Friday, May 30, 2003
Ano ba talaga, Kuya?
Based from yesterday's reaction to the General Assembly, we're asking why aren't people happy when management announced that we'll be getting a 15th month bonus.
Hello! Isn't this is what we're asking for, that they reward us for all that we did for the past year? Shouldn't we all jump up and down! What's bothering me is why did this get a response that is something short of excitement. Is it because we haven't absorbed it completely or, worse, that we just don't care?
2:32 PM
Anticipation
30 May 2003. Sweldo time.
It's as if I'm forever logged in to Equitable's Fastnet website checking if the my money's already posted. What's there is still P43.20. That's odd because it's usually in by this time.
I hope they post it now so I could run to bank and withdraw, or else I won't have anything in my wallet over the weekend. My new ATM card's still worthless. I upgraded it into a debit card (A Visa Electron) and it won't be activated until Tuesday next week.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed and my car keys ready. Feet, don't fail me now.
Wish me luck!
2:10 PM
Wednesday, May 28, 2003
Ang lakas ng ulan pero tuloy pa rin ang ligaya -- may pasok pa rin kami sa opisina. Pinauwi na kami kahapon nang alas-tres dahil sa lakas at mukhang mas malakas pa yata ngayon. Tuloy, lahat kami dito ay naghihintay sa kanilang announcement.
Mukhang ang problema yata'y dahil karamihan mga nagdedesisyon nito'y hindi pa nasusubukang mamasahe kung bumabagyo. Kung kaya't huli na rin kung mamaya pang hapon idedeklara dahil halos wala nang sasakyan pauwi at baha na ang kalye dadaanan.
11:29 AM
Sunday, May 25, 2003
Quotable Quote
Me talking to April on Carambs
April, I think she's my NEO - she's The One.
9:26 AM
Wednesday, May 21, 2003
Top 10 signs they're forcing you to have a healthy office environment
(Answer to Caramba's post)
10. They're replacing the office bar's draft beer dispenser with a light beer dispenser.
9. Instead of serving coffee during meetings, they're giving out Biguerlai slimming tea.
8. Three words: Monday Night Jogs
7. Heaviest employee of the month gets a Belo Medical Group Gift Cheque.
6. The microwave in the office pantry has a built-in calorie counter.
5. People who have cars have this bumper sticker: Lose Weight Now. Ask Me How.
4. Each department gets a weighing scale
3. There's a memo reminding everyone to keep it down while using the treadmill during office hours.
2. Employee with the biggest weight loss in a year does not get to date Manny Pangilinan. Ever.
1. Your body weight is part of your yearly targets.
7:43 PM
Tuesday, May 20, 2003
I'm taking the day off today from work and the reason I placed in the leave form is "personal chores" (also known as getting my driver's licence and having Chai tested for smoke emission).
If I were in Batangas it wouldn't be so much of a bother. I'd just tell my mom's driver to take care of this. But that's just not the case anymore so I have to experience first-hand the wonderful world of government offices. God help me.
The question that I have in mind right now is why do we renew our vehicle registration every year when we only renew our driver's license every three years? To make the process lighter for the government office renowned for its "efficiency", shouldn't the Land Transportation Office also adapt a once-every-three-years vehicle registration?
Oh! I forgot to factor in the red tape and corruption. If registration would be done every three years, how would fixers, stencilers, and emission testers earn a living?
Wonderful.
8:19 AM
Monday, May 19, 2003
So it's not that Amazing?
"Ah, they got that." This is the Smart people's reaction when we told them that two of our officemates got the Smart Amazing Phone.
"So is it good?"
"Well, it runs like a PC," they replied.
Funny because I was really thinking of getting one.
Hmmm. Come to think of it the phones they were using were mostly Nokia 7650's.
3:36 PM
Forwarded Text Message
I don't know who sent me this text message. The number isn't listed in my phone's address box. Nevertheless, it gave me a good laugh this morning.
Erap: Doc, I accidentally swallowed a chicken bone!
Doctor: Is it choking?
Erap: No, it's Max's.
Doctor: I don't mean Chowking. I said are you choking?
Erap: No Doc, I'm serious!
Reminds me of his Excellency's old blog, The Secret Diary of Erap Estrada. Too bad it doesn't exist anymore.
3:07 PM
Friday, May 16, 2003
I am not a Janice de Belen fan, (I'm not even a fan of any local artista!) but I must applaud her for her performance in last night's feature in GMA's Magpakailanman. I was suprised that there is depth and angst in her acting -- something rare in today's circus of stars. I hope she matures more with the craft.
11:09 AM
Thursday, May 15, 2003
Chai's OK! Her preventive maintenance is over and I'm picking her up after lunch! How much did the whole thing cost, you ask? A freaking nine thousand, one hundred twenty two pesos! As the great Jaws Mamangon would say, "this is highway holdup"!
Today is Matrix day, and people will be flocking to the movie theaters to see this much-awaited sequel to 1999's surprise blockbuster hit. I'm sure there are no more seats left in Ayala Center's Sureseats.com. If it were not for the appointments and the things I have to do today, I would've taken the day off with my honey to see it! Hmmm. I wonder if they'd give us a Watch Matrix Reloaded leave.
For those who've seen it already, please don't post any spoilers in the comment box. I even had to stop myself from reading Time's article on the movie.
