Rest Day

Last Thursday morning on my way at the office I got a slight colds, its normal for me having this during morning maybe due to allergy and the cold weather. But it got worst because the aircon of the rev-o I was riding was focused on my face and I can't adjust it. But I still report to work yesterday and my boss is requiring me to attend our Thriller Party. But later in the afternoon, when he saw that I was resting my head in the chair, he told me to go home and skip the party.

Today, because of the strong winds and a typhoon signal number 3 here in Bulacan, the electricity was shut off at 7 in the morning until past 1 in the afternoon. Better because I have no choice but to rest in the bed and clean the house a little.
Nikko watched the movie "Transformers" at the laptop but he wasn't able to finish it because the battery was already drained. And he is also requesting me to buy him a headset so he won't disturb me while playing the games, good thing i saw newegg.com promo codes so I can avail the gaming headset at a lower price. I am also planning to avail the discounted price of the external hard drive, it will be very useful for me while I'm here at home.

Creepy Halloween

Last year my kids had their Halloween party at the school. Nikko was very thankful that they won't have a party this year, he was afraid of the spooky costumes of his classmates. We bought his costume at Toy Kingdom so I won't be surprised if some of his classmates are wearing same costume as his.

I am not fond of Halloween too because I am afraid of ghosts..who doesn't? I won't forget lighting a candle for my dad so he won't surprise me at night! LOL! Happy Halloween!

Super Seat Sale

I'm already planning where to have our family vacation for next year, since this year we defer it because of financial constraint. Well dreaming is free right? Our original choice of destinations are US, Hongkong, Australia and Singapore. And guess what? Am I so lucky to find Accor Hotels 3-Day Super Sale Asia Pacific. Its campaign duration is from October 27 until October 29, 2009. There are one million hotel rooms at amazing rate across Asia Pacific to choose from. I will surely take advantage of booking online to take advantage of the very cheap rates that start at US$30 dollars per night.

Accor is a major global group and the European leader in hotels, as well as the global leader in services to corporate clients and public institutions. With Accor, it is guaranteed that all our needs and inquiries can be properly addressed. I am sure that my kids will be excited once our deferred trip can be pushed through next year. Singapore is also a good place to stay, and luckily I had many friends in Singapore, former classmates and officemates that already migrated there. This 3-day super sale include countries Thailand, Korea, China, Japan, HK, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Fiji, Indonesia, Taiwan, India, Bali.
So what are you waiting for? Grab this 3-day super sale now.

Mar-Korina wedding

At last, the most awaited "Wedding of the Year" finally happened yesterday. Political leaders and showbiz personalities graced the wedding at the Sto. Domingo Church. Korina was late because she visited first the grave of her parents at Heritage Park in Taguig City to pay respect before she finally tie the knot. Let us watch some footage of their wedding video. Approximately there were ten thousand people yesterday at the church, ten bishops and priests attended the wedding Mass, led by Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, Sorsogon Bishop Angel Valera, and Bishop Raul Martin of Quezon City. Father Tito Caluag officiated the mass that started about 4:45 p.m.

Always on demand

This week was a very demanding one for our team, budget defense was completed yesterday with all the divisions and it was really a very exhausting and tiring day for us. More than six hours of discussions can really create a terrible headache but we had an early knock off at 5pm so I did spend more time with my kids last night. They had fun watching “The Incredibles” at the laptop. We also did surf for some movies online and we saw this amazing site that offers over six thousand movies and shows anytime you want. Kids today are not fond of long wait for commercials, but having On Demand they are interested watching Dragonball Evolution, Hannah Montana The Movie, Street Fighter and X-Men Origin: Wolverine.
They also have unlimited access to the world’s largest film library so name it and definitely your choice of movie was included in their list. Here’s more, they also offer original series and award winning documentaries. Every week was exciting because they have new titles every week! Want more? A number of your favorites are free the day after they air it on TV. For more details learn more at charter.net/ondemand . You may also want to get updates and fun extras on Charter’s Facebook page. What are you waiting for? Visit their site now.

Relief Goods

I want to repost this interesting topic from Ella, due to the devastation brought about by 2 super typhoon, Ondoy and Pepeng, Philippines was very grateful to receive numerous relief from different foreign aids/countries. From the word itself, "relief" means aid, assistance, support to augment the needs of our victimized countrymen. But what happened to the supposed "relief"?

Scroll down for the complete details.

Dear friends,

I’m asking your help to spread the word. Tulungan po ninyo akong ikalat ito. Beyond this, we should also demand action. I disabled a plugin so you can copy the photos of relief goods rotting in DSWD warehouses. You can link this post to your blogs, facebook, websites etc. You can also email the photos.

