Monday, August 31, 2009

Pacemakers Anniversary Run 2009 Video (Part 1 of 3)

Speedy devils, DBKL Garbage truck right on the track, wet bananas and flying baton....Mix them all up, we get an unforgettable event!

The 5th edition of der Pacemakers Anniversary Run (PAR 5) was held at Lake Garden last Sunday. 33 and 11 teams took part in the competitive and non-competitive relay respectively.

Yours truly accepted the task of being the volunteer official videographer, just like any of the Pacemakers runs. Really had fun doing it.

As usual we get Mr. Kelvin Ng (we called him der Big Voiced Fler, 大聲公) as the announcer. Kelvin's voice got bigger this time with the help of the megaphone! LOL!

He also assumed the role of comedian, providing us the hilarious banters and non-stop laughter. You will get to see him alot in the video. It's not to difficult to identify him if you do not know him! LOL!

The volunteers got to Lake Garden as early as 6:00am to do the final set up. We actually made some preparation work the night before. Click HERE if you wanna watch the video.

The run started off well. Each runner ran a loop of 2.6km around the Lake Garden before passing the baton to his/ her team mate.

Here's the first part of the video, before the rain....Yes, it rained durng the run but you will get to see the wet T-shirt actions only in the Part 2. :)

ENJOY!

Come on shake your body baby, do the Conga! :P

Note: This soundtrack is a special request from der PM Captain, Ronnie See. He wanted an upbeat song to motivate der runners! Good choice!

Want more?

Please comeback for update....Part 2 coming real soon.

Soler - 988 Unplugged Session @ Sense Cafe IOI Mall

More of Soler....

I rushed to IOI Mall in Puchong after watching their appearance in Sg. Wang Plaza. They were scheduled to give a live performance at Sense Cafe.

The guys were warm, funny and cheerful. I was very impressed with their live show. It was broadcasted live through our local Chinese radio station 988.

Soler is formed by two twin brothers, Julio and Dino Acconci. Julio is older than Dino by 90 minutes. They look virtually identical and sometimes difficult to distinguish.

This is Julio...the big brother.

This is Dino....

They sing, they write their own songs and they even cook! Mamamia!

Fans were treated with an hour of acoustic/ unplugged performance from the duo. Very good! Two thumbs up!

Heheh! They showed off their multilingual prowess by singing in 7 different languages.

They will be back to Malaysia in September to join a legion of Chinese international singers in T Music Festval.

Soler and fans.

Soler Live Unplugged video snippets...

Check out how the guys sang their hearts out in many languages....English, Italian, French, Cantonese, Mandarin....and even Malay! See if you can identify the Malay song they took on... :)

ENJOY!

Sunday, August 30, 2009

HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY PACEMAKERS NETWORK!

To Ronnie See and the PMs.....

Into the 5th year of RUNNING and PIA-ing....

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY.....

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Soler - Live In Sg Wang Plaza

Soler visited Malaysia few of weeks ago to promote their new album, Canto and also an all stars concert - T Music Festival.

Soler is a rock band based from Macau formed by twin brothers Julio Acconci (vocals/keyboard) and Dino Acconci (vocals/guitar).

They went to several places in Malaysia like Ipoh, Melaka, JB before their stop in Kuala Lumpur.

Girls swoon at their good looks and hot bods but they are not just pretty faces. They write their own songs and knowned for their fantastic live performances.

Check out the video - see hilarious antics of the twin playing with soccer ball and also a live performance of the Paula Tsui song cover - Season of the Wind.

They look like Mat Salleh/ Gwai Lo but speak fluent Cantonese like typical Hong Kong citizens. So, do not adjust your monitor...LOL!

ENJOY...

Coming next - Soler Unplugged performance @ Sense Cafe, IOI Mall.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

The Nike+ Human Race 10K 2009

Fancy running together with thousands of runners from all over the world on the same day? Nike has just announced the date for the second Human Race recently.

More info here.

http://nikerunning.nike.com/nikeplus/?locale=en_my

No details yet so far if Kuala Lumpur will be one of the host cities. (Fat chance? :P)

What about Singapore, Bangkok or Manila? We will keep you posted!

