Random Thoughts Of A Driftwood

Some big plans ahead for beginning new blogs. Which means this will remain as my personal blog. But what is going to happen is that write ups on books will go on a new book blog. There'll also be a blog on food stuff which is really interesting... I promise you, you have not read anything quite like it. Not your average food blog. The movie reviews will remain on my personal blog here. I don't have any intention to write about movies in detail just yet. What to expect from this blog? Just my personal rants, thoughts, emotional outbursts(okay maybe not this, I save it for others). Write ups on the state of politics, which I admit, haven't done much of lately. It's not in any real state that is worthy of a comment to be frank. Oh and write ups about things in life that annoy me... like my write up on marriage . Keep an eye out on my new blogs which I'll be creating soon. Until next time, don't let the lemurs fight.

The much awaited Ridley Scott return to the Alien franchise is finally out, and as a fan of the Aliens movies, I watched Prometheus with huge expectations. To say that there is a lot to live up to is an understatement of gargantuan proportions. And you know what they say about expectations, they eventually disappoint. Prometheus is director Ridley Scott's return to sci-fi films and the Alien franchise. Does Prometheus succeed or does it fail like the Titanic ? The year is 2089, and archaeologists Elizabeth Shaw and Charlie Holloway find a drawing on a wall of a cave in rural Scotland.It isn't just any drawing on a cave, but it's a star map, pointing out to a particular cluster of stars. They see this as an invitation and an opportunity to meet our makers. They dubbed them the 'engineers' and they have seeded life on earth. The same image were found all over the world validating their opinion that this isn't just a coincidence. Fast forward a little and the f

George Orwell’s most notable book is most definitely ‘ Nineteen Eighty-Four’ , a book that showcased Orwell’s deep seated hatred for Totalitarian regimes. The book was a what if rhetorical question; what if the west lost?; what if Stalinism persisted, and took over the world as we know it. Nineteen Eighty-Four is a peering look into the bleak world, split into three main continental powers… Oceania, Eurasia and East Asia. I read the first chapter and saw how Nineteen Eighty-Four is a rather influential book. The working class men going to work and going through his daily routine is now almost a cliché opening scene in storytelling. Perhaps cliché is too harsh a word… but it’s been used so often in all forms of media since the publishing of this book. The protagonist, Winston Smith, is an outer party worker working in the news department. In this world, no one writes any longer. Machines churn out pieces of fiction and even news(which is fiction themselves) and Winston modifies th

" Why lah ?" a friend inquired with complete terseness. The curt, simple and direct ' Why lah ' cut like a knife and  denotes a measure of bewilderment in the tone of it. I suppose a simpler 'Why?' would have sufficed, but the ' lah ' suffix adds more melodrama where there isn't any. Besides, the ' lah ' has been a staple of Malaysian language inflection for aeons, it is as immovable as a traffic congestion on the Federal Highway. It's not just a Manglish (or an English language) thing too... " Kenapa lah ?" shock, surprise, even a tinge of disappointment. The Malay language is not spared from the ' lah ' contagion. Often used as a suffix that accentuates the dramatic effect of a phrase, ' lah ' could be used in multiple ways: The classic ' Why lah ?' The added for conviction ' Come on lah !' The added for surprise and shock ' WTF lah! ' For added appeal or even being indignant  

In the day of social networks being the in thing, not quite taking over real social interaction, but undoubtedly creating a whole new grammar... there is a rather disconcerting development. The word ' Like ' has been hijacked by the ultimate 800 pound gorilla of social networks, Facebook. ' Like ' in of itself isn't so much of an epilepsy inducing word. It's rather pleasant. I use it all the time(when it fits of course). The matter of contention here however, is that there is nothing other than ' like '. Seriously? what about love? or hate? or even dislike? This 'dumbing down' of the language and social interaction is rather depressing. Just with a snap of the finger, or rather a click of a mouse, the multitude and diversity of expressions in the English language... exterminated by Facebook and it's denizens of  the ' like ' brigade. I wouldn't make such a fuss if there was a scale of how much you like d something or a sort of

The word moderation is often thrown about by politicians and the intelligentsia(it is often the politicians though that receive my ire). Malaysia a land of moderates. Moderate politics, moderate Muslims... moderate policies... moderate society. I find it utterly revolting I say. Before I cause you to cringe in confusion, let me first define the word moderation. From dictionary.com: the quality of being moderate; restraint; avoidance of extremes or excesses; temperance. That's all jolly and well. But the word in Malaysia has been twisted into a sick and perverted joke of itself. A vapid excuse for inaction and mediocrity. Let me say that again MEDIOCRITY. Moderation doesn't mean giving way to bullies in for the sake of not 'hurting' their oh so fragile feelings. And it certainly doesn't mean being complacent and satisfied with a placid lifestyle. I've often heard people say way too often and rather glibly that they are a moderate. Which essentially transl