Bernel's Bullets (Midnight of) 12/3/2011

Sorry, it has been more than two months since my last post.  Can't find time to write lately.  Even in my personal site.  It seems a lot of things are eating up my free time.  

Anyway, since this blog seemed to be dying a bit, let me post something.  Wish I can write an organized post, but this will do for now. I promise to post a better one as soon as I find time.  For now, here's some bullet thoughts for you...

• This site got hit by a hacker and hosted some malware in it so Google had to block it :(  To fix the problem, Madz had to change our url address so the site can be visited again. That's why, if you notice, we're THE Experimental Theatre now.  Hope this won't happen again.  (UPDATE: it's back to http://experimental-theatre.blogspot.com/)
• Ok.  I managed to find time to write at least one blog post this month. However, it was not here nor even on my site.  It's on Silverscreenandroll, a web community for Laker fans. It's a post on my basketball hero Kobe Bryant.  It's not the first Kobe post I wrote - I already wrote a few of them in my site - but it was my first Kobe post in that site.  If you wish to read it, here's the link: http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2011/11/21/2577617/all-about-kobe
• Yehey!  Christmas is just around the corner.  And amidst all of the enjoyment and excitement, may we be reminded on what Christmas is all about.  Here's a cute video to remind you:  

• Speaking of the NBA and Christmas, the nearly half-year lockout is over!  An early Christmas gift to all NBA fans out there.
• Just recently, "House" just beat "The Twilight Zone" as my most favorite TV show ever.  House keeps on getting better and better, even though Cuddy is no longer in the show.  The writing is consistently superb!
• I think I still have nearly a half a dozen 2011 movies I've downloaded that I haven't watched yet.  Really having not enough time to do the things I like to do.
• As I write this, I'm currently downloading another movie.  As well, as an episode of "Psych".
• Mozilla's "Download Helper" is awesome.
• And I still have 5 books that I had bought this year that I haven't read yet.  Again, no time!
• Compared to my college years, my book purchases for this year is significantly low.
• Money problems... we'll always have money problems...
• But God always provides my daily needs!
• God is (always) awesome!
• These days, the manga I am most excited to read each week is Hunter X Hunter.  
• Got plenty of writing ideas and topics... arg!... really need to put them into articles soon.  Just continue to visit and check "The Experimental Theatre" and, my site, "The Bernel Zone" for new updates...
• Here's a fun mind-stimulating vid for you as finale...

• Sleepy. 

To know more what’s going on in Bernel’s mind, go to “The Bernel Zone”...

And September barely passed...

Phew, last month has been hectic. Attending to some due papers, formalizing application forms, applying for graduation and etc... I've barely had time to breathe some fresh air but hey, you get rewards after hard work right?
Well, even though its late. Let me just do September's round up which consists of a few articles by our dedicated and awesome core group (except me that is, I was too busy :p).

There are of course 2 articles by our most dedicated founder, Bernel, who is a Sherlock Holmes fan like myself. These include;
Top 5 Reinventions of Sherlock Holmes - a list of some people who have honored Holmes and
Top 10 TV Shows Based On Movies.

Of course the most artistic of the group, Maddy shares a unique but definitely not a rare form of art to our readers in Clean Graffiti / Reverse Graffiti Project :)

I hope our readers appreciate them and keep on tuning on. Onward!

Experimental Theatre presents...

I've been busy the past many weeks and it seems I owe everyone more than a post. Hehehe. For starters, let me share a short movie that my EFCOM group made for our midterms.

Experimental Theatre Presents...

Invidia

Invidia (latin: envy) is a short movie about Serena and Blaire, bestfriends and how one chose love over friendship and the other; friendship over love.
A group of friends visits a friend from a faraway province for her 18th birthday. They didn't know what a tragedy that visit would be.

Serena (Idy Cagas) has had a long time crush for Hans (Ran Tupas) and his surprise attendance at Steffi's (Betsy Pearl Sullano) party had her heart up in loops.


She excitedly asks her best friend Blair (Joana Jane Cabatingan) for some help in preparing for the party but keeping the reason to herself.

Meanwhile Hans found a confidante in Blair as he helps keep her secret and Serena grew jealous of their closeness. She shared her problems to a "demon" (Alexis Nacua) whom she found while crying in the middle of the nearby forest.
The demon then goads Serena into getting rid of her best friend to have Hans for herself.


