FF TD: The third Fast made me Furious!

What the ?!?! I just finished watching 'Fast and the Furious : Tokyo Drift' a few ticks ago and that was the lousiest movie sequel. I watched the 1st one more than 10 times and even have a VCD. The 2nd installment I watched a couple of times and have a DVD (but don't tell papaya dance man that it's pirated). I enjoyed both films. The case is not the same for this trilogy.

D.K. was the acronym of the day. The supposed star of the movie, I forgot his name and don’t intend to remember it, attempted to be funny and said that it means Donkey Kong. I thought that was funny. It may also mean Donut King but actually means Drift King. Incidentally, the real life Drift King Keiichi Tsuchiya played a cameo role in the film. He was the fisherman who kept giving comments on the side.

Another actor who played a cameo role was Vin Diesel. His movie handle was still Dominic Toretto who challenged the new D.K. to a race. Funny but he was driving a silver muscle car, a Plymouth Roadrunner GTX. The real muscle car star in the movie albeit weird was a Ford Mustang Fastback with a Nissan straight 6 engine. Ano ito, parang American car ng lolo ko na Ford Fairlane na sinalpakan ng Toyota 12R? At huwag ka, tinalo niya sa karera ang souped up Nissan 350Z.

Drifting is another car discipline which entails lots of tire skidding. This is quite heavy on the pocket as you have to change tires often. As in, 2 or 3 times a day depending on how tough you practice. I probably would not be engaged in this type of car discipline even if I have the resources. In my earlier blog entry, I mentioned that I'm the rally car type of guy.

The only thing nice about this movie is the cars used and the setting which was taken mostly in Japan. That accounts for about 20% so that means 80% of the movie was B–A-D. And that’s not an acronym for anything.

What’s a Subaru?

I believe everybody knows that a Subaru is a car brand. That answers the title question. Actually, the bigger question is: What country manufactures the Subaru car brand? Is it: (a) an American car, (b) a European car, (c) a Japanese car or (d) a Philippine car. Process of elimination tells you it is not a letter d. Philippines prides itself of the “King of the Road” the infallible Jeepney and the only similarity between the Subaru and the Pinoy workhorse is the four wheels. It is also not a Euro car as these have distinct sounding names such as Citroen, Peugeot, Mercedes. This leaves us with either a US or a Japanese brand. Truth to tell, in my three and a half decades of existence and a car junkie at that, I thought all along that it was an American car. In the 80s, they had this small truck called Subaru Brat which really caught my attention. You’ll see my Vroom Room Y2007 in an earlier entry and the Brat was in my 1987 to 1989 list. I only learned it was Japanese from a fellow car aficionado who was probably a notch or two higher than me. Heck, this officemate – friend of mine knows by heart the engine models of locally released cars! Ibang klase talaga!

When we were shopping for a replacement for our trusty Toyota psuedo SUV, we were looking at a Subaru Forester 2.0X priced at P1,275M. The beauty of the Subaru nowadays is that it is being distributed and serviced by Motor Image. Before, it was “bahala ka sa buhay mo” type of servicing so it was not practical for us. The Forester has a wow appeal (deserves a second look) and you won’t see much on the road. In fact in our hometown in Tarlac, I only see one silver Forester on the streets. We were eyeing the black Forester but when placed side by side with the CR-V, it didn’t measure up to our expectation. The CR-V was still a more pragmatic choice. Then there was the Subaru Impreza WRX Sti rally car which should be in my Vroom Room list. It would be a nice weekend car especially if you had P2 million to spare. I’m the rally car type of guy and don’t fancy the F1 series (Formula One). My race car driver idol is Sebastien Loeb of the WRC (World Rally Circuit) and not the F1 god Michael Schumacher.

To answer the 65 million dollar question, a Subaru is a Japanese car brand made popular in the United States because they are the only car manufacturer who produces horizontally opposed four cylinder engines. Talk about making a difference!

Imaging by Olen Lim

I love attending seminars. More than the organization that you work for, a seminar increases an individual’s self worth especially if you religiously apply what you learned years after the seminar was conducted. Like change, education is one thing that’s constant in the world that we live in. I’ve attended a number of company sponsored seminars this year and one of the best would be the Professional Image Management Seminar conducted by quintessential Olen Juarez – Lim. Apparently, Ms. O has mastered the art of balancing between driving a point and delivering it on a funny note without sounding too offensive. This blog entry would be insufficient to detail what I learned however I’d like to highlight some points which I will value eternally. This entry will also serve as my constant reminder:

I. Standards:
1. Competitive
2. Helpful
3. Respectful

For easier recall, I used the acronym C.H.R. for Commission on Human Rights or CHR 252, the plate number of my parent’s former ride. In the standards lingo set by Ms. O, C.H.R. for me means Competitive, Helpful and Respectful. She said that consistency is a standard below which you will never fall. I will or actually have started to live my life based on these standards especially Competitive and Respectful. The model region award 3-peat is a testament to my competitive spirit. On being respectful, I live by the golden rule and treat everybody just as how I’d like to be treated. I need to work on being helpful as I’m not foreseen by others as Helpful although this is one of the standards that I’d like to live by eternally. The Helpfulness factor will be an asset eventually when I join the crazy world of politics once I retire from the corporate life.

II. The Art of Conversation
Small talk reminds me of an article I read in a magazine written by Larry King which reads “How to talk to anyone anywhere” in which he gives tips on how to engage in a conversation at a snap of a finger. He says the key is having a common denominator or a connection. In Ms. O’s version, she sets some guidelines like what to discuss and what to avoid. It goes without saying that the topic should be an interesting one to keep the discussion continuous. I thought I was already a master of small talk, being a self assessed amicable person who believes can talk to anybody, if I’m in the mood.

I was able to practice what I learned immediately the evening succeeding the day 2 during our department’s Christmas party at Temple Bar Greenbelt. Our special guest was no less than the company president and our department’s big boss asked me to assist her in entertaining Sir NN. The PLxx – SMT prexy loves his mean machines and I learned that his new baby is a Porsche Carrera S and that he had sold his BMW Z4 via Buy and Sell magazine. Oh so he’s mortal after all and sells via everybody’s fave magazine. I was aching to ask how much he sold the Z4 and how much he got the 996 but I remember what Ms. O taught us.

