An update and a short reminiscence



It has been exactly two months since I've last blogged. It has been mightily encouraging that people asked about the reasons to my absence from time to time. I often find that I'm rather involved with too many things in life, which often leaves me to wonder, what is the priority or hierarchy of writing and blogging in my life. Needless to say, from a loose point of view, the absence from blogging would indicate that it is deeply relegated in the lowly slumps of my heart, but in truth, I hold writing very dearly to my life because it was something that I've acquired through a series of eventful years. I wouldn't say I'm a person that reads a lot. In fact the truth is far from it. I think it derogatory if I were to put on that sort of mantra which would take away the glitter and credit away from others who read so much more as compared to me.


I could vividly remember that certain day when I was in form 3. During those days, my mom would closely monitor the progress of my academic studies and various other matters. It was during one of those days that my mom exclaimed in hokkien "The level of your composition or essays resemble that of a comic". Of course I furiously denied that assertion that she put forward as she has always been a highly critical person and failing to clash with her would give her the impression that her claims are vindicated. However, if I were to draw back memories of those years, the command of my language was rather shallow. Back during those ICQ monopolized days, I remember that I would even reach out to the dictionary on many occasions when I was chatting with more English affluent friends just to comprehend certain words that they used. I remember that there was a period where I told myself that I would need to improve further. That period coincide with the period where I started reading very matured examples of English essays. I also broaden my perspective and tried to imitate the writing styles of the magazines my family subscribed to. The funny part was that, I remember my effort was not giving back much dividends. However that period was vital as a jump start towards my rapid improvement the following years. That period of improvement is subtle and before I knew it, I felt much more comfortable and composed in writing. It flatters me greatly when people tell me I have a way with words. Its because I could remember it was not very long ago, that very statement would sound rather sarcastic rather than a compliment.




TVB ohhhh TVB



I would never fail to give credit to TVB for being the major driving force behind my effort in acquiring Cantonese. That tumultuous period of learning started when I was approximately 6 and it has been a lifelong learning experience up till this very day. Although I'm glad to say that the learning curve which was steep back then, is rather flat already by today. I think it was a pure childish and thick faced effort that was the catalyst behind me my motivation. Modelling my Cantonese after those shows and practicing them with friends who spoke Cantonese as well was one of the best decisions in my life. A decision that was made, even at the age where I was not capable of making rather matured or sensible ones. I've lost count the number of times, this very flexible and fun dialect has helped me in one way or the other through the years. Because Cantonese is the dialect that I've acquired through my hard earned efforts during those tumultuous years, it would be fair to say that it is the chinese dialect that I've hold dearest to my heart. Even so as compared to hokkien which is my mother tongue and also mandarin which is a tool I so highly respect. I practically grew up with TVB drama as they would occupy my evening TV time for the 6pm or 7pm slots.


If there is a similarity between the two authors of this blog, it is our opinions and passion about TVB shows. Although we may disagree in areas such as which actress is prettier or cuter, or which snippet from a drama was rather cool, we could largely agree that TVB exude a world of their own. An old friend who is currently working in Hong Kong once told me long before that there is no pretty girl to look forward to, as all the pretty ones are already grabbed by TVB in a form of binding contract or another. If that fact was true back then, it would only serve as a revelation now for the MTV age that we're living in (as the Americans would put it).


Some actresses from TVB simply portrayed this balance of fun and beauty to die for in our common shallow evaluation. So much so that it defies logic and you smell something fishy on whether they're faking it. It wouldn't surprise me that some people would give their right hand just to have these actresses as their other half. As much as I give credit and appreciate physical beauty, I hope that I still have the check and balance mechanism in me to stay away from that level of extremism :p. Some of those actresses are common faces in the industry and I couldn't possibly name all of them. However I shall name a few prominent ones and those high in Jarod's charts (the numbers don't indicate their level of preference of any sort and it is random selection altogether :p). I shall use Jyutping pronunciation rather than Hanyu Pinyin to do justice to their more commonly addressed names.





1. Gigi Lai ( Lai Chi )





Famous for the involvements in many of the TVB dramas such as "War and Beauty" and also classical Hong Kong films such as "Young and Dangerous". It was to my surprise that wikipedia actually says that she started out her career as a singer. But I think she really made it big in the big screens. There are rumours of her being vain and refusing to accept any role that would cast her in as an unpretty character. But hey!!!, I'm not protesting :p.















2. Charmaine Sheh ( Sheh Shi Man )



I think she is an absolutely fire starter ( as Prodigy would put it). I've never quite credited her beauty up till the day she kept her hair long. When she did it for her roles in some of the dramas such as "Life Begins at Forty" and "Angels of Mission", I was bedazzled indeed. She is such a versatile actress that her roles in the past ranged from emperor's concubine, secret agent, working class women, farmer, waste collector, princess and many others. She came in 3rd for the 1997 edition of Miss Hong Kong.

3. Shirley Yeung ( Yeung Sze Kei )



This gem was the winner of Miss Hong Kong 2001 and she won 6 awards altogether in the competition. She currently holds the record for the most award won by any Miss Hong Kong to date. Her repertoire of filmography is rather brief, but she it wouldn't surprise me if she took on much more roles in the near future.

4. Fiona Sit ( Sit Hoi Kei )

This pretty lady is an established singer who has won her fair share of awards. As she is much more of a singer than an actress, her acting resume is not impressive or extensive. However, her flexibility and willing to take on challenging roles has won the hearts of many.

However it would be totally unfair just to attribute physical beauty alone to the cutting edge selling point of TVB's production. It is because their uncanny achievements of being such a self sufficient industry which eventually paved the way to evolve into one of the exports of Hong Kong, is a remarkable feat indeed. The quality of the dramas and their legacy has also been preserved more often than never, especially so when they never cease to produce and nurture new talents to replace the old. All of this speak volumes for a country that is so small geographically

Looking back, it is unfathomable personally for me, if TVB dramas were not a part of my childhood. It has instilled fantasies and great imagination coupled with wonderful memories even up till this very day. Although the quality of the production nowadays may not be as glorious as the period a decade or two ago, many wouldn't question the overall quality and potential that the future holds. Kudos to TVB!!!!