Searching for Utopia

Domain name is perhaps one of the biggest assets for a blogger, especially for those who want to be full-time bloggers. I do have those days when I dreamed of becoming one (who hasn’t?), but with my status as a full-time mommy now, I just can’t afford the time.

But serious bloggers can be filthy rich — and famous too! Just look at Perez Hilton.

Of course, first of all, you’d need to pick a good web host for that. And how to find one, you ask?

Visit Web Hosting Rating! They provide you with thorough information on the top ten web hosting companies, which is chosen based on the customer satisfaction, affordability, reliability, uptime and technical support.

When I said thorough information, that also includes their plans, promotional and discount coupons to give you better deals.

For your first attempt, cheap web hosting should be enough. But if you have extra budget, there is nothing wrong with securing multiple domains to generate more traffic.

There are actually many things to consider before deciding to choose your web hosting company. Read more on Web Hosting Rating!

Just a little update on Mike Tramp and Ayu Azhari for you. It looks like baby number two is on the way for the couple.

Ayu Azhari is said to be eight months into pregnancy now. Her due date is in the first week of September. It’s said that she’ll give birth in the US. Who knows, some of you may bump into her.

Her sister, Sarah, has confirmed the news.

For Ayu, the baby will be her sixth child. She already has one child from her first husband, three more from the second, and another one from Tramp.

Related posts:
Enter sarah Azhari’s Blog
It’s Official: Mike Tramp, Ayu Azhari and Baby Isabel

Have you ever been to Mexico? When you have an opportunity to fly there, don’t forget to visit San Miguel de Allende. It’s an ancient city founded in 1542. In 1926, it’s designated a National Historic Monument, and it has remained in its original state since then.

If you decide to pay this town a visit though, arrange your accommodation beforehand. In case you haven’t heard, it’s actually one of the top tourist destinations in the world. Don’t be surprised to find hotels are fully booked during holidays.

Like any other tourist destinations, the city provides many things to keep you entertained. You can just enjoy the beautiful 18th Century mansions along the cobblestone streets, or visit a bunch of restaurants and galleries around the city.

You can get a map from the tourism office, which is located right next to the great church built in the 1700s, close to the public square.

When you’ve armed yourself with a map, head to the Tuesday Market, where you can get a taste of the famous churros.

San Miguel is a historical, yet tranquil place. The weather is as perfect as spring all year round. It may even be a perfect town to spend your retirement. In fact, there are 7,000 to 12,000 retirees there, mostly from the US and around Canada and Europe.

Just a gentle warning for you girls, women don’t wear shorts in public! So be prepared with skirts or slacks.

If you need to know more about the city, visit the site at sanmigueldeallendemexico.com It provides many useful tips, such as how to get there, what you can do around the city, and even how to buy real estate.

Poor Kevin Cogill. FBI arrested him yesterday because of leaking nine Guns N’ Roses’ songs online. The songs were said to feature on their upcoming album, Chinese Democracy. His bail was set at US$10,000. As for the site, it got so much traffic after the songs were added that it crashed. Oh, the drama!

Gone are the old days when we could do just about everything online. Wrong words, and you’d get sued. Upload an mp3, you’d get busted. Download anime, you’d be fined. You can’t even post your kids’ pictures for fear of online predators. Bloggers, beware! The most you can do is just to chat with your relatives and share gardening tips on your blogs.

I’m not really against those copyright laws, but sometimes they’re just too much. I’ve lived long enough to witness an era where floppy disk didn’t exist, let alone CD. We did have songs though. The only problem is we can’t find those songs at any shops nowadays. Some (not all) are available on YouTube, but for how long? I’m too coward to try, but methinks file sharing is not always evil.

In case you haven’t known, that’s supposed to be a concept car from Ferrari called Ferrari Monza. Well, being a Ferrari fan myself, I’d say it looks out of this world, literally — but in this case that’s not a compliment.

However, apart from the look, Ferrari never fail to impress:

This conceptual Ferrari ‘Monza’ changes shape at higher speeds in order to maximise its aerodynamics. Furthermore, because ordinary humans don’t have the necessary skills to handle speeds in excess of 125 miles per hour or 200 km/h, an automated computer system will takeover a lot of the controls at higher velocities.

The highly original Monza design is obviously intended to minimise friction and to stop unexpected headwinds from sending the vehicle pirouetting into the sky at the slightest gust. Two fins adjust their orientation automatically with the increased airflow in order to keep the vehicle grounded. Oh, and they look absurdly cool as well.

Once the driver exceeds a certain speed, the computer will assume the majority of control. Think about it like your handing the steering wheel over to your sat nav. Maghsoudi doesn’t mention what kind of functions the computer pilot will handle, or how well it will take verbal directions like “I said turn left, no my left, oh wait this map is upside down”.

