Hey readers, this is another modern poetry that I wrote today! Hope you like it!
From the sunlight out the window,
I am seating at my desk casted by a shadow,
Using my computer,
Busy checking my twitter.
This is in the midday,
Of a sunny Saturday,
I look at the clock and it tells me three,
Besides twittering I have nothing else to do and am very free.
So I decided to sit down here and write a poetry,
To show the readers my artistry,
And as to kill time slow and gently
Without doing things violently.
While brainstorming as I walk around the area of my old neighbourhood,
I seem to remember the memory of my childhood,
For this surroundings are still planted with the same old sugar cane,
Which now seems to me like a memory lane.
Ten years haven't dimmed the thrill of the fun,
Of good moments shared with my friends under the happy sun,
The good old times are always the best,
For it is different from the rest.
Well the glowing afternoon seems very long,
But it didn't bother me because I'm having fun walking and listening to my favourite song,
And in this moment of calm and peace,
Is where I get the ideas for my latest masterpiece.
By,
Tan Wee Boon 31 July 2010
Copyrighted.
Friday, July 30, 2010
The 21st Century Life
This is an original poetry that I came up with during English class in tuition. It's part of the assignment. Guess what? I got an A+, so I decided to share this with you guys, enjoy!
My parents used to tell straight into my ears,
That life was hard and poor back then in fifty years,
Working day and night but nothing seemed to improve,
Still, I'm sceptical about the story as there were no proof.
Right now, I'm always busy,
Because this is the 21st century life, which is very lousy,
I barely have the chance to rest in my cozy cushion,
Because for me, my daily schedule is filled with tuition.
Back then, my parents barely see a phone,
But now, even a four-year old kid has a fancy mobile phone,
Life changes, like the value of gold
Everything is now going old.
Modern life is full of obstacles,
But life must go on, said my father wearing his spectacles,
The society is turning bad,
This makes me very sad.
At least my parents got to work at young age,
Unlike me, who is stuck in the house like a bird in a cage,
Because it is not safe to go out now,
So I might as well stay in the house with my dog, named Cow.
Things are getting more and more expensive,
Life is just explosive,
Oh my poor pocket,
It's unbelievable how much I spend a day, my eyes nearly pop out of its socket.
By,
Tan Wee Boon.
Copyrighted.
My parents used to tell straight into my ears,
That life was hard and poor back then in fifty years,
Working day and night but nothing seemed to improve,
Still, I'm sceptical about the story as there were no proof.
Right now, I'm always busy,
Because this is the 21st century life, which is very lousy,
I barely have the chance to rest in my cozy cushion,
Because for me, my daily schedule is filled with tuition.
Back then, my parents barely see a phone,
But now, even a four-year old kid has a fancy mobile phone,
Life changes, like the value of gold
Everything is now going old.
Modern life is full of obstacles,
But life must go on, said my father wearing his spectacles,
The society is turning bad,
This makes me very sad.
At least my parents got to work at young age,
Unlike me, who is stuck in the house like a bird in a cage,
Because it is not safe to go out now,
So I might as well stay in the house with my dog, named Cow.
Things are getting more and more expensive,
Life is just explosive,
Oh my poor pocket,
It's unbelievable how much I spend a day, my eyes nearly pop out of its socket.
By,
Tan Wee Boon.
Copyrighted.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Nepal's Buddha Boy
A meditating teenage boy in south-central Nepal is drawing the attention of scientists after attracting huge crowds in the past six months and earning himself the name Buddha-reincarnate.They are mulling over how to examine him without disturbing his meditation. Ram Bahadur Bamjan's friends, relatives and managers say he has been meditating without drinking water for six months now and that he will carry on for another six years until he gains enlightenment.Siddartha Gautama, who Buddhists believe later attained Nirvana, was born in 560 BC. Grown weak Word spread quickly about the teenager and people around Ratanapuri village in Bara district began to visit Bamjan, 15, who has been sitting cross-legged in a traditional Buddha posture under a peepal tree.
Bamjan's eyes are closed and his body firm, encased in a whitish shawl. His hair has grown long and has almost covered his eyes. Villagers say he has grown weak. His picture has been appearing regularly in newspapers and people now look for updates on him. Many around Bara worship him as the reincarnation of the Buddha. The tree is festooned and the air has the smell of incense sticks. The dramatically increased movement of people has generated economic opportunities. Makeshift shops have sprung up and offerings in cash and kind are on the rise. "Almost 500,000 rupees ($7,000) have been deposited in the bank by devotees," says Prajapati Koirala, a senior government administrator in the area. That is apart from the donations visitors make on the spot. Local people have formed a committee to make sure Bamjan gets the right environment to meditate and to manage the influx of visitors and the offerings they make. The most frequently asked questions: Does he remain seated like that and meditate even at night? Does he not eat or drink at all? Some say he has eaten nothing since he began his meditation, others that he used to take a milk-like liquid from the roots of the peepal tree at the beginning. Challenge Most people can live without food for several weeks, with the body drawing on its fat and protein stores. But the average human can survive for only three to four days without water. Followers of holy men and ascetics have often ascribed extraordinary powers to them, but such powers are seldom subject to scientific inspection.
