Archive for April, 2008

MAY COMES, SUMMER GOES

April 30, 2008 at 11:59 pm · Filed under Daily Journal ·Tagged

It’s the first day of May, a new day, a new month and basically a new beginning for the second month of the second quarter of the calendar year.  Summer is almost over by the time this month comes in.  Why is it so? Well, most of the people’s attention is leaned towards the back-to-school activities, entrance exams, enrollments, shopping for school requirements, etc.  I passed by a mall yesterday and the ambiance of that mall no longer exhibited summertime because most of the best buys are school materials.  I mean the swimsuits are still there but the center piece is now schoolbags.  Does this justify that summer is bidding farewell?

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DON’T SPOIL THE IRON

April 30, 2008 at 4:27 am · Filed under The Movie Actor ·Tagged

Oh, the buzz about Iron Man is circulating around the office. One of my team mates boastfully speaks of his eagerness to watch the movie right after the shift. Yes! It’s debuting today in Manila, April 30th. So be it my dear officemate. Go to the mall and watch all you want because you’re on off the next day. Just don’t come back to the office or mailing us anything that will spoil our view of the movie. Okay? Shut your mouth out or else your throat will get ironed all over. Enjoy the movie though!

 

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THE SURVIVOR

April 30, 2008 at 3:38 am · Filed under Fabs, Fans and Fats ·Tagged

Talking about reality TV series, Survivor is the very first show to catch my critically discerning taste of good television formats.  I used to be a couch potato until I worked in a call center and the graveyard shift took away all things healthy and enjoyable including the important people in my life.  The nature of my job is time restraining I can’t even find time for myself.  Well, I have lots of time after work but I rather spend it for sleeping.  Now let’s get back to the topic.

 

The first time I watched the show was back in college.  Note that I started with the second season, the Australian Outback, where I have seen two beautiful contenders – Amber Brkich and Elizabeth Filarski.  Again, because of my ignorance, I have no idea that I’m watching the second installment of the series.  Am I really from this planet?

 

 Anyway, as the years passed by, I have seen how much the show have grown and the last time I checked, the US TV program is currently airing its sixteenth season.  Imagine that!  Wait, season 16?  I thought there were only 12 seasons and then they will call it quits thereafter? Oh my, what have I missed? Sigh, so much for working in graveyards.  I summed up the seasons that did not lurk to my senses.  Here they are:

 

 

That’s 8 seasons missed and makes me 50% addicted to Survivor.  Am I a survivor???

 

 

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THE POWER NAP

April 29, 2008 at 10:54 pm · Filed under Fabs, Fans and Fats ·Tagged

 

If you see me in my workstation sitting steadfastly with my head laid back on my chair both eyes closed breathing gently and unconsciously unaware of what’s happening around, you will probably think I’m sleeping. My office mates who catch me in my unobvious sleeping position conceive that I’m the kind of employee who passes up my job for a 20-minute sleep during working hours. No, I’m not sleeping. I’m only taking a power nap. There is a big difference between a power nap and a deep sleep.

 

 

POWER NAP DEFINED

 

A power nap, as defined by Wikipedia, is a short sleep which terminates before the occurrence of deep sleep. The short duration of a power-nap is designed to prevent nappers from sleeping so long that they enter a normal sleep cycle without being able to complete it. Entering a normal sleep cycle but failing to complete it can result in a phenomenon known as sleep inertia, where one feels groggy, disorientated, and even sleepier than before beginning the nap. In order to attain maximum post-nap performance, it is critical that a power nap be limited to the beginning of a sleep cycle.

 

 

POWER NAP TYPES

 

  • THE NANO-NAP: 10 to 20 seconds. Sleep studies haven’t yet concluded whether there are benefits to these brief intervals, like when you nod off on someone’s shoulder on the train.
  • THE MICRO-NAP: 2 to 5 minutes. Shown to be surprisingly effective at shedding sleepiness.
  • THE MINI-NAP: 5 to 20 minutes. Increases alertness, stamina, motor learning, and motor performance
  • THE ORIGINAL POWER NAP: 20 minutes. Includes the benefits of the micro and the mini, but additionally improves muscle memory and clears the brain of useless built-up information, which helps with long-term memory (remembering facts, events, and names).
  • THE LAZY MAN’S NAP: 50 to 90 minutes. Includes slow-wave plus REM sleep; good for improving perceptual processing; also when the system is flooded with human growth hormone, great for repairing bones and muscles.

 

 

POWER NAP BENEFITS

 

  • Less Stress
  • Increased alertness and productivity
  • Improved memory and learning
  • Good for the heart
  • Increased cognitive functioning
  • Get motivated to exercise
  • Boost your creativity
  • Make up for midnight tossing and turning
  • Protect yourself from sleepiness
  • Better health

 Source:  ririanproject.com

 

Well, what can I say? I’m really a fan of power nap and it really works for me. It gets me going all day even if I have not gotten 6 or 7 hours of sleep. It’s my energizer and my natural medicine. Should I say it’s my hobby too? I hope this clears things out. And for the record, I love my job.

 

So you think I’m sleeping?

