The Special Furball

I wanted to share this touching story about a little boy and his special dog.
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A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell. He painted a sign advertising the pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the eyes of a little boy.

"Mister," he said, "I want to buy one of your puppies."

"Well," said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck, "these puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money."

The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer.

"I've got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?"

"Sure," said the farmer.

And with that he let out a whistle, "Here, Dolly!" he called.

Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His eyes danced with delight.

As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse. Slowly another little ball appeared; this one noticeably smaller. Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner the little pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up.

"I want that one." the little boy said, pointing to the runt.

The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would."

With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe.

Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see sir, I don't run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands."

Just as the world is full of people who need someone who understands.

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Star of Christmas

This came a bit late but I always thought that Christmas should be celebrated each day. Let this be an inspiration for that someone who needs guidance now more than ever. This is ABS-CBN's Christmas Station ID. I clipped some parts to edit it and add subtitles. Let it remind us that God always sends a spark of hope even in the darkest ordeals. See beyond the dark clouds, there is light.

This first video is the one I edited.



And this is the original and full video, courtesy of ABS-CBN. Thank you.



Star ng Pasko (Star of Christmas)
All Star Cast

Kung kailan pinakamadilim (when it's darkest)
Mga tala ay mas nagniningning (stars shine brightest)
Gaano man kakapal ang ulap (no matter how thick the clouds are)
Sa likod nito ay may liwanag (behind these is light)

Ang liwanag na ito (this light)
Nasa 'ting lahat (is within us)
May sinag ang bawat pusong bukas (there's spark in every heart that's hopeful)
Sa init ng mga yakap (in the warmth of embrace)
Maghihilom ang lahat ng sugat (all wounds heal)

Ang nagsindi nitong ilaw (the one who ignites this light)
Walang iba kundi Ikaw (no one else but You)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)

Tayo ang ilaw sa madilim na daan (we are the light in the dark path)
Pagkakapit bisig lalong higpitan (hold hands tightly)
Dumaan man sa malakas na alon (even if we go through strong tides)
Lahat tayo'y makakaahon (we will all survive)

Ang liwanag na ito'y (this light)
Nasa 'ting lahat (is within us)
May sinag ang bawat pusong bukas (there's spark in every heart that's hopeful)

Sa init ng mga yakap (in the warmth of embrace)
Maghihilom ang lahat ng sugat (all wounds heal)

Ang nagsindi nitong ilaw (the one who ignites this light)
Walang iba kundi Ikaw (no one else but You)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)

Kikislap ang pag-asa (hope will shine)
Kahit kanino man (to everyone)
Dahil ikaw Bro, dahil ikaw Bro (because you Bro, because you Bro)
Dahil ikaw Bro (becasue you Bro)
Ang star ng pasko (is the star of Christmas)

Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Chrismas will once again be colorful)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)

Ang nagsindi nitong ilaw (the one who ignites this light)
Walang iba kundi ikaw (no one else but You)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)

Ang nagsindi nitong ilaw (the one who ignites this light)
Walang iba kundi ikaw (no one else but You)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)

Ang nagsindi nitong ilaw (the one who ignites this light)
Walang iba kundi ikaw (no one else but You)
Salamat sa liwanag mo (thanks to your light)
Muling magkakakulay ang pasko (Christmas will once again be colorful)

Dahil ikaw Bro, dahil ikaw Bro (because you Bro, because you Bro)
Dahil ikaw Bro (becasue you Bro)
Ang star ng pasko! (is the star of Christmas!)

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Christmas From Home

Every year, we celebrate the birth of our Savior. But do we really understand what we're celebrating about? It is through the eyes of our children that we see a reminder of hope. The promise of this lenten season is far too great to be ignored. We are promised salvation with His birth. So if perhaps for some, Christmas isn't a time for gleeful excitement and happiness, just look at the children and see them in the eyes. We're not alone. And through it all, He will see to it that we are saved. We just have to do our part.

(Click on the picture to view larger image.)

No matter how little we have, there's always something to share.

