Connecting Asians Worldwide

This is a little 30 second promo video I created over at Animoto.com. Just trying to promote the Asian online community a bit more.

We’re just a small, close-knit community of friends, so that above caption might be a bit over dramatic. But, hey… here’s to hoping we get a lot more people to join.

Looking at my Google Analytics for this website, I thought it would be interesting to review the top 10 pages that people have found through the Google search engine. So, here I present to you the Best of the “Zen Garden”:

1. Are Filipinos Asian?

Enough people have asked, that this question warrants some further exploration. Indeed, Filipinos are unique in that many people have been confused as to whether we are Pacific Islanders or Asian. Despite our Spanish heritage and influence, The Philippines is indeed a part of Southeast Asia just as Singapore and Thailand and other countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Here I try to explain our true origins, which also links Filipinos to the aborigines of Taiwan.

2. Keith Jarrett Tour Dates!

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, then I’m sure you’re aware that I am a devout Keith Jarrett fan. But, to my surprise I’ve been getting a lot of hits to this page from other Keith Jarrett fans looking for his touring schedule. He’s currently not on tour at the moment, but I feel obligated to keep this page current, since it gets a lot of hits from Google.

3. I Carry Your Heart: by E.E. Cummings

A couple of years ago (as a prelude to Valentine’s Day) I decided to re-interpret E.E. Cummings’ poem “I Carry Your Heart With Me”, not changing the words but re-interpreting the lines. E.E. Cummings has always had a very unique style of presenting words in a poem (called orthography), so I thought, “why not restructure the words who I would normally write one of my poems”. And, I haven’t gotten any complaints from any E.E. Cummings scholars, so thanks for understanding. I first heard of this poem from the movie, “In Her Shoes”, starring Cameron Diaz and Toni Colette.

4. The 10 Wealthiest People in the World

Apparently, people are often wondering who the wealthiest people in the world are! Back in September I wrote a post that listed the 10 wealthiest billionaires at that time. I noticed that in 2008 the top person kept fluctuating between Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, but according to certain sources, in September, the wealthiest person in the world was Carlos Slim Helu, a Telecommunications billionaire from Mexico.

5. Yes, Filipinos Are Asian!

This post was a reply to a blogger who, with a very racist mindset, posted that Filipinos were wannabe “Fake Asians” who latched on to Japanese culture in an effort to identify themselves as Asian. Fact is, people the world over are influenced by Japanese culture. Well, this person’s blog has since disappeared after I linked to him within this post and told him that Filipinos definitely ARE Asian and have always been a part of Southeast Asia. There is so much confusion as to whether Filipinos are Pacific Islander or Asian, I just had to do some research on this. And despite our Spanish heritage as stated above, Filipinos are Southeast Asian.

6. Amy Poehler: Rap For Palin

When I first saw this on SNL that Saturday night, I was laughing so hard. And how surreal was that? To have Alaska Governor Sarah Palin actually on the show, sitting there and groovin’ along to the beat! I quickly found the video on the SNL website (at the time I couldn’t find it on YouTube), and suddenly I started getting a LOT of hits to this one post. I still watch the video now and then. Seeing a very pregnant Amy Poehler rapping about Sarah Palin is just too funny.

7. Quiz: How Liberal or Conservative Are You?

I’m sure that people who are extreme right-wing Conservatives or left-wing Liberals know where they stand and don’t need to take this quiz. But, during the whole Presidential race of 2008, many Republican Conservatives were accusing Senator Barack Obama (now President-elect Barack Obama) of actually being too far to the left… a Communist… a Socialist. I’ve always considered myself more Liberal than Conservative, but at the same time I am a bit conservative in some respects. So, for those who wanted to find out exactly where they stand and want to see some percentages, this is a good Quiz to take.

8. Akiane: Amazing 12 Year Old Art Prodigy

A fellow musical colleague of mine emailed me a link to a story about a young art prodigy named Akiane Kramarik. I was amazed at how gifted this young girl was, and quickly found a YouTube video documenting the girl’s amazing story. The amazing detail and clarity of her work reflects experience well beyond her years. At the age of 10 she was featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show and on CNN.

9. A Quote From “The Forbidden Kingdom”

Music is a connection between Earth and Heaven…

I was watching this movie on DVD and the above quote caught my attention. At the time I just thought it was pretty inspiring. But, I didn’t expect to get as many inquiries about this quote via Google. Hmm… interesting.

10. Tina Fey Meets Sarah Palin on SNL!

The presidential election of 2008 proved to be an exciting one, and I’m sure it will go down in history as one of the most notorious as far as “negative campaigning” goes. But, Tina Fey’s uncanny resemblance to Sarah Palin was just too hard for SNL to resist, and TV ratings turned out to be their best in 10 years, as everyone anticipated Tina Fey’s impersonations of the Alaska Governor. The culmination was when the “real” Sarah Palin finally her match in what turned out to be a very funny, yet surreal experience!

. . . .

