General Blog

Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go when we die?
What lies beyond? And what lay before? Is anything certain in life?

They say, "Life is too short, the here and the now and  you're only given one shot"
But could there be more, have I lived before, or could this be all that we've got?

If I die tomorrow, I'd be all right because I believe that after we're gone, The spirit carries on....

I used to be frightened of dying, I used to think death was the end
But that was before I'm not scared anymore, I know that my soul will transcend

I may never find all the answers, I may never understand why, I may never prove what I know to be true but I know that I still have to try

Move on, be brave don't weep at my grave because I am no longer here
But please never let  your memory of me disappear....

Safe in the light that surrounds me, free of the fear and the pain
My questioning mind has helped me to find the meaning in my life again....
Kristalina’s real, I finally feel a peace with the girl in my dreams
And now that I'm here it's perfectly clear I found out what all of this means....


If I die tomorrow, I'd be all right because I believe that after we're gone, The spirit carries on....

it has been 8 years since my last post....

LOS ANGELES -- Michael Jackson, the sensationally gifted "King of Pop" who emerged from childhood superstardom to become the entertainment world's most influential singer and dancer before his life and career deteriorated in a freakish series of scandals, died Thursday, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press. He was 50.

The person said Jackson died in a Los Angeles hospital. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity.

The circumstances of his death were not immediately clear. Jackson was not breathing when Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded to a call at his Los Angeles home about 12:30 p.m., Capt. Steve Ruda told the Los Angeles Times. The paramedics performed CPR and took him to UCLA Medical Center, Ruda told the newspaper.

Jackson's death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music's premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.

His 1982 album "Thriller" -- which included the blockbuster hits "Beat It," "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" -- remains the biggest-selling album of all time, with more than 26 million copies.

He was perhaps the most exciting performer of his generation, known for his feverish, crotch-grabbing dance moves, his high-pitched voice punctuated with squeals and titters. His single sequined glove and tight, military-style jacket were trademarks second only to his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance.

As years went by, he became an increasingly freakish figure. His skin became lighter and his nose narrower. He surrounded himself with children at his Neverland ranch, often wore a germ mask while traveling and kept a pet chimpanzee named Bubbles as one of his closest companions.

In 2005, he was cleared of charges he molested a 13-year-old cancer survivor at Neverland in 2003. He had been accused of plying the boy with alcohol and groping him. The case took a fearsome toll on his career and image, and he fell into serious financial trouble.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital as word of his death spread. The emergency entrance at the UCLA Medical Center, which is near Jackson's rented home, was roped off with police tape.

In New York's Times Square, a low groan went up in the crowd when a screen flashed that Jackson had died, and people began relaying the news to friends by cell phone.

"No joke. King of Pop is no more. Wow," Michael Harris, 36, of New York City, read from a text message a friend sent to his telephone. "It's like when Kennedy was assassinated. I will always remember being in Times Square when Michael Jackson died."

SILVERSTONE: Germany’s Sebastian Vettel ran away with the British Grand Prix in a Red Bull one-two while championship leader Jenson Button struggled at home in sixth place yesterday.

Australian Mark Webber finished runner-up, 15.1s behind the 21-year-old, with Brazilian Rubens Barrichello in third place for Brawn GP.

Britain’s Button, winner of six of the first seven races, had his overall lead over Barrichello trimmed to 23 points after finishing off the podium for the first time this year.

The dominant victory, from pole position in a race low on incident, was Vettel’s second of the season and third of his Formula One career.

The German, who also led Red Bull to a one-two in China in April, is now 25 points adrift of Button with nine races remaining.

“Thank you very much guys, this is a dream coming true. We’ve won the British Grand Prix,” he said over the team radio after taking the chequered flag.

“It is only my second time here but I enjoyed it so much,” added the youngster who also led Red Bull to a one-two in China in April.

“This is what I was dreaming of when I saw the first Grands Prix at Silverstone in the era of (Britain’s 1992 world champion Nigel) Mansell,” he added later.

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa was fourth, ahead of Germany’s Nico Rosberg for Williams.

“I put a lot of effort in the race and if I am honest I must say I didn’t expect to finish fourth,” said Massa. “It was a great result.”

