BOXXing out the competition

There's a new machine in town, and it's taking human jobs. Transformers are actually taking over.

Canadian Packaging reported that Eagle Packaging Machinery LLC, based in Miami, FL, has a new machine that it (Eagle Packaging) hopes will decrease operators' carbon footprints.

The new machine called BOXXER is an automated system that will build cases and place products in them. Which will negate the purpose of having hardly any human presence in a factory that does such thing.

According to Canadian Packaging, BOXXER will "help increase productivity and lower labor costs."

To learn more about how it works, read the original post.

Go Wild

Originally posted Nov. 26, 2011.

I'm a huge DIY fanatic, so here goes my first post.

On Pinterest, I often peruse the site to keep up with current nail trends. One of my first "pins" was someone's leopard-print manicure. I fell in love immediately.

A friend recommended I start reading Syl and Sam, a blog following a sister-duo on their fashion adventures and DIYs, while showcasing their amazing designs.
Syl posted a nail DIY with her version of the leopard-print manicure.

I had nothing else to do on a Saturday afternoon. Armed with two toothpicks, my trusty OPIs and 1.5 hours I decided to give it a try.
The result:

The pinkie I did at Sephora yesterday.

For those of whom are interested, I used "Isn't it Romantic?" for the base, and "Over the Taupe" and "Baby it's 'Coal' Outside!" for the spots.

Gemma the Great

Originally posted Sept. 3, 2011.

I’ve recently found out that supermodel Gemma Ward has been cast to play a role in the upcoming Gatsby film. While her character’s name is unknown, the role is said to be of some significance.

For those of whom aren’t familiar with Miss Ward in the fashion industry, if you caught the latest Pirates of the Caribbean, you would have seen her as Tamara the First Mermaid. This information I’m getting from IMDB.

I am still unsure of how I feel about this development. As the film is gaining a lot of attention, with big names attached to it, I cannot help but expect a lot from her. I mean, I guess there are lots of model turned actress success stories. Perhaps Gemma will deliver and change my perspective.

Hell hath no fury like an ape scorned...

Lesson 1: Testing on animals is NOT good.
Lesson 2: Don't piss off a chimp.

When the full trailer for Rise of the Planet of the Apes was released, I was none but pleased to see the ever-attractive James Franco and ever-gorgeous Freida Pinto sharing the screen in the much anticipated prequel. Later I learned that Andy Serkis decided to bust out the green suit again to play another CGI character.

I will be honest, I have never seen the original. Nor have I seen the 2001 remake by Tim Burton. The only movie with chimps would have been Tarzan... the Disney version. So when I saw the trailer, I couldn't help but gawk at the advancement of film-making technology. It is armed with CGI work that rivals Avatar... the apes look incredibly lifelike!

The film surrounds a genetic engineer named Will Rodman. His research is primarily on finding something that will hopefully cure Alzheimer's -- a disease his own father has. Will tests out a drug on a chimp named Bright Eyes and sees that her intelligence is growing -- a telltale sign that his drug should help Alzheimer's sufferers. When Bright Eyes goes bananas, her life comes to an untimely end and her newborn baby is left without a parent. Will shows compassion towards the chimp and brings him home where he is given the name Caesar.
As the chimp becomes part of the family, the intelligence Bright Eyes possessed is passed onto Caesar and as each day grows, his IQ increases.
One day, Alzheimer's troubles the family when Will's father gets into a neighbor's car and causes a ruckus. As Will's father is being verbally abused by the angered neighbor, Caesar watches in his room window. Protective of his family, Caesar rushes outside to protect Mr. Rodman. This results in Caesar being violent towards the neighbor, and ultimately is pulled away by animal control to a compound where other chimps live.

Thus begins the downfall of Caesar's trust in humans, and the rise of the apes.

If you have seen the trailer, you obviously know what happens. The chimps are outraged by the way they are being treated by humans so they break out of the compound. What else is next but a showdown with the humans. They literally go ape shit on San Fransisco.

For most of the movie, I found myself growing fond of Caesar. He is so lovable, but so misunderstood. About half the movie is seeing Caesar growing up. I did not find it slow at all. It was all rise, but it was gradual and I liked that. It wasn't too slow paced.

What I didn't enjoy is that Tom Felton's character seems so Draco-like. Having watched him play Malfoy for the past 10 years, I couldn't help but see him as his Potter persona. Although I really like him, I wish he didn't always have to play the bad guy...

While Andy Serkis was blowing me away with his best ape impression, James Franco didn't act as well as he did in 127 Hours. However, the focus of the movie is not on him. His looks and beautiful co-star made up for his lack-luster performance. Again, the focus of the movie is not on humans so I don't have much to say about Freida Pinto. She's just really nice to look at... She didn't have much to say so I can't criticize too much.

I have to admit that the film was great and well received. Achieving over 80% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes is quite the accomplishment for the remake. It ends leaving the audience itching for more. Luckily, there will be more Apes swinging our way in the future.

I Have a Dream...

...and it came true at 8:30pm on Saturday, August 6 2011. After a satisfying pho dinner, much, much anticipation, a great opening act and a half hour break, New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys started their second last show in their NKOTBSB tour.

I. Went. Bananas.

Turn back the clock to 1999 when Millennium was released. An album packed with what are now BSB classics I couldn't help but fall madly in love with the Boys, but really, what isn't there to love? They cover all bases -- catchy dance beats as well as slower love songs, and they dance. They are what all boy bands will forever be compared to... and they will never measure up.

