How not to get sea sick

I went to my hometown for the Christmas break. While the family gathering was fun, the trip back could have been a lot better.

I traveled by boat on my way back, and I (thankfully) slept through most of the trip. I woke up feeling a little dizzy sometime later though, as I felt that the boat was being tossed by huge waves. I wasn't expecting any turbulence at all, the sea was calm when the boat left the port (I jokingly told myself that if I were Jesus, I would have commanded the wind and the waves to be still at that point.)

The other passengers were getting seasick, and having experienced the same thing many times before, I resolved to conquer the blasted thing. I usually take a pinch of salt with me when I travel, because someone once told me that salt helps prevent nausea. So I ingested a little amount of salt and it helped a little, as I was getting a bit nauseous then.

My martial arts teacher taught me that breathing is key when performing a great technique, so I decided that it might help me. So, every time the wave moved up (on the way to a crest), I took a deep breath in, and then out, whenever the wave moved down (on the way to a trough). I repeated the cycle until at last, after what felt like a very long stretch (actually it was a little more than an hour), we reached the port. Whew! Thankfully, the breathing exercise worked, and I got off the boat still able to walk a straight line and feeling a bit triumphant for not giving in to seasickness. I was so glad to be on terra firma.

Why am I chronicling this? So I could remember this technique the next time I travel.

[As an aside, I got some information regarding seasickness prevention here and here.]

:)

Do you know what "Absquatulate" means?

According to the geek on this site, it means: "to leave without warning". So there. :)

Chocolate

I knew it! Chocolate is healthy! This article confirms my belief that eating chocolate is good for one's well-being. Why do you think I crave it so much? :P

Wisdom of a 9-year-old

I was a bit surprised when I read this bit of news: a nine-year-old fourth grader named Alec Greven has written a dating book entitled "How to Talk to Girls". Slightly curious, I checked the book's excerpt and was quite impressed with the way he expressed his insights: simply and to the point. Check out this sampler.

:)

Lorem Ipsum

Ever wondered what that website dummy text "Lorem Ipsum..." meant? I googled it and according to this site, it's from Cicero's "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum" (The Extremes of Good and Evil), written around 2,000 years ago. The line goes:

Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

which supposedly means:

Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure.

So there. The whole thing is a commentary on pain and pleasure.

(It's quite a cool trivia to know. Plus, Cicero's whole text itself makes sense.)

:)

Would you

Would you like to have this trailer for your next desert jaunt?

:)

Clever

In order to spread awareness of global warming, an ad company created this for HSBC. Both the idea and the implementation are way clever. I like! :)

Solace

I got this from IMDB trivia for Bond 22: "Quantum of Solace", from Ian Fleming's short story with the same title, is "a precise figure defining the comfort/humanity/fellow feeling required between any pair of people for love to survive. If the Quantum of Solace is 0, then love is dead." (Haven't read the story myself as the only Bond literature I ever read was 'Dr No', but the Bond geeks in the IMDB community can't be wrong.) Anyway, it's a cool concept to know.

:)

22

I finally got to watch Quantum of Solace (aka Bond 22), for which I had to prepare myself so that I thought of nothing but Bond before going to the movie house. For the duration of the movie, my eyes were glued to the screen: it was so action-packed that I was afraid of missing a sequence if I so much as blinked.
My thoughts:
Daniel Craig carried the Relentless-Avenging-Angel Bond very well, especially in the intro chase sequence and the consequent dome-hanging sequence (way cool!). I was quite a bit ticked-off with M (talk about unsupportive work mother), for not standing up to the Prime Minister and for not trusting Bond enough. (OK, so trust is not quite the rage in their line of work, but still, he's her best agent!) I felt sorry for Mathis (though I thought he was a villain that last time). Olga Kurylenko's character matched Bond's, in that both of them had scores to settle, and I was glad Bond didn't have to go through it alone. At least both got closure. I liked the way that the story unfolded, though I would have liked to see Bond vent his anger on Vesper's Ex (read: trash the jerk guy into a pulp). Bond's character development from the start to the end of the film was great, and the events of Casino Royale and 22 kind of explains why Bond is, well, Bond. And the hanging mystery of the Word-wide Evil Organization (in which the villain du jour, Dominic Greene is a member of) makes for an interesting sequel starter.
I liked Casino Royale's intro better, with the cards-and-shadow concept. This one's intro ("Another Way to Die" by Jack White and Alicia Keys) was great half-way through: I liked the sands-and-woman's-contour idea, but didn't like it when the sequence reverted to the usual dancing-women's-shadow concept common in most Bond films.)
Bond Girls usually have ... interesting names (e.g. Pussy Galore, Plenty O'Toole, Kissy Suzuki, etc) but I was caught off-guard when I learned from IMDB that Agent Fields' first name was Strawberry! (Hahaha Strawberry Fields! Oh, the jokes I could make on her name...) And for the record, I was upset that she had to go...
Was Dominic Greene villain enough? I say taking control of a country's water supply (among other evil things) is just plain devious. But did he make it to my top 5 Bond villains? Hmmm, I haven't decided yet...
And I just have to say this: MI6's computer monitor was way beyond cool! I want one! (And I will accept a doorless Aston Martin.)
Overall, all elements are accounted for: evil villains, fast cars, beautiful and tough Bond girls, cool gadgets, hot man in a tuxedo, fantastic scenery, action and more action. I like Casino Royale better, but Bond 22 still rocks! (And I am looking forward to a new sequel!)