Italy’s Jarno Trulli was seventh for Toyota, with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen taking the last point in a race billed as a farewell to the track that hosted the first Formula One championship race in 1950.

Red Bull’s superiority over the Mercedes-powered Brawn was underlined by Vettel lapping more than a second a lap faster than his rivals in the early stages, despite being heavier on fuel, and finishing 41.1s ahead of Barrichello.

“I don’t think we could have beaten them today,” said Brawn owner Ross Brawn.

Button, who had struggled all weekend for grip and to get heat into his tyres, started sixth but had fallen to ninth after the opening lap.

He worked himself back into the points and then made up two places at his second pitstop, when he switched to softer tyres and chased Rosberg all the way to the finish.

McLaren’s world champion Lewis Hamilton, who won by a massive 68 seconds in the wet last year, finished 16th – the Briton’s fourth race in a row out of the points.

Donington Park is due to host the British Grand Prix next year, although Formula One supre­mo Bernie Ecclestone has said it will return to Silverstone if that circuit is not ready. — Reuters

Looking for an iPod good catch? Apple Nano Third Gen Silver 4 GB MA978LL is the perfect catch for you. Want to know why?

It has a very high storage capacity that it can have more than a thousand of songs and a lot more videos. This iPod has an audio type format in Mp3, AIFF, MP3 VBR, WAV and AAC with a bit rate of 16 kbps- 320 kbps and a frequency response of 20 Hz- 20,000 Hz.

It also has a video type in MPEG-4 and H.264, and a 640 by 480 resolution. A bit rate of as fast as 25,000 kbps characterized it. Wow! This is completely amazing! Bit rate and formats are really fast and huge. You'll surely experience the word fulfillment.

Aside from that, this kind of iPod is user friendly. It has a stand by mode wherein list of music are flashed while playing it. Transferring of files is also monitored to prevent error where the transferred and pending files are visible on the screen, and a blinker is attached to be updated of your battery energy level.

Games, clock, address book, two jacks for headphones and USB are some of its minor features that give this iPod a new look

Having this kind of iPod is like having the world of music in your own palms. It allows you to keep the latest songs with their music videos so you won’t be out over the fad of music. Let this iPod pass your way and be out of style, and you'll be the town's laughing stock.

Apple is distinct in making electronic products and so this new gadget ensures you of an excellence device.

This is a great gadget that is a nice treat for you this coming summer. Have a cool and hip summer break, get this new iPod now!

Hurry! Fit in to your pocket this pocket size Apple Nano Third Gen Silver 4 GB MA978LL as soon as possible and you’ll never go wrong.

Let's get started. Getting a girl of your dreams is much like getting the car of your dream. But unlike a car which you can always bargain for, there is nothing like a 20 percent discount in courting the girl of your dreams, she's so sweet a thing to be discounted, you dearly are in love with her and your feelings for her can only be communicated not by the words of the mouth, but by the words of the heart. Getting the girl actually depends on how big your heart is - faint heart, never won fair lady.

The first dating idea for any man is to make a good impression. In your doing so, you don't have to talk, dress or do the common things that all the Toms do to get a decent girl's attention. Be unique, that's all you need. Be a man of his own style. Dress decently - indecency can make one be mistaken for arrogance; watch your language - obscene language gives the impression of immaturity, being uncultured and cheap; be a man of good habits - don't drink or smoke like any other loser.

How to make her fall in love with you? Take your time. Add some romance to your dating style. When in College I had a crush on the most beautiful lady in our first year lot. Though all senior guys were out to get that girl, I managed to divert her attention from the other guys. I wrote her three letters without disclosing my identity and slid into her room secretly; all I said was 'Yours Secret Admirer.' The first letter contained the meaning of her name, this I got by playing around with the initials of her name to make meaning. The second was a funny message that could only be read backwards and it was all about her physique and her smartness. In the third letter I told the girl to be ready to receive a rose flower from her admirer, but only if she could be kind enough to phone him using a number that I had included in the letter. The girl did phone me that very night, and her first words to me were, "Hallo Secret Admirer." So, the story of our love affair came to be. Later she told me that was so creative of me, no one had approached her in that manner. I made her fall in love with me and made a date in the romantic manner.

