Tuesday, August 22, 2006

DLSU GSB Entrance Exams

DLSU Graduate School of Business Entrance Exams

I passed the exams!! i passed the exams!! woohoo!! I'm so happy and nervous at the same time because interview's the next step! And it's on August 24, 6:00pm onwards! of all the days to have an interview! kelangan pa birthday ni Drich heheh but he understands! :)

My heart is still racing up until now!! I guessed through the Math stuff again! hahahaha! i am so lucky or better yet God loves me! :)

Woohoo!!

Monday, July 17, 2006

Stressed in Bora?

Stressed in Bora?

Ever imagined anyone getting stressed out and tired in Boracay? Well.... that's me!

I couldn't believe it either.

Post to come soon...currently still recovering...

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

Villa Escudero: Highly Recommended

Villa Escudero: Highly Recommended

Of all the trips that I’ve taken and all the resorts that I’ve gone to, Villa Escudero is the only one that I’ll definitely go back to! Situated at the boundary of the provinces of Quezon and Laguna, this 180,000 hectare plantation and resort is one place that’ll make you not want to go back to the hustle and bustle of Manila.

After an hour and half bus ride (which was comparatively more comfortable than the cramped city buses) we got off the highway just after the Welcome to San Pablo City arc. A traffic enforcer helped us crossed the street and there was already a tricycle waiting to give us a ride to the resort’s reception area.

The cool breeze, huge coconut trees and smell o
f cow dung (which I found quite fascinating) signaled the start of a rural life.

The reception area was of a native feel with the chairs, tables and even trash cans made from designed wood. While waiting for the receptionist to process our credit card, someone gave us welcome drinks of refreshing gulaman. All the employees there wore a uniform of a colored baro’t saya style garb that definitely enhanced the native feel of the place.

Since it was still 2 h
ours until our check-in time, we were advised to go sight-seeing on the grounds. We decided to give the museum a visit since it was the nearest from the entrance. Before getting there, we admired the park which displayed several age old canons, a real fighter plane and a catapult. It was a relief that they had a baggage counter at the entrance of the museum which allowed us to unload our backpacks while taking the tour.

Taking pictures or videos wasn’t allowed inside the museum so we just took a snapshot of every bit and detail with our eyes. A curtain of shells served as the entrance to the museum and the first floor was filled with religious artifacts—statues of saints, Jesus and his disciples of different situations and forms. I do not really like looking at religious statues and just regarded them with little significance as display objects. What interested me on the first floor were the preserved insects and animals all lined up in glass cabinets.

There were different species of butterflies that were not merely displayed outright but paintings and dioramas served as a background to help t
he viewer imagine the natural habitats of these beautiful creatures. There were bugs and insects from different countries that gave me the creeps coz they somewhat reminded me of cockroaches. There was also a tough and massive crab on display that was reported to been able to break open coconuts!

As for the animals, there were calf heads, horns of goats, a jungle display with stuffed leopards, elephant hooves, monkeys, baboy damos, snakes, snake skeletons, deer, bats, eagles, different bird species and a whole lot more animals that I do not know of! It was really a great spectacle that got me all excited :) Replicas of indigenous tribes and their clothing, accessories and weapons were also on display.

As we went up the stairs, we were greeted with lots of money on glass cases that came from all over the world. Old Philippine coins and bills and even 32 pieces of 1000 peso sample bills! Imagine that, if only there weren’t ‘sample’ stamped across those bills, it would’ve been 32,000 pesos together in one picture frame, cool! It was an interesting experience because we started reminiscing and pointing out the coins that we still had in our piggy banks. The hexagonal 2 peso coin, the square 1 centavo and the flower shaped 5 centavo coins brought back some memories. Aside from money there were also priceless vases, jars, bowls, utensils, gold artifacts and gems on display. Clothing from the different eras in Philippine history—from Rizal to Estrada, were all there to give visitors a feel of the history, culture and traditions of the country. There’s a lot more to mention and everything that one could see in the museum was part of Don Aresenio Escudero’s personal collection that his descendants took care of and displayed in the museum for all the world to see. How well traveled and culturally-rich the Escudero’s are! No money could ever equal the knowledge and experience gained from these journeys.

