it rained yesterday. there is so much energy in the air and it felt good to inhale all the ionized particles hanging on the breeze. speaking of which, seals and crofts started to croon over my speakers. wow! lovely day. enthused, energized, electrified by the enigma of it all. it is true indeed that we choose the colors of our day. i chose to be happy today. thank you!!!

BALDWIN PARK, Calif. – A birdnapper snatched Gordo the skateboarding parrot. The 30-year-old green Guatemalan parrot, a popular attraction for a decade in the San Gabriel Valley community of Baldwin Park, was taken from his front porch cage Wednesday morning.

Owner Fred Mireles said his mother heard some commotion and spotted a man running away with Gordo. The 47-year-old childless man says he’s devastated, adding Gordo is like a kid to him.

Baldwin Park police Sgt. Darryl Kosaka said it could be difficult to recover the parrot, noting that animals are often stolen to become pets in other households or to be sold.

Mireles said the birdnapper is “up against a can of worms” because Gordo isn’t used to strangers and will start biting. - AP

http://www.gmanews.tv/story/154452/Gordo-the-skateboarding-parrot-stolen

A Galapagos National Park picture, showing a pink iguana. A team of Ecuadoran and Italian researchers have discovered a unique species of pink land iguanas living on the Galapagos Islands.

http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/slideshow/photo//090106/photos_sc_afp/bed4a4fe5df9c8c73f95e08a0c4488b5/

TOKYO — Two sushi bar owners paid more than $100,000 for a Japanese bluefin tuna at a Tokyo fish auction Monday, about ten times the average price and the highest in nearly a decade, market officials said.

The 282-pound (128-kilogram) premium tuna caught off the northern coast of Oma fetched 9.63 million yen ($104,700), the highest since 2001, when another Japanese bluefin tuna brought an all-time record of 20 million yen, market official Takashi Yoshida said.

Yoshida said the extravagant purchase — about $370 per pound ($817 per kilogram) — went to a Hong Kong sushi bar owner and his Japanese competitor who reached a peaceful settlement to share the big fish. The Hong Kong buyer also paid the highest price at last year’s new year event at Tokyo’s Tsukiji market, the world’s largest fish seller, which holds near-daily auctions.

Typical tuna prices at Tokyo fish markets are less than $25 per pound ($55 per kilogram). But bluefin tuna is considered by gourmets to be the best, and when sliced up into small pieces and served on rice it goes for very high prices in restaurants.

Premium fish — sometimes sliced up while the customers watch — also have advertising value, underscoring a restaurant’s quality, like a rare wine.

Thousands of tuna were auctioned at Monday’s festive new year sale, which often brings unusually high prices.

“It was the best tuna of the day, but the price shot up because of the shortage of domestic bluefin,” Yoshida said, citing rough weather at the end of December. Buyers vied for only three Oma bluefin tuna Monday, compared to 41 last year.

A similar size imported bluefin caught off the eastern United States sold for 1.42 million yen ($15,400) in Monday’s auction.

Due to growing concerns over the impact of commercial fishing on the bluefin variety’s survival, members of international tuna conservation organizations, including Japan, have agreed to cut their bluefin catch quota for 2009 by 20 percent to 22,000 tons. - AP

http://www.gmanews.tv/story/142642/Premium-tuna-fetches-100000-in-Tokyo-auction

LONDON (Reuters) – Eight of Britain’s fattest pets are to embark on a 100-day diet and fitness regime in a bid to crowned this year’s pet fit club champion.

The seven dogs and one cat, who are all more than 30 percent overweight and weigh a combined total of 191 kg (30 stones), were picked by veterinary charity PDSA who are running the slimming contest.

The animals, who need to lose a total of 74 kg to reach their ideal weight, will be put on specially tailored diet and exercise programmes.

The pet who achieves the biggest percentage weight loss and best follows their new regime will be crowned champion, winning their owner a pet-friendly holiday.