The story then goes on with Serena growing obsessed about her emotions and letting the demon's words influence her thinking and actions.


It climaxes into Serena taking Blair hostage and finally Blair dies willingly into her best friend's arms. The ending reveals that Hans was actually taking Blair's advice on courting Serena and Serena's imagined causes for jealousy.

Invidia is not for the one who expects an Oscar-deserving result, but anyone who has been through the make-a-movie-as-your-requirement stage during college would definitely appreciate and praise this short movie.
For a movie done by amateurs (for lack of a better term ) it was definitely well executed and the actors and actresses did their parts very well.


Other characters include; Ripcord (Dominic Moneva), Eula (Su Jeong Jin), Carter (Daphne Olarte), Hiro (Marco Querubin), Sandra (Hedda Paquibot), Ellena (Erlyn Bolambao) and the doctor (Agnes Abapo).
The story was written by Maria Lourdes Sapitan who is fond of horror stories hence the dark themes of the short movie. It was also directed by her and Niki Reynes.

Top 5 Reinventions of Sherlock Holmes

"I am awesome."

If you already know me enough, you know Sherlock Holmes is my most favorite fictional character since I was a kid.  The greatest detective in fiction charmed me greatly.  And I’m not the only one.  Plenty of people out there who encountered Sherlock Holmes became passionate devotees of the literary icon.  These fans even wrote their own original Holmes adventures.  There are countless stories out there starring the legendary detective that were not penned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  Aside from books and short stories, there are also plenty of Sherlock Holmes films already made through the years.  As an icon, he was already depicted many times by media.  Heck, he even teamed-up with Batman one time!  

However, I am a bit wary of encountering Sherlock Holmes adventures that are not written by Conan Doyle.  Though some succeeded in delivering the “original feel” of the character, I found that it’s still not the same thing as the original adventures.  

Nonetheless, there are those who totally stopped trying to completely mimic Conan Doyle but instead reinvented and reinterpreted the character.  Not all were that awesome.  But there were some that I found fresh and lovable in their own original way.

Again, as I’ve mentioned, I am limited to exposure to Sherlock Holmes material that are not Conan Doyle’s.  That’s why this is only a top 5, since, honestly, I only can think of 5 that I really like.

Clean Graffiti / Reverse Graffiti Project :)

 Wow, it's been a long time since I haven't been able to update the blog with something artistic. Hahaha! I'm sorry that I have been busy with medical stuff (ironic) hahaha

Anyway, this post is all about ingenuity and the innovative minds of some artists, who not only creatively conceptualized the process of this type of art but also the double purpose why they are doing it.

What is "Clean Graffiti" or "Reverse Graffiti?"
Now as I understood it, it is actually a campaign to create art by cleaning our polluted/ dirty environment.
Yup... Sad to say not all people appreciate the original style of graffiti which we all know-- painting on walls and other surfaces. Some find it "dirty" and do not really acknowledge it as a form of art.

Sad to say most of these people who abhor this "dirty" art do not equally do anything to clean the environment at all. And the ones whom they accuse of polluting the streets are actually also the ones creatively innovating a way to make art to "clean."

Here are some of my favorite photos of Clean Graffiti or Reverse Graffiti projects done by unique responsible artists.

With some bleach and water and some scrubbing... 

pretty simple pattens made... i think by the looks of this one it is done with a stencil...

Kill all those germs... Death by Clean Graffiti... brought to you by this man doing it in a subway...

Environment friendly graffiti? Why not?

 Does it really take a genius to make our environment clean and actually be pleasing and refresshing to the eye?

Anyone can actually do this..

Some stencils... water spray... brush... and even some bleach...

Calling all artists! ^__^

Hmmm... all these photos were taken outside the Philippines...

I wonder if there are already campaigns such as these here. I myself would want to start one or support one starting here in Cebu. :)

Til next time art lovers! Mwah!

Top 10 TV Shows Based On Movies

Sometimes, when producers need a new concept for a new TV series, they turn to existing material.  And what more feasible material there can be than proven and successful popular movies.  Sometimes the TV shows turns out to be as great as the movie.  Sometimes the TV show even receives more success than what the movie received.  

As the title suggests, this is a list of TV shows that were based from movies.  So, as usual, my top 10 are after the jump…

Don't be surprised if animated series make up most of the list

August 2011 Round-Up: Just 3 Posts This Month...

