"PHL stocks end first trading day of 2013 at new record high"

Read from GMA News that: Philippine stocks closed the first trading day of 2013 on Wednesday at an all-time high, buoyed by the uptrend in Asian markets that thrived on positive developments surrounding the US fiscal cliff debacle.

WOW. Just wow. It's going to be a great year for our economy!

Semifinals Aftermath thoughts

It's been more than 24 hours since we lost to Singapore in the Suzuki Cup semifinals. And just hours ago, Thailand defeated Malaysia. So it's going to be THA vs SIN. I hope Thailand will trample Singapore.

Of course I am upset. If you've seen the Singaporeans' "Fair Play" on us...

So it's going to be UFL finals for us now. That's on Monday.

After one week...

My golly! I'm supposed to be updating this blog entry on a regular basis. Natapos na lang ang Suzuki Cup 2012 PHI vs SIN first leg, at magsesecond leg na mamaya, SIN vs PHI pero hindi pa rin updated ang blog na ito.

One week din 'yun. My gulay! (Ang OC lang.)

Ang dami kasing assignment eh. Speaking of assignment, I'm glad one of the first tweets I've read was about the incentive that Cebu-based teachers will receive. As reported, they will receive P10,000. Great! But I hope that teachers from other provinces will also receive an incentive this Christmas, besides the usual bonus/13th month pay.

Pablo

When I checked the news yesterday, only one was accounted dead because of Pablo. Then came the Compostela Valley news. I think the count was 43. Yes, 43 died because of flashfloods. :(

If I remember right, 41 000 families were evacuated yesterday. Now, I read that there were 275 families in Zamboanga alone who were evacuated. I hope Pablo will be out of the Philippines ASAP. If it wants to bother a nation, go to China.

I'm glad the death toll isn't as devastating as Ondoy's and Sendong's. But it would still be better if we were able to meet the "zero casualty" goal.

My thoughts on Philippine Tourism and Sports

It was said, "Tourism shares 5.9 percent of PH economy in 2011."

Of the total gross domestic product of the Philippines, 5.9 percent of it was contributed by tourism industry, according to the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB). (More...)

Great! Now, if only our government agencies - DOT and PSC especifically - will collaborate together we'll be able to generate more money (for lack of better term).

I remember watching a Yankee match, just on ESPN of course, and I saw those massive audience. I thought, what if we have that here in the Philippines? Imagine. Imagine the amount of money coming.

Mackerel and Sardines off season

BFAR 6 announces closed season for sardines and mackerel in the Visayan Sea starting Nov. 15.

Because I still couldn't get over it.

When I read it, I thought, "Oh yeah. It just makes sense." But I also thought that it's just like sports especially Baseball, which is on off season right now.

I decided to check on this Mackerel thingy. According to Britannica.com, a mackerel "is any of a number of swift-moving, streamlined food and sport fishes found in temperate and tropical seas around the world, allied to tunas in the family Scombridae (order Perciformes)."

In Filipino translation, Mackerel has a lot. There's a Tanige, a GG or Galunggong, Tambacol, and even a Japayuki..? With these translations, I realized that Mackerel is my favorite fish! :D

Now I am hungry.

But with this reminder/advisory/whatsoever, does it mean it'll take a while before we'd be able to have GG at home? That's sad.

At least there's processed sardines. My favorite is Spanish sardines.

The cost of waste management

Isn't it ridiculous how much our government has to spend for our wastes? It's not just ridiculous, it's also annoying. Here's an example of how much it costs a local government to manage wastes: Cebu City garbage disposal costs pegged at P216 M

But can we really blame the government? (Here we go again, pointing fingers.) No. I'd rather blame ourselves. We're so careless, untidy, and irresponsible. Surely, there had been many proposals to make sure our wastes go where they should go.

I remember visiting a relative before. We actually had a week-long vacation in their place. I was looking for a particular colored trash bag/can/whatever to throw my chips' pack away. I think I was supposed to be looking for red. There was none. Fine. I decided to look for something labeled with non-biodegradable. Still the same.

It was annoying.

Making sure that I'd be able to throw my trash away, I asked where's the trash can. I was replied with my aunt pointing to a sack. She said, "Just throw it there." So I approached the sack only to find out all sorts of wastes together. I was obviously disappointed.

Later that day, I saw my cousin throwing the trash-sack in a very unappealing manner. He just dumped it to a heap of wastes.

