Looking Back 2009

2009 was not a great year for the Philippines we encountered threats like H1N1, death of Pres. Cory Aquino, calamities like ONDOY & PEPENG, the Mayon Volcano and of course the controversial Maguindanao massacre. Still 2009 was not bad for all here are some of the things that  happened in my life this year.

- I  was able to attend an IT seminar for a month (April) which I thought it  would never happen because I’m not included in the list.

- I was able to meet new friends in Manila during our Get Together in our Netbooks.PH group this summer.

- I was able to travel in Ilo-ilo and Boracay this summer also.

- I was able to make it to my dream position as a Computer Teacher in our school.

- I was able to receive an Award of Distinction from  Aboitiz Group of Foundation from our IT seminar last summer because  I was  able to make it to the top 20.

 

- I was able to buy PC-TV converter and Xmini2 for personal used in computer laboratory.

- I was able to learn more in photography and basic computer trouble shooting.

 

- I was able to buy a Lumix LX3 camera and Lenovo S10 netbook in good price from a good friend.
 
and so much more….

Indeed God had blessed me so much this year and I know he will continue to shower me this 2010.  I think the most important thing God gave me this year was that my family remained in good health and safe from any calamities.
Thank you are not enough to express my gratitude  to everyone who shared the year with me new friends, colleagues and workmates.

I know God will bless us all in his own little ways
keep on believing keep on praying

A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!

Lets make 2010 our Year! 

New Battery for my Dopod C730

My new battery just arrived! Yey! I ordered this in Ebay.ph cost me Php 860 plus 35 for postal fee here. It took 15 days for the item to arrive coz item came from Hongkong pa kaya. hehehe! This is a rechargeable Li-on battery it has 2250mAh capacity. Has 12 months warranty. I think its worth it!

 

 

Ano Nga Ba Ang Pasko?

Taun-taon, lagi na lang ganito, may Noche Buena, masaya, makulay. I just can’t help but wonder kung ano ang buhay ng ibang tao na hindi masaya, kumakalam ang mga sikmura dahil walang pang-Noche Buena at giniginaw kasi nakatira lang sa daan. Nararamdaman ba talaga nila ang tunay na diwa ng pasko? Ano ba talaga ang tunay na diwa ng pasko? Marami ang magsasabi na ang tunay na diwa ng Pasko ay pagmamahalan, pero hindi ba ang pagmamahalan nangyayari naman buong taon? Did God have this in mind when He gave us His only Son? Nasa mga plano ba niya na gawin nating isang festivity ang Pasko? Dapat ba talaga na may mga parol? Ok lang ba talaga na gawin negosyo ang pangangaroling? Gusto ba talaga ng Diyos na makumpleto natin ang Simbang Gabi? Dapat bang maraming pagkain sa hapag kainan tuwing nuche buena? Paano naman ang mga iba na walang Pasko, kawalan ba sa kanila yun? Kung dapat masaya pag pasko, bakit meron parin malungkot? Totoo bang may three kings?

Siguro nga parang walang saysay na itanong ko ng itanong lahat ng mga bagay na yan, malamang marami ang magsasabi na mababaw ako, na baka nagtatanong lang ako para may maisulat, pero kayo ba hindi kayo nagtataka kung saan nanggaling ang mga paniniwala natin sa Diwa ng Pasko? Kung ako ang tatanungin, siguro ang Diwa ng Pasko ay relative. Kumbaga, nasa contemporary point of view… Semiotics!  Para sa mga mahihirap, ang Diwa ng Pasko ay panandaliang matakasan ang masakit at mahirap nilang kapalaran. Ang Pasko ay isang magandang dahilan para magkaroon ng pag-asa na balang-araw ay mararamdaman naman nila ang kasiyahan ng makaahon sa kahirapan, Ang Pasko ay simbolo ng kinabukasan. Para sa mga mayayaman, ang Pasko ay panahon upang makipagpataasan ng ihi sa mga kapwa mayayaman at ipagyabang na kaya nilang mag-aksaya ng pera para lang masabi na ang bahay nila ang may pinakamaraming Christmas Lights. Ang Pasko ay panahon upang ipakita na masaya sila sa pamamagitan ng pagpapa-cater para sa Noche Buena. Ang pasko ay isang malaking entertainment.