This month on the ET: just one post each from the founders

Top 10 Things I Liked About The Harry Potter Series by Bernel

My Sweet and thoughtful 22nd by Niki

...and the World Spins Madly On by Maddy

(Sigh)

Still...

Here's a classic Tim Burton short film as a bonus to this post to make up for the short August round-up...

... and the World Spins Madly On

The blog is dying!
Dang...

I have to admit that I've been quite lazy to post anything for the last month.., I can't say I have been busy. Just really lazy.

But right now, I'm inspired to share one of the greatest inspirations I have for studying animation.

Below is an Animation by Ryan Woodward entitled Thought of You... with the song The World Spins Madly On...

yep... and here are the lyrics to that song...

The World Spins Madly On

by the Weepies

Woke up and wished that I was dead
With an aching in my head
I lay motionless in bed
I thought of you and where you'd gone
and let the world spin madly on

Everything that I said I'd do
Like make the world brand new
And take the time for you
I just got lost and slept right through the dawn
And the world spins madly on

I let the day go by
I always say goodbye
I watch the stars from my window sill
The whole world is moving and I'm standing still

Woke up and wished that I was dead
With an aching in my head
I lay motionless in bed
The night is here and the day is gone
And the world spins madly on

I thought of you and where you'd gone
And the world spins madly on.

Okay the song sounds a bit emotional and sentimental, but I believe the animation was great, it beautifully interpreted the song.

Ryan Woodward is a really good figure artist and and animator. Watch how fluid the movements are and the concept behind the storyline. The art applies the combination of the following art styles and principles: Figure Drawing, Contemporary Dance, Animation, and of course Music...

for me the reason why I love Animation is because it is a combination of many fields of Art... reason why I want to learn how to animate...

^___^ explore around Ryan Woodwards site http://conteanimated.com/

This is an excerpt from that site...so i just copy pasted it hahaha (see how lazy ive been? gotta change that mind set if i wanna achieve this kind of animation

Ryan Woodward began his career as an animator/designer and storyboard artist in 1995. He has worked for Warner Brothers Feature Animation, Sony Pictures, Cartoon Network, Walt Disney Studios and Marvel Entertainment and Dreamworks Pictures on films such as Space Jam, The Iron Giant, Osmosis Jones, Spider-man 2, Spider-man 3, Where the Wild Things Are, Ironman 2, and Cowboys and Aliens and The Avengers (2012). Ryan has produced and directed 3 short films, The Loch, The Turtle and The Shark and Aliens that have played in over 40 film festivals worldwide. In 2009, Ryan created 9 animated sequences that play nightly at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Hawaii. Ryan is an assistant professor of the Animation program at Brigham Young University where he teaches storyboarding, figure drawing, visual development and animation. Ryan has a BFA from Brigham Young University and an MFA from The Academy of Art University in San Francisco. He is currently a member of IATSE local 800, The Art Directors Guild. Ryan and his wife, Tiffany, have three little girls, and is an avid cyclist and mountainbiker.

hahaha hopefully someday I'll be like him :)

My Sweet and thoughtful 22nd

I though the day would just be like any other

But I guess the Lord wanted to surprise me today

And spread presents along my way...

... I had missed breakfast again today because I wanted to sleep in. After Speech class, I dragged my classmate to eat with me and she found out that it was my birthday and she bought me my favorite ice cream. :)

It was my first present of the day. Thank you Trizzia. I was not really expecting it. The second gift was from my grandma. :)

... Then my 2C girls texted me to meet them at school. I knew they were up to something. Hahahaha but I didn't expect all of them to be there. Having all of you present was the best gift I got from you. I love you girls. ^_^ Even Ate Sialmo greeted me through text. hehehe. I totally love the frame and the cake too. Hanging out at the hospital... where we were almost not allowed to go in.Hope your dad will recover soon Joy. :)

.... Then around 4 my best friends were already looking for me. Madel had asked me if I liked carbonara so I expected her to cook that for me. I thought I was already late for whatever was happening there but I guess a celebrant is never late for her party (though they still ate the pancit canton without me). hehehe. But instead of carbonara, there was macaroni, macaroons and... the macarena????? O_o hahahaha!!!!! Thank you so much for the gift Dakz. Thank you so much for the food Madz. ^_^ I really enjoyed my mini party there. Hehehe. I didn't expect the three of us to be complete because I thought Rhoda had work but Korea's independence day falls on my birthday, what do you know??? hahahaha

... Then when I got home.... nope. No surprise party there. Hehehe... although there were more chocolates and presents. hahahaha. Soo cuuuute the cat Bernel. :D

I think today, is the first time in my 22 birthdays that I feel so loved. My best birthday ever. :)

Thank you all. Even though Andrew isn't here in Cebu you guys made me feel so happy. Also, Andrew had already given me an advanced birthday gift - A panda! Hehehe.

