Book, TV, and Movie

In order or preference...

The Help (Book) - this fictional story about black maids and their employers in Mississippi is written by a white person. Perhaps that's why a white lady and a bunch of black maids tried helping each other and only the white lady made a future for herself... anyway, I shouldn't be cynical about fiction, right? The book touches hearts with light and heavy subjects at the same time, and is simply a wonderful read. It's incredibly raw, and you find yourself sucked into the lives of the three main characters, rejoicing and bleeding with them along the way. Highly recommended.

Dexter Seasons 1-3 (TV) - I'm pretty sure this is fictional as well. Just kidding... blood scientist with the Miami police is a serial killer who hunts down people who slip through the cracks of justice. Yeah, okay. Surprisingly good actually, even though outrageous. Recommended.

Harry Potter (Movie) - It's not a bad movie at all... I just don't know what is going on most of the time because I haven't read the book and I rarely remember anything from previous HP movies. Wizard fight scenes suck and the general fight scenes aren't that great either. I suppose it's real good if you are an HP fan, like my wife is. Not recommended.

Shenzhen bi-products

Working in Shenzhen has its bi-products:

• Better reflexes: I fear for my life every time I get on a car... nobody respects a stop sign and no one uses their turning lights. So one tends to develop really good reflexes on the road even though one isn't the driver.
• Stronger abs: suspecting that every single person is trying to cut in line, all people in Shenzhen line up right behind each other. Makes me a bit homophobic sometimes, actually.Anyway, as a result, I constantly swing my backpack to create personal space. If I don't have a backpack, I'll swing my hips. Works like a charm.
• DVDs... at USD$1 a piece, you tend to just resort to pirated DVDs for all your entertainment. Here goes...

Lie to Me: Loved the end of season 1 with an undeniable dark turn. It lost some steam in the middle as every episode started to feel like CSI. Anyway, good TV but I have one big question... if actors can fake all the truth- and lie-telling faces, how can you detect them in real life? Recommended.

True Blood: I swear, my wife made me watch it. So much nudity that sometimes I thought I was watching soft porn... not that I know what soft porn is...

The Town: When the ending credits rolled out, I was shocked to see Ben Affleck directed! Not a bad effort by him. Shadows of The Heat in some of the bank robbery scenes, right down to the demise of each robber. And Ashley Judd's hand slide. It is, however, not The Heat. Affleck can try to be Michael Mann... but he can't try to be De Niro. And the guy from Mad Men is certainly no Al Pacino either. Good action flick that would have been much better if it was the first of its kind. Recommended.

The American: This is Michael Clayton, assassin version, gone bad. I fell asleep twice and finally finished the movie on the 3rd night. The Italian town is beautiful though - always liked those narrow stone paved European small towns where everybody knows everybody. Except for the new killer in town, apparently. Not recommended.

Eat Pray Love: I thought this would be a boring chick flick. Chick flick it is. Boring it is not. Thank god that Julia Roberts is in this movie as she nailed the role of midldle age divorcee unsure of herself. Negative points for making Bali a tourist madhouse (Our October honeymoon coincided with a book club gathering in Ubud). Recommended.

Oh, and happy new year!

Dumber? Low attention span? The value of entertainment.

This day and age, I'm looking for two things in entertainment like movies and TVs:

• Does it make me dumber?
• Does it lose me half way in?

Sorry I can't have a nice table here... but here goes:

G.I. Joe (IMDB)

• Yup, made me 15 years dumber
• Yup, lost in 10 minutes... and then entertains me for 2 minutes... and then loses me again

Not recommended. And please, no sequel!!! Just go an kill bad guys already... we don't need the romantic relationships that don't look real anyway.

Sherlock Holmes (IMDB)

• No, did not make me dumber; didn't make me smarter either
• No, movie kept me entertained throughout

Recommended for 2 hours of solid entertainment. Downey Jr. is slowly proving himself to be a pretty good actor. Jude Law gives a fine performance. Not sure where Rachel McAdams was during the movie, though she occasionally gives some fresh air to the script. Sure, I'll go see the sequel as well!

