Muhibbah

Muhibbah.
The word that attempts to define Malaysian national unity, goodwill and understanding among the races. Often elusive.

I'm not even going to attempt a political rant here.

I'm just here to say that I'm living in the most Muhibbah place in Malaysia and the most Muhibbah coffee shop is near my office.

Sabah is a land where you can have 10 people sitting at a dinner table. There could be 10 different races represented. Not only that, you would not be able to tell the person's race based on how they look or even their name.

Back to the coffee shop.

Its a Chinese coffee shop. But 15 ft away from the Mee stall with its very 'chinese' ingredients is a Malay stall selling Soto Ayam. The kakak manning the stall is fully aware of what's around her. And so are the 'obviously not chinese' customers. Yes, she wears a tudung and she's secure enough in her faith to make a living there. The girls working in the coffee shop are probably Sulug. They don't seem bothered either, neither is the aunty at the counter.

Everyone's getting along fine. Having their breakfast together in the best Muhibbah spirit they can muster, without even trying.

The Muhibbah Seafood restaurant in Taman Tun Dr Ismail in KL does a lot of business. What does the Malay owner sell? Chinese food! Smart guy figured out that plenty of people will eat Chinese food if they could. And yes, not all Chinese food needs to have pork in it.

Mamaks
Mamak stalls. (Although some of them are more like major food outlets these days with plasma TVs and all) are very Muhibbah places. Why do you think they do such great business? Why, because all Malaysians go and eat and drink there.

So, what do you know? Being Muhibbah is not only good for the country, it can even be good for your business!

And at the end of the day, I it actually takes effort to not be Muhibbah.

Muhibbah!

So long Eddie

For 10 years, Eddie the Jack Russell terrier, has bugged Dr Frasier Crane on the hit show 'Frasier'.

Eddie, whose real name was Moose, died last Thursday at the ripe old doggie age of 16 in Los Angeles at the home of his trainer, Mathilde Halberg.

Eddie who moved into Frasier's apartment with Martin Crane, Frasier's dad, had the main role of annoying uptight Frasier.

In the later years of the show, Moose's son, Enzo actually stood in as Eddie.

Kelsey Grammer while accepting his 1994 Emmy award for Frasier, said, "Most important, Moose, this is for you,"

Thanks Moose for all the memories.

Camelbak

Today we continue in the tradition of seemingly random thoughts from my mind in this blog, by discussing hydration systems. Or those water bags (called a bladder or reservoir) with a tube, things that you carry around in a backpack. Popularised by Camelbak Inc. , these things let you carry water around with you easily and encourages you to drink often while engaged in outdoor activities since you only have to sip on the tube instead of taking the water bottle out of your backpack, drink and then replace the bottle.

Its one of those, why didn't I think of it before things.

The US military likes these things so much, they're now standard issue instead of the old water bottle. Which is a good thing since they're hanging around hot climates a lot these days.



I've been using the 100oz or 3Lt Camelbak Unbottle,

which is basically a water bag with an insulated foam cover. I stick it into a my Osprey harness, fill it up with ice and water and I'm good to go for the whole day when I'm doing outdoor video shoots or hanging out at the islands. The ice and insulation keeps the water cool the whole day and its a lot easier than messing around with the Bubbakeg or various bottles of mineral water which get warm unless they're in a cooler.

I've found that having cool water to drink and sipping on it all day long helps me stand the heat and staves off dehydration when I'm in the sun all day. This is important when I'm directing an outdoor shoot and don't have the luxury of ducking under the shade all the time. I have to keep on reminding the crew to drink water.

Its very important to stay hydrated especially given the weather here, and we all know how hot it can get here in Sabah. I see plenty of people who don't drink enough water here indoors, let alone outdoors.

I used to think that having a camelbak was a luxury and quite unnecessary, now its one of those things I wonder how I did without.

About the only downside I can think of is cleaning these things. Its more effort to clean than a normal water bottle or bottled water (which you just throw away). I only put water in mine, so there's no sugary sticky stuff to clean out.

I just rinse it out, scrub the bladder and tube with a brush if I've left it out too long, then put in a liter of water and a baby bottle sterilising tablet. Let it sit for an hour or so, then drain and let it dry.

Most people I know are not particularly outdoor-sy, but if you are, you should really consider getting one. You'll drink more and feel better when you're outside. Stay away from the cheap stuff, because they leak. The good stuff costs more, but it lasts. If you're in KK, I know a place that sells them at reasonable prices.

The Fast and the drive sideways people

I figure most of you aren't going to see this movie, so I'm just going to give it away.

The 3rd installment to the franchise arrives with a new director, Justin Lin and no recognisable faces from the 1st two movies. Well, not until the end anyway, which was a nice touch.

The plot is shamelessly ripped off from countless kungfu movies and blatently the karate kid. Except this involves cars. Lots of cars. And lots of Japanese girls. The story is wholly lame and the characters one dimensional and uninspired.

Nevertheless the movie has great shots, excellent camera work and editing and the driving is much more exciting than its predecessors. There are some nice camera crane moves and I suspect a good chunk of the driving scenes are CGI, but it comes together very nicely for the most part.

The first movie emphasised flat out speed while this movie showcases the agility of the drivers and cars. This is tokyo after all, there are not that many places to drive over 200kmh.

Oh yeah, female lead much better looking than male lead. Acting ability same-same.

Hmm, this post/review is looking kinda uninspired.

To watch or not to watch. If you're a Gran Tourimo fan, Yes. Otherwise wait for it to come out on Astro and watch if you've got nothing better to do that night.

Cars

I've watched the movie Cars three times, over the past few days. Why? To hang out with people and I really enjoyed the movie.