But the number of people seeking real evidence here is increasing. Under pressure, locals have asked the administration to find out the truth. "We have agreed to conduct a scientific examination on him," said the local administrator, Mr Koirala. The challenge is to do so without touching him. Mr Koirala said scientists from the Royal Nepal Academy of Science and Technology were due to arrive to conduct the examination. It remains unclear how they will do it. "At least the scientists will be able to see whether he meditates the whole night or not," said Deekpal Chaudhary, who sells incense sticks to visitors. Monastery tour Bamjan's family members say they have no idea what is going on. His mother fainted when she found out her son had undertaken an indefinite meditation. "I sometimes go to see him but he does not talk to me," said Maya Devi Tamang. "I don't know what will happen to him but I know that god will help him." The name of Buddha's mother was also Maya Devi, a point Bamjan's devotees have stressed. The family said Bamjan was different from his four brothers. They said he did not speak much and stayed aloof. "He never touched alcohol," said his primary education teacher, Salden Lama. Relatives and neighbours said Bamjan undertook meditation when he returned from a tour of Lumbini, where Buddha was born, and monasteries in Pokhara in Nepal and Dehradun in India. Friend and cousin Prem Lama remembers Bamjan saying that he did not want people to call him Buddha as he had only reached primary enlightenment. Bamjan has spoken only a few times since he began the meditation, according to Prem Lama. He said the first time Bamjan spoke was when a snake bit him around a month ago. Bamjan took the incident as his second test, which he must overcome, Prem Lama said. In the first test he was also bitten by a snake - three months after he began the meditation. The second snake-bite episode led to increased curiosity. After being bitten, Bamjan was said to have asked his aides to put a curtain around him. "In less than a week he asked us to take the curtain away," Prem Lama said. Now another curtain is to be drawn around Bamjan - for the scientific examination. FROM AFP NEWS A young Nepalese boy reputed to have Buddha-like powers has reappeared in the south of the country to preach to thousands of supporters, witnesses said Tuesday. Eighteen-year-old Ram Bahadur Bomjam -- dubbed the "Buddha Boy" -- rose to fame in 2005 after his family claimed he could sit for months on end without sleep, food or water. In March 2007, Bomjam's supporters said he was planning to meditate for three years in an underground bunker, although he was spotted on two occasions. Now, Bomjam has appeared again to preach for around 45 minutes, and plans to continue addressing the public daily until November 18, said a local police official Bara district, 100 kilometres (62 miles) south of Kathmandu. "The whole jungle area where he has appeared has turned into a festival and around 10,000 people came to see him Monday," the police officer said. Local volunteers have collected thousands of dollars from people who visited the Buddha Boy in the past, prompting accusations that the "Buddha Boy" was merely at the centre of a money-making scam. During the height of his fame, a French television journalist filmed him nibbling on fruit while supposedly starving himself. An AFP correspondent also found him curled up sound asleep while he was supposedly meditating in private.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
200,000 Year Old Statue Found On Moon
WASHINGTON, DC - A noted scientist has just produced proof that the lunar surface was inhabited by intelligent life: a 10-inch angel sculpture embedded in a moon rock.
Geologist Dr. Morris Charles revealed last week that NASA lab workers chipped the angel from one of the rocks brought to Earth by Apollo 11 astronauts 40 years ago, in 1969. Dr. Charles was a NASA scientist himself for 23 years but left the agency in 1987. He still maintains close ties to many of his former colleagues.
“The implications of this figurine are absolutely mind-boggling,” Dr. Charles told reporters. “It means that at one time the moon had an atmosphere conducive to life. And what’s more, it was once home to a sophisticated race of people with a highly refined sense of beauty.”
The angel - a humanoid female with wing-like appendages on her back and long flowing hair - is made of an iron compound found exclusively in the highlands of the moon.
This rules out the possibility that it was dropped by a race of aliens from another planet. It’s been hand polished to a silvery metallic sheen. Based on chemical analysis of the metal, geologists estimate the sculpture to be 200,000 years old which means it was made 170,000 years before the human species appeared on Earth.
It’s been examined by art experts who concur with Dr. Charles’ appraisal of the culture that produced it. “Clearly these beings had a sense of religion that parallels our Christianity. Perhaps they had a Jesus of their own, proving that the important spiritual principles are, in a very literal sense, universal,” said a Washington anthropologist.
Others are not so sure of its religious significance. Dr. Miles Fredericks of New York University countered, “This is just more Christian propaganda. The Sumerians told stories of the Annunaki, winged deities, as far back as 18th century BC. Maybe the Sumerians were visited by these moon beings, who merely modeled the statue after their own image.”