And this pretty much wraps up the 10 most popular posts here, based on Google search engine results. And special thanks go to Google Analytics for compiling the results. Maybe I’ll do another Top 10 post at the end of the year, in case the list changes…

. . . .

So, I finally took the 10 minutes to upgrade to the latest version of Wordpress 2.6 “Tyner”, named after the great jazz pianist McCoy Tyner.

Okay, the above video explains all the new features included with this newest version. The “Press This” bookmarklet let’s you automatically embed YouTube videos when writing a new post. Also, you can easily add photos if you’re on Flickr.

And there are numerous additional improvements to the new features added in 2.5. So, if you haven’t downloaded 2.6, be sure to upgrade and keep your Wordpress blog up-to-date.

I’ve been so busy in real life… and not in much of a mood to write, so I’m trying to remedy my writer’s block with yet another “friday’s feast”.

Appetizer
When someone smiles at you, do you smile back?

Yes, I always smile back when someone smiles at me. I think it’s the proper thing to do, to acknowledge that someone has smiled at you by smiling back. What I find tragic is sometimes I smile at someone first, and they don’t return the favor. And, sometimes they are even showing a frowning face or showing a look of disapproval. Why would people do that? It’s not very nice.

Soup
Describe the flooring in your home. Do you have carpet, hardwood, vinyl, a mix?

The flooring in the family room, living room and parlor room is light maple wood flooring. And tiles in the kitchen and downstairs bathroom are white ceramic tile with gray grout. The stairs and 2nd story is grey-green berber carpet. Except for the upstairs bathrooms, which are tiled. The master bath has marble tiles.

Salad
Write a sentence with only 5 words, but all of the words have to start with the first letter of your first name.

Causing Catastrophes Can Create Chaos!

Main Course
Do you know anyone whose life has been touched by adoption?

I know a distant relative who is adopted. He’s a successful account with 3 children and lives in La Jolla. I know another person who was adopted and she’s a graphic designer who lives in northern california with her new husband. Both seem to be doing exceptionally well.

Dessert
Name 2 blue things.

Well the two things I love that are blue just happen to be the sea and the sky. Both are seemingly vast and endless, and stir my imagination of places far away.

Appetizer
What was your favorite cartoon when you were a child?

Any of the “Merry Melodies” cartoons that included Bugs, Daffy, Sylvester, Tweety Bird, Elmer Fudd, etc… some people say they are violent but looking at them recently… they were pretty tame stuff compared to the violent games and stuff that kids today are exposed to.

Soup
Pretend you are about to get a new pet. Which animal would you pick, and what would you name it?

I would pick one of the many beautiful saltwater fishes. I’ve always wanted to have a saltwater aquarium, but I wouldn’t get one unless it was a large enough aquarium so that the fish would live comfortably.

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy getting all dressed up for a special occasion?

Most of my gigs are special occasions for me, so any special occasion I enjoy dressing up for the occasion. I’m a drummer but I still like to wear suits and the like. It comes from the days when I was in a swing band and we dressed to the nines and bought vintage suits. So, I’d say 10.

Main Course
What kind of music do you listen to while you drive?

All kinds. I have a truly eclectic palate for music. One day it could be some Puffy Amiyumi and Jpop, another day it could be some Tibetan Chant music. But most of it would fall between classical and jazz, and that could be anything from bebop to modern 20th century classical, to a Mozart sonata or a big band. Reggae, Folk, Heavy Rock… not much Pop music, unless it’s the popular stuff from the Great American songbook… Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dinah Shore, etc…

Dessert
When was the last time you bought a clock? And in which room did you put it?

Oh, maybe 2-3 years ago, we bought a digital alarm clock for the master bedroom. It’s got huge numbers that light up with a blue-purple colour. It is really easy to see from a distance. And hopefully it’ll still be around by the time my eyesight gets really bad. Actually, it already is… I’m legally blind but I wear contacts.

After several attempts at writing a new and meaningful entry, I opted to do last Friday’s Feast. Thank God for that in helping to prevent writer’s block. So here goes…

Appetizer
Name a color you find soothing.

I find certain ‘greens’ extremely soothing because of it’s connection to nature… like forest green, or lawn green. But it would have to be a lush sort of green.

Soup
Using 20 or less words, describe your first driving experience.

First driving experience? Was both exhilarating and terrifying. But technically easy, since I learned on a car with automatic transmission.

Salad
What material is your favorite item of clothing made out of?

Cotton - the fabric of our lives, right? My favorite item of clothing is my Indian-style drawstring pants. Very comfortable!

Main Course
Who is a great singer or musician who, if they were to come to your town for a concert, you would spend the night outside waiting for tickets to see?

Hmm… tough one! Nowadays I’d be rather lazy to camp out overnight for concert tickets… but if I did it would have to be… Keith Jarrett performing once again at the Opera House in Koln, Germany! That would be worth camping out for.

Dessert
What is the most frequent letter of the alphabet in your whole name (first, middle, maiden, last, etc.)?

Carlos Belmonte Rull, Jr. - It looks like the L’s have it!