Life (in a) OUTSIDE the Box: 2010

When i was in college, I was a part of the christian group Victory Christian Fellowship. There was a time when I was invited to a prophetic presbytery. When it was my turn to be prophesied to, the man told me:

"oh i can feel the joy of the Lord in you. there is so much peace in you. you have troubles but because of the joy of the lord, you are able to overlook these problems."

Today I was reminded of this joy of the lord. Ever since i opened the store, my wake up time is 4am and i will be working until 11pm. At first i was complaining and literally having severe headaches and body pain. but after a month, somehow i got used to it. im still having hard time getting up early and going to the wet market. at 8pm, i am very exhausted.

but despite of all these, i am happy. i have peace. and i believe, this is the joy of the lord residing in me.

god's word never gave us an assurance of a trial free life. but the best part is, He gave us the assurance of never abandoning us. Last sunday as i went to mass, the choir sung the song YOU ARE NEAR.

"Yahweh I know you are near, standing always at my side, you guard me from the foe, and you lead me, in ways everlasting..."

i cried. i just felt that god was there and telling me that i am at the center of his will. and the best part is, he is telling me that he will always be near me. no matter what.

i just hope and pray that you will also find the peace and the joy of the lord in you. we may all be preoccupied with so much responsibilities, but at the center of our system, peace reigns.

God bless you.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

business conception: historical beginning

when i was a kid, i was raised not in a home, instead, in a canteen.

the kitchen was my playground. the market was my theme park. and of course, in the dining room, im the small cute host.

According to my mom, i will memorize songs recorded on cassette tapes and will sing them infront of our customers. I will get my pen and paper and show off my ability to write my name. and i am their little mathematician. my mom would ask me to calculate the total bill for a particular customer and will do the math mentally.

this was my life during childhood.

i will go to school (alone, no alalay from grade 1) asking policemen to help me cross the streets. at lunch time, i will go home for lunch and do my homework. when i was already a 3rd grader, after all the assignments, i will do the marketing for the canteem. My mom will do the market list, hand me the money and off i go!

my first stop is the supermarket. I will buy one or two large boxes of groceries and leave them at the baggage counter. my next stop is the wet market. buy the fish, give the orders for the meat and poultry, then buy the vegetables. when im done buying all those things in my market list, i will call a "kargador" and instruct him to get all my things. then i will go home and wait for my stuff. then i will do the cutting of the vegetables to prepare them for tomorrow's cooking. :)

end of my day.

a lot of kids during those age are playing on the streets with other children after class. in my case, i still have to do marketing, make and sell some ice candy and even buy school supplies and candies to sell them to my classmates. I never thought of being robbed of my childhood play time. for me, selling and marketing is play time. i enjoyed doing it and loved every moment of it.

as a reward, i get a higher school allowance. when my classmates have 10 pesos for their baon, i have 55 pesos, enough for two piece chicken joy from jollibee! :)

yummy life! :)

(ooops. a customer arrived. bye blog!)

Friday, November 19, 2010

happiness

last night as i was lying in my bed, and thinking about the events of the day, all i can say is, thank you lord for all the blessings...

i texted some friends and sent them this message:

share ko lang, i may not be earning 6-digits now, but all i can say is that im truly happy. feeling ko natupad lahat ng pangarap ko. gudnyt!"

indeed i am happy. things may not be perfect for now, but amidst all the trials, difficulties and physical challenges, there is joy and peace in my heart.

indeed, i believe, this is god's will.

image source: http://www.psfk.com/2010/10/what-aging-can-teach-us-about-happiness.html

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Reviving my blog life

It's been a while since the last time i wrote something to this site.

Recent events made me decide to revive this blog corner.
My sole purpose if to document the events that transpired in my everyday life.
Ever since I started the business, documentation is something I badly need to do.
It takes time to document things, but I believe it will be a bad thing not to document events.

In the future, I want to reach those simple juan dela cruz who wanted to go to business but they are simply afraid of going into one. I hope this blog will evolve to be a business blog that inspires pinoys to go to business and be their own boss.

image source: http://kurukya.i.ph

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

day 2 - SEO

today i learned a lot about Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

i must admit this area caught my attention. its pretty interesting. i believe this is one issue that web developers need to address. because what will be the use of their webs if they are not visible to the web??

its interesting and i will dig deep regarding this one.

