mah christmas

am planning to have the simplest christmas in my entire life...

i dont know if i can do it, but i still have 3 more days to make it happen...

and by then, lets see how it goes...

now, i just want to pray for the people who were affected by typhoon sendong... mah heart and prayers goes with all of you... just have faith as God will always show us the way...

wow ellen!!!

when i checked mah youtube account... one of mah friend recommended this link to me...

i was so surprised at the same time elated that he can still remember that this was one of my fave part of  ellen degeneres show... and what made it special was i told mah friend years back... dang! i so lovin mah friend now... indeed true friends never failed to forgot some of the most cheesiest part of mah life, hahahaha.....

therefore, as a fan of so you think you can dance (us series), this really made mah day... the last part of the video was indeed oh so super...

xoxo!!! kudos to ellen...

what makes you beautiful

finally... the wait is over...

their new single, WHAT MAKES YOU BEAUTIFUL... from mah fave boyband now, ONE DIRECTION!!!

ENJOY!!!

movie review... bridesmaids 2011

yes ok... i know that the harry potter fever is still in the air and i should go with the wave and write something about it... though am contemplating of doing mah own potter critique, circumstances change when somehow i accidentally watched this very good movie earlier... and i decided to go against the flow and write something about this movie instead...

i cant remember the last time i watched a comedy film which revolves around the wedding theme... and it will be very hard for someone to convince me to watch this type of movies in big screens as my standard for this kind of movie is very high... eventually at first glance, bridemaids would certainly pass mah criteria of a DVD worthy flick... the only reason i watched this is because that's the only movie i can watch in mah free time between mah class... and luckily, this movie really exceeds mah expectations and inspired me to write about it...

the movie revolves around Annie (played by Kirsten Wiig) and how her life was suddenly tossed upside down when her childhood friend Lillian (played by Maya Rudolph) chose her to become her maid of honor... the story seems simple though, but what made it interesting is the injection of Helen, Lillian's bestfriend, in the picture and how Annie and Helen struggle to outdo each other in proving to Lillian who's her best bestfriend ever... the characters in the movie reminds me of the characters in the tv series, desperate housewives... Annie as Lynette Scavo, Helen as Gabrielle Solis and Lillian as Susan Mayer... and when this three characters are put into one movie, the story will surely be a bomb...

overall, i certainly agree that this movie is a marriage of genuine characters, gross out gags, and pathos as this wedding-driven comedy surely refuses to be boxed in and may rival the position of my bestfriends wedding as the best wedding-driven comedy ever...

also, the holywood critics are saying that bridesmaids is a comedy movie that is raunchy and fearless, brilliantly written and shrewdly honest about what’s really going on in women’s lives.

finally, i must say that this movie is well worth of mah time and mah penny.... a movie that will definitely give you a good laugh from start to end and makes you cherish more the different aspects of true friendship... a movie that i will certainly recommend to my friends... i give this movie 4.5 out 5..

the day my life is torn...

in memory of....

JOHN DAVID M. MANLISES

Feb 15, 1980 - July 14, 2002

--- o 0 o 0 o 0 o 0 o 0 o ---

(excerpts from E! life story, 2002) 

 ... thundering clouds awaken me in the middle of mah sleep.. i tried to sleep again but i have this anxious feeling deep within me... i was guessing that it was just the feeling of excitement that kicks in as i know that i'll be visiting him that day... though i tried to stay calm for the rest of the night, there was this moment that bugs me that i just cant get back to sleep....

by morning, though i felt tired, my adrenalin is at utmost high because again, i'll be with him... i just cant thank the Lord that he's finally getting well and will be back home in few days...

on my way, i bought him the latest craze in town, the summit flavoured water... that was what i promised him the last time we've talked....

in the jeepney ride, i suddenly felt some discomfort... it seems that something bothers me and i can't reckon what... as soon as i arrived in the hospital, i felt that i was just dragging mah self... mah footsteps became heavy... mah heart pounded fast.... and then out of nowhere am having cold sweats...

in the elevator, it seems that the ride to the 6th floor took years... when i stepped out, mah phone vibrates... i looked at it and it was a message from my bestfriend's sister...

then i asked mahself, "why would she message me?"...

in that moment mah hands trembles and mah heart pounded much faster... then i felt to weak to open the message...

i summoned all the happy thoughts i can think of that time to built courage within me.... to make me believe that it was just a normal message...

then it reads.... "kuya passed away last night..."

the feeling of world crumbling in mah shoulder felt upon me as i dropped the bottle i carried and i just felt mah whole strength totally gone... i succumbs in the abyss of agony and the hurt within me was unbearable....

the pain made mah body numb and i just cant find the right words to say...

i cant believe that he was gone...

mah bestfriend, mah partner, mah brother... 

now gone...

a very sad moment when God finally decided to take what was ours for a while and will always be His forever...

good luck to me...

i've been busy downloading new tv series and movies this past few weeks... (i mean legal downloads ok! i paid for it, hahahaha).... and after i finished downloading mah almost 300GB of files, i am ready to transfer it to mah external HD for mobility... then whola! this window appeared when i transferred mah first folder...

dang!!! i guess there's something wrong with mah cable, hahahaha!!!!