After taking in the beautiful artifacts from the museum, we decided to go our cottage already since it was almost 5pm anyway. We rode in a carabao cart pulled by a carabao named Gigolo, while being s
erenaded with Tagalog love songs on a guitar. The place was breathtaking! We passed by several manicured gardens with lots of colorful statues of native folks specifically placed there for picture taking purposes with tourists.


After registering at the resort reception, we were led to our room called Rosas. It matched perfectly with the feel of the place since it was made entirely of wood. The windows were the rectangular sliding ones patterned with capiz shells. The very hospitable attendant showed us inside and there was a four-poster bed with white curtains made of some sheer fabric reminiscent of those Old English romantic beds! And the bed was as comfortable as it looked. I felt sleepy the instant that I lay down! It was just the right amount of softness and even though our room had no air conditioning, the fans and the location of the place provided a cool breeze that kept us comfortable.

The bathroom was not native at all which was just right to our tastes. There were three separate sections which enclosed the shower room, the comfort room and the sink with mirror of course. They also gave us towels and there were already packets of soap and a drinking glass, just like when you’re staying in a hotel.

The room even had a loft in case more people were staying in the place. It was,
by far, the largest room that I’ve stayed in among the resorts that I’ve been to. There was even a buzzer for room service if ever you might need anything. We didn’t really use that buzzer thing coz all the attendants there were very hospitable that you wouldn’t want to trouble them any more.

After resting a while and enjoying the coziness of our room, we went to the pavilion for our dinner buffet. We were seated at a table overlooking the river and served soups. Again, the waiter
s and waitresses were very hospitable and would give you all the instructions you needed to go around the place. There was also some form of native entertainment every meal, be it performers doing the tinikling or singing Tagalog songs. The meals always left us stuffed that we couldn’t even go back for seconds!

For dinner, I think we had macaroni salad, lasagna, pork shepherd’s pie, soy chicken, savory vegetables and for desert, leche flan and buko pandan salad. :)

We were supposed to go swimming in the evening but were too full and lazy; instead we just hung around the outside of our room, sat on the wooden sofa and chatted the night away. We also bought softdrinks and water which were very expensive but this was expected since everything else was free. (30 for softdrinks in can and 40 for wilkins mineral water).

We woke up at around 8:45 in the morning and prepared for the day’s activities. Breakfast was served from 8:00-10:00 so we went to the pav
ilion again to fill our tummies with the delicious food, and we were definitely not disappointed. I think I ate the most during breakfast and filled my cups with hot chocolate, calamansi passion juice, and my plate with suman that you’d put sauce and toppings on, arroz caldo that you’d put egg and onion stalks on, potato omelet, tinapa, ensilada, corned beef with potatoes and fresh fruits! That was just what I ate coz there were others I didn’t get, like plain and garlic rice, danggit, hot coffee and some other stuff that I can’t remember anymore.

After that filling breakfast, we went back to the room to change into our rafting attire. We surveyed the entire river portion with our rafts and had fun m
aneuvering and looking at the riverside cottages. There were trees hanging from the other side of the river so we went under it for shade and some more chitchat. It was a really cool experience! Next stop were the swimming pools, there were 3 in all: 1 for kiddies, 2 for adults and both only 5 feet deep, 1 jacuzzi and another wading area. We really appreciated that there weren’t many people crowding the pool, I guess because there was a lot more else to see than just hang around in the pool unlike our visit to a resort in Antipolo before.

Anyway, I was quite surprised that one of the two pools made me float more than the other. One pool had the standard pool look—with blue water and tiled flooring. While the other had no tiles and just plain concrete flooring and had this river theme. This was the one that made me float more and also where the Jacuzzi, in the form of a shallow well, was situated.

Thinking that it was already 1pm, we got off the pool and headed to our room to have a shower. There were actually lockers, dressing rooms and shower rooms beside the pool for daytrippers but since we were staying overnight, we just opted to take a shower in our room. Turned out that i
t was only 11:40 but we didn’t go back to the pool anymore coz we were excited to have lunch at the waterfalls!

