August: A Month To Ponder

Don't Settle For Anything Less:

I bought an iPhone 4 for my birthday. It took me four years to convince myself that this phone is worth it. After a month of using the phone, no doubt I made the right decision.

I realized that if you want something, don't settle for anything less. In my case, I tried to convince myself that Samsung phones are as good as iPhones. I tried to make myself believe that there are no other game console that can replace the PSP. I forced myself to be satisfied with iTouch in replacement for iPhones. Guess what? I end up selling all of it.

So in life, always choose what's best for you.

Take Every Advantage:

Last month, I went to Malaysia for a vacation. I find the place beautiful. The Petronas Twin Towers were magnificent, the Batu Cave was captivating and the Genting Highland was breathtaking.

When I got home, I was very impressed with Malaysia to the point that I can't help but asked myself why can't we be like them?

I think the reason is corruption. Youn know what, for me, I think we have more beautiful places here to offer but as long as we are one of the most corrupt country in the world, I don't think we can be like them.

What I am trying to say is, even though we have all the talents in life but if we don't know how to use them because of our attitude towards it then all of these talents are useless.

Bottom line is, whether we are talking about the tourism of our country or our life, we must learn to take every advantage fairly.

Birthday Is Always About Sharing:

This year I decided to celebrate my birthday together with my new found family from Girls' Home. After all, having a healthy and happy family, a beautiful and very understanding girlfriend is more than enough for me to be thankful this year.

Thank God It's Saturday

Since I stopped working at M3 Dialysis Center in Bacolod City, I spend my Saturday afternoon catching up of all the movies I missed by watching DVD at home.

Last Saturday, I watched this interesting movie Source Code. It is about a decorated soldier Captain Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) who wakes up in the body of an unknown man. He later discovers that he's part of a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter-train. In an assignment unlike any he's ever known, he learns he's part of a government experiment called the "Source Code". This is a program that enables him to cross over into another man's identity in the last 8 minutes of his life. With a second much larger target threatening to kill millions in downtown Chicago, Captain Stevens re-lives the incident over and over again, gathering clues each time, until he can solve the mystery of who is behind the bombing and prevent the next attack.

How I wish we can also re-live our life over and over again. Isn't it great if we can do this because we can correct our past to have a better future? Well, of course, this is only possible in movies.

What I really love about this movie is the realization that you can do a lot of things in eight minutes. In this movie, he was able to save the world at the same time express his feelings to the woman he loves in eight minutes. My point is that, in the real world, whether it is eight minutes or twenty-four hours, what really matters is what you do in the present.

I remember a scene in the movie Kung Fu Panda where Master Oogway said to Po "Quit, don't quit, noodles, don't noodles, you are too concern about what was and what will be, there is a saying, yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery but today is a gift. That is why it is called present."

The truth is that, some of us cannot move on with our lives because we keep holding on with our past. Most of us are even busy preparing for the future when in fact, no matter what we do, we cannot control it.

So let us instead re-live the past by learning from it, be thankful of the present and be hopeful of the future. Thank God it's Saturday indeed.

Death by Fugu

Few days ago, a colleague of mine asked my help to asses a case of a young patient with no history of asthma nor heart condition in the past who was admitted due to sudden onset of difficulty of breathing. When I saw the patient, he was restless and dyspneic. History revealed that the condition started few hours after eating a puffer fish. According to the family of the patient, there were 12 of them who ate the fish and two died before reaching the hospital.

Despite of the risk, we Filipinos still love to eat puffer fish or butete as we commonly call it in tagalog. In fact, I have one friend whose family likes to eats puffer fish. According to her, it taste like chicken and it is delicious.

Actually, this is the first time I encountered a patient poisoned by eating a puffer fish as far as my medical practice is concern. I never expected that puffer fish poisoning could cause instant death even if taken in small amount.

According to the NATGEO WILD, there are more than 120 species of puffer fish worldwide. Mostly are found in tropical and subtropical ocean waters, but some specie live in brackish and even in fresh water. They have long tapered bodies with bulbous head. Some wear wild marking sand colors to advertise their toxicity, while others have more muted or cryptic coloring to blend with the environment.

They range in size from the 1-inch-long dwarf or pygmy puffer to the freshwater giant puffer, which can grow to more than 2 feet in length. They are scaleless fish and usually have rough to spiky skin.

The diet of the puffer includes mostly invertebrates and algae. Poisonous puffers are believed to synthesize their deadly toxin from the bacteria in the animal they eat. Almost all puffer fish contains tetrodotoxin, a substance that makes them foul tasting and often lethal. Tetrodotoxin is deadly, up to 1,200 times more poisonous than cyanide.

The tetrodotoxin kills by paralyzing the nerves. Victims can't move or breath but they are fully conscious until their lungs fail. The only way to save victims is to use a respirator to breath for them until the toxin ware off.

Amazingly the meat of the puffer fish is considered a delicacy in Japan. They call it fugu and it is extremely expensive and only prepared by trained, licensed chefs who know that one bad cut means almost death for a customer. Indeed this is an ultimate food taboo.

