Alternative Reality

Automation Abomination

2010-05-11T10:24:00.004+08:00

Kinundisyon ko na ang sarili ko na mainit ang panahon at tiyak pawisan ang aking paglalakbay papuntang Novaliches. Hindi kasi ako nakapagpalit ng location kung saan ako makaboboto.

Hindi naman congested ang daloy ng trapiko kahit na nag MRT ako. Kokonti ang mga sasakyan sa EDSA. Madali akong nakahanap ng FX; as in hindi na sya tumigil sa station para magpapuno. Walang gaanong pinagbago ang mga dati ko nang nakikita na buildings, mga bahay.

Along Quirino Highway, may mga development na. Meron nang ginagawang SM Novaliches; about a few meters away from Uniwide. Marami rin akong nakita na mga bagong hospitals. Ganito ba kasakitin ang mga tao dito? Hahahaha!

Bumaba ako sa bayan, lakad nang konti. Sakay ng jeep papuntang San Agustin Public School. Sa entrance pa lang makikita mo na ang pila. As in lahat puro pila; hindi mo alam kung san pupunta.

Hindi ako nahirapang hanapin ang aking prisinto. Nahirapan ako sa pila. Lalu na pag SOBRA haba ng pila! Pinaka ayoko yung may pila na, nakabilad ka pa sa araw. Napaisip tuloy ako kung itutuloy ko pa bang bumoto o umuwi na lang at magpahinga. Kung uuwi ako, makakaligo ako, makakain, makakapagpahinga. Wala pa akong tulog coming from an 11:30PM - 8:30AM shift, was up as early as 7PM. Kung uuwi naman ako, papano yung boto ko? Alam ko kasi pag hindi ka bumoto, may ibang boboto para sa yo. Parang SSS Loan yan, pag hindi mo ginamit, may mangungutang on your behalf; worse, ikaw pati ang magbabayad! Ayoko nga1

So tiniis ko na lang ang isang oras na hindi paggalaw ng pila. From 10AM yun hanggang 11AM. Nakinig na lang ako sa mga chismisan ng mga katabi ko sa pila. Magaling akong magkunwari na hindi nakikinig pero daig ko pa talaga ang may radar. hahaha!

Napansin ko na lang na medyo bumilis na ang pila mga bandang 11:30AM.

Natapos ako 1PM. Panalo di ba?

Chicken Cordon Bleu

2010-04-07T16:04:00.004+08:00

Ingredients:

1 kg Chicken fillet (breast or thigh)
1 pack pancake mix or flour (for dredging)
2 packs sweet or smoked ham (cold cut)
1 pack cheese (cheddar or quick-melt); cut into 1cm x 1cm x 3inch sticks.
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
eggs
bread crumbs
1 pack Cream of Mushroom Soup Mix
1 can all-purpose cream
toothpicks

Using a mallet or rolling pin, pound chicken fillet to flatten until it is 0.25cm thin. Season with salt and pepper.

Place flattened chicken onto a plate. Place 1 slice of ham and cheese on top and roll. Use toothpicks to hold the rolls in place.

Dredge rolls on pancake mix, make sure it is evenly coated. Dip rolls onto beaten egg and then dredge again onto bread crumbs.

You can either bake or deep-fry the rolls under low heat. Cook until golden brown.

Prepare the sauce by fixing mushroom soup mix but less 1 cup of water. When mushroom soup starts boiling, remove from fire then add cream, stirring constantly. Then simmer for two minutes until desired thickness is achieved.

Chicken Curry

2010-03-28T22:38:00.003+08:00

Ingredients:

Gata, extracted from 2 old coconuts.
1st extraction – 2 cups hot water. Set aside.
2nd extraction – 1/2 cup hot water. Set aside.
1 kg. chopped chicken pieces
3 medium-sized red onions, chopped
2 medium sized white onions, chopped
6 cloves minced garlic
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
4 medium sized potatoes, quartered
1 cup carrots, cubed
2pcs chopped sili labuyo (optional)
3 tbsps fish sauce (patis)
2 tsps ground black pepper
4 tbsps cooking oil
3 tbsps curry powder.

Wash chicken pieces thoroughly. Let excess water drip for a few minutes. Add fish sauce and ground black pepper to chicken in mixing bowl. Mix for a few minutes to allow mixture to penetrate the chicken. Set aside for 15 minutes.

Fry chicken in cooking oil; cook until the meat has turned very light brown. Set aside cooked chicken.

Using the same oil, sauté garlic, onions and sili labuyo. Add bell peppers. Sauté for 1 minute.

Add 2nd extraction. Simmer and let liquid reduce, constantly stirring to prevent sauce from sticking.

Once sauce has been reduced (barely having any liquid at all), add chicken, curry, and 1st extraction. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sauce from sticking. Add potatoes and carrots. Simmer until potatoes are cooked.

Serve with steaming rice.

Pig-Out at Dad's Megamall

2009-01-05T21:32:00.000+08:00

We went to Dad's a few days ago at SM Megamall. For only 139 pesos, you'll get the merienda buffet - over 25 choices. Merienda is served from 3PM to 5PM.

Beginning with the best and tastiest (for me of course!):

1. Puto
2. Pancit Palabok (I got two servings)
3. Carbonarra
4. Siomai (box-office ang pila... nyahaha!)
5. Siopao

They also served bananacue and kamotecue though I'm not a big fan of it. Palitaw and biko were there. Special chocolate cake - i thought it was dry at first as it was exposed. I wonder how they kept it moist?

Lumpiang toge and sariwa, tokwa't baboy, dinuguan, pansit gisado, spaghetti. These are all I can remember.

Two of my friends asked me why do they have yellow and blue service plates? I just assumed jokingly, "Yung blue para sa mga mayayaman."

