Of Captain Wentworth, Darcy and Gilbert Blythe

All I can say is that I'm in love with fictional characters. First there was Mr Darcy. Then Gilbert Blythe. Now Captain Wentworth..........

I am re- reading Persuasion by Jane Austen now. I'm just taken aback once again. I can't wait to finish reading the novel so I can re- watch the movie again!!! ( It's just my principle )

Persuasion is my second most favourite novel by Jane Austen. First being Pride and Prejudice of course. This story is quite different from Pride and Prejudice. Persuasion is rather a heart breaking novel to read in the beginning. Anne Elliot was persuaded to reject the then poor, no high status Mr Wentworth. He was heart broken, and after 8 years, he returned. He was determined to marry any other woman other than Anne Elliot.  But somehow, you can't lie to yourself about your true feelings. And my oh my, I really love how both of them revealed their feelings towards each other. And the letter!!!! My goodness...........

When I watched the movie a few months back, I was basically dreaming away .......... Captain Wentworth is so handsome!! ( The actor of course...... )

Ah~~~


Mr Darcy swept my heart away the moment I finished reading Pride and Prejudice. He is a classic example of my favourite hero. Even though he was prideful in the beginning, he was willing to change. Furthermore, he helped his rival- Mr Wickham, giving him money and persuading him to marry Lydia. He was also so gentle to Elizabeth. I really love their chemistry together. This novel reflects the process one has to go through to search for true happiness.

Mr Darcy is not the type of man that will capture your heart immediately. You will hate him at first, but slowly his actions, his gentleness will melt your heart away.


Next, it's Gilbert Blythe!!!! This guy was such an attention seeker during his childhood days. The way he pulled Anne Shirley's hair and calling them " carrots"...... Tsk tsk....... But that's how the story begins..... Who would ever thought Gilbert Blythe would come out top of the class and eventually became a DOCTOR!!!! If only I can meet a guy like him nowadays, it would be so fun!!!

I like how their friendship bloomed into courtship. =) It's so sweet!! =)

My three best hero thus far. I may put Mr Knightley in the list too. We'll see.

Billy : The Early Years

My blog is slowly becoming like a site for movie reviews...... Well in just one week time, all these things will come to a halt...... School is reopening..........

While browsing through some movies on the Internet, I came across a movie made on Billy Graham, the evangelist. Since I happened to know about him, I decided to watch this movie.

I think this movie is made up of 60 % fact, and 40 % fiction. I have to constantly check on the true details about Billy's life as I watched the movie. It is told by a third person, Charles Templeton, who was once a preacher that became an atheist. He was also Billy Graham's best friend. His life was really a sad one.

This movie centers on how Billy became convicted in his heart at a young age to know more of God's love and knowledge. How God directed to the right woman, who is beautiful but yet so spiritual at the same time, and how he remained firm even though his friend Charles tried to persuade him to embrace atheism.

This movie is really an eye opener. It also gives me the thought of having faith , and to just believe in God. Even though our God is an ever loving God, he is also a God of justice and wrath. We can never comprehend the wonders of God.

Real young Billy Graham 

As portrayed in the movie

While you were sleeping

My initial thought when I saw the name of the movie : Is this a thriller? Scary movie?

When I watched the beginning : No, this must be a romantic comedy.... What thriller/ scary movie will play " This will be" at the very beginning? Come on, Sandra Bullock does more comedy than thrillers, right?

When I was watching half way through : So, who will win her heart? The sleeping guy or the other guy? Well it was suppose to make no difference as both guys are brothers, both are , good looking ......

When I was watching 70 % way through : Now what? What are they gonna do?

When I finally finished the movie : Owh.......... this is so sweet.........

Hahahaha, that was how I feel ( literally ) throughout the whole movie session. At home.

To be very honest, I was searching for some clean, decent romantic movie, and Mr Google suggested this movie. So, I watched it.

Did I enjoy it?
Yes.

Was it predictable?
 Not really. ( She liked the sleeping guy at first , but you know what happened next.... now it's getting a little predictable here )

Will I watch it again?
Maybe.

I am not a fan of Sandra Bullock, but I think she did a good job in this movie. I like the idea that she fell in love with Peter ( the sleeping guy )'s brother  ( Jack ) while he was sleeping. That's how they come out with the title......

Annie

I know, I have been using the holidays very  " wisely". Instead of filling them with REFERENCE BOOKS, ( Actually I did, not much though...) , I spent a lot of my precious time reading and watching a couple of nice movies. As a matter of fact, I watched a lot, but I saved some of the best for blogging of course. =)

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya tomorrow, tomorrow's a day away!! Ah, this song really spreads out the positive vibes in me! I remembered I watched this movie a long, long time ago, and I decided to watch it again! And once again ( drum rolls) , a big thank you to youtube!!!

