Coldplay - Moving To Mars (Official)

Enjoy the new song. ;)

Boast of Quietness

"Writings of light assault the darkness, more prodigious than meteors.
The tall unknowable city takes over the countryside.
Sure of my life and death, I observe the ambitious and would like to
understand them.
Their day is greedy as a lariat in the air.
Their night is a rest from the rage within steel, quick to attack.
They speak of humanity.
My humanity is in feeling we are all voices of that same poverty.
They speak of homeland.
My homeland is the rhythm of a guitar, a few portraits, an old sword,
the willow grove's visible prayer as evening falls.
Time is living me.
More silent than my shadow, I pass through the loftily covetous multitude.
They are indispensable, singular, worthy of tomorrow.
My name is someone and anyone.
I walk slowly, like one who comes from so far away he doesn't expect to arrive"
— Jorge Luis Borges

Skinny Love

Here's the official music video of Skinny Love by Birdy.

What a powerful voice. I love her. She's just 15 years old. What an amazing talent.

Her name is Jasmine Van den Bogaerde but she's using Birdy as her stage name.

Her mom is a concert pianist, no wonder she's great at playing piano.

I love the song. I'm gonna find the piano notes for this one soon. ;)

Come on skinny love just last the year
Pour a little salt we were never here
My my my - my my my - my my my my - my my ...
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer

I tell my love to wreck it all
Cut out all the ropes and let me fall
My my my - my my my - my my my my - my my ...
Right in the moment this order's tall

I told you to be patient I told you to be fine
I told you to be balanced I told you to be kind
In the morning I'll be with you
But it will be a different kind
I'll be holding all the tickets
And you'll be owning all the fines

Come on skinny love what happened here
Suckle on the hope in lite brassiere
My my my - my my my - my my my - my my ...
Sullen load is full so slow on the split

I told you to be patient I told you to be fine
I told you to be balanced I told you to be kind
Now all your love is wasted then who the hell was I?
Cause now I'm breaking at the britches
And at the end of all your lines

Who will love you? who will fight?
And who will fall, far behind?

Come on skinny love ........
My my my - my my my - my my my - my my ...

Something to ponder

Nearly met with an accident just now. Oh God. I was just inches away from crashing the reckless driver. Yup, he's one of the many. Out of the blue, he appeared in the opposite direction. Luckily I was driving slow at that time, if not, I would have hit him already. He was speeding in the wrong lane. It's the opposite. Who in the right state of mind would do such? hesssh..

My heart thumping like mad. I was shocked and I still am. I've never been in an accident before and this, it could be my first. But alhamdulillah, God has saved me, saved us. My friend was with me. Thank to her as well, she's the one who shouted, it snapped me out of it. I managed to maneuver my car. Fortunately, there was no car beside and behind me. If there's one, just one is enough to cause a big impact. I'm speechless.

Random thoughts came swarming. What would happen if I were to hit the reckless driver? First, all three of us would have been injured. Then what am I going to say to my parents, her parents and the reckless driver's parents or anyone important? The worst part is that I still haven't finish my whole set of daily prayers for that day.

I was going to pray before going out for a dinner, but I felt kinda lazy. I thought to myself to pray after dinner. Mannnn, it was such a bad idea after all. Again, my big responsibility was put on hold to meet other trivial activities in my life. For a dinner with friends, I delayed my prayer. ;(

I've been negligent but Allah still love me. O Allah. I felt ashamed. He has saved us. I'm beyond grateful for that. I still can't digest the fact that I almost had an accident. This is a reminder for me to keep being careful on the road. Be alert. The most important thing is always set my priorities straight. There's always a heavy price to pay if you put something on hold, put something off.

I'm grateful for tonight.

"A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person."

(Mignon McLaughlin)

One of us is getting married real soon. Finally, all of us gathered in spite of our busy schedules. These days, it's so hard to gather all of us at one time. The bride-to-be herself is a very busy woman. When she came out with an exact date saying that's the only date she's free, all of us made ourselves available prior to spend time with her before her marriage. You know, the catching-up session.

