Beatles, Ice T and Aja

ign.com made a list of the Top Ten Beatles songs. "Our choices came about for a variety of reasons, the most common being just the wonderful nature of the songs themselves. We looked for melodic overtones, catchy vocal harmonies, rich lyrics, and in the end just that lingering sense of emotional bliss; transcendence, if you will.," they said. Still their Number One surprised a lot of people. Then Dallas Morning News listed the Top Ten hip hop albums. This one is less surprising. Stylus deconstructs your Top Ten Steely Dan lyrics.

VideoJug: Dance Moves: An Emergency Guide For Men Then dance

Hoy, Patay na si Bergman

Minsan lang ako makatanggap ng text from Butch Macansantos, ito pa ang sinabi. Then the same message from Ed Cabagnot.

256

Major league baseball teams would have to play 256 games for the real good teams to shine through. Otherwise the 162-game season is too short and some underdogs come out. Two physicists of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico who should be studying quarks instead decided to run a simulation of the baseball schedule and found that the cream will only rise if there are more games. Because there's always some chance that a lesser team will win any given game, teams would have to play a larger number of games to overcome statistical randomness—specifically, the number of games should be the cube of the total number of teams, write Eli Ben-Naim and Nick W. Hengartner in an upcoming issue of the journal Physical Review. Well, maybe that's why they placed the wild card to stir things up.
And then, of course, there is that mathematician who said that the Yankees will dominate this year. That was in April. He he he.

The Gayness of Slurpee

I Lived on The Moon

Yeah, I lived on the moon with three funny multi-tailed monkeys, flying snakes and fireflies. It's all F's. Open your imagination, child, and you see the entrance to this private paradise. While I'm gone, you ride on a bulb that shoot up to the moon with roots for spindly legs. Fly by yourself then on a manta ray. The evil gnomes will not get you and they die as you go on with your dreams.
Hay naku, here's the YouTube:



I placed the lyrics in the Comments page

Goodbye to Newspapers and All That

The American press has the blues. Too many authorities have assured it that its days are numbered, too many good newspapers are in ruins. It has lost too much public respect. Courts that once treated it like a sleeping tiger now taunt it with insolent subpoenas and put in jail reporters who refuse to play ball with prosecutors. It is abused relentlessly on talk radio and in Internet blogs. It is easily bullied into acquiescing in the designs of a presidential propaganda machine determined to dominate the news...
This is Russell Baker in The New York Review of Books. If it was another person, I would have dismissed it. But I read Baker kaya na-tense ako bigla. Read the rest here.

Icosoc Call for Papers

8th International Conference on Philippine Studies
23-26 July 2008, Manila, Philippines

Theme:Philippine Studies for the 21st Century: New Meanings, Critiques, and Trajectories

The 8th International Conference on Philippine Studies (ICOPHIL) aims to provide a forum for scholars engaged in research on the general field of Philippine Studies. Reflecting on developments and discourses that shed light on Philippine realities in a global era, this International Conference hopes to reconceptualize Philippine
Studies and chart new directions for the 21st century.

The Program Committee invites conference presentations from Philippine Studies
Association members, affiliated societies, and local and foreign scholars in all disciplines. The Committee encourages creativity and innovation with regard to both intellectual content and presentation. In addition to panels, formats including poster sessions, thematic workshops, roundtable discussions, and other departures from traditional formal paper presentations are encouraged. The Committee particularly welcomes interdisciplinary or border-crossing proposals that complement or depart from conventional historical, chronological, geographic and disciplinary
boundaries. Young scholars are especially encouraged to participate.

Proposals should be submitted to the 8th ICOPHIL Secretariat at the Philippine Social Science Council via email (icophil@pssc.org.ph) or fax (632-924-4178 or 632-922-9621) by 15 November 2007. Proposals must include a 150-word abstract of the panel/paper as well as the name, affiliation and contact details of the proponent. Complete panels by potential chairs will be given priority but individual proposals will also be considered.