The staff pointed us to the right direction and it was an amusing sight to see. There was a man-made waterfall—water came from the river that we rafted in--and there long tables with benches set up on the ground. While eating the once more sumptuous food, you’d feel the cool water running up to your ankles and enjoy the sight of people having their pictures taken beside the waterfalls. We ate with wooden plates placed with banana leaves and drank soup out of niyog halves. Kaldereta, vegetables, lechon kawali, inihaw na manok, inihaw na isda, kalabasa soup, fresh fruits and some kind of coco-milk-sago desert were served among others.

We left the place really full and headed for the coconut harvesting demonstration. We were already late but still went, hoping to catch something. The harvesting was over but the men were still cutting up the coconuts for the tourists to have. Even though we just arrived, the men split a coconut, put two straws and gave it to us to drink. We tried to finish it best that we could and gave it back to them, we couldn’t eat the flesh anymore coz we were really full to the brim.

We had our picture taking session with the statues, flora, and the pink carabao named Pogi while walking around. There were also fat fishes under the little bridge leading to the cottages that I’d love to look for and have a photo-op with. We rented a sidecar (coz I don’t know how to ride a bike) to go around the area some more and we visited the church and rode around the houses of the staff. They actually lived in the place since the lot is really like an entire town.





The “biking” part was really tiring since the terrain would slope up at some points so we collapsed on the bed after that activity. We had a nap until it was time to checkout. The resort attendants were gracious and instead of having a carabao bring us to the main entrance, she called for their specially designed jeep (with the seats lined up horizontally for sight-seeing purposes) to bring us to the main road so we wouldn’t have to pay for a tricycle ride anymore.

I actually felt bitin coz I didn’t want to leave anymore! I wanted to stay one more day as the place was very relaxing and it would really cast away your cares for your entire stay :) A must must must must place to visit and revist! Villa Escudero is by far, truly the best resort that I’ve been to :)

Monday, June 26, 2006

How Am I Doing?

Thoughts on a Rainy Day

I think I’m more of a nature person than a techie one. Yes, I might yearn for a laptop or desktop PC but it comprises only a meager percent of my desires. The computer and its other accessories are just for my writing and designing purposes, which are not techie kind of things. The computer is only a tool for me, a tool to express my emotions and reveal my artsy side.

I thrive on the sight of lush trees and greenery outside my window. Our neighbor across the street has a huge expanse of ‘undeveloped’ land filled with fruit trees :) This never fails to brighten up my day especially when I am greeted by the warm sun, blue sky and the beautiful trees as I wake up and open my curtains. This little piece of heaven is the kind of surrounding where I eventually want to live and call my home someday.

Since I am now capable of earning and saving my own money, the dreams and aspirations seems to flow freely in me. This idea is new to me because I always had this rubber stopper mechanism to prevent myself from expecting too much and getting disappointed in the end. It seems like I am finally freed from those restrictive urges, well at least, to some extent.

I find myself dreaming of having my own place, currently its Serendra that I have in mind. The incorporation of a park with lots of trees in a condo area really got to me and I’m thinking of investing some money in this place (‘thinking’ being the operative word) Of course, I know that there are a lot of financial things and more to consider but I’m just happy to be able to aspire for something bigger. :)

There are so many thoughts and plans swirling around in my head these days, I guess this is the time when I am finally thinking of where I want to be in the next 5 years or so…

Suddenly, the importance and priority of things change; what was once the world to me has become just a part of the bigger picture. This is the time in my life where change is inevitable…


Pour down the Resentment

Why have I not blogged since March? Because that’s about the time that I was assigned to the Test Team of our team’s current release. I was really excited at first, literally with adrenaline pumping and butterflies in my stomach from the excitement of being given a new role. I approached my tasks with enthusiasm each day and even had extra energy to encourage others who were down. That was when we were doing TCERs and the start of the Core Scripts.

When Individual Scripts came, I was feeling quite run down from the constant overtime that I was rendering; add to that the feeling that the management does not have your back. It was a disaster brewing intensely.