One thing’s for sure though - you would not want to be seeing the Blue Screen of Death in one of these.

Verdict: only for Anakin.

So, the Olympics have come to an end. What do you feel? Honestly, I’m rather relieved. Phew! Now hopefully I can get back to watch my favorite series, after being bombarded with those Olympics-related news and events for the whole month.

I’m not being a hater, but I actually fail to see how the games could achieve their purpose as to foster the idea to promote friendship among nations. What friendship?

I don’t know about you, but what I’ve seen, people tend to be more nationalist during the games. Well, nothing is wrong with taking pride in our own roots. Just don’t overdo it, because it means betraying the spirit of the Olympics — to make friends with other nations, that is.

In FIFA World Cup, you may do that. The purpose of the tournament is to find who’s the best, after all. You can cheer or boo your favorite team all you want. In some case, it even has nothing to do with being nationalists. Many Indonesians would support Brazil, for example. It’s only for the sake of the game.

But in the Olympics, it’s different. It’s all down to you and your country. An athlete is only worth mentioning when s/he wins. Maybe that explains why some of them even considered of using doping to achieve this.

No wonder Indonesia’s female lifter Lisa Rumbewas wept all night because she got no medal. She had silver in 2000 and 2004, mind you. Couldn’t we just tell her that she didn’t lose? She didn’t give up the medal to just about anyone, anyway. It’s her own friends who won. But, nay. Athletes came to fight — and vanquish all opponents, if possible.

Ask Michael Phelps. Did he come to the Olympics to make friends, or to beat the rest? The answer is obvious, methinks. Well, maybe it’s a bonus if he got himself a girlfriend while doing it.

Foreign leaders praised China’s success in holding the games, but who hasn’t read of the news about the lip-synch scandal? I get it, even Mariah Carey does it sometimes. But then again she can really sing — when she wants to, at least. Lip-synching to somebody else is not OK. Remember Milli Vanilli?

Anyway, the scandal (and others) triggered backlash from other countries/ media/ artists etc. I haven’t done any research, and probably won’t start to, but I think sometimes people taunt each others because of Olympics. Did your colleagues ask why your country is only good in badminton, and nothing else? Or perhaps they asked why your country could only get a medal after luring foreign talents? Normally you wouldn’t receive such questions, but hey it’s Olympics time!

Therefore, folks, I’m glad it’s over, and we all can be friends again regardless of our nationalities. You can celebrate your victory. But don’t forget it’ll be over before too long, while your colleagues will remain longer than that.

Looking for a gift for the loved ones? Ever considering of giving tickets for them? Come on, everyone must enjoy some entertainment, be it sports, concerts or theaters.

All you have to do is to find out their interests first, and then check out what events are going down near the occasion.

Don’t worry, it’s not half as complicated as it sounds. You can arrange everything within a few minutes at StubPass.com. They have like 60,000 events available to choose from, so once inside the site, you’d just have to do a quick search.

I’m sure your hubby would appreciate some New England Patriots Tickets. And if you need to give a perfect birthday gift for your niece, I don’t think she’d refuse a chance to see Jonas Brothers. Or perhaps you want to attend New Kids on the Block reunion tour? You can!

Just arrange everything online. You can then proceed to purchase a pair of tickets for yourself and the recipient, especially if it’s for your husband — though I feel sorry for you if he wanted to attend NKOTB reunion tour.

Anyway, my point is that you won’t have to do your own research in some search engines, that’s soo yesterday! You’ll find every ticket you’re looking for at StubPass.

Better still, their site is also protected by both HackerSafe and GeoCerts, which means your private information is safe from any unwanted access. In short, you can trust them.

Another thing is that they offer a 100 per cent unconditional guarantee for tickets purchased from them. Should you find your tickets are unauthentic and invalid, or you receive worse than what you ordered, or in a case where the event is cancelled — you’d get all your money back.

If you have any enquiries, you can contact their sales staff here.

Who said that extra pounds are ok? Well, not in Alabama at least. Not less than 37,527 state employees there have been given a year to shed their weight, or they must pay $25 a month for insurance that otherwise is free.

Before this policy, the state has actually charged $24 per month for smoking employees. Understandably enough, those who have to pay for both are bound to be unhappy.

The State Employees’ Insurance Board will consider a person to be obese if his/her body mass index is 35 and higher. After given a year without any progress, the person will have to pay the charge.

The board has not yet determined how much progress a person would have to show and is uncertain how many people might be affected because everyone could avoid the charge by working to lose weight.

I think any yo-yo dieters can easily escape the charge though. If you know you’ll have your health screenings within the next two weeks, for example, then you can just ease down on your fried chicken for a while, that’s all. When you’ve passed the screenings, you can munch all you want. That’s not a good advice, I know. I just don’t think such policy will really be effective.

