Monthly Report

One of the things I DREAD every month, is not having periods, of course, but writing my monthly report for my superior. Urgh... This normally takes 2-3 days... And I haven't even started this month's report, and I am supposed to hand it up tomorrow! Sigh...

Speaking about monthly reports, I wanna thank all of you who are reading this now, for visiting my blog and kind enough to leave comments :) You know who you are! Thanks so much... here are some "statistics" from sitemeter.com:

10 and a half hours to go for this last day of the month, and there are already 620 visits and 877 page views. I believe that this month's visits will exceed my all-time record, set last month, which is 625. The only thing unachievable is the record of 1,006 page views!!!

So looks like most of the blog visitors to my blog are Malaysians (42%), Americans (30%), Brits (7%), Australians (4%) and Spaniards (2%)... how interesting...

A look at the world map of the past 100 visitors confirms the previous stats...

If by continents, Asians are the most (48%), followed by North Americans (30%), Europeans (16%) and Oceania/Australasia (4%). There are 2% from an unknown continent, so most probably, they are from outer space. Do we still have any unknown continents on earth? Nope. Welcome, aliens!

Oh well, back to preparing my real monthly report... *sob*

Thanks again for visiting my blog! Hope you had a great weekend and Thanksgiving and shopping!

Black Friday Madness!

When I read the news, I was like... WHAAAAAAAAT??? Recession or the financial crisis must have hit many people REAAAAAL HARD, until people resort to do things like these:

Nevaeh Enoch, 6, peers out from a shopping cart while waiting for a Wal-Mart to open around 5 am Friday, Nov 28, 2008, in Oakland, Calif. Hoping for deals on clothes and toys, Enoch and her mom joined the line of several hundred people at 2:45 am (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Nassau County Police stand just beyond the broken door of a Wal-Mart in Valley Stream, NY, Friday, Nov 28, 2008, as they investigate how a temporary Wal-Mart worker died after a throng of eager shoppers broke down the doors and trampled him moments after the Long Island store opened early Friday for day-after-Thanksgiving bargain hunting, police said. (AP Photo/Ed Betz)

Shoppers Kevin Naumann, from left, brother Steve, and their brother Eric of Berkley, Mich. each purchase a 42' plasma television for $499 that normally sells for $899 at a Meijers store in Troy, Mich. during Black Friday, Nov 28, 2008. The brothers had brought along an inflatable doll with the hopes of being able to purchase a fourth television. 'We tried to get her a TV but they wouldn't allow us' said Eric Naumann, 'you've got to be able to push a cart.' (AP Photo/Gary Malerba)

Absolutely total madness!!!

Black Friday???


I was wondering why my baby is up at 3, 4 am, and I finally found out that the Friday after Thanksgiving Day is known as Black Friday, which signifies........... the beginning of the traditional CHRISTMAS SHOPPING season!!! Sales!!! Discounts!!! Offers!!! Rebates!!! Now I understand... heh!

Black Friday is not a public holiday in the United States, but many people take the day off, which increases the number of potential shoppers. Retailers often decorate for the Christmas season weeks beforehand. Many retailers open very early (typically 5 am or even earlier) and offer doorbuster deals and loss leaders to draw people to their stores. The name "Black Friday" originated in Philadelphia probably because of the heavy traffic on that day.

The media frequently refer to Black Friday as the busiest retail shopping day of the year, but this is not always accurate. In 2003 and 2005, Black Friday actually did reach first place, but the busiest retail shopping day of the year in the United States (in terms of both sales and customer traffic) usually has been the Saturday before Christmas.

In many places it is not unusual to see shoppers lined up hours before stores with big sales open. Once inside, the stores shoppers often rush and grab, as many stores have only a few of the big draw items. Electronics and popular toys are often the most sought-after items and may be sharply discounted. Because of the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, many choose to stay home and avoid the hectic shopping experience. The local media often will cover the event, mentioning how early the shoppers began lining up at various stores and providing video of the shoppers standing in line and later leaving with their purchased items. Traditionally Black Friday sales were intended for those shopping for Christmas gifts.

