My Seven Lives...

Kitkat Break

2011-12-30T13:10:00.003+08:00

Taking a break after a day of dragon-slaying...

A Cup Full of Lego Minifigs

2011-12-29T09:43:00.001+08:00

Posting one of the many presents I got from Christmas... Happy holidays everyone!

Toy Kingdom Warehouse Sale

2011-11-03T11:49:00.000+08:00

I'm looking forward to the weekend warehouse sale. This will be my chance to buy discounted Lego and other toys. Thanks for the update, Vince.

Trick or Treating with the Kids

2011-10-31T14:34:00.000+08:00

I don't recall Halloween being a big celebration here in the Philippines. Things like "treat or treat" and getting dressed up as zombies had no relevance when I was growing up.

Blame it on the malls and the stores who promote the ghoulish costumes, just to boost their sales. Most kids right now consider it part of tradition and parents would spend money to get them dressed up in pretty costumes.

I never planned on getting into the Halloween bandwagon. My son's school organized the celebration, telling parents to bring their kids in costumes and go around the village for some trick-or-treats.

Rather than spend money on some costume, I decided to make my own Thomas train costume for my son.

And we bought a crown and pair of fairy wings for my daughter.

It's definitely cheaper than those creepy outfits.

Another discovery at Booksale

2011-10-25T14:53:00.000+08:00

Here are some of the stuff I discovered in a Booksale branch in Manila.

The D&D Fourth Edition Eberron Campaign Guide costs 325 pesos. I did not buy it since I'm not collecting Eberron or D&D 4e books.

I did manage to get my hands on a brand new Three Dragon Ante card game set for 45 pesos.

The card game is made by Wizards of the Coast. I also found a video tutorial for this game.

Found in a Local Booksale Store

2011-10-21T13:39:00.000+08:00

D&D Player's Kit worth 210.00 pesos. Looks interesting and a worthy purchase.The set should contain six dice, some miniature figures, maps, and some books.

Separation Anxiety

2011-10-20T16:45:00.000+08:00

We finally enrolled my eldest son in a local preschool. It's a new set of adjustment for all of us. I have to rearrange my work schedule to help prepare and drive him to school. My wife has to plan for his recess snack and the clothes he needs to wear.

My son is making the biggest adjustment in the family. He doesn't want to be left in the company of strangers. Blame it on us for not letting him do things by himself. Now he cries whenever we dress him up for school. He cries when my wife leaves him in class. He cries when she fetches him after school. The teacher says he cries during class hours as well.

I know this is just a phase and he will get into the habit and routine of going to school. But we are looking for creative ways of encouraging him to like his teachers and classmates.

Lair Assault (The End is Near)

2011-10-18T18:32:00.000+08:00

The guys decided to play a Dungeons and Dragons 4th Ed Lair Assault blog campaign. It's supposed to be a killer adventure, where you have to stop the main villain in twenty or less rounds from completing his ritual.

It's nice to have a play-by-post game again, even though I have a bad feeling I'll be the first to die. The three other players are more experienced in the rules and the system. But that won't stop me from having fun. At least I managed to kill off one of the warlocks and eat a fire fish (that grants my character temporary fire immunity).

I'm playing a dwarf shaman who is supposed to be healing and curing my companions as they hack the enemies to pieces. But it turns out they don't need much healing to start with, they've chosen stuff to aid their recovery (such as ongoing regeneration). I guess I'll be using my own healing powers on myself.

Anyway, it's already the 8th or 9th round and the dungeon is getting as hot as hell. I'm down to my last twenty-plus health and the fire demons are getting more aggressive. I'm hoping to make it to the main room before I die. At least I could say that I made it to the last climatic event before getting roasted.

Retirement Dreams

2011-10-04T14:11:00.000+08:00

I stumbled upon a financial article that featured an American couple who retired in their early 40's. I found the piece inspiring because they managed to plan early, and decided to save money for their retirement. Things like this take a lot of discipline and commitment. While their circumstances are different from mine, I believe I can use some of their suggestions to plan my own retirement.

I admit I have dreams of retiring early. But my situation is different from the Charltons. I have two kids and I live in a third world Asian country. The money I save would not be enough to sustain the standard of living that I want for my family and my children. I mean, I could choose to cut the costs of my kid's education and send them to a public school (which is way cheaper than private schools with a Chinese program). But this is not something I want for them.

There were three things in the article which reaffirmed my decision to focus on my own retirement plans.

1. Cutting Costs
One thing great about living with my parents is the fact that we get to split the monthly bills. Rent is free. We also have more people at home to watch over the kids. I admit I still get the occasional urge to splurge on things, but I think I can control this habit if I become more conscious of my budget and spending.

2. Agreeing on priorities
Planning for the future requires input from everyone involved. It's been a while since I talked to Jen about my financial goals and my idea of "retiring early". I think we both have different ideas on what "retirement" means. My idea of retiring means taking it easy but not totally getting out of work. Her concept of retirement is leaning more towards the "not working and living off your investment" kind of lifestyle. We do need to discuss about what we want, compromise on what we want for ourselves (plus the kids), and work towards that goal.

3. Living below your means
I believe this is something that a person needs to cultivate over time. You won't see the immediate results of being thrifty. There are times when I feel like I am depriving myself of the good things in life. But living a simple life has a lot of benefits, like having less clutter and stuff to control you.

Looking back at the "Reincarnated Princess"

2011-08-24T09:34:00.000+08:00

A few days ago, I stumbled upon this YouTube clip by accident. It was the title track of a Hong-Kong television series back in the 80s, called "The Reincarnated Princess". The show is a retelling of an old Buddhist tale, about the Kuan-Yin (the Chinese Goddess of Compassion).

I like how the show manages to mix elements of drama, action, and Buddhist philosophy into a presentable and compelling series. I remembered watching the series as an oriental/Asian fantasy story, rather than some boring historical account of a woman's struggle into overcoming her enemies and becoming a Buddha in the end.

I remembered watching the show on our old Betamax player, marveling at the special effects and the martial arts scene. Looking at the clip right now, I realized that the combat scenes and the dazzling visual effects looked campy and outdated. But the show still brought back good memories of those summer afternoon watching Chinese series with my parents.

A Lego Birthday Gift

2011-08-20T16:54:00.001+08:00

We'll be attending our third Jollibee kiddie birthday party this Sunday and it will be held in the same Jollibee branch.

The kids are looking forward to another fun time at the restaurant. It might be the same food, music, and games, but they don't mind. In fact, they don't seem to get tired of Jollibee birthday parties.

Tomorrow's party will be for a seven-year old boy. We decided to buy a Lego set for the celebrant. I got a nice deal on ebay.ph for the set. I personally love the set because it contains two minifigs and a whole set of weapons and an armor. I would love to buy the same set for my own Lego collection, if I had the money to spare. I hope the birthday boy would appreciate this gift.

Taking A Break

2011-08-18T20:29:00.000+08:00

I recently discovered two new variants of the Kit-Kat chocolate wafer candy being sold at the local supermarket.

My New Acquisition From Booksale

2011-07-22T09:47:00.000+08:00

Found these three books from local Booksale stores, all for around 105 pesos. Nice deal.

When TB Attacks

2011-07-12T17:51:00.002+08:00

A few months ago, one of the house-helps got diagnosed with tuberculosis. He had been coughing a lot at work, so he decided to go to the local baranggay health clinic to have a physical check-up. The doctors found out that he had been infected with the bacteria that causes TB, but the sickness has not fully manifested yet. He was instructed to drink a set of antibiotics for the next six months, just to be sure that the bacteria would go away.

Jen and I panicked when we learned about the diagnosis. This helper is part of is part of our yaya's social circle within the compound. She brings the kids with her to hang out with her friends, including the guy who has TB. So there was the possibility that our children might be infected.

And our fears turned out to be true. Both of them had preliminary symptoms of tuberculosis, based on the x-ray results and the skin tests. The good news is that their TB is not contagious. We also had ourselves and the yaya checked, just in case any of us got the bacteria. Fortunately all the adults are healthy.

The pediatrician prescribed a set of three anti-TB syrups for the kids to drink for the next six months. This means we have to find creative ways to have them take in the horrible-tasting medicine, without them throwing up or spitting it out.

So far we've tried bribing them with chips and lollipops. It would take us up to an hour, trying to convince the kids to take their medicine. They have been drinking the medicine just just three weeks and we are running out of ideas. The two kids are getting more rebellious and they would throw bigger tantrums when they see us holding the familiar-looking syrup.

I just hope they'd recover fast and maybe the doctor might decide to shorten the dosage period from six months or less than three.

June to July 2011 Updates

2011-07-11T10:01:00.001+08:00

Sorry, I haven't been posting any updates to this blog. I have been busy with some family and work stuff for the past two months, I'll try to write about them in the next few days.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some stuff I found online. It's mostly related to free e-learning content I discovered on the web. I'm talking about http://alison.com, which is one of cyberspace's leading free online learning resource for "basic and essential" office skills. The site contains excellent multimedia courseware for a variety of topics, such as online English grammar training, multimedia development, English writing skills, and many others. It also offers free courses on business/entrepreneurial training, healthy and safety, digital training and IT literacy. All you need to do is create an account, sign-up in one of their courses, and take the course.

I am currently taking the online English grammar training course and I am thinking of signing up for the effective writing and multimedia development programs. The site offers certification for members who complete the courses. I will post my feedback and comments about the alison.com and the grammar course as I continue my lessons.

Drawing Computer Chip Boards

2011-05-18T11:06:00.000+08:00

This was something I made a few weeks back, using Adobe Illustrator and Sharon Steuer's "The Adobe Illustrator CS Wow! Book".

There is an exercise in the manual, teaching you how to develop vector drawings of mechanical objects using geometric shapes. Then you create copies of the shapes, altering their colors and shades a bit.

The drawing took a few hours to make, but I only did the exercise during my free time so it took me two weeks to complete.

At least I now know how to create computer chips using Illustrator.

Disturbing Realities

2011-05-10T15:12:00.000+08:00

I know this is old news, but I just like to post the image that got a lot of people reacting. The mall owners say it was a prank and they are currently investigating on the matter. That's the problem when you project an image of catering to a specific market niche, in this case, the rich and elite.

This week's Booksale Purchase

2011-04-11T09:09:00.000+08:00

Found (and bought) a brand new copy of Microsoft Manual of Style for Technical Publications. The manual (plus CD) costs three hundred pesos at Booksale.

I finally have my own hard copy of the Microsoft technical writing style guide.What convinced me of buying the book is the unopened CD at the end of the book. The CD contains an ebook version of the manual, as well as a copy of the Microsoft Press Computer Dictionary.

