My Dogs Taught Me Proper Eating Habits

Maintaining my ideal body weight has been my problem as far as I can remember. I just can't develop the discipline to control my eating habits. One day I can say I've reached my normal weight, but after a few months, I'd gain it all back -- back to zero.

Today, I've learned something really interesting from an accidental experiment that happened out of boredom.

Here's the story:

I've got two dogs - Stacie, a Labrador that looks like Andre, the sea lion and Xylo, an ordinary dog that my friend gave me.

This is Stacie, the sea lion. (Haha)

And Xylo, the Albino dog.

Well, this afternoon, I thought of playing with them, and by that I mean grabbing a bag of bread, break it into several pieces, throw it at the dogs, and watch them catch it with their mouths. It's so funny how talented those dogs are when it comes to food, especially Stacie.

Out of my experiments, I've arrived to a conclusion that my dogs represent two types of people in the world - the skinny (Xylo) and the fat (Stacie).

Aside from being really fat, Stacie gets all excited with everything that has something to do with food, like the sound of spoons and fork hitting the plate. Also, when I throw food at her, she doesn't chew it even once. She just swallows it all up. (Damn, glutton!) And lastly, when she see someone eating, she'll get jealous and would want to eat as well.

That's me. I'm sooo Stacie. I've got to be more like Xylo.

Xylo, on the other hand, is health conscious, I think. He's really skinny and when I throw food at him, he takes time to chew it, or sometimes he even keeps it aside for a while and just eats it later because he's not hungry. He doesn't get jealous when I feed Stacie. And lastly, he drinks a lot of water.

That's what we should all be if we want to lose weight. We should not think that food is everything. We should have discipline and proper eating habits, just like Xylo.

Let's all make Xylo our inspiration to become slim. If an ordinary dog can do it, so can we. We're humans. Hehe.

So tell me, are you Stacie or Xylo?

American Idol: Simon Cowell's Final Two Pick

Five singers remain in the competition in American Idol. Start counting the days because by the coming month, we'll witness yet another of the dreaded head-to-head battle of the top two idol hopefuls.

A month left, that's a very short time. Have you chosen yours?

Well, if you ask the ever straightforward American Idol judge, Simon Cowell, he's already got an answer.

He told reporters at a recent event in LA that he'd like to see Adam Lambert and Danny Gokey in the final two because he thinks they are the best singers among the bunch.

The majority doesn't question Simon's choice of Adam Lambert. Adam hasn't run out of ways to wow the judges week after weeks, thus making him favorite of all four.

Danny, on the other hand, seems like a questionable choice for the viewers. Danny has received not-so-great comments from the judges at his last performances.

We don't know if Simon really made a good choice, but it doesn't matter. The show's not named Simon's idol, right?

America would have the final say of who would be named the next American Idol. Let's just wait for that day to come.

Susan Boyle's Makeover Photos

The Sun has copyright over Susan Boyle's makeover photos and you can view them here: Susan Boyle's Makeover

But wait! Look at these pictures that I found while searching for her makeover photos. These really made me laugh, especially the Amy Winehouse hairstyle. Haha.

Do you see what I see? The last photo at the top looks like Martha Stewart. Haha. Am I just imagining this?

This one's really funny. I love Amy Winehouse and I never imagined someone would do this. Haha. This is one of the reasons why I love the Internet and Photoshop.

Britain's Got Talent Boils over Susan Boyle's Makeover

People enjoy having a makeover. It improves their appearance, making them more likable by people and confident. This time, however, it's different.

I'm talking about Susan Boyle, the contestant of Britain's Got Talent that got the whole country (or world shocked) because behind her homely, slightly unattractive looks (let's be honest), hides a tremendous talent that made us all love her.

But back to the bad news. Susan Boyle's annoyingly thick eyebrows and unkempt, crazy, grayish brown hair is gone. She subjected herself into a makeover with a £35-worth chestnut hair dye, £5 eyebrow trim, and a facial at a local salon near her home.

