got this from forwarded mail (the comments are not mine):

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.
(Hardly seems worth it.)

If you farted consistently for 6 years and 9 months, enough gas is produced to create the energy of an atomic bomb.
(Now that's more like it!)

The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps out to the body to squirt blood 30 feet.
(O.M.G.!)

AA pig's orgasm lasts 30 minutes.
(In my next life, I want to be a pig.)

A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starves to death.
(I'm still not over the pig.)

Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories a hour
(Don't try this at home, maybe at work)

The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male's head off.
("Honey, I'm home. What the...?!")

The flea can jump 350 times its body length. It's like a human jumping the length of a football field.
(30 minutes.. lucky pig! Can you imagine?)

The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.
(What could be so tasty on the bottom of a pond?!)

Some lions mate over 50 times a day.
(I still want to be a pig in my next life...quality over quantity)

Butterflies taste with their feet.
(Something I always wanted to know.)

The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.
(Hmmmmmm......)

Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people.
(If you're ambidextrous, do you split the difference?)

Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.
(okay, so that would be a good thing)

A cat's urine glows under a black light.
(I wonder who was paid to figure that out?)

An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.
(I know some people like that.)

Starfish have no brains
(I know some people like that too.)

Polar bears are left-handed.
(If they switch, they'll live a lot longer)

Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure.
(What about that pig??)

be inspired...

here's a story of faith, love and dedication...
truly inspiring, even for those who think they don't need it...
NOTE!!! read this first before watching the vid




!!!double post!!!

site blocking anyone?

ever wanted to block a URL site (for whatever reason)?
check this link

i've been wanting to NOT visit a site for a time now but my senses always fail me so i've been looking for a way to block sites at browser level...
i just found this one... what's good about it is that you don't have to install anything so it's perfectly safe if you're worrying about installing softwares from unwanted sources

keywords: browser level URL site blocking

Are you floater or a sinker?

Signs From A Stool

If your diet has sufficient fibre your stool should be a floater.
However it it's a sinker, you might not be eating enough fibre.

taboos

An 8-year-old muay thai boxer fighting for his 'life'...
A 6-year-old forced by a nation to be a living goddess...
A 13-year-old deep-miner depending on cigarettes and coca leaves to get thruogh a miner's day...
These are real 'taboos' in different places of the world. I'll try to describe them as how I understand it as short as possible.

OUTSIDE BANGKOK, THAILAND
Muay Thai is a national sport in Thailand and is considered deadly. Bangkok has banned fighting for those weighing below 100-lbs, targeted for children. Since these 'young' fights draw big crowds, they still have fights outside Bangkok. Jay, the 8-yo featured fights not for pleasure of beating someone up but for the money. One win could give their family his father's half-year salary. Sad to think that his parents even put him up to it. Muay Thai fights in Thailand are fueled by gambling. The audience bet on their winning fighters. At a championship bout, Jay had the opp to win an equivalent of his father's yearly salary. Putting their faith in him, Jay's neighbors and his family gamble a large sum for him to win. A terrible pressure for and 8-yo. For that championship bout, he lost the fight and along with it, his family's and neighbors' money.

KATHMANDU, NEPAL
In Nepal, there's a tradition considered taboo in other cultures. They choose a girl aged around 6-14 yo to be a living embodiment of their god. The chosen girl, kumari, will be worshipped and treated as divine. She will be taken away from her family and will live in solitude until her first period, or until she bleeds from any wound. They believe this living god will set the future of their country. What can be considered taboo with this tradition is that the kumari will lose her childhood. While other children are playing, she is locked up in a 'gilded cage' and visited to be worshipped. She can come out only once a year during the annual kumari festival. The effects of solitude can be seen after the kumari is reverted back to common status. Ex-kumaris are seen to be silent types and speak only when spoken to. Here's a link for more kumari info.

