American Idol Update

Did you expect Chris Sligh to get knocked out this week? Well he did. Sanjaya stays for another week. Is that a sigh at the injustice, I hear? :-)

I wasn't surprised that Haley and Phil were in the bottom three with Chris. I predicted that Phil was going to get the boot last week but I was wrong. Chris Sligh did not perform as well as he normally did this week. He was totally not in sync with the tempo. Too bad though because he is one of the more interesting contestants this year.

Did you hear what Simon Cowell said? He said he if Sanjaya wins this year's competition he is going to quit! I don't think he has anything to fear. Every year there is one contestant who should have been knocked out early in the show but stayed on week after week. This year it is Sanjaya.

Did you know that there are people who are rooting for Sanjaya just because the producers of the show and the general public are against him? Votefortheworst.com, is a site that encourages people to have fun with American Idol and vote for the "worst" contestant in the show.

Ok, about this week's show. I think Lakisha, Melinda, Blake, and Jordan sang very well. Chris Richardson wasn't too bad either. The rest, err, so so.

Catch all the latest actions at AmericanIdol.com.

The Morality Police

I am sure by now most Malaysians will have heard or read about a video clip posted on YouTube showing enforcers raiding a hotel room where a couple was caught for khalwat.

The video clip claims that the enforcers were police officers of D7 PDRM. If that is true, I would like to know when the police department started making it their business to police the morals of other Malaysians.

I was of the impression that that was the domain of Mat Skoding and the various religious departments all over Malaysia.

I can understand the government being concerned about the declining moral standards among the young, because there are consequences, but that concern does not extend to invading people's privacy in an effort to stem the problem!

According to news report, the woman in the video is suing the police. Good for her.

AI Results

I was wrong. Phil Stacey made it to the next round of American Idol. Stephanie Edwards did not. I was surprised though that Chris Richardson was in the bottom two with Stephanie. All the judges had very positive feedback on his performance and I myself was quite impressed.

Peter Noone sang, It's a Kind of Hush and it was nostalgic. Lulu sang her trademark song, To Sir With Love. I didn't quite like the arrangement though because the original version is such a familiar tune. If she was singing it for the competition, I can hear Simon Cowell telling her not to mangle the melody of such a beautiful song. :-)

Looking forward to the top ten contestants next week!

American Idol

Is this really my first post about American Idol this year? Amazing! As my regular readers know I am an avid fan of American Idol.

I find tonight's show the most entertaining this season. The contestants were singing British sixties songs and the contestants were coached by two sixites British legends, Lulu, and Peter Noone from Herman's Hermits.

I have not been particularly impressed by the male contestants this year, but tonight their performances exceeded my expectations. I especially enjoyed Chris Richardson's performance. He kept his runs to the minimun and the acoustic guitar accompaniment made the song totally contemporary. Blake Lewis outdid himself and a sixties song sounded like it belonged in 2007 .

I can now understand why Sanjaya Malakar is still in the show. He has had such bad comments from the judges and almost everyone who blogs on American Idol, from the get go, says he'll be the next one to get booted out. But no, he keeps hanging on there. Tonight the camera kept showing a young teenaged girl, named Ashley, crying when Sanjaya was singing. It appears that Sanjaya has become a teeny bopper! No wonder he keeps coming back week after week!

Haley Scanato, wearing a skimpy top, sang first. She did an ok job. Vocal-wise, her talent is no where near the likes of Lakisha, Melinda and Jordan. Gina Glocksen was a little off pitch tonight and Chris Sligh did an ok job.

I was surprised that the judges did not give LaKisha Jones their usual praise eventhough I think she did a superb job with the song, Diamonds Are Forever. Decked in diamonds estimatedly worth $1 million no less!

Jordan Sparks did very well with, I Who have nothing. She can really sing. I was quite disappointed with Stephanie Edwards' singing. I think the judges were right, the song she chose was not the right one for her singing style which is usually more upbeat.

Melinda Doolittle, as always, sounded like a pro. She may not have the commercial look, but her talent is undeniable. I noticed that she has quite a fan base in the audience.