Learning Adobe Illustrator

2011-04-07T11:43:00.000+08:00

I've been studying some basic Adobe Illustrator techniques for the past few months. It's an interesting and challenging tool used for vector drawing; something that technical illustrators use to design detailed images and illustrators. So far I've been using the Adobe Illustrator CS3 Classroom In A Book, trying to follow and replicate the exercises given in the book.

But there are a lot of Illustrator training materials available in the internet. I discovered Tony Soh's Learn Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Class on the Vector Diary website. The lessons are short and very informative, with each day focusing on one particular tool or aspect of the Illustrator program.

The Vector Diary website also offers a lot of tutorials for people who want to learn Illustrator. I tried my hand on one of the tutorials and here is the image I created:

I'm supposed to add a picture at the center of the grafitti wallpaper art but I could not find a decent image online. But I'm happy with what I made.

Disaster Preparedness

2011-03-21T09:25:00.002+08:00

I've been keeping myself updated to the latest events happening at Japan. I am amazed at how the Japanese are coping with the crisis, trying to do everything they can to prevent a nuclear meltdown and rescue survivors in the earthquake-devastated cities.

Part of me keeps wondering how we would react and cope if such a disaster struck Manila. I remembered the events of Ondoy, how we lost people and property that time. We were able to survive and recover from the floods. Some people even got to swim in flooded underpasses, cheer at moving vehicles that were able to cross the flooded streets, and steal from those abandoned houses.

I admit that I'm a bit concerned about the possibility of another Ondoy, an earthquake or a tsunami hitting the city, and how unprepared we are for such an event. It got me thinking about preparing ourselves for the possibility of such an event. I'm not talking about stockpiling water and food that would last for months, or buying firearms to protect yourself from looters. I'm thinking of making small emergency kits like bottled water, biscuits, first-aid medicine, flashlight, extra clothes, some cash and other stuff that can fit a small backpack. These kits could be placed in cars and strategic positions at home, just in case something bad happens and you need to get away quick.

Call me paranoid but I think it pays off to be prepared for emergencies. Some people would just put their trust on other people -- like God, the government, or other institutions, for help whenever trouble comes. I think we should help ourselves by preparing for whatever happens in the future.

Weekend Booksale Purchases

2011-03-14T16:02:00.001+08:00

Visited the local Booksale store this weekend. I found a couple of interesting and affordable books -- one for me and the other one for the kids.

The first book costs 25 pesos and it is a Children's book. Written by Janan Cain, "The Way I Feel" is a picture book that talks about emotions. The book introduces young kids to feelings like "happy", "scared", "silly", "angry", "proud", and "sad". I loved the way Janan explains each emotion and the pictures enable children to quickly identify each feeling.

I bought the book (without much hesitation) because it teaches young kids how to express themselves and make them aware of what they are feeling. The book also has two pages devoted to teaching parents on how to introduce kids to their feelings -- how they should manage their anger or fears, what experiences evoke happiness or sadness, and so on.

The second book costs 75 pesos and it is an anthology of short stories about super-heroes. "Who Can Save Us Now" is a collection of superhero stories edited by Owen King and John McNally. The stories revolve around the theme of superheroes in the twenty-first century. The stories range from underachieving heroes, bizarre villains and protagonists, and reluctant superhero teams.

Visiting the new 999 Shopping Mall

2011-03-05T17:24:00.001+08:00

While making my rounds at Divisoria, I got the chance to visit the new 999 Shopping Mall. Located at Soler St, besides the (in)famous 168 Mall, 999 is the newest shopping center in the block. The mall has three floors, with basement parking (for customers) and food court. And They even have a facebook account.

I stumbled on the mall by accident, but I heard about it from my mother-in-law before. She told me that the 168 Mall already had an extension mall built beside it. So I thought it was just part of the old 168 Mall. Apparently this was a new mall with its own facilities.

The foodcourt is located at the third floor, which is smaller compared to the foodcourt in Divisoria Mall. It has the usual Chinese food stalls, along with Andoks Litson Manok, Lot's A Pizza, and a Wendy's Burger stand.

There are still a lot of empty stalls in the second and third floor, but the entire first floor is filled with shops owned by Chinese businessmen.

I found an interesting store near the foodcourt, which sells Korean junk food -- from ice cream to chips. The store is offering free chips to people, to try out the merchandise before buying. And it works. A lot of people are crowding the store, trying to taste the chips and buying them afterwards.

The mall has its usual clothes, school supply, hardware, and jewelry shops. There are a number of toy shops at the first floor as well. I came across a couple of toy shops that sell authentic US toys at a cheap price. One store (stall 1-L-9) sells original action figures and toys. I saw numerous matchbox cars, Star Trek action figures, Lego sets, and other toys in the shop.

The toys look original.

Of course, you have the electronic shops that sell the fake Apple Ipads. The smaller unit costs around 3k with the keyboard. The bigger unit costs around 7k.

Toddler Book Repair

2011-03-03T19:57:00.000+08:00

Years ago, when I imagined getting married and having kids, I wanted to raise my children as passionate readers and book lovers. Now, I have the opportunity to pass on my love for books to both Aaron and Nika.

Jen and I would often bring Aaron to Fully Booked Greenhills so he can run around in the Children Section of the bookstore, reading Thomas the Tank Engine books. He's already familiar with the layout of the bookstore and can find the shelves where his favorite books are located.

Sometime I dream of building a small library of books for the two kids -- a stack of alphabet and number books for them to read and enjoy. Unfortunately anything they touch ends up getting broken or ripped apart. All their books are now torn and damaged, with missing pages and ripped bindings. They still love to look at the pages, or whatever that is left

So far I managed to tape back all the books that I can salvage. I am trying to convince myself that this is just a stage and they would eventually learn how to treat their books well. I don't even know how to teach them to take care of their books.

Right now I am becoming reluctant to let the two toddlers touch any type of book -- even my parent's magazines or the phone directory. I'm afraid they'd eventually learn how to climb the desk, and reach out to shelves containing my collection of fantasy novels. I'm still letting them play with their old (damaged) books, although I am not going to give them any new stuff until they grow older.

Darna Lives!

2011-02-24T09:35:00.002+08:00

Stumbled upon an interesting online comic blog., featuring our favorite local superhero. Darna Lives is a fan fiction/blog/online comics created by Gerry Alanguilan and Arnold Arre. It offers a different re-interpretation of the Darna mythology.

I love the artwork and the depiction of Narda and her family. Honestly, I've been accustomed to see the likes of Marian or Angel playing the Darna role. It's a refreshing and delightful experience to see Narda presented as something different. In the blog, she is a middle-aged woman, selling meat at the local wet market, with a husband and three kids.

There are only a couple of posts in the blog, it's still too early for anyone to make any conclusions on the story or the characters. So far, things are getting interesting and I'll be sticking around to find out where it goes.

Graveyard Dwellers

2011-02-19T09:27:00.000+08:00

Here's another video that features families that live in cemeteries. It reminds me of the caretakers in my grandparent's grave. Like the family in the video, they live inside the graveyard, taking care of the tombstones and mausoleums. Some people find it creepy but these people are making a decent and honest living.

Serenitea Revisted

2011-02-19T06:48:00.002+08:00

Jen, Aaron and I went out last night to visit our favorite tea house in town. I'm amazed that Aaron knows about the tea house and is looking forward to drinking his favorite milk tea.

The tea shop is located along Wilson's street in Little Baguio. It is a block away from Little Store and it is along the block where the Buddhist Ocean Sky Monastery stands.

It is branded as the healthy tea shop since you get to decide how much sugar you want to place on your orders. There is also a wide variety of flavors to choose from -- like the Hokkaido milk tea, Yakult fruit teas, Okinawa, and even Earl Grey milk tea. The drinks also come with sago pearls and other gelatins which you can add for a few extra pesos.

I enjoyed taking out the family around the neighborhood and have a quick snack along the way. It offers a (tea) break from the usual weekday routine that we've been having. My only complaint about the tea store is its size. I think the store should expand to accommodate the number of customers it has. There were limited seats and tables. The traffic of people also makes you want to just order your drinks to go and leave immediately (rather than stay and enjoy the tea you ordered).

Jen and I ordered the Earl Grey milk tea and the ~~Raspberry plum~~ Passion Fruit tea for Aaron. The drinks tasted wonderful, the sweetness was just right. We decided to stay for a few more minutes before heading home with our drinks.

Belated V-Day post

2011-02-18T09:45:00.000+08:00

I found a nice music video to post for this Valentine week. Yeah I know its a bit late, but I think the song describes everything about the occasion.

Despite the hectic weekend at Clark (with the kids and the hot-air balloons), I still manage to sneak out of the house and buy some flowers for Jen. It's a small token of appreciation for all the things she's done and everything she has brought into my life.

Urban Bridge Dwellers

2011-02-17T10:59:00.000+08:00

I am posting this video as a reminder to myself, to be aware of these families and their sad condition, and also to remind myself to be grateful for what I have.

I've seen these people who make homes under bridges all over the city. It is sad, but I think they are better off compared to those who don't have shelter and live on the streets. The video also shows the resourcefulness of these people, how they are capable of surviving in the most intolerable environments.

Clark Adventures: 2011 Hot Air Balloon Festival

2011-02-13T10:56:00.047+08:00

We made plans with my college friends to go to Clark this weekend and watch the 2011 hot air balloon festival. The four of us met up with Sunshine and her family, Ching, as well as Chris, Eddie, and Rico. It was a nice road trip going to Pampanga, making occasional stop-overs for the kids.

Jen managed to reserve a lodge at Fontana Resort (with membership discounts). It was a three-bedroom cottage with television and a spacious living room for the kids to run around and play. We managed to check-in the resort around 2pm Saturday, take a short rest, and visit the Hot Air balloon show at around 5pm.

The house we got was a three bedroom duplex, with two beds on each room. Good thing the neighbors were not that noisy. We managed to take a short snooze before heading out to the air field.

It was a short ride going to the balloon show. Traffic was heavy but tolerable, since you get to see the balloons and airplanes even from a far distance. A lot of people did not go in anymore; they just parked their cars outside and watched the show from the street.

We managed to get into the field at around 6pm, paying 150 pesos per adult (kids go in for free), to watch the final event. Everyone got a chance to see different hot-air balloons -- like Darth Vader, Frosty the snowman, Pirate in a barrel, and others.

This was our first group trip ever since I got married. It was both fun and tiring, since Jen and I had to deal with the two kids. Sunshine and Leo also had their hands full with Basti. I am really thankful that Ching and the other guys were there to help out, taking turns watching the kids.

We left Clark at around 12 noon the following day. But before we left, the group managed to take a dip at Fontana's pool grounds. Too bad the main pool area was under renovation. However the 'smaller' pools are still big enough to accommodate the guests -- with Olympic sized pools and hot/cold pools for people of all ages.

