Strong Winds a.k.a. BagaBlog

Kapihan's A Go

2009-04-06T00:27:00.000-07:00

Ok! Kapihan will push through tomorrow!

Please come! A lot of people have told us that they will come.

More have told us that they will definitely try to come.

So please come to the Kapihan so we can all get an idea of what happened and what needs to be done next.

Singapore in September

2009-04-05T16:11:00.000-07:00

Who wants to watch the F1 night race in Sinagpore!!!

It's still cheap now, about 5k round trip ticket via Singair and I got hotels at USD20.00 per room for two people!

It's like going to a local destination!

Tara!!!!

What A Dot Means

2009-04-03T04:17:00.000-07:00

During the inspirational speech of Dr. Rogow, the President of the International Honors Society of Phi Kappa Phi, he shared a quick story about discernment and defiance. It's a story for everyone who's had to think about committing time to a cause. Is it worth the effort? Will my time go to waste? This story about a dot literally changed the world.

In 1946, the United Nations was about to be ratified and a new world community was about to be born. During this time, Carlos P. Romulo was the Resident Commissioner of the Philippines to the US Congress, and was de facto representative to the new international organization.

As organizations go, the United Nations needed an emblem to represent its identity, ideals, and objectives. A committee was selected, chaired by Senator Warren Austin of the US Congress. This committee made the final selection and released the emblem-to-be of the United Nations.

When it was unveiled, it did satisfy the identity and objectives of the institution. Being a community of equality, peace, and cooperation, the United Nations emblem was a map of the world, centered on no country, but at the North Pole, surrounded by a string of olive leaves, the symbol of peace. It was a hit, except for the Filipino representative.

Mr. Romulo had noticed something missing. He asked Sen. Austin, "Where's the Philippines?"

To which Sen. Austin replied, "It's too small to include. If we put the Philippines, it would be no more than a dot."

Then Mr. Romulo said...

"I want that dot!"

And a dot was placed on the new United Nations emblem.

The smallest things can have the biggest impact. It can mean the end of statement, or a nation of about 90 million people.

It was one man who had enough discernment to find what was wrong. And it took but a few questions to find out what was needed to be done. The point is that he chose to do it, to ask the questions, and to demand the answers, even if doing it meant only the drawing of a single dot.

When are things worth fighting for?

2009-03-30T04:16:00.000-07:00

I was asked something today by a friend. He asked me, why should we do anything about the Pisay issue when nothing might come out of it? Older batches don't seem to care. Only recent graduates care enough about their high school diploma so much. And it's the older batches who have enough financial muscle to wriggle a BoT statement, and the longer-shot retraction.

So, why do anything? It was a valid question. I've asked myself this question about so many other things. Why do this?

I replied to my friend, we were taught to do this. As PSHS students, as UP students, as DOST scholars, we were granted the privilege of a quality education. And as PSHS students, as UP students, as DOST scholars, we were given an attitude of inquisitiveness, a level of discernment, a drive to action, and a perseverance to succeed. We were taught to be such, so when the time comes that our country need us to be inquisitive, to be discerning, to be active, and to persevere, we will be. And right now, it is our school that needs us to be inquisitive, discerning, active.

I think academic excellence in Pisay is worth fighting for. If academic excellence can be disregarded in PSHS, then how about in other institutions? If PSHS graduates can tolerate rules being bent in PSHS, then PSHS graduates can tolerate other rules to be bent, bigger laws to be disobeyed. This is a chance for us to stand-up against old practices of leveraging personal power against what is allowed by our institutions. Our institution, PSHS, its values and mission, will lose to this power struggle tomorrow, during the graduation rites. Should you be concerned?

If academic excellence is not worth fighting for, then, I fear the worst.

When are things worth fighting for? What are the things that you believe in?

A Line Has to Be Drawn

2009-03-28T18:25:00.000-07:00

I've recently had to be responsible for my own actions. I decided to leave the job that was quite promising, for graduate school. It was my decision, and this decision will have a lasting impact on my career. The point is, that I have to be responsible for my actions. I chose to leave, I will be responsible.

Somehow, Pisay taught me that. I didn't know what Pisay was at the time that I applied for it, in fact, I applied for the scholarship on the last day of the extended application period. All I knew was that it was the best school to be in. When I was there, it was tough! You had to learn to be responsible for yourself. It's funny even, because we wanted to be responsible so much, we learned to cram projects. You end up cramming stuff because there really is so much to do, on top of having a normal life. But you make sure that come the deadline, come examination time, come judgement day, you are prepared, and that you are not found wanting.

Simply put, nine students were found wanting. The DECS diploma they should have received would have been enough for them to start anew, and perhaps reform their life. I wish them this, to improve themselves. Society needs them to better themselves.

Do they need a DOST PSHS diploma for this undertaking? I don't think so. The PSHS diploma isn't a matter of need, it's a matter of excellence. It is a mark of the student having achieved something great and something beyond ordinary. It shouldn't be doled out simply because our parents think that we should receive them. This is why there are such things as driving exams, board exams, bar exams, and other standards to which we measure our capabilities. We need to be qualified to recieve a driver's license, a professional license, and similarly a PSHS diploma. Otherwise, the qualification is reduced to tissue paper. Look at the state of our roads, and our drivers, those who passed the driving exams and the written exam. Our driver's license is worthless. I do not want the PSHS diploma to suffer the same fate.

I do not fault the parents who are doing this, all they want is a better future for their children. I just hope that they realize that this isn't just about their children, it's about all the others out there who studied and will be studying in PSHS. Their futures and reputations are at stake here as well.

So a line must be drawn.

I urge the Alumni Association to discuss this. I hope that we can find a venue to discuss and find a joint position that we can present to the BOT. This must never happen again.

Until then, I urge all PSHS Alumni to withhold all funds they intend to donate to the reconstruction of the school until a clear resolution of the issue is achieved.

If the BoT refuses to be responsible, then the responsibility comes back to us, once more.

Blogs about Pisay Controversy

2009-03-28T05:56:00.000-07:00

Some blogs about the controversy.

http://martinperez.asia/2009/03/19/we-teachers-dont-play-dice/

http://day2day.multiply.com/journal/item/219/on_teaching_your_child_how_to_fail
- from a concerned parent.

http://mdvsamson.blogspot.com/2009/03/i-cannot-sit-by-idly.html
- from sir Mike, my 4th year adviser.

http://dyslexiamania.livejournal.com/11102.html

On Accountability and Responsibiltiy

2009-03-28T05:12:00.000-07:00

We must be responsible for our actions. We cannot simply fail our classes and expect to have our powerful parents do the work for us. It insults the PSHS tradition, it insults the diploma thousands of students labored to receive.

So, with the BOT decision to let these 9 failed students graduate, I withdraw all of my intent to provide support to the school financially, through my batch, or through individual donations, until there is a clear plan of action, through an official message from the Board of Trustees of the Philippine Science High School, discussing the situation, and proposing a clear resolution.

I suggest the rest of the alumni to start doing this to pressure the Board to rethink its ways. These students failed in their responsibilities, not just once, but repeatedly through their life in PSHS. They insulted the privilege that was granted them. Now, their parents are doing the catch-up work, and it is only natural for them to do so. It is the Board who must be the ones responsible to decide. And they will be held accountable for the impact of their decision for years to come.

Learning [Generally] vs. Learning

2009-02-17T18:13:00.000-08:00

When I was in college, there was a time that I studied because that was what I had been doing my whole life. It was impressed upon me that high school graduates become college students, and that people who graduate college get better employment opportunities, and that the people who graduate with honors get the best jobs. I studied because my friends were studying, because my parents expected me to study, but most of all because I expected me to study.

I expected me to study. It wasn't a question of what I wanted to do next. It was a matter of what I was doing now. It wasn't a matter of what I wanted to do, but that studying in college was a status, a symbol of the potential that all college students represent. A good future. I was studying for show. I studied and studied to get good grades because I wanted to graduate with honors, so I had something to show. I wanted to impress my teachers, my classmates, my parents. I was fairly good in college (I think ). (ang angas. hahahaha. this is my blog.)

But I missed something. I learned for the sake of learning, which shouldn't be. One can't learn just because one is being taught. One should learn for the sake of using what you learned, to share it, to make things better. And it's funny that I had to go to work to realize that learning isn't just for me, it's for everyone else whom my future actions will impact, positively or negatively.

I guess that makes some sense. My work taught me that there are a lot of things that I am not aware of, that I didn't catch as much as I could have. I was given a chance to contribute, and as much as I wanted to, my knowledge wasn't enough. I'd be the first to acknowledge this.

And the second step, after awareness of a gap, is action. Now, I have a renewed urge to learn.

The true value of education isn't that we empower a person to the level of his knowledge. The true value of education is that we empower a person to create change in the lives of people, the value that he creates and impacts others. The value of education isn't linear to every person taught, it is exponential, in that a single person can touch the lives of many others. But in order for an educated person to do this, his study must be purposeful. It must have a direction, so that he studies not just for study, but for a greater end.

I think we Filipinos take education for granted, and because of this, we've not been able to leverage its value. Education is a status symbol for us. It [generally] means we're going to have a great future. The Philippines has become a tertiary level certificate factory. But look at where our college graduates go. It's not that the quality of education is poor, but because students simply assume that a college diploma is [generally] the ticket to a great future. So we [generally] study, and we [generally] pass. But the Philippine's has not had a great future [generally] as a whole.

I nearly fell into the trap of taking an MS right after grad without this realization, otherwise, I would have ended up going through the motions of studying for the sake of studying. And for that I am quite grateful for the opportunity to work. Because I realized that I need to learn because I want to learn, and that whatever I'm learning is important to whoever I work with in the future, and not just to me.

A Knight's Prayer

2009-02-15T22:20:00.000-08:00

I found this prayer somewhere on Knightsbridge International's website. Knightsbridge is an NGO that provides assistance to humanitarian crises worldwide. They've been in the Philippines, particularly in Minadanao. Interestingly they provide "sustainable" help, that is, they provide training for locals to operate and maintain renewable energy systems.

A Knight's Prayer

Almighty God, Eternal Father, Lord of Lords, have mercy upon me, a humble knight in Thy Divine Service. Oh Lord, I pray for Thy indulgence and blessings. Forget not Thine servant in his trials, nor his Order of Knighthood. I pray, that Thy Will be done in all things, both great and small.

Let me always be worthy of Thee, let me not forget Thee in good times nor bad. Armor me with the armor of Thy Righteousness, give me the sword of Truth that I shall confound Thine enemies and be unto Thee a true knight.

O Lord, in my hour of need, be with me. Let me never forget my sacred and holy vows unto Thee, that I should not be prey unto demons and devils nor the dark things of this world.

Let me always be a beacon unto those in distress, never allow me to forget my obligation unto the homeless nor the poor: let me serve Thee and Thine Eternal Throne all the days of my life. Let me always remember the obligations that I have taken upon me. Lord, if it is Thine Will, let me serve Thee forever!

If ever, oh Lord, I turn from Thee and this Order, let my name forever be cursed, may my spurs be broken and my body given unto demons to dwell with them forever in that Lake of Fire which Thou hast: prepared for the ungodly.

Power beyond Power, Pillar of Strength, Refuge of the Homeless, let me serve Thee for all the days of my life! Amen.

Science Daily dot com

2009-02-15T15:08:00.000-08:00

I'm sick. I'm on SL today. My head hurts and throbs when I move, or when I cough. And when I cough it just keeps going until I'm about to pass out. Haha. I hate being sick. I'm stuck home when there's a lot of stuff to do. So I'm left to doing my research on the internet..

I'm off to www.sciencedaily.com for my daily dose of leading edge science and research. This website is really great; it's like CNN for science and technology news. It's really great for a day when you're down and you just want to learn something. hahaha.

Check it out.

Electricity Transmission Futures

2009-02-11T22:15:00.000-08:00

I've been reading up on opportunities in Renewable Energy, and barriers to its widespread deployment. Apparently, there are hindrances beyond the project feasibility; it's not just a matter of difficult economics. There are also technical issues that need to be overcome before renewable (mini-hydro, wind, and solar) becomes mainstream, that is for a better definition, approaching the installed capacity of conventional power.

The traditional electricity generation model is centralized; there are few but large power generation capacities to supply the power of a grid. Hence, the grid is designed to support such a structure, and we have built "transmission and distribution" system that effectively transports power from these large but few power plants to literally millions of users. We've become comfortable with this, paying our electricity bills to a utility companies who make sure we don't have to use oil lamps at night.

A shift to renewable power for base load requires a slightly different system. Instead of having few large generation capacities, we'll have literally thousands of power plants all over the grid. This poses a challenge to the traditional centralized generation model. Our operations and control of system frequency, supply and demand management, are all based on the fact that it's easy to predict the amount of power that is produced from conventional power plants. Managing the system frequency of a renewable energy system based on wind and solar is a rather daunting task, with thousands of small power plants contributing to a grid with unpredictable supply.

So what do you do when your faced with a daunting task? You ask a computer to do it.

Intro, Smart Grids. They optimize and maximize grid requirements with respect to available supply against the demand. A computer, or a network of computers, manage the transmission and distribution system for you. It's like a national-grid scale DCS. It is able to read power consumption of the all the millions of loads. It is able to receive power generation of all the thousands of plants and aggregates the supply. It calculates and balances load requirements, and adjusts your swing plants accordingly. It balances system requirements against generation capacities, and takes the job of managing the transmission, perhaps even supply.

What will it take? Haha. A lot. A great digital national metering system, and a computer network with a hell-a-lot-flops of computing power.

Who will pay for this new Smart Grid? Initially, some angel investor, in our case, probably a first world organization like UNDP or JICA. Eventually and in the long term, itself. With the ability to measure and control the flow of power, comes the ability to quantify and qualify power use. Which makes energy efficiency efforts easier to identify, implement and monitor. And there is a ton of energy efficiency improvements out there. With a smart grid installed, it will be easier to identify efficiency opportunities throughout the system. And we can utilize the savings from such efficiency initiatives to pay-off the investment.

It sounds like it's too big a dream. The good news is that smart grids are already being developed, and some systems have already been installed. The latest news in the smart grid industry is Malta. The small island nation has contracted IBM, yes the mainframe computer giant, to study its transmission system and put up a smart grid. In the US, a Grid Modernization Commission has been created and given $500 million over 5 years to research protocol standards for smart grids. Obama has asked for the passage of new legislation for Renewables and Smart Grid deployment by 2012. In Ontario, Canada, it is required to have a smart meter installed by 2010. Even China is building smart metering systems into all substations 500KVA and above. So its being done.

What about us here in third world Pinas? Dream about it. Hahahahaha. And be aware, so when the time comes to put up our own, we'll have the technical skills and know-how, and people with talent and enough understanding of the technology to make it cheaper by not hiring foreign consultants anymore.

Why is it worth considering? Because we are an archipelago. From a centralized grid perspective, we are hell-a-difficult to manage. Distributed generation, and smart grids, in my honest opinion are the way to go.

It's not going to be easy, there are a lot of technical issues to be overcome, but we need to start studying it now, and finding opportunities to learn about it. With the passage of the Renewable Energy Act, people will start looking into efficiency and investment opportunities - this could be one of them.

Surviving Dengue

2008-09-23T03:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, I haven't blogged in a month or so. The usual excuse still stands: work gets in the way. Though I have nothing to blog about.

I've been planning our HK/Macau trip for the coming Ms. International 2008. My Lilo's preps are in full swing and I think she's flying mid-October. Still, please send her your best wishes and good lucks and keep praying for the best...

I seriously need a vacation. Though I've been really getting into the swing of employed life lately, I am still looking forward to a week of sightseeing and spending madness. Hahaha.

Last Saturday we attended the funeral of Chot's 2nd year HS classmate. She was hit by dengue. I could relate, having been struck by dengue twice, nearly killed once. Hahaha. It's an experience, and I've learned that the best way to avert tragedy is to recognize symptoms early. So please be aware and on guard if you have fever. I've listed here the early symptoms I experienced during my 2 brushes with dengue:

1. Really really high fever, to the tune of 38.5 and upwards (during my 2nd dengue case I had fever as high as 39.5 deg C and that was mild dengue). Drinking paracetamol doesn't help; it would lower your temp a bit but not too much. A persistent fever is a dangerous sign.

