Some of my favourite books... Canadian edition.

These are some of my books... Well, my favourite is True North Strange and Free.

I bought these books second hand. I personally think books should be loved. It's like book adoption. Books would cry if we don't read them... I value books very much. A bibliophile. The book seller is used to live in Canada. Kelowna to be exact.

And how did I know those facts? When I bought the books, she asked me, Why are all your books Canadian. I smiled. Kinda weird when Asians only care about US. Well, I have deep sentiment towards Canada. It started with my encounter with a kind. friendly Canadian lady when I was 5. (Kind and friendly is apparently not a stereotype... it's truth)

The second time I went to the book fair, the same lady commented on my book, this time, the True North Strange and Free.

"Interesting..." she said.
"Do you mean the title? Well actually, it a play word... you see, the Canadian anthem lyrics is true north strong and free... Yes, quite an interesting title..." I responded.
"You know a lot about Canada... have you been there?" said her.
"No" I replied.
"It's a nice place... I used to live in Kelowna" she said
"Oh, B.C.!"
"You really know a lot about Canada..."

And I wish she gave me some discount for having a good general knowledge...

Another reason why I bought those books... Well, nobody really want to buy books on country that they thought as 'second to US'... Which is kinda sad, because they underestimated Canada. But also a good thing for me not having to fight for it.

Those books are looking a a new place call home. I just don't want them to feel rejected. If only I could buy all.

Well, I am looking forward to pass those books to my nieces or nephews or grandnieces and grandnephews...

And your birthday is nearing,  Canada...

Misconception on Africa...

Last Monday, our lecturer asked us
"Which country is a 3rd world country?"

And a group of students answered
"AFRICAAAAAAAAA"

They are so confident that Africa is a nation, not a continent.

We have a Nigerian classmate. He laughed. In fact, if Trevor Noah were there, he'll make a joke on how silly people are on African knowledge.

So funny, when people imagine Africa as a hot continent. Hot and dry Sahara, hot and humid. Some would deny that there's snow in Africa. Well, you can see one on Mount Kilimajaro... or even the Sahara. Hence, Anggun's song, Snow in Sahara.

If Africa is so hot, why would apples grow in South Africa? Which reminds me of my teen years. A group of South African students were attending the church.

An elder asked them if it's hotter here (the equator) or South Africa?

"South Africa is cool, sometimes we have to wear sweaters. We do grow apples in SA..." Conrad replied

So all people with dark skin tone are from hot country?

No wonder we always think, Africa is very hot... and also South India...

Do media plays a role on spreading hatred?

It's Ramadan.

And one of my favourite show is 'Prophets' Trail'

Very informative. Yes, back in the 90's, it's more towards informative than dividing people of different race and religion.

It used to be aired for the whole of Ramadan. From that TV show, I got to know why the Balkans embrace Islam. Their reason is valid. Because it's a prophecy that there would be another prophet after Jesus. And it's Muhammad. A valid reason because it's stated in the Bible. Although so might call him a false prophet, but who are we to judge a person is the right or false prophet? All that matters is faith. Being faithful to God, doing good. 

Instead of focusing on Muslim communities, the TV show also highlight some of the natives along the Prophet's trail. Like the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian. It's also from this programme that I know the Ethiopian year is different from normal year due to the gap in determining the Annunciation of Jesus.

And it teaches me how Islam is actually related to Christianity. Well, those were the days, when mass media just deliver the facts, instead of feeding hatred.

A TV show this evening is shocking. It's not the same TV show, but in the same slot. They are covering the Muslims in the Philippines. And according to the 'brainless' correspondence, the Christian majority country is oppressing the Muslim. The government does not fund Religious schools and that's oppressing? In fairness, the mission school in Philippines are funded by the Christians which happens to be the majority. They live in poverty because they are oppressed by the government? Baseless accusation. How about the slum dwellers in Manila? Those living on streets, those living on landfill. Are they all Muslim. 

It's like 'You can't see the elephant next to you but you can see germs across the sea'

What about the minorities here? Even the word to refer God is debatable. It like saying that Christian God is less important than the Muslim's, when in fact both religion worship the same God, only with different ideas and style. At least in the Philippines, the Muslim can call their God as what they want...

The media is trying to make things 'sensational' by sowing hatred. Blaming all problems, the misfortunes on the Christians. To please the majority. 

The TV show spoiled my mood. I thought of keeping positive in this holy month of Ramadan. Taking the opportunity to know more about Islam, reducing prejudice. But instead, the plan backfired. Maybe it's karma. 

Anyway, I am only human being. Everyone is. Maybe they just overlooked it. It hurts but... they think that they are always right. 

Indeed, a good month to practice patience. 

p/s Maybe being the minority, maybe I could relate to the Muslim Filipinos better because we experience the same thing... well, both being the minorities. The silver lining behind it.

p/s/s We are still bitter from the fuss from the A-word... which just by saying it could be an uproar TO THE WESTERN and of course the western referred to the cockroaches living in the western part of the country.

Listening to Quirks and Quarks

And it's funny.

I am listening to CBC Radio One.

1st July is near... Molson Beer creative video

This year's campaign

Last year's

And of course the I am Canadian rant

I am looking for Acoustic version of O Canada

Just like the one played in CBC radio.

Yep, I've installed CBC Radio application on my  phone. The beauty of internet radio.

And I got to listen to my favourite radio channel to


...................95.8 Capital FM........................ (the ident... late 90's ident)

It was broadcasted from the neighbouring Sultanate. So it's free.

Counting days... O Canada...

Canada Day is just around the corner.

Here's a beautiful song... Arabic rendition.

And who said I hate the Arabs...

Betta fish update... again

My school of fish is getting along well. 2 male bettas and 5 female. Not a bite mark.

And this afternoon, Beau decided to visit his pals... well actually, I did. I wanted to see if they can get along. Like I said, the urn is pretty large for a school of bettas and it's heavily planted. So, probably another factor leading to my betta temperament. Lot's of hiding place. And I introduced the fish in a group.

Beau is living in a fish tank alone. So he is quite territorial. He flares a lot initially, but bit by bit his hostility diminished. Did I have a magic urn? I wouldn't recommend anyone keeping two or more male bettas together. But mine did pretty well.

First, I tried with a group of female. Then, I kinda like to watch them swimming. The iridescence scales are alluring. And I tried introducing the males, but watched them closely. Well, I read in some forum, a fish-keeper did keep his 2 males together. And some said brothers can live together.

