Saturday, April 30, 2011

My HD expedition turned Journey to Asgard.

being the tech-savvy person that i am (haha), i recently discovered a way to save the HD of my old laptop. it is done by retrieving the internal hard disk and putting it in a device called "the HD enclosure". i've been told that it has been the practice for a long time now, and today i finally knew and decided to convert this stagnant piece of machinery into an external HD. (so thats what the "Enclosure" does .. sounds awfully like a weapon!)



anyways,  i forced myself to leave the confines of the room and go to SM to buy this enclosure. my expedition was futile as all computer/hardware shops in sm told me that they have no stock. time  and effort wasted!

rather than going home, and since i am dying to watch Marvel Comic's THOR.




I did. my cousin tagged along, and we both watched the film. it had the feeling of the comic book thor while keeping true to their descriptions and characteristics in norse mythology (im a myth fan! and wikipedia fan as well!). the movie gave viewers such as my cousin a feel of norse myth and built a curiosity for the comic series. the story was great and wasn't "pilit". for a long period of time, i have avoided watching movies in cinemas because they tend to be disappointing, but thor has changed that  current view. 2011 is marvel's year. i hope they deliver all their movies the same way they did Thor!

(i am now itching to create a norse myth post for the week... one god a day haha)

March - April Photo dump and thoughts


since i was negligent to post (while i was supposed to) during the early parts of april (and latter days of march). i decided to just post some photos that made my late march and early april memorable. thus, this is the life as seen through the thick framed glasses.





3/28/11 - Achievers' Circle Incorporated Visited Capones Villas in Zambales to be part of the Teambuilding of Swell Bar and Cafe. we were excited and happy to be part of this event. and still is very much happy to be part of swell! (Thanks to Rudyard "Steve" Balmedilla for the photo.) 







3/31/11 - Happy 40+ Birthday R.Yang Celebration. Catalytyx, our sister company celebrated the birthday of R.Yang (their boss, and one of our company's director). kiddie party (had i known sooner, i would have dressed up as robin!) 



                    

                                 


4/17/11 - Palm Sunday (Glimpse) and Grad of my Brother at UP - since the graduates were required to be in filipiniana. the family decided to go there by following the theme as well.  we were extremely overdressed, other families came to the occasion weraing tees, poloshirts, and maong. 

while going through my collection of photos here in my HD. i realized that everything was about family . good times!




Friday, April 29, 2011

Back to Basic

Filipinos love the english language. Have you ever encountered some people talking in english inside elevators, or in jeeps, buses, or while strolling the mall. what are your reactions?

aside from that,  i've only seen a handful of blogs who use the filipino language as their medium (good for them!)

But one problem with our supposed love for the language is the refusal to relearn it over and over again. a month ago, i thought my english was flawless, i remembered receiving high marks for english during my college days, being praised here and there for communicating in fluent english, i even won a couple of declamation/oration and speech contests way back in highschool. Up until a month ago, i was certain that english is my primary language, seconded by filipino. 

Three Weeks ago, my boss pointed out that i still lack in a specific area when it comes to the language. at first, it was disbelief, then disappointment, then after hearing his explanation, there was acceptance. Possibly one of the few reasons why i am faithful to post in this blog is to improve my mastery of the language. but one thing that actually helped and is continuing to help is this book:




To be honest, i never even knew that this book existed.

Going through its contents and exercises (yes, i answer them! refer to 2nd photo.), i relearned some of the basic rules that was taught to me years ago when i was in grade 1 or 2. im currently on the 3rd book and honestly speaking, i am seeing results. 

this book costs about 215 pesos. if you think about it, it is such a cheap acquisition and a cheap investment. because by relearning and mastering the language, we will now have an edge compared to those who still lack in their language skills.

 Its a competitive world out there, we need all the help we can get!

Thursday, April 28, 2011

i spent the day in a hospital. listening to a lecture!

