What do I want to do when I retire?

When I’m 65 years old (that’s about 3 decades from now) and the word retirement is a reality that I have to face, I’d like to be in social class upper B at least and live an amazingly simple life. I look up to people who are secure about their financial position in society that they don’t have to hide behind their brand new cars, big houses and branded clothes and tell the world how rich or successful they are. After reaching that financial objective, I’d like to teach management to college students.

As my son B5 put it during his Preparatory Graduation rites, he said; “when I grow up, I want to be a teacher” even if he said previously that he wants to be: 1- the President of the Philippines, 2- a bus company owner, 3- a doctor, 4- a priest and a 5- a barber. As for me, when I grow old and have to face retirement, I want to be a teacher. Sana kunin ako ng Tarlac State University as a lecturer pag tanda ko teaching management subjects. The salary would be the least of my worries kasi nga I should be financially stable by then. Pang gasolina ko na lang yun sa BMW X5 ko. :) The teaching aspiration is my way of giving back to the community what I learned and will learn in the years to come. Young people sometimes only realize the value of what they learned years after somebody taught it to us. My mother used to teach at College of the Holy Spirit so it’s “in the genes.” Also, being an effective leader, something that I’d like to believe I am or at the very least, I’m on my way there, one of the key traits that you should possess is to be a good teacher.

Express Yourself!

This blogging is great! I don’t give a hoot if nobody reads my blogsite as long as I can write what I want, continually challenge myself in expressing myself as objective as possible and play around with new words, terms, phrases that I meet everyday.

Let me tell you about my high school teacher. I heard, kinuha na siya ni Lord pero I learned a lot from him in fact still apply what I learned constantly. He thought us to apportion a part of your notebook and write down ALL THE NEW WORDS THAT YOU ENCOUNTER, then check out the lexicon (pinahirap na word for dictionary) which he fondly calls, my good friend Mr. Webster, then use it in a sentence, then use it wherever applicable. Nowadays, I have an ms word file which contains the new words that I meet and constantly update this file. Apart from my resume, this is probably the file most accessed in my hard drive.

So if the name MR. RONALD PEROY rings a bell to you, I thank him for being a true educator.

On Health : A common denominator between man and computer is GIGO!

The computer term GIGO or GARBAGE IN, GARBAGE OUT was first introduced to me 2 decades ago by my high school computer teacher which we fondly call PREKEK. I’m not actually sure how that monicker was born, either he mispronounced free kick (a penalty shot in soccer) or an output in computer gone wrong.

As I write this journal, I have 2 misbehaving cells inside my body which are driving me nuts. I’m determined to delete them from my system soon before they recruit more of their kind. Come to think of it, it was really I who placed them there through the food that I eat. It can’t definitely be attributable to my lifestyle because I’d like to believe that I live a relative sports centered lifestyle.

For the past 2 decades of my life, despite my parents ultra frequent reminders to eat healthy food and my wife’s same level of reminders, I still continue to eat “earth friendly food” (a term I concocted which means bringing you closer to earth at a faster pace). I’ve always placed inside my head the “I’m still young and I can eat whatever I want” attitude. It’s time to wake up, Mister DyLac!

As my lovely wife puts it, let’s go for the most appropriate medical treatment, proper diet and regular family prayer. My equally lovely mother completely agrees to this.

My game plan is simple: let’s annihilate those batardos!!!

CRV or GV?

It’s a battle of 3rd Gen compact SUV for us. Our choices are down to two: the Suzuki Grand Vitara or the Honda Comfortable Runabout Vehicle. The only determinant left is the price specifically for the CRV since it will be commercially released tomorrow Sept 28 in the US. If they offer a base model CRV in the range of $20,000, there’s a good chance the price will be P1,2M in Pinas. Like the new Civic, the release of a new model is just a few months delayed in the Philippines. If the price is equal or price diff is in the range of P50th max, we’re going for the more popular & more common CRV. Practicality and prestige wins over style and a “nice to have” 4WD system. If more than P50th, hello ladder framed wonder.

