Moody Thursday

We expected traffic to be bad last Maundy Thursday but we didn't expect it to be THAT BAD! The average travel time from Makati to Tarlac is about 2 hours but this a special day so the travel time reached 5 hours.

CHOKE POINTS
The expected choke points for the 125 kilometer journey includes EDSA, NLEX approach, Mabalacat intersection and McArthur Hway in San Miguel, Tarlac. We passed by Nagtahan to avoid the EDSA traffic and that gamble paid off. The next chokepoint was NLEX approach in Valenzuela but good thing the ever reliable EC tag got us off the hook.

UN-EXPRESSWAY.
The gas stations northbound were filled to the hilt. Good for business, not so good for those who regularly use the expressway as it means abnormally heavy vehicle volume. This is when the nightmare began: traffic started in Sta Rita Bulacan until Angeles City Pampanga. That's right folks, what normally takes 20 minutes took almost 3 hours.

MAYOR AT 22.
After exiting NLEX via Angeles, traffic was light. It was a path least likely to take by a normal northbound traveler because it means almost 20 km additional road to travel. I'm the type of driver who will take the road less traveled but traffic free than a shorter traffic filled ride. En route to Tarlac, we passed by Ninoy Aquino's hometown. The guy who is a threat to Jose Rizal's throne became mayor of this small town when he was 22 years old.

We reached Tarlac City just a little past 1PM. That is officially the second longest travel time from Manila to Tarlac.

FN: The longest was in the 90s when we traveled from 6PM to 2AM during All Saint’s Day holiday break.

Ni Hao Mandarin

Yi. Er. San. Si. Wu! Countdown 10 days before my Mandarin classes start at Luke and Wendy’s Language School in Legaspi Village, Makati. Since Y2004 after my life changing thyroidectomy, I’ve wanted to learn to speak Chinese. I bought a Learn Chinese PC CD but I actually haven’t touched it yet so it’s just a waste of resource.

Life changing.
The thyroidectomy was life changing literally and figuratively. When I learned that after the surgery, I would be on medication for the rest of my life, I was extremely sad and in fact was very emotional. Imagine a person like me who hates taking meds and now I have to take it daily forever is a tough pill to swallow. The doctor who took care of me during the operation was Dr. Ang of St. Luke’s. Obviously he was Chinese, spoke to me in Chinese and said that I should learn to speak Chinese so here I am.

Awni Na.
I’ve been shopping around Makati for a good and reasonable school and I’ve learned of Berlitz which charges P7,500 and Speak and Write which charges P4,800. Finally, I saw an ad for Luke and Wendy’s Language school for P3,500 for 30 units. Classes is during Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:00 to 8:00PM and a 20 minute walk from our office. The class size is 6 students and one of the students is a fellow Kapampangan, good friend and officemate. That makes it more interesting as I get to practice the language with him. By the way, Awni Na is “here goes” in Kapampangan.

Three more words.
It’s Ni Hao (Hello) to Mandarin class on March 24, Zai-Jian (good bye) to this blog entry but not before I say Sheng-r Kuai le (Happy Birthday) to myself!

Top Ten Digital Camera Tips

Even though I have progressed to an entry level SLR digital camera, the point and shoot digital cam that we own still comes in handy. It still serves certain purposes because of its size and un-still camera features like the short movie. Some of the techniques that I use when taking shots with my latest toy, the Nikon D40 are holdovers from our first digicam, a Sony Cybershot T1. Here are my top ten tips:

