Wednesday, February 29, 2012
All on a leap day
My blog stat counter has stopped working since yesterday.
It's currently frozen at 97.
I am new with Blogger. Should I report this to them
or is everyone experiencing the same problem?
But the funny thing is, my profile view is moving.
After 2 months of use, my Havaianas flip flops
gave in. It took me 3 weeks to fix it. All
because I am lazy to do so. Thank God
my sister has the all reliable Mighty Bond
adhesive and I had my flip flops fixed in
5 minutes.
Updated my CV today and added these pages.
I needed to show past projects I handled
which are related to condo or hotels.
I am collaborating with my high school
friend in a condo make-over business.
I am excited about this venture!
Blogging is my latest therapy to get by a day
eversince I gave up my full-time secular job abroad
and decide to stay in the Philippines for good.
I read an advice from one of the bloggers that if you
lost the feel to write, just browse on other
blogs to get inspiration. There are so many great
bloggers out there. And the 2 blogs I got really
interested in and which now I'm following are:
Their blogs are fresh, simple and straightforward.
Today I just finished reading - ummm...or should I say listening -
to the full book of Genesis. Now I'm tuned in to Exodus.
Thanks to You Version's Holy Bible app for i-pad which
has an audio option for us to listen to the entire Bible.
With this perk, my commitment to read the Bible from cover
to cover can now become a reality.
Today, I commit to revive my daily
prayer time with my wife. We used to have one
sent by email. But then we lost it along the way.
Being 5,000 miles apart, prayer is one way that our hearts
and souls get connected. I miss her dearly...
I had an all-Madonna playlist on my background
while working a while ago. I admire her staying power.
She has not lost her popularity over the years.
Cheers to the Queen of Pop and the Queen of Re-Invention.
I made true the promise to myself to revive my passion
to photography. Gotta start finding my manual...
Back to the drawing board - well, now I call it my workstation.
All set and fired-up to make studies on the condo make-over venture.
Busy and challenging days ahead but I am very excited about it.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
It's more fun!
It's been more than 2 months since the slogan "It's more fun in the Philippines" was launched by the Department of Tourism. It's still too early to tell whether the slogan generated a significant number of touist visits to the country.
But one thing was surely generated - hundreds of personalized "It's more fun in the Philippines" campaign images made by Filipinos through Meme Maker websites such as www.morefunmaker.com. All you have to do is upload a photo and connected to that photo should be a description why you think it's more fun in the Philippines. Offensive entries are not allowed.
Of all the campaign images I saw on the web, I adjudge these 3 as my personal best:
1- Boracay. More fun in the Philippines - for most Filipinos, Boracay is synonymous to paradise. I've been to Boracay 3 times and the place never failed to amaze me - crystal clear water, powder white sand beaches and the friendly and hospitable island people - I'll never get tired from going there. 
2- Christmas. More fun in the Philippines. For a person like me who has not spent Christmas in the Philippines for the past 7 years, coming back for the holidays is the best feeling ever! Christmas parties, family reunions, midnight mass, carolling, exchange gifts, and last minute shopping are just but few things that I miss during Christmas in the Philippines.
3- Drinking. It's more fun in the Philippines. Value for your money. That is what you get to have fun in the Philippines. Being a former OFW and a dollar earner, I find it amazing that bringing a $50 budget for nighlife or a day of pigging out, goes a long long way. You can just go anywhere here and have fun. From clubbing to eating street food, from riding a jeepney to hiring a limo, from shopping at Bonifacio High street to price-haggling at Divisoria, the list is endless to have inexpensive fun in the Philippines.
But one thing was surely generated - hundreds of personalized "It's more fun in the Philippines" campaign images made by Filipinos through Meme Maker websites such as www.morefunmaker.com. All you have to do is upload a photo and connected to that photo should be a description why you think it's more fun in the Philippines. Offensive entries are not allowed.
Of all the campaign images I saw on the web, I adjudge these 3 as my personal best:
1- Boracay. More fun in the Philippines - for most Filipinos, Boracay is synonymous to paradise. I've been to Boracay 3 times and the place never failed to amaze me - crystal clear water, powder white sand beaches and the friendly and hospitable island people - I'll never get tired from going there. 
2- Christmas. More fun in the Philippines. For a person like me who has not spent Christmas in the Philippines for the past 7 years, coming back for the holidays is the best feeling ever! Christmas parties, family reunions, midnight mass, carolling, exchange gifts, and last minute shopping are just but few things that I miss during Christmas in the Philippines. 
3- Drinking. It's more fun in the Philippines. Value for your money. That is what you get to have fun in the Philippines. Being a former OFW and a dollar earner, I find it amazing that bringing a $50 budget for nighlife or a day of pigging out, goes a long long way. You can just go anywhere here and have fun. From clubbing to eating street food, from riding a jeepney to hiring a limo, from shopping at Bonifacio High street to price-haggling at Divisoria, the list is endless to have inexpensive fun in the Philippines.You won't go wrong if you consider spending your vacation in the Philippines. Because
wherever you go, it's the Filipinos that will make your holiday unforgettable.
wherever you go, it's the Filipinos that will make your holiday unforgettable.
