This Father's Gift

Sunday afternoon came the gift I... well, gave myself!

With Wifey's blessings and her excitement to enjoy the gift with me when it was installed in our living room. Integrated with our Sharp Aquos 37 Inch LCD TV, the gift I am talking about is our new Pioneer HTP-33 DVR Home Theater System! Sweet!

Replacing our 5 year old Philips LX3500D HTS which has long spoiled our movie-watching pleasures with unexpected skips and stops, and most irritably, locks and plays only one region code DVD which I had collected to date from overseas.

Like any newer DVD players, it is multi-coded so now we can play any disk format and all region codes 1 to 6 without worrying of compatibility issues.


The good thing about this new Pioneer HTS is its all-in-one deck - amplifier, radio tuner, MP3 player, DVD player and recorder in high definition without the clutter of stacking other sound system equipment on the TV console.

With a 160G hard-disk drive to enable TV programs recordings, among other things like DVDs duplications... ahem, for non-copyrighted materials of course!

Coupled with my recent DVD rental subscription to HollywoodClicks.com, the first movie played was World Trade Centre starring Nicholas Cage. Touching story yet with lots of CGI or computer generated graphics and blasting sounds to show off this HTS mighty prowess.

The 5.1 surround speakers is another great thing. Instead of having a pair placed behind the sofa and wires laid under the carpet, the rear speakers need only be placed outwardly in front , along with the other centre and left and right speakers.

To achieve this surround sound, Pioneer makes use of a MCACC microphone that one has to place where one normally sits to calibrate sounds coming from each of the 5 speakers and sub-woofer, then regulates sound levels and delays from the speakers.

No more wires across the living room!


Wifey was so happy with the system's performance that she has requested online to prioritize her own movie titles to watch on it... all 20-odd DVDs of her favourite drama serials... a Korean invasion of sorts. Yikes!

She is preparing herself to enjoy the drama marathon of the Korean kind... a lovely-dovey style with the typical "boy-meets-girl, but their love is forbidden... I know how the story is going to end" drama. Volumes and volumes of it.

Fortunately though, she is going to watch it while I am at work. Phew!

As for me, Sci-Fi and action movies with lots of CGI and explosions... planetary obliterations, devastations or natural catastrophe that totally blows-the-mind kind of movies for the cool special effects.

HollywoodClicks and with a few more free channels offered by Starhub CableTV launched since mid June, we are set to be couch-potatoes on stay-home weekends!

Consider this a father's day cum birthday gift for me!

3 Clicks Flicks...

Since the demise of video tapes and VCRs in the early 1990s from most people's homes and lives in Asia, I have stopped renting home movies altogether even when it was replaced with VCDs.

My last owned VHS is our wedding video but with no VCR to play it with. It will probably remain in the TV console drawer till kingdom come... or at least until the reel of tapes stick together and it is time to throw it away.

Yeah, I have been meaning to send it to the photo shop to have it transferred to VCD... nope! DVD... that will survive until the industry discards this format again or maybe until Blu-ray format becomes the next standard. Anyway... let me get to the present.

I have started renting home movies again and am even happier now with the many choices of movies the my whole family can watch without resorting to some illegal means.


With the subscription of cable TV for years, I now have HollywoodClicks.com added to the many movie titles I want... well, maybe not the really latest, but mostly the many movies and TV shows that I or any member of my family has not gotten a chance to watch yet.

3-DVDs at any one time is the plan I subscribed online for, for about S$36.00 monthly.

I have to queue 50 titles that I like, number 1 being my first choice if the DVD is available to me, else the next in line will be sent instead in about a day's time.

Once we are done with any or all of the DVDs, we just have to put them in each of the self-addressed envelopes given and drop them into the post box. Fortunately there is one post box less than a block away from my home that makes returning the DVDs less of a chore.


I will then get a replacement of the next available queued DVDs in a couple of days. The replacements are unlimited as long as I return it. Furthermore, there is no late return because there is no rental expiry period. Cool!

My first 3 DVDs I picked are:

Space Traveler animation is especially for my Son as he has been talking about it months ago but I was not going to waste money watching cartoons. Animated stories like Shrek maybe, but not cartoons.

Anyway, Son said the movie was a disappointment after he played it on his PC.

Fantastic 4 for my Son. We would need to watch this first movie to at least not be lost when we do watch the new Fantastic 4: Rise Of The Silver Surfer when it hits the cinemas here.

Would not want to repeat it like Pirates Of The Caribbeans: At World's End where I was totally nauseated not by the sea storms, but by the storyline... simply because I did not watch the second movie... I think.