Since 1989, the ICOPHIL conference series has been held every 4 years at an international hosting institution. The 2008 ICOPHIL is hosted by the Philippine Studies Association in conjunction with the International Philippine Studies Conferences Board based at the University of Hawaii’s Center for Philippine Studies. The 2012 ICOPHIL will be hosted by Michigan State University, East Lansing, USA.

INQUIRIES
Bernardita R. Churchill (nitachurchill@hotmail.com)
Belinda A. Aquino (lyndy@hawaii.edu)
ICOPHIL Secretariat (icophil@pssc.org.ph)

KEY DATES

15 November 2007
Submission of panel/paper/ presentation ABSTRACT

15 January 2008
Notification of acceptance

30 April 2008
Submission of full papers

23-26 July 2008
Philippine Social Science Center, Quezon City

Gas Tips

This was a sent by a teacher from her student now in the US:

My line of work is in petroleum pipeline for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks to get more of your money's worth for every litter. Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense is the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening, your 1-gal is not exactly 1-gal.

In petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products play an important role.

Here in Kinder Morgan pipeline where I work in San Jose, CA we delivered about 4 million gallons in 24-hours period thru the pipe line, one day it's diesel the next day is jet fuel, and gasoline, regular and premium grade. We have 34-storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000 gallons. So you see a 1-degree rise in temps is a big deal for the business, but the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pump.

Also one more reminder, if there is a gasoline truck bringing loads at the time when you have to buy gas do not fill up, most likely the gasoline has been stirred up when the gas is delivered, and you might get some of the dirt that settled at the bottom.

When you're filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look up you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages: lo, mid, and hi, with slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimizing the vapors that were created while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump are sort of corrugated, that one is a return line for vapor's recovery for the gas that has already been metered.

If you are pumping on fast rates, some of the liquid that goes to your tank become vapors; those vapors were being sucked up back to the underground tank so that you're getting less worth of your money.

One of the most important tip is to fill up when your gas tank is half full or half empty. The reason for this is, the more gas you have in your tank the less air occupying it's empty space, remember gasoline evaporates faster than you think.

You see all gasoline storage tanks have an internal floating roof, this roof serves as zero clearance between the gas and the atmosphere, it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike the service stations, here where I work every truck load that we load is temperature compensated so that gallons or liter is actually the exact amount.

In other words, better to gas up in Baguio in the morning or late evening. And gas up even if your tank is half-full. Or maglakad na lang kayo with your Havaianas

Zen

Remember playing with ink on a clear river? This is your virtual Zen moment made by a famous Japanese design company. I go this site to clear my mind sometimes. And then when I'm settled, I go into this blackhole.

The Complete Cebu Thriller Compendium

Jawo asked me why I didn't have the Cebu Thriller Youtube here. I said (my mind was screaming, OMG, I saw that more than two weeks ago), well, everybody saw it na. Then while waiting for a friend in Victory Cubao (long story), I watched Jessica Soho's take on the Cebu prisoners. But first, here the video:
Then here's the UK Guardian story. Guardian na ito ah.

It began as a fitness routine for old lags, but inmates in the Philippines have become a worldwide phenomenon and added a whole new dimension to jailhouse rock.
Hundreds of prisoners decked out in orange jail-issue jumpsuits are the latest stars of the internet with video clips of their routines going down a storm on YouTube.

More than 1.3 million viewers have downloaded the prisoners' performance of Michael Jackson's Thriller, one of nine clips posted on the video-sharing website.

Another classic in the inmates' repertoire is Queen's Radio Gaga, with Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby" slated as a forthcoming attraction at the Cebu detention centre.
The surprise internet hit is the result of an unusual programme designed to keep the inmates in shape and banish boredom as they await trial or serve out their sentences.

All 1,600 inmates - apart from the elderly and infirm - must take part. It started last year with marching to Pink Floyd's Another Brick in the Wall and has grown to include a whole series of dance routines.

It was the brainchild Byron Garcia, a security consultant for Cebu's provincial government, who saw it as a way to improve inmate behaviour.