PDSA statistics show around 30 percent of dogs are overweight or obese, amounting to around 1.95 million fat dogs.

“Alongside their daily portions of pet food, owners often show their affection by giving unhealthy human treats such as cheese, buttered toast and biscuits. They don’t realise they are actually killing their pets with kindness,” said Sean Wensley, a veterinary surgeon at PDSA.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081117/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_fatpets;_ylt=AlyCg.fLM6U2ShG4MejzlkDtiBIF

Is global warming really at hand?

I was reading the “Planet at Peril” blog of CNN this morning and was alarmed because the Arctic ice shelf is melting at an alarming rate. The saddest evidence that points to global warming is that polar bears are drowning! Since the ice floes which they perch upon to hunt and raise their little cubs are melting, they’re forced to swim further and further away from shore and though they’re naturally good swimmers, sometimes they don’t make it back.

What to do?!

I’m in love with a new animal! It’s almost as pretty as giraffes which isn’t surprising, considering that they’re relatives. Okapis are a cross between giraffes (though their necks are not as long) and zebras. For a while, it was believed that they were merely mythical since they’re rather elusive and it was only recently that they were able to take pictures of these animals via camera traps. Soooo pretty! Mahirap lang nga i-drawing. Hehe

PHNOM PENH– The price of rat meat has quadrupled in Cambodia this year as inflation has put other meat beyond the reach of poor people, officials said Wednesday.

With consumer price inflation at 37 percent according to the latest central bank estimate, demand has pushed a kilogram of rat meat up to around 5,000 riel (69 pence) from 1,200 riel last year.

Spicy field rat dishes with garlic thrown in have become particularly popular at a time when beef costs 20,000 riel a kg.

Officials said rats were fleeing to higher ground from flooded areas of the lower Mekong Delta, making it easier for villagers to catch them.

“Many children are happy making some money from selling the animals to the markets, but they keep some for their family,” Ly Marong, an agriculture official, said by telephone from the Koh Thom district on the border with Vietnam.

“Not only are our poor eating it, but there is also demand from Vietnamese living on the border with us.”

He estimated that Cambodia supplied more than a ton of live rats a day to Vietnam.

Rats are also eaten widely in Thailand, while a state government in eastern India this month encouraged its people to eat.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storyPage.aspx?storyId=129555

Photo: ROTHAMSTED RESEARCH VISUAL COMMUNICATIONS UNIT

A scientist has discovered a previously unknown insect—–after buying it on eBay.

Dr Richard Harrington thought he was buying just an interesting curio when he paid £20 for the fossilised insect encased in amber.

But it turned out to be a long extinct type of aphid which became trapped in the resin as it seeped from a tree millions of years ago.

It has now been named after Dr Harrington, vice-president of the UK’s Royal Entomological Society, who specialises in aphids.

He bought the fossil on the internet auction site from a man in Lithuania.

Because he couldn’t identify it himself Dr Harrington, who works at the world-famous Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire, sent it to fossil aphid expert Professor Ole Heie in Denmark. He confirmed that it was from a previously undescribed species.

“I was interested to see what it was because I’ve worked with a team of people involved in monitoring and forecasting aphids, those of greenfly and their relatives in this country,” Dr Harrington said.

“I looked at it with my team and we thought we could identify it down to the level of genus, but we had no idea what the species was.”

The 3-4mm insect is encased in a 40-50m -year-old piece of amber about the size of a small pill.

“I had thought it would be rather nice to call it Mindarus ebayi,” said Dr Harrington.

“Unfortunately using flippant names to describe new species is rather frowned upon these days.”

Instead, Professor Heie named the new species Mindarus harringtoni after Dr Harrington.