Click below for my race report Human Race 2008 in Singapore.

http://runwitme.blogspot.com/2008/09/nike-human-race-310808.html

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Aizat, Ladylike, Chin, Tank, Claire 郭靜, FAMA 農夫 @ Red Box IOI Launch

The period of 21 Aug - 22 Sept is consider dry season when it comes to road races. Organisers and runners take a break from running events due to the fasting month and Eid festivity. So, like it or not, I will concentrate to blog about other stuff like some tall Scandinavian women or something like that. Heheh!

I still have tonnes of photos to blog about like Soler appearances in Sg Wang and Sense Cafe unplugged session, Lenka Showcase and Juice Party @ Euphoria.

Today, I bring you the Red Box IOI Karaoke Launch (14 Aug 2009)

The launch boasted 5 international acts and one Malaysian. (Hidup Malaysia!)

Who was the one Malaysian act? It was Aizat. A talented boy with a guitar. And this boy CAN sing!

I am not that familiar with the songs he presented but I was disappointed because Aizat didn't sing anything from the soundtrack of Talentime. Could have been nice if he could pay tribute to Yasmin Ahmad or something. Anyway, it was fine performance.

After Aizat, came the Swedish import - Ladylike.

Honestly speaking, the main reason I went for the launch was because of these girls. I wanted to see how good they are. Have been hearing a lot of media hype about this vocal group from Sweden, you know the country that brought us "quality" pop like ABBA, Ace of Base and Roxette. :)

The four girls were handpicked from hundreds of hopefuls in the Scandanavian region(Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland dan Iceland) for KRU Studio, the people who brought you tonnes of local hits!

So, what's the verdict? Check out this video first....

CLICK PLAY!

I think the group should change their name from Ladylike to "Like Lady". They looked like a bunch of tranvestites with heavy make-up. :O

Scary spider eyelashes? Yikes!

A friend remarked that Mariah Carey with a beard looks sexier than any of the girls. LOL!

The only saving grace - they have nice shoes. LOL!

Their singing? Ouch! So out of tune. They covered and ruined the song "Teman Tapi Mesra" by Indonesian duo, Ratu. It's one of my favourite Indonesian songs.

The English lyrics are so lame....It has lost the playfulness of the original - about a girl who allows a guy to get close to her but maintains a platonic relationship because she already has a boyfriend.

What about the dancing? I don't even wanna go there..LOL!

That's my observation. Maybe I am in the wrong target fan group! But coming from KRU Studio, I don't like what I have heard and see so far.

Let's move on....

Chinawut Indracusin or affectionately known as Chin from Thailand took over from Ladylike. First, he crooned and made the ladies swoon. Then, he took off his jacket and invades the stage with a fast number.

The song is aptly titled Too Fast, Too Serious. Joining him on stage were two very enthusiastic female background dancers!

Check out Chin's performance here.

This is Tank. His performance was as boring as a tank full of dead fish. Heheh! Sorry. I just couldn't get this guy. He came on stage and he sang with his eyes closed. Zero interaction with the crowd and only sang facing the front, ignoring fans at the sides of the stage. Ugh....!

Cute? Yes. Sweet? Yes. Can sing? OK lah! Meet Claire Guo 郭靜 from Taiwan.

Closing the launch was funny duo - FAMA 農夫 from HK. Their music - hiphop/ rap. Not my type of music but they were good.

Thank god, it was a FREE show or else I would have demanded my half money back! :)

Check out more photos here.

http://picasaweb.google.com/rwmphotovault/RedBoxIOILaunch#

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Avatar - 15 Minutes of Sneak Peek in 3D

What? Avatar 15 minutes special screening in 3D

When? Aug 22 (Saturday) 10.30am

Where? GSC Mid Valley, Selangor (Hall 4)

On Friday, Aug 21, the world finally had its first look at director James Cameron’s Avatar, when 20th Century Fox and Cameron debut the film’s trailer everywhere – while selected cinemas would screen extended footage prepared by the renowned filmmaker for this global “Avatar Day” event.

The special screening took place on Saturday morning in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia because of the time difference. I won myself two passes for the event from The Star newspaper.

Glug! Glug! I was given 2 passes and 2 bottles of mineral water. :) No popcorn though. :(

The show was in 3D. We saw James Cameron popped out from the screen during the intro....The fler sitting next to me extended his hand like he was going to grab James Cameron.

