What do you want to watch today?

A week into my new job and I'm beginning to worry...with wonderment no less.

I'm now with the opinion that we Malaysians (Malays more than anyone else) are addicted to tragedy. Other people's tragedy. Why? Because that's all they want to see on telly these days. I'm reading scripts after scripts of these things. Synopsis, story lines, idea pitches and development notes of programmes are filled with tragedy.

Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against tragedy. Shit happens in this world, I know. But being in the media industry, I think we ought to be a little bit more inspirational than to sell to the masses that 'life sucks, don't bother changing it'. It worries me that 26 million people in this country get to tune in to shows that practically say 'there's no way out, it's been like that for ages, so don't bother'.

If you do drugs, you die. If you steal, you die. If you are forced into prostitution, you die. If you squander millions from the good guys, you die. DIE, DIE and DIE!!! Aiyoh...seems like there's no hope for these buggers. Have we condemned people to typical stereotypes? Is there no chance of a reprise, of turning a new leaf? Have we lost faith?

Hmmm...from the offering on telly these days, it sure seems like we have lost faith. Faith that people can still do good. Faith that there's a way out. Faith that deep in our hearts, there's a human being that wants to do good.

No wonder more people are turning off local programmes and switching on to international channels.

Therein lies my challenge. To change the face of television in this country.

Friends' Lives

Not too long ago, it was a phone call, an email occasionally or meeting up for dinner or afternoon tea on the weekends. That was how friends kept in touch, amidst a full and busy week of family, work and miscellaneous drama everywhere.

Yet, the age of technology gave people another outlet to this mundane, almost archaic venture of keeping in touch. It's called a blog! Everyone's got one (well, almost).

Yesterday I was called (cos' I'm the Helpdesk to my friends) to solve another problem. Someone wants to set up her blog to get paid but dunno what an RSS feed was. XML? What kind of shit is that?! How come the lines don't appear to be the way I want it?.....and it goes on...

What was interesting was this is a friend who's not the best-est of friend with technology but guess what...she's managed to setup a pretty impressive blog on her own. Kudos Drama Mama...you should be proud. I'm sure you'll offer us mere mortals a glimpse of your life with the kids that's filled with giggles and raised eyebrows!

Even my Pathfinder buddy (the one that's Chinese but speaks Malay to each other like we're Malays! Yes, it's you Jeffrey Tan!) has got his very own...

So now that everyone's got a story to tell and the space to tell them to the world, I am looking forward to interesting tales from beyond the ones and zeros of cyberspace.

I wonder what tomorrow will bring to Drama Mama...(fingers crossed)

International Helpdesk...hello?

When you buy a product, it usually comes with a warranty...and a Customer Care phone number to call in case the unimaginable ever happens to your purchases. But what do you do when the warranty runs out? You of course call on one of your more savvy friends...and assign them as your Helpdesk...for life! And that's where my story begins...'Good Morning! I'm Chee Yeong and I'll be your Helpdesk for life. How may I help you today?'

The occasional I-Can't-Log-In problem, My-Car-Makes-A-Funny-Sound problem, What's-The-Name-Of-That-Song questions and Do-You-Think-Black-Is- The-New-White opinions was the usual challenges I have to deal with. And it's all local of course...until recently.

Someone decided to make a long distance call (from Macau!) while on holiday with the family to seek the Helpdesk!! I guess overnight, I was elevated to the status of International Helpdesk....'wherever you are in the world, whenever the time you decide to call. Always glad to be serving you.'

Wow...that's peace of mind. If only big companies dish out such outstanding service to their customers. I know one company would not dare to even think of doing this...Microsoft. Their lines will be off the hook crazy.

(This article is written on a Mac...and proud of it!)

Load up on Hairspray!

It's been some time now since there was a great musical movie that gets you going...no, High School Musical and it's sequel aside. I'm talking Moulin Rouge, Phantom of The Opera, Rent and Dreamgirls. And now...we have Hairspray!

It's a story about a large girl (trying to be PC) trying to fulfill her dream of being a dancer on the Corny Collins Show. Set amidst the racial segregation and integration drama of the 60's, it proves to be an engaging, entertaining and downright feet-tapping-crazy kinda show.