What trouble would this little makeover bring to our poor Susan?

Susan seen with improved dress with pearls and a jacket.

We are not sure, but according to Amanda Holden, one of the judges of the show, Susan needs to stay exactly as she is because that's the reason people loved her. And maybe she's right by saying that if she tries to change her looks, we might look at her differently now.

Her humble looks coupled with her awesome voice is her only edge. Just imagine Kelly Clarkson or Leona Lewis standing in front of Simon cowell with the voice of Susan Boyle, one line from a song and off they go. Right?

She sings well, but not as good as those in the music industry. She just wouldn't survive. All she could become at the least is become a one-hit wonder. Or she may not even reach that far, after having that makeover.

Well, I just wish you luck, Susan. I was one of those who laughed at you at first, but got really touched by your personality. I hope you get far.

VIDEO: Girl From Ipanema on America's Next Top Model

Six girls remain on America's Next Top Model Season 12, and they've just landed in Brazil! They are Teyona, Natalie, Allison, Aminat, Celia, and Fo. Only a few minutes after landing, they met with Brazil's Next Top Model host and supermodel, Fernanda Motta, to talk about their very first challenge - to find the Girl from Ipanema, Helô Pinheiro.



At first I thought they would have to find a statue of the girl from Ipanema, but to my shock, that girl is a real person.

I love listening to that song, but never did I think that there's a face behind that song. I thought it was a general description of girls in Ipanema. Really, I'm in shock.

According to my research, the song was actually composed for a musical entitled, "Dirigivel (Blimp)," by Vinicius de Moraes and not brought about by his admiration for the girl. The composers later on attributed the song to Helô Pinheiro when it became famous, making her a celebrity in Brazil.

Moving forward, the girls got to meet Helô Pinheiro in person. She gave them the new set of keys to their new house in Brazil.

Episode summary: Fo and Natalie won the race to find the girl from Ipanema challenge. Fo won the capoeira posing challenge. And lastly, Natalie got eliminated. Too bad, I really liked her... before. Not now 'cause she got all these attitude problems. Maybe it's because of her being really rich. I'll miss her though.

Below is a video excerpt from America's Next Top Model Season 12 Episode 10 as aired by The CW.

Studio Light (Softbox) Photo Test

Below are the photos I've taken using my improvised Softbox from my previous post Improvised Studio Light (Softbox)

I placed the softbox at my left side, thus the greater amount of light from my left. To diffuse the light, I used a reflector, improvised as well. It's just a cardboard covered with aluminum foil to reflect the light from the softbox to prevent having unwanted shadows on the right side.

I held the reflector with my right hand, making sure it reflects the light from the softbox towards my face.

It would be better to have a backdrop, so that it would be easier to crop when processing it using a photo editing software. I didn't use a backdrop because the photo shoot was just a spontaneous result of extreme boredom.

I used my Canon PowerShot SD1000 digital camera to shoot this photo.

This first photo is the original shot. Light is diffused adequately to prevent over- or under-exposure of the subject.

With a few minor editing using Photoshop, I was able to achieve an almost professional-looking photo.

Soon, I'll be setting up a mini-studio at home, so watch out for my next do-it-yourself photography projects.

For more do-it-yourself projects on photography, go to DIYPhotography.net

Improvised Studio Light (Softbox)

One of my frustrations, obviously, is photography.

Being skilled in photography can be learned, I believe. But being extremely artistic and unique is something thousands worth of classes couldn't teach you. And that is the reason I don't think I could ever get into photography - I'm not artistic enough.

Well, I thought there's no danger in trying, right? Hehe!

I don't know what gave me this idea, but I felt that starting with an improvised studio light would jumpstart me into the photography field. (Oh, crazy me.)

So I googled my way into creating my own studio light and I found this great site for starting photographers.

DIYPhotography.net has a lot of tutorials to aid our photographers to have a studio of their own. They also give lessons about proper technique, developing film, and a lot of things photographers do. (Duh.)