2. A stabbing and throbbing headache. And I mean THROBBING. I suppose this comes with the really really high fever.

3. Joint pain. If your knees and elbows and knuckles feel some pain, that would be a bad sign too.

4. The disappearance of fever on the 3rd or 4th day. If it returns on the 5th or 6th day, it's probably dengue. At this point, immediately have your blood chem checked. A low platelet count would almost be confirmatory of dengue. St. Lukes and Medical City both offer dengue confirmatory tests.

5. If at any time you have a nosebleed, or see blood in your saliva or stool, that means you need to go to the hospital right away, not an hour after, definitely not a day after, but at that very moment. (Unless you just picked your nose too much...hahaha...) Doing this just might save your life.

My suggestions is just to be aware of the symptoms. My doctors said after my 1st dengue case that had I come into the hospital half a day later I would have not made it. I bled in my stomache and had a tube stuck down my nose. I had IVs wherever they could be struck. I had to take cardiac drugs to prevent my heart from failing.

By now I've also learned, through my own and others' shared experiences, that MOST doctors misdiagnose dengue as something else, as it appears exactly like other viral diseases. It's the responsibility of the doctor however to rule out. Until and unless the doctor has ruled out dengue, it's important to know what to watch out for. If you don't, make sure that your doctor informs you of what to look out for. The key to surviving dengue is recognizing it early enough.

Renewable Energy Team

2008-08-28T16:28:00.000-07:00

Haven't blogged in quite a while to.. I 've been really busy at work, double time at completing my projects and commitments for the year. I want to be done by first week of December. I just need to be done by that time.

On energy industry news, oil prices have gone up a bit due to a Gulf of Mexico storm. Pump prices not likely to go down this week. Ha ha.

I want to establish a research group that does energy research right here in the Philippines. Particularly research on renewables. Anyone interested to join? Let's start small. Initially a group of renewable energy enthusiasts. Our initial project would be to identify opportunities in developing renewable energy in the Philippines. Then maybe pick one and start doing thesis type research to find business and investment opportunities. A small group of committed enthusiasts who'll do joint research and jointly benefit from whatever comes out of that research.

Then eventually, work on renewable energy projects, intially one at a time. We'd be investing our own money of course, but just for the heck of it and for the love of science, technology and its contribution to nation building. Ha ha ha ha.....

All we need is to dedicate our spare time to looking for and developing small-scale renewable energy projects.

Anyone interested?

Language Gap

2008-08-28T16:21:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it's fun working at a far away place. You get to see different things and stuff from what you're used to and that makes your perspective just that much broader.

Sometimes though, it's not fun at all. And today, it wasn't any fun. It's not fun to be invited to a training, stay for it, and have to listen to it in a language that you don't understand. I know I'm supposed to be the one to adapt but, but, but...no buts. Ha ha.

Either I need to learn Bicol soon, or..., I need to learn Bicol soon. Period.

I can catch smatters of it like, digdi, dae, Maray na Hapon, Maray na Aga, ine, saro, dua, pulo, indo, gabos, other stuff like that. Maybe another 2 years more and I'll be conversant.

It's just hard, having to sit through a discussion yo don't understand. It's awkward, having to ask a group of people to repeat the conversation that just occurred because you didn't understand it (even if everybody else did). You're able to contribute less, and makes your job-security crap too heheheh... Especially in technical discussions, because Bicol is the language that my officemates are comfortable in, tech meets usually are in Bicol.

Owel. Another push to learn Bicol in the way.

I'll go to mass later.

Riding the Bandwagon: What My Name Means...

2008-08-28T00:29:00.000-07:00

What Jan Aaron Augustus Garcia Means

You are fair, honest, and logical. You are a natural leader, and people respect you. You never give up, and you will succeed... even if it takes you a hundred tries. You are rational enough to see every part of a problem. You are great at giving other people advice.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.
You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality. You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people. You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts. You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something. You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense. You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun.

You are well rounded, with a complete perspective on life.
You are solid and dependable. You are loyal, and people can count on you. At times, you can be a bit too serious. You tend to put too much pressure on yourself.

You are a very lucky person. Things just always seem to go your way. And because you're so lucky, you don't really have a lot of worries. You just hope for the best in life. You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy. Spread your luck around a little to people who need it.

You are deeply philosophical and thoughtful. You tend to analyze every aspect of your life. You are intuitive, brilliant, and quite introverted. You value your time alone. Often times, you are grumpy with other people. You don't appreciate them trying to interfere in your affairs.

You are the total package - suave, sexy, smart, and strong.
You have the whole world under your spell, and you can influence almost everyone you know. You don't always resist your urges to crush the weak. Just remember, they don't have as much going for them as you do.

You are a seeker. You often find yourself restless - and you have a lot of questions about life. You tend to travel often, to fairly random locations. You're most comfortable when you're far away from home. You are quite passionate and easily tempted. Your impulses sometimes get you into trouble.

You are very open. You communicate well, and you connect with other people easily. You are a naturally creative person. Ideas just flow from your mind. A true chameleon, you are many things at different points in your life. You are very adaptable.

You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing. You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long. You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.

My weekend

2008-08-10T05:15:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to sleep. Maybe after I type this blog I'll be drowsy...Quite a long weekend I've had. It appears I have grandiose images in my mind about things I should be doing. Ha ha ha ha....

Friday night after work I went over to the Tiwi Town Fiesta to help man the company booth at the plaza fair. When we got there the booth was sealed up and closed, and nobody was expecting us there. Ha ha ha. I was kidding around, saying we should do a montage / human diorama. Since we were promoting green energy. It would be quite easy to just pose as trees or something...haha...

Anyway...apparently we had two booths, and the other one, the open one, was at the far end. After a few minutes of wandering about the fair, looking for things to buy, Manay Norms, our community officer found us and led us to the correct booth. Ha ha. When we got there, Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth was playing. It was quite uninteresting...haa ha ha....

So Manay Yols, our Chem lab head, and I, decided to do an impromptu lecture about the geothermal process to the kids who were playing outside the booth. She gathered then together and led them to just outside our door. They willingly obliged, after the promise of prizes and candy...hahaha...

They were quite good listeners though. They were more than willing to shout Okay! to every Okay? I asked them. And when I asked questions I got more answers than I could handle. It was fun. I had a great time teaching the kids about the processes we work with. We asked them to repeat and describe the entire process, and the kids who could do it would get a baller. Ha ha. One by one they memorized the steps gave a quick run through. Later on most of the kids had the neon green ballers and the ones who didn't were scrambling to study the geothermal process. Ha ha ha...

There was one 1st year high school student, Mark Vincent, who kept asking good technical questions about how the process worked. He was really interested and it seemed he knew more than he was initially letting on. I hope he passes the UPCAT when he takes it ..hahaha...

After getting home that night I watched the Olympics Opening Ceremonies and you know how that turned out...

Saturday morning I spent my time getting home. Ha ha ha. We left the base camp around 6, took off about 2 hours later, arrived in Manila around 9, spend the morning driving around the Metro as I was the last one to be dropped off by our shuttle. Ha ha. Owel. I got home around 12. One disadvantage of living in far far away Quezon City....

I spent the afternoon with my Lilo. He he. Got to watch My Sassy Girl, which, is a poor re-make of the original. The sassy girl's role didn't fit the stereotype American girl....they're not "sassy" usually. ha ha ha... It just looked stupid and weird. hahahaha....

Then I spent my Sunday at the mall. Had mass this morning at UP, had lunch at Banana leaf. They surved us microwaved fish...which would have tasted great, except, it was dry and stiff after the radiation exposure.

Then we picked up my sister from her immersion in Zambales hahahaha.... Her stories just make me laugh... People's lives are so distant nowadays... Its a serious thing, but when those people who live so distantly meet, it's just...funny. hahaha...

We picked up Chot at Cubao after her work-out, and had dinner at Outback.

I just have to say, Outback is not worth the prices they charge. Ha ha ha... They used to be, but not any more. They have great and courteous service, but the quality of the food just doesn't match the prices.... Alfredo's is much better..... ha ha ha....

Yeah...zleepy...zzz

Olympics!!!

2008-08-08T05:14:00.000-07:00

An LED Globe stage in the middle of the bird's nest...

Literally a man-made birds nest...

Billions of pesos wrth of fireworks...fire work foot prints!!!!

A floating 5-circles logo...

A smiley painting...

Maybe a ten thousand people performing...

A thousand people wearing blue LED costume..

A massive LED lit stage...

Dance painting...

The athletes are coming in...hahaha poor kids who were forced to jump and jump through the entire parade of athletes. hahahahaha... yeah keep jumping hahaha...hahaha theyve stopped jumping, but their hands are still in the air and still waving....they're getting tired...hahahaha...

Hahaha Mali has got more athletes than us....

Hahahahah the poor kids are jumping again......this is the olympics after all they should promote good cardio...Uh oh the atheletes are walking over the dance-painting...

Aha...the music is live....interesting...those trumpeteers must be really tired also...

Belgium's got quite big a contingent...

All the Israeli athelete's got cameras. hehehehe....

Japan's got a massive contingent...

The jumping ushers still jumping hahahaha....

Chinese Taipei...interesting....

Interesting....Hong Kong's got its own contingent...

Ooh...blue...Gambia...

Hahaha red hair...Mauritius...

Hahahaha Denmark...my country's coming in...whooops phone's ringing wait wait wait...

Ukraine...blue and yellow...UPSCAns?!? Ukraine for Upsca..hahaha...

Coool!!!!! The atheletes are stepping on paint, and are then walking over the dance painting and leaving their footprints....cooooolll!!!!

Oooh cool olympic symbol tattoo on the face...

When is the Philippines coming in????

Oooh.. Palestine's got a team...

Hahahahaha the dancing and jumping ushers can barely lift their arms.....

Oooh interesting Belarus flag... looks like an Ilocano weave...

Oooh..interesting Nepal flag...it's not a rectangle, but just two pennants..

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines...interesting country name....

Sao Tome and Principe, these countries sure know how to pick their names...

Saint Kitts and Nevis?

Djibouti....magdjidjibou na daw kasi...

Kyrgyztan's got a nice flag....looks like the old Katipunan flag with the sun and the H in the middle...

When's the Philippines coming in????

Oooh Iraq's gotta team...

What are the Hungarians wearin?

Guam? Guam's got its own team? They look Pinoy...probably Pinoy.

The Sudanese must be really really used to the heat.....

Hahahaha...the commentators were silent when the Saudis came in.... probably thinking of the price of oil...

Hahahaha.. The Albanians are really happy...yeah!

Afghanistan's got a team hehehehe...

Azerbaijan's got a big contingent...

Ooohh...were just halfway through....man this is really long....

120 countries... 85 countries to go...hahaha.

Sarkozy is there...hahaha..large French delegation...

Polska!!!

Oh cool...South African amputee to compete in swimming...

Cote D'Ivoire....cool name...Ivory Coast.

Oooh Putin's there...

Oooh Bush is there...is Gloria there?

First there's the British Virgin Islands, now there's just the Virgin Islands....

Hahahahaha....the jumping girls are just stepping forward and back....

Man, 91,000 people in the audience...

I like African percussion music...

Ha ha ha jump Colombia jump....

Maybe we didn't send the delegates...or they got stuck at Naia Terminal 3... Ha ha ha ha...

Colorful Estonia....

Ooooh large Czech contingent.... with colors that look's like ours....

And here comes..The Philippines Blue Barongs!!!!.... with Manny Pacquiao with the flag...hahahaha....Didn't see Gloria though...It seems that the commentator didn't like a non-olympian carrying the flag hahahhahaha....

Nice Micronesian shirts...hehehehe...

I wonder at what time do we get to the lighting of the Olympic Flame....

Ooh nice Sri Lankan flag....

Hahaha there's a Caucasian on the South Korean team....

Montenegro the youngest nation in the Olympics....flag adopted only in 2004...

North Korea gets a big cheer...haha...

Hahahaha the jumping girls are just swaying in place hahahaha...not even stepping any more...

Chili!!

Federer's carrying the Swiss Flag....

Cool Mongolian flag....

The New Zealanders are wearing Crocs?!? hehehehe...

Hahahahah the ex-jumping ex-swaying girls are just standing and clapping quite slowly now....

Yao Ming carries Chinese flag hahahaha....

Ha hahaha so many Chinese....

Olympic Flame lighting coming up!

Oooh cool rapid firing fireworks!!!

Oldies carrying the olympic flag....

The children's choir singing the Olympic Anthem is really really good...

The oath taking is in Chinese....

Ha hahaha I bet you had the urge to do the bird hand thingy...

Flying gymnast ligjts the olympic torch!

Opening Ceremonies ends with a MASSIVE FIREWORKS display! Literally billions of pesos being burnt every minute!!!! Ha ha ha...

Great!

One World, One Dream!

The Olympic Post

2008-08-08T01:53:00.000-07:00

Waaaah! I'm watching the opening of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing!!!!

HOW IN THE WORLD DID THEY DO THAAAAT!!!!!

I wonder when will the Philippines host the Olympics...hahahahahahaha...probably not in my lifetime...but I sure hope so!!!!

Sleeeeepy

2008-08-06T02:06:00.000-07:00

I'm so sleepy... I don't feel tired actually. Just sleepy. I'll head right off to sleep after writing this post.

I spent the entire day out in the field. We got to the base camp around 9:30, fixed my stuff, checked my email, got out again around 10:30, had lunch beside a wellhead, waited anxiously to get flow and pressure data...ha ha ha...

Then my colleague informed me that there's as a pending issue on one of our lines, and that I might have to check it out... The line is about a kilometer long, and I walked from end to middle, and from other end to about quarter of the way. Ha ha. I did this right after lunch, around 12:30... Crap. When I looked at myself in the mirror this afternoon, my face seemed to have the imprint of my safety goggles. Ha ha... Not to mention the ton of mud that dried up on my pants and safety shoes. Ha ha.

Zzzzzz/...

In our best and worst of times

2008-08-04T22:10:00.000-07:00

Quarter-life crisis.

I just read Ardee's blog.

I suppose I can relate ha ha...

I told myself life would be easier after college. I expected life would be easier. No more exams, no more homework, no more teachers... What could be harder than writing a thesis by yourself anyway? I kept telling myself that, I'd have fun, watch movies all the time, get a job to cover my expenses, walk past through this early stage of my career to being a vice president or something.

But, after grad, you have to find a job. And when you do get a job, your performance becomes a source of pressure. Things change around you and you realize you're so distant from who you were, a student.

Graduating from college, and starting to work is probably the biggest change that anyone could experience, other than getting married. You stop studying period. Established study habits, regular places of tambay, places to eat, schedule, activities, norms, are all discarded for new working habits, new tambay places, new food, new schedule, new activities, different people, different culture. A new life takes over you, and suddenly, you're a different person, doing things you're not sure what for, and you start feeling old... Quarter life crisis.

Ha ha. Doesn't have to be a crisis though. At this point, it's really how we deal with the burden of responsibility that we're asked to carry. Which is really why, it's the best and the worst of our times. The best because it's when we develop our identities and beliefs, beyond being students, but as entrepreneurs, project managers, beauty queen(s), engineers, doctors, lawyers, teachers, leaders. It is also our worst because underneath all the roles that we start taking on, we look-back and yearn for the simplicity of student life, of having everything spoon-fed and delivered in a nice little package called a textbook...

That's okay I guess. I miss being a student...

But when I was a student I didn't have a 22" Samsung LCD on my PC either. So screw that. Ha ha.

What a last week I've had.

I've been pushing really hard on making my projects move. I'm enjoying though. I feel like I'm making progress. I guess that's a major part of overcoming whatever form of QLC you got is a sense of having achieved something. It comes later in the twenties for most people. I just heard over the radio the DJ starting to feel young again when she turned 30. I suppose that was when she overcame her QLC.

UPSCA Re-union

Keeping track, I went to UPSCA last Friday. I got to UPSCA around 5:30 in time for the choir practice for the 6:00 mass. It was great, singing with a choir again, singing at mass, jamming. It's also great to see my UPSCA batchmates again. We need to do this again sooooon!!!

Spicy Fingers

Then I went to GB3 with Chot and some of her cousins. I met Ate Anna, who's based in Japan at an UAAF base, dunno which one though. Had fun. Ha ha.

Then Saturday I watched The Mummy 3 with my Lilo. Funny movie. Was supposed to watch Lifehouse, went to Chot's uncle's burthday instead. Or was that last week? I'm not sure anymore.