I must congratulate the producers of Hairspray for casting Nikki Blonsky as the lead. She is so bubbly she'll perk you right up with her charm and warmth as Tracy Turnblad, the large girl with a dream.

Despite her size, she is as agile as any when it comes to strutting her stuff on the dance floor. It's just a joy seeing her go through her moves when she breaks into song and dance her heart out. I'll bet large-sized girls around the world will look up to her as a role model no doubt.

For a relatively newcomer to the movie scene, Nikki's first outing sees her working with a long list of established names...John Travolta, Michelle Pfeifer, Zach Efron, Queen Latifah, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden and Christopher Walken. That's quite a feat for a newbie, yet she held her own.

And speaking of Travolta, this movie sees him goes back to the genre that immortalised him forever. Beieve me, it's a thrill to see the man back in his dancing shoes, doing what he does best...albeit not as a man!

As Edna Turnblad, Travolta shines in shaking his booty (a REALLY huge one!) on screen that makes you just chuckle uncontrollably. Under all the make-up and prosthetics, he still managed to give an unforgettable performance. Truly a great performance from a multi-talented actor!

I thoroughly enjoyed the songs from the movie. Heavily influenced by the 60's era, the arrangement and compositions gets you going from the very first song in the opening of the movie till the end. I'm getting the 2-CD edition of the soundtrack. Fantastic!

If you haven't watched this...run now to a theater near you and shell out some dough on a great time at the movies.

You are your thoughts

I was having a conversation with a friend today and noticed a pattern among some of our friends. They say that work sucks, can't find the man/woman that they want, money is scarce and blah blah blah...Too much negativity to put into words. But they say they want work that they're passionate about, to have man/woman that love/cares/respects them, to not have to worry about where next month's salary is coming from and blah blah blah... Too much hope to fill these pages.

It dawned on me that these friends of ours seem to be pulled stronger by the under current of their fixed beliefs in life than what they really want. I want a man/woman/marriage but I hate man/woman... Errr... Houston, we have a problem! Men are not gentlemen. women are gold diggers. How lah to have a relationship like that.

Don't you know that what you hold dear in your thoughts will manifest itself in the real world? The same real world that you wake up to every morning and retire every night! And trust me, what you hold dear are not the intended 'wants' in your life but the shoulda/woulda/coulda's of your fearsome, scared, defensive life.

So the remedy is... drum rolls please.....STOP THINKING THE WORLD'S OUT TO GET YOU!! Stop closing the doors to infinite possibilities. And for heaven sake, stop punishing yourself by punishing others!! Just stop, stop, stop and stop!!

The Law of Attraction is simple... you bring forth into existence your deepest thought. For you are the Master Creator of your reality. So the bullshit that you've been brewing in that huge ass cauldron of yours is going to be real, like it or not. In the end, you've got no one to blame for not having anything or anyone who gives a rat's ass about you but yourself. Unless of course, a sad, pitiful life was what you intended in the first place.

Hmmm...some people just love to beat themselves up. My advice... be a friend and knock the lights out of this person to wake them up. If they ask you why did you do that, just tell them "You told me to!" They asked for it, trust me. Really.

Merdeka - What's Next?

Just 2 days ago, our nation celebrated its 50th anniversary of its independence. In my opinion, it was a bit of an anti-climax really. No real essence, all glitter. Is this what we've become as a nation?

I was at Pantai Hill on the eve of the big day, waiting to catch a glimpse of the fireworks display at KLCC. Found a great spot, parked the car and waiting eargerly. 5 minutes before midnight, I turned around and saw a huge gathering (about 150 or so people) as eager as I am for some good fireworks fun. The clock strikes midnight...and we waited some more. And more waiting... 40 minutes later, still no firewors in sight. What a damper...and people started leaving. So did I.

I went and drove around Bangsar and noticed the almost silent atmosphere. Isn't it supposed to be a time to rejoice as a nation after 50 years of striving to be a great nation? The silence only told me that it wasn't the case. That it was a sombre occasion. What happened?