GOOD LUCK TO ME INDEED!!!!

oh so rejoice!!!

when i opened my youtube account earlier, i ran across sandara's park rejoice commercial... and then it hit me... mah old self kicks me and i started reminiscing the old days... the old days where this jingle ads where so addicting... >darn! am getting gay again with this blog... :-)<

so back to my story, one of mah fave ads before was for the rejoice shampoo tv commercial... where girls with smooth silky long hair, top-billed by a beautiful and gorgeous local talent, sing and dance on an upbeat song that tells a hairstory... the initial tv commercial was an instant success and paved way to more rejoice singles... all the singles were so addicting that everyone looks forward for this ads in tv and certainly flares up any tv programs that carries the rejoice ads... a phenomenon that changes how shampoo ads are created for tv....

i remember that almost all my friends starts to sing and dance along everytime this ad is played on TV... and even years after the ads were aired on tv, i can vividly remember mah old office team singing this song every time we were bored and this time i sing and dance with them...

dang! how i wish we had this kind of ads here... am gettin bored with the lifeless ads here and how i praise the artistry in the type of ads we played in our country....

well without further ado, here are the different rejoices ads that flared philippine tv... and get the dancing shoes out then dance along to these wonderful jingles... :-)

Instant Ayos Jingle feat Mish Maravilla

Straight na Natural Jingle feat Gandakada Girls (Hazel, Jill and Isabel)

Kering Keri Jingle feat Kim Chui

Sunod sa Galaw Jingle feat Jaboom Twins

Walang Sabit Jingle Feat Sandara Park (mah personal fave!)

mah big day!!!!!

today is a beautiful day... the best time to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone as i did not realize how big my yesterday was not until i saw the overwhelming number of messages that greeted me in my phone, email, twitter and facebook today...

though i miss the surprise party that my friends prepares for me (i badly miss Ash and Macoy during this days), i did not have a big party like anyone would have when they turn another decade of their life as i celebrated my bday in the most special way i knew it could be.. i chose to spend it with my cousins who were on their last day of visiting us from filo... and it was a blast indeed... a whole day of eating and laughing until they board their plane bound to manila...

therefore, i would like to start my sincere appreciation to my family, whom in their own way, made my day special.... thanks dad and tita tess for the ripcurl jacket and dunlop shoes, mah bro and sis for the sumptuous thai lunch and manay kathy and manoy wyn for the afternoon max brenner treat....

to mah family back home, thank you... mah little angelic imp, be nice to your lola ok... i love you both... tita mila and the rest of mah tito and tita, thanks for the call... it surely made mah day....


to mah kapatids whom i badly misses the most; macoy, ash, elmer, mymy and calay.. i dont know what to say, just the thought of remembering you all and what you could have done for mah bday never fails to put tears in mah eyes....

and to all my friends back home, your thoughtful messages reverberates and made me the most important person for the day... my big hugz and kisses to everyone... all you've done for mah special day really means so special to me... you all made me feel so important and loved...

i know that my birthday will just be the beginning of another year filled with happy memories, wonderful moments and shining dreams..... and i thank God for this wonderful blessing and i could not ask for more...

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!

ipis.. oh ipis....

darn! it's so good to be back... term 1 of uni life is finally over and now i can get back the 18hrs / day free time stolen by mah studies during those term... and whola! the first thing i did is to revisit all mah fave blogs and be updated with them once again...

then after reading blogs over blogs over blogs, i run through yoshke's blog (which i would say mah fave blogger) where he wrote an artistic literary about mah personal enemy... the ipis... yes oh yes!!! ipis aka cockroach... i so hate them that no matter how well i compose mahself, a mere sight of them would definitely make me scream to the top of mah lungs... so embarrassing definitely!...

and yoshke's blog dealt with the ipis in a funny way... it indeed gave me a a good laugh in the early hours of the morning...

and yes, after several months in deep slumber, i chose to come back with this article because i believe that sharing a hearty laughter with everyone is a good thing to tell that indeed i am finally back...

so happy reading everyone....

-------



One of my college friends called my attention to a certain blog post we posted back in the day. I’d actually forgotten about it already. But now that I’m reading it again, I just can’t help laughing. And I’m sharing it with you. However, I apologize to all my Pinoy readers as some parts are in Tagalog and I kept it that way. Translating it would just ruin it.