"Using music, you can involve the body and the mind," he said. "Inmates say to me: 'You've put my mind off revenge, foolishness or thinking how to escape'."

Mr Garcia posted the first clips on YouTube to share with colleagues in the penal service, but they quickly became popular around the globe.

Now the inmates find a huge source of pride in the dances and are always eager to know the YouTube viewing figures for their latest efforts.

Soho talked to the star dancers of the video. Both are on drug charges and were dancers in their free time. Other than Garcia, Soho talked to the choreographer Vince Rosales who was quoted as saying, "Tinapunan ako ng tsinelas nung una (They threw their Havaianas at me)." Well, he was, like Pigeon Lobien, stuck in the 80s (some of the dancers were stuck since the 1980s) and now he has a captive crew to worked with. The 1,600 prisoners danced for Channel 7, Sister Act's I Will Follow Him and Michael Jackson's Beat It set in the prison mess hall. They also showed bits of the Algorithm Dance which is also available in YouTube.
And didn't you know that the Youtube was only a practice? As a Cebuano once sang it, "It's just a trailer. Trailer night." Yes! I was in University of San Carlos in Cebu that summer when Thriller hit the Philippines hard (delayed because Sony had some legal wrangling).
They performed also the complete one with rolling coffins and the star dancer in the red jacket lent by Andy Zapata. "You've got to admit, the fluorescent orange does add a nice sense of uniformity to the routine," said Washington Post's Express (kind of Inquirer's Libre). Come to think of it, why no story on this in the major Philippine newspapers?
Atin atin lang ito a, but this wouldn't happen in the US, for example, because litigations for human rights would be rammed down Garcia's throat. We already have too many HR violations in the Phil so I will stop. BUT wouldn't it be better if we have Estrada and Jalosjos or the mayor with the heinous hairdo to participate. I know there are some sons of Dolphy somewhere or even Hubert Webb or to make it more Cebu, the cono suspects in the Chong sisters slay case.
And I heard that Cebu is not only planning to put this in the Guinness under the category, Most Dancers Dancing to Thriller at The Same Time. And the government is also thinking of including this in Wow Philippines! Tourist attraction.
"Uy did you buy you otap na? Let's go watch the dancing prisoners. They'll be doing Dayang-Dayang."
"What's today ba? Sunday? No. It's Sister Act."
"Hinde. I heard Sonny Osmena would be making a guest appearance. It would be the world premier of their "It's Raining Men."
"Tara."

Writers Needed

If you have a short story in Filipino or Taglish hidden somewhere in your cabinet, someone wants to publish them. The audience are the OFWs in Japan. It doesn't pay much but at least you have a captive audience. One and a half pages.

Last Call for Alcohol

Finally science that is really working for us. The University of Kentucky (home of Jack Daniels)decided to study why drunks are so belligerent. According to the July issue of the journal Psychological Science, the study showed that alcohol can both increase and decrease aggression.
"In the study, both drunk and sober men, age 21 to 33 years old, competed in a computer game in which they had to complete a command (like "press the space bar") quicker than an opponent. Winners could zap their opponents with shocks of varying intensity," LiveScience reported. "Some of the drinkers also were given a taxing memory task during the game. The distracted drinkers showed less aggression toward their opponents, zapping them with weaker shocks, than the "empty-headed" drinkers as well as the sober non-drinkers."
The point of the lesson is that the drunks were more aggressive but if you distract them, they can become pacifists.
"The scientists suggest sober men had enough cognitive space to deal with both the provocative zaps and memory distractions, resulting in a low level of belligerence. Activating working memory reduces the "cognitive space" available for aggressive thoughts and resulting actions. Since drinkers have a diminished mental capacity, the memory task "used up" space that otherwise could have been allocated to a brawl."
So distract the drunk. And the rule I finally made up from the study is the 3D. Dumb Drunks Dangerous.

Living in Exponential Times

Vibes

All I will say is that each can be had for $69.

