Hello Everyone,
I had the honour and privilege to attend the Gala Premiere of the movie, “Real Steel” that is set to be released on the 6th of October, after winning a pair of tickets from participating in a contest organised by Nuffnang.
Both my girlfriend and I were blown away by the movie and we both rate it a 5/5. The movie is really heartwarming and during the fighting scenes between the robots, you will definitely feel the excitement and adrenaline to want to stand up and cheer on the protagonists in the movie. (of course we didn’t stand up, but seriously, I reckon the little ones might)
This movie is suitable for everyone, young and old, families with children, people who love action-packed movies and etc. Seriously, I don’t want to spoil the surprise any further, so do remember to catch the movie when it’s released! I reckoned that the movie will be sold-out and might have a good chance to be the number 1 movie for the week. So, you might want to consider booking your tickets early to avoid any disappointment!
Here’s a short synopsis of the movie as extracted from Wikipedia:
Robots have replaced humans in boxing. Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) loses a chance to become a boxing champion when robots take over, and he becomes a small-time promoter. When he has difficulty making a living, he reluctantly teams up with his son Max (Dakota Goyo) to build a robot that can contend for the championship.
The Movie Poster
Real Steel, Releasing On 6 Oct!
We had to deposit all our electronic devices (mp3s/phones/cameras/laptops) before we were able to watch the movie!
That’s Atom, the Nimble and Agile Robot in the Movie!
Yes, That’s Me Posing with Atom! (I think only The Cathay have this replica)
Hello Everyone,
this blog entry that I am going to put up today is solely my own personal views and opinions, and it does not represent the views or opinions of the organisations that I work for. Hence, viewer’s discretion is strongly advised.
Last Thursday, I alighted at Boon Lay MRT Station and headed to Cheers to buy some food for breakfast. After which, I went to look for the loading bay which I was supposed to board the bus to SAFTI MI. While searching, a male subject bumped into me on my right side and because it was very crowded due to the strong unrelenting rain, I did not suspect anything amiss. Just as I was about to board the bus, I realised that my entire wallet was gone. Inside my wallet were only $8 cash, so whoever stole it haven’t got any luck. However, what really was more important to me was the personal documents that were inside my wallet! Inside, I had debit cards, credit card, driving license, my EZ-Link card, my ID card and etc.
To be honest, I don’t really care about the $8 that’s inside my wallet. What was more important to me was the personal documents. The first time I checked, to replace the entire contents of my wallet, it would cost about $200 or more. So far, I replaced all my debit and credit cards FREE OF CHARGE as the replacement fees was waived off for me by the banks. The reason given by the banks for waiving off the charges was that I did not MISPLACE nor LOST my cards but rather, my cards were STOLEN and that I WAS A VICTIM OF CRIME! (In fact, I lodged a Police Report last Thursday and the whole session took me half an hour)
So, now I have to replace my military personal ID, my driving license, and my EZ-Link card, and all these remaining replacements will cost me a total of $183! When I made an enquiry and asked if the replacement fees could be waived off as my documents were stolen and not MISPLACED, I was told that I still had to pay a replacement fee for all of them EVEN IF I WAS A VICTIM OF CRIME! I really wonder, why could the banks waive off the replacement fees for me and not the government institutions? It’s not as if I wanted to become a VICTIM! I didn’t have any choice as to whether I want my wallet to be stolen right? Unsatisfied with the answer given by the authorities, I called up ICA to check what the stand for civilians who lost their NRIC was. Surprisingly, the answer given to me by the telephone operator was that civilian whom is a victim of a crime committed can get their stolen NRIC replaced with the fees waived off, on a case-by-case basis (upon presenting the police report).
So, the question is this, why is it that civilians can get their NRIC replacement fees waived off, on a case-by-case basis (upon presenting the police report), but not military personnel? For your information, to replace a NRIC, it would cost $100 whereas to replace a 11B, it would cost $50. Can’t the relevant authorities review my case on a case-by-case basis and not shut me off just like that? Not just the 11B, I have to pay for the replacement of my driving license and EZ-Link card too. Why is it that government institutions are not consistent in their various policies regarding this issue? Don’t TP/SAF/ICA are fall under the umbrella of the government? Shouldn’t their policies be the same?
