Month: January 2011

Inhaleable Food!

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Yeah, that’s not a play on words or a metaphor or whatever. It’s true! You don’t have to chew or swallow. All you have to do is breathe. How funky is that? This futuristically flabbergasting contraption is properly named Le Whaf because that is precisely how it works. You “whaf” up the vaporized food products and then you’re done. Seriously, that’s it! Astronaut food much? I mean we are literally reaching the space age or alien era or robotic future or whatever you want to call it. First they build a hotel in space, then they make a car that drives itself and now we can breathe food. What next, virtual classrooms? Oh wait, I’m pretty sure they already have those. Who knows! We’ve advanced so much it’s hard to keep track. Oh and for those girls that are “watching their figure” there are hardly any calories (*said with a heavy Valley Girl accent*)!

Huffable Food

5 Chinese Dining Habits

weirdjennyLeave a comment

There are many myth and superstitions in Chinese culture, even in their eating habits. Here are five major superstitions in Chinese eating habits.null

The first one is never rest chopsticks vertically in the rice. Because it looks like an incense which represents someone’s death. Second, do not turn over the fish. Turning over the fish looks like you are turning over a boat. And this boat carries all your good luck and fortune. So if you flip the fish over, it symbolizes that you are throwing all the luck and fortune away.null Third, when you are eating the noodles, don’t cut off the noodles. Because the length of the noodles represents the longevity of your life. So if you cut off the noodles, it means that you are shortened your own life.null

Fourth, never let your tea cup run dry. If your tea cup is dry, that means that there is nothing left in your life, so at least there should be something in your tea cup and it should be refilled immediately. Fifth, always order an even number of dishes. Odd number of dishes represents death, because during a funeral meal, people usually order an odd number of dishes. So next time, when you eat dinner with some Chinese people, you better watch out for these table manners!

There’s An Encore In My Dreams

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Albert King called him “the greatest white blues guitarist I’ve ever seen.” Rightfully so, his own unique style in a genre that innovation is hard to come by is recognized by thousands of adoring fans 20 years after his death in Alpine Valley. After a show where he played with his brother Jimmie, Eric Clapton, and Robert Cray, Stevie Ray Vaughan walked off stage the final time and onto a heaven bound plane in the middle of the night.

He was barred from local guitar competitions in his native Texas because he was deemed “too good” by the competition holders. He was the lead guitarist of one of the 90’s most influential heavy metal bands in Pantera. He too had a style all his own topped off with his trademark harmonic squeals and shredding style. Cowboys from Hell, Cemetery Gates, Mouth for War, and Walk showcase his work to perfection. His career and life ended with a bang in Ohio when a deranged fan shot and killed him on stage. Pardon the dark pun please, I’m just trying to lighten the mood. Darrell Lance Abbott known to the music world as “Dimebag” has been and still is unreplacable.

His incredible bass solos and riffs fooled two members from Metallica into believing what they heard was a guitar solo. Rather, it was the shredding of Cliff Burton. Renowned as one of the greatest bass guitarists metal has ever seen, he was with Metallica from 1983-86, their period of complete greatness and utter world domination. He provided the gut churning riffs and rhythm that has been the basis of “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” “Master of Puppets,” “Seek and Destroy,” and his famous bass solo “Anesthesia.” In the middle of the night, on their Master of Puppets European tour, he was thrown out the window of the tour bus as the bus hit a patch of black ice. He was crushed under the weight somewhere on the road by Ljunby, Sweden.Read More »

Soccer?

smackyjackjack2 Comments

Just the other day, my dad and I were talking about what were the most valuable sports teams in the world. He said Lakers, and I said that it had to be the Bulls. When I looked it up, I got a bit of a shock.

With Lakers being worth about 600 million dollars (according to Forbes), and the Bulls worth about 500 million, I figured that not a lot of teams could get much more valuable.  But boy was I wrong.

What I didn’t take into account was the world’s ridiculous obsession with soccer. Manchester United is worth a whopping $1.89  billion. $1.89  billion! How is there a single family owned team that is worth so much?

The answer lies with the strange relationship the world has with soccer (sorry, “futbol”)If you go anywhere in the world other than the US, then you can see what I mean. In places like Spain and Italy, soccer is huge. Why is that? It’s easy, can be played anywhere, and doesn’t require a lot of equipment. 

The one thing that the US has right is that soccer is a bummer. It is really boring to watch, and is frustrating to play. Whenever I play, I just wanna pick up the ball and throw it into the goal.

I guess I’m the odd one out.  The whole world cannot be wrong….usually. But a sport that’s played with your feet? Really?

Hyperbole and a Half

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I’ve recently stumbled upon another blog that has made me laugh harder than I thought possible. The blogger’s name is Allie Brosh, and she combines writing with creating near stick-figure drawings to help get her point across.

For Example:

Her blog is called Hyperbole and a Half, and features recurring characters from her real life such as her two dogs, Boyfriend, and a much younger, much more violent and hyperactive Allie.

She tends to talk about her past, such as the time her and her young friends violently attacked a teenage boy because they were playing “Wolves” or when she competed in a track meet only to start hallucinating due to the intense heat of Texas.

She has made me laugh out loud or more than one occasion, and I highly suggest to anyone that they should check it out.

Overlooked

therightliberal2 Comments

When I am asked who I think the footballer is, I always respond that the questioner must specify the position. For someone who has never played football it might be hard to understand, but the positions out on the soccer field are very different.

