Songza.com: Music Search Engine

Check out Songza.com, self-billed as "the music search engine and internet jukebox". Really easy to use and also links to the videos of the songs you listen to. Thanks Mark.

Baha'u'llah.org

Check out the new web site dedicated to Baha'u'llah, prophet-founder of the Bahai Faith.

Iran president on Baha'is at UN press conference

Check out this clip of the President of Iran answering a question on the Baha'is at a UN press conference. Apparently Ahmadinejad is not well acquainted with the history of his country. For the enlightenment of all - Baha'is believe the Messenger or Manifestation of God for today is Baha'u'llah. He is the Prophet-Founder of the Bahai Faith.

Of course Baha'u'llah re-defines the concept of religion as a progressive revelation from a single source, God. Each of the different faiths (e.g. Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Bahai) is "a stage in the limitless unfolding of a single Reality". (Click on the quote for an eloquent explanation of the concept by the Universal House of Justice.)

Departure Lounge

Mongolia 409
Originally uploaded by Departure Lounge.

I just wanted to encourage everyone to check out my friend Ryan's Flickr site, Departure Lounge. Travel the world vicariously through his photos. He takes us to the four corners of the planet and introduces us to the people who live there. Thanks Ryan.

Then They Came for the Baha'is

Article from U.S. Congressman Mark Steven Kirk about the situation of the Bahais in Iran. The Bahai House of Worship for North America is located in his district in Illinois.

Grass Valley in the news

California Town Relives Gold Rush

Hypem.com

Great site to listen to cool remixes/covers of popular songs.

Here's one cool one - Ray LaMontagne - Crazy (Gnarls Barkely) cover.

Armani and Prada cell phones

Some designer competition (not really) for the iPhone from Armani and Prada.

For my 100th post, a gift (from Starbucks)

Starbucks' song giveaway to promote iTunes deal

Kaiser Permanente in "Sicko"

I've been meaning to post this for some time: So Michael Moore's film "Sicko" portray's Kaiser Permanente in a negative light. Although KP may not be a perfect health care provider, it is not an evil one. Here's an interesting review of the movie that picks apart the details and here is KP's official response to the movie.

Blog on the Bahai Faith in Egypt

Check out this blog on the Bahai Faith in Egypt. Be sure to read the post on a newly-released documentary film examining the situation of the Bahais in Egypt, as well as the post on the letter sent to the Egyptian ambassador to the U.N. by the Graduate Student Assembly of U.C. Berkeley. (Thanks Nikoo for the lnk!)

Chris Jordan art

Check out this series of prints from Chris Jordan. He takes thousands of smaller images and blends them together to create a giant whole. Not only impressive for the visual effect they produce, they also draw attention to various social conditions in the U.S by using statistics (e.g. 3.6 million SUV sales in one year). Thanks to Mark for the link.

Poem by Dylan

My 8-year-old brother Dylan wrote this poem:

What the wind told me March 31st, 2007- by Dylan Portillo

This day of March 31, 2007, I, Dylan went outside of my apartment to transfer what the wind had to say, and this is what I heard:

The wind of humanity is saying to me;

Trust in my heart of love.

Happiness will come to me and good luck is here.

The wind is saying now that something is going to happen today.

It says we will have to go on a river hike.

If we go on that hike, we will see sparkling wild flowers and trees.

The river is called the River of Joy, and the joy of our hearts will spread all over the beautiful world, and we will find hope in our hearts.

By Dylan Portillo
(Charm Wizard)

Netvibes.com

For all of you who aren't using it yet, check out Netvibes.com. It's a slick Web start-page/news reader (really helps keep track of all those blogs/news sites). Sorry Google home page, Netvibes is way better. Thanks to K-Trot for the recommendation. Here's the official line: "Netvibes pioneered the personalized startpage, an alternative to traditional Web portals. With millions of users in more than 150 countries, Netvibes lets individuals assemble all in one place their favorite websites, blogs, email accounts, social networks, search engines, instant messengers, photos, videos, podcasts, widgets, and everything else they enjoy on the Web. Founded in 2005 by Tariq Krim, Netvibes has offices in Paris, London and San Francisco."

Canada: World Religion Day stamp

Apparently the stamp I had posted previously was a fake. Sorry for the mis-post.

Raising children of light

Bani Dugal, the Principal Representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations, published this article a few days ago in the Jerusalem Post, titled "Raising Children of Light". To quote from the article: "...we must consider that every child is potentially the light of the world - or its darkness."

Women as Peace Makers

Short article published on NPR.org about a women's group from a small town in the midwest supporting the formation of a U.S. Department of Peace. I thought it was interesting given the Bahai teaching that women will be a driving force for peace.

"Another fact of equal importance in bringing about international peace is woman's suffrage. That is to say, when perfect equality shall be established between men and women, peace may be realized for the simple reason that womankind in general will never favor warfare. Women will not be willing to allow those whom they have so tenderly cared for to go to the battlefield. When they shall have a vote, they will oppose any cause of warfare." (Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 167)

Free annual credit report

You may not have known (like me) that under a new Federal law, you have the right to receive a free copy of your credit report once every 12 months from each of the three nationwide consumer reporting companies. To request your free annual report under that law, you must go to www.annualcreditreport.com. If (like me) you need to dispute a negative item on the report, you can do so through the consumer reporting company's web site in just a few seconds.

Cast your vote for the Bahai House of Worship in Chicago!