1. Clean as you go. The top tip is to “clean the frame” before shooting. This means removing obstructions or objects that won’t look pretty on picture like a trash bin on a portrait shot or twigs on a landscape shot. Of course, this excludes not so pretty people J
2. Red Dot. This phenomenon seems to be irreversible on earlier compact digicams but I read that there are models which reduce red eye without any need to remove it using a software. You may use MS Office picture manager to fix the red dot.
3. Let there be light. Natural light is still the best. When shooting outdoors, it’s best to harness the power of sunlight hence avoid using the flash. Just a word of caution: there may be occasions when you still need to use a flash even when outdoors. This is done to highlight the foreground.
4. Set it up. A typical camera has prefix settings like landscape, portrait, sports mode, etc. Landscape’s almost universal symbol is the 2 uneven mountains; portrait is that of 2 to 3 uneven face silhouettes and sport is signified by 1 to 2 persons in running position. Use the mode that is applicable for the shot however when all else fail, stick to the trusty AUTO mode.
5. Angle's galore. Shoot the same subject from different angles. From the top, bottom, left, right, diagonal, horizontal, vertical. You’ll be surprised of the outcome!
6. Lens is your friend however... A lens is extremely helpful if you want to take a closer shot of the subject without moving an inch from your current position. But try taking the same shot this time move nearer the subject. You will not immediately notice it until you download the picture or print it out. Using the zoom lens uses less kilobytes therefore more chances your picture will be noisy when printed out. Remember, the heavier is the file size, the clearer it will be.
7. No cleaning after the shot policy. This does not conflict with the first item. A natural shot is still the best. If you have all the time in the world to take the shot and you have gigabytes of storage space, take multiple shots with different settings and scenarios. A cleaning agent in photography includes MS Office Picture Manager, Adobe Photoshop and a dozen of other software which can be found in the net.
8. No crop policy. Similar to number 7. For “not so photo buffs,” cropping means cutting the sides, top or bottom for “dirty” objects. My personal philosophy is that you should crop only if time in not on your side.
9. Different Strokes. A picture from a digicam’s viewfinder may seem the same compared to a PC monitor output but there are subtle differences. At most the digicam’s viewfinder is 2.5 to 3 inches while a PC monitor normally ranges from 14 to 21 inches. The difference is magnified tenfold. Pls. take careful notice of the little things.
10. Practice makes perfect. I’m sure you’ve heard about this adage and it applies to taking pictures as well. Practice taking shots of different subjects with different scenarios so when game time comes, you’ll know what is the best shot for a particular situation.

The beauty of the digital cam is that it is cost effective as long as you don’t regularly print pictures so go practice and take thousands of pictures. As the saying goes “A picture paints a thousand words.”

KENAN INSIDE

If you work in a telecommunications company, the biggest adjustment that one has to make is the dynamism of the industry. Telco people have to put up with fast turnaround of cellular phones, new promos released almost every week, services launched every so often and software entries, exits and modifications.

ICMS’ demise
The Integrated Customer Management System (ICMS) was introduced in 1999 in congruent with the entry of the GSM service of Smart. It is a database that primarily manages the postpaid subscribers. Originally designed for wired service (landline), it has evolved to accommodate wireless service (cellular phones). Almost a decade old, it has served its purpose hence time to retire this aging system.

Kenan’s entry
Comverse (http://www.comverse.com/) is a software company based in Wakefield, Massachusetts, USA that offers a billing solutions software called Kenan. It was created as a convergent software for wired and wireless service and this seems like the software database that can handle the challenges of the postpaid service of both Smart and PLDT. In the worldwide setting, Kenan users include VOXmobile (Luxemburg), China Telecom (China), GCI (Alaska, USA) and Euskaltel (Spain). Smart purchased its backend system and intends to use the homegrown Customer Solutions Platform as its front end tool.

CRM’s match
The Customer Solutions Platform was renamed to One Customer Relation Management to give it a holistic theme. Currently, the CSP is being used as a front end tool for the prepaid service. You can’t find CSP in the internet as this is purely a home grown system. Credit should go to our IT guys; if they can’t find a software solution in the market to meet the company’s requirement, they’ll create one for you. The software was borne out of a need which was specific to the Filipino subscriber, the ultimate texter.

The CRM – Kenan system tandem is expected to be in place next year. The fact that it will integrate numerous systems translates to operational efficiency. For the users of this software system, you may see a familiar screen in the guise of CSP however at the back end, Kenan is doing all the dirty work. It is analogous to a personal computer CPU where the computing part is done by Intel (remember the Intel inside branding). In this case, the computing will be done by Kenan hence the branding - Kenan Inside.

Small Sedan Surprise

The new Toyota Corolla 9th generation is out. I checked it today at the showroom in Bel Air. It's the typical utilitarian Corolla, nothing spectacular. Looks more like an oversized Vios than an undersized Camry. I still like the exterior styling of the Honda Civic 8th generation or the soon to be released 8th gen Mitsubishi Lancer better. Then again I am sure the Corolla will still sell like hotcakes, kelan ba naman hindi? Just a quick survey conducted at a nearby parking area, 4 out of 10 vehicles is a Corolla, just 1 Civic.

Surprise! Surprise! It's not the Corolla nor the Civic and not even the Lancer who won Consumer Reviews Best Car 2008 (small sedan class), it's the Hyundai Elantra.

Corporate RPG: Lessons from a Greenhorn

I got a valuable advice from a new kid on the block during our weekend in Dakak. He said that in basketball, you should play your role, stick to it and give it your best.

IN THE GAME
During the last BBall tourney that I joined, I was a complete failure. That is my personal assessment. I never bothered to ask my teammates or the coach their thoughts. If they invite me again this season, that's probably a clear sign I met their expectation. In that tournament, I set a goal of contributing 10 points per game (ppg) and 5 assist per game (apg). The actual performance was probably 2 ppg and 2 apg. In the next season, I'd like to target a more realistic 4 ppg and 4 apg. The bigger contribution would most likely be in defense more than offense. That will be my role to the team if invited again.