十月圍城 Bodyguards and Assassins (IMDB)

• No, did not make me dumber. I felt slightly more patriotic after the movie... for 30 minutes. Please note that this is fiction and not real history.
• Yes, sometimes it gets repetitive as people fight and die. I liked the build up... but the final 10 fight scenes... couldn't it have been 5?
  

Recommended. I'll overlook the fight scenes and skip to parts I liked: each martyr died for their own passion. The general to reinstall the family glory; the monk to reconnect with his faith and to spit in the policeman's face; the general's daughter to avenge her father's death; the gambling spy to be remembered by his child; the begger to see the women he loves but cannot have (um, yup, that's his mom... don't ask. I don't understand either.); the servant to protect his master; the master to protect democracy; the assassin (yup, he dies too, surprise!) to pay final tribute to his country. They all died for a different reason that they thought was worth dying for. Good stuff.

I also want to note those who didn't die: the tycoon, the organizer, the revolutionary, the police commander... yup... I think it's a subtle dig at those in powerful seats. You die for passion if you are a follower, and the "leaders" will succeed with your blood. It's always worked that way, no?

(By the way, Leon Lai got a bad rap in the movie. Not sure why. He wasn't good, but he wasn't that bad either)

Avatar IMAX 3D (IMDB)

• Yes, made me dumber, especially the part where the natives start chanting like humans in Matrix: Reloaded (And Morphius's speech was practically copied)
• Yes, I kept waiting for the final fight I almost passed out in my seat. Did it have to be 2.5 hours long? Couldn't it be 1.5 hours and have 1 more show fitted in? Plus, IMAX 3D isn't ideal from row 5.

Recommended for the IMAX 3D experience - much better than Up. Truly remarkable... very realistic... and the 3D was sometimes mind blowing. I just wish it were shorter and not that stupid. This is corporate America working here... they would have wiped out the indigenous people before trying scientists and then resorting to the military. Plus I don't think 20,000 people with bows and arrows would have been a match for the para-military men anyway. And wouldn't they just come back with bigger guns? Arg. My head hurts from thinking. Wait a minute, why do I have to think for this movie?

Mad Men (IMDB)

• No, made me think a bit... but not too much. Not like The Wire.
• Yes, I had some lapses. Sometimes I think it's just too subtle about its messages.

Recommended... mostly because Season 2 is said to be unbelievable. Season 1 really wasn't bad, but I can't pinpoint any particularly good parts either. Love the development of Don Draper from director to partner... Peggy Olsen from secretary to writer (and mother!)... Pete Campbell from manager to, uh, manager... Betty Draper's spirals... the relationship between Joan Hollaway and Roger Sterling... the strangeness and oddness of Cooper... the parent relationships within the Campbells (both Pete and Trudy)... all the family relationships... all very interesting. But subtle.

Looking forward to season 2.

HK TV

• Yup, most def makes me dumber... even the "news", which concentrates on so many meaningless local stuff
• Yup, I cannot keep my attention for more than 2 minutes

Not recommended. AH. I need ESPN, which would have drawn a no, doesn't make me dumber nor smarter and no, will not lose attention.

Flashforward (TV)

They marketed the show as "from the creators of Lost".

They forgot the other tag line "for the dumbest audiences who watched Lost without trying to figure anything out".

Big disappointment with way too many predictable subplots. The premise had so much promise but the execution was piss poor. I haven't totally given up on the show yet, but each episode is slowly wearing me down... and we're only at episode 4.

• Yup, some FBI regional director is playing basketball with the president
• Yup, some senator was just made VP because president wanted funding for the FBI regional director
• Yup, the same senator is going to be president in her (alleged) flashforward

My head hurts. Not recommended at all. Arg. I had hope before.

Olympic bids...