First, we had an amazing dinner for a warm-up. The gossiping session is then prolonged to a sleepover to celebrate the last days of a single lady among us. ;)

We had so much fun catching-up with each other, the ticking clocks didn't seem to bother us, night till morning were filled with our joyful laughter. Re-visits happened, reality checked in. Reminiscing the good old days. Sweet! but my oh my, how fast time flies.

Just by hearing their story is enough to melt every bones in my body. How her fiance put an effort to calm everything, how her heart flutters in the very beginning of their relationship, how easy things have been going on and yada yada. I'm in awe. Pathetic much?! Haha.

8 months ago, I wrote this right after her engagement ceremony saying how amazed I am seeing them surviving the long distance relationship. Now in less than 3 weeks, they're going to tie the knot. Can you believe it?? Oh I'm freaking excited and happy for them. Soon after that, she's going to migrate to Japan since her fiance is going to work there.

She had to make a huge decision to quit her job here to follow her husband, but I believe it's for the best. They have gone through a long distance relationship (her fiance studied in Japan) before, only God knows how hard it was for them. They deserved to be together after all this while.

Only certain people with a great amount of patience could maintain a long distance relationship. Hats off to them. I know I'm not one of them.

Last night, our conversation is mainly about marriage. We shared stories about successful and unsuccessful marriage. We're old anyway :D. No kidding, at this age, there's a pinch of jealousy seeing your friends, one by one is getting married to their soulmate. You're beyond happy to share the excitement but one question never fails to pop up.
When will it be for you?
Haha.

It's too early to tell. In reality, I'm not even ready. A lot of matters to be settled first. I still need to prepare myself, muster all the skills before stepping into the big picture. It's intimidating hearing about the unsuccessful marriage. I hope none of us would ever experience such unfortunate event. InsyaAllah.

This sort of thing is out of my control. I leave it all to Allah. ;)

Excuses

Why no one will help me
I am too dumb I am too smart
They'll not understand me
I am lonely
They'll hate me
And there is not enough time
It's too hard to help me
And god wants me to work
No resting no lazy

These excuses how they served me so well
They've kept me safe
They've kept me stuck
They've kept me locked in my own cell

I'm too far from home
It takes far too much energy
And I cannot afford to
No one will ever see me

These excuses how they served me so well
They've kept me safe
They've kept me stuck
They've kept me locked in my own cell

These excuses how they're so familiar
They've kept me blocked
They've kept me small
They've kept me safe in my own shell

Bringing this into the light
Shakes their foundation
And it clears my side
Now my imagination
Is the only thing that limits
The bar that is raised to the heights

No one can have it all see
I have to they want me to
And I can't let them down
I'll never be happy

These excuses how they served me so well
They've kept me safe
They've kept me stuck
They've kept me locked in my own cell

These excuses how they're so familiar
They've kept me blocked
They've kept me small
They've kept me locked in my own cell

P/s: I love Alanis Morissette. And yes, lately this old song keeps looping in my car. I just love the meaning and the acoustic version. Alanis' voice still haunts me. Haha. ;)

Note to self

Yesterday, I heard another news about an accident. For the past few weeks, this is the 4th times I heard about an accident involving people I know.

My heart did stop for awhile. Alhamdulillah, so far none of these people I know had severe injuries. Me and my friend went to see our sister, and as usual the conversation among us never stops. ;)

I've never had or met with an accident before. I didn't know how it felt. But yeah, it made me realized we just have to be extra careful. We'll never know what's going to happen. This is just a test from Allah.

"The heavier the burdens placed on you by Allah, the more strength He will give you to carry them" ~Yasir Qadhi

Sometimes we tend to forget. Sometimes our own responsibility was put on hold to meet other, more trivial things in this life.

This is a reminder for me, to reflect upon myself. Again, I'm not a good person. I may have neglected few obligations, I may have hurt others...I'm not even perfect. Perfection can only be attained by Allah.

I think some of my jumping beans are resting. Deep in my heart, I felt disappointed. I felt like I made a lot of mistakes lately. All things, good or bad, all come from Allah. And yes, I had a severe migraine today. Mr. cerebellum still hasn't got his rest. I've been thinking and keep thinking.