CORPORATE LIFE
After proving that I can compete with the best managers in our org through 3 consecutive model region awards, I was tapped to fill in an unfamiliar role. Initially, handing a project team then eventually handling a small team with a big responsibility. It’s basically a support team so I’m still feeling my way as I’m not used to playing a supporting role. When you’re in the front lines, you’re touted to be a SUPERSTAR. Total control is within your hands and as Spidey said “With great power comes great responsibility.” On the other hand, being in support is BIG CHALLENGE. Just suggesting to replace a step in dusty process flow will take meetings and meetings of debates and you will surely collect more foes than friends.

ROLE PLAYING GAME
The in thing for the net generation is RPG or Role Playing Games. The most famous all time RPG is Dungeons and Dragons. If you’re a net gen guy, you probably don’t know this. And if you’re a gen Xer, you probably thought I meant Commando arcade game. Anyway, my current personal professional vision is to be a role player. I can’t be a star in my current role but can definitely contribute to make our organization a star. I’ll do this by playing my role, sticking to it and give it my best. Thank you, greenhorn Glenmarc.

Boston versus Lakers dynasty part 3?

The two NBA’s winningest team include Boston Celtics from the eastern division and LA Lakers from the western division.

BOSTON CELTICS
Boston has 16 world champ rings, the most by any NBA ball club. They accumulated this mostly in the 50s through the 60s during the Bill Russell era. The Larry Bird era of the 80s added more rings for the franchise. The Paul Pierce lead team was not enough to give Boston a title but the recent addition of Ray Allen from Seattle and superstar Kevin Garnett from Minnesota increases their odds of winning the Larry O’Brien trophy this year. This is best proven by the 47 – 12 win loss standing which is the best record in the NBA this season.

LA LAKERS
Breathing down Boston’s neck is arch rival LA Lakers with 14 world champ rings. They earned this during the Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Shaq O’ Neal or Kobe Bryant led eras. KB is the new his airness, scoring at will and bringing his team to victory every night. His Scottie Pippen is in the guise of Lamar Odom but with the recent addition of Pau Gasol from Memphis, they just acquired a third superstar. They own the best record in the west and the second best record in the NBA with a 45 – 18 win loss standing.

They are at it again. Boston won the two games they played but that was pre- Pau Gasol trade. While I’m rooting for LA Lakers, my assessment is that this is Boston’s year.

Titanic: Who is Jack Phillips?

I just finished reading a book for children called Titanic written by Will and Mary Pope Osborne from NY, USA. It was relatively a short story but fact filled. It was enough to get my undivided attention last Sunday for at least an hour.

Now about Jack Phillips- the book says he was the wireless man or in layman's term, was responsible for the telegraph. On the night the SS Titanic sank, he received several warnings about icebergs in the ship's path but he choose to set aside the vital communication info, did not escalate to the bridge of the captain and instead focused on sending telegrams for passengers. You may argue that he was just doing his job and doing this effective however he may have a priority disorder. In the weigh in between saving more than a thousand lives and bragging about being in the maiden voyage of a luxury liner, I guess it's a no brainer.

NB: To the family of JP, I'm not portraying his role in the disaster negatively. Read the book and see for yourself. I'm just taking off from the author’s message.

MY HERO

Here's a few Jose Rizal trivia that I learned during my recent trip to Zamboanga del Norte. They sound like trivia to me probably because I wasn't listening during JOSERIZ class back in college. Here goes:
(1) The chickboy of a hero had 9 girlfriends!
Side Comment: He had 9 GFs in 35 years. My 5 pales in comparison.

(2) He had a Japanese girlfriend whose name is Sei-Kiyo-San.
Side comment: I also had a GF who is a quarter Japanese and her name is Judy Mineko.

(3) He had a love child with Joseph Bracken whose name was Francisco.
Side Comment: The love child Francisco was stillborn. I had a sister who was stillborn too. Her name is Charo.

(4) His forefathers were Chinese.
Side Comment: My maternal grandmother is a full blooded Chinese. Check out my eyes, it’s a give away!

(5) He lived in ZamNorte for almost 3 years.
Side Comment: I lived a stone’s throw away from Dapitan for 3 days!

DV8 IN DAKAK

In the afternoon, I deviated from the usual swimming, billiards and sing along that my peers indulged in. I opted pursue my 3 interests: photography, walking and basketball.

PHOTOGRAPHY. On day one, I was preoccupied taking portrait pictures as the un-official TCP photographer that I missed some nice landscape shots. I went to the resort's dock, reception area, garden and chapel.