Heart

Are you awake? Well, most heart attacks occur in the morning. That is not only anecdotal because the most recent issue of the Harvard Heart Letter said that before you wake up, your body releases stress hormones to make you ready for the day. But this puts a strain to the heart and could trigger a cardiac “event” to some of us. Also, dehydration which normally occurs after we sleep can be risky to a plaque-plagued heart system. Your heart medication also wanes off as you awake. You’re full of anger? That increases your chance of a heart attack 14 times, HHL said. So you make love or jog? Tsk. Tsk. A problem, unless you exercise or make love regularly. Don’t eat too much during dinner and try to be as comfortable as possible during sleep because heat can also be a trigger. Also, HHL said that infectious diseases like flu or pneumonia can trigger heart attacks. So, don’t get angry, make love and run away and drink water at night. Just don’t wake up.

Lady Valerie

If you are from Baguio, you should know Lady Valerie, the organist of Pines Hotel. Where is she now? The Baguio Writer's Group would like to know because we are coming up with a concert on September 15 at Baguio Country Club. We are going to get Josie Esquejo (who used to sing in Hyatt Terraces), Councilor Richard Carino (pianist in Pines and Hyatt), Gou de Jesus, Ivan Cruz and members Baboo M and Day. We are thinking of getting Comelec Commish Brawner who plays the trumpet and others. This is 70s nostalgia and hope Lady V, the Ballroom Queen, would indulge us.

Spoiler

I was supposed to buy a putter. Not Potter as in Harry but putter as in golf. But I lost my money to something else. Not Potter but another book or books. No one I know has read the new Harry Potter except as it turned out, Nash. Here is his spoiler:

Another spoiler from another best-selling book:

Quiz Show

Q. What is the largest island?
A. Greenland
Q. What is the largest lake?
A. Caspian Sea
Q. What is the largest island in a lake?
A. Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron
Q. What is the largest lake in an island?
A. Nettilling Lake on Baffin Island
Q. What is the largest island in a lake on an island?
A. Pulau Samosir in Danau Toba on Sumatra
Q. What is the largest lake on an island in a lake?
A. Lake Manitou on Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron

And the final question. What is the largest lake on an island in a lake on an island
A. Crater Lake on Vulcano Island in Lake Taal on Luzon in the Philippines

Surname

There is a Surname Internet Database site which has 50,000 surnames in store. I typed mine and this is what I got:

Surname: Cimatu
Sorry we have yet to research the origin of the surname Cimatu

But don't despair :-) We still endeavour to research about 10 surnames a month. To make sure that we can serve as many people as possible we have a scheme for researching the names with the most interest.

We measure this by the number of people watching a surname, we will research the names from the top of this list. So register with us and add the surnames your interested in to your watch list, and we will email you when these names get updated.

There are currently no people watching this surname.

Unfazed, I googled my name and found out this random things about other Cimatus all over the Internet:

Etheline Cimatu of the MEXA Alumni Association of Cal Poly helped start a fundraising in their school. You can donate any idle cellphone in your home and they would sell it or have it recycled. They estimated 500 million cellphones stacked somewhere in your house or car. Edmar Cimatu was elected treasurer of XPO Epsilon Chapter. Katherine Cimatu of the University of Hawaii, together with Steven Baldelli, wrote "Sum frequency generation microscopy of microcontact-printed mixed self-assembled monolayers." Edward Cimatu is in the Dean's List of the College of Business of the San Francisco State University. Alexandra was one of nine junior volunteers of the Auxiliary at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula to receive a $250 scholarship award. Janice Cimatu failed to win a seat in the De Anza University Student Board in Cupertino, CA only because she withdrew before the election. Artemio Calvan Cimatu, 63, died last July 15, 2006 in Honolulu. He was born in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. And lastly, Jennifer Coliflores voted her grandmother Trifuna Cimatu Acosta as her hero. "It is now my junior year in high school, and at time life is as stressful and hectic as junior year can bring. However I always remember that my grandma is there with me in spirit, guiding me along the way. My memories of her will always be in my heart. Along my path in life, whether it be filled with troubles or happiness, my grandmother Trifuna Cimatu Acosta will be always be there as my guardian angel," Jennifer said of her grandma. Trifuna died of cancer.