Boracay: Paradise No More ?

I read that the Province of Aklan is planning to construct a 40-hectare reclamation site between the Island of Boracay and coastal village of Caticlan. Personally I am against it.

I believed that by reclaiming the area, more commercial buildings will rise and for sure an increase in pollution can be expected. More so, this can have a major environmental impact to the island. In short, we will miss the real essence of Boracay as a paradise island.

You see, by definition, a paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter image of miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and idleness.

When I went there few months ago, another concern of the locals if ever this plan is push through is the peace and order of the island. According to them, a reclaimed Boracay would open the island to a lot of illegal activities. People can come and go anytime they want thus they can do whatever they want. Easy access to everything. From drugs to prostitution.

We must not forget that the very reason why foreigners keep on coming to Boracay because they want a taste of paradise. A place where they can sleep well without worrying about their safety. A place where they can smell the sea breeze instead of pollution from the traffic. A place where they can relax and appreciate the beauty of the island instead of commercial buildings.

Yes, I understand that the Governor of Aklan wants progress in his province. Can we have progress without destroying God's work. My point is that, instead of reclaiming Boracay, why don't the Province of Aklan look for another area so that the P 1-B money for reclamation can be allocated for other project instead.

We always say that everything has a reason. I'm sure He has a good reason why He made Boracay a Paradise Island. What do you think? So let us not mess around with mother nature.

Ako ay Pilipino !

I am a Lakers Fan. No doubt about it. So why should I waste time blogging about other teams. Well I realized that this years NBA Playoff is different because this is not only about being a NBA fan but it is also about being a Filipino.

Yes, I am talking about Coach Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat. Coach Spo, as his staff and players would call him is the son of an Irish-Dutch -American Jon Spoelstra and Elisa Celino of San Pablo Laguna, Philippines.

Spoelstra grew up in Portland Oregon, where he graduated from Jesuit High School in 1988 and from the University of Portland in 1992. At the University of Portland, Spoelstra was the Pilots' starting point guard for four years, averaging 9.2 points, 4.4 assists and 2.4 rebounds per game and was named the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year.

Spoelstra joined the Heat staff in 1995 as the team's video coordinator. After two years, he was named assistant coach/video coordinator, then promoted to assistant coach/advance scout in 1999. He became the assistant coach/director of scouting in 2001. He was cited by Sports Illustrated (May 30, 2005) for honing star guard Dwyane Wade's "shooting balance and smoothing out his release after the Flash's return from the Athens Olympics."

Spoelstra was an assistant coach with the Miami Heat when they won the 2006 NBA Finals by defeating the Dallas Mavericks, overcoming a 0-2 deficit.

In April 2008, Spoelstra was named successor to Pat Riley as head coach of the Miami Heat. In naming Spoelstra as head coach, Riley said: " This game is now about younger coaches who are technologically skilled, innovative, and bring fresh new ideas. That's what we feel we are getting with Erik Spoelstra. He's a man that was born to coach." Riley also noted: "A lot of players want the discipline; they will play for Spoelstra, because they respect him."

Three years after as head coach of the Miami Heat, if destiny will allow it, Spoelstra can become the first Asian American NBA Head Coach to win an NBA Championship.

As I have said from the very beginning, I decided to make this blog not only because I am an NBA fan but also because "Ako ay Pilipino". I believed that a championship for the Miami is a pride for all of us Filipinos. "Mabuhay ka Coach Spo!"

Ani ME!

It's been six months since I posted my last blog. As my first post for this year, I would like to share with you a new application from Youtube. This application will awaken your creativity and imagination especially if you are a fan of animation.

First of all, you have to make an account in Youtube. Once you have it, click UPLOAD and look for CREATE YOUR OWN ANIMATION. Then click TRY NOW. There are four applications to choose. I suggest as a beginner, try XTRANORMAL MOVIE MAKER.

Personally I like GOANIMATE because you can create your own character. The one you saw above was done using GOANIMATE. I really enjoyed making one. Now I know what will I look like as an Ani ME! Enjoy!

A Touch of Perfection

Finally I got my iPod Touch 4GS. Guys I tell you it's worth the wait. For me, the new iPod has a touch of perfection. Here's why:

FACETIME : Video calling is now possible with iPod Touch. You heard it right guys... VIDEO CALLING. The good thing with this new iPod is that you don't have to subscribe to Smart or Globe to avail this application. All you need is a Wi-Fi signal and a friend who also have an iPod Touch 4GS or iPhone 4. Now you're talking !


RETINAL DISPLAY : With the new iPod Touch, everything is crystal clear. The text in any web pages is crisp at any size. The images in games, photos and movies seems to pop off the screen. This is truly visionary.

HD VIDEO RECORDING : Now I can record and edit my video anywhere and anytime I want. So guys prepare for the next Youtube sensation ... Joke ! Hahaha !

GAME CENTER : Get your game face on ... the new iPod Touch has a new application. With Game Center, we can now play against unknown foes worldwide through social gaming network. With the aid of A4 chip - the same new technology used in iPhone 4 and iPad - will surely make our gaming experience like no other.