Sixth Sense Technology.... the future is here

I am not usually excited about any new technologythat comes out especially in its early stages of development.
However, this new technology called "Sixth Sense" developed by Pranav Mistry promises to bring more eye-popping and amazing applications of technology that only men of vision would ever thought possible. Wonder how many years from now before we see this on the streets? A year from now..... 2... 3???

Efren Penaflorida is CNN's "2009 Hero of the Year"

CNN just culminated the awards night for 2009 Hero of the Year and this honor went to the Philippines, Efren Penaflorida. When Efren started this project years ago, there were no awards of this kind yet and now with this recognition, this truly is a testament that no good deed goes unnoticed.

It is no secret that my country, the Philippines, despite the fact that we have left the Marcos years behind us for 23 years now, we are still beset with problems of poverty, corruption, government ineptness, and instability. More than ever, the masses still has not stop taking into the streets their dissatisfaction with some of our government officials due to their blatant incompetence. There are some individuals who enter politics not because it was a venue for them to truly serve their countrymen but as a way to hold on to power, to stay in the limelight and sustain their popularity or for others as a means to make a living. From what I see on TV and read from Philippine newspapers online, the rallies have not stop and it still continues as a way to show our government their disgust and force government officials to make changes.

However, there were some individuals who also went to the streets hopefully to make the change that they wanted to happen but the way that they did this was to go around the poverty stricken streets of Manila. Instead of banners, flags and chants of protests , this group of street workers had their cart/s filled with books, papers, pencils, blackboard and other school supplies to bring a teaching environment to kids who would otherwise not have the opportunity to go to a real classroom due circumstances beyond their control.

It is true that learning does not only occur within the four walls of a school building but it can happen anywhere as long as you have a willing teacher and eager students. In this case, I am sure that the little children who have had this experience must have enjoyed the learning process regardless of where they get their lessons.

Efren Penaflorida and his group, the Dynamic Teen Company, took matters into their own hands with their pushcarts. Now more than ever, they will need our support so that they can go on with their work. We cannot rely on the government to sustain this project. Efren and his team did it on their own anyway...

The awards show will be broadcast on national television on CNN, November 26th (Thanksgiving day) at 9:00 PM, Eastern time.

AATheory

Daughter Karrol is now also a contributing writer for a new online site called "AATheory". AA stands for Asian-American and this site was created by Ellie Lee (of Ellie Meets Talent), who together with other recruited AA writers, serve to feature and highlight Asian-Americans in their field of  greatness and accomplishments and bring them together in one online reader site. Check out AATheory's online presence and also one of Karrol's article on Justin Chon.

Anybody who has accidentally stumbled upon asian websites or blogs created by young asian teens would notice the cute factor and the almost narcissistic contents of their sites. However, as these young asians grew up especially those who are living outside of Asia, a growing voice of Asian-Americans or A-Canadians, or A-British and others, are getting louder, wanting to be not only seen, but most of all, be heard. And in light of this restlessness, the world wide web has served as the venue for our young kids to be noticed. Currently, the popularity and meteoric rise of Asian entertainers, most notably, those from Korea and Taiwan (in part due to the popularity of Asian dramas) has spawned the Asian craze. We should not also forget the contribution of Asian athletes that has brought admiration and respect for their accomplishments. Now it is cool for Asian kids to admire asian actors, athletes, singers, etc. embracing anything asian from food, to clothing, to Hello Kitty (& other new toy characters), to Manga, to Anime and so on and so forth.

Asian traditions and customs which were once disdained and unappreciated by the young ones is now gaining relevance and importance in an Asian's search for their identity, an identity which was never really lost or gone, but just hidden away, to be found in time when the individual is ready to embrace who they really are. And despite of the influence and confluence of two cultures in one's upbringing, one realizes that they can never escape their asian-ness.

Efren Penaflorida: an unlikely hero....

There is a well-known adage that says "We must be the change we want to see in the world". Popularly attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, he did indeed embody the changes that he wanted to happen in his beloved India by his practice of civil disobedience through non-violence. In his lifetime and generation, he set the example for his countrymen to see that something can be achieved with enough determination, passion and love for one's fellowmen to bring about the needed reforms and give back India's autonomy.

In today's generation, the Philippines is also in need of a hero to bring the country forwards after it has suffered (and is still suffering) major setbacks for the last 2 decades or so. Emerging from this is an unsung hero who is doing his part in his own way and thought that the best way to make the poor rise from their misery is to educate them. Efren Penaflorida, who was by his account, also from the slums, had the background and the experience to practice what he preaches. Growing up, he realized that the only way out of his miserable life was for him to get an education. Now that he has somehow achieved his goal, instead of running away from his past and making a different life for himself, he, instead went back to the place where he started from with the intention of helping to educate the children in the slum areas who would not be able to get to a school at all. With his pushcart, he has books and other learning materials that he can use for teaching. To the skeptics, this must be an effort too minor to undertake that it isn't worth the time and effort..... but I am sure that for those children, who have not had the opportunity to step inside a school, it could have made a world of difference.

Efren together with a group of his friends who were committed to this idea formed "Dynamic Teen Company" and has made it their life's work and mission to provide the much needed education that would have alluded poverty-stricken kids in the slums if they didn't bring the school to them.

Because of this, CNN has recognized Efren Penaflorida's work and has been included as one of the finalists in the search for CNN Heroes for 2009. Anyone who believes in this worthy cause regardless of their country of origin is encouraged to vote and support this effort for this may be the start of a movement that could be applied not only in the Philippines but also to other countries with the same situation.