Toddler Talk 101 : According to MC

Our daughter MC is 2 yrs, 8 months and 1 day old today. She already has a vocabulary of words and we’d like to share some of them.

I. Persons:
Meymi Yowe – M C
Huya – Kuya
Dobee Bee Five – KB B5
Teacher Beff – Teacher Beth
Don Bosto - Don Bosco

II. Characters:
Babab – Sponge Bob
Kitty Nono – Hello Kitty
Doya – Dora
Superment – Superman
Fay Five – High Five
Manang Martin - Lighting McQueen

III. Items:
Tameya – Camera
A Jachet – Jacket
Tomputer – Computer
Bastetboy – Basket ball
Dupit – Gupit
Umbush – Toothbrush
Stool Bus – School Bus
Sioton - Lotion
Pipers - Slippers
Wubber Socks - Socks
Wowers - Flowers
Swim Soup - Swim Suit

IV. Phrases:
One moch time – One more time
I fatted – I farted
Hatch – hot
Papit – Stop it
Fastoy – Faster
Doo Moning – Good Morning
Best Fends Tayu – We’re best friends
A you Otey? – Are you okay?
Sotay – Okay
We a you? – Where are you?
Weytap – Wake up
Chachor body – Shake your body
Hi duys – Hi guys
A wainbow – A rainbow
Doonight – Good night
Be HHHIND you – Behind you
Masayap – Masarap
Tamama – Tama na
Oh my dosh – Oh my Gosh
Pene – Pahingi
Oba De – Over There
Oba Hee – Over Here
Once upon a chime – Once Upon a time
Soyee – Sorry
Rain, rain, dow away – Rain, rain, go away
Tandoy – thunder
Tey Ta Bath – Take a Bath
I hap u - I'll help you
It's tinty - It's stinky
It's a specia day - It's a special day

V. Food:
Yatut – Yakult
Yodart - Yogurt
Joyabee – Jollibee
Hambudoy - Hamburger
Suprise – French Fries
Shup – Soup
Yayce - Rice
Ice peem – Ice Cream
Mido – Nido
Juice Mamam – Water
Dede mo – Milk
Apoy – Apple
Japes - Grapes
Bana – Banana
Omeynge Bamba – Orange
Chichen – Chicken
Adug – Hotdog
Booder Steak – Burger Steak
Watoy - Water
Gapes - Grapes
Chochoyate - Chocolate
Vita imin - Vitamin

VI. Fave Expressions:
Oh men!
That’s me!
Ayayayah!
It’s amazing!
Uh oh!
Meow!
Whaa! Whaa! Whaa!
Never! Never! Never!
Teypispurts to tetitup

B5 ranks 2 in Q1.

My son loves basketball. He has so much information about the players and the games in the NBA, PBA, PBL, UAAP & NCAA that sometimes it leaves me in awe. I’ve installed small bball courts in every place that he frequents: my office (the court is more for me :)), our condo and his grandparents place in Tarlac. Almost every Sunday, we shoot some hoops at his fave Timezone.

Last Sunday Sept 16, we got his first quarter grades and as good as he is in shooting hoops, he has a general average rating of 93.50 which is good for rank number 2. He has high grades in Math 97, Reading 95, Filipino 93 and Language 93. He needs to work on Sibika 92 and Science 91. He always talks abt being challenged by the rank number 1 in their class of 45 students that’s why he aims to study harder. We told him that if he wants to make it his personal goal, then he should work harder to attain it but his parents are already happy with his academic achievements.

We always tell him that it’s better to live a balanced life: good in academics (not necessary topping it always), engaged in a sport (of which basketball is the clear choice), exposure to technology (he surfs the internet and his favorite site is Time For Kids), critical thinking (that’s why he loves devouring information and sometimes engaging his parents to mini debates) and the religious aspect (he recently joined the Knights of the Altar).