"Eh yung yellow?"

Girl attendant sa likod namin: "Para sa matatakaw!!! Joke lang po sir!"

Panalo talaga tong waitress na to! Panu na lang kung yung taong nasabihan nya will take offense di ba? Namula na lang ako at nakipagtawanan. Sabay sandok ng palabok.

Make sure that you finish everything you got in your plate or you will pay extra. The buffet is not for those who have weak digestive organs. Dapat yung panunaw nyo kayang tunawin ang interior ng gulong! Nyahahaha!

Dad's - the best so far.

Sa May Bahay...

2008-12-22T19:08:00.001+08:00

Call me Mr. Scrooge if you want. I just have to write this. Have you tried listening to kids going around caroling? I mean literally. Here they are knocking at every door like doing trick or treating, "Namamasko po!".

What's annoying is they ALWAYS sing the same songs over and over again. I mean my next door neighbor's door is just about 3ft away and the apartment I live in is in a building with a common hallway; so you could just imagine hearing gossipers doing their thing. By the time these carolers reach my door, I already mastered the song and lyrics by heart!

The tune is pretty monotonous; much like they reading rhythmically. Here is the exact lyrics they are using. Note the first three lines have a uniform beat. But pay attention to the last line... you can compare it to a roller coaster ride.

"Sa may bahay ang aming bati (with rattles going *shik* *shik* *shik*)
Merry Kreesmas NAWAWALHATI (huh?)
Ang Pag-ibig ANG SYANG NAGHARI
Araw-araw ay magiging lagi.
Ansanhi po ng PAMPARITO (huh?!)
hihingi po ng aginaldo
Kunsakali kami'y perwisho

here is the part wherein they have to sing it double time

PASHENSYA NA KAYO KAMI NAMAMASKO!"

And it doesn't stop there... in fact, may karugtong! As in akala mong part sya talaga ng song:

"WEE WEESH YU AMERI KREEEEEEEEEESMAS (*shik* *shik* *shik*)
WEE WEESH YU AMERI KREEEEEEEEEEESMAS
ENAHAPI NYU YEER"

Asan yung 3rd na WE WEESH YU AMERI KREEEEEEEEEEEESMAS? Di ba tatlo yun? hahaha!

Then when you give them a coin - one peso will do, but try to observe them. Parang ayaw tanggapin na tipong wala naman silang magagawa. Anyways, you gave them the coin already. As soon as it touches his/her hand (whoever their point person is), the song changes immediately to the Thank You song:

...to the tune of the last line of My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean...

TENK YU... (*shik* *shik* *shik*)
TENK YU...
*TENK YU BERI MATCH, TENK YU!

Oh well we have to consider the time and also the distance these little ones must have covered. Hey but wait! We live in the same building - damn it! And they're doing it every evening. Hahaha! So next time, before shoving the one peso coin into their hands (I don't do that - that's extremely rude!) or closing the door, try listening to what they are singing - kakatuwa lang pakinggan.

Seems like I haven't done that when I was a kid. Honestly, I haven't experienced doing caroling like the little ones do. Let's just say that my family is strict. They treated me like a monk. Bawal lumabas! Mongha?!

So am I a perfect candidate for Mr. Scrooge 2008?

The Year of the Ox for Ymon

2008-12-22T15:59:00.006+08:00

I have a team mate who seemed gifted in doing Feng Shui readings. I had him make a reading on what does the year 2009 have in store for me. He goes:

"The year of the Ox connotes hard work and being born under the Snake sign would certainly bring big changes. The snake has a tendency to bite the hoof of the ox in self-defense as he might be stepped on. Good opportunities tend to hide behind what seem to be a dangerous decision or risks."

What I understood is I think 2009 will be good year to start a business for me. Better start reviewing on those guaranteed ROI businesses. Any suggestions?

Plurking Madness

2008-12-18T22:27:00.003+08:00

It all started with my team mate Sam. At least sa kanya ko narinig yun. Anu nga kaya ang Plurk? Medyo takot pa akong i-access yung site sa office dahil alam kong active palagi ang IT namin sa paghuli at pag-block ng mga non-work-related sites. E nagkataon na down pala ang firewall - sugod mga kapatid! Nyahaha! But still I didn't get to view the site until I got home.

Plurk is similar to Twitter. If you're fond of postingone-liner blogs then this is for you. Both are social-oriented sites and can be viewed internationally (of course as it is web-based) so you can easily communicate with people on the other side of the world.

Hmm... I wonder when would we be able to communicate with celestial beings. Hahaha! Come to think of it, it's no longer impossible. Di ba?

Wag kalimutang lumingon sa pinanggalingan

2008-12-17T20:16:00.003+08:00

Back to tier 1 mode again. Ang hirap mag-adjust... lalo na kung nasa night shift ka going on day shift. Imagine you have been accustomed to sleeping during the day and working at night then all of a sudden you'll be on the day shift.

Sobrang antok ako lagi ngayon habang umuuwi. It's good that my life is normal again, at least for now. Sobrang normal I have weekends off.

I know I have thought of this before and brought it to reality. Asan na kaya yung hinihingi kong pera?

Hmmm....

Sobrang Avail

2008-05-08T23:40:00.000+08:00

Nangyayari na uli yung pinaka-aasam-asam kong 84 agents avail. 31 minutes idle time. Ni hindi nagalaw ang ACW ng Avaya ko. Sana maging ganito naman ang buhay namin for a long while.

VGH agad!!!

Adventure in Makati

2008-03-23T00:04:00.000+08:00

Nag lunch kami about 2AM kanina. I was with Joyce, Tita Bheng, and Tita Wella. Napagkasunduan namin na mag lunch sa Jabi sa kanto ng makati ave and ayala since yun ang pinaka malapit. Bukas naman ang Mcdo sa baba pero gusto nila something different kaya Jabi na nga.