Well... it is actually for me because Jessica Alba is in it. My dear friend Wandi, I really get it now... but unlike you, there is nothing trivial about this.


Charlotte's Web for Wifey and all of us. Heartwarming story that miracles do happen. The ugliest of being can be the most beautiful one of all.

Dakota Fanning was not as terrific as she was in I Am Sam or War Of The World, but I am her fan nonetheless. Julia Roberts died at the end which sucked even though she was a creepy-crawly... and I would still be like that horse in the movie.

Hmm... I get the feeling Wifey is going to choose some Hindi and Korean movies too these fine days... I would rather watch cartoons than playing-hard-to-get love stories.

Now to post them back and catch-up on the movies that we have missed so far...

Malaise, Movies, Market...

As she went down and disappeared into the stairway, the house was quiet and boring again.

Wifey as always, will be full of hope for a good business on Saturdays. She left for the shop. I wish to go help her out, but this light irritating headache will do anyone any good at the shop.

My son has already recovered from a bout of flu, but he too has this lingering headache from time to time just like me.

I guess I had it better than him as I can now rest at home while he still has his Malay language tuition class in the afternoon. Sunday will be his free day. Poor boy.

So... what was I to do after I could not sleep anymore?

I started to blog-surf for awhile until I started to get the headache again... attributed to too much focusing on little letters on my 19-inch LCD monitor. The whole week at work staring at the monitor is quite enough for me.

I had to switch off my PC and do something else...

The obvious, not physical almost morbid activity would be watching a movie or two on DVDs.

I picked two movies that I have yet to watch after buying the DVD. One was Sinking Of Japan and the other, Apocalypto.

The first one was especially interesting to me because I really wanted to see how the Japanese conjure-up the devastation as realistically as the Hollywood counterpart.

It was impressive, no doubt. I especially like the cracking-ground and rising... brittle like biscuits. The huge wall of tsunami coming into the Japanese islands wiping out the entire town was thrilling. Awesome because I had always wanted to be a computer graphics artist when I was still studying computers then.

The most impressive is the satellite view of the devastation. Awesome. Realistic scenes.

Unfortunately, the worst part for me was the storyline... the falling in love bit between characters. The movie came to a slow crawl that I dozed off several times, only waking-up to the loud theater sound blasts when the earthquakes came.

Wifey would love this lovey-dovy scenes as she is a big fan of the Korean TV series.

The second movie was more to my liking... storyline-wise, not so much CGI, but thrilling all the same. Mel Gibson's Apocalypto was very believable, but I was a little uncomfortable with its subtle hints of western humor and thinking amongst the Incas.

Maybe it will be more palatable and easily understood to cater to the western audiences... amongst the many gory scenes Hollywood is famous for.

The actors and costumes are believably authentic to me; tough, muscular warriors that did not look like they came out from Planet Fitness. How much accurate of Inca culture was in the movie is another debatable story altogether.

Overall, I like that movie very much.

The tough life as humans make the world closer to each other over vast body of water, consuming the unquenchable desire to explore and exploit the weak.

You know what? I suddenly realized that both movies were foreign language and I actually had to switch on the subtitles to understand the movie. So much for reading on a monitor.

Enough movie watching for one day, it was time to do some groceries shopping armed with Wifey's grocery list. This time, it is wonderfully convenient since NTUC Fairprice Supermarket is just a 5 minutes walk from our home.

It has taken-over the more expensive Cold-Storage and the Seven-Eleven convenient store shop space at the ground floor of Tampines Central Community Club.

Never saw so many people at that place than today. I even met my Customer doing his marketing at the new place. All this time he was he was staying a few blocks away from me. Wow!

This slow Saturday... of malaise, movies and markets. Bring sick sucks, the weather sucks too... wonder Sunday will be a sunny day. Laying on the beach with a light throbbing headache is not too bad...

Joost Your Life?

As if we do not spend much time at our computer, there is another distraction from family time together.

Singapore will be part of the many countries that will receive free-airing TV programmes via the Internet. In its beta stage now, but Joost.com will make its debut here in March.

Like Demand TV or pay-per-view, the programmes are downloaded from a series of programmes available for watching. Other similar concepts have have been long operating this elsewhere in the world for all I know, but still an interesting concept to... watch.

So, if your computer is fast enough and that you have a broadband connection, you can multitask it together - doing your work or whatever that you use your computer for while watching a TV programme that runs on a small screen on your desktop.

