Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Happy Leap Day



Yes, it's the 29th of February, a day we get to meet every 4 years. It's awesome for those who are born on this day, because you can stay young till you die. Someone born 64 years ago can truthfully say that their age is 16.

Some interesting event that happened on the 29th of February:

  • 1504 – Christopher Columbus uses his knowledge of a lunar eclipse that night to convince Native Americans to provide him with supplies.
  • 1712 – February 29 is followed by February 30 in Sweden, in a move to abolish the Swedish calendar for a return to the Old style.
  • 1796 – The Jay Treaty between the United States and Great Britain comes into force, facilitating ten years of peaceful trade between the two nations.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: Kilpatrick-Dahlgren Raid fails – plans to free 15,000 Union soldiers being held near Richmond, Virginia are thwarted.
  • 1916 – Child labor: In South Carolina, the minimum working age for factory, mill, and mine workers is raised from twelve to fourteen years old.
  • 1940 – For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind, Hattie McDaniel becomes the first African American to win an Academy Award.
  • 1944 – World War II: The Admiralty Islands are invaded in Operation Brewer led by American General Douglas MacArthur.
  • 1960 – An earthquake in Morocco kills over 3,000 people and nearly destroys Agadir in the southern part of the country.
  • 1964 – In Sydney, Australian swimmer Dawn Fraser sets a new world record in the 100-meter freestyle swimming competition (58.9 seconds).
  • 1988 – South African archbishop Desmond Tutu is arrested along with 100 clergymen during a five-day anti-apartheid demonstration in Cape Town.
  • 1992 – First day of Bosnia and Herzegovina independence referendum.
  • 1996 – Faucett Flight 251 crashes in the Andes, killing 123 people.
  • 2004 – Jean-Bertrand Aristide is removed as President of Haiti following a coup.



Famous leaplings, or leap year babies:

  • 1692 – John Byrom, English poet (d. 1763)
  • 1792 – Gioachino Rossini, Italian composer (d. 1868)
  • 1828 – Emmeline B. Wells, American women's rights advocate (d. 1921)
  • 1896 – Morarji Desai, Prime Minister of India (d. 1995)
  • 1904 – Rukmini Devi Arundale, Indian dancer and founder of Kalakshetra (d. 1986)
  • 1908 – Alf Gover, English cricketer (d. 2001)
  • 1960 – Khaled, Algerian raï musician
  • 1972 – Antonio Sabàto, Jr., Italian-born actor
  • 1976 – Ja Rule, American rapper and actor


Countdown to the Olympic Games has Begun



Image from here: http://www.insidethegames.biz

London marked the 150 days till the games by floating giant Olympic rings down the Thames river. So the countdown begins. Man, I can't believe four years have gone by since the Beijing games.

The games will begin on the 27th of July and run till the 12th of August 2012. Afterwards the Paralympic Games will be held from  29th Aug to 9th September 2012. Good entertainment guaranteed.

More news about the giant rings.

Official London 2012 site.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

IceFest 2012

There was an ice carving event during the weekend. Unfortunately we got late and missed the demonstrations part, but there were many sculptures to look at.  

I saw a demonstration sometime back, and it's amazing to see those guys work. There was an award winning chef from Sri Lanka also, now living in Toronto, who is also an amazing carver. Him and some other SL guys are doing it as a business, making carvings for various events. Unfortunately I didn't see them at this event.  Maybe they came on Saturday. 

The carvers start out with a huge block of ice, and use a chainsaw to cut it up. They do the fine touch ups usually using drills and sanders.




















Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Another Reason Why I think Some People Shouldn't Allowed to be Parents

Toddlers and Tiaras

I've heard of this show before, but I never really got a good look at it until recently, and my first reaction was WTF? There are some crazy things out there on TV Land, and this is has to be in the top ten. Maybe it's just me but I fail to understand the logic behind adult beauty pageants, let alone ones for children. Watch the videos and you be the judge. Those Mom's in there are super-competitive and scary. They basically pimp their kids and wonder why pedophiles are running around. Doh...

In my opinion, kids shouldn't be pushed into doing things, especially something like beauty pageants. They should be encouraged to do something that develops their minds and skill set.

The sad thing is, it's the mothers who are the driving force behind these.


It's usually teenagers who gets a bad rep, blamed on their rising hormones, but it looks like they have a better understanding of how to be parents, or at least about what is bad for children. See the below video.



The following are links to two interesting articles on the subject by psychologist Lucia Grosaru.


Toddlers and children beauty pageants – Risk factors for severe psychological turmoils

Sexualizing your child is not playing dress-up – Parents and child beauty pageants

I think this sums up the whole logic behind it.

Mothers of these children are usually trying to live their own dreams through their young daughters. I am talking about dreams that they either could not accomplish or accomplished in such way that they’ve become a way of life.
(Lucia Grosaru - Toddlers and children beauty pageants – Risk factors for severe psychological turmoils)

Then again, this article is from the parents side of things.
Parents defend putting their kids in beauty pageants

Humans surely are strange creatures. 

Monday, February 20, 2012

Canadian International Auto Show 2012

The event I've been most looking forward to since I got here, the 2012 Canadian International Auto Show. We spent the whole day there and by the end, we were even too tired to take pics. Taking pics is also a challenge because there are too many people. I hate taking pics when there are people around.

Selection of pics below. I have tried to put the model name where I can remember them :)

Shelby GT Cobra



Ford Taurus

A Ford Hybrid Model

Ford F350 Truck

Ford Flex SUV

Ford Taurus

Ford Mustang

Lincoln

Lincoln SUV

Lincoln Navigator SUV

Lincoln Concept car

Volvo SUV

GMC Truck

Hot Wheels Chevy Camaro

Corvette Stingray Concept


Chevy Camaro

Chevy Electric - Volt

Chevy Truck

Buick

Buick Verano

Buick

Lexus

Toyota FJ Cruiser

Lexus LFS

Mercedes Benz

Merc B-Class

Bike with Ducati AMG collaboration

SLS Roadster



Hyundai Genesis Concept

Mazda Shinara

BMW 5 Series

BMW X3

BMW Concept

Range Rover

Land Rover

Jaguar 



Jaguar


Yamaha Bike

Triumph Classics



McLaren


Lotus

Lotus

Lotus

Lamborghini

Lotus

Lotus


Bently Continental

Bently Mulsanne

Bugatti Veyron

Aston Martin

Maseratti and Ferrari

KIA Concept

Infiniti

Infiniti

VW Van

VW Beetle

Nissan Hybrid Van

Audi A5

Jeep Grand Cherokee

Chrysler 300

Acura Concept