Ayoko isipin na ang Pasko ay ipinagdiriwang dahil lamang sa ito ay nakasanayan na. Ang katwiran kasi doon, hindi pwede na routinary ang Pasko, kasi taun-taon maraming mga pangyayari ang nakakapagpabago sa takbo nito. Nong nakaraang buwan nakita natin ang karumal-dumal na nangyari sa Maguindanao. Ano na ang pasko para sa mga nawalan ng mga mahal sa buhay? Ito ba ay isang paraan upang maibsan ang sakit at pagtangis na nararamdaman nila? O ito ba ay tila isang martilyo na magbabaon sa pako na nagbabadyang tumusok sa kanilang mga puso?
Para sa isang simpleng guro na kagaya ko,  ang pasko ay isang pagtakas sa katotohanan na ang buhay ay hindi lamang puro sarap kundi puno ng hirap. Ang pasko ay isang artipisyal na solusyon sa isang puso na nananaghoy.Kaming mga employado ng gobyerno sumasaya tuwing darating ang pasko kasi nga may year end bonus at additional bonus. Oo, masaya na kami sa konting halaga na binibigay sa amin na gobyerno. Ngunit bakit, parang pinagdadamot pa nila itong ibigay sa amin. Pasko na pero wala pa ring bonus na pumasok sa mga atm namin. Inaasahan na ito ng mga kawani at ngayong ang iba kong mga kasamahan ay sinanla o cash advance na nila ito (bonus) sa mga pautangan ahensya kasi gusto nilang may pagsaluhan ang buong pamilya sa Noche Buena. Octobre pa lang ay prenoklama na ng ating Pangulong GMA, na bibigyan ng additional bonus ang lahat ng mga kawani ng gobyerno. Ngunit tila parang hindi sincere ang pamahalaang Arroyo na ibigay ang mga bonus na ito sa kawani ng gobyerno? Samantalang ang mga matataas na opisyales ng gobyerno ay nagpapakasasang gastusin ang pera ng bayan sa mga walang kwentang mga bagay, biyahe at proyekto para lang may makurakot. Puro lang pangako, lagi namang pako!

Ano ba tong mga sinusulat ko at baka san na to mapunta...hehe!  Linalabas ko lang ang aking panaghoy sa pamamagitan ng pagsulat sa blog.

Ang tanong ko lang ...nasan ang bonus na ito?

Maligayang Pasko at Manigong Bagong Taon!!!! Pagpalain nawa tayo ng Maykapal.

XMINI 2ND GENERATION

Before anything else, if you get your own X-Mini II, HEED THE WARNING written at the front of the box: Warning: Unbelievably Loud

I didn’t. Which is why when I greedily opened the package containing the speaker and hastily plugged it in, and without reading the instructional material (who does anyway? ) I was totally not prepared for what came next. I almost jumped out of my skin when the music blared on the speakers – it was THAT loud. Sure, sure I heard reviews saying that the sound is unbelievable for its size and that it will rock your shoes off but experiencing the real thing is waaay much more convincing. I know I’m convinced.
Portability is a no-brainer. The X-mini scores a 10.5/10 for portability and geekness/coolness factor. Who’d believe you when you say that the small disc in your hand that closely resembles a hockey puck is a speaker? Not many – until you twist it, plug your device, and turn it on. You’d get the “Woooow” and the “Oooooh” and the “Haneeeeeps” you wish you’d get when you flex your muscles.
I tried it on different types of files: Music, Movies, Game sounds, everything sounded solid and great. Lyrics sounded clear and not muddled, and the same goes for the dialogues in the movies. I’m no music aficionado but even I appreciate the amount of bass the X-mini has. Out of the box, the X-mini sounded great but if your device has EQ settings, you might get better results. Not stereo? Listen to the X-Mini for 5 minutes and you won’t notice the difference – unless of course you are an audiophile and a perfectionist to boot. On the other hand, you might want to listen to around 85-95% volume max – the sound tends to break-up at the higher levels. Don’t be fooled though: that 95% volume is LOUD.
The multiple ways you can plug the X-mini to different devices is excellent as well. You have the built-in 3.5mm plug, the included mini-USB to 3.5mm (which doubles as a charger as well) and the Buddy Jack port as well. I used a 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable that costs 40 bucks in ACE hardware, and it worked perfectly. Battery life is something to marvel as well. My fully charged iPod went poof first before the X-Mini. Unless you plan to listen to music for 3 straight days, the rated 12 hours of usage should be enough for most users.
All in all, I consider the X-mini II as an excellent investment. Coupled with your portable netbook, the X-mini is perfect for that on-the-go sound trippings and movie marathons.

Love the red color on black

 volume control and connecting jack

 

audio jack

on and off switch

indicator light

Cdr-King PC to TV Converter

 

 

 

 

 

I love movies and I love TV series. And I have a bunch of them in DivX format. Sure I can watch them in my laptop LCD but nothing beats watching them in TV. That’s where the PC to TV Converter comes in. It displays whatever is displayed in your laptop LCD in your TV. And it works! Last month, I bought the converter at a nearby CD-R King and I went home, installed it and got it working (Say what they say about CD-R King but I’m still happy and satisfied with their products!).