Then there's this nice picture of the clearest I've ever seen Mayon Volcano get.

Then Sunday I bought a JBL Mini-Radial speaker/dock for my iPod. It's great. It looks real cool. I'll bring it to Albay to play with when I'm bored. Ha ha. Can't wait.

Then, I've got nothing more to say. I've bored you to death. I'm sleepy.

Working Lessons

2008-07-31T08:11:00.000-07:00

Man. Whatta week. Work work work work. And more work work work work.

It's 2:30 in the morning. But now we're back in the base camp and it's just work work work.

I dunno. I'm enjoying it more now though. A couple of months ago I was ready to throw everything in the air and walk away. But now, I feel like I'm getting into a rhythm and I'm pushing things forward. Nothing's perfect though, and I recognize now that if I attempt to making everything connected to me perfect, I'll just end up in a straight-jacket.

So, I worry yes, about what comes next, what needs to be done, what has to be completed, but not as much as I used to.

Things that I've learned so far:

My self-expectations aren't as realistic as they seemed to me.
People may seem to be helping you, but they have their own performance metrics to achieve. It's really a matter of timing.
Just be nice. Even if the other person is sulking and hesitant in his replies and responses, you have to play nice. I've always played nice though. I've just observed a lot of conflicts arising from people not playing nice.
Office politics play into a person's career more than he thinks, even in the smallest organizations.
The key in motivating yourself in doing things that you don't want to do, is that once you're done, you're done. And you can get to the MORE IMPORTANT THINGS.
Work creeps. Work slowly grows and grows and grows if it is not trimmed and kept.... Stakeholder involvement is like fertilizer, the more people you involve in your project, the more new ideas and changes introduced. The key to making your project succeed is being able to manage these new ideas, trim the bad leaves, identify irrelevant ones, take advantage of good ones, all while keeping true to the original intent and design. Leaving a project to grow by itself is fairly dangerous...
Your capability to adapt to a fast changing workplace is your key to succeeding. Without adapting to changes, you'll be anchored in place while everyone else is paddling past you.
Be passionate, at least about the industry you are involved in...be knowledgable about it, keep up to date and as informed as you can about industry developments, technical advances, people to know, potential resources. You'll never know you might have a chance to discuss industry issues with your CEO.
All while doing all of the above, leave time for yourself. WANT time for your personal life. And MAKE time.
If you find yourself faltering, trust in the fact that the worst that can happen to you is to get an indefinitely long vacation! Ha ha ha ha.

But seriously though, it get's better after a few months. Or I just numbed myself from the worry. Yeah. Crap....

Working Lessons

2008-07-31T08:10:00.000-07:00

Man. Whatta week. Work work work work. And more work work work work.

It's 2:30 in the morning. But now we're back in the base camp and it's just work work work.

So, I worry yes, about what comes next, what needs to be done, what has to be completed, but not as much as I used to.

Things that I've learned so far:

My self-expectations aren't as realistic as they seemed to me.
People may seem to be helping you, but they have their own performance metrics to achieve. It's really a matter of timing.
Just be nice. Even if the other person is sulking and hesitant in his replies and responses, you have to play nice. I've always played nice though. I've just observed a lot of conflicts arising from people not playing nice.
Office politics play into a person's career more than he thinks, even in the smallest organizations.
The key in motivating yourself in doing things that you don't want to do, is that once you're done, you're done. And you can get to the MORE IMPORTANT THINGS.
Work creeps. Work slowly grows and grows and grows if it is not trimmed and kept.... Stakeholder involvement is like fertilizer, the more people you involve in your project, the more new ideas and changes introduced. The key to making your project succeed is being able to manage these new ideas, trim the bad leaves, identify irrelevant ones, take advantage of good ones, all while keeping true to the original intent and design. Leaving a project to grow by itself is fairly dangerous...
Your capability to adapt to a fast changing workplace is your key to succeeding. Without adapting to changes, you'll be anchored in place while everyone else is paddling past you.
Be passionate, at least about the industry you are involved in...be knowledgable about it, keep up to date and as informed as you can about industry developments, technical advances, people to know, potential resources. You'll never know you might have a chance to discuss industry issues with your CEO.
All while doing all of the above, leave time for yourself. WANT time for your personal life. And MAKE time.
If you find yourself faltering, trust in the fact that the worst that can happen to you is to get an indefinitely long vacation! Ha ha ha ha.

But seriously though, it get's better after a few months. Or I just numbed myself from the worry. Yeah. Crap....

Website Designers Needed

2008-07-20T03:10:00.000-07:00

Friends, I am seriously in need of website designers, and graphic artists.

My sister and I have decided to be the new marketing team for our company. And our first marketing project is the complete revamp of our website. We've gotten some business from the internet, but I know it could be a whole lot better.

We're targeting the completion of our company's new website by end of September, in time for an "unveiling" at the IIEE National Convention in November.

If you're interested, check-out the AVGarcia Power Systems Corp website to get an idea of the scale of the project, and to get your creative juices flowing. We have a number of other stuff that we want to include though, but this should do for now.

You can contact me at my old number, or through jaafgie@gmail.com.

The sooner the better!

I'm going home...and Language Speed Theory

2008-07-09T22:16:00.000-07:00

Can't wait. I'm going home tomorrow! Wohoo..

Anyway, this week has been fun. Our office is doing some remodelling and it looks a lot better, and is a lot cubicle-neighbor-friendly. It's a lot easier talking to each other now.

So, I think I'm doing well. My first week back has been great, and I've done I think all I need to do. So, I'll just keep pushing.

I'll probably go jog a bit later too. Any electrical design projects out there? Ha ha.

I'm bored. I'm waiting for my officemate to finish his stuff so we can go grab some halo-halo in town. It's taking him long and it's about dinner time already..haha...

Working here is a bit of like being an OFW, because your away from your friends, your family, your one and only, for a while, but I guess I'm still lucky because I get to go home every weekend.

I have another theory.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread, and forgive us, our debts, as we, forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.

Ama namin sumasalangit ka, sambahin ang ngalan mo. Mapasaamin, ang kaharian mo, sundin ang loob mo, dito sa lupa para ng sa langit, Bigyan mo po kami, ngayon, ng aming kakanin sa araw araw at Patawarin mo kami, sa aming mga sala, para nang pagpapatawad namin, sa nagkakasala sa amin, at huwag mo kaming ipahintulot sa tukso, at iadya mo kami sa lahat ng masama.

This is the same Our father, with the same message and same content, in English and then in Tagalog. Notice how much shorter the one in English is. It takes three lines in English, and 5 lines in Filipino. I bet if you record the time a person at his normal speaking rate saying both prayers, we would find that his time in English would be shorter than his time in Filipino.

Filipino takes a whole lot longer to say than English. Maybe there's a correlation to the economic development of a country, or at least a culture with a common language, to the speed with which their language is said.

It makes sense...the longer you take to deliver your message, the less time you have to do the more important things. We spend more time talking than doing.... Look at China now, they speak SO FAST!!!!

Wacha think? He he.

Finding Cheese

2008-07-07T22:31:00.000-07:00

Okay. So my first to days back have been rather normal. I've gathering momentum and I don't want to lose it. Hopefully tomorrow I can continue the push and just keep pushing.

I just finished reading "Who Stole My Cheese?" It's really quite interesting, and on the surface it seems quite stupid to oversimplify complex human psychology, our drives and motivations. There are so many reasons why we do what we do.

But, after thinking about it, it's just quite simple. If we keep thinking about the many reasons, you can get burdened into inaction. People crumple under pressure, people don't do videoke because of stage fright, there are few public speakers because people mumble in front of crowds. There's always some form of hesitance because we think about things too much, we see our fear too much.

So what I learned from the book is, to simplify. To not think about it. To simply ignore your fear, and find nothing else stopping you from doing what you need to do. After all, what's the worst that could happen? And then maybe just laugh about it after the fact, if the worst does happen.

EE Projects

2008-07-06T04:44:00.000-07:00

Friends, I'm currently looking for Electrical Engineering Projects to work on. I know a number of us are getting ready get married (wohoo), build our own houses and start our own businesses.

If you know anyone who's looking for an electrical engineer, to make electrical plans and designs, I'm just here. He he.

I'm not sure if you know other EE's out there but if you need to have an electrical system designed for your home, or any other space you might need, I would appreciate it greatly if you remember me.

I'll be cheap. He he. I will personally work on the design, but I'll also have the support of 25 years of experience in the energy and electricity industry behind my back.

Our company has a website but it's quite jumbled up and we're working on improving what it looks like. But it's online and a fair amount of information can be found there about what projects we've handled in the past.

You can contact me through the usual channels if you need advice on the energy industry or electrical systems. Hehe.

Back to Work

2008-07-06T04:25:00.000-07:00

So I'm off to my real work tomorrow, back to the grind. Back to the stresses and demands of construction work and project management. Huhuhu.

Hahaha. It's fun developing an engineering idea. Really it is. And to see that idea come to full fruition, when it's helping you do better in your business, solving problems and returning good profit, it's quite fulfilling.

I guess in the past year, I've had a couple of career highs, when I saw an enclosure I designed constructed and installed, and when I saw the instrument process I designed implemented. It's really great seeing in front of you what you imagined. It's like pulling something out of your head and making it real. To be honest, I really really enjoy doing engineering work, especially work that's related to creating energy, and making money.

What I don't like is...having to doubt. Doubting if something will work, that it will operate as designed. I guess that's part of being a young engineer, not having as much confidence. A degree gets you somewhere, but it's less than a tenth of what matters out there. A great company knows how to deal with the unknowns for the most part, but making up for that is individual effort. You really have to exert the effort to learn, to find mentors, to get good information. Without this dedication to correct information, there will always be something to doubt about. And I hate that.

I come back to work with a ton at on desk and without a LAN cable. Crap. Wish me luck.

They found it!

2008-07-01T02:33:00.000-07:00

Yes! They found my lost receipt! St. Luke's admits they did something wrong!

That's it. I knew I gave my receipt to them. Ha ha.

I'm going to sleep. I need rest.

I've got a lot of catching up to do.

Error theory

2008-06-30T06:18:00.001-07:00

Bambling...I'm just taking down my line of thought.

I have a theory.

In a perfect world, people would commit no mistakes. Mistakes / errors / wrongdoings are indicators of imperfection. The more mistakes / errors / wrongdoings are committed in the world, the more imperfect our world becomes.

However, this isn't a perfect world, and people do commit mistakes, regardless of their intent or will. As such, what matters should be the fact that people tolerate mistakes / errors / wrongdoings to certain degree. If people don't tolerate errors, and imperfection, they exert the effort to correct it and return the error to its original state. However, if they do tolerate mistakes, people tend to want an equal value exchanged to them for the wrong to let it pass.

This is where justice comes in. It is the courts that decide the equivalent value for a wrong that is done. The punishment, is the equivalent for the wrong. And because of the punishment, the wrong is made up for (at least in the eyes of government)...

I'm unsure of the term...error tolerance maybe? We tolerate errors and wrongdoings to some degree, letting them pass (for now at least) because we deem them too troublesome to worry about. But maybe they are... If we all took responsibility for wrongdoings done, and exert the effort to introduce corrective action, we might be better off.

It would be good therefore to quantify what kind of errors, how big, and how often individuals let pass. This indicator would be a number signifying how a person would react to a mistake with which he is involved. This indicator could then be averaged through a nation to get a national error tolerance quotient.

If we are able to quantify how tolerant people are of wrong, I think we might get a correlation as to how developed countries are, compared to the developing or third world countries. I'd think people in the first world are less tolerant of errors, while people in the third world, let wrongdoings slide a lot more.

Maybe someone could devise an Error Tolerance Quotient per country and then correlate it with per capita income. They could also correlate it with incidences and scale of corruption and theft in government. They could correlate it with a multitude of cultural, political, and economic indices, and I think they'd find relationships. I'd think the Philippines would rank high on the countries with high Error Tolerance.

Filipinos talk a lot. But we let MOST of it slide.

Just a thought.

Error theory

2008-06-30T06:18:00.000-07:00

Not hepa, not tumor, not mistakes

2008-06-30T01:13:00.000-07:00

Okay. So it seems, I don't have Hepa, and I don't have a liver tumor, or anything like that. Wohoo!! I still have a liver problem though and I don't know what it is. Hopefully it's just another symptom of dengue that would resolve itself over the week.

I asked my boss to let me stay in Manila for another week just to complete the tests. I'm not sure though if he'll let me. It's hard, having a medical condition and working in a far away place. It's like being in limbo, being frustrated not knowing where to go and what to do. Your meds are in Manila but you need to be in Albay to work. Haha. Crap.

Anyway, I was pissed off at St. Lukes when I took my lab results. I had given my receipt and prescription to the person at the counter. After 15 minutes of waiting and seeing people who gave their receipts after I did get their results, I went back to the window to follow up. The same person who took my receipt suddenly says that he didn't get my receipt. Crap.

He then tried to make me write a lost receipt request form when it was his responsibility to fix the situation. I told him that I would not write a lost receipt request because I had given him my receipt, and that that was his burden. It took them an hour of scrambling and running around to tell me that they would look for my receipt, and that they are sorry for losing it. Crap. An hour lost just because someone made a small mistake. It would have been better if at the onset they had apologized and claimed responsiblity, but it took them an hour of random babbling.

So back to my previous blog's question. How much mistakes can we tolerate? When do we tolerate a wrong that was done to us? Or do we really need to make a mistake to learn?

I tolerated this one, I didn't file a formal complaint or talked to a Customer Care Officer. I let them deal with the mistake internally, within their department. I did that because the department head talked to me quite sincerely. So I guess, I tolerated the wrong because there was an apology. So as along as there's a sincere apology, it's okay?

There's a sense of justice being served when wrongs / mistakes are made and are then made up for.

I suppose...Justice is complex. Lawyers should answer this question. How much wrong can we tolerate? How much wrong SHOULD we tolerate?

It seems...

2008-06-29T04:42:00.000-07:00

It seems my problems are just starting. Haha.

Dengue did something wrong with my liver (if it was dengue that gave me fever and made my platelet count drop). My SGPT number is rising. Haha. I had to take an ultrasound this morning to have my liver checked. It was interesting, getting an ultrasound... especially when the technician seems to have lost your pancreas..hahaha... Ruling out other problems takes some time.... which is what I am running out of to do my work. Huhu.

I'll try to report for work tomorrow. I feel fine. I don't feel anything's wrong with me, except maybe some lose stuff in my head, but other than that, I'm okay... I'll just have to get the clearance of our company doctor. But knowing how we operate...where the safety of our employees is of the highest priority, our doc might not let me back in. Huhu.

Anyway, that's that. I'll deal with that tomorrow.

We went to mass today at UP. Father Jboy was celebrating, and he did good job as usual. Hehe. He asked a question at the end of his homily which made me think a bit about when we commit mistakes.

We all make mistakes...and it's in how we manage our wrongdoings that we see the quality of each person. But as a society, how far can we tolerate mistakes in order to develop individuals? They say committing a mistake is the best way to learn. But how wrong can we get before we know that it's really wrong? How much wrong do we have to commit before we know what's right?

I mean, are young doctors (with their surgical tools) allowed to make mistakes? Ooooh that's your pancreas I'm sorry, I thought it was your appendix...

How tolerant are we of people committing mistakes? In the Philippines, the land of the non-appreciative and hard-to-please, can we take a couple of mistakes here and there? Is it okay to be wrong, here...?

I dunno the answer, just something to think about. Haha.

That's it. It seems I'm getting sleepy.

Another blog hiatus

2008-06-22T03:15:00.000-07:00

Haha.

I got Dengue. I spent the entire week last week at St. Lukes...hence my week long blog hiatus. Good thing I got out Friday in time to watch the UP Centennial Pamantasang Hirang at CCP... Chot was part of the production, as a UP binibini hehe...

It was amazing! You can't help but be proud of being an alumnus of the greatest university this country has ever built. Hehe. This is just a reminder though of the problems at hand, that have been laid out for us iskolars ng bayan to give time to and solve.

I can't go back to work though, my doctor was keen on pointing out for me to get another week's rest.

So I'm resting. Lying in bed all week. Haha. And spending all this time at home is really dangerous haha...I'm seeing all that I'm missing when I'm away at work...

