BodyJam 52 Sizzler

With the disappointment that was BodyJam 51 (maybe it was over-hyped), I'm really looking forward to 52. And with the bonus Pop Block, I can't wait!!

BODYJAM® 52 is a smorgasbord of style, an assortment of sensations and a cacophony of choreography. This release is so super-awesome that we’ve given you a whole extra bonus block to teach!

That’s right, teach the Dark Block or teach the Bonus Pop Block – it’s your choice! Dubstep or Whitney?

The Warmup is a euphoric journey of movement exploration, before Shakira makes you howl with the Backward Hip Roll in Track 2. Then it’s time to bring your butt to the party in our all-new Merengue track, Gualando by Fulanito.

The Dark Block is unlike anything you’ve ever heard before – it’s phat, huge and driving. The contrasting sounds of Gangsta rap and Dancehall crazy come together in a trailblazing fusion of Dubstep madness.

In the recovery, T-Pain will have you tugging and pulling at your clothes, but no matter what you do, DO NOT TAKEYOUR SHIRT OFF!

Then lose your mind (again) to the hottest music on the planet – Major Lazer is blowing up worldwide with New Age Jamaican Electro Dancehall craziness. Right Hand Hi from Kid Sister comes from the sickest House producers in the world. Then the sounds from Jump Smokers and Vandalism will blow your head off, BODYJAM® style.

Beyoncé brings the party to a close, but don’t forget about the Bonus Pop Block! JT, Britney, Whitney – what more needs to be said? IT’S BODYJAM® TIME!

2009 in Review

I missed doing my annual review last year. I think annual reviews are important to help one reflect on his achievements, and notable events. We'll then be able to move on and be better the next year. Since no one at the office is really doing anything worthwhile anyway, here's what I remember most from 2009:

• Beijing: This working trip really opened my eyes to the idea of living outside Malaysia. Before this I've only had overseas vacations, but never to live or work. Though it was only 3 months, it did spark some nomadic tendencies of me moving to some faraway land to start anew...
  
• Work promotion: I remember when I first joined this company, my boss at that time told me that on average, it takes 2 years to move to the next level. It took me 2.9 years and I wasn't really happy with that. But hey, it did arrive and I got a pay raise from that so I'm still thankful nonetheless.
  
• Broke up: We had a strong 2+ years together, but I decided I had to be the bad guy before I really became the bad guy. (Heh, it's only something both of us would understand.) The biggest lesson I learned from this is to never be complacent. I'm now enjoying singledom and meeting people again.
  
• BodyJam: What should have taken 2 months took almost 2 years instead. But it was good - questions of unfairness aside, it did help me become harder, better, faster, stronger. Beforehand, getting an International BodyJam Certificate seemed an enviable goal. Now, it's just another step in the Everest scheme of things. Came so far, got much more to go.
  
• Cardio Fit: As always, I keep improving. I now have the confidence to say that my latest release could actually qualify as one of the weaker BodyJam releases. Call me out for a demo! Unfortunately, my stage charisma is nowhere near Gandalf 'G' Archer's.
  
• Family: Relations with Dad has improved this year. I believe he has softened with age, which does help smooth disagreements over. At the back of my heart though, I've begun wondering how life would be when he's gone? Relations with Mom has stayed positive throughout 2009. And she reads my blog so I'll refrain from commenting any further. Hi Mom!
  
• Ballroom: Took up basic ballroom latin classes to expose myself to partner dancing. I enjoyed it! There's a different feel to it compared to freestyle hip-hop. More importantly, it showed me how important it is to work closely with your dance partner. The lead cannot look impressive without his follower, and the follower can never do impressive tricks without the lead's support.
  
• Bangkok: My 2nd trip to Bangkok this year in November was really enjoyable. Besides the free entrance to the Asia Fitness Convention, I really felt comfortable moving about in a foreign country alone. My nomadic tendencies were honed from a lonesome childhood, and now they've made me strong enough to really survive elsewhere by my self.
  
