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Would You Drink Kopi Luwak Coffee?

YumSugar — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:50:33 -0700

In honor of today being National Coffee Day, I thought I'd ask all you coffee lovers out there how far you'd go for a good brew. At more than $100 a pound, kopi luwak, also known as civet coffee, likely takes the title of the world's most expensive coffee. But it also holds the title of world's only twice-consumed coffee.

Before you've enjoyed it, it's been consumed by the palm civet, a cat-sized mammal native to Southeast Asia. The civet, or luwak, eats fresh coffee berries, which are collected by coffee specialists after they've been excreted. The beans are then washed in spring water and sold as coffee.

According to civet coffee connoisseurs, the animal's digestive enzymes help to mellow out the acidity, causing it to taste mild and smooth. I think I could give it a try - so long as you didn't tell me what it was first. What about you? Have you ever tried civet coffee?

The World Celebrates Earth Day!

TresSugar — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:00:00 -0700

Happy Earth Day everyone! The world's been busy appreciating the environment today. Michelle and Barack Obama planted trees with a little help from Bill Clinton. The famous ball in Times Square, NYC was refitted with energy-efficient LED lights and rebranded the Earth Ball. In the Philippines, environmental activists rallied against reopening a nuclear power plant. And over in Indonesia, the US ambassador went underwater to feed sharks with the hope of calling attention to Indonesia's rich underwater biodiversity.

Over one billion people were expected to celebrate the environment today. Take a look at the festivities and demonstrations. Source

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Front Page: KY Workplace Shooting, Divers Pull Bodies From Typhoon, Mortgage Aid Could Pass

CitizenSugar — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 06:56:10 -0700

KY Workplace Shooting: An employee at a plastics plant in Kentucky opened fire after an argument, leaving six dead including the shooter. The CEO says the killings are just a "total shock." The incident began when an employee began arguing with a supervisor around midnight - he then shot the supervisor before opening fire in a break room. The plant employs around 150 people and makes plastic siding for homes.
Divers Pull Bodies From Typhoon: 100 divers search the wreckage of the capsized Philippine ferry, finding no additional survivors yet. When the seven-story ferry sunk in less than a half-hour during a powerful typhoon, the 800 passengers had little time to prepare, but the transportation undersecretary says she's hoping for "a miraculous air pocket somewhere in the ship." Only 62 of the 800 passengers have been found alive. The shipwreck could raise the typhoon's death toll to more than 1,300, with 329 people confirmed dead from flooding and landslides and more than 200 still missing.
Mortgage Aid Could Pass: The US Senate could pass a mortgage aid plan as soon as today. The massive foreclosure rescue bill cleared a key Senate test yesterday by an 83-9 margin, with both parties eager to help homeowners. The plan would let the Federal Housing Administration back $300 billion in new, low-cost home loans for about 400,000 distressed borrowers who would be considered too financially risky to qualify for government-insured, fixed-rate loans. Though it could pass vote today, President Bush is threatening a veto and Democrats are still fighting each other over key details, possibly delaying any final deal until mid-July.

Front Page: Zimbabwe Election Moves Forward, Female Suicide Bomber Attacks, Weather Slows Typhoon Rescue

CitizenSugar — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 06:58:25 -0700

Zimbabwe Election Moves Forward: After withdrawing yesterday from the run-off election in ZImbabwe, Tsvangirai has said today that he will negotiate with his rival, sitting president Robert Mugabe, if the political violence stops. He said, "We are prepared to negotiate with ZANU-PF but of course it is important that certain principles are accepted before the negotiations take place. One of the preconditions is that this violence against the people must be stopped." Though at this point opposition leaders Tsvangirai has pulled out of the election, it will proceed as planned on Sunday. He says party militias have killed 86 of his supporters and more than 60 opposition supporters have been arrested.

Female Suicide Bomber Attacks: Yesterday, the latest attack in a wave of female suicide bombers killed 15 and wounded more than 40 others in central Baquba. Seven of the dead and 10 of the wounded were Iraqi police officers. The female bombing was the most devastating of four attacks in Diyala Province yesterday that left at least 25 people dead and close to 60 wounded. The bomber who struck the provincial capital was wearing a vest padded with powerful explosives and laced with small projectiles. The magnitude of the blast points to an increased sophistication of the bomb design, which witnesses described as unusually strong.
Weather Slows Typhoon Rescue: Rescue efforts in the capsized ferry accident in the Philippines yesterday were hampered by heavy wind and rains, leading hundreds of ferry passengers, including as many as 45 children, to be feared dead after the devastating typhoon. Rescuers found only a few survivors. The Red Cross reported that at least 137 people had been killed in the typhoon, not including six confirmed dead from the sinking of the ferry, which had been carrying more than 700 passengers and crew members when it went down on Saturday.

Citizens Suing for Birth Control in Philippines

LibertySugar — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 03:00:23 -0800

A group of impoverished Filipino citizens have filed a lawsuit in an attempt to gain access to condoms, the pill, and other forms of contraception. The plaintiffs argue that the denial of affordable contraception has resulted in unwanted pregnancies and harmful health effects.

In February 2000, Manila's mayor issued an executive order, branding contraception harmful to Filipino values. Health officials interpreted the order as a prohibition. As a result, previously free condoms and pills disappeared from clinics. Hospitals have since been denying sterilization procedures as well. Any contraception that is available is prohibitively expensive.