If I were to take grad studies, I'm still split between taking up MS in Energy Engineering, or Law. Watcha think? Haha...

I already have a thesis idea for the MS. In the next 5 to 10 years, a lawyer specializing in Energy Law, would make a whole lot of money. Understanding the mechanisms of the sale of electricity and drawing up the contracts for that....is one hell of a gold mine... Hahahaha.... Maybe both.

Lying in my bed all weekend...and human sigma

2008-06-13T16:21:00.000-07:00

Haha. I'm just about three fourths of the way into this book and it is just amazing. Even though I'm technically not in a service industry like banks, hospitals or hotels, I can find many parallelisms enough to justify applying human sigma in our own workplace. I guess a key take-away for me at this point is that employee engagement is important. If an empoyee is not engaged, he would grow tired of the company and resign.

Anyway...I'm sick. I really felt the effects of Friday the 13th yesterday. I left Evercrest around 7:15 in the morning and arrived at Manila Hotel for my oathtaking around 9:30. My mom arrived around 11:00 to give my my barong tagalog but couldn't stay because my sister was sick. I didn't giver her my bag because I thought she would be hanging around and I would be able to leave my bag with them after parking. So I had to carry 3 days worth of luggage and clothing, not to mention my laptop and my work materials, while wearing a barong tagalog. Oh man. The oathtaking started but didn't serve the food until 3:30 pm. I had breakfast at 6:30 in the morning. Haha. Then after the oath taking I had to wait for my dad to finish his meeting until 7:15pm. I got home around 8:30, which was nother 5 hour wait for dinner. Crap. By that time I had hyperacidity and was feverish. Hahaha...

So I'm just lying in bed all weekend.

Tired, but Good Burger's really Good

2008-06-10T23:10:00.000-07:00

I'm tired. I need a long vacation. I'm still at the office doing my presentation for tomorrow's FE coordination meeting. After the oathtaking this Friday, I'll just sleep and sleep over the weekend. I need sleep. I want to wake-up of my own accord, and not the to the shriek of the alarm clock. Huhuhu...

Rest is important. When you're working and you're rigorously exercising your brain cells on a daily basis, an hour's rest goes a long way. I need a break...

There's this burger place along C5 Ave. just about across Tiendesitas, near the popular restaurant Mom and Tina's and San Jacinto. It's called Good Burger, and with good reason. They may have the best non-beef burgers I've ever tried. They have vegetarian and chicken patties that are just great, not to mention healthier than your average fast food burger. Chot and I have found ourselves wandering to Good Burger quite a number of times now. Since they only have a small stand (without an eating area), they're kind enough to let you wait in your car, and serve your burger there. Anyway, you should try to know how good the good burgers really are..he he..

So I was able to list down a good presentaiton outline just now. Even doing a blog entry's an effective short break. Haha. I want a good burger.

Why is Philippine Electricity Expensive?

2008-06-05T10:25:00.000-07:00

80% - Part of the country's total electricity demand that is under the franchise area of Meralco.

19% - Part of the country's total installed generation capacity that is owned, or partly owned by companies owned or partly owned by the Lopezes as of their most recent power plant procurement.

Electricity is a very complex product to sell; you have to use it AT THE SAME TIME you make it. You cannot store whatever is the excess, you cannot put it in a box and save it for later. You also cannot transport it like other manufactured goods. But you have to make it, and you have to get it to those who want to buy it, because today, we live in an electric world.

Due to these complexities of electricity as a product, it was natural to sell it through a regulated monopoly. A monopoly would ensure that generation is the most efficient it could be, and regulated so it's price wouldn't be too steep. NAPOCOR took this role of generation giant. NAPOCOR also essentially bankrupted the Philippine Government. If there's a starting point to all the chaos in the energy industry right now, it's the mess that the managers of NAPOCOR made, in terms of managing their finances. They're corrupt as hell but we cannot pinpoint anyone because they are good at what they do.

Imagine who IS PAYING FOR the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, for all the built capacity that had no transmission lines, for all the contracts that were unutilized...Us. We are paying for NAPOCOR's management mistakes during the 90's. All the mistakes in decision making as far as what is and is not allowed in contracting Independent Power Producers, was all done and decided BEFORE EPIRA was passed.

Whoops. Gotta get ready to move. I'll finish this later..Maybe do some thought-organizing too.

Early Morning

2008-06-05T10:00:00.000-07:00

It's 4:51 in the morning and I'm up and about in the office trying to clean up my stuff. We're leaving in an hour for the airport and I've hid most of my things, I think....Everything's new... Our office is getting a new layout, I'm getting a new laptop, maybe I should get a new cellphone...ha ha...Wala lang. I got bored.

So Hillary is finally backing out of the race. I guess that's that. Maybe Obama will do bring something new, and he deserves a chance anyway, seeing he's already got the nomination.

I'll be in Manila the entire week next week...Wohoo! Or at least until Thursday. I'm not sure what happened to the CS Training planning....maybe I should follow that up, it's going to be in two weeks.

I haven't written the first energy blog. Maybe I'll do that now. Haha.

Hitchhikers at night

2008-05-29T23:38:00.000-07:00

Thursday night me and my officemates went to Bar 101 in Legaspi for our weekly billiards game. Haha. I was making really cool shots...hehehe... lakas tsumamba hahahaha...

Anyway Legaspi is about 45 minutes south west of Tiwi, which is where I work. Typical of rural areas, there are long stretches of road in between town centers where there is no sign of civilization. Just trees lining the road for a few kilometers or so. It was in one such place that I saw something....

I saw it from a distance, just as a white shade. We were on a hill against a steep incline, with forest on both sides of the road.. I knew something was weird the instant I saw the figure. At first it seemed to be taking form. When we got closer it seemed to have fully materialized. I recognized a man wearing shorts and a white shirt. I told my officemate, who was driving, "Tignan nyo yan o nakakatakot..." He didn't say anything. We were in the middle of nowhere, with our car as the only source of light. If we turned our lights off at the time it would have been pitch dark.

As we got closer, I noticed that he was muddy, or even bloodied. There was a lot of brownish stuff on his face, and on his shirt, on his arms. When we passed by him, he tried to flag us down, in an eerily slow way. He looked as if he was trying to get a ride, but was too weak to do it with full gusto. He even followed our car with his eyes.

Just after we passed, I asked my officemate again if he saw.. He said he didn't. Haha.

He was driving the car. Nothing about that stretch of road was notable, there was nothing to see. If he was a good driver (as we think he is), he would have noticed all dangers along the road, including anyone who's trying to hitch a ride.

Haha. Freaky.

Electricity Prices 1

2008-05-26T23:54:00.000-07:00

As promised, I'll start posting EE related stuff on my blog from now on. Hahaha...

I'm in the business of making energy. I need to be in the dirt as far as issues and discussions in the energy industry goes. So I'll be posting EE and energy industry related blogs henceforth. Haha.

Electricity is such an important part of society that much until now we have ignored. No one really cares how electricity is produced, how it gets to their sockets, why the hell an electric fan turns. People have learned to just plug it in and expect whatever they plugged in to work. It's something we've taken for granted as something that's simply a given.

That has changed. People are beginning to realize electricity isn't going to be there all the time, that it doesn't have an infinite supply. The fact that electricity prices are going up is proof that supply is catching up with demand. People have started complaining because the thing that they took for granted was becoming something that they had to worry about. And worry they should.

As an electrical engineer (haha) it's nice actually, for my industry to get some attention and mileage. Hopefully at the end of it all, we'll be a more responsible people as far as electricity and energ policy goes, especially in making choices as to who we allow to make, and bring electricity to our businesses and homes.

The ultimate question: Despite the EPIRA law that was passed in 2001, why are electricity prices in the Philippines, still the highest in Asia?

Ha ha. This is one hard question to answer. So I won't try to give one, I'll just brush through the issues and points that many people have made in an effort to make sense of everything. There are many subtopics that we have to understand even before we can try to answer this question. By the end of this blog series, I'll probably have enough material to write a book. So maybe that's my end goal. Write a book.....hmmm...something to make money out of...maybe I shouldn't post this stuff online...hmmm....

CS Training

2008-05-26T23:03:00.000-07:00

I've had a good week-start. Hehe. I've gotten through most of what I outlined I'd finish by the weekend. I've some time to plan stuff like...a CS Training...hahaha...

Seriously, I'm excited about the CS training. There are rare times that I get to enjoy the company of old friends. I'm even excited about planning the CS training. I haven't had a nice old collegiate group-activity the last year and I just can't wait to participate.

I dunno. I like sharing knowledge. I like learning through discussion, sharing ideas, debating, arguing and fighting for personal truths, scientific theories, political ideologies...it's fun. And the most fulfilling of it all is being able to influence, making someone realize the truth not through a direct passing of knowledge, but through providing guidance. It's just nudging points of info here and there so the person can arrive at the conclusion by his own logic.

At least that's what I think training new cell supervisors should be. hehe...can't wait.

On other news. I lost the camera bag we use...huhuhu...I have to get a new one...

I bought a keyboard. Haha. I thought I'd practice here late at night. I couldn't remember my old pieces anymore. Hahaha....

Rainy season's started. Our flights are getting freakier. Huhuhu. Yesterday our plane just kept shaking during the first 15 minutes of the flight.

I want to go jogging but it's raining. Huhu. Maybe later when the rain's stopped.

I'm just mumbling now. I'm a little sleepy actually.

Oath taking for new REEs scheduled June 13. Haha. I might have to skip the second day of our department meeting.

There's so much hullabaloo right now bout the energy industry. Why is the cost of electricity so high in this country? This should be a different blog post...hahaha....

Fireworks, and Lines

2008-05-24T18:08:00.000-07:00

Wohoo...Chot and I (with her two sisters) got to watch the second display at the World PyroOlympics last night. That was fun. Hehe. I've gone to see the show 3 years in a row. The final barrage of fireworks was just massive; I think probably around 30 shells were up in the air.

If I weren't an electrical engineer, I'd be...

1. Pilot
2. Psychologist
3. Physicist
4. Pyro-technician....

Hehehe.. Blowing stuff up just seems a fun thing to do...

Friday I went to the Professional Regulatory Commission to finally finally register as an REE. Haha.

This is the process:
1. Get the form, fill it up and complete the requirements
2. Buy two documentary stamps at Window J.
3. Line up at the validation counter (window 14)
4. Pay the amount indicated (window 15)
5. Fill-up the registry and sign (window 20)

It's fairly simple, so it should have been fairly easy. But the place was cramped, it was humid and hot, and people were irritated and cranky. They'd bump up against each other and push one another to get through; that's quite typical for a Filipino. It seems being first is a classic Filipino trait. Hahaha..

It was a learning experience. There was a woman, probably an employee of the PRC, who tried organizing the lines. She tried ordering us to line up properly, to learn to give way, to be professionals because we were. She did try.

And we did try. We tried, half-heartedly, to fix the lines, be a little more organized. People at the back kept mumbling and grumbling that the people at the front shouldn't be at the front; while those at the front just kept quiet, talking among themselves, enjoying their front-runner status. Hahaha.

It was a microcosm of Filipino society. Everyone wanted to be in the front. Those at the back of the line all think that those at the front cheated their way. Those at the front didn't care. An authority tried to fix things, but that never worked. People kept mumbling, they all had something to say.

Haha. Dunno. This was at the PRC. If our supposed "professionals," the studied, the educated, the respectable, can't get along, then how can we expect the rest to do so? Everything's just funny. Haha.

Updates

2008-05-13T00:05:00.000-07:00

I'm waiting for my online fitness mentor, who's half a world away but still able to manage my health, for our scheduled appointment and I am bored.

Haha. Last Saturday was Santacruzan in Araneta Center, naturally Chot and the other winners were part of the entourage. Chot's escort (who wasn't me...) was a boy who kept his head down throughout the parade.

I realized I needed my own SLR. We have one but it's not technically my own. Haha. I'll have to invest in a handy D40/D60 within the next year or so...it depends...

It's raining quite heavily now. I'm just a few meters from where I live but I'll get soaked once I cross...

By the end of this year, I should be able to :

1. Go to Macau...

2. Watch Ms. International...

3. Buy either a nice and big flatscreen TV / a DSLR / or a PSP...

4. Start a Business / or Invest in stocks / find more income sources...

5. Have a nice overnight poker / videoke / jamming party at home to do some catching up with old friends...

6. Take the oath and get my license to practice my profession...

7. Do some volunteer work / join a choir (again)...

...I'll fill this in later... my phone's ringing...

Tinatanggap Kita Pagkat Ika'y Ikaw.

2008-04-27T05:22:00.000-07:00

Just came back from our company annual sportsfest somewhere around Taal Lake. Hehe. The place was really nice with quite an unusual view of the volcano.

I hurt all over...but I really enjoyed the games. I just hated having to use a teaspoon to transfer 3 liters of water. It took about 45 minutes for 9 people with a teaspoon each to fill what we needed. After 5 minutes of shuttling water with a teaspoon it wasn't fun anymore...

........

On a more serious note, the interfield really helped me understand the concept of diversity. It's being able to accept people whoever they are. In UPSCA we were always taught the message of acceptance, rooted on the fact that people are inherently good.

I was reminded, this past weekend, of how it is to be an UPSCAn, that we have to let all of our prejudices aside. We mustn't associate a person's behavior with his value as a person, because we all have inherent value. Whatever behavior that isn't the norm shouldn't be taken against the person. Even in the case of sin (which is an observed action / behavior), it's association with the person must be limited only to what was done, not on what is going to be done. Behavioral differences are such small things from this perspective.

It maybe naive. But I just have to trust that this is the case. God does find ways to remind us and He did remind me.

A month later

2008-04-18T05:27:00.000-07:00

It's been a month later and I've basically forgotten to update my blog. So much has happened...Hahaha..

I dunno. I guess I have to somehow re-start posting. I don't even know what to write about.

And i have a new policy. I'll be posting my new logs only for people I know. It just seems safer, and more logical that way. I've seen how people treat things that are available to the public so, I'd rather keep everything in my blog to people I already know. I wouldn't want anyone I don't know using any of my pictures or taking any of my writing.

I'll do that in the morning though.

I have a great idea. I hope I can make it work. I just need it to work. Please work. Haha..

I'm getting better at presentations though. I gave a quick presentation of a short project yesterday and got good feedback about my skills. It would have been great though if I had a chance to see myself present. One of our managers suggested that we video the presentations so we could get an idea of how we handle the situation, but that didn't push through. Oh well.

I guess that's enough for starters. I'll try to post electrical engineering related stuff in the future, so this blog could have something useful for a change. Review the things I should already know. Project TiwEE Afternoons.

Hehe.

A Great Many Thanks!

2008-03-12T02:40:00.000-07:00

Binibining Pilipinas - International

To all of you who voted through text, watched on TV, prayed, spread the news, invited people to watch, and helped find support...

To those who went to Araneta Center, screamed, shouted, held the tarpaulins up, to Donna, Anna, Lady, Angel, Bernie, Igi, Lei, Ces, Donna, Carlo, Anj, Diana, Pau, Tanya, Dean, Ron, Josiah, Roy, Renee, Maui, Menandro, Bananie, Juliet, Jamie, BJ, Rica, and Nathan, among about 75 people who cheered and lost their voice, who jumped at the announcement, and waited for a few hours after...

To those who continuously believed Chot could do it!

A Great Many Thanks!

Binibining Pilipinas Manila Bulletin Text Voting

2008-03-06T02:25:00.000-08:00

Manila Bulleting has began text voting for the MB People's Choice Award!

Here's how to Vote:

1. Type MB space POLL space BB space CANDIDATE# Name/Address/Age

So it should look like this
MB POLL B 2 Jaafgie Garcia/QC/22

2. Send to 2369 for GLOBE or 6800 for SMART

3. You should receive a confirmation text that your vote has been counted.

Chot's number is 2!

Keep voting!

Another round of text voting for SMART's Texter's Choice Award which is a shoo in for Top Ten so its would be great if Chot got both. Hehehehe!!!

Thanks!

More Tickets!!!

2008-03-04T08:41:00.000-08:00

Wohoo! I've matched all the 60 tickets that I have to people! Wohoo!

But that's no problem. I can still get more tickets. So please if you want to show your support for Chot this March 8, just tell me and I'll get tickets for you! Wohoo!