III. The Business Meal

I’d like to believe that my dining etiquette is not set at zero and I have my parents to thank for that. When we were growing up, they though me basic dining etiquette like: elbows off the table, spoon and fork on four o’ clock after eating, bread should be eaten bit by bit, soup should be scooped away from you and how to how to undress a shrimp. I wish my father taught me how to undress other living things. I had to learn it the hard way. :)

Purely based on recall (as I forgot my notes in Makati), here’s what I learned during the seminar: BMW in dining ethics means Bread on the left, Meal on the center and Water on the right, how to hold wine or champagne glass, European or American style of dining, table napkin discipline, how to eat pasta and where to place your hands. Again my father missed this part. :)

When my children are in their teens and Ms. O is still doing what she does best, we will make sure to enroll them in her class. So Miss O (not Olim or Golen as one of my manager friends christened her), if you are reading this blog entry, words are not enough to express how grateful I am for the lessons that I learned in your class. My pledge of allegiance would be to practice what you taught us and act as a police to my classmates.

My Vroom Room

You’re in St. Luke’s Medical Center watching TV straight for 12 hours so what else can you do as a breather? Doodle with your computer and type away your dreams! So here goes..it is year 2007 and I have unlimited resources, what vehicles will be in my stable? Here is my answer:

1. BMW X5 – My daily ride, a must have vehicle. Paging Aunt LST, wanna sell your ride?
2. BMW 320i – JML’s special occasion car. I hope/dream/yearn to have one before I turn 42 years old.
3. Honda CR-V – JML’s daily ride. Well, what do you know, we have one! At least, that’s one off our list.
4. Mitsubishi Spacegear – a family van, a must have for everybody. This will be our low profile vehicle.
5. Isuzu Pick up 4X4 – Light Haul UV which may serve as a daily ride. Isuzu diesel engine is still the best in the market.
6. Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano – my Sunday car. This increases my pogi points a million fold.
7. Hummer H1 – my four wheel drive car. Yup, I still like the original Humvee platform best. The H2 and H3 are more regular SUV-like compared to the utilitarian H1 military vehicle platform.
8. Toyota Corolla Sprinter (second generation) – vintage Japanese Sports Car, a once in a blue moon ride.
9. Range Rover (1995, last of the first gen) – vintage Euro SUV, another once in a blue moon ride.
10. Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla base model – a daily commute for B5
11. Honda Jazz base model – a daily commute for MC

Using the Chinese rule that transportation accounts for 10% of your total assets, we should have assets amounting to P 400M. So where do we start?

Top Ten Alpha SMS shortcuts

The Philippines is known as the ‘text capital of the world’. Another lingo that was created as a result of the texting generation is making waves. It’s probably a result of katamaran and cutting short every word in a phrase like instead of texting “See you later” the text lingo will read “C U L8R.” Here are the top ten alpha SMS shortcuts according to dylac.

LOL – Laughing Out Loud. Funny, all the while I thought it meant ulol, a tagalog word meaning demented.
ASL – This is the invaluable Age, Sex and Location which every internet generation person knows.
PLAK – Unfortunately, it doesn’t mean a tooth bacteria. It simply means “Please Acknowledge” which is mostly used in the office.
GAM – Good AM or good morning.
GPM – Good PM or good evening.
BFN – Bye For Now
TBAK – No, it does not refer to a thong which men crave about but means “Text Back.”
TKS – If you have not figured it out, it simply means “Thanks.”
AFAIR – Frankly, I had a hard time figuring that out. I means “As Far As I Know” and I got it from an officemate with initials AYT.
AYT – May mean 2 things for me and my officemates as one of our co-manager’s initial is AYT but the common tao understands it as simply “Alright.”

Yes to NUKE!

To keep my heart beating, the Radio Active Iodine therapy (Isotope 131) was a must for my thyroid disorder. It was the first line of defense for my condition. I was scheduled to be in therapy from December 10 to 14 and the competitive spirit in me was targeting to complete the process in under 5 days.

Day 1
I’m back in the 10 square meter room at my favorite hospital, St. Luke’s Medical Center. I don’t actually like the process of undergoing therapy but I’d choose it any day over surgery. To borrow a doctor’s line “surgery will destroy this young man’s life.” Anyway, the procedure is that you’ll pop a NUKE pill (200 mill curie) the size of the regular tablet, then you need to be confined in a room with the objective of flushing out the nuclear content out of your body in the fastest time possible. This is my third radiation treatment in 3 years hence it’s beginning to be an annual affair. My batting average is 4 days in the hospital and this time I’m targeting 3 days to flush out the toxin err medicine out of my system. The nuke man wearing a blue space suit said I’m currently at 50 MRs. I can be discharged at 2 MRs.

Day 2
After one whole day of trying to make the laptop work with 3 possible data connections (1- wifi using my aircard, 2- weroam using another type of aircard and 3- 3G via my Nokia N70 celfone), I’ve come to a realization that connecting to the internet was just not meant for me during the session. Maybe I was meant to rest instead and watch TV. At around 9:00AM, Mr. Rad-Man (the radiologist) measured my radiation level and it was at 12 MR. My life savior a.k.a. my doctor said I can be discharged from the hospital if my rad count is less than 2.5 MR hence that was my target.

Day 3
The first visitor for the day was Mr. Rad-man who was in my room as early as 8:00AM. I just woke up that time and was eating breakfast so I asked him to come back around 9:30AM. Apparently, he didn’t follow my instruction and we was back around 9:00AM so I told him to return after 9:30AM because I wanted to take a shower before he waved his magic wand. E nagtampo ang mister so hindi na bumalik. I asked the nurse around 2:00PM to check my radiation count and they sent Mr. Rad-man around 3:00PM. Lo and behold! My rad count was 2.1 MR!!! The first thing that I said was “Can I go home now?” I was SO BORED that’s why I had to go home. I texted my Doctor and he said he already gave instructions that I be discharged before 5:00PM. So I was on my way home around 6:00PM.

