Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest

I watched "Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest" with Orchi & friends on Friday. Normally, I would stay far away from Disney movies but I saw the first one on Channel 5 the week before and realized it was actually a lot better than I thought. I was actually very glad that they screened the first one on TV because this sequel continues from where it left off. It has many returning characters and lots of references. If I had just watched this sequel, I would not have enjoyed myself as much.

Anyway, the movie was more than two hours long. The story was very good and refreshing; more of the same style of action & comedy you'd expect. The only letdown was that the ending was abrupt and it will surely be continued in the next instalment of the series. This movie is definitely a must-watch for those who have watched the first one for the sake of completeness. I definitely look forward to the next Pirates film.

RT is Coming~

My RT (Remedial Training) begins this Sunday at Bedok Camp. I have booked for a Sunday and Tuesday slot (it was either Sunday or burn my Saturdays). It will last for around 8 weeks.

I still remember 4-5 years ago when I just ORDed and was in NUS. Shortly after, I failed my first NSmen IPPT then immediately got called up for RT. I still remember how depressed I was about having to go to Maju Camp for what seemed like an eternity of torture till I could pass (not likely to happen). It was like, I just ORDed but now I am going back to army camps again. The long traveling time was a real killer, too. Then, at the end of the first lesson, fortune smiled on me as they learnt I was studying fulltime and removed me from the program. They should've just mentioned this somewhere on the NS website or something. Even today, I see lots of innocent fulltime students attending RT & ICT because they are unaware that they can actually defer it if they want to.

The feeling is kinda different now. My RT is in Bedok so it is not so bad. And having attended that one fluke session, I more or less know how it operates. Even though each session is around 4 hours, a medic friend, Kaijie, said that they don't usually train you for the full 4 hours. That's quite a relief. Though I really hate the RT experience (it's generally a big waste of time; some people just can't pass no matter how hard you push them), I guess I can treat it as a way of keeping fit.

A Strange Visit

A strange thing happened at work recently. My boss was out so I was alone at the front desk surfing the net on the computer. Just then, an Indian man came in and asked if my boss was around. I thought it was one of his friends or customers. I told him the boss was not around.

The man started chatting with me. He remarked that I looked cheerful & happy on the outside but, in fact, I had a lot of worries. I smiled and nodded. He was right; I did have a lot of things on my mind (quite a lot in fact, but I was really thinking of my damaged television at that time). He then asked for a piece of paper and scribbled some things down. I thought he was going to leave a message for my boss. He then folded it and gave it to me, telling me to 'hold it in my palm'.

He then asked me to name a flower and told me to select a number from three choices (4,5,6). It was then I realized he was not specifically looking for my boss. He was some sort of 'fortune teller'. I just thought I would be polite and play along. I named "rose" and any-how chose one of the numbers, then he told me to open the paper I held in my hand. To my surprise, my flower and number choices were both written inside.

He then took my palm to read my fortune and gave me some advice. He even scribbled some numbers and told me to buy 4D two months from now. Before he left, he showed me a talisman/card that indicated the temple he was from (he's a Buddhist) and asked for a 'tribute'. I knew this was coming but since he kinda made my day, I didn't really mind. It was then he showed me a paper with the values $30, $60, $90, saying it's tribute for good luck. I couldn't bear to fork out that much, though. I just passed him $10 and thanked him. He just told me that I will have a chance to pay him the remainder in future.

Okay, that was totally weird. But I guess I will take his advise on matters seeing that he seemed somewhat sincere. I must remember to buy lucky numbers two months from now even though I have never bought 4D before (this entry will serve as a reminder to myself).

Superman Returns

And here's the belated Superman Returns topic. I didn't expected the movie to be very long; it lasted 2-and-a-half hours. Before I watched it, I had a feeling that this would NOT be an action-packed movie since there were no 'super-villains'. That held true as the movie seemed more like a romantic drama of sorts. I read that this movie continues from where the old Superman 2 movie left off so it kinda retcons everything else.

The movie has a very 'old-school' feel to it. Superman flies around, saving the people in need, accompanied by grand orchestral music and the cheers of adoring fans. It was very well-done so it did not feel one bit cheesy at all. I found myself engrossed and somewhat touched by the people who are routing for him.

But then, I almost cringed when I realized it was kid-friendly show. Thugs can fire gigantic gatling guns at cops, destroying cars and inanimate objects but no one dies (with the exception of one scene). Well, cos' Superman is there, no one ever gets hurt. It kinda takes away the excitement. Never mind, I always have high hopes for superhero movies. Let's hope there is a sequel and they make it a little more action-packed.