Again, to those who have already confirmed their tickets, please inform me of how you're going to get your ticket from me so we can plan the day on March 8!

Binibining Pilipinas Day Plan

2008-03-03T00:55:00.000-08:00

Hi Guys!

If you want to get your tickets before March 8, I'll be back in Manila by Wednesday, March 5. However, I'll be attending a conference March 6 and 7 so I'll be unavailable during the day. I can pass by anywhere along C5 / EDSA to deliver tickets. I can also pass by UP on my way home to get tickets to you. So, just inform me if you want to get your tickets before hand.

One reason why you might want to get your tickets from me, is that I'll be going to Araneta quite early. Apparently, you need to be rather early to get good seats. So, let's be early. The gates open 2 hours before the pageant starts, which is at 8:00. We can get in around 6:00. But people start getting there around 3:00. So I'l be at Araneta around 2:30-3:00 pm. You can get your tickets there. Might be a good idea to bring mats/chairs to sit on while waiting. Hehehe. I'm sure we can think of something to do.

So, if you need transport to Araneta, I'll pass by UP around 1:00 that day, at UPSCA tambayan/SPECA Tambayan/EEE. I can accomodate as much as 15 people in my van. If more people need transport from UP, I can shuttle back while the first batch hold our position in the line. hehehe. My target is that I'll be at Araneta by 3:00.

We don't have the really expensive tickets so we'll have to make do with what we've got. At any rate, we need to be able to contact each other so that we can be bunched together and be a more effective cheering section. I'll also be distributing some tarps and banners.

You can contact me at 09175375819. If you have questions about how to get your tickets from me, just text / call me here. I already have the tickets on-hand so just inform me of how you intend to get them.

By the way as of this writing, I have 50 Upper B Tickets, only 30-something of which have owners. If you have friends who are interested in watching, just contact me and we can give discounts to the price. Hehe.

After the pageant, I can bring people back to UP. Those in the QC area I can accomodate. Those outside QC along C5 route I can try to accomodate.

So, here's the day plan:

12:30-1:00 Transit to UP

1:00-1:15 UPSCA Tambayan Pick up

1:15-1:30 SPECA Pick up

1:30-1:45 EEE Pick up

1:45-2:15 Transit to Araneta Center

2:15-6:00 Depends. Shuttle Back to UP if needed. Distribute Tickets while waiting. Play Snake.

6:00-12:00 Watch Chot's Coronation! =)

12:-00-2:00 After Party! Go home...Going home is the easy part.

Okay. So it seems Friday night will be a long night for me. But that's okay. Basta anjan tayong lahat for Chot. Hehe. And keep on praying!

Please Confirm You Tickets

2008-03-02T04:48:00.000-08:00

Upper Box A
1. Mom - ok
2. Dad - ok
3. Jae - ok
4. Lola - ok
5. Tita Maan - ok
6. Tito Gerc - ok
7. Geboy - ok
8. Biton - ok
9. Ag - ok
10. Gian - ok

Upper Box B

UPSCANS
Donna - 1
Anna - 2 ok
Lady - 3 ok
Angel - 4 ok
Angel's Friend ABS CBN Cameraman - 5 ok
Angel's Friend -6 ok
Cath - 7
Nica - 8
Angeli - 9
July - 10

St. Paul Friends
Donna - 11
Carlo - 12
Anj - 13
Diana - 14

EEE Friends
Pau - 15 ok
Tanya - 16 ok
Dean - 17 ok
Ron - 18 ok
Josiah - 19 ok
Wilson - 20 ok
Roy - 21 ok

Ilang Dorm Mates
Djana - 22
Shane - 23

HSBC Officemates
Renee - 24
Mau - 25

Chot's Pictures!

2008-02-29T23:56:00.000-08:00

Just some of Chot's pictures during Binibining Pilipinas 2008 events over the last 2 weeks. Guys, tickets are seriously running out, I've reserved enough for the following plus a bit. So guys, please we still need more people hehehehe..So if you're interested I'll do my best to get some tickets for you. So, just text me.

Donna B.
Yas
Anna
Lady
Angel
Angel's Friend
Diana
Shane
Donna
Carlo
Anj
Diana
Pau
Tanya
Dean
Ron
Josiah
Wilson
Roy
Cathy
Aya
Josiah
Jae
Mom
Tita Maan
Tito Gerc
Geboy
Biton
Gian
AG
Cath
Nica
Angeli
July

Pictures courtesy of OPMB. But this site is full of pageant enthusiasts and beauty "experts" who have pre-judged the pageant before it even takes place, so I suggest you restrict your visits, if only to look at the great pictures. Hehehe.

Tickets for Binibini 2

2008-02-25T09:18:00.000-08:00

I've reserved 20 Upper Box B Tickets for:

1. Anna
2. Lady
3. Diana
4. Shane

5. Donna
6. Carlo
7. Anj
8. Diana

9. Pau
10. Tanya
11. Dean
12. Ron

13. Cathy
14. Aya
15. Extra
16. Extra

17. Jae
18. Mom

19. Me (Hahaha was about to order tickets for everyone else without getting one for myself)
20. Extra

Anyway, if you still want to join us, just text me at my old number.

Binibining Pilipinas 08

2008-02-21T03:58:00.000-08:00

Binibining Pilipinas 08

2008-02-21T03:55:00.000-08:00

Tickets for Binibining Pilipinas 2008

2008-02-17T04:11:00.000-08:00

Tickets for Binibining Pilipinas 2008 are now available at Ticketnet.com.ph! You can reserve your tickets online. Coordinate with me if you intend to go so we can take one long row at the Gen. Admission area, or Upper Box B, jointly. You can contact me at my old cellphone number (Haven't changed since high school.) If you want me to reserve you a ticket just leave a message down below. I've already reserved 20 Gen. Ad tickets. If you're interested tell me soon. Hehe.

Seat Location	Price
Patron VIP (1st 5 rows 101 & 103) (Reserved Seating)	5250
Patron (Reserved Seating)	1313
Lower Box (Reserved Seating)	1313
Upper Box A (Free Seating)	630
Upper Box B (Free Seating)	315
Gen. Admission (Free Seating)	105

Chot is Joining Binibining Pilipinas 2008

2008-02-12T00:50:00.000-08:00

Guys, Chot is joining Binibining Pilipinas 2008. Here's a link to a video of the press presentation yesterday on GMA 7's website. She was interviewed with 3 others, the early press favorites. Check it out! I'll post the video on my multiply blog once I know how. Haha.

http://www.gmanews.tv/video/18001/Bb-Pilipinas-candidates-parade-on-ramp

The pageant night is on March 8, 2008! Let's watch and give her our support! Hehe. If you're interested, just contact me and I'll coordinate getting the tickets for you. It will be at the Araneta Center, around 7:00 p.m. Send me a message if you don't know my number.

Stuff to do..

2008-01-22T00:45:00.000-08:00

Okay. So I've got a ton of stuff to do at work.. Huhuhu..Just took a quick break to take a look at my blog and my personal email.

Am tired anyway.. I have to have my blood taken tomorrow. Owel. Can't eat anything for breakfast.

Just a follow-up to my walking to town story, the week after the old woman followed me and I got sick, I went to town again with some colleagues. We decided to have some great DJC halo-halo and look for Pili nuts after. When we crossed the town square towards the church plaza, the old woman was there again, following our group. Then when we got into our vehicle, she looked at me, walked over to the back of the car (probably to look at the plate number), then went back to the front again. It was freaky. Good thing I didn't get sick afterwards.

On more serious things, Lilowy, I will always be proud of you, for having the courage to do something most people would't even think of doing. So, just enjoy the ride. =)

I Walked to Town 2

2008-01-12T03:43:00.000-08:00

Creepy.

I enjoy walking town. I just hate it when weird things happen so the things I like doing, become things I don't like doing.

I walked to town again. I was enjoying it, listening to my fave's playlist and getting to know the town and the people. I was already at the plaza of the church when someone called me about work. Anyway during the call, this old woman was slowly approaching me. She had a towel on her shoulder and was carrying a small messenger bag. She kept mumbling things I couldn't understand. She was mumbling. I though she was just some crazy woman. She didn't seem dangerous.

I went into the Church, and took a few moments to pray. The old woman followed me, sat behind the pew where I was and continued mumbling.

I got up, a little worried, thinking about what to do with the mumbling crazy old lady.

She got up too, and as I was exiting my pew, she was already behind me.

I walked faster to the convenience store across the road to the right.

She walked faster and her mumbling went faster and louder.

As I was lining up to pay for my things she disappeared.

I took a few moments to sit in the park. I tried to look for her but she was gone.

I decided I didn't need to walk so I took a tribike.

I got back to the basecamp around 6:30 p.m. I had dinner with my housemates around that time.

Around 7:30 I felt that my head was getting heavy.

Around 8:30 I had a fever.

Around 9:00 I decided I needed to be examined by someone qualified.

I went to the clinic, and they took my temperature at 39 deg C.

Nausog daw ako

I like walking to town. But not I'd rather not. Hahaha.

I Walked to Town

2008-01-08T22:43:00.000-08:00

I walked to the town center today. Hehe. It was fun. I wanted to jog but the cellphone and the iPod in my pocket kept pulling my shorts down each step. Haha. I caught up with half a mass in the church. All of it was said in Bikol, so I used up most of the time trying to figure out the meanings of the words in the prayers that I knew.

Anyway, it was fun.

NASUNOG NARRA DORMITORY!!! Whahaha. Owel.

I missed the torch lightning ceremony and grand fireworks display of the UP Centennial. Owel.

I saw Fr. Jboy in Legazpi airport last week! Hehe.

Adobo and Munggo are really good together.

The Story of Jessie Bass

2008-01-06T23:53:00.000-08:00

The Story of Jessie Bass
25 December 1953 – 17 November 2007

Mid morning of 16 November 2007, complaining of stomach pains, Jesus (Jessie) V. Bass (53) walked into the St. Luke’s Medical Center so he can get the best possible health care.

Jessie was attended to and examined by Dr. Edgardo M. Bondoc who diagnosed him for acute appendicitis. Nonetheless, Dr. Bondoc did not refer Jessie, nor called the attention of any surgeon. In fact, Dr. Bondoc advised Jessie to go home and be an out-patient.

Jessie, however, worried about his condition, opted to be confined at the world-class medical center convinced he would be given the necessary attention. He was alone then, as his entire immediate family lived in the United States . Upon confinement, Dr. Bondoc ordered an emergency contrasting CT Scan to rule out “possible gastro intestinal infectious diseases”. Jessie, however, waited until 7 pm before he was wheeled in for scanning. This was postponed due to alleged chills, fever and elevated blood pressure.

Finally, at 11:55 pm, Jessie’s scan proceeded.

Ten minutes after injecting Jessie with a test dose of the contrast dye, Optiray, a team composed of radiology technicians and 1st year Radiology resident, Dr. Gilbert N. Sy, administered the full dosage. The CT Scan followed.

Jessie was pronounced dead at 1:20 am, November 17, 2007, on the 64-slice CT Scan table - one of the most modern equipment of this world-class medical center. The National Bureau of Investigation’s official autopsy confirmed Jessie had an inflamed appendicitis.

In a fact finding meeting on 14 December 2007, Dr. Joven R. Cuanang, Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs, confirmed that the Medical Center did not have the ideal staffing at the CT Scan Unit at such unholy hour, with the most senior personnel being only a 2nd year Radiology Resident, Dr. Miguel B. Zamora.

It was noted that St. Luke’s Medical Center and the inexperienced junior team did not follow the important precautions that the OPTIRAY manufacturer indicated for its use :
a) personnel competent in recognizing and treating adverse reactions of all types should always be available; and

b) the possibility of a reaction, including serious, life-threatening, fatal, anaphylactoid or cardiovascular reactions, should always be considered.

It was further noted that the CT Scan plates recorded a time fixed at 00:03:42 while the Radiology Unit’s incident report indicated that Jessie was given the full bolus dose at 12:15 am, and got through with the procedure 10 to 15 seconds after. How soon after the “Code Red” team responded to give him the anti-dote was never accurately determined.

The presence of such inexperienced junior staff, Dr. Sy, only a 1st year Radiology resident, with two radiology technicians, was one main reason for the wrong diagnosis of what was happening to Jessie when he was wheeled out of the CT Scan gantry gasping for air...

Not recognizing the severity of the allergic reaction to the contrast material, the technicians even tried to question the patient before calling in a resident.

Dr. Sy admitted on 19 November 2007 that he turned Jessie on his side, thinking Jessie was trying to vomit. On subsequent formal meetings, however, Dr. Sy denied his initial admission.

There was, therefore, a critical gap caused by the lack of a full experienced team, and the diagnosis of an inexperienced staff that resulted in the loss of precious time to inject the needed anti-dote, and to immediately resuscitate him to effect a reversal of the adverse reaction.

Despite their subsequent claims of following protocol, or maybe because of its strict observance by young inexperienced staff, it was too late when “Code Red” was called and the first dose of anti-dote given.

Jessie, whose death on the table of one of the most modern CT Scan equipment available for medical practitioners in the Philippines , should be the first and the last to be sacrificed for the sake of many more seeking similar medical assistance, especially at the famed world class, and Joint Commission International accredited St. Luke’s Medical Center .

Unfortunately, despite the above factual incidents, the St. Luke’s Medical Center claims that it did its best and has denied any responsibility whatsoever on Jessie’s death.

NOTE: Please share and email Jessie.vbass@yahoo.com if you, your relatives or friends have a similar experience with St. Luke’s Medical Center , its doctors and staff, or with other hospitals and medical

Vacation Mode!!!

2007-12-19T22:54:00.000-08:00

I wann go home!! I'm going home tomorrow! Wohoo!

Happy Birthday to my dad!

I miss my Lilowy.

Home!

Watch a movie!

PA and learnings on life

2007-12-19T04:07:00.000-08:00

Yey! My PA is done.

Dunno. I feel that I have met most of my performance objectives for the six months that I have been working. But doing the PA got me thinking a lot about the kind of world that we live in.

It's really a man versus man kind of world. We're measured up against our peers - regardless of where you're working, people will have that natural tendency to compare. And they just can't help but compare, because when we know that there is an alternative, there is always lost opportunity in not pursuing that alternative.

So we do performance assessments. Others get promoted faster than others. It is clear to us those who excel and those who don't.

Not that I don't like the way it is. It's a great way to reward individual contributions. I'm just saying people are motivated by individual needs, instead of communal needs. Is there a way to unify individual desires to the desires of civilization? Is it possible to equate individual success to community success? In the current set-up, this is wholly dependent on how the successful individual decides to share his successes.

Take the Star Trek universe. Money and the individualistic pursuit of success are trivial. Individual actions are directed towards communal goals, and people are driven, not by individual gain, but by the recognition of the fact that in the long run, it is not individual success that matters, but the achievements of their time in history.

How did it come to be that our culture's definition of success is individualistic, and not communal? Why can't we define our successes as a civilization, as a group? Why is there such emphasis on empowering individuals, when doing so creates inequality?

Just a couple of questions to think about:

1. Can Civilization exist without money?

2. Can Civilization manage to support a social structure that is ultimately communal, and with shared resources, but can manage to reward individual contribution?

3. Can we convince people to think beyond their needs and look at what we can achieve as a civilization?

I just feel that there is a need to re-think the current world order. Capitalism does have its perks for people who perform well in their studies and in their careers. But if we can convince people to study and to achieve not because they (the individual) can get something out of it, but because everybody (society) can get something out of it, then wouldn't that be better?

South Road Trip

2007-12-12T23:50:00.000-08:00

Just kidding. Last Monday I got up around 3 to be picked up around 4 to check-in at the airport by 5:45. We're supposed to board the plane around 6:30. Come 6:30 they announce our flight is delayed up to 8 so we'll have to wait til then for more announcements. Around 8:15 they asked us to board the plane. We sat in the plane for 45 minutes or so, only to hear the cancellation announcment. Huhuhu.

So, around lunch time we went back to report to our Makati office to find other means of getting to Bicol. Apparently the next 4 flights, either Cebu Pacific or PAL were booked. So, we decided to take the Cagsawa Royale Class bus from Cubao to Tabaco, which leaves QC around 5:30 in the afternoon. We had to be in Cubao by 4 to keep the reservation, so we had to leave Makati around 3:00.

Wohoo! I was excited. It was my first time to take the South Road to work.

