Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Mixed signals @ Venusbuzz.com

Oh dear... I've been so busy lately that I haven't had the chance to feature some of my latest articles for Venusbuzz. Here's one, where I complained about "Manglish" at the KLIA:


The article garnered responses from Venusbuzz readers. Emily said, "Good one Adline, this is really funny. I never noticed those signs, I'm usually quite sharp. Must be a weary traveler when I land in this heat, perhaps they can cater me next time :p" Thanks for the feedback Emily!

Meet Mangosteenskin @ Venusbuzz.com

Here's a recent article I wrote, which features my interview with a very creative lady who goes by the online name Mangosteenskin, or simply, Mango. She crafts the cutest rubber stamps I have ever seen! Do check out the article and her website!

I wrote an email to Mango this morning, to let her know that the interview's up. As soon as she read it, she wrote back to share her elation at being featured on Venusbuzz, she said, "Heheheheheheh...tengah senyum ni sampai telinga (I am smiling from ear to ear) ...hehehe. Thanks so much Adline!!! I feel like dancing now! now! now!"

I do love making people happy :)

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Muffin Vs Cupcake analogy @ Venusbuzz.com

I really appreciate it when people take the trouble to write in to say that they liked what I wrote. It's uplifting to get positive feedback from people :) Recently, I wrote an article for VenusBuzz called "Muffin Vs Cupcake", which talks about the two different kinds of "woman" according to... well, me!



Ida, owner of Muffin Monster on the Block, left me a really nice message underneath my article. She said:

"Hi Adline, I like your entry muffin vs cupcake. Actually, I'm an owner of e-bakery selling muffins & cupcakes. Your description about those 2 products really catch my interest to extract your post into my blog www.muffinsmonster.wordpress.com. I'll put your name as the writer k. Do link me if you like. Thx..."

Auw! Thanks so much Ida! All the best with your muffin and cupcake biz, and thanks for featuring my article on your blog ;)

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Harry Potter and the Half -blood Prince


I went to see the sixth Harry Potter movie today, believing that I'd come away dissappointed. I am so very relived to report, therefore, that it exceeded my expectations with flying colours. I LOVED it!

Where to begin? Let's start with the characters. I can't think of a better actor to play Horace Slughorn than Jim Broadbent. He was PERFECT for the role. Although his interpretation of Slughorn was rather less enthusiastic and perhaps a tinge melancholic, the character was richer for it.

I thought this movie also presented a much mellower Albus Dumbledore, a fact that I greatly appreciated, for I didn't quite enjoy Micheal Gambon's frenzied headmaster in the last few movies. It was also most comforting to see Maggie Smith as McGonagall and Alan Rickman as Snape again. They OWNED the scene, whenever they were in it. I must say that I've always liked the fact that Alan Rickman portrays a much "kinder" Snape, who is much, much colder in the book.

Still cringing over lovestruck teen scenes from "Twilight", I wasn't looking forward to teenage mush, but thankfully, the director and scriptwriters didn't cheapen JKR's fine work with burgeoning hormones. The young actors all did really well, even the bad guys. Tom Felton has always performed admirably as Draco Malfoy, but there is a sense of vulnerability about him this time around. All the young Voldemorts also did really well.

Emma Watson did Hermione Granger justice in this movie; Rupert Grint, revisits his comical side, and presents a less broody Ron Weasley; Evanna Lynch, the girl who plays Luna Lovegood, shines as usual during her screen time, which I wish there were more of; Bonnie Wright, who plays Ginny Weasley did really well too. One could tell she was nervous about her on-screen kiss, but that added to the sweet innocence of it all. Daniel Radcliffe is, on the other hand, must be a veteran in intimate scenes by now, having waved his "wand" onstage for Equus and all.

I liked the fact that they fast forwarded a lot of the relationships in this movie. Here, Hermione and Harry were open to each other about their respective crushes from the get go, and Lupin and Tonks were already a couple (but why wasn't her hair pink?). No Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour though.

They may have skipped the marvelous beginning of the book, where the Minister for Magic shakes up the muggle prime minister, but I felt footage of a crumbling Millennium Bridge was far more effective in showing the muggle world in peril.

One particular scene of destruction that made me shed a tear, however, was the burning of The Burrow. I don't think that was in the book, but it sent shivers down my spine. This was the place that Harry and his best mates felt safest in, but now it's gone.

This, to me, is the best adaptation of a Harry Potter book to the silver screen. It pleases grown ups and teenagers alike, but will probably scare the little ones. My 5-year old son didn't like it much.

* Image via Wikipedia.

Friday, July 17, 2009

Hate the haze

I am positively hating the haze that's enveloping KL & PJ right now. It seems to have gotten worse since we got back from Sydney. I really miss the clean air in Sydney... sigh. I miss the cool weather and nice buildings and friendly streets. When we walked to and from work in Sydney, we went through a tree-lined field called "The Domain". It was so soothing.

In KL, for our trip home from work, we have to stand for 30 minutes to an hour for a commuter train that always seems to be delayed, while having the sun beating down our backs, listening to horrific traffic and breathing in filthy air. I get elbowed by some fat guy nearly every day when I try to get on the train, then I suffocate for 30 minutes in a train that's packed, and the air conditioning doesn't work - as if the working day wasn't stressful enough. By the time I get home, I'm usually bloody exhausted.

Oh yeah, back to the haze. I'm convinced that everyone's feeling sick because of this toxic air we're breathing. It's hard not to be depressed when you look around and things seem so apocalyptic. Here I am recycling my household waste, trying not to accept plastic bags, and using public transport to do my part for the environment, and the air is freaking toxic. If I could go without breathing, I would.

It seems like a joke that we're taking our son out tomorrow, so that he can play in the kids pool at KLCC and get some "fresh air". Such a thing doesn't exist in KL! When are we going to get blue skies?Sigh.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

You've got venus mail @ Venusbuzz.com

Wah! I received my first Venus mail today! It seems Venusbuzz.com, which I've been contributing to for a while now, has a newsletter! Cool! Do sign up! We promise to bring you good articles!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

A fresh new beginning

I've decided to change the whole look of my blog, in keeping with my current mantra of "living with less." Three cheers for fresh new beginnings... hip, hip hurray (3x).

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Helping hand & Sydney sense @ Venusbuzz.com

July is social awareness month, did you know that? I didn't. But now I do! As part of my assignment for Venus buzz, I came up with a few suggestions on how to make our children more socially aware.

Of course, I also had to write something based on my trip to Sydney. Here are a few things I learned about the city when I got there.

Welcome 2019: Time to Grow

Happy New Year everyone! I'm so so excited for 2019 and everything that it'll bring. I'm starting the year with gratefulness for...