Soliloquy

Top Christmas Gifts for 2010

2010-12-19T09:59:00.001+08:00

Christmas is the time for emptying our pockets and gift giving. People willingly spend thousands to buy presents for their loved ones, friends and family. The christmas rush is evident from the throng of people making a dash for the nearest malls and department stores to score discounts on their purchases. This is the season when most people will willingly max out their cards just to buy presents for themselves and for everybody. So, what are the best gifts to give this Christmas?

New IPods from Apple. These little gadgets are some of the coolest things ever. The new Apples are sleeker, handier and less expensive than their predecessors. They are now better equipped and can do a lot more things. Case in point are the new IPods which now feature cameras. Although pictures taken from digital cameras have much better results, these are really handy when your camera battery runs out.

Digital cameras. This is perennial favorites when it comes to Christmas presents. Who would not want to receive something which can be used to take memories and make it last a lifetime? There are various brands and model of digital cameras today. They range from the very basic to fully equipped DSLRs which cost a lot of money.

IPhone4. Who does not want to get the latest phone from Apple? This is a bit expensive but a lot of people are hoping to receive this phone this holiday season. Don’t you want to be a Santa and give this to someone you love? Problems from the earlier IPhones have been fixed and a lot of improvements have been made.

Xbox 360 Slim. This is a great gift for serious gamers and gadget lovers. Not just the young are caught up on gaming. Even men on their late 30s still play video games and they would certainly love to receive a gift like this. The compact style of this console is pleasing to the eyes. It also has improved features and it comes at a very good price.

Posting on Facebook

2010-04-11T13:10:00.004+08:00

Why do we have to announce everything on Facebook? "Eating chips right now", "Watching tv right now". The list goes on and on.I wouldn't be surprised if somebody posts that they have to leave for a minute to take a dump. I mean do people really care if you're eating chips? What can they get from that? Do people really have to know that you are eating a certain brand of chips? I don't think so, not unless you're a popular celebrity. I am sure that a lot of people would argue with me about this. After all, Facebook is free for everyone to use so they can share their thoughts. There is freedom in Facebook but let's exercise this freedom wisely. Although catching up with friends never hurt we should also keep in mind that too much of something can be bad. Keep in mind that your posts will be read not only by your friends but also by your friends' contacts, people who may not be the best persons to share certain information with. Some people have gone as far as posting their disgruntled opinions about their bosses and the companies they work for. Then lo and behold! Although they were not friends with their boss, their boss were friends with their contacts and were still able to see whatever they posted on their account, which unfortunately led to dismissal and unemployment.People go on vacation and tell everyone about it by posting on Facebook, even going to the extent of posting their itinerary. Some announce that they purcahsed the newest gadgets on the market. They not only make life easier for burglars, they're practically giving the burglars a how to guide on stealing their prized possessions. Some people are just downright ignorant that they post messages publicly which should have been intended only for certain people. Money can't pay the shame they have sufferred from posting on facebook unknowingly. The next time you post on Facebook, think first before you let your keyboard happy fingers get the best of you.

Job Hunting

2010-01-25T00:01:00.002+08:00

    When you move to a new place, it feels exhilirating, energizing and renewing. It's basically like you are given a second lease on life. The moment I stepped off the plane I sensed that the air smelled a little diferent than my hometown's, the place was busier and there were more people rushing about with their daily schedule. As I walked about the airport I felt like a movie star who just came home after a long hiatus overseas filming an expensive movie with a well known cast, minus the camera of course, the paparazzi, the signature clothes and the branded sky-high heels. Basically just a normal person going thru airport security who nobobdy will ever pay attention to unless I of course I breach security safety protocol by shouting BOMB and risk being tackled on the ground by the burly security personnel and detained for hours. Something which I will not definitely do. I'll just go for the inconspicous traveler. Thank you. After some negotiation wisely done by my dad we loaded our luggages and got in the car but not before I complained of the exorbitant price we had to pay for a 30 minute travel to the city. If we took a taxi it would just amount to 300 but since we took a private car with tinted windows, not that we need more anonymity than we already have, it amounted to 800 pesos. Perhaps the negotiation wasn't wisely done after all.Not to be such a stingy but there is a big difference with the prices.

    Dinner came and went and then we started unpacking what little things we brought with us on the plane. The rest of the furniture and electrical devcies were still on a cargo ship that would take about 3 more days to reach our new residence.No television for the next days. Quite a challenge. We spent the next 2 days going around the city and getting acuqianted with our new environment. We went to a lot of places, we scoured the malls, we marveled at the tall buildings which we had few of back in my hometown. However, after the thrill of the newness of the place faded, reality sunk in.