Philippine News (US based Philippine newspaper) will use this as its front page story this week. Every Filipino has the right to know where the tons of donations from the UN and other counties go. Kahit po nakakahiya sa mga nag-donate. Kung sa ganitong paraan, matutulungan natin ang mga nasalanta, then by all means, let’s do it.

For those who have the time, please try to volunteer sa DSWD warehouses. Getting in was not easy. A friend had to put in a word for us. Let’s see kung madali nang makapasok sa DSWD warehouse ang mga volunteers.

Please read on and good luck to us.

Ella

(This post was last edited Oct 22, 12:30 pm)

Kahapon, tinanong ng Philippine News si DSWD Secretary Esperanza Cabral:

Editor of Philippine News: Why are the relief goods in DSWD warehouses not moving?

DSWD Secretary Esperanza Cabral: Wala kasing volunteers.

This short interview was done over the phone. Philippine News wanted to hear her side pero ayaw niyang makipag-usap sa press. After four tries, pinasabi na lang niya ang maikling sagot na ito sa secretary niya - “Walang volunteers”.

I don’t want to accuse her of corruption but at the very least she is showing signs of being totally incompetent. We are in a state of calamity where every second counts. May namamatay araw-araw dahil sa sakit.

In my opinion, these deaths could have been prevented if Secretary Cabral had tried a little harder to do her job.

Deaths from Philippine storms nears 1,000

“Tropical Storm Ketsana left 420 dead and 37 missing when it flooded 80 percent of Manila on September 26, a disaster the government said affected 4.35 million people.

Some areas are still flooded three weeks later and 189,000 people remain in evacuation centres,

Typhoon Parma hit the northern Philippines on October 3 and lingered as a tropical storm for a week, triggering landslides that killed 438 people and leaving 51 missing mostly in mountain communities.

The government agency said Parma affected 4.16 million people, including more than 32,000 who remain at evacuation centres.”

During the first week after the storm, lumabas ang “bayanihan spirit” ng mga Pinoy. “Makatulong lang kahi’t konti,” katwiran nila.

kung walang volunteers, ano ‘to, komiks?

From Stella Arnaldo’s blog:

“At the offices of many civic groups and private organizations, hundreds of people showed up to volunteer in packing relief goods.

At the Tulong Bayan center at the Expo Centro in Cubao, Most of the volunteers were adolescents as young as 10 years old, along with their kuya or ate in high school and college.

They came in huge numbers, many of them barkadas, classmates or siblings, dressed just in their tees and shorts, wearing their Havaianas. All were just enthusiastic to do their share!
Photos by Leah Navarro

Even grade school kids pitched in to help!

Youth volunteers repack detergents for distribution

Making beds from carton boxes

GMA asked world for donations

Our government begged the world for more donations. Sumagot ang buong mundo sa ating panawagan. In less than three weeks, dumaong ang mga barko, ibinaba mula sa mga cargo planes, i-diniliver ng mga trak at container vans ang sandamakmak na relief goods. Cash donations were in the millions of dollars.

But these donations must be coursed through DSWD

Nagpalabas ng directive ang pangulo. Individuals, private companies and other nations were ENCOURAGED to send their donations to DSWD. I blogged about it here and the video of her announcement here.

This PGMA directive sounded suspicious to me then. Now I know why. Here’s the story.

A group of eight people, your ate Ella included, went to one of DSWD warehouses to help in repacking relief goods. We know they need volunteers pero hindi namin akalaing WALANG TAO TALAGA SA LOOB NG WAREHOUSE!

As in sa isang humongous warehouse (1000++ sq.m) NA PUNONG-PUNO NG RELIEF GOODS HANGGANG BUBONG, ISANG DSWD employee lang at ISANG SECURITY GUARD ang tao!!

Kailangang magpa-register at i-schedule ang volunteering

1) UNICEF Registration (as a volunteer)

The warehouse can only take as much as 50 volunteers at a time or per shift. Here you will find that there is a 4-hour shift, and an option for a 6-hour shift for the volunteers to indicate their availability.

What “volunteers”? Nasaan?

Aside from the 8 of us? Nope, there was nobody there. Bakit kailangan ang scheduling? Feeling hindi ba magkamayaw at nagu-unahan ang mga volunteers?

I know somebody who wanted to volunteer many times. She was always bumped off, laging nirere-schedule kasi “there were too many volunteers” daw. At tuwing Sunday lang daw puwede. What the hell is going on here?

