Words that light up our mind

Antebellum:Belonging to a period before a war especially the American Civil War.
Anodyne: Capable of relieving pain
Dulcet:Pleasing to the ear
Parsimonious: Excessively unwilling to spend
Contusion: An injury that does not injure the skin but results in discoloration.
Gadfly:A persistently annoying person.
Malaise: Physical discomfort.
Vintner: Someone who makes wine.
Veracious: Precisely accurate.
Rococo: Having excessive asymmetrical ornamentation.

The Dark Knight Rose...

This week has been a hectic one for me. And obviously it is due to tests. Nothing goes right for me.(Don't tell me to go left because it is lame *_*) First, there were two tests and i had to study so many lecture notes. Okay i have no objection to that because this is the normal routine in a student's life. What bothered me was that initially we knew that it would be an open book test for Nutrition. But at the last minute, we were told that no open book allowed. Gosh you can imagine the blood draining from my face. But thank god i studied and i did not take things for granted for simply assuming i can refer to the notes while having exam. It is too good to be true. On friday, everything was perfect during our Psychology quiz until i got stucked in the webpage. Actually i had finished my quiz but i chose to check over and over again. Somehow till the very last minute, whatever i clicked, the page got stucked and responded slowly. And again i was so fortunate because i clicked save after completing each page. So in the end, i got 26 out of 30 and it pleased me to the max. Haha. You think this is the end of my unlucky day? Well not quite actually. My friend and i had an appoinment but at the eleventh hour, she decided to go ahead without waiting for me. Gosh what a terrible day. Speak at the bright side, i watched batman and seriously have a crush on Christian Bale when he is wearing the batsuit. The face expression and tone of his voice draws me to him. What a great actor he is. He really potrayed batman well and i am going to watch the batman series because this is the first time i watch the batman film. Alright. Goodnight and spread out our hands and welcome the fifth week. LOVE LIFE.

Movie Review

Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame, directed by Hana Makmalbhaf is a story about a little girl in Bamiyan named Bakhtay who faces a lot of obstacles during her journey to a girl school. The child actress, portrayed by Nikbakht Noruz lives in the caves under the remains of the Buddhas of Bamyan which were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001. The movie revolves around poverty among the local residents, indifference of mother towards children, discrimination against women, children violence and the effect of war on the local children.

The story begins with a little boy, Abbas reading loudly, only to be scolded by his neighbor for interrupting her child’s sleep. As a result, he is tied up by his mother but continues to read loudly. This attracts the attention of Bakhtay who is also annoyed by his voice and starts to complain. In return, he mocks and insults Bakhtay for unable to read and assumes that she is jealous of him. After a short while, she starts to show some interest in his reading when he repeatedly says ‘A man was sleeping under the tree. A nut fell on his head. The man stood up and said ‘luckily it is not a pumpkin, otherwise it would have killed me.’ The clearly intrigued Bakhtay now wants to go to school. She asks Abbas to bring her to school. But she has neither notebook nor pencil. He then instructed her to sell eggs in the market after failing to search for her mother. In the market, she works hard to sell the eggs, but is ignored by a lot of people. Hearing that bread is wanted, she gives up the eggs in exchange for bread. She successfully receives ten rupees and bought a notebook. Bakhtay smartly obtains her mother’s lipstick as a substitute for a pencil as she could not afford to buy it. Just as she thinks that she can finally join the class, she is sent off by the teacher. Abbas is punished for being late. On her way to a girl school across the riverbank, she is stopped and bullied by a group of boys, playing war games. Poor Bakhtay is humiliated and her notebook is ripped off and folded into airplanes. In the cave, another group of girls is seen and they are captured by having lipstick, beautiful wolf eyes and so on which are thought to be ‘sinful’ by the boys. However, she manages to flee and continues her way to the school. Unfortunately, no one offers her a seat and when another girl initiates the action of making up the girls using a lipstick, she is blamed and ultimately kicked out from the class by the teacher. Accepting the fact that she is unwanted, Bakhtay rings the school bell and sits on the empty chair, reading the phrases to herself. On her way back home, Abbas and Bakhtay are surrounded by the same group of boys. Abbas pretends to be dead after the boys ‘shoots’ him. During this moment, Bakhtay runs to the field and drops herself to the ground when Abbas shouts ‘In order to live, you have to die’.