In order to satisfy my curiosity, I asked him why he threw it there, why they didn't sort their wastes. I was surprised and offended with the answer. "It's unnecessary," I was told.

Lincecum eyed for Philippine IX

Timothy Leroy Asis Lincecum

Manila, Philippines – The Philippine baseball team hopes to lure San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum for the World Baseball Classic qualifiers slated next month in New Taipei City, Taiwan.

Philippine Amateur Baseball Association secretary-general Tom Navasero said yesterday that the right-handed Lincecum, who played a key role in the Giants’ World Series title conquest, could make a decision this week.

“All I heard is good news from Major League Baseball,“ said Navasero during the PSA Forum at Shakey’s Malate adding that the Giants gave the PH batters the approval to invite Lincecum.

Although there are slim chances to see the long-haired son of a mother born to Filipino immigrants play in the WBC qualifiers, the younger Navasero disclosed that the Giants could ask him to play for the Philippines.

“Regardless if he doesn’t play in the qualifiers, we will still include him in our (pool) if we make the main stage,“ the younger Navasero said of Lincecum.

The Philippines are bracketed alongside host Taiwan, Thailand and New Zealand. The winner of the group slated on Nov. 1518 will qualify for the main WBC stage set for March. [Continue reading...]

Behold, The Freak.

Philippine Navy's new pride

I am definitely not talking about the Philippine Navy in UFL. It's simply the Philippine Navy, the real deal and not the Football team.

Read in Rappler, "Once the largest ship of the American Coast Guard, this is the first gas-turbine jet engine-powered vessel in the Philippine Navy fleet, making it the fastest, biggest and most powerful among the service’s aging inventory.

She is described as “a high endurance cutter with close-in weapons system” and features a helicopter flight deck with a retractable hangar, with capabilities for rescue operations and maritime law enforcement."

This is good news for Philippine Navy, which is usually lining behind PAF and PA when it comes to achievements in any form. Take a look at UFL. You'd see the priority given to its staff.

Hopefully, having BRP Gregorio Del Pilar will give a boost to Phil. Navy and elevate the navy men's morale.

Arrival ceremonies for the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, August 23, 2011. (Photo from www.gov.ph)

BRP Gregorio Del Pilar is not just about "prestige" because she's been deployed to the Spratlys. Cool.

Btw, also from Rappler, there was an article about BRP Gregorio del Pilar getting involved on a stand-off with Chinese ships.

Echostore

I've only seen this once or twice when I dropped by Serendra before. I haven't actually entered the shop, so when I saw a blog entry about it I thought I should give it a go next time. Btw, the blog I'm referring to is named Faitherz. I think that's the name of the blogger. But the blog entry was entitled "Let’s talk organic. Let’s go to echomarket."

It was an interesting blog entry. I'd like to go to echomarket. I should ask Mom about it. And I'd like to try their chocolates! :D

If you are interested to know more about echostore, feel free to contact them. I got this info from the blog entry:
http://www.echostore.ph
http://www.facebook.com/echomarket
http://twitter.com/#!/echomarket
Phone: 02-576-3703
E-mail: echomarket@gmail.com
Location: Ground Level, Serendra Piazza, McKinley Parkway, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City

US Warship in the Philippines

Pretty interesting. Is this an answer to US' loyal alliance with the Philippines and a counter-bullying against China? Either and both is good.

To secure alliance with your allies is good. Definitely good. And to have someone who'll help you counter a giant bully is equally accepted.

I've read that USS George Washington has finally arrived in the Philippines. They even saved some fishermen who got stranded somewhere Eastern Philippines. Also read, from the same website, that Philippines rolls out welcome mat for US warship.

Warship. Wow. Are we on war? I hope not. Is it brewing? No, please. We have enough of the Middle East. I sometimes get tired on reading stuff about politics and governance, but we're required. Ugh! College. I hope I'd get some good insight about this. 

Missing Davao

Years ago, we had a family vacation in Davao. It was sort of unforgettable, especially Day 1, because as soon as I set foot in the city, I was consumed with hunger.

I was so hungry. No, I was starving.

We had lunch in a particular restaurant. I think it was buffet style. I ate everything I could, had three plates emptied, and caused my sister to watch me with awe.

I miss those days. I hope we'd have more family vacations.

Ideal Vacation Spot

Ate and I have been thinking of a good place for family vacation, or just simple sister-bonding. Ate thought Boracay would be nice, because we haven't been there yet, but I think it's too common. For special tours, the place has to be special too. I guess I just don't find Boracay special.