Sarado ang Jabi sa makati ave. Di bale, lakad kami sa kabilang kanto sa tabi ng Manila Bank dahil may Jabi din dun. Pero sarado din. Pasok kami sa kabilang kanto at tinahak namin ang kahabaan ng Walkway papuntang Makati Med. Parang lahat ata ng makakainan dun sarado. Pero nakita namin ang Barrio Fiesta, Kitaro, HenLin, pati Starbucks at Chowking sa may Rufino nakita namin - puro sarado nyeta!

Ilang minutes na lang babalik na sila. Si Joyce nagbiro na magpakarga. "kaladkad gusto mo?!", sabi ko. Hala! Hagalpakan ng tawa ang twins!!! Si Joyce kasi nakaladkad ng taxi dahil hinablot yung bag nya. Talagang hindi nya binitawan yung bag nya. Kaya ayun nagkasugat sugat naman yun katawan nya... poor girl :-( pero matagal na yun. Saka ok ang sense of humor nitong si Joyce, abnoy din to. It was not my intention to put meaning into what i've said but yun yung lumabas sa bibig ko. Nag sorry naman ako kay Joyce and they knew that I was just kidding.

Eto pa isa. Habang naglalakad kami pabalik (papuntang Mcdo dahil no choice at gahul na sa oras), ang Joyce nagsalita "tumawid na tayo!". Haller! Mga sampung metro pa ang layo ng intersection na tatawiran namin. Joyce lipad! Hahahaha! Tawanan kami habang tumatawid. Panalo ka talaga Joyce!

To Bora or Bust

2008-03-19T03:07:00.000+08:00

Hay. Mukhang magdidire-diretso na naman ang work day ko. Ang tanga tanga mo kasi Ymon, pipili pili ka ng schedule yun pang abnoy na sched ang natripan mo. E sa na-excite akong mag-start nang maaga e. Walang pakialaman. Hehehe!

Di bale naka-leave naman ako for 2 days at nakipag-palit pa ako ng sched. All this for the sake of Bora. Yes Bora here I come!!!

Ang mahal ng plane ticket, 5K plus! Hindi na kasi naiplanong maayos kala ko wala na munang lakad for summer this year. Sana kumuha na lang sila ng ticket sa Cebu Pacific, yung tig piso yung upuan. Naka-kuha kami ng ganung promo last year, mga 3K lang binayaran ko nun. Pero ngayon, medyo tipid-tipid muna sa snacks at baka buhangin na lang sa Boracay ang kainin ko dun. Bwahahaha!

Nakalimutan kong ipundar... digicam. Napansin ko lang tuwing may outing kami, wala man lang akong something to remember na nagpunta nga ako dun. Buti na lang may cam na ang phone ko. This year talaga, i'll get myself a good digicam. Wala na munang mcdo for months....

Ice Cream

2008-03-10T16:50:00.000+08:00

Punta ako market market. Bumili ng strawberry ice cream. Sudden craving e, saka mainet. Speaking of mainet, yung aircon sa opis namin ni-shut down for maintenance daw. Grabe inet kala mo pugon. Hay. Nagpa pizza tuloy yung mga managers dun. hahahaha!

Working Alone

2008-03-05T08:57:00.000+08:00

Ang hirap magtrabaho nang ikaw lang mag-isa sa shift. Naisip ko tuloy, anu pa kung magtrabaho ako sa ibang bansa? Ganito ang buhay ko every sunday. Hahahaha! Gusto ko kc mag start as early as possible.

Siguro ito na yung sign na hinihintay ko. Sign to look for another job. If my scorecards for this month would not fit the position I want, I'm leaving. It's enough that I have done everything I could possibly do.

There were a lot of opportunities I missed. It's out there somewhere. C'mon feet, let's go!

Busted Climate Control

2008-01-17T05:21:00.000+08:00

Our airconditioning system broke down. Tang-ina ang inet!!! Nagto-troubleshoot ako ng internet connection when suddenly it became warmer and warmer. Hanggang sa... ayun! Sobra inet. Pinagpapawisan na nga ako ngayon e.

Mukha tuloy kami mga kawawa dito.

Mint Tea

2008-01-11T07:24:00.000+08:00

23 December 2008 - My friends and I went to Starbucks after rehearsals to have our usual coffee. We talked about their past experience with their choir master. I noticed some of them ordered Hot Mint Tea and added honey. It's really good for the throat. And honey made it even better.

Nokia PC Suite

2007-12-17T13:45:00.000+08:00

I have just installed the software included in the Nokia 6300 kit. It was an easy installation even if the connectivity between my pc and phone is only through bluetooth.

The suite runs only on WinXP by the way. It has the ability to use the pc to send out text messages without touching the phone. It offers safe backup of the phone's setup and file system so that if anything bad happens to my phone (hopefully none) i can easily revert to the backup files. It's similar to WinXP's System Restore.

It's a good thing Ubuntu offers the correct repositories for bluetooth devices so that makes my phone work both on Linux and Windows.

Bluetooth

2007-12-15T18:34:00.000+08:00

I went to CDR King and got a memory card and a bluetooth device for my pc. The USB cable my friend has been promising me for 48 years would remain just a piece of drawing - nyarharharhar!

I could now transfer files wirelessly from my pc to my phone and vice versa. Neat piece of technology. I'm still figuring out how to synchronize my contacts on my pc and phone. The software that came with my phone is useless as it was design to work with Windows and I'm using Linux.

It was an easy installation by the way, as Ubuntu has its own repository of drivers for every device you can think of. It even has drivers for printers particularly HP Printers.

Did you know that the term "Bluetooth" came from a 10th century Viking King Harald Blatand or Harold Bluetooth. He was a good tactician and responsible for uniting his people through constant communication.