“It’s not uncommon to find insects in amber… but I’m not sure that one has turned up on eBay that has been undiscovered before. It’s a rather unusual route to come by,” said Dr Harrington.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2591856/Unknown-insect-discovered-on-eBay.html

Before everything, may gusto lang akong i-share na not so relevant to the pinaka-post, pero anywho…

Disclaimer: Di ako ang gumawa ng video na ‘to. Di ko rin kilala kung sino. Kahit yung movie, hindi ko alam. Ngayon ko lang siya ire-research.

*spoilers*

EDIT: Title ng movie is Becoming Jane, directed by Julian Jarrold. It’s about a romance between Jane Austen (Anne Hathaway) and Thomas Leroy (James McAvoy). If you’re looking for a nice lovey-dovey movie with lots of kissing scenes, this one’s good. 8D

Unfortunately, if you’re expecting a happy ending…

–

Eto na!

A literary collaboration of the CW majors minus 1 (kasi yung imaginary blockmate namen ay masyadong imaginary), based on the poem Lola Coqueta by Isabela Banzon.

–

ANDY, CATHY, JAMIE, KARLA AND ME

–

Cecilia stood by the window, alone, and not at all looking forward to the following day. Her eyes caught the sight of a man working hard under the sun, tending the field with sweat all over his body. This was Fidel, the man her heart irrevocably beats for.

Tears fell down on her cheek as she remembered the fate set between them. Fidel caught her gaze; Cecilia looked away. Suddenly the painful truth hit her — they were not meant to be together.

Lola Coqueta entered Cecilia’s room, her presence oblivious to the bride-to-be. When the room was filled with the sweet melody of a kundiman, that was only when Cecilia noticed that her grandmother was already beside her.

“I wish you’d stop looking at him,” Lola Coqueta said as she motioned to close the window. Cecilia held her lola’s arm and stopped her. Lola Coqueta sighed, “For what are those tears? You are getting married to Ramoncito tomorrow! Don’t waste your time fantasizing on what will never happen!” “But, Lola, I love him,” Cecilia interrupted her. “I never loved Ramoncito, and I know I never will!”

Cecilia sat on the sofa with her grandmother comforting her, patting her shoulder as she shed more tears.

“Everything is just an act,” Lola Coqueta said. “From the engagement, to the wedding… Ay, the things you must do to ensure a wedding —”

“Lola, I don’t understand —”

“That’s the point! You don’t have to. You don’t marry for love! Love is overrated. You, hija, are marrying Ramoncito for the money and everything else that goes with it!”

Lola Coqueta looked at Cecilia, and said, “Por favor, use your cocote and do not waste on that poor boy Fidel your undying love.” After that, she walked away, leaving Cecilia to clear her thoughts.

Cecilia stood by the window once more, taking everything that her grandmother told her. She took one last glance at Fidel, and, with all her courage, closed the window, at the same time, locking away the memories and the love she felt for the only man she ever loved.

FIN.

–

In fairness, sa lahat ng mga short stories na pinasa kay prof, amin ang pinaka… sexual enlightening. With sweat all over his body morals and good manners, among other things… hehehe. Plus, sabi ni Jamie ang EMO daw. I agree. It’s a very good example of a girl emo-ing over her… ungranted wish to love freely.

Still. Emo.

Today, nag-bus ako pauwi. Super fun niya talaga, albeit mahal at may pagka mabaho strong-smelling yung katabi ko. Okay lang yun. At least gumagana ang aircon at nareregulate ang amoy sa buong bus.

Share-share kaming lahat, para fair. 8D

Ayun, since wala naman akong LA class, nagliwaliw muna ako sa Geyfwey Mol. Binilang ko lahat ng nakita kong naka-stripes (at kasama na ko dun!) and I arrived to the very shocking number of 116! Nakakaturn-off na tuloy magstripes.

Aw.

Sabi ni Fye, mukha akong hayop diyosa. I love you, too!

UP WISHLIST ITEM # 2

Gusto kong makapasok sa pinto na iyon, found in the new CAL building. Tingin ka lang sa taas.