I just felt like crying. Don’t ask me why. Just felt that I had to let go and have a cathartic bawl. Since I don’t have anything in particular to cry about, I had to fall back to my old standby of watching Season 2 finale episode of "Dawson’s Creek" which has never fail to reduce me to a sobbing mess. I’m sure people reading this are just snickering at how a teen-angst filled drama series can reduce a grown man to tears but don’t knock it off till you try it yourself. It’s hard not to shed a tear at the 2 scenes in the final third of the episode when Jen comes back to her grandmother’s house and the reconciliation scene between Pacey and his emotionally distant father.

It kills me every time I watch that episode. Got about 5 minutes of therapeutic crying out of it which was good enough for me. If I needed more, I would have selected the "Dawson’s Creek" series finale episode instead. That would keep me sobbing for almost ½ an hour towards the end.

Spent the whole morning just bouncing between light and darkness. I’m just riding it out hoping that it will resolve itself soon. In the meantime, I’m just staying at home listening to Alanis Morissette’s "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie" CD on continuous loop.

Alanis Morissette’s first two CD released were practically my life’s soundtrack while I was in college and the remaining part of the 90’s. I had so much anger, unresolved conflicts and self destructive urges in me then that listening to someone as angry and angsty as myself back then was nothing short of comforting. It’s like having a non-judgmental friend to share what you were feeling when you had nothing like that in real life. The first time I heard her, I was in the process of getting drunk on Budweiser beer alone in a bar and instantly got the connection after listening to "All I Really Want" and “You Ought To Know” from the "Jagged Little Pill" album. Much has changed since then but I would always have a soft spot for her first 2 albums.

She has released 2 more full albums after "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie" but other than a few of the videos shown on TV, I have not actually listen to her latter work. From what I can gather, her work has mellowed out over the years and doesn’t have the same biting edge of her first 2 albums which is understandable since no one can stay angry forever. I guess that the angst filled songs are more for artists like Pink or Avril Lavigne now who by the way are among my favorites too. I guess I should go out and get those 2 latter CDs one fo these days to balance out my Alanis fix.

But nothing beats spending a dark dreary day in a dark mood listening to Alanis Morissette.

"That I Would Be Good" - Alanis Morissette

That I would be good even if I did nothing
That I would be good even if I got the thumbs down
That I would be good if I got and stayed sick
That I would be good even if I gained ten pounds

That I would be fine even if I went bankrupt
That I would be good if I lost my hair and my youth
That I would be great if I was no longer queen
That I would be grand if I was not all knowing

That I would be loved even when I numb myself
That I would be good even when I am overwhelmed
That I would be loved even when I was fuming
That I would be good even if I was clingy

That I would be good even if I lost sanity
That I would be good
Whether with or without you




Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie
-Alanis Morissette

I’ll bounce back soon enough.

Post Update (11pm): Bouncing Boy has bounced back to the light side thanks to YM messages from friends.

It's Once In A Lifetime Thing, Folks!

OK .. here’s the deal.

I was messing around a few weeks back with the new mic headphone thingy that I just bought. Wanted to see if it was any good since they were selling it quite cheaply at the new wing at Sunway Pyramid. I also wanted to test out a voice capture freeware that I downloaded from the web with the possibility of incorporating audio podcasts in future blog entries.

So .. the result is you get to experience something that I rarely do in public around strangers but almost always when in the shower (definitely not that other thing … this is still a PG-13 blog site, people).

Nickxandar sings!

Be warned! If it the earth seem to be splitting open and the sky starts growl with ominous thunder, please stop the playback. If you hear dogs barking madly and birds start to dive bomb your window, for god’s sake stop the playback.

I don’t want to be blamed for bringing forth the end of the world with my croaking.

If I Let You Go – from Westlife

Keranamu Kekasih – from Puteri Gunung Ledang Musical OST

As you can tell … I’m mind-numbingly bored at the office right now. Just to be clear, I did the recordings in the privacy of my own house a few weeks back and not in the office just now. I’m not that bored to resort to an impromptu karaoke session at the office to amuse myself … yet.

Eye On Malaysia - Ending The Day

We ended the day having tea at the nearby EyeCafe. The menu selection there wasn’t anything to shout about. The brownies they had there was particularly appalling as it tasted more like chocolate cake then a brownie. Good thing that the tiramisu cake that we ordered was fairly good to eat. The prices at the café was somewhat expected of the items that they sell and they had a fairly wide choice of drinks for non-coffee drinkers as well.

We hung around the café until about 6:30pm. The crowd there grew larger as the temperature cooled and the sun began to move lower down the horizon. I think that most people want to go up the “Eye On Malaysia” as the sun began to set and the lights began to come out. As we walked back to where our car was parked, I saw some signs that told us that most of the light and laser shows around the “Eye On Malaysia” actually started around 9pm every night but it was too late for us to wait for.

It was an enjoyable outing and I can finally cross out the “Eye On Malaysia” off my to do things to do before the end of the year. I was initially worried about the crowds but it seems that most people have already had the experience or are not interested to see that view of Kuala Lumpur from high up. If you haven’t and want to, the “Eye On Malaysia” is opened daily but only until 31st Dec.

(EyeCafe near the entrance)

(My mango slurry and a so call artistic shot attempt)

(Parting shot when they opened the roof of the cafe as the sun went down)

Eye On Malaysia - Architecture

I love looking at the architecture of the “Eye On Malaysia”. A lot of clean strong lines going off to the distance in perspective. It’s actually calming to me to see repeated patterns like the way the beams cross here. I guess that having something so ordered to look out was quite relaxing to me.