My monthly allowance as a Corporal is only $510 and replacing the above-mentioned documents will cost me $183! That is 35.88% of my allowance! What about my other daily necessities like transportation and meals? Seriously, it’s not that I’m fussy about making payment for the replacements, but rather, I really hope I can be treated fairly and have my situation reviewed case-by-case. Supposing someone got robbed of their valuables, are they still subjected to paying all these replacement fees? If they still are subjected to paying all these replacement fees, I seriously wonder, do the government really care and empathize with those whom are in need? Are they really so inflexible in their policies that they cannot accommodate a plea for help from someone in need? Do they really deliver what they would promise, to listen to the people and understand their circumstances? After this ordeal, I highly doubt so. Hence, I followed what all my fellow military buddies advised me; I suck thumb, bo bian, just pay and get the important stuffs replaced.
Conclusion? I will always remember this tough ordeal that I gone through and I will definitely remember it in my heart. This was what I was subjected to and so shall I measure the same treatment to “you” in 4 years time. I will not trust “you” and “your” words so easily the next time.
“From A Poor Citizen cum Fellow Servant”
Hello Everyone,
yesterday, I participated in an outdoor game, “Rush Hour 2″ which was organised by one of my friends from Church. I was very impressed with how the game was organised and readers to my blog might want to consider using this methodology which would in fact help save you manpower and costs.
About This Game (Rush Hour 2) and How It Was Played
Everyone of us were divided into groups of 4 and within a time span of 2 hours, we were to locate 6 checkpoints as a team and solve missing riddles that would direct us to a place where we had to take pictures as a group in order to receive our next clue. The final checkpoint would be where groups are to play a game which consists of two tasks and which would ultimately determine who the winning group is. The mode of transportation for this game is a single seater bicycle for every members in the group and at least one double-seater bicycle per group. Note that this game is a simple adaptation of a treasure hunt game played in a very different way.
Manpower Required to Organise this Game
2X Game Masters
- Organise the groups
- Conduct a site recce prior to the start of the game
- Conduct a briefing as how the game is to be played, the rules and regulations involved, and etc
- Monitor the progress of the groups
- Issue out clues and verifying the clues sent by groups
1X Safety Master
- Conduct a safety briefing to groups as to what are the things to look out for and whom to contact in case of any emergencies
- Check the weather and lightning forecast periodically
- Be stationed at key and essential points where accidents frequently occur/Roam around the area to ensure the safety of participants
- Carry out first-aid when the situation arises/need be
- Know where the nearest medical centre/clinic is should a casualty evacuation be needed
Logistics Required
1 X Smartphone with Camera (must have Whatsapp installed) per group and for the Game Masters as well
1X First Aid Kit (sufficiently equipped for cuts, bruises, falls and etc.)
1X Bicycle per member in the group and for Safety Master + Game Master and 1X Double-Seater Bicycle per group for 2 hours (can be rented from the various Bicycle Rental Kiosks)
2X Balloons, 1X Styrofoam Cup with Holes Punctured, 1X 600ml empty bottle, 1X 1.5L Distilled/Plain Water (for the final showdown) per group
and
Prizes for all the participating groups
Prior to the Start of the Game
Game Masters are to plan out the routes which the various groups will take and the various clues/riddles that they want the groups to solve. In this blog entry, I would focus solely on the concept that my friend came out with, hence, the way to planning and playing this game can vary as to what you might want to come up with.
Rush Hour 2- Our Own Local Adaptation of the Famous Treasure Hunting Game
Mission: to locate 6 checkpoints within 2 hours as a group using single-seater and double-seaters bicycles as a mode of transportation within East Coast Park.
Note: clues to the next checkpoint are only sent out after the completion of the present checkpoint. A group photo must be taken at each checkpoint and sent to the Game Masters via Whatsapp as evidence that the group was physically there.
Our First Checkpoint: -a place where prince and princess lives happily ever after
Our Second Checkpoint:- list the 9 terms and conditions regarding the usage of the Xtreme Skate Park in descending order
Our Third Checkpoint:- locate the 76527 panel at the Bedok Jetty
Our Fourth Checkpoint:- locate the number “12″ rock
Our Fifth Checkpoint:- what is the price for unlimited wakeboarding and water-skiing at the 360 degrees lagoon
Our Final Checkpoint:- locate me; I am tall and yellow in complexion, I am only useful at night and not in the day. I guide the ships safely to the docks.
