Living in the City

From white boxing pants that turned slowly to crimson, Diaz looked almost like he didn't know what hit him. He is the beaten man and Manny Pacquiao reigned supreme. I am not much of a boxing fan. I find it too gruesome, violent and sadistic. Imagine having fun watching a person get hurt. And Diaz got hurt . Really bad. I salute Manny Pacquiao for the kind but unlikely gesture of wanting to bring Diaz up when the former 'signalled for help' while he was down on the floor. His magnanimity in defeat is further proven when news reports indicated, that during the few moments before the fight ended, he was already trying to tell the referee, that Diaz might not be able to handle it any longer. I am not sure of the actual words spoken and this is pure speculation on my part, but I believe that at one point he slowed down to soften the blows directed at his opponent. For this instinctive gestures alone, I salute Manny Pacquiao. An illuminating fighter, a real champion , a t...

Life is never easy in the city. The rising cost of living due to the escalating price of oil is making everybody feel hell is right here, now on earth. Hell it is, if we live without the usual utilities. How do I blog without the laptop or the desktops? How do I cook our favorite dishes? How do I get to watch my favorite celebrity chefs and celebrity travelers on TV? Oooohhh. That would be oh so not fun. ( Spoken like a true blue Gossip Girl fan) :-) I am thinking silly. Life is more than all these things combined, right. Oh yeah? Wrong! So when life wears me down, I look outside my side of the bedroom window and this is what I see. Having to gaze at all these inanimate and seemingly cold rooftops, electrical wirings, and lording it over them makes me feel bigger than how I feel at that precise moment. I grow, believe you me, relaxed somehow, in complete control. I realize that city living has taught me to stare at rooftops, to while away th...

My financial life is marked with ups and downs. Early on, while business was very good, I had been privileged to smell the roses, so to speak. Yes, but as expected, nothing lasts forever. The 'wild abandon' years went by, so fast, the consequential thorns made my hands bleed. So how do you deal with the prospect of a gloomy and financially cash-strapped retirement? I hate to speculate, but this early, I could already smell the loneliness enveloping the air. It would be in appropriate for me to talk about the details. Suffice it to say, that money is not everything, yes, but it sure is wise to save up some. For the rainy days, to have something when you get sick and perhaps, if it wouldn't be much to ask, to enjoy retireme nt . I say, while there is time, study your options. Seek trustworthy assistance. Plan your financial future, not tomorrow, not next month, not when you receive a substantial amount of income, nor cash but NOW!!!. There is no better gift you can giv...

And while we are talking about Marikina, I am calling all our residents, to please consider voting for our Mayor Marides C Fernando to the World Mayor 2008 Contest. According to its website: "During the first round of World Mayor 2008, held in 2007, more than 100,000 citizens from around the world nominated some 820 mayors for the World Mayor title. Based on the number and quality of nominations, the editorial board of City Mayors, the organisers of the contest, selected 50 mayors from across the world, who proceed to the final round. Profiles of many of the shortlisted mayors have been written. More will be added. VOTING CLOSES AT THE END OF JUNE. The results will be announced in September." So, ifhave the time why not proceed to to this site and vote for MCF. That would bring again another feather in her cap. And who wouldn't want that? We only have a few days to go. So please VOTE.

Talk about good governance, Marikina City is at the forefront once again. This morning some city employees came over to do a survey about house numbering. Let me say, that at the moment , the street where we live utilizes a hassle-prone type of house numbering. Imagine that our number is being used by three or four other houses, including our next door neighbor. But theirs is fine. We are xxx-A and they are xxx-B. No problem. Thing is, we get door-belled every so often for mails and deliveries which are not really intended for our household. It is such a hassle, considering that these delivery people ring our bell as if there was no tomorrow. Grrr. But at last! Finally! There is relief in sight. Marikina is doing a city-wide survey or housemapping activities to rationalize its house numbering system. The task is also in aid of updating the city's real property database and city-mapping system. Ah hah! Finally, the tax evaders' days are numbered. An efficient house numbering ...