11:18 AM
Wednesday, May 14, 2003
Trip to Honda
I took Chai (a.k.a. my car) to Honda Cars in Libis for her 60,000-kilometer preventive maintenance. She's not allowed on the streets today so I had to wake up at 5:30 in the morning to take her there before the 7:00 am effectivity of the number coding scheme. They estimated this work will cost me around P5,000. Ouch! Well, I'd rather have that than being stuck in middle of EDSA with mechanical problems.
I also saw the 2003 Honda City. One word to describe it: pogi. I like the styling. The front sections angle seems as if it was borrowed from a minivan. The rear looks more regal than the latest model of their Civic.
I have to say this first: finally Honda offered dual airbags as an option. I know, it should have been standard, but I'm sure we'll get there soon. At least there's a choice.
For legroom, the City is still cramped. No amount of interior dashboard styling can make the backseat people forget that they can't feel their legs anymore. It's OK if you're a family guy and you drive your kids to school, but you should sell it the moment he enters high school, unless, of course, he's as short as Weng weng.
For 2003, the City goes back to its 1.3-liter engine. Just right for smooth driving in the metro, but leaves much to be desired when driving in the Southern Tagalog Access Road in Batangas. It makes you wonder what happened to the 1.5-liter version.
What's new in this year's City is the sports mode option called CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission). It's similar to Mitsubishi's INVECS II system, wherein you can shift gears even if it's an automatic transmission. What's good is you need not hold the stick shift to change gears because the shifting control buttons are located in the steering wheel!
I was a bit surprised when I checked out how must it costs. A unit is priced at around P600,000 - a bit expensive for an economy car. The previous model debuted in 1999 with a P550,000 price tag. But if you're to compare it with the prices of sedans these days, I'd say the City's OK.
Normally I would recommend it because it seems a good buy. Honda has a good track record with their products, but with the new CVT system still unproven in the metro's streets I'd recommend that buyers adapt a wait and see stance.
11:43 AM
Monday, May 12, 2003
I hate that Dove commercial on TV. It's the one with the fat girl. I'm not exactly sure what she said exactly so please do correct me, but I think it's something like "ang taba-taba ko nga, ang pangit ko pa." What vales are they teaching our society - that fat women virtually have zero chances of landing on a guy if they're ugly, too? What a bunch of crap!
8:40 AM
Friday, May 09, 2003
On SARS scare, Jan Ulrich, Quizzila, and Dranreb Belleza
First it was her, now I, too, have sore throat. What's next - colds and then fever? I'm sorry. I can't help but feel praning. I guess just about everyone in this country is on their toes with this whole SARS thing.
Now here's another story totally not related to the SARS thing.
There's a possibility that Jan Ullrich, 1997 Tour de France champion and Lance Armstrong's biggest rival, might not have a chance to stop the American's bid for a fifth Tour de France title. UCI, the cycling governing body, suspended his team from joining any professional bicycle races until they've settled all the unpaid wages of their cyclists. Without him, Lance's bid for his 5th Tour de France title is more or less guaranteed. As I see it, only his former USPS teammate Tyler Hamilton, now with CSC-Tiscali, can challenge him, winning back-to-back the Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Tour of Romandie.
"You've been blogging since 2000 and you haven't taken quizzes?!" That was what Charo said. She just couldn't believe that I'm not aware of Quizilla, the website full of quizzes ranging from serious to just plain wacky. So what I did today while waiting for the DTI person was I logged in to the site. Now I'm hooked. It is has almost every stupid quiz that you can think of, and you can put it in your blog! What's cool is you can even make your own quiz! O ha!
Talking about Charo, her friend, Shirley, said I look like Jayvee Gayoso. Moby, my officemate, say I look like Dranreb Belleza. My friends say I look like Saddam. My lola said I look like an anak ng Italyano. Ano ba talaga?
Anyway, it's a Friday today, thank God! Now I have the whole weekend to relax and spend some quality time with my honey.
5:14 PM
Thursday, May 08, 2003
Getting an HP Kayak doesn't make you a better graphic designer any more than getting a full Shimano XTR bike makes me a great biker.
11:04 AM
Wednesday, May 07, 2003
Renting VHS Players
I really feel bad not lending my VHS player to my friend, Morny, last night. I should have, but I didn't.
Just talked with Charo. She said that her VHS player's free, in case Morny needs it. But that's not the point.
If it were for personal use, I'd gladly give it to him without thinking twice. But I know that he's going to use it for transcribing lines for the Urian production, and that's another matter - it's work.
Call me evil, but I think it's a little unfair for him to accept the job and then think of how he'll do it. I wouldn't want to think that he plans to rely on his friends for this. Hell, I even think it's not good for him to do his work at home. He should do his work in their office.
You see, Urian isn't paying for his electricity at home. Well, not directly, at least. And they're not paying for my VHS player rental, too.
Am I being too selfish and unreasonable here?
12:08 PM
Monday, May 05, 2003
Wishful Thinking
What's the use of scheduling the conference room if it won't be followed anyway? I booked it days in advance, but come today when we're supposed to do the presentation, another group is using it. Wait a minute! Shouldn't be the people who implemented this whiteboard system do something about this situation?
4:58 PM
Forwarded Mail
I got this one from Kayen
12:10 PM
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