A partnership between Bo’s Coffee and Asus Philippines will give chance to coffee lovers to win one of the five (5) Asus S101 netbook this summer.

A Php200 worth of purchases at Bo’s Coffee will earn you a raffle entry. This summer promo will run from March 15 – May 31, 2009.

Asus S101 netbook

The stylish netbook has the following specs:

Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz
Intel 945GSE
10.2” wide active matrix LED-backlit TFT, WSVGA 1024 x 600
Genuine Windows XP Home/GNU Linux
WiFi 802.11n
Bluetooth 2.0
1 GB DDR2 RAM
16GB, 32GB & 64GB SSD
20GB Eee Storage
4-in-1 MMC, SD, Memory Stick and MS-PRO card reader
0.3 megapixel webcam

They also have a treat for Asus Eee PC users, just bring your Eee PC to any Bo’s Coffee and get a free upsize on your drinks.

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• An Invitation for Bloggers and Sponsors to the First Bloggers’ Kapihan Event (9)
• Of staying slim, green tea and green coffee (7)

Let me start off the week with a sort of an announcement/invitation for the up coming Bloggers’ Kapihan Event entitled “Blogging Beyond the Basics”

Bloggers’ Kapihan?

Kape or Coffee + Bloggers, oh and donuts of course, and what do you get? A perfect opportunity to flesh out some crucial issues affecting the Pilipino Blogosphere and in part the youth. We know how blogging has grown into something that is chuck-full of potential, power and influence. It’s also no longer just about increasing traffic, making more money and reaching the top slots in the search engines etc. It’s about us bloggers going beyond the basics of blogging and doing something more with our blogs, that involves our readers and fellow bloggers.

Blogging Beyond the Basics

This is the first installment of the Bloggers’ Kapihan series. It will be held at the Advanced Sciences and Technology Building AVR of Philippine Science High School on September 8, 2-5PM. Gracing the event as speakes are Manuel Quezon III of The Daily Dose, Abraham Olandres of Yugatech and Victor Villanueva of Bikoy.net

Joining with us on the event would be Pisay students so there are 60 slots up for grabs for everyone who’d like to attend the event. Just leave a message in the comments form below if you want to attend the forum. We would be more than happy to share coffee and donuts with you.

Kudos to our sponsors!

Much thanks and love to our sponsors, DigitalFilipino.com Club and Pinoy Web Hosting Solutions for supporting this initiative. As always, freebies will be given away by the ever so generous Google and GMAnews.tv. Plus, the BK crew will be giving away domains + webhosting packages at the said forum.

Support Bloggers’ Kapihan

Sponsors are still very much welcomed for those who are interested to support this blogging initiative. It wouldn’t cost you that much and it will give back some awesome benefits. Below are the sponsorship packages you could choose from:

Major Sponsor (Php 3,000)

• Full banner (470×60 or 145×360) on Bloggers Kapihan website for 6 months
• Link to sponsor website for 6 months
• Streamer displayed in the venue
• 3-5 minutes presentation in the forum
• 1 table space

Minor Sponsor (Php 1,500)

• Logo (60×60) on the Bloggers Kapihan website for 6 months
• Link to sponsor website for 6 months
• Mention in the forum

Interested sponsors and donors may send a message at shari@misteryosa.com. We thank you so much already!

So mark your calendars, September 8, 2007 at the Advanced Sciences and Technology Building AVR of Philippine Science High School from 2-5PM. We look forward to seeing you there!

In case you were wondering

Bloggers’ Kapihan is an initiative of some of the country’s most prolific young bloggers. It aims to bring together Filipino bloggers–especially the young ones– to discuss issues and matters that affect the blogosphere and the youth in general.

It also aims to provide a venue for young bloggers to meet up and expand networks inside and outside the blogosphere.

Bloggers’ Kapihan seeks to kick off a regular series of fora and social events for Filipino bloggers.

Bloggers’ Kapihan is also in coordination with Kabataan Party and Tinig.com.

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I’ve been drinking green tea and the regular one for almost 3 years now. I’m drinking it for its health benefits, and the way, especially green tea, compliments my practice of tai chi. My mother however, warned me that green tea is suited for those who want to lose some weight and have a slim and slender body. If you have taken some time to look at my photos (God save your soul) you would say that I really don’t need to anymore, because yes, I am too skinny already and I’ve been like this since I was 8 years old.

Still, I stuck to drinking green tea every morning or in the afternoon before and after tai chi practice, which now really depends on how much free time I have. I still drink green tea because I’ve grown to love it, I even use it as cure for a hangover after a drinking binge. I also drink green tea to calm my mind and get it going especially during nights when I’m rushing overdue school works and projects. hehehe

Tai chi on the other hand has helped me stay tough and capable despite my busy and often times exhausting and ‘toxic’ life. I may be skinny and dorky, but heck, I outlasted my buffier, gym-going friends in an endurance and obstacle course we had in a youth leadership camp last month. But still, I do want to gain some weight just to add a little buff to my slim and slender form.

Drinking green tea, as I have now come to finally accept, will not help me achieve that goal. How? You may ask? Green tea has certain compounds in it that help me loose weight by utilizing the stored fat in my body. (If there were some to begin with, lol) One such compound is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which helps the body break down and utilize fat in the body by burning them into calories, which is energy for the body.

It’s simple really, the more calories you burn, the more body fat you consume, therefore the more weight you loose. Unless of course, you’re on a special diet that allows you to burn more calories per day than normal persons would and still manage to keep your desired weight. Athletes like sumo wrestlers are examples of such persons on a special diet like this.