Everyone had a great time -- with all the traveling, eating, swimming, and balloon watching. It was a bit tiring for the adults, since we had to pack up and drive whenever we wanted to eat or go around. Despite this, we are looking forward to our next out of town trip.

Emo

2011-02-01T09:40:00.001+08:00

Posing

2011-01-31T09:39:00.004+08:00

Street Children

2011-01-30T09:38:00.001+08:00

Fish in the Sea

2011-01-19T07:00:00.000+08:00

An Online Community Dedicated to Collaborative Learning

2011-01-17T13:43:00.001+08:00

I came upon Wikiversity by accident. I was researching course materials for technical writing when I found this interesting website that promotes open (free) educational learning to everyone. Much like Wikipedia, this site was built to store information on different topics.

I like the concept of free learning for everyone. I think everyone is entitled to education and this site is one good step towards that goal.

Imagine having students logging on to their computers and access their daily classes online. A lot of university classes are already taking this mode of learning, specially distance learning education (where students from one country can take courses from a school in another country). This wiki site has a grand goal to make learning available for everyone at no cost. I think it is possible if there are a lot of professors who would be willing to contribute their knowledge to the site, sharing what they know for free.

Currently, the site is still underdeveloped. A lot of information from different subjects are still missing. It would be nice to have a free online learning site that contains modules and lessons to aid its readers in learning.

I think the wiki site can use online quizzes or exercise questions, much like other LMS courses. These lessons can become more interesting and entertaining with additional learning exercises, videos, forums, and other tools that encourage student participation.

Shot Glass

2011-01-16T07:02:00.000+08:00

Book Review: Leaper (by Geoffrey Wood)

2011-01-12T12:06:00.002+08:00

I came across this curious novel at Booksale. Leaper talks about the "misadventures of a not-necessarily-super-hero". Based on the cover, the book is about a neurotic coffee barista named James, who suddenly discovers that he has a super power.

Flipping through the first few pages of the book, I saw how James discover his ability to teleport or "leap" from one spot to another. He found himself transported to the house of his ex-wife and struggled to make sense out of the whole predicament.

Based on my initial impressions, I thought the book was a good read. It had everything that I like in a story -- a quirky protagonist struggling to make sense of his new ability and what to do with it. The humor and snappy dialogue made the story even more entertaining.

After buying the book and making through the next couple of chapters, I got to learn more about James. He has been coping poorly with life, thanks to his divorce. His ex-wife took away everything and all he has left was his job at the coffee house and his apartment. The super power that he discovered made his situation even worse.

I did not expect the author to take the next few chapters to another direction, which was different from the typical superhero stories that I read before. It turns out that James was a non-practicing Catholic and wondered if his new power was given to him by God. I did a little research on Geoffrey Wood, and it turns out that he is a Christian writer and most of his works revolve on faith and religion.

As I continued reading the novel, I learned that it was God who as the one responsible for James's newly acquired power. I part of me cringed, thinking that the story would become one of those preachy religious parables that promotes Catholicism and religion.

Despite his sudden renewal of faith, James's situation continues to deteriorate. He loses his job, alienates his friends, becomes a fugitive, and gets arrested. I noticed that the humorous writing (which was present in the first few chapters) had been replaced with a grim and darker tone. With everything gone, James only had his faith left and learned to trust in God.

The novel had a satisfying ending (I won't spoil it for those who want to read the book), but I am not sure if the book would have the same impact for non-Christians. Wood took the risk in using God as the source for James's leaping power. The superhero story eventually became a spiritual journey of man who rediscovers his faith and reconciles with his own failures.

I find the book a worthy read. It's been a while since I came across a good Christian-based fiction. Despite living in a Catholic country, I noticed that we do have a lack of worthy Catholic stories and novels. Most that I encountered fall into two extreme opposites -- bashing the Church (and God) or blatantly praising them. For me, a good Christian-based fiction is a story that uses religion and faith to explore human nature, from its flaws and imperfections. Such stories don't have to end with people singing and praising God, but religion can be used as a catalyst to either help resolve or to heighten the conflict. It is still the protagonist (and not religion) that makes the choice and finds an appropriate ending for the story.

New Year at Tagaytay

2011-01-01T12:25:00.048+08:00

It was a bad decision to go to Tagaytay on New Year's day. But we thought it was a nice idea to spend the holiday outside the house. We thought it would be easier to manage the kids when we are out of the house. But things have a funny way of getting back at you when you least expect it.

Our trip going to Tagaytay was tiring but enjoyable. Jen's younger brother and his wife joined us on the trip. They just returned from Singapore to spend the holidays with her parents. We talked on the road and played with the kids. We made a stop over to SM Dasmarinas to have lunch at Max's restaurant. There were a lot of people there and strangely, the department store was closed for the holiday.

We left the mall and made our way up to Tagaytay. It was around 3pm when we arrived. There were a lot of people and cars near the junction. We noticed that both sides of the main road was packed with cars. Traffic was slow moving.

We decided to have a short snack at Josephine. The restaurant was packed with people, but we loved the ambiance. Aside from the actual dining area, customers can enjoy the scenery outside.

We ordered Bulalo, palabok, halu-halo, and blue marlin with mango salsa. The food was okay for its price. I guess the main attraction of the restaurant is its ambiance and its panoramic view of the lake. Jen and I had to take breaks in our meal, to feed and take care of the kids. Aaron loved the cold weather and kept dragging us outside to look at the volcano.

It was almost 7pm when we left the restaurant. Traffic was still bad outside, but we were determined to leave Tagaytay. We spent three hours on the road, trying to entertain and put the kids to sleep. It wasn't an easy task. Both of them demanded attention and would cry out when we appear to be ignoring them. But after an hour and a half, we managed to put them to sleep.

Note to self -- don't bring the kids to Tagaytay during holidays, you'll be stuck in traffic and you'll get even more exhausted taking care of the kids during the trip.

Goodbye Palm TX (It was nice knowing you)

2010-12-24T12:08:00.000+08:00

My wife's second-hand Palm TX has been having problems:

First, the LCD was damaged and you cannot re-adjust the screen anymore.

Second, the power button is not working anymore -- you can turn on the unit but cannot turn it off. You need to wait until it automatically shuts down on its own.

I have the option of replacing the unit's LCD, but it costs around 1.5 to 2.5k. Perhaps I can sell the unit as broken in ebay, for those people who want to dismantle the unit and use it for spare parts.

I don't want to throw away the unit since I think the parts can still be reused or someone out there might be willing to buy the defective unit, repair it, and use it.

I'm planning to transfer all my wife's files and programs to my Palm Lifedrive. I haven't been using the Lifedrive in months and I think she'd have more use for it.

Noisy Celebration Equals Happy Celebration

2010-12-21T10:13:00.000+08:00

It's the season of company Christmas parties again.

We live next to a ~~sweatshop~~ factory that makes branded girlie accessories. They had their Christmas party last weekend and it was literally a blast. The entire village, and neighboring houses, could hear their sound system. It's like they have gigantic speakers facing the windows and intentionally want to broadcast their event for all the world to hear.

They began playing their party music around five in the afternoon, with occasional commentaries from one of the DJ/employees. The other neighbors tried to ignore their rowdy event, closing the windows or turning up the television in their own rooms to drown out the noise.

Unfortunately, the party lasted until the evening. The kids were already asleep but the music was making it difficult for everyone else to rest. It was until 11:30 that a police SUV came into the village and demanded to talk to the owner of the factory. Apparently someone made a report and told the police about their wild celebration. The owner then came down and apologized to the policemen. He claimed that they were not that noisy and promised to lower the volume (which they did).

I really find it sad when people equate noisiness with happiness. You can have a meaningful and joyful celebration without waking the entire neighborhood. I guess it is a Filipino (or Asian) thing since a few foreigners have noticed this same peculiarity among the locals. We always think that being noisy is a way to be happy -- that's probably the reason why we spend a lot of money on fireworks, sounds, and noise makers to welcome the New Year or Christmas.

I doubt if we'll ever learn to keep quiet and learn to experience happiness amidst silence. I have a feeling that our neighbor's party next year will definetley be more rowdier and crazier than this year.

Attended the Xavier Toy Convention (2010)

2010-12-12T13:09:00.003+08:00

I had a chance to drop by the 2010 year-end toy convention, which was held at Xavier School. There was an entrance fee of fifty pesos and they'll give you some free biscuits and crackers, courtesy of the convention sponsors.

I've been to a couple of toy conventions before, and I find this one a bit subdued. There were only a few booths and people inside. I'm guessing that we came around 11am and the main activities would happen after lunch.

We saw a McDonald's booth selling their old happy meal toys (aside from their usual fast food stuff), Neutral Grounds booth selling Magic CCGs and boardgames, Seattle's Best coffee booth, the Open Gaming Meet group, an Isuzu dealership booth, and other booths from toy distributors (and shops in Greenhills). There's even a Dungeons and Dragons corner where people get to play a 4E game.

There are a lot of stuff being sold -- from cosplay wigs, costumes, and makeups, to model trains/planes/tanks/boats, mecha robots, action figures, board games, and other stuff. We bought some MegaBloks that were being sold at a discounted price for the kids.

I would love to come back later but I'm not sure if I'd have the time to drop by again.

Song of the day [Katy Perry's version of Hackensack]

2010-12-09T09:24:00.000+08:00

I occasionally caught portions of this song in the radio, but never got the song's title. Thanks to the internet, I finally learned that it was a Fountains of Wayne song. Now I've been listening to it the whole morning.

The song reminds me of the first Superman movie, where Ms Teschmacher (Luthor's girl friend) convinces Superman to save her mother, who lives in Hackensack (New Jersey).

I've posted a link of Katy Perry singing a version of the song below. Though I like the original FOW version, I do like the instrumental in Katy's Unplugged version. It sounds more melancholic and haunting. That plus Katy's voice, makes it an extra treat.

Contemplating on my 13th month pay

2010-12-08T10:33:00.000+08:00

I often get the mandatory 13th month pay and the bonus pay mixed up. The first one is required by law, while the second one is an option or add-on that the company gives, in addition to the employee's basic pay. For most people, like me, the extra money we get at the end of the year gives us an excuse to splurge and buy all the things we think we need, just to make our holidays more special. But when I think about it, the 13th month pay isn't really a gift from my employers, unless they are really generous to dole out bonuses to everyone in the company.

Now that I think about it, my 13th month pay is actually part of my annual gross income. This means that the extra money I am getting every end of the year is taken from the total salary I get every year. So if I earn 10k a month and get another 10k in December, this means my annual gross income is actually 130k and not 120k. One way to look at this is simply dividing the 130k over twelve months, which shows my actual monthly income (without any 13th month pay).