Monday, June 7, 2010

day 1 - SCRUM

today i learned a software development process called SCRUM. very geeky eh?
i was dragged into a meeting about scrum process. we talked bout the process owner, scrum master and the team members.

the process owner is the one that dictates what he wanted the team to accomplish within a certain limit of time usually called sprint. a sprint will last from 2 to 4 weeks. also, it is the process owner's responsibility to record the things to be accomplish in a sort of "project backlog."

from there, the scrum master steps in and manages the team. its the scrum master's task to make sure that the events on the backlog are attended (what will be included in the latest sprint and what event will be waiting in queue) also, its the scrum master's task to make sure that there will be no interruptions to the team during the run of the sprint.

and then there is the team member. the team members are free to get the task that they are most comfortable working with. if the need arises, the scrum master can assign task to the members. once the sprint starts, no one can add a task to the current sprint. if there are task needed to accomplished, then they are added to the backlog and later prioritized for the next sprint.

what i like the most in the scrum are the daily short 10-minutes meeting. in these meetings between the scrum master and the team members, there are only 3 questions needed to be answered by all members including the scrum master. these are:

1) What did you do yesterday?
2) What are you doing now?
3) What hinders you from doing your task?

as i was contemplating on these three questions, i realized that these are great questions we can ask ourselves everyday just to assess if we are really performing or not. work related or not, i think these three questions are very important and will be very helpful in attaining our goals in life. so starting today, why don't we ask ourselves everyday with these three questions?

365 project = 365 learnings

the 365 project is a photo essay of your everyday life. you can read about the project and its benefits from this site.

and i want to do a similar project. but i want to do it with a twist. I want to challenge myself of learning new things everyday. and these things will be posted as part of my 365 project. i think this will be very interesting. :)

so let me call this 365 learnings. :)

so excited! :)

reviving

its been a while since my last post! whew!

forgive me for not posting lately. I actually started another blog because i wanted to post some more personal stuffs about my life and daily activities. and i can't do it here with all of you knowing who i am! hahaha anyways, i realized that it is hard to maintain two blogs. so i decided to simply put everything here minus the too personal stories. :)

Monday, April 5, 2010

new song in my heart

I was listening to some songs lend to me by my friend. And i came across this Madonna song entitled "The power of goodbye" and i was amazed how she profoundly described the feeling of saying goodbye.

love this song. :)

Your heart is not open, so I must go
The spell has been broken...I loved you so
Freedom comes when you learn to let go
Creation comes when you learn to say no

You were my lesson I had to learn
I was your fortress you had to burn
Pain is a warning that something's wrong
I pray to God that it won't be long
Do ya wanna go higher?

Chorus:
There's nothing left to try
There's no place left to hide
There's no greater power than the power of good-bye

Your heart is not open, so I must go
The spell has been broken...I loved you so
You were my lesson I had to learn
I was your fortress

Chorus:
There's nothing left to lose
There's no more heart to bruise
There's no greater power than the power of good-bye

Bridge:
Learn to say good-bye
I yearn to say good-bye

Chorus:
There's nothing left to try
There's no more places to hide
There's no greater power than the power of good-bye
There's nothing left to lose
There's no more heart to bruise
There's no greater power than the power of good-bye

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

hot love

love is in the air... :)

picture: http://scenicbuenavista.com/balloonavista-2008.htm

Monday, March 22, 2010

love story

i want to save this picture. this is a testament of God's work. and i am a living witness of this great great love story. everything plain and simple. no fancy gimik. nothing else but LOVE.
congrats gail and ching. im so happy for both of you. im excited for the big day!

get out of the box!

in our life, sometimes we tend to put ourselves in a box. for some, they wanted to prevent things from getting bad to worst. others wanted to stay inside the box because they thought that staying will somehow make them feel secured and safe.

i realized, this is ultimately the biggest mistake we can ever do to our life.
putting yourself inside the box. never allowing anyone to hurt you more translate to never allowing others to help you move on.

hey dude, that includes me, you are missing so much LIFE outside the box.
time to get out. time to explore. time to change.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

hope

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

inspiration

As i was surfing the net, i came across this award Happiest Pinoy. I was surprised to learn that there is such an award given to the pinoy who according to some criteria, are the happiest in the land. I read the article about the year's winner and i was having goosebumps while reading it! sooooo inspiring! i am now posting the article in my blogsite for the information of everyone reading my blogs! i hope you'll be inspired as well. :)

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Source : Happiest Pinoy Article from Business Mirror

ARGUABLY, it is easier to be happy when one has many things to be happy about. And a person in the midst of suffering tends to lose faith and give in to sadness.