HOW TO TORTURE AN IPIS
by Pam Condeno

1. Pour Green Cross alcohol.
2. Get encyclopedia and drop it right on the target. Make sure it finds itself in a very AWKWARD situation where it will render itself confused, disturbed, and a bit in a vertigo state.
3. Make sure when it flies, you have an alcohol with you and swish it to make it pilay.

HOW TO KILL IPIS (especially with wings)
by KZ Ottara

1. Camouflage with the wall
2. Grab a slipper
3. ATTACK!!!
4. Step on the slipper to make piga
5. LEAVE OVERNIGHT FOR MORE FLAVOR!

HOW TO KILL COCKROACHES IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE HOUSE
by Reen Ladignon

1. Slam foot on ipis. (Said foot should be wearing a shoe or slipper.)
2. If ipis is on wall, take off shoe or slipper and make sapak the ipis.
3. If ipis is on kisame, get walis and swish at the ipis to make it fall down. Then proceed to number 1 or 2.
4. If Reen sees ipis while she is washing dishes outside their house, then she makes squirt-squirt it with dishwashing liquid and pours the dirty water on it. See them scatter. If ipis crawls near the hand, grab the nearest kawali and slap it on the ipis. Do nothing if it crawls down the drain.
5. If ipis is flying, grab a Baygon can and spray mercilessly towards the ipis. You will be momentarily disgusted at seeing the legs of the ipis in all their glory nearing toward you—but then you will soon have the satisfaction seeing the ipis make gewang-gewang as it falls to the ground.
All done while screaming like a headless chicken.


HOW TO MASSACRE A COCKROACH
(with illustrations which unfortunately cannot be replicated here)
by Glenn Ituriaga

1) Grab the ipis by the feelers.
2) Make hulog the ipis in a bottle of muriatic acid. Plug the bottle.
3) Turn the bottle upside-down and watch the ipis slowly melt away…

YOU’RE SO KADIRS (An Open Letter to an Ipis)
by Ace Mella

Bago mag-alas nueve ng gabi…

Oh ipis. You’re so kadirs. That’s why I can’t touch you. That’s why I can’t get near you. That’s why I can’t make buhos the Green Cross, make tapak the you, make hampas, make sabon, make tunaw, not even make hawak.

All I can do is stare while you crawl oh so near, wishing so hard that thou shall not go super near as in almost touching the skin of mine. ‘Coz you’re so kadirs.

But despite this what I said when thou tries to invade the privacy of mine, for example, making paramdam whilst I speaking on the phone, especially during the wee hours of the night, I shall summon all courageousness of mine, grab a shoe, a slipper, or a frying pan, and smash thee and all thy kadiriness.

Only wish the I that thy green juiciness shall not dikit on the murder weapon of mine.

‘Coz you’re so kadirs.

Always,
Ace

HOW I KILLED 3 COCKROACHES, A Poem
by Pam Condeno, the Ipis Queen

Heavy rain made the ipises come out
13 arrived at my house
Big, fat, flying ipises bombarded it
So I got 3 encyclopedias
But first I wore my Jazz Pants
Then my jacket with the hood and then I cried
Got the Green Cross alcohol and
Dropped it onto the ipises
So they were all SMASHED.

------

so how will you kill your ipis??? :-)

on break

i have not written anything for the past two months...

i know i promised that i will write at least once a week, but my current schedule is making it impossible...

currently i am juggling my schedule between my two jobs and masteral studies and i can only squeeze at least an hour a day for my online thingy (FB is eating much of my allotted time for internet)...

this next two weeks, my finals for the first term of my studies is fast approaching and i really dont know if i can be online everyday... therefore, i will bid adieu for now and i will be back with a bang this june...

CIAO!!! :-) 

holy week 2011

this is mah first official holy week down under and i must say i just missed observing this very important week back home... though the culture is very much different, i made my own way to make this holy week meaningful...

this was also the first time that i completed the easter triduum... it started with Maundy Thursday... then a visita iglesia on a Good Friday and capped with the Easter Vigil a day after...

now i say in my own little way, i believe that i made some life reflections during the past three days which will surely help me in living my everyday life...

i thanked our Lord Almighty for all the blessings and i will continue living my life according to His will....

greetings: mah lovable bro

haizt, April 16... mah little bro's birthday... little, hmmmmm... eons ago maybe... but he'll always be mah little bro... so, i really dont know what to say... its past half the month already and all i have is my two blogs about birthday greets... well, i will not write anything about any excuses for now and i need to concentrate in writing about mah brother... :-)

