"We believe that buying products, which adhere to high ethical standards, does not mean that you compromise on choice, quality, or beauty. We have a wide range of ethical home wares for you to browse so please take a look around."
Products made based on unhumanly cheap labor are not included here. :D
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
tribute to "tito"
it is feb 25, the EDSA People Power Day here in my beloved country. a friend texted me a quote, apparently, from Ninoy Aquino: "A time comes in a man's life when he must prefer a meaningful death to a meaningless life. I would rather die on my feet with honor, than live on bended knees in shame." and so i read about Ninoy on wikipedia. wow. by the way, he's not my biological uncle or in no way am i related to him, except that we are brothers as being both sons of the Philippines and God Almighty.
http://www.stannum.net/
Nice template custom-designed by the website owner! :-D Site is hosted on a FREE web hosting server. Cool!
You know you're Filipino if...
Invented by jobert.blogspot.com. I have a comment here... Hahaha. Check it out: http://jobert.blogspot.com/2005/05/to-be-filipino.html
Sunday, February 24, 2008
more books for sale
1. the leadership secrets of jesus. by mike murdock. brand new. PhP 180.
2. the 21 indispensable qualities of a leader: becoming the person others will want to follow. by john c. maxwell. brand new. PhP 350.
3. a layman's guide to protestant theology. revised and expanded edition. by william e. hordern. used. PhP 15.
4. the best christian writing 2002. ed. by john wilson. used. PhP 300.
5. conversations with god. book one. by neale donald walsch. not yet used but looks old. PhP 250.
2. the 21 indispensable qualities of a leader: becoming the person others will want to follow. by john c. maxwell. brand new. PhP 350.
3. a layman's guide to protestant theology. revised and expanded edition. by william e. hordern. used. PhP 15.
4. the best christian writing 2002. ed. by john wilson. used. PhP 300.
5. conversations with god. book one. by neale donald walsch. not yet used but looks old. PhP 250.
free wiki software!
it sounds cool... i mean, it seemingly has good reviews... try it. :-)
http://wiki.mindtouch.com/Deki_wiki
http://wiki.mindtouch.com/Deki_wiki
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Clark, Clark, Clark
I went to Clark Field, Pampanga one weekend. People and I, myself, forgot to remind me that Clark is like Subic. They are "strict" when it comes to traffic rules.
So anyway, it was actually my first time to drive inside Clark itself. I realized in my previous trips, I didn't really "enter the gates" of Clark. I was with 4 friends.
And then, whoah. Highway! Almost like those 4-lane freeways in the US (2 lanes on each side). Seeing the speed limit at 80 (and 60), I didn't think twice about this highway being like a freeway. I thought that 60 was the lower speed limit; that we can't go over 80 kph nor below 60 kph. So I went at 80 kph.
We went under what seems to be a wider highway under construction, it felt like a tunnel. Then there was a curve.
Then there were some orange things in between the lanes, and one car running ever so slowly. I passed those orange things and the slow car, and then we noticed one security-guard-looking guy apparently waving at us. Weird, we thought.
I then saw maybe a couple or three cars stopped, and saw that they stopped because of a red traffic light signal. When the light turned green, another security-guard-looking guy appeared, and this time it was clear he was stopping us. I noticed he had an orange vest that said "TRAFFIC." A traffic officer? So we stopped.
The traffic officer said (in Tagalog), "You do know what traffic violation you committed, do you?" The first thought that came to mind was overspeeding. But, no I don't think I did. So I told the officer, "No, sir." "You were beating the red light." "Did I? I didn't notice any traffic light prior to this last one." My 4 friends all agreed; they didn't notice anything.
"You were." And so my license was confiscated, and I was given a ticket. I was asked to go to the Clark CDC office to pay the fine, and get my license back, in as early as 3 hours from that time. The officer said that the office was open 24 hours.
Because I had to attend to something there at Clark, I was able to pass by the office for my license at around 1am.
The security guard there was asking me like I was up to no good, "What do you need?" (in Tagalog) I told him that I was there to get my license back. The guard reacted like as if the office was closed, as if he was a big "DO NOT DISTURB" sign. "I was told the office is open 24 hours." With that, the guard gave up not being accomodating, and went in the office with my ticket. He came back out and accompanied me in. I noticed that everybody, except for that guard, was sleeping.