The Philippines has no official national policy regarding contraception in the 80 percent Catholic country. But even the president endorses the Church's views that artificial contraception should not be used. In addition, abortion is illegal and efforts to legislate guaranteed funding of AIDS prevention or family planning services have been blocked. It's certainly eye-opening to think about the reproductive rights so many of us take for granted.
Source

You Asked: I'm Homesick All the Time

DearSugar — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 12:00:00 -0700

Dear Sugar--

I just migrated from the Philippines and I'm homesick all the time. I just graduated from college last March, finishing a Bachelors Degree in Nursing. As the days go by, I feel that I'm kinda lost in some ways, knowing that my friends back home are enjoying a more laid back life (that's how Filipinos are, sometimes).

Right now, I am enrolled at a review center near my apartment and because of that I need to spend most of my time studying. I know that I have to try to like it here but I just have so many ups and downs. I just want to fit in more but I don't know how. Help!

--Missing Home Marielle

To see DEARSUGAR's answer read more

Dear Missing Home Marielle--

Well I have to say that I commend you for following your dream to be a nurse and sticking to it. I'm sure it was really difficult for you to leave you friends and your home, but like you said, you've got to make the most of your time here.

I know you are working hard studying, but you'll never succeed if you are constantly feeling sad and lonely. I wonder if there are any girls or guys that are your age at the review center that you could get to know. If not, I suggest you join a gym, take an art or dance class, get a part-time job, or hang out at the local cafe. Getting involved with some non-school activities will help you meet people. Once you make some friends, they can show you around, introduce you to their friends and teach you all about American culture.

The reason you are so homesick is because you feel like an outsider. If you can immerse yourself socially, you'll feel more connected to your new home, and hopefully it will help take your mind off missing the Philippines. I hope this helps. You should be very proud of how much you are accomplishing!

Source

Cell Charging Station Inside Burger King In Philippines

GeekSugar — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 07:00:24 -0700

Sure, we've considered how people in countries without widespread electricity and Internet access charge up and get online, but what are other wired nations doing to stay charged? In most of the US you have to fend for yourself. Apparently, not so in the Philippines. Smart PDA website captured this image of a cell phone charging station at a Burger King in the Philippines and used the picture to prove Nokia's dominance in the local market. It's a point I totally get (I mean, there are three Nokia ports on the charger station), but what about the fact that this is a cell phone–charging station in a fast-food restaurant? I've seen charging stations in airports, but not in restaurants. Have you seen one in a fast-food joint before? If so, when and where? I'm flabbergasted.

Source

Who Won't Be Crowned the Next Miss Philippines?

GiggleSugar — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 16:15:00 -0700

Girlfriend kicked butt in the evening gown and swimsuit competitions, but opened her mouth and screwed her standing with a rambling response about like such as, haha, omigod, only being 17-years-old, so sorry for this sh*tty answer, wait, this is the top 10? No joke. We should at least give the girl credit for maintaining a genuinely fake smile the whole way through. Desperate times call for desperate smiling . . .

(Thanks, eBaum's World!)

Cool Capture: Mediya's Philippines Vacation

Geek Community — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:07:46 -0800

GeekSugar reader Mediya used her phone camera to document Philippines vacation, and posted photos in our Cool Capture group:

Rather than being caught without a camera on a vacation, I decided to take pictures with my My|Phone Dual-Sim Phone, taking advantage of my 2GB memory card storage. The resolution is a very low 96 dpi with image sizes of 352-x-288 pixels, but I sharpened my images using Paint.net, a free download. I must admit that I am a newbie at photography, but I enjoyed my vacation, and Puerto Princesa City in Palawan Islands is still one of the most beautiful places in the Philippines, if not the world.

View the rest of Mediya's vacation photos in her Cool Capture slideshow.

Do you have a photo you absolutely love? Join our Cool Capture group and share your image, the model of camera used to take the photo, and a little about the image or moment you captured and it could be featured on GeekSugar. Here's a detailed guide to posting questions or posts to groups if you are new to the PopSugar Community.

Kate, Nicole and Eva Share the Spotlight With CNN's Heroes

PopSugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:45:00 -0800

Anderson Cooper was the man of the evening on Saturday as he hosted the annual CNN Heroes Awards. The ceremony honored ten individuals who go above and beyond with their contribution to the world, and each was introduced to the crowd by a celebrity guest. Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, and Eva Mendes were a few of the ladies on hand to do the honors, while Carrie Underwood performed. The evening's biggest award, CNN's Hero of the Year, went to Efren Peñaflorida because of his efforts to bring education to underprivileged children in the Philippines. Kate and Nicole took the evening off from promoting Nine, though they were both out again last night for the American Music Awards. The ladies were joined by other actors like Neil Patrick Harris and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and we'll be able to see the whole show when it airs Thanksgiving evening.

More photos of the CNN Heroes Awards so read more.

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Images include: Nicole Kidman, Anderson Cooper, Kate Hudson, Eva Mendes, Dwayne Johnson, Neil Patrick Harris, Greg Kinnear, Terrence Howard, Jenna Fischer, Leona Lewis, Pierce Brosnan, Masi Oka, Rainn Wilson, Kate Flannery, AnnaLynne McCord, Debi Mazar, Creed Bratton, Lee Kirk, Carrie Ann Inaba, Carrie Underwood