Day 4
I had to go back to St. Luke’s Medical Center for the Whole Body Scan. Technically speaking, this wraps up my therapy with just a little concern, I had to re-take an exam which means I have to return the following day for a 15 minute process. It was perfectly okay, anything for my health and as long as I don’t spend another night in the hospital.

Day 5
I was back for Whole Body Scan partial re-take.

The whole therapy process including test amounting to P 150,000 was bankrolled by the company. Thank God! That would have been a huge sum if taken out of our finances. Seems like I’ll be staying with this company for a longer time.

10 versus 100th : How to invest P100,000.00

If somebody gives you P 100,000.00, what will you do with your new found wealth? Sounds like a third world-ish genie granting a wish but I’m pretty sure we can easily come up with a list of 100,000 things to do. For men, a new set of wheel and tires, an LCD TV, a digital SLR camera, a notebook computer, your own set of tools. For women, a new handbag, a set of make up kit, a sofa set, a baking oven, beauty sessions. The list is endless. And then there’s this boring option called investment. This article will focus on how to invest P100,000.00 and eventually, you can use the interest earned for your caprices!

1. Type: TIME DEPOSIT
Where: All Types of banks – Universal, Commercial, Thrift, Rural banks.
Period: As short as 15 days, 30days to as long as 5 years. Withholding Tax is 20%. Tax becomes free if period is 5 years and 1 day.
Interest Rate: range is 2% to 4% per annum or per year
Minimum Investment: P5,000.00
Risk Involved: Low
Investor Participation: Low
References: www.psbank.com.ph

2. Type: COOPERATIVE
Where: There are over 10000 cooperatives in the Phils. You can check out the list in http://www.cda.gov.ph/.
Period: Usually, dividend is declared first quarter of the year.
Interest Rate: Depends on the performance of the coop. May be as low as 3% or as high as 23%. Sempco declared 23% in the 1Q of Y2007.
Minimum Investment: P10,000.00
Risk Involved: Low
Investor Participation: Low
References: http://www.cda.gov.ph/; www.kskcoop.com

3. Type: DOUBLE YOUR MONEY
Where: Cooperatives and Rural Banks
Period: Usually 5 to 6 years.
Interest Rate: 16.67% per annum
Minimum Investment: P250,000.00
Risk Involved: Moderate. The reality is, universal and commercial banks are “more stable” compared to rural banks however life would be pretty mundane if we don’t take calculated risks sometimes.
Investor Participation: Low
References: www.firstcountryfinancial.com

4. Type: STOCKS
Where: Stock Brokers or on line stocks broker sites
Period: Holding period can be as short as one day but ideally, hold period is one year.
Interest Rate: Depends on a lot of factors like the company invested and the period of investment
Minimum Investment: P10,000.00
Risk Involved: High
Investor Participation: Low if passive, high if active.
References: www.citiseconline.com

5. Type: MUTUAL FUND
Where: Financial Consultants
Period: minimum of 1 month
Interest Rate: 7 to 20%
Minimum Investment: P10,000.00
Risk Involved: Moderate to High
Investor Participation: Low if passive, high if active.
References: http://www.sunlifefunds.com//mutualfunds; www.philamfunds.com

6. Type: UNIT INVESTMENT TRUST FUND
Where: Banks
Period: minimum of 1 month
Interest Rate: 7 to 20%
Minimum Investment: P5,000.00
Risk Involved: Moderate to High
Investor Participation: Low if passive, high if active.
References: www.bdo.com.ph/investment

7. Type: GOVERNMENT SECURITIES (Treasury Bills and Treasury Bonds)
Where: Banks
Period: minimum of 1 month
Interest Rate: 3 to 14%
Minimum Investment: P5,000.00
Risk Involved: Moderate to High
Investor Participation: Low if passive, high if active.
References: www.bdo.com.ph/investment

8. Type: BUSINESS – FOOD FRANCHISE
Where: There are a dozen food franchises in the range of P30,000 to P60,000.
Period: ROI is dependent on a lot of factors like sales, location, etc.
Interest Rate: You can actually double your money in under 6 months. In the same manner, you can loose your money in half the time.
Minimum Investment: P30,000.00 to P60,000.00
Risk Involved: High
Investor Participation: Low if capitalist, high if industrialist.
References: www.entreprenuer.com.ph

9. Type: BUSINESS – DIRECT LENDING
Where: Ask your neighbor
Period: Usually 1 month to 6 months.
Interest Rate: As low as 2% per month to as high as 10% per month.
Minimum Investment: P10,000.00
Risk Involved: High
Investor Participation: Low if capitalist, high if industrialist.
References:

10. Type: BUSINESS - TRADING
Where: Depends on a person’s passion.
Period: Depends on the “harvest period”
Interest Rate: Depends on a lot of factors but can easily double your money in less than 6 months.
Minimum Investment: P5,000.00
Risk Involved: High
Investor Participation: Low if capitalist, high if industrialist.
References: www.entreprenuer.com.ph

BONUS: Type: BUSINESS – REAL ESTATE
Where: Depends on your preferred location
Period: Depends on your resources.
Interest Rate: From 10% to 20% depending on monthly rental rate
Minimum Investment: At least P60,000.00 (for the first year)
Risk Involved: High
Investor Participation: High
References: http://www.camella.com.ph/; www.theorientalplace.com

There’s no perfect investment for any individual. It all depends on your need, your want, your resources, time you can spare and how you’ll justify your choice of investment.

A Vote Wasted

Picture Story:

Pix taken outside our condo unit's window facing south east. The subject is ABS-CBN's helicopter hovering about 700 feet on top the Manila Peninsula Hotel and covering the November 29 seige. The hotel is less than a kilometer from our place.

Shot Specs:

Shutter: 1/1250

Aperture: F5.6

Focal Length: 200mm

ISO: 400

If you are a Manila Peninsula patron, you have an axe to grind with honorable Senator Antonio Trillanes IV. It is because of him that a tank found his way inside the lobby of your fave hotel.

It started one rainy morning last November 29. A court hearing was in session in the Makati Regional Trial Court when the rebels just decided to walk out and walk to Manila Pen. With a platoon of about 30+ soldiers, they took over the hotel. The grapevine says the grand plan was to seize the hotel and last until the following day in time for a series of pocket rallies conducted by militant groups across the metropolis scheduled on November 30 Bonifacio day. To borrow the line of Cinderella's maid of honor "It simply isn't done."