Bodies

Sunday afternoon, I was walking along Session Rd. when I saw a crowd in front of the entrance of Music & Magic and Country Mart. Turned out a man was found dead. He was there even in the morning and could have suffered a stroke. People thought he was just drunk. A friend said it was a lonely way to die. Lonelier still a police report I got about two bodies found in the border of Benguet and La Union:

The first cadaver is described to be between 30-38 years old, about 5’4” in height, medium built, fair complexion, military haircut, wearing black short pants with blue stripes, with tattoo markings on his body as labeled with barbwire on his neck, barbwire with heart, sword with heart, rose on the upper right arm, skull with barbwire, animal Indian with name “Analiza” on the left arm, dragon on his left back portion, with gunshot wound on his forehead and strangulation marks on his neck and chin.
The second cadaver is between 35-40 years old, about 5’4” in height, medium built, fair complexion, clean haircut, wearing black short pants with tattoo markings on his body labeled as sword with heart, with name “Tess” on the upper left arm, JW initial on the lower right arm, with gunshot wound on his middle chest and strangulation marks on his neck.

Somewhere out there, Analiza and Tess are grieving or maybe not.

Writing Letters

When was the last time you received a personal letter? Even Christmas and birthday cards came in trickles. I used to write the love letters of my friends and I wrote a short story about it years ago. Australia Post has this poster to revive letter writing. And Parker Pen also had this old ad on "How to Write a Love Letter." Of course, you need a Parker but it also said that the major rule is, Fall in love first.

Silent Rally in Baguio

Jonas Brigade

Jonas Joseph T. Burgos is the proud son of highly-respected journalist Jose Burgos. Manong Joe, who came from Ilocos, was also an exponent of sustainable agriculture and spent his last days in his farm in Bulacan. Jonas studied agriculture at Benguet State University. Now he has disappeared. Some people say that he joined the NPA. Why then is he not contacting his mother? Gone are the days when there is a no man's land when it comes to texting. Produce Jonas! Now in deference to the father and son, let us join Guerrilla Gardening. let us make seed grenades. Let a thousand flowers bloom! Join Jonas.

Killed by Storm Mapping

This is the world map. Look how big Philippines is. It looks like a huge fetus. This shows the map according to deaths caused by storms. Territory size shows the proportion of all people who have died in disasters due to storms, who died there, between 1975 and 2000. A disaster, here, is an event which overwhelms local resources.

State of the Nation Address of PGMA Today

How to Make Cardboard Siopao

Of course, China says the cardboard siopao is fake but few Chinese believe that it is a hoax. In fact, Weird Asia News came out with the recipe. Here goes:

Soak the cardboard in alkali solution. Chop it and add veggies, seasonings and real pork. Form into dumplings. Steam for 12 minutes. WAN advises you to ingest vinegar before eating to digest the paper so order vinegar as well.

Disaster Month

July is the Disaster Month. UP Baguio had it in their billboard that it is the Disaster Consciousness Month. Shldn't it be Disaster Unconsciousness Month? Session Rd still bore the scars of the July 1990 Earthquake. The former Hyatt lot is still unsold. Nevada Hotel has been replaced with Nevada Square but it is still dangerous this time because of the gangs. And this foreigner is so paranoid about Session Road pollution that I always see him going around with his luggage and a gas mask with too many filters. We tried talking to him but his words were muffled. He said, Hi, Baguio! But I doubt if you believe him. Hi to Nash in Brazil, Volume Addict in Seattle, Mandaya in Davao, Kristine in Canada, Willi in godknowswhere and Mayumi in London and, of course, Ada. Keep the faith. That's the greeting in my cellphone.

I'm Hot

I'm so hot my cursor's on fire! And, Amnesty International wants to remind you that your signature is more important than you think

Copyright Napkin

Lawyer Eric J. Heels must be so tired of explaining copyright to people that he made this Venn diagram on a napkin.