    I was in a different place where I had 0 friends. I suddenly missed my buddies back home and the comfort of things familiar. I missed our house and our little swing out front. But of all the things I realized the most frightening was that I didnt have any job. The thought of submitting my resumes dressed in corporate clothes anxiously waiting for that make or break interview crept into my mind like a bad dream. It was not pleaseant. It's like something that you always procrastinate doing only to end up regretting not having done it sooner.After staying at home for a month not doing anything but watching the television and listening to music, I started thinking that one more month of doing nothing is going to drive me crazy. It is going to bury me into depression. Rather than spend hundreds and spend tedious months attending therapy sessions I finally decided to update my CV and started looking for a job. I looked through the classifieds section of the newspapers and searched through the internet. I got a call and was interviewed by phone. Luckily I wasn't tounge tied and was coherent enough to give sensible answers and thereby got an invitation to visit the office for yet another interview.

    During language assessment I was asked anything and everything that came into the interviewer's mind, from mundane things to sports to entertainment. She even asked me who I would want to be if I can be a celebrity for a day. It was a no brainer. I would like to be none other than Angelina Jolie. She has the beauty, brains, body and not to mention a golden heart that genuinely cares for people less fortunate than her. And the best perk of all? She gets to spend her day with Brad Pitt. I bet a lot of people are envious of her. She has the life we all wish we could live. Either you love her for the things she has accomplished or you hater her because you are not her and you wish to be her secretly.

    That particular interview went well. After that there was another one and then another one and there was the final panel interview. Thankfully I did get the job and so I can now bid goodbye to the worries which unemployment brings. I dont have to rack my brains thinking about where I'm gonna get money. If i see something in the mall that I might like I can now pay for it provided that its within my budget. I dont have to ask money from my dad anymore which is something I have been doing for the past month. Well I now have a piece of mind that employment brings. The only thing left for me to do now is to endure sleepless nights and a screwed up body clock that goes with the job. If a thing has perks it also has disadvantages. That's something that's gonna require another full blog though.

A Whole New World

2010-01-14T01:47:00.003+08:00

Moving to a different place can be unnerving. It can cause you anxiety and lots of sleepless nights.You will never know what will happen but then again a fresh start is always good right? It's a time to renew yourself, let go of your emotional baggages and turn over a new leaf.I t's a time of great adventures, a time of rediscovering your joys, a time of forgetting old hurts and a time of simply becoming a better version of your older self.I t's a time to come out of your shell and experience what the new place has to offer. It's a time for a great journey to begin.
When I moved from my hometown to another place I was scared.Yes, I was. Although I had my family with me, I dreaded leaving my old friends. I could not bear the thought of thinking that I will no longer be present in our next chat and our next get together. Although we rarely saw each other because we have been busy working I still look forward to our gatherings. I dreaded leaving my comfort zone. I was practically born and raised in the same place. I have never been away too long. And I never even had the slightest thought of leaving. It was next to impossible. But alas, sometimes the impossible can happen.
As I was packing my clothes in boxes I thought about all the important events I've worn them in, like my first day in college, the day when I saw my crush in school with another girl, the day when we defended our thesis proposal, the day when I first went out on an official date,etc. A flood of memories came rushing to my mind and I felt a great sense of nostalgia and sadness at the thought of them. Leaving behind the life you've built for the last 23 years isnt such an easy thing to do.
I walked about our house trying to memorize every nook and cranny, trying to commit to memory where every piece of furniture went, trying to capture the scent of the house in my mind as if I could bottle it up and it would never fade.I looked at every detail of how the house was designed and of how every piece was arranged. Oh how I'm going to miss my room, my private abode and my place of protection.Oh how I'm gonna miss my windows which has a clear view of our street where I can see our neighbors walk everyday.How I'm going to miss our little fish pond and our robust kois. How I'm going to miss taking care of our orchids and plants! How I'm going to miss sitting in the swing! How I'm going to miss rushing in and out the door! The familiar squeak of the backdoor, the high ceilings and the jalousie windows that no one wanted to clean.
I'll miss a lot of things but time has come to build a new life for me elsewhere. I admit I'll be sad but I have a lot of good memories to go back to. I have a source of overflowing happy moments that I can always run to every now and then. Although I can't stop my family from moving I can decide to always keep those memories treasured. One can always look back to the past but it's best to look forward to the future.