My Hats off to you B5!

A Car Nut drives a Toyota Revo???

A car nut can be classified into 3 categories: 1- no financial capability, 2- limited financial capability and 3- unlimited financial capability. I fall under category number 2 but aim to be in category 3 anytime during my lifetime or at least in my dreams.

Since we have limited funds at the time of purchase (and until this day), we have to choose the most appropriate vehicle to fit our requirements hence the Toyota Revo GLX A/T. It’s a very functional car. Cost effective to maintain. Good re-sale value though we don’t have plans of selling it when it’s time to get a new one. I’m a minimalist so during the first week of the Revo, the emblems just had to go. Now, non car aficionados or car dummies bother to ask what type of car I’m driving because they always rely on the car emblem. Heck! I can tell them I’m driving a Toyota LC Prado and they’d probably believe it. Of course, that’s exaggeration to the Nth power.

In less than a year, it will be time to replace my trusty ol’ Toyota. We’re definitely going the SUV route and we’ve narrowed down our choices to 5 SUVs and these are Toy Fortuner G, 3rd gen Suzuki Grand Vitara, 3rd gen Honda CRV, Subaru Forester 2.0X and Hyundai Tucson. A factor rating that I prepared shows that the Fortuner is leading the way by a few points but Suzuki GV (3G) and Honda CRV (3G) are close behind. Oh well, I have 3 quarters to think about it.

If I belong to category no. 3 at this point in my life, my car stable will have a BMW X5, a Hummer H1, a 90s red Ferarri Testarossa and a BMW 325 for my lovely wife.

In the meantime, our Revo comfortably brings us from point A to point B.

Drive safely, mi amigo!

GIANT NRS is a real GIANT!

I got my GIANT NRS frame via a swap deal in Y2003. I am extremely happy with that move. My immediate project then was to copy the Y2002 NRS 1 set up in Giant Bicycles website and I’d like to believe my set up is at least 50% better part per part comparison. Simultaneous to that was the objective of keeping the bike under 28 lbs. The “world record” for the lightest NRS bike is a feather weight 24 lbs which I think is not trail worthy. I’ve been successful at keeping it at 28 lbs without sacrificing strength. A light bike is useless if you need to carry it home due to parts that surrender to the tough trails that it is exposed to. The bike is staying with me for a long time unless somebody offers to purchase it at a very irresistible price.

Ride on!

USA Trip Synopsis

The Time For Kids.Com says that the Top 5 Cities Favorite Tourist Destinations are: 1- New York, 2- Los Angeles, 3- Miami, 4- Orlando & 5- San Francisco. I was able to visit 4 out of 5 in 25 short days. It also says that the Top 5 States Fave Tourist Destination are: 1- New York, 2- Florida, 3- California, 4- Hawaii and 5- Nevada. I went to majority of it plus had the chance to see New Jersey and a stop over at North Carolina en route to SFO (NorCal).

I endeavored to complete this US trip journal 3 months after my travel primarily for myself and my family. For my relatives and friends who are interested to read it, you’re most welcome.

In all, I had a wonderful 25 day US trip. I spent $3000 (thereabouts) but the experience, lessons learned, realizations, bonding moments and memories are priceless.

USA Trip Day 25 / June 4, 2006 Sunday

I learned that ErWong is a mountain biker like me. Erwin and Mark used to do the trails in San Jose. The place is like a haven for MTBers. We visited a couple of stores one of which was Performance Bikes where I sometimes get bike parts on line. My Giant NRS mountain bike is like a “chopsuey” because some of the parts I purchased online in the US, some via HKG bike shops however most of the parts I purchased in the Philippines. We had lunch at Santana Row. This is like a strip of high end stores and restaurants where 80% of the cars parked are high end. Check out the picture and you’ll know what I mean. The airport was about 2 hours away so more time to trade stories and catch up on old times with ErWong. Goodbye US! The flight time to the Philippines was about 16 hours but I guess the PAL pilot was in a bit of hurry so we made it in 14 hours. We arrived in Manila around 5AM, two hours ahead of schedule so I had to wait for my ride since my family came from Tarlac City. The US trip was great but there’s no place like home!

