Sunday, May 13, 2007

Amazing Mother's Days Facts


I was totally amazed, shocked, and intrigued by the facts as I read this post.

Can you imagine a young 5 year 7 months old girl giving birth to a baby boy, brought up as her younger brother, only to reveal her true status to her son when he was 10 years old?

How about the woman who held the official record of having given birth to the most number of children? Guess what's the number?

No, two football teams will be a gross underestimate of her prowess. The magic number is - 69! Hey that coincides very nicely with my 69 love notes too, isn't it so? ;p

A lot more interesting facts to commemorate Mother's Day today can be found on this site.

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Wednesday, May 2, 2007

World's Fastest Moving City


It's none other than our little island - Singapore!

Gosh! I thought we'll be in the trails of people in Hong Kong or even Japan. According to a study done by The British Council, the citizens in this little dot in the world map now boasts the fastest walking speed in the world.

At a count of 10, you'll see a Singaporean at a distance of 18 metres away from where you originally were. Now you see him, now you don't.

If we're the champion, who's the first and second runner-up? The honour goes to Cophenhagen and Madrid respectively.

Read the full news here.

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Monday, April 30, 2007

When Do Other Parts Of The World Celebrate Mother's Day?

We all know this day. Come every 2nd Sunday in May each year, we buy our moms a pink carnation as an expression of our love and appreciation for her. Or well, at least most of us do our best to keep her smiling and be happy that day. :)

But, do you know that not every country celebrate Mother's Day on the same day?

Take a look!

third Sunday in February

Norway

Shevat 30 (falls anywhere between January 30 and March 1)

Israel

March 3

Georgia

March 6

Slovenia

March 8

Afghanistan, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Laos, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam. The date coincides with the International Women's Day.

Fourth Sunday in Lent (Mothering Sunday - March 18 in 2007)

Ireland, United Kingdom, Nigeria

March 21 (first day of spring)

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Palestinian Territories, Qatar, Jordan, Kuwait, Sudan,United Arab Emirates, Yemen

April 20

Armenia

First Sunday in May

Hungary, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain

May 8

South Korea, Albania (Parents' Day)

May 10

Mexico

May 10

much of South America, El Salvador, Guatemala, Oman, Pakistan

Second Sunday in May

Anguilla, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Bangladesh, Belgium, Belize, Bermuda, Bonaire, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Croatia, Curaçao, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Latvia, Malta, Malaysia, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Suriname, Switzerland, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, Zimbabwe

May 26

Poland

October 9

Bolivia

last Sunday in May

France (except if it coincides with Pentecost day, in which case Mother's Day will be shifted to the first Sunday of June), Dominican Republic, Haiti, Sweden, Morocco

May 30

Nicaragua

August 12

Thailand (the birthday of Queen Sirikit Kitiyakara)

August 15 (Assumption Day)

Antwerp (Belgium), Costa Rica

November 10

Malawi

second or third Sunday in October

Argentina (Día de la Madre)

December 8

Panama

December 22

Indonesia

20th Jumada al-thani (also called Women's Day)

Iran and other Muslim sects, especially Shias. The date is the (disputed) birthday of Fatima Zahra. The Islamic calendar is lunar so it cycles relative to the Western calendar.


Source: Wikipedia

Are you getting ready for Mother's Day gifts? Mark your diary on13 May 2007, the day to honour and show our appreciation for this great woman who brought life to us years ago.

If you're cracking your head over possible gifts, it's still in time to do some online shopping. Excellent for those who have little time to spare to go shopping.

Mark 13 May 2007 on your diary.

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Sunday, April 22, 2007

How Pearls Are Made

Did you know that pearls are made because the oyster is fighting an irritant that is present in it's shell?

Well, that's what it is.

Everything happens for a reason. An irritant that is unwelcomed by the oyster actually has the chance to turn into one of the world's most beautiful and charming gem - pearl.

When an irritant, for example, a speck of sand, a parasite or even a man-made object (that is injected by humans for man-made pearls), the oyster will automatically use this lustrous layer inside it's shell call "nacre" to wrap this irritant around. By doing so, the oyster reduces the damage this irritant cause to its sensitive layers inside the shell.