But it turned out to be quite boring. Haha. My cellphone fell into my seat 4 fours into the trip. I kept trying to reach under my seat to pick it up but the bus was moving so fast I got so dizzy I gave up. Hahaha.

Safety first! The Cagsawa lines Royale Class buses have seatbelts! They are greatly recommended if you decide to take the south road to Bicol.

We stopped at a Chowking in Quezon and I think a Minas Restaurant somewhere in Camarines Sur. At least I could add a few more provinces and places to my "Been To" list, except, I didn't really see anything. Hahaha. I've been all over the island of Luzon! The last few provinces that I haven't been to would be Sorsogon, Aurora, that's it. Everywhere else in Luzon I have been to. Wohoo!

My week has been really really really busy. I've been wrapping up on my project's year end activities, checking, re-checking, accounting, huhu. Then there's the performance assessments and other year-end stuff you have to deal with.

Then there was the Christmas party that I had the lucky honor of organizing for the FE-Team of the Tiwi Asset. Hahaha. That Christmas party turned out really nicely, even if I hadn't been feeling well. Good thing I had a couple of co-Horizons eng'rs to back me up. hahaha.

Can't wait to go to the San Fernando gigantic parol festival this Saturday.

I have to clean up my table!

I have to do my accounting!

Death Plane

2007-12-08T23:10:00.000-08:00

Last Friday was CGPHI-Tiwi Asset's Christmas Party in Alicia Hotel in Legaspi. So instead of going home Friday, we went home Saturday morning.

The day started quite well actually. I had my iPod in hand and was playing my favorites list. I like playing Daughtry's Home when we actually go home, so it means something. Hehe. Anyway, I was excited to go to UP that afternoon with Chot for the College of Arts and Letters' Alumni Homecoming.

We had breakfast with our boss at our usual tambayan outside the airport. We were talking about wasted pipelines and excess materials. Hahaha. On a Saturday morning.

Anyway, the flight took off as any other would. The trouble started when we were about midway. I had been on a window seat and was looking outside when I noticed that we were flying quite lower than we should have been. When we were over water, I was able to see white caps when we normally woudn't have. When we were over land, the plane was low enough for me to identify moving objects like tricycles and bikes. So we were really really low.

Then suddenly the plane started vibrating violently. It fell a couple of times in fact, and some passengers were "ahhh"-ing and "ooohhh"-ing. People were eyeing each other really seriously. I looked out the window and it was all clear. There weren't any clouds to cause turbulence. This implies then that whatever made the plane do that wasn't anything outside the plane.

Then I saw the wing and it was bending like crazy. Crap. I was getting scared. I thought the wing was going to break-off of the plane. The lead flight attendant started doing his initial descent announcement, but was too flustered and mumbled most of the words through. Then just that moment, the plane started turning to port. I was on a starboard window and was looking at a wing that was on a much higher level than me. We were on a relatively steep 30 to 35 degree turn. I was afraid of the plane taking a tumble. I thought to myself, shit, if this plane doesn't level off, it means that the controls are crap and we're dead. We would simply turn and turn until air runs out and we crash. And at that position, the wing would hit the ground first and the plane would definitely turn-turtle.

But finally, after 3 to 4 minutes, it did level off. Thank God! I thought I was dust. Haha.

Things Uncontrollable

2007-12-05T19:57:00.000-08:00

What do you do when you get bad advice? I recently got bad advice. I followed it, thinking it was good advice. Crap. And the effect of the bad advice is bad action. On all parties involved. Crap.

I trusted, but I got bad advice. It's harder to trust now, but I have no choice. I still need to build on that relationship. But to get bad advice is really terrible.

And that's what you do when you are paid to do something, establish yourself as one who can distinguish between people who know and do not know what the hell they are doing.

At least something good came out of my day. I know how to design an orifice plate! Wohoo! It's quite easy now that I know the details. What took me about a month of information scavanging I can do in maybe two hours or so the next time. It's easier now, once you've done it.

But I'm still reeling from the bad advice. To have to face the liability of something which was not your idea in the first place, thinking it was also a good idea, but realizing in the end it was wrong. There are a lot of things in life that you cannot control. I guess the best thing to do is to be as informed as possible so the right decision is made. I missed some points. I wasn't able to see the whole picture.

But I can still fix things. Wohoo!

More random thoughts

2007-12-03T00:18:00.000-08:00

When I type blogs like this, I just let my thoughts flow. So bear with me if it doesn't make sense sometimes...

Hahaha. I just reread my last two blog posts. hahaha. Man was I really pissed off. But not so much any more now.

Last Thursday, I had just come back to Manila from Tiwi, Albay and was carrying with me 2 bags. 2 really heavy bags. I didn't have a car because I came from the airport. I didn't want to leave because I wanted to make sure that my Lilowy would get out of Makati safely. So when I was sure that she would, I tried to get out. I walked from 6750 to across EDSA through rain and traffic, without an umbrella, lugging 2 heavy bags. All because Trillanes decided to ram into the hotel just across the street. Hahaha.

So I was pissed and I say funnny stuff when I'm pissed. But that's really how I feel, magnified a hundred times by the effect of fatigue. hehehe..

Now, the Oakwood mutiny, and the Manila Pen seige would become only blips in the country's history. Tanks barging into the Makati Central Business District is not enough to derail the country's progress economically. Politically it would have slight effects, and definitely politics and business mix a whole lot of times, but generally, nowadays, people just don't care who is in power.

There's a consistency in corruption, and this consistency has allowed us (those outside of politics) to predict and mitigate risks, and as such conduct business.

The really weird thing is how we can continue to conduct business in such a corrupt and inefficient environment. Has the business world become desensitized to questions of legitimacy in government? Has business finally become independent of politics?

Or is there a semblance of political stability? The lack of an alternative leader to GMA has forced a commonality. The fact that we don't have anyone to replace GMA with, is something that we all agree on. Or at least, we don't have a common agreement on who to replace her with. So we chose to stick with her. Despite her obvious cheating in the last elections, despite the participation of her husband in a hundred different scandals, despite efforts of an extremely vocal opposition to replace her, GMA has stuck. And her sticking to the seat of power has given us a sense of stability.

Honestly I am a little confused. I know that she on some level did something wrong, something criminal, at least in the case of the Garci tapes, because I listened to the entire 3 hours of that recording. She did something wrong. And despite this, she is still President. Now, because of her remaining in power, despite a great number of efforts to unseat her, government appears to have some stability. And the lack of a replacement further strengthens this apparent stability.

So, how do I choose? She is the wrong person for so many reasons, but she is also the right one for so many others. My personal moral compass tells me that she lied, that she must at least answer to this allegation, to which she did say sorry ("I'm...sorry"...with a very sad face. Her theater coaches are really good..). My practical sense however tells me that at this time, a lot of people need a sense of stability, politically and economically, that she seems able to provide (at least the business community thinks so).

Right now, the way I look at it is that a lot more people need a good economic environment before an honest government. There is a need to make new opportunities available to those who need it, and this need outweighs that of creating an honest government. If we are so low on the economic ladder that we can develop without an honest government, then so be it. We seem to still gain economically despite our losses to corruption. My prayer is that these economic gains reach those who need it most, not those who have no need of it.

Now that I think more of it, people are also hesitant to replace Gloria not only because there is no one to replace her, but also because those in the direct line of succession are also weirdos.

1. VP De Castro: Press..

2. Senate President Villar: Balimbing numero uno.

3. Speaker de Venecia: Rigs his sons multi-billion peso business deals with the government

So people are hesitant to replace Gloria, not because she should not be replaced, but because, if we replace her, the replacement will be just as bad. So we can't replace her really. Even if we wanted.

It's not enough to replace just GMA. You'll have to replace the entire upstream government heirarchy. Which is what Trillanes wants.

Interesting, I have arrived at what Trillanes wants.

But not through his method. It can be done in time, not suddenly. There is already some inertia economically. To redirect the mass moving in that direction would require a lot more effort than what took to remove Estrada. During his time there was no economic inertia. The peso and the stock market were in a freefall. It would have taken a mere nudge to launch a middle class revolt, which was what Estrada's colleagues in Senate did at the time. So he fell.

Right now, it would take not just a nudge, but a battering ram. The middle class is the one in fact creating that economic inertia. There would be no middle class uprising against Gloria. And because of this, Trillanes failed, and will continue to fail if he so decide to do a Shanri La or an Intercon in the future. One of my colleagues in the office joked around about Trillanes doing a Sogo or a Victoria's Court! That would give us something to laugh and feel good about.

More Random Thoughts

2007-12-01T04:45:00.000-08:00

We Filipinos love our freedom. We love it so much we go around citing things like "Freedom of Movement" and "Freedom of Press."

I wonder, when a dad his child, "No, you can't play outside, it's raining!" would this parent be committing some form of human rights abuse? Child says, "Dad, you're violating my right to movement! How dare you!"

For one, such a child would be freaky (Anak ni Inday!!! Hahahha...). Two, restricted movement doesn't equal absolutely no movement at all.

I graduated as a DOST Scholar, and I am contract bound to stay in the Philippines for the next 5 years. Does this mean contracts like this are unconstitutional? Haha.

Freedom is not equal to Governance. Government is a body of individuals tasked to impose certain limits on what we can do. We cannot kill or steal and it is government that restricts are freedom to do so. Government is supposed to enforce law, and to do so, it must restrict some of our freedoms.

Shots are fired, and instead of running away from the shots, some of the media followed advancing units into the lobby. It was a stupid scene, shown on GLOBAL TV through CNN. A military operation was on going. And with complete disregard to their personal safety, and the safety of the military personnel and those to be arrested, the media followed in, cameras blazing and microphones armed.

It was utter stupidity. Instead of concentrating on the task at hand, the military were trying to keep the media people from standing and getting into harm's way. It was just stupid stupid stupid. It made the job of arresting Trillanes' bunch a whole lot more difficult. All in the name of PRESS FREEDOM. Obstruction of justice in the name of the right to free speech and free press. And after everything, having been stupid all day long, they feel that they are above the LAW! We cannot be arrested we're press! Don't put handcuffs on me I'm press! Man, if criminals were all members of the press I wonder what would happen. I'm PRESS seems to be the magic phrase; there is so much expectation that press people cannot be arrested.

And why not? What makes the PRESS above everybody else that they cannot be arrested?!? Are the PRESS the only PARAGONS of JUSTICE and FREEDOM and TRUTH that all of them can be TRUSTED?

The press are no better than politicians. They are of the same mold; in fact, a lot have crossed the lines to and fro. They are masters of gab and can manipulate words much better than your average politico.

I know this is a hasty generalization. But being press is one of the shinier routes of entering the world of politics. A former press person is sitting on the second highest office of the land, point-and-case.

Government is ALL ABOUT RESTRICTING FREEDOM. If the press is constitutionally protected by their right to movement and free press to get themselves into harm's way simply because they need to have a competetive story by 6:00, then let them, a bullet in the ass might teach them a lesson in the end.

We can always twist words to our agenda and we Filipinos have become really good at that. We can outsmart and outplay: this is our best and our worst quality.

More Random Thoughts

2007-12-01T04:44:00.000-08:00

Random Thoughts on Manila Pen

2007-11-30T19:56:00.000-08:00

Why did Trillanes fail?

Because, the current economic mood of the country isn't that bad. People have long associated economic improvements with peso to dollar valuations and stock market levels. Currently, both these indicators are performing quite well, and people are not akin to suddenly creating some event that would induce negative economic forces.

I'm sure everyone is as confused as Trillanes is at what to do about this GOD-FORSAKEN GOVERNMENT. We're all as ANGRY and as FRUSTRATED at how CORRUPT and EVIL the men and women of this government have become. We're EVEN MORE AWE-STRUCK at how impotent ELECTIONS have become as a means of political reform. Either elections are RIGGED by those in power, or the voting populace are really CONFUSED. We have not the TRUE and ACCURATE information necessary to make intelligent choices in governance. The people has become MERE PAWNS in the game of politics.

We are CONFUSED, ANGRY, FRUSTRATED and DISCOURAGED by what has happened in our country. What can we do about it? We're only pawns. If you're not actually in government, you can only make a single move: to write a name on a piece of paper and pray that the name you write will be for the best.

So we choose to work outside of the realm of politics. We work hard to improve our lives. We exert every effort to help our family and friends to reach their dreams. Some of us work with religious and non-governmental organizations in reaching out to the poor and needy.

Trillanes failed because it is FALSE that the way he wants change to happen is the only way that change can happen. TRUE enough, the fastest way to make change is to FORCE it upon reality. In doing so, the greatest resistance is also met (Newton's Second Law). Change can happen overnight, but it will be very very painful. And in the end, that pain would have been much better distributed over time anyway.

Trillanes even DUPED two BISHOPS, a former VICE PRESIDENT and a former UP PRESIDENT at that. And I say DUPED because I refuse to believe that the BISHOPS and Guingona and Nemenzo agreed to the method of forcibly entering and occupying an establishment.

Their DESPAIR and ANGER and FRUSTRATION DOES NOT give them the right to DISRUPT the lives of other people. WE ARE JUST AS DESPAIRING AND ANGRY AND FRUSTRATED.

If we had the right to interrupt and disrupt the lives of other people, even if it were justified, we would not be called a CIVILIZED society.

Our GOVERNMENT has failed. This means that the enforcer of this civilization has failed. We are simply running on some sense of GOVERNMENTAL INSTINCT, the ILLUSION that our GOVERNMENT is WORKING. We imitate some aspects of an operational government, but the rest of is only an ILLUSION. Our government is a symbol of disfunction; from the simple issuance of FALSE NOTARY Certifications, to FALSE Driving License Issuances, to the extreme cases of CORRUPTION, of the Congress-turned-Press-Conference-turned-impeachment court, the semblance of an operational government exists only in structure, but not in function. There is only the illusion or feeling of function, which is the result only of the continuous existence of the structure.

All these stated are crimes: these are POLICE RESPONSIBILITY.

GOVERNMENT DOES NOT WORK BECAUSE:
1. The POLICE is IMPOTENT against a multitude of crimes. They have limited investigative capabilities and skills. It is POLICE POLICY to CLOSE a CASE EVEN IF a CRIME IS NOT SOLVED. In essence, most CRIMES ARE NOT SOLVED.
2. IF NO CRIME IS SOLVED, there is NO JUSTICE.
3. If there is no JUSTICE, we CANNOT ENFORCE LAW.

The simple reason why CORRUPTION and PLUNDER exist is because the police are not capable of dealing with crimes like CORRUPTION and PLUNDER. Politicians are free to do what they want, without fear. Government agencies tasked to look for Corruption and Plunder in governance probably have limited interaction with the police. From an outsider's opinion, I think Corruption, still a crime, should also be a police matter. But our PNP I think is not sophisticated enough to deal with corruption.

I think NO President has had the TRUE commitment of taking out corruption once and for all. I also think that NO President has had the TRUE commitment of improving LAW-ENFORCEMENT (not simply police) capability in this country. And only until we have that kind of leadership, a no nonsense kind of leadership whose NUMBER ONE PRIORITY is to ELIMINATE CORRUPTION ONCE AND FOR ALL, we will all still be frustrated and angry.

For now, let's just use our direct influence to improve the lives of people around us. We cannot rely on government's efficency and productivity to do so.

7 months after graduation

2007-11-24T15:32:00.000-08:00

Blog!

I read an article about this person who stopped blogging becase he felt that his posts were being copied by other people on their own blogs in some kind of identity theft. Kinda freaky, but very possible. It made me think about to what degree about my life and myself do I post on the web where anybody can access it. The thought of someone copying my stuff doesn't bother me really, but the fact that the things I post can become security leaks is bothering.

I don't know. I guess it is a reminder for us to be a a little more prudent when it comes to releasing information. At work, we are always told that improper out-of-office reminders that contain too much information are security risks. I guess blogging posts similar dangers.

So we should be careful about what we leave out in the open. If you don't want your identity stolen, don't leave out things that should be kept private. I've even deleted my birthday information online. Anything and everything that could be used against you, to steal your identity, should be kept private. If your friends are your friends, they should know these things anyway. Hehe.

Anyway, this is a special day for me and my Lilowy! She's ok by the way. She got dismissed from Medical City last Wednesday and she's out and about. We went out to watch Enchanted yesterday. The concept's really corny, but I guess on some level it works. Everybody's searching for that true love's kiss. And the excitement of that moment makes life worth living. Regardless of how big CORNY is written all over your brain right now...hehe.