(My favorite picture of the day)

(Pic of the gondola/viewing pod)

(Center of the Eye On Malaysia)

(From the inside looking out)

Eye On Malaysia - Inside Looking Out

We got to spend about 15 minutes (I think since I wasn’t looking at the watch) in the viewing pod as it revolved around 5 times. The pod did stop a few times in the revolution while they let people who had been in their earlier get off at the base. There was a little swaying of the pod when that happened so it might freak out people who are afraid to go up there in the first place. Thankfully I have conquered my fear of heights (for the most part) and it didn’t really affect me as much as it would a few years ago. I was actually a bit disappointed that the viewing pod did not have a glass bottom so we can see straight down like the cable car that they have in Langkawi.

Thanks to the fairly clear weather, we could see quite a distance away towards KL and surrounding areas that afternoon. I guess that the view would even be more spectacular at night when the city comes alive with lights. I could not convinced the rest to come at night that weekend so I had to make do with an afternoon trip. Other than the KL city center and the suburb sprawl on the opposite side, there wasn’t really much to look at while we were up there. I actually like the view from Menara KL better since one can see a lot more from the top of the tower.

(KL City View)

(Iconic KL from inside the viewing pod)

(Areas surrounding Taman Tasik Titiwangsa)

(Fountains in the lake)

Eye On Malaysia - Supporting Structures

We reached Taman Tasik Titiwangsa at about 4:30pm was lucky to get a parking space quite painlessly given the amount of people at the part last weekend. Other than visit to Restoran Nelayan, it has been ages since I was at the lake side proper. I think the last time I was there involved me messing around in big fiberglass swan paddle boats in the lake around the age of 8. I can’t really tell if there has been a lot changes to the surroundings since then.

Surprisingly, we didn’t actually need to wait long at all to buy tickets as it seems that the crowd was less that I was expecting given that it was the school holidays. I guess that we were still quite early in the day and it was still fairly warm out. We went up to the ticketing booth and paid our tickets (RM15 for adults, ½ price for seniors and children under 12) and waited at the lane for about 5 minutes before we were ushered into our viewing pod/gondola.

(On approach to ticketing boot)

(The ticketing booth)

(The short queue to wait our turn entering the viewing pods)

(Eye On Malaysia - Control Room)

Eye On Malaysia - Exterior

The “Eye On Malaysia” installation at Taman Tasik Titiwangsa, KL has been something that I’ve been planning to go to but always postponing it for one reason or another. Since it will be ending at the end of Dec, I decided to go there with my parents, sister and nephew to experience it for ourselves last weekend.

We made it an afternoon outing for us and had quite an enjoyable time. I took some pictures using my mum’s Kodak EasyShare C643 just to record the moment and mess around with a camera. Can’t wait to get my own camera at the end of the year!

Some exterior shots of the “Eye On Malaysia” from the trip

(Shots of the Eye from across the Tasik Titiwangsa)

(On approach to the base of the Eye)

(Istana Budaya from Tasik Titiwangsa and Base of the Eye)

Workout Journal - Personal Training Sessions

It has been almost 2 months and about 20 sessions in my current PT package that I paid for when I first signed on for my gym membership. I have to say that it has really been money well spent for me as I have begun to see improvement both physically and mentally from these sessions. No doubt that most would say that what ever you can learn with a PT, you can actually learn it for free by watching other people work out but I have come to understand how much personalized the training programs could be for the individual. Without having someone to really show you how it should be done, you might even, in the worst case scenario, hurt yourself.

My PT program started off with a little bit of this and that to help PT identify what was my strengths and weaknesses. Right off the bat, we set goals of what I wanted to get out of the session. For me it was to lose weight, gain muscle definition and learn the techniques that I could use in my own workouts. We also identified things that I am good at and what I need to improve. For me it was my stamina and recovery times which was quite good to begin with considering my level of fitness when I started. I already had be frame to support the muscle mass that I was targeting for but I had to build both definition and muscle strength.

Earlier in the program, my PT sessions focused on my learning how to use the equipments correctly and strength training to see how far I can push myself. Gradually, it moved from that to muscle building phase. My workout sessions currently are broken down to 3 components namely a cardio warm up, weight or circuit training and a cardio cool down. I used to just have an hour of PT session but the new program that my PT has designed for me at the moment makes me work for it for almost 2 hours per session. While my PT officially only has to spend 1 hour per session with me, we have an arrangement that I would start the cardio warm up session on my own and he’ll check in with me from time to time until my ‘official’ PT time slot. Cardio cool down is similarly done outside of the official PT slot but considered part of the program.

Since I can’t run worth a damn without looking like Richard Simmons being chased by a pack of lions, my cardio workouts have been mainly on the stationary bikes. I first started out on the Level 3 mark doing just manual cycling for about 20 minutes which was quite challenging for me when I began. Over time I have gone up the Level 5 mark while doing the built-in interval cycling program for 40 minutes. Intervals basically simulates cycling on along a path with different gradient hills. First 20 minutes or so wasn’t that bad but the second half of the programs consisted of me cycling 3 times with max resistance for the selected level. That’s when my legs normally would start screaming at me. To make things more interesting, I also have to maintain sprinting speed (between 100 – 115 rpm) for the last 5 minutes straight. After 2 months, I’m currently averaging about 17.5 km cycling distance and burning off between 290 – 295 calories per cardio warm up session.

After the cardio warm up, my current training plan calls for either weight or circuit training depending on the schedule. I’m currently going through between 6 to 8 different exercises with the weight stack machines per session. We currently combine exercises for a pair of muscle groups in opposite locations of the body per session so I would do chest-triceps in one session, upper back (delts)-bicep in another session and so forth. I currently have 4 combination sessions (chest-triceps, upper back (delts)-bicep, core muscles – abs and lower back, legs and shoulders) that I run through before I complete a circuit training session that hits all muscle groups and the repeat the cycle of sessions. I’m currently doing 3 sets per exercise with a reducing rep count for each set beginning with 12 reps but increasing weight load with each subsequent set. According to my PT, this will help me build the muscle mass that I want to achieve.

