Top 5 of 2009

As the end of 2009 is approaching, I compile 5 best pictures and cartoons of the year, in my opinion. I obtained these pictures from various sources, including Time, Life, National Geographic, Economist, Telegraph, and Reuters. Understand the story behind it, and I hope you’ll agree with me

Top 5 Pictures of 2009 (click each image to enlarge)

#1. The Oracle of Omaha

On Sept. 24, 2008, with financial panic swirling around him, Warren Buffett cut a deal with investment bank Goldman Sachs. (This is the first of several entries on this list involving deals made in previous years that paid off in 2009.) Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway handed over $5 billion — and with it his de facto seal of approval — in exchange for preferred shares that paid a 10% dividend, plus warrants to buy 43.5 million shares of common stock for $115 apiece. A year later, those warrants could have been redeemed for a $3 billion profit. Buffett has thus far opted to hold on to them, betting that Goldman’s stock price will go higher before the warrants expire in 2013. A similar Berkshire deal with General Electric wasn’t quite such a slam dunk, but it was still a moneymaker. By buying when everyone else was selling — and by negotiating a far better deal than the Treasury Department did with its bank investments a few weeks later — the Oracle of Omaha scored big again. (Time)

 

#2. Mental Patient

A mental patient named Totok reacts as he is given a shower at the Galuh foundation house in East Bekasi, outskirt of Jakarta October 23, 2009. The Galuh foundation house has housed more than 285 underprivileged mental patients since it was founded in 1982 by Gendu Mulatip.
Credit: REUTERS/Beawiharta

 

 

#3. The Magic Lake

Chandra Tal (meaning the Lake of the Moon), is situated at an altitude of about 4,300 meters (14,000 feet) in the Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh, India. The name of the lake originates from its crescent shape. What drives people to Chandartal Lake is the natural beauty, the peace and the azure blue waters. There is nothing around but the stillness as if the nature has come to a halt. Sitting here takes you to a world that you have never seen before; being here brings the magic of life back to you. (National Geographic/Dhurjati Chatterjee)

#4. Faith is a simple thing, not a complicated one.

Firemen touch the marble statue of Madonna after removing from the top of the church in Paganica, near Aquila, April 13, 2009.
Credit: REUTERS/Max Rossi

 

 

#5

#5? It’s the big thumbnail in the beginning of this post. Yes, it is Usain Bolt, the world’s fastest man. Reading stories about Usain Bolt, I was convinced that it’s not only talent that matters, but also personality.

In 2009, Bolt single-handedly transformed the world track-and-field championships, usually of interest only to devotees, into a mandatory-viewing event. He delivered a mind-numbing 9.58 at the 100 m in Berlin, a 0.11-sec. improvement over his Beijing time. In an event in which records are bettered in hundredths-of-a-second increments, this was stupendous. Bolt then bolted on another record, 19.19, in the 200 m. (Time) (Image from telegraph.co.uk)

But when you spend time with Bolt, another attribute becomes apparent. He has a great personality and just loves to tease and have fun. He recounts a phone call with his mother before taking the 200-meter gold in record time Thursday night.

“My Mom said that I was going to break the record, and I asked her if she was the one running. Ha! But I decided I was feeling good in the warm-up, so I decided, ‘let’s just try for it,’ so I did it,” he said.

He’s also friendlier on the track than many of the past champions – think American Carl Lewis and Canadian Ben Johnson, who tried to intimidate opponents with their dagger-like glares. Bolt jokes around and teases his competitors before races, as 200-meter bronze medalist Wallace Spearmon of the United States explains.

“He was telling me I need to finish second, and he was also telling me ‘Don’t step on the line,’ and he was also telling me, ‘Just try to stay close.’ They shot the gun and I saw him for about maybe two or three seconds. And then he got so far ahead of me that I couldn’t see him anymore. Then I looked at the clock and it said 19.19. Yeah, yeah, he’s fast. He’s “the Big Jamaican” and he’s very, very fast,” he said.

So who is Usain Bolt? He’s a mixture of talent, charisma and fun. Oh yes, and quite possibly the greatest sprinter ever.

(VOANews)

Top 5 Cartoons of 2009 (click each image to enlarge)

#1 (KAL)

#2

#3 (KAL)

#4

#5 (KAL)