WALK-A-THON. Going around the places that I mentioned was a blast. I must have walked nearly 2 kilometers of rolling terrain while taking pictures. There was this sign "to the repeater" which tempted me but decided not to because it seemed unsafe.

BASKETBALL. I love this game but nowadays the feeling is not mutual. We played ball with college students from Ateneo de Zamboanga University. One of the opposing team’s player was a varsity so he led his team to victory. We were led by an officemate who similarly was a varsity player during his college days. My role during that game was to bring the ball down, dish out assist and grab rebounds.

RIZAL DAY BUMMING.

Our escapade today was threatened by an early morning rain. Good thing it stopped just around 8 o'clock right after breakfast. The call time was 9:30am so I had time to walk around the resort and take my precious pictures. Then we were off to Rizal Memorial in Dapitan. I have to hand it to JR, he knows how to pick a location. In Dapitan, he lives by the sea. His compound in Zambo is at least a hectare nestled in a forest with a water fall, a pond and his own version of Willy's rock.

Next up was the pasalubong buying part. There was just time for one stop so we went to Montano's famed bottled sardines. Majority of my teammates bought half a dozen to a dozen sardines at p60 per bottle. I figured, a sardines is a sardines is a sardines. Nothing special so opted not to buy.

To tame our 'growling' stomachs, we had eat all you can at Kamayan ni Manay. It was a resto near the beach and halfway between the airport and the resort. Parking was packed so that suggests that they were racking in money that day. For P250 per person, you had overflowing iced tea, sesame seed peppered fried chicken, crabs swimming in coconut (or was it the other way around), tempting talaba, cholesterol friendly lechon cebu and nilasing na hipon para busugin ang customer.

DOCUMENTING DAKAK

I almost backed out of the Dakak, Zamboanga del Norte trip with 1/8th of the customer care team. I lined up my things to do for this coming week and figure there was no way I can complete them on time. Then again I already shelled out P3,500 for this trip so I better make my money's worth, leave work behind, have fun with my teammates and take tons of pictures.

DAY 1 AM : MORE MILES.
The airline of choice was Philippine Airlines hence more points added to my PAL Mabuhay Miles. The flight time from Manila to Dipolog was about one hour and a half. No we did not have a "smooth landing" so that suggests that the pilot was a newbie. From the airport, there's another hour of land travel to Dakak Beach Resort. The resort is located at a cove north west of Zamboanga del Norte. It's owned by the family of infamous ex-congressman Romeo Jalosjos.

DAY 1 PM : WE COMPETE.
The trip was not purely junket as we had parlor games in the afternoon. The first game was a relay where you had to fill up a 2 liter pail with water using a sponge. The blue team (that's us) won. The second game was the age old get-the-coin-from-the-bottom-of-swimming-pool. It was a tough one. It seemed so easy when I was younger. The red team won that one. In the evening, we had a sumptuous meal for dinner (a great recovery from the lunch meal that failed our expectation) and a big bonus was a show featuring regional dances.

DH from Orlando

Dwight Howard from Orlando Magic wins the 2008 NBA all star slam dunk contest. Howard, a 6'11" all star center from the second NBA team from Florida won a sweet victory over Gerald Green of Minesota Timberwolves. Green won the dunk contest in 2007.

GREEN OWNS '07
Green, a 6'8" power forward from the T-wolves won last year's dunk contest at the expense of Howard. The only Howard dunk that stood out was an ultra high leap dunk where he placed a sticker of his face on the backboard. I reckon more than half of the NBA players can easily do that dunk.

HOWARD SWEEPS '08
This year though, Howard owned the dunk contest starting from the first round. The first dunk was an off the "rear" backboard throwdown. Actually, I'm not giving justice to the dunk so you'd have to watch the contest on check out this link http://dwight-howard.com/. He got a perfect 10 score from the 5 judges for the first dunk.

SUPERMAN VS. BDAY CAKE
For the second round, Green blew a candle from a small cake placed on top of the ring support before dunking the ball. For his part, Howard wore a superman jersey, jumped from the free throw line and dunked the ball. Frankly, the dunk wasn't as impressive as the first one but enough to put him in the finals.

NO CONTEST SHOWDOWN
The finals was a face off between the defending champ Green and high leaping Howard. Green's dunks were so lousy that I couldn't remember what they were. On the other hand, Howard had 2 creative dunks that's never been seen. The first was a bounce pass, then ball bounced to the backboard using the left hand before throwing it down with the right hand. The second was just icing on the cake: using a small ring as a 'tee' he jumped to the ball, double pump before the throw down. Again, the first dunk was more impressive.

While I didn't get to see the awarding ceremony, there was no doubt it was Dwight Howard who won the contest. It was sealed as early as his first round dunk.

