I'm at year of the Dog

Dog Overview
This year may be a bit more challenging than the last, but it still has the potential to be very favorable. The Dog is more comfortable with the Pig, which symbolizes endings, rather than the Rat, which is associated with new beginnings. If you are willing to leave your comfort zone, you can make significant progress towards your objectives and also achieve one or more notable successes. As with most things, your attitude is likely to determine just how well you do.
Dog Rating
58% (8 favorable and 4 unfavorable months)

Dog Career
If you have been considering a change in occupation, this could be the year to try something different. This is a time for action, not delay, so be decisive whether it is change you seek, or simply advancement in your current role. Spend time promoting yourself and your skills and make sure that those above you on the company ladder are able to recognize the good things you are doing this year. Your coworkers will be more valuable than ever this year, so pay close attention to what they have to say to you.

Dog Relationships
You will find the most comfort in your family relationships this year, be it with you parents, children or loved one. There is a chance someone in your immediate circle will need a good friend and you will need to find the time to step up and take care of them. The single Dog will find good fun and mental stimulation this year. You should have plenty of chances to meet new friends and explore new love interests.

Dog Health
Be alert for signs of increased stress or burnout. This will be an active year for you, which means you are at an increased risk for physical injury. Always be sure to exercise proper caution when out and about and you should be just fine. Your health, in general, should be good as long as you avoid stress related issues.

Dog Wealth
You should see a significant improvement in your financial situation this year. There is a good chance that the Year of the Earth Rat will be favorable towards your new savings plans and investment decisions. Your tendency to trust those around you too much might get you in trouble, this year. The wisest thing to do when considering a financial decision involving someone you trust is to get a second opinion.

Ryan Jaranilla(Olympic Chef) Proud to be Ilonggo

MANILA, Philippines—It’s a day before the much-anticipated opening of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, and already the Philippines has struck gold!
Meet our kitchen gold medalist, chef Ryan Jaranilla, senior executive chef, Olympic Catering Services Project of the Athletes’ Village in Beijing.

Tagasaan po sila(From where are you)?
Born in Iloilo, grew up in Manila. My father was with the Air Force and my mother a school teacher at Villamor Air Base. In high school, I went to Philippine Normal College, and college at UP Los Baños. I moved to California after Christmas 1991.

How did you become a chef?
I was working part-time in the Nutrition department of the Hospital of the Good Samaritan when my director encouraged me to take an AA in Nutrition Tech. After a year, a Filipino chef manager, Alex Jose, joined our team and encouraged me to pursue a Diploma in Culinary Arts.
After getting my culinary arts degree, I took a job in Lufthansa Skyschefs as food service manager and later became the chef manager of the Far East. I was handling all Asian Airlines such as JAL, Korean, Eva Air and PAL. But long hours and days took a toll on me, so I pursued a different area. I took a job as the chef manager for University of California in Santa Barbara, while on my days off I would do some catering.How was your climb up the “kitchen” ladder?
I came to California with no experience, so I started out as dishwasher. My job began at 10 p.m. and ended 4 a.m. It was hard labor. At the end of day, my hands would be chapped from water and detergent exposure. I had to walk seven blocks to catch a bus home, which came only once every hour. I also became a bus boy and waiter after that.
I never complain about work no matter how hard, and I always deliver. This is something I learned from my father, and it paved the way for people like chef Alex and chef Cecelia de Castro (a culinary school adviser) to throw their support behind me.
I am doing the same mentoring to some young aspiring cooks in UC Irvine. I just wish there was a Filipino cook among them. Someday, I will also open doors to young Filipino cooks. I’m working hard to make it happen.