While many ponder the significance of the figure, others are curious about why it has remained a secret for so long. “The artifact has been common knowledge among NASA insiders for years,” said Dr. Charles. “But space agency higher-ups have kept the information highly classified, fearing world-wide panic. It was smuggled out to me by persons who must, for obvious reasons, remain anonymous.”
NASA officially denies Dr. Charles’ allegations. The statue was displayed to photographers and newsmen but is now being held for further study at an undisclosed location.
Astronauts of Antiquity - Zecharia Sitchin has already shown in The Twelfth Planet that the statues of gods and goddesses from Sumer present special helmets with protuberances on both sides (the Middle Ages’s illiteracy turned them into”devil horns”), which perfectly look like the pilots’ headphones; the statues were provided with the SHU.GAR.RA - a term that literally means”that which makes you go far into the Universe”.
Another image discovered in North Israel, dating back to the ninth millennium B.C., represents the sculpted head of a god with a helmet and safety glasses. Also a picture of the goddess Ishtar from her temple in Sumer…
“The implications of this figurine are absolutely mind-boggling,” Dr. Charles told reporters. “It means that at one time the moon had an atmosphere conducive to life. And what’s more, it was once home to a sophisticated race of people with a highly refined sense of beauty.”
The angel - a humanoid female with wing-like appendages on her back and long flowing hair - is made of an iron compound found exclusively in the highlands of the moon.
This rules out the possibility that it was dropped by a race of aliens from another planet. It’s been hand polished to a silvery metallic sheen. Based on chemical analysis of the metal, geologists estimate the sculpture to be 200,000 years old which means it was made 170,000 years before the human species appeared on Earth.
It’s been examined by art experts who concur with Dr. Charles’ appraisal of the culture that produced it. “Clearly these beings had a sense of religion that parallels our Christianity. Perhaps they had a Jesus of their own, proving that the important spiritual principles are, in a very literal sense, universal,” said a Washington anthropologist.
Others are not so sure of its religious significance. Dr. Miles Fredericks of New York University countered, “This is just more Christian propaganda. The Sumerians told stories of the Annunaki, winged deities, as far back as 18th century BC. Maybe the Sumerians were visited by these moon beings, who merely modeled the statue after their own image.”
While many ponder the significance of the figure, others are curious about why it has remained a secret for so long. “The artifact has been common knowledge among NASA insiders for years,” said Dr. Charles. “But space agency higher-ups have kept the information highly classified, fearing world-wide panic. It was smuggled out to me by persons who must, for obvious reasons, remain anonymous.”
NASA officially denies Dr. Charles’ allegations. The statue was displayed to photographers and newsmen but is now being held for further study at an undisclosed location.
Astronauts of Antiquity - Zecharia Sitchin has already shown in The Twelfth Planet that the statues of gods and goddesses from Sumer present special helmets with protuberances on both sides (the Middle Ages’s illiteracy turned them into”devil horns”), which perfectly look like the pilots’ headphones; the statues were provided with the SHU.GAR.RA - a term that literally means”that which makes you go far into the Universe”.
Another image discovered in North Israel, dating back to the ninth millennium B.C., represents the sculpted head of a god with a helmet and safety glasses. Also a picture of the goddess Ishtar from her temple in Sumer…
All this suggests to us that the attire …was that of an aeronaut or an astronaut”…
Many drawings on the Sumerian plates show the gods with wings, which were not belonging to the body, but they were accessories of the flight suit, therfore the gods looked like eagles…This drawing on a Sumerian plate suggests that an Anunnaki / Elohim spaceship is connected to the base on Earth.”The central object … it is more mechanical, more manufactured than natural.Its (( wings )) looks almost exactly like the solar panels which American spacecraft are provided to convert the Sun’s energy to electricity. The two antennas cannot be mistaken. The circular craft … is located between Mars (the six - pointed star) and Earth and its Moon”(Z. Sitchin, The Twelfth Planet)…
cool
cool
Monkey God Tree
The monkey tree phenomenon is a social phenomenon in Singapore, which began in September 2007. It arose from the discovery of a callus on a tree in Jurong West New Town, which, through the effects of pareidolia, appears monkey-like. The callus has initiated a minor social mania, drawing large crowds to look or pray at the tree.
Beginnings
The phenomenon started on 12 September 2007 when an unknown person put up a sign in Chinese on a tree on Jurong West Street 42. The sign read that a monkey had come to the tree three years ago to look for his father, the Monkey God. It added that a recent car accident had split the old bark of the tree open, releasing the Monkey God. One resident purported that the monkey image appeared around 3 September 2007.
The appearance of the sign and the monkey outline on the tree trunk were reported in the local English and Chinese-language newspapers such as The New Paper, The Straits Times and Lianhe Zaobao. Reports also quoted residents claiming how three car accidents had earlier happened at the spot, but none had been fatal, purportedly due to the tree's "magical" properties.