16

They say that hindsight is the best sight. But I wish someone had told me about this list before letting me loose into the world. Cool insight, highly appreciated.

:)

Victorious

And Hopeful.

:)

While waiting

While waiting for election results, here are some funny images from flickzzzz.com:

1. Weird signs
2. Funny animals (Expand the "Reason Sometimes Dogs Hate Humans" section.)

:)

An important choice

In a few hours, popular voting for the highest office in the United States of America and the World, will commence. Both candidates have stressed that change is needed. This is the time when we most need someone who can bring about justice and fairness not just for Americans but for the rest of the world. I pray that the one chosen will be the one that the world needs, not just the one that the world deserves.

(As an aside, I wagered a friend that my Presidential bet will win by popular and electoral vote. And I have faith in Americans: David Cook DID win in American Idol 7, so it is not unwise to hope that the right guy will also be chosen for the Presidency. :P )

Secret

The Secret to Happiness is... Hmmmm, someone tore it off, but it's cool that someone cares enough to write about it. Or maybe THAT's the point: there is no secret, it's everyone's choice to be or not to be.

:)

Notes

A tad bit blasphemous, but why so serious? (More Monday-blues eliminator.)

:P

Daffodils

Here's a fun interpretation of William Wordsworth's "Daffodils". (Nothing like Savage Chickens to perk me up on a Monday.)

;)

Every road...

Every road leads you somewhere. And may every road you take lead you to your true desires.

:)

Necessity

Is Necessity the mother of these inventions?

:)

Amazing Pictures

Just when I thought it was just another photo-blog, I found some amazing (and funny) pictures here. Check out the posts with the highest Diggs, starting with this and this.

:)

a green mind

It's encouraging to know that many people are doing big and small things to help save the planet. Here's a list of sites/articles I found that promote green living:

5. GreenLiving
4. Tree Hugger
3. An article at Capessa
2. Green Geek
1. My favorite: a site that lists 50 ways to help the planet.

:)

Food Art

I found these really cool pictures of food art at wambie.com. Amazing!

:)

For bookworms

I have to admit, I found the etymology test at this site a tad bit challenging. And yet, there are some people out there who can actually ace the test effortlessly. (My hat is off to you!)

:)

$10

What can creativity and $10 do? Something amazing.

:)

Water

Here are amazing water art I found by stumbling:

1. Amazing water pictures.

2. Cool waterfall. Genius.

:)

Believing without seeing

A friend of mine is starting a new life today. She has wanted it for a very long time, and after some soul searching she has finally decided to do it. (It's not the kind of life I'll willingly take, so when she told me about it I wasn't so sure. But I support her decision, because, as someone pointed out, "It's not 'bravery' to do what you want to do, you're just an idiot if you don't.")
Anyway, my friend left a story about faith from Paolo Coelho's blog, "Believing Without Seeing". And this, at least, has put my mind at ease, keeping faith that my friend is in good hands.

Believing without seeing
By Paulo Coelho

An emperor said to the Rabbi Yeoschoua ben Hanania:

‘I would very much like to see your God.’

