Pages

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

name that animal ^.^


isn't the tiger cute?

i wish i have a tiger as a pet
don't think it will yield good results if that wish ever come true though.

anyways...my friend went to cambodia and gave me this picture..
.and I'm so envious because he gets to be there and
he gets to pose for this cool pic. So to spite him, I thought I'd do a contest.

NAME THAT ANIMAL!
and no I don't mean the tiger ^.^


name him and whoever gets his name first
will get 50 credits in entrecard ^.^
and a 125x125 banner ad of your blog.

oh, don't forget to drop ur cards ok? and do put
your blog link after you name him ^.^

**this playful exchange will run for two weeks starting its post date



Thursday, February 21, 2008

that part of my life.


Hungry people listens not to reason,
nor cares for justice, nor is bent by any prayers.

--by Seneca --

Help with your click

I used to be a part of a non-government organization and it was one of the best things that happened to me. I was not just a part of it, I was living it. Climbing mountains, hiking for half a day, being with indigenous people and living their lives for a few days, trying to create a better environment for them through our org's projects like alternative education and sustainable agriculture is something that just doesn't happen everyday for everybody.

The Hunger Site

Of course, it made a strong blow to my personal relationships, leaving a gaping hole at the end. My ex-husband couldn't accept the fact that my job entails more than the needed 8-hour shift in the office.

The Child Health Site

That I am on-call even on weekends. That I go home in the middle of the night and sometimes, I just can't because transportion is unavailable and that it involves walking for half a day to even reach the nearest motorcycle available. He couldn't bear me coming home in mud and muck, all messed up, tired and groggy from the trip.

The Literacy Site

My mother was hysterical as what I've become...no make up, always in jeans and slippers, and always never there. My children barely recognized me --- in the end, everything crashed. And when it did, I lost everything. My family, my children, my friends, the life I knew... I had to quit my job.
The Rainforest Site

Sometimes, we make choices and when everything fell apart, I chose to start over again, but the only thing I opted to keep was my children. A relationship that entails a mandatory obligation that it not be put in the backseat ever, is something that is too much for me, so I lost my partner. A job that will further take me away from my children no matter how valuable it is, is something I cannot bear. How can I make a difference to strangers while my children is hating me. And maybe, when my children don't need me anymore, I'd be given a chance to come back. My mom is happy to see me back and someone is being there for me. I am happy...for now.

The Animal Rescue Site

But leaving was difficult. Everytime I feed my children, I sometimes wonder if those children I met in the province are eating well. Everytime I kiss my kid goodbye before she goes to her class, I wonder if those indigenous children have a teacher teaching them basic alphabet. Whenever I am out with my family, I wonder if the families I was with in the mountains was able to have a good harvest....there are things you just can't simply forget...things you'll alwyas worry about...and it sometimes make me restless.

The Breast Cancer Site

And so, when I stumbled upon the Link To Us website, it made me think of my days when I was active in such projects. Please click on the banners and each click will bring food, security and service to the people who needs it...it's just a matter of a fraction of your time....

Hungry people, scared animals, children who wants to learn, better health services -- we all can contribute in our own little ways...put together, it can make a big difference.


Tuesday, February 19, 2008

are you thinking what i'm thinking?

I was out yesterday - and i saw a lot of foreigners with their Filipina partners. And these various thoughts invaded my mind...
  • Are they (meaning caucasian or black foreigners) choosing asian mates becuase we are "small" and our culture dictates that we become submissive?
  • Is it because they are young (asian females in this type of relationship are mostly young, just a few years above 18 or so)?
  • nice couple --- he is young!
  • where did he find her? --net, clubs, malls?
  • what the heck is he thinking? (especially if the girl is not that pretty and the guy is)
  • so that's exotic for him? (again at an aesthetic level -- yes, I'm shallow!)
  • why are they walking so far apart?
  • why is he not holding her hand?
  • why is she dressed that way?
  • why is he bald?
  • he walks funny
  • nice purse
  • are they really in love?
and because I am just particularly nosy on other people's business, here are some of the things I came up after pondering those couples that passed by while I sip my strawberry shake.

Sexually speaking - asians are small compared to caucasian and black women. If anybody read my re-post on "Does penis size matter?" - we are, in diameter, a half inch or so smaller to caucasian girls and 1-1.5 inches smaller than black women. Paired with our own race, we do fit perfectecly -- on average, asian men are smaller by half inch to caucasians and caucasians are half inch smaller compared to black men. So sexually speaking, asians may tend to be more attractive to caucasian/black men because not only do most asian women look exotic with their yellow or mocha skin, they will be 'tight' for them until the woman becomes adjusted to their size.

