harry potter & the half-blood prince

went to watch the newest harry potter movie this morning with the people i grew up watching all harry potter films with. :) it's really hard to believe how quickly time has passed since the first movie, as cliche as it may sound. but it's nice to know that we still laugh and groan over the same things and take turns to tell chongkz to quit embarrassing us with her sound effects. seriously, woman. shhhhh!

wokay about the movie. considering i am a big fan (though i'd say 'big' is an understatement, but we'll leave it as that), i may be a bit biased when giving a review but i'll try my best to be as honest as possible.

(spoilers ahead)

ok let me see. what i didn't like:

• lupin, tonks, mr & mrs weasley only in ONE scene (the burrow attack scene- which wasn't even in the book actually)! would've loved to see more of them. i always found their parts interesting. but also they could've done without that scene and replaced it with another important one straight from the book.
• was very upset to see luna instead of tonks rescuing harry in the train.
• all that teenage romance shit was uncanny. funny some parts, not funny others. and i never liked ginny anyway. she was annoying in the book and even more in the movie. but really, the teenage romance shit should've been replaced by the one between lupin & tonks. :P
• ok i will shut up about lupin & tonks.
• could've included more of tom riddle's memories in the movie. there were quite a few in the book and i remember being so absorbed into reading about his life. then again they couldn't have possibly captured every single thing mentioned in the book, but would've loved to see more.
• i read about them omitting dumbledore's funeral prior to the movie, but it didn't affect me that much until i actually watched it. i thought his death was so abrupt (actually it was quite like that in the book too wasn't it?) that they should've done justice to his character by at least showing the funeral scene.

the good stuff:

• heavier and darker, with more action and better effects than the first 5.
• i thought the beginning was really nice with the death eaters' attack on diagon alley and the millennium bridge. it's like the movie series stepped up a notch as it started off with a bang. found that somewhat refreshing.
• i didn't like michael gambon when he initially filled richard harris's shoes as dumbledore, but i thought he acted really well in this movie. especially the part at the lake when they were trying to retrieve the horcrux.
• horace slughorn was exactly how i imagined him to be!
• ron was quite funny. i liked the quidditch scenes.
• draco's character was played very intensely by tom felton. he very yeung sui/face got problem now (he used to be so cute!!!) but i thought he did a great job.
• i really liked the whole astronomy tower scene (the death of dumbledore and the takeover of hogwarts), as sad as it was. it was so dark and gloomy, totally in line with that part of the book. i was so upset when dumbledore died. i mean i knew it was coming, but seeing it being played out on screen was even sadder than reading about it.
• the movie provides good anticipation for the final installment, split into 2 parts! yay! 2 more potter movies. :)

basically i did enjoy the movie. duh. haha. i always enjoy potter movies even after watching over and over again. i don't think it's particularly my favourite of the potter movies. somehow i prefer the first 3. cuter. haha.

can't wait for the wizarding world of harry potter to be unveiled! HEY EDWINAAAA...orlando, florida in 2010 okayyy? PROMISE??? :D :D :D :D :D

idiot's guide to chee cheong fun

today i feel the dire need to educate you folks on chee cheong fun.

though ultimately i only have one important thing to say: ipoh has the best chee cheong fun. if you think otherwise, people will just laugh at you and spit into your face.

so don't think otherwise.

basically there are many types of chee cheong fun. of course there's the hong kong/dim sum chee cheong fun, which everyone knows of and loves. i love that one with prawns not char siew. a variation of the hong kong/dim sum chee cheong fun is the char leong, which is the same type of noodle wrapped around yau char kwai. omg that one is yummy. hey mich howai merv, remember the one in Mayim, Singapore?! amazing.

then there's teluk intan chee cheong fun which is stuffed with meat and vegetables. that one i know ben likes. but i don't really. there is also penang chee cheong fun which is served with prawn paste. that one ok ok la, not bad, but i generally don't like prawn paste.