I never really received any year-end bonus ever since I started working. But I am grateful that I get my 13th month pay every year. Knowing that my 13th month is actually part of the salary that I should be receiving, makes me even more conscious of how I spend this money. My attitude would probably be different if I knew that the money I get is an add-on bonus, given by the company because of profit gains or excellent performance. I'd probably spend it all on gifts for my family, toys, and nice gadgets.

I'm planning to spend a portion of my 13th month paying off my yearly insurance and investment expenses. The rest would go to savings. I still have enough room in my monthly budget to buy the things I need to make its holiday season enjoyable for me and my family.

MIT Online Courses for Free

2010-12-02T10:15:00.000+08:00

The other week I was looking for free technical writing courses online, or something that can help me improve my skills as a writer. I accidentally stumbled upon an MIT website that offers free online course materials.

I checked out the courses offered and realized that these were actual undergraduate and graduate classes held at MIT. The classes are divided according to different fields of study -- from engineering to health sciences, management, humanities and the arts.

There are several foreign language classes posted under the humanities and arts section, as well as a few poetry and creative writing courses. Each class has its own website, which contains the syllabus, lesson plans, and tons of reading materials that was used for the course.

Looking over the wide array of choices reminded me of my college years, when I had the chance to choose the classes I want to take as my electives. The basic technical communication course looks interesting, as well as the advance classes on technical writing for health sciences and technology. There are even specialty courses on essay writing and creating poetry on the web.

It would be a great new year's resolution to take (and finish) one or more of these courses. It would be an added treat to learn new things for free and say that you've participated in an MIT class.

Hectic Holidays

2010-12-01T10:04:00.001+08:00

So its the first day of December 2010 and our schedule for the month has been planned out. It seems that there are five weeks to this year's December and we'll be attending an average of 2-3 different reunions and gatherings each week.

All the planning, gift buying, and scheduling of reunions makes the holiday season even more stressful for me. Is it just me or is it getting harder (stressful) to celebrate the holidays nowadays? Sometimes I wish if it would be easier if we hold these yearly meet ups before December, like somewhere between January and November. It would save me the hassle of juggling my time and money.

It's a good thing that Jen and I will be attending our yearly spiritual retreat this weekend. I had to juggle my schedule just to find the time to join (Jen has been stressing on how we'd leave the kids over the weekend). But I guess it it worth it. All these planning and gatherings have made me lose my focus on what the holiday is truly about. This retreat is what I need to energize my spiritual life.

We'll be having our company party on the second week, as well as a small family reunion over the weekend. After that, I'll be attending two more gatherings with friends on the third weekend of the month. On the fourth week, I'll be attending a wedding and an engagement party, plus more parties.

And to make things more challenging, the kids' caretaker will be going on holiday break on the last week of the month up until the first week of January. This means Jen and I will be dealing with the two kids over the new year. There's even plans for an out-of-town vacation when Jen's brother comes home from abroad.

Here's hoping I'll survive the holidays this year. I guess if we do everything right and go with the flow, things might turn out more enjoyable (at least for me).

Mano Mano (Mike Adrao's Exhibit at Blanc)

2010-11-26T07:44:00.002+08:00

It's been years since I last saw Mike's works. Thanks to Facebook, I caught a glimpse of his latest project. I am impressed with his drawings and he has indeed grown as an artist.

Mike was one of the talented and devoted illustrators working for the University's literary journal. Everyone loved his drawings and how he expresses himself through his work. Personally I found his art a bit dark but alluring at the same time. I guess it is how he uses his drawings to create a brooding and serious perception of the things around him. No matter how strange his works may get, everyone likes it because he delivers it well.

Mike's works are currently being displayed at the Blanc compound, along Shaw Blvd.

For more information on the exhibit and Mike's other works, you can visit the Blanc gallery website.

Scribble Stage

2010-11-25T14:35:00.001+08:00

Got another invite from Min and Nano. They are holding another art exhibit from December 3 to 31 at Makati city.

It would be nice to go visit them before the holidays and catch up. I hope me and my friends can find the time to meet up and go to the launch.

Old Toys and New Toys

2010-11-25T06:54:00.000+08:00

Just finished watching Toy Story 3 with the kids. I'm glad that Aaron enjoyed watching it, even though he's just two years old. I guess he loved the animation and the idea of toys moving around. He instantly recognized Mr. Potato Head since we bought him his own Mr. Potato Head months ago.

He took an instant liking to Buzz Lightyear. I was expecting he'd like Woody more. The movie made me think of the old toys I had back when I was still a kid. I had an odd collection of trucks, cars, stuffed animals, and Lego. Most of these toys got lost or broken, but the only durable ones are my Lego collection.

Aaron still plays with some of my old matchbox cars and planes. But I'm slowly training him so he can play with Lego sets when he's much older. So far he's loving my old Duplo collection -- with the old town set where he can create houses, cars, and rocket ships (with my help).

The Story of Electronics

2010-11-15T09:05:00.003+08:00

Show another video clip from Jonathan Blundell's We Live Simply blog. The video makes sense to me so I decided to post it here and share it to my friends.

Most of our electronic stuff are really 'designed for the dump' and it part of what we call an 'unsustainable materials economy'. I do have a drawer filled with old electronic chargers (from various old cellular phones and electronic parts) tangled up like a lump of furball wires.

Having owned several desktop and hand-held computers, I can imagine how much junk we throw out just to accommodate the newer and 'flashier' electronic devices.

My old Pentium III-800 desktop is still in our closet, waiting to be used. I wanted to upgrade its memory and processor so it can run faster, but when I brought it to the shop they said that there are no more parts available on this model for upgrade. The shop assistant then gave me this 'why-are-you-trying-to-fix-this-junk, you-should-just-buy-a-new-computer' look.

I figured that we as consumers should be conscious of the stuff we use and dispose. I try to resell my stuff at ebay when I decide that I don't have any use for them anymore. At least the things I re-sell are still working and I know there are a lot of people who still need them.

C is for Cookie

2010-11-13T16:26:00.000+08:00

I am so grateful that there's the internet to entertain the kids. I usually accompany them as I go online, open two web browsers -- one for me and the other for them.

While I spend my time reading emails, blogs, and surfing facebook, the kids are watching youtube videos. I'd let them watch old and new clips from Sesame Street and other educational shows.

Here's one of Aaron's favorite clips, which taught him the letter 'c' and the word 'cookie'.

And here is an updated version of the song, which Nika adores as well.

Examination of the Fatty Bodies

2010-11-08T09:19:00.000+08:00

One of the nice perks of our company is the special medical services that it offers to employees. A few months ago, they offered the flu vaccine to everyone (including family) at a very discounted price. Last month, they gave a seminar on cervical cancer and offered the vaccine for all female employees at a discounted price.

This month they gave free body fat analysis to all employees who wanted to have themselves examined. So my colleagues and I decided to have our fats checked. The line wasn't that long and it took around half an hour for everyone to get their results.

Turns out I have 26.6% body fat, which according to the dietitian, means that 26.6% of my entire body is composed of fatty cells. It wasn't that bad. The ideal range is from 18 to 24.9%.

So I am 0.7% off and I think I made a mistake in stating my height as 5'7'. I couldn't remember what my actual height was, but I vaguely recall being 5'7", 5'8", or 5'85" on several occasions.
But with 5'7", I have a conservative reading of my body fat.

So matching my weigh and height, she told me that I needed to lose at least five pounds to go to the safety zone. I could lose more weight, but I would end up looking like a shriveled zombie.

The dietitian then gave me a list of food to each and how much of them I should consume within a day. It wasn't that bad. I was expecting a fat rating of 30% or more, considering the fact that I haven't been exercising regularly and my diet is a mix of fast food/high-cholesterol meals.

Perhaps this is a sign for me, telling me to take care of myself more and try to lose weight. But with the upcoming holiday, I can imagine the challenge and temptation.

Annie Leonard's Happiness Store (for kids)

2010-11-06T16:12:00.013+08:00

Something I'll let the kids watch when they grow older.

This video was made by the same creator who gave us the Story of Stuff.

NaNoWriMo 2010

2010-11-05T15:10:00.025+08:00

Ah November. The month when writers go crazy trying to spew out 50,000 words of fiction. Some people call it the suicide mission or the invitation to lobotomize your head. But still a lot of people are joining for the thrill and challenge of creating their own novel (or as Jerry Cleaver calls it, the 'shitty first draft').

I almost forgot that it is NaNoWriMo season. Blame it on work, family, the kids, even the church and the state. It would be nice to devote time to write stories again. Even if I do get to join, I might not have enough time for sleep.

The last time I joined, I set myself a target of writing at least 1,670 words a day (1,670 times 30 days equals around 50,100 words). Things would have been easier if I had an outline of the plot or how I spread out the conflict and resolution across the number of chapters. But I decided to let chaos reign and spew out whatever came to my mind. Hence the output was an abysmal draft of 50,030+ words.

Good thing NaNoWriMo focuses on quantity and not quality. And there's even a local community of NaNoWriMo writers willing to support you on your one month writing endeavor.

I might consider joining the next NaNoWriMo event next year. But I have to make preparations before November, like working out the structure of the story, the characters, and possible conflicts/resolutions. That alone would take another month for me.

Time Management

2010-11-04T09:38:00.002+08:00

I'm glad to read a new post from Frugal Pinoy. She's talking about the value of time -- how much we spend our waking hours paying for the stuff we spend and the expenses we accumulate.

Even though we have made leaps in technology and improved our standard of living, most of us still find ourselves lacking personal time or quality time to spend with family and friends. We spend most of our waking hours working and toiling just to pay for the things and luxuries that we think we need to make us happy.

It would be nice to leave the rat race and re-orient yourself to live a simpler life. This probably means cutting down on expenses (from internet, cable, luxury items, fancy food...) and live with just the bare essentials. But then most of us (meaning, those that have families and kids to raise) don't have that option.

Personally I would have to make the conscious effort of managing my time, making sure that I use it wisely to do the things that are important to me -- devoting the necessary number of hours to earn money, spending quality time with the kids and wife, and having enough personal time to pursue the things that I am passionate about.

Speaking of the importance of time, I just learned that one of the stars in Big Bang Theory just landed a role in an upcoming sci-fi movie. Johnny Galecki (the one that plays Leonard) is working with Justin Timberlake to star in I'm.Mortal. The movie works on the premise that the aging gene has been turned off and people have become immortal.

I like the idea and how this new technology makes time the new world currency. People now use their own time to buy the things they need. So in this society, the rich can live on forever while the rest of humanity struggle to pay for their immortality.

My Lego Investments

2010-10-29T10:27:00.000+08:00

I had some extra cash the other month and decided to invest it on another Lego set. Good thing SM Megamall was having a mall-wide sale that time. Toy Kingdom was offering a 10 percent discount on all their products, including Lego sets.

So I decided to buy the Medieval Market set from the Lego Castle collection.