Annie is a girl that I hoped that my daughter will be. Please, not the orphan please....... But her , her character, her strong determination that she deserves a better life, she can be loved, she can love , her ability to sing  and charm everyone with  her genuine smile............

I always love movies with songs, and I don't see why I will not remember this movie. There's one song-- Easy Street, it's pretty catchy, and a little funny........  The movie has nice dances and most importantly a great message behind it. Everyone needs to be loved.

To me, a good movie is one that leaves you thinking about it, talking about it, and making you want to watch it again! Annie is such a movie! =) Highly recommended!

It's a wonderful life

This movie is rated as one of the best films ever made, and it is hugely acclaimed as one of the movies you should watch during Christmas. Well, since Christmas is just in one week time, Yours Truly seized this opportunity to watch it. Thank God for youtube, plus this version that I found is in colour!!! =)

This movie is just a classic, and it's just my cup of tea. Actors and actresses that speak with an attractive accent and charisma, songs, funny antics and just pure romance. ( well a little kisses now and there, but it's still bearable....)

This movie really reminds me to be thankful and grateful of who we are, and the greatest gift that God has given to us-- our life.  James Stewart is such a man that always puts others interest above oneself. He had a wonderful family, but one day he faced a major financial crisis that simply just tore his hope away. He began to reflect upon his oh so pity life........ One of his ear went deaf, he couldn't make it to college, he missed the chance to travel around the world, and the list goes on and on........ He also took this anger upon his family. Depressed, he went to the nearest bar and got involved in a fight. He eventually seek help from God to show his THE WAY.  Which brings us to the very beginning of the movie, where a conversation took place between a group of angels, where Clarence, a second class angel ( LOL ) who haven't " earned" his wings was summoned too go down to Earth to stop James Stewart from committing suicide.  As James was preparing for his " final destination", Clarence pretended to be drowned, and James being James saved him, and Clarence " saved" James too! =)

             James and his guardian angel-- Clarence

To remind James of his wonderful life, Clarence showed him how everything would be without him. It was horrible, his hometown was a place of immoral activities, his friends couldn't recognized him, he had no wife, no children, his brother died as he was not there to save him, his mother was a bitter widow, and put it in plan words, it was a DISASTER!!!!

James soon realised that he had a wonderful life, and it would be so foolish to give up his life just because of a financial debt of 8000 dollars. He quickly went back to the bridge and shouted " I want to live again" And live he did, he got back his wonderful life! Back at home, the officers are prepared to arrest James as he needs to go to jail. But James was overjoyed that he couldn't be bothered about it. His wife, Mary returned with the people of his hometown giving their money to support him. Even his friend in New York, Sam sent him money worth 25 000 dollars!!  James Stewart is now the richest man in town!!  Towards the end of the movie, the crowd sang Auld Lang Syne , as Clarence earned his wings!! =)

I was so close to crying as the movie ends! =)

James Stewart

Mary Stewart, as a young girl she had a huge crush on James, saying that she will love him till the day she die...... She eventually became his WIFE~~

I give this movie : 9/10 =)

Blessed Christmas in advance everyone!! =)

A special email

So, I decided to email Uncle Soo Ewe Jin, a journalist from the Star yesterday, and voila surprise surprise he replied me!!!


Hi Mr Soo, I am an 18 year old girl from Seremban..I look forward to your articles -  Sunday Starters every week. Not only I am amused and amazed, and sometimes your articles just make me think out of the box.  I once had that dream to be a journalist, but reality bites....... You have to be the BEST to secure a job nowadays, and I don't think Malaysia's education system is perfectly balanced in a sense that it gives more priorities to those in the Science field. Your articles always inspire me, and I count myself blessed that at least despite the fact that I'm doing Form 6 Science Stream, I have MUET lessons. =) Through your articles, I learnt many quotes, vocabulary and it really helps my writing. So, thank you very much, Mr Soo. =)

One of my favourite article of yours is Seeing the real treasure of this blessed land we call home. =). It is such a beautiful piece of work. =) Well, I must say that after reading your article, I had that sudden urge to travel around the world in 80 days! LOL.......