MTB: Decisions, Decisions

It's so sad to belong to someone else when the right one comes along... A nice song indeed but I'm trying to relate it to a decision that I have to make now that I'm officially back to my second love - mountain biking! It goes without saying that my first love is my family.

GIANT NRS
It's like this: I'm currently using a 2003 Giant NRS mtb. It's almost a 5 yr. old bike which I got via a frame swap deal. It still serves it purpose but I'm exploring the idea of upgrading the frame to a newer model. I maybe able to sell my current frame for a reasonable price of P20,000 ($500). The plan is to look into cross country frames like Giant Anthem or Santa Cruz Superlight.

GIANT ANTHEM
I love my NRS frame. It's an award winning frame which is a dream frame for entry level mtbikers. The ANTHEM is the next generation NRS however, my take is that the ANTHEM doesn't come close to NRS' performance. But the price is right. An ANTHEM retails for P30,000 ($750) therefore my cash out will be in the range of P10,000 ($250). If I upgrade to an ANTHEM, it's analogous to upgrading from a Toyota Revo to a Toyota Innova. It's your trusty Toyota for the mass market.

SANTA CRUZ SUPERLIGHT
This maybe a long shot and might cost an arm and a leg pero astig na option ito! Kung milyonaryo lang ako, wala ng isip isip pa, mag Santa Cruz Superlight na ako! I've always been fixated with the SC Heckler, the Superlight's older and mightier brother. It retails for $1,200 (P48,000) for the frame only at http://www.rbikes.com/, a US based web based bike store. In our lovely Pinas, it sells for a whopping P60,000 ($1,500). Owning a SC Superlight mt bike is like driving a brand new 3rd generation Honda CRV. It has a wow appeal and deserve a second look.

The biggest question is if I can justify the $700 (P28,000) expense to myself then to my family. We'll see in the coming months...

Kalulu

Menakit ku kalulu nandin.

Melunus ku rugu.

Marinat ya ampo lupang maranup.

Ligpasan ku ne uling mamalagwa ku.

Belikan ke rin, ali ku ayatim.

Dininan keng singkwenta.

E man pepasalamat.

Pero alang problema ita.

Meka saup naku man.

Kasanting ku pakiramdam.

Blog it!

It's been nearly 3 weeks since I last posted a blog entry. I've been swamped with THINGS TO DO. In previous entries, I mention about predicting a 2 notebook year this 2008 but it looks more like a 3 notebook year. The current notebook that I'm using is already 40% fill up and we're only on the second month. I'm happy that I'm busy because I feel useful at work and deserve the pay that I'm getting. On the other hand I'm also a little bit sad because there is less 'petiks' time like searching the web for just about anything. Surfing the net at home is taking a back seat because it's eating precious family time. Fact is, I wasn't able to view my friendster account for the whole month of January!

ST & LT Goal

Goal setting should be an eternal exercise. When I was in college, I dreamed of owning a Daihatsu Feroza by age 20. I didn't meet the Feroza goal and got my own ride which we bought out of our own blood sweat and tears around age 26. I'm turning 36 this year and since our first car, we've had 4 car replacements, two of which are brand new. That's an average of a new ride (not necessary brand new) every 2.5 years. While I didn't actually meet my Feroza goal, critical to the experience was the goal setting and planning factor.

ST
ST may mean a dozen things, for generations 90s movie buff ST means Sex Trip, for presidential aspirant Manny Villar, ST means Sipag at Tiyaga but for this blog entry, it actually means Short Term goal. My short term goal is to Learn Chinese (Mandarin). Why? Aside from actually being 1/4 Chinese and having strong Chinese features, learning the language is a critical tool for business. I actually got a 50% discount from my full blooded Chinese surgeon just for saying that "I'm Chinese, don't speak the language, but plan to do so." I reckon he would have given me a 75% discount if I spoke the language or even operated on me for free.

LT
Hearing the acronym LT, only one thing comes to mind - Lorna Tolentino. She's the Filipina actress married to DaBoy, Filipino action star Rudy Fernandez. For this entry, LT means Long Term and for me my LT goal is to retire comfortably in Tarlac City at age 55. To quantify it further, we should be earning in the neighborhood of p200th per month in passive income from various sources. That covers the financial aspect. For the mental aspect, I should be teaching any management course at least 2 times a week at the local university. For the social aspect, I should have my own foundation which focuses on granting college scholarships to qualified students interested in an entrepreneurial course. Lastly for the spiritual aspect, I should be a lay minister.

How's that for goal setting? I'm nowhere near my LT goals but what's important is I start laying the groundwork for my 20 year timeline. As to my ST goal, enrollment is within the next 2 months. Zai - Jian!

Ayala Land @ Fifteen!

