One Life

I have read a few books on the Holocaust. I visited the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Austria and also went to East Germany and Prague in Czechoslovakia on the same trip many years ago. (I recognise the famous stone arch bridge over a river in Prague, in one of the scenes in the film.) So, of course I would watch One Life on opening day!

One Life is a war drama about the Holocaust hero, Nicholas Winton.  He visits Prague a few days before WW2 began and he sees the awful state that the children Jew refugees are in and decides to launch a misson, to save as many children as he can.

This is a film well worth watching! There are so many words to describe it: amazing, captivating, emotional, epic, exceptional, outstanding and powerful, heartwarming and heartbreaking, real and honest… … the list goes on.

Special mention must be given to Anthony Hopkins’ performance. My eyes continually became wet and I was sniffing a lot, even when he appeared nonchalant.

I must also mention the impact of using classical music in the soundtrack (Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutti and Dvorak’s 2 Minuets).  The cello conveys  sadness and mournfulness, the violin conveys emotional feelings, the piano fosters a sense of closeness and vulnerability, the voice is beautiful and sacred, the orchestra enhances the dramatic narrative; all these stir up powerful emotions.

I wish there are more films like this!

What Is Activity Modification?

Today’s talk at the Toa Payoh library was delivered by Adeline Lee, Senior Occupational Therapy Educator (with 25 years’ experience) from the Kwong Wai Shui Hospital’s Community Training Institute.

Definition: Redesigning the activity to suit the individual needs of the person.

Importance: To allow the person to continue to participate in the activity and to improve the safety profile of the activity.

With the aid of YouTube videos, Ms Lee talked about how successful ageing involves the mental, physical and social aspects, and the need for activities to stay healthier. She also elaborated on Home Modification, Active Senior Centres and the HDB enhancement scheme.

An interesting 3yo clip from NUH about Trigger Finger led to this Activity Modification principle: remove, replace, reduce, rest. I had learnt this (and more) from TTSH over the years. The videos enhance her talk greatly.

Cognitive Activity Moderation refers to simplifying tasks and breaking them into manageable steps and using visual cues, timers and reminders. Structured routines and minimising distractions are also preventive measures for early Alzheimer’s disease. (This is good to know.) Even decluttering and organising the environment help. It is also important to continue doing things we love and stay connected with friends, family and even through social media.

Some emotional considerations are creating a calming environment and incorporating stress- limiting activities. A collaborative effort involving the individual, family and caregivers, understanding goals, preferences and limitations, and tailoring activities to individuals are also important.

Basically, the most important message of this talk is that there are three pillars of health: exercise/ physical activity (150 minutes of moderate intensity a week), diet (eg 1g of protein per 1kg body weight, plus enough vegetables and fibre) and sleep/ mental wellness (eg improving sleep hygiene like winding up before bed by reading and absolutely NO smart devices).

Some benefits of activity moderation include maintaining or regaining independence, allowing individuals to continue with their regular activities and maintaining energy conservation and joint preservation.

I look forward to more such talks.  The next one I’ve registered for is in a fortnight.

Books Read in March 2024

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1) The Night She Died by Jenny Blackhurst

2) The Playground by Michelle Francis

3) The Personal Assistant by Darcey Bell

4) The Puzzler: One Man’s Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, From Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life by A. J. Jacobs

5) Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica

6) Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney  Boylan

7) My Darling Husband by Kimberley Belle

8) If They Knew by Joanne Sefton

9) Dear Wife by Kimberley Belle

10) The Marriage Lie by Kimberley Belle

11) Three Days Missing by Kimberley Belle

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12) Someone Is Lying by Jenny Blackhurst

13) Lucky Girl: Lessons on Overcoming Odds and Building a Limitless Future by Scout  Bassett

14) Perfectly Famous by Emily Liebert

15) Stranger in the Lake by Kimberley Belle

16) The Girls of Summer by Katie Bishop

17) The Perfect Daughter by D. J. Palmer

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18) She Lies Close by Sharon Doering

19) Cross Her Heart by Sarah Pinborough

20) The Other Guest by Heidi Perks

21) Keep Him Close by Emily Koch

22) Among Wolves by Erica Blaque

23) The Worst Thing You Ever Did by Karen Perry

24) Something She’s Not Telling Us by Darcey Bell

25) The Disappearance of Patrick Zhou by Ally  Chua

26) Just Between Us by Adele Parks

Hi, Mom (你好，李焕英)

Yay! I watched the movie on YouTube.

I’m not at all disappointed in this movie though neither am I pinching myself for having missed it at the cinema three years ago.

It is a remarkable story that is relatable but with a twist that I do not quite appreciate.

It is unpretentious; it is humorous and heart-warming. It is about family ties (particularly the bond between mother and daughter), responsibility, obligation and selfless love.  It is about cherishing every minute and every second with your loved one; once time passes, it is gone forever.

A commendable directional debut from Jia Ling.

YOLO (热辣流烫)

Curiosity was what prompted me to go watch this movie. I first knew of Jia Ling (贾玲) when I watched a Chinese variety programme 青春环游记in late 2021 in which my idol, pianist Lang Lang, appeared  (because most of his concerts were cancelled due to the pandemic). I had the impression that she was a comedian. This movie showed me she is not just a comedian but also a competent actress-director.

Yes, some parts of the movie contain humour but it slowly gets more intense and powerful.  It is authentic, passionate and touching. And very inspiring. (Especially the final 30 minutes or so, including when the end credits roll.)

It is not just about weight loss, though losing 50kg in a year shows determination, and that rewards come with  perseverance. It is about relationships – with family, friends, colleagues and self. It is about strength, integrity and betrayals.  It is about living life with meaning. It is important to fight for our dreams. It is a reminder of Shakespeare’s Brutus in Julius Caesar (“et tu?”). It is not selfish to love oneself first; work on yourself so that you can feel proud of yourself. After all, You Only Live Once. Do not put too much hope on others as they would usually fail us or disappoint us.

