Glendale Police are looking for missing UCLA student, Nancy Salas. I don’t think I knew her personally, but apparently, I’ve been in school clubs wit her when I was at UCLA. I pray for her safe return and for God to strengthen her family during this time.

Anyone with information can call the Glendale Police Department at 818-548-4911

When I usually meet someone for the first time, I say, “Hello. My name is Giovanny. What’s yours?” No pick up lines. No game. Just a straight out greeting. I don’t often have the convenience of a name tag, but it usually is a good opening to talk to someone new. There’s an idea that when you give a little of something, the other person will give something back. So when I give someone my name, I’d expect the other person to give me theirs.

Names. I love my name, although it wasn’t always so. Imagine being the Indonesian kid with an Italian name where every other Indonesian kid had American names or Indonesian ones. So I got names on my mind.

It was just 45 years ago that Shirley Ellis released her hit, “The Name Game,” an addictive fun naming rhyme song.

It was just 10 years ago that Destiny’s Child released their hit, “Say My Name,” a song about a cheating boyfriend.

It was just 5 years ago that Eminem released his hit, “My Name is,” a song about  introducing himself to the world.

It was just last year that the Ting Tings release their hit, “That’s Not My Name,” a song about a guy who can’t remember the girlfriend’s name, probably because he’s been cheating on her.

Whatever the case, names are important. It’s part of your identity–it can say a lot about who you are and where you are from or how interesting your parents are. For example, some celebrities give their children the most bizarre names. I mean who names their child Kal-El? Apple? Tu? And gives an Italian name to their Indonesian son? *Sigh* My mom.

Names can help put your name in the door, especially when they’re unique. Or, they can be as common as “John” (I apologize if I’ve offended anyone by that name). Names have important meaning, often what your parents hope that you will aspire to be or what you already are. For example, my name means, “God is gracious.” My mom decided on “Giovanny” because I was born on her birthday. Thus, God is gracious because I was her birthday present.

And for the rest who hate their names, there’s always the choice of changing it. Just ask Sean Combs. Sean Puff Daddy Combs. Puff Daddy. P. Diddy. Sean John Combs. I forgot what he’s going by now. Or you can be as unique as adding a dollar sign to your name, lie KE$HA. Or, you can go ridiculous as that UK teenager who legally changed his name to Captain Fantastic Faster Than Superman Spiderman Batman Wolverine Hulk And The Flash Combined or the guy named Lord Jesus Christ.  We do strange things sometimes.

What’s the story of your name? What does it mean?

People say that time heals all wounds. I don’t think that’s how it works. Sure, the wound may get closed, but I think it can easily open up again and get infected. And if it doesn’t open up again, then it heals into a scar. And scars remind you about where you’ve been, what you’ve survived. I think I’m at this scar stage. I know my sister’s in a better place, but it still doesn’t cover up the fact that there are events I feel I’ve missed out on: her prom, her graduation, etc. How selfish of me to use the word “I.”

So now, the 8th of May has finally arrived. It marks the 3rd year without her. And I am now 24. I’ve gained another year of life, of experience, and hopefully, of wisdom—I’m thankful to God.

Still I’m singing Spirit take me up in arms with You
And I’m not who I thought I was twenty four hours ago
Still I’m singing Spirit take me up in arms with You

There’s an exercise that I do whenever I get so emo. At least, I try to remember to do it. I think about all the thinks God has blessed me with and so it makes this birthday much more bearable. It’s not a complete list—I don’t think I can count ALL God’s blessings—He blesses us abundantly.

1. I’m thankful for my parents who continue to support me in all that I do, especially through prayer.
2. I’m thankful that I graduated from my dream school-UCLA.
3. I’m thankful that God provided me with an awesome accountability partner who has quickly become my best friend.
4. I’m thankful for amazing friends.
5. I’m thankful that I’m able to use my talents.
6. I’m thankful for church and fellowship.
7. I’m thankful that I’m part of a group that wants to defeat the horrors of human and sex trafficking.

There’s so much to be thankful for…

What I Expected

I expected lots of action and lots of people dying from flying bullets or fist fighting.

What It’s About

The Losers are a team of elite soldiers on a mission in Bolivia. They are framed for a heinous crime and must go silent to recover. A mysterious girl shows up to help the Losers clear their names, but she has an agenda of her own.

You’ll Like

The One Liners – It’s an action movie with some comic relief thrown in.

Chris Evans – he’s hilarious. In this movie, he brings a lot of that charm and laughs that he brought to Johnny Storm (“Fantastic Four”). And to think he’ll soon be playing badass Captain America.

Zoe Saldana – She’s hot–didn’t think she could pull off a killer because of her body type. She proved me wrong. However, I couldn’t help but see her as her Avatar character as she fought the bad guys.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan – he’s no Johnny Ocean, but he definitely has some on-screen chemistry with Saldana.

The Action Scenes – Did I mention this was an action movie?