I was asked to pay PhP 500 for a beating-the-red-light offense. So I did and was given my license back. I asked for a receipt. The person there said, they can't issue a receipt at that time.
Who is in charge of Clark/CDC? They just stole PhP 500 from me. And maybe they have stolen many thousands more from hundred other motorists, who cannot do anything in the presence of a dozen buff-bodied men with guns.
Two issues here:
1. Why set a maximum of 80 kph on a highway when there's a traffic light up ahead? At least put up a warning sign, 100 meters ahead, indicating that there is a traffic light up ahead. People going at 80 kph cannot also easily notice a YELLOW-colored traffic light box hanging from a cable. If it was on a pole, and the traffic light box was BLACK, it would have been easier. Maybe it didn't help that the sky was a little bit cloudy and lit with... yellow. It was early in the morning. Either they should replace the traffic lights with something more recognizeable, remove it, install warning signs at least 100 meters ahead of the intersection, OR, set the maximum speed limit at 60 kph only.
2. It is difficult that there are "traffic discipline zones" in the Philippines. Duh. Everywhere should be one big "traffic discipline zone." When you come from "traffic non-discipline zones" everyday of the year and then go into one "traffic discipline zone" for one day, it's difficult to adjust. They shouldn't be "strict" only at certain areas around this country. Traffic enforcers should be strict everywhere. The solution needs more than just "disciplining" these people who are supposed to be in charge of disciplining, or correcting these other specific traffic-related issues. A more totalitarian approach is needed.
So anyway, it was actually my first time to drive inside Clark itself. I realized in my previous trips, I didn't really "enter the gates" of Clark. I was with 4 friends.
And then, whoah. Highway! Almost like those 4-lane freeways in the US (2 lanes on each side). Seeing the speed limit at 80 (and 60), I didn't think twice about this highway being like a freeway. I thought that 60 was the lower speed limit; that we can't go over 80 kph nor below 60 kph. So I went at 80 kph.
We went under what seems to be a wider highway under construction, it felt like a tunnel. Then there was a curve.
Then there were some orange things in between the lanes, and one car running ever so slowly. I passed those orange things and the slow car, and then we noticed one security-guard-looking guy apparently waving at us. Weird, we thought.
I then saw maybe a couple or three cars stopped, and saw that they stopped because of a red traffic light signal. When the light turned green, another security-guard-looking guy appeared, and this time it was clear he was stopping us. I noticed he had an orange vest that said "TRAFFIC." A traffic officer? So we stopped.
The traffic officer said (in Tagalog), "You do know what traffic violation you committed, do you?" The first thought that came to mind was overspeeding. But, no I don't think I did. So I told the officer, "No, sir." "You were beating the red light." "Did I? I didn't notice any traffic light prior to this last one." My 4 friends all agreed; they didn't notice anything.
"You were." And so my license was confiscated, and I was given a ticket. I was asked to go to the Clark CDC office to pay the fine, and get my license back, in as early as 3 hours from that time. The officer said that the office was open 24 hours.
Because I had to attend to something there at Clark, I was able to pass by the office for my license at around 1am.
The security guard there was asking me like I was up to no good, "What do you need?" (in Tagalog) I told him that I was there to get my license back. The guard reacted like as if the office was closed, as if he was a big "DO NOT DISTURB" sign. "I was told the office is open 24 hours." With that, the guard gave up not being accomodating, and went in the office with my ticket. He came back out and accompanied me in. I noticed that everybody, except for that guard, was sleeping.
I was asked to pay PhP 500 for a beating-the-red-light offense. So I did and was given my license back. I asked for a receipt. The person there said, they can't issue a receipt at that time.
Who is in charge of Clark/CDC? They just stole PhP 500 from me. And maybe they have stolen many thousands more from hundred other motorists, who cannot do anything in the presence of a dozen buff-bodied men with guns.
