And The Plot Thickens...

Seems like I've been getting into the habit of watching episodes of these series consecutively (namely NBC's Heroes and ABC's Grey's Anatomy). Just finished watching Episode 17s of Heroes "Company Man" and Grey's Anatomy "Some Kind of Miracle" respectively. I Love Heroes S01E17! Just when you think that things are starting to clear up, they don't! Can't wait for Episode 18! Haaaay... I can't really say the same thing about Grey's S03E17 though, it was kind of so-so since it was a bit predictable.

Which Superhero are you? Take the test...

Hahaha! I was sort of expecting this... :) I think I'm more of the Grey Hulk though...


Your results:
You are Hulk

Hulk 60% Green Lantern 60% Spider-Man 60% Robin 50% Supergirl 50% Superman 50% Catwoman 50% Wonder Woman 40% The Flash 40% Batman 40% Iron Man 35%

You are a wanderer with amazing strength.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

What will make me leave the Philippines... An Open Letter

This has been circulating around in Email. I really don't know who this guy is but I think what he's saying here makes sense...

Dear Fellow Filipino,

Good
day to all of you! Before I begin my letter... just a disclaimer, for
people who know me they know that I love the Philippines very much and
I am not really one who rants and complaints to high heavens about what
is happening to our country and does nothing about it, in fact, I feel
that at my relatively young age of 27, I have done much service to the
Philippines by setting up Pathways to Higher Education which has sent
more than 500 poor but deserving students to college and AHON
Foundation which has already built two public elementary school
libraries that have benefitted more than 3,500 students. Yet, after
seeing how events in our nation have transpired the past few weeks and
talking with some friends, I feel the urge to share with you my own
thoughts and feelings.

Over the weekend, we saw the completion
of two major political alliances for this coming Senate Elections that
has just began here in the Philippines . Now we have two political
forces with familiar faces nonetheless on opposite sides of the fences.
On one end, you have Tito Sotto and Tessie Aquino-Oreta who were two
major stalwarts of the opposition and the FPJ Campaign in 2004
hobnobbing with the woman (Pres. GMA) whom they claimed to have cheated
FPJ in the last Presidential Elections.On the other side of the fence,
you see Manny Villar, the former house speaker who was actually
responsible for impeaching Erap now part of the United Opposition who
is led by no less than... Erap himself.

Now if you don't see
anything wrong with this picture then you must be one of the many
Filipinos who have accepted this very sad reality that there
is indeed no permanent ideals that our government leaders stand up for
but rather they just go where there self-interests can best be served.
It is this kind of politics why I no longer wonder why good people like
Ramon Magsaysay Awardee Mayor Jesse Robredo of Naga City or outstanding
Bulacan Governor Josie Dela Cruz will find it hard or worse, never be
elected to national positions.

It is with these in mind that I'd
like to share with you what are events this coming May elections that
will make me consider leaving the Philippines :

1.) If former
COMELEC Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano of Hello Garci fame wins in
his bid to become Congressman of Bukidnon...seeking to replace a good
man no less in incumbent Cong. Neric Acosta... We would really be the
laughing stock of the whole world if we allow a man with the reputation
of Garci to be one of our so called "Honorable Gentlemen".

2.)
If Dancing Queen Tessie Aquino Oreta reclaims her seat at the Senate...
I hope that all of us would still remember that dance that she did
during the 2001 impeachment hearings after they voted to overrule the
decision of then Chief Justice Davide... let us make sure that people
like her never make it to the Senate again.

3.) If Richard Gomez
becomes a senator... what does he know about making laws? We already
have the likes of Bong Revilla and Lito Lapid in the Senate and their
performance or lack of it would be reason enough not to elect another
actor who has no prior experience in government to the distinguished
halls of the Senate.

4.) If Gringo Honasan wins again.... have
we not learned our lesson? I cannot believe that just because someone
is charismatic then we will just elect him to become one of our
senators despite the fact that he has time and again caused so much
instability in our country... if we want a military junta similar to
that of Thailand ... then lets all vote for this guy....

