But I love Russell Crowe and even if he’d acted in something else not related to the beautiful legend of Robin Hood, I’d still pay for my admissions ticket to see my hero in all his glory in the big screen.

I digress, however, so let’s move on. How was the movie? I enjoyed it. Seriously. It flouts old English history, it gets a little camp and unbelievable sometimes, but it was utterly enjoyable. I told SmartDode this and I will say it again here: I would totally not mind if someone asked me to go watch it again in the cinema.

The acting was good – Russell Crowe only had to reprise his macho-ness from Gladiator, Cate Blanchett was uber cute as Marian, and the rest of the cast held their own to make the 2-hour movie watchable.

And after all that, through other bloated, nonsensical movies with nonexistent plotlines that just rely on animation, when you’re sitting through a movie that goes back to the theatre styles of yore, who could ask for more?

Ya, it has been a long 1.5 months since I last blogged and I really apologise for my absence. Have quite a few things to write about actually (well, only some movies that I recently watched and would like to recommend, and other assorted stuff) but haven’t had the friggin’ time to do anything of the sort. Need some me-time but have no idea when that is going to happen.

Life-wise, I am pretty much okay where I am at. Work drives me insane sometimes but you just gotta love those frantic bits when you feel like your breaking point is now. Also getting more and more involved and attached to church which is awesome but which will also be heartbreaking if and when I eventually move on to another place.

Anyways, it’s a Public Holiday on Friday which I am going to take full advantage of for doing nothing. Well, the afternoon for doing nothing, since I have a meeting in the morning. Saturday is for full day teambuilding. Sunday I will be meeting with my lovely girls.

Life is bliss at the moment!

I’m not an expert on HR matters but I do know what irritates me when people come for interviews. So, for show, here are my top 5 interview pet peeves:

1. Turning up sick for the interview. Really. I had one fellow who was obviously just recovering from a nasty bout of conjunctivitis and believe you me, I read him the riot act on that one. If you’ve an appointment, you can call in sick especially if it’s something like conjunctivitis which spreads easily. If not, you can always come when you’re fully recovered.

2. Rudeness. Or rather, as an act of self defense when you get too scared during the interview session. I once asked this fellow to introduce himself to me. He actually asked me to read his application form where he had written down all the answers. Oh-kayyy, obviously he did not get the job.

3. Not coming prepared. I recruit for a lot of rank and file staff so I do not need them to come with set hair and a three-inch thick resume. However, I would appreciate some effort coming into the interview. I’ve had people asking me for pens to fill up the form, and then submitting just the form without any other attachment. Also, I’ve had some coming in wearing shorts and slippers. What is that all about?

4. Being too vague. When I ask what their previous job was all about, some applicants give me this blank look, some have actually answered “don’t know”. Do you think you are increasing your chances of being hired if you can’t even tell me what you used to do?

5. Over arrogance. Or it could be a case of over confidence in some people. Yeah I know I am just an Executive level staff and you want to meet my Manager. But suffice to say, if you get the job, you will be dealing a lot with me on a lot of matters. So why must your nose be so high up in the sky?

* * *

Well this list is obviously not a be all and end all when it comes to a guaranteed hire. But I wish that some people would think twice before showing their obnoxiousness during the interview session.

* * *

Anyone who is interested, these are my results *lol*

Your view on yourself:
Other people find you very interesting, but you are really hiding your true self. Your friends love you because you are a good listener. They’ll probably still love you if you learn to be yourself with them.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:
You like serious, smart and determined people. You don’t judge a book by its cover, so good-looking people aren’t necessarily your style. This makes you an attractive person in many people’s eyes.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:
You prefer to get to know a person very well before deciding whether you will commit to the relationship.

The seriousness of your love:
You are very serious about relationships and aren’t interested in wasting time with people you don’t really like. If you meet the right person, you will fall deeply and beautifully in love.

Your views on education
You may not like to study but you have many practical ideas. You listen to your own instincts and tend to follow your heart, so you will probably end up with an unusual job.

The right job for you:
You’re a practical person and will choose a secure job with a steady income. Knowing what you like to do is important. Find a regular job doing just that and you’ll be set for life.

How do you view success:
You are confident that you will be successful in your chosen career and nothing will stop you from trying.

What are you most afraid of:
You are afraid of having no one to rely on in times of trouble. You don’t ever want to be unable to take care of yourself. Independence is important to you.

Who is your true self:
You are mature, reasonable, honest and give good advice. People ask for your comments on all sorts of different issues. Sometimes you might find yourself in a dilemma when trapped with a problem, which your heart rather than your head needs to solve.

Talked to SmartDode about it and complained that guys are so gullible. Even when their world is about to come crashing down and they are fighting to save their own asses, they let themselves be fooled by tears and a pretty face. And all he could say was: But she’s hot! I would have done the same!!

Get my point??

Anyhoo, take Megan Fox, for example. Hot, right? Sure if such a specimen were to come onto you, you would definitely thank your lucky stars for sending you such a delectable dish.

But, if by helping her, you run the risk of dying or getting bitten and eaten up by a zombie, thereby ending up as one of the undead yourself, as like this:

What would you do??!

Yeah, guys, I know there is a totally moot point. The lure of saving hot, beautiful stranger by way of risking your life thus invoking her undying gratitude where she is willing to do anything to repay you even if you are the most repulsive human being on Earth (also since other repulsive beings have since been turned into snivelling, bloody creatues) and of course by *repay* you can only mean one thing.