I attended the People Mangement Association of the Philippines GMM (PMAP-GMM) in St. Luke Fort. its theme and topics for discussion were Wellness and Corporate Image. (beneficial, i know!)

the presentation started with a presentation by kraft - showcasing their world class office. Imagine being part of their team and working in an office where there are gyms, spas, dentists, lots of greenery and zen gardens. wouldn't that be the life? the speaker guaranteed less boredom and a lot of activities for all employess - he ended the speech by saying "kudos to all hr and personnel that deals with people management for taking care of the company's most important asset."Thats you and me, my friend!

Lunch was served at around 2:00PM (supposedly the end of the conference). but the anticipation of the  participants was calmed by the very dynamic presentation delivered by Abbygale Areneas-de Leon,  a former Bb. Pilipinas winner, and 11th in Ms. Universe pageant. She taught the audience how to project the "Corporate Image". here are some tips that i still remember.

1. SMILE -  rather than saying cheese (like old times), try saying "A" or "8" (her words, not mine!) - she also gave us an assignment, she urged us to try saying A or 8 and sustain it for about 2 minutes everyday, after waking up and before going to bed. (try it, in private though! - again, her words, not mine.)

2. Posture - she said that there is a big difference on how people look at other people when posture is involved. proper posture commands respect. (so pag binastos kayo, posture niyo problema!)

3. Attire - dress appropriately - keep it simple, keep it clean.

4. Mannerisms - lose the playing with your hair, the unbuttoning and buttoning of your shirt, the twitching of your legs, the tapping of you foot/feet (in short, be a robot!)

she urged us to try and follow her tips for a better corporate image.
abbygale also said that by changing or improving corporate image, we get the edge in terms of promotions, projects that we may want or how we may be perceived in the workplace.

keeping those benefits in mind, following her tips might prove useful ( why dont we try it. nothing to lose anyways!)

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

after a days work.. i reward myself with Isaw!

after work, i found myself in the front doors of the gym i usually go to. spent an hour or two trying to lose some holiday accumulated weight. right after, i developed a serious craving for isaw (there goes my hour or two!)

i asked myself, at this time of the day, where would i find isaw? (i was at fort bonifacio by the way, so finding isaw there could be a challenge.) i sat in my car, thinking of possible locations of isaw vendors. and then it hit me! i texted my friend Nd, and told her to meet me at ruins in BF Homes. (well in the end, i picked her up from her place pa!). to be honest, i never liked isaw before. it grossed me out! but times have changed!


i, along with me friend ND (whos is said to be depressed) found ourselves in front of Genie's booth/Kiosk/Stall in BF Ruins. although it says Shawarma Station, its main seller are its ISAW.
a l bite of heaven for 10 peso a stick! (not bad). of course, isaw is generally bbq'd (i think) but genies offer a fried isaw that is better than the bbq.(from my point of view)

Barbecued Isaw (or grilled) in toyo+suka+onions+chili+calamansi

PLUS

 Fried Isaw in toyo+suka+onions+siling labuyo+green chili+calamansi

Equals

HAPPINESS! :)

till the next craving! thank you Genie's!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Career Success

If i ask you for the definition of a career, what answer would you give me?

then if i followed it up with a question asking you its difference from a job? or work? what would you say?

most of us treat the two or three words synonymous to each other, we view the concepts as same and plainly interchangeable. guess what my friends, They are not.

4 months ago, i would have said that career and job is the same. back then, i would have answered the question in this manner: career is the field your working in, and work is the process. but by reading materials and learning first hand from my boss, i learned the difference.


the book Career Success: the 48 Cs is one of the essential materials that helped me understand what it will take for me to be successful in my career and in life. and since it is still not in the market, i have asked permission from the author to share to you, my friends, a sample of the book. but of course, reading it entirely would prove helpful for those who are lost in their tracks, as well as for those who plan to be part of the corporate industry, and to those who are still in school, but are looking forward to their working life!

to download the file, visit http://career48.com and download the file (3.10Mb in size). and discover how these Cs can help you in your selected fields!