It's a Quiet Week at Home

Earlier this week, I went to the dentist to get a filling done. It was quite painful. It felt like he was scraped out the inside of my bad tooth then put in a metal screw and some paste that hardened after it dried. He told me that if my tooth hurts, then he will probably have to remove the filling and perform a 'crown'. Thank god my tooth stopped hurting after the second day or else I will get sleepless nights.

The dentist also mentioned that my braces should be ready to be taken off in a few more months. I am wondering if he is serious because every time I look in the mirror, I don't feel that they are ready yet.

This week has been a typical work week. I go about with my usual net-surfing and video-gaming. Unfortunately, my three-month-old television set appears to be spoilt. Every few minutes, the picture would go fuzzy and there would be a loud buzzing sound. I suspect that my TV got damaged because my old air-conditioner started leaking again. It's the same problematic air-conditioner that killed my previous television set when it dripped water all over it. I should've asked my parents to get it fixed a long time ago. At least I can still play the PS2 with no problems. I'm currently playing Monster Hunter 2.

Scary Movie 4

I watched Scary Movie 4 on last Friday. As expected of the series, it is very funny & entertaining though the plot makes no sense and the ending is abrupt. The thing I like about the Scary Movie series is that it spoofs other movies and sometimes, it makes me want to watch or read up about them. This time, the main plot follows War of the Worlds. Good thing I watched that before so I could grasp the jokes. The show also pokes fun at the Grudge, The Village and Saw (I went to read about Saw at Wiki and it is a totally sick & sadistic movie).

The most funniest scene to me has got to be the 'boxing match'. haha. I was still laughing non-stop minutes after the scene was over. It was hilarious. The show really makes me want to re-watch the first 3 Scary Movies. I wonder if anyone has any 'lobangs'.

Anyway, this is the second movie beginning with 'S' that I have watched this month. The last 'S'-titled movie will be out this week. hehe.

Silent Hill

I went to watch Silent Hill with Darrell, Calvin and Wende yesterday night at Cineleisure (since not all cinemas are showing it). Every time I see the movie poster, I am somehow reminded of this emoticon. :X

The show lasted 2 hours and was quite intense. Most of the scenes were intended to be freakish rather than scary. I felt that the plot was pretty good and, at the end, all the questions are answered. I think I have not watching a movie in Cineleisure in a looooong time because I didn't realize that there were toilets in each cinema. This is great for people like me who needs a toilet break during long movies and not miss out too much.

This is the first of the trio of movie titles beginning with 'S' coming out this month that I plan to watch. I think everyone can pretty much guess the other two.

Monster-Hunting Addiction

I am still addicted to Monster Hunter Freedom. I even changed my deskstop wallpaper recently. I think it's kinda nice. Sorry, nothing else to type but I just didn't want to see my blog empty.

Everything Back to Normal

Oh, well. Things have returned to normal now after my ICT. I have gotten the week off so I am quite free. I am wondering what I can do to pass the time again.

I am still addicted to my PSP. Clocked nearly 150+ hours on Monster Hunter Freedom but so long as there are friends to play with, I don't think I will ever get sick. hehe.

There seems to be several interesting movies this month; Silent Hill, Scary Movie 4 and Superman. I hope to be able to watch at least Scary Movie 4 and Superman. hehe.

Starting from next month, I will be going for RT. I hope it is not too tough. I know I will never be able to pass my IPPT but at least I hope I can lose weight through RT.

Hell Week is Over

Finally, the hellish week was over. No more ICT till next year. Wee.

[ Monday ]

Booked into camp. Morale was very low. At 1:30 pm, we loaded stores and boarded the 3-tonner. We arrived at the site at around 3 pm. The near-bank TCPs (Traffic Control Points) deployed first. Mine was TCP23, the last checkpoint before the river crossing. It's just a sandy road leading to the harbor. We are also in charge of a Holding Area, which is just atop a hill for people to park their vehicles before they cross.

We started operating at 6 pm. My duty was from 10 pm to 12 midnight. Since it was the first day, no vehicles attempted to cross the river. The 2 hours passed veeery slowly as I chatted with my section I/C, Andy. The motorcycle platoon smuggled in chicken rice. It was heavenly. At night, I tried to get some sleep on my groundsheet. It was horrible; every few minutes, I would hear mosquito buzzing around my ear and I would try to swat them away. This repeated throughout the night and I don't think I got any sleep. At 2 am, some tanks came into our Holding Area to do practice support fire.