Look at this: can you see the nacre?

So the nacre will be wrapped around the "intruder" layer after layer. The size of the pearl thus depends on how much layering of the nacre on the irritant and for how long. The longer it is, the bigger the size of the pearl.

You can get a pearl that ranges from 9-12mm in size with a few years of manufacturing. It is normal to find a huge number of rice-sized pearls inside an oyster in a span of 2 years. You can imagine how "disturbed" an oyster must be, even when it is taking residence in the deep ocean.

With human intervention, pearls are dyed to have more vibrant and captivating colours, which gives them a higher commercial value.

Natural pearl comes in shades of white and mauve, even pink, unlike the one you see above and the variety of colours that are found behind the glass panels of jewelry boutiques where shining black, sexy turquoise and mysterious olive green pearls are calling out to you to buy them.

Did you also know that pearl is the birthstone for the month of June? Are you a June baby? Do you always feel an affinity with pearls but just couldn't seem to understand why?

Maybe that's one way the universe is reaching out to you, giving you clues to your heritage... have you caught them yet?

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Friday, April 13, 2007

Wedding Anniversaries

A rose is as sweet even if it's not called a rose. Romeo is still smitten and head over heels in love with Juliet, even if she is known as Piglet. I mean, well, you get the drift.

Yet, we all know that names give us an identity. So, we also name anniversaries, so that we can proudly announce to the world that "Me and my honey is celebrating our Crystal Wedding Anniversary!"

Part of the fun comes from your friends' gaping look, though mostly from the fact that you have spent fifteen years in marriage with a special someone, and your relationship is still going on strong, and loving.

Alright, for the first post in this treasure hunt, I'll give you the names for all the wedding anniversaries so that in future, you'll know what present you can ask from your husband ya ;)

Year

Traditional

Modern

1st

Paper

Clocks

2nd

Cotton

China

3rd

Leather

Crystal, Glass

4th

Linen (Silk)

Appliances

5th

Wood

Silverware

6th

Iron

Wood objects

7th

Wool (Copper)

Desk sets

8th

Bronze

Linens, Lace

9th

Pottery (China)

Leather goods

10th

Tin, Aluminum

Diamond

11th

Steel

Fashion jewelry

12th

Silk

Pearls, Colored gems

13th

Lace

Textiles, Furs

14th

Ivory

Gold jewelry

15th

Crystal

Watches

16th


Silver holloware

17th


Furniture

18th


Porcelain

19th


Bronze

20th

China

Platinum

21st


Brass, Nickel

22nd


Copper

23rd


Silver plate

24th


Musical instruments

25th

Silver

Sterling silver

26th


Original pictures

27th


Sculpture

28th


Orchids

29th


New furniture

30th

Pearl

Diamond

31st


Timepieces

32nd


Conveyances (e.g., automobiles)

33rd


Amethyst

34th


Opal

35th

Coral (Jade)

Jade

36th


Bone china

37th


Alabaster

38th


Beryl, Tourmaline

39th


Lace

40th

Ruby

Ruby

41st


Land

42nd


Improved real estate

43rd


Travel

44th


Groceries

45th

Sapphire

Sapphire

46th


Original poetry tribute

47th


Books

48th


Optical goods (e.g., telescope, microscope)

49th


Luxuries, any kind

50th

Gold

Gold

55th

Emerald

Emerald

60th

Diamond

Diamond

75th

Diamonds, Diamondlike stones, gold


80th


Diamond, Pearl

85th


Diamond, Sapphire

90th


Diamond, Emerald

95th


Diamond, Ruby

100th


10-carat Diamond

Source: Chicago Public Library

Yes, they were given a name for a reason, as that's also the type of gift you can give to your loved one on that special year.

In a fast-paced society like now, we can't wait till the 60th year for the diamond. So, maybe if we get it even before the 1st, and one each year thereafter, chances of the loving marriage to see it's 100th anniversary looks pretty high, if we are still breathing in thiw world. :)

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