And also to those who greeted me on FB and through text. Thank you. :)

Top 10 Things I Liked About The Harry Potter Series

In my personal site, I already wrote a top ten list of things I didn’t like about the Harry Potter series.  But I made it clear in that article that though there are things I didn’t like about HP, I am no Harry Potter-hater and am actually a “fan” to the extent that I have actually enjoyed the series.  So, this time, I think it is only fair to write a list of things I like about the Harry Potter series.  
View this image first as an appetizer, then meet me after the jump...

Click to enlarge.  Here's something I found from Deviantart.

July 2011 Round-Up: Blah Blah Blah Blah

Blah blah blah.  Here's a lazily made round-up:

"World's Most Difficult Brain-Busting Logic Puzzle" by Bernel
"Peter Pan and the Peter Pan Syndrome" by Niki
"Vhong Navarro is Awesome" by Bernel
"The Filipino Diabetic Part 2" by Maddy
"Stop, Stare, Write" by Niki

They are still missing...

That's all...

Stop, Stare, Write

by Siggi Churchill, Flickr

Stop.

If you're thinking of nothing, and you've got nothing to write, nothing to say then stop.

you can't do anything anyway.

Stare.

If there is an action word for what you're doing now, then that would be it. Stare.

Something is bound to be in front of you that will catch your attention.

Write.

So now that you can find something to talk about. You should start to write.

It doesn't matter what it's about. From your mind, something will definitely come out.

Peace all. ^_^

The Filipino Diabetic 2

Whew! I'm back!

After a long time that I have not been able to update the next part of my post The Filipino Diabetic Part 1, I finally got the time to put down my skethpad and pencil and my graphic tablet (which i got a craze over for the past few weeks).

Now I just realized that this part of my article is more important than the first because as all medical practitioners would say "Prevention is better than cure".

We've discussed what Diabetes is all about on the previous post I made. So right now, I will share the ways on how this deadly disease can be prevented.

Yep, it's starts with the determination and the wariness to prevent acquiring this ailment. Think about the life you can spare in your years, as well the number of your years in your life. Think about your loved ones-- you don't want them to be greatly affected because of acquiring this condition. I must say it is going to take a toll on your years, life, money, energy, emotion and not just yours but the people who care for you too.

1. Eat the proper amount and kind of food.

"You are what you eat." --as they say...

Control your sugar intake-- but don't shut it down. Sugar and starch are still our primary source of energy, we cannot deprive ourselves of which. On the other hand we must see to it that we don't take in too much than we need.

Avoid eating too fatty and oily food as well especially fat and oil that comes from an animal source. you may say "Hey, I thought Diabetes is about sugar intake only?" It is also an aggravating factor if you have a high cholesterol level in your bloodstream. We are not naive of this, we all know the many things and diseases result on this. And just because you are not fat and obese doesn't mean you don't have a high cholesterol in your blood. Even skinny people accumulate cholesterol plaques in their arteries-- they don't even realize it til they are diagnosed.

Good stuff you should eat-- I mean SHOULD eat--

vegetables-- the colorful your plate is the better...

fruits-- instead of your favorite chip snack, try munching an apple-- and they taste better than vegies...

2. Hydrate-- I mean drink lots of water... fruit juice and some tea may be helpful too...

Avoid drinking too much alcohol-- it can damage a lot of organs even the pancreas... Avoid drinking too much power drinks or energy drinks. Water-- clean and fresh is still the best.

3. Maintain a good hygiene

What does this have to do in preventing Diabetes? I would ask myself before as well. Later I found out that when you take a bath, you are also hydrating yourself...and preventing yourself from other infections that would cause other disease. And by preventing these diseases it will not affect your overall health. Hygiene is very important.