USA Trip Day 24 / June 3, 2006 Saturday

During my last day in SFO City, I checked out more places – Yerba Buena Garden, Sony Metreon, the Fashion District, did a little more shopping (entered my at least 10th GAP store), went to “the only toy store in the City of San Francisco” Jeffrey’s Toy Store and bought MC her now favorite Dora the explorer castle, checked out Nordstrom, Ross for Less (my kinda store) and Neimann Marcus (nagpapangap na may bibilhin). They had Chloe denim jeans on sale 40% off. The sale price was $500. Read again, $500 sale price. Lunch was with Ronnie again. Come on, Ronnie, let me foot the bill this time! In vain. He drove me to my college friends in San Jose. We went to Julienne Bernardo – Aquino’s house. I met his hubby and their cute li’l boy who was abt my li’l daughter age. Then we brought some stuff at the mall before proceeding to Erwin Wong’s place where I stayed overnight. The get together with college friends called LSC Boys included of course ErWong, Julienne and Mark Bumatay. People really mature. Well at least normal people do. When we were in college, parties would last until the wee hours of the mornings (sometimes just in time for the start of the 7AM ROTC) and everybody goes home drunk. This time, everybody was like a Cinderella who needed be home by 12MN. The last time I saw my college friends was 12 years ago so I just had to see them. Originally, SFO was not in my itinerary.

USA Trip Day 23 / June 2, 2006 Friday

I stayed at Savoy Hotel along Geary St. just 2 short blocks from Union Square. The hotel bell hop Mang Ricky is a Cabalen from Angeles City Pampanga and he was a big help. I had this day all by myself so I went back to some of the places that we went to the previous day and took my precious picture. First stop was Union Square. A trip to SFO would not be complete if you didn’t ride a cable car. Kala ninyo sa Pinas lang sumasabit sa jeepney, pwede rin sumabit sa cable car! I rode the cable car from Union Square to Fisherman’s wharf. I wanted to go to Alcatraz but the queue was too long. The earliest available ferry was at 4PM. After buying some souvenirs, some shopping, checking out museums, taking tons of pictures in Pier 39, the next stop was Lombard Street again. I just had to take more pictures of the crookedest street. Then I checked out more places like the Chinatown, Office of the California Governor, the elegant SFO City Hall, a row of high end auto dealers along Van Ness, Grace Cathedral and Fairmont Hotel again. The beauty of staying at a downtown hotel (though a bit pricey) is that you can unload the stuff that you purchased and rest a bit. I had dinner with Ronnie again at an Italian resto in SFO. Afterwards, we have a few drinks at a bar in Daly City where 95% of the patrons where Filipinos.

USA Trip Day 22 / June 1, 2006 Thursday

T’is the last leg of my US trip. I had mixed emotions; sad that I was leaving my parents and would probably take years before I see them again but happy that I’ll be seeing my kids and my lovely wife very soon. I miss them already. I committed a major blunder today. As a self proclaimed organized person, I thought that my flight from Orlando to SFO was on June 1 via United Airways. My ticket showed that my flight was via US Airways on June 2! After numerous calls, speaking to 3 frontline staff, practically losing my composure, I was finally on my way to SFO. That mistake cost me $100. I was met at SFO airport by a good friend from Tarlac Ronnie Pagaduan. I’m proud of this guy, he has come a long way. He is an epitome of a hard working person. He has 2 RJP Phonemart stores in Daly City. RJP Phonemart first started in Tarlac City. He just photocopied his business model in Tarlac and applied it in Daly City. He showed me around SFO and Daly City. During our first day, we saw the Golden Gate bridge, Union Square, Coit Tower, Lombard Street better know as the crookedest street in the world and passed by Fisherman’s Wharf. Dinner was at Fairmont Hotel where Al Capone used to dine.