If I have to take a guess as to who will be next to get the boot, I think it will be another guy. I think Sanjaya will remain in the competition and Phil Stacey will be the one to go. We will see if I am right at tomorrow's result show! :-)

Global Warming Revisited

Various recent news headlines claim that this has been the world's warmest winter on record. Yeah. So warm that an Artic trek ended prematurely due to frostbite. And yeah, a religious environmental organization had to brave a storm on their climate change trek in March. Even a Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality hearing called "Climate Change: Are Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Human Activities Contributing to a "Warming of the Planet?" had to be postponed due to inclement weather. That last bit was the most ironic of all the recent stories.

Last night I caught the tail end of ABC's broadcast called The Last Days on Earth on The History Channel. Of the seven apocalyptic scenarios presented, one is caused, you guessed it, by global warming. With melting ice caps sea level will rise 40 feet, it was claimed. The scientists featured in the program all concur that global warming is caused by human activity and that it is imperative we, with the leadership of our politicians, reduce CO2 emissions now.

"There is no meaningful correlation between CO2 levels and Earth's temperature over this [geologic] time frame. In fact, when CO2 levels were over ten times higher than they are now, about 450 million years ago, the planet was in the depths of the absolute coldest period in the last half billion years," testified Professor Tim Patterson, paleoclimatologist ofCarleton University, before the Commons Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development last year.

As I watched the global warming scenario of The Last Days on Earth program last night, there was no mention of past warming/cooling climate cycles, and neither was there any data mentioned, even in passing, of what C02 levels were liked in the previous ice ages. Context was sadly lacking.

That is why a recent documentary by UK's Channel 4 called The Great Global Warming Swindle is so timely. We have been bombarded by hysterical claims of global warming from mainstream media and it is easy to fall into the doom and gloom crowd. Here is a documentary filled with scientific data and quotes from experts on climate science to counter the alarmist environmentalist propaganda that is so widespread in the media.

According to this documentary, CO2 emissions caused by human activity is very small compared to those caused by animals, dead leaves and the sea itself. The data provided in this documentary shows that CO2 levels follow temperature not the other way around.

The idea that man can control the level of CO2 in the atmosphere is simply preposterous to me. Moreover, CO2 is a necessary gas for life on this planet and for anyone to call it a pollutant simply shows his/her ignorance.

It is always interesting to follow the global warming debate. It is very much like a debate on the merits of the different religions. It can get downright dirty! Michael Crichton, well-known author, even suggested that Environmentalism has become a religion for the urban aethiests. Facts are becoming unnecessary in the global warming debate because like religion it has to do with one's faith and beliefs.

Be informed and not fall prey to the global warming alarmists.

Ear-rings and Pearls

Crystals, Pearls and Sterling Silver make up these ear-rings.

I bought some sterling silver wire and used a 22 gauge for this pearl and crystal necklace. I also made the S hook from gauge 20 sterling wire.

Grace Vs Works

I have been watching videos at YouTube of former Muslims who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. Muslims find it hard to believe that there are people who have left Islam to follow Christ. The following are some of their comments.

* poor sick lady dont know anything about islam . you try to get sympathy and love from non muslims by misleading them . dear poeple go and read about islam from the right source from the holy quran .


* show us i you have a real story not this one,you can see this man was never a Muslim in his life but always a Christian

*i would like to talk to this person....may i have his email id or yahoo or msn ....let me find th truth....he lies...he cannot be a muslim...and muslim evangelist..thats bosh...who r u fooling....just give me his id...or a face to face conversation and all those people who approached him...

*what bull shit! I still haven't found one real muslim who converted to christianity! why do christians have to lie?

*What a weakling. He should be Ashamed of Himself for being such a Sell Out. He just wants to be accepted by the white man with his broken english. Sounds like he has personal inner issues with himself Allah is the Most Forgiveing, Most Merciful, Allah's Love is more than a Mother's Love for her Child. We shouldnt even pay attention to people like this! Staghfirallah that we are not like this.

*fake conversion videos

Why is it so difficult for Muslims to believe that there are people who would choose

- grace over works? Ephesians 2:8-9; Surah 17:13-14

- a personal relationship with God over a ritualistic and legalistic religion? Isaiah9:6, John 20:28; Surah 1:2-4

- assurance of salvation over uncertainties of heaven or hell? 2 Peter 3:9, John 2:2; Surah 14:4, Surah 17:13-14

- unconditional love based on the blood of Jesus Christ over conditional love based on obedience to Allah? Romans 5:8; Surah 60:1

To this day Muslims pray to Allah: O Allah! the Lord of this perfect call and the everlasting prayer, grant to Muhammad nearness and excellence and raise him to the position of glory which thou hast promised him as mediator on the Day of Judgment.