5.) If
Manny Pacquiao becomes Congressman of General Santos City... everybody
loves Manny the Boxing Champ but Manny the Lawmaker? Lets be realistic
here, Manny is our Hero alright but I think it takes more than just
great boxing skills and a desire to serve to be able to make
appropriate laws that would help uplift the lives of the many Filipinos
who live in Poverty.

6.) If Lito Lapid wins for Mayor of Makati
City... I don't like Jojo Binay as well but Lito Lapid as city mayor of
the country's finance and business center?!?! And do you really think
he is from Makati and has good plans for the city? The Arroyos asking
someone like him to run just goes to show you how much love and concern
this government has for our country.

7.) If Chavit Singson becomes a Senator, Illegal Gambling = Chavit... enough said.

Now
if all of these 7 things happen during this coming elections then don't
be surprised if I decide to leave this country that I love dearly.

Like I said during the first part of my letter, I feel that I have done much for this country but I think it's
time that Filipinos become more vigilant and critical in selecting our
leaders for the sake of our future and the generations that will go
beyond us. So I appeal to every Filipino who asks what can I actually
do for my country... Choose and vote for the right people this coming
elections, huwag na tayong magpaloko sa mga kandidatong maganda lang
ang jingle o gwapo lang sa mga poster. Let us choose leaders who have a good track record for service and who are genuinely committed towards serving our country.Manindigan naman tayong lahat para sa ating Kinabukasan at para sa Kapakanan ng ating Bayan!Thank you very much for your time in reading this letter.

Sincerely,

Harvey S. Keh
Email: harveykeh@gmail.com

WTF?!

...and I mean it in a good way. I just finished two episode 16's (Heroes Season 1, Episode 16 - "Unexpected" and Grey's Anatomy Season 3, Episode 16 - "Drowning On Dry Land") and I'm at a loss for words...

An Inconvenient Truth

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Movies
Genre:	Documentary

A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.

Director Davis Guggenheim eloquently weaves the science of global warming with Mr. Gore's personal history and lifelong commitment to reversing the effects of global climate change. A longtime advocate for the environment, Gore presents a wide array of facts and information in a thoughtful and compelling way. "Al Gore strips his presentations of politics, laying out the facts for the audience to draw their own conclusions in a charming, funny and engaging style, and by the end has everyone on the edge of their seats, gripped by his haunting message," said Guggenheim. An Inconvenient Truth is not a story of despair but rather a rallying cry to protect the one earth we all share. "It is now clear that we face a deepening global climate crisis that requires us to act boldly, quickly, and wisely," said Gore. -From Amazon.com

It's an eye-opener. A horror movie of sorts with a punch cause it's very real. If you care about your children and your children's children, you'd rethink everything.

Potah!

Tangenah!  It's probably the 5th or 6th time, I actually lost count already that some asshole neighbor upstairs or downstairs has been playing the Gregorian version of Duran Duran's "Ordinary World." It's not so much as I hate the song but the repetition! It actually made me do a search on Duran Duran's discography around the second time he played it. At least some good came out of it, though. I found a torrent download of their complete discography. 

Regarding "Free" Art...

Reposted from http://abiogenisis.deviantart.com/journal/11639859/#journal which pretty much sums up how I feel about the subject.

___________________________________________________________________

Every day, there are more and more Craigs List posts seeking “artists”
for everything from auto graphics to comic books to corporate logo
designs. More people are finding themselves in need of some form of
illustrative service.



But what they’re NOT doing, unfortunately, is realizing how rare someone with these particular talents can be.



To those who are “seeking artists”, let me ask you; How many people do
you know, personally, with the talent and skill to perform the services
you need? A dozen? Five? One? …none?



More than likely, you don’t know any. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be posting on craigslist to find them.



And this is not really a surprise.



In this country, there are almost twice as many neurosurgeons as there
are professional illustrators. There are eleven times as many certified
mechanics. There are SEVENTY times as many people in the IT field.