2001 comes around and for my 11th birthday I received Black and Blue.
Shape of My Heart is still my favorite on that album.

Fast forward to 2005 when my dear friend's birthday occurred shoftly after the release of Never Gone. Because I was too cheap to buy her the actual CD and I was feeling techy, I made her a mixed CD of past BSB hits as well as their new material. The love grew as I reacquainted myself with their biggest hits.

2008 rolls around and I am off to first year at Wilfrid Laurier. Thanks to a wonderful thing called DC++ I managed to download their entire discography and a tiny obsession begins.

All this time, I'm dreaming of one day seeing them in concert.

Summer 2011 my friend Eileen emails my girlfriends and I telling us that NKOTBSB will make a stop in Hamilton! Without hesitation we all agreed to get tickets for the show. The obsession grew as each day passed. The closer we got to the date, the more I was starting to  feel like I was a preteen again.
The week before the concert my sister and I listened to all their songs to prep us for the concert.

When the day finally came, my friends and I spent a couple hours making our tshirts. When they were dry, we ventured into Hamilton where we saw about 8 tour buses parked outside Copps Coliseum. We were going to see our childhood loves! As Copps is really close to our dinner spot, we walked there. Before we got close to the main entrance we saw a group of women crowded behind yellow tape. What were they there for? To catch a glimpse of the Boys of course! Determined to see Brian (our favorite), we stuck around. We waited around for about 15 minutes when one of the bus's doors opened. Women screamed as Howie D stepped outside and walked in our direction!! He stopped in front of the small crowd we were in and started shaking hands. I muscled myself in there and he touched my hand and WINKED.

Brian didn't end up coming out and the concert was starting. We didn't want to miss too much so we made our way to our seats. Matthew Morrison (Mr. Schue from Glee) was the opening act. He's amazing live! Sounds just like recordings. And he's way more attractive in real life.
Great way to start the show.

30 minute intermission.

Lights dim, fans scream, opening video introduces the groups and then BAM. The bands appear and sing some of their lyrics to Viva la Vida. Actually a dream come true. The concert was amazing! Could care less about New Kids but the Boys still got it! What made it even better is that they sang all my favorites!






Concert highlights:
- many crotch grabbing dance moves (so funny seeing 40 year old Kids dancing like that)
- seeing Brian
- Jordan Knight's comical high-pitched falsetto
- Donnie Wahlberg stripping
- BSB's amazing dancing
- "Don't Turn Out the Lights"
- "Everybody" encore
- experiencing this with my girls




I have never screamed so much or so loud in my life but it was definitely worth the sore throat!

Who shalt play Romeo?

According to Perez Hilton the role of Romeo has been cast by Douglas Booth. This I confirmed on IMDB. The name is not familiar to me, but like Hailee Steinfeld, a name I am sure we will be hearing for years to come.

...Actually, now that I think about it, he was the boy Miley Cyrus allegedly dated briefly after her initial split from Liam Hemsworth. Anyways, he will soon have another reason to remember his name. The fresh faced newcomer will be starring alongside Hailee Steinfeld as the famous star crossed lovers. While I know absolutely nothing about him, I think he is the appropriate age to star as the leading male.

In similar news, Holly Hunter is set to play the Nurse, and (Vampire Diaries fans rejoice) Paul Wesley will play Paris, the guy who does not get the girl. Shouldn't matter, he's so good looking, he should get pity dates easily.

Read more about it on Perez's website!

So long, Farewell

There once was a boy named Harry

Whose name was mentioned in a prophecy

One must die

While the other survives

And thus it all began

Hunting for Horcuxes

Voldy's soul now fluxes

Voldemort rises again

His power so great

Harry’s life was up to fate

…and the Battle was less than accurate.

Like my fellow Potter fans, I have been anticipating “The End” since the release of the final novel. It was inevitable, and for most it means the end of their childhood. I am one of them.

I started reading the series when The Prisoner of Azkaban had already been published. A friend introduced me to the magical world of witchcraft and wizardry and it was unlike anything I had ever read. I was fully immersed in their world.

All 7 books were published within 10 years, and similarly, the films were also released within 10 years. If I started reading the books when I was just shy of the age of 10. It means that Harry Potter has been part of my life for 12 years.

More than half my life has been dedicated to the series and I’m sad it has come to an end. However, the purpose of this post is not to bore you with my laments, but to share my thoughts on the final gift the franchise could give.

After being blown away by Part 1 of The Deathly Hallows, I expected no less from Part 2. Because I had not read the book since 2007, I felt compelled to refresh my memory and read it once more. 

I believe the movie was a joy to watch – cinematically speaking. 3D didn’t do much for me but I got Harry Potter glasses out of it. The film was full of emotion… those who have read the books will understand why. For those of you who don’t read the books and haven’t seen the movie yet, I will not spoil it for you. The most frustrating aspect of the movie was the inaccuracies that plagued the film.

Movies based off books have the difficulty of staying true to the original, for many reasons. The Harry Potter film franchise was no exception.

While I love the films, a part of me is always disappointed with the film doesn’t match the book. However, I must constantly be reminded that it is the Director’s vision not mine, that budgeting must play some role in the omission of characters, and again, it is someone else’s interpretation.

I liked the film, for it bade farewell to the beloved franchise… but unfortunately it was laced with inaccuracies.

While it saddens me to see it all end, I find comfort in the fact that Harry, Ron and Hermione still have adventures on paper.

Auf Wiedersehen, Harry Potter.