Befriending and understanding the girl you are out to get is the next important thing. This is what I also did. You have to understand that as a lady, she loves to be loved, adores to be adored and needs to be needed. This will move you closer to the girl and you'll get to know what she's into, what she likes and dislikes, and what her style is. Love is built upon friendship and it always leaves individuals better off having known each other should they break up. I and my College steady were to break some time later but to date, we are the best of buddies. Be sure that bringing out the selflessness friend in you will make her create room for you in her heart.

A shoulder to lean on and some good friend that she can always turn to is all that a lady wants. Please don't hesitate to be helpful and supportive. Be that friend who rekindles her zeal of hardworking and restoring hope back into her life when she looses hope. This above all other things will make you her daily vitamin simply because you bring out the best in her in terms of personality and character. In you, she'll have found that friend whom she can open up to, share with and advice each other on the rights and wrongs, the dos and don'ts of life. Don't forget to always be there to celebrate the good times, and to lend an ear when the girl needs you to listen as a friend.

Make the girl feel special; because she's someone's friend - your friend, and let her know that she too has touched your life in a unique way like no one else could. Compliment her for her company and for being there when you needed her, when you felt sad and all alone. Show appreciations for the comfort the girl offers you and for making you smile.

In your day to day talks, share your dreams, your world, and every aspect of your life with your girl. Always dream with her, build with her, and always cheer her on and encourage her. Tell your girl how you always think about her even when you try not to think about her. Let the girl know that she's your first thing in the morning and the last thing when you go to bed at night.

Her knowing that you were thinking of her when you slipped beneath the softness of your blanket and gave in to the bliss of sweet dreams, will make her go 'my my' and her heart will sing your name all the year round.

You have to be creative and constructive to keep girl's interest in you so full of life. I remember one time I told my girlfriend to be to imagine we are both deaf and dump. We then sat opposite each other on the table and started sharing our feelings for each other using eyes and hand signs. It turned out to be some fun. There was also this time that we were in the library and we decided we are not going to speak to each other verbal, so I wrote a love note on a paper and passed it across the table to her, she replied and on and on we carried on our love on paper conversation till we almost exhausted a whole rim of paper. At sometime, I noticed that some guys sited with us on the table were enjoying our ordeal than their studies. Such are the things that made the girl embrace my world. I remember her suggesting that we play deaf and dump two years after we broke up, can you imagine that?

Never fail to phone her, even when she least expects it. I once called some girl that I was interested in at four o'clock in the morning. When inquiring of what I was doing up so early, I told her I was in thirteenth heaven, where people think of their loved ones when they can't sleep. Wow! First thing early the next morning, she was at my door with a king-sized hug for me. No matter how many dates you take her, don't make any elbow - exceeding moves after any date, just drop her home and with a friendly handshake, wish her good night. Don't kiss her when she expects you to. Your respect as a gentleman will be earned on how patient you are with her when it comes to such matters as kissing her and accessing her inner graces.

The writing is on the wall that you want her, but you can't have her just yet. Increase your demand. Try to show her that men are also hard to get at times. Make her realize that when she feels a little dizzy, a little tired, a little sad, a little sick, a lot bored and very much cold, she's actually missing vitamin you. By this time, she'll be so much into you and since love is truthful and is characterized by open and honest communication, honestly promise her your everlasting devotion, loyalty, respect, and your unconditional love for a lifetime. Prove to her that you'll always be there for her, to listen and to hold her hand, and that you'll always do your best to make her happy, and feel loved.

Remember, patience is the key to her heart; be like that gardener watching a fruit as it hangs on the tree, day after day admiring it, but, exercising tremendous self-discipline, neither feeling the fruit, nor pinching it, nor testing it to see if it is ready. And then, one day he holds out his hand and the fruit simply drops into it, ripe, warm and eager to be eaten.

The patience and self-control which you practice will make you more attractive and charming. This will qualify you as her daily vitamin and win you that heart hers.

I wish you to meet the girl of your dreams ASAP, make her fall in love with you, and make her feel the happiest girl in the world!

There's a lot of hype around the phrase "make money with affiliate programs." Can you really make money with affiliate programs, or is the market too saturated? The answer is you absolutely can! There is so much room to make money online. Stop listening to pessimists.

Are you looking for ways to make money at home? Do you want to quit your day job because you hate working for other people? Do you just want to earn a bit of extra cash on the side? There is a way. I'll show you.

