Sie Jin Kwie

A young hero by the name of Sie Jin Kwie (or known as Xue Ren Gui in Mandarin) appears in the dream of Li Si Bin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty. Sie Jin Kwie then rescued him from certain death. Li Si Bin became curious, he wanted to meet the Dreamed Hero. He would do anything to meet Sie Jin Kwie.

Setting: In the Middle of 7^th century China.

Synopsis: from the accompanying booklet

At about the same time, Ko Le Kok country, a commonwealth of Tang’s empire was facing a though time. The King who was technically dethroned by General Kae So Bun was forced to declare a war with the Tang Empire.

As a good citizen of Tang, Sie Jin Kwie, who was well trained in martial arts enlisted himself in the army. Devoid of any ulterior motive he simply wanted to fight for the glory of the kingdom. But because of the lies told by Army Commander Thio Su Kwie –who loves to claim other people’s chivalrous deeds as his own- Sie Jin Kwie then was led to believe that the Tang’s Emperor wanted to eliminate him. So the young man stayed low and worked in the imperial army kitchen while slowly building the very formidable Kitchen Army of Tangs or KA-Tang.

Unexpectedly, KA-Tang soldiers become the most accomplished heroes of the Ko Le Kok War. But nevertheless Thio Su Kwie was still keeping Sie Jin Kwie secret under his wings, even concocting a murderous plan to befall upon the young hero. What fate will Sie Jin Kwie meet in the end? Would Emperor Li Si Bin able to meet him?

This is a story of heroism, chivalry, patriotism and the sincerity of a young man to fight for one’s country amidst the running corrupt officials. Beautiful costumes blended with dazzling dance numbers, unique musical treat, presenting an entertaining show, yet still meaningful and contemplative. A drama, blended in Chinese Opera style, Golek Menak, Potehi Dolls (Bu Dai Xi), Wayang Wong and the ingenious Wayang Tavip.

Performing in Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Sie Jin Kwie is the 119^th production of Theater Koma, to commemorate its 33^rd anniversary. Until Feb 21^st, 2010.

My Take on This:

Lovely, enchanting, and motivational. A way to return to the cultural history that was long forgotten (or forbidden) by the descendant of Chinese people living Indonesia. Somehow when the “universe” had chosen a great task for you to do, no matter how your feet would lead your ways, a star will eventually be born.

See how delightful Dalang Tavip brought back the historical Sino-Javanese leather/ paper puppets to life with his own Wayang Tavip creation. He ain’t no ordinary dalang as he put the experimental modern lighting, curving screen and his mastery on controlling shadow puppets created this amazing colorful puppet show extravaganza. The historical Sino-Javanese puppetry died out since its banishment in the Suharto era, now securely locked in Jogjakarta’s Puppet (Wayang) Museum.

Sie Jin Kwie – Ceng Tang/ Eastern War, the play was the first installment of a trilogy. The second of the series, Sie Jin Kwie – Framed, will be performed in 2011. The third of the series, Sie Jin Kwie – Ceng See/ Magical Land will be performed in 2012. Go watch this one now or you’ll be sorry later!

I really enjoyed the musical treatment that was going on the entire show. Traditional Chinese music would meet Javanese gamelan then went on Rocking and Rapping in a hip hop style, not to mention some very jazzy number and romantic ballads.

The grandiose set was amazing, the movement was very fluid, and everything was deliberately done. It was a very nice way to spend 4.5 hours in the theater (an intermission break included) on the same day that I was celebrating Chinese New Year earlier with my family.

Happy Tiger Year everyone! Gong.





Prof. Utonium

Copyright: Images are from personal collection © 2010

Fried Rice Explained

“If you knew you were going to dump me like this. You shouldn’t even agree to be my boyfriend in the first place” he said in agony. That statement on the other hand somehow stupefied me. How would I knew back then? Then I remembered a very nice lesson. A long time ago, while helping my grandmother cook the best traditional fried rice in the world, she in return said something very enlightening.

“Cooking is not so much different than relationships,” she said.

For the best possible fried rice, here you fridge the steamed rice overnight, choose the most tender chicken breast, select the freshest shoots of spring onions, prepare your fresh eggs, chilies, garlic and shallots. On the side you’d arrange your regular kitchen spices. Here we have salt and pepper, chicken powder, unrefined sugar, soy sauce and you may even have a bottle of fish-sauce handy.

“Now that you have the best ingredients available around you, how can you be sure that whatever you’re cooking is going to turn out great?” she asked. “First of all the temperature had to be right” she continued while heating up the frying pan and splashing some cooking oil, getting ready for her chopped garlic to jump first at the almost boiling point. I could hear the happy sizzles from the pan.

