Ashleigh and Pudsey

A dance with a dog act is not very unusual in public performances. There have been many talented dogs that I have seen perform great antics in the past but this one, or Pudsey is one for the books. Actually, the choreography looks simple but the way Ashleigh and Pudsey has done it, it seems that Pudsey could follow choreography in a way a human does! 

Of course, the credit goes to Ashleigh for being a good master and teacher. Making a dog remember those intricate movements is simply amazing!    

Bonfadini Image of Snow Frost Transforming the Arctic Circle into a Bizarre World

Nature has a way of creating bizarre occurrences. It seems like nature’s way of painting the earth’s surface. Like this one in the Arctic Circle, perhaps a snowstorm has buried the entire topography under thick ice. The surrounding trees that the snow has covered have appeared like bizarre images of creatures and smoke.

Photographer Niccolo Bonfadini has captured those amazing images of nature. They might look gothic and eerie, but unusually natural. Thanks to Mr. Bonfadini for making the images available to all who wish to see them.

In what appears to be the set of a science fiction movie, photographer Niccolo Bonfadini has captured ghostly images of trees buried under a foot of snow in the Arctic Circle. Snow and frost become so thick the entire landscape is transformed into an otherworldly planet. (c/o Yahoo! News)

To see more of the Bonfadini images of the Arctic Circle, you may follow the link below:

http://news.yahoo.com/photos/arctic-circle-transformed-into-ghostly-world-slideshow/arctic-trees-photo-1343068100.html

Akira Yoshizawa: the Master of Origami

Google pays tribute to one great artist of all time: Akira Yoshizawa, the Master of Origami or the Japanese art of paper folding with an Origami Doodle.

Akira Yoshizawa c/o wikipedia

I remember doing Origami in school as a child even up to early high school. I used to do a paper model of a German shepherd then but I have already forgotten the technique if you will ask me to do one now.

I admire his creativity. Who would think that folding paper would become such a remarkable and famous artistic expression? Perhaps, during those times, people would think that he was wasting his time with pieces of garbage but he must have had shown a queer determination and passion for his art.

Well, his painstaking efforts have paid off! Origami has become famous not only in Japan but around the world! Amazing!

Vegetable Musicians

Last night, I saw on a local news broadcast (GMA Network), a special report about Chinese musicians using vegetables like carrots to make music by drilling and carving holes on them like that of a flute.

I know a musician, a National Artist for Music in the Philippines, Levi Celerio who can make beautiful music by blowing on fresh leaves, but carving carrots to make music is something new to me.

It fascinated me so much being a musician myself. I tried to look for the new item in You Tube but to my further amazement, I found out that it was not something new at all.

I found out that there is “The Vienna Vegetable Orchestra” that performed at the Moscow International House of Music. The musicians used nothing but vegetables.

According to the caption: The orchestra members are from various walks of life. There are musicians and actors, but also an architect, a journalist, and a writer. They began playing vegetable music 14 years ago. Since then the Vienna Vegetable Orchestra has given over 200 concerts all over the world. After each performance, the carrot flutes and "cucumber phones" are usually handed over to the audience for snacks.

They are amazing!

Tattoed Barbie

In ancient civilizations, tatooing has been a part of their culture and tradition. They have considered it a form of art. In ancient tribes, they use tattoos to signify a warrior’s heroism in war. The more tattoos one has corresponds to the number of enemy he has killed in battle.

While tattooing has become a form of art in many cultures, it remains to have a stigma in other cultures. In Jewish law, their people are forbidden to wear tattoos on their bodies.

In recent years, people have known tattooing to be marks of people from prison since it has become a form of branding by gangs and fraternities inside penal colonies.

Thus, tattoing has become a controversial form of artistic expression. This is the reason why the new Barbie Doll (tokidoki) has created a sort of controversy after its launch into market. The Tokidoki Barbie Doll has tattoes all over her body.

Many parents dislike the idea of a Barbie Doll with tattoes on her since it might send the signal to kids that it is ok to have tattoes on their bodies even at their young age.

Well, I guess it is a matter between parents and kids.

Image above courtesy of:
http://justlia.mtv.uol.com.br/2011/02/barbie-tokidoki/

Keisuke Yamada: Amazing Sculptor

People have used sculpture as a medium for communication and art. Many centuries ago, men have used rock walls to preserve their culture. They carve stones, tablets and pieces of wood to write about their ways and norms to keep a legacy for the next generations that would come.

Along the years, sculpture has become an important form of art and I have heard about people carving wood, ice, clay, even steel to express artistry. I have seen chefs carve fruits like watermelon, apples, oranges, etc. to garnish their mouth-watering dishes.

However, I find it amazing to see a banana fruit as a medium for sculpture carving. Keisuke Yamada, a Japan-born artist uses banana fruits for his carvings. I can say that his ingenuity is at the extreme! Amazing work of art!

Yamada Images Above Courtesy of: Yahoo News! Philippines

Why Quit Smoking?

According to a magazine article, a man loses five minutes of life for every cigarette stick he consumes. So, if you consume 100 sticks per week, you lose 500 minutes per week, which is equivalent to 8 hours or 33 hours per month, which is roughly 16 days each year.

There are so many things that you can accomplish in 16 days. You can already join the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence, which is an international campaign originating from the first Women's Global Leadership Institute sponsored by the Center for Women's Global Leadership in 1991. Michael Ashcroft has a 16-day beginner crossfit workout, which you can do in 5 to 15 minutes per session. If you will follow it intensively, you can become a better and stronger athlete in 16 days. The point is, there are many good things we can accomplish with our lives so should not we bother to prolong it instead?

Imagine, if you have been smoking for the past ten years at that rate, you have lost 160 days of life.

Magazine articles say that smoking kills. Nicotine in cigarettes can cause addiction, cancer, reduction in oxygen supply to the brain and body, cardiovascular problems, heart attack and stroke. Heavy smokers are more susceptible to die of lung cancer than non-smokers. Smoking can also cause still birth or prenatal deaths, which experts term as fetal tobacco syndrome.

No wonder, many heavy smokers have already stopped. Yes, they have stopped reading health magazines!

A few months ago, I have received an email from my friend, which has photos of some amazing and extraordinary paintings. One of those is a ceiling painting intended for a smoking area of a restaurant if I am not mistaken. The concept I must say is brilliant. If you are a smoker, you might not feel comfortable smoking in that area, particularly under that ceiling...

An Amazing Hotel CR

I have also received a picture of an amazing comfort room in a hotel but I do not have the information about its location. Sorry for that. However, I still want to share the photo. I guess, since I have received it through email, it does not have any copyright restriction.

It has a truly amazing design but a little crazy for a concept. It is like making a nice comfort room available for public use but at the same time, scaring users off their feet. Imagine, your body fluids have filled up your bladder beyond what it can hold and you need to release it all right away so you run to the nearest comfort room but as you open its door, it seems floating on the clouds with an image of a man that has fallen off. Whew! It is not a very good idea!

A See-through Comfort Room

Several months ago, I have received an email from a dear friend, which shows a kind of “see through” public toilet in Houston. It has one-way glass walls, which allows you to see everything that is happening outside while you are doing your thing inside. I don’t know but I think it would not be comfortable for me to use a public toilet like that. Hahaha! Though, I guess it's a cool concept...