I know this is fun, baby, but please get some sleep ok! :* ]]]HUGS[[[

Happy Thanksgiving!

To all my friends that celebrate this beautiful day...

Have a great time with your family and friends...

And a good time of feasting as well!

God bless and take care!

Great news! Woohoo!

New jobless claims drop from 16-year high

New jobless claims fell more than expected last week from a 16-year high, the government said Wednesday, though they remain at elevated levels due to the slowing economy.

The report was one of four released by the government that added up to a bleak overall picture of the economy.

The Labor Department reported that initial requests for unemployment benefits fell to a seasonally adjusted 529,000 from the previous week's upwardly revised figure of 543,000. That is lower than analysts' expectations of 537,000.

Despite the improved number, initial claims remain at recessionary levels. The four-week average, which smooths out fluctuations, rose to 518,000, its highest level since January 1983, when the economy was emerging from a steep recession.

One minor bright spot was seen in the number of people continuing to claim unemployment insurance, which also dropped unexpectedly to 3.96 million, down from the previous week's 4.02 million. which was the highest level in 25 years. The labor market has grown by about half since 1983.

I am believing God to turn around the recession.

I believe unemployment rates will drop.

I believe that the U.S. will be richer and better off than ever before.

I believe all that 11 trillion will be fully paid off.

Yes, we can!

Guess these "firefighters" are on their way to California ;)

Lipton's Ten


Hi Friends! This is another interesting list from Inge' blog, which originated from James Lipton's show (Inside the Actor's Studio).


1. What is your favorite word? Lucubration - for "night owls" such as myself!

2. What is your least favorite word? Any swear word that contains "God" or "Christ" e.g. goddamnit, for Christ's sake...

3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually, or emotionally? God :)

4. What turns you off creatively, spiritually, or emotionally? Idiots, problems, physical fatigue.

5. What sound or noise do you love? Music.

6. What sound or noise do you hate? Any sound categorised under noise pollution.

7. What is your favorite curse word? It depends on case-to-case basis.

8. What profession other than your own, would you like to attempt? Home economist.

9. What profession would you not like to do? Engineer.

10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? "Can I see your ID please?" LOL just kidding... :)


Please feel free to give it a try, if you want to. I'm not tagging anyone :) Have fun!

Things I Have (& Haven't) Done


I'm doing this interesting list that I read on Donna's blog!

For those that I had done, I am going to change the font colour to GREEN, and for those that I have never done before, it will be ELMO. Please feel free to try it yourself too. You may add your comments too, like me (in brackets).