So here I am. 7 months after graduation, on a Sunday, typing my blog, at home, listening to Augustana's Boston, and I'm enjoying my life. I have some worries here and there, but not enough to take the smile of my face. I'm happy. And I'm grateful, because even if I know a hundred different kinds of problems come my way, I'll always have so many things to be thankful for.

Man. It's been 7 months since grad...

Keep safe!

Blog!

2007-11-19T20:32:00.000-08:00

So. My last blog was a really really long time ago...

Chot got Dengue last week. The good thing is she'll be discharged tonight. After the FE dinner I'll go to Medical City to pick her up and bring her home. Yehey.

I'm still in the office. We're waiting for the 6:00 pm dinner with our Indonesian FE counterparts.

We're currently in a training being conducted by J.M.Campbell. Our trainor's the best one we've had so far; he can keep the audience's attention without having to ask people to recite.

I dunno. I seem to have lost the enthusiasm to blog. Probably because I have so much to do at work. When you're handling a ton of projects at the same time you redirect your energies to the immediate decisions that you have to make.

So, I haven't blogged lately. Most of the time I'm tired when I get home, and for the past few months I thought multiply was blocked in our company network...(apparently not anymore)...

Aha. so we're going to dinner...i'll do this later. But i have to finish my proby assessment. Whaaa!!!

Singapoorah

2007-10-18T17:17:00.000-07:00

Whoohooo! I'm in Singapore waiting for our connecting flight to Jakarta. So cool. This place is as clean as ever. Trees still line the airport grounds. Am lookin to buy a camera bag but I might not have time... the flight leaves in about 45 minutes. Anyway, I'm using a free internet portal at the pre-departure area. Good thing to type blogs at. hehehe.... Will post pictures later.

picking up

2007-10-18T06:43:00.000-07:00

Whoohooo.. Off to Indonesia in a couple of hours. Can't wait.

Can't sleep. Just remembered I have a multiply site. Hehe.

I've had a rather fun week. I've had to do a lot of stuff at work, but things are moving along nicely I think. So, I enjoyed most of my Tiwi time.

My flight from Tiwi got really delayed today. It's just sad the Ceby Pacific uses "Always on Time" as their company tag line but they not really. We had to wait for 3 hours more.

The good thing about the flight was that while we were in the air, there were times that the clouds below us seemed to be solid figures. They were just there, and the sun was setting over the horizon on. It was amazing.

Another good things is that I got to have dinner with my Lilowy at Sbarro. We haven't had Sbarro in a while. Still good though.

Then when I got home earlier this evening PBB was on and they were committing some form of kidnapping, or illegal detention (would be the proper term I think). They had forced one of their hosts inside the house. If I were the host I'd sue. And I'd have the entire viewership of PBB as my witnesses. And down goes PBB and ABSCBN and their ruthless and tactless play at the ratings game.

I'm not sure whether Malacanang gave Panlilio the 500k. It's just such a weird and stupid move. I'm a little more inclined to believe that Panlilio was duped into dragging the palace into a stupid new scandal. He's honest enough to be believed, and probably knows as much as we do. His being new is being taken advantage of, his nonfamiliarity with the culture of politics in the Philippines. He's being used I think, and Malacanang is the target. Otherwise, they're just plain dumb.

Shucks. Gotta sleep.

Apparently I have a blog..

2007-10-11T21:04:00.000-07:00

Hehe...

Just haven't visited my site lately. I've been real busy at work, and as multiply isn't exactly business related, I can't access my site from the office as much.

It's a loong weekend. Gotta take some much needed R&R. But gotta catch up on my work too. Huhuhu. Choices to make...

I'm in my dad's office. They have a really fast internet connection. Hehe.

We're about to leave. I'm going to watch my Lilowy's fashion show tonight.

I'm going to Indonesia next week. Wohoo!

11 Days to Go!

2007-09-02T15:08:00.000-07:00

Yes. And I can't wait! Board Exams Na! In 3 weeks I'll be a licensed electrical engineer. Yehey. I will pass this exam. I will do my best to make it to the top. If I won't then that would be fine too. But if I do, then that would be great. Hehe. Back to study...

25 Days to Go

2007-08-20T00:24:00.000-07:00

Hmm... My head hurts. I've been studying all day long and I've covered maybe a year in college's worth of stuff. I can do this. Just 25 days to go. 25 days of full effort to cover 5 years (and then some) of college work.

My headache is kinda weird, its not that "general" kind of headache that really gets you down, its more of a pinpoint headache, its not the entire head that hurts but just a small part of it. Instead of the entire head throbbing (which is what you get when you're sick), its just that small part.

I need to finish my metering recommendations. My deadline's tomorrow and I've barely my technical recommendations put together. I'l be working on that tonight. I'm still having trouble getting through to our purchasing officers to help me get quotations. Oh well.

25 days to THE exam. THE exam that doesn't measure individual capability, but memorizing capability. THE exam that both does and doesn't matter.

I miss having weekends. Haha. I can't wait to have my weekends back. Which is really sad because the Monday morning of the boards I'm flying back to Tiwi. Haha. But the weekend of that, I will go out and have fun. Dunno what I'm gonna do yet but I'm going have fun. Something to look forward to...

Another long study weekend

2007-08-12T03:09:00.000-07:00

Saturday - Engineering Economics - Strength of Materials
The econ part I fairly get. The strength of materials part I know nothing about.

Saturday Night: Straight study session in EPRL with Angols and Benjie.
Spent the entire Saturday night answering Engineering Economics supplementary problems. No need to study that anymore. Let me see....

A = P(1-(1+i)^-n)/i ,-- Annuity given present value

Everything else follows. Slept at 5:30, woke up at 7:30. Left around 8:00 for Sunday's review. Got some starbucks coffee.

Sunday - Engineering Mechanics - Hydraulics
For the first time I actually enjoyed working on ES12 problems. Turned out that would be the only thing I'd enjoy for the rest of the class. Knew spat about hydraulics. Even the notation and conventions were different.

7:00 pm and my brain is burnt. Decided to skip the rest of the class and get some rest. I went to the our church before going home. Felt a lot more refreshed and more calm after. Saw the choir that had some talent but needed a whole lot more practice. Decided to join. Hope to see them next week.

Am looking for a house Manila area, U-belt area for a month-long study break, beginning August 27, until September 16.

Going to sleep for another work week tomorrow. Man. I really do hope I pass this exam. I don't want to have to go through this again. Haha.

Man am I tired

2007-08-10T03:49:00.000-07:00

Just got home from another three-day marathon training session, which was quite fun actually. I got to meet lots of people, from Manila Shared Services to the new Caltex Management Trainees. I also met the new Legal Counsel of Chevron Malampaya, which is a big big honor. He also teaches in UP College of Law, quite interesting. Thanks to Joane, Don, Dave, and everyone over at MSSC/EBS who were friendly enough to spare a spot for me, the lone CGPHI participant. Hehe.

I learned a lot. In between running back to the 15th floor to coordinate with my project stakeholders and running back to the 10th or 6th floor of 6750 to actually participate, there was a lot of useful info. Like how we're going to be assessed. Like how we're going to be compared to each other to define what is excellent and what is not.

After everything I went to see my Lilowy in Greenbelt. We had dinner in Cibo which is apparently a really great restaurant. We ordered two fruit shakes, a strawberry and a plum. Both were really good. Will be coming back for more of that.

Now, I'm home. I look at my watch and see the 10 blaring at me, reminding me that Sept 15 & 16 is just around the corner. Crap.

But I am so exhausted. I have been working for about a month and a half straight at this point. Maybe 10 hours off at the most during my waking hours per week, a quick visit to my Lilo, a movie, a lunch or dinner with my family, and that would be it. I'd be awake for 18, even 20 hours on worst days. Right now I'm probably working, in American terms, around 80 hour weeks.

When the person who recruited me told me it would be hardwork I didn't understand the gravity of what she said. It is hard work, it is difficult, and it is wrenching. At some points I actually enjoy it, learning new stuff, meeting new people, dealing with the entirety of a project, it's fun and it's exciting. But to couple all that work with dealing with a board exam is just draining. Instead of coming home to some R&R, you come home to a different kind of work. And I've been going at it for maybe 1 month and a half.

I just wish I can get this exam over and done with.

Working 7 day weeks

2007-07-27T06:23:00.000-07:00

Hmm... This board exam is really eating me alive.... I've never worked at this pace my entire life. Even while I was working on my thesis, I had been able to allocate at least 1 day per week for rest. Now, I can't even get a single day off. Haha.

But that's that, and I'd rather look at the better side of things than to dwell on the negative.

So, again I haven't done my keeping track for a very long time, which means I have a ton to write about. I've probably forgotten half of them already, so I must do this now, lest the other half be lost to time.

My last week has been really great, tiring, but really informative and educational. As part of our training as engineers in Chevron Geothermal, Prof. Rolande Horne, the head of the Energy Mangement Engineering Department of Stanford University, reservoir engineering expert-extraordinaire and celebrity professor was asked to come to the Philippines and teach us about RE. The four day session was probably the fastest paced course that I've ever participated in. I learned so much, I just wish that my brain has better retention now so I could actually keep and use the knowledge that was given.

I am currently working on two assignments. And that's as much as you are gonna get.

I was able to watch Ratatouille with my Lilowy last 25th. It was a very well made animation feature whose story was integrated and developed even better than that of Happy Feet. I really enjoyed watching this movie and you guys should go out and see it.

I'm flying back to Tiwi again on Monday so I decided I'd spend this evening with my Lilowy. We got to eat at a Spaghetti place in Glorietta, I just forgot the name, but its better than Chocolate kiss as per their pasta dishes. I also found a really greak Oakley bag that has a laptop container but doubles as a large enough clothes carrier. The not so great thing is that, as it is an Oakley line, it is terribly expensive. It's really nice, but I'm not sure I want to spend that much yet on a bag.

This week I spent maybe 4 hours a day on travelling which means I barely have time to study at home for the board. I wake up at 4 in the morning to get ready for work, and get home around 7pm on the average. We eat, I work on maybe 15 problems, and wake up 5 hours later with all of my study material spread out in front of me, and in a terribly uncomfortable position.

Ill be back in Manila Friday next week, which means I need a bag that's good enough to carry everything that I need.

Something that I'd like to write about here is the fact that over the last week, I've had the chance to work and interact with New Zealanders, Americans and Indonesians. The great things about working for a multinational company is that your horizons (forgive the intentional pun[to those who understand it]) are broadened through international transfer of information. There is a lot of things that we could do to imrove the lives of our fellow Filipinos, its just a matter of going for these things, and initially, understanding the mechanics of how these will work.

Secondly, we are representing our culture and identity to the Corporate Chevron. There are location specific cultures and traditions that need to be introduced to the Corporate as well, and to the improvement of our technologies by providing technology assessment analysis. Thank you.

Haha. I just wrote Thank You. I'm that sleepy. I'm actually dreaming of the boundary.

Sleepy. Wonder what they'll have me after.

I Chose

2007-07-12T01:24:00.000-07:00

Free to Choose

Hahaha. Reading this a few months after I wrote it is so weird. I still remember what I felt at the time, a bit of fear, some hope, a lot of dreaming. And it still holds true. The main reason why I accepted the position in Chevron is because it is in line with the career trajectory that I am aiming for, to be involved in large scale project management in the energy industry. At this point, I am involved in the energy industry, I am involved in projects, although not so large in scale.

It was important for me at the time to know what I wanted. If I hadn't been accepted in this job would be concenctrating for the board exam (still am). And it's still true, what I do now, is still my responsibility, although my accountability is not just to myself, but also the company that I work for.

I still want to study. Maybe not now, but I will definitely take up postgrad studies in the future. Maybe after the training.

And it's true by the way, I am making the bucks way before the end of the year. =)

This blog thing is paying off. I'm having fun reading my own stuff.

No place like home...

2007-07-12T00:51:00.000-07:00

Yehey. =)

I'm going home tomorrow. Next week I'll be in Manila for training for two weeks. Although I'll have to be here from Monday to Wednesday.

During training, I'll have to invest about 4 hours of travel everyday just to report to work. For two weeks. Huhuhu. Maybe I could live somewhere in Makati? So I don't have to wake up at 4 in the morning. So I could use that 4 hours to study for the board. I don't want to have to waste 4 hours a day just for travel when I should be investing as much time as I could studying. Why am on a computer right now anyway? Hahaha....But I don't want to live in Makati just yet.

I'm just excited to go home. Even if my room at home isn't airconditioned as mine is here. As they say, there's no place like home. It's the place where you don't have to be on your toes, where you could let go of all your hesitations, where you could joke around and be clumsy and be stupid. It's the place where you can not be afraid of the repercussions of your actions.

I'm not saying I want to be stupid at work, because I don't, and I will always be professional, but that's just it. At home, you don't have to be professional. And that is where the line is drawn. At home, there is no work, no supervisor looking over your shoulder. Just family and friends who are there for you all the time even when your far away.

So, I can't wait to get home. Not because I don't like my work because I do like it, but for everything that home is.

Will you vote for me if I run for Senator?

2007-07-10T03:20:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to see if people will vote for me if I run for Senator. Kindly post a yes/no reply in the comments section. Hehe.

Thanks.

Three weeks of work and this is what I've got

2007-07-10T03:14:00.000-07:00

With great benefits come great responsibility.

Hahahahaha.

I've come to think about the cheezy Spiderman line a whole lot often recently, only I've been replacing power with benefits.

As of today, I've been working for Unocal Philippines Inc. for about three and a half weeks. Over that time I've flown on five flights, with one of them taking a trip around the Mayon volcano. It's one thing to look at the volcano from ground level, but it's another to look at it from an airplane where you're just about level with the crater. The detail is much better and you're just awed at how perfect the cone is.

Beyond the travel opportunities I find myself lucky that I was accepted in this job. The training is absolutely comprehensive. It is basically equivalent to taking another course in college (for the same duration), only that the course isn't offered in a typical university, and the exams aren't just exams, they are actual project implementations. We are going to be trained (and in fact employed), not only in the technical aspects of our work, but also in the financial, economic, and even human aspects of the business.

Which only stresses the cheezy Spiderman 1 line. We should not be simply engineers. Beyond our technical expertise, beyond all the design and engineering work, there are economic, social and business realities that we must consider. Part of our responsibility is to make sure that our designs must not only work, they must fit the economic strategies of the companies that we work for, like the fit of an egyptian pyramid block against another. The bottom line is not great engineering design, but net profit. We must also be businessmen, social analysts and managers at the same time. Hehe.

So, again, as of today, I've been working for about three and a half weeks for UPI. I've come to realize that the company has good reason to invest in its people, because ultimately it is the employees who contribute to improve the bottom line. And the big part is, that as an employee, particularly as an engineer - businessman - social analyst - manager, it is my responsibility to improve the bottom line.

As the list of benefits grows longer, so does my list of responsibilities.

The list of sacrifices becomes longer too. I live in Albay for four days a week, a get to see my Lilowy and my family only during weekends, and I can't watch a movie whenever I want to. And I never get to see my friends from high school or college. And I only get to review for the board exams after work, which is hard since the work is challenging and the review tiring. Haha.

This is the path I chose, and I hope and pray that the sacrifices I make now will someday give bigger returns. But guess what. I know that that will happen, because I will do my very best to maximize the yield. Hehe.

First Day of Work

2007-06-18T03:38:00.000-07:00

Just got home from my first day of work! I learned a lot today. Can't wait to get back tomorrow. Hehe. And to top my day off, I got to have dinner with my Lilowy over at Glorietta. =) Had lots of fun. =)

Anyway, I just wanted to leave a post after this day of firsts. The people are accomodating, the company is huge and great, the work is fulfilling in all aspects, and the "remuneration" is the best. =) I'm really not sure about the kind of info I'm allowed to dispense outside of the company, so it would be my policy not to post any details at all. Haha, so much for keeping track. As they say, safety is of the highest priority, and it is better safe than sorry.

Safety, safety, safety. Don't use your cellphone while driving, and hold the handrails when using the stairs

Uh shucks. I get a C.

