The 07 Year

The 2007 year is approaching rapidly, what does -Samuel's Blog- remember of the 2006? Will 06 just be forgotten like the other years before it? 2006 was the founding year of -Samuel's Blog-.

OCTOBER
20th Samuel's Blog at Windows Live Spaces gets created*
NOVEMBER
29th Samuel's Blog gets deleted, uses Blogger, get renames to -Samuel's Blog-
DECEMBER
3th First Post
19th Blog gets major renovations, shut down for 1 hour
24th Gets CO.NR Domain (www.samuelsblog.co.nr)*
26th-28th Taiwan Earthquake 3 Posts about it
29th Deletes CO.NR Domain
TODAY
Last Post of 06, the one you are reading now

*Please note, links do NOT exist anymore.

No Internet Due To Earthquake

I can't type for long, the internet connection is very unstable (Most of the time, the web browser page looks like the image above, sorry, no image currently available, cannot upload). The unstable internet began this morning, I could still access Gmail, but, suddenly, Gmail couldn't detect any internet connection. I looked at the modem, it was working fine, no Alarm signal was on. The only lights on were link, act, power, and line. I tried to access Windows Live Messenger (MSN), no connection, they detected something was wrong with my Key Ports.
Why did this happen? What's happening NOW?
Due to the Taiwan Earthquake, some underwater internet lines got damaged. Now Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, even San Fransisco and the coast of California is getting either unstable or no internet connection. We are lucky, we at least have internet, but it's very slow and unstable. I can rarely access overseas websites. Currently, major internet providers are working together to fix the underwater wires. The problem is it's going to last for a few days, so my blog is not going to be updated for a few days. I can access most HK websites, some overseas, unfortunately, I cannot send email. I've got to go, bandwidth is a precious resource.

Taiwan Earthquake

A few moments ago at 20:35, an earthquake occurred in Taiwan. Just in! On Asia News, they just reported a 6.7 quake. Wow, right now they're showing live pictures. Everything is swinging, and the Tvs are starting to wobble. Wait, I'm taking pictures......ok, now uploading. The news also said China and Hong Kong can feel a little of it. Unfortunately, we can't feel it, we live in upper New Territories (Upper Hong Kong). Yahoo! and Google News both haven't reported it yet, not even Yahoo! Taiwan. My dad's sister lives in Taiwan, he tried to call her a few minutes ago, but it was unsuccessful. The earthquake must have knocked over some power lines. 10 minutes after the last sentence I wrote (The sentence before this one), a story popped up on Yahoo! Now, a 3-foot-high tsunami is heading toward the Phillipines, click here for the story.

Merry Christmas

Today is Christmas! This morning I woke up to a pleasant surprise, a new cellphone. I had lost mine somewhere a month ago, so now I got a new one. But this time, It wasn't what I expected, it was a black and green screen Nokia, but it was new (see picture on the right). At least I got another cellphone. My old one was a Sony Ericsson j100i. Also, my brother and sister got a startling surprise too! My brother got one of those Play-Doh Drill and Fill (see picture on left). I feel bad for the head, my brother is using scissors to poke his tongue, are dentists supposed to clean and repair teeth? They're not surgeons! My sister got a Princess cellphone, the only thing it can do is beep. We all want to thank "Santa", whoever that is for all our presents. So Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Did you know? Santa Claus isn't red and white. Saint Nicholas never wore red and white. The colors are from The Coca Cola Company. So the Santa you know is really a "logo" of Coca Cola, click here.

Movie Reviews: United 93

Today, I saw United 93 (2006), the saddest movie I have ever seen. The movie is about bravery and the terrorism that happened on 19 September 2001. The movie is a great choice to see, not only just for 19 September, but it's very sad. I especially liked the part when they got together in the kitchen and used all the things they had as weapons. The movie is a perspective of what happened on the plane. If you want a movie about the "rescue mission", I would recommend you to see World Trade Center (2006). Even though United 93 is sad, I still highly recommend you to see it, but, I could never watch it again. I rate it 8/10, the first part was a bit slow, and the plane was kind of fake. Wow, I can't believe it! Some Palestinians celebrated the tragedy while the world was in shock, see the video here. WARNING: United 93 (2006) is rated R due to some intense sequences of terror and violence, If your parents don't let you see it, I'm sorry, you're missing one of the best movies created about 19 September.