Nakatambak ang donations ng UNICEF sa warehouse, local and international

Mga banig na dapat ay nahihigaan ng mga nasalanta. Mga imported camp beds na hindi na yata masisilayan ng mga biktima. Mga kumot na hindi naman nakabalot sa katawan nila. At mga pagkaing hindi sumasayad sa sikmura nila.

The relief goods are not going anywhere

We arrived at about 8 am and left by midafternoon and yes, you guessed it right. Kami pa rin ang tao bukod sa isang DSWD employee sa loob ng warehouse maghapon. Walang ibang dumating.

The relief goods are not moving. By the way things look, they are not going anywhere. Hindi maglalakad mag-isa ang mga donations na ito papunta sa mga evacuation centers.

LET THE PICTURES DO THE TALKING

Note: Pinagbawalan kaming kumuha ng pictures sa loob ng warehouse. I wonder why.

“Not a creature was moving, not even a mouse.”

Parang haunted warehouse ang dating. May multo na yata.

Kahit na daig pa ang tindahan sa Divisoria sa dami ng naka-stack na kaldero

At walang katapusang kaldero pa ulit

Kahit halos natakpan na ang mga bintana sa dami ng mga kahon

Kahit umabot na hanggang kisame ang stack ng mga kahon

(Close up ng Coleman camp beds sa previous photo) Hindi ito kasama sa ni-repack naming goods. Para sa mga “special victims” kaya ito? Ire-repack kaya ang mga “imported” camp pads na ito ever?

Sabagay, may BANIG naman para sa “ordinary victims”. Ito ang kasama sa inimpake namin. Sayang ‘yung imported.

Ano kaya ang laman nito? Hindi rin pinabuksan. Pang-special victim din kaya ito? (teka, dito nga pala galing ‘yung mga kumot)

Mahiwagang mga kahon from Japan Aid.

(close up ng mahiwagang kahon) Hindi rin ito kasali, of course. Hindi namin alam kung ano ang laman nito. “Imported” are not included, we have concluded.

Marami ito, mga laruang kasinlaki ng tao. Hindi nakunan ng pic kasi nasa tabi ng sikyo.

PORK AND BEANS? Yup, you’d think kasama ito sa relief bag. Pork and beans lang ‘to, puwede na sigurong ipamigay,

Naaah! “Imported” pork and beans from Spain po ito. Sorry, hindi pa rin included

Now let’s take a look at what a victim will get from DSWD

Look Ma, sampung lata ng sardinas! How generous! Kaldero ang unang ilalagay sa sako. Sabong panglaba (bar soap) at sampung sardinas sa ilalim. Siyam na sabon sa gilid ng kaldero. Local goods lahat syempre.

Tapos papatungan ng isang tuwalya at isang pack ng sanitary napkin.

Sisiksikan ng tatlong rolyo ng kumot(?) ang blue water jug tapos ipapatong sa kaldero sa loob ng sako.

Last but not the least, lalagyan ng dalawang banig.

Sabay tatahiin na ang sako. O di ba, parang asong tinapunan ng buto ang mga nasalanta? Eniwey, busog naman sila sa SAMPUNG lata ng Mega sardinas

Do not delay

YOU THINK?? WTF is the matter with these people? Mag-iisang buwan na mula nang masalanta ang mga kababayan natin. ISANG BUWAN!! Do you mean “do not delay ang dati nang delayed”?? Shet.

Anong ginagawa ng mga donations na ito sa warehouse?? APAT na warehouse ang nasa loob ng compound na ‘yon! APAT na warehouse na punong-puno ng inaalikabok na relief goods! Relief goods na ayaw yata ibigay sa mga nasalanta. Halatang-halata.

Marami pang pabubulukin

Wow! May bagong shipment na naman! At the rate DSWD is moving, next year na madi-discover kung ano ang laman ng mga kahong ito.

“The first of two of the largest high-energy food shipments from the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) arrived in the country two days ago for victims of storm “Ondoy” and typhoon “Pepeng.”

The biscuits were fortified with essential vitamins and minerals for supplementary feeding to children, pregnant women and the elderly in evacuation camps. Another 100 tons of biscuits will arrive on Oct. 24, in a continuing effort to provide food assistance to flood victims.

Sige, ideretso ‘nyo ulit ‘yan sa DSWD warehouse. Para AMAG naman ang abutin ng biskwit… at sapot ng gagamba.

Conclusion

Sa maghapon namin sa warehouse,nakagawa kami ng 150 sacks of relief goods. 150 bags of relief goods lang ang lumabas sa warehouse na ‘yon that day. At nandoon pa rin sa loob ang mga imported relief goods, safe, sound and packed as the day they arrived.