--

well, to start with... i believe, though he said he is not, mah brother is known for his hot-headedness… once he made up his mind, it would be very hard to persuade him out of it... but despite that, he always put his love ones close to his heart... and don't even dare to put a finger to anyone special to him or you may see the dark side in him... he is a principled man that never tolerates injustice, naks!....

mah bro value all aspect of love so much that consciously or unconsciously, the intensity of his action in defending everyone he loves can sometimes harm his own life... that is why i so love him so much! :-)

i may say that my brother has this leader trait in him... he never wait for orders rather he take initiatives...

also my brother is a firm believer... without thinking much of the consequences, he dare to stand for what he believes in.

well, one thing i cant deny... him being intelligent... they said it comes naturally to the arians (of course same with cancerians too, hehehe)...  he has this sharpness that never fail to impress those around him...maybe that is why he is an accountant... :-)

likewise, what i like about mah brother is that he is very simple and straight forward...  he acts independently and believes in direct approach... he really love his freedom and easily get irritated if his privacy is broken... 

finally, i can ask anything i want from him, though his reply does not reflects what is in his mind, because sometimes he says no but at the end he gives in to mah request  (that is why sometimes i take advantage of him, joke! hehehe)...

today will be a very long day for me because i'll cook for mah bro and we will make this day a very special day for him... i only wish him more success and happiness in his life... hopefully, no more dramas for a long time... i love you always bro!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

greetings: macoy

our story begins 4years ago, when he first stepped into our operations floor... he was a new trainee doing floor tour in our account... i was tasked to welcome their batch and that was the first time i saw him... what catches mah attention was this unique aura in him that he easily stands out among the crowd... yeah, he is good looking, and no question about that... but there was this mysterious part that makes me interested to know him more...

so fast forward, after their training, he made it into our account... though my interest in him remains, my personality kicks in... the shy type in me prevails.... so i did nothing... and since i am not that type of person who would approach someone...  our frequent interaction was just the simple "hi-hello"...

then we finally had a chance to have a real conversation through our common friend Tinnie... Tinnie was his supervisor that time and she was one of my close friend in our account (though she's also new to the company, we easily get at ease with each other)...

from that moment, the connection started... and fast forward, he became one of special person in mah life... part of mah extended family... though our personalities pulls opposite way, we have this common understanding in respecting those differences that makes our relationship stronger...

in the past four years, i can quantify 4 words that speaks highly of him.... adventurous, fiery, brilliant and spirited... i can significantly remember him of his straightforwardness.. he is very much direct in his speech, often outspoken and very undiplomatic (sowee!), that is why i easily fall into arguments with him which surely i cant win... :-)

if he aspire for something, he will not give up and try his level best until he achieve what he wants... that is why i think he stayed in my previous company... :-) i remember that i did not approve of what he plans to achieve, i gave him better options to explore his career and warned him of the storm he will face if he pursue with his plans but i failed... i know that he does not look for external approval especially when it comes to achieving success... and i guess, he just want to prove himself to himself that he can achieve what he wants... and at the end... yes, he succeed and i was wrong...

and yes, he loves to be liked and praised... it is very much necessary to appreciate and praise him openly to keep him very happy... furthermore, he is a cheerful spender and like to spend a lot of money buying new stuff and unique items, big YES especially to clothes... if he's down and want to be cheered up, bring him to a shopping spree... :-) but remember, second hand items, used stuff is out of the equation... he's intent are for buying first hand, first class and branded new items...

if you want to make him mad.... do just one thing... ignore him.... if he felt that he's ignored, he'll definitely loose his temper... if he said he's hungry, he means that he immediately require food or else his patience will be gone in a zap... he likes to be attended first or his interest will pass out and worst, may end up quarreling for nothing... to top that, he does not like admitting to his mistake and personal failures...

when i get lucky in times that he admit his mistake... he admit it silently and will not express it to anyone and be vocal about it... this is the worst time in giving him advice, so i might as well just listen to him...

lastly, there is certainly one thing that makes me like him the most... he keeps his loved ones on a high pedestal... he is very much thoughtful, generous and caring... the attention he gives is unparalleled...  if pushed, he can defend everyone he loves even till death...

wow, i cant believe time travels so fast and despite all of my shortcomings... you stayed with me through everything... i cant imagine living my life now without you on it... and i thank you for all of our wonderful experience together... as you open a new chapter in your life... i would like to assure you that i will always be here for you... i will be your shoulder to cry on and your ears to whine upon... and i wish you a great day and have a blast on your special day (though am sad that i cant be there to be part of your big 3-0 celebration).... 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

the sad truth being a filipino . .

browsing the blogosphere, i happened to read a blog that clearly explain why Philippines is still in the bottom list of ASEAN countries... our country is literally lagging behind our neighbors and the sad truth is that it is our fault... and this is all because of our Filipino mentality... our mentality shines so bright and reverberates across all oceans and blinds us all in the process... we are so proud of this mentality that even following a simple rule of law is out of the question... i remember that there was a philosopher who says, "nothing is above the rule of law"... law needs to be set for order to precedes... and breaking this golden rule will cause an avalanche in the rapid decay of our country...

though i believe we can still make Philippines rise again, its a matter of when will we act for this to make it happen...

