Are You a Leader? A Quick Movie Hero Quiz

alex
Dec 10 |17:15

So, you want to be a leader. And not just any leader – you want to be the best there is. Though there may be no fool-proof plan on being one (after all, it takes a lot of practice, time and patience to lead people), you can do the next best thing. How? By setting your mind on it. And what better way to create an image of a leader than using Movie Heroes? Take this quiz and see if you’ve got the makings of a powerful ruler:

You are in fortress, about to face thousand of orcs. On your side – a small battalion of sharpshooting elves, hundreds of peasants forced to fight, and a single stout dwarf. Theirs – abominations of trolls and orcs, coupled with the hundreds of suicidal bombers. What do you do?

A. Wave the White Flag
B. Cry like the baby you are
C. Raise your sword up high, motivate your men to fight through the night

You have to guard a bridge against a German regiment. Your forces are wounded, unmotivated, and in this bizarre case – too young to actually face danger. Plus, the German forces have a tank. What do you do?

A. Give up on the bridge, tell everyone that it’s better to be POWs
B. Cry like the baby you are
C. Just do it. Fight against the Nazis

After a surreal and bloody battle with Persian assassins, you suddenly find you and your army under a dark sky. No, it isn’t rain. It’s actually arrows. What do you do?

A. Shout “This is Sparta!”
B. Cry like the baby you are
C. Let you and your men cover yourselves with shields, and laugh about fighting in the shade

So, are you a leader? If you’ve answered A in any of the three scenarios, then there’s probably a lot to work out to. Giving up is a big NO in leading people. You’d need to show you can stand strong against any odds. And in the third scenario, just because you’ve shouted something to boost your troops morale doesn’t automatically mean you’re a leader. You have to carefully think things over first (otherwise, you’ll be in a world of hurt with the prickly Persian arrows).

If you did answer B, you may need to consider building up your confidence first. A leader usually takes the bulk of stress and pressure in any field of work. So you just can’t cry and act like a baby.

If you did answer C, then give yourself a pat in the back. Hooray! You’ve just got what it takes to be a leader! Have this short quiz ready, anytime you feel you need to boost your leadership skills up!

 

I’m Sorry: Because your Girlfriend’s the Queen of your World

alex
Dec 6 |11:46

I did it – I messed up real back. I was supposed to pick my girlfriend up from work last night. But with me having to write 25 articles, and stopping over a cool comic shop – that was more than enough reason for my girlfriend to be furious with me. She is still, actually, mad at me. So much, that not even a single sorry was enough to not let her decide on breaking up on me. So what did I do to make everything A-OK again? Check these tips out, in case you messed up real bad, or ran out of things to say you’re sorry to your loved one:

Shopping Spree
They say shopping is great therapy. That sure is right, for my girlfriend! So I treated my girlfriend out on a whole-day, no complaints from me, shopping extravaganza. We went to almost every single store in the mall – from affordable clothing finds in department stores, shoes and pumps in designer labels, even high-end, more-than-averaged priced boutiques – everything for her heart’s desire. That didn’t stop with the clothes and accessories. We went to restaurants, sampled the latest coffee flavors, even went for whole bags of candies! That sure did cool her down, through. As an important tip when doing this approach, make sure to not look bored during the shopping escapade. That’ll only make her more furious, when she asks how she looks like on that expensive summer dress. Also, to make it more beneficial for you – lessen the pain, man – go out on the shopping spree during mall sales. It’ll help you to not totally burn your pockets, it’ll also tire her down with the tons of other girls in the mall!

Sweets for My Love
Chocolates are a good way to say sorry. Not just any ordinary chocolate will do. Never buy a single, cheap chocolate to say you’re sorry – you’ll only make things worse! To keep it safe, buy a box of chocolates. Make it in variety, so that you’ll never go wrong on flavor. Also, you may want to try themed chocolates, or those than can be personalized. Check out pastry shops, if they can carve a “I’M SORRY” in a bar of chocolate. Also, when doing this approach, make sure (again, make sure) that your girl isn’t on a diet.

Hug
Sometimes, all it takes is a nice warm hug to say you’re sorry. It shows that you truly value your partner, that no material object can match to her. Human touch is essentially the best form of contact, that a hug will not only let her feel that you’re genuinely asking for forgiveness, that you’re also telling her that she completes you (as cheesy as it sounds). I should know, I went for this approach!

Everything is cool with me and my girlfriend. It sure was hard for me to get things back to a stable level, but at least it’s back to normal. I’ll make sure to keep things tight this time, and try to prevent getting in that comic shop again!

 

The Not-So-Beautiful Truth behind Plastic Surgery

alex
Dec 2 |17:34

Everyone pretty much wants to look young. To do this, they constantly find means to feel young inside and out. Although there seem to be hundreds of other ways to look good, people today seem to be resulting to plastic surgery. Reconstructive surgery during burns or accidents is different. Plastic surgery here means going under the knife in order to change a physical characteristic. It is a known fact that this kind of treatment is expensive, still people seem to resort to it anyway. South Korea tops many a survey as the country with the most plastic surgeries performed.

Celebrities and the rich folks seem the avid customers of these treatment, well for one thing, they seem to be the only ones who can afford this rather delicate procedure. Rich people just happen to have the money for it while celebrities need to look good in front of the camera. And although there has been so many accounts of successful plastic surgeries, there are those unheard few that have gone bad. Let’s enumerate three of them.

Donatella Versace – she is known as the Fashion Queen of Bad Plastic Surgery after all the surgeries that she had. She has had breast implants that became too obvious after she lost some weight, she has had lip injections that made them look like wax and she has had multiple facelifts that overstretched her face. She literally looks like a caricature from some magazine and is a living example of what happens when plastic surgery goes wrong.