You’ll Dislike

The Comic Book Mix – yes, it’s a movie based on a comic book, but it holds its own as an action movie. I didn’t like how they cut into comic book mode when they introduced the characters.

The Main Villain – come on, can you please be more evil. The character is just a narcissist with a temper and a trigger finger. Can you do more things, please?

The Plot Line – it’s an okay plot, but I wish there was more to it.

The Character Development – I like how they introduce the audience to some of the main character’s families–it humanizes for killing all those people. But I wish there was more developed.

The Cheesy Music – There are some slow motion scenes where the Losers wear sunglasses and walk out of a building looking all badass. But the music…jeesh. It only made the scene cheesy and corny. I don’t like cheese on my corn. I don’t like cheesy corn period.

Rating

I’d give it 3.5 stars out of 5. It was a great action movie for what it was–it definitely delivered. But it lacked the emotional character development as well as a great plot. The Losers aren’t exactly losers, but they aren’t exactly winners with this film either.

College exposed me to a variety of ways I can help my community or make some impact in the world. When Hurricane Katrina hit or even as most recent as the earthquake in Haiti, college students across the country volunteered their time, even sacrificing their Spring Break to help those in need. You see, college supposedly trains you in life to be upstanding citizens. But it is utilizing what you learn in the classroom into the real world that shows

Most people after they graduate get a job or go for more school. Some even get married. There’s noting wrong with which path you choose. But that’s usually when the spirit of apathy comes stumbling back, telling you that what you’re doing doesn’t matter. Sure, you can’t save everyone, but you can definitely save one person at a time. Well, for Jonathan Crisman, Melanie Young, and Thomas Yung, the passion for helping others never left. Together they formed the 58-12 Design Lab, dedicated in integrating design that would affect communities in positive ways. But they first need your help. It takes less than 2 minutes. Vote for their project on Pepsi’s Refresh Project .

Temptation. The word basically means the quality of seduction. I find the Temptation Challenges on “The Biggest Loser” quite entertaining and down-right educating. The first Temptation Challenge changes the weight loss competition into a all-out strategy game. The contestants stood behind silver platters. When they open the platters, a single cupcake is revealed containing 100 calories. Whoever eats the most cupcakes gets to manipulate which team would fall below the yellow line at final weigh in. However, the team who wins the challenge still has to work hard to not fall bellow the yellow line, or it would be a waste of strategy. Oh, and whoever wins the challenge would not receive any help from trainers to lose weight. To put it simply, to eat the cupcake, or not eat the cupcake? That is the question. Only two gave in to the temptation as piles of cupcake are added to each contestant’s silver platter- Antoine from the red team ate one cupcake, while Tracey ate four. She “wins” the temptation.

When I saw this, I had to laugh. This is ridiculous? Tempting people with cupcakes? That’s so easy to resist. But it isn’t. I forgot the context of the situation, and who is being tempted. For someone who enjoys food and eats cupcakes like breathing air, this was quite a challenge. Addiction is challenging. I remembered my own addiction to Starbucks frappes and how I tried so hard to give it up for 40 days, only to fail on the 20th day. When the temptation was presented to me, the smell of a Chai frappe floating through the air, floating towards me–I remembered the fun times I had sipping on my Starbucks frappes. And my body remembered too, craving it. That’s what temptation is, right? Seduction. Reminds you of what you’re missing out on, what you can’t have, what you had, and essentially, what you could have for the taking. It’s right there in front of you, welcoming you, calling out your name. It messes with your mind. Temptation is easy; withstanding it is the hard part.

Lately, I’ve been craving cupcakes, but not just any cupcake. RED VELVET CUPCAKES! My mouth is watering just typing the words down. I can taste it now, the vanilla cream cheese with a dash of red sprinkles touching my taste buds. And I’m not the only one. Everyone and their mother have been wanting cupcakes, whether it be red velvet cupcakes, I do not know.  In this down economy, the cupcake industry has been steadily growing between 2006 and 2008 and still growing now. Gee, that’s about time the economy started going down. But why the increase when the economy isn’t tasting good? Apparently, cupcakes are nostalgic foods and comfort foods. Cupcakes bring people back to when life was much simpler and better (nostalgia) and when they eat the cupcake, it makes them feel a whole lot better about themselves and their situation (comfort). It’s as if all the stresses of the world disappear while you’re eating a cupcake.

Living in Los Angeles, I love Sprinkles Cupcakes (located in Beverly Hills). They sell about 5,000 cupcakes a day. And though the cupcakes may be a bit pricey (hey, they got to pay the Beverly Hills rent somehow), their cupcakes are worth it! Not only are they delicious, but you can also customize it if you want–find a cupcake that matches your nostalgia and comfort.