Never see 3D before izzit? LOL!

It's bursting with colour! It has got eye-popping, jaw-dropping and head-spinning actions! It's loud!

The aliens remind me of elongated Smurf...with tails. They are BLUE.

The film – which has totalled more than US$240mil in production costs thus far and has been four years in the making – takes one to a spectacular new world beyond imagination, where a reluctant hero embarks on a journey of redemption, discovery and unexpected love, as he leads a heroic battle to save a civilization.

The film was first conceived by Cameron 14 years ago, when the means to realise his vision did not yet exist.

15 mins of 3D is fantastic but I am not sure if I could survive 3 hours (well..Titanic lasted 194mins) LOL!

The movie stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez and Sigourney Weaver.

My verdict: See the survey form I filled up below. :)

Check out the shorter 2D trailer here.

Friday, August 21, 2009

New Home For Rescued Pulau Ketam Dogs

Six dogs were rehomed last week from SPCA, Ampang, Selangor to Lotus Life Liberation Park (LLLP) in Bentong. They joined another 7 rescued Pulau Ketam dogs which have transfered there earlier.

I just tagged along with the SPCA staff and volunteers and shamelessly self-appointed myself as the photographer and videographer of the trip. Heheh! :)

Our journey started around 8:30am after the six dogs were transfered into the SPCA truck.

What do you see in his eyes? Fear? Hope?

The journey to Bentong took about 1 hour. Hope the trip was not too bumpy for the six little flers at the back of the truck.

Welcome to Bentong, a town in Pahang.

Look at the eyes again! It must be saying, "Wow! I can't believe this is gonna be my new home!" LOL!

The dogs were hand carried by the volunteers and SPCA staff into a wooden shed. They will be kept there until they are familiar with the place.

A wet nose on the crotch is an effective welcome. :)

How could anyone abandon this face onto a deserted island???

Woof!

Finding comfort with friends.

It is obvious that the dogs are still nervous and afraid. But I hope time will heal everything....

Don't be sad....Life will be much better here!

I just can't imagine what have these dogs had gone through previously before they were rescued....Severe case of abuse and neglect. Can you see that scar?

This is Roli, an loving SPCA volunteer. He has been working with the rescued Pulau Ketam, showering them with TLC.

Bath time....Some of the residence dogs get FREE bath from the volunteers. :)

LLLP is truly a beautiful new home for the dogs. There are lotus ponds, tortoise pond, waterfall and Durian orchard...

If there is a durian orchard, there will be durians....Yum! We were treated to a durian feast (D24 no less) before we left LLLP. (Thank You LLLP!)

Just let this little fler clean up your hands after handling the durian. Heheh!

I am truly glad that there are a lot of people still care aboout and compassionate to the animals, especially those abused and neglected ones.

Thank You SPCA, Roli, Marianne, Shahrul, Dr Chan, Dr Joe, Murugan and all those involved in the rehoming of the Pulau Ketam dogs to LLLP.

Here a video I put together to document their journey from SPCA to Bentong.

Looks like a wonderful new home, doesn't it?

SPCA Official Website

Background Information: Pulau Ketam (Taken from SPCA Press Release Dated 29 April 2009)

Pulau Ketam consists of two settlements - Pulau Ketam Village and Sungai Lima Village. Both villages claim to have been facing a stray dog crisis for the last several years. Earlier this month, newspapers reported that Pulau Ketam villagers were trapping stray dogs and transporting them to a vacant island in a desperate attempt to reduce the population of dogs. Sungai Lima villagers were planning to start a similar operation.

Pulau Ketam villagers informed the officers that an estimated 200 to 400 dogs had already been trapped and abandoned on uninhabited Pulau Tengah out of an estimated population of 2000, while Sungai Lima villagers estimated their stray dog population to be around 600.

Despite a visit two weeks ago by the SPCA and Department of Veterinary Services, officials saw no more than 20-30 dogs altogether at both locations during the daytime- although the villagers stated that the dogs only appeared when the tide came in and spent their time living beneath the houses and walkways which are built on stilts .

Several dogs were seen on the island which was said to be the location where the dogs were abandoned, although landing on the island for a closer inspection was impossible due to the muddy shoreline. The interior of the island was stated to be solid, with illegal logging being undertaken.