I’m not looking for big muscles that would make me look like someone who has to turn sideways just to walk through a doorway so I keep my weights on medium workout intensity. Just enough for me to put in an effort to lift them but not really too heavy that I get discouraged when I can’t. One thing that I have learned from working with my PT is that 9 times out of 10, I would sell myself short when it comes to how much I could do when it comes to weight training. I would tell myself that I would never be able to lift it only to find that it was just all in my head. Sure there was some amount of pain involved in getting to lift almost double what you’ve been lifting before but after the initial shock of realizing that you can actually do it, the pain was just something that I had to file away in the back of my mind as I focused on completing the reps.

Weight training or my circuit training sessions with the PT would normally last between 45 minutes to 1 hour depending on how much time I take to rest between sets and exercises. That resting time has been getting less and less as the sessions progressed as my PT wants me to stay in active fat burning phase by moving quickly to the next exercise. Once that’s all done, I would return to the stationary bikes for a cardio cool down. Unlike the warm up at the beginning of the session, I usually set my cool down for 20 minutes cycling on flat terrain on a Level 2 setting. To make things a little more challenging, I set a goal of burning off 100 calories and maintaining a constant sprinting pace between 100 – 115 rpm for the duration of the 20 minutes. Suffice to say that I would be sweating profusely again at the end of workout session.

A 10 minute session at the sauna, cool down and a drawn out shower later, I would be ready to leave the gym after getting dressed. I’m currently spending almost 3 hours at the gym on each visit. Given that I go there 5 times a week, that’s actually quite a lot of gym time clocked but it’s not like I have anything else to do in the evenings anyway. Out of the 5 times a week that I’m at the gym, 3 of them with be sessions with my PT and the remaining 2 would be just me on my own using the knowledge that I have learned from my PT sessions. Most of the time, I would be focusing on working out my core muscles when I workout on my own since they would be the easiest ones to work on without someone to spot you. Good thing that those are the muscle groups that I’m most excited about developing.

I still have 6 more sessions with the PT which would last me until the middle of next month. I’ve already made up my mind to renew it for another 24 sessions once I get paid my yearly bonus at the end of December. It still costs a bomb to renew, the cheapest that I could get was RM 110 per session, but the results that I’m seeing from these past 2 months working with my PT has done nothing but reaffirmed that this was an investment worth it’s weight in gold. I’m also thinking of going to at least one of those free with membership GX classes that I have been to date too intimidated to join. I have been eyeing the spinning classes since I’m already doing my cardio on a stationary bike which makes sense to transition into. Other classed like BodyStep or BodyJam would be a bit of a stretch for me since with my coordination skills, I’m more likely to accidentally poke someone’s eye out with my flailing arms.

I have quite a ways before I look anywhere near like an older A&F model but at least I don’t look like an overweight troll that I used to before. Knowing that gives me hope that I can be better and that’s the crux of why I put myself through all of this.

Movie Review: Beowulf

I have never read “Beowulf” before in my life. It was neither required reading during secondary school nor was it required in any of my classes during college. So fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you see it), I do not know much of the old English epic poem. What little I did know was that it was about a hero how fought and defeated a monster called “Grendel” in a Norse mead hall. I knew that much from watching an old Star Trek: Voyager episode where the holographic doctor got stuck in the ship’s holodeck while it was running a “Beowulf” scenario. I never really knew that there was more than that part to the poem until I watched the recently released reinterpretation of the poem in a full length animated feature medium.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis who earlier pioneered the same animation technique used here in “The Polar Express”, “Beowulf” tells the story of the titular character’s exploits starting with his arrival to the lands ruled by the elderly King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins) and his queen Wealthow (Robin Wright Penn). The King’s land has been beset by a horrible monster, Grendel (Crispin Glover), who had slaughtered his people as they were reveling in his newly built mead hall. Beowulf (Ray Winstone) and his crew of Geatsman arrived on scene vowing to rid the king of his monster which he eventually did in a great battle.

Grendel’s death in the hands of Beowulf did not sit well with his mother who immediately set out to revenge her son’s death. She massacred all of Beowulf’s companion save for Wiglaf (Brendan Gleeson) who was sent to prepare their ship for their departure home. Beowulf was again dispatched to deal with the murderous monster in her lair only to find that it had taken the seductive form of a naked woman (Angelina Jolie) who tempted Beowulf with power and glory for exchange for him give her a replacement for her dead son and leave her to live in her lair.

Beowulf returned to the king with proof of Grendel’s death and not of the mother although he told everyone that the deed was done. Knowing what Beowulf had done, King Hrothgar proclaimed the returned hero the new king and promptly threw himself off the tower to leave him to rule his lands. The story fast forwards several decades where the older King Beowulf had to again face a monster menacing his lands but this time in the form of a giant fire breathing dragon. Unlike his battle with Grendel, the fight this time around was more personal to the king as his past sin had finally come to haunt him and all his deeds finally becomes undone.

From what I was able to read of the movie, several changes were made by fantasy novelist Neil Gaiman and co-scribe Roger Avary who wrote the screenplay to the film in order to create a cohesive connection between the different events detailed in the original material. Having not read the original poem, I could only guess what was added or taken out from the storyline but what was left was good enough to propel the movie forward. Beowulf’s character development from a boastful warrior to wizen kind was explained adequately through out the film. The story itself flowed smoothly throughout the movie although some of the quieter moment of the film as a bit of a chore to go through. I found myself almost nodding off while waiting for the next action sequence to start since nothing really substantial was provided to hold my attention.

“Beowulf” was a visual treat to watch with it’s many depictions of the open expanse of the snow covered landscape, blue flame strobe like effect during the Grendel’s fight scenes and the golden shimmering waters of the monster’s lair. All of these set pieces were meticulously rendered in wonderful detail which could better enjoyed when watching the IMAX 3D version of the film which I’m not sure will be shown in Malaysia. Nevertheless, the 2D version that I saw was still quite impressive to watch. Less impressive was the character rendering which although was quite advanced compared to the earlier attempt with the same technique in “The Polar Express”, still had a plastic mannequins quality to the real life actor reproductions. The technology has still a ways to go if it would be used to replace live action actors in a film production as it has not solved the problem of how to make the live actor representation look less creepy.