Yes, watching them is very relaxing. I kinda like a hillbilly who wants a koi pond but have limited budget and resort to keeping bettas. I must admit, it's an addiction already. At least it's not as expensive as koi. The cost of keeping one is very cheap... well, it's a tropical fish, and I live on a tropical island. I have teak trees at the backyard, which is a good water conditioner (some said it is superior than Indian almond leaves). Banana leaves. Plenty of foods. Mosquitoes. I have a bug zapper and in the morning I would collect the dead mosquitoes to feed the fish. Pretty much a low cost maintenance fish (for someone who lives in the tropics), but beautiful.

And if you keep one long enough, they would recognize you. They would always begging for food if they see me. And Beau have adapted to my schedule. He would rest on the gravel if I lie on the bed... or floor... mimicking my actions. If only he blogs.

...People planning to move to Canada because of the Supreme Court decision...

Yep, it's from BuzzFeed.

My first thought before watching this video was...

"If it's about same sex marriage thingy, that's stupid. Canadian have been legalizing gay marriage wayyyyyyyyyyy before this. Moving to Canada to protest the same sex marriage is indeed stupid"

Yes, if I am not mistaken, in Simpson, there is a scene where gay Canadian soldiers kissing. And Homer managed to slip into Canada because of this. I thought it's a common knowledge in America.

"Buzzfeed should do some reseach... or maybe it's a mocking video...must be funny"

Imagining Quinta or Zack or Justin playing the role of homophobes.

So I watched the video.

I was proved wrong after watching the video. The video is apparently mocking those ignorant homophobes.

The more I watch the local news agency, the more I felt like North Korean

I just think the news are telling lies like how North Korean lied their citizens.

And there's always denial on the news.

Double standard...

In the past, the nation tried so hard to curb globalization.

And blame them on Western culture. So LGBT, blame the west

Same sex marriage, blame the west. Rock, heavy metal, blame the west. Indecency, blame the west...

Curbing globalization, just to preserve our Asian culture.


In a way, it's double standard. Anything from the Arab world is not globalization. In the past, on Friday, instead of wearing 'western' formal attire, people wear our traditional dresses. Yes, to preserve our culture.

Now, on Friday, yes... Arab dresses. Tunics instead of the loose shirt and trousers. Considering the Arabs are from the west, is it double standard?

Globalization from the Arab is okay, but not from Europe or Americas. While trying to preserve our culture, some absorb Arab culture. And in the end, we lose our identity to the Arabs instead of the Americas or Europe.

Blaming the western culture goes further into blaming the Christian. A very good example would be Valentines. Although Valentines is not really a Christian tradition.... (yup... not a patron saint's day...) people tend to blame the Christian.

Anything from the Arab world is permissible. Even the head of government used to praise the ISIS 'for their bravery'.... and then retract, deny and soon, turn 180 degrees into curbing the ISIS's influence.

I don't think globalization is that bad... and if one were to fight with globalization, fight it without discrimination... fight the Arabs and Europe and American equally... maybe the Far East too... Double standard.

Like I said, globalization is not always bad. And I don't hate the Arabs. Just commenting on the double standards we have.

10 years later, nobody wears traditional dresses... only abaya and tunics.




p/s just pondering, why is our state always bottom of the list. Alphabetically, our state should not be at the bottom. It's always (the collection of states in the western part of the country), (the neighbouring state in the north then) our state. Is it because we are the 'Bible belt'? Bible belt because we are Christian majority...

p/s/s speaking of rock music, yes in the past rock music is associated with bad influences... now, there's a rock hybrid with nasheed, titled 'salute'. And it's a 'patriotic' song. Yes... kinda funny. I never like that song... it's too 'western*' orientated. (Western orientated... isn't it an oxymoron? orient=east)

*western as in the western part of the country. not the west in general.

We have the shittiest police procedural drama

We have the shittiest police procedural drama...

Tonight's episode is one of the shittiest. It's about atheist terrorizing the nation. And the atheist was portrayed by well, Westerners... and Black.

Well, anything offending the official religion is a crime, but the reverse is not always right. Offending the nation's official religion would be on the front page. Burning other religion's place of worship? Well, the media would not give a damn. Even if it's on the front page, the media would have the tendency to blame the other religion. Always making us the black sheep. Freedom of religion should be for everybody. And I think religion should not be politicized. Also I don't think human have the right to use religion for their own advantage. Religion is good only of the person embracing it is good. When one uses religion for their advantage, it tarnish the sanctity of the religion. Good example... well, why point at other religion,... INDULGENCES!!!

Atheist terrorizing the nation. A friend of a friend of mine, Maurice is an atheist. He is as cool as a hippie. I couldn't imagine Maurice bludgeoning a puppy, let alone a person... maybe slashing the haters with word, but not physically.

Another reason why it is a shitty drama, they would anybody with fair skin to portray the Westerner. The atheist in this particular episode is an Englishman, but his accent is more like Middle Eastern, with some French. Syrian refugee? Fair skin, dark hair. But to make his character more 'English', the actor dyed his hair.

Over here, nobody cares about the actor's accent. An Aussie with thick Oz accent can play an English character. A Brit could play American. It's so different from other country. In Grimm, one of the episode, there's a South African Wesen. Nick and his friends use the Wesen's accent as a clue. The same goes with Common Law when both Wes and Travis track a Texan couple from their accent... to be exact, couple from the Texas panhandle. So accent plays a role in other drama, but not dramas from here.

It's really shitty, that I can laugh at a serious drama. And the police are acting like they are religious preachers. And they keep on mentioning that their religion is the holiest. Yeah... other religions are less holy, that's why nobody cares if they offend the other religions.... hmmm...

Well, I like watching the drama, seldom miss it. A good source of comedy. I think the police should punish them for ridiculing their job... not the cartoonist*.

*well, a cartoonist is jailed for belittling the police... yes, in this 'can'able nation. we can....

Angelea is suing Tyra?

Angelea is suing Tyra because Tyra 'kicked' her out of ANTM  cycle 17. Tyra found out her ugly past and Angelea got disqualified.

When you think about it, maybe the world would be a better place for Tyra had she eliminated Angelea instead of Alexandria.

Lexie music video maybe bad, but considering that Angelea had been in the bottom two more than other contestant...

............................you silly broke whore...........................

New Betta update (2nd day)

I was feeding my bettas, and they are all doing fine. My hypothesis, the territorial male are terrorizing the 'pond' bed. The girls are getting along, swimming close to the surface.

Probably there's enough space for 7 in that urn. And the pistias and water hyacinth gives them ample place to hide from aggression.