4. Exercise regularly... as in... YOU MUST..

It is not enough to take in your body good stuff... You have to keep your body well functioning and nothing keeps it from rusting than regular exercise. We are not ignorant of this. We know the many ways we can do exercise. Please, no excuses. This is a very critical prevention measure in Diabetes. If you don't use up your glucose, it will get stuck in your bloodstream--you get the idea?

5. Get a regualar medical check up. You gotta know what's going on in your body.

Naaah... by regular it doesn't mean that you have to get a check up daily or weekly... probably twice a year or as the doctor recommends it. Get your blood sugar levels and your cholesterol levels as well. It helps to know about them.

So that's basically just it.... measures you can prevent Diabetes...Particulary Diabetes of the second type...

How do I know I am already susceptible in acquiring it...or I already have it?

Here are a few signs...

excessive sweating, excessive hunger, excessive thirst and excessive urination...

sluggishness or sleepiness during the day, feeling tired most of the time despite that you've already eaten...

weakness and fatigue and you acquire mild illnesses easily like cough and colds for example...

If you have these signs and symptoms have yourself a check-up... an early diagnosis can help prevent the problem from worsening....

Hahaha so I'm done sharing about what I've learned about this disease so far. There are still lots more to learn from it, but I hope this blog post is informative enough to all.

I gotta go now, I still am gonna have a class on Analytical Geometry... :P

^__^ Stay Healthy!!!

Mwah! <--cooties free

Vhong Navarro is Awesome

Vhong Navarro is probably the most entertaining dancer in Philippine showbiz.  His dancing ideas and performing creativity are probably only second to Gary V (who is the "Philippines' Michael Jackson" in performance genius).  But Vhong's trademark dancing is definitely more humorous than Gary V's style.  

His Street Boys mates also deserve some kudos since they are also among the best in the business as they effectively compliment Vhong's performances.  

My favorite Vhong Navarro and Street Boys dance act is their "Evolution of Dance" - a medley of different dance crazes/styles through the years.  I first saw this act when they guested in Sharon Cuneta's show years ago.  They clearly got the idea from this stand-up comedian's own "evolution of dance" act (which is in the top 10 most viewed videos in Youtube).  Here is a video footage of the act:     

Vhong and the Street Boys also performed another epic but entirely different "evolution of dance" in the hit "Showtime" last year (if I get it right), which was first performed in ASAP during a birthday of Vhong.  Here was  his "Magpasikat" performance: 

Clearly, by these dances, we can see how an awesome performer Vhong Navarro is.


When not dancing in the "Experimental Theatre", Bernel is dancing in "The Bernel Zone"...

Peter Pan and the Peter Pan syndrome

"Pan, who and what art thou?" he [Hook] cried huskily.
"I'm youth, I'm joy," Peter answered at a venture, "I'm a little bird that has broken out of the egg." - Peter Pan

First, of all; No. Peter Pan syndrome isn't a recognized disease in the medical world. But it is an interesting concept to consider.

I guess most of the people reading this would already be familiar with Peter Pan. The boy who lived in Neverland and has wonderful adventures with Wendy and the Lost boys. Some of us loved him when he was a kid, though I guess he won't stop being that to us - a kid. And though some of us would just like to be that - kids, most of us grew up and left our childhood days behind.

Peter Pan Syndrome is a term coined by Dr. Dan Kiley with his book "The Peter Pan syndrome: Men Who Have Never Grown Up". I think I've read it once in my library visits. And though it is not recognized as a psychological disorder, I think there are people who fit in this syndrome.

Characteristics:
- refusal/failure to accept mature responsibilities
- post adolescent development stage
- emotionally immature
- narcissism
- a history of failed relationships/ fear of commitments

Causes:
One probable cause would be a person rejecting the adult world because of fear of growing up. He or she has experienced or observed an adult event that makes them afraid that that is how they'll be as adults. Another theory is that it is due to over protective parents. As young children, the adult "realities" were hidden or masked so they have a false sense of security which immediately dissolves when their first adult problem sets in. They're used to their parents handling their responsibilities.

This makes us look at Peter Pen at a different light huh. :)

Though the syndrome makes us think of lazy-good-for-nothing bums who has no sense of responsibility, I believe that it is not necessarily their fault. These people are merely "victims" of the circumstances that surrounded their growth and development. I think with supportive friends and family, a person can grow up to be a mature, responsible and productive citizen of a community.

What do you think?

