The journey of two faces

The first face: Everyday, for 6 years (2356 days!), from January 11, 2000 - July 31, 2006, Noah Kalina has taken pictures of himself, primarily of his face. Know more about him. Noah has gained quite a following worldwide and celebrities are more than happy to have a picture with him (along with his seemingly stoic expression). He also got featured in The Washington Post.

Noah is a professional photographer and his works have been featured/included in New York Magazine, Seed, I.D., Alarm, Interview Magazine, Blender, RollingStone.com, CMJ and Esquire, to name a few. He currently lives in Brooklyn, New York.

The music that he used in the video is entitled "Everyday" by Carly Comando and was made especially for it.

The other face: Laurel took photos of himself for 1 year, that's 365 days!

Counting my blessings:Week 1

I have always believed that "amidst life's drudgery and pains, it is still a beautiful world" and with the world seemingly trapped in a consensus of turmoil and hopelessness, it is high time to reinvigorate the power of positive thinking - directing and focusing one's thoughts on life's blessings no matter how mundane they be.

So today i start this weekly series of counting my blessings; jotting down even the most trivial of things that made me feel good, alive, happy, blessed.

March 19

Was able to learn and configure how to send HTML email newsletter and found out about Scribd and iPaper. Will be needing this for Linkage's email campaigns.

March 20

Got my 2 Starbucks planner + bags and was treated by our friend Sally at Starbucks Ali Mall.

Photo from Flicker

Found Fantasia's heartwarming rendition of What Are You Doing The Rest of Your Life during her AI competition. She's still the best American Idol to me.

Found out that Atlas Shrugged, my most favorite book, has immensely increased sales in 2008 and is continuing to sell primarily because the events that happened in the book (ie: the strike of the people of the mind against the looting society) is congruent to what's happening today amid the global financial crisis. Now isn't that amusing. I'm sure Ayn Rand is laughing wherever she may be.

March 21

Cried buckets of tears and had a serious talk with my partner and planned for steps to take to tackle problems; wrote an "i'm sorry" email to my Mom which made my hopelessness and despair ease a bit.

Ate 2 full meals today.

Was able to buy viands at the market even with a measly Php200.00.

Finished watching Baler and the 2008 TV movie The Andromeda Strain; got entertained but wasnt exactly ecstatic about them. However, Anne Curtis in Baler is just exquisite.

March 23

Was able to solve another financial obligation and felt relieved. 1 down, 5 more to go. Whew!

March 24

Visited my fav Starbucks and had a Venti White Chocolate Mocha while doing some internet surfing.

Had a good meeting with a returning client. Positive that it'll be a good new deal for us. I pray that the project will start very soon as we really need more projects.

Another good and liberating meeting with our restaurant staff over at our Japanese Resto branch in UST Dapitan.

Ate 3 full meals today.

Set up my new Behance Portfolio. A great community website for artists from all over the world. Apparently membership is by invitation only. Glad i got accepted.

March 26

Ate a very good dinner at a friends house celebrating the graduation of her daughter who also had an academic award. Later on we went to Starbucks Marquinton in Marikina and used my Buy1 Take1 voucher for 2 Venti's (Choc Cream Chip & Raspberry Latte Non-Fat).

March 27

Had a good meal tonight.

Finished watching the documentary Examined Life featuring some musings on life's meaning and purpose, idealogy, ecology among others by some modern day philosophers.

March 28

Had a quick nice chat with my mom over at Skype.

Found a new mac software called Kinemac and explored some of its functions. Will thrive on it on future posts most likely. Apparently, Kinemac is offered at an insanely low price bundled with some other inventive Mac softwares over at MacHeist.

March 30

My sister Tessa graduated from high school. I attended the graduation and was made to wear the "Parent" ribbon. Well, virtually i am their parent now since my Mom migrated to Denmark. All my siblings are left to my care. So i'm officially a MaPa (Mama/Papa). Hahaha!

As a treat for my sister, we had a small family dinner together with my close friend, Sally and her husband Andy. We had spaghetti, fried chicken and 2 Goldilocks cakes!

March 31

I have been informed by my favorite Auntie that my one of my dearest cousins was awarded Magna Cum Laude in the University of Sto. Tomas. This cousin virtually grew up with me, we were very close and i am so proud. Really, really proud.

Our Bayantel telephone line is finally fixed! Yipee!

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It's fab! It's flying! It's The Hotelicopter!

Of course we all know about Cruise Ships and how fancy the experience could be. But wait till you board and check-in The Hotelicopter! Suddenly, first-class air travel has a new meaning.

The Hotelicopter is billed to be the answer for first-class travelers who simply abhors long security lines, flight delays and cancellations and the other alienating experience of well, the usual, air travel.

"The Hotelicopter was designed with the sophisticated, affluent traveler in mind. You’ve just taken off your belt, your shoes, your jacket, and put your laptop in a separate bin. You’re feeling a little bit - shall we say - undignified. All you want to do is melt into your hotel the moment you step onto the concourse. Well, now - thanks to The Hotelicopter - you can!"

The Hotelicopter has a SkySpa, jacuzzi, dry sauna, and other facilities to keep you entertained while you're up there, in the sky. They even have a Tea Garden (whatever that is)! It features 18 luxuriously-appointed rooms for adrenaline junkies seeking a truly unique and memorable travel experience. Each soundproofed room is equipped with a queen-sized bed, fine linens, a mini-bar, coffee machine, wireless internet access, and all the luxurious appointments you’d expect from a flying five star hotel. Room service is available one hour after liftoff and prior to landing.