It’s so easy to install. The monitor cable connects to the laptop VGA out port and straight to the converter. The USB power supply connects from the converter to one of the USB ports in the laptop. The video (yellow) RCA cable connects from the converter to the TV video in port. I then connected my laptop audio out to the Aux port of my stereo system.

And now I can also use this converter during my computer class so students could see my powerpoint presentation to the bigger screen.

And the next thing to do — play those DivX videos!

How To Know If You're Really In Love

It is a very common question, "How can I tell I'm in love?", but it is not an easy question to answer. What feels like love to one person may be nothing more than attraction to another. Some people fall in and out of love quickly and often while others are never really in love as much as they are in lust. This can get confusing when you are a teen because romantic love is a relatively new concept for you and you don't know what to expect. You are overwhelmed with all sorts of new feelings and social pressures. They are confusing. What is love? What makes you want a romantic relationship with one person and not another? How does your heart choose a partner? Why does love end? These questions can't be easily answered.

One of the most confusing quasi-love feelings is lust. Lust is a very powerful, very intense feeling of physical attraction toward another person. Lust is mainly sexual in nature - the attraction is superficial based on instant chemistry rather than genuine caring. Usually we lust after people we do not know well, people we still feel comfortable fantasizing about. It is very common for people to confuse lust for love. But why? What is it about lust and love that make them so easy to mix up? If lust is all about sex, how can a relationship without sex be about lust? Teens struggle with this because they see lust in the Biblical sense, but lust isn't that sinister. Lust is about physical attraction and acting ONLY on physical attraction. Love is about much more than that. Yet many teens (and to be fair, many adults) confuse an intense attraction for some sort if divine love. For teens, since feelings of attraction are still new and since pop-culture sells sex and love as one package, it is very easy to get the two mixed up.

Lust is clearly not love. Love is based on more than just physical attraction. Sure, attraction is a factor, but love goes deeper than that. Love is based on caring, friendship, commitment and trust. When you are in love it is as if you have your best most trusted friend at your side AND you feel physically attracted to them. It is the best of both worlds! Love is a shared feeling between two people who have a vested interest in one anothers happiness. Love is not about jealousy. It is not about conflict. It is not about testing. Love is a positive feeling. If it is tainted by mistrust, jealousy, insecurity or spitefulness it is not really love but merely a pale copy. Love is the total surrender of your heart to another person with the security of knowing they will treat it better than you will. Love should feel good. It should not feel bad. Love should make you want to be a better person, it should not lead you to do something self destructive. Love is not demanding of your spirit but lifts it and makes it glow. Love is a good thing. Anything less is lust, deep friendship or attraction. So the sappiness aside, the question remains, how can you tell you are in love?

There is no easy way to find the truth behind your feelings or the feelings of another person but there are some tell-tale signs that love is blooming (or growing deeper). If you agree with 7 of the following 9 statements you are probably in love.

1. You know, because you have been told by your significant other, that your deep feelings are returned in kind.
2. The object of your affections makes you feel special and good about yourself.
3. If/when you feel jealous it is always fleeting; you trust your partner not to betray you or hurt your relationship.
4. Nothing makes you feel as serene as when you and your partner are together.
5. When you fight with your partner you usually make up within a few hours and you always agree that nothing is more important than you both being able to express your true feelings (even if they sometimes cause conflict).
6. Your partner never asks you to choose between him/her and your loyalties to your family and friends - if you do choose him/her over them you always have a good reason and it is always YOUR decision, and your decision alone.
7. Neither you or your partner feel the need to test the other's loyalties or feelings.
8. You are more yourself when with your partner than you are with anybody else.
9. If sex is part of your relationship it is by mutual desire and agreement without the slightest hint of commitment testing or persuasion.

If You Forget Me

If You Forget Me - Pablo Neruda


I want you to know one thing, you how this is:

If I look at the crystal moon, at the red branch of the slow autumn at my window..
If I touch near the fire the impalpable ash or the wrinkled body of a log,
Everything carries me to you,
As if everything that exists: aromas, light, metals,
Were little boats that sail toward those isles of yours that wait for me..

Well, now, if little by little, you stop loving me
I shall stop loving you little by little..

If suddenly you forget me, do not look for me
For I shall have already forgotten you.

If you think long and mad,
The wind of banners that passes through my life,
And you decide to leave me at the shore of the heart where I have roots,
Remember, that on that day, at that hour,
I shall lift my arms and my roots will set off to seek another land.

But if each day, each hour,
You feel that you're destined for me with implacable sweetness,
If each day a flower climbs up to your lips to seek me,
Ah my love, ah my own, in me all that fire is repeated.
In me, nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
My love feeds on your love, beloved.
And as long as you live, it will be in your arms,
Without leaving mine..