I'm looking forward to your articles to come. Perhaps you can write about your school life? I used to enjoy school life, until the burden of performing well and the too examination based education system simply " kills" my passion to study. Have you watched the movie 3 Idiots? That's what I think about our education system now- merely producing photocopy machines.....  However, I am not that pessimistic of the situation , I have friends, teachers and family to guide me along, and of course God who is always beside me. =)

I hope this email will enlighten you and encourage you, sir. It has been a great pleasure reading your articles. =) Wishing you and  your family a blessed Christmas! Take care and God bless! =)


Joycelyn Ong


Here is the short but sweet reply.


Thank you. Always nice to receive mail from my young fans. :) some people think my articles only appeal to the uncles and aunties, but I am thankful young readers like you not only appreciate the simple reflections I share, but take the trouble to connect. I think you should explore possibilities of being a journalist. Some of the best writers come from science background, like me. .:). A MUET teacher told me she uses my articles for her lessons. I like to write simply so I can communicate to others and not just speak to myself. This Sunday i am writing about teachers, so hope you will enjoy it. A blessed Christmas to you and family too.

God bless.

Ewe Jin (uncle to you)


Ahhh, how do you spell a satisfying sigh...... =)

Up

I've been waiting for a long time to watch this on free TV. ( Not so of a typical teen,eh? )

Heard that it was a nice movie, CARTOON movie. Hmmmmm........

It's a heart warming story about puppy love, marriage, adventure and that old famous , cliche theme of helping each other. Helping each other even though you barely know each other and " adopting" animals along the way.

Watching this movie also sparked a thought in my head, Starting an adventure book. =) Am starting to gather the photos, and sketches, what so ever now....... =)

I give this movie a 4/5 rating. =)

I wish I'll meet someone like Carl Fredicksen.


I think I'm like the young Ellie. =) Hahaha....... Always pretending to be somebody else, like some people who travel around the world...........

 Oh well, adventure knows no bound. It is subjective and speculative. =)

Amazing Grace

I remembered watching a small part of this movie at a friend's house some years ago. Amazing Grace, as most of us know is a beautiful hymn written by John Newton, who experienced a transformation in his spiritual life. It was only till yesterday did I realise that it was somehow related about slavery, and the will of a man named William Wilberforce to abolish it.

Amazing Grace is a heart warming movie that talks about how God can use a man who is " in" the world to carry out His work. William Wilberforce is a very popular MP, and has a promising career ahead of him. At one point of his life, he is at a cross road , where he is prepared to let go of his career in politics to pursue theology. However, his friends, including the then Prime Minister of England, William Pitt, persuaded his to stay on his course and to fight against slavery. He did, for more than 10 years, introducing the Bill in Parliament, much to the dismay of his fellow MP members. It was such a tough battle that Wilberforce himself became ill, and his friendship with Pitt eventually stained. He then went back with his friend, and met a lady by the name of Barbara. Somehow they discovered their passion for the  liberation of the oppressed  and slaves, and she managed to persuade him to return to politics. And of course, they got married. =)

It took William Wilberforce more than 15 years to see his dream come true, and England eventually abolished the slave trade FOREVER. I was so close  to crying when I watched the ending. It is all about God's amazing grace that transformed man, and the whole universe. =) Highly recommended.

William Wilberforce was such a witty MP that I laughed when he made such ridiculous remarks about his opponent. He will make a good lawyer in 21st century. 

John Newton, the man that wrote the beautiful hymn, Amazing Grace. He was Wilberforce's mentor and ally. 

William' The Younger" Pitt, the then Prime Minister of England and best friend of Wilberforce.

And of course, Barbara Spooner who eventually became William Wilberforce's wife. She is played by Romola Galai, who acted as Emma. One of my favourite actress. =)

Amazing Grace, How sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me,

I once was lost, but now am found,

Was blind but now I see.

D- Youth Camp

I signed up for this camp, with my class mate, Jia Wearn. I actually looked forward to this camp as it is a way of relieving my stress after the oh- so - scary STPM...... Actually I wasn't quite aware of the fact that the camp is very outdoor and adventure based...... ( Yours Truly is exactly the polar opposite)

Anyway, I went there with my friend and we were somehow quite taken aback when we learnt that we're sleeping in " containers" and we need to walk to our bathroom. Not only that, we 'll need  to wash our own plates after eating. Now that  was really UNEXPECTED!! Lol........... After a short briefing we were told to change into a more casual attire so as to prepare for the wet games session. The number one task we have to do as a team is to build a raft out of bamboo sticks and all , I mean  ALL, the 18 of us have to seat on the raft, and kayak one round at the pond ........... What were we expecting actually??? I had no idea how to build a raft, but thank God we had the guys in our team that were formerly Scouts. Apparently they knew how to tie the bamboo sticks together and somehow make it happen. ( From that moment, I decided, that if I ever have a son, I'll ask him to be a Scout, no matter what, seriously ) And, off we go, kayaking and shouting, while we were all seated on the raft......  There was one occasion I fell into the pond and my leg got entangled with the rope....Nope, no  Prince Charming came and save me, and do what so ever CPR. Even if there was really a Prince Charming, he will just ask you to stay calm because you're wearing a life jacket. Hahahahahahahahahaha.......