- - -

There is very little evidence that Filipinos are capable of living by the “rule of law”. The society is quite extraordinary in the sense that simple rules and regulations whether on the road or in the work place are for the most part ignored. This is because each individual has this baseless sense of being more important than everybody else. It is why you see people cutting you off on highway lanes on the road or pushing their way in lines ahead of the rest in a queue. In other words, Filipinos in general tend to put their own interest first before other people.

As a blogger, I quite often come across commentators who cannot even follow simple commenting guidelines. There are some participants in the blogosphere who constantly violate the guidelines by consistently writing obscenities and foul language on forums just to give the impression that they are above the guidelines. The funny thing is, being moderated does not even stop them from misbehaving. They even cry foul for being moderated instead of conforming to the guidelines.

This brings us to another world-renowned Filipino mentality — the “victim” mentality. Filipinos are good at playing the “victim card” because they are very sensitive and emotional people. They play the victim card in front of the public to get as much attention as possible. Filipinos always try to get around following any rules and regulations or even simple guidelines by appealing to emotion.

Filipino victim mentality was quite evident in the case of a group of nurses in the US who reportedly filed a discrimination complaint when their employer called their attention for speaking too much in their native Tagalog at work. Victim mentality was also quite evident in the way the Philippine government tried to intervene and stop the execution of three drug mules that were sentenced to death in China for violating their anti-drug rule. Likewise, victim mentality is definitely evident in the way the incumbent President, Noynoy Aquino (PNoy) cries foul whenever he is criticized for decisions that were obviously not thought through very well.

It is quite interesting to note that some Filipinos would rather act like idiots than follow the rules. They always want to find an easy way out of a situation. They want to make uncomplicated things complicated. This brings us to another world-renowned Filipino trait: “lack of discipline.”

Filipinos in general are incapable of any form of discipline because they focus more on form rather than substance. In short, they want to stand out. They lack the discipline to engage in discussions in a civilized way and lack the discipline to not turn a public forum into a circus. This is why issues do not get resolved. This is a consistent observation — from every Senate inquiry being broadcast to the Filipino public down to the most benign discussions in the blogosphere, Filipinos love honking their horns.

Worse, Filipinos in general feel a strong sense of entitlement to relax or “chill-out” even when there is still so much to do to move the country forward. Instead of discussing solutions seriously and in detail during their spare time, Filipinos would rather spend it fooling around — never mind that societies from great nations like China, Japan and South Korea have historically shown that being more serious and devoting more of their time to solving problems yields better results in the long term.

From the top guys and gals sitting behind desks at the Presidential office down to the tricycle driver down the road, everyone just wants to have “fun” in the Philippines first before tackling the problems of the land in a more serious manner. You can be forgiven for thinking that one hit wonder Wang Chung probably wrote the song “Everybody have fun tonight” for Filipinos. It can absolutely boggle the mind to wonder why Filipinos cannot limit switching to party mode when they are at an actual party.

Filipinos are proud of being a happy-go-lucky society and make it a point to show the rest of the world that they are coping with smiling faces despite the dire circumstances they face. This mentality shows that Filipinos are satisfied with mediocrity and find striving for excellence too daunting. A few remaining Filipinos who want to engage in a more serious discussions are even labeled “kill-joy” or “librarians.” Aside from their penchant for bullying when others don’t engage in “pakikisama,” Filipinos indeed, have a tendency to discriminate against more sober ways of tackling solutions.

Unfortunately, a 90 year old study by psychologist Dr Leslie Martin and his colleagues in California suggested that “too much of a sense that everything will be fine can be dangerous because it can lead one to be careless about things that are important to long life.” Likewise, the study also showed that those who are always optimistic take more gambles with their health. They were more likely to drink, smoke and eat badly, which is a typical characteristic of a Filipino. While prudent and persistent individuals are more cautious with their health and overall wellbeing – characteristics that are less likely to be found in Filipinos.

Filipinos have so much to learn from the Japanese. Despite the devastation that the people of Japan experienced due to the magnitude 8.9 earthquake that hit country and the killer tsunami that followed immediately after, people around the world admired the stoicism and orderly reaction of the Japanese. People in most societies would have found themselves wailing in misery and chaos after such destruction.

