A Girl’s Notebook :)

So much has been said about the Manila hostage taking incident. On the lighter news, a Filipina made the Philippines for making it to the five of 2010 Miss Universe Pageant held last Monday in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Maria Venus Raj placed 4th runner up in the said pageant. She is said to be the crowd’s favorite. We have hoped and prayed that she will be the 3rd Filipina to be crowned as Miss Universe, but the result of the pageant didn’t turn out the way we expected it to be. Miss Mexico, Jimena Navarette is Miss Universe 2010.

Jimena Navarrete, Miss Universe 2010

I am proud of Venus. Like what the crowned Miss Universe 1974 Margie Moran said, being in the top 5 out of 83 countries is a big honor already and something that we should be proud of.

You made the Philippines proud Venus!

Venus Raj, Miss Universe 2010 4th Runner Up

Ciao!

The anger and rage of a dismissed police officer led to the murder of eight innocent Chinese nationals. The Quirino Grandstand Hostage drama that happened last August 23 had become worldwide news. The globe stays tuned on the live coverage of the said hostage taking. The hostage taker is known as dismissed Senior Police Inspector Rolando Mendoza. The hostage lasted for almost 12 hours. The Manila police and SWAT team decided to assault the hostage taker.

The 2010 Manila hostage crisis is all over the Internet. Even my clients who are in the US asked me about the said dreadful incident. I was able to watch the live coverage of the said occurrence. My family and I had different views while we’re watching the coverage. I was praying for the safety of the innocent victims aboard the bus and hoping that Mendoza would be free them safe. If you put yourself on to Mendoza’s shoes, you would really felt sad about how his career as a police officer ended. In my research I found out that the Ombudsman found Mendoza and the others guilty of grave misconduct for allegedly extorting P20,000 from Christian Kalaw, a chef of the Mandarin Hotel. According to records of the case, Mendoza and the other policemen accosted Kalaw for illegal parking, driving without license and use of illegal drugs two years ago in Manila.

His demands during the hostage taking is to be reinstated with benefits to his previous post at the Manila Police District from which he had been dismissed.
The country, the government, and the police officers received a lot of criticisms especially from Hong Kong government and its people.

First, I would like to extend my condolences to the families and relatives of the eight victims who were killed in the said incident. I heard in the news that Filipino are experiencing discrimination and irritation from other nations especially those who are in Hong Kong.

I cannot blame them. Their fellowmen were killed by a furious dismissed police officer. I know that we Filipinos would feel the same way if the same thing happened to our fellow Filipinos.

At this point, we can no longer bring the lives of the eight victims. We cannot even make Rolando Mendoza pay for what he had done. What is important now, are the lessons we learned from the said incident. I believe that the hostage taking incident is still an isolated case. It doesn’t happen all the time. I still believe that the Philippines is still one of best countries to go to.

As far as our policemen are concerned, I believe that they just got nervous during the assault. That somehow they forgot to wear their helmets and mask! But, I still salute our policemen. They are not perfect though, but for me they still shown bravery and courage.

Ciao!

Last weekend, we had a Harry Potter movie marathon. I was in my fourth year in high school when the Harry Potter mania boomed like a star. To be honest, I wasn’t interested about it then. Everybody was going crazy buying the books, part after part.

I admit that I am kinda “late bloomer” with Harry Potter. I have not read any of the books yet but I have seen the movies. And I loved it! Actually we all love it. Even my 4-year old daughter is interested about it. She wasn’t able to understand it well yet but she knows how the story flows. She knows who Harry Potter is and his friends. Her favorite Harry Potter spell is Wingardium Leviosa! It is a levitation charm and she is fond of pointing her pencil at us while casting that spell!

Daniel Radcliffe

My youngest sister Pauline is actually saving money so she can buy the complete hard bound series of Harry Potter. She wanted the set in a chest box. We saw one online and it cost around PhP 8500. She said that it will be her gift to herself when she graduates in college. She’s in 3rd year college now, and she has this strong will to get that set.

Harry Potter Books

I am really curious about what have become of Harry Potter now. I have seen Robert Pattinson in The Goblet of Fire and he is now the famous, Edward of Twilight. We thought that Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince would be the last to film in the Harry Potter Books. But, November 19, 2010 is the US and UK release of the movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 while Part 2 would be released in 2011.

Daniel Radcliffe who is widely known as Harry Potter is currently filming the part 2 of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. He is currently filming some parts of The Journey is the Destination movie which will be released in 2011, too.

For those who can afford and for those who are an avid fan of Harry Potter books and movies, then I believe that you would definitely find your way to visit Universal’s new theme park called “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” in Orlando, Florida.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

I hope that one day we would be able to visit and explore the The Wizarding World of Harry Potter!