‘That is impossible,’ said the Rabbi.

‘Impossible? Then how can I entrust my life to someone whom I cannot see?’

‘Show me the pocket in which you have placed the love of your wife, and let me weigh it in order to see how large her love is.’

‘Don’t be silly; no one can keep someone’s love in their pocket.’

‘The sun is only one of the works which the Lord placed in the universe and yet you cannot look at it directly. You cannot see love either, but you know you are capable of falling in love with a woman and entrusting your life to her. Is it not clear then that there are certain things in which we trust even though we cannot see them?’

Beautiful

Nature has great engineering and artistic abilities. Here's proof. Beautiful.

:)

Geography Fun

Want a fun way to learn geography? This is the site for you. (Don't worry if you don't get your answers right the first time, you can start over and over.)

:)

Mamma Mia!

I finally got to watch "Mamma Mia" the movie! I had a great time. This romantic comedy/musical is exuberant, high-spirited and fun! And the music is great (OK, so I really like Abba). It's beautifully done, I laughed (and cried) watching it. Will watch again.

:)

Interesting Creatures

For your Monday blues: weird and cute creatures here. Seems like the baby alpaca is fishing for a photo op. The Angora rabbit looks like a fluffy, huggable pillow and the Blobfish looks quite like Ziggy. The Komondor dog can substitute for a mop. (I've already seen a Narwhal before: in Futurama the movie [the one with Lars in it]).
Nature is so cool!

:P

Plans...

Warning: The following post is not suitable for children. Parental Guidance is advised.

When: Late Friday night/Early Saturday Morning
Doing What: Staring at my computer, working
Mood: That feeling when you're working on a Friday night
What Happened:
I was minding my own business when this creature invaded my screen, talking about world domination and evil plans. I could not resist. I was hooked.
Then the creature astutely summarized my life plan for me:

"Evil Plan (TM)!

Your objective is simple: World Domination.

Your motive is a little bit more complex: Power

Stage One

To begin your plan, you must first blackmail Superman. This will cause the world to slaughter a sacred calf to appease the gods, amazed by your arrival. Who is this criminal mastermind? Where did they come from? And why do they look so good as an elemental?

Stage Two

Next, you must seize control of Fort Knox. This will all be done from a Floating Fortress, a mysterious place of unrivaled dark glory. Upon seeing this, the world will tremble, as countless hordes of computer programmers hasten to do your every bidding.

Stage Three

Finally, you must unleash your corporate takeover, bringing about something that's really metal. Your name shall become synonymous with the Spice Girls, and no man will ever again dare cross you. Everyone will bow before your superhuman powers, and the world will have no choice but to give you control of the planet."

So what happened next, you ask? I, uh, rubbed the sleep from my eyes and went back to WORK!

Superman's Fortress is Where?

Apparently, Superman's Fortress of Solitude is in Mexico. Cueva de los Cristales (Cave of Crystals), a cave filled with, (you guessed it right!), crystals has been found in southern Chihuahua, Mexico. Well, this isn't really news, but I just found out about it here and here. Check these sites out for really cool pictures.
Nature is AMAZING!

:)

Sharing

I always wondered if animals talk to each other, or if they have values and such. I am now leaning on the affirmative, based on this duckling's argument. (If baby ducks can share, we CAN too!)

:)

Procrastination

Lately I've been putting things off and as a result, work has piled up a little. I've been wanting to get back on track, but something always draws my attention away. Luckily, I came across this article via Yahoo. The message is quite simple: Put off big stuff while doing small stuff in order to be (and feel!) productive which could enhance motivation to tackle the big stuff.
This seems like a great idea, it's worth a try.

:)

Irrational

I laughed so hard when I saw this post. This is quite the best lesson I've had on Irrational Numbers.

:D

Hum

I have discovered that my attempts at writing is too costly in terms of time. So I now resolve to be as laconic as I can. I think I'd do something twitter-y in this blog, to save time and effort.

I stumbled upon these articles that I think are worthy of a link and a good word, simply because they are thought provoking:

11 Ways to Build an Extraordinary Life by Steve Olson
Seth Godin's Is it Worthy?

:)

Hello World!

I guess I have put this off long enough. This is my first attempt at writing in a very long time. So here goes:

HELLO WORLD!