By far the most secluded player on any team is the goalkeeper. They have special rules for them , they wear a different jersey and they see a different game. When I say they see a different game I mean that they are able to see everything that goes on during a soccer game, watching from the back.

They have an incredibly hard job; telling people where to be and trying to organize a defence. They also face wickedly hard shots, diving to punch the ball away, slamming into the ground, sacrificing themselves.

As the saying goes, being a goalkeeper means long periods of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.

My mind is on this subject because today Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar announced he will be retiring at the end of this season. This is not a huge surprise given that he is 40, yet reading the headline I am filled with sadness.

Van der Sar came to United late in his career, after playing at Fulham and Juventus for many years as well as for the Netherlands. He gave United a real force at the back, giving the whole team confidence that even if there was a shot on goal, if it was a shot that could be saved, Van der Sar would save it.

He has been a leader and an inspiration to a position that is to often overlooked. It is the most stressful position on a football pitch and he controlled it gracefully. He has shown talent far above players half his age.

Despite family issues he gave everything he had for United, his most famous save coming against Nicholas Anelka in the Champions League final in 2008.

He will be remembered by United fans and I wish his the best of luck in whatever he does next.

The Return of the Lin.

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Best friends never grow apart, no matter the distance between them.

Wendy Lin has been a part of my life ever since my first year at OVS. Wendy was a prefect in my wing-she lived right across from me. Living in such close proximity, it was just a matter of time before a friendship blossomed. I was new, scared, and excited to come to this new school but Wendy let me feel just at home. She showed me around, and explained boarding school life to me. With her kindness, living away from home was easy and my life at Ojai Valley School began.

I don’t remember really fighting with Wendy. We have gotten mad, annoyed, or overwhelmed with each other at times, but we’ve never raised our voices at each other. Wendy and I generally agree on everything, or settle on things. We have a lot of things in common and a lot of things that make us individual people. I think that is a key factor to our friendship. We both look out for each other’s benefits, we make sure we don’t make stupid mistakes (and tell each other when we are being stupid), and we are sisters.

For the first half of the school year, Wendy decided to take her life in a new direction. She went to Santa Barbara High School for one semester and that was her first public school experience. She loved it, but she realized that this year, her junior year, was an integral part of her high school curriculum and her future college acceptances. Wendy, now, is back and we don’t feel any strange awkwardness or distance between us. I love her, and I am glad to have her back.

Four years strong, our friendship has only grown from the young, naive eighth grade girls that we were. Four years strong, and we can boast that we have never fought before. Four years strong, Wendy Lin has left and grown up in the public school’s eye. Four years strong, and she has returned to the school we had first met and next year, we will be five years strong, graduating on the same stage together, just as we had our 8th grade year.

Transfer Time

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As it is January the EPL transfer season is open. Most deals are either completed right at the begining or in teh final hours. This years has not seen many big name transfers in or out of the EPL, mostly inpart due to the economy.

Patrice Evra

Sir Alex Ferguson decided against any big transfers. The players supported him in this choice with Rio Ferdinand saying, “I look around the changing room and I’m happy with the players we’ve got”. This lack of trading comes as no surprise as Man U are top of the league and have a fairly deep roster.

A story that has not received very much attention up to this point is the intrest in 17-year-old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. He currently plays for Southhampton but is interested in training with Arsenal. This is very similar to the path that Theo Walcott took, going from Southhampton to Arsenal at a young age.

From the scouting reports, Chamberlin has quite a bit of talent and potential. Arsenal is a very good team for developing youth and Chamberlin would be well suited to go there. Arsenal has a tendency to do a great job developing young players and then selling them. They look to break that cycle, keeping players like Samir Nasri.

A shocking airline event

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When flying most people are scared of a terrorist attack or an engine failing, but passengers on flight 4376 had something else to worry about.

Lightning!

Wednesday US Airway’s flight 4376 was struck by lightening on its short flight from Charlotte, North Carolina to Lynchburg, Virginia. I’m not sure how the pilot navigated through what must have seemed like a thunder storm or if she had failed to notice, but the situation does seem a bit odd.

Although no one was harmed in the incident, the pilot called for an emergency landing just 20 miles south of its destination. None of the 13 passengers and three crew members probably didn’t expect such an exciting flight

For the original article click here

Terror on Moscow Airport Leaves 31 Dead and 168 Wounded.

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Today, in Moscow, families are mourning for their loved ones that never made it home. Children are waiting without a purpose for their mom or dad, brother or sister. Innocent lives were taken, stolen, by a suitcase carrying explosives. A suicide bomber entered the Domodedovo Airport earlier this day and murdered 31, and injured 168.

People saw things that weren’t ever meant to be seen. Severed legs, fingers, arms, and even heads were flying across the airport due to the power of the impact.

Artyom Zhilenkov witnessed this gruesome sight firsthand stating, “The guy standing next to me was torn to pieces.”

President Obama has offered American assistance whenever needed by the Russians. However, this bombing raises many questions on the Russian‘s ability to safe keep their public from terror attacks. Just a few years back, an explosion erupted inside the airport. Last year, a suicide bomber killed 40 people and wounded around 100. Does Russia really need to turn to America for national safety issues? Will this lack of security, will they be disqualified from hosting the 2014 Olympics? Only time will tell.