The west has a stereotype over asian women that's called the "china doll stereotype" where women from both Far East & South East Asia are portrayed as exotic sexual beings...like felines...who visually yawns and secretly plots...

the China doll stereotype and other variations of this submissive stereotype exist in American movies: "Geisha Girl/Lotus Flower/Servant/China Doll: Submissive, docile, obedient, reverential (including Asian men as effeminate, servile); Vixen/Sex Nymph: Sexy, coquettish, manipulative; tendency toward disloyalty or opportunism; Prostitute/Victim of Sex Trade/War/Oppression: Helpless, in need of assistance or rescue; good-natured at heart." wikepedia

Of course, this is not a learned observati
on and I am just expressing an opinion based upon what I am noticing and what I have read -- some pieces of useful junk I've found in books and over the net. Just because it made sense to me - doesnt mean it is the absolute truth.

Ok, now that I've written the disclaimer, I'm more comfotable to babble. wehehhe! don't wanna get sued, you know.ANd if you ever stubbed your toe and lost your foot because what I'm ranting here is making you choke, I am in no way liable for your clumsiness.

(where was i?)


Culturaly speaking, asian women, in their patriarchal prisons have learned the art of pleasing their men. We please our men, although the rise of feminism is rampant these days, a lot of women have yet to know and believe their rights as human beings. Generally speaking, women do nag, rant, complain, have the ability to push you to bankcruptcy becuase of their expenditures -- my mom have this ability to talk like an machine gun - ratatatatatatatat! -- that makes my dad shakes his head -- but when the man of the house raises his right as the head of the household, most likely asian women bow down to the authority. It may not be willingly, but asian women recognizes the power of the male dominance in the family. You cannot expect the aisan woman to pack her bags immediately - she may argue, shout, complain - but it will take her a long time to leave her partner, even in the presence of physical abuse.

In terms of fidelity, most asian women would ask their partners to be discreet in their affairs to avoid any circumstances where it can shame the family. Children are taught to honor their fathers and are instructed to respect them, no matter what. Same goes with the mothers, but it is more important that the children look up to their dads. It is prevalent in an Asian household that children hold their tongue back until they are allowed to speak and argue with their parents, especially with their father...and it is always in a respectful manner and always without the presence of any guests. Children are taught to not defy their father in front of guests, if one chooses to do so, a harsh punishment is awaiting them. It is the honor of the father that his children show respect and it is his disgrace if any sign of imputence from his wife and family is shown in front of his friends and collegues.

Caucasian men on the other hand, have been stereotyped by asian women as promiscuous. Who date around and dating means sleeping around. Who sleep around, and sleeping around doesn't necesarily mean he is in a commitment.


Plus, I know someone who knows a taxi driver who hates foreigners becaase he gets to witness how foreigners change women everyday...so that's one point. And me personally, I saw this one caucasian guy, he was with this curly hairde asian girl, we were in singapore airport then, I'm going home to the Phil, he is riding the same plane -- and a few days later, when I was in Cebu and was with may friend, we saw him with a different girl...I think he recognized me, he didn't enter the restaurant we were in and opted to go somewhere else. Ok OK, I'm gossiping... erase erase erase

In terms of asian women committing adultery, I don't know. Although asian women has been portrayed in the west as "aggresive sexual beings" (what's that song again?..."a lady on the street but a freak in the bed" =P) in many movies, the life of a conservative asian woman is void of dates and friendly dinners with the opposite sex. It is a disgrace to her family to be seen with a man alone, except if it is her husband or son. Although this tradition is slowly changing as more and more young asian women are more and more open in terms of their views of life and relationships.

Things are really slowly changing though. Foreigners looking for Asian wives are more reciprocated especially in the provincial areas.
  • A foreigner may look like a savior to a starving asian family (believe me, I've met people who makes sure she marries a foreigner a career).
  • An angel to free her from her patriarchal prison.
  • An adventure to see other places and acquire things she's only dreamed of for herself or for her family.
  • A sacrifice she has to make.
  • An introduction to a new culture she has never known...
  • or it can be plainly because she has fallen in love over this strange man who embraces her culture regardless of its strangeness.
  • Because she is in a situation that might pose as a problem in future relationships she'll have with men in her own race (separated, kids, etc.)
  • etc. etc. etc.
It can be for any reasons why caucasians and asian hook up -- most common thinking would be, she's in for the money (Yeah, We asian women are all suckers for green eyed or blue eyed fair men, and we dream of beautiful children --- but you cannot just ignore the stamp on his forehead that says "green card") and he is in for the sex (they are suckers for young, slim, beautiful women who would let them lick thier foot -- sheeesh-- and who just worhsips him from head to toe).

The only thing that a foreigner must understand is that, when one marries an asian, he does not only marry the girl, but the whole family. He must not only please the girl but must be approved also by her family. And if she takes care of her, her loyalty is boundless and her respect is deep. Of course there are few exceptions --but i don't have time to discuss them.

so are they in love or what? if both are good to eachother -- sooner of later they might end up there...

so were you thinking what i was thinking?