Since news broke on 13 September 2007, hundreds of people from all over Singapore have flocked to the usually quiet HDB neighbourhood to pay homage to the tree. By the afternoon of 13 September, the crowd visiting the tree had swelled to more than 30, with offerings occupying the grass patch surrounding the tree.
Monkey outline
The tree with the monkey outline is a species of the African Mahogany. It is a common tree planted by the National Parks Board (NParks) to provide shade, particularly in parks and along major roads and expressways. It is a hearty tree that grows well under most soil conditions.
On the trunk of the tree in question is an outline of two monkeys — one larger than the other — with limbs, faces and bodies. They were formed on a surface that is smoother and of a slightly lighter colour than the rest of the trunk. Some people claimed to see three monkeys.
NParks gave a plausible explanation for how the monkey outline could have been formed: The tree was involved in several minor accidents over the years. The uneven bark surface at the base of the tree trunk was the result of callusing, a natural reaction in which the tree grows new bark over injured areas.
The department of biological sciences at the National University of Singapore explained that patterns formed by callusing are random and depend on the damage caused by the accidents. It added that the monkey outline on the smoother bark may disappear with time as the new tissue layers form under it and push this layer out. Subsequently, the smooth surface would get darker and rougher, like the rest of the tree bark.
Public mania
Devotees to the tree believed that the images are either a manifestation of the Monkey God, a deity from Chinese mythology, or Hanuman, the monkey deity in the Hindu pantheon, and that praying to them would bring them luck.
The crowd has been leaving bunches of bananas, packets of peanuts, oranges and chrysanthemum flowers, burning joss sticks, and praying for lucky 4-D numbers at the tree. People also started burning incense paper, prompting a resident to place a zinc barrel beside the tree so that the ashes could be scooped into the barrel. Some residents even won a bet on the 4-D draw held on 12 September. The winning number "4309" was obtained by combining the HDB block number near the tree (430) and the order of the monkey in the Chinese zodiac (ninth).
There were volunteers who helped to distribute the bananas and peanuts to people who drop by. Some of them have also put up signs telling people not to leave red packets filled with money beneath the tree. A visitor had left a tin can containing tiny rolls of paper at the tree.
Thousands of people have since visited the tree, and the crowd grew to over 200 at one point on the afternoon of 14 September. The crowd consisted of both men and women, mostly Chinese and Indians of all ages. The people wanted a peek of the monkey images, while many took pictures of the tree with their mobile phones. Images of the monkey tree were even sold at S$3 or S$10 a photograph near the tree.
The crowds were so large that residents started complaining of the noise, littering and traffic jams caused by vehicles parked illegally along the narrow road. This prompted the police to patrol the area.
Two nearby trees also started garnering offerings from 14 September — one for a supposed outline of Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, on its trunk, and another whose bark resembles the Hindu elephant god Ganesha.
The phenomenon started on 12 September 2007 when an unknown person put up a sign in Chinese on a tree on Jurong West Street 42. The sign read that a monkey had come to the tree three years ago to look for his father, the Monkey God. It added that a recent car accident had split the old bark of the tree open, releasing the Monkey God. One resident purported that the monkey image appeared around 3 September 2007.
The appearance of the sign and the monkey outline on the tree trunk were reported in the local English and Chinese-language newspapers such as The New Paper, The Straits Times and Lianhe Zaobao. Reports also quoted residents claiming how three car accidents had earlier happened at the spot, but none had been fatal, purportedly due to the tree's "magical" properties.
Since news broke on 13 September 2007, hundreds of people from all over Singapore have flocked to the usually quiet HDB neighbourhood to pay homage to the tree. By the afternoon of 13 September, the crowd visiting the tree had swelled to more than 30, with offerings occupying the grass patch surrounding the tree.
Monkey outline
The tree with the monkey outline is a species of the African Mahogany. It is a common tree planted by the National Parks Board (NParks) to provide shade, particularly in parks and along major roads and expressways. It is a hearty tree that grows well under most soil conditions.
On the trunk of the tree in question is an outline of two monkeys — one larger than the other — with limbs, faces and bodies. They were formed on a surface that is smoother and of a slightly lighter colour than the rest of the trunk. Some people claimed to see three monkeys.
NParks gave a plausible explanation for how the monkey outline could have been formed: The tree was involved in several minor accidents over the years. The uneven bark surface at the base of the tree trunk was the result of callusing, a natural reaction in which the tree grows new bark over injured areas.
The department of biological sciences at the National University of Singapore explained that patterns formed by callusing are random and depend on the damage caused by the accidents. It added that the monkey outline on the smoother bark may disappear with time as the new tissue layers form under it and push this layer out. Subsequently, the smooth surface would get darker and rougher, like the rest of the tree bark.
Public mania
Devotees to the tree believed that the images are either a manifestation of the Monkey God, a deity from Chinese mythology, or Hanuman, the monkey deity in the Hindu pantheon, and that praying to them would bring them luck.