Why would anyone pray to a god asking him to keep his promise regarding Muhammad who was supposedly his last and final prophet? According to this prayer, Muhammad was promised a position of glory, but the Muslim is not sure because he has to say this prayer on Muhammad's behalf at least five times a day.

Is it any wonder that the people in these videos would choose the God of Jesus Christ over the god of Muhammad?

What a Fool!

"All bloggers are liars. They cheat people using all kinds of methods.

From my understanding, out of 10,000 unemployed bloggers, 8,000 are women.

Bloggers like to spread rumours; they do not like national unity."

Malaysia's Tourism Minister, Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor. Read More.

What a fool of a Minister! Many women bloggers have accused him of being a "woman hater", and that his remarks were "demeaning and insulting to women". Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor is unapologetic and has refused to comment on those accusations.

Those accusations may be so, but I think he is just a fool, an ignoramus. An uninformed and misguided fool. How did a man such as he end up being an elected official, and holding the post of Tourism Minister?!

I don't know if he even knows who or what bloggers are. I don't know if he knows the varied topics that bloggers write about. I don't know if he is aware of the fact that there are many serious bloggers who comment on the social and political issues of the day. I don't know if he is aware that bloggers are made up of all stripes of people, not mostly of "jobless women".

Malaysia is promoting and encouraging an IT and internet savvy society, but when someone representing the government comes up with stupid and ridiculous comments like the above, it makes one wonder if the government is serious about what it is promoting at all.

Is it any wonder that when Malaysians living overseas write and comment about such news to folks back home in Malaysia, they wonder of all the serious issues confronting the country and that are in the news, only topics like silly remarks made by a government official, and stories about Mat Skoding are highlighted?

Paul Harvey does not need to go very far for items in his News and Commentary. Malaysia is a rich source for his program!

Designer Who? Part Deux

‘Linda was not well-prepared’

PERHAPS it was not just the dress that made Linda Onn refuse to show up to co-host the 79th Academy Awards in Los Angeles.

Star TV’s associate vice-president for South East Asia, Nini Yusof, claimed that Linda Onn’s no show was because the radio deejay was just not well-prepared to host the red-carpet event.

“A day before the event, we asked Linda to rehearse for the show but the producer was not satisfied with her performance and spontaneity.

“So we asked her to rehearse again in the morning before the start of the event,” Nini said.

Nini’s comments were carried in Kosmo!

Era FM deejay Linda had been slated to co-host the awards ceremony with Channel V presenter Dominic Lau for Star TV but she backed out at the last minute, saying that she had not been allowed to wear the dress of her choice.

She had planned to wear a black and white kebaya by Jovian Mandagie, an Indonesian designer, but was asked to wear an outfit by Malaysian designer Radzuan Radzi will instead - which she said was an unflattering skin colour, did not fit her properly and was too revealing.

Linda also said that she received Radzuan’s outfit only an hour before she was due to leave for the Kodak Theatre.

Nini, however, refuted this, and said the organisers had provided a tailor and hairdresser for Linda to make the necessary adjustments.

Linda’s claims that Radzuan’s dress was revealing and not suitable to her body, Nini said, were baseless.

Source: The Star

What do you all think? The mention of the alternative dress in every news report about the controversy makes me believe that she was under pressure to wear it and not the one of her choice.

As for Nini Yusof, Star TV’s associate vice-president for South East Asia, she should have dropped Linda Onn if she had doubts about her performance before Linda Onn ever arrived in Los Angeles. Now, whatever she has to say, only sounds petty and defensive.

I do not believe that Linda Onn does not have spontaneity. She is after all not a stranger before the cameras. She does host her own TV show on Astro. Had she been a novice before the cameras, I may be inclined to believe the statement that her performance and spontaneity were not satisfactory.