All information from the internet. :)

World's Most Difficult Brain-Busting Logic Puzzle

Three gods A , B , and C are called, in some order, True, False, and Random. True always speaks truly, False always speaks falsely, but whether Random speaks truly or falsely is a completely random matter. Your task is to determine the identities of A , B , and C by asking three yes-no questions; each question must be put to exactly one god. The gods understand English, but will answer in their own language, in which the words for yes and no are “da” and “ja”, in some order. You do not know which word means which.

The puzzle above is what George Boolos, a legendary philosopher, logician, and teacher in MIT, coined as "The Hardest Logic Problem Ever."  This puzzle was invented by the logician and puzzle-master Raymond Smullyan and slightly modified by the computer scientist John McCarthy.    

I love logic puzzles and have solved some difficult ones, but I am not smart enough to touch this one.  It's so friggin' hard.  But, hey, you might be able to solve it (I doubt it :P. lol).

If you are interested for more details about the puzzle and its solution, CLICK HERE.

When not busting his brain in the "Experimental Theatre", Bernel is busting his brain in "The Bernel Zone"...         

June 2011 Round-Up: The Month Where I (Bernel) Turned 22

Haha. That was shameless.  Plugging that it had been my birthday month.  I just couldn't think a good title for June's round-up.
Aside from yours truly becoming 22 years old this month, we also saw the Dallas Mavericks kicking the butts of the Miami Heat.  Thank you, Mavs!!!  Booyah! (Just sad that we have an NBA lockout in our hands right now)

Anyway, we're still alive in the month of June and we had (though few) some good posts this month:

Top 10 Paradoxes

We can express paradox in different ways.  In literature, paradox is a mere figure of speech.  In theology, a paradox is distinct from a contradiction; paradoxes in theology are truths that only seem contradictory, but further and careful scrutiny would show that they are not, whereas contradictions are impossibilities and untruths.  In the mindblowing world of mathematics, paradoxes are contradictions that are possible and true (e.g. 1 = 0.99999…).

Indeed there are different treatments of paradox among different disciplines.  But what is paradox in general?  A paradox, according to wiki, is “a seemingly true statement or group of statements that lead to a contradiction or a situation which seems to defy logic or intuition.”  So, as I want to interpret it, paradoxes can either be possible (which happens in theology and math) or impossible.   Paradoxes can be seemingly contradictory but actually not or they can be outright contradictory.    

I love paradoxes because they are awesome mindblowers. 

Warning:  This may happen while reading this list 

Once you are ready for some massive brain-beating, meet me after the jump.

The Filipino Diabetic Part 1

My dad just got out of the hospital a few days ago. He is a diabetic and also got hypertension which means he occasionally has a high blood pressure. Daddy suffered this condition for more than a year now after his diagnosis.

But what really is diabetes and and how is this disease such a health threat at the same time a health deficit?

Diabetes Mellitus is the condition where there is lack of insulin in the blood steam to help glucose be assimilated in the cells to and be used as energy.

There are two types of DM.

DM 1 means that the pancreas do not secrete insulin. Pancreas are the glands responsible in secreting insulin. Persons who have DM 1 are dependent in injectable insulin and most of them if not all of them, would have to depend on it for their entire life.

DM 2 means that the pancreas secrete only a scanty amount of the hormone. Another hand, it could also mean that the person having DM 2 takes in more glucose than what the body requires and by which their is insufficient supply of insulin produced by the pancreas.

My dad suffers Diabetes Mellitus type 2.

In my dad's case, like most other persons suffering DM2, he has maintenance drugs for diabetes. These drugs have different mechanisms or dynamics on how it works in the body to intervene the illness. One of his drugs stimulate his pancreas to produce more insulin. Another drug slows the absorption of glucose into the bloodstream.

Aside from his oral anti-diabetic drugs, my dad also has other maintenance drugs to control his hypertension or high blood pressure.

But drugs are not all good. In fact, if not taken with much care, awareness and safety, it could lead to other complications. The therapeutic effect of a drug might mend only a certain problem, but a lot of people neglect that drugs have side effects and long term effects called adverse effects. More so, they also have dangerous effects when they get to interact with other chemicals, food and other drugs we ingest and that stays in our body. These are factors we cannot easily control especially once they are already absorbed in our body.