Voting for the CNN Heroes will be accepted until the 19th of November and the winner will be announced on the 26th, Thanksgiving day, at a special CNN tribute to be held at the Kodak Theater. Please vote and support Efren Penaflorida.

Bamboo and Blossoms: The Fall Chrysanthemum Show

The Smith College's Botanic Garden will be holding its annual fall Chrysanthemum show at the Lyman Plant House and this year's theme will include bamboo sculptures. The actual date for the flower show will be from Nov. 7 through the 22nd. However, in conjunction with the flower show there is also an on-going photo exhibit from Oct. 17 until Dec. 15th of photographer Paul Meyer called "Exhibition: A Plantsman in Asia". Click here for more information, as well as dates and time of the exhibit and flower show.

I hope to be there for the fall show...

The National Parks: America's Best Idea, a documentary by Ken Burns

I spent this past weekend watching Ken Burns' latest masterpiece of a documentary called "The National Parks: America's Best Ideas" which ran a marathon of the series. For me it was worth spending half of the day completely enthralled since this latest work of Mr. Burns and his collaborators specifically Duncan Dayton is something that should have been done a long time ago. Even with the limitations of the tube, I cannot but feel the majesty of the scenes that have been carefully filmed together with the beautiful descriptions of the writers and poets who have made this documentary an interesting study if not a masterpiece.

It was well written and the cinematography is to die for. It has given its viewers a fresh new look (for those who have visited the national parks) or inspiration (for those who still have to visit). The narratives together with the sceneries were effective in relating the history of how the ideas of park preservation and conservation came about. It was really eye-opening and heartwarming that the men and women before us who, I believed, were pulled by divine inspiration to lead the way for next generation to be the keepers of the land and its resources.

I am glad that this has happened because just by looking at the direction that this country is going thru now, if there were no laws to preserve the national parks, we would not be enjoying its beauty and the vast resources that these places have to offer. Unbeknowst to many, these places should not only be preserved for its aesthetic value but also for the lessons that it teaches us as to the balance of nature and civilization's survival depends on it whether we are aware of it or not.

According to latest count there are 62 US national parks including those located in Hawaii, American Samoa and the US Virgin Islands. My family and I have had the opportunity to visit 2 of them: the Grand Canyon located in Arizona and the Acadia National Park in Maine.

It was said in the documentary that you have to be there to feel and see the grandeur of the Grand Canyon. Our family had this chance to see the canyon. This was just a day trip that we took in 1999 when we were vacationing in Las Vegas, Nevada. We took a group trip which is a 2-hr ride by bus. Another place that one wouldn't miss since it is on the way, bordering Nevada and Arizona is the Hoover Dam which is a man-made marvel.

Words could never describe one's feeling or emotions upon seeing the gorges and deep gauges that makes up the canyon.  The gorge is 18 miles wide, a mile deep and 277 miles long. The immensity of this place makes one think how long the earth had been in existence to create the wonder that is right in front of you.

The Acadia National Park was also another park that we visited on our way to spend our vacation in Nova Scotia in 2001. Getting to the top of the muntain which is part of the Cadillac mountains was not that hard since you can drive up to top of the boulder and as always the view up there is fantastic with land, mountains and ocean encompassing everything that your eyes can see. It is also amazing to see birds in flight from that vantage point. Since we really did not spend enough time there the first time, I have made the effort to go there this Columbus holiday to visit the park at a time when the foliage will make its magnificent transformation of colors. I just hope that by the time we get there this coming weekend, the foliage will be at its peak.

Now it is my dream to be able to visit more national parks in my future. For the meantime, I will just have to contend with watching the show to enjoy the sights until I have the opportunity to visit them. This series is available not only on your public channels but also on dvds and with a companion book. And for those who won't be able to see this on tv, according to their website, full-episodes will be available online starting October 9th. Watch this show and be awed by the greatness of this country's beauty. I am sure that after you have watched you will feel blessed that we have had men and women who have had the forsight to devote their time, money and effort to preserve this land.

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown's highly anticipated book made it's debut last September 15th and according to the news media, it sold a million dollar copies on the first day alone of it's release.

Although I was eagerly awaiting the release of the book, I haven't really been following any news about it so I just learned recently before its release, that the book will weave around the Freemasons and their role in the creation of the United States of America.

Bea is 20 ....

My niece Bea just celebrated a birthday.... Here's a video that my sister & her Mom (moonyeen) made. Happy Birthday, Bea!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

New England Fall In The Air...

Woke up this morning and there was a strong chill in the air. We didn't turn the air-conditioning on and only have one window open throughout the house, but boy! it really did make me freeze this morning. It's September and this time of the year it's expected that after summer comes fall. Too bad, that summer here in the Northeast is too short you wont even know that it has come and gone.

I always have mixed feelings about "Fall"... hard to say why... maybe it's because I'm not too excited about the cold weather while my husband loved it. I don't mind cool temperatures and the slow transition from 75 to 60 degrees.... but please, like I've said slowly. I really am not happy to be basking in nearly 90 degrees one day and then waking up the next day in 35 degrees Fahrenheit... no exaggeration here! I've lived here in Massachusetts now since 1991 and my body still gets shocked from weather changes. I guess once a tropical animal.... always a tropical animal. I envy those birds who can migrate to the South where warmer climes are abundant and just come back to the East in the spring and stay thru summer.

Time to take out the winter clothes which I haven't really stashed or hidden away up in some attic like most people do here since I don't follow rules about proper dressing... I have my own set of rules which have raised some eyebrows from some people I know.

The things I love about fall though is the foliage which fortunately takes place in my neck of the woods, apple picking, cider donuts, blooming mums of varied colors, it looks like candy and a visit to the Cider Hill farm in Amesbury.