Day 1.

Flight PR505 of the Philippine Airline touched down at Changi International Airport at 10:45 P.M. It was earlier than expected. Nothing special about the weather. It was just like in Manila. Dhey and Jong fetched me at the airport some minutes after my arrival. We took a cab and headed to Dhey’s place to drop off the big luggage. We then went to a small restaurant (or a carinderia) to have a quick meal.  To my surprise, their siomai there is more than double the size of the one we have in Manila. We decided to go home immediately after eating. Dhey took the bus going home while Jong and I took a cab to the Fairmont Hotel (formerly called Raffles Plaza Hotel, the one right in front of the historic Raffles Hotel).

Day 2.

We had our breakfast served in our unit. Finely toasted bread, ham and scrambled egg. After breakfast, Jong left the hotel to attend training.

Dhey reported for work.

I had a quick shower but went back to bed to sleep again. Haha. Lazy boy. You can’t blame me since there’s no one to tour me around the city. When I woke up, I watched CNN and learned that Heath Ledger died. Bye bye Mr. Brokeback. I then switched to CNBC to get the latest business news. PSEi was up. I decided to withdraw everything from my mutual fund investment. Haha. Thanks to Manny for submitting my pre-signed order ticket.

Dhey and I went to the Orchard for lunch. I had Indian food. I don’t know what the food is called. What I can recall is that it tasted like afritada with curry. Haha. Lunch was on Dhey. Libre lahat.

After lunch, I went back to the hotel to get more sleep. Very lazy me. Haha. For merienda, I headed to the Orchard and got myself ice dessert. Fruit cocktail and Mango-Pomelo. Do I need to tell you that I returned to the hotel to sleep?

Dhey and I waited for Jong for dinner but Jong sent an SMS saying his colleagues invited him to drink. So, Dhey and I opted to go to McDonalds for dinner. We saw a girl wearing a T-back. Haha. Her T-back was shouting. She probably wanted everyone to know that she’s wearing a T-back. Too bad for Jong, he didn’t see it. (Just kidding!)

I returned to the hotel and had a good sleep. You can see that nothing extraordinary happened that day.

These are some of my pictures here in the little sunny country called Singapore. The stories behind these pictures will follow shortly. I still need to enjoy my last day here

I have always been negative about starting anything all over again. I feel like something, if not all, will be thrown away in the process. The same is very true when it comes to getting a new job. When a company offers me a post, I see to it that everything has been considered before finally responding to it. My most important consideration is whether it is aligned to my medium and long term goals or not. If not, then I will say “No” without hesitation. That is even if the company is offering a very attractive compensation package. But if it is well-aligned to my goals then I will still have to go through a very long process of taking into account other important things.

Family. If the job offer requires me to relocate to another country, my first consideration is whether I will be able to go back to the Philippines easily or not. The closer the host country to the Philippines, the better. If it’s very far from my beloved country, then the contract should include a provision that will allow me to return home once every 3months. Yahoo Messenger, even with webcam and mic, is not enough to replace the feeling of having my family around.

Financial. The financial aspect is only an issue when the offer is coming from a local company. Otherwise, it follows that accepting a job abroad should bring me and my family financial freedom.

Nature of Work. If I will still be developing and maintaining systems for an insurance company then I have no problem with it. Otherwise, it should at least be in the financial sector like banking.

School. Since I’m still in my last term before finally getting my master’s degree, moving to a new company is probably not  a good idea until my graduation. But if all the three items above score high, then this item could be waived. Haha! Anyway, I can continue with my studies even when I’m out of the country.

Lovelife. Haha. Need not discuss it here. It’s already settled. Oh come on, don’t leave any comment that is related to this item. I will not approve it for sure.

So, to wrap up this blog entry, I would like everyone to know that I’m currently evaluating a number of offers. Haha. Arrogant me! No, not really. It is not something to brag about because it is tough. Really tough.

This is where my family usually attends mass on Sundays. It is located at the heart of Lucena City.

Have booked a round-trip flight from the Philippine Airlines. My flight is scheduled in the evening. So, it means I have plenty of time to organize my things. I still don’t have my itinerary written. A not so planned trip probably is better. Not sure about it though.

A month after this Singapore trip, I might go to Malaysia. I might.

Will make sure to post good shots when I return to Manila.

If everything will fall into the right place, I will be in Singapore on the 22nd of January. That would be my first time to go out of the country. I’m excited and at the same time a bit nervous because I’ll be going there alone. I will be meeting with some good friends during my 6-day vacation. I can’t wait to see them.

I think this Singapore trip will not be the only trip for me this year. I have a strong feeling that I will be going to another country soon. I’m crossing my fingers for that to happen.

Tonight, the sky is pitch black. Stars are out of sight and so is the moon. A heavy rain pours down. Suddenly, a cold wind blows upon my face. It gives me a very strange feeling. Very much unfamiliar sensation. It is as if the wind wants to tell me something. But I am able to comprehend its message. And it blows even stronger. Colder. With some raindrops on it. But still, I don’t get to understand what it is trying to say.

The rain finally stops. A couple of stars start to show up. One by one, they twinkle. They give the sky a blaze that pacifies me for a while. It makes me forget all my worries. I then ask myself, “Are they trying to appease my restless soul? Helping me cope up with the things that bother me?” Still, I can’t find an answer. Maybe one day, I will be able to finally grasp their message. Maybe.

(a recycled post from my old blog)

When I saw the pictures of mudsring@UPLB in Esti’s blog, I decided to invite my college buddies Jeremy and Lyelle to go there. The date is not final yet. But it sure would be a perfect time to reminisce and talk about the good old college days.

(picture downloaded from ohmynews.com)

For those who want to join us, just send me a note.

I was checking some articles in INQUIRER.net when I came across an article entitled “Countdown to 15 things I miss about the Philippines.”  I found the title so interesting that it made me so eager to read it. The eagerness suddenly disappeared after reading the first two items the author has written. I then checked the name of the author and to my surprise, she was my profesor in two graduate courses I took in UP.

I don’t know if she really intended to write a “funny” article or something because some items are really not funny at all. I just hope she will not be hit by angry Filipinos like what happened to Malu Fernandez.

I’m a keen observer. That’s a fact. I give so much value to details. At least for the things that interest me. Sometimes, to the point that I make predictions on what will happen next based on what has happened and what’s currently happening. For example, when I watch movies I try to guess what the ending would be. Most, if not all, of the time I’m right. This thing actually freaks me out when I start to think about tomorrow. For I have been so cynical about so many things and I refrain from thinking that the negative thoughts I have in mind will come true.

Just this morning, I predicted that I will win in our late Christmas party’s raffle. And to my surprise (or should I say “as expected”), I did win. Scary…

Ok, so it’s the first day of the year… A very cold and windy day here in the province.  I was trying to go to bed as early as possible because I need to get up at two in the morning for me to catch the first bus trip. But I simply can’t sleep. I don’t know what’s wrong with my system.

So I went downstairs and got myself loads of buko salad – leftover from the New Year’s Day celebration. It didn’t taste that good because we used lots of whip cream and just some sweetened condensed milk. The buko salad last Noche Buena was far better than this one.

I’m starting to realize that this post is pathetic. Haha.. I should have discussed something informative and interesting and not about this silly buko salad. Heck, I still can’t sleep.

This was indeed one of the happiest new year celebrations we ever had. Just after having our Media Noche, we had taken a picture together with the latest addition to the family – Boomboom.

I had also taken a good photo of seven beautifully lit prosperity candles with twelve round fruits serving as the backdrop.

 Happy New Year to each and everyone!