“You keep dreaming, Ayala Land keeps building. Fifteen years later, our vision remains clear: We want to build only good things for Filipinos. Thus, we keep innovating by building not just houses but communities and homes for every life stage. Not just malls but entire lifestyles. Not just offices but real estate solutions for corporations. As long as people continue dreaming, we’ll continue building.”

Six months after purchasing on installment a condo unit in Avida Makati West, three months after the Glorietta 2 'bomb blast' incident and one month after some passengers got stuck at The Columns Ayala Avenue (TCAA) elevator, the BIG QUESTION is if Ayala Land Incorporated (ALI) has learned from their recent experiences. In an earlier blog entry, I mentioned that ALI is in a lose - lose situation regardless of the G2 investigation result; if it’s a terrorist attack, then how come they were able pass through G2s “tough” security? If it’s a faulty sewage system, then that’s reflective of their property management (or mismanagement). And the most recent TCAA resident ordeal which I think is NOT an act of terrorism, have our fingers pointing to property (mis) management once again.

A financial magazine says that the property boom is in play and will continue until Y2010. Furthermore, it said that some of the players include Ayala Land Inc., Megaworld Properties and Robinson’s Land Inc. with ALI leading the pack. The Avida Makati West project’s expected turnover is fourth quarter of Y2010. There’s ample time to react and get your act together. Small time investors like us don’t want to deal with problems with security, elevators conking out and a stinky sewage system. That’s the prime reason why we choose to invest in Ayala Land Inc.

GMAs Burj Al Arab adventure

Hear ye! Hear ye! Our President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is staying in Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai. She's in Dubai to say HI to our OFWs.

GMA TRIP
GMA is in Dubai for a business trip. Officially, she's looking for investors and unofficially she just wants to know how our bagong bayani (OFWs) are doing. She's also there to grace the launching of LandBank's remit business in which SMT is a critical partner.

BURJ AL ARAB
Burj Al Arab hotel is in Jumeirah beach, Dubai. It stands on an artificial island in the eastern part of the city. It is a world famed 7 star hotel which is ranked 10th most expensive in the world. It is considered the world’s tallest hotel at 1,053 feet. Their flagship royal suite cost $28,000 a night. I hope that already includes breakfast else that would be a rip off!

Report says she flew there from Switzerland with a battalion of cabinet members, lawmakers and local government officials in tow. My estimate is that if she has a party of 20 people, easily she'll be spending P10 million at the hotel. At P10 million, I guess that qualifies as the most expensive HI.

Watch NBA or Bust!

When I was in the US in '06, one of the goals that I set was to watch an NBA game. The trip was in May so it was actually post-season.

.

STAPLES CENTER, LA

That time, the LA Lakers were in the playoff lording it over the Phoenix Suns until they ran out of gas and missed the conference finals. My schedule in SOCAL was just too tight as I only had 5 days to check out the dozen of touristy places I set out to see and meet families and friends. The consolation was I saw the Staples Center and took pictures while on mobile.

.

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NY

New York Knicks had a bum team that year (and they still do) reason why they didn't make it to the playoffs. While in their homecourt, I found time to check out the historic Madison Square Garden. Actually, everytime I see the Garden, it reminds me of the Matthew Broderick movie Godzilla because he used the arena as a nesting place. That's one BIG nest.

.

TD WATERHOUSE CENTER, ORL

On my list of places to see was the homecourt of the Orlando Magic. While in Florida, Miami Heat was battling it out with Dallas Mavs for the 2006 NBA World Champ trophy with the heat emerging as winner. If the Magic opted NOT to trade Shaq in 96, maybe, just maybe they might be slugging it out with the Mavs instead.

.

Unfortunately, I was not able to watch an NBA game for 2 valid reasons: 1- Orlando to Miami is about 300 miles or a 4 hour drive and 2- an NBA finals ticket cost $800. Heck, that's almost 1/2 the cost of my airfare from Manila to LA! Cable TV was free so that did the job and I watched Miami Heat win their first NBA crown. Maybe watching the NBA during my first visit to the US wasn't meant to be. At any rate, I have a 5 year multiple entry tourist visa so I hope to watch an NBA game within that timeframe.

The Beauty and the Book

What's the advantage of the internet over a book? Convenience and Cost.

.

I read a magazine article once that if you're the type of person who buys second hand items, a book is first on the list of OK TO BUY AS SECOND HAND. The last on the list is clothes and needless to say, undergarments. I bought a book called Lonely Planet - Los Angeles yesterday at Buy-the-Book in our fave mall Waltermart. It cost merely P149 compared to the P1000 price tag if bought in Powerbooks. That's a power price indeed. It's practically the same stuff except that the book is no longer a virgin and it's 1/6th of the price. The REAL downside of it is that the cook is copyrighted Y2001. Though half a decade has passed, I reckon the data would not have changed significantly except probably the admission fees.