Winston Abella Maxino, 47, has been, for the longest time, contradicting these statements. Humor and infectious laughter are his best “weapons,” empowering him to rise above the medical challenges in his life.

The eighth of nine children, Winston was born and raised in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental. For most of his life, he suffered from severe asthma and allergy attacks. There were times when he had to be brought to the hospital and be confined for half the total number of school days.

The surest way for him to get rid of the physical pain was to make people laugh by cracking jokes and playing tricks on them. He always felt he was on the verge of death and with those simple gestures, he could leave a mark in case he would die soon. People would remember him as the “poor boy” who mastered the art of making people happy.

Even while faced with serious medical conditions, Winston was born to be an achiever. At 11, he became the “Little City Mayor” in Dumaguete City and performed mayoral duties for a week. He got elected as the youngest kagawad representing the youth sector of the city when he was still studying in Silliman University in 1980.

He completed BS Political Science, cum laude, despite his busy schedule as a public servant. He carried the distinction of being the only college student of Silliman University who was the grand slam recipient of the Most Outstanding Student of the Year in his four years in college.

Winston’s condition could have been an easy excuse for him to stay in the background and live in self-pity, but it only made him more determined to go beyond his limits.  

From 1984 to 1988, he pursued his ambition to become a lawyer like his father and two older siblings at the Ateneo de Manila University. Law school tested his endurance with sleepless nights of studying that led to worse asthma attacks. His strong will and hard work paid off when he graduated with Distinction for Honor Scholarship.

After law school, he served as a legislative assistant to former senator Agapito “Butz” Aquino from 1988 to 1990 and a technical assistant and one of President Corazon Aquino’s speech writers in the Office of the President from 1990 to 1992. He occupied various positions in the Philippine Postal Corp. from 1992 to 1996.

Discouraged by corruption and bureaucracy in the government, Winston made a big leap to the private sector in 1997. He was hired as special assistant to the President of Hooven Philippines Inc. and quickly promoted as vice president for Corporate Affairs.

In 2000, when everything seemed to be perfect, he was diagnosed with a degenerative and incurable bone disease called Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS), a rare case of rheumatoid arthritis of the spine and sacroiliac joints. He found himself unable to move without pain and walk without help. He had to take various strong pain relievers to manage the pain.

Despite his newly discovered disease, he became chief operating officer of Hooven Philippines Inc. in 2003—and remains so up to the present. As a leader he led from the heart and made employees’ welfare his priority. He was accessible to anybody who wanted to talk to him, and inspired loyalty and dedication in his subordinates.

Beyond Winston’s numerous accomplishments, it is his noble role as a loving husband to his wife Alina and an adoring father to his three daughters that he is most proud of.

His second child was born with Down syndrome. He worked hard to earn well so that he could support the regular medical treatments and weekly therapies of his daughter. He became an active member of the Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines, where he served as president and chairman of the board. He was instrumental in securing Presidential Proclamation 157 which declared the month of February as “Down Syndrome Consciousness Month.”

His passion in life is to make people happy. He loves to make children happy and calls himself a “kidologist.” He presents impressive and entertaining magic shows equipped with latest magic kits. Winston is also a certified balloon artist who conducts balloon twisting and decors in kids’ parties for free. He would surprise people with an audio-visual presentation that he prepared with photos he took.

Death is not a distant possibility to Winston, and he bravely welcomes it. He does not dwell on his health problems, having learned how to suffer cheerfully. His positive frame of mind motivates him to make the best of time with his family by starting to chronicle their happy moments together.