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Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel

Ok, so I know there are plenty of really good movies showing next year. But if you wanna watch something with the family, this has to be at the top of the list.

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My Movie Review: AVATAR

 

Movie: AVATAR

Director/Writer: James Cameron

Actors: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel Moore
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James Cameron placed this story on a moon called Pandora, inhabited by a primitive race known as the Na’vi. They are physically superior to humans, almost twice in size having sharper features. They have blue bodies with white fluorescent marks on their faces. And they have tails.

Their peaceful existence is challenged with American troops entering their world to gain hold of precious minerals worth billions hidden beneath their land. The Na’vis fight for their land, people, pride and existence.

The Americans send one of their men (Sam Worthington) to Pandora. Turning him into a Na’vi to penetrate and understand the ways of the natives and talk them into relocating so the Americans can take over the land.

Once on the inside however, his loyalties to the humans start to turn when his heart gets lost to the Na'vi culture, and the princess Neytiri. "Which side is he going to fight for?" is the big twist in the movie.

“Avatar” is an admirable effort because of these three main ideas that James Cameron combined and portrayed in the film; first, to have respect for other culture and traditions, lands and natural resources, second, to hold on to the hope and faith that good will triumph no matter what, and third, to believe that you can find friendship and love even in the most unexpected place and time.

If we're going to talk about special effects, all there is to say about that is, nobody directs like James Cameron. Instead of just shoving special effects in your face, he weaves them into the story beautifully, and they come off magnificently effortless. Ten years in the making, and every minute is worth it. Avatar has a great future ahead and, possibly another Oscar for the mighty James Cameron.

To both the actors' and director’s credit, the performances came through extremely well. It’s amazing how much of the actors' emotions you can see through their Avatar characters. Zoe Saldana gave an astoundingly emotional and strong performance, and you never even see her real face.

You'll laugh, smile, fall in love, cheer, get angry, maybe shed a tear or two, and simply be amazed of this 3-dimensional exceptional experience.

To sum up my review, “Avatar” is not a film to be seen and just talked about. It is one to be felt and experienced. Let your senses take over and be amazed of every thrill of every second of the film.

RATING: 4/5 stars

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When God Made You

 

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Christmas Wishlist

This week started slow and ended crazy!

Been wanting to post this entry for a number of days already but just had the time today to do so.

This is a few of my Christmas wishes(along with love and world peace.. lol).

1. D.A.'s Christmas Album - I've heard cuts from this album which includes the one I posted here in my blog, "The First Noel". Can't say enough about it. Last time I checked, recordshops here didn't have it yet, and then last week they said it's sold out! Nice luck!


2. Ok, so cheezy right? But if I'm going to get his Christmas CD, I'd like to have his first album as well. It's not that I can't buy it for myself, but it's Christmas, I'll have it for free if I can. hehehe..


3. I'm not your regular music junkie, but I would really like to keep music handy when I need to de-stress(pretty much all the time!).


4. Point and shoot digital camera. Everybody needs one, right?

5. Higher pay at work.

All other wishes will have to wait until next year. But more importantly, I'm thankful that I've been alive and well throughout this year. If I can have only 1 wish next year, it'll have to be, continued good health. Then I'll take care of everything with a little prayer in my pocket.

Merry Christmas! =)

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Happiness

Alright, so I read further about feeds and figured, I don't need them. haha.. So I'm not doing that anymore. I'm just happy I finished what I had to do to make things right for my blog. Merry Christmas! =)
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Life and Death

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The "Efren Christmas"

I had been busy thinking of gifts to give this Christmas and how much they would cost me. And then I remembered Efren Peñaflorida who gave so much with what little he had. He brought education to the needy children in the slums.

I wanted to feature this in my blog to serve as a reminder that giving comes in more ways than just in beautifully wrapped Christmas presents.

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Holiday Feast

I was browsing the internet for good meals to prepare this holiday season and came across this article. It is so real that it's almost funny, or it's so funny, that it's almost real.. haha.. however you take it, enjoy reading!

