Elements Bits: Trespass

 

Cast:

 

Nicholas Cage – Kyle Miller

Nicole Kidman – Sarah Miller

Liana Liberato – Avery Miller

 

Wealthy business man Kyle Miller has things going for him, as one of the top diamond brokers in the business..The huge house and the flashy cars are but a simple taste of how life is for him. But when thieves break into his estate, he may lose everything he has including the lives of his family and of his own.

 

The thieves already know how much they are taking home from this heist. But to their surprise, there is nothing inside Kyle’s safe. No millions of dollars, no diamonds, nothing. What now seems to be owned may all be aesthetics? And how do they actually know how much was there?

 

The burglary now turns into a web of deceit as Kyle tries to negotiate his life and the lives of his family, and Avery and Sarah trying to manipulate the burglars so they could escape. Will the Millers be able to reclaim what was lost?

 

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Elements Bits number 1:

 

Material World. I will admit that I live in my world where I have this need for material things. From electronic gadgets to literature and comics, including collectibles, it’s like a part of me is not complete if I don’t get to satisfy my urge with these items. Of course I will not sacrifice the basic necessities for these, but you tend to spend beyond what the pay check can sustain. We have to understand that there is something greater than this. We don’t need the flashy cars or the mansions to be happy; we just have to learn the simpler joys of life. Besides, having so much money may pose bigger problems down the line.

 

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Memorable Quotes:

 

Sarah: “Open it so we can all die.”

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Bitterest Truth or Sweetest Lie

Bitterest Truth…

“It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.” – George Washington

 

Sweetest Lie…

“If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.” – Adolf Hitler

 

In one of my Elements Bits I gave a brief opinion that telling the truth will not set one free, and that telling a lie will not hurt the other party either. If telling a truth would lead to one’s death, would you still speak up? If telling a lie would mean a harmless and painless way of bringing light during one’s darkest moment, would you remain silent?

 

At any given time, our conscience is put to the test. We dig deep into our soul to see whether we choose the path of righteousness or the virtue of honesty. What is the difference between the two? Righteousness does not always mean good things. For me it is simply doing the right thing at that very moment, even it means doing something bad. Honesty may indeed be the best policy, but it may not be the appropriate one on certain occasions.

 

I will not be a hypocrite and say that I am an honest man and that I have never lied. I believe that I am a righteous man and that I will tell the truth as much as needed, and will suppress the same if the situations calls for it. I will also not hesitate to choose between two lesser evil lies, because I know that the truth hurts, and if it causes more damage then I will not risk it to the point that I can no longer repair it.

 

The truth is not also always what it seems. Facts can be delivered in bad faith. If the intent of telling the truth is to enact revenge or cause chaos, then what good will this bring?

 

On some hilarious instances, our actions and responses are even magnified and scrutinized whether you are providing the truth or not. And sometimes it yields the same repercussions. If you offer no excuse for you shortcomings and claim accountability all the time, they say you are negligent and didn’t change a damn thing. If you tell a tale and say it was not you and is able to convince them that you had no idea, they will say you are incompetent and you were oblivious to every damn thing. Either way, you’re screwed.

 

Finding out the bitter truth has never been easy. I have been a recipient of so many heartbreaking revelations and it does leave a mark, especially if you found out about the truth on your own. But is seeing really believing? Or is it merely our point of view and how we interpret the facts if there is any truth to it or not. Because when faced with the truth, surprisingly we still deny it, and on these times that we cannot accept the truth, we convince ourselves to believe in something else. (Who are we kidding here??)

 

So do we sugar coat things and serve the sweetest lies?

 

I am not saying that it is good to tell lies. I just tend to frequently wonder if a lie that bears good intentions still be considered grave, malicious and deceitful. Simply put yourself in a situation where a girl asks a guy if the model they saw was pretty. What would be the guy’s response;

 

A. Hell yeah, she’s pretty and hot

B. Hell no, you’re prettier than she is

C. I don’t dig skinny girls

D. It doesn’t matter coz I have you

 

Even if the guy truthfully answers B & D, the girl would think you’re just being cheesy and really think the model is pretty. If you lie and go with C it opens up another series of questions, that if you don’t dig skinny girls then what do you like. Obviously if you answer A you will get an ass-whupping. Again, regardless of what your answer will be, she has your back on the wall. So what do you do? You say, “Which model are you talking about, didn’t see any.”