Well, ESPN just spent ten minutes to describe the "fall-outs" from Chicago's ouster in the first round of voting for the 2016 Olympic games. Here's what an ESPN reporter had to say:

• "there's a lot of backroom dealings... been some issues between the US Olympic Committee and the International Committee... it's a huge disappointment... it (Obamas) really didn't matter... it's a defeat for The President and he hasn't suffered much defeat in his career..."

And of course we have the great American free press, courtesy of sports columnist Jay Mariotti:

• "affects the legacy of The President... and Mayor Daley... Chicago is the 2nd city with an inferiority complex... it hurts a lot... I don't think the city is going to get over it for quite some time..."

What a bunch of BULLSHIT! I'll tell you why Rio deserves to host the Olympics:

1. "Thousands of people stood in bewildered silence in downtown Chicago on Friday after the International Olympic Committee eliminated the city from the race for the 2016 Summer Olympics in the first round of voting.
2. "Nearly 50,000 people cheered in celebration when Rio was announced as host, jumping and shouting in a Carnival-like party on Copacabana beach."

Look, they had 50,000 people hoping for a nod of approval. 50,000! Do you know what happens if 50,000 filled Michigan Ave? They become a major annoyance to the locals, that's what.

Want more evidence?

• After IOC President Jacques Rogge announced the winner, Brazilian football legend Pele was reduced to tears.
• Think Chicago basketball legend Michael Jordan is in tears? I think not.

It's really quite simple. Brazilians, much like the Chinese years ago, wanted the Olympics more. It was a matter of national pride, and that's that. South America has never hosted an Olympic event. Brazil is already committed to hosting the World Cup in 2014.

Instead of bickering over Obama's lack of influence and faults on the voting system, how about a loud applause to Rio de Jeneiro? ESPN, how about that, a little sunlight for Rio? Please?

The Wire with TF

I'm blogging from about 40,000 feet over somewhere in Nevada/Arizona. Pretty cool, I'd say. Internet on flights will be a regular thing soon with extended battery lives.

Anyway, I've been watching Season 4 of The Wire with TF lately. I think she's enjoying it. And I'm definitely enjoying it, especially with her reactions during the show. For example, she always gets tensed up when people are walking in the dark alley.

• "Oh shit, something is going to happen, right?"
• "Is he going to be shot?"
• "I'm scared"

Of the people whom she thinks are going to die all the time: Bodie and Carcetti. Whenever a car drives up to Bodie's corner for a re-up, TF instinctively thinks machine guns are going to come blazing out. I'm not sure why she thinks Carcetti is going to die all the time... but obviously she's been movie trained and regular TV trained.

• "No, hon, nobody is going to shoot the mayor-to-be when he walks out his home"
• "They are just kids hanging out... nobody is shooting at them"
• "I told you this was realistic... there's no drama... and nobody is gong to shoot at the police"
  

Unintentional side effects...

One of the unintentional side effects of watching The Wire: I can't stand watching Cold Case, CSI, NYPD, NCSI, Bones, Law & Order, etc... Apparently, I've been brainwashed to think that The Wire is the most realistic portrayal of police work. Anything less would be dissatisfying.

Dang it!

Now... should I hit the play button for The Wire Season 4 Episode 1?

The Wire, Season 5

I'm continue to watch The Wire in a torrid pace... Season 5 is yet another excellent show that explores a dying industry with a lot of influence: the media.

(See my review on season 1 on drugs, season 2 on unions, season 3 on politics, season 4 on education)

Unfortunately, it's Season 5, which comes after the absolutely brilliant Season 4. And I love bashing the media (even more so, the people who buy it). So Season 5 was actually a bit of a let down. The story surrounds our usual suspects (cops, drugs, politicians) and adds the media to the center of the story. Quick re-cap: discouraged cop creates a serial killer out of thin air so he can get resources to track his drug target. Morally corrupt reporter finds interests in this story and starts making up shit to sensationalize it and sell papers. Cutting to the end, cop sort of nails his drug target in his last case while reporter wins prizes for his writing.