Then the sound of fireworks broke the silence of the night and lit the sky... it was 1 hour and 10 minutes past midnight! Apparently, too many speeches delayed the display. I just wonder what was more important, the celebration of a nation or the speeches of politicians?

2 days later and nothing has changed. I really hope people of this country will wake up from their slumber of denial and realise that they have a role to play. Soldiering on will only create more soldiers with no soul. I hate to see us becoming a country full of zombies who can't think for themselves and take steps in being great together.

50 years has come and gone...what's next Malaysians?

6 days

That's all it takes to make an otherwise sane, logical and strong person turn into an ugly mess...

When someone you love deeply goes away for an extended time (read that as more than 24hrs!), sanity and reason goes flying out the window. Time gives no meaning, home is just a prison, going out seem like a daunting task.

It is time like this that truly tests a person's resolve and ultimately a person's love for another. I'm glad to say that this time away makes the heart grows ever more fonder. But it's been a painful and long process. I'm just hoping there's an end to it soon, so that something great will grow out of it.

I know there is and it will...

I miss you terribly.

Voices from the past

Got a call from AW yesterday and was told that someone was looking for me. It was Pasree and unknown to her, she will be playing a character voice in the animation I'm currently producing. When I told her that she got the part, she was so excited. I was taken aback a little by the enthusiasm, to say the least. But I'm glad cos it tells me that the project I'm in is headed towards the right direction.

Later that night, I was attending the Digi Apostrophe thingy and met up with another soul that went for the audition. I've known Bernice from the time I was working in Planet Films (some 9 years ago!) We got along talking about it and like Pasree, she too was overly excited about the prospect of this project. She said "Finally, I get to play a character for an animation! Been doing too many voiceovers for radio and telly. Please, please, give me a part!" We went on and on about the project and though she didn't get a role in the upcoming episode, I know she will be in one of the episodes, if not more. I like her voice. We'll KIV it lah!

Finally...some real proof that this is a great project to be in. Just when I thought that I was just the handful of people who's excited about it. Their enthusiasm and wanting to be involved in it really made my day.

Digi Apostrophe

Went to attend the Digi Apostrophe competition last night and it was really interesting!

It's an initiative by Digi to flush out the creative geniuses from the average blokes and showcase their work being interpreted by artists. Over 8500 entries and only 16 was selected to be showcased. The task? Write a short, short story... using only 16 words!! Hah...

Just when you think the average Malaysian public is a dumb lot who cannot create anything new creatively and would buy into anything they are being fed (according to the some people in the government)... it was interesting to see the entries. Some were macabre, some sad and most just got you thinking. All in 16 words?! Yes, more DOES NOT mean better.

Here's an initiative from a corporate body that is serious in promoting the arts in this country, not some haphazard effort with a logo and a slogan with nothing to show. Bravo Digi!!

This is only the first of 3 events for this year. I'm looking forward to more...hehehe. Check them out at http://www.apostrophegallery.com/

Strange bedfellows

An email can really spoil your day some time...

Got one that just droved me up the roof the other day. A colleague decides to be stupid and tried to cover up his incompetencies by doing a tai-chi number on me. In his effort to look like he had it under control and seem important, he even included my boss in the email...mistake number one! You whiny little thing...

He must not have known never to cross me...not when I'm right!...mistake number two. So, short to say that he got a rather not so nice email from yours truly (that I so generously included my boss as well). You see, this man's been working in an environment where people with grouses never voice their thoughts. Boy, do they talk among themselves and behind your back but never to confront. But me, not saying something when there's something to be said? Must be a dream then.

I'm sure it came as a surprise to him. And I'm sure he very much regretted using that tone with me for I know for a fact that he was called in to a meeting with his entire department by the boss. Just to show that sometimes, a little act of arrogance in the name of power can backfire quite badly. Especially in my space.

I have yet to receive his reply to my email...I'm still hoping.

I was just thinking...why does some people act strangely when they given a little power? How come people lose their sense of self and dignity when entrusted with a little authority? Can you get high on power? What drives these people? Hmmmm....power and stupidity makes strange bedfellows.