Two issues here:
1. Why set a maximum of 80 kph on a highway when there's a traffic light up ahead? At least put up a warning sign, 100 meters ahead, indicating that there is a traffic light up ahead. People going at 80 kph cannot also easily notice a YELLOW-colored traffic light box hanging from a cable. If it was on a pole, and the traffic light box was BLACK, it would have been easier. Maybe it didn't help that the sky was a little bit cloudy and lit with... yellow. It was early in the morning. Either they should replace the traffic lights with something more recognizeable, remove it, install warning signs at least 100 meters ahead of the intersection, OR, set the maximum speed limit at 60 kph only.
2. It is difficult that there are "traffic discipline zones" in the Philippines. Duh. Everywhere should be one big "traffic discipline zone." When you come from "traffic non-discipline zones" everyday of the year and then go into one "traffic discipline zone" for one day, it's difficult to adjust. They shouldn't be "strict" only at certain areas around this country. Traffic enforcers should be strict everywhere. The solution needs more than just "disciplining" these people who are supposed to be in charge of disciplining, or correcting these other specific traffic-related issues. A more totalitarian approach is needed.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Monday, February 18, 2008
Smile : - )) (FWD by Boc V)
[sub-labels: inspirational]
These are a must have!
BAD JUDGMENT -
SHOCKING ACCIDENT -
POLICE HARD AT WORK -
McBURNT
I'D RATHER HOLD IT -
PILE UP -
THIS IS GOING TO HURT -
FORGOT SOMETHING
LET ME EXPLAIN
THESE WILL MAKE YOU SMILE!
HOW WAS YOUR CEREAL THIS MORNING?
HOW TO HANDLE A PROBLEM NEIGHBOR
The Ass Family
Boy Genius!
Good Reason to Wear Pajamas to Bed!!!
It doesn't matter how many people you send this to, just remember if it made you smile, your friends will smile too!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
for sale
1. (used) motorola v3x, PhP4997 neg
2. (used) 3.5" hard drive, external, usb2.0 connection, 40Gb, PhP1997 final.
3. (used) 3.5" hard drive, external, usb2.0 connection, 120Gb, PhP2797 final.
4. (used) 3.5" hard drive, external, usb2.0 connection, 250Gb, PhP3797 final.
5. (brand new) toshiba 1gb xd picture card (memory card), type M, for olympus digital cameras, PhP 597 final.
6. (brand new) linksys compact wireless-g router, PhP2997 final.
7. (brand new) the devil and miss prym (book by paulo coelho), PhP249 final.
2. (used) 3.5" hard drive, external, usb2.0 connection, 40Gb, PhP1997 final.
3. (used) 3.5" hard drive, external, usb2.0 connection, 120Gb, PhP2797 final.
4. (used) 3.5" hard drive, external, usb2.0 connection, 250Gb, PhP3797 final.
5. (brand new) toshiba 1gb xd picture card (memory card), type M, for olympus digital cameras, PhP 597 final.
6. (brand new) linksys compact wireless-g router, PhP2997 final.
7. (brand new) the devil and miss prym (book by paulo coelho), PhP249 final.
house+lot for sale
house and lot in vista real, quezon city. modern architecture. you'll have congressmen and rosanna roces as neighbors. it looks like a scaled down version of this: http://189apitongaav.multiply.com/. offer price: PhP10.6M.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Six Degrees
You've heard of the term "six degrees" - that we are all interconnected on this planet within six degrees of... something. (I forgot!)
Consider this situation now: what if Earth was hotter by six degrees? (Haha, that was so off-topic.)
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/sixdegrees/index.html
Consider this situation now: what if Earth was hotter by six degrees? (Haha, that was so off-topic.)
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/sixdegrees/index.html
Sunday, February 3, 2008
and yet another BLOG!
finally, i have the FWD blog. i've long wanted such kind of a website. it's all the forwarded e-mails in the world.
4 things you probably never knew your mobile phone could do (FWD by Boc V)
[sub-labels: cellphone, help, life hack, mobile, phone]
There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:
FIRST Emergency
The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialled even if the keypad is locked Try it out.
SECOND Have you locked your keys in the car?
Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their mobile phone from your cell phone.
Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to
drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote" for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
Editor's Note: It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our car over a mobile phone!"
THIRD Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your mobile battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370# Your mobile will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your mobile next time.