This would be my third Castle Set, along with the Dwarf Mines and the Castle Siege. I both the other two sets for a nice price of 10k last year.

I've wrapped the three unopened sets in plastic and kept them in our storage cabinet. I'm planning to sell the three boxes in a few years. Hopefully the prices for these unopened castle sets would have doubled or tripled by then. Good luck to me.

Music of the Day -- [Internet Killed the Video Star]

2010-10-27T09:44:00.001+08:00

Zombies!!!

School Reunion

2010-10-19T10:03:00.002+08:00

I got an unexpected phone call last night from a former classmate. He told me that they were organizing a small batch reunion this week. He was asking if I would be able to attend.

"It would be great to meet old classmates and friends," he told me. "Who do you keep in touch with? Maybe you can invite them as well."

I told him that I already had plans that night. He should have called sooner and I might consider attending the get-together.

He asked again, wondering who I still kept in touch with. I told him that everyone I know has either migrated to a first-world country or gone off the radar (keeping a low profile). I could call up our reclusive classmates and invite them, but I doubt if they would want to go.

From what I heard, this has always been a problem with our batch. Only a few people show up at reunions and school homecomings. Most of the organizers end up frustrated at the low turnover of people. I don't blame my former classmates, we were never really close as a batch. We had a lot of cliques and social circles, and many loners and misfits. But there was nothing (as far as I can remember) that tied us all together.

As we continued to talk, my mind drifted into this bizarre fantasy of what our high school reunion would be, if everyone in the batch attended. The intellectual elite would be seated on one table, next to the social butterflies. The basketball jocks and soccer jocks would be together, talking about their next game (or maybe about their new passion, which is golf). The other "clique-less" people would also be there (me included), alone or forced to sit together in a table.

I resumed our conversation, chatting about the time I got him into detention for a mistake I made. He was surprised that I remember something as trivial as this. As much as I like to attend reunions, I feel that I won't really connect with the people there. They still had their cliques and friends attending the party. My friends are somewhere else. They want to come together to remember the past. I still carry much of the past in my mind.

In the end, we exchanged numbers and promised to add each other at Facebook. He asked me (for the last time) come to the reunion. I told him that I'll try. He must have sensed my hesitation, but didn't force the topic anymore.

Urban farming in the city

2010-09-27T13:27:00.004+08:00

Got some space in your backyard or window? Why not turn it into a small vegetable garden? Urban farming sounds like a good alternative to buying expensive vegetables in the market, and it is eco-friendly.

It would be great to grow my own food. I know my parents have started their own malunggay, papaya, and ampalaya plants in the backyard. Unfortunately the harvest isn't that great. The house help says that our soil is not that good for cultivating plants. We also have some wild aloe vera, oregano, and onions in our yard. Unfortunately, the leaves of these plants are prone to attacks from ants, worms, and other pests.

I found this Reuters video and it talks about the potential for urban farming here in Manila. Watching this short clip shows that people can live off the land, if they choose to. It also reminds me that our country is really fit for agricultural development and we should take advantage of this valuable resource.

Maybe if I have the time, I'd try to learn some basic farming/gardening. Such a skill may come in handy and it is something that is good for the environment.

Pictures from Nano's Peninsula Exhibit

2010-09-25T06:57:00.001+08:00

These are some of the pictures taken from Nano's latest exhibit, entitled "Games for Growing".
The show features new works from Nano, Min, and their son Haraya.

I dropped by during the opening at Makati Peninsula (Blanc) and took some pictures.

I was surprise to learn that these works were made by Haraya:

And here are some paintings made by Haraya's parents:

I left the exhibit feeling amazed, knowing that Nano is doing well in his career as an artist. He even influenced his son to follow on his footsteps.

Tagaytay Wedding Adventure

2010-09-24T14:05:00.004+08:00

We went to Tagaytay last weekend. It was the wedding of Jen's cousin and the entire family was invited. I always have second thoughts bringing the kids out of town. Jen always gets stressed preparing for the kids things -- from clothes, food, vitamins, and other baby necessities. And to complicate things more, our two yaya get car-sick during long travels.

True enough, we brought tons of stuff along and forgot some of essential items as well. We left Manila around 1PM and arrived at Sonya's Garden around 4PM. We stopped over the Jollibee restaurant at Tagaytay junction so the two yayas can throw up and shake off their dizziness. By the time we arrived, the wedding had started.

It was our first visit to Sonya's Garden and I find the place quite homely and secluded. The garden is absolutely breathtaking, with lots of colorful flowers and strong floral scent lingering the air.

The wedding reception was also held at the Garden. It was nice to see Jen's relatives again. Everyone was having a great time talking to each other, enjoying each others company. We feasted on fruits, salads, and other wonderful dishes. I'll be posting some pictures of the event when I have the time.

We left the garden around 9pm and got a log cabin at Chateau Royale. Jen's aunt booked several rooms there for all the guests to spend the night. I found the resort a bit strange since it had a Western sounding name, but the place was filled with Buddhist and Chinese Taoist statues.

Jen's relatives were inviting us for some coffee but we had to stay in the cabin and prepare the kids to sleep. We then realized that we ran out of milk for Nika, so we asked for my father-in-law to go buy a can in the nearest drug store. Turns out the nearest drugstore with infant's milk was in Silang Cavite.

We had a nice breakfast the following morning. Everyone had to leave early, since they all had plans that Sunday afternoon. But they were making plans of returning to Tagaytay this December and spend two or three more days there. We were lucky to have Jen's family helping us out for the trip. It would be extremely difficult for us to travel with the kids and the yayas alone.

Animated Urban Art

2010-09-24T09:02:00.003+08:00

I wonder if we have drawings like this here in the Philippines....

Waiting for the end of September

2010-09-23T09:45:00.001+08:00

A lot of things are suppose to happen at the end of the month. Yet I feel that the days are passing by rather slowly. It's a good thing, I guess.

One of the caretakers announced that she'll be leaving. We convinced her to stay until the end of this month. She told us that she needs to go home and be with her husband. But when Jen asked her further, she said that there is friction between her and the other caretaker. Both of them are responsible for watching the kids, but they seem to be fighting over who gets to do the lighter workload.

We'll be talking to her again by the end of the month. Jen wants her to stay and get rid of the other caretaker.

Speaking of the other caretaker, I caught her reading one of my Japanese language books while watching Aaron play. I don't mind her going over the bookshelf and reading. At least it shows that she wants to learn things and (given the opportunity) study.

But this isn't the first time she's caught touching other people's things. The other helpers caught her wearing the shirt of a former house help. Jen also reprimanded her for talking candy from our refrigerator without our permission (we would have given her the candy if she asked).

Jen wants to let her go but she's afraid that no one will be left to take care of the two kids. WE both agree to wait till the end of September and talk to the other caretaker. We hope that she'll stay for another month and replacement the other yaya with klepto hands.

Leadership Flaws

2010-09-22T10:37:00.004+08:00

It's been a while since I last posted. A lot of real life stuff has been going on, most of it mundane and fairly boring.

I'd just like to share some insights I gained during the time I was away from this blog. It's mostly about the leaders I've encountered and their leadership skills. It is no easy task to take up the mantle of leadership. To accept the role of a leader means you have to take resp0nsiblity for those under you and become accountable to them and to those outside your group.

Unfortunately, some of leaders I know fail to recognize their responsibility and accountability to those under them. Here are some of the things I noticed when leaders fail to fulfill their duties to their team-mates.

1. Criticizing your own group in front of other leaders. I think a leader should stand up for his group and at least try to defend them. Every group has its flaws and a good leader should help improve his or her group's weaknesses, rather than criticizing the group in front of other people.

2. Restrict or limit information. Being a leader means having to deal with things that affect the welfare of the group. A good leader knows how to keep his group updated on things and events that might affect their performance or work. Some leaders I know tend to withhold important information, causing confusion among his or her group.

3. Disregarding regulations and protocols. Groups and teams function properly when they follow a prescribed protocol or standard. Everyone knows their role and responsibilities, what is expected of them, and how they contribute to the overall performance of the group. Some leaders ignore the standard rules and processes, often making up their own rules as they please. This can cause confusion and conflict within the group and other groups.

4. What works before can work now. Every group is unique. Leaders should learn to adjust their management skills and adapt. Some leaders I know follow the same leadership style, thinking that what works in one group can work in another.

5. Micromanagement and total mismanagement. Some leaders I worked with fall under these two extreme categories. There are leaders that try to manage everything that his or her group does (even though the subordinate is an expert or skilled on the task assigned to him/her). For me it shows that the leader does not fully trust the people under them. And there are leaders that have no clue as to what is happening within the group.

6. Power tripping. Just because you are the leader doesn't give you the right to be a jack-ass to your group mates.

There are a lot of other things I can add, but I think these are the more glaring flaws that I've noticed in the recent leaders I worked with. I try my best to understand their own weaknesses and imperfections. But these leaders need to remind themselves of their responsibilities and obligation to their groups.

Adventures at the Phil. Orthopedic Center

2010-08-09T07:42:00.003+08:00

It's the fourth day of my father's injury. He and Mama wanted to get a second opinion, and decided to consult a Chinese doctor in Quezon City. By Chinese doctor, I'm referring to a physician schooled in the alternative/Eastern Chinese medicinal sciences. Personally, I do not believe in Chinese medicines and I prefer to trust Western medical sciences. But my parents brought me along, to get help them decide what to do with my dad's broken bone.

We drove to the doctor's house and showed him Dad's x-ray. Like most practitioners of Chinese medicine, the doctor was from the Mainland. He looked at Dad's x-ray and said that he cannot do anything about the bone. It was broken. No amount of pressure point massage and herbs can fix that. That probably scared my parents (who were still relying on Chinese medicine). I'm grateful that the doctor convinced my parents to go have Papa checked in the hospital -- the sooner the better.

Out of options, I suggested that we have Papa examined in the Philippine Orthopedic Center. We drove to the hospital and brought my dad to the emergency room.

This was my first visit to the hospital. It reminded me of PGH -- how the building and facilities looked old. Compared to other private hospitals that were built to resemble five-star hotels, the Philippine Orthopedic Center looked more like a sleazy motel.

We went to the ER and there were a lot of people inside. I was a bit shocked to see injured patients lined up, waiting for their turn at the clinic. There were kids with broken fingers, arms, and bruised eyes. Several other patients had severe injuries that they had to be placed in the bed while they waited.

I brought Papa to a doctor and showed him his x-ray. He studied it for a couple of minutes and told us that the bone could be re-set and allowed to heal. This was the best solution for Papa's case. Surgery would result to unforeseen complications (due to my father's age).