Who are your kitchen heroes?
My father, the cook in our family. He would come home and cook every meal as my mother couldn’t even boil an egg. The other person is my grandmother; she is very meticulous in her cooking—even the vegetables should be cut the right way. She taught me how to develop my palate by making me taste everything she cooked and making me guess all the ingredients she used in her dish.
My fave chef is Wolfgang Puck. The man is very down to earth—not an inch of ego. Working with him was fun and unpretentious. He will give you a chance to make your own niche. He gets involved in the kitchen and will roll up his sleeves to get the work done.
You got to cook for the Oscars, the Grammys and People’s Choice Awards, right?
As a young chef, I found that fun and exciting. I worked that year when Julia Roberts won the Oscar and she passed through the kitchen to reach the Governor’s Ball. I was so shocked to see her in person that I dropped the chocolate Oscar I was placing on top of the chocolate mousse.
Danny De Vito came through the kitchen to ask for a second helping of lobster and to thank us for the dinner he really enjoyed.

How did you become senior executive chef of the Olympic Catering Services Project?
I was already working with Aramark (a professional service provider) during the Athens Olympics, but did not qualify in the selection process. So I called Human
Resources and asked them how I could make it to the next Olympics.
I started building my credentials within the company, took new projects and implemented a lot of company programs within our unit. I went back to school and added a certification in Catering Management & Event planning from California Polytechnic University.
So when the announcement was made for the Olympics Project, I had my credentials and was well-prepared for the interviews. When the final lineup was published, I was surprised that I got the senior position in the culinary department! There are seven senior executive chefs and I’m the youngest and the newest in the group. The rest are veterans of three or two Olympics.
What is it like to be an Olympics chef?
My friends and family think it is cool and prestigious. So it seems. It is a different story once the curtains are down and you are serving hungry athletes with different dietary needs. It is hard work, with long hours and no days off.
Every day is a different day. My day starts at 2:30 a.m. when I wake up for breakfast, and ends at 7 p.m. when dinner has been served.
Then I get to sleep for four hours, as we are now on 24-hour on-call service. I got a call from my sous chef at 1 a.m., asking me if he could serve couscous salad to an athlete with a gluten-free diet, since the dietician was not around and I have a Nutrition background.
There are challenges in abundance. Communication is top on the list, as our Chinese cooks do not speak English. Also, a lot of the spices and ingredients are in Chinese characters without any translation. I would end up tasting all of them before adding them to my food preparations.
We do have translators, but their English is also limited. One time, I asked for saffron but my translator thought it was apron!
You will not believe it, but the apron ended up on top of the paella, because they thought it would serve as a cover like those on Chinese buns!
With a final count of 15,000 athletes and 7,000 media people, this is definitely not a picnic.

How many people are under your wing?
Our kitchen is like the United Nations. I have an executive chef from Belgium, six sous chefs from the US, England and Bulgaria, and 108 Chinese cooks. Language is only a challenge but never an obstacle as we have one common goal, to serve the athletes.
The other Filipinos in the kitchen are Ian Mendoza, a Filipino-Canadian facilities manager, and Norma Frias, sous chef.

What are your plans after the Olympics?
I will return to my home base, the University of California in Irvine. I will handle special projects for Aramark and will travel to different locations [in the US] or international units. Also, probably a visit to the Philippines.
Could you share a recipe that’s Olympics-inspired, or a signature Jaranilla dish?
When I learned we were serving Philippine mango in the Olympics, the first thing that came to my mind was Mango Crème Brûlée—a classic dessert with a Filipino twist.
I did Mango Pudding, Mango Tart, Mango Chutney, Mango Parfait, anything I could possibly done to showcase mango! The mango will always be the center of our fruit and dessert stations!

Mango Crème Brûlée
8 egg yolks.,1/3 c granulated sugar.,2 c heavy cream or Nestlé cream.,1 tsp vanilla extract.,¼ c puree Philippine mango.,½ c diced Philippine mango.,½ c granulated sugar (to caramelized top)Preheat oven to 325 ºF.
In a bowl, whisk yolks and sugar until thick and yellow in color.
Combine heavy cream and vanilla extract in a sauce pan and heat until hot but not boiling.
Slowly add the heavy cream into the egg mixture. Whisk until blended.
Continue to whisk mixture and add the puree mango.
Spoon diced mango into the ramekins and pour the mixture.
Pour the custard into the ramekins.
Place ramekins in a roasting pan with hot water bath.
Bake for 40-50 minutes or until edges are set but loose in the center.
Remove ramekins and chill for 3 hours.
Sprinkle with granulated sugar and blowtorch until sugar melts into dark shade.
For a more exotic presentation, scoop middle section of a cut mango. Place the crème brûlee in the middle and blowtorch to a caramelized top.