I my opinion, Singapore’s approach in this case will be more fruitful, though no doubt, a bit insensitive. Criticism towards obesity is so high here that you’ll often hear such remarks, “Pig — Some people call us pig. and if you see my name – my name is zul – so if you translate it directly into Chinese it’s pig. So most of the people insult me. ”

He happens to be a sixth-grader with some extra pounds on him. And here’s how it’s handled:

“Of course, such taunting of overweight kids is hardly unique to Singapore. But while schools in other countries try to stop this kind of behavior by telling children that everyone is equal and worthy of respect, Singapore’s program has exacerbated the stigma of being overweight. By dividing the children into two groups – the fit and the fat – the schools impose a kind of segregation. And this segregation can extend outside the clubs, into the cafeteria.”

Agree or not, this program is a success. While in the United States the number of obese children has tripled since 1980, in Singapore it has fallen from 14 to nine per cent in the past 15 years.

I personally think that people in Asia tend to be more straightforward in speaking their minds to others about such things. I didn’t grow up in Singapore. Although nobody ever called me a pig when I was still in school, schoolmates made sure that I knew I was big.

I hated it. Then again, it kept me motivated. It took me years, but it worked. Of course, everyone is equal and deserves the same respect — regardless of size. But if you’re under no pressure to lose weight, naturally you will never make any effort to do so.

Dare to try?

Did China really invent this self-heating meal? Good job I say. I’d definitely try that!

Are you unhappy with your current internet service provider, and looking for a new one? Don’t go with just a company. Before anything else, you’d need to compare every option available for you.

Depending on your needs, you can choose between one of these: DSL service, dial up access, cable, wireless or satellite ISP.

Still confused? If you live in the United States, perhaps you’d want to visit GetISP.info first. This site provides everything you need to know about ISP providers and VOIP. The purpose of this site is to help its users deciding which type of service that would suit them the most.

Of course, everyone has different expectation. Some people may search for fast connection. Since money is not an issue, they might want to subscribe to a DSL internet. Let GetISP.info do the job for you, and click on this link to see the comparison. There, you already have a handful options in your hands.

If you look for a more economic solution, fret not. You can compare many discounted dialup services , and better still, even free Internet dialup connection is available for you.

Apart from that, if you often make international phone calls — I know I do — then you might also be interested in trying VOIP. One thing, though, you must have either DSL or cable internet to be able to use this. When you do, proceed to find out the cheapest VOIP providers at GetISP.info.

Other useful tips from this site are including on how to avoid online scams, and how to protect your computer from spyware.

A parent posted that thing in a primary school’s forum in the East. Judging from her diction, s/he must have been raised under the same circumstances in her youth.

Every country has its own characteristics, even in shopping. Here in Singapore we have the GSS, or Great Singapore Sales, which gives up to 70 per cent discount on selected items across the island.

My friend in the United States told me that they call it Black Friday there. It’s actually the first Friday after thanksgiving, and the busiest day for shopping throughout the year. Normally people will line up outside shop fronts since dawn to get the best bargains available on that day. More often than not, though, they would end up picking everything they happen to come across — just because they think they’re cheaper than on normal days!

Unless you’re a hardcore shopper, I honestly don’t think you’d enjoy it. Do you know, you can actually skip the queue?

In case you haven’t known, check this thanksgiving flyer. Black Friday Online provide you with items you can purchase for your holiday shopping, without the hassle of having to step out of your home.

They also have email alerts to let you know about the new ads. There are many merchants available, such as Amazon.com and Walmart.

You can start browsing through their offers as early as now, and create a shopping list in advance. Just before the Black Friday sale ends, you can simply start to shop. If you’re lucky, you may be able to buy some Black Friday products online. Some merchants listed on Black Friday Online are kind enough to make their products available online on Thanksgiving morning.

Say bye-bye to stressful Black Friday shopping experience; now that you can make your own plan in advance.

Good news for you, folks — not so much for the ladies though. New research conducted by the University of Sheffield in UK suggests that men from polygamous cultures live 12 per cent longer than those from monogamous ones.

Chris Wilson, an evolutionary anthropologist at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York also said, “It’s a valid hypothesis and good prediction. It doesn’t surprise me that men in those societies live longer than men in monogamous societies, where they become widowed and have nobody to care for them.”

But how about the women? Next time they should also do the same research on women.

Moral of the story: never tell your wife that you love Aston Villa!

Click on the picture above for the story.

Do you find it a hassle to look for car hire company during your overseas stay?

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If you’re planning to visit the States, for example, make sure to book your car online from this car hire USA.

How, we hear you asked. First, fill in their online booking form. After receiving your booking, their representative will confirm it. Fret not, you won’t have to pay until your car is confirmed. Then you should receive your car hire voucher. That’s all.

Since their system makes comparison between over 40 car hire companies in USA, most probably you’ll get the cheapest price. Click the picture above for more info.