I have not downloaded the beta testing software yet, so I am still ignorant about it, but have registered for its progress and updates newsletter.

Not mainly because I need more time to spend on my computer already, but mostly for the technology part of it. It is so interesting to know how things work and how it will revolutionize TV watching specifically in Singapore.

Whatever philosophical good or the downside to it is still debatable. You just cannot escape technology... a two-edge sword of sorts, but how well you can manage living in balance with technology riding most part of your daily life for yourself, your children, and your family.

TV has somewhat replaced most part of human communications especially from a family. Everybody may be in one room, but few words may be spoken as the focus is on and eye glued to the screen. The Internet, makes us glued to the monitor instead.

So we have more time saved with technology helping us out our daily chores, we seem to have less time with one another. 24 hours does not seem enough for one day as it moves too fast to here.

Joost may take off like a rocket or may be just another fad.

It may become an integral part of our lives here, or it may just blow-over like bubble tea kiosks phenomenon in Singapore a few years back; or the Internet bubble that burst the dot-com companies around the world into obscurity.

Somehow, after the disintegration, something new is continuously being reinvented... for the better?

Will just have to watch the wave for ourselves as it comes... starting this March 2007.

My Singapore Rediscovered

I have been following the second week of the edutainment show called Explore Singapore!

The main reason is to provide Singaporeans as well as tourists alike about the rich cultures and heritage this tiny island holds with its more than 80 museums and libraries.

There seem so much to learn about the yesteryear from when Singapore was discovered by the Temasek Prince who gave the island its name Malay name Singapura or Lion City in translation... known today as Singapore, to the Japanese Occupation years, the handing-over back to the British... to the day it became independent from Malaysia... and beyond.

The museums and libraries spread throughout the island have so many stories to tell... just waiting especially their natives to visit these places.

This show ignites my curiosity to arrange for outings with my son to a heritage trail. Rediscover our island's past, the nation building to where it is today and beyond. A good and easy way to know where these places of interests are, is by clicking onto the map below.


I have joined the second contest after the show and are gearing-up for more until the end. It would be great if I could win something from taking part in the contest. If not, at least I learn a whole lot about my homeland.

A noble effort by the National Heritage Board, The National Library and Media Development Authority to let the busy Lions get to know our roots in a den at the southern-most tip of Malaysia.

My Man, Hady!

Its official, as of 9:00pm tonight, Hady Mirza was declared the Singapore Idol 2006!

He takes over the crown champion of last year's, Taufik Batisa.

After repeated pounding of the Redial button on my phone, my son has chalked-up over S$40.00 worth of phone bill calling the voting number 1900-1121902 for Hady.

A small investment for a talented young man who will do Singapore proud. Not to mention the Malay community as a whole, the second time around!

He always chooses the most difficult songs, but did them outstandingly. I was amazed at his high range when he sang "Through The Fire" by Chaka Khan. Not just anybody, but Chaka Khan! Awesome vocal power with a wide range showed he was the man!

He deserves every support he got as he was the only competitor that was consistent in his perfect delivery every week, yet pushing himself higher thus raising the bar to a higher level every week for the competition as a whole.

Jonathan Leong was good and charismatic. He definitely has the X-factor, engaging, but lacks the powerful vocals and range. He does subdued songs, cool songs that suit his vocal range, which sometimes in one tone always, I felt.

Nonetheless, Jonathan has mass appeal, especially for the young ladies in this region with his bad-boy, rocker look, yet cool and collect appearance.

He will go far commercially as Dick Lee and Ken Lim - the Singapore Idol judges have mentioned. He will have staying power in the music business as Florence puts it, while Jacintha thinks he is already a Singapore Idol.

All the best to both Idols!

Hady, your fan here will support you all the way... right down to the wire, even through the fire! Fire? Well I have to think about that one. Congratulations Hady Mirza!

Singapore Ideal 2006

I watched Wednesday's Singapore Idol and totally forgot about the next day's results show. I did not know who was eliminated until I saw an article at the back of Life! that Paul Twohill was out.

I breathed a sigh of relief that my favourite singer was not booted-out as I did not help him by voting for him this week.

The last standing 4 Idols had the judges picked out the songs for them to sing and showcase their singing talents and showmanship abilities.

Hady Mirza was superb, while Jonathan Leong was great too with his laid-back song which suited him perfectly.

Here's the thing...

There is just not a big enough talent pool of budding singers here, so we make do with a few that really shine, while the rest will fade out through the course of the competition eventually.

Yes, I am stating the obvious.