Voice acting from the stellar cast on “Beowulf” was particularly memorable for me as I tried not to be too distracted by the character representations. Ray Winstone’s voice gave Beowulf the commanding heft that the character required although the frequent pronouncement of “I am Beowulf” left me with flashback to a more superior Gerald Butler in “300”. John Malkovich as Beowulf’s jealous court rival, Unferth, was particularly enjoyable to listen to as he delivered his lines with such mastery of the character. The other actors also left their memorable marks in terms of voice acting which helped to make their on screen characters easier to relate to in an emotional sense even when visually they lack the emotional link.

The two main action sequence in the movie was also choreographed wonderfully to sustain audience attention. The fight scene between Grendel and Beowulf would be remembered for the hideously grotesque depiction of Grendel in his most murderous as well as the cutesy strategic blocking of Beowulf’s privates during the acrobatic battle given that he was stark naked when fighting the monster. Given that we see much more when Grendel’s mother appears on screen, the earlier cover up attempts seems to be a bit on the childish side. Thankfully, we also have an even more exciting climatic battle scene between Beowulf and the dragon. Visually rich, the aerial dogfight left me quite exhilarated by it and made for a really memorable way to end the movie. Special mention should also be made for the sea monster battle montage that came before the Grendel battle for being somewhat appropriately gory for a hero to boast of his success.

While it may not win any fans from those who might prefer the original material, “Beowulf” has some moments of brilliance to get people to come and watch it. Some may even try to guess if it would have made for a better movie had it was acted with live actors instead of representation of them generate with the performance capturing technique. It would definitely lost some of it’s visual richness had it been produced as a live action movie as the cost of having the same level of detail might be a bit too cost prohibitive. One could also wonder if it would not have been better to have the emotional gravitas that only live actors might provide instead of pale reproduction in digital animated form. Regardless of where one stand on the issue, “Beowulf” was still a visual treat to experience.

Just try not to fall asleep during the quieter moments.

Thankful

Although it is a North American holiday (Canada celebrates it too but on a different date), I’m always partial to the idea of the Thanksgiving holiday. Having a day to stop and reflect on things that you are thankful for sounds such a good idea especially when we now hardly get to count our blessings when we go though our busy day. To me, Thanksgiving is also a day to take a step back and review that no matter how bad we thing our life if there are still things that we can be thankful for.

I still remember the first Thanksgiving dinner I ever attended. It was my first year in Madison and I have just been there for a couple of month. Prior to coming to the States, one of my American professors, who was returning back to the State at the end of the last summer semester I was at KPP, extended an open invitation to all of his students to come and have our first Thanksgiving dinner in the States with him and his family. A bunch of us from his class decided that we would get together once the date came and take up his invitation when we all reached the States.

Out of the 10 of us who attended his class that year, only 5 of us who happened to be at the same university managed to get together and make plans to go to my professor’s house. We had hoped that our other classmates from the other universities would make the journey but it turned out only us 5 who came. A flurry of emails flew between us and Prof as the date came closer to finalized details on how to get to his house in suburbs outside of Chicago. We were all really excited as the day came as it would be our first American roadtrip ever.

It so happened that only one of us had a valid drivers license to drive in the State so he obviously became the designated driver for the whole trip. I was assigned to be the navigator since I was the only one of the remaining people who had a fairly good sense of direction. The rest (who incidentally were all girls) were in charge of making sure we had all the items that we need for the roadtrip and the gifts that we would bring for the Prof. All 5 of us packed all our things into an old station wagon borrowed from one of our seniors and left Madison the day before Thanksgiving.

I don’t remember now how long the journey took but I remembered making quite a few number of stops whenever we saw something different to see during the journey. It was actually our first time ever traveling out of Madison and there was so much that we have never seen before on the journey. We made pit stops for bathroom breaks, meal breaks or just to be silly and take pictures of things we saw along the way. It was quite fun actually and really felt like a roadtrip especially when we didn’t really have a particular timetable to follow on our journey to Chicago.

We reached Chicago just as the sun began to set. Everyone was tired from the extended roadtrip and wanted to get ourselves to where we planned to spend the night. We had called ahead to some friends of ours in town and made plans to stay overnight at their place. We were lucky that the directions that they gave us was easy to follow since Chicago was much larger than we expected. Once we had our sleeping arrangements set, we went out with our Chicago hosts to grab a bite to eat before turning in for the night.

Early the next morning on Thanksgiving Day, we called up the Prof to get directions to his house and to know what time we should be there. Since we were already quite close to where they were, they told us to turn up early so we can pitch in with the dinner preparations. This was even more exciting for me personally as not only did I get to share a traditional Thanksgiving meal with our gracious hosts but we also get to help prepare it. We said good bye to our friends who also graciously allowed us to spend the night and went straight out to the suburbs of Chicago to where our Prof’s house was (unfortunately the exact name of the place where it was has slipped my mind now).

We reached the house just after noon and the preparation for the Thanksgiving dinner was well under way. The girls who came with us took it upon themselves to help out in the kitchen with Prof’s wife while us guys went to setup the dining room area for the dinner. Both the Prof and his wife did not have any other relatives to share Thanksgiving with and their children were still quite young at the time so they have been opening their home to students like us to share in the festivities for years. The year that I went there was actually quite special for the two of them as it was the first time that his Malaysian students from when he was teaching at KPP came to his Thanksgiving dinner.

We were all famished by the time that dinner rolled around. Our hosts really went out of their way to make sure that we had a choice of a variety of traditional American Thanksgiving meal dishes as well as making sure that they only used halal ingredients to cook them with. We had a huge turkey with all the trimmings, candied yams, home made bread, pumpkin pie and other dishes associated with the occasion. The dinning table was full of serving plates piled with food that it was hard to imagine anyone finishing it all. There were just about 10 of us (some of Prof’s other students in his then current university also joined us) but I could swear that there was enough food to feed 30 people.