Maia Szalavitz in an article she wrote for TIME magazine aptly described how it works for the Japanese – they follow the belief that “others are at least on par with the self, if not more important.” Here’s an excerpt:

“In restaurants, you never pour your own sake, you have to notice whose glass is empty and you serve them. It’s these little rituals [that have prepared them for this crisis] so that even if you have one bowl of rice, you share it with a stranger.

The wonderful thing about the Japanese is that they are presenting an example of the pro-social power of the group. The group as a whole is saying explicitly or implicitly, this is what we do: no looting, no horn honking even if you’re in a 12 mile traffic jam, no complaining. [CNN's] Anderson Cooper said he’d never seen such calm in the face of such adversity.”

Not that Filipinos need copy what the Japanese do to a tee, but the most interesting thing to note about societies like Japan is that nobody has the desire to grandstand. Individuals do not want to show that they are more important than everybody else. This is in stark contrast to people in societies like the Philippines where people in general want to be the “star.” And this is the reason why some Filipinos think that they are above the “law” or above even just simple “guidelines.”

Discipline should be inculcated at an early age. If people are not taught how to follow rules and regulations when they are still young, they will be shocked to realize once they enter the “adult” world that they will have a hard time coping with life if they keep deviating from the rules that put order in society. Which is what is happening to most Filipinos now.

smart bro service by heckler

i am supposed to sleep hours ago but the sleep bug failed to bit me... so while waiting for the sleep bug to bite me again, i browsed the old blogs of Professional Heckler... and this specific blog of him about smart bro service really made my night...

this was the same problem that i've experienced too when i was a smart bro subscriber before... i just want to kick all the asses of Smart CSR for all their bs excuse... good thing that i'm not in Pinas to experience this stress anymore... i hope this time, they already fixed the damn base stations...

so enjoy a good laugh!!!

- - - - - -


Postscript to an Outburst

My SmartBro nightmare continued over the weekend. Last Saturday, my connection was disrupted twice. Yesterday (Sunday) four SmartBro customer service reps had to endure a buttf*cking sort of experience as I unleashed my frustration over the company’s mediocre service. Nope, I wasn’t mad. I was furious!

Here’s a sample transcript of the phone conversations. (And what I wanted to say but couldn’’t.)

SmartBro: Customer care hotline, this is Miss Invectives Absorber how may I help you?
Heckler: (Of course you cannot help me!) This is Mr. Vesuvius of Makati – again! My service reference number is blah-blah-blah.

SmartBro: Thanks for that info. What’s your concern sir?
Heckler: (Ah, nothing much. I just wanted to congratulate you and your colleagues there at the SmartBro Hotline Center because SmartBro has a f*cked up service thereby assuring you of a job as calls from irate subscribers will surely flood your lines!) My connection is disrupted – again! This is the fifth time it happened in six days and this is my third call today. Chances are you will tell me that there’s a technical problem at the base station.

SmartBro: Kindly hold on sir, I’ll just check your account.
Heckler: Sure. (As if I had a choice!)
 
SmartBro: Thank you for waiting. I’m sorry sir but there’s a technical problem at the base station. Kindly monitor your connection in 24 to 48 hours.
Heckler: [Of course, I expected you to say that! Come on, can’t you be more novel with your excuse? Your technical group has been fixing that freakin’ base station for weeks. Wala na bang katapusan ‘yan!) Ah ok! Thanks anyway.


Well, guess what. It would have been more helpful if Mr & Ms SmartBro customer service rep gave a more creative justification for their inefficient service. That could have somehow eased my frustration.

I was thinking of the following:

Top 5 Things to Tell An Irate SmartBro Subscriber If You Were A Customer Service Representative

5: “I won’t say sorry for our poor service Mr. Vesuvius. Lest you forget, SmartBro didn’t force you to be a subscriber. So stop whining or I’ll kick your dumb ass off this planet!”

4: “I’m sorry sir. But here’s a suggestion: why not try Globe Broadband? That’s the essence of competition and a deregulated telecoms industry, right?”

3: “I’m sorry sir but we’re just being consistent. Get used to it!”

2: “I’m sorry sir but our big boss, Manny Pangilinan is so preoccupied with his favorite pastime – basketball and basketball players. He doesn’t have that much time to check on the efficiency of SmartBro’s service. And he doesn’t really care if the people behind SmartBro are actually doing something to address the problem of poor service. Ang mahalaga, makapasok sa PBA finals ang Talk N’ Text.”

And the top thing to tell an irate SmartBro subscriber if you were a customer service representative:

1: “Sir, I know you’re frustrated with our service. And I am sincerely sorry for that. If you want, I can offer my personal service. Care to trade digits? Here’s mine: 0910-675-BLOW.”

when i dream of monarchy

maybe many would disagree with me when i say that constitutional monarchy is better over a republic... i dont know, maybe growing up in a torn republic made me sick and tired of the system... though i still have faith that my country would get back on its feet and slap me back and tell me you're fckin effin wrong *slap!!!!