2007-06-16T01:05:00.000-07:00

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Visited Map" alt="" />
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title="Lakbayan Grade: C" alt=""
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My Lakbayan grade is C!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at href="http://forge.codedgraphic.com/lakbayan">Lakbayan!

Created by Eugene Villar.

UPSCANS Attention!

2007-06-13T15:26:00.000-07:00

Matthew 9:9 - Matthew 9:13
As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax office; and he said to him, "Follow me." And he rose and followed him. And as he sat at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" But when he heard it, he said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, `I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."

Sin, is sin. It is wrong, but sadly, no one is exceptional, and everyone does it. We, as UPSCAns and as Catholics, are definitely tasked to avoid sin. In whatever form, be it murder, theft, lust, disrespect, homosexuality, dishonesty, it still is sin, it still is wrong.

But we are sinners all of us, and no one is exempt.

We as an organization of Catholics, cannot exclude members on the basis of being sinful, whatever kind it maybe. We are all sinful. I hope and pray that we do not make the mistake of those self-righteous pharisees two thousand years ago. We cannot and have not the right to judge the tax collectors and prostitutes of our time, as they did not two thousand years ago.

Post Script
PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK and post a COMMENT. Thanks. I just received some disturbing news from Anna. I have to write something in my blog about it. I don't know if what whe told me is accurate to the point as it is second hand information, but even if half of it was true, it would be very disappointing. Yes I am an alumnus and I know alumni have a pesky habit of being meddly and I don't want to be like that, but this is something that I cannot but take exception and comment on.

Thanks

2007-05-24T04:03:00.000-07:00

Right now though I'd like to thank my Lilowy for being very supportive and understanding. Thanks by for giving me strength and courage. I wouldn't be able to do these things if you hadn't shown me what was possible. You may say otherwise but by far, you are one of the most accomplished people I know. I'm very proud of you.

Job Offer!

2007-05-24T03:47:00.000-07:00

Yehey. I got a really good job offer! A really really good one.... A few posts ago, I kept telling myself I wouldn't accept a non-engineering job. I kept true to that promise. Yehey!

I was offered a position as Facility Engineer by Chevron Geothermal in their facility in Tiwi, Albay. Yes it's quite far, but I get to ride an airplane twice a week just to spend my weekends in Manila. So I get to do two things I like, ride airplanes 8 times a month , and learn hardcore engineering . And they're willing to let me go for a month prior to the board so I would still have a chance at passing.

And the pay is good too. =)

Right now though I'd like to thank my Lillowy for being very supportive and understanding. Thanks by for giving me strength and courage. I wouldn't be able to do these things if you hadn't shown me what was possible. You may say otherwise but by far, you are one of the most accomplished people I know. I'm very proud of you.

Panganiban = Pangilinan ?!?

2007-05-16T14:21:00.000-07:00

It's weird. Last May 14, I saw a vote for Panganiban counted for Pangilinan. I was so enraged at the time. I started documenting every move the precinct officers made on my cellphone. I made sure I noted every mistake and error that they made.

Three days later, I don't care anymore. I don't know. It just seems so small a thing to be troubled about. There are 45 million voters, and a single error counted in favor of an already winning candidate isn't much to be troubled about. Maybe I just overreacted. I don't know.

We have such a crappy electoral system. It takes weeks to get any results, and any result that we get would probably have an error margin of 2-3%. At all of the precincts that I visited in Filinvest, a gated community whose polling place is much cleaner, and much more peaceful than your typical school, 6 out of 8 precincts committed simple clerical mistakes. What was written on the board did not match what was submitted on the election return, and what the officers would do would be to correct at least one of the documents instead of conducting a recount.

The logic that "one vote does not really matter" is obviously and sadly prevalent. Instead of making sure that the count is correct, they add a vote or two to make sure that the documents tally. In Filinvest, this kind of error occurs once every 70 to votes, or at least once per precinct. This would be more if the teacher assigned is tired and rushing to go home.

An error rate of one vote per precinct would mean that there would be 38,000 errors in the election tabulation. If there were two errors per precinct, that would mean 76,000 errors in the final tally. According to electoral law as I heard a lot of people say on the news, election fraud at the level of 10,000 votes and above is a non-bailable capital crime. 76,000 is much much greater than 10,000 votes. In my opinion, as long as teachers commit simple clerical mistakes like these, the Comelec as the body that is responsible for the sanctity of the vote, should be liable for electoral fraud.

But 78,000 votes doesn't really matter. It takes 10 million votes to get into the Senate. So 78,000 our about 0.78% of what is required to get into the Senate, doesn't really matter. So our teachers don't really care if they commit simple mistakes. And we could care less.

But you know what? If we can't stop simple mistakes like these, how can we stop the larger-scale fraud?

Song Lyrics: In my Life

2007-05-13T19:20:00.000-07:00

There are places I remember all my life,

Though some have changed

Some forever, not for better

Some have gone and some remain.

All these places have their moments

Of lovers and friends I still can recall

Some are dead and some are living

In my life I loved them all.

And with all these friends and lovers

There is no one compares with you

And these mem'ries lose their meaning

When I think of love as something new

And I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before

I know I'll often stop and think about them.

In my life I loved you more.

And I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before

I know I'll often stop and think about them.

In my life I loved you more

In my life I loved you more

My Career Trajectory

2007-05-04T05:05:00.000-07:00

We're going to Anilao tomorrow! And suddenly as I type this line my desktop picture changes to a beach. Yehey! You know how cool macs are...hehehe...

Anyway, I'm really excited about tomorrow's trip.

Keeping true to the title of my blog, just a few updates. I'm still unemployed, hahaha. I think God's trying to tell me something regarding that topic. I really enjoyed the Shell Recruitment Day, but I made some interesting mistakes. I had used a topic in my technical presentation that wasn't really my technical expertise. Haha. I really should have known better. So, that's that. =)

I had an interview with Unocal Philippines, now Chevron Geothermal, yesterday. I woke up around 9:00 in the morning. I was really taking my time getting up when I realized that I was supposed to have an interview some time this week. Then I realized that it was going to be that noon. I felt the sudden rush that you feel when you think you're about to do something really stupid.

I went to 6750 for the interview and was early by about 30 minutes. It was a 5-member panel, which was quite odd because normally first interviews are conducted by individual HR people. I guess they had "sifted" out the other applicants through the exam. The exam was quite harrowing. It was about thermodynamics, a subject a got a really low grade on. Hahaha. Anyway, it was a typical interview, covering my leadership experiences, technical skills, social skills. It went fine, they were quite interested in my thesis, I was quite interested in one of their job offerings. I guess at this point, working for Chevron would be a good thing, since they're mostly involved in the oil and energy generation. These are things I'm also very interested in. They have yet to give me a callback so, I guess that's that as well. =D

After everything that I've been through I realized that there are so few TRUE engineering jobs available in this country. What I mean by TRUE/hardcore engineering is the design and/or use of equipment and/or systems. Or more accurately, There are few hardcore engineering jobs offered to fresh graduates.

If I'm going to work, I want a TRUE engineering post. I don't want to go into IT, or a call center. I want to practice my trade, and my skills, my technical expertise. Not only do I have an edge in that field, I would have a better chance of enhancing my skills further. At any rate, that is the only way I think that I'll be able to fullly repay my debt to this country for having paid for my tuition the last 9 years. They didn't do that for me to simply work for an IT company and do something outside the realm of my academic investments.

I really don't want to work on something that is not related to being an EE. But God help me find a great job. Haha. Until then, help me top the board also hahaha..

Graduates

2007-04-22T14:44:00.000-07:00

I am officially a graduate of the University of the Philippines!

My plans:

1. Over the next minutes, finish this blog entry.

2. Over the next hour, take a bath and have some breakfast.

3. Over the next day, get through the Shell Recruitment Day.

4. Over the next few weeks, finish the PISAY 2002 Yearbook.

5. Over the next few months, pass [and maybe get into the top 5 of] the board exam.

6. Over the next year, depends. If I get offered a good job, I might take it. But it has to be really good for me to forego graduate studies. Otherwise, I will continue with my life in the academe and get my MS and PhD.

7. Over the next decade, get married at some point. Maybe even children.

8. Over the next three decades, defintely children. Haha. And maybe a business.

9. Over the next half century, a business empire. And a great big charity foundation to go with it so people won't be mad at me for the money that I amassed.

10. Over the next century, die, albeit unwillingly, but with the knowledge that I lived a life full of experiences and fun and joy and love and fun and ideas and change and hope and fulfillment and happiness, completely and utterly without regret.

Lights in the Ampitheater

2007-04-21T15:39:00.000-07:00

We're graduating today! =)

Last night after having dinner with Chot's family, they brought me back to my car in AS parking lot. As I was driving home I passed in front of Quezon Hall, I saw the lights inside the ampitheater where our graduation today will be held. I decided to take a closer look. I drove into the Quezon Hall parking lot and saw the thousands of white chairs covering the entire area. The stage had already been decorated with maroon and forest green colors, and the manongs were busy putting the decorative plants and other grad materials on stage. It was a surreal scene.

At first I was a bit sad, because I knew that my time in UP is done. It had been a most wonderful and exhilerating experience, but that experience is about to end. In a few hours, we'll be putting on our Sablays and we'll be filling the empty white seats. We'll be sent on our way and reminded of the responsibilities and obligations that are demanded of UP graduates as the "iskolars ng bayan." After graduation, we take pictures, hug friends, shake hands with our teachers, say goodbye to orgmates and classmates. Then we part ways, highly likely that we will never see each other again.

Then I realized, it's up to me if I want to keep in touch. So I will. Only my undergraduate life, and not the friendships that I built, will end this afternoon.

To the University of the Philippines Class of 2007, a beaming Congratulations to all of us! Let us make our alma mater proud. Serve the country in whatever way you can. Always remember to give back the the institution that took you in and molded you into the person that you are today.

Now, I'm just really excited to graduate. I can't wait to show the world what UP grads can do.

1/4 of 1/4 of a Chicken

2007-04-15T01:37:00.000-07:00

This morning my sister started her driving lessons at A1 driving school in Katipunan Ave. She was scheduled for her first drive at around 1 pm today. We decided to eat at Kenny Rogers while waiting for her.

I know we're not supposed to believe what restaurants post on their menus. What you see displayed above the counter isn't exactly what you get. This experience definitely reminded me that we shouldn't trust the menus' pictures.

I ordered the chicken and rib plate. It was supposed to be a serving of half a slab of ribs, and a quarter of a chicken. Everything looked nice and pretty on the menu, it was a huge serving of ribs and a nice cut of chicken. So I was getting ready to have a great big meal.

What they served was probably the smallest serving of ribs and chicken in the entire history of eating out. I could barely see the chicken, it was probably about a quarter of a quarter of a whole. It was so small I couldn't identify which part of the chicken it was. It was a day old and it tasted dry and dull. The ribs was half of what they used to serve.

So, don't trust the pictures. Or at least don't trust Kenny Roger's food.

Wifi Working!

2007-04-12T23:59:00.000-07:00

Yehey! My wifi is working. Dunno why, dunno how. But it's working. =)

Wifi Help

2007-04-10T00:18:00.000-07:00

I need help. I have a Linksys WRT54G wifi router setup for automatic DHCP, meaning it receives the IP address from my DSL router automatically. I spent all day trying to figure out how and why my router doesn't receive the ip address, when when I connect my dsl modem directly to my pc, it is able to receive the proper settings. I've researched online and found some cases involving different kinds of dsl modems. I tried to check my dsl modem settings and saw that it is indeed set to operate as a DHCP server, meaning it is supposed to send out the ip address. Has my wifi router bombed out?

Help!

Market

2007-04-09T00:17:00.000-07:00

Ok. So I went to the market with my mom this morning, to do a bit of re-stocking eheh. I decided I wanted to get a new DVD to watch, its getting kinda dull these days with nothing to do and my location options started getting occupied by others, I wanted to watch a new movie. So I went to the DVD shop and picked out a 12-in-1 DVD with Casino Royale and Babel which are both movies I wanted to watch but didn't get to during the busy semester. The tindero gave it to me and after receiving my 100 peso bill as payment, went to look around for some change because he didn't have any. I took the DVD out of the plastic and started looking at the other 10 movies. I bent it a bit and I realized there was no DVD inside the wrapping. I looked inside and there really was no DVD. So I gave it back when he returned and expected to get my money back. After a few minutes of looking for another copy, the other tindero who was wearing shades decided to tell me that they don't return money, they only replace the DVD. I said I wanted my money back. This other tindero took of his glasses and started posturing around saying he didn't return money.

Hahahaha. As if that ever worked on me. I know its kinda stupid but in cases like that I don't have a fight or flee question. Only fight.

So I looked straight at him and said the DVD wasn't there and I wanted my money back. Good thing another girl tindera was there, and I think she noticed what was happening, I guess a lot of people were because they started gathering around already, she said just give the money back it hasn't been an hour, so just give him his money back and she took it out of the first tindero's bag and gave it to me. Then I noticed she was wearing a cape to hide her hair and realized the family selling DVD's were muslims as they usually are.

Hahaha. I was about to get into a fight with a Muslim tindero who didn't want to give me my money back for something I didn't get. How weird is that.

I don't know much about Muslims, I had studied a bit of thir faith in my spattering of Asian history and culture and that is as much as I could say. But from what I see and hear and read on the news, they are terribly misunderstood.

I think they are terribly misunderstood because they misunderstand the world, or at least, our cultures do not understand each other. Look at what happened to the comments of Benedict XVI about the prophet. There was an amazing uproar against what he said. There was no attempt to contextualize the message, they had completely ignored the fact that it was said in an academic setting, addressed to an academic audience.

We also cannot begin to understand how terrorism fits a religious setting, or receives a religious mandate. How?

I don't know. But if what I experienced this morning is normal, it's just weird. But I'm willing to try and understand how that is. I just hope they are too.

The suspense is over

2007-04-04T01:02:00.000-07:00

Yes. The suspense is over. I know all of my grades. And I am GOOOOD! hahahaha...

It's time to PAARTEEE!!!!

Ang Pagaagawan ng Kumot

2006-10-01T00:12:00.000-07:00

The Kumot Argument
Everyone in the world claim a small piece of the very limited wealth.

The Langit Lupa Bundok Syudad Mahirap Mayaman Game
The rich get richer and the poor get poorer, and that is the only thing that can ever happen.

All romanticized misrepresentations of society. In such a complex world, we cannot afford to and should not, romanticize and misrepresent. These activities seek to create differences, and as such incite unnecessary emotional response. As such we should not promote these activities as actual representations of society.

Question the VISION

2006-09-30T23:56:00.000-07:00

We the UPSCAN's commit ourselves to the vision of forming a true Filipino Christian Community founded on Truth, Freedom, Justice and Love...

It sounds nice right?

Amazingly I've been reading up on church documents and papal encyclicals and I've discovered that maybe we are going in the wrong direction, especially as an organization that calls itself CATHOLIC action. We even believe in things that are not only not taught but discarded and argued against by the Church, like TheoLib. Hence, we are a somewhat misguided organization. It is up to the residents to review what the formation process contains and to redirect our effors to change what is needed to be changed. This the challenge to all of us who call ourselves UPSCANs. We have to look deeper into what we are taught, and more importantly, what we TEACH as an organization. As the cliche goes, we have to look left and right, before crossing the road.

We crossed the road without looking and where do we find ourselves? Teaching things that are opposed by the Church. How weird is that? We find ourselves with a vision that does not call its foundation Christ. Shouldn't our vision be...

"We the UPSCAN's commit ourselves to the vision of forming a true Filipino Christian Community, whose life, purpose and foundation is Christ, and as such holding true to and believing in the principles of Truth, Freedom, Justice and Love..."

Again a challenge.

Bagablog

2006-06-10T13:52:00.000-07:00

Hay...

Takot ba tayo pagusapan ang mga kabagabagabag na pangyayari sa ating organization?

Wala lang. Nababagabag ako na wala masyadong nagbabagabag talk sa tambayan recently. Hindi sa maganda ang may ikinapapagbagabagan.(Nahirapan ka magbasa no...=)) Mabuti na yung pinagiisipan natin ang ating problema kesa yung isinasantabi at tinatakpan ng dyaryo.

Pag may mali, kayanin mong lumutang at magsalita.
Pag may wala sa direction, manguna at ihawi sa tama.
Pag may nabubulok, wag ka magtakip ng ilong.
Linisin mo.