Wednesday, July 8, 2015

A minute of silence and self-loathing

I really really really really really liked the Constantine series. No one was as highly strung, self-loathing, and sour as Matt Ryan's rendition. (Although the only other screen version I know of is the Keanu Reeves version, so...) He was all sharp edges and tics (and tic-inducing).

Of course it was cancelled about 2 months ago. After 1 measly season, or series, if you're from the UK. There had been 13 episodes.*

ONE season. But what a season it was. I barely remember any filler episodes. It seemed like the tension was turned to 10 all the time, even when apparently nothing was happening.

The last episode was a cliffhanger. And hearing that it'd been cancelled left me on the precipice of despair.**

The network said the show didn't garner the eyeballs to justify renewing its contract. Fair enough, but also unfair when you think of how series such as Arrow and The Flash are still filming. (But I also see their appeal.)

On the other hand, we downloaded the episodes we watched, so I guess we were responsible for the insufficient eyeballs too. It's hard not to take it personally when you think about it like that.

Now that's it's apparently going to be screened on the FOX channel here, it just feels like a cruel joke.

*A bad luck number if there ever was one.
**It's funny because John Constantine featured in at least one episode in The Sandman series, and one of The Sandman's sisters is named Despair, and, er. Yes. Well.

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

BioZ vs. Mosi-Guard mosquito repellent

If you spend any amount of time (like 30 minutes or so) in the Malaysian outdoors, and I'm not talking about sprinting across the carpark through the pouring rain and inside the mall, you will usually need insect repellent.

Specifically, "outdoors" refers to any setting where there are trees, grass, shrubs, whatnot, i.e., flora, which is accompanied by the according fauna, i.e., flies, gnats, ants, MOSQUITOES. I have a (sensible) horror of getting bitten by mosquitoes because I could contract dengue. And I would probably need hospitalization. And I would shrink from the illness. As I weigh 50 kg (half of which is probably teeth and hair) and stand at 5 feet 4-ish inches in my bare feet, that would be a bad development.

Staying indoors isn't even a surefire way to avoid getting bitten.

Tip (if you didn't already know it): Mosquitoes will attack when you slow down/stop while running/exercising. Therefore, keep moving!

But people get tired, and have to stop anyway. Which is where roll-on mosquito repellent becomes a godsend. Apply it on all exposed skin, even your ears if you need to (I need to, but I don't!), and reapply when you stop. This has 2 benefits: it keeps you moving a bit so that mosquitoes don't land on you, and you refresh your anti-mosquito layer.

I stopped using the spray-on repellent because it stings like a fucker if it gets in your eyes. I also feel that with sprays, most of it gets in the air rather than on your skin, which is stupid.

Compared to its spray-on version, you have more control of where you apply the roll-on Mosi-guard to, but it's so thick and you have to reapply anyway if you sweat a lot (like me), so you don't feel like you're getting your money's worth.

Enfant Terrible says "you get what you pay for", but he also gobbled down the cheap Malay snacks we got a few weeks ago, so forget him. This is my idea of a lead up to saying that we tried the Bio Z mosquito repellent, and we're going to stick with it for the near future.

For one, it passed the taste test (er, heheh), and you'll never get any in your eyes (unless you're extraordinarily stupid) because it's solid. I like that it's in a pushup tube like a deodorant, so you can gauge the remaining amount. I'll probably have to get a new tube next month, which is reasonable, considering how much it costs.

If you must, it probably also emits less carbon emissions as it's from (gasp!) Singapore, whereas MosiGuard is made in the UK.

Briefly:

Safety: Both are DEET-free, therefore kid-safe.
Active ingredient(s): Mosi-guard, Citrodiol/lemon eucalyptus oil; Bio Z, lemongrass oil and citronella oil.
Taste: Mosi-guard tastes bad (Bio Z does not) and you (I) always accidentally smear some on your (my) drinking hose (but I don't with Bio Z).
Price: Mosi-guard, ~RM28; Bio Z, ~RM7.90.