FOURTH How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 0 6 #
A 15 digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone get stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody does this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.
This is the kind of information people don't mind receiving, so pass it on to your family and friends
There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:
FIRST Emergency
The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialled even if the keypad is locked Try it out.
SECOND Have you locked your keys in the car?
Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their mobile phone from your cell phone.
Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to
drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote" for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
Editor's Note: It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our car over a mobile phone!"
THIRD Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your mobile battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370# Your mobile will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your mobile next time.
FOURTH How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 0 6 #
A 15 digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone get stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody does this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.
This is the kind of information people don't mind receiving, so pass it on to your family and friends
Saturday, February 2, 2008
NEW BLOG!
i have a new blog. yet again. oh, my AD/HD. it's cool though. i hope to update it regularly. for now, check the new posts at the ronjie.com featured photos and art work of the week!
Kenny Rogers' Roasted
Hmmm, I am here to say "I never learned" again. The last three times I ate at Kenny Rogers 'here in the Philippines, I saw some disappointing things.
The first time, I ate at the Kenny Rogers' at the Duty Free Fiesta Mall in Paranaque near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. That branch seems to not have that much customers, and because maybe of their poor sales, comes the poor quality of food. I mean, I don't think that's where they can find their target market. I wonder then, how cheap maybe their rent is there. I ordered one of their "latest" products, what they call "gourmet" sandwiches. I think it was a chicken sandwich. For ~P80, it was nothing that I couldn't prepare myself at home for P20 or less. It wasn't worth it. Nothing fantastic. I would pay P20 for it somewhere else. P80 was too much. This was in early 2007.
Second time, I ate at the Kenny Rogers' at the SM Mall of Asia, just last month (January 2008). I was trying to save on money, so I got thesandwich meal again. What sandwich? Oh, and there was a seat which appeared it could collapse anytime someone sits on it. And it's just out there! Management just left it out there! Then unfortunately a kid sat on it and got hurt. Management of course wanted to wash its hands early, and they were offering to bring the kid to a clinic. Nope, they weren't offering the kid or his family any money of course; that would be such a huge expense for a restaurant in a country which cannot afford giving out a sufficient amount (one or a couple pieces extra) of tissue (paper table napkins). Man, I don't like getting hurt! Not this way!
What has happened to you, Kenny Rogers?
And I noticed this just at that Kenny Rogers' at the SM-MOA, but they have abandoned the one-line fall-in-line-in-front-of-the-food procedure and have used instead a multiple line (one per cash register) format. It takes up a lot of space! And what happens, as the case for such formats in other restaurants, is that those people coming in late sometimes get ahead of those people who have already been in line for minutes! What the hell???
And, yep, I never learned. I ate again at another Kenny Rogers in January 2008, this time at Glorietta in Makati. I made that choice, partly because well I like the ORIGINAL Kenny Rogers roasted chicken and the ORIGINAL Kenny Rogers format - you know, you pick your side dishes with the "Solo A" meal that comes with 1/4 Chicken and a muffin. Plus I ate there because I had SodexHo Gift Certificates that Kenny Rogers' accepts. Our total meal was P280, so with my P200 GC, I practically paid only P80. For what happened at that store, I thought it P80 wasn't bad. IT WAS JUST RIGHT. Now hear this.
First, it's that "new" Kenny Rogers' meal ordering format again. I think at least one person who came in after us got ahead of us. Oh well. Then there are these on-line order takers. You know, you really order at the cashier but because of the long lines (emphasis on LONG lineS), somebody takes your order even before you reach the cashier and then gives you a piece of paper which contains your paper. Fault Number One: the order taker didn't properly get what we ordered. So the cashier had to redo his thing, probably to the chagrin of his manager. Fault Number Two: the cashier didn't take our order properly after the first fault was addressed. When our ordered arrived, my friend got the "new" "Fiesta" type of chicken, which we didn't go to Kenny Rogers' for. Fault Three: The cashier didn't give us the right change! Fortunately, they still gave us the change, except that the cashier himself just delivered it to our table. It was a frustrating evening. And then my order was gone in a flash. That was something I accepted, because I eat like an American, and well, I typically order two times the regular quantity of food orders here in the Philippines.