The Growth of Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is when a merchant arranges with an affiliate (you) to sell their product online in exchange for a commission. Affiliate marketing started in the mid 90s because merchants realized that they could get the word out about their products easily, quickly, and to a larger audience via the internet. The amount of income you can earn is limitless.

As long as there are merchants who want their products sold and there is demand for the product, you can make major sales. The higher the priced item, the more of a commission you receive. For instance, if you become an Amazon affiliate and promote their FreeMotion Treadmill t7.3 which sells for $3,599, if you receive 10% commission, you would get $359.00 just for that one sale. Do you see how easy this is? It gets easier.

Opportunities to Make Money with Affiliate Programs

Here's a list of manufacturers that have a big stake in having affiliates sell their products:

1. Sony
2. Dell
3. Barnes & Nobles
4. eBay
5. GAP
6. Weight Watchers

There are tons more companies desperately looking for affiliates to sell their products. There's so much money to be made as an affiliate. So how do you become a successful affiliate marketer?

Join Reputable Affiliate Networks

If you want to make money with affiliate programs, you'll need to know which affiliate networks to join. Even before joining an affiliate network, you'll need to know how to promote other people's products online if you want to make serious money. I recommend going online and finding an affiliate handbook that takes you step by step through the affiliate sales process, especially if you're new to the internet marketing game.

Joining reputable affiliate networks like Clickbank, Commission Junction and Linkshare will ensure that you get paid on time, have a hassle free transaction with the customer, and make tons of money. Or, you can join an affiliate "university" that will teach you how to become a wealthy affiliate from the ground up. With this kind of support from these two resources mentioned you will be well on your way to becoming financially independent.

Get Ready to Make Some Serious Money

Many people make money with affiliate programs, but many others don't. Why don't they make money? They don't make money for a couple of reasons, but the main reasons are:

a)They don't have a road map (an affiliate handbook) to show them
exactly how to become a super affiliate; and
b)They give up 5 minutes before the miracle.

Making money with affiliate programs is not a get rich quick scheme. It takes dedication, perseverance, and determination to succeed no matter what. If you do nothing else, definitely buy an informational affiliate handbook or affiliate guide to walk you through the process or join an affiliate program that will teach you how to make money as an affiliate so that you can become financially independent. Then you can tell your boss to take a hike!

Contextual advertising means that ads which appear on a web page are related to its content, as determined by a spider (or robot) which scans the page and sends instructions to the advertising program about what ads to serve. This means that if your page is about fishing, you’ll get ads related to fishing, such as fishing gear, baits or hooks. If the program has a good technology of content scanning and a broad range of advertisers, then the ads appearing on a web page will be very targeted, and readers will be interested in them. When a visitor clicks an ad, you are paid a certain amount of money, which depends on the advertiser’s bid, and which can be between $0.01 for less competitive niches, and even tens of US dollars for the niches with lots of major players.

Advantages of contextual advertising

1. Low admission barrier: there is no traffic limit for your blog to get accepted, so even small, new blogs can use it
2. Easy integration: you can blend the ads with your page layout, in order to make it look like being a part of it, without having to know any programming language
3. High CTR: if well optimized, on niche sites, contextual advertising can have 10%-20% CTR, which is a very good rate.

Drawbacks of contextual advertising

1. Cheap look: many people perceive ads which serve contextual ads as being low quality, or made especially for the purpose of serving ads (maybe you’ve come across the term MFA, which means Made For AdSense)
2. Low performance on sticky sites: readers have to click away and leave your site, in order for you to get money.

List of contextual advertising programs

Google AdSense: the most known and widespread contextual pay-per-click advertising program. I’ve been using AdSense since 2006, and I can say that they are trustful, and they pay as promised in their terms of service. You have to make at least $100 before they’d issue a payment.
Yahoo Publisher Network: in order to be accepted, you need to have a valid US Social Security or Tax ID number, and your website must be predominantly in English and targeted at a US user base. The payment threshold is also $100

Miva Monetization Center

AdSonar
Adify
AdBrite

ShoppingAds: not exactly a contextual ads service, but you have the possibility to choose keywords for your ads block, so it will display only ads related to whatever you choose. All Non-US traffic will always see CPA (Cost-Per-Action) ads, regardless of your campaign configuration. The US visitors will see Cost-Per-Click (CPC) ads.