After hearing Abbas’ reading, Bakhtay dreams of going to school because she wants to learn funny stories and be able to read. Abbas has repeatedly mock and insult Bakhtay for her inability to read. Having a high self-esteem, she denies the statement and bravely reads in front of him despite not knowing any of it. She is fascinated by Abbas’ schoolbook because she finds it funny when he says ‘A man was sleeping under the tree. A nut fell on his head. The man stood up and said ‘luckily it is not a pumpkin, otherwise it would have killed me.’ She smiles brightly and wants to learn more of it. Her desire for knowledge can be seen here. Although technically she does not attend the class, she does realize her dream. There is one scene whereby she sits on a chair and starts reading to herself. She herself says that she learns on her own. Bakhtay’s notebook has appeared numerous time. It plays an important part in the film. To learn reading and writing, you must have something to write on as this allows practices. But sadly, after the hardship Bakhtay has been through for obtaining the notebook, it has been repeatedly tear off and used as a fun tool. We always see her book being stripped away from her, indicating that she is denied an opportunity to obtain knowledge. In Malaysia, we could easily obtain stationary and books anywhere we want. We could never think that to some people, buying a notebook or going to school seems like an impossible mission because they are simply too poor. The lipstick too can be seen repeatedly in the movie. Although it is just a small little red thing, it triggers a lot of events. When Bakhtay cannot afford to buy a pencil, she uses the lipstick which shows how smart she is to be able to think out of the box. However, the lipstick causes troubles for her as well. In her place, having make up and being beautiful are considered as sinful. When she is caught for having a lipstick, the boys want to stone her as a punishment. When a girl starts making up other girls, she is blamed to cause this to happen.

The messages in the movie are conveyed well in the sense that we could observe and even feel the feelings of Bakhtay when she faces problems during her journey. Poverty is clearly shown in the movie. Families living in caves where there is little light source instead of normally build houses. Baby receiving glucose water instead of milk. Selling eggs and making trips just to buy a notebook. Bakhtay’s mother seems to neglect her education and she is forced to take care of the baby at home. In the society’s point of view, women should not receive any form of education. Working and taking care of the family are their jobs. This clearly shows that women are discriminated and thought to be funny for wanting to study. They have little rights and are always overpowered by men. On the other hand, children violence are portrayed. We could see how war has affected and polluted the mind of the children. Throughout their childhood, they are always dealing with violence. As a result, they exhibit aggression and playing mean so called ‘war games’ and of course bully the weak.

I feel sad while watching this film and become guilty towards the end of the show. Seeing people struggling and going through all the obstacles just to obtain knowledge while myself just sit back there and is sent to school without difficulties. I have never thought that this could happen in real life. All I can say is I am blessed with opportunities and I am going to appreciate it more.’ In order to live , you have to die’ is a statement which is contradicting to me. How can a person die in order to live? But in this movie, we can see that the message is not just about death and living. It is about freeing yourself from violence. You have to suffer before you can get what you desire. Just like the heroes protecting our country. They had fought with the enemies and freed us from their bloody and cruel rule. They sacrificed their lives for us. So basically, this means going through difficulties is a necessity before having the chance to realise our dream. The child actors are brilliant in portraying their roles. Maybe this is because they live in the condition like in the movie and they sort of portraying their lives instead of acting one. In a nut shell, I have to conclude that war affects people, physically and emotionally. The people suffer from poverty and children have very little future prospect because of lack of education. I believe there are thousands of children facing the same problem like Bakhtay and people around the world should really think and help them as much as possible for education is a priceless item where nobody can rob it. I rate this film 4/5 stars for being realistic about the life in a war country. This is really a good movie about struggles and obstacles we have to face in real life.

To those who are interested in this film, you can watch it here

Words Of The Week

I almost forgot to put up these words. Wooohhh. Luckily i remembered it. LOL.
Anomaly- deviation from the normal or common order or form or rule.
Dogged- stubbornly unyielding
Despoil- destroy and strip of its possession
Euphony- any agreeable (pleasing and harmonious) sounds
Puritan- someone who adheres to strict religious principles; someone opposed to sensual pleasures
Vagabond- wandering aimlessly without ties to a place or community
Writhe- to move in a twisting or contorted motion, (especially when struggling)
Macabre- shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
Grapple-  to grip or seize, as in a wrestling match
Depreciate- lose in value
Goodnight then.