1. Started my own blog (Is this a trick question?)
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band (in church)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than I can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world (Hong Kong)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo (a couple of times for a singing competition in church, and twice for two of my friends' weddings)
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris (it's on my list!!!)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught myself an art from scratch (water color and pencil)
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning (who haven't???)
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (coming soon!)
18. Grown my own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train (from Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok - that was FUN!)
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (Ooppssie!)
24. Built a snow fort (coming soon!)
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon (coming soon!)
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice (very nice!)
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset (Welcome to Earth!)
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise (is this fun?)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors (The family name is Tan, so could be anywhere in western Shandong or Hunan Province, OR maybe somewhere in Zhao'an County, since that is my dialect. Zhao'an County is in Zhangzhou City, which is in Fujian Province)
35. Seen an Amish community (coming soon!)
36. Taught myself a new language (¡Hola!)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David (and all the other statues all around David... they are so BEAUTIFUL!)
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt (coming soon!)
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance (Remember I was talking about the dislocations? And there was a bike accident too...)
47. Had my portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person (the architecture, carvings, paintings and sculptures are indescribably amazing!!!)
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain (we must try this one day, baby!)
53. Played in the mud (no thanks!)
54. Gone to a drive-in theater (just once, and this year too!)
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China (it's really cold up there, if you want any tips before you plan a trip there! Brrrr....)
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class (Wushu, Taekwondo, Karate)
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen (yes, in a chicken rice shop)
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching (is this fun?)
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (many times in the past, but not in recent years)
65. Gone sky diving (sounds crazy but I'm gonna try it!)
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check (in fact, I've never written a check in my life)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy (My favorite childhood toy? Has to be Lego!)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial (coming soon!)
71. Eaten Caviar (on a sushi)
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square (coming soon!)
74. Toured the Everglades (coming soon!)
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London (London is on my list too!!!)
77. Broken a bone (I can only give thanks to God, considering all the accidents I had been through, but still, not a single broken bone!!!)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (I was the driver!)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car (still driving that faithful 6-year-old Satria)
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had my picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible (once, and still trying to complete another round for the past 7 years! Talk about motivation huh?)
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life (You wouldn't believe this... I can't swim, but I actually saved a friend from drowning! Thank You Lord for using me!)
90. Sat on a jury (Ooooh, I'd love to do this given the opportunity!)
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one (who haven't???)
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person (coming soon!)
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake (coming soon, even though I can't swim!)
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee (I think my face and neck became bloated!)
100. Ridden an elephant

Now, wasn't that fun??? :) My score is 37/100, same as Donna! :)

Do give it a try, and nope, I'm not tagging anyone. Have a great week ahead friends!

Is it a bug?

Is it a fly?

It's... an MAV!

In this shot, taken from computer animation video yesterday, Nov 21, and released by the U.S. Air Force, shows the next generation of drones, called Micro Aerial Vehicles, or MAVs. The MAVs could be as tiny as bumblebees and capable of flying undetected into buildings, where they could photograph, record, and even attack insurgents and terrorists. U.S. military engineers are trying to design flying robots disguised as insects that could one day spy on enemies and conduct dangerous missions without risking lives.

Although there are currently few MAVs, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has recently announced a program to develop even smaller Nano Air Vehicles (NAVs) with a wingspan of 7.5 centimetres (three inches) or less.

The bad thing about this is, if this new techie falls into the hands of the wrong people, it is devastating!

By the way, have you all seen this trailer for "Dance Flick"? If you love musical and dance films like "Save the Last Dance", "Hairspray", "You Got Served", "High School Musical", "How She Move", "Step Up", and "Flashdance", YOU'VE GOT TO CATCH THIS ONE - Feb 6, 2009!!!

LOL!!! I'll bet you went "WHAT THE?" a few times too! HINT: The Wayans brothers did "White Chicks", and THAT was bloody hillarious!!! LOL...

Have a great weekend!

Recharged :)

Hi Friends! Thanks for your well wishes... I slept quite well on Thursday night... going to catch some more rest tonight. Saturday will be great!

Before I sign off, did any of you see this piece of news?

In a way, it's bad news, because it signifies the perils of global warming. On the other hand, it's kind of a good news, because it wouldn't be SO COLD this winter! Less cold, means less consumption of energy to keep warm. I know my baby will be glad to hear this :) So to folks out there in Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas, have a Merry Red Christmas!

Mid-week crisis

Hi Friends! I'm not going to post anything today, as I had been sleeping less than 6 hours daily since Saturday. Was late for work for the past 3 consecutive days. Very, very tired. Thank God it's Friday tomorrow!

Ginkgo biloba for Alzheimer and dementia - DOES IT HELP (AT ALL)?

I came across a recently published clinical paper for this traditional Chinese herb and decided to review the effectiveness of this herb in helping people with Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Ginkgo biloba is one supplement often taken in hopes of improving memory function. It is currently one of the top selling herbs in the U.S. and the U.K. But can it help prevent dementia and Alzheimer's disease in the elderly? The answer came hot from the oven - just yesterday (Tuesday).