We waited for another hour to have a nurse come and help us re-set Papa's bone and apply a new set of bandages and cement on his shoulders. While waiting, I stumbled upon another ER patient -- a young woman who's head a bruised and blood pouring out of her neck. Her companions were making fun of her while the nurses try to clean her injuries, they made fun of her and even took pictures of her (much to the disapproval of the nurses).

When our turn finally came, the nurse and the doctor applied some bandages to Papa and we applied pressure on different parts of his shoulder. Papa endured the pain as we re-set the bone. A few minutes later, Papa was all wrapped up in new bandages and was headed to the x-ray room for another look at his bone.

Looking at the new x-ray, the doctor said that the bone was now set properly. It will take the bone a couple of months to mend. He prescribed a couple of pain-suppressant pills to be taken as needed.

We are all grateful that Papa is on his way to recovery. I'm sure parents are also relieved. All the while we were expecting him to have surgery. I am truly thankful to the nurses and doctors at the Orthopedic Center -- they are heroes in doing what they do.

Playing doctor doctor

2010-08-07T16:52:00.000+08:00

Dad broke his shoulder bone yesterday. He was helping out the workers when he slipped and fell. They all thought he just sprained a muscle and quickly brought a masahista over. Jenny called me from the office, asking if what kind of medcine can help in this situation.

I told her to apply cold compress on the area and have Papa drink some Alaxan FR. I also said that Papa should have an x-ray examination, just to make sure everything is okay. Unfortunately he and mama refuse to go to the hospital.

That night, my dad requested that I rub some massage oil to ease the pain on his shoulder and arms. I said no, saying that I don't want to touch the area unless I know there is nothing broken. He and mama kept nagging about it, and so in the end I gave in.

Eventually the two of them listened and went to the nearby hospital to have papa's shoulder examined. There is a broken bone. The local doctor gave Papa the sermon of his life, saying that he should have gone to the clinic as soon as the accident happened, and not have a masahista work on the wounded area.

The doctor placed a shoulder cast on my dad, telling him to come back next week and have another x-ray. If the bone does not mend on its own (an unlikely possibility, but we are still hoping on it), Papa might have to go under the knife.

Budgetting for Books and Other Stuff

2010-08-02T09:58:00.004+08:00

I finally bought the last Dragonlance Lost Chronicles novel. This book features Raistlin and the story of his conversion to the black robes.

I'm saving up some money to buy the first and second books of the Kingpriest trilogy. Unfortunately, these books are out of print and the only place I can get them is through Amazon dot com.

Another good news is that Jackie Cassada's Immortal Eyes trilogy is now available in pdf format. The story is set in White Wolf's old World of Darkness, featuring a motley of changelings from the city of San Francisco.

I'm still saving money for the upcoming 2010 Manila International Book Fair. Unfortunately there are other things that need to be paid first -- like maintenance for the car, Nika's medicine, and our monthly expenses. Spending money on books seem like a luxury for me nowadays.

2010 Manila International Book Fair

2010-07-16T13:36:00.000+08:00

Now this is something to look forward to.

This year's MIBF will be held from September 15 to 19 at the SMX Convention Center.

I'll try my best to go to the fair, but I'm not worried if I don't make it. The country's major bookstores will also be holding their own book sales during at month. So I can buy the books I've been wanting to read in a nearby bookstore.

Here are some of the books that I'm planning to buy. I hope I can save enough money to get all these stuff by September.

Fables Vertigo Comics
Percy Jackson series
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Hardbound)
The new Spiderwick series
The latest Harry Dresden books

Lessons Learned from Basyang

2010-07-15T09:17:00.003+08:00

After the typhoon came and left Manila, I was again reminded of how we have become so dependent on technology and energy to sustain our modern way of living. Basyang struck the metropolis and caused a city-wide black out. A lot of areas are still without electricity and the power company is working round-the-clock to restore energy to these places.

Power was restored in our area around three am this morning. Jen and I were both relieved because the kids were getting restless from the evening heat. Of course we are to be blamed for spoiling them with the air conditioner (and sometimes the electric fan) turned on. Kids are big sweat factories -- they perspire even if they are just standing still. Being the protective mom, Jen would turn on the cooling machines just to keep them dry and sweat free.

It's not just the air conditioner. The source of our regular evening entertainment (computer, internet, and television) were cut off. It's one thing to endure the dark and the heat, but enduring them without these diversions makes things even more difficult to bear.

Maybe we should try to find some other alternative to our evening activities and rely less on electrical machines. People from the past have lived (and thrived) without the modern comforts that we now enjoy. We could cut down on the use of the air conditioner and spend our evenings doing other things beside watching TV. It can help reduce our electrical bills and make us closer as a family.

Tools of the Trade

2010-07-12T09:01:00.003+08:00

I am currently trying to expand my personal library, adding books on technical communication. While I have reference manuals and books in the office, I do want to have my own copies of these books. Since I am in the profession of writing technical manuals, I might as well invest on books that can help me improve my work.

Here are some of the books I'm currently looking out for:

Microsoft Manual of Style for Technical Publications
Training manuals on various Adobe products (like Framemaker, Illustrator, and Robohelp)
Powerpoint and Visio manuals (the ones that each you how to do fancy presentations and diagrams)

Since my budget is limited, I am planning to scout different Booksale branches. Besides, I am not looking for the latest versions of these manuals. I just want to have my own copy of these reference manuals, to serve as guides to the tools I use in the office.

Happy birthday, Aaron!

2010-07-08T21:19:00.001+08:00

We celebrated Aaron's 2nd birthday today. Time really goes by so fast. Jen and I were remembering the 'old' days where he was just a tiny little baby. Now our two year old boy is a hyperactive little kid who loves to run around the house and get into trouble.

We started singing happy birthday when he woke up. I brought out the gift we bought him months ago and said that it was a special gift from Nika. Aaron quickly opened up the present and saw a familiar looking figure....

It was a small and simple celebration between me, Jen, the kids and my parents. My mom bought a couple of Red Ribbon cakes and we had spaghetti to celebrate Aaron's special occasion.

Rule of 72

2010-06-23T08:30:00.002+08:00

Last week, one of my co-workers introduced us to a Financial planning adviser. The two of them represented a financial company that offers various investment products tailor-made to the client's needs.

The financial adviser gave a simple presentation which focused on personal finance and financial planning. He discussed the different financial products, as well as the investment habits of the typical Filipino (according to age group).

But one thing that got stuck to my mind was his reference to Albert Einstein's Rule of 72. The rule is to divide 72 by the interest rate you are receiving for a financial product. The number you get is the number of years it will take for investment to double. For example, investing 25,000 pesos with a 10% interest rate will take 7.2 years (72/10) for the money to become 50,000 pesos. This is the magic of compounded interest.

This shows that if you allocate more time you to an investment with a high interest rate, your money would grow faster. Simple as it might sound, there are other factors involved, such as inflation, taxes, and the type of investment you place your money.

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-21T18:10:00.005+08:00

It seems rather strange to celebrate the day without the kids or Jen. No, we didn't have a fight or anything like that. We are still yaya-less and still looking.

Jen wanted to take a break. Her parents offered to have the four of us stay at their house for the weekend. My mother-in-law managed to hire one of those part-time house helps -- the ones that stay out and charge P150 to 200 pesos a day. It was nice to have another person look after the kids for a while. Unfortunately, the house-help did not come back the following day (like she promised).

I spent most of the Saturday and Sunday morning at her folk's apartment. A couple of neighbors told us that they knew someone who wanted to apply as yayas. So we spent Saturday and Sunday hoping that they'd show up with the house help.

Well, it's now Monday and we are still waiting.

Anyway, I spent Father's day with my parents and Jen's family. I treated my dad to a breakfast meal at Little Store. Both of us ordered some sticky rice, crab meat, and black chicken misua. I returned to my in-law's apartment and spent most of the afternoon there.

Jen was still hoping that the yaya would arrive. I decided to go home first and prepare the house for their arrival. Hours passed and still no news. By seven thirty, we all grew tried of waiting. I called up Jen and we both decided that they stay another night at her parents' apartment.

So I spent the rest of the night alone, cleaning the house (as well as the Lego and Duplo pieces we bought from the garage sale).

Countdown to Zero

2010-06-13T09:58:00.000+08:00

By tomorrow morning, we will be yaya-less again. The current substitute yaya is leaving for the province and the original yaya has not yet arrived.

We never had any issues with house-helpers before we had children. Jen and I would do the laundry and the cleaning by ourselves. But now that we have two kids in the house, we've become dependent on other people to do basic household chores.

The original yaya left us two weeks ago when she got word that her father passed away. She promised to return after two weeks, saying that the family needed the time to grieve. (Is this a Filipino tradition?) She got her pay and asked if we could loan her one thousand pesos to help pay for her trip back to the province. I gave her an additional five hundred pesos for the funeral.

She texted us a couple of days ago, asking if we could lend her one month worth of her pay. She explained that the funeral expense was costly and they ran out of money. I thought about it and decided to help her out. She is hardworking and probably deserves some break. Jen replied saying that we'll give her the money when she comes back.

The yaya answered back, saying that she doesn't have money to pay for the trip to Manila. She told us to send over her one month pay plus an additional eight hundred pesos for transportation. No one in the province was willing to lend her money anymore (she maxed out her credit).

That was when we decided to draw the line. We were willing to help her out, but she kept asking for more money. She's even planning to borrow another month's worth of salary on July for help pay for her daughter's wedding. Jen told her that we won't be spending her money but that we'll give her the money when she comes back.

She gave a ultimatum -- either send us the money or she won't return. Even though she is a hardworker, I realized that she does have a tendency to over-borrow money. And when she doesn't get what she wants, she threatens to leave us.

Jen and I decided to leave it at that. If she returns, then we'll continue hiring her. If she does not return, we'll continue looking for a new house-help.

Neighborhood Garage Sale

2010-06-12T09:24:00.001+08:00

This was the first garage sale in our block, so we decided to pay the neighbor a visit. I immediately got an idea of our neighbors' personal preferences, judging from the things that they were selling.

There were lots of wooden figurines, fancy silverware, candle holders, a couple of polished metal chests, and antique furniture. Two tables filled with books stacked one on top of the other -- from hardbound art books, romance and horror novels, business and investment manuals.

Jen and I quickly surveyed the other items for sale. There was a carpet full of used (branded) shoes, several boxes of toys, a cabinet filled with classical CDs, and a basket of dolls/stuffed animals.

We spent most of our visit sorting through the toys, looking for possible items that the children can play with. Jen and I are not that particular if the toy is new or used, since the kids will probably dismantle the thing in a day or two.

After twenty minutes of sorting through the boxes, we got the following items for our two babies:
1. A deck of cards containing art/craft ideas for kids
2. A small Barney figurine
3. A stamp/paper cutter
4. A shopping bag filled with old Lego and Duplo bricks

All of these for the price of fifty pesos.