I then was assigned the task of marinading the chicken breast with salt, pepper and some other spices. After that I would have to mix the steamed rice with the spices, sweet soy sauce and two raw eggs by hand. Meticulously she then removed her garlic from her frying pan and poured the sliced spring onions in the hot oil. Heavenly smoke then started to fill the kitchen, especially when the diced chicken breasts joined the onions in the pan.

“Perfectly golden brown,” she said after a while, removing the chicken and onions to another plate.

The spiced-up rice went in immediately after a hot batch of canola oil was ready. I busied myself stirring and incorporating our Sunday brunch fried rice.

“Now taste it,” she asked me.

“Hmm, something is missing here. It’s still flat”

She then gathered her remaining ingredients, her chilies, her golden brown chicken and onions and shoved everything into the frying pan.

“Now try again…”

“Wow, it’s certainly kicked it up a notch, but Grandmamma.. Try this… Something is still missing”

She tasted our cooking, gave it a thought for a while and then she whipped up her secret ingredients. A spoonful of sugar.

“Wow Nana, now it’s perfect. It’s perfect!” I screamed exhilaratingly.

“Back to the story my child,” she continued.

“Imagine that you started a relationship with the best possible ingredients to begin with. And then you forgot to spice it up. What happened to your cooking?”

“It tasted flat”

“And even if you added all those extra efforts of spices, did it guarantee that it was going to come out delicious?”

“No, Nana, you still need to add a degree of sweetness” I replied.

“There you have it”. She smiled lovingly.

So don’t expect too much if you forgot to spice things up. Don’t ask for forever if you didn’t hear my callings to sweeten things up then and again. Don’t just rest there in your comfort zone and pray that everything was automatically going to come out delicious.

Just because we had the best ingredients to start with.

Not cooking tonight,

Prof. Utonium

Copyright: Opening Image. My Recipes © 2010

The Inevitable

“There, I laid everything on the table already. Now do you guys think that he’s still in love with me?” This might as well be a tricky question I thought. Every storyteller wanted her audience to be on her side. The tricky part was: That day, nothing would please the storyteller ever. Especially when it was about Chacha (his street name), one of our dearest friends.

She was a little bit shaken when we met her. She didn’t cry. But we could see some type of anguish in her face. She looked confused, disoriented, and disappointed.

“Well to begin with, we never met as often as our usual arrangements”

Maybe he was busier than ever.

“It’s okay if he couldn’t give me the weekend. Yet he promised to see me every other day during the weekdays”.

We told ya it wasn’t easy dating someone who was legally married with kids.

“But that’s not the point, I don’t mind the non-weekends. But now he doesn’t seem to wanna spare any tiny time for me anymore”

Okay.

“It took him several hours now to reply my messages. And it’s always just a short reply, no more effort it seemed would be done from his side”

Well first of all that was why it was called the short messaging services. Second of all, maybe he got tied up in some new projects.

“I knew his work, I knew his schedules. He was far more busier before than nowadays! But back then he was able to send me cute hellos and he was able to reply my messages in a promptly fashion”

Okay.

“Then I met him like 3 days ago. We had dinner. I showed him the messages from some annoying bastard. Someone, who tried to seduce me even though I clearly stated that I was taken”

Oh, really?

“Yes, and my boyfriend was like: You know, since I may not give you the time that you deserve, why don’t you look into that possibility?”

What kind of reply was that! Bastardo.

“I am so confused with his reply. Whatever could he meant by that?”

My beau insisted that maybe he (Chacha’s beloved) was trying to open the gate of “open relationship”-ity. But I simply kept my silence. Couldn’t you people see? Something went awry. It was a trick. Nothing magical by any mean. He knew damn well that Chacha was a respectable monogamous lady. It was simply a trick to get you thinking: Is it time to move on?

“And suddenly he made a confession. That before he was with me, he was a pretty naughty boy. And the scariest of them all was, he always did it bareback! Can’t you imagine him telling me these things now?”

Darned you. Yet, exactly my point. Just like on the chessboards, he had already started moving his pawns. Better get ready girlfriend. Have a counter strategy handy.

“I don’t know what to do anymore. Well, to tell you the truth these matters really clouded my mind. I stopped having euphoria when he was in bed with me (a.k.a dysfunctional specific bodily-organ). It started like a month ago… When he began to have his awol mode like this, when he stopped replying to my concerns…”

Woman. Maybe you have to face the inevitable. Why don’t you start packing? Or vice versa. Maybe you should listen to him. Maybe he had a very good reason to do such and such.