Or maybe the boys are docile. Well, Beau is, he's been bullied by a girl... and his tail is still healing. Bad idea. This happened in a shallow pot. Now Beau has the exclusive place in my room. Although the new halfmoon plakat looks fancier, well, Beau is very tame. And clever! Now, he's begging for food.

No! I don't want to overfeed you Beau.

Pineapple wine update.

And my wine turn sour. Well, no biggie. I use them as fabric softener, floor cleaner, disinfectant. Not sure if it could clean produces like fruits or veggies.

And it smells like pineapple, unlike other vinegar. So yes, I don't throw it away.

Betta update.

Today I bought another 3 bettas. 2 male and a female. So, now I have 8 bettas. 3 male bettas and 5 female. One of the male has a beautiful colour, purple and red, halfmoon plakat. The other is plakat. And my beau is spadetail, not veiltail.

The three new fish are with the girls in the sorority. Well, I like feeding the fish. It's like feeding koi, if koi are cheap. So the earthen jar is my koi pond. The males shows aggressiveness but they are outnumbered by the females.

Beau is in the room with me. He's like a dog. Now he's still awake, but wait till I sleep, he'll sleep too. Cute. And he knows my schedule too.

What I like about the fasting month...

What I like about the fasting month... nobody would judge you for having late heavy meals. And food establishments open late at night.

Premium Economy?

Yesterday, I booked a return ticket for my mother for the coming Eid holiday. Due to the availability of the flights, (and of course the price) She'll fly out of this town on an Italian/French-made turboprop, which is single class (the so called business class is more like premium economy... but for a short leg, it's quite a luxury)

The returning flight is on a Boeing 737. Previously, I didn't pre-book the seats, but since it is not possible to ask for better seats from the check-in counter, we tried, checking in online the previous trip. And when it comes to seat selection, one can't choose the seat.

Why on earth would you have seats selection if you can't select the preferred seats?

So, yesterday I asked my mother if she wants to pre-book her preferred seats. There, on a Boeing flight, the first few rows are priced at $22, and all seats behind the over-wing exit rows are $11. I'm not sure about the price of the over-wing rows and the row before them. These are the least preferred seats. And only able bodied passengers are allowed to seat there. Well, able bodied passengers are usually adult, but in the past, when flying was less 'rigid' I sat on one once when I was 17.

Airlines is getting poorer, so they milk money from passenger? Well, I'm not against the idea of premium economy. But on this flight, it's hardly a premium economy. The seats, pitch and width are the same. Just that they are first to embark and disembark.. And it's a full service airlines.

It's akin to the concept of preferred seats in a rival low cost airlines. Full service airlines are on the verge of extinction. To generate more income, they start to copy the low cost carriers strategies. Ryanair and Aer Lingus?

Oh, did I tell you that our flag-carrier shared the some connection with Aer Lingus?  Hint: a German.

The flag carrier was doing well, revived by a fellow (well, again insert the demonym of people from my state). But the idea of having a person from the 'state where people wears loincloth only*' helming the ailing airlines is beyond comprehension why the westerner (which is 'better' 'intelligent' 'developed'). Well, the westerners always underestimate our capability. Aside from asking us stupid questions such as

"Do you live on trees?"
or
"Do you wear loincloth at home?"

A biochemistry lecturer who's from the west, once asked me

"Why is (let's call him Mr Nett) charged me more for my flight?" For an academician/professor who holds law and medical degrees, that's a STUPID question. Maybe his PhD is for his PERMANENT HEAD DAMAGE.

That's how ignorant most of them are. So they replaced him with a westerner, and the airlines stars to lose money AGAIN! Even our top chef complaint on the food quality on board.

I told Josh about this. He told me that his pilot friend said that the area in front of the wings are the safest. Well, to my understanding, it depends on how the airplane crash.

In CFIT, of course the front part is the least favourable. Over-wing rows are sitting on the fuel tank, so any crashes with fire, that's the first part to explode. The tail section is the safest? Well, again it depends. But a lot of survivors were seated in the aft. So nowhere on an airplane is the safest. It depends on the situation and how the plane crash. (Again, I'm not a pilot, Josh's friend is... maybe he's right)

My favourite seats? A few rows away from the aft. As near to the aft as possible, but with seats which recline. I can hear the cabin crews gossiping, but away from the lav.

*westerner... does not refers to people from western countries, but anybody from the Western part of the country.

Amazon Trail

I was watching this:

‘90s Kids Play Oregon Trail As Adults

And I reminisce my childhood.

We had our first PC in 1997. And one of our favourite PC games is Amazon Trail, a spin-off of Oregon Trail. Oregon Trail is a game about well, the Oregon Trail, when Americans crossed the Prairies and Rockies, breaking frontiers... and reach the west coast. Correct me if I am wrong.

Amazon Trail is also an adventure game. Basically, the player have to collect as much items as possible and to bring cinchona to the Inca king as they are plagued by Malaria. And along the river, one would stop at major tributaries, or town. From Belem, to Peru. 

Along the way, one would encounter some ordeals such as food shortage, water shortage, whirlpool, logs, Malaria. Or meet some friendly natives at the town. 

So in a way, playing this game helped us with our geography. Some of the places we learn from this game are, Belem, Xingu, Rio Negros, Santarem, Manaus, Iquitos,  etc.

Yeah, back then even when our games are not 3D or CGI animated, our games are very educational.

I need your John Hancock...

Josh and I went to the school office to get our offer letter. He needs it for scholarship application while my mother needs mine for tax exemption.

At the office, the clerk was looking for our offer letters. Apparently, as we registered with the school online, there are no physical letters. So the clerk have to print out them for us. She then asked us to get the letters signed by the principal.

We then proceed to the principal's desk, (just few metres away) asking him to spare some of his time signing our letters.

Me: Sir, may I have your John Hancock please?
Principal: Huh?

I'm not sure if he doesn't know what I meant by John Hancock
or maybe, he's amazed as we seldom use John Hancock to refer to signature.

Why why why? Why do people hate Chris H so much?

Again, still watching cycle 20 when ANTM  cycle 21 is already over... But I would watch cycle 16, 17 and 20 over and over, like I'm stuck in yesteryear. Giving my undivided support to Alexandria and Chris H. Weird? Yeah.

And everybody attack Chris because he is faking when Nina was eliminated. And they think Chris should have supported Nina. I don't hate Nina but, it's a competition. So Marvin and Renee PDAing is OK but when Chis avoids all the drama, he's selfish? It's a competition, not a dating reality show! Of course people are selfish. Renee thinking that she's better than Jourdan, it's selfish too, laughing at her misfortunes. Marvin calling Chris ugly, it's selfish. Cory... okay, he's probably the least selfish, but blaming Chris on Nina's elimination...

