A Happy Death - Corazon "Cory" C. Aquino

It's been too long since I've posted a new blog entry. Been very busy for school works. There were a lot of happenings which I have missed, but I guess I really need to take a break off school and share my thoughts about what happened last August 1, 2009. It's the death of the Saint of People Power. Well, everybody knows her. She's not just Kris Aquino's mother, not just Ninoy Aquino's wife, but Cory Aquino, the one who was responsible for our country's democracy. I guess everybody should pay tribute for her. It was a real lost for our land. Everybody loves her. But I guess she died happily. She fulfilled her dreams and finished her task successfully. Here's what she thought about death. She made a prayer:

Almighty God, most merciful Father

You alone know the time

You alone know the hour

You alone know the moment

When I shall breathe my last.

So remind me each day,

most loving Father

To be the best that I can be.

To be humble, to be kind,

To be patient, to be true.

To embrace what is good,

To reject what is evil,

To adore only you.

When the final moment does come

Let not my loved ones grieve for long.

Let them comfort each other

And let them know

how much happiness

They brought into my life.

Let them pray for me,

As I will continue to pray for them,

Hoping that they will always pray,

for each other.

Let them know that they made possible

Whatever good I offered to our world.

And let them realize that our separation

Is just for a short while

As we prepare for our reunion in eternity.

Our Father in heaven,

You alone are my hope.

You alone are my salvation.

Thank you for your unconditional love, Amen.

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How Will You Know If You Are H1N1 Positive?

Today, there are 445 confirmed cases of swine flu in the Philippines, and 1 already died. By this very moment, there is no easy way to know if you have the Influenza A (H1N1) Virus. Before, there is a laboratory test done to isolate and identify organisms that may cause infection in the throat, also known as throat swabbing. Now, the process has been discontinued. Patients that might be positive for H1N1 shall stay at home, take a rest and drink the medicine prescribed by a doctor.

That's what hapened to me. I've experienced fever, my temperature rose up to 39 degrees Celsius. I've got cough, headache, body ache, soar throat and chills. It all started when I'm on school. Yes. I've gone to different places. And before I went on to the university, I travel through public transportation such as jeepney and the Light Rail Transit (LRT). It never felt good when I came to school. My head feels very heavy. I can't even understand what the people around me are saying. All I know is that my head is gotta burst into pain and I hate it. So, fear came into my mind. Is it H1N1? I can't find the answer. Maybe I should ask a fortune teller. And even if I consult the doctor, there's nothing he/she can do. So I went home. Cut my classes and took a rest. I took paracetamol every 4 hours, but still doesn't feel any better. So on Monday, my mom aided me to visit the nearest public health center. By that time, my temperature was 37.8. So what did the doctor said? Do I have H1N1? Am I positive? Well nobody knows. And why should I know? I just need to take Cefalexin (an antibiotic) for 4 times a day, a medicine for cough, vitamin c and biogesic and that's it! Within 10 days or less I could go back to school. Whew! Well real easy huh?

So as far as what I have experienced there is no significant difference whether you are H1N1 positive or you just have the seasonal flu. It's just the same, you just need to stay at home for 10 days, and take your pills and that's it! You're good! So why worry? But there's one thing for sure: the H1N1 pandemic will not just scare the hell among of us. Its gonna be tough, and its gonna take a long time, after all, the government is not doing everything to take good care for the community.

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Michael Jackson: RIP

June 25, 2009: Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon at a rented home in Los Angeles. Paramedics got Jackson with no pulse and unable to get his pulse back. He was reportedly not breathing and CPR was quickly performed from a 911 call. Michael Jackson fell into a coma and died shortly, 2:26 PM, on a rush to UCLA Medical Center. The autopsy is scheduled for June 26, 2009 for the complete information on Jackson's death.

More of Michael Jackson memories: Soon...

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Kebism: Not a Personal Blog Anymore?

"Kebism - The Personal Blog of Kevin Michael C. Garcia shall not be called a "personal blog" anymore. Today, this blog is officially called Kebism - Music, Movies and Tech: All in One."

-Kevin Michael C. Garcia

Why change?

The rebirth of my blog was inspired by a lot of things around me. I have set another goal in my life. Another subject, another side of me and my other point of view that does not exceed with me as an individual, my friends and my world. I am not 100% sure if this transformation will help me achieve the best things for myself. As far as I know, this change will allow me to explore a better world, with no limits and infinite opportunities which I should take not just for considering myself, but now I shall go beyond my limits: from my personal way to reflect on life and works of art, now going further through the massive world of Movies which I love most, Music which I treat as a vital source of my life and the greatest innovation of all time which is Technology.

What are the changes?