Fast forward to 500pm, just minutes before day break, the government troops stormed the five star hotel along Ayala Ave via the front door using a tank and made mince meat of the entrance. Next step was to smoke the bandits with tear gas. That seem to be the perfect formula to extricate the rebels from the temporary lair. It was all over by 800pm with the government winning this battle again. This 10 hour siege maybe an entry in the record books as the fastest coup de etat resolved.

Senator Trillanes must have swept his own feet off the ground. He banked on the thought that over 11 million voted for him to a senate seat in last May's polls. He may not have realized that he was no sweet talker nor a charismatic leader reason why his lines sounded more like a plead for support from a college student who recently got a ‘C’ in communication. I voted for him last election, the first guy in the list. Like half of the populace, I’m starting to think that I made the wrong move. I hope the honorable Senator proves me wrong.

Mother's Know Best

My two EXes are past president of their school dance club. As a company manager, we get to present during functions and it's usually a dance number. I love to listen to songs with danceable tunes. All these suggest that I am a good dancer - NOT!

I was once invited to join a dance competition in our town during my teenage years. My mother did not allow me then and I felt bad. I didn't know if I was a good dancer but my partner would be a high school crush so back then, it was all that matters.

Two decades after that incident, it's crystal clear to me what my mother's intention was - that she wants to protect her son from imminent humiliation. I don't need any further proof and embrace the fact that I'm not cut off for dancing. I've realized that more than 10 years ago.

Three's a crowd

It nearly happened this last week of November 2007, a historic and potentially destructive three simultaneous typhoons in our country.

Typhoon Lando seem to have forgotten something from his visit late last week and made a 180 degree turn back to the Philippines. This while typhoon Mina is threatening to wreak havoc in our country within the next 12 hours and typhoon Nonoy within striking distance.

The result: a sunny Wednesday morning. We now have more reasons to believe that our weather forecast system badly need an upgrade.

Friendster: Networking in the Digital age

Finally, I created a Friendster (FS) account in July this year. The FS website was introduced about 7 years ago and when people ask me if I have an FS account, I tell them it’s just a waste of time and it’s not my cup of tea (read baduy).

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I am now a convert and 4 months after opening my account, I've amassed close to 300 friends and acquaintances, update photos once every 2 wks and get mails once every 3 days. I am a full pledged FS frequent user. My account demographics shows about 50% women, 45% men and the balance belonging to the friendly ‘third force.’ Nearly 1/3 are officemates and the remaining 2/3s are a combination of families, friends, acquaintances, high school, college and graduate school classmates, fellow mountain bikers and car aficionados and photo buffs.

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The most pleasant surprise invite came from Ms. Carla Custodio who I last heard more than 13 years ago. She was the least person that I expected to meet via FS. Carla was my college thesis mate. She used to live in a condo in Salcedo Village where we often hold our thesis meetings. She’s now based in the California USA while I now live in Salcedo Village just across the street where she used to live.
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So what’s with Friendster? You have common internet features such as email, photo sharing, testimonials, a blog site, announcements and links to social groups. You have an option to accept or reject friends. Of course, we wouldn’t want to be rejected, right?
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Our parents and mentors always highlight the advantages of networking. In the pre internet era, networking was limited to casual talk, parties and other social occasions. In this day and age, aside from text messaging, email groups, forums, you can add online networking such as Friendster Multiply, MySpace and Facebook in the growing list.

Leisure in La Luz

Our annual Team Celebration Program (TCP) of the department was held in La Luz Beach Resort in San Juan Laiya Batangas. It was an open change from Boracay where we’ve had our TCP for the past 2 years.

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Going There
The resort’s website http://www.laluzresort.com/ says the travel time is 2.5 hours from Manila but the actual travel time is about 3.5 to 4 hours. There was a build up of traffic in some parts of Batangas because you have to pass through small municipalities where you see people literally lazing around on the highway. Like Dora the Explorer, a map came in handy as the direction posted in the web was partially inaccurate. At any rate, the travel time was well worth it and was actually bitin as I traded stories with a fellow manager and friend AYT.
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The Resort
The resort was actually not as impressive as the website projected. That’s two thumbs up for the photographer and the web writer for their fantasy like projection. I’ve give it a rating of 7 out of 10. The highlights of the resort include a short jungle scene going to the resort, picture perfect cabanas, bright white sun loungers & parasols, their own version of Willy’s Rock (in Boracay), good food and clean, comfortable & relaxing rooms. The beach orientation reminds me of Bohol where resorts line up all along the shoreline. In this side of the country, apparently La Luz got the best spot. Also, a scene shot in Ysabella, an ABS CBN telenovela was done in this resort in August this year.
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The People
The characters in this escapade where the managers of SMT’s Customer Care department or at least two thirds of the population. Save for 2 big bosses, we were almost complete. We occupied four big rooms adjacent to each other, ate merienda and dinner together, hoarded one of the cabanas, played cards, took tons of pictures ala models, renewed ties with Jose Cuervo (tequila) and played truth or consequence like college students. When the smoke cleared, some managers exceeded the limit of being tipsy, others were in lakas tama mode and everybody knew something new about everyone. This is the epitome of a perfect team building exercise.
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Although the lack of night life, beach and resort quality is incomparable to Boracay, that we had fun is an understatement. A friend of mine once said it is not the venue but the people that makes a place memorable.

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FN: To view pictures of La Luz Resort, go to http://www.flickr.com/ and search for La Luz Resort by dylac.

Ysabella

"Ladies and genamen, pyesenting my yesipi, Vitoria's chichen" said my MC imitating Victoria Amarillo (Connie Reyes) famous line in the ABS-CBN soap opera Ysabella.

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This dragging TV show is becoming more of an advertisement program rather than a true blue soap opera. Bacolod Chicken Inasal is riding on the 'popularity' of the drama series. Maggi Seasoning is chipping in the limelight. I won't be surprised if BMW is in it too because of Mito's silver X5.
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The Real Line : Ladies and gentlemen, presenting my recipe , Victoria’s Chicken! – Victoria Amarillo
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DYK: The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble, Colgate – Palmolive and Uni-Lever as the show's sponsors.

