Saturday, May 24, 2008

Today marks the death of my old faithful 5 year old 3Com wireless router


On 23rd May 2008, 5.30pm marks the day and time my faithful 5 year old 3Com wireless router model 3CRWE52196 died.

First, it showed a steady Amber ! exclamation mark - but the speed was still fantastic. As a matter of fact, one of the fastest I've ever experienced. Then, my wife complaint that she couldn't connect to the internet via her wireless notebook.

Checked the router and it looked ok except for that steady amber ! LED. Then without warning, my Ethernet wired connection failed too. Port 3 was dead. Strange - ethernet ports rarely fail individually... Tried port 4, works.

Checked the internal configuration - all looks ok - then even port 4 failed and soon, all the LEDs on the router blinked for its last time.

Funny. What crossed my mind was how it was blazing fast just before it died; making my mind think of stories people share of how 'active' and 'energetic' some people suddenly become just hours or even minutes before they pass away... (haven't heard of this?)

Anyway it was hot to the touch, and even more so the power adapter. No more blinking LED, nothing; just lot's of heat.

I lamented to my wife saying it had served me well for 5 years almost non-stop (as my computers are almost always connected to the internet 24/7)

Had to get a replacement immediately; how can we live without the Internet!

Jumped into my car, drove for 30mins towards the city and reached Mines Shopping Centre. To cut a long story short, here is my new Wireless router and of course it's a fantastic replacement at only RM145.00.


Nonetheless, this is still a special posting in memory of my old faithful 3Com; may its Ports rest and its LEDs finally be still.

Friday, May 23, 2008

my FIRST Star Trek toy when I was 10 ... seems almost yesterday


This was my FIRST Star Trek toy when I was 10 years old. Today I see it again at ebay - exactly the same except that I remember the shuttle was also white not red ...

But, as I turned the 'bridge section" at the top, I can still see the photon torpedoes firing out from the bow...

And soon, some news about one of my life-long dreams to own NCC-1701






Monday, May 19, 2008

What if someone were to tell you that MSG (i.e. Ajinomoto) added to food could cause brain damage in your children...


Art by David Dees.
Article from the book 'Excitotoxins - The Taste That Kills'By Dr. Russell Blaylock, MD

Hidden Sources Of MSG In Foods
From the book 'Excitotoxins - The Taste That Kills
By Dr. Russell Blaylock, MD3-6-3


What if someone were to tell you that a chemical (MSG) added to food could cause brain damage in your children, and that this chemical could effect how your children's nervous systems formed during development so that in later years they may have learning or emotional difficulties?

What if there was scientific evidence that these chemicals could permanently damage a critical part of the brain known to control hormones so that later in life your child might have endocrine problems? How would you feel?

Suppose evidence was presented to you strongly suggesting that the artificial sweetener in your diet soft drink may cause brain tumors to develop, and that the number of brain tumors reported since the introduction of this widespread introduction of this artificial sweetener has risen dramatically? Would that affect your decision to drink these products and especially to allow your children to drink them? What if you could be shown overwhelming evidence that one of the main ingredients in this sweetener (aspartate) could cause the same brain lesions as MSG? Would that affect your buying decisions?

And finally, what if it could be demonstrated that all of these types of chemicals, called excitotoxins, could possibly aggravate or even precipitate many of today's epidemic neurodegenerative brain diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, ALS, and Alzheimer's disease? Would you be concerned if you knew that these excitotoxin food additives are a particular risk if you have diabetes, or have ever had a stroke, brain injury, brain tumor, seizure, or have suffered from hypertension, meningitis, or viral encephalitis?

Would you also be upset to learn that many of the brain lesions caused by these products in your children are irreversible and can result from a SINGLE exposure of these products in sufficient concentration?

How would you feel when you learn the food industry hides and disguises these excitotoxin additives (MSG and Aspartate) so they can't be recognized? Incredulous? Enraged? The fact is many foods are labeled as having "No MSG" but in fact not only contain MSG but also are laced with other excitotoxins of equal potency and danger.