 

It doesn’t hurt anyone’s feelings and it doesn’t put you in a compromising situation. What do you think?

 

Bottom Line…

 

"Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." – Marcus Aurelius

 

Elements Bits: Johnny English Reborn

Cast:

Rowan Atkinson – Johnny English

Rosamund Pike – Dr. Kate Sumner

Dominic West – Simon Ambrose

After being dismissed from MI7 for failing to protect the newly elected president of Mozambique, Johnny English has sought solace and refuge with the monks. But when MI7 encounters a mission where an MI7 asset claims that he will only speak to English about information regarding a plot to assassinate the Chinese premier, they track English down and MI7 has no choice but to reactivate him.

English finds out that a group named Vortex is behind all this, and they plan to use a mind control weapon that was disapproved 10 years ago by the CIA. According to the asset, the vault that holds the formula for this weapon requires three keys.

The plot thickens when English finds out that these three keys are being safe kept by agents of the CIA, KGB and MI7. English’s mission is to either retrieve all three keys or prevent the keys to fall into the wrong hands, at the same time prevent from falling in love with a colleague; nothing that English can’t definitely handle.

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Elements Bits number 1:

Do you think it is true that governments are really run by private contractors? Whether they are there to preserve peace or to dominate, they can pull strings and make things happen to their bidding. Certain superpowers even have the capability to control governments in other countries; swing the tide to their favor. The worst case scenario would actually be to eliminate any threat or hindrance to achieving their goals. And this is where the “wet-works” come in.

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Memorable Quote:

Dr. Sumner: “Why do you always think he is better than you?”

English: “Well, the man is a God.”

Dr. Sumner: “Well I prefer mortals. Pure, complicated, maddening mortals.”

 

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Featured Destination:

 

Le Bastion

 

Although the “Le Bastion” which is the base of MI7 in the movie is fictional, there stands a glorious structure atop the Aiguille-du-Midi mountain, which is simply breathtaking.

(Photos courtesy of the Internet)

Featured Clips of the Day: MB C-63 AMG

Aside from the vehicles, and it's not about the woman either...the location is just wonderful...

 

C63 Coupe

 

C63 Coupe 2



Julia’s 1st Bday Celebration

 

My little princess turns one! Days before the party itself we were worried because Julia was really ill as she was suffering from a really bad case of colds and cough; we even had to rush her to the hospital. Fortunately enough, on the day of the celebration she was up and well already.

 

We had a simple Carnival theme, got some cotton candy and sno-cone vendors, hired a magician and of course the usual games for the kids and adults.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next day we went to Swensen’s ice cream parlor for a sweet afternoon delight. My daughter saw these dancing waiters and waitresses at Johnny Rockets, to the beat of Gangnam Style and little Julia joined them.

 

 

You’re a real bundle of joy Julianna Kassandra. Happy Birthday!!

 

SPi Globalympics 2012

The company is now half way into its annual Globalympics, which showcases athletes from all its sites in Metro Manila including Paranaque and Laguna. One of the reasons for having this event is to scout for home-grown employees who have exceptional skills or talents who can represent the company in the MVP Olympics and Call Center Olympics.

 

 

The event kicked off with it’s first ever Fun Run Marathon. Even though it was raining so hard, we were surprised with the turnout of employees who braved the weather to support this activity. Having a 2k, 4k and 6k category, I tried, and I just literally tried and didn’t even achieve the goal time, in the 4k event.

 

 

 

(Finally! after 38 minutes!)

 

We had the usual opening ceremonies, guest hosts and the parade of site colors, raffle prizes, and what sports event does not have the showcasing of the muses, including divas.

 

(Hosts: Kat Alano, Andy Smith & Eric Tai)

 

 

One of the major highlights of the Globalympics would be the cheer-dance competition. It may not be the UAAP caliber type performance but I was in awe as to how good our regular employees are in this kind of event.

 

 

After that we closed off the day with 2 basketball games, where I was literally holding back my tears while playing the 1^st quarter because the first 30 seconds of the game, I suffered muscle cramps on both legs and the rules state that each quarter will have a different set of players and no substitutions can be made in the 1^st three quarters. So I had to endure the pain for 9 minutes and 30 seconds.

 

 

That’s what happens when you don’t get any exercise for over a month, run for 4k at 6:00AM, remain standing and walking around for next 4 hours assisting in the event, then play a basketball game to cap it off.

 

But it was all worth it. Good Job SPi Global!!