For more information on the 'It's more fun in the Philippine' tourism campaign, please visit: http://www.itsmorefuninthephilippines.com/#funstuff
Monday, February 27, 2012
Place to retreat
Yesterday was the first Sunday of Lent and the Gospel tells about Jesus' 40 days retreat in the desert. Truly Jesus is such a strong man. He endured 40 days and 40 nights with no food or water. On top of that, he was in the middle of the wilderness together with all the snakes, wolves, vultures and Satan who offered Christ the 3 temptations!
God's message for me yesterday was to go on a 3-day retreat prior to the Holy Week. I am now searching for that one perfect secluded place. No television, no internet, no celphone, no ipad, no radio, no mp3s. I felt the need to detach myself from the world and spend more time to pray, meditate and listen to God.
The world has too many distractions and it's really a challenge to just shut down and reach out to God on a daily basis. That is why I find it as an opportunity this Lent to be in solitude.
But the question is where?
In my thoughts, I was imagining myself staying in a barrio on top of a mountain, or a seminary somewhere outside the city,
My prayer is that God will lead me to the right place. A place where we can both spend time together, one on one.
God's message for me yesterday was to go on a 3-day retreat prior to the Holy Week. I am now searching for that one perfect secluded place. No television, no internet, no celphone, no ipad, no radio, no mp3s. I felt the need to detach myself from the world and spend more time to pray, meditate and listen to God.
The world has too many distractions and it's really a challenge to just shut down and reach out to God on a daily basis. That is why I find it as an opportunity this Lent to be in solitude.
But the question is where?
In my thoughts, I was imagining myself staying in a barrio on top of a mountain, or a seminary somewhere outside the city,
My prayer is that God will lead me to the right place. A place where we can both spend time together, one on one.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Live vs. Exist
"In Time" was one movie I wished I saw on the big screen. Unfortunately it was shown here in the Philippines last December; the same time that I and my then fiancè were busy preparing for our wedding. It was only last night that I had the opportunity to watch it, thanks to my brother in law who has a dvd copy of the movie.
It has always been a habit for me to internalize a movie and I apply the story to my own life. And with the movie In Time, I did just that. Questions popped in my head like: what if I was also genetically engineered to live only for 25 years? Should I also steal or kill just to add more time to my years? Would this be the solution to my obsession with immortality and to be forever young and beautiful?
When I reached the age of 40, the past years of my existence panned in front of me. Where am I headed? What could I have done differently? What is in store for me in my 40's and beyond? I have a fear for what is unknown and the search for answers to these questions really scared me!
But then I was pacified with the thought that yes, I have a God who secures my future, I have a healthy body for me to be able to work, I have a loving family, wife and daughter and I got
a huge friend-base whom I can count on whenever and wherever.
And that is the difference between 'living' and 'existing.' Living for me is experiencing life untiredly chasing your dreams and your passsions; while 'existing' is just experiencing the daily grind of life without any direction or vision. In the movie, Will (Justin Timberlake) 'lived' his life while Sylvia (Amanda Seyfried), despite of her fortune, just 'existed.'
So taking off from In Time's plot, I am giving all of you a hypothetical question: "If your life is programmed only to last for 25 years, how are you going to live it?"
For me, I would lived it the same way...The first 25 years of my life were the best years of my existence. And as the clichè goes, "I would not change a thing."
Would you?
It has always been a habit for me to internalize a movie and I apply the story to my own life. And with the movie In Time, I did just that. Questions popped in my head like: what if I was also genetically engineered to live only for 25 years? Should I also steal or kill just to add more time to my years? Would this be the solution to my obsession with immortality and to be forever young and beautiful?
When I reached the age of 40, the past years of my existence panned in front of me. Where am I headed? What could I have done differently? What is in store for me in my 40's and beyond? I have a fear for what is unknown and the search for answers to these questions really scared me!
But then I was pacified with the thought that yes, I have a God who secures my future, I have a healthy body for me to be able to work, I have a loving family, wife and daughter and I got
a huge friend-base whom I can count on whenever and wherever.
And that is the difference between 'living' and 'existing.' Living for me is experiencing life untiredly chasing your dreams and your passsions; while 'existing' is just experiencing the daily grind of life without any direction or vision. In the movie, Will (Justin Timberlake) 'lived' his life while Sylvia (Amanda Seyfried), despite of her fortune, just 'existed.'
So taking off from In Time's plot, I am giving all of you a hypothetical question: "If your life is programmed only to last for 25 years, how are you going to live it?"
For me, I would lived it the same way...The first 25 years of my life were the best years of my existence. And as the clichè goes, "I would not change a thing."
Would you?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)