It’s been such a long time since my last update which accounted for the winning of the American presidential race by Barack Obama. Well, I am so busy with my work lately that I don’t have time to write any new entry in this blog. Anyway, today marks a special day in American history as it’s the presidential inauguration ceremony of Barack Obama which reflected the time for hope and change. As my last entry was about Obama, it’s a good idea to write this entry in the day of his inauguration.
I visited Washington D.C. last month on my winter break and as I saw the Capitol Hill and the National Mall full with crowd, it is magnificent sight to see how excited people feel about the new administration. Hopefully, things will be better. Hope and change are what we wait for.
After a long and exciting presidential race that began more than 2 years ago, Barak Obama has been officially elected as the new President of the United States of America today. This election could be considered as a historic moment for American politics, as Obama is the first Afarican American to be elected as the President of the USA. He promises that he will bring changes to the Executive Office in Washinton, D.C. Overwhelmed with economical problems, changes and hopes are what most American needed. Hopefully, the end of Bush’s presidency and the beginning of Obama’s office will bring about real change and the better America.
Congratulations to the president-elect Barak Obama.
Lately, I haven’t had a chance to update my blog as often as I used to. I am not sure if there still be anyone following my post here anymore. Anyway, I decided to write a short journal of my recent trip to San Francisco Bay area here for the sake of memory.
From October 18 to October 22, 2008, I had a chance to visit San Francisco Bay area for the first time. My friend from Thailand came for a conference in Mountain View, California and he invited me to be his guest at the conference. It was a good chance for me to fly from Portland to San Francisco and traveled around the city and then met up with my friend for the conference. I spent the weekend in San Francisco, visiting various famous spots of the city including the Golden Gate Bridge, the famous Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39 (where you could watch tonnes of sea lions on the pier), Coit tower, Lombard street (the crookedest street in the world) and the Palace of Fine Arts. I also had a chance to visit Stanford University in Palo Alto and the NASA Ames Research center in Mountain View. All in all, it’s an enjoyable and memorable trip.
Below is the video I took at Pier 39. You may notice the noise of those sea lions.
I also included the gallery of photos of my trip here as well.
I have just had a chance to watch the new TV advertisement from Microsoft featuring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld. This ad campaign debuted in the U.S. on September 4, 2008 as an attempt to reconnect Microsoft with the customers around the globe. In fact, I couldn’t make any sense out of this commercial. Anyway, according to Microsoft PressPass, there will be more commercial and advertisement coming up and this first ad is intended to spark the conversation about Windows brand. Well, it might be effective in the sense that people will talk about this ad as I did here in my blog. At least, the advertisement served its purpose. We’ll have to wait and see what is next for Microsoft and its competitors.
You may check out the ad here.
Here is the archive from Microsoft Official Press Release:
Microsoft Kicks off Windows Campaign with Star Power Sept. 4, 2008
More than just a quirky ad about nothing, the newest Microsoft ad for Windows signals the beginning of a series of initiatives to improve consumers’ experience with Windows products – in retail, on the Web and working with manufacturers to make PCs faster and easier to use. > more
I always enjoy watching Olympics game as it shows achievement of human in sport. It gives an inspiration that you could win if you try hard enough and nothing is impossible. The Games of the XXIX Olympiad or the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics Game proves to be phenomenal as the records were shattered and the history has to be rewritten.
Halfway into the game, after the eye-popping grand opening on 08-08-2008 had been a talk of the town, Michael Phelps, the 23-year-old U.S. swimmer became the first man in the history to win 8 gold medals from 8 competitions that he competed in. More remarkable thing is the fact that he set up the new world records on all of his wins except one event (100 m Butterfly) which he set the Olympic record anyway. In fact, the event was exciting to watch as he won his opponents by a mere 0.01 second – the least margin possible. In whatever way we see, Michael Phelps’ achievement will be remembered and be an inspiration for the younger generation to challenge in the years to come.