Alright, after completing 5 checkpoints, we had to journey all the way back to the Bicycle Rental Kiosk and take a group photo as evidence. After which, we received the final clue to our last checkpoint for the entire game! As mentioned above, our clue was to locate a yellow lighthouse at ECP and well, it was pretty easy for us to know where it is. The only issue was that we had to journey all the way there on foot (the distance is approximately 1.2km and below). My apologies that I do not have the photos for this part of the game as they have not been uploaded yet. Nevertheless, when we reached our final checkpoint for the day, we had to complete two tasks:
1) Count the number of steps from the bottom of the lighthouse leading all the way to the top of the lighthouse. (40 steps is the answer)
2) Fill up a 600ml Empty Water Bottle with Sea Water using only 3 items given. (a styrofoam cup punctured with holes, and two balloons). Note that the bottle has to be stationed on top of the lighthouse at all times.
-Being the team leader, I divided my group into 2 so as to quicken the process of gathering the sea water and at the same time ensure that there isn’t any need to run up and down the lighthouse too many times. Within 2.5 trips, we managed to fill the 600ml bottle with sea water and emerged as Champions for the entire event! (the trick is to use the balloons given as balloons have a larger capacity than the punctured styrofoam cup)
Advantages of Using Technology to Organise An Outdoor Game
- Little manpower is required to organise this game as there are no need for Game Masters to be stationed at the various checkpoints
- Costs is efficiently managed as all correspondences between Game Masters and Group Members are via Whatsapp, unlike traditional treasure hunt games where clues are issued in hardcopy format.
- Minimal supervision required by the Game Masters as cheating in the game is greatly reduced
Disadvantage of Using Technology to Organise An Outdoor Game
- Using Whatsapp is a great way to manage correspondences between Game Masters and Group Members. However, there is a downside to this because when there are a flood of messages and pictures being sent between the Game Masters and the Group Members, it might cause a lag time where clues/riddles are sent out really slowly. Hence, resulting in time loss for the Group Members. To overcome this, it would be good to have 1 Game Master to liaise with 1 Group directly.
Hello Everyone,
I’m participating in a blogging contest organised by Nuffnang so as to win a pair of Gala Premier Tickets to the upcoming movie entitled, “Real Steel“. Hence, the topic that I am going to blog about for today’s entry is, “What is the Main Function My Robot Must Have and Why?”
Well, I have given some serious consideration and thought as to what main function my robot ought to have and why, and after pondering for some time, I decided that if I were to own a robot, the main function that it must have would be to run errands for me. What kind of errands you may asked and well, simple errands like grocery shopping, taking photographs, feeding my pets, paying my bills, managing my schedule, and organising my life, would be sufficient for me.
Now, why exactly would I need a robot with that kind of function?
Seriously, we Singaporeans generally live quite a hectic life. For myself, time is really precious and we all only have 24 hours each day. If I can save time by delegating minor tasks and errands to a robot, the time saved could be well spent with my family members and loved ones whom really mean a lot to me. On top of that, with the amount of time saved, I could use it to do good which would benefit others whom are in need or perhaps spend some time to improve my quality of life.
So with that, “Catch Real Steel in cinemas this 6 October 2011 and like the Official Real Steel Singapore Facebook Page!”
(*picture extracted from Nuffnang website)
Hello Everyone,
I caught the movie, “Johnny English Reborn” last Saturday with Baby and my group of friends from work and seriously, YOU MUST WATCH IT! Out of a 5/5 scale, I give the movie a full high-5! Some of you might have caught the 1st Johnny English and I did too. However, Johnny English Reborn released just last week is so much better than the 1st Johnny English which was released in 2003. After more than 8 years, this sequel to the 1st Johnny English is so much better and funnier! Although the jokes and enactments were pretty cheesy, I bet audience will still love Rowan Atkinson’s performance.
This movie is suitable for children and is also good for gatherings with family members and friends. Seriously, despite signs of ageing, Rowan Atkinson is still able to put up such a good show that really, I feel that he is perhaps the most respected actor cum comedian in the world today. So if you enjoy some really good time of laughter, you got to watch this movie! It really brightens up your day somewhat.
(Image Extracted from Wikipedia’s Site)
Movie Plot (extracted from Wikipedia’s Website):
English attempts to stop a group of international assassins before they eliminate a world leader and cause global chaos. In the years since MI-7′s top spy vanished off the grid, he has been honing his unique skills in a remote region of Asia. But when his agency superiors learn of an attempt against the Chinese premier’s life, they must hunt down the highly unorthodox agent. Now that the world needs him once again, Johnny English is back in action. With one shot at redemption, he must employ the latest in hi-tech gadgets to unravel a web of conspiracy that runs throughout the KGB, CIA and even MI-7. With mere days until a heads of state conference, one man must use every trick in his playbook to protect the world.