Monday, February 18, 2008

survey

I have a penchant for useless things...

shirts that i won't ever use, stuff that will just gather dust, shoes that are better displayed and more practical to look at -- breaking ur neck because of your high heels is something your insurance might not pay for...etc. etc.

and took a survey at dneero -- realized I'm not a "i-have-a favorite-girl".
No particular restaurants that I adore, no particular drink I crave for, no particular favorite of anything...sheeesh....





Friday, February 15, 2008

Top ten out of place artifacts

TOP 10 OUT-OF-PLACE ARTIFACTS (O.O.P.s)
from scribd

By
Joseph Robert Jochmans, Lit. D.

Walk into any modern museum, or open any history textbook, and the
picture of the past presented is one in which humanity started from
primitive beginnings, and steadily progressed upward in the development
of culture and science. Most of the artifacts preserved in archaeological
and geological records have been neatly arranged to fit this accepted
linear view of our past.

Yet many other tantalizing bits and pieces unearthed offer a very different
story of what really happened. Called out-of-place artifacts, they don't fit the
established pattern of prehistory, pointing back instead to the existence of
advanced civilizations before any of the known ancient cultures came into
being.

Though such discoveries with their inherent sophistication are well-
documented, most historians would like to sweep these disturbing
anomalies under the proverbial rug. But the rug of true history is getting very
lumpy, and hard to step across without tripping over such obvious
contradictions to the conservative picture of antiquity.

What's more, the mysterious artifacts confirm ancient legends and stories
which describe human history not as linear, but cyclic. Forgotten ages and
former worlds rose and fell in great cycles of life and death over millions of
years, lost to our memory except in myths, and now, through a few amazing
pieces left to us. Here are the top ten out-of-place artifacts and what they
reveal to us about our missing legacy:

1. BAFFLING BATTERIES OF BABYLON

In 1938, Dr. Wilhelm Kong, an Austrian archaeologist rummaging through
the basement of the museum made a find that was to drastically alter all
concepts of ancient science. A 6-inch-high pot of bright yellow clay dating
back two millennia contained a cylinder of sheet-copper 5 inches by 1.5
inches. The edge of the copper cylinder was soldered with a 60-40 lead-tin
alloy comparable to today's best solder. The bottom of the cylinder was
capped with a crimped-in copper disk and sealed with bitumen or asphalt.
Another insulating layer of asphalt sealed the top and also held in place an
iron rod suspended into the center of the copper cylinder. The rod showed
evidence of having been corroded with acid. With a background in
mechanics, Dr. Konig recognized this configuration was not a chance
arrangement, but that the clay pot was nothing less than an ancient electric
battery.

The ancient battery in the Baghdad Museum as well as those others which
were unearthed in Iraq all date from the Parthian Persian occupation
between 248 B.C. and A.D. 226. However, Konig found copper vases
plated with silver in the Baghdad Museum excavated from Sumerian
remains in southern Iraq dating back to at least 2500 B.C. When the vases
were lightly tapped a blue patina or film separated from the surfaces,
characteristic of silver electroplated to copper. It would appear then that the
Persians inherited their batteries from the earliest known civilization in the
Middle East.

2. THE STRANGE ELECTRON TUBES FROM DENDERA

In different locations within the Late Ptolemaic Temple of Hathor at
Dendera in Egypt are curious wall engravings which Egyptologists cannot
explain in traditional religio-mythic terms, but about which electrical
engineers are finding very modern interpretations.

In one chamber, No. 17, the topmost panel, depicts Egyptian priests
operating what look like oblong tubes, performing various specific tasks.
Each tube has a serpent extending its full length inside. Swedish engineer
Henry Kjellson, in his book Forvunen Teknik (Disappeared Technology),
noted that in the hieroglyphs these serpents are translated as seref, which
means to glow, and believes it refers to some form of electrical current. In
the scene, to the extreme right appears a box on top where sits an image
of the Egyptian god Atum-Ra, which identifies the box as the energy
source. Attached to the box is a braided cable which electromagnetics
engineer Alfred D. Bielek identified as virtually an exact copy of
engineering illustrations used today for representing a bundle of conducting
electrical wires. The cable runs from the box the full length of the floor of the
picture, and terminates at both the ends and at the bases of the tube
objects. These objects each rest on a pillar called a djed, which Bielek
identified as a high-voltage insulator.

The tube objects look very much like TV picture tubes, an impression which
is not far from wrong, for electronics technician N. Zecharius has identified
the objects as Crookes or electron tubes, the forerunner of the modern
television tube.

Though the upper chamber scenes have been damaged by vandals from a
later age, other pictures found inside the crypt below the Holy of Holies are
almost perfectly preserved, and their portrayal deepens the mystery of the
strange electron tubes even further. Here, not only are the tubes shown in
full operation, but something else has been added which may suggest the
ultimate purpose for the tubes themselves. In several instances, both men
and women are shown sitting underneath the tubes, hands held out and
cupped, which meant they were in a receptive mode. What kind of radiation
treatment was being performed here?