Yes, he did. Typhoon Frank was slowly coming in at about 9:00 in the evening on June 21 in Metro Manila. I could feel the that this was no ordinary breeze. It was definitely cold, blowing like hyperventilating winds, loudly wheezing its velocity that smelled nothing but disaster. I was near our bedroom window trying to tweak one of my blog's templates when I suddenly shivered. I wondered WTF is happening. Please excuse the abbreviated profanity. Just as my partner arrived from a get-together, the wind was really blowing hard. I had to close the windows. But I thought the tropical storm was somewhere in Mindanao? We couldn't sleep. We were watching the History Channel. At about 2:30 in the morning, the winds began lashing, pouring all its strength against the roofs and the trees. My blood pressure was acting up. I prayed hard, not so much Lord. Spare us, as always. I guess it was already 4:00 when we fell asleep. And so when I woke up there were no TV, phone, computer, ele...

I am happy that our atis fruit tree is bearing fruits again. Last year, it bore two but this year, there's quite a number. We can't wait to do some harvesting soon. It is always good to plant, and harvest fruits nurtured by our own hands. It's like watching a child grow. There's a different kind of enjoyment when we experience those tender moments with our plants. Remember, plants are alive. They breathe, and get hurt when they do not get enough care and attentio n. I am happy to note that this fruit tree now enjoys better sunshine. Our neighbor's mango tree used to tower above her, thus blocking that much important aspect of plant growing; but has recently been pruned. Alas, it seems the tree grew happier, that within a week, it started bearing quite a number of fruits, to our satisfaction.

Just today, my gmail inbox contained thousands of spam messages. Never have I been deluged before by spams these many. God, where on earth did they come from? Recently, I submitted my email address to a link I found through the blogger blog. I was asked to type in my email and wait to be submitted to several blog directories. It promised that there are no spams involved. I guess I was so naive to think and believe that all those directories are not into spamming. I have already enabled my gmail to try prevent these messages from coming in. I hope I did the correct set-up. In a related story, I sure am glad that spammers get what's due them when they do unscrupulous activities such as what is in this news story.

I have been tagged by mckhoii. This blogger friend had been pleasantly persistent in his many invitations. I couldn't find any excuse anymore :-) So here it is: INSTRUCTIONS 1. Copy and paste everything to a new post and Add your name next to your profession (or profession-to-be for undergrads) in the list. Make sure your name is linked to your blog/webbie 2. If your profession is not in the list then simply add it to the correct alphabetical place. For example, if you want to add PLUMBER then it should be placed in between ONCOLOGIST and QUEEN 3. Tag as many people as you can and witness how your technorati will explode! 4. Don’t forget to link back. In your case, link back to www.mckhoii.com THE WORLD CLASS PROFESSIONS Blogger - Doctor - Nurse - Mckhoii , Teacher - Semi-retired (IT Marketing and Sales) - lotusflower I’m tagging this lot: More →

The truth is I have a small black book I keep to list all my memberships to many different sites: some writing, some money earning, web albums, you name it I may have been or is currently a member. The thing is I never talk about it in any of my blogs. Truth is I am so afraid of google - that I believe and heed the many warnings I have read from reliable sources. Yes, I have signed up for this site too. A long, long time ago but never got any chance to see how it goes and how it work. I have forgotten. And then a visit to one blog which spoke about it and presto I suddenly remembered I am a member of bloggerwave . So here I am it checking out, Perhaps, make some bread to fund my everyday dough? :-) In effect, this site is now one of my current sponsors.

Here's an interesting recycling thing I found on the web which is even children can do. It's a nice way to teach children about recycling. And best these are considered toys for children and I bet even adults can do this and both can make some money from it. Calling Marikina City. I found it here. And thanks to site , where I got the link. "These funny clowns are made at the spectacular Foz do Iguacu (Iguasu Falls), which sits at the point where Brazil meets Argentina and Paraguay. Here, there are always beautiful, lush green plants growing everywhere, so no wonder the kids there have incorporated grass into their toys!. Meet the Grass Head Clown, which is often decorated with the colors of rainbow, the same colors created from the mist of Iguassu Falls which falls along 350-foot cliffs of river". "The child who made this particular toy used all recycled materials: a pair of her mother's old stockings, a piece of scrap ribbon, sawdust she found lying around h...

I was thinking of preparing a post about Father's Day not in honor of my father because I have already done that in my IBANAG Family blog. I thought perhaps I will do some research on father related humor. To that end I saw this website which essentially talks about fathers, what else. I found some of what's been written as amusing and I quote some of it below: "To be successful father, there's one absolute rule: when you have a kid, don't look at it for the first two years. - Ernest Hemingway. The thing to remember about fathers is ... they're men. A girl has to keep it in mind: They are dragon seekers, bent on improbable rescues. Scratch any father, you find someone chock-full of qualms and romantic terrors, believing change is a threat, like your first shoes with heels on, like your first bicycle.. - Phyllis McGinley. If the relationship of father to son could really be reduced to biology, the whole earth would blaze with the glory of fathers and sons. -J...

