Thursday, June 26, 2014

Transformer: Age of Extinction




I have the pleasure to watch this latest blockbuster in advance on 25th June. Quite a great experience in an Xstream screening with somewhat perfect visual impact.

I wouldnt want to disclose much about the content, dont want to be a spoiler :)

I enjoyed the plot, although there are parts where can be prolong a little, like between the fight (Might due to time restriction). To my surprise, there is not much liking from the 1st 2 movies, this is more like a stand alone movie.  It might be because of the core actor/actress were not involved in this movie and the story line was abit more about the leas's bravery etc. Interestingly, not much about Decepticon, and heaps of Autobot dont appear  in the movie :/ Yet I admit that the graphic and the visual of the automobile was pretty cool, and the appearance of dinosaur? Is pretty tricky.

In brief, the whole movie is about (plot) frame - betrayed - greed - fame - faith - gratitude - love - change - bravery - trust - loyal.


Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Life as a Negotiator

*I have the privilege of watching a movie for free in university some time last year. Is about negotiation (on life-death matters not those commercial). It was a great movie, the plot has it own twist in it. At the end of the movie, there is a guest speaker who will relate the movie content and the real-life experience. And here is some of the takeaway that I had. [p/s: Like my previous post, CSI is still one of my favorite drama series, so it is a no surprise that I enjoyed the session  :) ]*.

When negotiating, bring up open-ended question and importantly, listen their statement without judging them. When dealing with this life and death matter, one will need to build up rapport with them, to generate the trust among the both of them. Some basic idea about negotiation:
   ·         Never make a promise
(   As at the end, the offender will discover the truth that you won’t be fulfilling his ultimate request, and loses the faith in you.
   ·         Never be ‘deceptive’
   ·         Build rapport

Who are involved in a negotiation?
It is usually the local police commander that liaises closely with the negotiator and the negotiator will keep close contact with the technical people. It is not encouraged to change negotiator as the first negotiator has already build the rapport with the offender. Whether the negotiation is make or break, it all boils down to the senior negotiator, as he or she is the one who call the shot and it often based on the negotiator experience and not the police.

What happens during negotiation?
The negotiator will adopt the container negotiation approach, where the taskforce will quarantine the public with the ‘crime scene’, so that the offender is isolated with the public to reduce any further stimulation.

When the negotiator arrived to the location, the commander will brief the negotiator before the negotiation commences. This is important for the negotiator to understand the background of the offender, so the negotiation can be themed around the heart of the issue. Like mentioned, it is crucial not to be judgemental, instead, be objective and independent, so that one emotionally connected to it and thus easier to conduct the negotiation.

Meanwhile, negotiator will communicate with the commander or with psychologist if necessary using written notes to avoid communication disruption with the offender.

Who can be a negotiator?
Negotiator is usually a detective or a sergeant, one need to be on call so that they could head to the location directly. They are usually in their causal wear, able to keep calm and not rushing as these create pressure on the offender.

Since negotiator is a high stress level job, it usually comes in part time position and in rotation basis.

What it takes to be a good negotiator?
   ·         Communication skills is a must
   ·         Tolerance
   ·         Empathy
   ·         Patience (Especially you might need to talk to them for 14 hours straight or more)

It is not necessary to have a tertiary education to be want as negotiator needs more soft skills than the technical knowledge. Yet, various policing experience will be of great help during negotiation as one have witness all kinds of humanity from the best to the worst.

How to be a negotiator?
The recruitment of negotiator usually will be announced through internal portal, and you will need to go through 3 weeks training. You also will go through medical and work history check, and also any complaints filed against you. It is also vital for you to understand the your stress management capability.

NSW has this policy of not having force entry during the invasion. At the moment, NSW has done a great job for not having death in custody.

It is never easy to be a negotiator as ethics always come into place.  One has to always be remembered to never expense anyone, if forced to, do the greatest good for greatest number of people.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

沉迷于《案影追踪》CSI

如果你是美剧剧迷,那你应该很难没听过《案影追踪》这部连续剧。若没记错,CSI共出了三部不同的地点(州属)为主的犯罪事件,即Las Vegas, Miami 及 New York。而“出道”最久的也是Las Vegas 版,目前已在播放第14季。偶然之下发现,原来每一季,就是一年,也是无意间所发现。第一季播放于2000年。天哪!我中学都还没毕业呢。现在仔细想想,开始接触到这部美剧时,也是刚入预科班/大学的时候。掐指一算,真的看了那么多年,时间也就这么飞逝而过。