That's our team - The Overcomers. Can you spot me ? =)

I can't believe I did this..........  It was a nice experience though..... =)

The second day was THE day!! Climbing Broga Hill was the first thing we have to do in the morning, at 5 in the morning. I didn't sleep during the first night, as it was SO cold!!! I was really shivering, and it was so tiring for me .... Now for the climbing part, it was still bearable at first, but as we climbed towards the steep hills and rocks, I almost felt that I will die there, really. I was gasping for air, and I was very afraid of height. I was sweating and was so close to crying when I climbed the hill. Thank God for Jia Wearn and the patient instructors that grabbed my hands and assured me that I can make it. And I made it through, all glory to God.
After that, what next? I didn't want to go down!!! Climbing up is scary enough, what more going down? The first thought that went through my mind is that I should have stayed at home instead........ But Pastor Timothy and the rest prayed for me, and I felt that God wanted me to indeed be an overcomer and overcome this fear that has been with me all these years. So, I decided to climb down the hill, with the assistance of the rest of course. Faith and Pastor Timothy were kind enough to hold my hands while going down the hill, and Amen indeed, I did it!!!! I still can't believe it! Next we had another session, and it was slightly better as it was no so much of a wet game. But there was one game that really made me crumble..... The balancing game, where I got so frustrated when I attempted it for the 5th time, that I burst out and cried. ( That was such an emotional one, apart from the fact that our team lost because of this game, it was also an internal battle and struggle within me) The instructor, Wyman ( May God bless him ) allowed me to continue the game by starting half way, he even helped to support me, and I made it through! He encouraged me and asked me to trust myself and God. =) After hearing that, I tried again and I did it!!
 I quickly hugged Jia Wearn after the whole drama. ( It was a bit embarrassing , but it was really tears of joy and relief )  What a day!
The third day was also a nice one, when we figured out who was our angel and mortal during the camp. Michelle was my angel ( lol, I thought it was her cousin, hahahaha ) Jia Wearn was my mortal, how easy and HARD  was that, eh? She was so close to me, and wouldn't it be so obvious if I suddenly become TOO GOOD to her? But of course, I think I played my role well. Hahaha.

I'm grateful to God for what He has done for me and my friends during this camp. Never in my wildest dreams that I expect myself to go through all these activities. I had make God so small, and even gave up on myself. But thank God He carried me and He loves me so much! =)

Little Women

* Pads on shoulder
I did it, I read this amazing Christmas present ! =)
What can I say?? It's really a very heart warming and such a satisfying book !
The story revolves around 4 sisters, namely Margaret " Meg", Josephine " Jo", Elizabeth " Beth" and the youngest, Amy. This story depicts the one year that the sisters and their mother went through without their father, as he went for war. ( During the American Civil War ) As the girls struggled and learnt how to become little women as their father hoped that they would one day be, they befriended their lonely neighbours, The Lawrence family. Jo especially, formed a strong bond with Theodore Lawrence " Laurie" as they are of the same age , and shared many similarities.

The two families helped each other through thick and thin, and considered each other a blessing. Each sister has her own distinct personality and I can't help but identify myself with Jo, the topsy turvy girl, who loves to read and write...... She is one courageous girl who dares to talk to a fierce looking old man aka as Mr Lawrence ( Laurie's grandfather)  Did I mention that she has an " unpredictable short temper" too? This is totally so me.....
Meg, being the eldest is somewhat a responsible sister and takes care of the household when both her parents are away from home. She, too has her own flaws as she sometimes get carried away with worldly things and people.... But thankfully, she has a bunch of "little sisters" to bring her back to reality. Oh, and somebody fell in love with her too.... ( I wouldn't tell here, read the book yourself! )

Beth is one character that one couldn't help but love her. She is always thinking of her family and has a gentle spirit. She is basically the peacemaker between her sisters, particularly between Jo and Amy. She is said to be quite sickly and loves to play with her dolls.

Amy is the youngest , she is very particular on how she looks and loves drawing. She was formerly known to be very selfish and not understanding, but as times goes by she learns to think less of herself and think more of others.