(Note: This is part of the profiles BusinessMirror is running on the persons who made it as finalists in the Search for the Happiest Pinoy, presented by Cebuana Lhuillier).

pal seat sale for its 70th anniversary!

grab your seat tickets now!!

focus

after dinner, while i was resting, i was observing the different appliances in the kitchen. I was wondering bout the kitchen equipment's long period of service to the company.

let's take for example,the bread toaster.

the toaster is the favorite equipment at the start of the day to toast bread for breakfast. It will do its job again later for afternoon snack, dinner and sometimes, even during midnight snack. Again and again, the toaster will be utilize in the same manner day after day after day. and the good thing is, it remained efficient in doing its task, that is, to toast bread, for some time now.

lets talk about the refrigerator.

the refrigerator compared to the toaster, is i think more flexible and adaptable. it comes with various design and colors, with different added functionality like "no frost system", "ice cube maker", "cold water dispenser" and can cater to wide range of products, from meat to vegetables to fruits to beverages to salads and everything you can imagine. but ultimately, the refrigerator was created for one purpose, that is to make/keep things cold. the refrigerator at the office has been functioning for a long time now. doing efficiently what it does best, to keep things cold.

now i want to talk about the most brilliant creation in this world, the human beings.

i can't help but think, why is that the products that the human creates are very efficient in the things that they do while their creator are living a messy life??? from what i am trying to prove, i think human beings tend to live a messy life simply because they try to do a lot of things in a way they are losing focus to what they are supposed to be doing. im not here to preach about the human's ultimate destiny or the purpose of its creation. what im trying to say is that, whatever that purpose you have in life, try to focus doing that and see your self living a rather fulfilling life.

focus is the key to living an efficient life.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Panakip butas

sa bahay, isa sa mga importanteng gamit ay ang sealant. kilala natin ito sa Pinas sa pangalang vulca seal. ang pamosong produktong ito ay matagal nang ginagamit upang takpan ang mga butas sa ating mga bubong, sa mga daanan ng tubig, at sa kung saan saan pa.

magaling ang vulca seal. basta may butas, kayang kayang tapalan. itago ang mga kailangan itago. madalas sa hindi, kayang magbigay proteksyon. sa bubong na butas at tumutulo sa panahon ng tag-ulan, vulca seal lang ang kailangan. isang solusyong panakip butas.

pero sa realidad ng buhay, mahirap na maging panakip butas sa buhay ng iba. masaya ka sa mga oras na kayang punan ng ibang tao ang pangungulila mo. pero sa kabilang banda, masaya kaya ang taong pumupuno ng kalungkutan mo?

mag isip ka kaibigan. matalino ka. wag kang magpakabulag sa iyong pangungulila.

1st PyroMusical Competition

The first Philippine Pyromusical Competition ended with a blast!

Yesterday was the last day for the competition and I was there to witness the grand concluding fireworks display! I am lucky enough to witness years ago the very first Pyrolympics and now the first Pyromusical.

congratulations to the event organizers and the participants of this event. :) great show guys!

picture: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2488/4234960239_77ea4bd1de.jpg

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

ikaw

kung mataas ang lipad mo, paano kita aabutin? :(

joseph vincent is the name!

two days ago, my friend sent me a video of a man singing Bad Romance (acoustic version) and from there on, i can't help but to repeatedly listen to this guy. I made some research and i discovered that his name is joseph vincent. watch his videos at youtube and be mesmerized by his charm and his voice! :) enjoy!! :)

Monday, March 8, 2010

huwaw!

my bet for best dressed! :)

i need to watch this

i was watching the 82 academy awards during my bus trip to the province. and i was surprised to know that it was the movie THE HURT LOCKER that garnered the most number of awards. i must see this film together with DISTRICT 9.

DVD DVD DVD DVD DVD DVD hehehehe

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

out of luzon!

for the second time around... i love it! :)

Friday, February 26, 2010

the favor of the lord

there are times in our lives when God's voice is so loud and clear. at times like this, I know things are about to change and he is preparing me for some real pounding. this time, he gave me a picture. a father holding his son on his arms, secure and comfortable. it is as if he's telling me..

"do not worry my son, i am here, holding you in my arms, all throughout the journey..."

thank you...

Thursday, February 25, 2010

movies to watch soon!!

i watched Perry Jackson and the Lightning Thief last Sunday and I got so excited with the line up of movies that are about to debut on the widescreen! here is a shortlist of the movies we can
watch in the coming months!

watch! watch! watch! watch! watch!

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

bagong simula.

everytime i see this pepsi advertisement, i really get inspired. well, i just have to post it here.

game!!

Monday, January 25, 2010

high hope for the new year!

at the start of the year, things are changing!

last year, i was contemplating about being in the new state.
new year implies new life.
and i want that so badly.

the year started with a twist.
somethings are really not meant to last forever.
something ended.

but the good news is, its a start of something new.
i am about to reveal things very soon.

catch you later!

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Tuesday, December 14, 2010