.

CONVENIENCE

The power of the internet is: information at your fingertips. It goes without saying that there is no information about Florida in the LA book. Nor the location of the branches of Ripley's Believe it or Not across the US. That's where the net comes in handy. Throw in the ease and quickness of updating the website data, assuming the organization is as responsible as they should be, then you have a potent information tool. While on mobile, internet browsing is easy as 1-2-3 on selected internet capable handsets. The internet is really God's gift to our generation and future generations. The problem now is the plan b or a dozen "what ifs" which the infallible book like the Lonely Planet can fill in. It has things to see & do, places to stay, places to eat, entertainment and shopping guides and Dora's favorite, the map! And you it doesn't need a signal or a battery to give you the information you need.

.

COST

The book that I bought cost P149. I opted to buy it over merienda - a roll of beef shawarma, a can of coke light and my fave toblerone flavor ice cream. Yum yum! In less than 24 hours, I've practically completed reading it but I'm pretty sure it will be used a hundred times more by me and even my children. The 360 page book contains unquantifiable information at the fraction of the cost to access the internet. I'm paying P500 per month on our unlimited braodband connection on our desktop PC however can't bring the information in our car. While mobile, I can access the net using my phone for P20 per hour. After under 8 hours, I would have attained Return on Investment on my old new book compared to mobile internet.

.

Back in college, I used to be a book worm devouring books like fiction, inspirational and sports. As a professional, I've progressed to management, health and autobiographies. I still have the urge to buy books that delight my palate. I guess once a bookworm, you'll forever be one.

Infamous Wowowilly and his 430

The Wowowee superstar Willie Revillame is in the limelight again, this time due to his passion. No, I'm talking about women, that was 2 controversies ago when he split up with his model wife. I'm also not referring to his TV show entitled Wowowee which is most definitely not co-hosted by Joey de Leon. I'm talking about our common passion - cars.

Last time I heard, he was driving a Range Rover and a Porsche 911. I'm pretty sure he changes cars as often as he changes partner or even faster. Talks from the grapevine says he co-owns an imported car dealership along Wilson St. in Greenhills. He was news material once again this week for driving a Jaguar and Ferrari F430.

The Jag is plateless so it might have been purchased from his namesake Willy Soong's dealership. Willie knows his cars so he definitely won't get an X-type. The news didn't specify the model but I surmise that would be at least an S-type and I won't be surprised if it's an XK.

The red hot Italian sports car a Ferrari F430 is as controversial as the driver. The F430 is said to have mis-declared custom taxes. Imagine paying only P1 million tax on a P20 million peso car. And what's dubious is the fact that the car was registered in Cebu. In case you see it on the streets of Metro Manila, you won't miss it because the plate number is 430.

Tsk! Tsk! Some guys have all the luck, bad luck that is.

Love ko Busko

December 30, 2007 is just an ordinary day for every Juan de la Cruz but for the graduates of Don Bosco Technical Institute of Tarlac Batch 1989, it was a special day because it was our annual mini reunion. It started in Y2004 when the only Salesian priest in our batch Father Joel Camaya had this idea of celebrating New Year’s day mass at his hometown in Don Bosco Tarlac. At first, there were only a handful of attendees, not more than 7 if I recall right and through the years the number has grown. This year, the figure jumped to 33 boys and 5 girls from our counterpart school College of the Holy Spirit.

Intermarriage
My third year high school prom date Ada Maida C. is now married to my batchmate Rico B., who used to be the boyfriend of my good friend Rachel F. Another batchmate Edgar S. is married to Pinky P. (CHS batch 1989) who used to be my wife’s officemate in PLDT. There’s another one in the pipeline, I have to further mask their identities, as I’m not privy to the status of their relationship. Another batch mate and friend ex-Brother Malutu is seeing Doktora O.B. Gyne. Doctora attended to my wife when she had her executive check up in a hospital in Ortigas. This is the law of connection at work for you.

Professionals
These naughty boys are now grown ups! During the reunion, the spotlight was tuned to the professionals who were raking big bucks such as OFWs, migrants, doctors, politicians and stars (or at least married to stars). I reckon half of our batch mates are based abroad or at least 40%. Like most Filipino migrants, they are either in North America (Canada or USA), Middle East countries (Bahrian, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, et al.) and progressive Asian countries like Japan and Singapore. As of last count, we have 6 doctor batchmates. Their specialization escapes my mind right now. Rounding up the batch of big shots is a City Councilor and the better half of GMA 7 star Ruby Rodriguez - Aquino.