日新月异。14年了,难得还看得到第一季的演员坚持到第14季。当我在看着某一集的时候,察觉演员的眼角皱纹格外鲜明,所以便搜了一下,恍然发现时间变迁所遗留下的痕迹。后来我也在猜想,这些演员难不成每一年就只接这部美剧的拍摄?毕竟也没从其他戏剧电影看过他们的印象。

为什么会说到这些?因为我,即使过了多少年,老觉得自己不够成熟、长不大、像个大小孩。才明白,在父母眼中,孩子永远还是孩子。白驹过隙。因此也没察觉自己追随CSI也有那么多年了。

好了重点重点!有关自己为什么会喜欢这部美剧的原因(因为认识的女生大部分都喜欢浪漫悲剧、青春遗憾剧等,找不到共鸣。)。高中毕业以前,我就想攻读心理学。但回归现实,父亲的阻扰及“提醒”关于该行业在国内的前途,结果还是打断了那个念头。现在想起,老觉得我会喜欢看这剧的原因,其实就是和心理学有关。

我讨厌恐怖片或是残忍的画面,所以每集的前几分钟,我要嘛就把声量给关了,要嘛就故意迟开个几分钟,让死者的惨况给过了才看。除了老帅哥,喜欢这部剧的原因是他让我了解到人这个“生物”是如此的复杂。人,可以为了许多不同的因素而做出‘那个’决定,而且犯罪的通常就是意想不到的身边人。所谓身边的人可以是刚遇到的、有血缘上的等关系。也让我明白了,某个人自身的经历,有不同的影响,进而做出不一样理论。情情爱爱、金银珠宝、深仇雪恨、待遇不平、存粹意外、错综复杂、愤世嫉俗、灭口掩案、连环杀手等等,我无法不佩服作者/剧组为每件罪案的发生“铺路”——想出不同的犯案方式、犯案原因还有呈现方式等。再加上为了增加戏剧故事线而想出队员之间的感情线、事业道德问题。不但需要丰富的想象力而且还需要揣摩人心而拍出的电视剧。看了这么多集以后,我就发现,人真的真的是个复杂体。有时真的可以为了鸡毛蒜皮而寻仇。但就如所说的,我们这么一个“生物体”毕竟因为有所谓的理智和情感,认真钻研以及盲目追随,生活环境的影响才会选择走上不归之路。

当然,除了所谓的因果,这部戏剧也让我庆幸生活在这个年代,也不得不承认科技随着年代“改朝换代”。与未有检测确认脱氧核糖核酸方式的年代相比,我们生活在这个年代是多么地幸运,让罪犯绳之以法。

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Reflection on Movie: Chef


Ever since I am studying in Sydney, I dont often go to the theatre for movie. Sole factor: price ~>.<~
Yet, I got a free movie voucher as a staff gift from the office, so I head to the cinema after work, despite I have to walk for nearly 20 minutes to the nearest cinema :))

Watched Chef alone, at the back of an empty theatre, well, literally empty since there is only a couple of people occupying each of the 5 out of 7 rows. Needless to mention about the storyline, since Goolge helped quite a bit. Quoting from IMDb:

Chef Carl Casper suddenly quits his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant after refusing to compromise his creative integrity for its controlling owner, he is left to figure out what's next. Finding himself in Miami, he teams up with his ex-wife, his friend and his son to launch a food truck. Taking to the road, Chef Carl goes back to his roots to reignite his passion for the kitchen -- and zest for life and love.
I would say this story draws one of the ideal life one can get. In fact, it is these kind of attitudes and courages that one will be encourage to have. I being a pessimistic person, but trying real hard not to, I always thinks that it is not impossible but it is hard. This is about losing control on one's life, when things just go wrong, nothing works out, you dropped hard on the floor from the height etc. And in a certain way, it does reflecting what had happened. The magnitude might not be as great as this, but it al depends on individual's life and perspective, and I could say that the pattern of it is definitely similar.

So, thoughts for the movie that I like, learned and realized:
1. Social media today is incredibly powerful, it can brings you up, and no doubt, it can throws you down. The power of sharing, retweeting, and is all about what others think (Might or might not be the fact of an issue). Is a double-edged sword,

水能载舟,亦能覆舟


2. Words hurt. Even more than the physical pain. The worst part of it, you cant argue with it verbally (referring to passive communication using words). You cant clarify it immediately, even you attempt to make correction to it immediately, because it subject to whether did the recipient read it.So be mindful with the words.