It might be a coincident but number 8 is considered as a lucky number in Chinese language. Michael Phelps’ 8 attempts for 8 gold medals would definitely be a charm for the Beijing Olympics game.
This is a funny story that merged U.S. politics and pop-cultures together It all began when the presumptive Republican presidential candidate John McCain aired a TV campaign ad comparing his opponent, the presumptive Democrat presidential candidate Barak Obama, as a celebrity like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. It was an attempt to devalue Obama’s status. However, the ad seems to backfire as Paris Hilton responded to the ad with her “hot” policy. CNN and BBC repeatedly played with the story. Well, at least, it is enjoyable to see the light side of this presidential campaign. Who knows? Paris Hilton and Rihanna (???) her running-mate for Vice-president might get the post at the White house (even in the next Hollywood spoof films). We may even see some souvenirs or T-shirts bearing the sign “Paris for President!” in the near future. It’s very interesting to see the dynamics of politics and pop-cultures that go hand-in-hand.
The original McCain’s ad could be viewed below:
Paris’s response (exclusively from funnyordie.com) could be viewed below:
Portland celebrates its 101st annual Rose Festival in 2008 from May 29 to June 8. The event was named as the Best Festival in the World by the International Festivals & Events Association in 2007. The event is organized by the non-profit Portland Rose Festival Association with the purpose of promoting the Portland region.
I went to the WaMu Fireworks Spectacular which was the kick-off event of the festival on Friday 30 May 2008. The firework is the state of Oregon’s biggest firework show and it was indeed spectacular as its name. I also visited the Funtastic traveling carnival at the Waterfront Village. It was a fantastic and enjoyable night.
I am very busy lately and don’t have a chance to update my blog regularly like before. Anyway, I just heard the new song from the British band Coldplay called Viva la Vida featuring in the new Apple iTune TV commercial. In fact, the commercial was first aired in the U.S. on May 20, 2008 during the American Idol season 7 final. The ad is great and the music is just wonderful. You may watch the clip of the ad from the link below.
The song could be download exclusively at iTune music store. The forth studio album of Coldplay entitled Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends which contains this track will be released on June 12, 2008 in the U.K. and on June 17, 2008 in the U.S.
Here is the lyrics of the song.
I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sleep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own
I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemy’s eyes
Listened as the crowd would sing
Now the old king is dead long live the king
One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand
I hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can’t explain
Once you’d gone there was never
Never an honest word
And that was when I ruled the world
It was a wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People couldn’t believe what I’d become
Revolutionaries wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?
I hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can’t explain
I know St Peter won’t call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world
Hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can’t explain
I know St Peter won’t call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world
The new X-Files movie under the title “The X-Files: I Want to Believe” is scheduled to release in U.S.A. on July 25, 2008. The official website is online and the first trailer is set to release on Monday 11 May 2008 at midnight.
Welcome back Agent Molder and Agent Scully. I really want to believe…
Chelsea Clinton made her way to Portland State University on Saturday 12 April 2008 as a part of Hillary Clinton’s campaign for presidential candidacy. This means that all the Clintons family had visited the state of Oregon. Bill Clinton visited Oregon on March 30-31 while Hillary made her first appearance in the state as a presidential candidate on 5 April. In the previous elections, the primary in Oregon was held so late that it had no impact at all. However, bBecause of the tight race with Barack Omaba, both democratic presidential hopefuls couldn’t ignore any primary in any state.
Even though I couldn’t vote in the States as I am only an international student, I wouldn’t miss a chance to listen to what Chelsea had to say on behalf of her mother. She appeared to be very friendly and was in earnest in delivering a speech and answering questions. In fact, she informed the audiences that PSU marked her 106th college visits all over the country, thus, it is no doubt that she could well deliver her mother policies including universal health care and other issues. All in all, it was a delightful event.
Posted by Sunny 
Posted by Sunny 
Posted by Sunny 