Ciao!

I was amazed how President Elect Noynoy Aquino answers to the questions, asked by the press people during the press conference after his proclamation. I am happy that I was able to cast my vote last national election. One of the question asked yesterday was, what will be the plans of president-elect Aquino for the overseas workers. He mentioned that the different offices such as OWWA(Overseas Wokers Welfare Administration) and POEA (Philippine Overseas Employment Agency) will be coordinated to protect the welfare of the Filipinos abroad. But, he said that his priority is to create more jobs in the Philippines. So that working abroad will only be a choice but not a necessity. Wow! What a president! The late president Corazon Aquino and Senator Ninoy Aquino would have been very proud on their only son.

He is very honest and realistic to say that creating jobs for the Filipino people may take time to fulfill. But what is important is that his visions and his aim that many Filipinos may not need to leave their families to work overseas.

With his vision, I believe that in the coming years, as job offerings grow into numbers, we would be seeing more buildings around, steel buildings, perhaps.

When President-elect Noynoy Aquino’s term is over, my daughter will be in grade 6 then. I believe that she will be happy and proud that her mother has chosen a president like Noynoy.

Ciao!

The Filipinos have spoken. Today, June 9, 2010, almost a month after the first National Automated Election, Benigno Aquino III and Jejomar Binoy have been proclaimed as the new President and Vice President, respectively of the Republic of the Philippines. I am so proud to have Noynoy as the 15th president of the our country. Before the elections, my family and I were talking about the presidential candidates. We have different views and opinions about our own choice but the my first reason why I have chosen Noynoy over other candidates, is because of his integrity. I am clapping my hands as Noynoy walked down the session hall of Batasang Pambansa.

As for Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, well, the Filipinos are expecting a lot from you. We have heard that if you were able to make Makati what is it now, then we believe that you would be able to do the same for our country.

I pray that God will bless our newly elected leaders. I pray that we Filipinos will all be united. Set aside all the misunderstanding and let us join hands in making our country progress. The two leaders will not be able to do it on their own. We need to help them and work with them in bringing progress and good life to our country.

God bless our leaders. God bless the Filipino people. God bless the Philippines!

Congratulations Noynoy and Jojo!!! Mabuhay!!!

Ciao!

I met ney at Galleria last Sunday. He will spend time with us since I filed a 2-day vacation leave from the office. I cross the newly repaired footbridge in Rosario and I noticed there were several bypasser who stood by and busy taking picture of something. I stopped and checked what’s keeping them busy. When I looked up the sky, I saw an celestial event that made me held my breath. I saw a star on top of the crescent moon. My recollection is so poor but I know that I have read about that sign somewhere. I really got nervous and prayed to God that hopefully everything is going to be okay and the scene I have witnessed is just an ordinary scene, and that I shouldn’t worry much. Nevertheless, I sent a text message to my sisters who were at home to witness that scene. Too, bad I wasn’t able to take a picture of it. The mobile phone that I was using doesn’t have any camera.

I found a picture though from the net that looks like what I saw.

The following day I learned from the news, that the heavenly phenomenon was caused by the planet venus passing through our moon. I didn’t catch the name of this type of eclipse but the said scene was an eclipse. It was said that the said eclipse is similar to the symbol of our Muslim brothers and sisters religion, Islam. That the recent eclipse will bring good luck for them.

I am happy to know that it will bring good fortune to our Muslim brothers, but I hope and I pray that it will also bring good luck to all the world. I pray that the peace that we always dream off will soon turn into reality.

God bless everybody!

Ciao!

Today, Senator Mar Roxas turned 53. The gift he expected to receive on his birthday is still not received :(. I just like to greet you Senator Roxas a Happy Birthday. Like many people, I am of those who believe and trusted in your capabilities as vice president. Should the election result didn’t turn out the way we expected it, I still wish you good luck and I hope that you continue to do your duty as a dependable leader. God bless you and your family.

Ciao!

The much awaited “First Automated Presidential Election” in the Philippines happened yesterday. It was a national holiday and I was on leave from work for 3 days! Yey!!! I woke up early so that I would be able to cast my vote early as well. Since ney is just waiting for the schedule of his flight, he wasn’t able to exercise his rights of suffrage. He is registered in Quezon province and he just decided to accompany me in the voting precint.

I have been very vocal about my presidential bet. There had been a lot of controversies that surround Noynoy but I still believed in his integrity and the way his parents had raised him. My cousin, Marjorie, is a very avid fan and follower of Kris and Noynoy Aquino. We decided to wear a yellow shirt on election day. I didn’t care even if people will tease me about wearing a yellow shirt. This is a free country and we are free to express our opinions.