3. THE ENIGMA OF THE ASHOKA PILLAR

A testimony to ancient metallurgical skills in Delhi, India is called the
Ashoka Pillar. Standing over 23 feet, it averages 16 inches in diameter and
weighs about 6 tons. The solid wrought-iron shaft is made up of expertly
welded discs. An inscription on the base is an epitaph to King Chandra
Gupta II, who died in A.D. 413.

Despite being well over a millennium and a half in age, the Pillar's
constitution is remarkably preserved. The smooth surface is like polished
brass with only occasional instances of pock-marks and weathering. The
mystery is that any equivalent mass of iron, subjected to the Indian
monsoon rains, winds and temperatures for 1,600 years or more would
have been reduced to rust long ago.

Production of the iron and the techniques of preservation are far beyond
5th century abilities. It is probably far older, maybe several thousand years.
Who were the mysterious metallurgists who made this wonder, and what
happened to their civilization?

4. AN OUT-OF-PLACE COMPUTER FROM ANTIKYTHERA

A few days before Easter Sunday in 1900, Greek sponge divers off the
small island of Antikythera discovered the remains of an ancient ship filled
with bronze and marble statues and assorted artifacts later dated between
85 and 50 B.C.

Among the finds was a small formless lump of corroded bronze and rotted
wood. which was sent along with the other artifacts to the National Museum
in Athens for further study. Soon, as the wood fragments dried and shrank
from exposure to air, the lump split open revealing inside the outlines of a
series of gear wheels like a modern clock.

In 1958 Dr. Derek J. de Solla Price successfully reconstructed the
machine's appearance and use. The gearing system calculated the annual
movements of the sun and moon. The arrangement shows that the gears
could be moved forward and backward with ease at any speed. The device
was thus not a clock but more like a calculator that could show the positions
of the heavens past, present and future.

It is highly possible that the device may have origins ages long before the
Greeks, and in a land far removed, now unknown.

5. FLIGHT IN ANCIENT EGYPT

In 1898 a curious winged object was discovered in the tomb of Pa-di-Imen
in north Saqqara, Egypt dated to about 200 B.C. Because the birth of
modern aviation was still several years away, when the strange artifact was
sent to the Cairo Museum, it was catalogued and then shelved among
other miscellaneous items to gather dust.

Seventy years later, Dr. Kahlil Messiha, an Egyptologist and archaeologist,
was examining a Museum display labeled bird figurines. While most of the
display were indeed bird sculptures, the Saqqara artifact was certainly not.
It possessed characteristics never found on birds, yet which are part of
modern aircraft design. Dr. Messiha, a former model plane enthusiast,
immediately recognized the aircraft features and persuaded the Egyptian
Ministry of Culture to investigate.

Made of very light sycamore the craft weighs 0.5 oz. with straight and
aerodynamically shaped wings, spanning about 7 inches. A separate
slotted piece fits onto the tail precisely like the back tail wing on a modern
plane.

A full-scale version could have flown carrying heavy loads, but at low
speeds, between 45 and 65 miles per hour. What is not known, however, is
what the power source was. The model makes a perfect glider as it is.
Even though over 2,000 years old, it will soar a considerable distance with
only a slight jerk of the hand. Fully restored balsa replicas travel even
farther.

Messiha notes that the ancient Egyptians often built scale models of
everything familiar in their daily lives and placed them in their tombs,
temples, ships, chariots, servants, animals and so forth. Now that we have
found a model plane, Messiha wonders if perhaps somewhere under the
desert sands there may yet be unearthed the remains of life-sized gliders.

6. A JET FROM SOUTH AMERICA

In 1954 the government of Colombia sent part of its collection of ancient
gold artifacts on a U. S. tour. Emmanuel Staubs, one of America's leading
jewelers, was commissioned to cast reproductions of six of the objects.
Fifteen years later one was given to biologist-zoologist Ivan T. Sanderson
for analysis. After a thorough examination and consulting a number of
experts, Sanderson's mind-boggling conclusion was that the object is a
model of a high-speed aircraft at least a thousand years old.

Approximately 2 inches long the object was worn as a pendant on a neck
chain. It was classified as Sinu, a pre-Inca culture from A.D. 500 to 800.
Both Sanderson and Dr. Arthur Poyslee of the Aeronautical Institute of New
York concluded it did not represent any known winged animal. In fact, the
little artifact appears more mechanical than biological. For example, the
front wings are delta-shaped and rigidly straight edged, very un-animal-like.