Some are labelling this as one of the 'weaker' Pixar movies due to its 'not record breaking' opening weekend in the US as well as its subject matter of cars. Which would lend one to think it was targeted at the largely male crowd. Not only that its about NASCAR racing which is pretty much a US white male thing.

Well, I'm telling you to not let all this get in the way of you watching the movie. It's a movie that will appeal to all. The familiar hallmarks of Pixar movies are there. Groundbreaking and gorgeous animation, great voice acting, lovable characters, good values, and a heart warming storyline.

Pixar's attention to detail does not lapse here. The scenery though, obviously CG due to unatural geographic formations, takes one's breath away. And Pixar obsesses over making dust, dirt, light, and cartoon cars behave like the real thing in a cartoon world. The cars sound like they should. Yes, a Porshe sounds like a Porsche. Then again, their boss is the same guy who makes sure that his computers look good on the inside as well as on the bottom. Two places most people never ever look.

Given the whole raft of CG animated features of late, Pixar continues to stand out. The actors voicing the characters don't overwhelm the characters and become the actor on screen. You do see bits of Owen Wilson's playful bravado which is prevelent in other movies, but its played down here and only comes out earlier in the movie.

The movie also has heart. Something that's just missing from most movies these days. When RJ the racoon in Over The Hedge does the 'right' thing in the end, you think, "He'd better! After all the rest of done for him." And RJ is primarily motivated to help his 'family' because they have taken him into their fold. When Lightning McQueen does the right thing at the end, he does it because its right. Even if it costs him everything he's worked for. It will move you.

The movie is a tribute to NASCAR no doubt, with the voices of Richard Petty as the King, the Andretti's and others. Apparently in the german version, the King is voiced by Michael Schumacher.

Oh yeah, since its a Pixar movie, make sure you go early to catch the short in the beginning and stay back for the outtakes which pay tribute to 20 years of Pixar.

If you also pay close attention during the opening race, you will briefly notice a white race car next to The King as he goes into the bank. The white car is number 84 and yes there's an Apple computer logo on the hood.

Rest in Peace Pendeta Asang

John Trevor White @ Pendeta Asang
17/8/1910 - 29/5/2006

Asang passed away the week before. He was 95.

He came to Borneo as a young man from the UK as a missionary and gave his life for God and the people of this land. He must have touched thousands and his impact on the lives of people in the Ranau-Taginambur-Kota Belud area will be felt for generations.

I had the privilage of interviewing him a couple of times. Once in KK and another time in his home in Taginambur which he built himself. There is a peace about the place and I felt the presence of God over the land. I wished I could have attended the funeral, but I was in KL.

So many have left their homes and given their lives for the gospel of Jesus in this land. The thousands upon thousands of us who are part of SIB are their legacy. Lets finish what they started.

The move.

Just decided to move over here. So, welcome all.

A technological leap

Dad used Skype for the first time today. Yay dad!

More on local MVs

Just in case I left the impression that I'm against locally produced music videos shot with handycams, there's actually one I like.

Its by a local Ska band. If you don't know what Ska is
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ska_music

Anyways, this MV was shot with a Handycam using existing light, and as far as I can tell probably shot on analog Hi8, not even DV. It follows the band as they go on tour in Tawau, none the less.

Nevertheless, there is a flow to the story of the band as they travel to Tawau (yes, they fly air asia) to play at a funfair, setup and goof around before the night's performance. Forethought went into the shots, as you can see the band being introduced sucessively along with the Manager/promoter guy. It then chronicles the band's trip. Its super low budget, but it makes good use of the material, is nicely edited and ends up being a goofy, fun, home movie of the band's travels.

The only other time I've seen a handycam (with night shot too) used for a MV was the Foo Fighters MV with Dave Grohl and Jack Black acting as trailer trash and culminates in them dancing around in drag. (Jack's ugly in a dress) Then again, when you're big like them it probably takes a huge crew and a parking lot full of trailers just to shoot something with a handycam. Go figure.

Editing

My mind is on the subject of video editing, hence the post.

Disclaimer: The following is not a slam on any particular person or show. If you so perasan and think I'm talking about your work, its just a coincidence. 'K?

I've been channel surfing the past few days and actually stopping by local channels. A few things stood out to me.

Case 1.
The first was a TV magazine type show talking about proper etiquette in using public parks. (not a great topic to begin with) This particular segment had lots of jerky handheld camera work with the camera tilted to extreme angles. Fast hand held pans and zooms. Good thing I don't suffer from motion sickness easily. There there were jerky fast cuts and various transitions such as page peels, spirals, and wipes thrown in for good measure.

There was this shot of a handheld, fast extreme zoom, going into the camera's digital zoom. Resulting in a grainy image. And this shot was used over and over again like 5 times. Not only that the subject they were zooming into didn't really have all that much to do with what they were talking about. So much for broadcast standards. Why use an expensive betacam? Handycam also can, and edit in MS Movie Maker.

I changed channels after that.

Case 2,
I was watching a channel showing local music videos (or MV's in trade talk, not MTV's mind you) Some of the local stuff actually has great production values and a halfway decent storyline. Some on the other hand....

In this MV there was a bunch of people dancing , then people in a living room, then this guy talks to this girl, another girl talks to another guy. Girl 2 sees guy 1 with girl 1 then gets upset, but I can't figure out why.

There is no flow that I can tell of. The action on screen is often out of synch with the what's happening musically. Groups shots are badly staged. There is no discernible sense to the lighting that I can tell. Camera work is rather random. Many of the shots just don't work and seem like they were dropped in because the editor couldn't find anything else to work with.

Which brings me to the point of this rant. These people are making real money doing it.

Me? I'm making... well, you know.. .

Bleh. :p

PS. Incase you think I have something against local MVs shot with handycams, stay tuned later this week.