Why am I defending Chris? Well, I think he's not as bad as depict in ANTM. He's just defensive. And the other contestant making him look bad, it's kinda like my cousins kissing my parents' asses and making me looks bad. I know that situation. Well, the best way is to be aloof. And when you are aloof, the others would say that you are not friendly? Yup! I know that situation. Very familiar with it.

You trying to be a better person but wasn't given the chance. And you end up being the black sheep. Whatever you do bad or good, nobody cares. Only the ass kissing parasites are worthy of praises.

And Nina, you're not trying to be his friend, you are patronizing him. And oh I hate being patronized. Nina loves him with the hope of him reciprocating her love. Well, she said it. A crush.

Another experience of mine. A girl had a crush on me, but I can't reciprocate it, wanting to get to know her better, as a friend first. Well, things get sour because I am not ready to be in a relationship with her. It's so sudden, and to be honest, she's patronizing me. Asking me to convert my religion when we were never a 'thing'. Well, I don't reject her. I just want things to go slowly. But she felt rejected. And yes... she spreads rumours that I am not interested because of my sexual orientation. I can be straight, or gay or bi, it's too sudden, I just don't want to be rushed into committing myself into serious relationship.

I might look bad to the whole 'stupid' small medical school, but at least, I'm not the rebound guy. Apparently, she just broke up with her boyfriend, and a few weeks later, she is back with him.

That is why I could relate to Chris H. Well, watching Chris isolated from the other contestants kinda reminisce how I feel like in that forlorn medical school. It's painful to watch, considering that he has the potentials.

If I were in that cycle, I would befriend him, just not too clingy. Clingy people suffocates me. Just like my 'McClingy friend'. I would avoid him at all cost, but he thinks that I need him? Do I need him that much? Actually, he's being ostracized and needs somebody to associate with, which is fine with me, but don't only talk about yourself, bragging about how many 'beautiful girls' you've dated with. You are bragging to a wrong person, a feminist!

Well, being a good friend isn't always about presence. It's about giving personal space too, not being judgmental and accept your friend as he/she is.

When I watch Chris getting angry, I get angry too, because nobody is trying to understand him. Making assumption that he is a jerk, just like Alexandria.

So I just don't bother to watch the elimination process (well I'm referring to the Bat/hanging upside down episode) But I laughed at Renee because she got eliminated first when in fact in the same episode she said Chris have to go home. Ughhhh... yeah I hate Renee. Her hobby is criticizing other people. Hey, you're not perfect too Renee!

Watching Chris gives me flash back of the medical school. But C'est la vie. Well, I think Chris is the most successful among all the contestants. He deserves them.

p/s I am also mad because Tyra choose crybaby Marvin instead of Nick Sabatolo. He is way better looking than Marvin. With that nerdy glasses. (well, I just hate Marvin so much)

my favourite ANTM contestants... (fan-mail?)

Yes, I like watching ANTM.

While not all are memorable (at least to me), some like Shannon Stewart and Yaya are.

My favourite 2 are, Alexandria Everett and Chris Hernandez.

Funny huh, considering both my favourite are 'jerk' (Well I don't think they are)

Both are being attacked in their respective cycle. Almost everybody hates Lexie in cycle 16. Being attacked by Britani. She might be a 'bitch', but well, in the following cycle, the all star, she kinda mix well with the others, avoiding conflicts. In the first elimination, I literally crossed my fingers for Alexandria to stay. Like really hard, my finger ached. (And I watch it a few months after the cycle ended... still, it was intense although I know Lexie would still be in the running...)

Chris H in the other hand is initially trying to be friendly, but misunderstood. Well, both are misunderstood. In cycle 20, I am disappointed why Chris H was eliminated before the cry baby Marvin. Oh, I hate Marvin very much. "My father's a janitor....10x" We get it, OK! Don't make a mountain out of an anthill. I think Chris H had gone through worse than Marvin. Your father is a janitor? At least you still have one. And calling Chris ugly? Hey! To be honest, Chris is way way more handsome than Marvin.

Chris can smize, Chris is witty, Chris is also unique. And Chris can control his sexual urge better than Marvin.

Of course, sometimes people are annoying. Lexie seems annoying, Chris seems annoying, but in fairness, everybody has their flaws. Sometimes, I can't comprehend why people hate Alexandria and Chris so much, but I know I like both of them. They have potentials.

Chris is an October baby? Oh yes!
Yes, we October babies are... should support each other. And he's my age. Maybe we share the same birthday?

If only Alexandria Everett and Chris Hernandez read my blog... well if both of you do, I wish you all the best and I still think that both of you are awesome. Alexandria, you are strong, confident woman, which is actually a good role model for everyone. And Chris, you look more and more handsome each day, I wish I could say the same about myself... haha.

If I'm in social media, I'll definitely follow both of you...

Versions of Pusing Kepala Berbie...

Apparently, there are various tunes to sing Pusing Kepala Berbie.

What the hell is it? Why is it a popular phrase?

My dictionaries...

These are our dictionaries (foreign language dictionaries). Of course we have other English dictionaries.

The longest in possession is the Tagalog English Dictionary, given to us by our dear Auntie Precy. It's dog-eared and the binding is loose. Considering that it's about 20 years old. Well, my parents couldn't think of what to do with it. But it's a gift, so we keep it. But I like it more than the rest.

Well, if my memory serves me right, she gave it to us because I am eager to ask her how to say something in Tagalog. Noodle in Tagalog is Pancit (pun-sit) which I find funny considering that the same spelling (but pronounced as 'pun'-'chat') means punctured. So initially, I thought Filipinos eat tyres. Well, if I'm not mistaken, a few visits later, she gave us the dictionary.

My aunt is probably happy to know that this dictionary did not just collect dust, as we know a few Tagalog words. Well, only words. But we still can't speak Tagalog. So, it's easier for her to tell some funny Tagalog jokes/puns.

And I'm thinking of water/tubig and too big.

The Indonesian dictionary is useful because we do have some Indonesian books on agriculture. 15 years in our possession. We seldom use it but the appendix of this dictionary is full of general knowledge trivia. And the Indonesian call New Zilin as Selandia Baru. Something quite funny when I first read of it.

The other one is the 5 languages. I bought it back when I am in Medical School. Actually, I am looking for Latin, but, well, it's a dead language, but it's still relevant to medical students. Considering that French, Spanish and Italians are derived from Latin (Romance language... nothing to do with being romantic or romantic comedy), I bought it. I have another French-English dictionary. I think it is still with my opportunist cousin. I bought it after discovering that French is also an official language of Canada. Canadiophile... much!?