Can you guess who's the artist behind this? 

I really love this story. I find myself controlling my anger more frequently now, not because it's the right thing to do, but it's because I love the March sisters and I love my family. =)

Rating : 4.8/ 5

Christmas present

I am ever so gracious to my sister in Christ, Jocelyn Lee for buying this book  for me as a gift for Christmas ! =)

Little Women, and it's the original UNABRIDGED text.....!

Having reading this book half way through, my thought is this, I want to READ THE SEQUEL!!!!
I want to know what happened to the March sisters, who did they marry and did they achieve their ambitions??? ( I can predict some of the outcomes though.... having read the details on Wikepedia before....) Just keep this a secret.... Shhhh.....

I really love the cover of the book, and the story too!! Will post about the review when I finish reading it. =)

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

I have been doing a lot of reading lately, and this is really a GUILTY pleasure..... ( You will understand this when you are still a STUDENT....  a Pre- U student in the midst of her semester break.....)
I never thought that I will enjoy reading this book. But I guess as time goes by, I grew to love mystery and suspense. I even watch TV series like Bones, NCIS, CSI : NY etc........  Perhaps, I have become the " master" of love stories that I can even predict them before I even read them, or watch them.... =)

So, I decided to give this book a go. Plus, it's less than 10 bucks!! Worth it, I tell you, it is TOTALLY worth it!!

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle really has a way to spin his stories around with logic, imagination and a blunt sense of humour..... This book consists of 12 short stories, narrated by Sherlock Holmes's sidekick, Dr Watson. I really love the word, sidekick, it's really " trendy" Haha..... =)

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are really like opposite poles, but they complement each other rather well. Sherlock Holmes has a really good observation , my,  he can basically deduce ANYTHING and EVERYTHING  by first impressions.....  He is a problem solver, very calm and creative.  On the other hand, Dr Watson has a flair for writing and of course practicing medicine. Hence, he provides a less comic effect compared to Sherlock Holmes. In my opinion, I think that Sherlock Holmes really respects Dr Watson and enjoys his company. Dr Watson, being a married man is also willing to spend his time with his bizarre yet good friend. I mean, Sherlock Holmes with his wit and quick reasoning doesn't even need Dr Watson to " assist" him, but yet both of them are considered inseparable..... Very interesting indeed. And they sometimes address each other in a " friendly" manner... Which is totally understandable, since they once lived together before Dr Watson married. Haha.......

My favourite short stories are The Adventure of the Speckled Band and The Five Orange Pips. I can't put the book down until I read the whole story. Seriously. This book is that GOOD.

Rating : 4.5/5

The Secret Garden

I feel a little guilty if I don't do a book review after reading..... Well, only during holidays I guess......

Anyway, I read The Secret Garden and I can sum it all up in 3 words. Life goes on.

It does, for the main character in the book, Mary Lennox lost her parents in India, and was sent back to England , she has a guardian, her uncle, Mr Craven. It seemed that Mary didn't have a " happy" childhood, parents were too engaged in their own world, she was pampered by her maids, didn't really have a friend......

Mr Craven, her uncle/ guardian is a successful businessman, who happens to be a hunchback and a sad man. He is a widower, having lost his wife after giving birth to their son, Colin. He simply made his work his primary excuse to avoid direct contact with anyone , including his son, Colin.

Colin is like Mary actually, lost his mother, didn't experience the love of his father since young...  He is very sickly, constantly having the fear of being a hunchback, like his father.  He too, has the tendency to be pampered and likes to order people to obey his DEMANDS. Mary calls him a young rajah - a young prince.......  ( A spoilt one....)

Together their lives somehow intersect because of the existence of the SECRET GARDEN. It was the very garden that Colin's late mother was so fond of. But poor Mr Craven was so heartbroken that he hid the key to the garden, a symbol of  hiding his heart and his happiness and memories with his wife. But Mary was so intrigued by the idea of the Secret Garden that she somehow managed to find the key to the secret garden and " convince" Colin, her cousin to explore the NEW WORLD. Of course, how can I forget, Dickon, her servant's brother that can talk to animals, and charm the animals in the garden. Dickon and Mary instantly clicked, and they really enjoy each other's presence.

I have a feeling that if this book ever has a sequel, it would certainly focus on the three of them. Mary, Dickon and Colin. A love triangle, perhaps?  You will never know......

So, grab this book and see for yourself what happened to the children, and what happened to THE SECRET GARDEN?

Ratings : 3.75/ 5