I rest my case :S

I’ve experienced mixed and conflicting emotions these past few weeks. I’m contented and happy to be a part of RCIA and that is something that I don’t want to let go of. But work drives me crazy sometimes and the me of last year never thought of Nilai as a focal point for more than 2 years. And yet it seems like I am kinda stuck here for that same amount of years.

So am thinking of options in my head – what works and what is too far fetched to become reality. Am not at the point where I want to talk to people about it (I’m like that, it’s not that I don’t like to hear opinions but having too much information confuses and perplexes me even more. I mull over things in my head, figure it out eventually and then make my own decision) because I still don’t know what I want to do and where I want to go. HELP!

I was talking to a colleague the other day and he told me that I could make a good *pensyarah* (Nota bene: lecturer). And I’m like yeah, I think I would be able to pull it off. But you know … I don’t know … sheesh! This is really difficult, you know.

This I-don’t-know-ness is killing me!

I, of course was super excited when I found out that Andrew Lloyd Webber was concocting a sequel of sorts to his masterpiece Phantom of the Opera. Even though I don’t have a chance of seeing it in Malaysia any time soon (and by that, of course I mean like in the next 20 years!) I of course grabbed the chance to have a look-see on the plot and album as soon as I could.

Welllllllll … let’s just say that I kind of love the album, though it might not churn out songs as classic as the original (the opening numbers to the Phantom of the Opera still gives me shivers, and who can forget the plaintiveness of The Music of the Night??). It still retains its creepy playfulness, and I especially loved Meg Giry’s parts in them.

BUT I didn’t like the way that Raoul was portrayed. I mean, being the golden boy-hero in the original, over here he is reduced to a bit part, snivelling drunkard and gambler who doesn’t live up to his previous image. The travesty, right?!

Anyhoo, however you look at it, Love Never Dies is not meant to be compared with The Phantom of the Opera cause obviously, there would be quite a few points which are lacking from what makes the original great. But, there are enough plus points from the soundtrack and – based on the reviews I’ve read so far – Love Never Dies looks like its well on its way to be another Andrew Lloyd Webber classic.

Or so it seems, based on his debut album, My Best Days. Sampled the songs from this album and while he definitely will not be winning Best Album of the Year, or New Breakthrough Artist (I have a suspicion that even this album is going to slip under the radar cause even I found out about it by accident!), it is a good enough indication that if he is savvy enough, he can actually have a lasting career in the music industry.

Favourites from this album are It’s Only, My Best Days are Ahead of Me and I Still Believe. Listening to him sing, I find it a shame that he did not make it into Finals of last year’s American Idol, the honour instead going to Adam Lambert and winner Kris Allen. Not to begrudge them their success, but the bespectacled one has always been a favourite since day one. And surely, as the likes of Chris Daughtry and David Archuleta have shown, you don’t need to win American Idol to win in real life!

Even before deciding to be baptised into the Catholic church, I’ve loved listening to musicals. Nothing made me happier than imagining I’m singing next to Christine Daie, or frolicking with cats, or bopping to the hippy sixties. And in my search for beautiful, haunting melodies, I came across Jesus Christ Superstar.

Living in Malaysia, sure I knew loosely about Jesus Christ and the Catholic faith. And I thought it was super cool that the visionaries that are Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber created such a masterpiece in this rock operatic musical – albeit very, very loosely based on St John’s Gospel. Back then, I even thought it was a touch cool that it was told from the eyes of Judas Iscariot, the traitor.

And today, on Easter Sunday, I was just listening to the album – yeah, I need my musicals fix once in a while – when it came to the song The Last Supper, right at the end, when Jesus goes “Will no one stay awake with me? Peter, John, James …” I just started tearing. I mean, that and Gethsemane, have to be some of the most heart wrenching songs in the entire album.

Definitely something I have to do before I die is to watch this musical. No way it’s ever coming to Malaysia, sadly, but who knows in the future, my life might be headed somewhere else One can only dream, right?

Well, this happened a few weeks back but I am still sore over it. And honestly, even when driving on that small little stretch, I am still faced with a slight phobia. Yes, this is going to be one of those pet-peeves-driving-in-Malaysia kinda posts :p

I was driving out of my lane on the way to church one Saturday evening a few weeks ago. Normally I am at 40kmph while still in housing estates and this time was no different. At the end of the lane, I signalled to show that I was turning left and started slowing down.

Suddenly, this idiot red taxi swerves into my lane (coming from the opposite end) and I swear at this instant my heart just stopped beating. In my head, I was going “shit! shit!” while braking like mad. Uncle in the taxi did the same and thankfully, we both stopped just a few centimetres away from each other. Phew.

So the Uncle reversed his car and then drove forward again, rolling down the windows in the process. Me being super naive and innocent rolled down my window too, expecting at least an apology or something of that order. Instead, what I got was this (which still has me steamed up till today):

Uncle: Amoi, lain kali jangan bawa laju sangat!

The nerve of that man. So I – ever the fighter cock – gave him a death stare (or as QueenB and SmartDode say, the stink eye) and said: Uncle, lain kali ikut jalan sendiri!!

He immediately drove off.

QueenB thinks I am nuts for expecting an apology and even more nuts for talking back to him like that. I mean, you’ve heard instances of road rage and the like.

BUT I am stubborn when it comes to what is wrong and what is wrong and following rules so there!! :S

ps. What would YOU have done?