More Info About 19 September and Hijacks:

The Unforgetable Day (Wikipedia)

Places Closed Down (Wikipedia)

Airlines Hijacked (No Survivors):

United 93 (United Airlines) Did NOT hit target Depart from KEWR

United 175 (United Airlines) Hit target Depart from BOS

American 11 (American Airlines) Hit target Depart from BOS

American 77 (American Airlines) Hit target Depart from IAD

Movie Reviews: Monster House

Last Night, I rented a Monster House DVD at a very cheap price, $15 HKD ($2 USD). Everybody says Monster House is scary, it isn't scary at all, of course it's not, it's rated PG. When it starts there is a little girl singing while riding her trike, then she lands into the House's lawn (Click here for Monster House's movie trailer). The movie was a bit slow, it wandered quite a while in making a plan scene. Overall, the movie was ok, it wasn't that great. The graphics were pretty good except for the house, it looked very fake. The whole movie is 91 minutes long. Depending on what kind of person you are, you might enjoy it or hate it. For me, it's not the best movie I've ever seen, but it's acceptable, I rate it 6/10. Next week, I will rent United 93, I've heard it's really good, but sad. The movie is about 11 September 2001 and what happened onboard the plane that day. The movie is very intense and is rated PG-13 (Click here for United 93's movie trailer). It's so sad, I remember when I went there a year before the hijack, It was Summer Vacation, I had just graduated from Kindergarden, I bought a souvenir on the top floor of WTC, a NY Taxi (See picture on the left). I'll tell you about it soon (Maybe never, my sister and brother want to rent their movies too).

What To Buy This Christmas

What's a great Christmas gift this year? There are so many choices, Nintendo DS, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii or even a new laptop? Below are some great gifts you can exchange for Christmas for under $400 (Not Including Tax). Using major retail stores (Toys R' Us, Wal-Mart, Dell, HP, and Amazon.com etc.) Some items may be out of stock and some prices are after rebate. If you have any suggestions, please email me.

Xbox 360 Premium w/ BONUS Burnout Revenge Game Bundle $400(High-Definition, user-friendly Dashboard interface with built-in support for wireless controllers and online games via Xbox Live. But, noisy exhaust fan, only 3 USB ports, is a gigantic power eating machine, and finally, Xbox Live requires a heavily money eating subscription).

Nintendo DS Lite Gamer's Bundle $160(Slimmer and sleeker than original NDS, dual-screened, can be compatible with almost any GBA game. But, very easy to get damaged, scratched).

Nintendo Wii Console $250(Built in Wi-Fi delivers free online services (and soon) games, compatible with all GameCube games and controllers. But, very hard to get used to, eats batteries very quickly, and lacks HD graphics such as the ones found on PS3 and Xbox360, and cannot play CDs or DVDs)

Silver Playstation 2 Holiday Bundle $180(Sleek, lots of games, DVD movie playback, cheaper now that PS3 is out. But, still waiting for hard drive peripheral and only 2 controller ports).

Apple 60 GB iPod video Black (5th Generation) $400(Incredibly thin, and Incredibly easy to lose since it's so thin, beautiful LCD screen, smooth video. But, poor battery life, sometimes, very uncompatible, no guarantee non-iTunes Music Store video will play on an iPod).

HP Pavilion a1410y series $300(Desktop) A 3.5/10 Choice. Comes out with 0 MB RAM, But, comes out with a weaker operating system (Windows Home Edition), also, it only has 80 GB for its hard drive. All these cheap computers are rip offs, don't use them for a personal long-lasting computer.

Dell Dimension B110 $350(Desktop) A 3/10 Choice if you are looking for a cheap and fast processer computer (Celeron), capable of Windows Vista, at least 512 MB of Memory, like all Dell Computers, XP is recommended. But, not recommended for a long-lasting computer, soon will be outdated of the technology world, I know, so sad.

Compaq Presario V3000Z series(Laptop) A 5/10 Choice if you are looking for a cheap and long lasting battery laptop, configured with a 1.6GHz Turion X2 processor, and one of the lightest laptops in HP history (5.3 Lbs). But, keyboard design should be more convenient and has a short warranty, only 1 year (But really, who cares about the warranty? Most of us never use the warranty).

Important Notes Before You Buy (Cnet):

Microsoft Zune, out of Tune?

Maximize Your iPod's Life

Hong Kong Air Cadet Corps

YES!!! On Saturday 9 December, I passed my C&C (Customs and Courtises) test. My score was 78 (Grade: C), and the score to pass was 70. Last month, I had a huge test, bigger than C&C, it was the HKACC (Hong Kong Air Cadet Corps) test. But for the HKACC, I failed. Corporal said the next HKACC test for those who failed will be next month. If I fail that one too, I'll have to wait at least another year. To visit Hong Kong Air Cadet Corps's website, click here. My Squadron is No. 1** in Hong Kong Island (Squadron No. is not shown for privacy reasons). The chinese name for Hong Kong Air Cadet Corps is 香港航空青年團. There are 4 wings in Hong Kong, New Territories Wing, Hong Kong Island Wing, Kowloon Wing and No. 3 Wing. On the top right, it is a "BC" uniform, I also have one. Funding for Air Cadets is by Cathay Pacific Airways, Dragon Air, and Air China.

For a video of Air Cadets training at a Hong Kong MTR Station, click here (Squadron 602, No.3 Wing).

Welcome

Hello Everybody! This is the very first post of -Samuel's Blog- so come back for regular updates. Please help support my blog, leave a comment. If you don't have a Google Account, click anonymous.

2006 "-Samuel's Blog-" All Rights Reserved.

*Last Revision: 31 December 2007-Due to change in blog name.