1. I've changed the blog title, description and the header.

2. As the blog converts from its personal subject to another forms of niche, posts about the personal life of the owner would be less prioritized. But still, readers would be able to read the creator's thoughts and opinions with various topics.

3. The blog shall not just be listed for the category of "personal blogs" but also in "movies," "music," and "technology."

4. Other topics such as news and current affairs, Pinoy, science, stuffs, games, personal and entertainment are not forgotten but paid less attention.

Goals and Achievements

As I have started my personal blog here in Kebism, I've got plenty of friends. I can't even count now how many are they! Really! That is why I treasure them as true buddies and as I write my thoughts and reflections, I feel so grateful because I've found my own sanctuary. And I achieved a lot of things which I might call, "a little step towards success."

My blog has started publishing since January 24, 2009 and the first time I've checked my Alexa ranking was four months later. Here are the improvements of my rank, which I can say good-but-not-so-great:

May 21, 2009: 5,333,567th

June 3, 2009: 3,372,045

June 12, 2009: 1,205,396

June 17, 2009: 993,403

June 18, 2009: 926,128

At least I'm not on the one-millionth place (lol). I wish more success for this blog. More readers and visitors. And as I change my path and points of view, I'd still publish great posts for those who continue to support me. I assure you all that you'll still get the ultimate Kebism experience. Have a great time and enjoy! Cheers!

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Battle of Pinoy Energy Drinks

In 2006, more than 3 billion Red Bull cans were sold over 130 countries. Here in the Philippines, we are advised to refrain from drinking the energy drink within the past few weeks because of the said risks of heart attack and stroke in Australia. Even young people might be affected. The energy drink is popular in Australian Universities because they say it gives them "wings" which causes the blood to become sticky, a pre-cursor to cardiovascular problems such as stroke.

Red Bull products here in the Philippines were manufactured in Thailand. But the government says that we are not sure that the products do not come from Australia. And because of the cocaine controversy, Red Bull is on hold in supermarkets and stores.

There are a lot of energy drinks in the market as of today. But here are three of the most popular:

Extra Joss: You can avail a sachet of this energy drink in any stores nationwide. Just dissolve the powder with one glass of cold water, and you'll have an instant energy drink. Cost: P5 - P8. Well, my dad prefer drinking extra joss instead of red bull. Hehe.

Sting: Usually, sting energy drinks are bottled in softdrink bottles. Also available in cherry flavor. It costs P8 - P10. My friends usually drink this after our soccer games.

Cobra: This energy drink also costs P8 - P10. Has a great taste, as what I have heard from many people. And its now popular in TV ads.

What's your energy drink?

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Happy 25th Anniversary Tetris!

Created on June 6, 1984, tetris has become available for nearly every video game console. Devices such as calculators, mobile phones, portable players and PDA's have their own tetris game. It was originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov.

Mostly, it was played during the "game boy generation." The game got it's number two spot for the 100 Greatest Games of All Time by the Electronic Gaming Monthly. Super Mario got the first spot.

Well, this game is quite addicting. Even if it only features undying random sequences of tetromenoes (the bricks which flow from the top of the tetris screen), it perseveres any player to score high and aim for the top spot of the game. Well as I have played the game, I always get envy on those who are on the high scores after having a game over. I don't even know someone who does not know how to play this very simple game. From the day I was born, until now, gaming consoles really consider including this game on their list. That is why up to now, techies are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the game.

I also wondered the best tetris player in the world. Is he/she able to play the game forever, without having a game over? Well as I have researched the web, I found out that it is not possible to play tetris forever, without having a game over. The reason has to do with the Z and the T-shaped bricks. A thesis by John Brzustowski in 1988 concluded: "Suppose that player then receives a large sequence of Z tetrominoes. Eventually, that player will be forced to leave a hole on the opposite corner without clearing the previous hole. Thus, if a game with an ideal, uniform, uncorrelated, random number generator is played long enough, any player will top out."

ksm (-)

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CHED: Classes in College and Universities Postponed on June 15

Hate this! CHED officially announced this Saturday: classes in colleges and universities postponed! Opening will be on June 15. Damn! As what I have thought, it's because of the A(H1N1) threat. So you think rescheduling of the classes may stop the outbreak huh? Well, if they don't really want Swine to spread with students, then they should postpone classes forever and let us study by ourselves on a quarantined bio-hazard room! As if 1-week allowance would allow them to completely destroy the virus! And second reason: the inclement weather in the past days? Duh! It's better to get wet outside rather than be dry inside a cold room full of rain droplets!

Info from GMA News.

ksm !

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H1N1 in Philippine Schools: Who Cares?