Clutter in the House

2010-06-11T09:35:00.004+08:00

My parents are both pack-rats. They hold on to things -- like broken glass figurines and ceramic wedding souvenirs, old clothes that won't fit or shoes that went out of style decades ago, clunky betamax tapes and a VHS player that doesn't even work anymore.

We have two large rooms that work as their closet/time-capsule. It contains everything they own since the 70s, 80s, and 90s. It would take hours just to sort through the layers of stuff, piled on top of one another.

I don't blame my parents for their attitude towards things. Both of them grew up poor and learned not to be wasteful. This sort of thinking led them to keep things, even things they don't need, just in case they might need them in the future.

Unfortunately, they never realized that the things they own would be the things that tie them down (much like what Tyler Durden said in Fight Club). They take up a lot of space in the house. And you have to devote time and effort to clean/organize them.

It's a good thing that Jen and I are not like my parents. We strive to keep our things to a bare minimum. This minimizes cleaning and simplifies everything in our small house.

I have been convincing my parents to give away some of their stuff. But they refuse to let go of things. Despite their attitude, I count myself lucky to have this awareness of "clutter". I see how they surround themselves with useless trinkets and realize that I don't want to live like that.

World Economic Collapse Explained in Three Minutes

2010-06-07T17:08:00.003+08:00

I like it when he said, "sell everything immediately... quickly..."

Fun at Ace Water Spa

2010-05-24T08:46:00.004+08:00

Even though we haven't had an out-of-town trip for the summer, Jen, Aaron and I managed to have a mini summer excursion/swimming trip here in the city. The three of us, along with Cendo and Vivian's family spent yesterday afternoon at Ace Water Spa.

It was an interesting, fun, and tiring, swimming experience. This was the first time I swam in a water facility that promoted hydrotherapy and family fun. The facility was spacious, there were a lot of people swimming, but everyone had a great time.

The "spa" had a large five lane lap pool (for serious swimmers), waterfalls, floor fountain, and lazy river for the kids to play around, and twenty five different hyromassage systems to soothe your tiring muscles (and promote health). There are small hot herbal pools for people (with jasmine, mint, and lavender flavors), sauna, and steam rooms.

I tried out everything tried out everything there, except for the sauna/steam room. Jen and I loved the shower hydro-massage that gave our back a full back massage. The lukewarm water felt wonderful and I could just spend the entire day soaked in one of those bubbling pools.

The admission fee is around 550 per adult, but if you have their special card and discount coupons, you could get in at a cheaper price. I'd definitely like to go back and have another water blast. Maybe during a weekday, where there are fewer people in the pool.

The Guild

2010-05-20T14:20:00.003+08:00

Just finished watching seasons 1 to 3 of The Guild. Although I never played MMORPG before (just table-top RPG), I still find the storyline amusing and funny.

Each guild member has his or her own quirks and they sort of represent the typical gamer. I thought that guys are in to MMORPG, but the guild here is equally represented by both sex.

What got me hooked into the series is the delivery of its interesting storyline into short six to ten minute clips. Each web episode is small enough to contain its own chapter and contribute to the overall plot of the season.

I'm looking forward to what will happen to the players in the upcoming fourth season.

Notes on creating pdf forms...

2010-05-12T12:57:00.004+08:00

I was instructed to convert a technical survey document to a paperless pdf format. This is the first time I'm using Adobe Acrobat Professional 9 to create a pdf form, so I'm posting all the links and references for this process.

Here is a video that shows how to create fillable forms using Adobe Acrobat's form wizard.

Another link on how to create pdf forms.

Once you created a pdf form, you can even add a submit form feature. This enables people to send the form to a specified email address once they finished filling up the form.

For the upcoming national and local election...

2010-05-08T14:34:00.003+08:00

Found this link that has a complete list of all candidates running for the national and local election.

I found this useful since I live in a city that is managed by a family of showbiz actors-turned-politicians. The people here love them and I have no doubt that they'll win again. At least I know their competitors and see if they have something better to offer.

Only six senatorial candidates have made it to my list. I'm still considering a couple of other people, but I'm fairly certain I won't make it up to twelve. There are only a few deserving and qualified candidates out there and I don't want to waste my vote.

Music of the Day

2010-05-07T09:10:00.002+08:00

Pooplamoose rendition of Mr. Sandman...

Story of Stuff

2010-04-29T09:31:00.002+08:00

An Ounce of Prevention is Better...

2010-04-29T08:29:00.003+08:00

Aaron and Nika's doctor has decided to add the Pneumococcal vaccine into their list of shots. The vaccine is suppose to protect a child from pneumonia, as well as sinusitis, meningitis and a bunch of other illnesses. At first the vaccine was optional, but last week the doctor told us that the Pediatric Association decided to add it to the list of essential shots to be given to babies ages 2 to 23 months. The vaccine is to be taken in every two months until the eight month, with a total of four shots.

Since it was now part of the essential vaccines to be taken, we had Nika injected. The cost of the vaccine and doctor's fee came up to around 4.5k! I could not believe such a small dose would be that expensive and I had to pay for eight of these vaccines for my two kids! Jen went online and checked the local price of the vaccine. Someone at sulit.com.ph was selling the vaccine at 4.1k. So we were sure that the vaccine was around the 4k price range.

This means I would be setting aside a budget of around 36k for Aaron and Nika's vaccine. Since Nika had her shot this month, I told Jen to let Aaron get his first shot next month. That way, I would be paying out an average of 4.5k monthly.

Adding the numbers, I immediately thought about the other families who do not have the money to pay for this medicine. These parents would choose not to have their kids vaccinated. I doubt if there are any other cheaper versions of this vaccine and the local baranggays won't have this on their list of free medicine as well.

Holy Appendicitis!

2010-04-26T11:28:00.003+08:00

We had an interesting weekend. One of my parent's househelp got an inflamed appendix and had to be rushed to the hospital for surgery.

At first we thought it was just indigestion or food poisoning. He complained of severe cramps in his abdomen and was unable to stand up. It was when we brought him to the hospital, that we realized the true condition of his sickness.

Then the blame game started.

The househelp accused my mother of giving him rotten hopia for merienda. It was the food that irritated his appendix. We tried to convince him otherwise. The other househelp also had the same food, but he did not get any stomach problem. The resident doctor then explained that his infrequent bowel movements might have triggered the appendicitis. There was no choice but to have surgery and the entire operation would cost around 10k.

In the end, My parents shouldered all the expenses. The househelp had no money and none of his immediate family was willing to help him out. My mother was afraid that he could die at any moment and that would cause more problems.

He got discharged yesterday noon. The bill went up to 16k due to added medicine and cost. He wanted to recuperate at our place but my parents refused. My father insisted that he return to his family and rest. He said that he won't be earning anything while he's staying with his brother. My mother finally got fed up. He still expects us to take care of him and pay him while he's recovering? There is still a matter of 16k that needs to be settled.

In the end, he left with his brother. The whole incident made me think of how the househelp had no foresight to save money. He was a thirty-five year old man, still living a hand-to-mouth existence. I bet his appendix was a ticking time bomb that was ready to explode. He was lucky to that my parents were there help him out.

The High Cost of Electricity

2010-04-23T08:36:00.002+08:00

We finally got our bill from the electric company. It was definitely higher than the previous month, more than double what we paid two months ago. With all the people protesting and complaining about the added cost, I was expecting our bill to be way much higher. I guess I over prepared myself mentally for this occasion.

This is one of those moments when I'm glad we decided to live with my parents. Since we are living under their roof, they are the ones that are paying for the utility bills. They have the money anyway, and they are willing to provide for us. This is definitely a big blessing on our part since we don't have to worry about the water and electric bill. Still, I guess we have to do our part in conserving energy. It's not that easy to cut back when you have a baby and toddler living with you.

A lot of people are blaming the electric company for the unreasonable price hike, but I think they had no choice. It hasn't rained for months and the water level in the dam is at a critical low. Despite the rotating brownouts and the limited supply of energy, people are still consuming endless amounts of electricity. It made me thing of how much we have taken things for granted. Conservation is probably the path we have to take in the near future.

Conscious Spending

2010-04-22T14:44:00.003+08:00

I've been rereading some of my favorite personal finance blogs and I've decided to become more conscious of my spending habits. It doesn't hurt to tighten my belt and save money, frugality is the way to go nowadays.

So far I've managed to keep my expenses down to less than a hundred a day (during work days). This does not include the transportation expenses to get me to the office and back home. I've already set a budget for gas to cover the monthly driving expenses.

For now, the biggest dent to my savings are the baby supplies. I'm spending an average of 1,200 pesos a week for each child. This money covers milk, diapers, vitamins, and other kid-related expense. It's not that much as other parents would spend, but I am trying to keep track of these expenses as well.

I know I am saving money, but I think it is not enough to cover my long term plans for the family. It would be nice to rebuild the house, add a new room for Aaron and Nika. Jen has been giving me rough estimates as to how much preschool education would cost per child. So it would be wise for me to start saving as early as now.

Weekend Reunion with Friends

2010-04-19T09:30:00.000+08:00

I was fortunate to catch up with Sunshine, Cessna, Cry, and Iris last Saturday. Cry was visiting the country and invited some classmates from the Malate Literary Folio for a mini reunion. We met up at EDSA Shangrila Plaza around 2pm.

I brought Jen and Aaron with me, while Sunshine had Leo and Basti, Cessna brought Sandra, and Cry was with his entire family. It was fun to see the kids interact with one another. Aaron was feeling a bit sleepy so he wasn't as active as the other kids.

We spent the afternoon catching up, swapping stories, and talking about kids/family life. Iris updated us on the lives of the other Malate writers/artists. Cessna, Sunshine, and Jen were trading mommy stories on how they manage the little ones.

It was nice to see Cry and Kelly again. They appear to be enjoying their vacation here in the Philippines. I forgot the names of their kids but I found them really adorable. They don't resemble their parents. I guess that's what you get if you come from a multiracial stock. The older sister looks Japanese while the younger brother looks like Caucasian.

Jen, Aaron, and I had to leave early because we left Nikka at home alone with the yaya. We tried to keep Aaron awake through the trip by buying some french fries, but he fell asleep on the way home.

Scribd

2010-04-13T15:15:00.003+08:00

I found an interesting social networking site that focuses on publishing and reading. Scribd is a website that shares electronic documents, allowing its members to post and view documents of various formats.

The site appears to be an online ebook reader that masquerades as a social networking site. You can read the documents in the Scribd without becoming a member. But you must become a member to upload your own document. Once you become a member, you can create your own collection of favorite online documents, scribe to other users' documents, or invite other people to scribe to your documents.

I noticed the site contains numerous works of fiction, instruction manuals, drawings, and other stuff. There are a lot of pirated content as well. I bet the pirated stuff are the reason why people are signing up to this site. At least people will have another free venue for sharing content online.