I wish I know Arabic or Hebrew. Or maybe Mandarin. Of only their alphabet/characters are Roman script.
 

Aquaponics idea...

I've been dreaming of having a farm since 2 years ago. Well, back in my Facebook days (yes, I don't do FB anymore) I played FarmVille. The best of all I could imagine. I collected (virtual) money just to buy a flagpole with, of course the red maple leaf flag. It might not be as beautiful as other's but I like it. And my avatar is tan. Redneck? No, I just think guys should be tan. (Not a typical Asian, Asians like Fair and Lovely)

In my free time, I would do my own research on green technology and farming, particularly aquaponics.

So I drew this, an idea for my future farm.

Here's my crude sketch. Basically, it's a greenhouse on stilts, with reflective shade cloth as it's covering, fish tanks under the structure, louver walls, solar chimney. To augment cooling, I'll probably add ventilation fans and evaporative cooler.

Why on stilt? First is to save space. Some aquaponic farmers employ a technique of erecting grow bed on top of their fish holding tank. This is akin to it albeit larger scale. Second, to facilitate cross ventilation. More breeze, unobstructed breeze would flow freely into the greenhouse. Passive cooling.

Shade cloth is to reflect heat from the greenhouse (well, I'm thinking of planting strawberries or lettuce in the greenhouse, and sell them in local market at a cheaper, affordable price) while allowing light for photosynthesis. For the colour, I'll pick white. It reflects heat better but still allow some light for the plants. (Black just shade the plants but still allow heat to enter)

Like normal greenhouse, plants grow in controlled condition, without pest. Hence, there is no need for pesticide. And it's soil-less, so weed would be not much of an issue.

The solar chimney would enhance cooling by stack effect.So heat could just escape from the chimney. However, if technology advances, and energy efficient compressor/air cond are in market, why not use air cond on a very hot days?

Probably, I'll put some solar arrays (PV cells) or wind turbine or if I'm lucky enough to able to harness hydro power, mini hydro electric (damless of course!) to power necessary equipment such as air pump, water pump and the fans.

Another way to enhance cross ventilation is to plant some trees to direct wind into each greenhouse. A reverse of wind breaker.

As for fish, I'm thinking of Pacu. A baby Pacu costs 50 cents at Sen's aquarium. And adult fish is at least $18 per kilo. And I like Pacu. Personally, I think of it as 'pork' substitute. (well, despite trying to keep kosher, I do, at times crave the taste of pork... My father isn't that strict on keeping kosher, so...)

Or maybe, tilapia, or carp, trout if the fishery department allows. Or ornamental fish. Who knows I would be breeding Fighting Fish in the future? Koi? Well, that depends on if they could live in an aquaponic system.

Well, to make it organic (just an option), I would keep some worms in a worm bed. Vermicompost. The food scraps or rejected produce could feed the worms, and I'll feed the worms to the fish, and I'll have compost to sell to backyard gardeners.

Well, farming is the future 'in'. Food security/food crisis would be a big issue in the next few decades. Doctors would be useless if there's no enough food to feed the world.

Maybe, I'll have a beautiful daughter (Luisa Fernanda), and a young doctor (Carlos Eduardo M.B.B.S) would fall in love with my beautiful daughter. Heck, I'm a farmer not a gardener (a reference to the telenovela 'La Hija del Jardinero')

*Should I call this project a greenhouse? Well, a greenhouse is to keep plants warm in winter as carbon dioxide traps heat, hence the greenhouse effect/carbon emission/global warming. Well, it still houses greens, so it's still a greenhouse. A house for greens.

*No M.D. hahahaha... I'm 1 semester shy of getting M.D.

*Well, I think the gardener is better looking than the young doctor.

Religion and birth order?

Funny thing about Abrahamic faith, they share the same fundamental understanding, but tried to be different from each other. Try to be distinguished from each other, having own identity.

What I think funny is, they come from the same (parent), and if religion are people, they are siblings.

Before this, personification of nation is common, Johnny Canuck, Uncle Sam, Marianne, Britannia etc.

I'm not sure if making persona out of religion is Blesphemy, I'm just commenting on the religion, not God.

The first born is Judaism. One word explains all. BIRTHRIGHT!

Christianity is very complex, having multiple personality, quite independent (as evidence by myriads of denominations), just like MIDDLE CHILD.

Islam is the youngest child, GETTING ALL THE ATTENTION. There is no one day without Islam or Muslim on the news.

Siblings are like that, they have different personality, but still they are friends (well most are).

BUT WHY ARE WE FIGHTING EACH OTHER?

Fighting for toys?

Well, as siblings get older, they fight less. I hope the same could happen to these 3.

I'm not being funny, that's how I look at it, that's how it is.


p/s I'm a middle child.

p/s/s my brother in law lived next door to an American (his accent is). So, my brother in law gave his neighbour a nickname. Uncle Sam. One day, I asked my brother in law, if his neighbour's full name is Samuel. Confused, he asked me why would I think so. I told him Sam is a nickname for Samuel. He laughed. Apparently, he called his neighbour as such because he's an American.

2 men stealing our coconut right in front of me

I was working on my previous entry when 2 men stole our coconut, right in front of me. I was facing the coconut tree.

So when I get out, I took a photo. Then, he asked me if they can have 2-3 coconuts.

"I just want 2-3 coconuts, Do you have to take a photo?"

And I replied, of course I would want to take some photos, as evidence and it's our freaking coconut tree.

"You didn't ask my permission to get those coconuts, I don't think I need your permission to take your photo stealing my coconuts, right?"

I just don't want to stress myself out, so I think ok, maybe they need them so much. So I waited by the window. And they took more than 3.

Oh my goodness, the typical (I would rather not say, stereotype and prejudice), first stealing, then they plucked more than what they initially asked? 'Give calf want thigh?'

They thought I flee and continued to pluck more, until I shouted from inside my house. "Hey, that's more than 2, you think it's fair for us who have been waiting for the coconut to ripe? (we want old coconuts, that's why we left them dangling from the trees) and you pluck more than what you asked what more to say, STEALING?" Off they go.

Will they cast black magic on me? Oh, you're stealing for Pete's sake!

Vege pasta?

In the past week, I've change my style of cooking. Instead of using a lot of pasta, I used vegetables.

The two vegetables that I used is aubergine/brinjal/eggplant and carrot. Well, I'm used with calling the purple vegetable, brinjal, so from hereon, I'll just use brinjal, even though the spell check doesn't agree with me.