I had a few days break after the Test Planning since I was tagged to work for other stuff; after that I was placed into the PT Execution team to help out Anna since she’s pregnant and cannot be exposed to deadly overtime. (I read in a newspaper article last night that night shift work for women exposes them to higher risk of breast cancer) It was overtime hell all over again but suddenly, our manager proposed a shifting schedule for the two of us and a ‘Sacred Day’ for the Manila executors. Eyebrows raised but clearly pleased and relieved, I felt my life and energy slowly coming back.

It was a nice move from our manager but it will just be branded as a failed attempt if those initiatives are not translated to long term plans, such as effectively pushing back work that the team cannot handle anymore, creating more realistic Timeline and Estimates and being open to change.

So cliché, but always forgotten.

  • The only constant in this life is change.
  • There is always room for improvement in everything.
  • The unwillingness to change something just because it is already working shows narrow-mindedness and the inability to take necessary risks to attain improvement.

I was extremely disappointed, but hey, people make wrong decisions, so here I am giving them another chance, and hoping that the succeeding days prove to be better.

If not? Then it’s time for Plan B.

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Thoughts @ 10

Valentines...
Missing those far away...
My Life...
Yearning for something more yet not really being able to pinpoint what it is that i am looking for...
Something to get me excited, something to get my blood rushing...
Too much of the mind working...im not used to it
I need a mixture, a balance, a combination
I'm an emotional person, that's how i live, that's how i am
I'm just glad that my love is just around the corner :)

Thursday, February 02, 2006

Another Cliche

Cliches exist because people never seem to learn at the first time, second time, third time or fourth time and so on..that they encounter a lesson.

One age-old cliche says that you won't feel the importance of something or someone until it's gone and i am one guilty party to attest to that.

My parents are planning on a move to a place nearer my office and after checking out some units in Makati, surfing the Buy and Sell site, pestering other more experienced people, did i suddenly stop to notice my current home in San Juan.

It is actually spacious for us. The sala can accomodate our whole family with the grandkids, i can sing on the KTV in the living room when no one's around, i can lounge around the sofa and read a book while feeling the cool breeze coming through the windows. I actually saw our house with a different light last night, ironically, at a time when we might soon leave it behind.

Hehehe, just one of my passing thoughts while i was in the car this morning :)

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Restless in the Office

There's definitely an air of restlessness for me when Aldrich is not around in the office. Even though normally, we wouldn't really chat a lot while working, the difference is pronounced knowing that his presence lies elswhere.
Nagpapaka-profound na namana ako...

To sum it all up, i miss Aldrich.

If we ever change offices, then this will be how it'll feel like. I hope that it won't be like this forever though. Coz when someone's bugging me in the office, i can always pop him or go to his cube and tell him about it. Times like now, i'd have to text him or wait to see him at the end of the day.

Oh well, it's just a matter of getting used to if ever.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

The State of Being...

Just feeling weird...

"Na-eewan", an emotional state that guys usually can't understand; especially the actions that ensue from such state.

Na-eewan ako..and i dont' really know why. No one really knows exactly why.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Last Song Syndrome

Last Song Syndrome

Listen to the song here: http://www.worshipmusic.com/23719.html

All I Once Held Dear (Knowing You)

All I once held dear, built my life upon
All this world reveres, and wars to own
All I once thought gain I have counted loss
Spent and worthless now, compared to this

Chorus:
Knowing you, Jesus
Knowing you, there is no greater thing
You're my all, you're the best
You're my joy, my righteousness
And I love you, Lord

Now my heart's desire is to know you more
To be found in you and known as yours
To possess by faith what I could not earn
All-surpassing gift of righteousness

Oh, to know the power of your risen life
And to know You in Your sufferings
To become like you in your death, my Lord
So with you to live and never die

Friday, January 20, 2006

Shiny and New

New Stuff

I got another hand-me-down phone from one of my brothers. It's a Sony Ericsson T630 in Liquid Black.


I actually like it very much and am starting to forget that there's a black mole the size of a droplet of water on the LCD, hehehe, that's why my bro didn't want it anymore. But hey, there are workarounds for almost everything and good thing that this is one of them. How do i read my text messages? Scroll up and down to read the covered text or if there's nothing to scroll, i either understand based on context clues or reply and include the message to see the hidden word. Every message is a whole new challenge!