Saguisag Case: The Airbags have it

Last Nov 8 at 2AM at an intersection in Makati City, one of the numerous early morning vehicular accidents happened. It was a smash up between an 8,000 lbs. dump truck and a 2,500 lbs. van. It was a typical beating-the-red-light accident except that the victims where ex-Senator Rene Saguisag and ex-DSWD Secretary Dulce Saguisag reason why it was all in the papers the following day. At the end of it all, 1 person was killed, 2 persons were critically injured and 1 was slightly injured.

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Let’s talk about the spanking new white Toyota Hiace Grandia that was crushed during the collision. The concentration of the impact was from the left side of the van. The seating arrangement shows that on the wheel was driver Felipe Calvario Jr, on the driver’s right side was dance instructress Imelda Obong while at the back directly behind the driver was Mrs. Saguisag and on her right was Atty. Saguisag. Mrs. Saguisag was instantly killed; Ms. Obong escaped with minor injuries though badly shaken up; the driver and Atty. Saguisag where in critical condition but survived the horrific incident.

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The airbags did their job. That probably saved the driver from certain death. The Ms. Obong was not wearing her seatbelt but she was saved by the airbag. Mrs. Saguisag who was on the side of the impact was actually a direct hit by the rolling mechanical monster while Atty. Saguisag was beside her wife. Reports say both were not wearing seatbelts. Who wears seatbelts anyway on a family van? I will from hereon.

Glorietta Case: No way out

The inquest in the explosion that rocked high end mall Glorietta 3 weeks ago is about to be resolved. The blast that killed 11 (including a fellow smart employee) and injured hundreds is said to be caused by (a) a terrorist bomb or (b) gas leak.

It was easy and most convenient to point to terrorism as the cause for Makati's ground zero. The leftist have long been known to exact injury without remorse and it has been an annual event. I’m not really sure if they're really fighting for a cause, they're just news hungry or simply masochist. Bomb experts from PNP, NBI, Australian Police Force and US FBI all said it was NOT caused by a bomb. The evidence points to another direction.

The next angle is a probable negligence on the part of Ayala land management. The explosion was said to be caused by methane gas. The blast's point a is in the basement where the sewage system and the fuel tank is located. I’m not an expert in this field and I'm not sure if it's actually a lethal mixture but I’m pretty sure it was ignited by something. This something is the biggest question mark nowadays. Recently, the submersible tank was recovered and the blast seem to happen from top up. The base of the tank was intact. This is a strong evidence that the blast was NOT triggered by a bomb.

It's a no win situation for Ayala Land Inc. If it's a bomb blast then their security team was sleeping on the job. If it's a gas leak, then their maintenance team are the ones not doing their jobs. In all, the biggest loser here is the Ayala team.

Beyonce Bumisita sa Bayan

Ang banyagang si Beyonce Knowles ay bumisita sa bayan natin nung nakaraang linggo. Siya ay nagbigay ng isang gabing concert sa the fort bahagi ng kanyang Concert sa Asya. Ang totoo niyan, mababaw lang ang pagka kilala ko sa mang aawit. Nung nakita ko yung wax sculpture niya sa Madame Tussaud nung nakaraang taon, kinunan ko lang ng picture kahit hindi ko siya kilala. Pang souvenir lang ba.

Basking in Baguio

I've lost count how many times I've been to Baguio City. Before this trip, I was in Baguio for our company's national conference in February 2007 and the last time with my family in September 2002. That time, we were driving our then b/new Toyota Revo. This time, we're breaking in our b/new Honda CR-V. Will it be a BMW 320i in 2013?

We stayed at El Cielito Inn, a cozy small place near Session road. Good thing I booked in advance because the hotel was booked to the hilt. I stayed in this hotel ages ago so was quite familiar with it. One of the main requirements was a safe and secure parking.

On day 1, we went to Camp John Hay Mile Hi where we had lunch, then checked out CJH Museum, CJH Cemetery of Negativism, Wright Park, The Mansion, Mine’s View Park and capped off for dinner at Sizzling Plate. It was an exhausting day so we dozed off early.

On day 2, first up was Pink Sisters Convent, then we went to Botanical Garden, Good Sheperd Convent for the yummy ube, passed through Session Road and parked near Burnham Park. Lunch was at Rose Bowl before going back to Tarlac. Of course, we bought veggies and pasalubong at the market.

Manilenos and lowlanders are in the summer capital of the Philippines. On the road, 6 out of 10 vehicles are Metro Manila registered, 1 out of 10 are Central Luzon and the balance are Baguio based. Traffic was horrendous and parking was bad however any chance to relax and bond with my family is precious time.

Hello Moto

The plan today (November 1) was to go to the farm, Barangay Balanti in the morning. The agenda was to check out the Eucalyptus and Jatropha trees. My cousin John D provided the transpo which was a choice between a 4 wheel drive vehicle or a 2 wheel motocross wonder. We chose the latter.

The last time I rode a motorcycle was in Boracay in 2002. Since it's been a while since I last rode one, I actually was not very confident and at the same time excited to ride again. To further drill down the choices, it was a toss up between a 200cc real moto cross bike and a psuedo moto-x 125cc bike wt auto tranny. The fake off roader was perfect for a novice like me.

While we rode motorbikes, the trail we used was for mountain bikes. T'is the trail I use everytime I visit the farm riding my human powered machine. The biggest challenge was fording the 2 feet deep river whch was over 50 meters wide. On a mt. bike, it was as simple as carrying the 27 lbs. Steel structure but on a motorbike, you have to push the 200 lbs. ride. That was the most uninteresting part of the ride.

In all, it was 26 kilometers and 3 hours of fun, adventure, kwentuhan and a good work out.

Stairway to Heaven

It was a perfect day; a combination of leisure time, a cool ride, a digital camera and an adventurous driver. The plan was to check out the Bamban Grotto en route to my hometown. The Bamban Grotto is located in Bamban, a town in the Province of Tarlac. Going north, it's on the left side situated on top of the mountain just after you pass through the new bridge.

