How was your year? Well, here is a video which shows how the world went according to Google. It is called "Zeitgeist 2011: Year in Review," a video which compiles data from global queries from the world's biggest search engine. Zeitgeist, also known as "spirit of times", is the general cultural, intellectual, ethical, spiritual or political climate within a nation or even specific groups, along with the general ambiance, morals, sociocultural direction, and mood associated with an era (src: wiki). 2011 is a year of adversity, crossroads, remembrance, possibility, and inspiration. Check out the highlights of 2011 and ponder how your year went...

Sorry for the foul language. This is a new series of posts that I'm sharing. Unlike my other series which is filled with positive and heart-warming stories, TANGINA THIS! is let's me see the uglier side of reality. Here are my rants, frustrations, and dismay on the things that just make me unhappy. I got the title from a series of Youtube videos.

This video left me struck, teary and speechless. I feel sad for the kids in the short-scale mining industry. They are exposing themselves in danger and they are risking their health in doing strenous things like this. Instead of playing and studying, they are laboring just to have money to sustain their living. What made me more sad is the old woman who is dedicated to do the hard work just to earn...

Here are the top ten crews competing for America's Best Dance Crew Season 6! Who's your bet?

787 Crew, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Hailing from Puerto Rico, this crew is among the fiercest dance crews to hit ABDC. Their fusion of tricks and acrobatics combined with their street finesse and Latin flavor are sure to tear up the dance floor. They take their inspirations from past dance crews, including Jabbawockeez and Kaba Modern, who showed them the real meaning of what it means to be a dance crew. 787 is ready to show everyone how it's done.


Eclectic Gentlemen, North Hollywood, CA
The dancers that make up this crew have taught workshops and toured with musical artists around the world, however, they aspire to reach a higher level — and gain recognition in the dance industry. With their focus on being clean cut and well dressed, these suave dancers from North Hollywood bring a unique professional style to the stage; they are sure to wow the judges and viewers, and maybe steal a few hearts.




FootworKINGz, Chicago, IL
This renowned dance group from Chicago represents the essence of strength, raw talent and extreme energy and power. Their artistic direction comes from Charles "King Charles" Parks and Prince "Prince Jron" Boyd, who have both toured globally with Madonna. FootworKINGZ bring a dance style to ABDC never seen before. Blink and you may miss their incredibly quick foot movement in unison to music played at 160 bpm. It's hard to believe this ultimate synchronized crew is from two rival battle cliques representing the West and South sides of Chicago who have united to attract attention to their one-of-a-kind Chicago dance style. The Chicago Tribune describes their unique dance style as "part tap, African tribal and breaking."



I.aM.Me, Houston, TX
This crew originated in Houston, with members from around the globe, including China and the Czech Republic. Individually, these dancers have an impressive resume including collaborations with past dance crews, performing with Justin Bieber, Fat Joe, Cobra Starship and American Rejects. They are ready to bring their talents and experiences together to be America's Best Dance Crew.



ICONic Boyz, Englishtown, NJ
With a member of the crew as young as 10 years old, these boys will be the youngest dancers to ever compete on the "Dance Crew" stage as they hope to impress the crowd with their unique style of hip hop and street jazz. While most young boys take up sports like football, baseball and basketball, this crew has been pursuing dancing. They may be a bunch of little "Italian boyz" from New Jersey, but they can hang with the best and are not afraid of a fight!



Instant Noodles, Los Angeles, CA
Instant Noodles is a crew of five young men whose dance roots and native tongue are in Taipei, Taiwan but who live in Southern California attending college and entering dance battles whenever there is the opportunity. Sharing not only a country of origin but also a love for dance, the crew aims to inspire future generations of b-boys while remaining true to their craft in building a distinctive and entertaining style that showcases their groundbreaking dance skills. This crew will quickly become an ABDC favorite with their musicality, sense of humor and energetic choreography.



JAG6ED, Crewnshaw, CA
From roller skates to jump ropes, past dance crews have proved that nearly anything can be incorporated into hip hop dance as long as it is done with style. These California girls from Crenshaw, a district in Los Angeles, are a contemporary pole-dance crew, fusing the art of dance with aerial pole work. The sophisticated six-member crew strives to break the negative image of pole dance and reconstruct it as an art form.



Phunk Phenomenon, Boston, MA
Composed of New England's finest male and female dancers, Phunk Phenomenon is a company of unique multi-ethnic and multi-cultural urban artists who create an intriguing blend of modern and traditional dance styles. The end result is a provocative dance performance with a unique synthesis of style and appearance. In addition to fighting for the title of "America's Best Dance Crew," Phunk Phenomenon is also fighting to raise awareness for Sanfilippo syndrome, a rare disease that is afflicting the son of the crew's founder back home in Boston.



ReQuest, Auckland, New Zealand
Flying across the globe from New Zealand, this group of females is riding high as the 2010/11 World Hip Hop Dance Champions. — whose members are Kiwi, Samoan, Chinese, Maori, Rarotongan, Japanese, Hawaiian and Portuguese — are a melting pot of many cultures. Though made up of many cultures, this crew is brought together by the culture of hip hop dance and hopes to inspire women around the world to get up and dance.



Street Kingdom, Los Angeles, CA
Tight-Eyez, the group's founder and co originator of Krump who was featured in the movie RIZE, leads this dynamic crew. Having experienced rough inner city life in Los Angeles, this dance crew knows the meaning of hardship. Dance became an outlet and a savior for them as they discovered their passion for Krumping, a highly energetic style characterized by free, expressive and explosive movements. After overcoming gang life and broken homes, the members of Street Kingdom feel like they have the strength to succeed on the "America's Best Dance Crew" stage.



Reference: http://abdccasting.com/

New stars were born! 2 months ago Lady Gaga's Telephone music video was released and now the youtube video reached almost 40 million hits. With its stunning visuals and unique style, this video is surely one the best music videos of the year. Along with its rising popularity, a young filipino Lady Gaga fan also gained the attention of the youtube viewer's. He is Vinzon Leojay Rubia Booc (vinzonleojay2009), famously known as Lady Gagita. Together with his friends, they created parodies of the music videos of Lady Gaga with nothing but their creativity and resourcefulness. Now, the youtube sensation reached national level with TV appearances, Newspaper features and photo shoots. With better costumes, make-up and studio, Lady Gagita and Haronce (his friend who played Beyonce in the Telephone video), were given an exclusive photo session. Here are the photos of Lady Gagita and Haronce.

Photos were published in Manila Bulletin last May 14, 2010. (photo1, photo2)
Photography: Niccolo Cosme
Styling: Matt Gozun
Makeup: Jake Galvez
Headpiece and Rubber Dress: Nixon Marquez and Chi Kotur

Disclaimer: I don't own the photos. I just got the link from Vinzon's facebook. :D
Click here for more photos.