Second H1N1 case on Philippine schools is confirmed from De La Salle University, Taft, Manila. Total number of cases in the PH: 29. Well it's really growing. I wonder what will happen, when all universities start their classes for the first semester. Well, our classes will start on 9th of June,  in Intramuros Manila (because we don't have the schedule for Monday). 

I am pretty excited to go to school this coming week. But the said outbreak decreases my full interest and turns my energetic mind into low level terror and chaos. I also wonder why most cases of H1N1 occur in private areas, where upper class individuals basically come. 

Well I tried to figure it out, and that seems to be the air-conditioning system of mostly private areas we know. And as what I have discovered, classrooms located in La Salle University, were mostly, air-conditioned. Therefore, the rooms are fully closed, preventing proper airflow throughout the area, and same air inhaled by the individuals inside the room.

So how about rooms which are open and not air-conditioned? This would allow air to flow continuously, and it does not trap the bad air inside the room. Well thanks, because most of the rooms in our city university are not air-conditioned, and there would be less chance for the virus to spread. But of course, it doesn't really assure us that we are safe against the outbreak. Well, no one has the exemption to receive the virus. Even those who were given vaccines are not yet safe, because those are vaccinations to protect humans against the seasonal H3N2 flu, but not the H1N1, which is currently circulating right now.

As we were all informed, H1N1 is transmitted to humans just like how the seasonal flu spreads -- by touching something contaminated with the flu virus and touching someone's mouth or nose, and through coughing and sneezing or the spread of saliva droplets. That is why, the use of flu masks is now in demand to prevent the spread of the said virus. 

But I'm afraid H1N1 should not stop our full motivation to go to school. My friends are really excited to learn more lessons and we really can't wait for Tuesday. So, time to get your own flu mask and isopropyl alcohol! No one can stop us!

ksm |

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Careless Whisper: I'm Never Gonna Dance Again!

The song "Careless Whisper" is a single by singer George Michael in 1984, released by Epic Records and Columbia Records. For this year, it has been the most controversial song in the Philippines, and became the official musical score for the "Katrina Halili - Hayden Kho Sex Video Scandal." But let us not discuss the scandal on this topic, because I'm too exhausted from the words of mouth by the people here in PH. I just want to listen to the song. I really love the saxophone riff (*lol). 

There we go. Have you heard the other versions of Careless Whisper? It has been covered by a number of artists since its first release. Including the release of Sarah Washington's version, Tamia, Willy Mason, Bananarama, 

Brian McKnight, Kenny G., George Michael, Gloria Gaynor, Julio Iglesias, Jordan Knight, Richard Clayderman and Barry Manilow. And I really like Brian McKnight's RNB touch to the song.  There were also live performances of the song by Incubus, and American Idol finalists Jamar in Season 1 and Paul Kim in Season 6. The song was really controversial. It already reached number one in nearly 25 countries. In Ecuador, the song's sax riff is often used as a reference to homosexual people. In the Philippines, the song is always heard on bold films (Rated X Films in the PH) as a musical background while 2 people are doing sex. Now, the latest appearance of the song in media, a video scandal recorded by Dr. Hayden Kho, with actress Katrina Halili. Well, the song is really undying. I guess listeners really feel the passion and the obsessions of love from the song Careless Whisper. Well it's up to you, which video did you liked? Ahm! I mean, which cover, I guess.

ksm**

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Man's Ancestry: Verified?

The American Museum of National History in New York, USA announced the most controversial discovery of the generation. A discovery that will end up the debate about human history for about 150 years, from tree-dwelling primates to the modern Homo sapiens. Today, scientists from the University of Oslo found "Ida," Darwinius masillae. It has been called the "missing link" in connecting human skeletal structure to early mammals, such as dinosaurs. Ida has certain human features such as forward facing eyes and an opposable thumb. 

Long ago, Ida was popularly known as Lucy, estimated to live 3.2 million years ago. Lucy's specimen was discovered in 1974, she was 40% complete skeleton. Now that the scientists found the missing link, Darwin's theory have been validated and it's not the end of the discovery, it's just the beginning of our history.

More info on The Link.

ksm*

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Swine to H1N1

Before the 2009 US outbreak, on August 27, 2007, the Department of Agriculture in the Philippines already investigated an outbreak of swine flu in Nueva Ecija. Now: in Mexico. Canada. Australia. US. And more more soon! The Swine Flu Virus, is now called "H1N1" by the World Health Organisation. It is said that the word "swine" associated with the other not-so-EATable word "flu" and "virus" made the meat industry go down. So now there it goes. The H1N1. Nice name. By the way, we already ate pork adobo, pork barbecue, pork sinigang and pork 'n' beans in a can. Ooh Oh! Got cough now..

ksm X-X

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