EVIDENCE #1
The University of Virginia School of Medicine's Dr. Steven Dekosky, who was at the University of Pittsburgh at the time of the study, led the research team for the study quoted above.

"Because it is the most common kind of dementia in late life, we were especially interested in focusing on Alzheimer's disease, as well as all other causes of dementia that occur in late life," he said.

The study appears in this week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), a weekly peer-reviewed medical journal. It compared the effect of ginkgo biloba, with placebo, for as long as seven years by more than 3,000 people age 75 and older with normal cognition or with mild cognitive impairment.

Participants in the study took 240 milligrams of ginkgo biloba - or placebo tablets - daily.

"The test results showed us that under these circumstances, ginkgo doesn't appear to have any effect of slowing down thinking changes in late life," Dr. Dekosky said.

No effect - and so, no breakthrough. But Dr. Dekosky still has a goal: To find a way to delay the onset of dementia in the elderly.

"Delaying the onset of the disease for 10 years would effectively eliminate it from the population," he said.

And so there is hope as the battle against dementia continues.

EVIDENCE #2
In another study earlier this year, similar results were exhibited:

A herbal extract used by an estimated 10% of people with dementia is not an effective treatment for it, an Imperial College London study suggests.

A six-month trial of 176 people with mild to moderate dementia found no difference between those taking ginkgo biloba and those taking a placebo.

The researchers tested 120 mg daily of ginkgo biloba in patients recruited from London general practices. The results are due to be published in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry next month (December 2008). If you want to read the full paper (PDF), please let me know, I could forward the document to you, because reading it requires a subscription to the journal.

They measured participants cognitive skills and quality of life at two, four and six months. Tests included exercises such as recalling words from memory or answering questions about time or places.

There was no evidence that the standard dose of the herbal extract had any benefit on memory. And quality of life as reported by the patient or by their carer did not improve over the course of the research.

Study leader, Dr Rob McCarney who carried out the research at Imperial College London, said the lack of drug treatments in early dementia meant patients would try anything to slow down the progression of the disease.

"This isn't a hugely expensive treatment but if you're living on a state pension it can make a considerable dent in your budget. The findings add to the growing evidence that ginkgo provides no benefit."

He added that negative findings, such as these were in general less likely to be published.

"But we think this is equally important because people can clutch at straws when a diagnosis of dementia is made."

Professor Clive Ballard, director of research at the Alzheimer's Society, said the finding was very disappointing.

"However, this is an extremely important finding. Thousands of people with dementia, who are already struggling to make ends meet, may buy ginkgo biloba expecting an improvement in their memory."


And... EVIDENCE #3 (three strikes, and you're OUT!)
Back in 2002, a long-anticipated paper appeared in JAMA titled "Ginkgo for memory enhancement: a randomized controlled trial." This Williams College study, sponsored by the National Institute on Aging, examined the effects of ginkgo consumption on healthy volunteers older than 60 (n = 230). This is a six-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial. Participants were randomly assigned to receive placebo or ginkgo, 40 mg 3 times per day. The conclusion, now cited in the National Institutes of Health's ginkgo fact sheet, said: "When taken following the manufacturer's instructions, ginkgo provides no measurable benefit in memory or related cognitive function to adults with healthy cognitive function."

So the overall conclusion, or the bottomline, is this:

It's useless. Don't waste your money.

12 Reminders


These striking photographs are a stark reminder of the challenges faced every day by people around the world, from climate change to recycling. Let's not just look at these photos and maybe shed a few tears. Let's do something to make this world a better place for everyone. A simple prayer everyday. A helping hand. A small donation. A little extra effort to recycle. A thankful heart for what we have.