That tiny voice inside my head keeps whispering, always succeed in the effort of crushing my fortitude. Sigh. :(

I wonder what does it take for you to push yourself up to the extra miles? Persistence or passion or even faith and hope is enough?

NVM, I'm still trying my best to smile to everyone. Let's just smile while we still can. :)

P/s: Excuse my PMS-ride. It's once in every month.

Again

Dear void again,

I'm not in a good mood lately. PMS might be one of the reasons. I tend to think a lot about small little things in my life. Things about tomorrow, days to come, my future, my life and so on.

A lot of things keep me up at night. All of a sudden, I miss my late chipmunk, I miss A,B,C up till Z. I just miss everyone.

I'm trying my best to stir my mind for a special kind of recipe, for something less puzzling. But nah, it failed. Still, I've been wondering about a lot of things.

How could I please everyone? I'm just a normal human being with no special power whatsoever.

How to be a better version of myself? I'm not a good person myself. I have sinned, I have flaws. But there's always a reminder for me. But sometimes even a reminder didn't ring a bell to my ears. ;(

We are forgetful. Always have been.

As of today,

I tend to forget how to stop punishing people...

I tend to forget how to stop killing people with my jokes...

I tend to forget how to conceal my thoughts, my feelings etc...

It felt like I've talked too much. Nonsensical..!!

Nonetheless, I do try my best to be nice with everyone. But you know, people, some of them are just plain weird. They don't even know that heart is a fragile organ. Sigh.

I need a distraction dear void. Mr. Cerebellum needs a rest.

P/s: Blame the hormone for such a doleful climate.

Dear Void

Dear void,
No one is gonna reveal what's hiding inside.

If I could, I would.

But right at this moment, only miss alter ego knows.
She couldn't give the respond that I want.

So I'm sending this out into the void.

Sometimes it's hard to contain. Feelings are unpredictable. Unremitting unpredictability it is.

Who knows colours inside could form a very beautiful rainbow, unnoticed. The question is, how do you kill a rainbow, in silence perhaps?

But then again, if it's meant to bloom forever, let it be. If it's not, please kill it for me dear void.

Oh how I wish this sort of thing has a twitch, where you could easily pull it away.

Who ignites a spark in this stale heart of mine? If you must do so, do it in a right way.

My thoughts are rolling far off the normalcy. I'm instilling the new verses in my daily prayers.

What future upholds remains unknown. If this is something to comfort the parallelism of my destiny, I dare to endorse.

"Let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together, yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow."
— Khalil Gibran (The Prophet)

White Flag

Today marked the day I raised my white flag. Haha.
But not in a war, it's just that I used to think I don't need a Facebook account.
But today,I created my own account. Yes, I have a FB account for now.

It took me so long to create just one frigging account. It took me what, 6 years? I had my first invitation back years ago and the invitations kept coming, not to mention those who keep asking about adding me on FB.

Whenever I told them I don't have an account there, usually they would laugh, not being able to digest the info. I wonder what's so funny? They would think I lied, I used another account to hide myself, I'm anti-social whatsoever. Oh mannnn, I don't waste my time to hide who I am, being a stalker or whatsoever. I don't do such.

It's funny how some people thought I don't have a FB account because I'm not tech-wise. I don't really know how to browse internet. That's funny!!
Come on, I have a love hate relationship with computers and tech. In fact, I can do a bit of a hacking thingy. I'm quite a nerd myself when it comes to computer. Haha.
I don't mind. Let them figuring it out by themselves.

Besides, I do have twitter so I don't really think I need FB.
But then, too many people rely on FB. I wrote it in here. It's a good social networking after all. Everyone has one. You can easily find back your old classmates, old kindergarten's friends and sorts. The thing is that, when you have technology, everything is at your fingertips, you seem to lost the perks of being in a real conversation. You know what I mean? Nowadays, even wedding invitation is sent via FB. I don't really like it. But I know it's easier. It'd be a blatant lie if I say I'm not falling for that. Haha.

Frankly, it feels weird. I still don't like the idea of owning a FB account. I don't know why. I can't explain it. I feel like an alien after I created it. Gosh, I'm so weird. Haha.
Whatever. Let's see if FB can do wonders.

