Zeitgeist 2011: Year In review

Looking at the years most prolific events that happened around the world for the past 12 months of 2011

The Australian flood

One of the most devastating flood to hit Australia after the 1974 flood.


Related articles:

• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/12/australia-floods-brisbane_n_807997.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1974_Brisbane_flood

Christchurch, New Zealand earthquake

Related articles:

• new zealand earthquake (Huffington Post)
• christchurch earthquake 2011 (Huffington Post)

The Japanese Quake and Tsunami

Related article:

• Dhoku earthquake and tsunami (wikipedia)

The Egyption Revolution

Thousands and thousand of Egyptian people gather on streets to protest the high u employment rates, corruptions and also poor governmental disparity. After months of rebelliousness, the people finally won.


Related Article:

• http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/201112515334871490.html

The Royal Wedding:

Related article:

• http://www.officialroyalwedding2011.org/

The Arnold infidelity

The Governator was caught fathering a child, after their housekeeper admitted of the relationship to Maria Shriver

Related articles:

• http://www.popeater.com/2011/07/05/Arnold-schwarzenegger-maria-shriver-divorce-settlement-prenup/
• http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b242558_arnold_schwarzeneggers_other_woman.html

South Sudan declared a new nation.

Related article

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14069082 (BBC World)

Bersih Rally 2.0, 2011

Related Articles

• http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/169406
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Bersih_2.0_rally

The Casey Anthony trial

Related Article:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casey_Anthony_trial

The Pheonix Sand Storm

Gunman at Norway Camp

(picture by: AP/Morten Edvardsen/Scanpix)

Related Articles:

• Gunman at Norway Camp( News Yahoo)
• Who is Anders Behring Breivik (New York Daily News)
• Norway suspect deems killing atrocious but needed ( News Yahoo)
• Police arrived 90 minutes after the killings began (News Yahoo)
• Messages offers mother, daughter hope amid carnage (News Yahoo)

Death of British singer Amy Winehouse at 27

Related articles:

• Amy Winehouse (Wikipedia)
• Amy Winehouse: A timeline of her troubles. (MTV.com)
• Could Amy Winehouse be saved? ( News Music Yahoo)
• Amy Winehouse: "I would be on a ditch, on fire". (News Yahoo)

US Debt Crisis

(scott eelis/bloomberg via getty images)

Related articles:

• S&P downgrades US credit (Finance Yahoo)
• stock market mania (Yahoo News)
• US expecting standard poors debt rating downgrade (ABC News)

The London Riot

Related News:

• London Riots put spotlight on troubled unemployed youth in Britain (New York Times)
• Do you know this looters? (Daily Mail UK)

Hurrican Irene

Related articles:

• http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-08/28/c_131079832.htm
• http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-27/hurricane-irene-may-remain-category-1-storm-as-it-hits-new-york-on-sunday.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Irene_(2011)

Bernama TV camera killed in Humanitarian Effort in Somalia

Related article:

• Bernama TV Cameraman's remains arrive home( The Star)
• Profile: Somalia (BBC NEWS Uk)
• charity aid groups misleading somalia

Rising star Marco Simoncelli died at Sepang GP race

• Simoncelli dies in horror crash (Daily Mail UK)
• Simoncelli dies of multiple injuries (Autosport.com)

Nicol Ann David wins 6th World Open Squash Championship 

Related article:

• World open squash 2011   (Official World Open site)

other notable links and websites:

• The most powerful photos of 2011( Buzz Feed)
• Year in review (Yahoo)

what was the thing that you remembered the most during 2011 that touch your hearts???. Please share at the comment section below.

Christmas Outing Part 3 and finale

Part 3

The kids when shopping for school stuffs like bags, shoes, socks etc.

ok kids...its time for a shopping spree....

all smiles for the camera

make sure we dong exceed the RM130 amount given...

Okay now, please tell me if it fits you properly....

Part 4, the finale

Consist of an awesome kids party, more goodies given out and a stage performance

NOM!!NOM!!NOM!!

All smiles!!

More goodies given out to the kids...

The stage performance by Malacca Dance school

A group photo to end the day....

howling wind from the east

I have no idea at all where the wind is coming from, but I thought that the title sounds awesome.

Christmas Outing at Mahkota Parade Part2

You know the picture of the saloon shop on the previous entry??? Well, the children who are attending the outing had a free haircut session....