Season 5 does a good job depicting the pressures the media feels. Take the reporter who spends a few weeks with Bubbles the "homeless" to write a heartfelt story about homelessness. That's a couple of weeks on a story. And a blogger can take that one page story and spin it in all sorts of direction in a few minutes of writing. Who is going to generate more news? Who is going to generate more revenue? (Obviously The Wire is going to be better than Josekin's blog, but you get what I mean...)

And then there's the demand for good reporting, as in reporting on topics that are fun and engaging. In words of the actors, "a blond disappearing from Aruba is more important than inner city drug killings." And editors of the Baltimore Sun is just reacting to that. And the national spotlight on them (due to coverage on the fake serial killer) encouraged them to focus even more on riding the story.

Alas, 10 episodes is too short for a real damning piece on all this. I'd recommend Season 5, but not nearly as much as Season 4.

The Wire, in order of my "recommendability": 4, 1, 3, 5/2.

Just for fun, a quick recap on how the characters did at the end (STOP reading if you still want to see the show...):

Cops

• McNulty: insubordinate cop brings down two drug orgs... then gets laid off from the force
• Daniels: straight up commander gets fucked over by mayor and resigned for family reasons
• Greggs and Sydnor: excellent detectives will continue to serve... as detectives
• Freamon: Good cop forced to fake serial killer so he can get the drug org... and forced to resign
  
• Herc and Carver: both are not very good at their jobs... one lands a great paying job as a double spy for both the police and lawyer who helps drug lords; the other continues up the police ladder
  
• Prez: inept cop can't handle a gun but can cracks codes by drug gangs; ends up as a teacher at some half hopeless school teaching math
  
• Rawls and Burrel: commisioners trying to be politicians succeeds some, fails some, never did much about crime and finally pushed out and onto better jobs
  
• Valchek: how this man became the newest commisioner still confuses me...

I guess unless you loved the job (as either detective or higher up)... don't be a cop

Drugs

• Dee, Snoop, Bodie, Wee Bay, Bird, etc - all work for the drug organizations and none would make it to the C-level... and all in jail or dead.
  
• Chris: Marlo's right hand man kills with or without a conscious; life without parole.
• Stringer - he tried to walk away at the top; killed.
  
• Barksdale - he kept going back to the streets even though he made enough; life without parole.
  
• Prop Joe and Butch: I thought the middle man never would be touched; dead.
  
• Marlo: ruthless dealer forced out but the street is still in him; Free man.
  
• Omar: renegade stick up man tries to enforce his code on Marlo failes; dead.
• The Greek: Drug supplier remains drug supplier.
  

The lesson, as usual, don't join gangs... but you can be the supplier apparently

Non-police

• Pearlman: always balacing between bringing a good case and her career, it seems that she will do well
  
• Levy: lawyer helping drug organizations barely survives... and will continue to serve gangs with a target on his back (from Pearlman)
  
• Carcetti: aspiring mayor has nice ideas... but falls to politics and turns out to be the same as his predecessors (less the corruption)
  
• Clay Davis and Royce: shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit is now my favorite phrase. Corrupt officials will continue their good lives.
• Templeton: better at writing fiction than reporting real news, he's headed for news prizes and headlines with his sensational and dishonest reporting
  
• Gus and Alma: Good and honest reporters relegated to irrelevance
  
• Michael Lee: smartest kid in Prez's class also tries to take care of his friends; he ends up on the street becoming like Omar - stick up man with a code robbing drug dealers
  
• Duke & Randy: both pretty smart kids, both end up homeless (one in the streets, one in a group home)
• Cutty: former gang muscle walks away from the game to run a boxing ring for kids on the brink; he's going to do okay
  

Finally, I wanted to end with Bubbles, one of my favorite characters on the show. Drug addict/ trash man never got away from drugs. He finally turns up clean after accidentally killing his protege Shorrod.

"Ain't no shame on holding on to grief, as long as you make room for other things too"
-Bubbles

Did I forget anyone?

The Wire is one of the best TV dramas I've ever seen. Maybe I will watch it again next week. Highly highly highly recommended.