Hang Mioku – is a 48-year old surgery-obsessed woman from Korea who stunned the world when she injected cooking oil into her own face. Doctors refused her requests for more procedures and reported hers as a bizarre psychological case.  Somehow, she managed to find a doctor who gave her a personal kit that will allow her to inject silicone on herself. She started undergoing various treatments since she was 28 years old and her tremendous obsession left her face enlarged and her features unrecognizable.

Michael Jackson – is known world wide not only for his musical legacy but for his transformation as well. Back in the 1970s, he looked like an ordinary African-American boy. But as he became older, he had to undergo “body bleaching” due to a serious skin problem. However, it is his infamous nose that people often make jokes about. In his lifetime, it was rumored that he had ten different nose jobs.

Nobody said that getting a plastic surgery is bad. However, like everything else, too much of something can be bad for you. You should understand that everyone will age, it is not a matter of stopping this normal process, but rather, we should choose to age gracefully.

 

Museo Pambata – a fun and learning museum experience

alex
Nov 28 |15:16

If you ever do find yourself visiting Manila, do drop by the Museo Pambata for a different, yet fun and educational museum experience.

Located at Roxas Boulevard, just beside the American Embassy, the Museo Pambata (translated in Filipino, Children’s Museum) is an establishment filled with large and strange, yet colorful and clean designs. Upon anyone’s initial visit, the first thing that would be heard in the air would be the laughter of the many children playing in the many interactive exhibits and sessions in the museum.

Unlike typical museums where artifacts and objects are meant to be just admired behind a safe distance, the Museo Pambata encourages – not just kids, but adults alike – to enjoy and touch their exhibits. Focusing on the senses, the museum contains many theme rooms, each containing hands-on exhibits.

One popular and often visited theme room is the Katawan Ko, or Body Works, in which a large human model (aptly named Mrs. Big Mouth for her rather large mouth) is on display. Want to let your kid know what it looks like inside a human body? Well, then visit this room and let them crawl down Mrs. Big Mouth’s throat!

Another popular interactive exhibit in the Museo Pambata is the Pamilihang Bayan, or Marketplace. This theme room features an interactive marketplace, with working scales and weights; and miniature business spaces, such as a barbershop, fireplace and multiple market stalls. The aim of this room is to let children learn the value of money, and to encourage and affirm good entrepreneurship skills.

Aside from having different theme rooms to visit, the Museo Pambata also features educational programs and activities, such as storytelling sessions, dance sessions from the Philippine National Folk Dance Company and shadowplays.  Also, in terms of enhancing the Filipino child’s growth and child empowerment, the museum features It’s Right to Know Your Rights!, a program that lets a child know their rights and privileges; and Paglaki Ko, or Career Options, where different work occupations are highlighted to let children get a grasp on having a job.

The Museo Pambata also tries its best to reach out to the deserving underprivileged, or to those who simply can’t go to the museum. With it’s latest addition, the mobile library, the museum can visit and share its fun, learning resources to various communities in the metro.

So for a different, enjoyable and memorable experience in Manila, visit the Museo Pambata. It’s not just for your kids, you’re bound to enjoy and learn something from here too!

 

Five Cocktail Drinks That You Should Not Dare Miss

alex
Nov 24 |14:01

Whether it is for a celebration or simply to chill out and relax, it is best to have a classic cocktail experience once in a while. Cocktail drinks basically consist of spirits of any kind, fruit juices or soda, sugar, water and bitters and most of the time are served iced or chilled. Here are some of these classic cocktails that have been served for more than a century already. You might want to try these at least once in your life.

Dry Martini
Martini is probably the first thing that comes to mind when you mention cocktail drinks. Even though a lot of neat drinks that come in different colors and flavors are usually called “martinis”, the true Martini however, is just made up of gin and dry vermouth and is usually garnished with either an olive or lemon twist. Nowadays there are already many variations to this simple drink like Dirty Martini and Vodka Martini. Also, you can now make preferences as to how ‘dry’ you want your glass of Martini to be.

Manhattan
Another classic cocktail drink that should be on your try-out list is Manhattan which instead of using gin as with a Martini incorporates whiskey or bourbon into the mixture. Also, sweet vermouth is used instead of Martini’s dry vermouth while cherry is usually used as the drink’s garnish.

Sazerac
Although Sazerac may not be for everyone because it includes absinthe which gives it an anise flavor, it can still be considered as one of those cocktails that you should try at least once in your life. A well-made Sazerac can be the best cocktail that you can ever have and for this reason it has been made the official cocktail of the city of New Orleans in 2008.

Margarita
One of the classic cocktail drinks that perhaps most of you have already tried is the Margarita. Today, it now comes in every color and flavor just like the Martini. But the traditional Margarita is simply made of tequila, orange liqueur, lime, lemon juices and includes a simple syrup. Try to experience the ultimate Margarita from these simple recipes instead of using those bottles of ‘margarita mix’.

Old-Fashioned
The Old-Fashioned is another great way to experience different whiskies. It is a simple drink but nonetheless essential to you cocktail collection because it teaches you one important technique of bartending which is muddling. Enjoying this drink is more about the process than the ingredients. Old-Fashioned is created by muddling sugar, bitter and a slice of orange. Afterwards, you add ice and bourbon, while you continue stirring the mix.

A party wouldn’t be complete without cocktail drinks. Make sure to try and serve one of these cocktail drinks when you have a gathering with your family and friends. Get to taste these exquisite mixes at their finest. Cheers!