Holiday Eating Guidelines

1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can and quickly. You can't find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an 'eggnog-aholic' or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it! Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think.

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy.Gravy does not stand-alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk orwhole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports carwith an automatic transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.


7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple, pumpkin and mincemeat - have a slice of each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert -- Labor Day?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.

10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Reread tips: Start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner. Remember: "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body. But rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming 'WOO-HOO what a ride!'"

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Indigay sa Parol 2009 (Lantern Contest 2009)

I was thrilled! Most specially because I didn't get to see any lanterns over at Xavier Days '09.

I did not expect it at all, 'coz I had no idea. I was at Limketkai to get a haircut and on my way to the barbershop, right in the heart of the mall was, "Halad sa Pasko 2009 - Indigay sa Parol" (Offering for Christmas 2009 - Lantern Contest). This year, the contest is about using junk or indigenous materials in creating the lanterns.

It didn't take too much time for me to grab my Nokia 6600 camera phone and take shots of the wonderfully colored lanterns. However, a high-definition camera would have to be used to capture the intricate details.

This is a shot of the contest proper. The city mayor himself, honorable Tinnex Jaraula was around to grace the event.

This is a shot I took from the center of the mall's balcony. There's quite a number of people looking around, amazed.

As you can see, the lanterns are tailored around in a square where the judges can view each one individually. The venue of the contest was in the center oval of the mall. Although this is not a very good angle to take a shot from, I just wanted to get a good view from the top.

There were around 25 entries and I took a few shots of those I liked. Here are some of my favorites.

This one is made mostly out of "Jollibee" plastic cups and cellophanes. The cups were tailored around in a circle with a big star in the middle.

This one made use of a lot of colored cellophanes. Inside the odd, pod-like shaped structure, is a Belen. On the top right side is a pink star. The ornaments at the bottom part of this lantern, are plastic cups cut to look like flowers, and they placed lights in the middle of each plastic cup.

The thin lines you see around the star are those twigs you get from the center of coconut leaves. The rest of the design is sprinkled with dried rice stalks.

This one is shaped like a candle. The ornaments around it are plastic cups cut to look like flowers and the insides are dried leaves.

This, right here, is the big winner. The materials used here, are used straws and plastic cups. The star is made out from pink straws, green straws for what looks like leaves in the middle, and finally yellow straws for the star in the center.

This one depicts the Star of David shining down on a Belen. Cut-out plastics were used as materials for this.

This one used dried leaves.

Dried leaves as well. There's a Belen in the center of it.

This one too.

This very ornate, oddly shaped lantern made use of a lot of red cellopanes. The leaves-like structures at the bottom have cut-out foils in them.

This ornate Star of David made use of green and blue cellophanes and cut out plastic cups.

This church-like structure is made of 100% pure styro.

 

These are made out of plastic bottles. It is shaped like the hands of God protecting earth.

This is the front view. There is a Belen in the middle.

These were made from dried leaves.

This is a personal favorite. It's a star within 5 bells formed into one big star. This made use of recyled paper dyed yellow. And the green ornaments you see around it are cellophanes shaped into small flowers. Used wires along the sides pulled off that nice finishing touch. This is my personal winner.

These were made from dried rice stalks.

These are the winners. From left to right, 2nd, 1st, 3rd.

This made use of used disks(DVDs), shaped simply circular. I don't understand how it made 2nd place.

This is the 3rd placer. Made out of cellophanes. There is a Belen in the middle. It's shape is odd enough to look like a vertical rectangular bell. There is a funny looking star to its right and an even funnier looking star to it's left.

After the winners had been named, they were pulled out and show-cased onto the stage for everyone to see.

I wanted the star-shaped yellow bells to win, or at least second, but oh well.

For sure people had their own bets of the entries they wanted to win. But in the grand scheme of things, all these deserved to win, just by the hardwork, patience and creativity the makers put into creating their magnificent work of art.

The mere fact that their love for the Christmas season enabled them to mold and create such beautiful work of artistry, made them winners in their hearts.

Happy holidays! =)

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