Happy New Year to Everyone

2008

Happiness deep down within.
Serenity with each sunrise.
Success in each facet of your life.
Family beside you.
Close and caring friends.
Health, inside you.
Love that never ends.
Special memories of all the yesterdays.
A bright today with much to be thankful for.
A path that leads to beautiful tomorrows.
Dreams that do their best to come true.
Appreciation of all the wonderful things about you.

Wishing you lots of Happiness, Success, Love n Good health

Best Wishes…

Beware of these Flip flops or simply sandals

Not that we are using these now but maybe in the summer we have to think twice!

Don't buy any cheap flip flops in Mexico,us etc-dont know in the philippines if there is such sandals..

Subject: Be aware of these FLip Flops from China - true

http://www.snopes. com/medical/ toxins/flipflop. asp

I can't believe it, but this is TRUE! See the link to snopes.com and see for yourself. Pretty scary. Very good to know!! Definitely pass this one onto everyone you know to spread the word



This is very true I heard it in news from one of our local radios here that our govt has to be extra careful on these cheap imports from china especially clothes because the Chinese are using some strong but cheap chemical in their manufactures. Cheap is expensive and at the same time fatal.

ATLANTIS-NASA

One Day in Space

NASA Atlantis & Others

Here are some stunning new NASA pictures, plus a few photos from a Russian source, you can get a closer look at science and maintenance work in orbit, including several fascinating spacewalks.

STS-117 Atlantis mission's rendezvous with Expedition 15 of the International Space Station. Read more info here. Click any image to enlarge.


Astronaut Steven Swanson during the mission's second spacewalk.






Inspection of the thermal shield.









Shuttle's payload bay is clearly visible, with a valuable cargo inside.



Shuttle approaching the International Space Station






"The Backflip" - flipping Atlantis on her "belly" to allow for closer examination of the heat shield.












Giving out packages from Earth...



Astronaut Jim Reilly during spacewalk.

Mission's first spacewalk (connecting station's newly installed truss)






Construction of the International Space Station continues - activating new truss segments.






Folding the older solar arrays...



Astronaut Patrick Forrester during the mission's fourth spacewalk.









New solar array configuration. Future missions will add more arrays to each side and several science modules.


Aurora Borealis as seen from space:


(Image courtesy of the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, NASA)


Sunset over the Pacific:


(Image courtesy of the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, NASA)

Self Management

You are responsible for everything that happens in your life. Learn to accept total responsibility for yourself. If you do not manage yourself, then you are letting others have control of your Life. These tips will help "you" manage "you."

Here is a list of things that help you in self management and which will in turn lead you to the path of success: -

-) Look at every new opportunity as an exciting and new-life experience.

-) Be a professional who exhibits self-confidence and self-assurance in your potential to complete any task.

-) Agree with yourself in advance that you will have a good attitude toward the upcoming task.

-) Frequently ask, "Is what I am doing right now moving me toward my goals?"

-) Do it right the first time and you will not have to take time later to fix it.

-) Accept responsibility for your job successes and failures. Do not look for a scapegoat.

-) Do not view things you do as a "job." View all activities as a challenge.
-) Use your subconscious mind by telling it to do what you do want. Instead of telling yourself, "I can't do that very well," say, "I can do this very well."-) Give yourself points for completing tasks on your "to-do" list in priority order. When you reach 10 points, reward yourself.

-) Practice your personal beliefs. It may be helpful each morning to take 15 minutes to gather your thoughts and say a prayer.

-) Make a commitment to show someone a specific accomplishment on a certain date. The added urgency will help you feel motivated to have it done.

-) Practice self-determination, wanting to do it for yourself.

-) Believe that you can be what you want to be.

-) Never criticize yourself as having a weakness. There is no such thing. You are only talking about a present undeveloped skill or part of yourself that if you so chose, you can change. You do not have any weakness, only untapped potential.

-) Be pleasant all the time-no matter what the situation.

-) Challenge yourself to do things differently than you have in the past. It provides new ideas and keeps you interested.

-) Talk to yourself. A self-talk using positive affirmation is something that is common among all great achievers. They convince themselves that they can accomplish their goals.

-) Create your own "motivation board" by putting up notes of things you need to do on a bulletin board or special wall space. It is an easily visible way to see what you need to work on. When an item is done, remove the note. Also keep your goals listed and pictured on your board.

-) Stay interested in what you are doing. Keep looking for what is interesting in your work. Change your perspective and look at it as someone outside your job would,

-) Establish personal incentives and rewards to help maintain your own high enthusiasm and performance level.

Soon to Top 9 unique structures

obviously, construction technologies are advancing extremely quickly. couple that with multi-billionaires / deep-pocketed companies trying to outdo each other in the quest for the next standout design and you have a near-future filled with mile-high skyscrapers and buildings that no longer look like buildings.

below are 9 strange and unique structures which have either been approved or are in the final stages of approval. some have already been partially constructed.

welcome to the future landscape.

1. aqua, usa (website )

from a distance this skyscraper, to be completed in 2009 in Chicago, will seem quite traditional. it'll only be when you get close and look up that you can appreciate the ripple/jelly effect created by variously sized balconies from top to bottom.

2. chicago spire, usa (website )

the phenomenal Chicago spire, when completed in 2010, will be the world's tallest residential building and the tallest building of any kind in the western world. seemingly modeled on the image of a giant drill poking through the ground, the 609m structure will dominate the Chicago skyline.

3. cctv headquarters, china (website )

at a modest 234m the cctv building isn't going to stand out from a distance. however the design and shape is a crowd stopper to say the least and will be another incredible addition to Beijing's skyline in time for the 2008 Olympics. the shape, described as a 'z criss-cross' results in a very high, seemingly unsupported corner at the front. let's hope there's a glass floor up there.

4. regatta hotel, jakarta (website )

taking on a nautical theme, the developers say the 10 smaller towers represent sailing boats whilst the larger building is 'the lighthouse'. it's the lighthouse that steals the show for me, possibly the most incredible looking structure I've seen for a long time. if it ends up looking anything close to these pictures I'll be impressed.

5. residence antilia, india (architects' website )

construction has begun on residence antilia despite opposition from those who see it as an 'excessive' design in a city where more than 65% of the population live in slums. politics aside and after you recover from the initial shock of seeing a skyscraper that resembles an ikea cd rack, the building actually looks like it may succeed as a stunning, unique, green piece of architecture.

6. russia tower, russia (architects' website )

topped with an observation deck over the city of moscow, russia tower will become the tallest building in europe when completed in 2012 and twice the height of the eiffel tower. construction has already started on this angular beast which was designed by foster partners, also responsible for the gherkin and spaceport america, currently in development.

7. penang global city centre, malaysia (website )

following months of speculation and sturdy opposition, this humungous project is in the final stages of approval and apparently construction will start very soon. even so, due to the size of the plan it will take at least 15 years to complete. resembling a sci-fi city, the area will be crowned by 2 x 200m towers and completely transform the small island of penang.

8. gazprom headquarters, russia (architects' website )

this gigantic, 300m tall glass flame of a building will house the gazprom headquarters in st. petersburg, dwarfing all structures in its vicinity. it will apparently change colour up to 10 times per day depending on the position of the sun. the building has already been nicknamed 'corn on the cob' by unhappy locals.

9. burj dubai, dubai (website)

this is the big one. when completed next year it will be the tallest man-made structure in the world and the tallest building by a long shot with a predicted height of 818m. note: currently the tallest building on earth, excluding an antenna, is taipei 101 in taiwan which stands at 509m. the photo below is the building's current state: the skyscrapers below the burj dubai used to look tall.