It's quite final. Google and Yahoo are slated to become advertising partners. According to the non-exclusive agreement, "Google would deliver ads next to some of Yahoo’s search results and on some of its Web sites in the United States and Canada." Essentially, "Yahoo will choose search terms for which Google will offer ads. Yahoo will determine the number and placement of ads sold by Google and mix them with some ads it sells itself." If all plans pass the "scrutiny" of "antitrust regulators," some of which are from the United States (US) Justice Department and the US Senate anti-trust sub-committee, in three months, we will start seeing all-in-one Google and Yahoo ads occupying one distinct place at a time. Please read the full story here .

I took this photo when I happened to pass by Marikina City Riverbanks last week. Riverbanks is some sort of a mini mall where you can shop from branded stores and 'tiangge' types, as well. There is a bookstore, an appliance store, a supermarket, plenty of food shops, from Jollibee to Tropical Hut as well as other retail stores catering to different needs and various markets. On the foreground is the famous squeaky clean Marikina River. And that large block of building is the new and soon to open SM Super Mall . The other buildings on the farthest right, I believe is Eastwood , actually located at nearby Quezon City. Marikenyos are excited about SM's opening, I am sure. It is touted to occupy 60,000 sq meters of land and shall maintain a floor area equivalent to 124,877.85 (one of Henry Sy's spacier malls). And to this effect I suppose Riverbanks (t oo bad I forgot to take a photo of the place), will just be a thing of the past? Me? I am more worried about the traf...

Top Entrecard Droppers of this Blog 23 article specialist 21 underheavenz 17 first door on your left 16 spitting vessel 15 juliana's lair 13 retire in paradise 13 juliana's world 11 2witches blog 10 puzzled me 9 reap money online Thank you all.

I have not been around lately. My time has been consumed with "tweaking my blog templates ( as if) :-) My absence also was due to inaccessibility to a computer. I get to have 'access' at around 11:00 in the evening and by that time I am all exhausted to do my posting. But I am almost back. Thanks to all of you.

I have been a member of this survey site for awhile now. It was an experimental thing for me; try out and see if their claims about making money from online surveys are true at all. I believe I was able to complete a couple of surveys earning some points. A few days ago, I checked in on them to find out what's new. Their system could not recognize my log-in details. Apparently, there was a glitch. This morning when I opened my mail I got this response: Dear Ms.___________, Thank you for your email. We experienced a technical issue which deactivated your account. I have thus reactivated your account and apologize for the inconvenience. Thank you for your patience. Best Regards, Malina Bankova Customer Service How about you? Any positive experience about online surveys? Can it pay for at least a domain name registration? Just curious. Your opinions will be highly appreciated. Thanks all.

According to the Wall Street Journal's China blog, foreigners must take note of certain guidelines when they intend to visit China for the Beijing Olympics. "On Monday, the organizers of the Beijing Olympics issued “legal guidance” covering 57 issues relevant to foreigners planning to attend this summer’s Games (see WSJ story here ). Some excerpts from these rules, presented in the original Q&A format: No. 22: Is it possible to sleep out in the city? In order to protect the urban public hygiene and a civilized appearance, it is prohibited to sleep in public places, including airports, train stations, piers, pedestrian crossings (both sky bridges and underground passages) and grassy areas. No. 32: Is China entirely open to foreign tourists? China is not currently fully open to foreigners, foreigners who have not obtained permits should not enter areas that are not open to the outside. No. 36: How are the business hours of entertainment venues regulated? Entertainmen...

I am insisting on posting about investing topics despite my ignorance. Precisely. The truth is I am really studying up, researching and finding out everything I could on mutual funds, because I might just end up in this industry soon. As consultant or as an investor myself (I :-) wish). Different countries, different rules. That's my dilemma. There's not enough info I could get my hands on, about 'investing in mutual funds in the Philippines'. So my readings are mostly U.S. scenarios. I guess, and I hope I could use the American model when I evaluate Philippine mutual funds . From what I read these are some of the points stressed about mutual funds: 1. Management competency is a must. This means a track record of not less than 10 years. 2. Consider how the fund is being promoted. Rise or fall prices are fairly indicated in the last 2 quarterly reports. Fund must be fairly consistent. It is may be well to also watch fund performance both on the up and down markets...