POTOSI, BOLIVIA
In Potosi, there's a mountain filled with silver. Mostly, boys 13-yo above go to work the mine during summer to earn money for necessity. On their way to the mine, they pass by nearby smallshops to by dynamites, cigarettes and coca leaves(raw ingredient for cocaine). They need these for the job ahead. Most of them compare going down to the deep-mine to hell and they need the cigarettes and coca leaves to get them through hell. The dynamites they use for blast digging, where every blast can cause the tunnels to give-in, so they say a prayer before every blasting. Though risky, most boys choose this job from peddling or from being conductors in buses. The mining job pays 5$ a day as compared to the other jobs paying only pennies... Here's a link to a miner's experience at the mine.

***
The above involved children in difficult situations but they are there because of necessity and/or tradition.
I will NOT say these are bad cultures/traditions cause they aren't. They can be considered taboo by other cultures but that's really the world we live in - full of diversity in different cultures - and these make the world and interesting place to explore.

source: "Taboo", documentary, ArtsCentral

of shawarma and other stuffs

I just learned something(s) new today...
- Shawarma is a turkish dish, contrary to what most believe that this is from india. Well, at least I thought it was from India. I love roti prata - now this is Indian and looks pretty much like the bread used in shawarma. I was in fact surprised that the Indian I asked haven't even heard of shawarma. At least now I know why. =) You're not wondering where I got this trivia, but I'm gonna tell you anyway. :) I was watching a documentary about Korea (Dynamic Korea) and one part of the show was a showcase of the intenational variety of food offered there. Shawarma was featured as one such dish. Here's more: meat used in turkish shawarma is lamb meat and specially prayed over for its mostly muslim turkish customers. I have only tried the beef shawarma (my favorite is the one sold at Ayala MRT) and I really do enjoy it. Hmmmm I wonder what lamb shawarma must taste like? Funny I learned this from a documentary about Korea. =) (More info about Shawarma.)
- Lobsters taste good any way it's prepared. Well, at least i does look yummy. In another documentary, this time about Japan (Japan Hour), the feature was about a group of island provinces somewhere in Japan. A peaceful place with boat routes instead of trains and subways. There's a hotel there which is always full in the peak season. Being a hotel in the islands, one could guess there specialty - yes, seafood =D. Now that's something someone I know would enjoy =). Now back to lobster talk... One of the hotel's specialty is complete meal course (forgot the course's name but I'm sure there was lobster in it) with the main star being the lobster. First, course would be all-sashimi and the fishes are all island-fresh and the type depends on what is caught that day. But a whole fresh lobster is always present in the menu. Just looking at how Mitsugi(was that his name?) ate the first course made my mouth water, and the way he ate the lobster... Then next course would be salted-grilled lobster. Words can't describe the taste I saw but I really wished I was the one doing the tasting. (Count: 2 lobsters) Then the third course came: another lobster, this time halved. The first half steamed in broth, and the other deep-fried. The steamed one looked more appetizing, but I still want to try the deep-fried. Now the last course came. (Mitsugi must have been bloated already by this time, but hwo cares? He might not even feel anything 'cause he was in lobster heaven.) It was a rice-topping. Topped with what? Yup, lobster!!! But only half this time. (Count: 3.5 lobsters) Whew!!! Talk about being full just by watching. (I was actually eating something while watching them lobster hehehe.)

Hmmmm... I think that's trivia overload already for a mere blog entry. Birch3 signing out...

Here's more... I also learned the process of how they create karaoke in Korea, from song-hunting to video editing to live production in a karaoke-machine. Maybe it's also the same elsewhere. It's a simple process but I think that's for another blog entry if the mood hits me. Birch3 signing out... REALLY...

to presume or to assume

Ever doubted as to when to presume or when to assume? Or rather, ever had trouble when to use presume or assume?
I did lots of times... But just a minute ago, I got the urge to look it up.
->> (If you had trouble as well (or just plain curious), click here.) <<-

Now... I'm wondering if I cam presume and assume at the same time. :-?