So here's how I prepare mine. I'll just use vegetable peeler and 'peel' these two vegetable, so instead of slicing, I get ribbons of vegetables. These are the pasta substitute. Imagine trees growing spaghetti* but instead of pasta bears brinjals.

Next, preparing the sauce. Prepare like what you'd normally do when preparing spaghetti sauce, well in my case, fettuccini or linguini. Again, I like tweaking recipes to suit my taste (and budget). I add chilli powder and substitute ground beef with a can of sardines. So it's like Arabiatta/Ragu.

Since eating this, I feel healthier (probably, just placebo... vege=healthy?) and I use a lot of ketchup and vinegar. More than what Asian usually use (unless the Asian in question is a Filipino... My aunt's kitchen are fully stocked with Datu Putti or Silver Swan vinegar and Del Monte Tomato Puree. Well, she's the one who taught us how to cook 'espaghetti')

Cook like one would normally do with spaghetti, I mixed the pasta and sauce together, like my aunt taught us... not very keen with the idea of mixing the pasta and sauce when serving. And I thought that's the correct way. Any Italian reading this, please rectify if I'm wrong. And like spaghetti, generous amount of oil is a must. Choose healthy oil if olive oil's price is prohibitive.

Well, personally, for me it's delicious, and more flavourful than regular 'pasta'.

*an April Fool's joke, televised and manged to fool a lot of Britons

*espaghetti like what my aunt said... and we thought it's how they were pronounced.

My Business Ethics textbook was written by South African...

Yay! Another excuse for me to sing the beautiful national anthem.

At the first glance, I kinda have the feeling that the authors are South African. Their surname, sounds Dutch or Afrikaner. Rossouw and van Vuuren. Well, I just don't really care until another surname surfaces in the text book, du Plessis. I think it could not be just another coincidence so I search them online.

Yes, indeed both authors are from the rainbow nation. These 2 authors are the real author. My textbook is a modified to suit the majority (of this country). So there are two more local authors. And to be honest, I think of them as someone who like to piggyback another person's work. These two are just adding some input regarding ethics in their point of view.

I wish they could just tone down on the religion.  And it's a damn Business Ethics textbook, not Religion teaching textbook.

Nonetheless, our lecturer only teach us on these two Afrikaners ideas. Well, it's a secular state. By state, I mean our state, well at least it is. So, another reason to sing
-Nkosi sikelel iAfrika, Maluphakanyis uphondo lwayo.......... sounds the call to come together, and united we shall stand, let us live and strive for freedom, in South Africa our land.....

p/s well, I think secularism is the ideal, considering the plurality of the nation.

I like to dance...

Like seriously. Yes, I'm a guy. Sexuality yet to be determined. Too liberal, I don't care if I'm gay or straight, as long as I love the other person and the other person could reciprocate my love, be it a girl or a dude.

Dancing is always associated with 'effeminate' guys. Cheer-leading is for girls only? At least that's what Asians think. Same goes to ballet. I always associate those 2 form of art with girls until I am in my 20's. The late Jon-Erik Hexum was a cheerleader, and very masculine, very macho. Most male ballet dancer are muscular, not 'soft', considering the fact that they need to be strong to lift their dance partner. Another sexy flamenco dancer, (yes, one would associate flamenco with frilly dresses or pink flamingo...) ummm, the one in Samsonite advert... ah, yes! Joaquin Cortes.

However, when I asked my guy friends would they like to join me for a Zumba session, the answer was, NO! DUDE!. I'm a guy. So up till now, I haven't enroll myself into a dance class. Well, almost, if the studio allow male students to join the Flamenco class. Again, gender bias. Women have been complaining about sexism*, well it's time for men.

In the end, I downloaded a video for home dance session. Yes, I like dancing. I even surprised my colleague back in medical school. Nobody expect me to dance in front of a hall full of people. Pudgy, but still, I like to dance. Imagine an elephant in a tutu. That's how I look, or at least how it looks like in my distorted self loathing mind.

The possibility of dancing at home? That's why I love my DVD player. I don't have to squint to look at the laptop screen, 3 metres away.

*sexism? well, it's not only applicable if women are marginalized by men, or vice versa, I think sexism happens when a straight men/women marginalized the transsexual, gay or lesbian.

hashtag Pray for (insert anything which is makes you cool if you ray for them...)

I'm not against anybody praying for something, but recently, people tend to show off what they pray for.

To me it's insincere. Just like the ALS ice bucket. Majority did this because it is 'cool'.

Well, I don't have twitter. Which makes me agree with Max Black's (2 Broke Girls) statement.
"Twitter is stupid and Instagram is Twitter for people who can't read"
Again not all are using Twitter or Instagram for sharing 'trivial' daily life things.

In the Ice Bucket Challenge, one can choose not to donate by dousing him/herself with ice water. A convenient way to avoid donating for good cause while gain popularity on YouTube, which I reckon doesn't do much to drive more donation. Again not all, some did both, donating and making splash.

Same goes to hashtag Pray for phenomenon. Do they really pray, in their heart, or just on social media. If praying is as easy as Twittering... A bit like blasphemy. Is the blue bird, The God? And the rest of social media the demigods? Showing off piety to the world when indeed, it's just a publicity stunt, to show the world how pious they are, how good they are praying for the victims.

Which reminds me of a story, Mark 12:42, the rich were showing off how much money they gave for offering, while a poor widow humbly puts in a few coins, but Jesus regards her as someone who contributed the most.

Too bad, while some of the people who showed to to world that they pray for world peace is the one demonizing other religion, bringing prejudice and making a mountain out of a molehill. Probably a distant relative of Dracula and other vampires as they can't see any cross. Watching/reading too much Twilight??

p/s While most are using Twitter to show off their 'good intention', some are sincere. Yes, I did say majority, not all. If any of the reader do pray, sincerely, you are not among those pretentious pious people.

"Those who eats chillies... "

Lockheed L1011 TriStar?

This morning, our lecturer asked us, "Would you want to befriend a 'samseng'?"

I laughed. And immediately I came out with a joke. Aviation of course.

Which airliner is Samseng? Well, samseng means 3 stars, associated with gangster/organized crime.

Lockheed L1011 Samseng?

Haha.

Funny?

Not funny?

At least I laughed alone. Something which hardly happen. Damn PTSD!

English essay vs blog

Last Monday, our English lecturer asked us to write a 300 words essay. A new lecturer, not Mdm. Q. It's an assessment, assessing our English proficiency.

300 words? Not that much. Or so I thought.

300 words looks little on computer, but writing 300 words on paper? It's a lot. Imagine writing 300 words, edit, re-edit, as it's getting messy with correction tapes and crosses, I have to rewrite the whole essay. And it took me 45 minutes.