He’s also got a great music video out for his latest single, “Ordinary Day” featuring Ilana Broad, which is currently one of my favorite songs on my iPod playlist. I don’t know what it is, but I’m hooked. Perhaps it’s the instruments used in the song? Perhaps it’s the ethereal voice of Broad? There’s just a magical quality to the song. The video was directed by Trevor Marti Smith, but I’ve become a fan of the director of photography, Craig Hung–just love this guy’s vision and style. Oh, and you’ll also see Jonathan Langley dancing in a lot of the scenes. Quite the Lord of the Dance, right?

Josh is getting busy, busy, busy. Just an ordinary day for a talented guy. Can’t wait for the album.

In the mean time, I’ve got to finish writing about another budding singer and song-writer, a much over-due interview that I feel like a jerk for not finishing it.

Get some free stuff courtesy of Cumbee:

When Kate Winslet walked on to the TV screen wearing a silver strapless gown by Yves Saint Laurent, I’m sure the damp red carpet was quickly evaporating. She radiated with beauty, looking like she stepped out of a time machine. She brought that old Hollywood glamor that only those starlets back then possessed.

When Taylor Lautner and Kristin Stewart introduced a tribute to horror films, I was horrified. What were they doing there? They weren’t accomplished actors–they didn’t do any movies that were Oscar-worthy. I’m not a big fan of their acting chops either, particularly Stewart. And why was “Twilight” part of the Horror genre? Then it hit me when I saw a parade of other young stars like Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, and Miley Cyrus, who haven’t quite established Oscar-worthy performances either. This was Hollywood’s ploy to gain younger viewers. They got to catch us when we’re young, right?

When Sandra Bullock won the award for Best Actress, I was ecstatic. I absolutely love her and her other funny movies, so to see her win an award for a dramatic one–that’s huge! However, I would’ve liked to see the award go to Merryl Streep for her role as Julia Child in “Julie and Julia” mainly because mimicking Julia Child is no easy task. But I’m fine with Bullock winning.

When Katherine Bigelow became the first woman to win “Best Director,” I wasn’t shocked. But I’m sure it was definitely an F-U moment for her ex-husband, James Cameron, who was also in the category for his movie, “Avatar.” I mean, come on, Cameron helped create an entirely different way to shoot a movie using a special camera invented just for the movie, as well as hired a USC linguistics professor to create a working language too. And need I mention that Cameron’s “Avatar” placed some people in depression? Surely, he should have won for creating such powerful movie, especially since his movie made billions compared to Bigelow’s movie, right? Wrong. And as Jimmy Fallon put it best last night:

“Did you watch the Oscar’s, or as I like to call it, James Cameron’s own personal ‘Hurt Locker.’”

Why do we obsess over celebrities? Don’t we have enough stress to keep us occupied–the economy, the job market, our own lives? It surely can’t be healthy, right? Maybe it’s our defense mechanism–escapism. We don’t like how our own lives are going so we fantasize about a better one, or as Fergie Ferg puts it, “by the glamorous, ooh the flossy, flossy.” She reminds us that, “If you ain’t got no money, take your broke self home.” Yah, I’m broke. I think I will.

Maybe we obsess over celebrities because it’s a way to connect to others, or as Professor Nicholas DiFonzo calls it, “The Water-Cooler Effect.” The term comes from a study of office behavior. In a large company, workers would have informal gatherings around the water cooler, chatting, gossiping, and talking about current events. If one doesn’t participate in the conversation or have some kind of opinion or have the latest news about someone, then one was left out of the group. Rejection can be a cruel thing, especially when you see that person for 8 hours of your life of every single work day.

Professor Alex Pentland, in an article for a November 2009 issue of Psychology Today, puts it best when he writes:

…it underscores that we are all social animals and that our connection with others at a local level – our tribe – is vitally important. Second, with increased cohesion likely comes an increase in things such as shared tacit knowledge, shared attitudes and work habits, and social support.

But whatever the case, the celebrities remain present in your life for your entertainment. And they get rich entertaining you. Check out this NY Times graph in which we spend $1000 to $5000 for our entertainment.

A stroke is a “brain attack” which can occur as a result of a blood clot blocking an artery or a blood vessel bursting and effecting blood flow to the brain. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, strokes are the third leading cause of death in America. The American Heart Association also reports that across America, there are about 700,000 cases of strokes per year.

Here’s a 3-part test that can help indicate if someone is suffering a stroke and needs to go to the ER ASAP.  It’s commonly referred to as the “S-T-R” Test, but is officially called Cincinnati Prehospital Stroke Scale (CPSS).

S – Smile. Ask the person to smile. If he or she can’t or the smile is uneven, that may mean paralysis.

T – Talk. Ask the person to talk. If  you hear slurred speech or an incoherent sentence, that means something is wrong.

R – Raise. Ask the person to raise both arms. If he or she can’t, that may mean paralysis.

If the person in question has trouble with any of these tasks or exhibits any of the symptoms, call 9-1-1! You may save a life and decrease the likelihood of disability.