Music Focus: So Close

A few weeks ago, I have heard this wonderful and heart-warming music from a recent Disney movie. Okay, I'll give you some time to listen. Enjoy the music! By the way, the artist is Jon McLaughlin...

Will I ever have that fairy tale romance? No, I don't think so because it's all just a fantasy... Nonetheless, the music have made me to continue smiling and loving people... Year 2008 is fast approaching. At this point, I will be working my way into "being a friend" rather than "having a friend."

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog about this new music :)

Ants on Rainy Days

Several days ago, some of my foods were attacked. I was supposed to save them for the rainy days. However, numerous ants found them and will now save them for the rainy days. I don’t like it. I really don’t like it. It’s like I am feeding an orphanage full of hungry children.

Ants, on the other hand, can teach us humans some of the significant life lessons.

1. Ants try and will continue to retry their quest for provisions/food. They will walk through any surface (jagged, tough, or even grueling surface) no matter what. Sometimes, they even walk on water! I have seen it really (there’s some science term behind it). In other words, they persevere (they don’t give up).

2. Ants explore different places to search food. In other terms, they go out of the place where they perform their daily routine (they go out of their comfort zone).

3. Ants save for the rainy days. For us humans, it’s like saving money when we have lots of money. When rainy days come, how can you save money if you only have little money?

4. To be determined…

There is just one thing that we should not follow with ants. Ants don’t rest. Day and night, they work. So they don’t have a “time in” and “time out” of work.

Proverbs tell us “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.”

Bottom line: Humans should be wiser than ants.

Five Coffee Cups

I am not really a coffee drinker. However, coffee shops are quite alluring. I like the ambiance and the sounds of something like bossa nova, jazz, and similar others. A few months ago, I have started checking them out. I bought some ice-blended coffee (with a cream on the top). I can’t really recall the exact names of those drinks but for sure I can remember the names of the great shops here in my island.

Starbucks is great. However, due to its popularity, a lot of people (Koreans, Filipinos, Americans, Europeans, etc.) linger around. “Too crowded” – that’s the phrase to define it here in Cebu.

Bo’s Coffee is really good. I like the place because it’s not crowded when I go there. Perhaps I’ll have a visit there sometime this week.. hehe

I also recommend the following: Gloria Jean’s, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, and Brown Cup. Sometime soon, I’ll try Mocha Blends, Figaro, Seattle’s Best, and McCafe. However, I still need to travel to the capital of my country (Manila) in order to taste the products of the latter three coffee shops (and to collect those good-for-viewing-and-collecting plastic cups).

Surfing the net with your laptop (since most coffee shops have free WiFi), reading your book, enjoying the company of your buddies, making some deals with business people, relaxing your soul, and/or taking pleasure in drinking the coffee are basically the reasons why people go to this kind of place.. Moreover, I also like observing the conduct of some interesting people.. What might be the other reasons?

Trump Challenge

Living in a business world can sometimes be unforgiving. I, myself, as a working professional find it a real challenge to move up and break barriers. Nevertheless, I’m still young (it’s true, hehe) and I’m certainly open in developing myself.

Take this challenge: http://www.trumpuniversity.com/apprentice/nbc.cfm

I actually loved watching “The Apprentice” reality TV show. I hope that some broadcast station here will franchise it. I actually enjoy (nothing personal to the contestants) seeing those would-be-hired-Americans being FIRED!! Imagine if that happens to you when your boss suddenly wants you in his office (wow, just kidding)…

My personal results for the challenge are not quite good. It says that my 2 highest personality dimensions for success are Work Passion and Demand for Excellence. While my 2 lowest are Self-Promotion and Self-Confidence. My over-all Trump potential for business success: 30%. That means I am still on track, :-)

Logos of Upcoming Games

I am not much of an athlete but I believe that I can pretty get a Bronze medal if I was one in four participants scheduled for a sporting event. That means I am still competitive, huh? Of course, I am competitive.. zip.. period.. Anyway, Here are the logos of upcoming sports events...

Let's start from the top left. That's the 2007 South East Asian Games in Thailand. I have not seen a description of the logo somewhere but I think it's like three boats made in an artistic way, hehe.. Rating: "Can Be Improved"

Next, we have the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics in China. It means Dancing Beijing -- the invitation of China to the world to share in its culture.. Rating: "Little Below Great"

Next is the 2009 World Games in Taiwan. The games there are similar to that of the Olympics except that no new facilities are made for other games. Existing facilities are used. Perhaps the logo came from the gymnastics sport? Rating: "Little Below Great"

Next is the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Basically, the logo is a kicking football player whose background is a curved South African flag. It's still great - equally nice with the previous Germany logo.. Rating: "Great"

Next is the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics in Canada. The logo is named "Ilaanaq" which means friend. So, it's just a person standing with no effects since the setting is a winter.. hehe.. Rating: "Little Above Great"

Lastly, we have the 2012 London Summer Olympics in UK. The logo resembles the numbers 2, 0, 1, and 2 (top left to right, bottom left to right). See it? Go figure it out. Great design! Rating: "Above Great"

Do You Have a Genuine or a Bogus Smile?