Princess Diana

yes, no system is perfect... both system, monarchy or republic, have its pro's and con's... both maybe bad or good... both have its success stories and inevitable ending as our history would show us how many nation flip-flop between the two systems... but this blog would not argue which is the better between the two... i am writing this becuase i just want to share one of my dreams.. my love for monarchy....

Queen Elizabeth I

since childhood, i love reading history books.... i read a lot about different stories of royal families, their success and their failures and how they create and destroy their kingdom... and thru this, i grew up daydreaming about what it likes to be in their shoes... i am like this probably because i grew up in a neighborhood where poverty is an everyday eyesore... i so envy their lifestyle... and i told myself like in every child's dream, "soon i will be one of them"....

King Rama IX

impossible, but it did not stop me living that dream... as i grow up, sort of somehow i brought my dream to life... in every role play games i play with my friends... i would always be the King, or the Prince, and if sometimes the Emperor... funny because until now 20 years later, i still play that royalty role... in my online games, i am Duke Elmer, or Prince Adriagn, or Emperor Cutingcao, or Tsar Vlaughdiemyr.... and my personal favorite title was the Duke....

i was like saying that if i will live a royal life, i want to be a Duke.... why? i dont know the exact answer... i dont even know any Duke who is famous... maybe its just the royal title that strikes me... since i dont want the mostly used King or Prince... or the boring Lord or Baron... likewise, i remember that before i chose Duke, the other title that was running for selection were Count and Earl... and in the end, i settled for Duke...

Emperor Akihito

now, my dreams continue... though i know that never in my entire life will i be one of them... so i will just settle admiring them.... i so look forward in my country the time when there will be like Prince William of Wales who were adored by everyone, or King Rama who is the pillar of morality of Thailand, or maybe Emperor Akihito who will uplift our spirits in time of stress.... hmmmm, maybe Pinoys would have the Raja titles if we adopt this kind of system.... :-)

dang! enough of my dream now... i decided to write this blog because i am too stressed with my studies.... and while browsing the net, i remember that Prince William just visited Australia... so my royal love kicks in that made me write this dream of mine... sadly, Sydney was not a stop for his trip because if it was, well i'll be for sure part of the screaming crowd who would welcome him here... so with this note, i just want to end this by sharing one of my favorite speech of him...

why i so adore ninoy!

i would say if i live during the martial law years, i'll be a marcos loyalist... others would tend to disagree with me, but i dont know... maybe, i so like Marcos because of his uncanny intelligence... yes, i must admit that he failed, and he failed big time... whatever the reasons for his failure, i say i do forgive him already... i just see that with his failure, he brought the best out of our countrymen... he is not perfect, yes... but given a choice, his still one of the great president our country ever had... he lost his way, yes... and now he is considered part of the dark times of our country history...

though marcos was the devil during his time, i must also say that i do admire our politicians before on how they deal with him... and one of them is Ninoy Aquino... the father of our current president PNoy... the way he dealt with Marcos was so adorable that i so pity our current roster of politicians in the august hall of our senate... now, our politicians are just plain celebrities without brains... the speeches they are giving are just plain BS... the expose is just an expose without balls... and watching them is such a waste of time...

i look back in our past where the august bodies are dominated with people with intellects, and people with integrity... i so wish that our people would soon elect the likes of Tañada, Salonga, Diokno and Ninoy...

going back to Ninoy, mah blog would not be enough to express mah adoration to him.... and i will just share one of his best speeches that would simply summarize why i love him the same way i love Marcos.... this speech was given in the US during his exile, and though his anger to Marcos administration was uncanny, take note that he still commands respect in the way he deliver his speech...

i just wish and i hope to see the next Ninoy Aquino rise in our country and bring the country back to where it should really belongs...

hypocrisy of anti mining advocates

this specific blog am writing is inspired by my friend's friend, Rex Russel Colina... He wrote this note in his facebook profile and for this purpose, I will be lifting his words in expressing my own thoughts too about mining...though his note specifically targeted ABS-CBN, i believe that his points should be slapped not only to them but to the entire supporters of anti-mining advocacy in my beloved country, Philippines...

i firmly agree with him that there are many things in this world that are undesirable—pollution, corruption, poverty, discord, disease, and many others...  and what we often fail to include in the list is HYPOCRISY.

this word really hits the bone of many contentions, but I would like to focus this particular contention to the advocacy of anti-mining supporters... they claims to be against mining, and seems to be intent on bullying the mining industry.... Is there an ulterior motive? I have a strong reason to believe that there is…

But going back to hypocrisy, i categorically claim that all of the anti-mining supporters are hypocrites... all of you profess to be against mining and i would love to see the day that you practice what you preach...

