Goodbye 2007. Be a new girl.

Cannot believe today is the last day of year 2007, I have to say goodbye to my past.

Tomorrow will be 2008, a new day a new beginning. Gertie-Yunis wants a new self. I have to determine, not just simply say it.

I am not young now. Day has gone day by day, opportunity would not stay, but I stay at the same level. No, I am going backward. No matter my reaction, my thought, my health, my work, my salary, relationship with colleagues, my temper… worse. Every time I was in a deep thought, when I think of my family and friends would go away at any moment, other people are striving for the best, people at the same age are having not hackneyed life, I am so breathless with anxiety.

At this age I am not able to do what I want to, on the contrary, still dilly-dally. I am afraid I would become a homeless old maid die of cold by the roadside!

Tomorrow, new beginning, a reborn me.

I bought myself a Christmas gift

I received two gifts this Christmas, all from my associates-- a pair or stockings with patterns and a mirror of Snow White. All cost around HKD10, but they are for a happy Christmas.

I bought a pair of pants to momi, paid them an Indian lunch in Kowloon City, but got no Christmas gift... woo... Momi told me to choose a pattern and promised she would knit me a scarf for this Christmas, however...

Momi went with my in Christmas Eve upstairs and downstairs to read all models and prices in all shops. Sony Ericsson K770i, I fall in love with it once it comes to the market, though it is not very special or gorgeous, I like its thin body, it is cool. But momi kept on persuading me to buy other models other girls buy, creamy white, pink, or even K850i. Then, she got angry and went away because of my fault... and "5 o'clock now, I can buy no fish!"

Momi complained to dadi about I cannot make up my mind on the mobile. Ai, I have told her which model I want but she keeps on telling me that K770i is too much for a guy. I don't want too lady style!

On Christmas morning when we had breakfast, I said I want to buy a mobile by myself, momi said she wanna go with me, cause she wanna see how I buy a mobile. I refused immediately because I can buy nothing with her as she would have millions of opinion. And so, I bought my own Christmas gift in a minute, alone. Then I spent a whole night to study it, and more unexpectedly, my brother sponsored me HKD1,000! Hooray~

Merry Christmas!

I wish you all a fabulous Merry Christmas 2007 and a Marvelous New Year 2008!

May May - Prison Break

May May is enjoying lying anywhere in her cosy bathroom.


* Hey, why are you staring at me?

* Can you see the Heart shape on May May's tortoiseshell?

* May May loves to lie on the stone

Suddenly, Momi gets in to wash the bathroom with a toilet brush. Once May May sees her scary-as-ever toilet brush, she RUNs.

* HELP!

She jumps up to a rack and the rack falls down (it is too messy to take any photo as prove).

Momi is so angry. She punishes May May by putting her into a small plastic box, places her outside the bathroom.

The box is too small to turn her body. May May does not like it, so she tries hard to climb up, she has to RUN AWAY.

May May is trying hard with her hind legs. She jumps out! Prison Break successful.

I pity the poor May May. As the Uncle Sun comes to our living room after hiding for ages, I think it is time to give May May a sunbath.

May May loved to have sunbath, but after 21 years, she wants to whiten herself.

Look at her! She RUNs away from the sunlight by making herself a 90 degree against the ground. How difficult it is.

* May May, "The ultraviolet of afternoon sunlight is too strong, it would hurt me, idiot!"

Miss Potter

Beatrix Potter was born on July 28th 1866 in London. At the time, the British were feudal-minded, people did not respect females even they were talented. Beatrix did not get marry at young age like other females to house themselves, instead she stuck on to her dream, created popular characters and published, such as the famous Peter Rabbit.

The Potters was a typical Victorian family, lived in a large house with several servants. The mother had overprotected her two little kids – Beatrix and Bertram. She never let them made friends because "the village kids have germs". Brother Bertram could go to boarding school however, Beatrix was educated at home under governesses, and made friends with her pets. Since 1882, the Potters spent their summers at Lake District where Bertram studied insects while Beatrix painted the landscape and animals with water color, and created stories for self entertainment. The Lake District and her animal friends had inspired the tales of Peter and Benjamin, and other characters later came out.

* Beatrix Potter at age 15, with her family pet Spot the spaniel

At a later age, Beatrix had defeated some real estate developers in several auctions, and bought over 4,000 acres of farmland with her huge fortune from selling her books, which had saved the nature from devastation. She had devoted her love to the nature. She had bred the rare and threatened Herdwick Sheep indigenous to the Lake District, and became the first woman to be selected President of the Herdwick Sheepbreeders' Association; she also showed her passion to farming, to ensure the traditional farming methods would be preserved. When she died, she passed all her farmlands, cottages, etc., to National Trust, to preserve a beautiful nature for future generations. Otherwise, people now would not be able to enjoy the gift of the Lake District.

Back to the movie. When Mrs Potter did not approve Beatrix's marriage to Norman, the determined Beatrix accepted her mother's advise to have a "calm down" summer at the Lake District, to prove that her love with Norman was true. Unfortunately, this separation was for ever. Norman was cough to death so suddenly. Why Norman died so quickly? I was so curious to know if he was died of pneumonia or galloping consumption.

The fact is neither of them. I searched some websites and found out the truth: he was died of pemicious anaemia within a few weeks.

More than that, again, this movie has digested the history to make Beatrix younger, also re-arranged the sequence:

1. The Warne brothers did not decided to publish The Tale of Peter Rabbit until Miss Potter had successfully printed and sold several books herself.
2. The Tale of Two Bad Mice was inspired from the dollhouse Norman made for his niece, but not of her own in childhood.
3. Jemima Puddle-duck was a real duck that kept hiding her eggs at Hilltop Farm, and the story was written after Norman's death.
4. William Heelis was neither a groundskeeper nor a childhood friend of Beatrix, in fact, she was older than he.
5. The publication sequence has been changed in the movie. Though Peter Rabbit was the first book published, the second published Jemima Puddle-duck in the movie was in fact the twelfth book published in real life.

This story moves smoothly. In between there are lovely animated Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-duck take part which make the story more lively; the Lake District and the natural landscape are beautiful and fresh which colorized the movie. "A place propitious for giving birth to great men", it is no wonder to have million inspirations when one is having such a comfortable and tranquil live there.

The performance of Renee is fair. Her acting has not much improved indeed. She tries to imitate the accent of British upper class ladies but gives a strange feeling; on the contrary, Ewan McGregor is much competent to be Norman and delivers Romance. However, the length of the movie cannot be longer, so is not enough to tell more about their romance. (At least I feel not enough)

Although this movie has been criticized, Gertie-Yunis thinks it worth watching as it depicts the life story of Peter Rabbit's author, along with the beautiful scenery of England. Even my momi, who does not like watching movie, has sat down quietly to watch it. See? It is quite a good movie.

Director: Chris Noonan

Casts: Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Emily Watson

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Potter_(film)

http://www.peterrabbit.com/?territory=1&country=1

http://www.hop-skip-jump.com/

http://asp.mov3.com/trailer/index.asp?mov_id=2393&ver=B5