Pay it Forward

How do you change the world? No, it doesn't involve saving any cheerleaders or supermodels. You have to do it one step at a time. And initiating the first step is above all the most challenging and difficult part. You would probably wondering why I am talking like 'Peter Petrelli' all of a sudden, all optimistic for a better and brighter tomorrow.

Well, let me introduce you to a concept that I just learned, Pay it Forward . I got this from watching a movie on Astro with the same title. Like most inspirational movies this one originated from a novel.

It started as a Social Studies extra credit project of a 7th Grader and turns out as a movement throughout America that touches and change thousands of lives. They call it the Pay it Forward Movement. The concept is quite simple. It is one that any person can implement in his or her own life, at any time. It begins with doing a favour for another person without any expectation of being paid back. Indeed one would request that the recipient of that favour do the same for someone else: ideally for three other people. The unconditional favors can be large or small. As Trevor(the boy) observes: it doesn't have to be a big thing. It can just seem that way, depending on whom you do it for.

It is like another form of pyramid scheme, minus the fraud. The most important thing is that it shows that you don't have to be rich like Oprah to be able to change lives. Start small.

If you're still not convinced that this might work or curious on the details visit http://www.payitforwardfoundation.org/ . Maybe it's time for Malaysia to embrace it. Other countries have done it. What are we waiting for?

Then, perhaps in the future you'll stumble upon someone in distress and help them. When he/she asks what you want in return. You'll just say Pay it Forward.

27 Dresses of Horror

I sure do have a lot of free time on my hands when my Astro is out of order. Now, there is time to revise the lectures that I missed, do the homework that I haven't done and most importantly study for the upcoming exam. Unfortunately, I opt to do none of that. Instead I spent my newly acquired free time watching '27 Dresses'. No, not at the cinema but at the comfort of my own home.

Judge me all you want, I admit I was wrong. Buying pirated DVDs are bad for the film industry but I guess we could make an exception for foreign movies, right? OK, enough about me, lets talk about the movie now.

A story of a woman who enjoys being a bridesmaid and yet to be a bride. Has a crush on her boss and had been working very hard to get his attention. The situation becomes worse when her boss falls for her sister instead.

Despite the horrible subtitle, the colour that keeps changing from black and white to coloured (you should know why) , the horrendous dresses and predictable main storyline, 27 Dresses is not all that bad. I read the reviews before watching it and most of them criticise it as another cliche rom-com (read: romantic comedy, not a bad word). Sure it would not stand out if compared to other romcoms such as 'My Best Friends Wedding', or 'There's Something About Mary' but it's a decent one nonetheless.

The director's effort to add a little sugar and spice here and there should be recognised as an added humour and entertainment for viewers. It's no fun when you know the whole script of the movie before you actually watch it. So the remedy is to put a few twist and turns in the plot (although some doesn't make sense, then again it's a movie) to get the viewers interested until the predictable ending. I'll stop here before I ruin the movie for you.

All in all, watch it if you have the free time. Don't go to the cinema, it's a movie best watched at home with family and friends.