1. Inside an ice cave on the edge of the Marr Ice Piedmont, Anvers Island, Antarctica (photo by Gary Braasch). This cave reportedly has since disappeared as the glacier retreated. For a long time - the first fifteen years that we knew about global warming and did nothing - there were no pictures. That was one of the reasons for inaction. Climate change was still 'theoretical', the word that people in power use to dismiss anything for which pictures do not exist. But now the pictures, like this one, have started to come, and they will not cease.


2. A Ghanaian father watches over his son as a guinea worm is slowly removed from the boy's scrotum (photo by Brent Stirton). Guinea worms live in the mud around water holes and are ingested by people who drink infected water. Water is the key to life. It is fundamental to all human activities. Water grows the food we eat, generates the energy that supports our modern economies and maintains the ecological services on which we all depend. Yet billions of people worldwide still lack access to the most basic human right: safe, clean, adequate water.


3. Women and children are responsible for hauling water in Africa (photo by Brent Stirton). This four year old girl in Ghana walks four kilometres twice each day to fetch buckets of water for her family.


4. An eleven year old girl in Ghana helps her blind mother and brother fetch water from a swamp (photo by Brent Stirton). She has cared for them for six years, since they both lost their sight to trachoma, a bacterial infection of the eyelids linked to dirty water. Our failure to provide safe water and sanitation will cause sickness, blindness, lost opportunities and, for a staggeringly large number of people, early death.


5. Using water pumped from the Buriganga River, a young girl washes carbon rods from used batteries at a battery recycling workshop in Ayena Ghat, Bangladesh (photo by Shehzad Noorani). Day in and day out, women and children as young as three or four break open discarded batteries with hammers in order to remove the recyclable carbon rods and tiny pieces of reusable metal. Depending upon the speed of their work, they earn between 30 and 50 taka per day (1 USD = 68.7 taka), i.e. about 13 dollars per month.


6. Kelvin Kalasha, 30, is helped into his bath at the Mother of Mercy Hospice in Zambia (photo by Tom Stoddart). Unlike in the rest of the world, where HIV is largely confined to 'high-risk groups' - mainly prostitutes, intravenous-drug users and gay men - in East and Southern Africa everyone is at risk. Outside Uganda the HIV epidemic is finally beginning to subside in a number of African countries. As a result, a growing number of African men and women are raising their voices and talking about AIDS as never before. The courageous man in this photograph is among the seed corn of that movement. His dignified refusal to accept shame and denial is a powerful remind that AIDS is neither an act of God nor a punishment for a sin, but a terrible disease that no one deserves.


7. Wastewater flows from a pipe at the state-owned Lianhua MSG factory (photo by Steven Voss). Lianhua is the largest producer of MSG in China and one of the largest polluters in the Huai River Basin. Decades of extraordinary growth have catapulted China to the top of the world's economic charts, earning the admiration of much of the rest of the world. Indeed, China's continued economic rise has been one of the few certainties of the twenty-first century. Increasingly, however, the China story is not one of economic miracle but of environmental disaster.


8. Wang Zi Qing, 60, shows the scar where a tumour was removed from his stomach (photo by Stephen Voss). He was a fisherman but is now too sick to work. His two brothers died from cancer within a month of each other. Wang blames polluted water.


9. Trans Amadi Slaughter is the largest slaughterhouse in the Niger Delta (photo by Ed Kashi). Workers kill thousands of animals a day, roast them over burning tires and prepare the meat for sale throughout the delta. Fish was traditionally the main source of protein here, but fish stocks have dwindled due to overfishing and oil pollution.


10. Chernobyl unit 4 (photo by Gerd Ludwig). This unit is so radioactive that even workers in protective gear and respirators can stay inside for only fifteen minutes a day. The site for Chernobyl was chosen in 1970: in northern Ukraine, on the left bank of the Pripyat Rives, which links up through the Kyiv Reservoir to the Dnipro or Dnepr River, the Ukraine's main water supply. The first Chernobyl reactor came on line in October 1977. Three more followed in 1978, 1981 and 1983.