The State of Illinois is adopting seven natural or historic sites
which it will designate as the "seven wonders of Illinois".

The Baha'i House of Worship is among the current eight contenders for
the Chicago suburban region, "Chicagoland". However, it looks as if the House of Worship may be eliminated from the Chicagoland region if more people don't vote for it this week. It only takes a second to vote, go to the web site and click on the vote icon for the Bahai House of Worship. You can vote once a day.

Housingmaps.com

Check out Housingmaps.com. This web site takes all housing listed on Craigslist.org and charts them on a Google map. Espectacular. Thanks Payam.

Calhospitalcompare.org

If you are wondering about the quality of the hospital close to your house, you can check this web site to see its rating. The one I go to close to work got a "Poor" rating. Does that mean my life is in danger?

Ayyam-i-Ha - Wikipedia

I gave some gifts to my co-workers for Ayyam-i-Ha, which prompted one to look it up on Wikipedia. The listing is interesting: "Ayyám-i-Há, which means the "Days of Há", commemorates the transcendance of God over his attributes since its name "Ha" has been used a symbol of the essence of God in the Bahá'í holy writings.

During the Festival of Ayyám-i-Há Bahá'ís are encouraged to celebrate God and his oneness by showing love, fellowship and unity. In many instances Bahá'ís give and accept gifts to show forth the love, and it is sometimes seen in the west as a "Bahá'í Christmas" held two months late. It is also a time of charity and goodwill and Bahá'ís often participate in various projects of a humanitarian nature."

Here's an article from the Bahai World News Service for those who want the official story.

Viva El Salvador

IMG_0633
Originally uploaded by cskevint.

My roomie Kev recently visited El Salvador. This pic he took reminds me why I am proud to be (half) Salvadoran! The pic is of the world's best snack: avocado, salvadorean tortilla, salt. No contest.

Peekvid

Check out Peekvid.com. It's an index of all kinds of TV shows and movies on the Web. Think of an instant and free Blockbuster.

Cannoli Gram

For a unique gift, send that special someone a Cannoli Gram. (Gotta love Gmail. This link randomly popped up in the sidebar ads alongside one of my emails...)

Sunrise/Sunset times

Here's a great web site for sunrise / sunset times all over the world. Perfect for those preparing for the Bahai fast, from March 2nd through March 20th.

Scientists dispel global warming doubts

The evidence for climate change caused by fossil fuel combustion was “unequivocal”, said the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a body comprising 2,500 climate experts convened by the UN. The Financial Times editorial page makes an interesting point (especially in light of the Bahai principle of the unity of mankind): "This is a huge, long-term and global challenge that involves difficult questions of justice both within and across generations. Humanity’s ability to address it is a test of its capacity to manage the consequences of its own actions. So far it has failed. It can afford to do so no longer." Read the editorial here.

New Daylight Savings dates in the U.S.

The U.S. Congress has changed the dates for the start and end of Daylight Saving Time (DST). This year DST will begin three weeks earlier than it traditionally has (March 11 rather than April 1) and will end one week later (November 2 rather than October 28).

Geni.com - Your family tree online

Check out Geni.com, you can post your family tree online and share it with your relatives.

Creatine Supplements: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

I'm thinking of taking creatine to bulk up (I just joined a gym), so I started reading up a little online about how it affects the body.

Apparently it also is useful in preventing injury and disease.

Short-term use is generally considered safe, but long-term effects are unknown. "Also, the FDA urges caution, since long-term effects of creatine supplements are still unknown. 'The FDA recommends that consumers consult their physicians before taking this or any product like this,' says FDA spokesman Lawrence Bachorik. 'Creatine has not been evaluated by the FDA for safety, effectiveness, or purity.'"

Belly Size Predicts Heart Disease Better Than Obesity

Check out this article from Medical News Today.

75 FREE MP3s with eMusic

http://www.emusic.com/me

Baha'i Blog Portal

This is from an email from a friend of mine named David:

"Some of the most popular websites these days, like digg.com and popurls.com, constantly update themselves with the newest stories, blog entries, and videos. We're trying to create a Baha'i version of this. The House appointed Baha'i Internet Agency has identified individual Baha'i generated content like blogs as a great, untapped teaching tool. Baha'is all over the world are producing great blogs, podcasts, videos, pictures and websites and we're trying to create a dynamic portal to make it all easily accessible and searchable...and we need your help.

Go over to bahainine.com to vote on your favorite look for the website, but more importantly if you have a blog take a minute to register it, and pass this [message] on to any Baha'i bloggers you know."

Ray LaMontagne in Concert

Some friends had an extra ticket to go see Ray LaMontagne in concert recently at the Paramount in Oakland. I was glad I went, he has a pretty amazing voice. His style puts him into a similar group as jack Johnson and John Mayer, but his melancholy distinguishes him. Click on the link to listen to a live concert in D.C.

Try Last.fm

If you like music and want to try something new, I recommend Last.fm. It's a social music/internet radio web site. Download the software, then enter your favorite artist. Last.fm creates your own music station that plays artists similar to the one you entered. You can also choose a tag, like opera or rap. Last.fm almost always chooses good music, unlike Pandora (a similar web site that I'm not linking to because I never like the music it chooses).

Check out my top artists:

Meet the Real Sacha Baron Cohen

NPR (National Public Radio) dropped this gem today - an interview with Sasch Baron Cohen, aka Borat, Ali G & Bruno. In addition to the interview, NPR includes another gem - the Kazakh embassy's point-by-point response to Borat.