Life rests hugely on the luck factor, true. But then, you need to know the tricks to drive Lady Luck your way. One of the most thriving luck games across the world for ages has been the casino games. Hold on. I am not asking you to hop right into a Las Vegas casino to taste your share of luck but you can do it right there in your bedroom, provided you have a high-speed Internet connection at your home. With the huge upsurge in the field of technology taking place over the last decade or so, you are able to experience the rush of anticipation right at your house through web when you play casino online games. However, for a casino online win it takes a lot more than just a super-fast online connection. You need to know the tricks of the trade right.

Majorly, casino online games is about basing your calls and bets on sharp logic and shrewd calculations. Mere speculation on whether you are making the right moves or your opponent is extending moves that might be favorable for you will not help. For a casino online win you need to know the proper knowledge of online casino games. Firstly, under any circumstance, like any other online game, you need to read through the information regarding how-to-play the game. Once you are through, you have to gradually build your own strategies and techniques. Some techniques, if correctly applied, can step up the odds of making a good stake and even earn you much more moolah than your deposit money.

Broadly speaking, in a theoretical line, the three general types of online casinos are web based casino, download based casino and live casino. The first one allows you to play the casino games online without having to download the games to your PC. You can also play even if do not have the required software. The second type requires download of the software and the game to your computer before you start to play. The third type gives you the real feel of a hard-core casino. The rush, the excitement, the adrenaline pumping – everything is guaranteed in this type of online casino gaming. You are in direct contact with your opponents – so you get the feel of competition right.

If you are new to the scene it is best to gather substantial information about the best online casinos. This will help you spot which casino offers the largest selection of games. Commonly, the best ones offer a wide range of online games like roulette, blackjack, craps, video poker, baccarat, slot machine, keno and bingo. However, while choosing the right kind of game you need consider certain points. Firstly, you have to find out how good are their help services to see you through your problems, if any. Secondly, look out for the maximum bonuses. Thirdly, the gaming software and system should be of high-end technology. Lastly, opt for the payment and cash-out method that suits you best.

Once you are into the right casino and the right game you need to play according to the instructions and on the way detect your own special moves and methods for a casino online win. Get going.

I know we’ve done our fair share of lauding Barcelona on The Offside recently, and I know that has annoyed a couple of people. So if anyone doesn’t want to read any more of the same I recommend clicking away now.

As you should know by now (if not then where have you been?) it finished Barcelona 2-0 Man Utd in Rome. Here are the goals....

With the game just ten minutes old, Samuel Eto’o turned Nemanja Vidic inside out and toe-poked past van der Sar:

And then in the 70th minute Messi scored. With his head. Past van der Sar (who’s about 10.5″ taller I think):

All the pre-match talk was about Barcelona’s creaky defence. But it was Vidic and Ferdinand who looked suspect. This game made it a little harder to make the case for those two as the best central defensive pairing in the world. In contrast, Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol were man-mountains at the back.

But it was midfield where Barcelona really lost it. Ably assisted by Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta absolutely ran the show in midfield. I was keeping an eye on Xavis’ passing stats (vie UEFA’s MatchCentre thingy) throughout the game, and the numbers tell you all you need to know. Xavi completed 66 out of 71 passes for a 93% completion rate, with Iniesta just behind (56/65 so 86%).
Xavi not only made the most passes and completed the most passes, he also did more running than anyone else on the pitch by covering 11,369 metres. So pretty hard to find an alternative Man of the Match (although Pique got a mention in the LiveBlog).

Man Utd’s plan was obviously to try and contain Barcelona, as evidenced by playing hardworkers Rooney and Park on the flanks. But that basically backfired and allowed Barcelona a little too much possession while neutering Utd’s usual attacking verve. By the time Fergie switched things around it was all too late.

And so Barcelona are European Champions, netting Pep Guardiola an historic treble (first Spanish team to take Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey) in his debut season. Best of all, they did it by playing beautiful beautiful football and with a fair share of homegrown players in the team. No wonder Michel Platini looked so happy while handing out the winners’ medals.

So congratulations to Barcelona, the very worthy winners of the 2009 Champions League.


http://www.theoffside.com/