So, given that they are less rare, and therefore less in demand, would
it make sense to ask your mechanic to work on your car for free? Would
you look him in the eye, with a straight face, and tell him that his
compensation would be the ability to have his work shown to others as
you drive down the street?



Would you offer a neurosurgeon the “opportunity” to add your name to
his resume as payment for removing that pesky tumor? (Maybe you could
offer him “a few bucks” for “materials”. What a deal!)



Would you be able to seriously even CONSIDER offering your web hosting
service the chance to have people see their work, by viewing your
website, as their payment for hosting you?



If you answered “yes” to ANY of the above, you’re obviously insane. If
you answered “no”, then kudos to you for living in the real world.



But then tell me… why would you think it is okay to live out the same,
delusional, ridiculous fantasy when seeking someone whose abilities are
even less in supply than these folks?



Graphic artists, illustrators, painters, etc., are skilled tradesmen.
As such, to consider them as, or deal with them as, anything less than
professionals fully deserving of your respect is both insulting and a
bad reflection on you as a sane, reasonable person. In short, it makes
you look like a twit.



A few things you need to know:



1. It is not a “great opportunity” for an artist to have his work seen
on your car/’zine/website/bedroom wall, etc. It IS a “great
opportunity” for YOU to have their work there.



2. It is not clever to seek a “student” or “beginner” in an attempt to
get work for free. It’s ignorant and insulting. They may be “students”,
but that does not mean they don’t deserve to be paid for their hard
work. You were a “student” once, too. Would you have taken that job at
McDonalds with no pay, because you were learning essential job skills
for the real world? Yes, your proposition it JUST as stupid.



3. The chance to have their name on something that is going to be seen
by other people, whether it’s one or one million, is NOT a valid
enticement. Neither is the right to add that work to their “portfolio”.
They get to do those things ANYWAY, after being paid as they should.
It’s not compensation. It’s their right, and it’s a given.



4. Stop thinking that you’re giving them some great chance to work.
Once they skip over your silly ad, as they should, the next ad is
usually for someone who lives in the real world, and as such, will pay
them. There are far more jobs needing these skills than there are
people who possess these skills.



5. Students DO need “experience”. But they do NOT need to get it by
giving their work away. In fact, this does not even offer them the
experience they need. Anyone who will not/can not pay them is obviously
the type of person or business they should be ashamed to have on their
resume anyway. Do you think professional contractors list the
“experience” they got while nailing down a loose step at their
grandmother’s house when they were seventeen?



If you your company or gig was worth listing as desired experience, it
would be able to pay for the services it received. The only experience
they will get doing free work for you is a lesson learned in what kinds
of scrubs they should not lower themselves to deal with.



6. (This one is FOR the artists out there, please pay attention.) Some
will ask you to “submit work for consideration”. They may even be
posing as some sort of “contest”. These are almost always scams. They
will take the work submitted by many artists seeking to win the
“contest”, or be “chosen” for the gig, and find what they like most.
They will then usually have someone who works for them, or someone who
works incredibly cheap because they have no originality or talent of
their own, reproduce that same work, or even just make slight
modifications to it, and claim it as their own. You will NOT be paid,
you will NOT win the contest. The only people who win, here, are the
underhanded folks who run these ads. This is speculative, or “spec”,
work. It’s risky at best, and a complete scam at worst. I urge you to
avoid it, completely.



So to artists/designers/illustrators looking for work, do everyone a
favor, ESPECIALLY yourselves, and avoid people who do not intend to pay
you. Whether they are “spec” gigs, or just some guy who wants a free
mural on his living room walls. They need you. You do NOT need them.
Say NO to free art.



And for those who are looking for someone to do work for free…please
wake up and join the real world. The only thing you’re accomplishing is
to insult those with the skills you need. Get a clue.



If you agree with the above important information, please pass it
along. The more people know, the faster we can correct this problem.

Heroes? Zeroes!