Addict Mode

2007-12-13T08:23:00.000+08:00

Just finished my 12AM - 9AM shift. I've been awake since 7AM yesterday so you could just imagine how groggy and sleepy i was...

Call time for the tech rehearsals is 1:15PM at the PICC Forum 3. Got to the venue @ 12:45PM. The cab dropped me at the PICC Main lobby. The place didnt look like it's a typical venue for the party. It resembled the lobby of CCP and some 5 star hotels. The guard on the frontdesk asked me where I am going. I said "Convergys". He said it's on the other side, Gate 1.

So I trodded again and walk about a few miles to where the "Forum" tents are. It's still closed. I walked further and found myself in front of "Snow World". Snow World is an attraction which is housed within the Star City Complex (which means nakarating na ko ng Star City... hihihihi!). I met BJ (Bass, chorale) sitting on the stairs, waiting for the others.

After a few minutes, we got a message from the group that they're inside the venue already. When we got inside, it was huge. It's about twice the size of the NBC Tent at The Fort in Taguig. Convergys booked all 3 PICC forums. :-)

We rehearsed 4 songs: invocation, national anthem, and 2 christmas carols. The performance was a success. Though we shouldn't get applauded after singing the first 2 songs, I should still say that they liked it.

Old Number

2007-12-12T09:53:00.000+08:00

I was cleaning my window near my bed when I noticed something blue and shiny. It was my old Globe SIM. So that's where it's been. Hehehe!

I loaded it on my phone; obviously it has no load yet as I have left it untouched for months and I mean months. I tried to dial 222 and got a busy tone. I tried 223 (for call card reloading) and it prompted me to enter the call card number. Which made me think of trying to load at least 25 credits....

And indeed, it was activated. Now I'm also Globe connected.

My New Globe Number

2007-12-11T14:18:00.000+08:00

I just got the SIM Pack from Globe this morning, which was ordered about 3 months ago, I received a call from a girl who's doing telemarketing. She was asking for contact details like my name and address which I find weird. She said I was qualified for a new Globe Sim Pack. I gave my friend's contact info... hehehe!

I guess I have to buy another phone... ung mga pang txt txt lang.

As Seen from Above

2007-12-10T09:45:00.001+08:00

The street at the middle is Ayala Avenue.

Something which I enjoy doing.

Take pictures and then post.

These were taken using my n6300 phone. I'm gonna miss this place as I will be moving to new building... new account... new environment... new faces... new friends... new challenges... same old company.

My Typical Day

2007-12-09T11:19:00.001+08:00

My tools....

Finally, my MMS has been activated. I now have an identity. I can keep track of my activities.

Thanks SMART!

More power!

Still no MMS

2007-12-06T22:36:00.000+08:00

Hindi pa rin ata activated yung MMS service ng Smart. It's been over 48 hours and i still can't send pictures. Hindi naman ako makabili ng USB cable kc natatakot ako baka mawalan ng warranty yung phone ko.

Someone out there who can help? When I push on the INTERNET shortcut on my phone, I get an error "Packet Data Connection Not Available" then "Link Not Available".

Does that mean that the MMS service is still not enabled? I have already sent "MMS ON" to 3401 and "SET n6300" to 211 a lot of times already and still no MMS.

I'm getting desperate here.

Smart MMS

2007-12-04T05:14:00.000+08:00

Sana magawan ng paraan ng SMART yung pag enable ng MMS ng phone ko. Ayaw talaga. It says on the simpack, "To activate MMS, type SET(space)phone model and then send to 211."

Ginawa ko naman. I got a configuration script which i save on my phone. After a few minutes i tried sending a picture to an email address, ayaw "Packet Data Connection not available" daw and then Link Not Available." Out of my frustration, i used google and searched for other possible solution. May nakita ako na ipapa-activate pa day by sending MMS ON to 333. I did that and got a reply to send the same command to 3401 this time. I did that and got a confirmation. Activated na daw. Pero ayaw pa rin magsend ng MMS.

I called the *888 help line. Seems strange kasi I was holding for 30minutes already walang sumasagot. E 2AM kaya yun ng madaling araw. Finally I got to speak with a rep (which i recorded using my N6300 phone). Mabait naman si rep.

He gave the same instructions for activation. Meron pa daw 24 hours waiting time. Baka nga for activation pa rin yung MMS ng phone ko. Sana lang magawan ng paraan.

New Phone

2007-12-01T19:09:00.000+08:00

I bought the N6300 for only Php9780 at SM San Lazaro. I was looking for SE-Z610i or Z750i because of its design. Both models have a lustrous metallic finish. Z750i is an improved version of the Z610i as it has HSDPA, a feature found in most 3G ready phones. Unfortunately, they were out of stock.

I've been drooling for the N6300 even before its soft release during the first quarter of the year. I think it's the simplest yet complex fone I have seen. Simple because of it's design, slightly longer but thinner than the old N8210, and very light. Complex because of the 2megapix cam, internet-ready connection, music and video player, etc. Perfect for busy people like me (busy?!?) hehehe!

I'm thinking of getting a bluetooth device and install it on my pc so i can also use the CD included in the kit. I'm now again easy to reach - just a text away.

Tagged

2007-11-02T03:56:00.000+08:00

I got tagged.

This time I wont tag someone else, pasaway ako e. Hehehe! This is cool Henry.

Instructions

Each player starts with 7 random habits/facts about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. At the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!

Seven Random Things

I am a call center agent.
I am a blogger.
I am a professional singer.
I like cooking.
I am a businessman.
I am a choir member.
I'm always horny. (What the....)

Age : 27 years old

Band you’re listening to right now : none

Career : Agent

Drink or smoke : I don't drink nor smoke. Good boy e.