11. To repel malarial mosquitoes, the Mora people of Amazonian Peru wear a natural insect repellent made from two fruits that stains the skin for several weeks (photo by Maggie Hallahan). It seems unthinkable that malaria, a disease carried by a fragile, seemingly insignificant mosquito, could be responsible for a global tragedy on the scale of 9/11... every single day. But it is true. Three thousand children, the equivalent of seven jumbo jets full of infants, toddler and small children - die each day from malaria. This is an unacceptable reality that has only recently pulled at the heartstrings of the international community.


12. Workers push gasoline barrels from the water-front onto the main market road of Yenagoa, Nigeria (photo by Ed Kashi). By almost any measure, Nigeria's oil-producing states are a calamity. The UN estimates that between 1996 and 2002, the human development indices (education, life expectancy, income) actually fell in the core oil-producing states. Since 2000, the rage felt by the marginalised and unemployed men across the Niger Delta has taken a militant turn and for the better part of 2 years, has been more or less a war zone. The history of our addiction to oil is a chronicle of violence, corruption and the worst excesses of frontier capitalism and social Darwinism.

But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.

~ 1 John 3:17-19 (New King James Version) ~

Another WIN!

And many thought it was finished... President Obama is THE more than obvious VICTOR. But Americans just didn't want to stop creating history, did they? President Obama has won yet another electoral vote - Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District.

Since Obama already had been declared the winner of 364 electoral votes – 74 more than needed for victory over Republican opponent John McCain – the added vote from the Omaha area is tantamount to kicking an extra point in a football game in which your team already has a big lead. It is symbolic of the wins Obama made over the performances of the Democratic presidential nominees who lost to George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004, and also of the Illinois senator's success at expanding the playing field in the campaign for an electoral vote majority.

Nebraska is one of just two states that does not automatically award all of its electoral votes to the statewide winner. The Midwest state and Maine give two votes to the statewide winner, and one vote apiece to the winner in each of the state's congressional districts. Obama's win for one of Nebraska's five electoral votes, however, marks the first time there has been a split decision. It was the result of Obama's strategy of campaigning heavily in places his campaign viewed as winnable, even though many had been Republican presidential strongholds for years.

Along with Nebraska's 2nd District – which favored Bush over Democrat John Kerry with 61 percent of its votes in 2004 – Obama has been confirmed the winner in nine states that went Republican four years ago: Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia. And the contest in one more 2004 Bush state, Missouri, remains too close to call, although McCain holds a razor-thin lead in the current vote count.

McCain, who currently totals 162 electoral votes from 21 states that he won, would increase to 173 with a win in Missouri. If the final count flips Missouri Democratic, Obama — who already has claimed 28 states plus the District of Columbia — would round out to 376 electoral votes.

What's up with Missouri, anyway?

Almost two weeks after Election Day, Americans know who their next President will be. But voters in Missouri still aren’t quite sure which candidate their state preferred.

With John McCain leading Barack Obama there by fewer than 5,000 votes with thousands of provisional ballots yet to be counted, election-watchers have been reluctant to toss the battleground into either candidate’s column, and it will still be days before the outcome is finally resolved.

Hanging in the balance along with Missouri’s 11 electoral votes is the state’s reputation as a national bellwether - Missourians have voted for the winner in every presidential election since 1904, except for 1956 (Eisenhower).

“It looks like we’re going to have about 6,300 (provisional ballots) that are going to be reviewed statewide,” said Laura Egerdal, a spokeswoman for the Missouri secretary of state, adding that about 2,000 of those ballots will come from heavily Democratic St. Louis County.

But though those ballots provide a glimmer of hope for the Obama campaign, even Democrats concede that it would be an astonishing turn of events for their candidate to overtake McCain.

REALLY weird happenings



1. Boy Hits Mom with Saw, Offers Her $5
Authorities say an 11-year-old boy hit his mother in the head with a saw and then offered her $5 not to call police.