All of the above are true. And all of these well known brain toxins are poured into our food and drink by the thousands of tons to boost sales. These additives have NO OTHER purpose other than to enhance to TASTE of food and the SWEETNESS of various diet products.


Hidden Sources Of MSG

As discussed previously, the glutamate (MSG) manufacturers and the processed food industries are always on a quest to disguise the MSG added to food. Below is a partial list of the most common names for disguised MSG. Remember also that the powerful excitotoxins, aspartate and L-cystine, are frequently added to foods and according to FDA rules require NO LABELING AT ALL.


* Food Additives that ALWAYS contain MSG *

Monosodium Glutamate
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Hydrolyzed Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
Plant Protein Extract
Sodium Caseinate
Calcium Caseinate
Yeast Extract
Textured Protein (Including TVP)
Autolyzed Yeast
Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
Corn Oil

* Food Additives That FREQUENTLY Contain MSG *

Malt Extract
Malt Flavoring
Bouillon
Broth
Stock
Flavoring
Natural Flavors/Flavoring
Natural Beef Or Chicken Flavoring
Seasoning
Spices

* Food Additives That MAY Contain MSG Or Excitotoxins *

Carrageenan
Enzymes
Soy Protein Concentrate
Soy Protein Isolate
Whey Protein Concentrate

Also: Protease Enzymes of various sources can release excitotoxin amino acids from food proteins.


Aspartame - An Intense Source Of Excitotoxins
Aspartame is a sweetener made from two amino acids, phenylalanine and the excitotoxin aspartate. It should be avoided at all costs. Aspartame complaints accounts for approximately 70% of ALL complaints to the FDA. It is implicated in everything from blindness to headaches to convulsions. Sold under dozens of brand names such as NutraSweet and Equal, aspartame breaks down within 20 minutes at room temperature into several primary toxic and dangerous ingredients:

1. DKP (diketopiperazine) (When ingested, converts to a near duplicate of
a powerful brain tumor causing agent)
2. Formic Acid (ant venom)
3. Formaldehyde (embalming fluid)
4. Methanol (causes blindness...extremely dangerous substance)

Common Examples:
Diet soft drinks, sugar free gums, sugar free Kool Aid, Crystal Light, childrens' medications, and thousands of other products claiming to be 'low calorie', 'diet', or 'sugar free'.

A Final Note...
Dr. Blaylock recounted a meeting with a senior executive in the food additive industry who told him point blank that these excitotoxins are going to be in our food no matter how many name changes are necessary...

Sunday, May 18, 2008

This week's Streaming Audio 24/7 from the Power of Prophecy program by Texe Marrs

This week's Streaming Audio 24/7 from the Power of Prophecy program by Texe Marrs
Everyone Will Go Hungry (may require WinAmp for audio streaming)

Monday, May 5, 2008

Another specially memorable one for me, from Carly Simon

I heard this on Lite FM in the wee hours of this morning ...

For me, it was also one of my favourites when I was in Singapore 18+ years back. Now, I get the chance to Youtube, and video customise it to add its lyrics. Enjoy.


One of my most favourite songs when I was young

This song is particularly of significance because when I was a young policeman in big city Singapore, though I lived with a distant relative, I still felt lonely.

The radio back then was my truest companion and there was a radio station from Batam (Indonesia) that I listened to each night without fail. It is something like the Lite FM 105.7 we have today in Malaysia.

Anyway, one of the songs that most brought me to tears was this song by Carly Simon - My Romance.

And here it is, after 18 years or so, found it on You Tube and used my video editor to customise it a bit here and there...


Saturday, May 3, 2008

Riker and McQueen



Riker is engrossed in watching McQueen race... the part where he ties the race with his tongue...

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Shots of Riker - N73 camera phone


Xindi

A scream, a yawn or just need more air?

A grin, a big ugly smile or pain?


Acting?


More acting?

Vulcan

Some unnamed alien species?

Romulan likely


Squid-like creature?

Definately Vulcan