Tuesday, October 31, 2006

IF

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

--Rudyard Kipling

Friday, October 27, 2006

Untitled Zen Story

Two monks were once traveling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was falling. Coming around the bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono and sash, unable to cross the intersection.

"Come on, girl," said the first monk. Lifting her in his arms, he carried her over the mud.

The second monk did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrain himself. "We monks don't go near females," he said. "It is dangerous. Why did you do that?"

"I left the girl there," the first monk said. "Are you still carrying her?"

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Where Bright Minds Meet

Interesting read-s:

click here

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Coming Soon


Welcome to my 3D World

I do lots of 3D. 3D for architecture, interiors. Some people think I'm good at it, some don't. Either way, no one can stop me from loving it.. and as one 3D guy said, "you're only as good as your last render".

Quite ironic that my favorite piece is the one posted here. It's a rendering of an oriental interior done about 3 years ago.. With the advent of more advanced 3d software, I've got better recent works but this one has a significance not only to my individual skills, but to the other 3D lords who have stamped their talents on this image.

The team involved in producing this was the early DDG team. It started out as an actual project but during one of my spare times I thought it would be cool to consolidate some of the elements the team members have worked on.. Mon modeled the bed, Rolz - the display cloth, Richard - the plants and the Buddha head, Myx - the standing Siddhartha, can't remember whether Diegh did anything here but we were probably making fun of him while we were doing the models (hehe). And Alex introduced me to the wonders of Vray (this is a rendering system which makes your images look real - we call it G.I. or Global Illumination technique). I did the final materials, lighting, camera angles and the other 3d elements. In between, Starcraft and Generals breaks with Mir and Dennis.. Then voila


There, I'm reminiscing again. But only because there are some people you have worked with - the ones who have got real talent, real skill, unpretentious, positive and dedicated - that are worth remembering.

The Great Cliff Burton

The reason why I love playing bass is because of this guy.

Monday, October 23, 2006

Etch Us Days Revisited


nols bing johnpaul celes vizky


Yup I'm reminiscing.. band days. Used to play with 4 other brods - Bing on guitars, Vizky on drums, Nols on vocals, John Paul on his feet.. haha.. to disguise our (my) lack of talent, we didn't (cannot) play covers and so ended up doing our own stuff - not that we wanted to cut a record deal or anything, just to have material to play on stage. To (Etch) Us, being in a band was simply to play and get some rockin' time going.. ending up in Tomas Morato's Persian Kebab after a gig, gobbling shawarma would be the ultimate reward back then :).

This song was originally written by Nols and Bing.. didn't really get to notice how poetic the lines were until now. It does sound a bit suicidal.. but that's probably part of the rebellious (and idiotic) side of youth.. you get lost in love's tug-of-war and you'd feel pretty much the same way the song goes.. haha. Nevertheless I found the song cool, much cooler if you would get to listen to the melody - it started out with Sandman-like riffs then eventually ended up with a blues-like groove..

Spider on the Ceiling


As I drift into my endless sleep
I look up at the spider as it gently weeps
Its web engulfs the neon flames
As I recall my endless shame

Spider on the ceiling
Don't weep for me

I look up at the spider in the air -
As I think of this world which for me hath no care

Spider on the ceiling
Don't weep for me

Slowly but surely I drift into slumber

The spider in confusion looks back at me and wonder

Spider on the ceiling

Don't weep for me

..hope we can record the song in digital format soon..:)

Movie Review - The Prestige



"The Prestige"
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, David Bowie, Scarlett Johansson

The movie's tagline is - Are you watching closely?

Well, one can't help not to. It is quite rare to find a noteworthy movie these days. I got to see "The Departed" a few days ago and being a Scorsese fan the movie didnt falter, but when I discovered it was actually a copy of the original HK version "Infernal Affairs" I was somewhat ticked off..

There are a couple of "stage magic" movies these days. One is "The Illusionist" starring Edward Norton (haven't seen this one yet but it also looks promising). The other is "The Prestige" - a story about 2 rival magicians during the early 20th century. A bitter feud between them sparked a lifelong battle to discover each other's secrets.. The ultimate goal for each magician was to decipher the ultimate trick - that of the "Transported Man". And this is what catapults the movie into a rollercoaster of twists and turns. Just when I thought I figured out what the ending was (my main premise was the disappearing bird on a cage trick), the plot will surprise you with another, more plausible twist. Cool!

Grab your popcorn now. :)