Friday, February 23, 2007

Welcome to the World of Entrepreneurship


<------- Just a glimpse of the outside

I have been trying to keep this as a secret because I dont want to preempt it. But since its already confirmed and its already operating...I should now call myself a "Boss of my own Business!"

At long last! After a couple of weeks of processing all the papers and buying all the things needed for the business...I have finally established a business that I can call my own. This has been a dream come true. Anyways, its just a small business but I know with the help of my brother, Jonathan, Brian, parents and the rest of the guys who are helping me out on this business, it will be as successful as any other big businesses here in the Philippines.

If you happen to know anyone who needs educational nurturing or help with regard to their acads, most especially in Math and Physics, just give me a call or text at 09196707889. I have wonderful teachers (not sure if they want me to disclose their names here) in the business who are most welcome to help you appreciate the subjects/courses you are having difficulty with.

I guess you are all getting what the nature of my business is...yes, its a Tutorial Center (FoG Tutorial Center) based in BF Resort Village, Las Pinas. So if you live nearby and needed a "tutor", dont hesitate to give me a call or text. I might even give you a big discount. We are accepting advance learning classes this coming summer and reviews for entrance exams (high school and college) We operate from Monday to Friday but no specific office hours since we will all have to depend on the class schedules of each tutees.

Hahaha...this blog sounds like an advertisement already. Well, I intended this blog as a "commercial blog" and at the same time an announcement blog to all my friends who have been so curious asking me what's really making me so busy these past few weeks. Here it is guys!

I know it will be a tough career for me but I will do my best to make this work and run the business as robust as Henry Sy (God help me! Sana lang walang kokontra!) By the way, there's a reason behind the "business name"...if you want to know more about it ask Leo or Erwin. Hehehe. Hope you know them.

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Something we need to know about Valentines' Day


The History of Valentine's Day

Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine's Day -- and its patron saint -- is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.
One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men -- his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.
Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.
According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl -- who may have been his jailor's daughter -- who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.
While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death or burial -- which probably occurred around 270 A.D -- others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to 'christianize' celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.
To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification.
The boys then sliced the goat's hide into strips, dipped them in the sacrificial blood and took to the streets, gently slapping both women and fields of crops with the goathide strips. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city's bachelors would then each choose a name out of the urn and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine's Day around 498 A.D. The Roman 'lottery' system for romantic pairing was deemed un-Christian and outlawed. Later, during the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds' mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February -- Valentine's Day -- should be a day for romance. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.

In Great Britain, Valentine's Day began to be popularly celebrated around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine's Day greetings. Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began to sell the first mass-produced valentines in America.
According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)
Approximately 85 percent of all valentines are purchased by women. In addition to the United States, Valentine's Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia.
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine's didn't begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap".
Let's now all have a quiz! Hehehe. Happy Valentines' Day to everyone.

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Reminiscing the Past...


Reminiscing the past...well its nice to rekindle some past experiences especially if those were really interesting and fun. I had a great night yesterday because I was able to visit my former dormitory in UP Diliman. When I was still studying in the university, I stayed in an old building, the NARRA Residence Hall. It's an exclusive dormitory for male students of UP Diliman.


Anyways, I was with Leo yesterday and he told me that he will go to UP Diliman to bring something for Kiko. Because of not having been there for a long time, I decided to join him and went there from Las Pinas. It was really a tiring ride from the almost southernmost part of Manila to the northernmost part of the region. Leo and I were able to get a cab from Las Pinas and it cost me a lot for the fare...


Well, we arrived in UP Diliman at around 8:30 in the evening. We waited for Kiko at Philcoa Jollibee Branch. Just after 15 minutes, I guess, we saw Kiko outside waiving at us with Anton. I felt happy seeing them again after a long time. They told me that Narra is having their OPEN HOUSE that night. Leo told me that he informed me about it but I cant really remember him telling me that. Anyways, I felt a bit bad because I didnt bring my camera with me...and I was only holding my very cheap Nokia 1110i and left my phone camera in my condo. So it was a little frustrating though...I kept on blaming Leo and Leo kept on telling me that he infomed me about it. I guess it was my fault...I'm so damn deaf!


Moving on...Leo, Kiko, Anton and I went to a nearby Jeepney Station from Philcoa. While walking towards the station, we saw Christian who's a former dormmate of ours too. I think Kiko informed him about the activity in Narra so he decided to come too. So we all went straight to Narra and arrived there after a 10 to 15 minute ride.