On computer, it's easier. With spellcheck, (yes, thanks to Mr Dyslexia) and the ease of edit and reediting without those pesky correction tapes and crosses, I could finish 300 words in 15 minutes, if the idea keep on running. Longer if I have writer's block. And no, I don't have writer's block when writing the essay.

I wish we could just type our essay instead of writing one. But that would be considered as cheating with spellcheck and grammar-check.

Caroline Mili Artiss going home?

I've been subscribing her YouTube channel for ages. I know she's a Eurasian, but not half (insert the demonym for people from my state)

And she's back!

Yes we (insert our demonym again) should stick together! Haha.

p/s I've tried her LOTR Shepherd's Pie recipe! Yummy!

What's the difference between an A and A+?

So our result is out. I got 4 As, and an A+ for Basic Accounting.

So 4 As and an A+ equals to 4.0

So if a person got 5 As, he/she gets 4.0

What if a person gets 5 A+s would she/he gets more than 4.0?

Anyway, I got CGPA of 4.0. Too bad, I have nobody to celebrate with.

And I don't tell anybody in my family. Especially my mother. She would say "Yeah, you're clever, but WHY DID YOU QUIT MEDICINE?"

Actually, I didn't quit. It's more than 7 years, which is the maximum/limit for medical studies. Well, who the heck came out with this stupid idea?

And most people thinks our Medical school is like Medical Schools elsewhere, where one can just continue their studies after umphteen years of sabbatical. "Oh, it's only one semester, you can continue next time once you're comfortable enough to go to the hospital..." one would say.

Unsolicited advice. It's impossible in the land of 'possibility', 'doablility' and 'canablility'.

If changing to another university with medical school is impossible, what more to say extended years?

Why do you study Business?

A quite common question I have encountered.

"Oh Business! So, you're going to be a business man?"

Oh I wish, graduating with Business makes one a businessman, automatically!

I was tired with the question, especially because of my science background... and 1 semester shy from graduating medical school.

I wish I could just answer "So that I can fly business class" without looking like a stupid asshole.

Imagine if such response were used by Economics students...

Analog perm?

I was in a hair saloon when I noticed 'Digital Perm' on the price list.

If there's digital perm, is there such thing as analog perm?


or does it have to do with fingers?

Fingers are digits, in medical term. But digitalis isn't from fingers. It's from foxgloves. Gloves=fingers.

Speaking of foxgloves, I couldn't help but remember Enid Blyton's story on the origin of foxgloves. Apparently, foxgloves original name is folk's gloves. A naughty pixie hates gloves so much and tricked the glove-makers into making heaps of 'wrong/misfit' pixie gloves. And somehow the gloves turn into flowers. Couldn't recall the whole story, I hope it's right.

Toiletries: Bedroom or Bathroom?

I'm not sure about other household or culture. But for our household, and most of the people I know store their toiletries in both bathroom and bedroom.

My late cousin used to 'hide' her shampoo in her wardrobe... along with other her bath creme. So, when ever I spent one or two nights there, she would tell me to get the toiletries from the wardrobe. It might sound weird, but she had her own reason. She's hiding them from her brother. My other cousin, would 'shampoo' his rooster with his sister's shampoo. A dedicated chicken owner. There's a lot of other things that she would hide from her brother, including pastries from her favourite bakery.

The reason for this entry is, where would one put most of their toiletries, bath or bedroom?

In the past, I would put my lotion in the bedroom, on the chest of drawers. Since Nivea came with their in-bath shower, which is genius, I put them... well, in the bath.

Of course one would put their soap, face-wash, toothpaste, toothbrush in the bathroom, but what about deodorant? I put my deodorant in the bedroom, along with my eau de toilette, perfumes and cologne. Shaver and shaving cream/oil is usually found in the bathroom, but not aftershave.

But EDT were meant to be used in the bathroom, hence the name, French for 'toilet water'. Not from the toilet bowl of course! Since deodorant is in the same category as EDT, why don't I put them in the bathroom? Why most people in this part of the world put them in the bedroom?

Probably because we don't really have medicine chest to store such stuffs. And those things are considered expensive. Another reason would be because our bathroom is very humid. As in very very humid. A humid room in a hot and humid region. Small window, and absence of ventilation fan in most household bathroom, and our bathroom is really really wet*. When I was younger, I thought the Westerners keep their bathroom very neat and dry. One of the interior decorating magazine even showcase a commode in the middle of the, what I assume as a library. Toilet among bookcases. A functional toilet along with bathtub.

Which makes our 'Westerners seldom take bath' stereotype stronger. And I thought Westerners seldom poop too! (Try putting books in the toilet and someone might scold you for not respecting knowledge book**)

What about the cheap deodorant? I think it's more convenient to apply deodorant in the bathroom, while your armpits are still fresh. And it's private enough for one to apply deodorant in the nether region. Yes, it's a thing! Along with powders. Using powder in the 'powder room' is less messy than in bedroom. Imagine the spill in the bedroom. In bathroom, one can just wipe it off, or like us, flush it off (yes, another reason why our bathroom is very very wet. We don't only mop the bathroom floor, we flush the whole floor for cleaning!)

I my bathroom is drier, I would put powder and deodorant in the bathroom. For the time being let's just put them in the bedroom. Maybe I'll start with putting the deodorant first.

* I'm not exaggerating. During my first year of medical school, we were to collect questionnaire on home safety. Distributing the questionnaire among 30-40 households. Most score less in bathroom section. Our respondent even asked us "Aren't bathrooms meant to be wet?"

** A friend of mine, scolded me in a holier-than-thou manner, after I told her I sometimes do my revision in the toilet. I told her that as a warning that, my reference books aren't that clean, and one would borrow them at their own risk. Well, I'm just being honest, a disclaimer. She told me "And all the knowledge you acquire from reading in the toilet would not be blessed!". The joke is on her, I passed my geography with flying colours. Maybe, digesting knowledge is complemented by the digesting system. Hence our affinity to read while seated on the porcelain throne.

p/s I am writing while watching ANTM cycle 17... -wanna be on top?-

Pondering... is it OK to watch Air Crash Investigation while flying?

Say, if I were to download an episode of ACI and watch it while flying.

Well, with the advancement of In-flight entertainment system, where it is possible to watch movie or TV programme from a portable device, it's possible.

Air crash scenes are commonly replaced with 'milder' crash scene. An information I read from a book. In the same paragraph, only Qantas retain the famous dialog from the movie Rain Man.

"Qantas never crashed..."

