Weekly Babble #2 : The Short Haired Girl Who Misses Her Mom

It's time for another weekly babble!

(source: babble.com)

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Rage Review: Kingsman The Secret Service

So I watched Kingsman The Secret Service yesterday and found it extremely fun and hilarious (complete with colorful multiple head-blowns because fun is obviouly not complete without any head-blowns) but (spoiler alert!) that last exchange between Eggsy and Princess Tilde threw me off the guard and totally ruined what was going to be an A+ movie experience for me. I already have a problem with the persistent old trope of "man will get a sexual reward from woman after saving the world because you know, hero!" but that scene (which is totally unnecessary to the plot, by the way) is obviously man-driven and man-centered.

Okay, here's why I found that scene offensive and stupid (to say the least):

Princess Tilde is an amazing woman who refuses to be a part of this movie villain's major scheme to destroy the whole world and  her refusal lands her in the villain's prison. To have such a great woman character with great moral principle offers a sexual reward out of the blue for a stranger under such stressful circumstances (audiences know he's the hero but what does Princess Tilde know? He's still a stranger who shows up unexpectedly in front of her while being locked down), reflects a major character inconsistency. I know Kingsman is an action comedy movie and it does not take itself rather seriously, but comedy still requires character consistency, don't you think? Or should I just throw my brain out of the window? 

Not to mention, Eggsy is groomed to become a GENTLEMAN. A freakin gentleman who takes advantages of the situation?!! *flips table*

And then, Mr. Vaughn has the audacity to call that last scene empowering because it shows how it's the woman who offers sexual rewards, instead the opposite.

No, Mr. Vaughn. You offer the sexual rewards to Eggsy by using Princess Tilde and turning her into your laughing stock. If you stick to your character, to your own story, to your own plot, to your own logic, there is no way Princess Tilde offering that sexual innuendos in that problematic scene and there is no way Gentleman Eggsy would take advantage of distressed Princess Tilde in such a way (Manner maketh man, remember?! *flips table again*). You have empowered her so much with huge bravery on the first part of the movie, only to attenuate everything in the end and incites my rage. Frankly, I can't think of any better words to explain the scene other than misogynist.

Look, there are good things about this movie. It's fun. There are Colin Firth and Mark Strong who lures me (and all the ladies) in.

But then that scene happened and all I wanted to do was throw my popcorn to the screen.

I thought I was the only the one who felt this way but there are other people who thought the same (here and here are the two examples. They talk about the problematic scene more eloquently than I do and point out some great points in the movie that I missed. Have a look).

Overall, this movie was a great ride until it forgot its manner, ruined everything and left me with a bitter aftertaste.

Manner maketh man, Mr. Vaughn. What does this make you?


Si Mbak.  

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Weekly Babble #1

(Source: thoughtcatalog)

So. 

I decided, on a whim just now, to use my blog more often since this blog has been so neglected that once in a while, I forget that it even exists in the first place. Someone asked me this question once: why don't you write more often? Don't you love writing? 

Well, I do. I even make some money out of writing. But the thing is, writing has not yet become a part of my daily life, something that I always look forward to when I start my day. I write only when I feel like it - not the best habit to have if I ever aspire to become a writer. But so far, up until this second, writing has always been something of a waiting process for me: I wait for that right moment to arrive or rather,  I'm waiting for the energy inside me to build-up until all those energy gets to the point that everything explodes and I find myself surrounded with words that won't stop flowing from my head into my hand, which is always a delightful process. Again, I realize that I need to change my writing habit into something more regular but I still find it really hard. Every time I try to write something when it's not the time yet, the result is less than satisfying and it always ends up on the recycle bin. Not to mention I'm always easily distracted by my external environment which also has an effect to my writing (ie. I've always stopped writing whenever someone comes nearby which is often whenever I try to sneak writing time at the office). 

So then what should I do to make myself visit and write here more and hopefully, help me change my writing habit into a better one? 

And then I just thought, well I need to force myself into it. I should just make one regular personal post every week about anything I would like to talk about every week! (which hopefully is going to become something regular. I'll try my best. I promise) (Okay, I'm bad at commitment or keeping promises. So let me rephrase that last sentence: I'll really try)

So on to the post!

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Playing Doctor: Berdiri Terlalu Lama dan Tekanan Darah Rendah

Playing doctor time!! 

(source: cracked tumblr)

Sejauh yang bisa saya ingat, saya adalah salah satu manusia yang  memiliki tekanan darah cenderung rendah (low blood pressure). Secara umum, tekanan darah sehari-hari biasanya berkisar sekitar 100/70, dengan kisaran tertinggi (yang saya ketahui) tidak pernah melebihi 120/80. Fakta ini sebenarnya tidak terlalu mengagetkan, mengingat kedua orangtua saya pun memiliki tekanan darah rendah.

Walaupun angka tensi saya cenderung rendah, saya nyaris tidak pernah menemui masalah dengan tekanan darah rendah. Saya malah sering bingung sendiri setiap kali periksa darah dan menerima pertanyaan seperti:

"Sering pusing-pusing nggak? Sering mau pingsan nggak?"

Er, no. Sering pengen tidur sih iya (which is why low blood pressure has always been my go-to excuse to explain make my oversleeping habit looks a bit cooler)

Intinya, hingga setua ini, tekanan darah rendah bukanlah sesuatu yang mengganggu kehidupan saya sehari-hari kecuali pada saat-saat tertentu (misal: ketika saya berdiri terlalu cepat setelah duduk atau berbaring, biasanya saya akan sedikit kliyengan. Tapi ditunggu sebentar semuanya akan kembali normal). Tapi belakangan, saya sepertinya menemukan masalah baru terkait tekanan darah rendah yang saya miliki. Masalah tersebut, tak lain dan tak bukan adalah berdiri terlalu lama tanpa bergerak.

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