I’m glad that you’ve read up to this part of this already lenghty post. My guess is that you’re looking for a way to loose some pounds off your body, no one’s blaming you. It’s the ‘in’ thing to do this summer especially if you want to strut that new bikini or thong in the beach.
Don’t worry that though you may want to loose some weight but would not like to drink green tea for whatever reason, and you’re a bit shy to go to the gym or a bit skeptical about dialing those “loose/gain weight” ads, there is still hope.

Yes my friends, hope can still be found in a cup of yet another famous beverage the world over; coffee. Green coffee that is.

What the heck is green coffee you may ask? It’s simply unroasted coffee, hence the name green coffee. News on the Discovery Channel site has said that;

Coffee made out green, unroasted coffee beans promotes weight loss, according to a new study on compounds that are naturally present in the beans.
The discovery mirrors earlier research on green tea, which was found to slightly increase metabolism and to speed up the body’s ability to burn fat. Green coffee appears to have a more potent effect.

Doesn’t it sound magical? You get to drink coffee and loose some weight at the same time. Again, how does this happen? The news story has more;

Shimoda, who is a scientist at the Oryza Oil & Fat Chemical Company, Limited, in Aichi, Japan, told Discovery News that consuming regular, roasted coffee will not lead too much, if any, direct weight loss.

He and his colleagues determined that there are two key types of compounds in unroasted coffee beans. The first is caffeine. The second is chlorogenic acid and its related compounds. Heating destroys the acids.

Just like green tea’s EGCG compound, chlorogenic acid in green coffee helps the body break down fatty acids and produce calories. The sure win formula to losing weight. But don’t get too excited yet and rush out to drink cups of green coffee. You may, and will not like the taste.
The secret to coffee’s rich flavor and aroma is the way coffee beans are processed; by heating or roasting. The roasting process turns the coffee beans from green to dark brown even black. Unfortunately, this process destroys the chlorogenic acid in the coffee beans but it produces the brown aromatic Maillard reactants which gives us the rich and aromatic flavor of coffee. Green coffee on the other hand, tastes bitter and has no aroma. Who would want to drink that kind of coffee right?

The slimming promise of green coffee is not totally lost; extracts from green coffee could be used as food supplements for weight loss diets or programs. So now we have two choices, green tea for that oriental, natural and serene effect and feel or green coffee extracts brought about by modern research and technology. So which ever you choose, you’d still loose, weight that is.

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The last time I had a cup of coffee was back in May, it was badly needed because I was still in a theater production then, and being the sound director meant that my creative juices must flow constantly, a tough challenge if I may say so, and for that to happen I must stay alert and awake for most of the time, especially when rehearsals and production meetings went on late at night. Coffee has always been the trusted solution. (Image link)

After the production was over, I stopped drinking coffee and went back to taking [tag]green tea[/tag], a cup in the morning and a cup in the evening, if green tea was not available, I’d go for the indigenous herbal drink ‘[tag]pito-pito[/tag]‘ which was cheaper and easily available here in rural Cavite. Don’t get me wrong, I’m fond of coffee but has opted for tea for its healthier benefits. A health ritual that my grandparents taught me since my early childhood days, a practice I’ve religously kept until just this morning at breakfast.

To start my weekend with something different, I decided to fix myself a cup of nice, hot instant coffee complete with the powdered creamer. The experience and delight of having coffee with fried rice, eggs and tuyo, (dried salted fish) were simply heavenly and it brought back some past thoughts and memories.

I remember arguing with my grandmother as to why should I take green tea if it’s available or pito-pito instead of coffee. With her eyes sharply gazing into my young soul she explained that green tea is healthier than coffee, it will help me stay fit and healthy despite my skinny form and it will greatly compliment my [tag]tai chi[/tag] practice. It was a lesson well learned and proven by my experience, but she must have forgotten that before that lecture on green tea, she has taught me another lesson that has often kept me at odds against her and her teachings. She earlier told me, “Always doubt what you learn, read, hear, believe and know. Even your self.”

So in doubt of her teachings I wondered off to verify, prove and disprove the lessons and bits of wisdom she has imparted unto me. In this case, it’s about coffee. Is [tag]coffee[/tag] really unhealthy? If so then how come many people are still drinking and loving it?
My search for answers thus far has led me to understand the [tag]health[/tag] benefits and [tag]risks[/tag] of coffee. (image link)

Benefits:

• May reduce the risk of suicide among women.
• Helps prevent gallstones and symptomatic gallbladder disease in men.
• Contains caffeine-related compounds (theophylline) that can alleviate the symptoms of asthma in some cases.
• Can increase alertness and prolong waking hours.
• May improve short-term recall.
• Promotes the effectiveness of certain migraine drugs.
• May reduce the risk of cirrhosis of the liver among heavy drinkers.
• May postpone muscle fatigue and thus enhance athletic performance and endurance.
• May protect against free radical damage to tissues – one study found that coffee has more antioxidant activity than red wine, green or black tea, or orange juice.

Risks:

• Increases blood pressure among people with high blood pressure.
• Causes insomnia, anxiety, and irritability.
• May worsen symptoms of PMS in some women.
• Can reduce fertility in women trying to conceive.
• Can cause heartburn and indigestion.
• May increase the risk of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women.
• May increase blood levels of homocysteine and the associated risk of cardiovascular disease.

So with the above following in mind, I wonder what my grandmother would say?
I wonder what you would say?

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