我想當一個很厲害的人 ， 讓這個世界，因為有了我，會有一點點差別
九把刀
An unconventional title with punctuation errors and seemingly unrelated terms. How is a Kindle related to 2 countries and 3 movies? Have I finally gone insane? Bear with me, this is going to be a long post. To make sense of it all, let’s go back in time to July of 2019.
Amazon Kindle
Reading has been a leisure hobby of mine since childhood days. Many afternoons were spent in the neighborhood library, looking for books that piqued my interest. As days went by and I slowly grew up, the passion for reading slowly faded away, leaving a small flicker of flame, weak but still alive.
Following my enlistment into national service and entering into unit days, evenings were pretty much free leisure time. My friends either went to the gym or played cards night after night. Sure, I did both of those from time to time, though I found more purpose in picking up knowledge and information. Thus, I started reading again.
In my first year of national service, I purchased an Android tablet, which made reading pdfs and other books easier than reading on the phone or computer. The phone was portable but the small screen real estate meant frequent page flipping which interrupted the flow of the texts and was not entirely enjoyable.
Used Kindle from Ebay
Another bunkmate (“JC”) also spend most nights reading books, the only difference being that I read on my phone while he read on his Kindle. That was the first time in my life that I saw e-ink technology with my own two eyes. The resemblance to printed words was uncanny and JC raved on about the excellent battery life of a kindle. “Read for weeks without recharging! ” The unfortunate downside was that his Kindle wasn’t equipeed with led lights, hence the he couldn’t read after the lights out time while I could. Not that we are supposed to be reading at that time anyway.
I started looking up used Kindles on Ebay, which easily be found for less than half the price of a new one from Amazon. Getting a used Kindle doesn’t sound like a good proposition, given that international shipping would easily increase the cost by 50% and a brand new one doesn’t cost a bomb either.
However, the value seeker in me still crawled through Ebay listings from time to time, till one day I spotted a Paperwhite 3 White Edition being auctioned for 30 USD. Most of the listings are for older PW1 or PW2 models which was not what I was looking for. This particular listing was a PW3 which had a bad list title and barely any description, hence the bid price was stuck in the price range of a PW2.
How to recognise a PW3
Paperwhites are confusing. Kindles are classified into the basic Kindle, the more expensive Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Voyage and lastly the premium Kindle Oasis. They are officially differentiated by their release year instead of increment numbers like iPhone 5,6,7 etc.
The model number was not helpful in deciphering the correct model either, since there was no official product sheet to compare against and the only credible reference I could find (a teardown guide), stated that the model number is not a good indicator of the exact model. The only way I knew for sure it was a PW3 was that it came in white.
I count white as one of my favorite colors. Hence it was fitting that if I were to buy a used Kindle for the excitement of uncovering a undervalued treasure, it would be the white Kindle.
I like to avoid making rash unsound decisions. The consequence of this means that I tend to take a longer time comparing the pros and cons, before running it through a couple more times before hitting the buy button. During the time I undertook an intensive research into the e-reader options, from the likes of Kindles to Kobos and chinese iReaders (more expensive than kindles!), my family decided to save me the trouble and gift me one instead.
Fast forward to Black Friday 2019 and courtesy of Amazon Prime Shipping, I became a proud owner of a Kindle Paperwhite 4 for 145SGD.
Paperwhite 4
The Paperwhite 4 introduces a flush bezel design and waterproof capabilities which would come in handy for a little poolside/seaside reading. There is also one additional led light which would provide more even lighting compared to the PW3. “Dark Mode” is also present, a feature I have been using permanently on my tablet since the backlight hurts my eyes for long periods of reading. I switched it on once but the experience was queer so I disabled it for good.
Are the above reasons strong enough to get a PW4 over a used PW3? Perhaps not, but considering that the Kindle will accompany me for at least the next decade or more, it all becomes insignificant. I am positively certain that the PW4 will bring me many delightful reading sessions.
Setting up the Kindle
I received the Kindle days ahead of the scheduled arrival date, just two weeks after placing the order. Typically this calls for a celebration, but since I was still in the midst of final examinations, the Kindle could only sit alone on my desk unopened. The temptation to unbox the Kindle and start reading was immense, somewhat like a little kid who could only stare at ice cream and candy behind a glass panel on a hot day and not get to enjoy a single taste of the lucious creamy goodness.
The painful wait was soon over and I could proceed to unbox the Kindle peacefully without the fears of exams looming over my head. The setup process is foolproof and fussfree. Within moments, I was ready to go.
Novels, Fantasy or Non-Fiction?