The Wire, Season 4

My friend HW told me that this was the most spectacular TV series he has ever seen. He might be right.

Season 1 was police vs. drugs. Season 2 was police vs. port. Season 3 was police vs. drugs vs. politics vs. community. And Season 4... this is about how kids become involved with drugs. And it's a damning piece on the education system. Oh, and also the teachers, the parents, the cops, the politicians, the kids, everyone.

Man, I feel a bit depressed for them... there's a focus on the education system this time. And the whole thing is just so in-ept in educating the children that it makes me want to cry. And that's just the most minor offense. It is worse at keeping kids out of trouble because, well, the school's job is to have better test scores. Children be damned, get those numbers right!

I'm a bit conflicted about whether I recommend Season 4. It's makes for a great Michael Moore movie, I'll give The Wire that. For a TV series, man, it's just too real and depressing. Well, with that, I highly highly recommend Season 4 of The Wire. Awesome show.

The Wire, Season 3

Season 1 (review here) and 2 (review here) of The Wire were pretty good. Season 3 is right on top of things as well, and a good step up from Season 2.

One of the things that The Wire does very well is to involve the about a dozen different story lines and move them in parallel to show a complete picture of the police department, the drug organizations, and the politics. Imagine how much work went into that! On that note, I'll split the review on the three:

• Police: well, the premise is simple... the police finally tried the "move the drugs to the worse neighborhood and turn a blind eye" tactic. By the numbers, this of course works. It's like moving all the bad guys to an off shore island and letting them do their thing there. Unfortunately, this presents a slippery slope for the good people in govt, media, and the general public who are not affected, i.e. those who live in already nice neighborhoods. Sadly, that's how I would think about it too. I can get all moral on it if it's not my neighborhood. But hell, if they get drugs off my front door, I'm all for it. Can't blame any of us, huh? It's just human nature.
  
• Drug orgs: the fall of Avon Barksdale and Stringer Bell teaches us a few lessons. One, once in a gang, always in a gang. Two, you feud, you lose. Remember, the whole world is out to get you. Three, be the middle man. Why Butch and Prop Joe are still alive is beyond me. Four, trying to leave a gang is inviting death. And five, don't join gangs. Duh.
• Politics: it's clear from the show that they condemn the higher-up system (police, drugs, whatever) more than the individuals at any level. And a season where they finally put politicians in the lime light, The Wire really put the heat on. Decisions were made/coerced because the higher-ups say so, and for all sorts of different reasons. Politicians do have a conscious... it's just that politics overrule it.
• One more for Mr. Cutty, the ex-con who tries to help kids on the brink... I love this character. He just snapped out of the gangs and decides he will help however he can. We need more people like this.
  

Highly highly recommended. Makes you think if any system is ever going to work perfectly (I know, it's a how and all... but it's so realistic!) to move society forward.

By the way, blog is way down because I've been organizing all my photographs from the beginning of time. Do you know how many pictures I've taken since 2003 when I got my first SLR? 24,000. That's right. And I'm organizing all of them. I'll try to blog some about food (NYC Restaurant week!) soon.

TV series

One of the by-products of taking time off is TV that makes me dumber. Those I try to avoid: any reality show in the US (here's what the American public needs: one single website that has all the reality show results from the prior night with no more than 50 words describing the outcome and "character developments..."), any Cantonese soap opera, any show like Deal or No Deal...

Yet another by-product is non-value add productivity, such as watching TV that adds wisdom but little else.

I watched Weeds seasons 1 to 3 and lost season 4 as I traveled back and forth from New York to Hong Kong. It was entertaining but way too outrageous. Just to quickly recap. Beginning of season 1, widow tries to make ends meet by dealing pot. By the end of season 1, she's starting her own growing operation. By the end of season 2, she is dancing with the regional drug lord and has to work for him to pay off her debt. By the end of season 3, she is working for the Mexicans. I hear in season 4 she is pregnant with the Mexican drug lords' kid. Right. Still... an entertaining series. In fact, I'm kind of glad I lost season 4 in my suitcase. Moving on now... I'd recommend season 1 and 2 only.