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THE SHUTTLE SERVICE PART 2

April 29, 2008 at 8:59 pm · Filed under Daily Journal ·Tagged

 

Yes!  It’s the shuttle service again but I’m not yakking about how bad I felt when it left me for two consecutive days because I’m not left off this time.  I made it, I made it!  I’m able to ride my way to the office this morning through the service van.  Gosh!  It feels good – so good I comfortably fall asleep while traveling because I know I’m safe inside the van.  Zzz…

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THE SHUTTLE SERVICE

April 29, 2008 at 1:42 am · Filed under Daily Journal ·Tagged

Oh, man!  This is the second time I am left off by the shuttle service on the way to the office.  And the bad thing is that the shuttle passed by in front of me when I am about to arrive at the pick up point.  And it happened not only once – twice.  Imagine how grumpy I can get but I decide not to lose it since it is 3 o’clock in the morning.

 

I opt to ride in the free shuttle, provided to regular employees only, for safety and convenience.  Who would want to get stabbed on the loins or robbed early in the morning? Who would want to look wasted and untidy after a brisk walk to get in the office? Not me. 

 

Okay, I have learned my lesson.  If I want to take the shuttle, I have to be earlier than the departure time.  So tomorrow, I will be leaving home a couple of minutes ahead and hopefully I will make it in time, this time around.  I hope so…

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THE IPOD DREAM

April 29, 2008 at 12:53 am · Filed under Fabs, Fans and Fats ·Tagged

Music is my fetish.  I cannot live a day without listening to my favorite songs.  I collect CD’s I even have three CD players, only two are working though, so I can do sound tripping anytime of the day or night may it be in the living room or in my bedroom.  I have my head over heels to music I want it to be part of me all the time.  How do I do this? The answer is my phone – it has a radio feature.  I enjoyed listening to my phone although the songs came from local radio stations but I simply loved it that way. 

 

Until my best friend, also a music enthusiast, showed me his IPOD.  My God!  On which planet have I been I did not know IPOD exists? The gizmo is so cool I want to suck my teeth in it.  I told my best friend and I promised myself that I will get one soon – as soon as I have the money.

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THE DESKTOP SHORTCUT

April 28, 2008 at 9:05 pm · Filed under The Rocket Scientist ·Tagged

Don’t you hate it when you have to minimize all of the windows you have opened just to see your desktop screen? I do.  And it’s even more painstaking especially if you don’t have the desktop shortcut icon somewhere on your toolbar because the network administrator does not allow you to modify the settings of the computer.  Call me dumb for I have no idea what the hotkey for the desktop shortcut is.  Not because I’m new to computers, it’s just that I’m not used to keyboard shortcuts.  What an excuse, huh?  Now let me present to you, the solution to my problem.

 

 

DESKTOP SHORTCUT HOTKEY:

Windows + D

 

 

And there goes my desktop screen.

 

Special thanks to Vanessa for sharing this with me.  She gets another hyperlink from my blog and she loves it.  All smiles…

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ON MY WAY HOME

April 28, 2008 at 12:15 pm · Filed under Daily Journal ·Tagged

My shift ends at 12:30 in the afternoon. It is Monday and so on my way home I…

 

  • grabbed a friend to accompany me
  • rode in a white Nissan taxi cab to get to Cubao
  • paid the fare, note that I was the one who took care of the expense
  • alighted in Shopwise, the usual drop off point
  • walked with my friend until he reached his destination, the gym
  • walked by myself, scribing for things I can buy, did not find any
  • tried to be amazed by looking around, sadly nothing caught my attention
  • rode a jeep to get home, my last trip for the day
  • found myself in traffic, as always
  • listened to the radio using my phone, pretending it is an IPOD
  • got off from the jeep, I made sure I paid the fare
  • walked a few meters until I reached the door of my home

 

Now, I am home and that wraps up the day for me. Sigh, nothing new.

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CASH ON DELIVERY

April 28, 2008 at 3:41 am · Filed under Bloops and Bloopers ·Tagged

Three of my lady team mates and I were deciding when to take our Microsoft Certification exams.  One member was coordinating with the testing centre and the other two were talking to me about something and as usual, unrelated to our workloads.  Talk about work ethics, huh.  Anyway, so we were waiting for confirmation from the representative and lucky enough we were given respective schedules for the tests.  Two examiners will be on May 13 and the rest will be on May 14.  I picked May 14 because I do not like the number 13.  It is not about superstitions but I just do not like that number.  So everything has been settled down and we were pretty much happy about it.

 

 

Lady1:  “Are we fine about the schedule?”

 

Lady2:  “Yes, I’m fine with May 13 but I will take the morning schedule of the exam.”

 

Lady1:  “That’s fine with me. How about you guys?”

 

Lady3:  “Close the deal.  I will be in the morning and he will be in the afternoon.”

 

Me:  “That’s okay.  I will take it because I have no other choice.”

 

Lady1:  “Okay then.  The payment will be COD.”

 

Lady2 and Lady3:  “Okay.”

 

Me:  “COD?”

 

Lady2:  “Yes, cash on delivery.  Don’t you know that?”

 

Me:  “I know what COD means.”

 

Lady2:  “Okay.”

 

Me:  “So when are we going to pay for it?”

 

Lady2 and Lady3:  “Huh?”

 

Lady2:  “It’s COD, remember? Cash on delivery.”

 

Me:  “Oh okay, so when are we paying if it’s COD?”

 

Lady1, Lady2 and Lady3:  (Blunt look on their faces and then started laughing.)
 
 

 

All of a sudden, I realized I asked a stupid question.  I have lost it …

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