I have a pretty long list of books on my read list, with genres ranging from fiction, biographies, finance and business books and even recipe books. Choice is a dilemma in this scenario. #firstworldproblems
I started on this novel a number of years back but I cannot seem to recall if I finished the book. Regardless, I decided to re-read the book, this time on a Kindle. Sidetrack: accidentally discovered that the author of this novel is the same person presenting the crash course history series. At first I thought it was either a mere coincidence but a quick check on his twitter account showed that they are one and the same person.
The flexibility of having an Ebook reader meant that I could have access to more books at once than the number of physical books I could carry with me. You could argue that this is not really a flexibility but a liability and I would agree with you. But for now, the freedom of choice resides with me. Hence, the second book which I am reading: 那些年，我们一起追的女孩 by 九把刀 .
I have watched the movie about 8 or 9 times, which averages out about once a year as the movie was released 8 years ago. I count a couple of these watched with my army friends on those weekday evenings, all crowding around the common table watching the movie on the small screen of my phone.
Spoilers aside, there are differences between the 2011 movie and the book. The characters seem to be portrayed in a much better light in the movie. As of today 21st of December 2019, I am 55% through the book and the story progresses much slower than the movie.
青春是一場大雨。即使感冒了，還盼望回頭再淋它一次
那些年，我们一起追的女孩
Movie trailer linked below if anyone’s interested.
每個人都有這樣的經驗。 不經意間聽到某一首歌，某一段旋律，就會瞬間回憶起某段時光裏的自己。 或大學，或高中，或看見曾經在自己座位旁，那張用粉筆劃下著白線的青澀臉孔。
九把刀
2 or 5 Countries?
I know, the post title says 2 countries, but technically it could go up to 5. What I’m referring to is the number of countries this Kindle has visited. If I start counting from the day of unboxing, the number is 3 but if I count the entire lifetime, I throw in the country of manufacture (probably china) and the US where it was shipped from.
For the sake of this post, I assumed the first condition and excluded my home country hence the number of countries the Kindle has visited is now officially 2. Not bad for a device which is barely half a month old.
Traveling on the road, flying in an airplane or sitting on a ferry means hours of idling. Pop on my earphones, turn on some light music and all is set for some time on the Kindle. Sounds perfect, except when there are bumps on the road, some air turbulence or crossing paths with a huge wave, the tranquil reading turns into a nightmare of confusion and eye fatigue.
This is the dream. Having mouthfuls of delicious baked pastries along with aromatic freshly brewed coffee whilst having a novel in hand. Hours just fly by as the Kindle and I stare mutually at each other, absolutely oblivious to the thunderstorm just outside the window.
Of course I’m exaggerating. The winds were so strong that the trees were bent. I would have to be blind not to see that even in my peripheral vision.
3 Movies
Knives Out
Knives Out counts as one the best movies I have watched in a while, hands down. The beginning was rather monotonous and dry as the characters are being build up but towards the end, the twists and action makes the wait worthwhile.
The cast comprises of a number of well known stars like Chris Evans and Daniel Craig. The plot revolves around a murder investigation and the scenes cut in and out between the interrogation of the persons of interest and a flashback to the night of the murder. The visual and comedic elements are commendable,
21 Bridges
A classic cop movie with clique shooting and chase scenes. The plot gets predictable as the story progresses, but still an enjoyable watch nonetheless.
Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker
Well this one is a torrent of mixed feelings. Having watched all the Star Wars movies, the story and fight scenes cannot live up to that of the original trilogy. The obvious positive changes over the years are better CGI and cinematics, but even those cannot compensate for a weaker plot and overly long victory hug scenes. The final battle scene is disappointing and a little confusing (not going to include spoilers here). This is my first Dolby Atmos cinema experience, not quite noticing any dramatic blow my mind sound effects, which is slightly disappointing and not worth the extra in ticket price in my opinion.
IP Man 4
I almost got to watch my fourth movie in two weeks, Ip Man 4, had I been able to fit it within my schedule. That would change the title of this post to 1 Kindle, 2 Countries and 4 Movies. That works too, with the progression being exponential instead of simple increments.
If I could only watch a single movie out of all 4 mentioned here, my top pick would still be Knives Out. There is simply no competition here. However if you prefer action packed movies with a lot of guns firing and blood splattering along with screams of agony, 21 Bridges is the one you seek.
Finally, to answer the question above – how is a kindle related to two countries and three movies? Well the answer is simple, if you still have not grasp it by now. I got a kindle, traveled with it through 2 countries and watched 3 movies with it by my side.