He said, "In the middle of the drawing are uses that are covered by copyright but uses that have been declared to be "fair use" by the law. So you can use copyrighted works without permission (to some extent) for:

* commentary
* parody
* limited educational use."
After making the drawing, he gave it to the waiter who gave it to the singer who turned out to be Pinoy and she sang the request. That is parody.

Where Do You Sit in the Plane?

Popular Mechanics had a recent article on the safest seats in a plane. Well, surprise! The cheapest are the safest.

This diagram shows the survival rates in case of an airplane crash.

Attn DOT and Gov. Baguilat of Ifugao

The village of Inakadate in Aomori Prefecture in Japan had been doing mosaics in their rice fields by using a little purple and yellow-leafed kodaimai rice and their local green-leafed variety. The farmers had been doing this since 2002. This is the link and these are the latest photos:

Umbrella

Here's an umbrella for Ibalois. And from my gmail draft, I found this old contest from Washington Post on re-definitions.
1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.
2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.
3 . Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.
4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.
5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.
6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absent-mindedly answer the door in your nightgown.
7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.
8. Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavoured mouthwash.
9. Flatulence (n.) emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.
10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.
11. Testicle (n.), a humorous question in an exam
12. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.
13. Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.
14. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.
15. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.

Stealing Beauty: The 3rd Martin Masadao Poll

Heeeeeeeeere's Mahtin:

Hey All! :-)

Last Thursday dearest Susan Tagle sent me a txt message which read:

"If today is WORLD STEALING DAY, what would you steal from me? Reply is a must! Send this to others. You'll get surprising answers...:-)"

And so, I did... here are those that bothered to text back. In their original text message including emoticons. Those in parentheses are my asides. Enjoy! :-)

Benjie Franzuela: Straightforwardness and panache! Uy :-)
Frank Cimatu: Ur secret recipes of afro disiacs (meron ako nun?)
Felina Adefuin : I would steal your wit (wit wat will u steal it wit? hehe)
Becca Padilla: Oh Dear! I wil definitely steal dt shirt u were wearing d first tym i met u at aureaus haus! Hahaha! (I don't remember what I was wearing then... hmmm. ukay yun am sure)
Eew-Eew: ur...being friendly part! :-) Charng...hahaha... (I have friendly parts? Do tell me which they are, and which parts are unfriendly)
Grace Murillo: Why would I steal, mahihingi ko naman. (Tama ka dyan, sister!)
Raymond Oribio: D nude painting felina gave u! (sorry, that was my sis' xmas gift to me)
Jordan Jorda: Girlfriends? You have lots right? (yes I do, but, sorry, they like girlfriends too!)
Nina Ledesma: Your little black book. Hmmm... kapakipakinabang pa ba? (I dont have a little black book. Never did. I have a little black dress I wore once last Gay Pride, might fit you)
Grace Subido: I wd steal ur libido. Think comparative lit has rendrd me 2 cerebral! I'm 4getting my gonads! (I'd share my libido girl, but you'd probably grow facial hair. it's all hormonal you know!)
Ice: Il steal ur brain. para lalo ako tumalino...ehehe.corny! (Corny nga!)
Padma Perez: One of your exquisite leather bags from wagwag. I know you've got a Bree stashed away somewhere!!! What would you steal from me? (Re: the bag, you have to contact Felina for that -- she's got a whole room of leather bags, she could start her own specialty ukay shop. I would steal you air miles, sweetie! :-) hahaha)
Oca Campomanes: Ur mahika blanca, ur umph & sense of style, ur french langue fluency! Opps kapatid, was dat 2 greedy? hehe :-) (wat d first one? Huh?!)
RR Rovillos: I'll steal your wit, brilliance and humur honey (You might as well steal my knack for spelling too)
Reji Regalado: everything... everything you'd steal from me. hahaha (Solian ng gamit?!)
Murphy Red: your future (that really creeped me out, man!)
Nadine Navarro: Your wit! (walang originality)
Sam Lee: sis, alam ko na itong joke, hehe di ako magnanakaw lalo sa mga friends ko, and ur my friend, hehe (walang sense of humor/irony)
Lee Meily: Your coolness! Yahaha! (Miss Lee, my coolness is actually laidback-ness in disguise.:-) hehehe)
Nina Tesoro Poblador: Depends on who you are. Your no not registering. Who is this PLS :-) (Puhleeze, nagkita lang tayo sa CCP last week at pina misscall mo ako sa phone mo tapos sabi mo, "ayan I saved it na!" -- echosera kang bakla ka! :-)
Elmar Ingles: Hmm, your boys perhaps. Especially the ones willing to be stolen, Hihihi. (Elmar, re: the boys... I stole them too!!! Hahahaha)
Willy Alangui: Ur beauty:-) (Willy, sa lahat ng mga taong na-meet ko sa buong buhay ko, ikaw lang ang nagsabing may 'beauty' akoh! Salamat kapatid, and for that, nope, you're not stealing my 'beauty')
John Abul: Your two big rings=) (Okay, in exchange for your beautiful table in your shop)