• Lecturing: I've had an ambition to be a lecturer since college. And I finally got that opportunity this year! I'm just about to complete my first semester there and I can say that I really enjoyed myself. Unfortunately, I'll be turning down any lecturing offers next semester. Notes preparation and assignment marking does take its toll on my weekends. Actually, it usually eclipses my entire weekend! So while I've identified lecturing as a possible retirement career, it is not possible to fit it in my life right now without sacrificing my social life.
  
• Friends: While I'm surrounded by many sincere, good friends, I realized that I'm not really close to any of them. Once again, I'm like a nomad ready to move on.

I believe 2010 will be another exciting year for me! For better or for worse. I hope 2009 has been good to you too. Happy New Year!

145 Years Later

If you haven't caught Avatar in the cinema, don't miss it! I watched it in 3-D and it passed my Entertainment Rating* with a perfect score of 0!

Anyway, the most memorable scene for me has nothing to do with the war battles, alien lifeform, or eye-popping 3D. It was a short scene less than 5 seconds:

Sam Worthington's character, who is wheelchair-bound, was temporarily out of his avatar. He had been spending the whole day in his alternate character and had a short window to rest and recover.

In that scene, Sam was quickly wheeling himself away when Sigourney Weaver's character (the lead scientist), quickly pulled him back to his meal. She chastised him and made sure he ate, while both smiled sheepishly.

But why was Sam smiling sheepishly? What was he embarassed about? And then I saw it. In his other hand, he was holding.... *suspense*...... a Tenga Deep Throat! Though it was unlabeled, I knew what it was because I have one :$

In a nutshell, James Cameron managed to sneak in a scene to explore how soldiers of the future would satisfy their sexual needs. And also to show that Sam's character is a normal hot-blooded male who would prioritize a quick wank over eating.

James Cameron, I give you a standing O.

On a related note, would Tenga really still exist 145 years in the future (Avatar is set in year 2154)? Would it become standard issue equipment for men flying on deep space missions?

P.S. I did a rough Google search and I might be the first one to actually blog about this observation. Digg me up! :P

* Entertainment Rating: The number of times I check my watch, out of boredom. The lower the better!

Stranded

I'm supposed to fly back from my ZhangJiaJie vacation on Friday morning, but I'm still stranded at Guangzhou at the moment. And the flight home has not been confirmed.

Details later!

Facebook Withdrawal Symptom

I'm currently somewhere in Hunan Province, China on a holiday. Managed to get internet connection in my hotel room via Dad's netbook, but I couldn't find a working web proxy to access Facebook! SneakMe.net which worked while I was working in Beijing, is sadly out of operation here.

Must... read... status updates.... ugh.

Thank You, Enjoy Your Meal

Last night I visited a food court and ordered Chicken Chop from the Western Food stall. After the lady served the food and collected the RM7, she said, "Thank you, enjoy your meal."

I was literally stunned for a second! It's just so rare from a hawker stall, heck, even *any* stall for that matter. Goes to show how rare pleasantries are in our culture.

(Unless you're a foreign tourist.)

Achy Breaky Legs

Phew!

So glad I completed the 5 replacement classes for BodyJam! Thankfully I had Pauline's help for most of them, so it's less of a burden. Still, it felt exhilarating to be able to dance for 6 days straight especially after the back injury episode 2 months ago.

The teaching experience culminated in me recording my BodyJam international certification video on Tuesday morning. A rite of passage for every Les Mills instructor, I think I did good enough to clear even with the following mishaps:

• I forgot to ask some of their names, so I could not call out names during class for CRC. I did give general feedback like, "You gals look hot!" though. (I did consider calling out a fake name, but decided against the dishonesty)
• The microphone went kaput doing the 2nd half! I bought a new battery just to prevent this from happening. As I found out after the class, the battery was working but I had disrupted the wire connections. Therefore, I had to reduce music volume and shout louder so that the video assessor will be able to hear me.
• I was supposed to wear a jacket for the warmup to look "cool", but forgot all about it as I was running late after setting up the videocam myself.
• Small little mistake in the final breakout but managed to correct myself quickly.

And now... the wait for results!