The rudder is perhaps the most un-animal but airplane-like item. It is right-
triangle, flat-surfaced, and rigidly perpendicular to the wings. Only fish have
upright tail fins, but none have exclusively an upright flange without a
counter-balancing lower one. Adding to the mystery, an insignia appears
on the left face of the rudder, precisely where ID marks appear on many
airplanes today. The insignia is perhaps as out-of place as the gold model
itself, for it has been identified as the Aramaic or early Hebrew letter beth
or B. This may indicate that the original plane did not come from Colombia,
but was the product of a very early people inhabiting the Middle East who
knew the secret of flying.

7. CRYSTAL SKULL FROM ATLANTIS

Without doubt the most famous and enigmatic ancient crystal is the skull,
discovered in 1927 by F.A. Mitchell-Hedges atop a ruined temple at the
ancient Mayan city of Lubaantum, in British Honduras, now Belize.

The skull was made from a single block of clear quartz, 5 inches high, 7
inches long and 5 inches wide. It is about the size of a small human
cranium, with near perfect detail. In 1970, art restorer Frank Dorland was
given permission to submit the skull to tests at the Hewlitt-Packard
Laboratories. Revealed were many anomalies.

The skull had been carved with total disregard to the natural crystal axis, a
process unheard-of in modern crystallography. No metal tools were used.
Dorland was unable to find any tell-tale scratch marks. Indeed, most metals
would have been ineffectual. A modern penknife cannot mark it. From tiny
patterns near the carved surfaces, Dorland determined it was first chiseled
into rough form, probably using diamonds. The finer shaping, grinding and
polishing, Dorland believes, was done with innumerable applications of
water and silicon-crystal sand. If true, it would have taken 300 years of
continuous labor. We must accept this almost unimaginable feat, or admit
to the use of some form of lost technology.

Modern science is stumped to explain the skill and knowledge
incorporated. As Garvin summarized:It is virtually impossible today, in the
time when men have climbed mountains on the moon, to duplicate this
achievement...It would not be a question of skill, patience and time. It would
simply be impossible. As one crystallographer from Hewlitt-Packard said,
The damned thing shouldn't be.

8. WHO SHOT NEANDERTHAL MAN?

The Museum of Natural History in London displays an early Paleolithic skull,
dated at 38,000 years old, and excavated in 1921 in modern Zambia. On
the left side of the skull is a perfectly round hole nearly a third of an inch in
diameter. Curiously, there are no radial split-lines around the hole or other
marks that should have been left by a cold weapon, such as an arrow or
spear. Opposite the hole, the cranium is shattered, and reconstruction of
the fragments show the skull was blown from the inside out, as from a rifle
shot. In fact, any slower a projectile would have produced neither the neat
hole nor the shattering effect. Forensic experts who have examined the
skull agree the cranial damage could not have been caused by anything but
a high-speed projectile, purposely fired at the prehistoric victim, with intent
to kill.

If such a weapon was indeed fired at the man, then one of two conclusions
can be made: Either the specimen is not as old as it is claimed to be, and
was shot by a European in recent centuries, or the remains are as old as
claimed, and the marksman was ancient too. In view of the fact that the
Paleolithic skull was excavated from a depth of 60 feet, mostly of lead rock,
the second conclusion is more plausible. But who possessed gunpowder
38,000 years ago? Certainly not Stone Age man himself. Another race
must have existed, one far more advanced and civilized, yet contemporary.
The question is, where did that rifle-toting marksman call home?

9. THE INCREDIBLE STONE OF DR. CABRERA

A very unique time-capsule of images is housed in a warehouse in Ica,
Peru. Here are some 20,000 stone boulders, tablets, and baseball-sized
rocks, decorated with an astounding assortment of pictures, in many cases
very much out of time and place. The owner is local physician, amateur
archeologist and geologist Dr. Javier Cabrera Darquea.

Most material employed is a gray andesite, an extremely hard granitic
semi-crystalline matrix, that is very difficult to carve. But as Dr. Cabrera
observed, People have been finding these engraved stones in the region
for years. They were first seen and recorded by Jesuit missionary Father
Simon, who accompanied Pizarro in 1525. Samples were shipped to
Spain in 1562.

The stone portraits show very sophisticated surgery skills and medical
knowledge, in some cases as advanced, and even more advanced, than
today. There are scenes of Caesarean sections, blood transfusions, the
use of acupuncture needles as an anesthetic (which only gained use in the
West since the late 1970s), delicate operations on the lungs and kidneys,
and removal of cancerous tumors. There are likewise detailed images of
open heart and open brain surgery, as well as 20 stones showing a step-by-
step heart transplant procedure.

This is a disturbing revelation in itself, that someone in unknown antiquity
achieved a level of sophistication rivaling our own. But there are other
pictures even more out-of-place. As Dr. Cabrera noted, and as has been
verified by other medical physicians, there are stone etchings which show a
brain transplant. The prehistoric surgeons, it is evident, possessed
knowledge several steps beyond modern-day surgery.