Nakisakay kami palabas sa isang DSWD delivery van. Gusto sana kaming ihatid ng driver hanggang Makati pero wala raw siyang sobrang gasolina. Ibinaba na lang niya kami sa gitna ng EDSA. Millions of dollars in donations, walang extrang pang-gasolina.

Susulpot din siguro ang laman ng mga mahiwagang kahon at mapapasakamay din ng mga tao…sa ARAW NG ELEKSYON. O mabibili na nila ang mga imported goods na ‘yon sa mga puwesto sa Quiapo at Divisoria.

Suggestions lang po sa DSWD:

· Alam ‘nyo palang walang mag-volunteer sa inyo, bakit hindi kayo mag-hire ng mga tao? Bayaran ‘nyo ng arawan para mag-repack. Ang daming walang trabaho, makakatulong pa kayo. Hindi naman malaking kabawasan ‘yon sa bilyong pisong donasyon na natanggap ninyo.

· Isa pa, gaano ba karami ang mga sundalo natin? Hindi ba puwedeng ipagawa sa kanila ‘yan? Baka isang araw lang, tapos na ang problema ‘nyo

· Bakit hindi ‘nyo ibigay ang trabaho sa mga NGO, churches, private charities, TV stations? I’m sure they are more than willing to help. Time is of the essence. Huwag kayong suwapang. Obvious ba, hindi ‘nyo naman kaya.

Kung talagang gugustuhin ninyong makarating agad sa mga kawawang biktima ang mga donasyong ‘yon, nagawa ‘nyo na ‘yan. Maraming paraan…kung talagang gusto ‘nyo lang.

You are the government. You have the power, the resources and the money. You just have to really care.

special thanks to Johanness for forwarding this email.

Pinoy eyes to break Guinness record in Chess

Mark Paragua, the first Filipino to reach “Super Grandmaster” status, will attempt to put the Philippines in the world chess map once again as he tries to break the Guinness simultaneous chess world record in December.

The attempt dubbed as “1 vs. 600: Beat the MARK”, which will pit Paragua against 600 players at the same time, will be held on December 27 and 28.

According to sports writer Noli Cruz, there will also be 400 reserves for a total of 1,000 opposing players present during the event.

The current record is held by Iranian GM Morteza Mahjoob, who faced 500 opponents simultaneously last August 13 at the Engelab Sports Complex in Tehran.

The Guinness World Record for the largest number of simultaneous games played in a single session was initially set in 1996 when Swedish Grandmaster Ulf Anderson took on 310 opponents. This record was broken in 2004 by British IM Andrew Martin, who played against 321 opponents, scoring 294 wins, 26 draws and 1 loss for a winning percentage of 95.64 percent.

In August 2005, GM Susan Polgar played against 350 players simultaneously at the Gardens Mall in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Finally in February this year, Bulgarian GM Kiril Georgiev played a simultaneous exhibition against 360 opponents before the record was eventually broken by Morteza.

Paragua’s trainers for the 1 vs. 600 event will be Asia’s First GM Eugene Torre and World Chess Cup bound GM Rogelio “Joey” Antonio Jr.

The event is organized by Touch of Gold Enterprises in close cooperation with the Department of Tourism, Manila Sports Council (MASCO) Chairman Niño dela Cruz, City of Manila, Filway Marketings Inc. CEO/ President Hector "Chito" Tagaysay and Meralco Chess Club.

Wilfredo “Willie” Abalos of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) will head the list of International arbiters (IA) that will oversee the competition. The arbiters include Gene Poliarco, national masters Erwin Carag and Elias Lao and RP’s six-time executive champion Dr. Jenny Mayor.

Organizers are looking to hold the event either at the historic Ninoy Aquino Stadium or the San Andres Gymnasium in Manila.

For inquiries, contact mobile no: 0919-8493648. By Marlon Bernardino. source

Templates

I was busy this week updating of our budget templates. This quarter of the year will be the busiest season of our group, I belong to the Financial Planning Group. We are now consolidating the budget submitted by numerous custodians from the different departments, both Operating Expenses (Opex) and Capital Expenditure (Capex) that will be for utilization next year. Yesterday was the first day of budget Defense for Sales & Marketing Groups, they justified their numbers, as expected some expenses were slashed. Another batch of defense is scheduled on Tuesday (whole day). I hope there will be no additional inputs so we can have a relaxed weekend tomorrow. Have a blessed weekend guys!

Oratio Imperata

Friends, let's all humble ourselves and ask for God's mercy to deliver us from all sorts of danger brought about by calamities.