Carrie on a new Look..

You know what's awesome? When you develop an unexpected girl crush on a celebrity you'd completely written off. This is what just happened to managing editor Annette and me after reading Allure's September cover story about Carrie Underwood. In it, the 25 year-old singer/ American Idol winner comes across as vulnerable, likeable, frugal, slightly confused and young. Which is so much more honest than when 20-something celebs try to pretend they actually know something or get all deep and pretentious about their "craft" and "life path." Sure, Underwood still looks freakishly perfect—super, super airbrushed, glossy, coiffed and skinny (she apparently has to maintain a weight of between 110 and 115lbs, so she records every snack she eats). But it's what she says that made us want to hang with her, protect her from the jerks and maybe sit her down and give her some old-fashioned sisterly advice.Read on for excerpts from the interview (the issue is on newsstands now).

On money:

The Steinway piano she craves? "I have the space. It's just waiting for the piano, but, you know, they're expensive!" The SUV she desires? "They're expensive, too!" She is still driving around in the Mustang she won on American Idol."But what if I don't earn any more next year? What if something awful happens? I'm not at the point where I say, 'OK, I've made enough.' I don't know what the limit is."

About Chace Crawford of Gossip Girl:

"We didn't have a fight. No one cheated. It plain didn't work."

On ex-bf Tony Romo:

"We were both small-town people doing very big things, and we relied on each other, dealing with fame," she says. And now? "I don't know. The phone will ring and it'll be him, and I'll maybe not answer.

"What she thinks about fame:

"You never really know why somebody wants to be around you, or if they do genuinely like you," she says. "I wish everyone had a label on their forehead so you could automatically tell their intentions. Sometimes you just wish that no one wanted anything from you."and"I really have gotten rid of a lot of people in my life that don't need to be there.

"About the inequalities in the music industry, especially country music:

"I know [the record companies] figure out their target audience is thirtysomething females. So they get these guy singers in there, thinking that will appeal to them. But there's nobody left for these thirtysomething women to relate to! The guys, they're just there to be eye candy!" She stares furiously down at her black flip-flops sprinkled with silver glitter. "We work harder than the guys do, because we have to! They think, She's doing great 'for a woman.' They don't come out and say it that blatantly. But they think it.†Moreover, she continues, "There's a lot of women who should have been nominated for Entertainer of the Year. Martina McBride! Faith Hill! You know what I mean?"Meanwhile, Underwood has plans. Maybe these plans will even include Faith Hill. Underwood says she intends them to include Kellie Pickler, another Idol graduate tilling the same musical soil. "I want to have a girls-only tour and get some awesome chicks together, and have us all go out and," Underwood beams a happy smile out toward this future, "kick butt.

"On fashion and her critics:

"Whenever you wear a simple, solid color dress, they'll be like, 'Oh, she's playing it too safe.' But then you do something fun and you hear, 'Oh, she should have stuck with something simple.' Nobody is ever happy. Style is all about what you feel great in."

King Bhumibol of Thailand...

