Bye-bye Blogger

I've decided to pull the plug on Blogger.

Now before you start crying or spray hot coffee out from your mouth, no, I haven't stopped blogging. I've just moved someplace else (a better one hopefully).

Come visit me at my new home.


Update
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I see a lot of people are still coming here. I have moved to http://lostcodger.com and will not be updating this site any further. Please update your bookmarks now. Thanks.

Of Football and Royalty

After Friday prayers today, I headed to the local post office to send off a package. It's just a small branch, with just two counters for your every-day postal needs.  When I said small, I meant hidden away at the back of a newsagent, like many post offices we have here. You wouldn't be able to tell until you accidentally walked into one, like I did a few months back. And to think that after living in this area since 2002, I would know where everything was.

Anyway, as I walked into the newsagent-cum-post-office, there was already a long queue. It seemed to be moving fairly quickly so I was quite relieved.  As I joined the queue, I noticed a tall chap who seemed quite restless and can't seem to be standing still.  He was wearing a grey track bottoms and a matching jumper.  Nothing out of the ordinary but his hair stood out like a sore thumb; it was braided.

Yes, although I myself am follicaly-challenged, I can still find pleasure in admiring other people's hairdo. By this time, the chap's face seemed a tad familiar. Muka penyangak.  I was pretty sure he was a professional footballer.  I've seen his face on telly so many times, but yet, unable to put a name to his face.

There were four things I could have done:

1) walk up to him and say, "Hello, I know you're a famous footballer but I can't remember your name or the team you play for" and ask for his autograph (dgn muka selamba dan tak malu)

2) ask the neighbouring customers if they know him and further make a scene

3) do a google search on my mobile phone, but how do you search for a face?

4) wait until I get back and do a search then, but missing the opportunity for a priceless autograph

Alas, I went for number 4. This goes to show how much of a footy fan I am.  And of all the days, I picked today to leave my digital camera behind. Dammit!

Oh, if you're still wondering who the mystery footballer was...

...it was Rio Ferdinand.

*****


Speaking of football, the official World Cup song for England was released this morning.  It was done by a band called Embrace.  I'll be honest with you; I've never heard of them, probably due to my different taste in music.  If you have iTunes, you can catch a very short preview of the single from Bizzare's Podcast of The Sun Newspaper.  I repeat, you will need iTunes.  The whole podcast is over twenty minutes long, but if you just want to catch their bit, just move the time slider to 12:43.

If you ask me, the song sounded like something played by U2 and Coldplay mixed together.


*****

The Queen hits the big 80 today.  I'm quite pleased to know that it'll be another 50 years before I reach her age. Lambat lagi hehe.

In any case, she looks pretty good for an 80-year old. Happy Birthday Queenie!

Technorati Tags: celebrity, entertainment, events, seasonal, songs, sports

Why can't we all just get along

I was at the local supermarket earlier today when I saw a copy of Maxim on the magazine shelves. It was May 2006's issue and had MTV UK presenter Emma Griffiths in black bikini on the front cover.  *SCHWINGGG!!!*

To my utter disappointment, there was an old age pensioner lingering nearby and I wasn't prepared to give him a nasty heart attack by flipping through the magazine to my heart's content.  So I thought I'd satisfy my hormonal needs curiosity next door at WH Smith.  Now don't get me wrong, Miss Griffiths has the most sensational pair of....... eyes *cough* *cough*.

At WH Smith next door, the magazine was nowhere to be found and I really didn't want to sound dodgy presumptuous by asking the lady shop assistant.  I scoured the magazine shelves row by row, and as I squat down to investigate the bottom shelf one last time, I noticed the shop assistant approaching a potential customer nearby;

"Excuse me, sir.  I'm afraid you can't stand here."

The man (who strongly resembled UK celebrity Interior Designer, Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen), with an open magazine in his hands, seemed confused initially as he wasn't sure what the shop assistant was trying to say.

"Well where am I supposed to stand then?", he barked.

"Perhaps in the library?", was her short reply.

"Uh-oh", I thought to myself.  From where I was squatting, the man appears to be holding a gardening magazine.  By this time, he'd realised what the shop assistant was hinting at.

"Excuse me?", he said.

"People would normally come in, buy what they want and leave...", the shop assistant tried to explain.

There were only two potential customers in the store at the time; only him and me.  I mean, the man wasn't really bothering anyone, why can't just leave him be?

"But how am I supposed to know it's any good if I don't look at it first?", the man retaliated.

It was beginning to feel really awkward.  Had there been a copy of Maxim on the shelves, would the shop assistant come up to me and tell me off as I skimmed through the magazine?  In my years of living in the UK, I have never come across this incident happening at a popular stationery store before. I can understand had it been a small and cramped premise, where standing and reading a magazine could potentially be a safety hazard.  But no, there was ample space all around.  So what was the shop assistant's problem then?

In any case, I couldn't be bothered to stay and find out.  So I bailed.

Miss Griffiths' "eyes" will just have to wait another day.