Before we started our meal, we went around the table to tell everyone what we were thankful for that year up to Thanksgiving Day. For me it was very easy to put into words as the opportunity of being able to share in an American tradition in the United States was something that I would always be thankful for on top of the other things that I have been blessed with. Once everyone had they chance to share what we were thankful for, we shared a moment when our hosts said grace and we recite our doa makan to ask for the blessings of the food that we were about to share.

The meal was exactly how I imagined it to be from what I saw on TV. Prof carved the turkey up for us and we all took portions of the bird from the serving plate that was passed from one person to the other. Same thing does with all the other items on the table. We had good food, good drinks and really good company to share on that Thanksgiving night. For a time, we all felt like it was a big family while not related by blood but was strong nevertheless due to the bonds that we all shared. I remembered not being able to stop smiling at the thought that we all had a really great opportunity to experience a slice of American life that we would have never been able to do so had we not taken up the invitation.

Once the dinner was over, we stayed for a bit to help clear up before we had to make our way back to Madison as some of us had to work the following morning after Thanksgiving. Prof’s wife was really disappointed that we could not stay the night but we didn’t really have much of a choice. We thank our gracious host for opening their house and sharing their Thanksgiving meal with us. The Prof’s wife even made us take some leftover turkey sandwiches, potato salad and pumpkin pie back with us to have a long the way which was quite impossible since we were all filled to the brim with all the food we had before. We left their place feeling really happy that we had the chance to really experience the occasion first hand.

I will always be thankful for that opportuinity as I do with all the blessings that I have in my life. This year especially I have so many things to be thankful about. I continue to have a job that gives me the satisfaction and stability that I need. I have my health and the opportunity to further improve it since I joined the gym. I have old friends that I continue to appreciate as well as made a bunch of new friends that I would have never thought of making had I not made changes on how I accepted myself. I’m thankful that I still have my family around me even when we don’t see eye to eye on things sometimes. I know that they will always be there for me if I need them. I’m also thankful for the chance to know several special individuals that have made a large impact to my life this year. Above all I am thankful to received all the blessings that I have this year as well as being where and who I am.

Take some time out and think about what you are thankful for and keep them in mind so they can keep you warm inside even when you think that you’re down in the dumps.

Happy Thanksgiving, y’all.

Movie Review : Stardust

A lot of recent movie releases especially in 2007 have had their humble beginnings in the sequential art form also know as the comic book medium. With a treasure trove of story, plotlines and characters stretching back for decades, the comic book medium seems to the current ‘in’ source for movies as evidenced by the number of releases and upcoming movies in production. While this is no doubt a boon for comic book readers like myself who long waited to see favorite comic book characters and storylines realized on the big screen, there is still that fear that the movies would not be able to meet the comic book fan expectations and forever ruining the character in non-comic book readers. We have the utterly dreadful “Catwoman” movie to blame for that fear.

The latest addition to the list of movie released based on sequential art material, “Stardust”, was thankfully handled with the amount respect that a critically acclaimed graphic novel should be approached with. Written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated for Charles Vess, “Stardust” – the comic book, was both remarkable in it’s lyrical content and imaginative setting. An instant fan favorite, “Stardust” chronicles the tale of Tristan (Charlie Cox) who was on a quest to find a falling star to give to his aloof paramour (Sienna Millers) in exchange for her promise that she would marry him instead of another suitor. To get to the falling star, Tristan had to cross the wall that separated his village (also known as the village of Wall) and the magical kingdom of Stormhold.

Unbeknownst to Tristan, the falling star had taken up a human form and called herself Yvaine after she was knocked out of the sky by the enchanted necklace tossed out by the dying king of Stormhold. The king’s surviving sons had to search for the necklace which was now worn by Yvaine if they wanted to become the next king of the land. The falling star also had another seeker in the form of the witch Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer) who wanted her for her heart that she would feast on with her sister to gain an extension to their already unnatural lifespan. With a little magical assistance, Tristan was the first person to find Yvaine and while his original intent was to bring her back to his paramour, their journey became one filled with challenges to elude the other pursuers. Along the way, their love for each other begin to blossom and in the end, it was that same love that help them fulfill their destinies.

While at first glance “Stardust” seemed to be made for family viewing, much of the story and humor in both the original material and the movie was written with a much more adult sensibility. Distinctly dark in tone, this adult fairy tale is not one that has been sanitized for children’s viewing. Death, both of people and animals, were shown in graphic terms even though the dead end up being part of a hilarious chorus of ghosts who haunt the surviving prince looking for the enchanted necklace. A fair amount of deliciously witty entendre fathomable only by adults run through out the story culminating in scenes with the cross-dressing sky pirate no less. Nothing is actually overtly explicit that parents would not want to bring children to watch it but there was enough for adults to enjoy it in a whole different level altogether.

“Stardust” was also blessed with a multitude of brilliant actors who seemed to relish the opportunity to play against type. Both leads, Claire Danes and Charlie Cox, were serviceable enough in their roles but it was the non leads, Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert De Niro (playing the abovementioned cross-dressing sky pirate Captain Shakespeare) who stole the spotlight of the movie in my opinion. In the witch Lamia, Michelle Pfeiffer displayed wonderful comic timing a portrayal very seldom seen in her other films. Her well timed eye roll when things don’t go her way never failed to crack me up. Also playing against type, Robert De Niro’s portrayal Captain Shakespeare ranks as one of the more memorable scenes I’ve seen in a movie this year not because of the character he played but because of the actor himself willing to have fun outside of the usual gallery of characters he portrayed before.