NEW YORK (AFP) - With a fortune estimated at 35 billion dollars, Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the world's richest royal sovereign, and oil-rich Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi is far back at No. 2, Forbes magazine reported Thursday.
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King Bhumibol, 80 and, at 62 years on the throne the world's longest-serving head of state, pushed to the top of the richest royals list by virtue a greater transparency surrounding his fortune, Forbes said.
It said that the Crown Property Bureau, which manages most of his family's wealth, "granted unprecedented access this year, revealing vast landholdings, including 3,493 acres in Bangkok."
Forbes called it a good year for monarchies, investment-wise. "As a group, the world's 15 richest royals have increased their total wealth to 131 billion dollars, up from 95 billion last year," Forbes said on its website.
With oil prices soaring, the monarchs of the petro-kingdoms of the Middle East and Asia dominate the list.
Sheik Khalifa, 60, the current president of the United Arab Emirates, was estimated to be worth 23 billion dollars, on the back of Abu Dhabi's huge petroleum reserves.
In third was the sovereign of the world's biggest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia. King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, 84, who inherited the Al-Saud family throne in 2005, came in with a fortune of 21 billion dollars.
The previous king of kings, wealth-wise, 62 year old Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah of tiny, oil-endowed Brunei on the Southeast Asia island of Borneo, fell to fourth place with 20 billion dollars.
"The sultan, who inherited the riches of an unbroken 600-year-old Muslim dynasty, has had to cut back on his country's oil production because of depleting reserves," Forbes explained of his dwindling fortune.
Fifth was Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, 58, of another Emirate, Dubai, with a net worth of 18 billion dollars.
One of two Europeans on the list, Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein, 63, ranked six on the list with 5 billion dollars in wealth. However the bank that is a key source of his family's wealth, LGT, is under investigation by the United States for helping wealthy people evade taxes.
Qatar's Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, 56, came in at seventh, worth two billion dollar; eighth was King Mohammed VI of Morocco, 46, his 1.5 billion dollar fortune based on phosphate mining, agriculture and other investments.
Number nine was Prince Albert II of Monaco, 50, his diverse fortune in the southern European principality put at 1.4 billion dollars.
Tenth on the list was Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman, 67, worth 1.1 billion dollars.
Rounding out the top 15 were: The Aga Khan Prince Karim Al Hussein, 71 (1.0 billion); Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, 82, 650 million dollars; Kuwait's Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, 79, 500 million dollars; Queen Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands, 70, 300 million dollars; and King Mswati III of Swaziland, 40, with 200 million dollars.
Forbes noted that because many of the royals inherited their wealth, share it with extended families, and often control it "in trust for their nation or territory," none of those on its list would qualify for the magazine's famous annual world billionaires ranking.
"Because of technical and idiosyncratic oddities in the exact relationship between individual and state wealth, these estimates are perforce a blend of art and science," it added.

Taekwondo Hunk

Steven Lopez (born November 9, 1978) is a 2000 and 2004 Olympic gold medalist in Taekwondo at the Olympics. Lopez became the first official Olympic gold medalist in the sport of Taekwondo at the 2000 Olympic Games. In 2003, he earned the rank of Taekwondo world champion in his weight class.

Born November 9, 1978, Lopez's parents moved to New York City in 1972 from Nicaragua, where his father, Julio, worked for the government of the then-President Anastasio Somoza who was overthrown in 1979 after the Sandinista Revolution. His father took odd jobs to support his family but later relocated to Texas.[2] Lopez first learned the sport of Taekwondo in his garage at the age of five from his father and Jean, his older brother.[1] He is a 1997 graduate of Kempner High School in Sugar Land, Texas where he was voted "most likely to succeed" and was member of the National Honor Society.
Steven's siblings, Mark, Diana, and Jean Lopez (coach) are all USA National Team Members in the sport of Taekwondo. His younger siblings, Mark and Diana, will also be representing the United States at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. This is the first time since 1904 that three siblings have been on the same Olympic team. Steven and his siblings, Mark (men's featherweight) and sister Diana (women's featherweight) made sports history in April 2005 when they all claimed a world championship title at the same event (2005 World Taekwondo Championships) with their oldest brother, Jean, participating in the feat as their coach.[3]
On January 2006, Lopez tested positive for a banned substance (L-methamphetamine) which he said came from an over-the-counter vapor inhaler he used. Lopez promptly accepted a three-month suspension and participated in an educational anti-doping program.[3]
Lopez has appeared in People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People.[3]