Every year, the management opens their dormitory to all visitors. All people can go inside the vicinity of the dorm and hang out with the other dormers in their respective rooms. Usually, Narrehans (that's how we call students staying in the dorm) will just invite their friends and/or relatives and prepare some food for all the visitors. So you will see a lot of rooms with lots of people inside it eating and drinking beer. The Open House is usually held at the last day of the week-long activity of the dormitory. I was once an organizer of the Narra Open House. That was way back 2001 when I was elected as a Secretary of the Narra House Council.


Moving on again...when I first entered the lobby of the dorm, it kind of struck me. Struck me in a sense that it brought back all the good memories I've had in the dormitory. I used to stay in the lobby and sit in one of the old chairs there with my fellow Narrehans. We always sing there while looking at all the people who pass by the entrance door. I saw the paging system, the same old paging system I once used to call the residents. Well, there were lots of new things in the lobby...the television area is already there (before its located in Wing 3) and a small room for I guess studying or conference room. We went inside the hall of the dormitory and saw lots of familiar faces...my former Narrehans, alumni of the dorm. I felt so happy chatting with them again. Its been ages since I last saw them. Anyways, the dorm was having a mini concert at the basketball court and there were just a few people (dormers and visitors) watching the bands. I watched a bit of the concert and decided to walk around the dormitory with Leo, Kiko, Christian and Anton. We passed by one room with lots of people inside it...then I heard someone calling me. It was Francis...my friend from the dorm. I used to hang out with him and other fellow Narrehans (Rykiel, Jack, Ron and Jay) He invited us inside his room. They were drinking beer, I guess. He introduced us to his pretty girlfriend and his other friends in the room. We stayed there for a couple of hours drinking beer and chatting with them. We sang songs while Rommel plays the guitar.


I left the dormitory quite late, I guess 4 in the morning. I took a cab with Kiko and Christian going home. Kiko and Christian got off the cab first because they live nearby and I was left in the cab with the driver. I felt like talking to the driver since I was so drunk...I told him that I might puke so I asked him to drive slowly. He told me that he's only running at 30...that was really slow. Well, I arrived in the condo after an hour trip from UP Diliman. This time...I was able to sleep instantly and had not been bothered with insomnia.


It was really an interesting night...a night full of good memories from the past.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Friends...Problems...Advices...


Well, I am a very friendly person that's why I have abundant friends, either it be just pure acquaintances or serious and real friends. But anyways, since I have lots of friends and that I have been a BUM for a long time, I get to meet some of them and hang out with them. I really appreciate them inviting me over to their parties and other gatherings...and I enjoy being with them. It's just that whenever I am with them, I seem to hear a lot of their problems and struggles in life. So my normal reaction to it is that I tend to give advices and/or opinions which I find so strange...because I have lots of problems of my own. Funny thing, until now I'm still struggling to find ways on how to solve it.


Anyways, it feels good that people trust you with their secrets and ask for your advice regarding lots of things but I just can't help but think, why am I good at giving advices yet I don't know how to give advices to myself? Why is it so easy for me to think of solutions to someone else's problems? Why am I not able to solve my own problems? Isn't it too ironic?


Well, I guess I have to change the scene now whenever I meet them. I guess, this is the best time for me to ask help from my friends...it's the best time for me to talk to them about my life and be more open about it. It's the best time for me to listen to what they will say and try to grasp and understand everything. I know advices aren't really good...sometimes it makes our lives more complicated. But I think I need some right now.


Help, guys!!!

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Dont Give Up by Josh Groban


I dont know why Josh Groban's songs always struck me. With songs like "The Prayer" with Charlotte Church, "You're Still You" and "To Where You Are"...all of these songs have given me lots of inspiration, motivated me and lifted my soul.

Now, he has a new album called "AWAKE" which has the best songs ever. Some or I believe most of the songs were composed by Josh Groban himself. If you have time, please try to listen to his newly released single, "You Are Loved (Don't Give Up)"... This song will encourage you to move on with your life. It'll wake your senses and give you a realization that life isn't just about having a stable career and earning a lot money. But it'll tell you one of the most important reasons why we are living...that is to share your life with people, not only with those people you care most but those people who needed you more than you need them. It'll tell you that no matter what happens, there will always be someone who will LOVE you and will CARE for you. Well, this is how the song affected me, I don't know about YOU.


We need to survive for other people to survive too. It's just a chain of life...

Beginner


Hi there everyone! I just started my blog here today. Never had I imagined myself really creating a blog since I'm not good in writing and neither interested to write all things about me. But well, what the heck...I already have this so I should use it. This is the effect of being a BUM for almost 6 months...doing nothing.

I'll do my best to keep all the ridiculous and interesting events of my life posted in this blog. Hope you enjoy reading this.