Dad suffered a lot of complications of Diabetes

One it caused edema in his legs and feet because of poor blood circulation. Edema is a swelling caused by fluid that leaked out of the blood vessels because his blood vessels couldn't hold them in anymore.

Hypertension also developed because his blood has become viscuous due to the accumulation of glucose in the blood. It makes it sticky and blood cannot circulate well.

This leads to another complication which is poor or slow wound healing. My dad walks everyday and if he cuts himself, especially on his foot, it takes long before it heals. In some cases, for other people, the wound never heals and turns gangrenous, resulting to amputation of the dead tissues.

Another complication that arose was dad's eyesight degeneration. This is a result of the poor circulation as well. His eyes do not get enough good nutrition and oxygenation. To make it short the eyes degenerate resulting to poor eyesight, meaning vision gets blurred and it makes the person strain to see. This causes headache and pain because of the pressure in his eyes. My dad can no longer see clearly and he got bleeding inside his eyes. He had to undergo cataract surgery and retinopathy to intervene this problem. And because he had swelling inside his eyes or on his macula, he had to be injected with a drug that stops the swelling inside. But whatever procedure he underwent, it never restored dad's vision to like before.

Recently, there came another complication discovered. This time, during when he was confined in the hospital. He had a 3rd stage renal disease, which means his kidneys do not function well anymore. We all know that kidneys play an important part in maintaining our blood to be free from impurities. It excretes the waste in our blood stream and important in balancing the chemicals that go in and out our body. Dad's kidneys can no longer perform this function well anymore. This led to more swelling or edema in his legs.

And the more dangerous part of it, because his kidneys can no longer excrete and filter blood well, the by-products of the drugs he takes can no longer be excreted properly thus it remains in the body and continues to toxicate my dad's bloodstream causing many damages all over the body.

One damage it made, which was the primary cause of his hospitalization was the sudden drop of his blood sugar. Yes, my dad is diabetic then wouldn't be a drop of blood sugar a good sign? No, for in this case it dropped really low that he is in the state called hypoglycemia. His body almost collapsed because the body's energy is depleting very fast. In fact being in the state of hypoglycemia for a long time is much dangerous than being in state of hyperglycemia (high glucose in the blood). It can lead to coma.

At that time my dad really was weak and he was sweating cold. He was shaking or what we say as tremors and he feels he can't breathe well because his muscles are weakening. He gets irritable, almost disoriented, uneasy, can't sleep and can't focus. More over, he is having a very high blood pressure. This prompted us to rush to the hospital emergency care, and eventually needs to be confined.

I am sharing this to all of you because we all need to be aware of this certain disease.

This is the first part of my blog post and on Part 2 I will be talking about how this disease has already become rampant amongst us Filipinos and what could be the factors that inclined us to acquire such illness.

I am basing all these thing from facts and real events that happened in my life and I have been a witness to the condition my dad is going through.

:)

The Filipino Happiness

People have always talked about how a Filipino can smile even though tragic events are happening around them. Other countries also wonder about that. I don't have the exact answer but one of the things that I think contributes to it lies in the history of the Philippines. Being conquered by a lot of countries, the Filipinos have developed a sense of resiliency towards painful events. They have a deep sense of hope that things will turn out for the better. You can just imagine the horrible stuff those invaders did to our fellow men and yet the Filipinos still forgive them and even turned out to be one of the most hospitable people around.

Another factor is probably the fact that a majority of the Filipino population are Christians and being Christians, we know that a higher being does not ignore our suffering and we can turn to God in times of life's sufferings. I observed in other countries that they don't or maybe they can't really smile about it and yet I observe the local news and somehow... the people there are grinning ear to ear. People who have lost homes. People who have nothing and yet they can still smile. Maybe some may call us fools but during those times, what can you do? It's not like moping around would help.

I think that having a family centered orientation also contributes to this cheerful nature. When a Filipino is lonely, he/she knows that mother (or another relative) is only a phone call away or a shout away. No one can underestimate a Filipino's love for their families or even their fellow men. Even though they can be harsh sometimes (not the abuse kind mind you), it is probably because they think of your future.

History, Faith and Family. These contribute to the smiling Filipino. I'm truly proud to be pinoy.

Jimmy Kimmel's Most Epic Comeback

Kimmel is one of the funniest and most entertaining men in TV.  He has done plenty of fun craziness in his career, but I think the following video - done back in 2008 - is his most fun so far.

(Warning: for mature audiences only...)