Going up the grotto, you have to conquer 164 flights of stairs. That alone is a sacrifice. When you reach the top, you'll be greeted by a white grotto. The grotto was donated by my maternal grandmother in the 1950s. It features an our Lady of Lourdes statue with 2 female devotees in kneeling position.

While on top, it presents a majestic view of the arching Bamban bridge, Sacobia river, McArthur highway and Concepcion town from a distance. The last time I did this escapade was in 1992 just after Mt Pinatubo erupted. The view then was devastation. This time, it was truly a sight to see and the side trip was well worth it.

FN: To view more pictures of the Bamban Grotto, go to http://www.flickr.com/ and look for Bamban Grotto by dylac.

What you wear is what you see.

"Don't judge the book by its cover" reads an often used (and misused) adage. Being a savvy dresser is not directly proportional to a healthy bank book.

Mr. Angeles from Pampanga visited a Mitsubishi car showroom straight from the farm. He was driving his owner type jeep, needed a shower but had in mind the request of her college daughter to buy her a car for her 18th birthday. He went inside the showroom unfortunately, nobody seem to mind him. Irked, he went to the bank withdrew enough money to purchase a vehicle outright cash. Talk about purchasing power.

On the other hand, Mr. Lacoste (not his real name), was neither an animal activist nor a son of a Philippine congressman, has a wide array of Lacoste clothes and apparel. He looks like an astronaut in his matching Lacoste polo shirt, jeans, belt and shoes. His traveling bag is, you guessed it, Lacoste! He's happy with his get up even if it means going around the metropolis via the trusty taxicab. Saving the cost to purchase 25 polo shirt is equivalent to a 20% to a brand new car. Three polo shirts is needed for the monthly car installment.

Life it seems is a matter of priorities. People who dress up in branded clothes have a "look rich attitude" even if their financials can barely support their caprice. Their ideology is they'd rather die looking good than die looking like a rag. Then there are the "walang pakialam sa pananamit basta may ipon" type of person. Buys clothes on sale, matches local brands with signature brands but drives a nice car, in fact changes car every 5 years. The trick is to be in between these two types of persons. The middle ground is the "just right" type of person. A little of everything because in our society, people actual judge books by their cover and saving for the rainy days seem to be entrusted to luck or "God will provide attitude." Work hard, spend just right and save enough for the future.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The new automotive exterior design is in. It may not look pretty for everybody but there are believers, in fact a throng of them. Motion Cars website straightforwardly called the design UGLY. I'm talking about the Volkswagen Beetle look side windshield in Sports Utility Vehicles.

In the Philippines, the look was first introduced by Isuzu Alterra in 2006. Then Honda CR-V followed suit in early 2007, said to be a design only a mother would love. The third company to imitate the style was Chevrolet Captiva then followed by another American car, Dodge Caliber. Actually, the real trendsetter who started it all was little known Ssangyong Rodius released in 2004. However, the company is a non entity in the Philippine automotive arena that’s why nobody noticed.

The design is both weird and trendsetting, depending on how you look at it. At first, I hated the design but it grows on you and you’ll eventually like the design.

Deal with the Devil

Erap is a free man! The unlucky 13th President of the Philippines who was caught with his hands inside a cookie jar was arrested 6 ½ years ago for plunder. Just last month, the verdict was released and the court found him guilty beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced to reclusion perpetua.

His get out of jail pass was through an executive clemency granted by the “lucky-for-now” 14th President of the Philippines. The news cites Erap’s current age, health and her mother’s condition as reasons for granting pardon. The historic act was announced yesterday by Malacanan and implemented today.

The red carpet was rolled out today for Erap in his hometown in San Juan. In his obvious impromptu speech, he thanked President GMA for the action and not allowing him to live in the Southern part of Muntinlupa City (site of the New Bilibid Prison). The audience did not actually receive the statement warmly but that is the least of his worries.

The past 2 months seem to be a movie segment which was very predictable. Probability was high that Erap will be found guilty. It was the best decision given the circumstance. Besides, GMA can always grant an executive clemency. Which she did. It was a win-win situation for both parties with the biggest winner being the current administration.

Photography 101 : Twilight Zone

Subject: Makati Skyline
Location: Salcedo Village, Makati
Date: September 2007
Camera: Nikon D40
Shutter: 10
Aperture: F5.6
Focal Length: 88mm
ISO: 400

This is picture just brought my photo skills to another level. It looks SO SIMPLE but believe me, this is one tough shot. If you have a point and shoot cam or a compact digicam, try copying the shot. There is a high probability that you won't be as successful. I can't say though with finality that only an SLR cam can take such a pix. Here's the perfect formula to take a similar photo: SLR camera + tripod + read a good photo book + patience.

Photography 101 : Do the Locomotion

Subject: A Locomotive in Luisita
Location: Luisita, Tarlac City
Date: October 2007
Camera: Nikon D40
Shutter: 1/640
Aperture: F5.6
Focal Length: 38mm
ISO: 800

I've been yearning to take a picture of this locomotive. I'm not much of a train fan but I reckon the subject looks good on camera. Finally, I mustered enough strength and found time one Saturday and took snapshots of the mechanical icon. I took about 3 dozen shots until the security guard called my attention and said that taking pictures is prohibited. Too late the hero. Thanks anyway, Mister Sikyo. Both of us were just doing our jobs.

Photography 101 : Tita's Garden

Subject: Plant in front of house
Location: Tarlac City
Date: September 2007
Camera: Nikon D40
Shutter: X
Aperture: Y
Focal Length: Z
ISO: A

The Boyfriend Story

"I have a boyfriend" announced my 3 year old daughter over dinner. We got a good laugh after her statement. The question is, will we have the same reaction in a decade's time? By the way, the boyfriend's name is Miracle.

Blown to Smithereens

"Do you play the number 1 position?" I was asked yesterday. The number 1 position in basketball means playing the point guard role. I replied "Yes, that's my role." I played basketball last night, my first time this year as the last game I played was in December 2006.