[ Tuesday ]

It began to rain very heavily from 8 am onwards. The weather was reported CAT1. Everyone stayed in the 3-tonner and chatted for hours. Thanks to the rain, I skipped my 10 am duty. Everyone prayed the rain would last all day and it'd be an 'exercise cut' but I guess it is wishful thinking on our part. The rain finally stopped in the afternoon. No vehicles again for the whole day. It was a waste of time.

At night, the first convoy came by and everyone was real busy. I was very nervous during my duty at 10 pm. Andy told me to man the telejay while he halted and directed traffic. It was quite horrible as the convoys arriving did not tally with our vehicle sheet; seems like commanders switched convoy numbers at the last minute. It was hell. One senior guy named Wong came out to assist us cos' two guys were simply not enough. The telejay kept ringing every five minutes and it was stressful relaying information between my section-mates and the Exchange. Our PC complained that we needed more men at the Holding Area, so everyone who got off duty had to go there for... even more duty. I slept at around 2 am but could still see and hear convoys coming in.


[ Wednesday ]

I woke up and was surprised to hear that we were down to the last few convoys. This means that vehicles kept constantly coming in throughout the night while I slept. Unfortunately, I had food poisoning. My tummy was hurting like mad. Had to go do my business on a hillside and I saw pieces of tissue everywhere, too.

My duty was at 10 am again. It was quite busy. As usual, the telejay buzzed like crazy. There was a miscommunication and I almost got F'ed by the Exchange. The senior, Wong, was still around and helped talked things out with them (I would later learn that Wong actually was being a super-man by assisting every single duty personnel that needed help, in addition to his own duties.) With a lot of help, the last convoy left to cross the river. The exercise was cut soon at around 1 pm. Everyone was elated. My tummy was hurting. On the way back to camp, I almost puked due to motion sickness. We were allowed to go home at night.


[ Thursday ]

Returned to camp in the morning to do washing and accounting of stores. Nothing happened. Spent most of the day sleeping and booked out at night.


[ Friday ]

Alas, the final day. Everyone was in high spirits until a series of major screw-ups happened. We were supposed to out-process in the afternoon at around 2 pm. Suddenly, it was reported that the Medic platoon lost like 5 stretchers (the thing is so big, how is that even possible?!). Everyone was held back in the training shed while investigations were going on. Time passed very slowly. We did nothing and idled till around 6 pm (that's 4 hours!). It didn't help that one idiotic Captain kept pestering us to do area cleaning 3 times. One of our guys finally broke down and openly said he was going to lodge a complaint since it felt like the Captain was doing it on purpose. With everyone's low morale and bad mood, a few sided with the guy and started hurling abuse at the Captain. It was a nightmare for me; I just want to book out and what they were doing weren't helping. Our PC & PS came to help calm the situation.

Finally, at around 7 pm, we were allowed to go. After each person forked out $2 to pay for the lost stretchers, of course. It was so late already. What a waste of time. I just hope what the 'complaint guy' did will not make the unit condemn us when we come for our next ICT.

ICT - The Finale!

*Sigh* I am having the same feeling as last Sunday all over again. Feeling scared as well as having low morale. Thanks to everyone who spent the day playing MHF with me.

Tomorrow I will be going for my outfield exercise. I will probably be back by Friday. I am just scared that I will screw up my duties. I hope that I will be back safely. We'll meet again next weekend.

Weekends Are Here! A Break from ICT

Friday was quite hectic for me. While in camp, we mainly loaded stores and made other preparations for Monday's exercise. We were able to book out at around 5 pm My mother came to pick me up. I thought of asking her to fetch me to Ang Mo Kio while I changed clothes in the car, but then I asked her, "Do I smell... really bad?" She just nodded and it was then I decided it was better to just go home and take a bath first. I arrived at FunZ Centre at around 6:30 pm and immediately started playing MHF with Orchi, Darius, Calvin and Michael. It has been a week since I have come out to play. It was really refreshing and a fun.

On Saturday, Himura invited me to his birthday dinner with Lionel, Orchi, DS, JokerZ. It was a buffet at a Chinese restaurant whose name escapes me for the moment. This was unlike other buffets I've attended; we just ordered whatever we wanted off the menu and the waiter would bring them to us. It was very filling. I was glad to have a good proper meal after one week of ICT.

Tomorrow is Sunday already; my last day to enjoy myself. The past week in camp had been super-slack but Monday will be the real deal. I think I am going to be worried sick over it. Coincidentally, though, Miya told me that he will be involved in an outfield exercise next Monday and it happens to be the same as mine (EX Tiger Strike aka Giant Buaya). I will be on MP duty at TCP 23 and Holding Area 9 for 3-4 days. I wonder if I will be able to see him. hehe