The crowd has been leaving bunches of bananas, packets of peanuts, oranges and chrysanthemum flowers, burning joss sticks, and praying for lucky 4-D numbers at the tree. People also started burning incense paper, prompting a resident to place a zinc barrel beside the tree so that the ashes could be scooped into the barrel. Some residents even won a bet on the 4-D draw held on 12 September. The winning number "4309" was obtained by combining the HDB block number near the tree (430) and the order of the monkey in the Chinese zodiac (ninth).
There were volunteers who helped to distribute the bananas and peanuts to people who drop by. Some of them have also put up signs telling people not to leave red packets filled with money beneath the tree. A visitor had left a tin can containing tiny rolls of paper at the tree.
Thousands of people have since visited the tree, and the crowd grew to over 200 at one point on the afternoon of 14 September. The crowd consisted of both men and women, mostly Chinese and Indians of all ages. The people wanted a peek of the monkey images, while many took pictures of the tree with their mobile phones. Images of the monkey tree were even sold at S$3 or S$10 a photograph near the tree.
The crowds were so large that residents started complaining of the noise, littering and traffic jams caused by vehicles parked illegally along the narrow road. This prompted the police to patrol the area.
Two nearby trees also started garnering offerings from 14 September — one for a supposed outline of Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, on its trunk, and another whose bark resembles the Hindu elephant god Ganesha.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Michael Jackson Forever!!! R.I.P.
25th of June 2009 will always be a date to be remembered. Michael Jackson is dead after suffering a cardiac arrest, sending shockwaves sweeping across the world and tributes pouring in Friday for the tortured music icon revered as the "King of Pop." Jackson, 50, collapsed at his rented mansion in the exclusive Los Angeles neighbourhood of Holmby Hills and was rushed to hospital by paramedics before being pronounced dead at 2:26 pm (2126 GMT) on Thursday.
One of the most influential figures in pop history whose career included the highest-selling album of all-time, "Thriller," Jackson had been preparing for a concert comeback in London next month he had dubbed "the final curtain."
News of his death triggered an outpouring of grief as shocked celebrities, foreign governments and devoted fans from Beijing to Beverly Hills paid tribute to the troubled star.
Lieutenant Fred Corral, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Coroner's office, said an autopsy would likely be carried out on Friday and would not speculate on the exact cause of death.
Jackson's brother Jermaine, the family's official spokesman, later revealed physicians had battled for more than an hour to revive the star after his arrival at the UCLA Medical Centre before he was pronounced dead.
"Our family requests that the media please respect our privacy during this tough time," Jermaine Jackson said. "May Allah be with you, Michael, always."
As the sun began to sink over Los Angeles, a coroner's office helicopter bearing Jackson's body took off from the UCLA Medical Centre, where hundreds of media and fans had gathered throughout the day.
Meanwhile police motorcycle riders surrounded Jackson's gated mansion as crowds of tourists and fans congregated.
Pop diva Madonna was among dozens of celebrities who struggled to cope. "I can't stop crying over the sad news," the singer said in a statement. "The world has lost one of the greats, but his music will live on forever!"
The star's first wife Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley, said his death had left her speechless.
"I am so very sad and confused with every emotion possible. I am heartbroken for his children, who I know were everything to him, and for his family," Presley told MTV News in a statement.
Political figures also paid their tributes.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger lamented the loss of "one of the most influential and iconic figures in the music industry."
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband also posted his thoughts on micro-blogging site Twitter. "Never has one soared so high and yet dived so low. RIP Michael," Miliband wrote.
But the most visible emotion came in spontaneous gatherings of fans here and across the world.
In Los Angeles Lana Brown, a 49-year-old tourist from Dallas, broke down in tears as she digested the news. "I can't believe we might have lost the best entertainer this world has ever seen," she told AFP.
In New York's Times Square, Chantal de Roy van Zuydewijn watched a giant screen broadcasting the news of Jackson's death with tears running down her cheeks.
"He is a legend. He is a genius," said the 28-year-old Dutch tourist, who had a ticket to the pop legend's scheduled comeback tour in July.
Jackson's death came as the singer prepared to make a keenly anticipated concert comeback in London, his first series of shows in more than a decade.
Jackson family attorney Brian Oxman said he had harboured concerns over the singer's condition, revealing that he had been taking prescription medication as he prepared for his comeback.
Oxman compared Jackson's fate to the overdose death of Playboy centerfold Anna-Nicole Smith, voicing concern over "enablers" in his entourage.
"The people who have surrounded him have been enabling him... if you think that the case of Anna-Nicole Smith was an abuse, it was nothing to what we have seen in Michael Jackson's life," Oxman told CNN.
While Jackson ruled the charts and dazzled audiences with electric dance moves like the backwards "moonwalk" in the 1980s, his once-stellar career was overshadowed by his colourful public behaviour, his startling physical transformation and multiple allegations of child abuse.