Pardon my French but I sucked. When I was in college, I scored 30+ points once in a winning effort. In that same street ball tournament, I averaged 15+ pts, had a healthy assist number and decent rebound stats. Yesterday was probably my worse game ever! I played for about 5 minutes, didn't score, zero assist and had a number of turnovers. Being out of shape is an understatement. The experience was so humiliating that it bothers me until now.

It started when I got a call from an officemate inviting me to be a player for the Senior's Basketball Barkadahan. Senior means 35 year old players and up. I politely declined but he insisted that I join. He said he saw me play in the exhibition game last year and he said "Pwede ka pa." Sayang naman yung uniform so I joined.

One humiliating experience is enough. I just have to embrace the fact that I'm no longer geared up for competitive basketball

DLSU's Dramatic Comeback

The 68th UAAP season. The story starts with De La Salle University winning the 68th UAAP men's basketball crown via a 2-1 win over FEU then being stripped of the crown a few months after. It was definitely a humiliating experience for DLSU. The investigation shows that DLSU fielded 2 players with bogus high school records. Whether it was the wrongdoing of the player or the talent scout, as a responsible institution, they should have verified. As a result of the careless move, DLSU was stripped off the title and worse, suspended from the league for 1 year.

The 69th UAAP season. Effectively, DLSU’s suspension happened during this season. To keep their players in competitive shape, they played in "b" leagues. The show must go on since the suspension clearly stated 1 year only hence their basketball program continued. During the 1 year layoff, new players joined the team and beefed up their line up.

University of the East. During the 70th UAAP season, everybody was expecting University of the East to breeze through the series and claim the crown after 22 years of drought. The last crown they had was during Jaworski's era. Despite having a rookie coach in the person of Dindo Pumaren, an ex-La Salle cager, the team had a perfect match of veterans and rookies. The team boast of having 11 players capable of scoring in double digits. The biggest accolade was they swept the elimination round 14 - 0. The last team to sweep the elimination was DLSU en route to a crown during the 90s. The rules have been revised since so a team that sweeps the elims has the glory or just waiting for their opponent.

De La Salle University. And now let's talk about the champion underdogs. They lost to arch rival Ateneo twice in the elims, had a 10 - 4 score card in the elimination, lost again to Ateneo during the playoff game one to force a winner take all match. During the finals, UE was heavily favored. The only good thing to say about the DLSU team was that they had a multi titled veteran coach and finals experienced team. That advantage seemed to be the key to DLSU's success. Lady luck was on their side when they snatched game 1 via a 64 - 63 win in regulation. Game 2 was a display of experience, preparation and motivation. Again, luck chipped in. When the buzzer sounded, the score was 73 to 64 and this paved way to DLSU sweeping the finals.

The basketball analyst were right that the UAAP men's basketball finals will be a sweep. The only difference, it was the underdogs DLSU who completed the sweep.

Photography 101 : Alin ang naiba?

Subject: A row of high end cars in a high end street
Location: Santana Row, San Jose, CA
Date: June 2006
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101 : Stretched Budget

Subject: A black Lincoln Town Car "stretch" limousine

Location: Torrance, CA

Date: May 2006

Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101 : Pimp my Ride

Subject: A pumped up Dodge Charger (1966 to 1978)
Location: Santana Row, San Jose, CA
Date: June 2006
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101: Old School

Subject: 1952 Chevrolet
Location: Torrance, CA
Date: May 2006
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Pumaren Duel

DLSU def. ADMU, 65 to 60 banners the sports headline last Sunday, September 30. This marked the start of the Pumaren duel. The head coach of DLSU Men's Basketball team is Franz while Dindo is the head coach of the University of the East.

Both Pumaren's played the backcourt position during their younger days. They belong to a family of basketball buffs as the patriarch Filomeno “Pilo” Pumaren used to coach for various teams such as San Miguel in the PBA, U.E and DLSU in the UAAP while the eldest sibling Derick is currently the coach of Talk N Text and used to coach DLSU.

I wonder who Daddy Pumaren would root for on Thurs. If I were him, I'd go for the underdog, La Salle. Go La Salle!!!

FAST FORWARD

DLSU def. UE, 64 to 63 in 48 minutes of action that saw 11 lead changes. The UAAP Finals Game 1 proved that experience by DLSU in the finals plays a big part in a basketball game. The fact that UE, who have 11 out of 12 players that can score in double figures and swept the regular season 14-0 shows that their credentials are only good in paper and they actually succumb under immense pressure. I hope I’m not speaking too soon as game 2 is set on Sunday. At any rate, my mind was set that UE will sweep the UAAP Men’s Basketball Finals and eventually win a crown after 22 years.

One on One

Our one and only son (our little kobe-conut) scored a rank 1 in the first quarter. His 95.17 general average catapulted him to this ranking after consistently being in rank 2 in his class during his 3rd grade. Not all news is good though because he graciously lost to a returning grade 2 representative in the race for grade 4 student council representative. For being a runner up, he gets to sit as grade 4 council member. Together with his academic award comes a conduct award. We hope he maintains his ranking until the end of his grade 4 season.

My Humps

“Trials are not the reason to give up, but a challenge to improve ourselves, mistakes are not an excuse to back-out but an inspiration to move forward.”

Tim Hardaway, one third of the NBA famous RUN-TMC from the Golden State Warriors committed a major boo boo in February this year. During an interview, he said he didn't like gay people. A strong statement because I assume about 25% of the worldwide population belongs to that gender. The statement definitely earned their ire. Since then he has “recovered” and brought back the trust in some way by doing voluntary work for the underprivileged.

Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago also had her share of mishap recently. She took potshots at the Chinese during one interview. She called them intsik on national TV and boasted that the Chinese invented corruption. Strong words indeed reason why the Filipino-Chinese lambasted the feisty senator. She immediately wrote a letter of apology to the Chinese Embassy and publicly apologized the day after she delivered her infamous line saying that she was under a lot of stress.

One of the biggest trials of my professional life is currently in play. I hope it ends soon and I get to already view the closing credits. I'd rather not detail how it came about but would like to focus on my life learning and these are humility and tact. With all the blessing that is coming our way this year: a new car, travel with family, real property investments and achievement of our children (B5 is rank 1 in school and MC was accelerated), any normal person has the tendency to forget where he came from hence the timing of the trial is just right. There are no regrets that this happened, apologies have been delivered to the proper persons and as Julia Fordham said in her song "time heals all wounds."