2. Lucky Man Survives After Being Run Over by Train
Talk about being lucky - a north Alabama man is alive after being run over by a train.



My comment: Most probably it was Thomas ;)





3. Menu Glues Dog's Jaws Together
A Scottish terrier, trained to pick up its mistress' mail, ended up in the hands of an English vet after a fast-food menu glued its teeth together.

4. Man Arrives at Bar with Pet Alligator
Heard the one about the guy who walked into a bar with an alligator? At Johnny's Saloon it was more than a joke when a man arrived with his 3-foot pet gator on a leash.

5. Man Attacks Girlfriend Over Macaroni
An unemployed man faces a domestic assault charge after he allegedly attacked his girlfriend for making him macaroni for dinner.

6. Woman Finds Frozen Pig Head on Pole in Her Yard
Police are investigating after a woman leaving for work with her 9-year-old daughter found a frozen pig head stuck on top of a pole next to a tree in her yard.

7. Cat Missing for Over 13 Years Back with Owners
A couple recently had an unexpected reunion with an old housemate: their pet cat who went missing more than 13 years ago.

8. More Cockroaches Expected in Florida
Florida researchers say a hissing cockroach that grows as big as 5 inches inadvertently could be released in the state and, if so, would thrive.

My comment: I hate cockroaches... never knew it could grow to THAT BIG!!! YIPES!!! Anyways, I googled this and found that this news refers to the Madagascar hissing cockroach. And there are even people keeping them as pets! This is even weirder! Sheesh... a cockroach as a pet...

9. Woman Found Living with Three Dead Siblings
An elderly woman has been living with two skeletons and a badly decomposed body of her siblings in a suburb of Chicago, one of whom may have died at least 20 years ago.

My comment: Poor lady. Didn't anyone visit her at all for the past 20 years?

Winning images of the European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008


I love gazing and pondering upon award-winning photographs and here are some of the winners and commended entries of the European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008 competition:




1. "Children and black lace-reef sharks on Aldabra Atoll, the Seychelles" by Peter Verhoog, the Netherlands. Highly commended in the Man and Nature category.




2. "Clown fish" by Franco Banfi, Switzerland. Highly commended in the Underwater World category.



3. "Detained by the storm" by Łukasz Zandecki, Poland. Winner of the Birds category.



4. "Bush meat" by David Maitland, Great Britain. Overall winner of the competition. David Maitland took this photograph at a food market near Libreville in Gabon. It shows the carcass of a Black Colobus monkey being prepared to be sold. The monkey's chopped-off head is thrown onto a fire to burn off its fur.



If you have not heard of David Maitland, you should check out some of his works HERE, and HERE... it's astonishingly disturbing, but extremely insightful. Makes those of us who seldom see nature appreciate things that we are missing out in life more, and as in the case of the monkey photo above, exposes the cruelty of some twisted men. Those bloody idiots.


5. "Elephants in the twilight" by Richard Packwood, Great Britain. Highly commended in the Mammals category.



6. "Mountain hare in a snowdrift", also by Richard Packwood, Great Britain. Highly commended in the Mammals category.



7. "Trembling poplar branch in Autumn" by Markus Botzek, Germany. Highly commended in the Plants category.



8. "Old green turtle" by Andreas Maecker, Germany. Highly commended in the Underwater World category.



9. "Cayman under the stars" by William & Matthew Burrard-Lucas, Great Britain. Runner up in the Other Animals category.



10. "Right of way" by Thomas Dürrenberger, Switzerland. Highly commended in the Underwater World category.



11. "Duel in the trio" by Marc Steichen, Luxemburg. Runner up in the Mammals category.



12. "Dragonflies" by Georg Kantioler, Italy. Highly commended in the Other Animals category.



13. "Giant vacuum cleaner" by Thomas Heckmann, Germany. Highly commended in the Underwater World category.


I hope you had enjoyed the photos as much as I did :) Do let me know which one is your favorite!

Have a great weekend!