Monday, April 25, 2011

everything Geek!

hey guys, since i am a comic fan, a hardcore gamer and a very serious-"maarte" type of movie watcher.

 im creating another blog to put all my comic reviews, game reviews and updates, as well as movie reviews, rants and reactions.

be sure to follow it too. thanks
http://geeks-notebook.blogspot.com/

p.s. i started with a green lantern post , in anticipation of the upcoming movie!

Since Potter Season is near.

HP7 part two is upon us. and the activities has now been announced.

lets do a recap on the activities PHP (Pinoy Harry Potter) did for the 1st part of movie 7!

Francis and the Gryffindors (Market Market, Advanced Screening)

Pose for the Paper (IMAX, Sm Mall of Asia - Exclusive Advanced Screening)
(left - right . - RJ (Gryff), Francis(Me- SLYTH!), Robin (Slyth), Edsel (Huff) and Echo (Gryff)

Posing for the TV show that slipped my mind! hahahaha (SM MALL of Asia - IMAX Exclusive Advance screening)


Slytherins at Newport Cinema ( PHP Exclusive Early Morning Screening)

Me and Jovan inside Newports excellent cinema

the Slytherin Poster (Newport Cinema)

Powerbooks Promotional Event (the Tale of the three brothers)

PHP Class Picture (2010 - Powerbooks Greenbelt)

want to be part of PHP : Visit  hogwartsphils.forumotion.com
game on! june! 1st event!

Death and Life ( a post easter blog )

Before the Holy Week. my boss gave patchie (my officemate) and myself a short lecture/session/education on the difference of religion and faith. frankly speaking, i learned a lot during that 20-30 min lecture compared to every catechism that i've been to. and just like any lecture, an assignment came after. and it is "to get attuned with your faith".

the whole week was about sinakulo, prusesyons and penitensya.

3.22.11
he stopped in front of our place to be watered.

we were awaken by the sounds of kwitis (did i spell that right?) exploding in the sky, announcing to the entire place that the march of christ has started. the jesus actor, who carried a wooden cross while being tortured by belts, slippers and other hitting items endured his way through people watching, some actually jeering, and others taking photos of his sacrifice ( including myself).

i asked some people why they do it, was it for entertainment? for the forgiveness of sins?
and they said, because its tradition.

and they continue their march. i didn't have the courage to actually watch the crucifixion.

maybe because i thought it was the real thing, or maybe felt that it was the real thing. maybe by watching what may have transpired years ago, we get to be aware of what was done for all of us years ago.


3.24.11

Iglesia filipina hosted its annual prusesyon(again, not sure with the spelling). my mom, urged us to come with them and celebrate the resurrection. me, my brother, my cousin, dad and the son of my cousin went. compared to the trudging we did last year, this year's prusesyon was rather fun. the people were actually having fun compared to last year's very sad 3 hour walkathon.


in front of the church

the priest and the marching band

the people who danced their way through the prusesyon

and our party, my cousin (in blue), my brother (the head in betwen my cousin and me), myself, and dad.

all in all, this felt different. probably because of what i've heard and learned from ed, what i read from john, and from what i saw with people and their faith.

in the end, faith is what people believe in, whether it be the rigid type of worship or the plain and simple one. whether we express it in different ways, what matters in the end is that we have it.

belated happy easter to everyone. lets have a fruitful new birth of christ year.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Perfect? i think not!

how is it that some people expect you to be perfect, when they themselves aren't clean of flaws.

how is it that some people can whimsically throw in accusations that they themselves are guilty of doing.

how is it that some people can judge your personality to be unpleasant when they aren't all candies and butterflies.

filthy hypocrites!

wake up, and realize that you are one of us! the imperfects, the people with flaws. but hey, ain't that life? life cant be about you being up there all the time, it can never be a faultless one at that.

leave your ivory tower and experience the many imperfections of life, which by the way, makes it more perfect.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Moments when you feel the world is set out to make you feel miserable.

now thats quite a mouthful title. but seriously, were there instances when everything you do is never enough for other people. you get criticized either by doing something, or by the lack of the action.

or when everything is already going the opposite of where you expect them to go, and suddenly another situation makes you feel more miserable and down.

there are for me! and it sucks.

why is it when you think things couldn't get any worse, they still do. i have the urge to sulk, i am neither calm nor collected. i am unfocused once again. and i think i already said this, but, this sucks!

comics, cheer me up!