I've read something interesting though. I think Boracay really is special just not for me. Btw, the article says: Boracay tourist arrivals likely to hit 1-M mark by end-October. WOW. I hope this'll happen. It'll be good for Philippine Tourism and Economy.

However, I still haven't changed my mind. I don't want to spend family vacation or sister-bonding trip in Boracay. I'd rather go to Palawan. =)

Saving Dogs

I was looking for information related to dogs (Thanks, Ms. Pam!) and read an interesting article from Rappler. The article's title was Pit bulls need your help. It reminds me of a photo I saw weeks ago in FB. Poor dogs had to participate in dogfights.

It always touches my heart whenever I see/hear/witness good deeds for dogs. I knew someone from Ateneo before who volunteered for animals that were victim of Ondoy. We were in Makati by that time and she went all the way to Muntinlupa to help. How sweet.

Just a two days ago, there was a news about dogs saved from becoming "Pulutan" in Baguio City. There were about 60 dogs rescued.

Killing dogs for consumption is against the law. Besides, it is dangerous to health. My sister used to tell me stories or information about the danger of eating dogs. I actually wondered why she told me those, as if I eat dogs. No way!

I hope killing dogs will be stopped. It's so inhumane.

Vacation

I miss having vacations. I know, it's sembreak but it's usually spent for enrollment, reviews, and still school-related stuff. *sigh*

I love to travel though I haven't been to a lot of places in the Philippines. The following are the only places I've been to in the Philippines:

LUZON
Baguio
Bataan
Batangas
Laguna
Metro Manila (Haha!)
Mindoro
Pangasinan
Rizal
Tagaytay
Tarlac

VISAYAS
Bataan
Cebu
Tacloban

MINDANAO
Butuan
Cotabato
Davao
Gen. Santos
Zamboanga

I'm not sure if I've miss some places..

An exclusive Israeli conference prelude in the Philippines

I am in the mood to be talkative right now. Not much. Haha! I found this link about an Israeli conference having a prelude event in Makati City tomorrow. Take note, only in the Philippines! Well, it said, "There will also be a prelude event on October 17, which will only take place in the Philippines." Awesome.

If my friend finds out about this, I know he'll be very happy. He likes anything about Israel. Before I forget the link, it's here: Tel Aviv to host Israel Home Land Security's 2012 International Conference

Now I am wondering why it's exclusive in the Philippines, if it really is. I wonder if it's open to the public. The article didn't mention anything about it except that they're expecting potential business investors in Israel. But, why have the prelude in the Philippines? Why in a very far away country when the event/conference itself is in Israel? I hope I'd get some answer to this question. Please. I should ask my friend. Perhaps he knows an answer or two.

Skeptic pa rin si Nur Misuari.

Nabasa ko 'to kanina: “Mahal na mahal namin ang kapayapaan sa Mindanao. Itong tinatawag na framework agreement, this is a recipe for another crisis and war in Mindanao,” he said.

Sana naman hindi mangyari 'to. Tama na ang paghihirap ng Mindanao. Nga pala, for more information keep reading this: Nur: Bangsamoro deal may lead to crisis and war.

"NO Loading & Unloading" Weh?

Ako ay naglakad sa kahabaan ng mga kalye sa Makati kahapon para makasakay ng jeep nang ang unang jeep na makita ko ay hindi ang kinakailangan ko. Eh ano naman? Ang jeep na iyon ay nakaagaw ng aking pansin. Kasi naman, naman. Tingnan ang malabong larawan sa ibaba

Malabo ang larawan, kasing labo ng pagsunod ni Manong sa nakalagay na "NO Loading & Unloading" sign sa tabi. O baka naman ang signage talaga ang malabo. Marami naman tayong malabong mga batas, 'di ba?

Hindi ito ang unang pagkakataon na nakakita ako ng ganito. Meron dati sa Greenbelt, ganito rin. At sa tabi pa ni Manong Guard? Panalo! Maraming beses na rin akong nagugulat kapag pumupunta ako sa mga bagong lugar. Pagbaba ko kasi ay madalas bumubungad ang babala na "No Unloading."

Bakit ba kasi ganito? Baka naman kasi mali ang pinaglalagyan ng mga babala. Dapat siguro ilipat nila ang mga 'yun kasi nilalagay nila sa mga lugar na madalas babaan ng mga tao, 'yung tipong doon naman talaga sila bababa.

Ano kaya ang magandang gawin sa mga ganito? Ano nga kaya?