USA Trip Day 21 / May 31, 2006 Wednesday

I was the driver designate again for the 2 hour trip again from Kissimmee to Orlando. My navigator was cousin Nikko. Lunch was at Burger King, Aloma Bend Plaza near Unc Dan’s residence. We met Papa Boy there. We had a chance to go around Orlando, TD Waterhouse Centre where the Orlando Magic plays basketball, downtown, Macy’s where cousin Ace Ligon works and spent some time there just window shopping. I wanted to get a book but prices are pretty much the same back home.

USA Trip Day 20 / May 30, 2006 Tuesday

The Happiest Place on Earth. It was very nice of my cousin Nikko to join me in Disney World though I know it was the Nth time he has visited the place. There are 4 theme parks in Disney World which is considered to be the biggest Disney amusement park. We had a one day pass so we breezed through 2 parks – EPCOT center and the Magic Kingdom. Ideally, you need 4 days to enjoy and maximize the park. We tried some of the rides and checked out some of the museums. The best ride being the TEST DRIVE. Sponsored by GM, a car nut like me would love this place. It gives you an overview of what happens in a testing plant e.g. testing the brakes (with and without ABS), a 60 miles per hour loop, 0 to 60 MPH acceleration. It also has a nice display of GM cars. It would be cool to drive home a bright red Hummer H3. That time, my mom’s Hyundai Accent would provide the transpo. While Disneyworld is the happiest place on earth, the trip back home was one of the saddest because we got lost. My learning that day was that you should not trust mapquest always, learn to modify. And modify we did so we were back on track in no time. Dinner was at the townhouse that we stayed in Island West Resort, Kissemmee.

USA Trip Day 19 / May 29, 2006 Monday

The college sweethearts! My parents and I had eat-all-you-can lunch at a nearby resto called Whistle Junction. T’was my last day in DeLand. The plan today was to see the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral and stay overnight at Aunt Aida’s beach house in New Smyrna. I was really, really looking forward to seeing this site however it would not be my destiny. There were a number of bush fires along the high way hence numerous re-routing so it was not really a good idea to push through with the trip. Instead, my mom and I decided to drive to Orlando and see Uncle Dan, Auntie Baby & my cousin Nikko. In Orlando, we had dinner at Uncle Dan’s very nice house by the lake (which was not alligator infested) with my cousin Lyette Ligon and her kids, Uncle Rene Ligon and Aunt Baby’s friends. In the evening, Nikko and I had a chance to watch the movie X-MEN : The Last Stand.

USA Trip Day 18 / May 28, 2006 Sunday

More sight seeing! I always see in the internet and in package tours ads saying “See St. Augustine.” I often wondered where THAT place was and today, I would discover the beauty of this place in Florida called St. Augustine. From DeLand, it was nearly a 2 hour drive. My tour guides today were my aunties Aida and Suet. The sites to see in St. Augustine include: Fountain of Youth, Mission of Nombre de Dios, St. George’s Row (where you can find the oldest wooden schoolhouse in USA), Lighthouse Museum, Flagler College, Castillo de San Marcos, Ancient City Baptist Church and Lions Bridge. Aside from seeing the place, another highlight that day was lunch at Florida Cracker Cafe where they serve alligator meat. It tastes like chicken on steriods. Dinner was at a steakhouse near Daytona International Speedway. And balikbayans say that all they do in the Philippines is eat, eat and eat.

USA Trip Day 17 / May 27, 2006 Saturday

Papa’s work starts at 12NN so he accompanied me to more shopping. I got a dozen baseball caps for a $0.25 each. Twenty five cent baseball caps! Where in the world can you find a better bargain! He showed me downtown DeLand so I had the chance to see Stetson University and DeLand Museum of Arts. In the evening, I joined Aunt Suet, Aunt Aida and Uncle Rene Capulong at a dinner dance. It wasn’t really my cup of tea but I tried it just the same, at least one dance. I learned early in life that I’m not a good dancer. In fact, I dance bad and that’s even an understatement.