10. MANUFACTURED METALS MILLIONS OF YEARS OLD

For the past three decades miners at the Wonderstone Silver Mine near
Ottosdal in the Western Transvaal, South Africa, have been extracting out
of deep rock several strange metallic spheroids. So far at least 200 have
been found. In 1979, several were closely examined by J.R. McIver,
professor of geology at the University of Witwaterstand in Johannesburg,
and geologist professor Andries Bisschoff of Potsshefstroom University.

The metallic spheroids look like flattened globes, averaging 1 to 4 inches in
diameter, and their exteriors usually are colored steel blue with a reddish
reflection, and embedded in the metal are tiny flecks of white fibers. They
are made of a nickel-steel alloy which does not occur naturally, and is of a
composition that rules them out, being of meteoric origin. Some have only
a thin shell about a quarter of an inch thick, and when broken open are
found filled with a strange spongy material that disintegrated into dust on
contact with the air.

What makes all this very remarkable is that the spheroids were mined out
of a layer of pyrophyllite rock, dated both geologically and by the various
radio-isotope dating techniques as being at least 2.8 to 3 billion years old.

Adding mystery to mystery, Roelf Marx, curator of the South African
Klerksdorp Museum, has discovered that the spheroid he has on exhibit
slowly rotates on its axis by its own power, while locked in its display case
and free of outside vibrations. There may thus be an energy extant within
these spheroids still operating after three eons of time.

COPYRIGHT 1995. JOSEPH ROBERT JOCHMANS. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Wingate

California Director
SKYWATCH INTERNATIONAL

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Happy Valentines Day

image from xkcd

waaaahhhh!!!!

i screwed my blog!i screwed my blog!

i lost all my links and widgets huhuhuhu!
i was just trying to change templates and stuff....waaaahhhh!!!!

anyone knows how to recover it?

huhuhu!



Monday, February 11, 2008

revenge of the eye

Things are out of focus...literally. And my kids jumping up and down the bed is starting to get into my nerves. Why oh why do children have a way to tick parents off? They just don't listen. And if they bang their heads or started bleeding in the nose -- my son also has this tendency to puke his guts out-- guess who gets to panic? Me. Well, in my case, I have ate neng to panic more. She's better at that than I. Me? I just get stumped and I try not to faint. Some mom huh?

Anyways, I won't be blogging about my little angels who have this demonic tendencies to wreck everything within a 2 mile radius - I'm whining because I can't seem to focus. My eyes, it's hurting my head - at least, that's what my expert opinion is (and yes, I am no eye doctor, so my expert opinion has no educated backing =P)... I think the blurry eyesight is one clue. the pounding head because of the blurry vision is the second.

My dad, when he was still alive, once brought me to an opthalmologist ( I was in my last year in high school then, i think) and I was given drops for my myopia. I was disappointed, I wanted glasses then. hmmpppff. I was too busy blinking my eyes in a weird way for him to reconsider and so I don't know exactly what is causing my nearsightedness, if it's becuase my eyeball is too long or my cornea is too steep. I wish I was more attentive.

Aha! maybe that's why I like staring at blank walls without knowing it...or maybe it's just pure brain defect. waaaah!

Thursday, February 07, 2008

kung hei fat choi!!!!

2007 has finally weaned off and now we are faced with a new year that might better than the last year. May this year be filled with everything good for us all. ^.^

Predictions for 2008 from Daily Grail


OVERALL PROJECTION
This is the fifth year of the Lower “8” Cycle of the world. Based on I-Ching, while the period between 1984 and 2043 ( totalling 60 years ) is “Fire-Wind Urn ”, the year 2008 is “Thunder-Earth Yu ”.

I-Ching Analysis

“Thunder-Earth Yu” contains only 1 “Yang” and 5 “Yin ’s ”. This is quite an extreme situation for the dominance of “woman” power. Many women not only would climb to senior corporate but also political positions.

This I-Ching symbol indicates thunder on top of earth. There are 2 “yin’s” covering 1 “yang”, implying that most countries in the world would still to suffer, especially those that had been strong in the past. The world may have to suffer from many wild fires caused by thunder. Inevitably there would be many arguments , battles and wars, especially among southern countries .

On the opposite, China would enjoy the power of the uprising “yang” and advances even further in its economies. This may be a year with many activities involving the sun, such as those “black spots”, involving electromagnetic interferences on earth.

This may be a record year for single old ladies to re-marry. Marriage involving older women and younger men would continue. The world’s political picture, especially USA and UK, could be very dark, owing to many terrorist attacks.

Flying-Star Analysis
robberies, mugging, pick-pocketing and defrauding.

Vulnerable places are such as South Africa, South America, Guangdong. If you live or visit such places, be more cautious. There would be plenty of water problems worldwide, such as flooding. The polar ice will speed up its melting process, thus increasing the water level in the oceans. Low-line islands may be endangered. Mudslides, cracks in high-rise buildings would be commonplace. Old cities may experience more problems with underground water systems. Because this is a year of “Male-Male” connection, there may be problems with the homosexual community, including divorces and murder-suicides. On the bright side, this is a good year for economic recoveries. Many businesses would do well.

