Yearly Archives: 2007

Daily Scribble

Martial arts vs guns

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Some time back then, I went into a discussion with a friend who is a kung-fu master. Martial arts is taught as an exercise, a spectator sport and self a defense skill. I was questioning the usefulness of martial arts in self defense among modern weapons, like guns. This is one of the reasons that leads me into learning shooting. How useful can martial art be under gun point?

Since then I have learned more about shooting and combating handgun skills, now I realize how wrong I was. Even when you are in a standing off situation with another gunner, martial art skills prove to be extremely useful in winning the gun fight. Most handgun fights happen within a few feet, that is within the range of martial art striking distance. If the bad guy reach for his gun, even your are skillful shooter, you can’t beat him in reaching you gun. The best you can do is draw and fire slightly before he fires at you. The reaction time delays you enough from stopping him before he pulls the trigger. Mutual death is not the best way to win a gun fight. In a gun fight, the goal is not to shoot the bad guy, the goal is not to get shot. Shooting the bad guy is just a mean to archive the goal by disarming him. If the fight is within martial art striking distance, it is actually faster to reach for his gun instead of drawing your own gun. Once you push his muzzle way from pointing at you, you gain the valuable split second to draw your gun and fire at him.

Yes, martial arts is no match of a gun in a distance. However in real life combat situation when both sides have guns, martial arts will give you a tactical advantage that can help you win the gun fight.

Daily Scribble

Yet another round of layoff

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The rumor is true, there will be another round of layoff in my company. We saw managers packing their belongings after work today. The managers know their fate a day earlier than the grunts, so the big axe is already swinging up, waiting to chop down the head counts tomorrow. According to reliable source of water cooler talks, they are laying ten or so people off from my on-loan department and shut down a money losing division.

It is pure bad management decisions lead to the end of that division. The now defunct division is working on DSL product line. Somehow the executive think the VP of the PON product line should also manage the DSL products. DSL and PON are two competing technology for the next generation home access network. It is a clear conflict of interest asking the PON VP to manage the DSL products. The PON VP must secretly wish the DSL product die and fade away instead of gaining market share. Long story short, because the PON VP didn’t put enough resource into the DSL division, we lose some potential big accounts. If we had those account, the balance sheet of the DSL division would in black instead of red. The division should have survived this round of lay off.

Well, being lay off is not necessary a bad thing. Some people laid off in last round filed class law suite against the company for wrongful dismissal and they won the case. The court ordered the company to pay them one year of salary for the severance package. In other words, whoever get laid off in the future can use this case as precedence to sue the company if the severance package is less than one year of salary. I am sure if the company ask volunteers to be laid off with this generous severance package, there will be a long line up to take the money and run.

電影

出埃及記

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Exodus 當一個導演成名之後﹐就不用受制於幕後老闆的商業條件﹐可以擁有較高的自由度﹐去拍攝他心中的理想電影。可惜導演想拍的電影﹐未必是觀眾想看的電影。有閒情雅緻去看藝術電影的人﹐畢竟只是一小撮電影觀眾。一直以來我也十分喜歡彭浩翔的電影﹐尤其欣賞天馬行空的黑色幽默。他在「出埃及記」中嘗試發掘新風格﹐很多影評大讚電影中的藝術元素﹐把彭浩翔捧為黃家衛的接班人。老實說﹐我不懂欣賞什麼細緻畫面﹐凌厲影像﹐構圖意境。對於我來說﹐「出埃及記」是一套超級沉悶的電影﹐我按著極大的耐性﹐心懷對彭浩翔的敬意﹐才可以挨到完場。

這套電影節奏嚴重緩慢﹐九十分鐘的故事﹐若用正常的手法來拍攝﹐大慨半個小時就可以講完。 節奏慢還不是最差﹐電影中間夾雜很多無厘頭鏡頭﹐也不知與故事有什麼關係。啊﹗那些藝術電影的愛好者﹐大慨可以分析每個鏡頭﹐解構每個細節與電影的關係﹐寫篇洋洋數十萬字的論文出來。不過對於一個普通觀眾﹐只能聯想到呵吹連連。開場那段祼體蛙人打人場面﹐有人認為導演別出心裁﹐與未段的伏筆首尾呼應。我則看了十秒後心想﹐大件事﹐整套戲會不會也是這些古怪場面﹐還來得及按停止鍵。我還是懷著一絲希望繼續看下去﹐一廂情願以為還是我熟悉的彭浩翔﹐結果白白浪費了個半小時。

電影的故事很怪雞有趣﹐用藝術電影的手法拍攝﹐糟塌了一個有潛質的好劇本。任達華飾演一個老差骨﹐給卷入了一宗離奇的案件﹐女人集體謀殺男人。劉心悠演任達華的妻子﹐演技比「阿嫂」時成熟不少。不知她是否不好運﹐接拍的都是悶藝電影﹐命中注定要當票房毒藥。張家輝演偷拍女廁的變態佬﹐給任達華落證供時﹐說自己入女廁偷拍﹐是要調查女人殺人組織。他戲中大講粗口﹐電檢處沒有把這齣戲列為三級﹐算是製造個宣傳的小話題。不過想聽粗口不用看電影﹐入夜後去旺角打冷宵夜﹐保證聽到比戲中更粗的粗口。溫碧霞久休復出演張家輝的老婆﹐在張家輝被謀殺後﹐與任達華發生肉體關係。大慨她是整齣戲演得最好的演員。雖然整齣戲也過份沉悶﹐但我十分喜歡任達華不停打嗝的結局﹐好玩聰明之餘亦合情合理。