In the following forum, one of my favourite forum, there's some conflicting responds on whether airlines do show air crash scene in-flight.

http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/general_aviation/read.main/576246/

I'm thinking of watching Gimli Glider onboard. Nobody died, no hull loss, only excitement...

Imagine how pale my seatmate would be... horrified.

Mrs Doubtfire... fish sorority version.

My female bettas are kept in a big bowl (their new home), a sorority, until I found out one of the 4 fishes is a male betta.

This afternoon, I put Beau with the 'females'. Beau is quite shy actually. Not very aggressive. Well, he's my favourite since he responds to me, and let me touch him. He would be a good dog if he were a dog.

A few minutes after introducing the 'girls' with Beau, one attacked Beau, nipping his tail. Eventually, I found out that the girl is actually a boy.

While the other 3 girls show signs ob nipped fin, the dominant one isn't. He/She is in perfect condition. I thought he/she is just a dominant girl. Well, until I found out bubble nests under the pistia.

Would I separate the boy from the girls? No. They could coexist together. For Pete's sake, they have live in the same container since hatched. They were in the same tank at Sen's shop. I would just let them breed. So that I have more baby bettas siblings. Yes, siblings would never murder each other if they were together since they were little fish fries.

Airbus vs Boeing... (Queen sized)

Before I proceed further, I am a Boeing fan.

PART 1

Almost a decade ago, the first A380 landed in this country. Back then, the Super Jumbo was very popular. Some even thought that it is the first double decked airliner.

A friend of mine, Danny enthusiastically told me to see the 'double-storeyed' airliner. I asked him, which one? 747 or A380. He replied "I thought the new aircraft is the only double decked aircraft"

Well, not even the 747 can assume the title of the first model to have 2 passenger deck. Some older aircraft particularly the Stratocruise utilized the lower deck for passenger use, (as in passenger lounge)

A380 was so popular, outshining the 747.

However, some are not that keen with A380. Another friend, Humphrey said that the A380 takes off clumsily. Not as graceful as the 777 or 747.

While I prefer 747 to 380, there is some aspect in the aviation industry evolving with the advent of the Super Jumbo. Before the introduction of the A380, First class suite is uncommon. As far as I know, the first airline to introduce the First Class Suite is Jet Airways of India on its 777. Shah Rukh Khan was the brand ambassador, featured in the advert, promoting the First Class Suite.

What distinguish the First class to Business class were wider seat, wider PTV screen, dedicated crews, better amenity kits, and fewer passenger to share the space with. The First Class in the 90's were as good as today's Business Class.

Although Jet Airways was the first to introduce the First Class Suite, this line of service was made popular by Singapore Airlines with the introduction of A380. And many airlines join the trend. Some like Etihad, offer a better option. A private apartment. A higher end niche to the First Class Suite. In this line of service, the apartment comes with a bed fit for 2, private bathroom and private sitting area. In 'normal' First Class, only Lufthansa offer a bed (a permanent bed, not a lie flat seat, or convertible bed/seat) on it's 747-400, which would be phased out within this decade.

Such improvement were made possible by A380. Those luxuries were only possible in private aviation. It's like bringing private aviation into general mainline passenger aviation.

Improvement were not only limited to First class. Business Class and Economy undergoes improvements too. Snack bars and premium economy for economy class. In business class, lie flat seats are becoming more common, replacing the cradle seats.

PART 2

While the Airbus comes with many perks, there are also downside of it. It's sheer size means not all airport could handle them. Some airport have to undergo some renovations such as extending their runways, longer air bridge, larger hall to accommodate the crowd of passengers in a time. The large size means flying with low density is not feasible.

As there are more profitable for high density route, it is mainly used in hub and spoke network. This overcrowds the hub. Making hub airports prone to delays. Very crowded airports means very long queue. One have to open more lines.

It is only feasible for intercontinental flights. So it is limited to big airports. So having an Airbus 380 is only feasible if your airline is flying long distance, with high density.

747 can fly from most regional airport.

PART 3

While Airbus 380 could bring prestige, it is not always wise to have one. Currently, a famous airlines is planning to sell or lease it's A380. Well, in my personal opinion, this particular airline should have not bought them in the first place. It sounds like impulse buying just to compete with another rival airlines. Not wanting to lose face.

The 2 airlines mentioned are both a 5 star airlines, previously operated as a single entity. Well, the airlines separated because of conflicting philosophy on improving the airlines services.

The former airlines aims to improve domestic services while the latter, wanted to expand globally.
Both airlines goes a separate ways, the latter being more famous than the former airlines.

The former airlines in currently downsizing due to financial difficulties and aim to improve on regional and domestic services. Having a Super Jumbo while operating mostly on regional/domestic services doesn't make sense.

Why the airlines opted for A380? Probably due to anti-American sentiment? Palestine sympathizer? Well, it's just some possible explanation. It could be that or some other reasons.  But buying A380 is costly. A grave mistake I would say.

PART 4

Personally, I think Boeing 747 is more versatile than 380. The airline should have bought newer generation of Jumbo Jet instead of the Super Jumbo. Had they do that, probably the airline wouldn't be in such deficit. The delay with the deliveries could cover the cost of a 747-8. Not a financial analyst but 747 is matured enough, the one you can count on. Sadly, compared to 380, 747-8 is less popular. Most 747-8 are freight planes. And most airliners are retiring their 747 from their fleet referring smaller aircraft like 777 and 787 or larger aircraft (A380).

 If 747 were an animal, it's status would be endangered or threatened despite having a younger generation variant. It's sad considering that 747 have a legacy of it's own. But the good news is, the new Air Force One would still be 747. A good decision of not using A380 for the presidential fleet. American pride.

My opinion could be biased because I have a deep connection with Boeing. I always fly in a Boeing. Baby Boeing. Never in a Jumbo Jet, which I wish I had.

And if I were to have unfathomable wealth, I would buy a Jumbo Jet over a Super Jumbo.

Jumbo Jet is a marvel. Designed before the computer age. A bold move to prove that a big aircraft is profitable both as passenger plane or freight plane, convertible, or combi. Very versatile. A humble origin. Unlike the Super Jumbo which is pompous.

Like most Boeing fan would say...

"Boeing let's pilots to control the plane, Airbus rely on computers, and would not let pilot to override the system"

Of course Airbus fans would counter by saying such system is standard. But I see it as being too reliant to artificial intelligence.

An Airbus fan I know blame such thing on the disappearance of MH370, which I counter with the GermanWings deliberate crash.

Really, nothing to do with the control system.

However, I would trust a pilot flying Boeing than a pilot who flies an Airbus.

But that's nothing compared to a pilot who flies bush planes.