We arrived at our clustered precint at around 8:30 in the morning. The voting started at 7AM. The clustered precint where I belong was composed of 7 precints with around 983 registered voters. Like many other voters, I waited for my turn to vote.

Would you believe that I was able to cast my vote after about 4 hours?!? Yes that’s true. It took about four hours waiting for my turn to cast my vote. It only took me around 7 minutes to finish my shading my ballot.

While I was waiting on the line, I really felt scared about the possibility of a failed election. It’s a good thing that God listened to our prayers for a successful election. I have been in the IT industry for like 7 years now and the possibility of cheating is very high. Good grief my worries didn’t happen.

Before leaving the house to cast my vote, I told my daughter that I will vote wisely for her future. My daughter is only 4 years old now. On the next presidential election she will be in grade 5 already. I do not want her to blame me for not choosing the right candidate. I do not want to gamble her future and welfare as well. When she turned 10 years old, I wanted her to be proud of me. I wanted her to know that I was able to exercise my right of suffrage and had been a responsible  voter and citizen.

I hope you did, too!

God bless our country!

Ciao!

Well not in the Philippines. Although, the country us experiencing terrible hot weather lately, there are many states in the US which are experiencing winter storm. People must have been using different electric blanket to keep themselves warm. At work, I have been receiving calls with regard to delayed shipments due to the bad weather conditions in there. I just hope that sooner or later they will have a pretty fine weather already.

 Ciao!

While I am waiting for my friend Judy, I scrubbed my outlook and check for emails that needs to be deleted. I found an email sent by my dear tl and this is really interesting that I couldn’t help myself but share with you. It is possible that you have read this before, but for the benefit of those who haven’t seen or read this yet, this one’s for you.

Have a history teacher explain this—– if they can.

Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.

Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.

Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both wives lost their children while living in the White House.

Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head

Now it gets really weird.

Lincoln’s secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy’s Secretary was named Lincoln .

Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.

Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln , was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.

John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln , was born in 1839.
Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939.

Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are composed of fifteen letters.

Now hang on to your seat.

Lincoln was shot at the theater named ‘Ford.’
Kennedy was shot in a car called ‘ Lincoln ‘ made by ‘Ford.’

Lincoln was shot in a theater and his assassin ran and hid in a warehouse.
Kennedy was shot from a warehouse and his assassin ran and hid in a theater.

Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.

And here’s the kicker…

A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe , Maryland
A week before Kennedy was shot, he was with Marilyn Monroe.

Creepy huh? Hey, this is one history lesson most people probably will not mind reading!

INCREDIBLE

1) Fold a $20 bill in half…

2) Fold again, taking care to fold it exactly as below

3) Fold the other end, exactly as before

4) Now, simply turn it over…

What a coincidence! A simple geometric fold creates a catastrophic premonition printed on all $20 bills!!!
COINCIDENCE? YOU DECIDE.

As if that wasn’t enough. Here is what you’ve seen…

First: The Pentagon on fire…

Then The Twin Towers.

..And now .. look at this!

What can I say? Let us all pray for everybody and for world peace. Amen.

Ciao!

In the midst of the happy seasons that we have right now, it’s so sad to think that our fellow Filipino who lives near Mayon Volcano will be spending their Christmas in different evacuation centers. As of this writing, alert level number 4 has been raised with regard to Mayon Volcano. It means that any moment, Mayon Volcano will erupt. It’s good to know that Albay’s local government are working pretty hard to obtain zero casualty. Being an animal lover, I am glad to hear that even the animals, which are within the 10-km danger zone, are moved to a safer place.

Mayon Volcano

Aerial view of Mayon Volcano

I know that that this is a natural calamity that only Bro can stop. But, in case that the eruption push through, let us pray together that it will only cause minimal damage.

I pray for the people who lives in that area to be strong. That in spite of the this life’s challenge, they would remain faithful to God and let His light be their hope, our hope and guide.

Ciao!

It has been a pride to the Filipino people that CNN’s Hero of the year is a Filipino. He is none other than, Efren Peñaflorida. He was born on March 5, 1981. He is a young teacher and social worker.
He is the founder and head of the Dynamic Teen Company. It offers Filipino youth an alternative to street gangs through education. They hold classes and school recreation in unconventional locations such as cemeteries and trash dumps.

Last March 2009, he was featured as a CNN Hero as part of the news network’s program to honor individuals who make extraordinary contributions to help others. Then, on November 22, 2009, he was named CNN Hero of the Year for 2009. (Source: Wikipedia) I am really getting goosebumps every time I read about his story. He is really a true hero that deserves a hero’s welcome. Someone who will inspire the youth of today.

Congratulations Efren! The Filipino people are proud of you!

Efren in action!

Ciao!