大慨我對這齣電影有錯誤的期望﹐原本想看彭浩翔讓人捧腹大笑的招版電影﹐卻變成一套悶死人的藝術電影。期望越大失望越大﹐難怪我會邊看邊罵﹐差點想學張家輝爆粗。希望彭浩翔吸取今次的教訓﹐下套開拍的電影回歸主流﹐做回那個帶給我們「買兇拍人」和「大丈夫」的彭浩翔。香港有一個王家衛也嫌太多﹐藝術電影還是留給藝術學院裏﹐那些無所事事的學生去拍吧。

Daily Scribble

Snow storm

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Vancouver is having its first snow fall of this winter.  The whole city is covered under snow.   The road condition is really bad with low visibility.  The street is empty, no one want to go outside since it is too dangerous to drive.  So I am trapped at home for the whole day due to the bad weather.  If the snow storm comes one day later, we will have a snow holiday.  Why can’t we have the snow storm on weekdays instead of weekend?

Since snow has start falling, my ski season officially begins.  Luckily I just took my ski to the ski shop for waxing yesterday.  I can pick it up on Friday, so I am ready to hit the mountain next weekend.  I am sure there will be a long line up in the ski shop next week.

書評

弓和禪 – Eugen Herrigel

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zen of archary 禪是一個很玄的東西﹐雖然我在香港長大﹐自幼耳濡目染中國文化思想﹐對這個佛家的名詞並不陌生﹐可是總不能很確切地說出禪到底是什麼。或許正如很多人說一樣﹐禪並不能像西方哲學般有系統地學習﹐只能身體力行去感受並領悟其中的道理。我在逛網上的書藉論壇時﹐很有緣地遇上這本「弓和禪 」的簡介﹐還附有網上免費版本的連結。可能我開始愛上射擊運動的關係﹐對於講弓道心法的書藉有興趣。弓箭與槍同樣也是射靶﹐抱著這本書可能對射擊有幫助的心態﹐便用了三數小時看畢全書。

讀完後上網看多點資料﹐發現原來此書的來頭不少。原本出版已超過半個世紀的歷史﹐最近才被翻譯為中文。從一個西方哲學家的角度﹐去看東方禪學的奧秘。作者Eugen Herrigel是二十年代旅居日本的德國哲學家﹐跟弓道大師透過射箭修研禪學達六年之久。他是把禪學帶到歐洲的第一人﹐這本書則他的最重要著作﹐記錄他學習弓道六年的經歷﹐述描從中對禪的領會。日本文化中有很多不同的道﹐弓道﹐劍道﹐柔道﹐花道﹐茶道。每一種道好像與禪也有關連﹐都是讓修習者內省靜心﹐體會禪的最終奧義。

弓道並不只是射箭準確的技術﹐ 而是一套生活的哲學。修練的過程看起來好像沒有意義﹐但是只要耐心遵從大師的指示﹐最後就能夠學到大師的心法。作者先花了一整年時間去學習呼吸﹐再花一整年時間去學習拉弓。每天只是重覆做同樣的動作﹐一箭也沒有發出過。到了第三年才學習放箭﹐第四年才把射向箭靶。作者在過程中對大師的教法充滿懷疑﹐但他堅持到最後通過弓道考試。學懂弓人合一的禪理﹐不去計較射不射不中﹐射箭是一件再也簡單不過的事情。

其實讀完這本書﹐我對禪好像理解多一點﹐又好像依然是完全不理解。 不過有一點可以肯定﹐書中說弓道的心法﹐對我練習射擊很有幫助。拉弓與舉槍瞄準一樣﹐呼吸十分重要﹐只要心緒寧靜控制好呼吸﹐槍管自然會瞄得平穩。放箭與扣機板的道理一樣﹐越想射中就會越射不中。心中不要執著想射中高分﹐只要盡力去做好一個完美的射擊動作﹐就自自然然會射中靶心。箭要在毫無考慮的迅間放出﹐在不經心的情況下自然飛出去﹐不能注意手部的微細動作﹐才能進入忘我的境界。我在射擊時也有同樣的體會﹐有時我會專注手指的動作﹐儘可能順滑地完成扣機板動作。這時雖然可以射中第十環﹐但總是覺得有點地方不對勁。另一些時候我會在不為意下扣了機板﹐子彈好像是自己飛出去一樣。同樣也是射中第十環﹐卻有一個完全不同的覺感﹐一個很實在很完滿的感覺﹐就像書中說如同積雪在葉子上滑落一樣。也許我也如作者在練弓道中途般﹐只是在自作聰明地去理解禪﹐並不是真正的領悟射藝的精神。大師並不是教授學生弓道的技巧﹐而是以自身為榜樣讓學生自已發現弓道的秘密。不過很可惜沒有大師收我為徒﹐只能看著書本自行摸索。據說日本也有銃道﹐以射槍來修練心靈的學問。不過明治以後日本禁止民間私藏槍械﹐大慨銃道已成為失傳了的藝術。