The prayer:

“Almighty Father, we raise our hearts to You in gratitude for the wonders of creation of which we are part, for Your providence in sustaining us in our needs, and for Your wisdom that guides the course of the universe.

We acknowledge our sins against You and the rest of creation.

We have not been good stewards of Nature.

We have confused Your command to subdue the earth.

The environment is made to suffer our wrongdoing, and now we reap the harvest of our abuse and indifference.

Global warming is upon us. Typhoons, floods, volcanic eruption, and other natural calamities occur in increasing number and intensity.

We turn to You, our loving Father, and beg forgiveness for our sins.

We ask that we, our loved ones and our hard earned possessions be spared from the threat of calamities, natural and man-made.

We beseech You to inspire us all to grow into responsible stewards of Your creation, and generous neighbors to those in need.

Amen.”

Sister's Week Tag

Thank you Kat for including me in this tag... am back on doing my tags again!

~~ Start copying here ~~

Be the kind of women that when your feet hit the floor each morning,
The devil says "Oh Crap, She's Up."
Sister, life is too short to wake up with regrets.
So love the people who treat you right.
Love the ones who don't just because you can.
Believe in everything happens for a reason.
If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands.
If it changes your life, let it.
Kiss slowly. Forgive quickly.

God never said life would be easy.
He just promise it would be worth it.
Today is sister's day.
To the cool women that have touched my life.
this is for you.....LOVE U!!!

Rules:
Tag all your sisters, mothers, daughters, aunts, girlfriends,
Including me if I am like one. If you get tag back seven times, you are loved.
Happy sister's day! LOVE YA SISTA!!!
Girlfriend and sisters WEEK.

~~End Copy here~~

Now I am tagging meryl, liz, niko, pehpot, fhedz, nini, shimumsy, amy,grace, dhemz, katherine....

Shop and Share

Let us support Angel Locsin and celebrity friends auction their personal items and donate the proceeds to the victims of typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng.

We are celebrities who have been exceptionally blessed by your love and support. We witnessed for ourselves the devastation, brought about by "Ondoy" and "Pepeng". We felt compelled to share not just our voices and our time, but from our own closets. These items have meaning in our lives and now they'll become even more meaningful because they'll help rebuild broken homes and broken dreams.

Because of you we are where we are. And now with you, together, we can help our fellow Filipinos move forward, even just one step at a time. Maraming salamat sa pagbibigay nyo ng pansin sa adhikain namin. We love Philippines! We love you :)

- Ms. Kris Aquino

Akon Freedom Tour in Manila

Finally, Akon's Freedom Tour in Manila will finally push through this coming Friday October 23, 2009 at the Araneta Coliseum. R&B Superstar will still have Billy Crawford as the special guest. It was cancelled last July because of the Swine flu cases here in the Philippines.

For ticket inquiries, call TicketNet (911-5555). Exclusive VIP tickets are also available at ALV Events International (633-98-25 to 27). Red Cross booths will also be set up near the gate to accept donations in cash or kind.

Kourtney Kardashian's home was robbed

More than $100,000 in jewelry was taken from Kourtney Kardashian's Calabasas, California home, Los Angeles according to County Sheriff Sgt. Kristy Criner.

Criner says Kourtney, 30 -- who is expecting her first chid with beau Scott Disick in December -- was not home at the time of the incident.

She adds that there are no suspects in the case and that no further information is available. photo credit Michael Tran
source

Barbra Streisand auction

The Oscar-winning performer is selling off more than 500 pieces of clothing, books, furniture, paintings and vintage collectibles in a drive to raise money for American charities including City Year, the William Jefferson Clinton Foundation and the Cedars-Sinai Women's Heart Health Center.
A pink robe from The Way We Were fetched nearly $6,000 (£3,700) and an outfit from Meet The Fockers sold for $3,500 as fans of the actress rushed to purchase a piece of film history.
Among the best sellers were a Stickley china cabinet, which sold for $15,000, and a wig worn by Streisand in On A Clear Day You Can See Forever, which fetched $3,500.

Thousands of people bid in the two-day sale, on items ranging from a baby grand piano to oriental rugs.

But the items that attracted the most attention were the personal mementoes from the 67-year-old's long career in Hollywood.

Darren Julien, president of Julien's Auction, which is holding the sale, said the items on sale were from Streisand's New York apartment and homes in Malibu and Beverly Hills.

"Barbra has consolidated her homes to Malibu, and these are items that don't fit into her new house, but they're items that she's loved for many years," he said. source