USA Trip Day 16 / May 26, 2006 Friday

Again I woke up early but returned to sleep after everybody left. It was my chance to rest my complaining body. After 16 days in the US, today was my first time to watch TV. Our cable TV back home has about 70+ channels and I only use about 40% of the channels. The cable TV of Aunt Suet had 500+ channels! In the afternoon, I checked out a couple of malls down the block. I got a lot of stuff from the Dollar Store. Some of the items that I got I really didn’t need pero they were cheap so I just had to buy them. Aunt Suet and I met at the mall and went to nearby Volusia Mall (abt 45 minutes drive). Finally, I saw the John Cena action figure that my son Kobe requested after checking out at least 7 toy stores in SoCal, New York and Deland, Fla. I asked the store manager why it was SO DIFFICULT to find this action figure and he said he's the hottest WWE star and when he was rumored to have passed away, all his items sold like hotcakes. That's why I bought 2 John Cena action figures, just to be sure. As programmed, I’ll do ALL my shopping in Florida where the sales tax is lower.

USA Trip Day 15 / May 25, 2006 Thursday

I really didn’t want to wake up early because I didn’t need to but was up early anyway. It’s in my system already so Papa just showed me around DeLand. We went to Aunt Aida’s H-O-U-S-E. That’s one BIG house on a BIG lot. She was on the phone so I didn’t get to talk to her. I saw Winn Dixie were Papa works and Wal Mart where Mama works. Papa left me at Wal Mart so I did some shopping from 2PM till 9PM. Yup, that was 7 hours of shopping. I couldn’t believe it myself. The funny thing was, around 845PM, I was in a hurry to bring all the stuff that I got to the cashier only to find out that Wal Mart is open 24 hours! Papa picked us up and we had dinner at home.

USA Trip Day 14 / May 24, 2006 Wednesday

Back home, I’m used to waking up early because I have to bring my son B5 to the school bus pick up point. I look forward to those moments because that’s one of our father and son bonding moments. While on vacation, waking up early is common because time is SO PRECIOUS. We left Lawrenceville around 8AM and passed by Butchoy Salanga’s house before proceeding to Newark for our flight to Daytona, Fla. In Daytona, my dear father excused himself from work for a while to pick us up. Hello washing machine and dryer! Finally, I was able to wash my 2 weeks worth of clothing. Not much pictures taken today because it would be weird to take picture while doing the laundry. Dinner was in Auntie Suet’s house in DeLand, Fla with Aunt Suet, Mama & Papa.

USA Trip Day 13 / May 23, 2006 Tuesday

Just when I thought that I would not see the Statue of Liberty up close, lo and behold, my mom and I were riding a ferry to Liberty Island via New Jersey courtesy of Tita Cynthia Munar, my mother’s high school friend. I just realized that Liberty Island is “closer” to NJ than NY. We also had a nice picture of the NY skyline through NJ. Lunch was at a Filipino resto where the waiters were, you guessed it, Filipinos! Sayang, I wanted to see my college friend Johnny Garcia but seems like he was so busy. Tito Venus & Tita Susan Jordan from Tarlac City now living in Lawrenceville, NJ picked us up in the afternoon. We had dinner at their cool new home in NJ then had a tour of their Dunkin Donut outlets in NJ. I was surprised to find an old BMX buddy Jun Magdangal. I used to BMX a lot during my elementary and early high school days and Jun was one of the guys I hanged out with. Later I found out that he is a kinakapatid (My father is his godfather).