It seems that those advocates are enjoying in bullying industries that have no media savvy, and are easy to bully.... what they failed to mention is that they should make the distinction between responsible and irresponsible mining.... yes, i may agree with them that irresponsible mining are wrecking havoc in our country but this reason would not be enough to categorically bad mouth the industry as a whole...  it's like saying all in the police department are bad... the mining industry is doing their very best in working with the government to curb this irresponsible players... and these anti mining advocates should help the government instead of barking at the entire industry as a whole...

these anti mining advocates should have to acknowledge how much mining has contributed to our country.... they should acknowledge how many jobs it provides for our countrymen... and how many great cities across the country were built and created by the industry, cebu city and baguio city to name a few... lastly, how the mining industry served as the backbone of the economies of many great and wealthy countries like USA, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Germany etc....

if they are not yet convinced by this simple reasons... then i must say that they really should practice what they preach.... If they despise mining so much, please, do us all a favour and DON’T support it....

for a start... DON’T buy products that are from mining... DON’T make use of these things that mining provides for us... Do us a favour and STOP using these mineral resources that can be produced only through mining.... Show us all that all of you are sincere in your advocacy.... Shun anything that has metals, rocks, petroleum products and its derivatives; gems, concrete, and the rest of the products which I may have failed to mention, which, in one way or another, can be produced from mined products... i long to see the day that all of you would start by riding in a wooden car that runs on water... throw away your phone, laptop, gadgets, jewellery, coins, and your clothes....

and what really gets into my nerve is that even the media giant, ABS-CBN seems to ride in this anti-mining advocacy... maybe ABS-CBN must no longer uses wires and cables, or even electricity for that matter... they should cut their towering signal antenna and replaced it with lumber i must say...

all of these things i mentioned are all major products of the industry that they claim to despise... i can go on and on and in case they don’t realize, their homes uses concrete (which is produced by mined resources), glass (another mineral resource), metal (one of the major products of mining), and electrical appliances (which use components produced by mining)... so to be believable for me, they should start living inside caves again.....

though I respect that they have an advocacy.... and I, in fact, admire them for it.... but maybe they have to stop being a hypocrite....

x factor uk: season 7

i have been doing x factor marathon this past week... i started with season 1 and until the last season last year, season 7... i would say, that every season, x factor never seems to amaze me...  every season is much better compared to the previous season... honestly, i never grew tired of the show, because each season has its own story to tell...

to kick off season 7, the drama of audition in each city was so surprising.... indeed UK is infested with very talented singers and the not so good ones... i will spare the good singers in my writing and concentrate with the not so good ones... likewise, the videos below, pretty sums up what i mean, hehehe...

the worst start for the season...

a group that should have listened to their song first...

which ends up in a fight....

after all the tears and laughters during the boot camp and in the judge's house, one of the biggest shock of this season was the sudden exit of gamu nhengu, the contestant whom the public projects to be the winner of this season... i myself was shock when she was not called out for the live show... and based on mah further readings, it seems that there was politics behind her exit... nonetheless, her short airtime in the program captured the heart of millions of people...

 gamu in auditions...

 gamu in bootcamp...

 gamu in the judge's house..

this was the first time in the show that the judges introduced a wildcard acts bringing up the number of finalist in the live show from 12 acts to 16acts... simon cowell was tasked to mentored the groups, louis walsh for the 28 and over, danni minogue for the boys and cheryl cole for the girls...

moreover, the live show was a great production and i really look forward for each of the group performance... but to top it all, the drama and arguments of the judges was the one i look forward to... judges word bashing each other so that not to discredit their reputation as a good mentor, hehehe..

to top it all, i really like the show of each act as their performance is really worth the money... the productions are huge and the choreography is stellar... it just saddens me that in each week, an act have to leave the competition... as i believe they are already a star on their own...

week 1 elimination of nicolo festa and FYD...

week 2 elimination of storm lee and diva fever...

week 3 elimination of john adeleye

week 4 elimination of belle amie

week 5 the first heartbreak, sudden elimination of treyc cohen

week 6 another shocker... the elimination of aiden grimshaw

week 7 sad and unfortunate elimination of paige richardson

week 8 exit of katie waissel and the all so joyful wagner

week 9 semi finals elimination of mary byrne

week 10 first act to exit in the finals, one of mah fave act this season, cher lloyd

the next day, mah fave act and mah bet to win the season, left the competition, one direction

in the finals, after the hard fought battle, rebecca ferguson got knocked out...

to cap the wonderful season 7, the champ, matt cardle, sings his heart out with this year winner's single, when we collide.