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Did you know?

Interesting and/or alarming facts about the world and technology.

Did you know that: India has more honor kids than America has kids? If MySpace were a country, it would be the 5th largest in the world (between Indonesia and Brazil)? The first commercial text message was sent December 1992?

More facts in the video. Great watch!

Your advice in a bracelet: The Sound Advice Project

Generally aimed to keep kids/teens away from drugs, The Sound Advice Project is a cool way of reaching out to your child or even a friend.

How it works? Record your message of inspiration, love or any message that would provide a positive reinforcement. Through the distinct sound waves of your voice, a bracelet will then be formed and since no voice is the same, no two bracelets will ever be alike even if you record the same message. You can further customize the bracelet's bead color and cord. The result will be a very personalized bracelet that your child/friend could always wear, a tangible reminder of your message and advice to them. I say: Very cool and inventive!

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Mastercard's "Priceless" Valentines proposal

Whether this is cooked up (Hannah knowing that her beau would do this) or not, the experience is definitely priceless and really romantic. Hay, the things you do for love. Kudos to Mastercard for having such a focused campaign on a Valentines. I could just imagine the extravaganza when Mastercard sponsors a wedding proposal... hmmm, that will be exciting.

Agency: McCann London, UK

Via Adoholik

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Experience the Philippines through the eyes of HappySlip

A series of videos documenting the trip of Fil-Am YouTube star, HappySlip, to the Philippines. The videos are very entertaining and they have captured the essence that makes the Philippines a top tourist destination.

See more videos of HappySlip's trip to the Philippines.

We also invite you to come and visit The Philippines and experience first hand the warm hospitality of the Filipinos and the wonderful sights and events that the country is known for.

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Of Paula Cole and how i see the music of today

With today's music becoming more of a trend dictated by the scheming strategic minds of big music producers - and artists who are shaped, packaged to become the next Mariah's, Beyonce's and Britney's amassing hits and billions of records sales - artist's statures cemented by titles and proclamations usually preceded by the phrase "the best selling...", one can tell that quality may have taken the back seat over quantity (the more you sell, the better artist you are).

Worst, the perception of what "quality" is has been jaded by all these - tucked away in the dark abyss of octaves upon octaves of voice, the teasing movements in a performance, the studio's post-production magic and the hype of the media; leaving some really great artists whose music are phenomenal but unfortunately do not sell, in the small recesses of YouTube, Multiply, and countless other social sites that aid them in independently showcasing what they love to do - great music - songs created through experience, time, pain, joy - songs that resonates the artist's soul and character - songs that aim to affect and communicate.

Such artist is Paula Cole. Yes, she had her share of attention and fame, she even managed to win a Grammy, but now, she seem to be part of a distant past where truly great and thoughtful artists dominated the airwaves and earned well deserved accolades and hits. Paula reminds us how disturbing that artists like her (i.e. Sarah Mclachlan, Tori Amos) have become increasingly scarce at least in the Billboard Charts.

These songs are my most favorite among the tracks from her 1996 released This Fire album which so remarkably showcased the magnitude of her talent and artistry. This Fire, for me, is Paula Cole's best album. It is one of the best albums that i have listened to, ever. No track is dispensable. Every song takes you into a journey; her vocals, haunting, mesmerizing and powerful.

Nietzsches Eyes - Paula Cole

Hush, Hush, Hush - Paula Cole

Me - Paula Cole

Some tracks off her 2008 released album Courage. An album that resonates positive growth and maturity in her songwriting and vocal abilities. Really good album.

In Our Dreams - Paula Cole

Its My Life - Paula Cole

And here's a video of Paula Cole singing Elsewhere with another great female artist, Sarah Mclachlan.




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Cactus Inspired Designs

How remarkable it is that designers get their inspirations from virtually anything. We see architecture in a handbag, animal skin patterns in clothes, butterflies in fashion, and a whole lot of other things that generates "ooh's and ahhh's".

Take these designs for instance; inspired by the Cactus - a plant that many may not see as inspiring but designers, well, thought otherwise.

From DesignBoom: Cactus inspired chairs

(This one below looks scary. I hope the thorns are not like real cactus thorns.)

The Urban Cactus project. An architectural project in Rotterdam designed by UCX Architects. This will be a future housing project that is planned to accommodate 98 residential units within its 19 floors. Because it sits on a harbor, the architects decided that the tower needed a natural "green" image -- which manifested itself in a stacked set of rotated, swoopy plates. Via Inhabitat.

Now this one's really beautiful.

Not only is this planned to be a sustainable, energy-efficient structure to be built in Qatar, but will also be a beautiful example of how eye-striking architecture can blend with nature and the environment. Bangkok-based Aesthetics Architects Go Group has designed a new office building for the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Agriculture (MMAA) in Doha, Qatar, which due to its distinct shape is known as the Cactus Project. Via Eco Architecture.

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Support Earth Hour 2009

Sometimes amid these times of global financial troubles and seemingly widespread consensus of helplessness and confusion, we need to turn-off our lights in order to spark hope and show that we are concerned about the world and its welfare.

Sometimes an hour of darkness could mean countless brighter tomorrows.

Let us support Vote Earth by switching off our lights for one hour and

joining the rest of the world for Earth Hour.

Let us fight the further widespread of Global Warming. One hour with lights turned-off multiplied to a billion target supporters from all over the world will mean a great deal to the future of our earth and its future inhabitants. We may not live forever, but it is in such collective efforts that we may ensure that the small things that we do will be forever stamped in the history of the world.

Click on the banner above to sign up for Earth Hour 2009.