The story elements of “Stardust” were greatly supported by tight editing and pacing, unlike the other comic book movie released at about the same time, that at no time during the 2 hour screening time does the movie fall into dead space in between set pieces. The action moved in an increasingly frenetic pace as the main character faced increasing odds against their survival. Although the ending was clearly apparent to those who picked up on the foreshadowing presented in the beginning of the film, the journey that audiences took on the movie to get to the ending was one worth the payoff. This film did the original material proud and would be ranked up there among the better comic book to film adaptation by fans of both genre. It would definitely get into my list of the highly recommended movies to watch for this year.

Can’t wait for the DVD to come out.

Movie Review : 30 Days of Night

It is hard for me to articulate what scares me nowadays. I’m definitely squeamish when it comes to snakes, loud pushy drag queens intimidate me and clowns in full makeup makes my skin crawl but they don’t really make me shiver with fright. Gory horror movies have likewise lost some of their luster with me over the years as I guess I’ve become jaded by the sight of arterial spray coming from ripped throats. I think that the last time that I truly left the cinema feeling really creeped out of my skin was after watching the first “Blair Witch Project” film. Fortunately for me, the atmospherics in films from the Asian horror cinema genre still could be depended on to provide me with a dose of real chills down my spine but I fear even that might become jaded for me after a while.

“30 Days of Night” comes to our shores with the tagline that it would be the scariest film you see this year. Based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel written by Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith, the film is set in Barrow, the northern most town in Alaska, where the sun sets and never rises for 30 days in the middle of winter. During the enduring month long night, Barrow get overrun by a pack of vicious vampires led by Marlow (Danny Huston) who mercilessly start to butcher the population of this isolated town. Survivors, led by the Sheriff Eben Oleson (Josh Hartnett) and his estranged wife, Fire Marshall Stella Oleson (Melissa George), has to survive the 30 days of darkness that surround them and hope that the vampires don’t find them before they get to see the sun again.

Directed by David Slade (“Hard Candy”), “30 Days of Night” did for vampires what “28 Days Later” did for zombies by returning them to the mold of the vicious bloodthirsty monstrous last seen in “Nosferatu”. The vampires in this movie were not tortured by their bloodlust like their brethrens in Anne Rice novels or were they the stylish high kicking martial art masters as seen in the “Blade” or “Underworld” film franchises. With their high pitch screams (which did get more annoying than terrifying after the first few times) and reptilian like facial features, these vampires were truly the kind you don’t want to be standing behind you in any circumstances. They hardly speak which means audiences don’t get much of a backstory for them and when they do it would be in an dialect specifically created for this film. The would rather play around with their meal rather than trying to turn them into vampires to keep them company.

Unfortunately for me, this was the only interesting aspect of the film for me with the exception of the memorable CGI crane shot they did to show the vampires taking the population of Barrow from their homes to slaughter them. Most of the non-vampire characters were blandly developed with most supporting characters undistinguishable from each other. The few characters that did get a little more screen time from the others were not that interesting to watch either. A lot of them seemed to fall into general horror movies archetypes that one could be forgiven for knowing before hand which one of them would be killed by the vampires first.

Pacing of the film was another aspect of the film that I felt could have been done better. Unlike “The Thing”, another film set in the snowy expense with a monster running around killing people, the tension in the “30 Days of Night” annoyingly comes in fits and starts. At several points in the film, the action grounds to a halt as the survivors start talking among themselves without really adding to the overall feeling of desperation of their predicament. Character revelations comes without any particular rhyme or reason other than to flesh out a character just before he/she meets their gory end. The action in the film also skipped long time frames with the things happening only on the 7th, 18th and 27th days which makes viewers wonder what they did the rest of the days. I was not expecting to see what they did on every day of their 30 days confinement but it would made for a more enjoyable viewing if we see their increasing desperation as the days roll by. Instead, what we get to see is this motley crew repeating the same cycle out hiding out then going out to a new location only to get someone else in the group killed.

Gore fans might be placated by the amount of gore on screen but I guess one could say that it was a bit tame compared to some of the other more gory films that have came before. There were more than a few decapitation scenes since cutting their heads off was the only way to kill these vampires. Vampire feeding were shown in very quick and messy cut away shots that emphasized the vicious nature of their attacks. Tons of blood gets splattered all over the place as the vampires seemed to be very messy blood drinkers who don’t really mind wasting the blood even though the existing people in Barrow might not last them the whole 30 days of darkness. There were a few action set pieces in the film that involved inventive ways of dispatching the vampires but they came in very few and far in between to sustain gore fan’s attentions.

I was told that some viewers hated the ending because of what happened to the main lead. To me the predictable ending was the only way that the conflict would have ended and to see anything else would definitely invalidate the whole movie. I just wished that there was much more of a character struggle to come to the decision that the main lead had to take instead of appearing to be the most convenient thing to do. After watching “30 Days of Night”, I am sorely tempted to get the original graphic novel that the movie was based upon to get more satisfying story to sink my teeth in. Weak characterization and pacing did the most injustice to a fairly imaginative premise. The film would be something that you would watch on a free afternoon but don’t expect too much from it.

Deepavali Wishes

Wishing all who will be celebrating it a safe and Happy Deepavali (or Diwali) tomorrow.

They Know Me Well

Had to do a personality/behavioral survey today in preparation for my Management Mentorship meeting tomorrow. The results of the behavioral study was eerily accurate! I’m posting it here so I have a record of it to refer in the future. Of course I had to change my real name in the report with my blog name and it was written as such to be read by another person. I’m not crazy enough to refer myself in the third person … yet.

"Nickxandar tends to be incisive and analytical. He is usually steady, easygoing and relaxed. He may have difficulty sharing his feelings if it may disturb the relationship.

When the time is right, Nickxandar can stand up aggressively for what he believes. Nickxandar can be discreet and sociable as called for by the situation.

Loyalty and being a team player are usually his goals. He is a good, steady, dependable team member.

He needs time for some study and analysis, particularly when doing new or challenging assignments. This allows him to adjust to the changing environment.