What's going on Kenny Rogers?
I told my friend, you see as a sign of desperation when a restaurant starts serving stuff they are not known for. Kenny Rogers with SAUSAGES? And BURGER STEAK? Come on!!! I go to Kenny Rogers for the wonderful roasted chicken and the side dishes! I go to Jollibee for Chickenjoy, what Kenny Rogers calls their "Fiesta" chicken. I go to McDonald's and/or Jollibee also for their "burger steaks." Why is Kenny Rogers offering such things?
They're losing. They haven't lost yet, but it's coming to that. And while it is generally a good business decision to "diversify," to give the customers what they want, great companies focus on their core businesses. For Kenny Rogers, I don't see SAUSAGES and BURGER STEAKS and "GOURMET" SANDWICHES which are nothing but STUFFED PANDESAL as part of their core business. And while it is obviously a good business strategy to grow, I think their supply (of outlets/branches) has far outgrown the demand. That is what I think is going wrong.
What's going on with Kenny Rogers?
I want the old Kenny Rogers back!!!
The first time, I ate at the Kenny Rogers' at the Duty Free Fiesta Mall in Paranaque near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. That branch seems to not have that much customers, and because maybe of their poor sales, comes the poor quality of food. I mean, I don't think that's where they can find their target market. I wonder then, how cheap maybe their rent is there. I ordered one of their "latest" products, what they call "gourmet" sandwiches. I think it was a chicken sandwich. For ~P80, it was nothing that I couldn't prepare myself at home for P20 or less. It wasn't worth it. Nothing fantastic. I would pay P20 for it somewhere else. P80 was too much. This was in early 2007.
Second time, I ate at the Kenny Rogers' at the SM Mall of Asia, just last month (January 2008). I was trying to save on money, so I got the
What has happened to you, Kenny Rogers?
And I noticed this just at that Kenny Rogers' at the SM-MOA, but they have abandoned the one-line fall-in-line-in-front-of-the-food procedure and have used instead a multiple line (one per cash register) format. It takes up a lot of space! And what happens, as the case for such formats in other restaurants, is that those people coming in late sometimes get ahead of those people who have already been in line for minutes! What the hell???
And, yep, I never learned. I ate again at another Kenny Rogers in January 2008, this time at Glorietta in Makati. I made that choice, partly because well I like the ORIGINAL Kenny Rogers roasted chicken and the ORIGINAL Kenny Rogers format - you know, you pick your side dishes with the "Solo A" meal that comes with 1/4 Chicken and a muffin. Plus I ate there because I had SodexHo Gift Certificates that Kenny Rogers' accepts. Our total meal was P280, so with my P200 GC, I practically paid only P80. For what happened at that store, I thought it P80 wasn't bad. IT WAS JUST RIGHT. Now hear this.
First, it's that "new" Kenny Rogers' meal ordering format again. I think at least one person who came in after us got ahead of us. Oh well. Then there are these on-line order takers. You know, you really order at the cashier but because of the long lines (emphasis on LONG lineS), somebody takes your order even before you reach the cashier and then gives you a piece of paper which contains your paper. Fault Number One: the order taker didn't properly get what we ordered. So the cashier had to redo his thing, probably to the chagrin of his manager. Fault Number Two: the cashier didn't take our order properly after the first fault was addressed. When our ordered arrived, my friend got the "new" "Fiesta" type of chicken, which we didn't go to Kenny Rogers' for. Fault Three: The cashier didn't give us the right change! Fortunately, they still gave us the change, except that the cashier himself just delivered it to our table. It was a frustrating evening. And then my order was gone in a flash. That was something I accepted, because I eat like an American, and well, I typically order two times the regular quantity of food orders here in the Philippines.
What's going on Kenny Rogers?
I told my friend, you see as a sign of desperation when a restaurant starts serving stuff they are not known for. Kenny Rogers with SAUSAGES? And BURGER STEAK? Come on!!! I go to Kenny Rogers for the wonderful roasted chicken and the side dishes! I go to Jollibee for Chickenjoy, what Kenny Rogers calls their "Fiesta" chicken. I go to McDonald's and/or Jollibee also for their "burger steaks." Why is Kenny Rogers offering such things?