Another End of Week and DEBATE~~~~~

It is Sunday again which marks the beginning of another week. A lot of events have happened throughout these days. First, all of the new students finally received their student IDs! Sounds good but actually it is not. All of my friend complaint about their photos looking ugly and dark. Well, me too. I wish i have the chance to change my photo instead of using the current one. But i can forget about it since it is impossible. I guess i just have to live with it. During our first English class of the week, we had the opportunity to watch a movie entitled Buddha Collapsed Out Of Shame. To me, it is an interesting movie. We were required to write a review on this movie with at least 500 words. This will be considered as one of the assignments we have. I am going to post my review on Monday so if you want to read about it, well stay tuned. After that, Miss Crescentia informed us that we would have a debate on Friday. Honestly, i know that this day would come so i am kinda prepared for the worst. After going through all the disscusion with my group mates, i was picked as the third speaker. One of my friends told me that the third speaker bears a huge responsibilty as she or he needs to rebut all the points coming from the other team we were against with. But luckily this ain't a parliament style debate. Everyone got to rebut if they wanted to. As usual, i freaked out and feeling nauseous when it was my turn to speak on Friday. I can't seem to get rid of my negative feelings. But anyway i completed my speech and i felt proud of myself for trying to be brave although it ended badly. Of all the group members who participated in the debate, i think Maathini was the strongest speaker. She literally stole the show when it was her turn to speak. I believe everyone can't help but focusing on her the entire time. She has the confidence in expressing herself through words and this is why i admire her so much. I wish i could have her confidence and fluency in English and from that i ought to improve myself. I have never participated in a debate before, so i considered this as a huge step for me for speaking in front of a crowd. Actually i did join story telling competition back in the days when i was in primary school. But it was a long time ago, eventually fear overpowers me and i do not have the courage to speak in front of the crowd. Guess i need time and practices. No excellence can be acquired without constant practices. Nonetheless, everyone did amazingly well and i believe all of us will improve step by step and conquer our ultimate fear.  After a tiring day, my friends and i went out and enjoyed our dinner in Barbeque Plaza located at Berjaya Times Square. It felt wonderful after going through a terrifying time. We ordered a chicken set and started barbequing and of course shared among ourselves. Then, the next day we went to Carrefour for groccery shopping. Unfortunately my friends had to put up with my attitude while shopping because i tend to think a lot when choosing the right thing for me. Haha. Yesterday i got to meet up with my long time friend. We were friends since form four and i felt happy to be able to chat with him and his group of friends although we barely knew each other. Because i went out till night and it was kinda dangerous for me to walk alone to my apartment, i stayed in my friend's house. We chatted until 3.00 am in the morning and i was scolded by her for not letting her to rest. LOL. Well, i had an interesting week and i hope u guys had one as well. *_*

Gloomy Sunday...

Well today is Sunday and week 3 is coming. I am amazed at how time flies. I mean REALLY FAST. Think of the first day in IMU makes me realize how far i have made it here and i have been living alone without my parents' company. Speaking of that, i miss my family and my dog. I hope it will remember me when i go back. LOL. What i do not expect is this will be a short semester for the June intake students. We are required to choose three alternative selected modules for these eight weeks which are totally unrelated to our course. Well, i guess it is a good thing to try out different things. Anyway, i have selected ECS, Intro. Psychology and Nutrition and Wellness. And thank goodness i got it all! But do not be happy too soon. Tons of stress,tests and assignments are ready to knock me down. Especially for English, before i chose her, i am awared that students have to do quiz, homework related to grammar or language skills and an oral presentation with the teacher which i find it quite tolerable for me as i want to improve my English language skills. I thought this will be a typical tuition-like class i had when i was in secondary school. It is surprising to know that all my expectations go the other way round and i will be facing somewhat more challenging tasks. What i feared most is speaking in front of a crowd and BINGO, i have to do it. Gosh it is really freaking me out and there is no way out. Haha. However i understand this is a way of pushing us to confront with our fear because there is no way we can be in a health care profession without brushing up our speaking skill. So therefore i have to face it no matter how nervous i will be. 
I believe everyone is experiencing Monday blues. Well, i am too! But when i think of the coming
holidays, all my sorrows just vanished in a second. I can't wait to go home and meeting up with my beloved friends. I am so gonna enjoy myself to the max!! But before that i have mission to accomplish. That is to do well in what i am doing now. Anyway a new week is coming in just a few more hours and i hope everyone in the world could be happy. GOD BLESS US ALL!  :  )

Last but not least, here are the 10 new words that  i am introduced to this week. Here you go!
Vex-to irritate; annoy; provoke
Ambivalent- having ”mixed feelings about someone or something; being unable to choose between two (usually opposing) courses of action
Vicarious-Felt or undergone as if one were taking part in the experience or feelings of another.
Vamp-To patch up; repair.
Abjure-formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief, usually under pressure.
Insipid-lacking interest or significance or impact.
Altruistic- Showing unselfish concern for the welfare of others.
Siesta- A nap in the early afternoon.
Contemplate-look at thoughtfully; observe deep in thought.
Demure-affectedly modest or shy especially in a playful or provocative way.

It's A First!

I have never thought of myself creating a blog. Well since this is an activity for the English class, i have no reason not to create one. I always think that becoming a blogger is such a trouble because it requires time to manage the blog. Maybe i will change my mind in the upcoming weeks as we are required to post at least once after every class. For me, i enjoy reading other people's blog. It enables me to get to know them better. It is good to know what friends are doing lately and how they are coping with their own lifes. As for me, i don't share my personal life on the social network. I rarely post or update my status on facebook except when i am in the mood. LOL. My friends even wonder if i ever log on to facebook. In fact, i log on almost everyday! Like i said, i like to know what friends are up to. But make no mistake, i am not a stalker or whatsoever. HAHA.