Last September 5, a corporation named Omron has released new software that checks the percentage of a smile in a person's image. It is called the OKAO Vision Real-Time Smile Measurement Technology. This vision software analyzes the extent to which the mouth and eyes are open, shape of the eyes and mouth, and the arrangement of other facial features. Such a system was developed after analyzing the facial expressions of 15,000 individuals from mixed cultures (age of the participants ranged from infants to the oldies). Moreover, the software can process an image in just 44 milliseconds on a PC.. This is really a good kind of technology, don't you think? A genuine smile authenticator – wow! However, is it really that reliable in terms of measurement? Actually, I think that it is only a "computer vision stuff". I am not sure if it would be appropriate to label it as an "emotion verifier material". Well, from the point of view of a person, he cannot judge if the smile of another (in a photograph) is really genuine or fake.. You understand what I mean? For example, Clarky can show a Big Great Smile to somebody (or on a photo session) but inside him, the "good smile feeling" might not be true. Okay, I do not intend to be a psychologist here, hehe.. Anyway, "I think" the 3 uses of this technology are on: truth or lie test, truth or lie test, and truth or lie test.. Okay, so there are three of them, hehe (just kidding you guys).. Moral lesson: give a sincere smile to someone or else this technology might be used against you. This is all for now.. :)

KFC Anyone?

Last week, I got the opportunity to see a moving mascot right before my eyes. His/her name is Chicky (KFC character). I’m not sure what Chicky’s gender is and I’ll leave that for you guys to find out and research, hehe.. However, I think Chicky’s a “he” since the outfit is more applicable for a rooster than a hen. Anyway, I wasn’t really aware that Col. Sanders has a partner in his career. Perhaps Mr. Sanders is already tired of publicity and exposure.. Just imagine your appearance printed on all KFC cups, funshots, and buckets… By the way, have you seen the latest McDonald’s (quite related to previous post, huh) mascot? The slim clown turned into a real mascot! Try to notice it when you come across a McDonald’s birthday celebration.. Moral lesson: enjoy the food; let the kids enjoy the mascot’s presence..

McFish and French Fries -- Have You Tried Some?

I haven't been to McDonald's, Jollibee, or any of the fast-food restaurants lately to try their latest products. I have been searching through the web about skydiving (that somehow relates to my previous post, I think, hehe).. And then after a lot of clicks, I saw this image on the search engine... Wow, I said to myself, French Fries!! :) But then, there.. are.. two.. fishes..? Cooked or uncooked? Haha, this has really tickled me.. I then went to the link and found out that the picture is about 2 clownfishes swimming among french fries-like anemones! One more thing.. the setting of this is actually in Anilao, Batangas. It has been used as a base image for the Batangas-Wow Philippines page.. Amazing capture!

I Never Thought Before That I Can Fly.. Wow!

"I Believe I Can Fly" -- man, this song is so encouraging and one of my favorites really. I say "very encouraging" because it really pushes you up when you're down, tells also that you can "do it" if you just "believe it", and conveys that you have a potential to do something special or something you haven't done before.. Listen to the song below, it really cheers you up and gives that encouragement to you.. I can't think of another word to replace "encouragement" so I'll use this further in this blog, hehe..

By R. Kelly -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTahrYXCChI

By Yolanda Adams -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBPBfNlCHio

All three versions of R. Kelly, Yolanda, and Erik Santos are really great and encouraging. What I know is that the song became a big hit with the movie Space Jam (featuring Michael Jordan and the Looney Tunes mascots). Click on that youtube link and listen to it now! Don't miss your chance of not hearing this wonderful song. R. Kelly's voice goes really cool with the beat.. In Yolanda's version, she adds some more phrases of encouragement.. The version of Erik Santos during the live reality contest was really nice as well. Too bad, none can be found on the web right now. He has an MTV version in youtube but his moves are quite awkward. As a last course of the meal, I have found a nice MIDI format of the song.. Sorry, I can't share my MP3 now, :)

Find the MIDI here: http://www.redsal.com/believe1.htm

Let me know your thoughts. Regards all..