AND THE BEST REPLY OF THEM ALL GOES TO...
BETSY MULLER: YOUR BALLS YOU DONT NEED THEM ANYWAY... BUT I DO HEHE (wala akong ma-say)

My answer to Susan Tagle: Your Husband!!!

Cheers!

No Sh*t

A friend was in Tokyo a few years back and came into a public loo. After doing her thing, she was alarmed to not find the flush handle. She searched everywhere for any button and can't find one. She was there for 20 minutes when she decided to just escape. When she opened the door, it flushed. He he. Let's segue a little. Here's a product that will take the smell away. It may not mean anything but the makers are selling it as a business tool. Think about the contract you would lose if your sh*t smells like hell. Now it smells like Japanese mint. How divine!

Homer 2

If you are following the Homer furor, you have to watch this inevitable video

Schmuck

Hey, Jeni
Your favorite word (Schmuck) actually carry a line of fine wedding rings. I am NOT giving you hints.

Jesus Math

from Math for Laughs

Mayoyao

Harley P and Kulotsky have an exhibit at the Mt Provinces Museum. Here's Harley's photo of Ifugao

Porn Nevermore

Once upon a midnight dreary,
While I porn-surfed, weak and weary,
Over many a strange and spurious site of 'hot xxx galore'.
While I clicked my favorite bookmark, suddenly there came a warning,
And my heart was filled with mourning,
Mourning for my dear amour,
"'Tis not possible!", I muttered, "Give me back my free hardcore!"
Quoth the server, 404

Homer

A large image of Homer Simpson in diapers holding a large donut was created beside that of a famous fertility symbol in Dorset. Now the furor begins in time for the movie. And it's 50 years for "What's Opera, Doc." "Oh Bwunhilde, you'w so wuvwy!" "Yes I know it; I can't help it!"'

Empowerment

Foggy

Last week's afternoons were miasmic as hell. Bad for driving but more than fine for romance. This is the Baguio that Manila tourists don't know.

Bunman

They should have just smacked this cellphone guy with their bows and got a better ovation.

glumbert.com - Why you shouldn't use your phone at a concert

Aluminum Magic

Remember how you gild your radio or Tv antenna with aluminum foil to get a better reception. You think you passed that stage with your wifi and all? Wrong!
How To Boost Wi-Fi Range With A Homemade Parabolic Reflector - you can also cook pinikpikan this way

Guinguined

Seventeen years ago, Baguio was hit by an earthquake measuring 7.7. Everybody thought it was the end for the city. The people are indeed resilient but the buildings were not. Every July 16, employees of Hyatt Terraces visit their 50 or so friends who perished here. Sometimes, they were not permitted inside so they stick candles and flowers by the gate. This day, they held their reunion, which they often did in December. Some came from the Hyatt branches in Aruba and Saipan. Some stuck it out here. Some did not work anymore. For 17 years, this lot is for sale but there were no takers.