Finished The Wire Season 2. Not as good as Season 1 (review), but still pretty good. Instead of drugs, the BPD is onto illegal activities at the Baltimore piers. Call my cynical, but this is way less dramatic than drugs and doesn't make for great TV. You do feel for the dock guys though: they are the inidividual GMs that you will never see on the evening news. Somehow, while dying a slow death, they have to survive, and a little dirty money here and there will just have to cut it. Ultimately, however, they aren't criminals and never were in the mindset of avoiding surveilance, hence the easy catch. Again, I highly recommend this series!

(Have to suspend TV viewage for a few days as we are packing to move... from one end of Wall Street to another.)

The Wire

I finished Season One of The Wire today. Awesome TV show. Highly highly recommended for guys. Obviously I've never worked for the gang nor the police, but I thought the show was extremely realistic: somehow, it was able to "accurately" depict the delicate balance (read: politics) between the hood, the Baltimore police department, the courts, the city hall, the runners, the distributors, the drug dealers, the detectives, and the politicians.

There were only a few things I found a bit fishy (the dancer being turned and bringing a wire into the club!? No way.)... not that I would know. Haha. Great show - go watch it.

Anyway, couple of funny points:

• I turned on the sub-titles cus I couldn't understand all the street talk; I didn't even know what a runner was.
  
• PNGF wanted to watch the show together; I showed her the scene where two detectives worked the crime scene for 5 minutes and their conversation consisted of "Shit", "Fuck", "Motherfucker", "Fuck Me" and "FUCK!". She decline our next viewing.
• Freakonomics has a nine part conversation with real gangsters that has to do with The Wire - fascinating reads
  
• You know what... there's much more politics in a civilized society and it's quite complicated and frustrating; in the gangs, it's quite strict and you deal with the rogues quickly: drop 'em (okay, that wasn't funny)

By the way, reality TV is awful. I hate it. Let's have more real TV shows.

Lost, Season 5

I once called the end of Lost Season 3 the mother of all cliff hangers. After Lost Season 5, that still holds true. In fact, disappointingly, Season 5 didn't even come close. It's an awful ending that puts too many question marks on the table but answers none of the questions that have been plaguing (may I use that word?) the audience all along Season 5...

My view all along: look, if old Eloise Hawking was okay sending Dan back to his death, then she must be okay with Jack trying to detonate a nuclear device on the island! Duh!

Mother of all cliff hangers...

My god Lost season 3 just ended on a ridiculously good cliff hanger. I've tolerated the show through its first 2 seasons because of the Momento similarities and the generally okay plots. But Season 3 has just turned the whole show around. Wow.

Anyway, I wanted to make a quick comparison on why I like Lost much better than other conspiracy dramas such as 24, Prison Break, and Heroes (Note: I'm still in love with Law & Order, CSI, and other gruesome detective shows).

• 24 was novel for the 1st season. Real time TV! Who would have thought. Anyway, by season 2 the side plots and general stupidity among CTU agents, government bureaucracy, and bad guys was just too much to overcome. At the end of season 2, when President Palmer was poisoned through a handshake (Note to bad guys: there are much better ways to assassinate a president if you are that good at it already), I lost interest.
• Prison Break. First season was phenomenal. I did wonder outloud though: once they break out, there wouldn't be a season 2 or 3... and of course the producers had it in for us: we'll put them in another prison! Season 2 (the escaping act) deteriated quickly as all the characters started to drop like flies. Season 3... I won't dignify it with more than a sentence. Ops, I almost did.
• Heroes. Save the cheer leader, save the world. Great plot to bring different fractions of the story together and having the audience put the plot together for them and keep everybody's attention. Season 2 was a downer due to the strike, so I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt in season 3.

However... in the mean time, Lost Season 4!!!

TV Programming

Well, one thing is for certain: I desperately miss ESPN.