“I think I still love him though…” she concluded.

Then ask him the truth. What does he want out of this?

Prof. Utonium

Copyright: Opening Image. Fan Pop © 2010

And the Award Seasons Began!

Starting with the Golden Globes, which was held in the Beverly Hilton, el Lay, the Award Seasons 2010 began. Now for you movie buffs, please click here for the complete Golden Globes Award Winners List.

And for the rest of us.. Dahleng, it's all about the dress!

THE GOOD LIST



Cameron Diaz.
Now this was the sexy vixen I remembered from the Mask.
Alexander McQueen did an amazing magic on her.



Christina Hendricks.
Somebody just stole the red carpet with that golden glow,
and she didn't have to be blond!
Kudos Christian Siriano for this gorgeous item.





Courteney Cox.
A proof that black could be very refreshing indeed.
Say hi to your cute hubby doll!



Drew Barrymore.
Very classy in Atelier Versace.





Kate Hudson.
Astonishingly silky in Marchesa.




Tina Fey.
Love this cute girlie outfit.
Very 1950-s ball.


THE BAD LIST



Amy Adams.
I enjoyed Amy Adams. I admired Carolina Herrera.
I respect pregnant women. But what was this about?
Shame on you Carolina!
She looked simply fugly.



Calista Flockhart
in Alberta Ferretti.
Somebody feed the girl.
Harrison?



Glen Close.
Oh I don't know. Maybe it was your biceps and triceps?
Maybe it was your fake golden tan? Maybe it was the shimmery number
which resembled a shimmery wet lizard getting out from the swamp.
Something was just wrong. Something was just missing.



Lea Michele (Glee).
Maybe this was one of your first award ceremonies,
so I would forgive you.
Xena the Warrior Princess wanted to be Odile,
the black swan, for the upcoming performance in the Met.



Mariah Carey.
Why didn't you just flash them all out together!
Your boobs were distracting
(and they were like taking over 2/3 of your pose).



Penelope Cruz.
Was it the black umbrella? In this Armani,
I felt like she wanted to be sexiest (with laces) -
mummified (in ribbons) mourner in a funeral.



Zoe Saldana (Avatar).
I thought you were interesting as a blue
N'avi creature Neytiri.
But this makes you look like a drenched purple cat.
Cute dress though too much ruffles!

Next time better,





Prof. Utonium

Copyright: All Images were from Getty Images © 2010

You Know My Methods, Watson

Yes Sherlock darling I know your unusual methods. And no darling, sometimes I just don’t get you. So many times I felt like you’d die when we were apart. Now admit it, you did break down a couple of times. And you seemed to be apparently lost without me. You would even appear to be, how do you phrase this nicely... extremely envious, if I was in the arms of my woman. I am your friend, your brother, your man. If it weren’t for your never-ending interest in that bitch Irene Adler, I’d think you did fall for me. For my charm, my loyalty, and of course, my cute arse.

- from the unpublished journals of Dr. Gay Watson.

This rendition of Sherlock Holmes directed by Guy Ritchie could be the sweetest rendition of Holmes that I’ve ever seen. Certainly was not the usual nerdy Holmes that I would imagine. He wasn’t some skinny old man with a hunting hat, a smoke pipe, and sometimes accompanied by a detecting canine. Today’s version of Holmes is a mature hawtieee, a combination between brain and brawn, who didn’t “slip” away from his enemies. Yes, he fought right on, battle to battle, with nice martial-art skills as well.

Watson couldn’t be better as well. Here he was cute, smart, agile, and most of all, he really kicked ass! I wish they’d insert like at least one steamy scene when Sherlock finally was about to confess his undying love for Watson. Which they would then caress and kiss each other so passionately in a messed-up attic, somewhere in the brownstones of Baker Street.

Good flick. Fast actions. Lot’s of scattering clues to unveil (for you detective fans). Furthermore, I enjoyed the soothing blue-ish hue that appeared through the length of the movie, acting as some sort of mood-maker/ atmosphere. It reminded me of the “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” (2003) where good story telling and great actions met charming fashion and high-style.

Oh, I want that bed. No, I want this entire room. So princess-ey. With Sherlock spread-eagled, exactly like this. Tied on the bed posts. Then we can play a little game Sherlock.

Now close your eyes. Let Mama blindfold you.

Prof. Utonium

Update (Jan.18.2010): Congratulations Robert Downey Jr. and Sandra Bullock for winning the Golden Globes 2010!
Robert Downey Jr. snatched the Golden Globes for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical from his role in Sherlock Holmes. And respectively, Sandra Bullock won Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama.