Prexy Says
The current Don Bosco Tarlac batch president is Tikyo. On my timepiece (which I rarely wear), we’ve had 3 batch presidents but Tikyo’s the only visionary among the crop. His grand plan includes: preparation for 20th batch reunion in Y2009, funding for batch activities (in Y2009 and Y2014), batch communication and harmony. These may sound like BIG PLANS but like any plan, it should start from somewhere.

In the last four years that the mini reunion has been conducted, what’s noticeable is the compounding number of attendees. What started with 7 attendees has grown to 33 which accounts for 28% of the whole graduating batch of 1989. The expectation is we will hit 40% this Y2008. This will be a good preamble for the Y2009 planned batch reunion where the target is 60% attendance. Social status aside, it is good to see you guys again.

PBB season 18 : Pusoy Bonding ng mga Boys

The Celebrity PBB season 2 big four has been identified in its show last night. In the list are Racer Gaby, Wide bodied Will, Red hot Riza and Rural boy Ruben. The big night is this coming Saturday. My forecast is the leader of the bugoy squad Ruben will emerge as no. 1, followed by Riza, then Will and last will be Gaby.

A different PBB unfolded last December 30 and it's been an annual affair for the last 18 years. The Pusoy Bonding with the Boys with main characters mountain biker Dylac, globe trotter Tikyo, family man John and I.T. EL. These quadro bunch shares a common passion and that is playing poker. Thank God they're not playing strip poker as that would have been gross. Just poker with a few bets on the side to keep it interesting.

It started in 1990 a year after graduating from high school at Don Bosco Tarlac. These four friends had a number of things in common: playing basketball, drinking to death, enchanting women (at least most of them), alaskahan to name a few things but gambling 'with a cause' was what kept them together through these years.

In the almost 2 decades of playing poker usually during christmas season break, beyond normal scenarios occurred such as playing poker until the wee hours in the morning (as in 7AM the ff. day) and getting drunk a number of times. Once, we played poker while attending a friend's relative’s wake. In all occasions, the big winner IS ALWAYS globe trotter Tikyo.

Although there were years when we missed playing poker as a group because one of the members went on AWOL and went on a soul searching mode, we easily got back together and renewed our bonding. In the game of Russian Poker, having a "four of a kind" is considered luck and with this quadro bunch of friends where I belong, I consider myself lucky.

DYK: In Russian Poker, the maximum number of players in this game is 4. There are no wild cards. Deal 13 cards to each player. Each player makes 3 poker hands, a bottom, a middle, and a top. The top hand is made with 3 cards, and the other 2 hands have 5 cards. The bottom hand should be the strongest hand.

My TV

Just like a car that you have to change ideally every 5 years, I decided to upgrade my trusty phone from a Nokia N70 to a Nokia N77. It was actually planned because my N70 will be celebrating its 2nd year on February.

The requirements are crystal clear: data connectivity for internet, group texting and acceptable resolution (2 megapixel) camera. My celfone hunting produced a number of Nokia models but what stood out was the N77. It met ALL my requirements BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE...aside from getting it on installment through our company's employee benefit (12 months to pay at zero interest) the phone was DBV-H ready. In layman's term, it had a myTV service. Still Greek sounding? You can watch TV on it. There, I think I got the message across. So the N77 is a phone cum digital camera cum TV.

And what's next on the technology roadmap? A phone with a digicam, TV, microwave and aircon?

1-1-08 : An alternative way to usher in the New Year!

Time flies especially while you are having extreme fun while living life. The Y2007 was relatively a busy year for me in general and my marker is the 2 notebooks that I fully consumed. In Y2006, I only used one and it was only half filled. This year look like a 3 notebook year for me.

The date 1-1-8 is significant because it is my son B5's 'birthdate' in a sense. He was born January 18 so expressed in numeral, that would read 1-1-8. That's the main reason why we made sure to get 1-1-8 as our car's plate number. He'll be turning 10 years old on his birthday.

While the son is turning a decade old, his old man is turning 36 years. The second reason why Y2008 is significant is because it is the Year of the Rat which is considered my lucky year. How lucky is lucky? Do I set luck targets or standards or just leave it to fate? A former big boss once shared that "Luck comes to the prepared mind."

So how did WE usher in the New Year? We slept at 8p and woke up at 8a. A sign of a sleepy year you say? I view it as greeting the new year well rested so we can survive the grueling 365 days and come up a better person. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

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).

.

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.

.

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.
.

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?
.

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.

_

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.
_

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.
_

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.
_

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.

_

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.

.
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.
.

The Real Line : Ladies and gentlemen, presenting my recipe , Victoria’s Chicken! – Victoria Amarillo
.

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.

_

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.

_

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.