Typhoid, Aya and Tau Gamma

These are what you googled mostly last May. Imagine no politics in the searching and what's with tipos?

1. emo layout
2. rock star (CBS reality show)
3. red dragon
4. chicano
5. harrypotter
6. paris hilton
7. lucas grabeel
8. typhoid fever
9. de la hoya mayweather
10. xzibit
11. school rumble (japanese anime/manga)
12. markyctrigger (overlay generator)
13. aya medel
14. tristan (Filipino online community)
15. tau gamma phi logo

Compare this with the other countries and you see almost no similarities except with paris.

Codifying Radiohead

Kunal Anand, another brilliant Indian engineer with too much time on his hands, decided to diagram the song structure of his favorite songs. This is based on the lyrics and what word comes next. Here is Radiohead's Idioteque followed by Beatle's A Day In The Life.

The more complex, the less simplistic the lyrics. It doesn't mean that the bands today are lazier. They are just market-oriented and the people now need less words to karaoke.

Siopao 2

And now to totally ruin your siopao fetish. I watched two months ago this grisly movie. You think cardboard and pusa are bad? This one takes the cake or siopao. The title is "The Untold Story: Human Meat Roast Pork Buns." Stupid Title. Human na, pork pa. I only now know that the other titles for this classic are: Ba xian fan dian zhi ren rou cha shao bao in Hong Kong (Mandarin title); Bunman: The Untold Story; Human Meat Pies: The Untold Story; Human Pork Chop in the USA; and The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story also in USA. But then what do you call human meat anyway? Human pork Chop?? Enough of that. The director is Herman Yau Lai-to. The movie is about a man who killed another man in a mahjjong game in Hong Kong. He moved to Macau and became a slicer (not yet a cook) in the Eight Immortals Restaurant. Then the owner of the restaurant accused the man of being a mahjjong cheat. He killed the owner and his family. He sliced and diced them and froze them and took over the restaurant. The policemen who were working on the strange disappearances were wondering why the man(Chan something) kept on feeding them siopao. Genius! Especially that part when the man confessed it all to the police. I heard Anthony Wong won the Chinese Oscar for his role as the siopao maker. I will lend you the DVD, Padma, as long as I don't hear Yeow somewhere.

Scissors

Andy, buy this scissors!! This is your only chance to see Lynda Carter spread her legs and you can do it by yourself! From a distant soil blog

17777

I opened this and out came 17777 in my counter. Yay! But seriously, think about this. If you mistype blogspot and came out with blogsopt or blosgpot like I do, out comes the site of a bible study course or the mega-Bible site. Is the religious right waiting for everyone to make a mistake on their blogger and they would then pounce? And then on CNN, I watched this disturbing thing about a javelin piercing a triple-jumper. How weird is that? Because a shoe company has this ad where Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Kobe Bryant, Le Bron James, the Nigerian running team and a host of other world-class athletes (I heard Manny Pacquaio was invited but he declined) playing their stuff in one small oval. So this is something I hoped to see and sho enough, Youtube has it.

This Karaoke Is For You, Gob

Being a leading quasi-scientist on karaoke murder, I now give you karaoke suicide. No, this is a Slate article by Michelle Tsai on online karaoke. Now you can sing in your own booth and share it with the universe, Gob.
For the rest of us, Butch Perez linked me with this wonderful video of Laurie Anderson and Lou Reed on the Lost Art of Conversation.

Siopao I

Also from the Business Mirror, I learned that they are using cardboard in their siopaos in Beijing. They don't call it siopao there but baozi. A Chinese TV network showed one baozi maker chopping cardboard and using industrial chemical to soften and adding pork flavoring. OK. And yet when I was young, I was having a soliloquy on whether to eat the paper at the bottom or not. Then that persistent rumor about our siopao made of pusa. I would be discussing that in a later blog. Also, I came upon a story of a dinuguang siopao. it was supposed to be a celebrated crime case in China early this year.