I knew that fake British accent would land you one darling!

Copyright: The Title : "You Know My Methods, Watson” was quoted from "The Crooked Man" from The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (1893) by Arthur Conan Doyle © Doubleday Publishing. Opening Image: IMP Awards © 2010. Scene Image: Theiapolis People © 2010. Award Image: Getty Images © 2010.

Fifty Percent Off

A while ago I bought this book from Aksara. As a passionate Paulo Coelho fan, I actually refused to buy this very edition that was widely available in the market. My reason was simply artistic: This was a large print edition, which of course wouldn’t sit nicely on the bookshelf with my other paperback-sized Coelho-s. (I know I am crazy). But whew, Aksara did change my mind that fateful day. All they did was just applying a nice little red sticker that read: 50% off. There they’ve changed my buying behavior on the spot.

Then it was sorta collecting dust on the ever-growing “books to read” pile until Mr. Beau picked it up. “Jiahhh, you finally bought this book! You should read it, I was just reading the local version. It was certainly different from the Paulo that you might know!” he claimed.

Wow, that fast eh? I didn’t know how Gramedia managed to do its magic in only several months. Before long I would spend the next 3 days finishing off the particular piece. Then I realized that I was attacked by this heavy migraine. Still unsure that the headache came from reading the book or from the “Jiahhh” expression that my Beau had utilized too much lately. But I knew that I was really, really disturbed.

High Alert: Spoilers for those who intend to read this book.

Paulo indeed introduced a very different style of writing this time. The use of a fast-paced thriller approach somehow eliminates the “teacher” technique. The teacher style he rampantly used to enlighten us, his disciples, previously. However, this new writing might also gain more public audience onto his regular reader, a.k.a people (who’s struggling to get) on the path of their personal illuminations.

A little too documentary for me to be read as a novel. As if he wanted to show a proof of how ignoramus a humani can be. Followed by their fatal consequences if the ignorant should keep his ignorance. Thus becoming the main disturbance for me: This novel was very dark, almost as a flip-side of what he’d preached normally.

As if it was bad to work hard to become a very unique model. As if being a great actress was just for people whose only aim was visibility. As if it was wrong to finally place yourself in the world of the Superclass. As if all movie-distributors would be financed by dirty money in one or other cases.

Wasn’t he the one who preached: Nothing is impossible if you really work toward your goals? Well, if this is your way of attacking human’s vanities then I hope that it wouldn’t go in vain rapidly as the world is still transfixed by the world of celebrities, glamour and glitz.

I never minded that many other hopeful characters seemed to vanish abruptly to convey his messages. I also didn’t mind that it had a gory ending. Never enjoyed much happy ending movies anyway.

But I did despise the fact that the book had a strong connection to the life that I am leading today.

From the Character Ha:

There was this character Ha, who married this woman Ev. And was so in love with Ev thus he never asked her past, her feelings, her needs, her being with him. Just because he was afraid to lose her. Ev was living with someone who seemed to enjoy the lie. That someone pictured resembled Beau. Someone who’d rather not ask if I was having any problem with him. Someone who pretended that everything was okay. Someone who lived a constant fear of loosing me.

Everything I said was seemingly ignored. Nothing changed. Nothing improved. Nothing transformed. Nothing grew. The flicker then began to die within.

From the Character Ig:

And then there was this character Ig, who did very nasty things in order to get the love of Ev back into his life. He was so in love with Ev, he would reach the top where he thought his achievements would please Ev. His journey to become successful then made their relationship sour. Then Ig slowly became another person, a monster perhaps. Finally, Ev left Ig after her first knowledge of what Ig might do in order to keep the relationship.

Beau also believed that love could transform anything, became the strongest glue to any relationship. He was of course right. But he forgot to acknowledge that even love needed to be nurtured, needed mending, constantly enhancing one another. Just as Ig, he was living in his comfort zone: that Ev was enough for Ig, as I was enough for him. But he never asked if he had ever been enough for me.

At the end Ig killed both Ha & Ev, while he never knew the exact trigger on why she was loosing her feelings for Ig in the first place.

Soon this will also end Beau.

I am dying inside. And you need to know why.

Prof. Utonium

PS. The professor was so disturbed that he stopped reading books at the time this writing was published.

Title: The Winner Stands Alone
Author: Paolo Coelho
Publisher: Harper
Number Of Pages: 368
Publication Date: 2009-04-01
Copyright: Opening Image. Cover of The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho. HarperCollins © 2009-2010