Locations and Orientations

Central
The controlling force is the central “1-White”. It causes many extreme phenomena among central countries. In particular, China would climb to another new height in its economic development. Middle East would experience new turmoil, resulting in huge up’s and down’s in the world stock market. Central Canada’s real estate may experience a buyers’ market.

East
This is the “money” centre. Japan would benefit from it. It would try to befriend China, more so than the USA. China’s Shandong, Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou and coastal cities would prosper. Canada’s Maritime Provinces and U.S. eastern states would also do well.

South-East
This is the “joy” center. This is also the future money center. There would be plenty of joyous events such as weddings, promotions and births. However, it is also subject to fires, affecting areas such as Taiwan, Guangdong, Florida, Georgia, Ontario and Scarborough in Canada’s Toronto. Much fire may be caused by thunderstorms or electric wirings.

South
This may be the most exciting center of all. It is both the “triple conflict” and “five yellow” centers. Hence it requires a lot more attention than normal. Southern countries such as South America, South Africa, India and Australia would be rocked either politically or natural disaster. There would be robberies, muggings and contagious illnesses. South-facing houses likewise should pay attention to the security of both people and the premises. A good feng shui practitioner should be able to help.

South-West
This center is somewhat receding. It becomes a center vulnerable to robberies and legal conflicts. Places such as Tibet ( China), Southern California, Southern BC and Alberta ( Canada) could be affected.

West
This is the “arguments” center and is the second worst center this year. It would involve controversies, legal conflicts, wars and battles. It is mostly represented by UK and USA. There would be major happenings in these countries, such as terrorist attacks. In USA, such events may happen even before the federal election, in which a female president should prevail. BC ( Canada) may suffer from any labor problems.

North-West
This is the “sickness” center, especially to do with food. Representative places are such as the North-West Territories ( Canada), North Western China and the Baltic countries in Europe

North
This is the center of change and travel. Even though it is somewhat receding, it is enhanced by the year’s controlling star “1”. Hence finally it would continue to do well. It is represented by both Canada and Russia. Unlike last year, there would be a lot more rainfalls

North-East
This is the “learning” center. It benefits those in analytical businesses. There would many scholars from this center, represented by North-Eastern China, Canada’s Maritime Provinces, and Boston (USA). Likewise, those houses with north-west main entrance would have smart children this year.

Life Chart Analysis

This year is composed of “ earth rat ” year, “wooden tiger” month, “ wooden dog ” day and “ wooden dog ” hour. There are 3 “wood” elements in this combination, resulting in good news concerning land and real estate. The “tiger” and “dog” form an empty connection that causes things to be unstable, especially reflected by the world stock markets. The conflict between an equal number of wood and earth elements makes the world more polarized – between poor and rich, between the western world and the terrorists. Countries which can act as the middle agent to reconcile such situations will prevail – such as China.

Combined Analysis

Businesses

Business involving “fire, earth or wood ” would do well. Those involving “ metal or water ” had to work much harder.

Top of the list is “fire”. It is typified by both high tech and energy sectors. Examples are electronics, computers.
  • Nano technology will become commonplace. Hence Apple Computers will do very well, followed by Black Berry.
  • There would be many business mergers , especially in the hi-tech sector. Many new fast growing hi-tech venture firms would appear .
  • Environmentally sensitive products will come out in big droves.
  • Real estate is more extreme. It would favor areas in the North but not the South. Hence the Canadian real estate market would still out perform USA South part of cities such as Canada’s Toronto downtown would not do as well its outskirts. However, there would be new tall buildings being built in the downtown core still. Other places such as London, Moscow, and Tokyo would enjoy a surge in their real estate prices.
  • There would be some kind of breakthroughs in cancer treatments.
  • Food businesses would do well too, especially those targeting weddings and births.
  • Gold and Metals would do well in general but Metals businesses may suffer, especially Northern American cars . There would be major layoffs.
  • Textiles would do well, for the first time in many years, especially those targeting the Beijing Olympics.
  • Soda Water businesses also would be outperformed by Pure Water.
  • Travel industry would do well in the north , especially mountainous areas .