USA Trip Day 12 / May 22, 2006 Monday

Hi Mom! I saw my mother for the first time in 12 months. It was probably one of the most difficult decisions that they (my parents) had to make…at 50++ years old (a more polite term to near 60), they migrated to the US. To think they really didn’t have to because my sister and I were relatively doing well with our lives and my parents were living comfortably in Tarlac City, Philippines. Probably it was time to think about THEIR future. The rendezvous was Rockefeller Center near the skating rink. My mom was with Aunt Lulu, Uncle Dong and their classmates who they haven’t seen in years. I was a bit late since I was busy taking pictures. The meeting was short because I had a lunch date with high school friends myself. I saw Raciel Fermin, a very good friend since high school and we had lunch at Bula’s house in Scarsdale. It was really good to see Raciel and Bula. I am very happy that my friends from Tarlac City since high school are doing well in their chosen career and environment. Again it was a very short get together as I needed to go back to the city to rejoin my mother and proceed to New Jersey. Okay so my conclusion is 4 days in New York is bitin!! I could have stayed there for 2 weeks and would not get bored.

USA Trip Day 11 / May 21, 2006 Sunday

Okay, so Sunday back home gives you another reason to wake up late. But while on vacation, Sunday means waking up at 630AM to catch the 8AM train to NYC. The objective today day was to explore lower Manhattan: the site of Ground Zero, Brooklyn Bridge, Battery Park and China town. I had the chance to see and take pictures of the Waldorf Astoria and Madison Square Garden. Dinner was at Ate Marissa’s house in New Jersey. Ate Marissa was a REAL ATE during my college days at DLSU. If I had any questions, I’d ask her. She also encouraged me to join the DLSU Camera Club but that time it didn’t interest me. I was a member but was not active. Little did I know that 15 years after, the camera bug would bite me. The last time I saw Ate Marissa was during her wedding at least 5 years ago in the Philippines.

USA Trip Day 10 / May 20, 2006 Saturday

Back home, Saturday is a day allotted for rest. After working smart and working hard for 5 straight days, this day gives you the chance to maintain ties with the family bed. :) While on vacation, Saturday means more pasyals!!! We saw the Museum on Natural History and Central Park. I used to just read about it or see it in the movies now I am strolling around Central Park. The park was gargantuan! It probably covered at least 4 city blocks. My point of reference is the Velasquez Park near the condo where we live in Salcedo Village, Makati. While I was reading Leadership by ex-NY Mayor Rudy Guiliani, he mentioned about the Department of Parks & Recreation. I was wondering, why the H_ _L does he need a whole department to manage a park. My visit to Central Park completely answered that question. No further questions, your honor. I saw another pretty cousin, Greta. She used to be the little younger cousin, now she’s a chic 20+ year old (closer to 30 :)) lady. Dinner was at a Japanese restaurant near Columbia Business School.

USA Trip Day 9 / May 19, 2006 Friday

I'm on top of the world! It’s technically my first day in New York. I arrived from SoCal late in the evening. Bula dropped me off at Scarsdale’s train station around 1PM and I had a taste of THE CITY around 2PM. Bula was right when she said bring an umbrella. It was a chic small umbrella so it fit well in my bag. Grand Central Station was really grand. Built in the 1850s, the Grand Central Terminal stands today as one of New York City’s most famous landmarks. It was good I was using a digital cam, had I been using an old school 35mm, I would literally say I finished a roll of film just taking pictures of the structure. Next stop was the Empire State Building. A visit to NY will not be complete without a visit to this building. It was good that the line was not long lest I would have postponed my trip to the top of the tallest building in NY. I passed by and took pix of the New York Public Library which was featured in the movie “The Day After Tomorrow.” When I was in NY, movies showing were Cars and The Da Vinci Code. I checked out Times Square, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick’s Cathedral and went inside stores along 5th Ave that interests me. I saw the Philippine Embassy Office, Bank of the Philippine Islands and Metro Bank and Trust Company. Dinner was at a relatively cheap diner. Cheap means an $11 tab plus 10% tip. Back home that would be a t-bone steak at an upscale restaurant. I went home around 10PM in Scarsdale. Yes, I did have fun.