He can be open, patient and tolerant of differences. His natural quality of being nonjudgmental is a great strength. Because he is receptive and listens well, he excels in gathering information. Patience, control and deliberateness characterize his usual behavior. At times, Nickxandar would like to slow the world down and cut out some of the activities people want him involved in.

Nickxandar needs to gather data and facts in a logical fashion. Logic is important when trying to influence him. He pays more attention to logic than emotional "hype." Making plans and following those plans is important to him. When challenged he can become objective, searching hard for facts and figures. This may be his way of defending his decisions.

Nickxandar can be sensitive to the feelings of others and is able to display real empathy for those who are experiencing difficulties. He prefers to plan his work and work his plan. Others may find it refreshing to have him on their team. When faced with a tough decision, he will seek information and analyze it thoroughly.

Nickxandar tends to be possessive of information; that is, he doesn't voluntarily share information with others outside of his team. This may be a blessing, or a curse, to his superiors. He likes having others initiate the conversation. He can then assess the situation and respond accordingly.

He can be outgoing at times. Basically introverted, he will "engage" in social conversation when the occasion warrants. Rarely does he display his emotions; that is, he projects a good poker face. Others may get the feeling that he is unfriendly, when in reality he is not.

Nickxandar may guard some information unless he is asked specific questions. He will not willingly share unless he is comfortable with the knowledge he possesses about the topic. He is not easily triggered or explosive, but he may conceal some grievances because he doesn't always state his feelings. Most people see him as being a considerate and modest person. He probably won't try to steal the spotlight from others."

I couldn't have described my work behavior better than this report.

Workout Progress - Oct '07

October’s challenge was to see how much damage I would avoid doing to my diet plan during the Hari Raya break. After losing weight during the fasting month, I would in previous years gain it back by feasting on all that heavy and fattening festive delicacy. This year around, I promised myself to watch out for that tendency and be more calculative about the amount of food that I took in. I have to admit that it was hard to resist the temptation to binge during the holidays but I was not about to let nearly 10 months of dieting effort go down the drain. Looking back I think I did OK as I didn’t really gain much after coming back from my Hari Raya break. I would know for certain next week when I go for my InBody scan again but based on the bathroom scale I think that there was not too much damage.

Working with my PT during my gym workouts also have been helpful for me this past month. I’m currently averaging 5 gym visits a week with 3 PT sessions. My normal routine would usually consist of about 15 minutes of stretching exercises, 20 minutes of stationary bikes for cardio and about 45 minutes of either resistance weight training or circuit training. My PT has been very helpful in keeping me honest with my training and giving me the tools for me to learn how to get the most of the machines at the gym. He has also been an invaluable motivator to spur me on when I thing that I’ve reached my limits. I’m really glad to see the investment that I put in to engage a PT at the gym showing positive returns.

I still have a ways to go before I look anything like the guys you see on the health magazines but there has been noticeable physical changes. Chief among them was dropping 2 pants sizes which means that I would need to fork out money soon to get new pants tailored. I also see some definition happening in the shoulders and the upper arms area which is always encouraging. I have been receiving some comments from friends and co-workers who have noticed the changes in my body weight which is always a good self-image booster. The best one I got was from my old secondary teacher who told me that I look better now than I ever did in school which was surprising for me since I always thought that I looked my best while I was in secondary school. It may be superficial and shallow but for someone with self-image issues like I do, hearing something like that just gives me the confidence to continue on the current path that I’m on.

Diet plan in Oct ( post fasting month diet)

Breakfast (8 am)
- 1 cup fat free yogurt
- 2 banana or
- 1 serving of oatmeal

Brunch (10 am)
- 1/2 serving of plan fried rice with tempeh goreng or greens
- 1 hardboiled egg (alternate working days – 2 whole eggs total per week)
- 1 serving of fruits

Lunch (12 pm)
- 1 Spirulina cereal 3 in 1 mix.

Snacks (4 pm)
- 1 Nature Valley Granola bar (Apple Crisps, Almond and Pecan have lowest calories)
- Japanese Green Tea

Dinner (7 pm) – non workout days (Tues/Sat)
- buy something roughly less than 300kcal

Workout Days (M/W/Thurs/F: 8 – 10 pm, Sun: 4 – 8pm)
Pre workout
- EAS Creatine Powder – 10mg
- 3 homemade tuna sandwiches on wholemeal bread.

Post workout
- tomato juice immediately after workout (when I remember to buy some)
- EAS Myoplex Deluxe Protein Shake 1 hr after workout as dinner

Supplements :
EAS Creatine Powder – 10mg per day
EAS Myoplex Deluxe Protein Shake – ½ serving post workout
21st Century’s HerbalLipo Tea – 1 serving per week day
GNC MegaMen Dietary Supplement – 1 tablet per day

I’ve switched to having dinner before going to my workouts instead of after workouts in Oct. I had thought that I wanted to keep my body on fat burning mode by working out on an empty stomach but I soon found that I could not keep up with the workout intensity as I near the end of the session. I tried eating different types of food before my workout sessions and have discovered that tuna on wholemeal bread seemed to give me the best level of energy that I need to sustain the workout sessions. The meal was not too heavy that I would spend most of my gym session trying to burn it off but enough to give me the burst of energy I need. I’ve also discover that I could recover faster after each workout session if I ate before instead of after my workout.

Looking forward in November, my plan is to continue to increase the intensity of my workout as well as the levels that I put myself through. I have proven myself that I could do that in this past month when I went up a resistance level on the stationary bike for my cardio workout as well as sustaining a heavy intensity with little rest time in between during my circuit training. I also have to work on developing my muscle strength in November which my PT commented was markedly lower than my stamina level. The ultimate goal in muscle strength development would probably be to the point that I would be able to train with free weights safely which currently I can’t yet.