*snip**snip*away....

okay..I am getting nervous here...never had a haircut at a saloon before.

Okay now!! I want my bangs PERFECT!!

Well I rarely go to or get a haircut from a saloon before, and when is is especially free.. Awesome stuff.. a free haircut. I want a free haircut too =(

Christmas outing at Mahkota Parade Part 1

Venue: Mahkota Parade

Date: 21st December 2011

Kids from various schools and orphanages took part in this outing

consist of 4 parts

Part 1 consists of the children getting their schoolbags from the counter at the entrance of the shopping mall

nice!!!! a schoolbag for the new schooling session 2012

okay queue up now kids.....

Kids from various schools and orphanages took part in this outing

Avail yourselves and get your attendance look at by the beautiful lady assistants....

what does that have to do with the kids.....Part of 2 of Christmas outing at Mahkota Parade will commence soon.....stay tune

handstand dog

the year that was in Youtube 2011

Best of the best youtube videos of the past 12 months


Best Advertising video






Best Public Service Announcement video


Best Sports Video







Best animal related videos







Best Kid/ Baby related videos




Best Nature Video


Best accident related videos



Best blooper/Blunder/Fail videos















Best improvisational videos






Tell  me what you think? Are there any favorite of yours that should be listed here? Comment below

Merry Christmas 2011

May all of you have joyous Merry Christmas!!

featured blogger

two featured bloggers are into two very different stuff, and very interesting indeed.

the first one comes all the way from India. A cook connoisseur  with the passion and zeal to show. Spread across the blog is entries upon entries of mouth watering recipe anyone can try ( plus some adjustments). The link is below. I dare you to have a look.

• Baketitude.blogspot.com

The next one is fascinating to me because of the subject matter. Not only do I love reading about other people's rambling but also nature related blogs such as this that got featured.

• Birding North Wales.blogspot.com

The random book review: The client

Author: John Grisham
Publication date: 1994
synopsis
Eleven year old Mark Sway and his younger brother Ricky were sharing a forbidden cigarette when a chance encounter with a suicidal lawyer left Mark knowing a bloody and explosive secret: the whereabouts of the most sough-after dead body in America


Now Mark is caught between a legal system gone mad and a mob killer desperate to cover up his crime. And his only ally is a woman named Reggie Love, who has been a lawyer for all but four years


Prosecutors are willing to break all the rules to make Mark talk. The mob will stop at nothing to keep him quiet. And Reggie will do anything to protect her client- even take a last desperate gamble that could win Mark his freedom ..... or cost them both their lives.
Review on the book: 
I love how the plot goes as Mark is in deep trouble for knowing such a live changing secret. How his world is turned upside down by a desperate and group of legal prosecutors and a bad bullying mafia head. Even though Mark is eleven in the book, John Grisham tells him in such a way that his a very real and functioning character, when in truth he is only a kid.
The energy from the first page to the last is relentless- truly gripping that you wouldn't want to put the book down. The narrative just flows from one chapter to another seamlessly


randomdotfm book rating:
*Highly recommendable read*

are you a disco dancer??

I was not born yet when this film was released(1982), but somewhere along my childhood when I was growing up, I got introduced to this film and with this particular song much later in my life.
This dance steps are mad...I can tell you that...lol

Christmas Miracle...

By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES | Good Morning America

Sam Schmid, a 21-year-old college student from Arizona, astounded doctors by recovering from traumatic brain injuries just hours before being readied to be an organ donor. (Barrow Neurological Institute)