  • Favorable Business (Fire, Earth, Metal)
    • Those driven by new energy sources
    • Wind-related businesses, such as windmills
    • Nuclear plants coming back alive
    • Electronics and computer/storage media ( such as computer part s , consumer items, mobile phones ) , especially those with Nano technology
    • Communications and Internet : machines would become smaller and smaller and yet more and more all-encompassing
    • Securities
    • Education
    • Financial
    • Show business
    • New building materials
    • House renovations
    • Clothing
    • Food businesses
    • Real Estate values would become far more selective. While most sectors would somewhat slow down, quality ones would continue to prosper in growing areas such as Toronto, California, Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, etc.
  • Unfavorable Businesses (Wood, Water)
    • Automobiles
    • Metals and Machinery
    • Fishing
    • Travel / Transportation – there would be more aviation companies running into financial troubles and air accidents
    • Smuggling
Politics
  • Female power predominates in this year’s world politics. Many countries may elect female presidents, including the USA. However, controversies would also be abundant. This is not really a good year to head up countries such as the USA or UK. There would also be many “xxx Gate” problems in the world.
  • Canada would continue to enjoy its political stability. There would not be much change in it leadership or heads of state.
  • Canada ’s Toronto would continue to suffer financially and would be outperformed by its surrounding cities and towns.
  • Japan would try to befriend China, resulting in huge economic gains.
  • South and North Korea would intensify their talk of peace, which eventually would lead to their re-unification.
  • Taiwan ’s Kuomin Tang would win the election – making it one step closer to re-unification with China.
  • Hong Kong would do well. Its political picture would be stable. However, controversies would continue, especially those involving female politicians .
  • UK and USA may have to face another round of terrorist attacks, especially in both the south and west sides of the country.

World Economy
Overall, we are into a good year , especially in the oriental countries such as China and Japan. . People’s living standards would improve. More large corporations would be headed by the female.

The fastest growing country would continue to be China . India may have a setback because of terrorism and natural disasters . The Chinese dollar will appreciate. The Canadian dollar would continue to grow beyond the US dollar . USA’s deficit will balloon even further . Drugs would be a major problem in both USA and Canada.

Countries in South American and Africa would have to endure many natural and human disasters.

Interest rates in North America would continue to be low.

Canadian Economy

  • Fiscal deficits would be well under control at most levels of governments
  • Interest rates will stay low and prime rates will fluctuate between 4 - 6 %
  • Can $ will fluctuate between $0.95 and $1.10 US.
  • TS X should fluctuate between 14,000 and 16,000 points
  • Corporations would continue to be leaner and meaner with consolidation and centralized control
  • Many CEO’s would continue to change, with some corporate heads to be female
  • Canadian companies would continue to expand into the US and buy out US companies
  • More US chain companies would buy into the Canadian market
  • Competition among all businesses will be more fierce than before
  • Steady economic growth ( 3-4 %)
  • Unemployment rate to stay low ( 5- 7 %)
  • World Climate Pattern
  • The world climates would continue to be unstable, with many more thunder storms. They may in turn many forest fires. The Sun’s black spots may cause much Earth’s interference. Flooding problems would be abundant in both southern and northern countries. Weather pattern would be milder than the past year.

Health
There would be fewer serous illnesses than the past year. Most problems seem to be related to water and air. Hence, the ultimate is to keep your health in check by doing good exercises such as yoga, qigong or Tai Chi .

Projection for the World Stock Markets

  • February Positive
  • March: Positive
  • April: First half of month better than second half
  • May Positive
  • June Positive, but with volatility
  • July Positive
  • August : Negative
  • September : Negative
  • October: Second half of month better than first half
  • November : First half of month better than second half
  • December: First half of month better than second half
  • January (2009): Positive
Conclusion
All things on earth go in cycles – both high and low. By understanding the rules of nature, we can become happier and more successful. I hope these predictions would benefit my readers around the world .


Friday, February 01, 2008

musings on death

this is in response to Catea's comment.

How do I want to die?

That is one question that have passed my mind not too often but has passed more than once.
I don't know how I want to die, but I do know that I don't want to die violently. I'm scared of dying slowly, having to slowly see my life and everything pass away in front of me. I don't want to be confronted by my conscience if I had done everything right, which I know the answer is not gonna be satisfactory -- which would make me beg for life -- so I can straighten things out.

Urong-sulong - a phenomena that happens when one is in doubt is an experience that only prolongs one's agony.It cannot help you, it just swings you back and forth, until you are dizzy that you just gave up -- without you ever going anywhere.

If I'm gonna die, maybe I'd want it swift and sweet. I don't want to be mutilated, that looks not so good on my funeral pictures. *You just cannot dismiss aesthetics even when you're dead, or else, you'll be giving nightmares to everyone who creeps up your coffin to say their final goodbye. On the other hand, it might scare them enough to do something about their lives, good or not...but that is inconsequential. You don't want to start a chain of events when you are dead. You'd rather do that when you are alive.

Hmmm...I've always wanted to grow old gracefully... but could one die gracefully? COuld one exit one's life without being rude? I mean, you are in the middle of something, living your life, relatively interacting with other people, and you just die, just because?

Life is an eternal job to accomplish...but the worker cannot ever complete it. Life goes on even when we pass away. Our natural clock starts to unwind, our visions blur, our ears starts to not hear, and our brain loses its grasp of reality, locking us with our own memoirs and demons that we have created from the past.

I wonder if there is someone who calls the shots as to whose turn it is to die...scary.

how about you catea? How do you want to die?