Just how difficult can it be to interview movie stars or anyone in the movie industry? There are usually so many interviewers representing TV and radio on the red carpet, and just how much time do you think each star can give you during the interview? You can be a non-English speaking Japanese interviewer with an interpreter, and I doubt very much if the stars care how you sound like or act like when you are interviewing them. Do you think the stars are going to ignore you especially when they are on live TV?!

It appears to me that some people with powerful connections are trying to save face after being caught up in this controversy, and are now trying to cover their asses by putting all the blame on Linda Onn. I have no proof, but that is my sense.

Jesus' Burial Site Found?

Claims made in a new documentary about the discovery of Jesus's burial site have raised some questions among believers and non-believers.

As a believer, this news is just one of many and many more to come, to discredit the Christian faith. It is hard for me to take this more recent claims seriously.

When the early Christians started preaching the gospel, their faith stood or fell with the claims of Jesus' resurrection. The following passage from 1 Corinthians 15, best summarises the basis of their faith, and our present day faith.

¹²But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? ¹³If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. ¹⁴And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. ¹⁵More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. ¹⁶For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. ¹⁷And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. ¹⁸Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. ¹⁹If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.

Therefore, it is hard for me to believe that if Jesus had not resurrected from the dead, that the early Christians were able to spread the message of the gospel. Their claims would easily have been discredited and their message rejected entirely. And they were right that they should be pitied more than all men, if Jesus had not resurrected.

But Jesus was indeed resurrected, and later ascended to heaven. There were witnesses to his resurrection and ascension (Luke 24:1-52).

Bar-Ilan University Prof. Amos Kloner, the Jerusalem District archeologist had this to say about the claims to the Jerusalem Post, "It makes a great story for a TV film, but it's impossible. It's nonsense. .. There is no likelihood that Jesus and his relatives had a family tomb. They were a Galilee family with no ties in Jerusalem. The Talpiot tomb belonged to a middle-class family from the 1st century CE." Also according to Prof. Kloner, the "Jesus son of Joseph" inscriptions had been found on several other ossuaries over the years.

It seems to me that James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici are very good at stirring this controversy and therefore drawing attention and interest to their Discovery Channel documentary.

Designer Who?

Have you heard the reason why Linda Onn was a no show on the red carpet during the 79th Academy Awards? She was supposed to have co-hosted the red carpet show with Channel V's veejay, Dominic Lau, for Star Movies.

But according to news reports some people were unhappy that she was going to wear an outfit by Indonesian-born designer, Jovian Mandagie. Who would those unhappy people might be? Read the unverified rumours, at Mr Manager's blog. He seems to know the low down on the controversy with the Jovian Mandagie outfit.

I can understand why Linda Onn would rather pull out of the co-hosting job rather than bow down to pressures from spiteful people. I would not have succumed to the pressures though. I would tell them, yes, I would wear your design, but on the red carpet day itself, show up in the outfit of my choice! How's that for a slap in their face?!

Linda Onn was not on the red carpet to represent Malaysia per se, but rather to do a job that was entrusted to her by Star Movies. Why should she be forced to wear something that "show cases" Malaysia's talent?

Come to think of it, the Datuks and the Datins in Malaysia love to show off their foreign designer labels! I see them all the time wearing foreign designed clothes in the local magazines, especially in the magazine, Nona.

I am sure there are some very talented designers in Malaysia but it is still up to the individual with the money to decide whose designs he/she wants to wear. I just hope that this incident does not back-fire on the designer who "wanted" Linda Onn to wear his outfit.

Crochet Time

One of my favorite past times, while surfing the web, is to look at other sites that show case their craft work. How I oohhed and ahhed at the beautiful work done by those people!

I was quite inspired to do something more than a scarf after looking at the free crochet patterns at Crochet Pattern Central. I downloaded several patterns and of course I then drove over to Michaels and JoAnn to look for the necessary yarn. I even ordered some yarn from Lion Brand when I came across a pretty pattern there.

The reason I have put off crocheting is that I have difficulty following the pattern instructions. What do I do? Buy "how to" crochet books of course! :-) I bought three books from Amazon, books with lots of illustrations of course! Even with those books, those pattern instructions are not that easy to understand.

Anyway, the yarn I ordered from Lion Brand has arrived and I can't wait to start on a jacket with it! But first, I have to finish the tank top that I started using micro spun yarn by Lion Brand. Errr, it is coming along, but not as great as I would have liked!