They're losing. They haven't lost yet, but it's coming to that. And while it is generally a good business decision to "diversify," to give the customers what they want, great companies focus on their core businesses. For Kenny Rogers, I don't see SAUSAGES and BURGER STEAKS and "GOURMET" SANDWICHES which are nothing but STUFFED PANDESAL as part of their core business. And while it is obviously a good business strategy to grow, I think their supply (of outlets/branches) has far outgrown the demand. That is what I think is going wrong.
What's going on with Kenny Rogers?
I want the old Kenny Rogers back!!!
A Father's Story (FWD by Julius C)
[sub-labels: inspirational]
On July 22nd I was en route to Washington, DC for a
business trip. It was all so very ordinary, until
Landing in Denver for a plane change. As I collected
my belongings from the overhead bin, an announcement
was made for Mr. Lloyd Glenn to see the United
Customer Service Representative immediately. I
thought nothing of it until I reached the door to
leave the plane, and I heard a gentleman asking every
Male if they were Mr.Glenn. At this point I knew
something was wrong and my heart sunk.
On July 22nd I was en route to Washington, DC for a
business trip. It was all so very ordinary, until
Landing in Denver for a plane change. As I collected
my belongings from the overhead bin, an announcement
was made for Mr. Lloyd Glenn to see the United
Customer Service Representative immediately. I
thought nothing of it until I reached the door to
leave the plane, and I heard a gentleman asking every
Male if they were Mr.Glenn. At this point I knew
something was wrong and my heart sunk.
When I got off the plane a solemn-faced young man came
toward me and said, "Mr. Glenn, there is an emergency
at your home. I do not know what the emergency is, or
who is involved, but I will take you to the phone so
you can call the hospital." My heart was now pounding,
but the will to be calm took over. Woodenly, I
followed this stranger to the distant telephone where
I called the number he gave me for the Mission
Hospital. My call was put through to the trauma
center where I learned that my three-year-old son had
been trapped underneath the automatic garage door for
several minutes, and that when my wife had found him
he was dead.
CPR had been performed by a neighbor, who is a doctor,
and the paramedics had continued the treatment as
Brian was transported to the hospital. By the time of
my call, Brian was revived and they believed he would
live, but they did not know how much damage had been
done to his brain, nor to his heart.
They explained that the door had completely closed on
his little sternum right over his heart. He had been
severely crushed. After speaking with the medical
staff, my wife sounded worried but not hysterical, and
I took comfort in her calmness. The return flight
seemed to last forever, but finally I arrived at the
hospital six hours after the garage door had come
down.
When I walked into the intensive care unit, nothing
could have prepared me to see my little son laying so
still on a great big bed with tubes and monitors
everywhere. He was on a respirator. I glanced at my
wife who stood and tried to give me a reassuring
smile. It all seemed like a terrible dream. I was
filled-in with the details and given a guarded
prognosis. Brian was go ing to live, and the
preliminary tests indicated that his heart was OK, two
miracles in and of themselves.
But only time would tell if his brain received any
damage. Throughout the seemingly endless hours, my
wife was calm. She felt that Brian would eventually
be all right. I hung on to her words and faith like a
lifeline. All that night and the next day Brian
remained unconscious. It seemed like forever since I
had left for my business trip the day before. Finally
at two o'clock that afternoon, our son regained
consciousness and sat up uttering the most beautiful
words I have ever heard spoken. He said,"Daddy hold
me" and he reached for me with his little arms.
[TEAR BREAK...smile]
By the next day he was pronounced as having no
neurological or physical deficits, and the story of
his miraculous survival spread throughout the
hospital. You cannot imagine when we took Brian home,
we felt a unique reverence for the life and love of
our Heavenly Father that comes to those who brush
death so closely.
In the days that followed there was a special spirit
about our home. Our two older children were much
closer to their little brother. My wife and I were
much closer to each other, and all of us were very
close as a whole family. Life took on a less stressful
pace. Perspective seemed to be more focused, and
balance much easier to gain and maintain. We felt
deeply blessed. Our gratitude was truly profound.