Easiest friends to talk to : My Team Mates, Marvin, Mark, Dale

Favorite food : Noodles

Gummy bears or gummy worms : Gummy worms

Have a girlfriend : None

In love : Yes

Junk food you like : Cornbits

Kids : Not interested, yet

Longest ride ever : Manila to Pagudpud

My nicknames : Ymon, Mon

Name for your next kid : No plans yet

One wish you have now : I want to run my own business
and get rich

Phobias : Spiders

Quote : Nyeta!

Reason to smile : I always smile for no reason at all

Sleeping time : If i get sleepy then I'll sleep

Time you wake up : Usually after 6 to 9 hours of sleep

Unknown fact about you : I'm a descendant related to the 13 Matyrs from Cavite

Vegetable you hate : I like vegies

Worst habit : Getting LSS

X-rays you’ve had : Chest x-rays

Yummy food : Kare Kare

Zodiac sign : Libra

Forrest Gump

2007-10-26T23:20:00.000+08:00

Life is like a box of chocolates. You'll never know what you'll gonna get.

I often catch this on HBO. It's a story about a mentally-challenged man who has gone through fame and and fortune but still felt incomplete. I like listening to the soundtrack while sleeping or meditating. Very relaxing.

The suite was composed by Alan Silvestri, who also composed themes for "Back to the Future", "Pratical Magic". His latest project is Beowulf. Get to know the person more.

Sway

2007-10-26T17:12:00.000+08:00

Don't stray, don't ever go away
I should be much too smart for this
You know it gets the better of me
Sometimes, when you and I collide
I fall into an ocean of you, pull me out in time
Don't let me drown, let me down
I say it's all because of you
And here I go, losing my control
I'm practicing your name so I can say it to your face
It doesn't seem right, to look you in the eye
Let all the things you mean to me
Come tumbling out my mouth
Indeed it's time to tell you why
I say it's infinitely true

[CHORUS:]
Say you'll stay, don't come and go
Like you do
Sway my way, yeah I need to know
All about you

And there's no cure, and no way to be sure
Why everything's turned inside out
Instilling so much doubt
It makes me so tired - I feel so uninspired
My head is battling with my heart
My logic has been torn apart
And now it all turns sour
Come sweeten every afternoon

[CHORUS TWICE]

It's all because of you
It's all because of you

Now it all turns sour, come sweeten every afternoon
It's time to tell you why, I say it's infinitely true

[CHORUS TWICE]

It's all because of you
It's all because of you
It's all because of you

The Three Bears Song

2007-10-21T22:32:00.000+08:00

Kiddie song from Korea.

gom semari ga, han jibe itso
appa gom, umma gom, ehgi gom
appa gom eun tungtung heh
umma gom eun nalshin heh
ehgi gom eun nuhmu giyowuh
wu suk wu suk jal han da

It's even featured in a popular KoreaNovela, FullHouse. Below is a behind the scene clip. Pati rin sya natawa sa kagagaawan nya. So cute!

Music Video

2007-10-21T20:10:00.000+08:00

I woke up and looked up a haunting image in my mind. I searched YouTube and found this... this movie is so emotional. Awww....

Ymon Goes To Palawan

2007-10-15T14:54:00.000+08:00

Palawan is located in the Western Visayas Region of the Philippines.

Departure.
Thursday, October 10.

Muntik pa ako ma-late nun kasi lintek na cellphone yan, hindi nag-alarm. Buti na lang tinawagan ako ni Marvin mga bandang 5:45AM. Usapan kasi namin hintayan sa may Rotonda mga bandang 5:30AM. Pero hindi nga nag-alarm ung phone kaya ayun. Naalimpungatan pa nga ako. Kala ko walang lakad, ordinary day lang. 8:00AM yung flight namin. Ayoko naman maging cause ng delay ng flight ng grupo. Dyahe yun!

Panic-stricken, I got up immediately and hit the shower. Within 5 minutes I was done, prepped up (ligong-pato hehehe!) and hailed a taxi. I left home 6:10AM. It was a 30-minute trip from Makati Homes to Manila Domestic Airport. I was expecting ts going to be traffic as that usually happens when you're in hurry. Luckily, the taxi took a detour somewhere along McKinley Road and I began to see signs pointing to the airport.

Got there about 6:30AM. It's busy as usual. Dami naglalakad papunta entrance, dala-dala yung mga maleta nila. Dala ko lang isang medium-sized na backpack. Andun na lahat. Medyo tumambay pa kami dahil naghintayan pa. Sunod na dumating yung isa pa naming kasama sa Boracay Adventure nung February, Laurice and Marc. Another hintayan for 15 minutes. Then dumating na sila Dale, Mark, Lara, and Alfie. Tapos yung mga 4 friends ni Lara na foreigners (3 Chinese and 1 Korean). Iba talaga tong si Lara, international ang coverage neto.

We got in and had the bags checked. We spent about 30 minutes for processing. After going through the final scanning, we sat down in the waiting area where I had coffee at Mister Donut which I find strange because I seldom drink anything hot especially in the morning. We boarded the plane about 7:35AM and took off in 10 minutes. Maybe all the passengers for that trip had already boarded the plane so Cebu Pacific never hesitated leaving early anyways.

Hindi ko nakuha yung upuan near the window. It's ok, i dont have a cam yet. May palaro pa sila. "Show me" wherein they give out Head n' Shoulders Shampoo kung saan kinarir nina Mark and Vin. Each got 12 sachets of shampoo. Buti na lang nanalo sila... may hihingan na ko ng shampoo ngayon... nyahahaha!