X-men First Class

Pic credit: Google

Last night, me and my friend went to watch this film. Right after work, went home for a quick shower then off to the cinema. We hadn't eaten anything for dinner, thus we bought sweet corns and popcorn to minimize our hunger pangs. I was quite disappointed with the seller.

I ordered a mineral water along with all the meals and I was certain I saw he entered the price of mineral water in the cash register. But when he gave me my sweet corns and pop corn, politely I asked for my mineral water. He said that I didn't say anything about mineral water and that one wasn't included in the bills, so he asked me to pay some more for mineral water. I was shocked and told him, "how could you forget about mineral water?" and quickly gave him some more money.

I didn't want to cause any chaos there as I wasn't in the mood to talk at all, I wanted to say different things and it seemed like different words came out. I guess that was his sustenance. NVM. But I was disappointed considering dishonest people are everywhere. Sigh.

Okay back to the film. At first, it was a bit slow for the characters to develop and less actions but it's understandable since this is a prequel, so the focus should be more on how the characters evolved and the strong bonding between Magneto and Charles Xavier.

This film is adapted from the comic books and yes, I didn't read it. But trust me, even for general audience like me, I honestly think it was a solid movie. But hey I did watch all of the X-men trilogies;X-men, X2, X-men: The Last Stand and last one, X-men Origins: Wolverine. The only less exciting about this film is the CGI parts as some of them looked very much unreal to me. Oh I think there were some lame scripts as well but nah, you won't be bothered by it.

The acting is superb. Everyone did a good job in portraying their characters and the flow of the story was well-related to the previous installments. It was awesome for a prequel.

James Mcavoy as young Prof. Charles Xavier is exceptional. Charles Xavier is seen to be quite of a laid-back type of person with a very gentleman way of speaking in previous installments. And James Mcavoy did exactly the same thing. In short, he is everything you would expect a young Xavier to be. I've always love his acting. Remember him in Becoming Jane and Atonement? He's a good actor. No doubt about it.

Not to forget Micheal Fassbender as young Magneto. He nailed it. Fassbender and Mcavoy, they have a strong chemistry which led to a brilliant performance. And kudos to all of the supporting actors. I just love seeing how things started at the beginning, how did they end up being together, how did they separate being rival and etc. There's nothing new on the side and it was driven the right way just as I expected it.

The pace of the movie was not too slow, nor it was too fast. It was just right in between, as a matter of fact I didn't realize the movie is actually more than 2 hours. I enjoyed every bits of it. I wrote it before saying how much I like for a pretty full course of satisfaction in the end of a movie, and I think I can safely say this is one of them.

The movie is almost pitch-perfect being a first class movie it is. If you still haven't watch it yet, go and watch it. Not a waste. Definitely worth seeing if you're a fan of superheroes movie.

P/s: I've always fall for James Mcavoy's piercing blue eyes. Awww. And his accent is just so lovely. Haha. :D

KROQ Live

I envy those at Weenie Roast who can watch KROQ live. But then again, I watched it too via Ustream. Haha. I woke up early just to watch the live stream. Boo me..!!

The Strokes is solely responsible for that. Haha.

Watched the full live stream without any buffer or hiccups. Love it.

Jules as usual, was rocking his neon green sneakers and sunnies. Niko donned the vest again. Fab and Albert were rocking their usual attire. Valensi, on the other hand looked hot! ♥_♥

Here's Valensi with his guitar. :)

Pic credit: LYWB

They played my theme song, Hard To Explain. Mann, I was melting again when they played it. I effing love that song. Rather than mellow kind of song, I chose this song to be my love song. I'm weird like that. Haha. Besides, it was the song Jules used when he proposed to Juliet.

Despite a dying mic, The Strokes didn't fail to impress their fans. Their fans were totally jumping and dancing along to their tunes. I was stoked seeing their background. Jules with his sexy rocking voice. Aww. And yes, he just loved to crack a joke in between songs. :) I love it when he's messing with the lyrics. They played Reptilia, Hard To Explain, Under Cover of Darkness, Juicebox, Last Night, You're So Right, You Live Only Once, and Take It Or Leave it.