:(

Be Better at what you do

while reading one of my assigned texts for the week. i chanced upon a very nice quote.

 a quote that can change our perception regarding the difficulties that we face or might face during our day-to-day jobs.

"Never wish your job were easier, Wish that you were better!" - E. James Rohn

now, lets get better so that our jobs will be a cinch!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Positioning - the winning Survival Kit!

I've recently finished a book entitled "Positioning, The Battle for your Mind" by Al Ries and Jack Trout.
i have been trying to finish the book for N number of weeks already, and finally i did! (no excuses, i know!)


the book taught me how companies battle it out. how they compete with one another, and the different strategies that they implement to be the best/Number 1. the book also states that it is more effective to play with the information that is already in the prospects head, and not bash them with new information.

so rather than asking the question "Ang Pogi ko diba?" , try to see if she thinks you are and then devise strategies from there.

dont try to force the concept into her, if at the very first instance she already thought that you are not!

But don't fret, the book also teaches ways on how to go over/under/around the concept to change the perception (for more information, BUY THE BOOK! tradepaper back available at fullybooked!)

going back to the point, the authors suggested that in order to win the consumer war, you have to position your product in such a way that it can relate to the customer/buyer. be first in the field and keep it that way. have a unique position, but keep the appeal broad. retain the position, but ensure different strategies to keep the position intact.

positioning is everything! (not to be blasphemous or anything, but i i think this book should be the bible of many aspiring entrepreneurs/business starters)

Monday, April 11, 2011

How to kill a Hero : The Last Stand of Johnny Storm

Johnny storm, also known as the Human Torch.

iconic, funny, arrogant, and quite the character.

is now dead! (well about three weeks ago)

Fantastic Four #587

so how do you kill an icon? a hero?

you split the four .
you put johnny and Ben together. (formidable!)
But Ben is human during this time (not a rock anymore! uses a gun, quite useless!)
make johnny and ben take on a responsibility, like, lets say, taking care of the baxter building (home of the FF). as well as the kids. while millions of insect aliens try to invade and destroy it.
get overwhelmed
argue who gets to save the day
and say your last words.

for the human torch, it should be his iconic battle cry! FLAME ON! (even if the fire is about to be extinguished!)



Rest in Peace, Johnny! too bad you aren't part of the norse god walkout, and red skull's new power!

Pain . Arrogance .

during the past few week(s), i have been unable to update the blog, probably because of the hectic days that have gone by. i also have been ill for some time, fever, colds, and stupid stomach pains that, should i say, kept me running to and from the little boys room! (pain!) excruciating! but all is good now! 

two days ago, whilst on my bed, i heard this speech delivered by a man that was pushed to a corner! for the past few days, i have been closely keeping my eyes fixed on transcripts, developments, and news regarding the janjan issue, an alleged child abuse/exploitation act done by Willie Revilliame on his show Willing Willie (from TV5). the arrogance of the douchebag! threatening every person that actually said something against him, and throwing in some insults that are totally unrelated! what a douche! and to think that he succinctly laid out all the points and facts (according to him) of all the controversies that he has been involved in! 

thank you willie for treating us like dumb people. the defense alone wasnt enough to justify some acts, the bashing of fellow celebrities wont help erase the fact that you are wrong! 

lastly, if you really want to help out the unfortunate ones, the poor (as you always quote!). give them the means to help themselves, dont allow them to rely on you and your show for that cash. in a way, you are giving out cash and ways for them to eat (for a day, for a week) but what will happen after? they line up to your show again? if you truly are a stalwart of charity. give them something that they can do for a long period of time!

as far as quoting is concerned, let me end with one. one of Chinese origin.
"Give a Man a Fish, and you feed him for a DAY. Teach a Man to Fish, and you feed him for a LIFETIME!