He lived as a virtual recluse following his 2005 acquittal on charges including child molestation and plotting to kidnap his young accuser.
Despite his acquittal, the trial was a body blow from which the pop music superstar, whonamed his ranch after Peter Pan's "Neverland" of perpetual childhood and furnished it with Disney-inspired rides, struggled to recover.
Born on August 29, 1958, Jackson made his show business debut with four of his elder brothers in the Jackson Five pop group, and went on to lead the stage clan with a piping soprano and dazzling dance moves.
In 1979, Quincy Jones produced Jackson's first solo album for Epic, "Off the Wall," a huge disco-oriented success that sold 10 million copies.
They teamed up again in 1982 for what would be Jackson's breakthrough album as a composer and co-producer, "Thriller," which became the top-selling album of all time, with sales exceeding 41 million.
Jones reacted with shock after being informed of Jackson's death Thursday.
"I'm absolutely devastated at this news," he said. "I just don't have the words. Divinity brought our souls together and allowed us to do what we could do through the '80s," Jones said.
Tommy Mottola, the former head of Sony Music who released Jackson's records for 16 years, said the singer had a place in the pantheon of American music icons, alongside Elvis and Frank Sinatra.
"It's one of the greatest losses," Mottola told the Los Angeles Times.
Crowds continued to throng near the UCLA Medical Centre and Jackson's home late Thursday, while street vendors selling hastily designed commemorative T-shirts for 25 dollars sought to cash in. Michael Jackson will always be remembered and there will never be a second Michael Jackson. He will remain to be the greatest artist of all time!
One of the most influential figures in pop history whose career included the highest-selling album of all-time, "Thriller," Jackson had been preparing for a concert comeback in London next month he had dubbed "the final curtain."
News of his death triggered an outpouring of grief as shocked celebrities, foreign governments and devoted fans from Beijing to Beverly Hills paid tribute to the troubled star.
Lieutenant Fred Corral, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Coroner's office, said an autopsy would likely be carried out on Friday and would not speculate on the exact cause of death.
Jackson's brother Jermaine, the family's official spokesman, later revealed physicians had battled for more than an hour to revive the star after his arrival at the UCLA Medical Centre before he was pronounced dead.
"Our family requests that the media please respect our privacy during this tough time," Jermaine Jackson said. "May Allah be with you, Michael, always."
As the sun began to sink over Los Angeles, a coroner's office helicopter bearing Jackson's body took off from the UCLA Medical Centre, where hundreds of media and fans had gathered throughout the day.
Meanwhile police motorcycle riders surrounded Jackson's gated mansion as crowds of tourists and fans congregated.
Pop diva Madonna was among dozens of celebrities who struggled to cope. "I can't stop crying over the sad news," the singer said in a statement. "The world has lost one of the greats, but his music will live on forever!"
The star's first wife Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley, said his death had left her speechless.
"I am so very sad and confused with every emotion possible. I am heartbroken for his children, who I know were everything to him, and for his family," Presley told MTV News in a statement.
Political figures also paid their tributes.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger lamented the loss of "one of the most influential and iconic figures in the music industry."
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband also posted his thoughts on micro-blogging site Twitter. "Never has one soared so high and yet dived so low. RIP Michael," Miliband wrote.
But the most visible emotion came in spontaneous gatherings of fans here and across the world.
In Los Angeles Lana Brown, a 49-year-old tourist from Dallas, broke down in tears as she digested the news. "I can't believe we might have lost the best entertainer this world has ever seen," she told AFP.
In New York's Times Square, Chantal de Roy van Zuydewijn watched a giant screen broadcasting the news of Jackson's death with tears running down her cheeks.
"He is a legend. He is a genius," said the 28-year-old Dutch tourist, who had a ticket to the pop legend's scheduled comeback tour in July.
Jackson's death came as the singer prepared to make a keenly anticipated concert comeback in London, his first series of shows in more than a decade.
Jackson family attorney Brian Oxman said he had harboured concerns over the singer's condition, revealing that he had been taking prescription medication as he prepared for his comeback.
Oxman compared Jackson's fate to the overdose death of Playboy centerfold Anna-Nicole Smith, voicing concern over "enablers" in his entourage.
"The people who have surrounded him have been enabling him... if you think that the case of Anna-Nicole Smith was an abuse, it was nothing to what we have seen in Michael Jackson's life," Oxman told CNN.
While Jackson ruled the charts and dazzled audiences with electric dance moves like the backwards "moonwalk" in the 1980s, his once-stellar career was overshadowed by his colourful public behaviour, his startling physical transformation and multiple allegations of child abuse.
He lived as a virtual recluse following his 2005 acquittal on charges including child molestation and plotting to kidnap his young accuser.
Despite his acquittal, the trial was a body blow from which the pop music superstar, whonamed his ranch after Peter Pan's "Neverland" of perpetual childhood and furnished it with Disney-inspired rides, struggled to recover.