It is definitely a movie worth watching. Now I wonder if I can get hold of Jia Ling’s directional debut which came out in early 2021, before I knew who she was.

Bob Marley: One Love

It’s a biopic. There is music. There is drama. Of course I would catch the first screening on opening day.

This movie is about Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley who overcomes adversity to become the most famous reggae musician in the world. An artist. A rebel. A legend. His Tuff Gong music label/empire is the nickname he earned due to his formidable street-fighting skills as a child.

I lost count, but I think about thirty songs are featured, including Roots, Rock, Raggae; Get Up, Stand Up; I Shot the Sheriff; War/ No More Trouble; Turn Your Lights Down Low; Natural Mystic; Jamming; Simmer Down; Sclassie Is The Chapel; Three Little Birds; One Love; Is This Love; Exodus and Redemption Song.  I like that there are references to (and recordings of) at least three songs by other artistes: Exodus (by Ernest Gold), You Should Be Dancing (by Bee Gees) and Rock Your Baby (by George McCrae) These are soul-stirring music. There are also clips from Bob Marley’s actual concerts.

The poignant story- telling shows the man behind the music, the father behind the legend and the soul behind the revolution. (Interesting fact: Bob Marley had 11 children by different women and his wife raised some of them together with her own three children.)

The stunning visuals of lush landscapes and pulsating concert scenes, enhanced by the sound design, come alive.

All these reaffirm the timeless messages of love, unity and redemption. Another underlying message is that money can’t buy life. Bob Marley died in 1981, aged 36, of a rare kind of skin cancer (mucosal melanoma). He had ignored the early signs and refused treatment after he was diagnosed on 7 July 1977.

Jigsaw Puzzle (#07/2024: Boulders Against the Sky)

I decided to tackle this puzzle after dreaming about jigsaw puzzles all night. I thought it would be the most challenging (in this series), but surprisingly, it wasn’t. Not really.

The border was a little more tricky than the last one:

Half an hour and several missing pieces!

It took me another 15 minutes to complete the border:

Then I sorted the pieces into two bags and decided to tackle the boulders first as there are fewer pieces in this section:

This alone took me one hour!

After a small break, I spent another hour to reach this stage:

It’s time for a longer break.

Now comes the challenge:

An hour spent on this.

Another hour on this.

Yet another hour to complete it!

I think I shall do  a 1,000- piece puzzle next.

Jigsaw Puzzle (#06/2024: A Field)

After reading A. J.  Jacobs’ book The Puzzler: One Man’s Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, from Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life, I decided to open a new box of 500- piece jigsaw puzzle yesterday.  It turned out to be very challenging!

This didn’t look too challenging at first.

It took me only 30 minutes to sort out the pieces and form the border.  Easy peasy, I thought.

It took two hours to complete half the puzzle:

After a short break for lunch, I happily continued.  Alas! Another two hours, and I only managed this:

Umm, this is more difficult than I expected!

Feeling a bit frustrated, wondering how the Russian team could complete two 1,000-piece and two 2,000-piece puzzles in less than six hours, I decided to take a break before my eyes went bonkers. Yet, after another two hours, I only got this:

Wow, now my head is dizzy too.

I decided to call it a day.

Today, after lunch, I told myself I would complete it before dinner.

Another two hours to get to this stage.

I had to take a break. Then, surprisingly, I completed the puzzle after about an hour:

Phew! Yay!

Now I want to start another puzzle; but I shall pace myself. I have only two more new ones. I’ll need to buy more after that or I’ll just redo those I’ve done before.

Books Read in February 2024

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1) There’s No Such Thing As A Skinny Bibik by Sandra Chua

2) Pretty Guilty Women by Gina LaManna

3) The Joy of a Left Hand by Liang Wern Fook (translated by Christina Ng)

5) Beautiful by Katie Piper

6) Naturally Tan by Tan France

7) Open Your Eyes by Paula Daly

8) The Hiking Trip by Jenny  Blackhurst

9) The Serial Killer’s Sister by Alice Hunter

10) The Night We Burned by S F Kosa

11) The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding

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12) Playing Scared by Sara Solovitch

13) Now You See Us by Balli  Kaur Jaswal

14) Useful Phrases for Immigrants by Mei-Lee Chai

15) The Perfect Escape by Leah  Konen

16) Good Husbands by Cate Ray

17) All That’s Left Unsaid by Tracey Lien

18) There’s No Stopping This Skinny Bibik by Sandra Chua

19) Such a Good Wife by Seraphina Nova Glass

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20) Find Me by Alafair  Burke

21) The Guest List by Lucy Foley

22) The Book Haters’ Book Club by Gretchen  Anthony

23) Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

24) The Storm by Amanda Jennings

25) Just Another Missing Person by Gillian McAllister

26) Greenwich Park by Katherine Faulkner

27) The Summer Girl by Jenny Blackhurst

28) The Girls are Good by Ilaria  Bernadini

29) The Perfect Betrayal by Lauren  North

30) I Know It’s You by Susan Lewis

Jigsaw Puzzle (#5/2024: Sunflowers and Purple Daffodils)

Day One

Another new puzzle:

At usual, I started with the border:

This took less than an hour. It suddenly became very dark and then came a downpour.  Luckily, it lasted for only half an hour, and I continued with the puzzle. Three hours later:

It grew dark again and I had to stop.  Continued for two hours this morning:

Day Two

After lunch, I spent three hours to complete the puzzle:

Yay! I shall take a break tomorrow. Or maybe longer, if I can resist. Otherwise, I’ll run out of puzzles very soon!