The story is not over (smile)! Almost a month later
to the day of the accident, Brian awoke from his
afternoon nap and said, "Sit down Mommy. I have
something to tell you." At this time in his life,
Brian usually spoke in small phrases, so to say a
large sentence surprised my wife.
She sat down with him on his bed, and he began his
sacred and remarkable story. "Do you remember when I
got stuck under the garage door? Well, it was so
heavy and it hurt really bad. I called to you, but
you couldn't hear me I started to cry, but then it
hurt too bad. And then the 'birdies' came."
"The birdies?" my wife asked puzzled.
"Yes," he replied. "The birdies made a whooshing
sound and flew into the garage. They took care of
me."
"They did?"
"Yes," he said. "one of the birdies came and got you.
She came to tell you I got stuck under the door." A
sweet reverent feeling filled the room. The spirit
was so strong and yet lighter than air.
My wife realized that a three-year-old had no concept
of death and spirits, so he was referring to the
beings who came to him from beyond as "birdies"
because they were up in the air like birds that fly.
"What did the birdies look like?" she asked.
Brian answered, "They were so beautiful. They were
dressed in white, all white. Some of them had green
and white. But some of them had on just white."
"Did they say anything?"
"Yes," he answered. "They told me the baby would be
all right."
"The baby?" my wife asked confused.
Brian answered. "The baby laying on the garage
floor." He went on, You came out and opened the garage
door and ran to the baby. You told the baby to stay
and not leave."
My wife nearly collapsed upon hearing this, for she
had indeed gone and knelt beside Brian's body and
seeing his crushed chest whispered, "Don't leave us
Brian, please stay if you can." As she listened to
Brian telling her the words she had spoken, she
realized that the spirit had left his body and was
looking down from above on this little lifeless form.
"Then what happened?" she asked..
"We went on a trip." he said, "Far, far away." He grew
agitated trying to say the things he didn't seem to
have the words for.
My wife tried to calm and comfort him, and let him
know it would be okay. He struggled with wanting to
tell something that obviously was very important to
him, but finding the words was difficult.
"We flew so fast up in the air. They're so pretty Mommy,"
he added. "And there are lots and lots of birdies."
My wife was stunned. Into her mind the sweet comforting
spirit enveloped her more soundly, but with an urgency
she had never before known. Brian went on to tell her
that the "birdies" had told him that he had to come
back and tell everyone about the "birdies." He said
they brought him back to the house and that a big fire
truck and an ambulance were there. A man was bringing
the baby out on a white bed and he tried to tell the
man that the baby would be okay, but the man couldn't
hear him. He said the birdies told him he had to go
with the ambulance, but they would be near him. He
said they were so pretty and so peaceful, and he
didn't want to come back. Then the bright light came.
He said that the light was so bright and so warm, and
he loved the bright light so much. Someone was in the
bright light and put their arms around him, and told
him, "I love you but you have to go back. You have to
play baseball, and tell everyone about the birdies."
Then the person in the bright light kissed him and
waved bye-bye. Then whoosh, the big sound came
and they went into the clouds.
The story went on for an hour. He taught us that
"birdies" were always with us, but we don't see them
because we look with our eyes and we don't hear them
because we listen with our ears. But they are always
there, you can only see them in here (he put his hand
over his heart). They whisper the things to help us
to do what is right because they love us so much.
Brian continued, stating, "I have a plan, Mommy.
You have a plan. Daddy has a plan. Everyone has
a plan. We must all live our plan and keep our
promises. The birdies help us to do that cause
they love us so much."
In the weeks that followed, he often came to us and
told all or part of it, again and again. Always the
story remained the same. The details were never
changed or out of order. A few times he added further
habits of information and clarified the message he had
already delivered. It never ceased to amaze us how
he could tell such detail and speak beyond his ability
when he talked about his birdies. Everywhere he went,
he told strangers about the "birdies." Surprisingly, no
one ever looked at him strangely when he did this.
Rather, they always got a softened look on their face
and smiled.
Needless to say, we have not been the same ever since
that day, and I pray we never will be.
[Movie Review] Anastasia (1997)
I got the chance to see Anastasia, a 1997 film by Warner Bros. I think.