There's no much TV going on for people like me. There the TVB (oh, only 90% of the market share) that caters to viewers who demand a brainless experience. I'm not saying that they are brainless; they just want a brainless viewing because their jobs have been so stressful. At least that's my theory. Stupid and dumb soap operas that make no sense and always involves a love triangle rule the TVB channel.

Yet I digress...

On the English version of TVB, there are some US TV like CSI and 24 (and the sad sad sad Prison Break season that should never have been made)... and then there is this at 2am. I just got home from work and I just want to relax before getting into bed.

What do I find on TV? "How to masturbate an elephant" It's a program about helping endangered animals reproduce. The captivating title kept me watching for about 15 minutes. And then the visual feed from the tube that was poking in the Great White Rhino's vagina in search for an egg so that an extraction of it may help save the species (that was a long phrase) lost me. It really did. I just don't think I need to be watching Rhino vagina at 2am.

Goodnight.

I'm so sorry!

Weather Gods, forgive me for saying that Winter is over. Please don't snow on me. DOH! Freaking Chicago. It snowed on Wed, ten got very cold the last few days.

Watched Prison Break season 2 finale on Tuesday night. What a fucking disappointment. I'm boycotting the rest of the seasons, just like I did 24 after its season 2. The idea of a finale is to have a climax in which the protagonist achieves some level of victory and faces some level of (unexpected) difficulty so that viewers will be intrigued by the ending and hopefully beg for season 3. Prison Break fails to convert on either way.

Nonetheless, I have learned many valuable lessons from Prison Break:
10. If you are a pretty doctor, you should not work in a prison. This is not negotiable. Nor should you respond to some fat cop who just tried to hit on you. This is also not negotiable.
9. When your life is in danger, it might be a good idea to let people know where you will be. Or, of course, you could venture into danger yourself and then get killed. Why not.
8. Actually, it might be better to call the police; even though they are incompetent, on your own, you probably are more incompetent.
7. Trusting the mob boss and a child pedophile is a great idea if you need to escape from prison... NOT.
6. Handcuffing yourself to another person (especially the protagonist) and swallowing the key means there's only one way to get you off - say goodbye to your hand.
5. If you have a gun, don't just point it at someone; use it. The idea is to neutralize the other person, like shoot his calf or something, or force him to tie himself up, rather than wait for the other party to grab your gun.
4. When Blackmailed by others, don't just oblige. Use your phone to record the conversation. It's really just one button.
3. If you get arrested, ask to go to Fox River. I hear the security there is lax and the warden needs someone to help him build the Taj Mahal model for his anniversary.
2. When in doubt, work for "The Company"... the other jobs suck.
1. "You'll have to trust me" translates as "I'm going to screw you later"

Management Lessons

Well... I finished season 2 of 24 last night. In contrast to the 2 days or so that I took to finish season 1, it took me 3 weeks to finish season 2. Part of it was because school started and my priorities switched. But more importantly is that season 2 was a HUGE disappointment after watching season 1. Didn't feel the urgency of finishing an episode and then watch another right away.

Nonetheless, there are many management issues that I learned from season 2.
1. No matter how much you like David Palmer or think that he is right, as a leader, he has failed in making his followers believers of him. These are your closest allies and they are against you. Don't you ever wonder why!?
2. More on the "President"... calling off an attack on a hunch is hardly the right thing to do. At least have all your pieces in place to make a quick strike!
3. The joint chief of staff can oust their leader by a simple majority!? Come on now, leaders don't just come and go by popular vote!
4. Nobody seems to appreciate the gravity of an impending war. I blame the leader for not making himself clear.
5. Obviously the management of CTU is a complete mess. Insubordination is cause by bad management, that's my theory. Okay, so Amarosa wants your job, get rid of her and don't place her in a situation that can hurt you!
6. Like I said before, don't date within the office... and don't date your boss!
7. CTU again, let your subordinates do their job. All you need to know is the big picture. Micromanagement is bad management.
8. If your ex-boss is back in the office, make sure he or she is on a short leash.
9. Should you go rogue when you don't agree with your bosses? OF COURSE NOT! Your job is to convince that your boss is wrong, not to undermine him or her!
10. Don't make a public appearance after you've been up for 24 hours straight. Poor David.