It is very obvious who are the ones that will be at the finals, while the rest will have their dignified exit the last day they sing... with the judges praising them for their efforts to improve and for their tenacity to receive blow after blow of criticisms every week for their less than so-so performance.

This is of course exceptional as far as Matilda D' Silva is concern. She has an incredible voice, but lack appeal to the voters. She should be the last 4 standing as far as singing goes. Hack! Last 3!

You will know whose turn to leave when the judges give praises to them even though they, well... suck at singing. Nonetheless the audience love their persona -a dignified exit for taking part and enjoying the ride.

So, with 3 left - Hady, Jonathan and Jasmine, the last two is obvious to me from the very beginning. Honestly it was obvious to pick the final two when it first started.

What you see during the course of the competition is that they get better at singing. Well... most of them.

Jasmine Tye gave a few surprising performances, but still too mechanical-like and I do not feel the maturity in her voice. That is just me... a CD buying fan for the real singers I like.

Now, I am banking on Hady Mirza simply because he can sing... really sing! Not because he is of the same race... well that is true in a small part of me, but because he has quite a vocal range and has been delivering the songs perfectly and consistently throughout the length of the competition.

That is why the judges picked songs that are challenging for Hady and perfect for Jonathan.

Hady has to show his vocal range and hit those high notes, while Jonathan has to ooze his charm while he sings.

Both are terrific singers, but if you were to judge mainly on the singing, then Hady is a clear winner. Jonathan is commercially bankable with a vast Chinese audience in Asia.

Do the math and you get your winner. Nonetheless, I am going to invest some of my money to vote for the dark horse, Hady Mirza for his singing which has already reached the Pro ranks.

All the best Hady! Hope this one supporter will make a difference to you and Singapore music industry at large. Be prepared to show your best at World Idol.

Ghosts No More

Episode 101: Pilot

Date: September 23, 2005

Synopsis: Melinda Gordon has a gift. Ever since she was a girl she possessed the ability to receive messages from spirits that have passed.

These spirits use Melinda as a conduit to pass messages to the living. . . sometimes this information is too intense and scattered to understand.

This leads to skepticism by the living and confusion for Melinda. But when she is able to aid both the deceased and the living Melinda realizes this unearthly talent is gift to human kind and that it is her calling to help all those that have passed connect to those that have survived.

Pilot Description: Melinda is channeled by the spirit of a soldier who doesn't know he is dead. After researching this man, Melinda learns that he died 30 years ago in Vietnam. Melinda gets in touch with the soldier's son to help them find closure.

MY TAKE: This wonderful new series that Singapore's Channel 5 has started showing every Friday night at 10:00pm is really enchanting, above anything ghostly.

Spooky, yes creates the excitement of a ghost movie it seems, but more of people finding closures with the things and dreams that had gone unfulfilled when their time was up.

The same too for the people they left behind. The show is warm and has a good plot for the pilot. Jennifer Love Hewit is still as attractive as ever. Love Hewitt.

My son watched it at the beginning with a ready-pillow to cover his face.

The passing shadows, the weired music and the expected in-your-face ghost pop-ups never fail to scare the wits out of my son.

Wify will have a ready-pillow with her too, not watching ghost movies though, but serial killer-type of movies.

Guess my son has to learn that humans cause more harm to each other than ghosts ever do in our daily lives.

Do not really know why he is so "ultra-terrified" of ghosts. Understandably I was a child once and yes, I was scared too, but both of us as parents try very hard to not make him scared of ghosts, but he just is.

Maybe from the many ghost movies we watched on our home theater system. Maybe when children talk amongst themselves. The bogeyman out to get them. I just do not know. Hope it is phase that will go away as he grows up.

I noticed he did use the "ready-pillow" at all during the entire show. He however cried when the soldier and his son found closure.

I was surprised that he identified with the longing, the resolution both the living and the dead seek, and he actually cried! He was totally embarrassed.

I acted as if I did not notice. I have to admit the scene was very touching... sad, wish-could-turn-back-time kind of feeling, but finally closure... warm, satisfied... the best way, given the circumstances they were in.


Alright... for now Ghosts No More! as far as my son is concern, I think. He is actually looking forward to watch next week about a little boy who does not seem to understand that he is already dead. Interesting.

Now stories with demons it totally a different issue altogether. Sigh. Have to get through that with him somehow. Wonder if there is any good show... Hell Boy?... no, good show....

Heck! For me too sometimes, when I watch scary movies alone at night. Fortunately my fear fades quickly after that, because The Almighty is where I seek my strength... is where he has to seek his strength from too.