3. Friendship. Ideally, your best friend/supporter will be loyal to you, follow you and support you all the way through. Even if you are in deep sh*t. From the movie, you can see that one of the chef buddy has followed him and the other one didnt. Being emotional, you can say that the other one is a coward or doesn't value the friendship, but think about it, rationally, in reality, how many of your friends will do the same? Moral of the story is, treasure those friends that really back you up! (Doesnt mean that the rest are no body, just show extra appreciation to those will do so.) 帮助你是人情,不帮你是道理。

4. Dad, an influential individual. Regardless you are the daughter or the son, both parents definitely have certain influence over you. Here comes the biological inheritance, DNA talk etc. Besides this movie, backing up from other reality shows clips, parents occupation and future do highly influencing the child's future prospect, in particular, dad. He is the one that overpowering the potential path of their children.

5. Time spent together/Communication. Is all about the moment that you had with someone, be it father-son, husband-wife, employer-employee or all other sort of relationship. Time + communication. A definite combination for maintaining relationship. Especially when we are referring to those who really matters to us. Once neglected and ignored, there goes the relationship. From the movie - one second of everyday.

6. When you fall, think of why you started it. After the soaring heights, we tend to lose ourselves, being distracted with the fame, power, respect etc that we earned throughout. In an unfortunate event, once you fall, it is devastating. Now, it is about standing up from the mud despite the heartbreaking moment. Recall the reasons you chose the path, the reasons you made that choice. If you cant go further, revert back and start from the beginning, and work all the way up again.

7. There is no eternal enemy. Although you have been through a nasty moment with someone, being hurt or 'humiliate', there is no need to keep that negative feeling deep down. Because these guys, in future might be the one that help you out when you most needed. Put it in another way, the past is past. Look forward to another kind of meet up in future with your 'enemy'. (P/s: if he or she hurts you again, just ignore him/her and by pass them, your time worth much more than having to hate them).

8.Opportunity will come. There is never a dead end (unless you died). Keep looking out for opportunities! Even a small one! When you have build up the skills and accumulate the experience, better things will come along. Like the saying "Opportunity will come to those who are prepared".

9. Do what you like and trust yourself. Do what you enjoy and be the expert of it! Even if you fail, you know that your passion towards it will make you a pro! Like one conversation between the chef to his son - I might not be a good husband, I might not be a best father, but I am good in this, real good. I am good in what I do (cant remember the exact phrase, but something similar). All about confidence and self-esteem you have, and never afraid of climbing up again when you are at your worst. (Like the scene where he dine in in Miami with his exwife and ex father-in-law)

10. The working world. When you are out there, working for someone, the most you can do is to suggest, whether to do it or not, it all depends on your boss/owner of the business (or sometimes, your customer). Let just face it! You have no say, unless you are the boss. Welcome to the reality, the hard cold fact.

Btw, the food really looks good on screen, so make sure you had eaten before the show stars, otherwise, you will be drooling all the way till the end ;)

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Gasping for Air

"Life is tough."

I need to get rid of these negativity.

>>"Life is challenging but I am up for the challenge."

Yes, I graduated. Before I officially end my student life, I am (slightly) packed with work, but mostly occupied by volunteering or society event. What make things worse is you got a team without synergy. So I "study-work-'work'", missing the "rest.

As a student we struggle to get a part time job, seeking balance between studying and working. Once you graduated, is only about working. Then you start to cater for work-life balance. I used to dream to become a freelancer. I can work whenever I want, wherever I want. I can choose to work when everyone is busying shopping, and shop when the rest working. Yet, reality is just too realistic. I end up need to take day off without pay just to see doctor or pickup parcel, since post office close exactly at 5pm. Spending without income. Nonetheless, I am still grateful I got a job (disregarding the pay).

So, I thought I finally can "work-rest", and I can give in the fact that I need to day day off just to do pick up from post office. Thanks to the urge to stay and the pressed for time, I enrolled into weekendS class. Note, is with the S. So I work 9-5 weekdays and need to study 20 hours from 8am-6.30pm on both Saturday and Sunday. I cant be "anti social", so I have to meet up and keep in touch with the rest during dinner. Let's embed the return commuting and travelling time for about 1 to 2 hours per day (depending where is the dinner/grocery venue), and all these block-off time, with the assumption of me sleeping 6-7hours per day...I wonder how long I can hang on to it.

Stay Strong!