Whoa! Time sure flies when you’re busy. A third of a century of  my life just flew by like that, before I even realized. So here I am, 33 years old. Single, but definitely not lonely. Poor in the pockets, but rich with the love of family and friends around me. As it is, I’m already into the 3rd day of the 2nd third of a century of my life. So far so good. With a bit of luck (and possibly some hard work), things could get better.

The big day started without any bangs. Just a frantic search for stockings since I accidentally ran a hole in the pair I was wearing. Thankfully that got fixed easily. I wish my program bugs could be fixed as effortlessly.

Next, I headed to fill my hungry little tummy before rushing to purchase tickets for the earliest screening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 at my favorite cinema (which as coincidences go, happen to share the same birthday as me, only that they’re 43 years older than I am). The movie was great! However, I found it very fast-paced, which was understandable since there was lots to be packed in this grand finale. I’m just glad that I’d read the book before watching the movie, so I more or less knew what to expect. Watch out for my review of the movie coming up soon!

Here are a couple of trailers I watched while waiting for the movie to begin:

Cowboys & Aliens are 2 things that I’d never think of putting together in a movie. A rather interesting mix of genres involving sci-fi, western & suspense. Not something that will draw me spend my time and money to watch in the cinemas though.

Captain America isn’t something I’ve grown up with on my side of the world either, although I’ve heard some of my online friends mention the popular set of comics. Not particularly a comic fan myself, so probably will give this one a miss too.

The remainder of the day was themed “shop-till-you-drop“. Hey, if you’re a shopaholic like me, whose birthday happens to coincide with the annual Great Singapore Sale, you’ll most likely do the same. Finally at around 3pm, I decided to sit down to rest my tired legs and to get some late lunch. Japanese ramen followed by light cheese cake for dessert. Yummy!

So there, my 33rd birthday well spent; tired legs, empty pocket and all. Nothing extravagant or grand, just a simple itinerary to satisfy my simple needs.

Tags: Harry Potter, movies, musings, Personal, youtube

Today (15th March) is Catholic Media Promotion Day. In celebration of the inaugural 1st CMPD, here’s a list of my favorite Catholic stuff:

3 Favorite Catholic Podcasts (SQPN)

• The Break with Father Roderick (website)|(rss)
• Catholic in a Small Town (website)|(rss)
• Catholic Weekend (website)|(rss)

3 Favorite Catholic Podcasts (Catholic Radio)

• Catholic Answers LIVE – This Week (website)|(rss)
• EWTN Audio Library (website)|(rss)
• The Catholics Next Door (website)|(rss)

3 Favorite Catholic Podcasts (Others)

• BustedHalo Cast (website)|(rss)
• pray-as-you-go (website)|(rss)
• Faith & Family Live! Podcast (website)|(rss)

3 Favorite Catholic Blogs

• JIMMY AKIN.ORG (website)|(rss)
• The Integrated Catholic Life (website)|(rss)
• Catholic Cartoon Blog (website)|(rss)

3 Favorite Catholic Apps (Android)

• Catholic One (AppBrain)|(Android Market)
• Evangelizo – Daily Gospel (AppBrain)|(Android Market)
• iBreviary (AppBrain)|(Android Market)

My current project is this blog, of course. I try to review podcasts, blogs, apps, etc, Catholic or otherwise, but I’m a little behind since work has been piling up. Still slowly trying to clean-up broken links and obsolete items.

Tags: android, Announcements, blogs, Catholic, Podcasts, SQPN

The season of Lent is here again. With Ash Wednesday coming up tomorrow, it’s time again to think about abstinence and cleansing of one’s soul in preparation for the glorification of Lord through His death and resurrection. It truly is a humbling time of the year, when we recall how Jesus suffered His passion to redeem us from evil. We look back on our lives so far, and examine what we tend to cling blindly to and learn to give up unnecessary material wants, and replace these “things of the world” by stocking up on our spiritual needs.

What are you giving up for Lent this year?

Many tend to think of Lent as a period of giving up something. Most times, these may be things that may not mean much in terms of our spirituality and faith, such as chocolates and candy. The idea of giving and abstinence during Lent, is actually a form of cleansing and disciplining ourselves, by learning to conditioning our urges and desires in a way that leads us to greater union with God. It is by no means a form of oppression or suppression, but rather a way to free ourselves from unwanted and unhealthy desires and attachments. It is only when we let go of these unnecessary burdens can we rise higher in our spiritual life. Such acts of self-discipline should not be restricted to just the period of Lent, but throughout our faith journey. However, it is especially highlighted during this period because we want to love Jesus as He has loved us, through sacrificing.

I’ve learned through the years that giving up simple things like coffee and chocolate during Lent does not essentially make me a better person. Lent should not be a treated as a season to adjust to a healthy diet. Instead, I try to assess what material things I’ve been overly attached to and learn to give these up. Such things can be either food, games, a bad habit, etc. Also, I try to devote more time to do something good, like saying extra rosaries, reading a good religious book, learning a new devotional prayer.

This year I’ll be continuing my fight with the morning alarm. I’m going to try to wake up without hitting the snooze on my alarm clock. Discipline in terms of  time management is something I seriously need to work on. And let’s not forget my continuous battle with my quick temper. Haven’t figured out how I can work on the latter, but it’s definitely something I desperately need to get rid of.

For more information on the season of Lent, as well as fasting and abstinence during this season, visit ETWN’s mini-site.

Meanwhile, here’s a good commentary on Lent by Father Barron.

Tags: Catholic, Inspirational, musings, Personal

I found time to watch this 3rd installment of the Narnia series after my crowning procedure. So with half of my jaw numbed by the after-effects of the anesthetics, I embarked on this adventurous voyage with Edmund and Lucy Pevensie and their cousin Eustace Scrubbs.

SPOILER ALERT: The following contains some spoilers, so if you’ve not watched the movie or read the book, you may want to give this post a pass until you’ve done at least one of two.

Narnia3 is extremely rich in Christian undertones. The main mission of the Dawn Treader crew is to break the evil spell from the dark powers residing on the Dark Island. However, to accomplish this, they will need to follow a mysterious blue star to get to the island of Ramandu, during which they will be tempted by their darkest secrets and their inner demons.

“I tried to do it myself, but I wasn’t strong enough.. then He came closer.. it was painful, but it was a good pain”

That was what Eustace said about how Aslan helped him change back to his human form after being transformed to a dragon, his punishment for coveting the enchanted treasures of the evil ones. This also aptly describes our relationship with God. Although we try our bests to be good, we’re often not strong enough to do it by ourselves. Only with the help of God can we overcome the temptations from the world and from our inner selves. Though the process will cause us pain, but it is a good pain that will bring us to our ultimate destination, Heaven, God’s country.

Towards the end, there’s also mention of Aslan’s country, where the brave and valiant are always welcome. Reepicheep receives his well-deserved reward as he’s welcomed into Aslan’s country. Aslan also tells Lucy that although he cannot be with them physically, he’ll always be within them in spirit. He also says “you must learn to know me by another name in another world“. Much like how we must learn to recognize God in our world.

I must say, C.S. Lewis is a genius! He beautifully injects his Christian beliefs into his literature. Through his literature, we’re able to see Lewis deep love of God and Christianity. The Chronicles of Narnia series have really prompted me to explore more of Lewis’ works.

For those who’ve not watched the movie, here’s the trailer to whet your appetite.

Tags: movies, Narnia, Reviews

Our favorite pirate, Captain Jack Sparrow of course! Yeah!!!

Tags: movies, Personal, videos, youtube