Sarah Silverman, his then girlfriend, pulled an epic prank on him when she guested on his show.  Watch below:

This was Kimmel's rebuttal a month later.  Definitely more epic...

Bonus:  
- somebody also made a parody starring Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton
- here's something recent. a prank on Ron Artest


Just a random sharing.  Hope it made you laugh ^__^


For more on Bernel, go to the "The Bernel Zone"...  

49 Days: What will you do?

As anyone who's been stalking my FB wall lately, you would know that I've been watching this great Korean TV series; 49 days. It's a 20 episode drama written by So Hyeon-Kyeong and directed by Jo Young-Kwang. Recently, I've been watching a lot of Asian dramas but as always I'm pretty much choosy when it comes to shows, only watching the interesting ones until the end.

49 Days

49 days is a beautiful story about Ji Hyun (Nam Gyu-Ri), a rich girl who's life was well and perfect. She was getting married to the man she was destined for and no one could be happier. But her life literally takes a sudden turn when an accident caused her to have a coma. Pronounced brain dead, Ji Hyun's soul wandered about and she met the Angel of Death a.k.a. the Scheduler (Jung Il Woo). He offered her 49 days to find 3 people who sincerely love her but this excludes anyone of blood relation. As proof she had to collect 3 tears. Ji Hyun then was "allowed" to take over a depressed person's body - Yi Kyung for a certain time. Ji Hyun felt confident that she would accomplish that mission easily.

Nam Gyu Ri and Lee Yo Won

On her first day "alive", Ji Hyun remembers why she got into an accident - she had seen her best friend and her fiancée being intimate and had driven blindly and so crashed into the back of a truck. Suddenly she's not that confident in finding those three persons.

But then Ji Hyun has always been known to be the optimistic princess and as she unexpectedly finds other people who care, she brings her hopes up and goes on to find people who can shed those three tears for her.

As the story goes on, Yi Kyeung discovers someone is possessing her body and soon enough Ji Hyun and Yi Kyung help each other and find something meaningful in their lives. The writer also gives a satisfying finish as she reveals a secret to the watchers.

The drama has a smooth script but isn't that heavy though I can't help but cry at the end. Ji Hyun gives an air of being a scatter brained at first but she is someone who is genuine and can do things if she puts her mind in it. Though she is definitely a cry baby, being in tears in almost every episode. Nam Gyu Ri performed her well.  Of course, Lee Yo Won (playing Yi Kyung) has always been considered a very good actress in Korea and her acting in the show was unquestionable considering that she had to play 2 different personalities.

On my own personal drama reflection; I also think what if I was given 49 days and be in the same situation? Would I do what the unselfish Ji Hyun did? Do I really know my friends? Can I forgive my fiancée (If I had one) for doing that? Can I forgive my best friend for plotting for my end? Would I have the grace to accept my end?

I can't speak for anyone but myself though but I really liked this drama and recommend it to you if you haven't seen it. ^__^

Has Just Recently Watched "Drive Angry 3D"

Wasn't able to watch this in 3D in a movie theater.  But I think it would have been awesome if I did since it's the good kind of 3D (i.e was shot with 3D cameras) and not the poor technique of post-production 3Ding of 2D-shot movies.  

This is not really a movie review.  Won't tell you much about it.  I wrote this just to say that I really love this movie, even though it received some negative reviews and has flopped in the box office.  I don't know why a lot didn't like it.  "Drive Angry 3D" was oozing with gritty action and contained both badass and very funny moments (the funniest scene though was already shown in the trailer).  The story and plot both felt cliche and unique, I can't really tell, but, nonetheless, they delivered.  

It also has three entertaining and fascinating characters (kudos also to the actors, as they successfully made the characters they played to be such) They were mean, badass motherf*@*##!!!

John Milton (the Protagonist/Anti-Hero)

Jonah King (the Villain)

The Accountant (Not Only The Best Character, But The Best Thing About This Movie)

The movie also has one of the baddest, raddest weapons ever in fiction...

It is badassly called as the "God Killer".  No joke.

Well, I can't guarantee that you will also like the movie as I did.  But if you care to watch it, here's the link:

http://www.movie2k.to/Drive-Angry-3D-watch-movie-668532.html

When not writing about badassery, movies, or entertainment in the "Experimental Theatre", Bernel is writing about them in "The Bernel Zone"...