With my mind wandering around a bit at the start of the movie watching, the first thing that came to mind (as it has come to mind when I first heard about this movie) is that "oh it's another Disney movie."
Watching the film closely, I came to realize it's not a Disney movie. And suddenly, my appreciation for Disney movies grew exponentially.
Anastasia is not a great movie. Not by my Disney-movie standards.
Story-wise, it's fine. But I guess it doesn't also meet Disney movie standards, that's why it's not a Disney movie. How it was crafted - there are some good points for a movie created back in 1997. But overall, no thanks.
I rate it a 2/4: watch it only if you have free time, out of curiosity maybe.
By the way, I'm slightly revising my ratings system as follows:
1 - DON'T BOTHER TO WATCH, IT'S A WASTE OF YOUR TIME.
2 - Watch it only at home on DVD or if you have absolutely nothing else to do.
3 - DON'T PAY TO WATCH THIS MOVIE if you're not a movie lover, or well, it's a MUST-WATCH FOR MOVIE LOVERS.
4 - MUST WATCH FOR EVERYONE! GO WATCH IT NOW! :-)
[sub-label: CPC general, CPC movies]
With my mind wandering around a bit at the start of the movie watching, the first thing that came to mind (as it has come to mind when I first heard about this movie) is that "oh it's another Disney movie."
Watching the film closely, I came to realize it's not a Disney movie. And suddenly, my appreciation for Disney movies grew exponentially.
Anastasia is not a great movie. Not by my Disney-movie standards.
Story-wise, it's fine. But I guess it doesn't also meet Disney movie standards, that's why it's not a Disney movie. How it was crafted - there are some good points for a movie created back in 1997. But overall, no thanks.
I rate it a 2/4: watch it only if you have free time, out of curiosity maybe.
By the way, I'm slightly revising my ratings system as follows:
1 - DON'T BOTHER TO WATCH, IT'S A WASTE OF YOUR TIME.
2 - Watch it only at home on DVD or if you have absolutely nothing else to do.
3 - DON'T PAY TO WATCH THIS MOVIE if you're not a movie lover, or well, it's a MUST-WATCH FOR MOVIE LOVERS.
4 - MUST WATCH FOR EVERYONE! GO WATCH IT NOW! :-)
[sub-label: CPC general, CPC movies]
Friday, February 1, 2008
RAW blog thread
Each RAW (ronjie.com around the web) post features a link to a website, file, video, whatever, anywhere, somewhere on the web that is cool, interesting, or useful.
Stars Travel - still charging a 5% credit card surcharge
I will still use their service in the future, but I'm just stating here a fact. Last November, I booked a trip to Shanghai with them, and because it is a "free" trip that I need to pay first in advance and reimburse after a month's time, I used my credit card again (this is my second time to do so with them). That is November 2007. Just a few months before, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) I think has already (re-)issued a circular/law disallowing any surcharges on credit card transactions. And here they are still, a-charging. I personally really didn't mind, because again, I was going to reimburse whatever they're charging to this foreign group with lots of dough. So anyway, I'm just here stating a fact. And again, I will still use their services in the future for trips around Asia, and most especially for trips to/from Japan.
("Skilled people...") (FWD by Jay Q)
[sub-labels: puzzles/riddles]
Only skilled people can solve this....... Now it is your move!
There is a bus with 7 girls .
Each girl has 7 bags .
In each bag, there are 7 big cats
Each big cat has 7 little cats.
Each cat has 4 legs .
Question: How many legs are present in the bus?
NOTES:
1. You may post your answers here as comments. :-D
2. I think this is just a way for HR people to find out who's doing other things while on the job! Tsk tsk tsk. :-D
DOWNLOAD Prove.xls
Only skilled people can solve this....... Now it is your move!
There is a bus with 7 girls .
Each girl has 7 bags .
In each bag, there are 7 big cats
Each big cat has 7 little cats.
Each cat has 4 legs .
Question: How many legs are present in the bus?
NOTES:
1. You may post your answers here as comments. :-D
2. I think this is just a way for HR people to find out who's doing other things while on the job! Tsk tsk tsk. :-D
DOWNLOAD Prove.xls
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