Septuplets babies

CAIRO, Egypt - A 27-year-old Egyptian woman gave birth to septuplets early Saturday in the coastal city of Alexandria, family members and the hospital director said.
Ghazala Khamis was in good condition after having a blood transfusion during her Caesarean section due to bleeding, said Emad Darwish, director of the El-Shatbi Hospital where she gave birth.
The newborns, four boys and three girls, weigh between 3.2 pounds and 6.17 pounds and are in stable condition, Darwish said. They have been placed in incubators in four different hospitals that have special premature baby units, he said.
"This is a very rare pregnancy — something I have never witnessed over my past 33 years in this profession," Darwish told The Associated Press by phone from the hospital.
Darwish decided to carry out the Caesarean section at the end of Khamis' eighth month of pregnancy due to the pressure on her kidneys. He said Khamis, who already has three daughters, took fertility drugs in an effort to have a son.
Khamis, the wife of a farmer in the northern Egyptian province of Beheira, was admitted to the hospital two months earlier, Darwish said.
"From the initial checkup, I say that none of the babies have any sort of deformities or incomplete organs," Darwish said.
The woman's brother, Khamis Khamis, said even though his sister was trying to conceive more children so she could have a son, the family was astonished when they found out she would give birth to multiple babies.
"We thought about an abortion, but then we felt it's religiously forbidden. So we said 'Let God's will prevail,'" he told the AP by phone.
Egypt's health minister announced that the seven babies will receive free milk and diapers for two years, the brother added.

Hamed Ehadadi 7' 2'' from Iran

BEIJING – As interest has grown in the NBA over signing 7-foot-2 Iranian Olympian Hamed Ehadadi, the league office has sent a letter to its 30 teams instructing that they are forbidden to even discuss a contract with Ehadadi, Yahoo! Sports has learned.
In the letter, which was sent Friday, NBA legal counsel wrote: “It has come to our attention that representatives of Hamed Ehadadi, an Iranian basketball player, may be contacting NBA teams to discuss the possibility of signing Mr. Ehadadi to an NBA player contract.
“We have been advised that a federal statue prohibits a person or organization in the United States from engaging in business dealings with Iranian nationals.”
The NBA is applying to the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control for a license that, “if granted,” the league said, would allow teams to negotiate with the 23-year-old Ehadadi. Until then, no franchise is allowed to do so.
Commissioner David Stern invited the Iranian national team to compete in July’s NBA summer league in Utah, allowing the team a pre-Olympics tune-up. When NBA teams started to show an interest in signing Ehadadi, Stern had league counsel begin the process of clearing a path through this complicated circumstance with the U.S. State Department.
After his most impressive game of these Olympics – 21 points and 16 rebounds in a 97-82 loss to Argentina on Saturday – Ehadadi, a center, said through an assistant coach, Mehran Hatami, “It is my dream to play in the NBA.”
When asked if he had been in contact with NBA teams, Ehadadi said, “two or three,” including the Memphis Grizzlies.
“It’s our pleasure for one player from Iran to one day play in the NBA,” Hatami said. “I am sure he will play there this season because he has played great (at the Olympics). He is a talented player. He is OK for beginning in the NBA. After practicing a few years, you will see that he will be one of the great players.”
League executives don’t exactly share Iran’s grand vision for Ehadadi. He’s considered a project – “Pretty limited,” one league executive said Saturday – but there has been intrigue with his developing offensive game and an ability to block shots. In Iran’s four losses in Pool B thus far, Ehadadi has averaged 16.5 points, 10 rebounds and 2.5 blocks.
“He’s huge,” one NBA scouting director said. “You have to give him that.”
After going unselected in the 2004 NBA draft, Ehadadi became a free agent eligible to sign with any team. He has played with several clubs in the Iranian professional league, including Peyakan and Sanam. Ehadadi gathered some favorable reviews among several NBA scouts for his play with Iran in the summer league.
“The Iranian basketball federation supports him to play in the best situation for his basketball career,” Hatami said. “We would like for him to go to a place where he will play, not sit on the bench. That’s very important for our basketball – and also for him.”
If that’s the case, Iranian officials are likely to be disappointed if Ehadadi ever does get to the NBA. For now, politics make him wait to get that opportunity.