Puerto Prinsesa Airport

Touched-down @ 8:45AM. A lot of vegetation, less buildings. As we walked to the receiving area, I noticed there was this wet footrag (treated) to disinfect our footwear with. It's how they control pathogens to protect the local animals. We waited for about 30 minutes or so because Lara has to accompany her friends to have their flight schedule changed as the ticket indicated an October 14 return trip to Manila. They preferred an earlier departure.

Nakita ni Alfie yung pinsan nya na taga munisipyo dun at nakapag-reserve ng rooms. We got two vans. Daan muna chowking para kumain.

Color Mansion

Mura lang yung place saka tahimik. Meron pang stage. Nyahahaha! Naalala ko yung stage namin sa school... ganung ganun yung itsura nya. We got 3 rooms. Boys room, Girls room, saka Mag-Jowa room (jer jer na!) kasi ung dalawang kaibigan ni Lara mag-on and they prefer to have some privacy.

We planned our itinerary here which were:

Day 1 - Puerto Prinsesa City Tour

Crocodile Farm
Butterfly Farm
Mitra Farm
Baker's Hill
Public Market
KaLui's

Day 2 - Island Hopping / Snorkeling (Cowry Island, Starfish Island, Snake Island)

Vietnamese Village

Day 3 - Underground River Adventure / Market Day

Kinabuch's

Day 4 - Uwi na

After planning, we took a rest for about an hour and then began the tour. Nakita namin yung ni-refer na resto nung officemate ko, KaLui. The ambience is similar to Mumba's in Quezon City.

Crocodile Farm

Our first stop was at Crocodile Farm. It is a joint venture between the Philippine and Japanese governments. They breed the animals in captivity and eventually harvest them for the meat, skin, and whatever a crocodile has that is valuable. I even saw recipes for preparing croc meat.

Upon entering the building, I saw the skeleton of the largest saltwater crocodile ever caught. Its about the length of a Hi-Ace Van. It's hide was also preserved and hanged on the wall just right above its skeleton which was encased in a wooden framed glass. When it was still alive, it ate a human (a human pelvis was retrieved inside its stomach), a deer, and other reptiles which forced the local people to have the croc captured. But the task of capturing was so stressful that it slowly killed the poor croc in just a few days.

Moving inside, I saw pictures of you know what. Egg shells of different sizes. Even pictures of celebrities holding a live crocodile which is about a few months old (its snout is tied shut with a rubber band), the same size of a full-grown cat.

Moving farther we got to the pens where they kept the beasts. Instead of the usual cages you see when you go zoos, the crocs are housed behind concrete walls and they built metal planks above the cage so you'll get a top view. We even get to feed the crocs with a large fish which costs about 20 pesos. Sinulit ni Marvin ang bayad sa feeding dahil hindi nya agad binibigay sa mga buwaya nyahahaha! Poor thing.

After feeding, we went to the man-made jungle where we found a pair of bearcats, native horned-bill, macaques, even native chickens nyahahaha. Not to mention local insects feasting on our blood... andami ko kaya pantal saka mga kagat ng insekto. Buti na lang hindi naman ako nagka-dengue or malaria.

Entrance in @ P40.

Butterfly Farm

The place looks like a very small paradise because of the flowers. They grow flowering plants to sustain the butterflies and provide foliage for the caterpillars, which I find strange because I didn't get to see a single caterpillar. The plants produced more flowers because the butterflies help in pollination. Hence, the cycle goes on. Entrance fee is P25.

Mitra Farm

It didn't look like a farm to me. Perhaps more of a ranch as the fence gave a close resemblance to that of typical ranches. The late Congressman, Ramon Mitra, built his house at the center of it using a long and enormous log which served as the only foundation. Galing no? The place is well kept and could be used as a picnic area. Do not lie on the grass, however. Makati sya. No entrance fee.

Baker's Hill

The place is still under development. It looks like a small version of Enchanted Kingdom in Laguna minus the rides. They also have a mini zoo in their backyard. We found a pair of ostriches, an unknown bird which has colorful feathers. It even had tiger prints on its back.

We headed back to the entrance to have snacks. They also serve full meals. I liked their pizza. Too bad, i have to eat only small portions of it or I'll easily gain more weight. No entrance fee.

Public Market

After snacks, we headed to the public market to buy our lunch for tomorrow's island hopping. Got separated from the other van as they are going back to the mansion to freshen up. On the way, we've heard about a resort which has a beach front so we took a detour. The place is called Dangkalan Beach Inn. It's dark already when we got there so we couldn't tell how deep the water was. We made arrangements and agreed to move in tomorrow morning.

We went to the market and found seafoods like shrimps, prawns, clams, crabs, squids, fish and not to mention seaweeds. All cheap. They are selling shrimps for as low as 120 pesos a kilo. We bought seaweeds, slices of tambakol, and 2 kilos of shrimp. This is the place to be if you want seafoods. :-)

Ka Lui's

After doing the market, we headed back to the "mansion" and took a shower. We rested for a few minutes and went outside again to have dinner at Ka Lui's. Nice interiors. You have to take off your shoes once you get inside. You have the option to either eat sitting on a chair or eat slumped down, indian-style. We chose the latter. Too bad I forgot what we ordered but the food was great at a very fair price. Drinks range from 35 - 45 pesos. Food is at 300 to 400 pesos which serves 2 -3 people which is fair enough.

Lara was celebrating her birthday that day. We got her a coco-salad cake which was cute. What a way to celebrate! After blowing the candles, we chatted for a while then went home.

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Day 2 - Island Hopping / Snorkeling
Thursday, October 11

Woke up about 6:30AM. Hit the shower. Fixed my bags as we are moving into the resort, Dangkalan Beach Inn. When we got there, it was low tide and the water wasnt deep. In fact, you could still see people walking miles away with the water still below their knees. The beach front is clean, though it has a lot of holes. It could be burrows where the small crabs live. Haven't seen one in action.

