The Paomnnehal Pweor Of The Hmuan Mnid

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

Randomizing

What do you do when you just can't find one thing to write about? Write about completely random things...at least the ones worth mentioning from the last couple of days.

Gym

Rommel (my trainer) gave me a new gym program to work with for the next six months. I'm back to using free weights after a long time (last time I lifted was back in college). And I'm finally into the whole cardio thing to help me lose a lot more weight. I "push" on Tuesdays, "pull" on Thursdays, and dance on Saturdays. Yup, I dance. On Saturdays. Body Jam and Cardio Funk these classes be called. I've been going with Pi, Pats, and Zane for quite a while now. Nothing like a fun, feel-good, musical activity to close off a hectic and overly technical work week. And Rony, who I just recently discovered had a blog of his own, joined us last Saturday which was cool.

Movies

Let's just say I got to watch a bunch of movies recently.

• House of Flying Daggers. Amazing production design. I loved the fight scenes and the story is interesting and well written but I just found some bits and pieces a little too dragging. Zhang Ziyi is as stunning as ever. Overall, I liked this movie, but I still think Hero was better.



• Shark Tale. I found this movie highly entertaining. The humor is very...well, adult, just like the Shrek movies (the "dolphin" reference was hilarious). The actors' voices fit the characters perfectly. Dreamworks Animation has been turning up some good material so far. Here's hoping Madagascar delivers the same quality of entertainment.



• Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. I expected too much from this film. Jude Law was an okay hero but I'm sure he's better off as Alfie. Generally, I like Gwyneth Paltrow - I didn't like her in this one though. I just think they could've cast a better actress to play Polly. The story is well-executed though typical of a high-adventure-WW2-science-fiction movie. Rocketeer still tops my list of films of this type. Did I mention I fell asleep at one point during the movie?



• The Bourne Supremacy. Good movie. Probably tops or at least equals The Bourne Identity in all aspects. Lends itself to a third movie. But since JC and I sat at the front row when we watched this, we were just too damn near to appreciate most of the parts, especially the fight scenes and car chases. I had a serious headache after the screening.



• Fahrenheit 9/11. Michael Moore deserves the award, and George W. Bush can choke to death and go to hell (and lose to John Kerry while he's at it). And that's all I've got to say about that. Just check out Mon's blog if you want a better review.

G!

Brother Gerwin is back in town, much to the delight of close friends. HK seems to be treating him well (sorry, no picture reference available...yet). Too bad Jon couldn't be here to celebrate with us this coming Friday.

Suriya

Paolo, Toffer, and I went last Sunday to get ourselves some well deserved and overdue massages. I've always been an avid fan of their Oriental Body Work Massage (combination of Swedish and Shiatsu) but somehow I didn't want the Shiatsu part that day. So I got the Mind and Body Harmony Massage (Swedish). Like I was telling Pao and Tof, my mind and body were in serious need of harmony anyway. I'm glad I got it. It's my new favorite massage. If only I could afford to go there more often.

3200

So I got to salvage a Nokia 3200 from the office. It's not top of the line but what the hey, it's better than my own phone (which is just about ready to die). And it has a camera. I'm not sure how long I'll be holding on to this phone, but I'm hoping long enough to allow me to save up for a replacement. In the meantime, I took this baby's cam for a spin.

World without a Superman

Actor Christopher Reeve, who played 'Superman' in four movies and appeared as 'Dr. Virgil Swann' in the hit TV series Smallville, died at 5:30 p.m. Sunday after suffering a heart attack on Saturday and going into a coma. He was 52.

Reeve was rendered paralyzed for life after breaking his neck in 1995 during an equestrian competition. He emerged from his personal tragedy with the help of friends and loved ones and has since been a powerful lobbyist of medical research, especially on behalf of fellow sufferers of spinal cord injuries.

Reeve tried many therapies throughout his life, and had others move the legs he could not - so the muscles would be ready when he would be able to use them once more. He never gave up on his goal of walking again, despite missing his target of doing so by age 50.

His condition did however improve in ways that were remarkable to the medical community. In 2000, Reeve was able to move his index finger, and a specialized workout regimen has made his legs and arms stronger. He had also regained sensation in other parts of his body.

Reeve was a strong supporter of stem cell research, which he believed could pave the way to allow him and others like him to walk again.

Farewell, Superman. Thank you for making us believe that we can fly.

The Gender of 'Computer'

A French teacher was explaining to her class that in French, unlike English, nouns are designated as either masculine or feminine. "House" for instance, is feminine -- "la maison." "Pencil", however, is masculine -- "le crayon."

A student asked, "What gender is 'computer'?"

Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the class into two groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselves whether "computer" should be a masculine or a feminine noun.

Each group was asked to give four reasons for their recommendation. The men's group decided that "computer" should definitely be of the Feminine gender ("la computer"), because:

1. No one but their creator understands their internal logic;


2. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else;


3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for possible later retrieval; and


4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself
   spending half your paycheck on accessories for it.

The women's group, however, concluded that computers should be Masculine ("le computer"), because:

1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on;


2. They have a lot of data but still can't think for themselves;


3. They are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time they ARE the problem; and


4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited
   a little longer, you could have gotten a better model.

The women won.