AND THEN. there's super shitty chee cheong fun which is found all over KL, the type where they flood noodles in disgusting black sweet sauce and horrible chilli sauce, served with oily factory-made liew. (e.g. the van outside imu which i'm very embarrassed to say i used to eat quite often because i had little choice. if you think that one is nice aiyo so sad la you, please give me a call.) this chee cheong fun copy ipoh one. but totally FAIL.

finally... there is ipoh chee cheong fun. fresh, smooth, dressed with soy sauce and oil, and topped with good har mai/hae bi/dried shrimps, fried onions and sesame seeds, with an option to add sweet sauce and green chillis. and mushroom sauce, too, though not recommended by me. i don't get why people want to drown their chee cheong fun in mushroom sauce. i mean, i really don't see the point.

now not all the chee cheong fun in ipoh is nice, obviously, but there are really REALLY good ones- the BEST one in my opinion is found in pasir pinji! the shop has no name (or maybe it has, i don't know- but everyone i know just calls it pasir pinji chee cheong fun/ping yi kong chee cheong fun). i just found out it's called Ah Tuck Chee Cheong Fun LOL! actually it isn't even a shop. it's just a stall set up in the porch of their tiny little house along a very narrow lane.

pic taken from here

it is SO GOOD that the world's most impatient people (i.e. me and chongkz) are willing to sacrifice our time to sit and wait. sometimes you'll have to wait more than an hour just to get a taste of those glorious noodles, but we don't mind! once you're there, don't be fooled by the lack of crowd. most people come by to order for takeaway, and then they go somewhere else and come back later. and these people are nuts. they tapau 20-30 packets at a go. =/ (LOL chongkz's dad even tapau-ed like 50 packets once cos he was so proud his number was in the top 10! haha kiasu!)

nnnYUMmmm i'm going back again tomorrow.

oh and you have to take a number. when your number is called, they'll shout across to you and ask how you want your chee cheong fun, and you'll have to shout back. haha. how very old school.

i sincerely hope this superb recipe doesn't die off with the very old uncle and aunty who make the chee cheong fun when their times come. i will be in distraught!

it is VERY rare to find chongkz and i grin from ear to ear when we have to wait for food. so this must be something! and it is!


i heart chee cheong fun.


chongkz hearts chee cheong fun.

oh and do tapau a few packets when you're done eating. you'll always want more later. :)

address: 1455, jln pasir pinji 5, 31650 ipoh.
opens at 1pm until they're sold out, which is pretty quickly! so do go early! and bring someone to talk to or something to read!

over world of warcraft?

hahahahahahaha what a frrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreak! i'm just SO relieved he didn't strip off his boxers.

thanks sherms for the vid. really made my day. HAHA!

ridikulus

i hate it when people have this unreasonable fear towards dogs. perhaps it is QUITE acceptable if one is afraid of big dogs like rottweilers and doberman pinschers especially since they have been unfairly portrayed time and time again in the media... but to be scared of smaller dogs and toy breeds? completely baffles me.

seriously people. have you seen my dogs or not. do they look like they can eat you up.




okay so kiki may seem scary with all her barking and her (very unfortunate) devilish look but she is SO small that if you gave her the slightest kick, she'd fly to my neighbour's house in a flash. and omg, don't get me started on how anyone in their right mind can be so afraid of GINGER! that one is totally beyond me. i mean, to jump onto my antique chair while you flail your arms around like a chimpanzee and scream your lungs out at the sight of my two tiny dogs... now that is REALLY annoying. especially when you're 25 years old, not 5.

and to ask - no, demand - for my dogs to be caged up just for you? you can go eat your own shit lah ok.

so please lah. if you want to come to my house when i don't really know you/don't give a damn about you AND be so afraid of my dogs, i'm sorry but you are most welcome to stand outside my gate.

stupid retarded fool.

The only thing left to do is to brace myself.

• visa... approved.
• flight ticket... booked (allowed 40kgs! ahhahaha)
• hsbc uk account... activated.
• accommodation... settled (sort of).
• manchester student id number... received (not like it really matters now anyway).
• health checkup appointment... confirmed.
• luggages... bought, discounted. :)

but am i really prepared to go? no. dont think i ever will be. 6 weeks may sound far away to you but not to me. i am not looking forward. sometimes i feel really nauseous thinking about it. last time die die also want to go overseas but now i dont understand why i thought that way. hate! hate hate hate. just want to stay at home!
ps: finally succumbed to the twitter madness. only follow me if you're interested to keep up with my bowel habits and what i have for breakfast...