Born on August 29, 1958, Jackson made his show business debut with four of his elder brothers in the Jackson Five pop group, and went on to lead the stage clan with a piping soprano and dazzling dance moves.
In 1979, Quincy Jones produced Jackson's first solo album for Epic, "Off the Wall," a huge disco-oriented success that sold 10 million copies.
They teamed up again in 1982 for what would be Jackson's breakthrough album as a composer and co-producer, "Thriller," which became the top-selling album of all time, with sales exceeding 41 million.
Jones reacted with shock after being informed of Jackson's death Thursday.
"I'm absolutely devastated at this news," he said. "I just don't have the words. Divinity brought our souls together and allowed us to do what we could do through the '80s," Jones said.
Tommy Mottola, the former head of Sony Music who released Jackson's records for 16 years, said the singer had a place in the pantheon of American music icons, alongside Elvis and Frank Sinatra.
"It's one of the greatest losses," Mottola told the Los Angeles Times.
Crowds continued to throng near the UCLA Medical Centre and Jackson's home late Thursday, while street vendors selling hastily designed commemorative T-shirts for 25 dollars sought to cash in. Michael Jackson will always be remembered and there will never be a second Michael Jackson. He will remain to be the greatest artist of all time!
Sunday, June 21, 2009
What A Strange & Wonderful Coincidences
Have you encountered any strange coincidences? I dont think I have. Anyway, life is always full of coincidences. Sometimes they are so strange you may think that it is a set up. Well, here are some of the strangest coincidences of all time.
15.Childhood Book
While American novelist Anne Parrish was browsing bookstores in Paris in the 1920s, she came upon a book that was one of her childhood favorites – Jack Frost and Other Stories. She picked up the old book and showed it to her husband, telling him of the book she fondly remembered as a child. Her husband took the book, opened it, and on the flyleaf found the inscription: “Anne Parrish, 209 N. Weber Street, Colorado Springs.” It was Anne’s very own book. Strange isn't it?
14.Lucky Poker
In 1858, Robert Fallon was shot dead, an act of vengeance by those with whom he was playing poker. Fallon, they claimed, had won the $600 pot through cheating. With Fallon’s seat empty and none of the other players willing to take the now-unlucky $600, they found a new player to take Fallon’s place and staked him with the dead man’s $600. By the time the police had arrived to investigate the killing, the new player had turned the $600 into $2,200 in winnings. The police demanded the original $600 to pass on to Fallon’s next of kin – only to discover that the new player turned out to be Fallon’s son, who had not seen his father in seven years!
13. Twin Death
On 2002, Seventy-year-old twin brothers have died within hours of one another after separate accidents on the same road in northern Finland. The first of the twins died when he was hit by a lorry while riding his bike in Raahe, 600 kilometres north of the capital, Helsinki. He died just 1.5km from the spot where his brother was killed. “This is simply a historic coincidence. Although the road is a busy one, accidents don’t occur every day,” police officer Marja-Leena Huhtala told Reuters. “It made my hair stand on end when I heard the two were brothers, and identical twins at that. It came to mind that perhaps someone from upstairs had a say in this,” she said.
12.Poe Coincidence
In the 19th century, the famous horror writer, Egdar Allan Poe, wrote a book called ‘The narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym’. It was about four survivors of a shipwreck who were in an open boat for many days before they decided to kill and eat the cabin boy whose name was Richard Parker. Some years later, in 1884, the yawl, Mignonette, foundered, with only four survivors, who were in an open boat for many days. Eventully the three senior members of the crew, killed and ate the cabin boy. The name of the cabin boy was Richard Parker.
11. Royal Coincidence
In Monza, Italy, King Umberto I, went to a small restaurant for dinner, accompanied by his aide-de-camp, General Emilio Ponzia- Vaglia. When the owner took King Umberto’s order, the King noticed that he and the restaurant owner were virtual doubles, in face and in build. Both men began discussing the striking resemblances between each other and found many more similarities.
1. Both men were born on the same day, of the same year, (March 14th, 1844).2. Both men had been born in the same town.3. Both men married a woman with same name, Margherita.4. The restauranteur opened his restaurant on the same day that King Umberto was crowned King of Italy.5. On the 29th July 1900, King Umberto was informed that the restauranteur had died that day in a mysterious shooting accident, and as he expressed his regret, he was then assassinated by an anarchist in the crowd.
1. Both men were born on the same day, of the same year, (March 14th, 1844).2. Both men had been born in the same town.3. Both men married a woman with same name, Margherita.4. The restauranteur opened his restaurant on the same day that King Umberto was crowned King of Italy.5. On the 29th July 1900, King Umberto was informed that the restauranteur had died that day in a mysterious shooting accident, and as he expressed his regret, he was then assassinated by an anarchist in the crowd.