Alternative Investments

2010-04-12T11:22:00.003+08:00

Jen will be celebrating her birthday next week and I have already bought her gift. I had a hard time deciding what to give her, since she's not that particular on things. I thought of buying her a new mobile phone, since her current Sony Ericsson unit is experiencing battery problems. But I decided to buy her something that does not depreciate and could be worn on special occasions.

It's a small 14k Italian gold necklace.

I've been reading a few money/finance blogs that talk about alternative investments. I think gold and jewelry are some things you can invest on, aside from putting money in the bank. These things do not depreciate over time and they can be traded for food during times of war (or when the local economy collapses and paper money becomes useless).

Anyway, I spent last Friday morning visiting the jewelry shops at a nearby mall. I had around 5k as my budget for Jen's gift. I wasn't planning on buying anything yet. I just wanted to look around and see what's available in the gold market. There was a shop that was selling its jewelries at 40% off. I took a look at the stuff on their display case and found a nice looking cross valued at around 10k. Apparently the store is affiliated with the SM Malls and if I buy in cash (and present my SM advantage card), I'd get another 10% discount.

So I bought the gold cross at half its original price. I think it is a wonderful gift for my wife and also a good investment. At least we'll be able to trade it for water/shelter when the Philippine government falls apart or when peak oil actually happens.

What to do with this oppressive heat...

2010-04-07T10:11:00.002+08:00

Make your own solar oven!

Solar oven uses reflectors to re-direct and focus sunlight onto a cooking container enclosed in an insulated box. Creating a solar oven takes only a few hours and you can use cheap materials that can be found around the home. A solar oven works similar to a conventional oven by retaining most of the heat generated, and this allows for shorter cooking times.

The solar oven box is composed of two boxes separated by a small gap and filled with insulating material. They are usually made from cardboard or wood, with the inner box just large enough to hold the cooking container when the oven lid is on. The cardboard won’t catch fire because the temperature inside is about half that required to set paper on fire. Cooking time is reduced if the container is supported by wooden blocks that allow reflected sunlight to reach its underside, and they also allow heated air to completely surround the container. The insulating material can be made from shredded newspaper, wool, fiberglass, or cutoffs from roof and wall insulation.

Find two boxes. One should fit inside the other with a 2- to 3-inch space on each side.
Line the bottom of the large box with crumpled newspaper.
Place the smaller box inside the large box.
Fill the space between the sides of the two boxes with crumpled newspaper.
Line the sides of the inside of the smaller box with aluminum foil. You can use a non-toxic tape or fold the edges of foil over the top of the box to hold it in place.
Line the bottom of the inside of the smaller box with black construction paper to absorb heat.
Lay a piece of cardboard on top of the large box and trace the shape of the box onto the cardboard.
Add 2 inches around the trace line and cut out to make a reflector.
Cover the cardboard piece with aluminum foil. Smooth out any wrinkles and secure the aluminum foil to the cardboard with non-toxic glue or tape.
Staple the reflector to the outside back of the large box.
Situate the oven with the box opening up and the reflector facing the sun for maximum heat.
Place food to be cooked in the solar oven.
Stretch clear plastic wrap across the top of the large box. Secure the plastic with tape around the entire box.

Easter Baptism

2010-04-06T14:28:00.001+08:00

Nika finally got baptized on April 4, Easter Sunday. She is two months and nineteen days old.

It was a remarkable experience, watching her take this next step in her young life. The whole ceremony took place during the Easter vigil.

I would have invited friends and family to witness the occasion, but I doubt if people would make an effort to go to Church at three in the morning. It was great that Ching was able to make it to the ceremony. She really takes her godmother role seriously.

I'm grateful for everyone who helped out in preparing for the baptismal font, the flowers, and the songs. The godparents were all dressed up for the occasion, welcoming our baby girl to the Christian world. It was truly a wonderful memorable Easter celebration for my family.

Things You Can Do to Simplify Your Work Day

2010-04-01T10:19:00.001+08:00

Copied the list below from this post (thanks to Icheb for posting the link).

I think I can really use some of these ideas to improve my working schedule. Time management is one crucial element here, as well as prioritizing what really needs to be done at the office.

To enjoy a simple work day:

Start your work early. Going into work early allows you to work in peace. By the time everyone's in the office, you've finished two or three big tasks.
Limit your hours. Believe it or not, having limits enable to you to be come more productive. Most people think that long hours equal more productivity. It is better to cut back on the hours and set a limit (6 or 7 hours a day) to get the essential work done within that limit.
Make a short list. List down the tasks you need to do and then create a shorter list of 1-3 things that needs to be done. Choose the more important tasks before doing other things.
Batch distractions. Identify your common distractions, like reading email and blogs Set a time for these. This allows you to do important work first, but still get in your distraction time.
Write shorter emails. If email takes up a lot of your time, limit yourself to 3-4 sentences per email makes a big difference.
Limit meetings. Attend fewer meetings If you can get out of meetings and just get the notes, or find an alternative way to communicate, it could save you hours per week.
Automate. The fewer repetitive and routine tasks you have to do, the more time you’ll have for important work.
Eliminate paperwork.
Clear your desk. Put the most essential items on top of your desk.
Get away. If you can get out of the office, find a peaceful spot where you can focus on important work. Working from home is a good option here.
Take breathing breaks. Every 15 or 20 minutes, get up from your desk, and take a break. It could be simply walking around the office, saying hi to someone, or even better, getting outside to get some fresh air.
Practice a focus ritual. Do a refocus ritual every 1 or 2 hours. It can take a minute or two.
Schedule big blocks of creative time. When possible, put a big block of 3-4 hours in your schedule for creating or doing other important work. Do not allow meetings or other things to be scheduled during this time.

Adult Fans of Lego (Documentary)

2010-03-19T13:07:00.001+08:00

AFOL A Blocumentary from AFOL on Vimeo.

Another set of watercolor drawings

2010-03-16T18:43:00.001+08:00

Looking forward to the new Dark Sun novel

2010-03-12T11:29:00.003+08:00

I'm looking forward to the release of the new Dark Sun novel this October. Good thing WOTC decided to revive this campaign setting, it's been years since I read anything about Athas and its Dragon-Kings.

Here's a teaser of the book, courtesy of Rico.

Aric, a half-elf with a rare natural ability with the psionic discipline known as “the Way,” must find his place in a world ruled by the tyranny of evil sorcerer kings, and dominated by the savage wilds of the Athasian desert, a world presided over by the unrelenting crimson eye of Dark Sun®.

When Aric is brought into a quest to search for a priceless trove weapons, he would rather keep his head down and live a simple life. But nothing is simple in the city of Nibenay with it reclusive ruler known as the Shadow King. And in a world where metal is the rarest of commodities, Aric’s “way” with metal is an even rarer talent.

Enlisted by the Shadow King himself to seek out this cache of metal weaponry, Aric heads into the desert with a treacherous band of adventurers. Allegiances are tested and secrets are uncovered. But sometimes the secrets hidden by the sands of time should remain undiscovered.

When Aric and his band uncover an evil perhaps greater than the Shadow King himself, it is a race against time to see who will harness its power.

Dancing in the Dark

2010-03-11T09:21:00.002+08:00

I like Mat Kearney's rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing In The Dark". Mat's version sounds much slower, more toned down, and relaxed.

First attempt at using watercolor pencil...

2010-03-03T19:59:00.005+08:00

I bought some watercolor pencils a few months ago. Tried to make some sketches/drawings using these water-soluble pencils.

Here are some of the more decent stuff i made... still have a long way to go...

From My Sketches

Aaron's current favorite song

2010-02-17T07:17:00.000+08:00

I've been playing this on my computer for the past three days now....

Audacity, the free (MP3) sound editor

2010-02-15T13:20:00.001+08:00

Thanks to Fat, for recommending me this nice freeware.

In an attempt to amuse (and pacify) the kids, I've been downloading children songs from YouTube. Most of the songs come from classic Sesame Street episodes (like the baker's number song), Thomas tank engine music, and various theme songs from Disney channel shows.

I also noticed that Nika loves to listen to contemporary/classical Chinese music. Perhaps the rhythm or the tone of the music relaxes her, making her fall asleep much faster.

Now that I have downloaded a bunch of music files, I noticed that the sound quality of each file is different. Some MP3 have a lower volume range, while other have a higher pitch. It is difficult to play the songs as a set because I have to adjust the sound settings every time a new music is played.

One of my fellow instructional designers suggested that I use Audacity to fix the sound files. She gave me a 2.1 MB copy of the program and I quickly installed the editor in my desktop.

The GUI of the program reminded me of an old program I use to work on. For a freeware program, Audacity works well as a sound editor. I was able to adjust the volume and audio settings of all my MP3s into a standard, playable level.

My only complain is that whenever you edit an MP3 file, the program converts the file into another file type. To re-convert the file back to MP3, you have to download and install another program. It's a minor hassle, since you are working with freeware programs and the output is good.

Happy 1st Birthday, Basti!

2010-02-10T08:30:00.002+08:00

Met up with the guys at my God-son's first birthday party. I brought Aaron with me, while Jen had to stay at home to take care of Nika. It was a fun, entertaining, and tiring afternoon. At least everyone got charged up with the food, the games, and all the sugary sweets (cakes, ice creams, and cotton candies).

Seeing all the kids run around and play made me remember some of the birthday parties I attended back when I was just a boy. The most of the party games are still the same (with the pinata and the dangling wood board filled with toys). It's fun to see your kids enjoy the same toys and games that you enjoyed back when you were still a child.

Arranging parties are definitely a challenge and I think Sunshine did well. The food was wonderful -- from Sotanghon, fried lumpia, chicken pastel, and fish fillet for the adults... to the traditional spaghetti, barbecue, and chicken lollipops for the kids.

I'm amazed to see Basti grow so fast. He looks more mature, more attentive and curious about his surroundings. I'm sure he'll look back on this day (through the videos and pictures), and see how much his parents and family love him.

I took the opportunity to tell Chris and Ching that they'll be Nika's god-parents. Both took the news well and I told them that we'll be setting up for the baptismal ceremony this coming summer (perhaps Holy Week, during the Easter vigil).

It has begun...

2010-02-09T08:41:00.003+08:00

So today marks the start of the political campaign period... for better or worse. I'm expecting more circus freak shows to happen in the next few weeks, like the one with Mo Twister and Ara Mina. The poor woman should stick to what she does best.

What's even more tragic is the fact that there are other actors/political wannabes who are running for office. I'm picturing a future where showbiz and politics would mesh even more... More billboards of senators endorsing popular product brands and more politicians starring in their own blockbuster movies.

Speaking of billboards, I'd have to bear with the horror of seeing more ugly faces plastered on the walls and phone posts everyday.