What I liked about their site is that it has a lot of photos to really guide on what to do and how your project should look like.

Attached are photos of the finished product from the DIYPhotography.net site and my own softbox studio light.

(DIYPhotography.net's finished softbox)



(And mine!! I've got to buy a new bulb, one that professionals really use. hehe)

Of course, mine has to have more photos than theirs. It took me almost 5 hours to finish doing that project! Haha!

Click here for the studio light (Softbox) tutorial

Gossip Girl show is spreading STDs

WTF's happening to Gossip Girl with all of these twist and turns at every episode?

It's a disease, I'm telling you. Diagnosis? Flood-the-show-with-unexpected-twists-to-keep-people-interested-in-hope-that-the-network-would-not-stop-airing-our-show Disease! (What?!)

One day this guy is with girl A, then breaks up with her. He moves on with another girl, but then they break up, and he goes back with girl A. They break up again. He did the dirty in some costume closet with a teacher. And I'm just talking about one guy!

Gossip Girl typifies how STD (Sexually transmitted diseases) are transferred - multiple partners, and, whatchamacallit, the boyfriend-girlfriend swap thing! That's how you get it! Waah!

It's understandable that they're trying their best to keep the show airing after having to bid goodbye to some other shows [Pushing Daisies] that has been aired off by their networks as response to their country's crisis, but come on, don't you think what you're doing's too much?

The clock's ticking before people get bored with those twists. Don't wait until it's too late. Do something right now. Brainstorm!!!! My G!!!

XOXO BoNaKid (Bwahaha!)

God of War: Chains of Olympus [PSP]

For the first time in my 21 years of existence, I've finally been able to finish a game from start to end!

From the Family Computer to Sega, from Nintendo to PlayStation one, and until every high-tech game console started coming out like Wii, it was my frustration to finish a game.

Once the going gets tough, I quit and never would I ever attempt to play it again.

But this week was different. I was successful! I've put an end to my lame attitude of starting something, but never really get to finishing it.

God of War: Chains of Olympus [PSP] would be an unforgettable game for me. Overall, I would give it a 9.7 (10 as the highest.)

Presentation: 9.5
The story presentation was cool! I'd like to commend the writers for being able to tie Greek mythology with the game as if it's the really story that's been written on the books.
Graphics: A staggering 10
This sets the standard for gaming in the PSP. Clear and smooth graphics all throughout the game with awesome visual effects.
Sound: 10
The voiceovers deserve a big hand, and the background music as well. I swear, my heart pounds hard when I hear that kind of music while playing the game.
Gameplay: 9.0
I've played games like this, but it has better graphics and presentation. However, it was a bit short. It only took me less than 8 hours to finish. I so, so love the mini-game play.

Appeal: 10
This game would go a long way. I'm looking forward for the PART TWO!!

Of course, a big thanks to IGN.com Entertainment Games for their Walkthrough [Click this link to go to the guide]. I can't do it alone, you know! I needed help, or else, I'd be putting my PSP down and would have slept rather than pissing myself on trying to figure out how to get out of a freaking chapter!

Here are some screenshots from www.ign.com

BoNaKid (Bongga Na Kid)

Only time could tell how long this blog would last before I'd be sued for copyright infringement. (I hope not!!)

For those who are not aware, I got my blog name after a milk company here in the Philippines - Bona Milk. I have no idea whatsoever if it's even known internationally. So if I have offended some people for doing this, I'm sorry.

I was too desperate to come up with a name, so when I saw this pen holder from that company on top of my table, ideas started to flood in. Hehe!

Soon, I was making a header for my blog and typing away to create my first post.

Did I drink that brand of milk as a kid? No. I had Promil (I think).

Don't expect that I'd be telling you ideas of what I'd be posting on this blog, because I have no clear idea either. I'm not the type of person that could focus on just one thing like fashion, photography, music, or whatever. I'm one helluva mix of all those things.

So... YOU BETTER WATCH THIS SPACE!!!