After leaving our things in the room, we headed off to the local port and rented snorkeling gears. Our first stop was cowry island. Our guide just pointed that this is the island where they have loads of cowry shells, we never landed there. He also pointed to the direction going to Dos Palmas Resort and El Nido. If we tried to land there, we will be charged 500pesos per head. Duh!

We landed at Snake Island, got ourselves two cottages and went snorkeling. At first I got worried I might drown as I don't know how to swim. Tanga ka? E naka suot ka ng life jacket, malulunod ka?! Nyahahaha!

Our guide taught us how to properly feed the fish. You just simply hold out the piece of bread to them and let them feed. Oo nga naman. Hehe! It was a sight to behold. Different species of fish came to feed. All greedy. They ate the whole piece in a few minutes. We then went to the spot where the jackfishes swim. They were swimming in circles, but I never got to see what they were circling.

We went a bit farther and managed to get two starfishes, resting on a big rock. It's skin was hard and rough as that of a coral's We took pictures (which reminds me to get a digicam asap) of it, holding it in different angles.

We headed back to shore for lunch. It was the best Hinalabos na Hipon I have tasted. I guess they added Sprite to the shrimp as the sweetness was giving it added flavor. We also had roasted tambakol slices which was marinated in soy sauce and kalamansi, our native lemon. Seaweed salad (a mixture of onions and tomatoes) acted as a side dish and fresh coco water for drinks, no ice.

After lunch, we went island hopping again and went to do some more snorkeling for corals. We docked at this small floating cottage, about a few miles from snake island. Its floating because it's resting on big plastic barrels. They even had a dog there which they call Marimar. Very friendly, it never barked at anyone. At hinahagis pa nila sa dagat! Boy, the dog knows how to swim. After taking some more pictures, we went back to the port and went home.

We had dinner at the Inn where we had what was left for lunch earlier. After dinner, videoke time! Costs about 5 pesos. The videoke machine is similar to that of a small bar in Manila I hangout with my teammates. usually after work (near Providence Inn). We slept about past 10PM.

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Day 3 - Underground River Adventure / Market Day
Friday, October 12

Woke up very early as the vans would be dropping by for pick up about 5:30AM. The guides would always remind us that we must get there early. I didn't realize the logic behind it until we got there.

We left about 6:30AM as we would have to wait for the others. The trip took about two hours. It seemed like an hour on good road and then another hour on rough road. The view of the countryside was a sight. I wish i had a camera that time. The trail was similar to that of Baguio's zigzag road.

At Sabang, we paid the entrance fee and got on the boat. Ride is about 20 minutes from shore. We got to this island and walked towards the river. It is an open jungle and I saw a monitor lizard pass by.

(to be continued)

I'll try to finish the whole adventure asap. Do check back for updates.

Email Account

2007-10-03T10:55:00.000+08:00

Finally, my email account is working. I just discovered it as I was able to login to the web mail. Took patience. Speed na lang ang problema. Sa PLDT kc they offer the same price but a whooping 1.5MBPS on the dowmload speed saka may kasama nang landline yun.

Pop Idol

2007-09-22T17:50:00.000+08:00

I joined another singing/ popularity contest. It's just in PBCom Tower... 7TH at the Food Patio. Held every Friday at 6:30PM. This week's category is R&B. Guys if you wanna watch, text nyo lang ako @ 09212491186. See yah there!

Failing Stats

2007-09-17T18:12:00.000+08:00

I'm about to prepare to head back to work from a 2-day time-off - hey, everybody needs a vacation. I got a message from my trusted team mate. Seems like no else was left to manage the team's performance. We'll be getting a bad impression again from the management.

Mga pasaway talaga... hay! Kawawa na naman kami sa sched bidding.

Mediator

2007-09-07T07:09:00.000+08:00

I had a conversation with my team mates yesterday after shift. I'm not going to put their names here to give them privacy (guys, you know who you are hehehe!). It was about our team mate Celia whom they had a hard time understanding. Let's just say that she's going through a lot of disappointments and frustrations lately.

Celia and Phylis had gaps before but I think they easily settle it because that's how I see it. You'll feel that there's tension between them because you won't see them talking. If they're not gossiping, you can conclude there's gap (ha-ha-ha). But lately, they seem to become more frequent.

Phylis is concerned with how things are going on between them. Even if she tries to hide concern through her words, her eyes speak differently (this girl has the strongest personality in the team). She asked me to talk to Celia because it is getting out of hand. It started with their application for VL. Both applied for the same day. Phylis got approved, Celia's was put on hold.

I only had the opportunity to hear Phylis' side personally on this matter so this would be one-sided. She explained everything to Celia (through text) and was expecting complete understanding. It turned out to be the opposite. Phylis asked me, "I noticed Celia is not talking to me anymore. Should I be angry at her?" I told her that I don't know why would she do that and she doesn't have to be angry. "You have done your part in explaining what really happened. just give her time. I'll try to talk to her later about it."

Later, I had a chat with Celia and she explained her side why she felt and acted that way. There seems to be some unsettled issues between her and Phylis and I think this is beyond my control in making them friends again.

Reconciliation should be two-fold: Forgive and forget. It doesn't matter how many times you forgive as long as you forget about it and move on. But how can one forget if there were scars? E di gumamit ng cebo de macho!!! Hehehehehe!

Life Goes On

2007-09-07T06:59:00.000+08:00

I didn't make the final cut. :-(

It felt like it was the end of everything that I had put my powers into. I was frustrated and disappointed, but at the same time I was happy because Grace (my team mate) got in! At least our TL's efforts on giving us the proper motivation (inspiration) to get us where we want to be was not wasted.

It's not the end of the world for me - yet! Our operations manager would still approach me and ask if everything's ok with the team. That's proof enough that I'm still in for the position, but some later time. I'm not in a hurry.