10.Falling Baby
In 1930s Detroit, a man named Joseph Figlock was to become an amazing figure in a young (and, apparently, incredibly careless) mother’s life. As Figlock was walking down the street, the mother’s baby fell from a high window onto Figlock. The baby’s fall was broken and Figlock and the baby were unharmed. A year later, the selfsame baby fell from the selfsame window, again falling onto Mr. Figlock as he was passing beneath. Once again, both of them survived the event.
9.Mystery Monk
In 19th century Austria, a near-famous painter named Joseph Aigner attempted suicide on several occasions. During his first attempt to hang himself at the age of 18, Aigner was interrupted by a mysterious Capuchin monk. And again at age 22, he was prevented from hanging himself by the very same monk. Eight years later, he was sentenced to the gallows for his political activities. But again, his life was saved by the intervention of the same monk. At age 68, Joseph Aigner finally succeeded in suicide, using a pistol to shoot himself. Not surprisingly, his funeral ceremony was conducted by the very same Capuchin monk – a man whose name Aiger never even knew.
8.Photograpic Coincidence
German mother who photographed her infant son in 1914 left the film to be developed at a store in Strasbourg. In those days some film plates were sold individually. World War I broke out and unable to return to Strasbourg, the woman gave up the picture for lost. Two years later she bought a film plate in Frankfurt, over 100 miles away, to take a picture of her newborn daughter. When developed the film turned out to be a double exposure, with the picture of her daughter superimposed on the earlier picture of her son. Through some incredible twist of fate, her original film, never developed, had been mislabeled as unused, and had eventually been resold to her.
7.Book Find
In 1973, actor Anthony Hopkins agreed to appear in “The Girl From Petrovka”, based on a novel by George Feifer. Unable to find a copy of the book anywhere in London, Hopkins was surprised to discover one lying on a bench in a train station. It turned out to be George Feifer’s own annotated (personal) copy, which Feifer had lent to a friend, and which had been stolen from his friend’s car.
6.Twins
The twin brothers, Jim Lewis and Jim Springer, were separated at birth, adopted by different families. Unknown to each other, both families named the boys James. Both James grew up not knowing of the other, yet both sought law-enforcement training, both had abilities in mechanical drawing and carpentry, and each had married women named Linda. Both had sons, one of whom was named James Alan and the other named James Allan. The twin brothers also divorced their wives and married other women – both named Betty. And they both owned dogs which they named Toy.
5.Revenge Killing
In 1883, Henry Ziegland broke off a relationship with his girlfriend who, out of distress, committed suicide. The girl’s enraged brother hunted down Ziegland and shot him. Believing he had killed Ziegland, the brother then took his own life. In fact, however, Ziegland had not been killed. The bullet had only grazed his face, lodging into a tree. It was a narrow escape. Years later, Ziegland decided to cut down the same tree, which still had the bullet in it. The huge tree seemed so formidable that he decided to blow it up with dynamite. The explosion propelled the bullet into Ziegland’s head, killing him.
4.Golden Scarab
From The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche: “A young woman I was treating had, at a critical moment, a dream in which she was given a golden scarab. While she was telling me this dream I sat with my back to the closed window. Suddenly I heard a noise behind me, like a gentle tapping. I turned round and saw a flying insect knocking against the window-pane from outside. I opened the window and caught the creature in the air as it flew in. It was the nearest analogy to the golden scarab that one finds in our latitudes, a scarabaeid beetle, the common rose-chafer (Cetonia aurata) which contrary to its usual habits had evidently felt an urge to get into a dark room at this particular moment. I must admit that nothing like it ever happened to me before or since, and that the dream of the patient has remained unique in my experience.” – Carl Jung
3.Taxi
In 1975, while riding a moped in Bermuda, a man was accidentally struck and killed by a taxi. One year later, this man’s bother was killed in the very same way. In fact, he was riding the very same moped. And to stretch the odds even further, he was struck by the very same taxi driven by the same driver – and even carrying the very same passenger!
2.Hotel Discovery
In 1953, television reporter Irv Kupcinet was in London to cover the coronation of Ellizabeth II. In one of the drawers in his room at the Savoy he found found some items that, by their identification, belonged to a man named Harry Hannin. Coincidentally, Harry Hannin – a basketball star with the famed Harlem Globetrotters – was a good friend of Kupcinet’s. But the story has yet another twist. Just two days later, and before he could tell Hannin of his lucky discovery, Kupcinet received a letter from Hannin. In the letter, Hannin told Kucinet that while staying at the Hotel Meurice in Paris, he found in a drawer a tie – with Kupcinet’s name on it.
1.Historical Coincidence
The lives of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, two of America’s founders. Jefferson crafted the Declaration of Independence, showing drafts of it to Adams, who (with Benjamin Franklin) helped to edit and hone it.The document was approved by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. Surprisingly, both Jefferson and Adams died on the same day, July 4, 1826 – exactly 50 years from the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
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