24 marathon

Last time I was glued to the TV for a whole day, it was 911.

This time, it's 24. I wonder if it's the numbers. I've seen episodes here and there when they were live. Per my usual principle, I don't like TV series. It hooks you in and leaves you with a cliffhanger every week. I can't get over it. So when 6 discs of season one came knocking on my door, it eliminated my biggest fear: handling the suspense.

Since I came back from Galapagos (website almost ready!), I've done a lot of work on my photos and also travel journal. But mostly, in the last three days, I've watched the entire season one of 24. That's right, all 24 episodes. I counted... about 45 minutes per episode. It was addictive. Evil. And soooo good. It was also predictable, not too suspenseful, and full of holes hat make you scratch your head (and in my case, pulling my hair). If there's one life lesson you have to learn from 24... it is this:
1. don't date people in the office

Oh, and I also had a wonderful brunch with Meghaks at Bonger Room (I think...) and it was deviliously delicious. Plus I learned the difference between flapjacks, pancakes, and hotcakes. I had the hotcake and it was okay. But the chocolate tower that Meghaks insisted that we order and share was to die for. I'm learning about so many more brunch places now. Should make it a habbit. Unfortunately, 24 has limited me to dumplings today - they were no hassle and I can glue myself to the couch as they cooked. Perfect.

So now, my life is back to normal. I was told that there are DVDs of Season Two. I don't think I can handle it though. Now I need to get back to my travel journal and get things organized.

Bait Ball

I love coming home at 3am, turning the TV on, and getting good programs on Animal Planet. I've seen this episode before (Called "Massive Nature," shmoo, not "Blue Planet") before and blogged about it. Yesterday's viewing was from the beginning though. The particular segment that I stayed awake to watch was the sardine bait ball. (Come on, even at 3am, the mention of a sardine bait ball should always excite you)

The dolphins separated the pack of sardines (called a bait ball) from the main pack by blowing bubbles into the pack of fish. Afterwards, the sharks, birds, and seals joined in. The rest you can see in my previous post. The program concludes that "becoming separated is what made these fish vulnerable" and that the sardines' doom was facilitated because "these predators have ignored each other (because of how easy it is to hunt sardine bait balls)".

So... stick with the pack. If you show weakness, every one will want a piece of you.

Alternative reviews!

Beautiful cooking - local HK TV game show invites beautiful stars to cook hard core chinese dishes. Wildly entertaining show. The guests are all male and they have a trash can behind them in case they need to puke. It's all very sexually degrading, but you can't deny that the premise is funny. The next step is the have HK male stars demonstrate how to fix up stuff around home. But... back to the gals. The "Iron Chef" lookalike is extremely well done with tricky ingredients; not so much because the ingredient itself (octopus, sea urchin, anything that is slimy and in general repulsive in live form), but because, as I said, they are all alive to begin with. The starlet has to grab the incredient while it's moving, kill it, and then cook it. One of the best moments was when an octopus latched on and refused to let go it its tenticles. Another is when ALL the guest stars had to puke upon one dish. There's a negative score too, so the poor gal got -110 (max is +120) score. Good times all around.

Death Note - Japanese comic about a kid who picked up a notebook from the Death World in which he can write names and kill people. He battles a detective who is determined to arrest this kid, who slowly thinks that he is god (not capitalized intentionally) and that his deeds will lead to a better world by killing criminals. Very underrated at first but quickly gained a cult following. I shall not spoil the ending for you (not that you'd ever read it)... but the comic does raise a very interesting point as to what is right and what is wrong. The kid who plays god against criminals that police cannot pin? Or the detective, a kid as well, clasically Japanese, who thinks the very act of not using the justice system is criminal? In the end, I think the author has a pretty clear view of who can play god. In fact, the author questions the authority of god and whether god can ever exist. Good comic book. There's a movie coming out as well; I wonder if we can show that movie at school or something.