Sam Schmid, an Arizona college student believed to be brain dead and poised to be an organ donor, miraculously recovered just hours before doctors were considering taking him off life support.
Schmid, a junior and business major at the University of Arizona, was critically wounded in an Oct. 19 five-car accident in Tucson.
The 21-year-old's brain injuries were so severe that the local hospital could not treat him. He was airlifted to the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Phoenix, where specialists performed surgery for a life-threatening aneurysm.
As hospital officials began palliative care and broached the subject of organ donation with his family, Schmid began to respond, holding up two fingers on command. Today he is walking with the aid of a walker, and his speech, although slow, has improved.
Doctors say he will likely have a complete recovery. He even hopes to get a day pass from the hospital to celebrate the holidays with his large extended family.
"Nobody could ever give me a better Christmas present than this -- ever, ever, ever," said his mother, Susan Regan, who is vice-president of the insurance company Lovitt-Touche.
"I tell everyone, if they want to call it a modern-day miracle, this is a miracle," said Regan, 59, and a Catholic. "I have friends who are atheists who have called me and said, 'I am going back to church.'"
Schmid's doctor, renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Robert Spetzler, agreed that his recovery was miraculous.
"I am dumb-founded with his incredible recovery in such a short time," said Spetzler. "His recovery was really remarkable considering the extent of his lethal injuries."
Hospital officials are crediting Spetzler with having a "hunch" that despite an initially dire prognosis, the young man would make it. But he said it was "reasonable" for others to consider withdrawing the patient from life support.
"It looked like all the odds were stacked against him," said Spetzler, who has performed more than 6,000 such surgeries and trained the doctor who operated on Congressman Gabrielle Giffords after she was shot at the beginning of this year.
During surgery, Spetzler clipped the balloonlike aneurysm in the blood vessel -- "as if I were patching a tire," a procedure that eventually worked.
For days Schmid didn't seem to be responding, but what puzzled his doctor was that he did not see fatal injuries on the MRI scan. So he decided to keep Schmid on life support longer.
"There was plenty wrong -- he had a hemorrhage, an aneurysm and a stroke from the part of the aneurysm," Spetzler said. "But he didn't have a blood clot in the most vital part of his brain, which we know he can't recover from. And he didn't have a massive stroke that would predict no chance of a useful existence."
So while the family was given a realistic picture of Schmid's poor chances for survival, Spetzler ordered one more MRI to see if the critical areas of the brain had turned dark, indicating brain death.
"If not, we would hang on and keep him on support," he said. "But I didn't want to give the family false hope."
Schmid's mother said no one "specifically" asked if her son would be a donor, but they "subtly talk to you about quality of life."
"At some point, I knew we had to make some sort of decision, and I kept praying," said Regan.
The MRI came back with encouraging news during the day and by evening Schmid "inexplicably" followed the doctors' commands, holding up two fingers.
"It was like fireworks all going off at the same time," said Spetzler.
Today, Schmid -- his speech clear and sounding upbeat -- told ABCNews.com, "I feel fine. I'm in a wheelchair, but I am getting lots of help."




Sam Schmid Has No Memory of the Accident
He said he remembers nothing of the accident nor coming around after being in an induced coma. "It wasn't until I woke up in rehab," he said. "But they told me about afterwards."
Schmid was returning from coaching basketball at his former Catholic school when a van swerved into his lane. The Jeep in which he was riding went airborne, hit a light pole and landed on its side.
Schmid's left hand and both of his femurs broke and required surgery. But the worst were the traumatic head injuries, which were complex and nearly always fatal.
All those involved say the support that Schmid got from family and friends -- and especially the care at Barrow -- may have made the difference. His brother John, a 24-year-old IT specialist, took a leave of absence from his job in Chicago to be at his brother's bedside.
Family flew in from around the country, and Delta Chi fraternity brothers made regular visits, even creating a mural for their friend.
"It seems like we were being led down a path to plan for the worst and that things were not going to work out," said John Schmid. "The miracle, to put it bluntly, was that in a matter of seven days, we went from organ donation to rehab. What a roller coaster it was."
He said his brother's speech is slow, but he understands what others are saying. Sam Schmid's athleticism -- as a basketball coach and snowboard instructor -- probably helped, he said.
"Honestly, I am at a loss for words," said John Schmid. "I am just so proud of Sam. He's got a strong constitution and he's very determined. But it's been quite an eye-opener for me -- a real learning curve. You can't take anything for granted."
Sam Schmid's surgeon agrees.
"You get incredible highs when you save someone facing neurological devastation or death," said Spetzler. "That is counter-pointed by the incredible lows when you fail to help someone."
"In a way, his recovery was truly miraculous," he said. "It's a great Christmas story."
Ever the scientist, Spetzler wasn't willing to speculate what a comatose patient hears. But he admits, "There are so many things we don't understand about the brain and what happens at the time someone is near death."
"The whole family was at his side during the day and at night hovering over him, then to see there was a chance after being ready to let go," he said. "But I am very much a big believer that positive thoughts and positive energy in a room can only help."