I might also try out some of the GX classes that they offered at the gym while I am at it as well in the coming month. I’ve been watching other people attend them and they looked like they were quite fun. I was thinking of trying out some introductory spinning and BodyJam classes. I guess the spinning classes would definitely be a possibility in the near future as I’m already doing most of my cardio on a stationary bicycle. The BodyJam session would be something that I have to really think about since I am absolutely lousy as tasks requiring any amount of physical coordination and rhythm. My PT is also recommending me to try their KickFit program at the gym which basically is kickboxing training but I’m a bit wary of embarrassing myself since I kick and punch worse than a girl.

I am encouraged by the results that I’m seeing and the feedback from people around me during this experiment. Every little bit helps as I continue on this current path.

Raya '07 : Berasak

“Berasak” is a rice dish that is not very well known outside of Johor and pureblood Johoreans. I first rediscovered it about 10 years ago when I spent my Hari Raya holidays with my relatives in Pontian, Johor. It was after a few years after my paternal grandmother’s death when my dad’s side of the family decided to resurrect the tradition of making our own “berasak”. I had it before as a kid but I never remembered it until I was told what it is much later. All the memories that I thought I had forgotten did came back with my first bite of “berasak” 10 years ago. It was a taste that I had long remembered and associated with my late paternal grandmother but never knew what it was.

“Berasak” is basically a rice dish that is popular among the Johoreans of Bugis descent which is usually made during celebrations like Hari Raya. In my father’s family we would either have normal rice ketupat or berasak since none of the people of that side of the family were fans of glutinous rice which make up lemang and ketupat palas. I have not actually seen the process of making the “berasak” since I was always unable to come back early enough to see it made but I was told of the process by my aunt who currently is the only one in the family that makes it for the rest. Much like my dodol, my aunt’s branch of the family is currently the only custodian of the family tradition which she makes to be distributed to everyone else.

The process of making “berasak” starts first with the one main ingredient that differentiate it from other festive rice dishes. Unlike ketupat, the “berasak” is wrapped in the young pisang nipah leaves. It can only be the leaves of this particular banana type as it imparts both flavor and color to the finished product. It is also the only type of banana leave that would held up to the rigors of the cooking process. The leaves had to be the very young ones that you would find still curled in a tube at the top of a banana tree. The leaves that have already unfurled further down the banana tree would not be usable in this instance.

Once the banana leaves are available, the rice would then be prepared. “Berasak” uses normal short grain white rice which is washed and the cooked in coconut milk much like making nasi lemak. It is important that only fresh coconut milk from the first pressing is used in the making of “berasak”. A little salt is added to the coconut milk before it is used to cook the rice with to enhance the richness of the coconut milk. Once the rice has fully absorbed the coconut milk and fully cooked, it is immediately portioned out onto squares cut out of the pisang nipah leaves. While the rice is still steaming hot, it is compressed into a tight rectangular shape which is then wrapped with the pisang nipah leave. The wrapping method is quite similar to how a kuih lepat is wrapped. Throughout the process of wrapping the “berasak”, continuous pressure is applied to it to ensure that the rice in it is compressed well.

The individual parcels of leave wrapped rice would then be grouped into groups of about 10 and wrapped again in a few layers of pisang nipah leaves. Each bundle would then be tied up as tightly as you could with either raffia string or heat resistant plastic raffia string. Tied up bundles would then go into a large pot of boiling water to be boiled for a minimum of 8 to 10 hours to fully cook the “berasak”. At the end of the process, the cooked rice inside the “berasak” parcels would expand more and become denser in texture. Once the cooking time has expired, the “berasak” is taken out and hung out in the kitchen area to dry before it can be opened and the individual wrapped rice parcel served.

Taste-wise, the “berasak” basically tastes like compressed nasi lemak. The pisang nipah leaves imparts a subtle aroma and taste to the rice inside which is quite unique when compared to other festive rice dishes like ketupat and lemang. It is also quite denser compared to the normal rice ketupat since it is cooked with coconut milk before being reboiled for a second time unlike the ketupat which is only boiled once. Unlike ketupat palas or lemang, you should not be able to differentiate the different grains of rice when you bite into a well made “berasak”. A well made “berasak” also travels well since it could last at least 2 weeks without refrigeration and up to a month if you kept it in chiller. The “berasak” however cannot be frozen as the resulting ice crystals would leech out the taste of the coconut milk from the rice.

Any side dish that you can eat with ketupat and lemang can also accompany the “berasak”. My family prefers to eat it with something that has more sauce that the normally dry beef or chicken rendang. My father for instance loves to eat his “berasak” with ikan masak assam pedas. I actually prefer eating it drenched fully in a really hot curry. The other peculiar way how we enjoy our “berasak” is that we only eat it after it has been chilled at least for a day in the fridge. I personally find that the low temperature actually enhanced the taste of the “berasak” and contrast beautifully with the heat from the curry that I put on it when I eat it.

Some pictures of the “berasak” that I brought back from my parents house last week.

(Wrapped bundle of berasak as it would look first taken out of the pot)

(About 10 pieces of individual wrapped berasak tightly tied within the bundle)

(The individually wrapped berasak which is the size of your normal kuih lepat)

(When unwrapped, the compressed rice is feels slick on the touch from the coconut milk, has a unique aroma and a greenish tinge in appearence)

(My favorite Hari Raya dish - Berasak with beef curry)

The “berasak” is another piece of my family heritage that I have begun to discover as I grow older. The rediscovery is somewhat of a bittersweet experience for me. On one hand it meant that it was time for us the younger generation of the family tree to know of our family traditions so we can continue the legacy. On the other hand it meant that the generation before us were getting older in age and would not be around for that much longer. There is a sense of racing against the clock to make sure that legacies are passed down to those who are willing and able to carry it. I personally know that I have a few things that will be coming my way and it would be my future responsibility to ensure that passed on to the next generation.

Legacies are so much larger than the individual. By passing it on, we carve a little bit of immortality for ourselves.

Yikes!

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