New Activities

I was chosen to be one of the backup singers for our Sunday church gathering, sort of a mass, although im not sure if that's what ours is called since i usually hear it in chinese. Anyway, i don't really have a high voice coz i sing in alto and sound more like a guy but i can always fake it. There is the falsetto and since i'm just a backup singer, my task is simply to blend in and not let my voice be outstandingingly heard. I think our newer church songs are getting better now, they have a modern beat similar to the songs we hear on the radio (with class of course) ;p

New Team

Now i'm hybrid. After being borrowed from the testing team, I'm now a half Tier 2 Manila and Tier 3 Prod Support! I take this as a challege but of course there are times that i confuse myself and do not know which folder to look into my files...crazy workaholic rambling...

Saturday, January 07, 2006

Certified Workaholic

Certified Workaholic

Ever since i got assigned to be on Tier 2 Manila Team in Prod Suport, i think i've slowly become a workaholic (or more if that is possible). Since there was a deluge of tickets from customers, nearly 100% of our time was required if we wanted to go home early, and that's what i tried to give. I think i've been on the working groove since i got back from my 10 day holiday vacation. I was even surprised last night that it was Friday, which meant that there was no 'tomorrow' to continue working on the tickets, tsk tsk. I don't even surf the net anymore or check my mails since it usually breaks my concentration.

I'm in b_connected now in Greenbelt 4 and have decided to check my personal mails, sites and update my blog too. It's kinda funny coz 95% of the people here are playing 'games' and are also guys so they're talking to each other out loud in their seats. It doesn't really bother me much, but just amuses me.

***

Fading fad

Right now, friendster has lost it's appeal, if only i could easily transfer pictures from a camera to the pc, then i'd probably update my friendster pictures more often. I have a new pic actually, with a huge stuffed toy in Gateway mall that you'll see sitting in a chair when you go up the escalator.


***

Harry Potter Obessession

I think i'm a bit too late for this but after watching Harrry Potter 4, the best Harry Potter movie by far, my desire to continue reading book 5 was reignited. I actually stopped in chapter 3 or so of The Order of the Phoenix a while back since it was dragging but Aldrich told me that the more exciting parts started in the middle of the book and continued till the end so i decided to give it a shot. After book 5, i was hungry for The Half-Blood Prince and after finishing that, i knew that it's stil quite a long wait till the next and final book arrives. So, i've decided to reread all the Harry Potter books to gather as much clues as i can on what would possibly transpire in the final book. J.K Rowling promises to answer 'most' of the questions for her finale.

***

New Year's Resolution

I'm on diet again, what's new? For a few months last year, i've decided to stop dieting coz i didn't really feel the need anymore. I used to diet before coz i felt that if i was thinner, i'd be more appreciated, accepted, etc. But after about 6 years of dieting, i've finally seen the light. I accepted and appreciated myself for who i am and realized that i needn't diet to achieve that. So why am i dieting again? I don't want to buy new clothes anymore, hahaha! I also had my blood chemistry checked and have couple of things over the limit and according to the BMI charts: i'm obese! hahaha! Well, so far, i've lost 1 pound in the first week that i've started dieting: less junk, less rice, more greens and other fibers, too. It's quite a challenge but i know i'll pull through. :)

KTV

Before i end this post, i just want to say that my brother gave my mom a portable karaoke mic for Christmas! He actually has the Xtreme Magic Sing which he bought from Raon for 8k and we enjoyed using it during Christmas eve. But when we found out that it was that expensive, we lost hope in buying one for ourselves. I must say that my bro is really nice coz he knows how much my mom loves to sing and i also like singing even if i don't really have a great voice, and he gave us a generic karaoke mic with 1000 songs! Cool! Doesn't matter what brand it is, as long as it has songs that we can singalong to! It was really a happy new year for my mom and the rest of the family :)

What's up? How's it going?

January 2025 became a positive turning point. I was still on edge when we went back to the Philippines for Chinese New Year. I didn't wa...