Hoping for the Best

2007-08-10T09:57:00.000+08:00

Today was the second to the last module for our Agent Development Program. Our Senior Operations Manager shed some light about Leadership. He's been working for Convergys for 4 years and during the span of his tenure he was able to make it from an agent to SOM. My impression though he's kinda intimidating because of his position. But once you get to speak with him, he's just normal, not arrogant, cool person. This changed my perspective in looking into the people in the upper management. I just discovered that they don't bite afterall.

I'm done with the final interview as part of my application for the Team Lead Intern and results will be announced by monday. They do have the list of successful candidates. I hope that my 2 team mates and I would be included in the final 4.

I felt nervous during that interview but I believe that I did well.

Using Beryl

2007-07-09T19:42:00.001+08:00

I spent my day installing beryl on my ubuntu os. I just love it! Now my window would behave like its flexible.

New Phone

2007-07-08T03:33:00.000+08:00

I've got my eyes fixed on that Nokia 5700. It boasts of Hi-Fi sound and a dedicated audio chip which is idead for playing mp3s plus storage capacity of 1500 songs. Now who would ever store such so many songs on an MP3 player?!?

Eversince my old 2600 went byebye, i've been out on the market for such finds. Initially, i was aiming for that slim 6300 but its too simple. Hehehe!

Childhood Memories

2007-07-05T04:28:00.000+08:00

HARDCORE POETRY
Tavares

It depends on who is looking at the tenement walls
Whether he's coming home or passing through
You can walk the streets and find so much to criticize
But that would be the easy thing to do

'Coz there's beauty in the concrete
If you see it with your heart
The sidewalks only hurt you
If you hate them from the start

This is a song not necessarily sweet
I'll pass it on to folks that I never will meet
And if my words dont make history
Just call it Hard Core Poetry

You can blame the world if troubles come
And knock at your door
Let your weakness cut you down to size
If you find some fault with everything surrounding you
Maybe it's your narrow-minded eyes

'Coz there's music in the city
If your ear is to the ground
Only nonbelievers never hear a single sound

This is a song not necessarily sweet
I'll pass it on to folks that I never will meet
And if my words dont make history
Just call it Hard Core Poetry

===========================

This was back in the 70's. I remember my mom used to beat the hell out of me everytime I escape siesta. Radios usually play this music during afternoons along with the Carpenters. Hehehe!

New Broadband Connection

2007-06-28T22:09:00.000+08:00

Nakauwi ako mga bandang 8am kasi kumain pa kami sa mcdo with my team mates. I was so excited to go home kasi kakabit lang ng SmartBro ko. Syempre, wireless broadband! Hehehe!

I was able to get on quickly kasi kapitbahay ko lang yung cellsite na gamit ng smart. After a few minutes of surfing, the connection went down. Being a tech support representative I checked my connections; making sure that my network card is able to detect the wireless receiver. After a few minutes of troubleshooting, I decided to call my ISP's helpdesk as that is the only thing I havent done.

May load pa naman ako kaya malakas ang loob ko magtatawag (mayaman!). I texted the installer who came here and I got their support hotline 6727277 or if I'm on Smart, *1888. Since I'm on Globe, i used the landline number.

Their waiting time is 7minutes. Im not sure why it took that long pero definitely yung service level nila bumababa (call center terms hehehe) dahil matagal nilang sagutin yung call. I got tired of holding the handset so I used speaker phone. Finally, may sumagot. Joseph pangalan. The usual spiel. Tatanungin yung account number mo and then name mo. I patiently answered every question while containing myself from making him proceed to check on my connection and cut the crappy interview.

After getting the information needed, he asked permission to place me on hold while he's going to check on the status of the problem. Then after a few seconds instead of hearing the usual hold music i heard a busy tone. Now, being a call center representative I would definitely conclude that he did that on purpose. Nagpanting ang tenga ko but then I realized pareho lang kami ng trabaho and sometimes nagawa ko na rin yun (releasing or dropping calls). So, I went down and bought a smart sim to call the helpdesk again.

I got steve this time and he was very professional. He began checking on my connection. Gusto ko na syang barahin kasi I know my pc detects the device they have installed but I remained patient. After a few minutes of answering crappy questions, he placed me on hold because he had to verify the issue with their base station. at yun nga, may outage sa lugar ko. So we ended that call kasi wala talaga kaming magagawa. Ayoko mangaway kasi I know what feels like being in their shoes as we have the same job. And knowing that Im using wireless connection, it's still subject to interferrence.

Tinulugan ko na lang. By 5PM, nichecko uli at yun! Gumana na!

Waffles

2007-06-28T04:38:00.000+08:00

Went home alone yesterday. I passed by this bakery my dad was recommending and bought pandesal. He said that they don't use "cassava flour" as the bread still stays soft after a few hours. He was comparing it to the pandesal I have been getting for the past few months from the other bakery, just a few steps away from my place. Their's is kinda odd as it is yellowish and gets hard after a few hours. With regards to the taste, i'd say it is still the same - lasang pandesal pa rin! Hahaha!

I also bought a pound of sugar for him because he's the only one who drinks coffee more than usual everyday. It's decaf anyways so caffeine overload is not an issue. Let's say if he drinks coffee every hour, he boils water quite often as well. We do have a thermos bottle but he never uses it. I think its not keeping the water hot for too long.

Training

2007-06-27T05:58:00.000+08:00

I went on EVTO (End-of-shift Voluntary Time Out) to take the 2nd module for our development training. The module took 30minutes to finish and has an assessment at the end. I got amused as I was able to analyze the question very well, at least for some of the questions, and was able answer it correctly even if the training module has no audio (it should have an audio because the slide sometimes has no text).

Bottom line is, I just discovered my analyzing powers! Hahahaha!