Technorati Tags: awkward, incidents, babes

Interrupted Sleep

My initial plan to stay in bed until late noon on Easter Monday was spoilt by the thundering engine and exhaust noises coming from outside.  They were so loud, I could hear my windows rattling.  I could even feel my entire bedroom shaking a little (but that's to be expected when you're living in an apartment that was built at the turn of the century).

With much whining and whimpering, I got out from under my duvet and went down to the kitchen to take a peek out the window to find hundreds of motorbikes on the road.  Thinking it could be an Easter thing, I did quick search on Google and found an event called "Southend Shakedown" where hundreds of bikers participate in a get-together every year and ride from London to Southend, raising funds that will go to the Little Haven Hospice at Thundersley.  How exactly they will achieve this, I'm not entirely certain.








One thing for sure, my next house or apartment will definitely not be next to a major road.

Technorati Tags: apartment, easter, seasonal

It's funny how...

...you can listen to everyone else's problems, maybe even provide clear and concise solutions for them, but you can't sort out your own shit.

So what do you do do? You can talk to other people about YOUR problems and get THEM to sort you out.  But not a lot of people like to share their problems. In my opinion, these types of people are usually the ones who are good listeners.

I find myself in a similar situation. I don't go to people and share my problems. I try to avoid it whenever possible.  It's just something I'm not comfortable with.  But if somebody share their problems with me, I would go out of my way to help.  I felt the need to help others and it makes me feel good when I've accomplished that.

But why is it so hard for me to talk to others about my problems? I do confide in a small minority of my friends, but only when they really really really ask, and I tend to blurt out everything.  It can get pretty awkward sometimes when they don't know what to say back to you.  But I think what's important here is that at least they know how you're getting along.  I'm sure that given the opportunity, they would want to help you out too.

The question is, are you willing to accept their help?

Technorati Tags: behaviour, life

Unlucky Seven Slevin

So you just got laid off, come home to find your apartment condemned and go over to your girlfriend's to find her doing the doggy-stylie with somebody else. Still keeping your sanity and cool intact, you found solace when a good friend calls and invites you over to his place in the big city to escape, only to find yourself getting mugged upon arrival, your wallet taken from you and your nose broken in two places.

Arriving at your buddy's apartment, you found the front door unlocked and him missing. You decided to make yourself at home, take a shower and admire your new nose-shape in the mirror, when suddenly the extremely friendly and cute neighbour from across the hall knocked on the door to borrow some sugar, and managed to catch a glimpse of your privates while you were adjusting the towel around your waist.

But that's okay, because you fancy her a little, and a big smile was around your face when you thought she was knocking on your door again, only to find two men of suspicious nature in her place instead, who think you are Nick Fisher (your missing friend), decided to drag you to their leader while you're still in your towel and further disfiguring your nose in the process.

The leader turns out to be the head mob called The Boss, tells you that you owe him US$96k, and in order to pay off your debt, wants you to assassinate the son of his arch-nemesis, The Rabbi, who happens to be another head mob and occupies the penthouse opposite to The Boss' own, right across the street. You also learn that The Rabbi's son is called The Fairy, because..........

The Boss returns you to your apartment (or your friend's apartment rather), where you tell everything to your newly-befriended neighbour, and get another pair of visitors who are also after your missing friend, force you to meet The Rabbi himself, discover that you owe him money as well, and given 48 hours to come up with it.

Are you still with me? Good.  So you owe two big time mobsters lots of money, have to kill a man you've never met and now the police are after you.  To make matters worse, you also have a world-class hitman hot on your trail. Further to this, your friend is still nowhere to be seen, and you're beginning to wonder what the hell he's been up to and whether you've been set up to take his place.

Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In Lucky Number Slevin, Josh Hartnett plays excellently as Slevin, the guy who runs out of luck, gets stuck in a war between two crime bosses, all due to a case of mistaken identity. I haven't watched a lot of his movies, but I really enjoyed his performances in Pearl Harbour and 40 Days 40 Nights. He also spends a good chunk of the movie in just a towel, much to the delight of all the lady audience out there. Boo.

Anyway, Morgan Freeman plays The Boss; I think he's far too nice to be the head mobster.  Perhaps I still see him as one of the guys from The Electric Company, a Sesame-Street-style show that I enjoyed watching back when I was a kid.  Sir Ben Kingsley was excellent as The Rabbi, especially with his put-on Brooklyn accent.

Lucy Liu plays the adorable next-door-neighbour; I really find her to be quite refreshing in this film where she just plays a normal girl.  Normal, meaning not the gung-ho ass-kicking Oriental babe with freckles.  I've never fancied her in Ally McBeal or Charlie's Angels, but she's definitely cute here.  However, standing next to Josh Hartnett, I didn't realise she was extremely short.  Still cute though.  Stanley Tucci plays the detective who complicates things further, and somewhat insignificant in my opinion.  Bruce Willis plays the hitman, Mr. Goodkat, whom I must say, steals the show with his extreme-coolness.

I really enjoyed this movie, although I do question some aspects of the story-line, like in the opening credits, leaving me somewhat feeling like being taken for a ride, albeit a very entertaining one.  In spite of that, I'm giving it 7 out of 10.

Go see it.

Technorati Tags: entertainment, movies, reviews