Miranda Right

“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.”

The Miranda Right largely applied in the US is actually applicable in the Philippine corporate setting. Anything that comes out of your mouth, officially or unofficially, delivered seriously or said in jest, may be used against you. In the corporate setting, there are pseudo lawyers who may defend or persecute you.

Place in the Sun

The travails of a start up group is that you have to overcome a lot of hurdles, the greatest being proper acknowledgement. I must admit stress is getting the better of me and I sometimes have trouble juggling work. The whole global and new business group is under the microscope right now by management because of expenses. These expenses are expected to turn into revenues and at the rate things are going, these will be realized in over 2 years. That's just my amateur forecast.

The core business is still the cash cow but the 64 million dollar question is until when. Remittance business (to the Philippines) is a $15 billion annual amount and steadily growing. The company is aiming to corner a sizeable chunk of the market and we have the business model to answer the requirement.

But until the global and new business groups pour in the needed points and have an impact on the company's bottom-line, my role will be perceived as a glorified PM.

Photography 101 : Windows Desktop

Subject: A cow grazing
Location: San Jose, Tarlac
Date: July 2005
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101 : Mountain Dew

Subject: Dew on a plant
Location: Tagaytay City
Date: October 2005
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101 : Belfry

Subject: Cagsawa Ruins
Location: Daraga, Albay
Date: October 2005
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1
Footnote: After the Nov 2006 typhoon that hit the Bicol region and triggered lahar, the belfry was covered by at least 80%. Now, the only thing remaining in the historical landmark is about 10 feet from the top.

Photography 101 : Baguio Cathedral

Subject: Baguio Cathedral

Location: Baguio City

Date: March 2007

Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101: Burnham Park

Subject: Burnham Park
Location: Baguio City
Date: March 2007
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101 : Sunflower

Subject: Sunflower
Location: Baguio City
Date: March 2007
Camera: Sony Cybershot T-1

Photography 101: Lover's Quarrel

Subject: A couple in Burnham Park
Location: Baguio City
Date: March 2007
Camera: Sony Cybarshot T-1

The Complete Photography Book

“Whatever your experience has been, you can use this book as a source of information and also as a springboard for your imagination. Treat it as invitation to open your eyes, to think laterally, to bend the rules, to experiment, improvise and customize. View the camera as a tool which can shoot wonderful pictures. But it is the eye – the ability to see a good picture – that will make you a good photographer. " from Michael Joseph and Dave Saunders

I recently got hold of a very comprehensive photography book from my brother-in-law. I learned that the owner of the book is my father-in-law. The book is copyrighted 1993 and it is always mentioned in the book that digital cameras have a few more years to mature. Digital cams have arrived and conquered the photo world. The paradigm has shifted since the book was launched and it’s just a matter of time before film cams become extinct. In under a decade’s time, film cams would be relegated to museum artifacts.

My father-in-law is a camera buff. He’s also into farming, likes traveling, a gun and car enthusiast, used to devour piles of books. These are the things we have in common. It’s just too bad that he’s indisposed right now and I’m hoping and praying that he recovers soon. It’s no wonder that his obra maestra inside their house are of fine quality. I learned from my wife that he has an armament of photography devices, Nikon at that. Too bad he’s not exposed to the internet as I would have shared my precious shots to him. I’ll probably print a couple of pictures then share it with him so he can marvel at my shots or critic then if necessary.

Name Game

In a meeting last week, one of the department heads mentioned that I had a unique name and asked if I like poetry and I said no. He then asked what was the pronunciation of my name “dee-lun” or “die-lan” to which I replied that the pronunciation doesn't matter as long as the spelling is correct. He further said that two of the greatest poets are named Dylan. I said I only know one – Dylan Thomas. I can’t recall the name of the other Dylan poet and can’t seem to find him in the internet too.

From the internet, I learned that the name Dylan is a Welsh name, from the Welsh elements dy, meaning "great" and llanw, "rising tide". A given name in Wales, where the first syllable is pronounced closer to "dull" than to "dill", it is now also a surname in other parts of the world.

My mother who is an English major is fond of poets reason why I was named after the Wales native. My father on the other hand used to listen to Bob Dylan music. The connection between the two, Dylan Thomas and Bob Dylan, seem to be the fact that they’re both good writers. In fact, Bob Dylan’s influence is Dylan Thomas reason why he used the screen name Bob Dylan when his real name is Robert Allen Zimmerman.

DYK

Did you know that Bob Dylan's most recent album "Love and Theft" was released in September 11, 2001.

Let's Meet Halfway

My son B5 is 9 y.o. while my daughter MC is 3 y.o. Their average age is 6 y.o. and this is the rendezvous age where the siblings meet.

B5 the kuya most of the time plays as the protector. One time while in the park playground, he told the kids trying to bully his sister 'hey, it's my sister's turn'. On the other hand, he would get mad at her sister for being makulit when if fact he started the kulitan.

The bunso MC, angelic looking at three, can be the ultimate terrible three when in the mood. She would shout 'Huya!' when in pikon mode even if she was the promotor. Then there are days when the only hand that she'll hold (while walking in the mall) is kuya's hand.

My mother was right when she said we will be amazed by the difference of personalities of our offspring. My wife shared that we sometimes abhor certain traits of our children when in fact these are the traits we want to scrub off our system. This is just the tip of the iceberg and we'll learn more from our kids as time goes by.

Photography 101: False Falls

Subject: Water Fountain
Location: Baras-Baras, Tarlac City
Date: August 2007
Camera: Nikon D40
Shutter: 1/200
Aperture: F5.3
Focal Length: 45mm
ISO: 400

Photography 101: JoeLac's Vineyard

Subject: Vines @ my Grandpa's place
Location: Mabini, Tarlac City
Date: January 2006
Camera: Sony Cybershot DSC-T1

Photography 101: Banana ako!

Subject: Ornamental Banana
Location: Puerto Princesa, Palawan
Date: January 2006
Camera: Sony Cybershot DSC-T1