But I think Jules was not in his top form. Regardless, it was short and sweet. ;)

I managed to catch Foo Fighters too. They played my fav song, Learn To Fly,Times Like These and Best of You. I think they played longer than The Strokes which is not fair. Haha. One funny thing, I've read a comment in Ustream chat feed box saying Dave Grohl is actually Tony Stark. LOL. I only see a tiny resemblance.

Anyhow, I found an old pic of Nick Valensi. How cute.

Kung Fu Panda 2

Yesterday, me, dear mom and my brothers went out to watch a movie. I was going for Pirates of The Caribbean but then big bro said it's better to watch Kung Fu Panda 2 since we have little brothers. I don't mind since I wanted to watch both.

We didn't watch the 3D version, just normal 2D one. All of us watched the 1st movie and we liked it a lot. Now for the sequel, we liked it too. :)

The movie was just awesome with good choice of words like awesome, so hardcore, and etc. Not even a minute I felt like going out of the cinema or perhaps I was being bias since you know, I'm a sucker for animation. Pfft.

It was packed with action but fully integrated with comedy, sadness and moral. Though the storyline may have not been an original or could be a tad boring, the perfect voices and beautiful animation offered is enough to compensate.

Well if you're a fan of Kung Fu Panda, you should go and watch the sequel. This film is suitable for kids which make an excellent choice for a family outing. :)

I've watched few trailers while waiting for the movie to start. I even made a list for what's next to watch:

-The Adventures of Tintin (Steven Spielberg's is a must watch for me)

-Happy Feet 2 (I loved the 1st one, might as well watch the sequel)

-Transformers: Dark of The Moon (This a definite must. Period.)

Suck It and See

Well this is something I've been waiting for so long. Arctic Monkeys' fourth album, Suck It and See.

The whole album can be streamed on their official website: ArcticMonkeys

I've listened to the whole album. It's been looping in my playlist. I need to get some sort of a hook to their latest album. :)

Here's the track listing:

1. She's Thunderstorms
2. Black Treacle
3. Brick by Brick
4. The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala
5. Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair
6. Library Pictures
7. All My Own Stunts
8. Reckless Serenade
9. Piledriver Waltz
10. Love is a Laserquest
11. Suck It and See
12. That's Where You're Wrong

Frankly, this album is nothing like their old albums. Less guitar riffs, less opaque lyrics and they're focusing more on the tunes itself. The title itself says 'Suck It and See', this is something that they wanted to test I suppose.

Nevertheless, this album is better than Humbug. I'm not really keen with 'Brick by Brick' and 'Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair' but their opening 'She's Thunderstorms' glued my ear to speaker waiting patiently for next tunes.

Love may have clouded Alex's mind since most of them were love ridden theme which made the album sounded more melancholy and back to the oldies. I've fallen for 'Love Is The Laserquest'. Oh my, the lyric was beautifully written. Thumbs up to Alex. The lyric and the melody fits perfectly with Alex's laid back charming voice.

“I’m sure that you’re still breaking hearts with the efficiency that only youth can harness”

"And do you look into the mirror to remind yourself you're there Or somebody's good-night kisses got that covered"

Not to forget the title track, I love it to bits. It felt like Alex has bared his soul in this song.

"You're rarer than a can of dandelion and burdock"

"I poured my aching heart into a pop song, I couldn't get the hang of poetry"

"Be cruel to me 'cause I'm a fool for you"

Much respect to them as they've gone for more matured with a poise album.

I know lot of fans were not satisfied with the album as opposed to their earlier stuffs when they had great vocals and strong-edge sounds. But I don't mind seeing them exploring with their creativity.

All in all, I would rate this as 4/5 with 'Love Is A Laserquest', 'Suck It and See', 'Black Treacle', 'That's Where You're Wrong' and 'Reckless Serenade' being my personal favorites.

And yes, Alex Turner is still a brilliant lyricist. ;)

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Written by Max Ehrmann

credit to Fleurdelis

P/s: I just love this piece of art. :)